‘Sabres equipment manager Rip Simonick has been selected to work the exhibition. The Old First Ward native has been with the Sabres for 36 years, supplying the pads and sharpening the skates of everyone from Floyd Smith to Tim Horton to Dominik Hasek to Michael Funk. This will be Simonick’s third All-Star honor. He also worked the 1978 exhibition in Memorial Auditorium and 1989 in Edmonton.’