Pittsburgh, PA - The Pittsburgh Stars AAA Hockey Program, proud members of the Tier I Hockey Federation (T1HF) and the North American Prospects Hockey League (NAT1HL), turn the calendar to December and return to the ice this upcoming weekend, Dec 13 - 16, for exciting AAA hockey action as they continue to celebrate the Star's 40th season.

Four Pittsburgh Stars teams (U18 AAA Midget Major, U16 AAA Midget Minor, U15 (only) Midget Minor, and the U14 AAA Bantam Major) will be in Blaine, MN, to participate in North American Tier I Hockey League (NAT1HL) Minnesota II Showcase. All games will be held at the National Sports Center in Blaine, MN.

The U14 AAA Bantam Major Pittsburgh Stars will open the NAT1HL Showcase with a pair of games on Friday, Dec 13. First up will be a 2:00 p.m. opening face-off against CarShield (MO) 14U AAA. Then at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, the Stars Bantam Major squad will face Omaha (NE) Mastery. On Saturday, Dec. 14, the Stars and the Philadelphia Hockey Club Bantam Major squads will square-off at 1:00 p.m. The Stars close the Minnesota showcase on Sunday, Dec 15, 9:30 a.m., against the Tri-Stars (OH) Spartans 14U AAA team.

The U15 AAA Midget Minor Pittsburgh Stars will open the NAT1HL Showcase with a pair of games on Friday, Dec 13. First up will be a 12:30 p.m. opening face-off against the Orange Co (CA) Ice Dogs 15U AAA. Then at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, the Stars Bantam Major squad will face Car Shield (MO) 15U AAA. On Saturday, Dec. 14, the Stars and the Philadelphia Hockey Club Midget Minor U15 squad will square-off at 12:00 p.m. The Stars close the Minnesota showcase on Sunday, Dec 15, 7:30 a.m., against the Tri-Stars (OH) Spartans U15 squad.

The U16 Midget Minor Pittsburgh Stars will also open the NAT1HL Showcase with a pair of games on Friday, Dec 13. First up will be a 8:30 a.m. opening face-off against face Car Shield (MO) 16U AAA. Then at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, the Stars Midget Minor squad will face the Seattle Kraken (WA) 16U AAA. On Saturday, Dec. 14, the Stars and the Madison Capitols (WI) U16 Midget Minor squad will square-off at 1:00 p.m. The Stars will then close the Minnesota showcase on Sunday, Dec 15, 9:30 a.m., against the Vegas Jr Golden Knights (NV).

The U18 AAA Midget Major Pittsburgh Stars will open the NAT1HL Showcase with a pair of games on Saturday, Dec 14. First up will be a 9:00 a.m. opening face-off against the North Jersey Avalanche (NJ) 18U AAA. Then at 8:30 p.m, the Stars Midget Major squad will face the Phoenix Jr Coyotes (AZ) 15U AAA. On Sunday, Dec. 15, the Stars and the St Louis Jr Blues (MO) U18 squad will square-off at 11:30 a.m. The Stars close the Minnesota showcase on Monday, Dec 16, 11:30 a.m., against the Dallas Stars (TX) U18 squad.

The U12 AAA Pee Wee Major Pittsburgh Stars squad will travel to Harrisburg, PA, to participate in the T1HF – Hershey Showcase. On Friday, Dec 13, the Stars and the Ohio Prospects U12 squads will face-off at 4:30 p.m. Then on Saturday, Dec 14, the Stars hit the ice twice, facing New York Arrows, 9:35 a.m., and the PAL Jr Islanders, 8:30 p.m. The Stars Pee Wee Major squad close the showcase with a 8:30 a.m. opening faceoff on Sunday, Dec 15, against the Mercer Chiefs. All games will be played at the Twin Ponds Arena in Harrisburg.

The U13 White Bantam Minor Pittsburgh Stars will be in Red Bank, NJ, for a pair of weekend Tier I Hockey Federation (T1HF) games with the Red Bank Generals this upcoming weekend. The Stars and Generals Bantam Minor squads will face-off at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday and at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday. Both games will be at the Red Bank Armory in Red Bank.

Additionally, the U13 AAA Red Bantam Minor Pittsburgh Stars squad will return to the friendly confines of Pittsburgh Ice Arena for a four-game home weekend. On Saturday, Dec 14, the Stars and the Pittsburgh Predators will hook-up for a pair of games, 12:00 and 4:30 p.m. Then on Sunday, Dec 15, the Stars welcome the Cleveland Barons to Pittsburgh for a pair of games, 12:00 and 4:30 p.m.

The 12:00 p.m. Saturday game, will serve as the Bantam Minor U13 Red AAA Stars Community Initiative Game, with Carson’s Hope being the charity honored. All proceeds from the game’s events will be donated to the charity.

Carson’s Hope is named for Carson Rudick, a young man who was diagnosed with a rare tumor, rhabdomyosarcoma, when he was just 3 1/2 years old. The non-profit was created by Carson's parents, Jim and Carlie Rudick, to help support families dealing with pediatric cancer, as well as pediatric cancer research.

Game schedules for the '24-'25 season, as well as team rosters, have all been posted to the various Pittsburgh Stars team pages on the Stars website (www.pittsburghstarshockey.com).

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