The NHL All-Star weekend generated an estimated $11.4 million in direct spending in Raleigh and Wake County, according to figures released by the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau this morning.

The figure represents new money coming into the local economy, not money spent by locals during the Jan. 28-Jan 30 festivities.

The bureau also says the weekend produced $49 million in "media value" for the area.

That figure was calculated by Meltwater News, a monitoring and analytics firm based in San Francisco.

Meltwater used readership data from Nielsen to come up with the number.

The All-Star weekend brought an estimated 18,900 visitors from outside of the Triangle to the area and generated 10,551 hotel room nights.
 

The NHL announced today the details of the Honda NHL SuperSkills competition to be held Jan. 29 at the RBC Center during the 2011 NHL All-Star Weekend.

The 42 All-Stars and 12 selected rookies will participate in six events:

-- Fastest skater. There will be six preliminary races, with two players skating one lap of the ice. The players with the fastest times from each team meet in one final match race.

The rosters have been announced for July's East-West All-Star Football Game in Greensboro.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman toured the Triangle on Friday, visiting hotels and Raleigh's new Convention Center as he prepares to live up to his 2001 promise to bring an All-Star Game to the RBC Center.

Bettman wouldn't offer any hint of a potential date, but all indications are that the league has the Triangle penciled in for 2013.

"When we made the commitment, these were the things I was told were going to be in place," Bettman said. "We owe an All-Star Game, and I can't as I sit here today say when it will be, but we will get the Triangle into the rotation."