Gorillas bring four-time CHL All-Star to Amarillo
                                                               
Amarillo, TX 8/5/08 – When Gorillas Head Coach Tom Coolen signed with the team in May, he said he would build his team from the net out.  After Tuesday, it became apparent that he plans to make good on his promise.

Four-time CHL All-Star Jason Tessier has signed with the Amarillo Gorillas for the 2008-09 season, becoming the first defenseman under contract with the team under Coolen’s watch.  Tessier played last season with the Austin Ice Bats, finishing third on the team in scoring with 44 points.

“Tessier is a proven-quality player in the CHL, and one of the top scoring defensemen in the league,” said Coolen of his newest signee.  “He’s an All-Star caliber player, and will be a welcome addition to the Gorillas for this season.”

The St. Jerome, Quebec native was nominated to CHL All-Star Games in 2002, 2005, 2007 and 2008.  Most recently, he scored the game-winning goal for the Southern Conference in last year’s incarnation of the yearly classic.

Tessier (6’1”, 202 lbs.) has scored at least nine goals from the blueline in five of his six seasons playing in the Central Hockey League.  With Memphis in 2006-07, he was limited to two goals after spending nearly half the season on the injured reserve.  The Gorillas will be Tessier’s fifth CHL squad, after having played for Austin, Memphis, Rio Grande Valley, and the now-defunct El Paso Buzzards during his career.

“Not only does ‘Tess’ want to be here, but he is a top-two defenseman on any team in the league,” Coolen added.  “He is a player we can build around.”

Tessier is the sixth player under contract in Amarillo for the 2008-09 season.