Iowa Chops to offer contract to Brett Favre

July 24, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL) - Iowa Chops News Release





DES MOINES, IA - (July 24, 2008) - Could sports fans see Brett Favre in an Iowa Chops jersey? If Chops President Steve Nitzel has his way, Favre may be coming out of retirement to sign a playing contract with of all teams... the Iowa Chops. "Brett is one of the greatest American athletes of the past 50 years and deserves a place to play, so we are extending an offer to him to become the newest member of the Iowa Chops Hockey team of the American Hockey League," said Nitzel.

Favre and the Iowa Chops do have something in common. They both have received a large amount of publicity the past couple weeks, but for completely different reasons. Favre wants to come out of retirement and play football, but Nitzel believes hockey may be the best sport for him this time around. "We can offer him plenty of bone-crushing hits, read-and-react plays, and thousands of fans cheering for him, so what's not to like about that?" said Nitzel. "All we have to do is sharpen his skating skills and after that his athletic instincts will take over and he'll be one heck of a hockey player."

Nitzel said the Iowa Chops have contacted and will be sending a contract to Brett Favre's agent, James Bus' Cook Jr., in hopes that the quarterback will consider signing with the Iowa Chops. "We live in a beautiful, Midwestern city here in Des Moines and play in a state-of-the-art major league venue at Wells Fargo Arena, so that meets Brett's criteria of places to play," said Nitzel. "We wanted to be the first team to offer him something new and challenging, and I believe he will enjoy the thrill of raising the Calder Cup just as much as he did the Vince Lombardi Trophy back in 1997."

The Iowa Chops announced their new team name over two weeks ago and have still been receiving a wide amount of publicity regarding the announcement. Fans, media and the hockey community still are a buzz about the new name, and the team has struggled to keep up with demands for the new Iowa Chops merchandise. Prior to the team name announcement, Nitzel went against the trend and slashed ticket prices by an average of 38% across the board, which included the best seats in the arena on the glass being marked down 50% from their price last season.

The Iowa Chops home opening game is scheduled for Friday, October 10, 2008. To purchase tickets for this season or for more information, call 515-564-8700, or visit their web site at www.iowachops.com.

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