OTTAWA, January 21, 2005 -- While NHL arenas sit empty and Canadians pine for their favourite sport, hockey games are still being played in arenas across the country. In many Canadian towns, junior hockey teams rule the ice. As the stars of tomorrow take centre stage, Canada Post will again pay tribute to the players of yesteryear with a sixth series of stamps honouring NHL All- Stars. The stamps will be available for sale in post offices across the country on January 29, 2005. Featured on the stamps will be goaltender Grant Fuhr, forwards Henri Richard, John Bucyk, and Bryan Trottier and defensemen Allan Stanley and Pierre Pilote. The stamps will be unveiled at the AHL Edmonton Road Runners home game (against the Grand Rapids Griffins) on Thursday, January 27th - with all six players being honoured in attendance. The stamps will be available in both traditional gummed sheets of six as well as self-adhesive sheetlets of six, with 3.3 million sheets in each format printed. Collectors and hockey fans will also want to check out the special related product that includes signed lithographs, collector cards, coasters and a commemorative boxed set of stamps with a special puck. The stamps were designed by Stéphane Huot of Montréal. As with the previous sets, Huot is assisted by Pierre Rousseau, a computer artist who retouched all of the portraits and added colour to some which were black and white. Consistent with the look of previous issues, this sheet consists of six stamps illustrated by François Escalmel plus six portraits of the "stars", retouched by Rousseau. The postage stamps on the left and right sides of the sheet feature action shots of the players in puck-shaped frames. The interior of the sheet has formal head-and-shoulder portraits of the players - superimposed upon star-shaped backgrounds. Additional information about the players featured on this year's stamps and other Canadian stamps, can be found in the Newsroom section of Canada Post's website, and a downloadable high-resolution photo of the All-Stars stamps are in the Newsroom's Photo Centre. Stamps and Official First Day covers will be available at participating post offices, can be ordered online by following the links at Canada Post's website www.canadapost.ca, or by mail order from the National Philatelic Centre. From Canada and the USA call toll-free: 1-800-565-4362 and from other countries call: (902) 863-6550. - 30 - Media requiring further information should contact: Cindy Daoust Ottawa, Ontario Tel.: (613) 734-4258
