Derek Landmesser, head coach of the Mississippi RiverKings, welcomes students and teachers to a field trip to watch a hockey game. He encourages students to cheer loudly and thanks teachers for their work in bringing students. Landmesser hopes everyone enjoys the experience of watching a professional hockey game.

1. WELCOME!
Hello Everyone!
I’m Derek Landmesser, Head Coach of the Mississippi RiverKings, and I want to welcome you to
the Face Off Field Trip! I would like to thank everyone very much for coming out. We hope you
enjoy this unique experience!
We plan on talking a lot about hockey, but we also plan on covering some of the same material
you are learning in the classroom!
Students, this is the moment you’ve been waiting for a while now. As a father of three girls, I
know how loud kids can be. I also know you aren’t allowed to be loud in school, and the same
probably applies for most of the fi eld trips you go on as well. This is different! We encourage
you to be as loud as physically possible when cheering our guys on to victory!
Teachers and chaperones, we appreciate the work that you do for your students and are
grateful to have individuals such as yourself in our community. I believe it takes a special
person to be a teacher, and the entire RiverKings organization would like to thank you for
your hard work and dedication. I would also like to thank you for making it possible for these
children to experience this hockey game. Most young people in this area have never seen a
professional hockey game or watched a live professional sporting event of any kind. Therefore,
we plan on making this one the most enjoyable experience possible for both you and your
students!
I hope you enjoy your game, and we hope to see you back again soon! Go RiverKings!
Derek Landmesser
Head Coach, Mississippi RiverKings
Face Off Field Trip is one of the Mississippi
RiverKings’ signature events! We want to
know your thoughts about this year’s event.
Letters regarding the Mississippi
RiverKings Face Off Field Trip should be
addressed to:
Community Development Department
Mississippi RiverKings
4560 Venture Drive, Southaven, MS 38671
caitlyn@riverkings.com
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2. 2014-2015
Team Roster
Dylan
Quaile
6’2” 198 lbs. Defense
4
Favorite Movie as a Kid:
“Mighty Ducks”
10Devin
Mantha
6’1” 203 lbs. Forward
Favorite Movie: “Forrest Gump”
Bryon
Paulazzo
6’1” 198 lbs. Forward
Career Goal as a Kid:
Become a Navy Seal
16
Mike
Grace
6’1” 170 lbs. Defense
Favorite Vacation Spot: Niagara Falls
17
Paul
Ciarelli
6’1” 203 lbs. Forward
18
Favorite Snack Food:
Cheetos (the crunchy kind)
Justin
Gvora
6’2” 194 lbs. Forward
Favorite Subject in School: Math
19
Linden
Bahm
5’11” 195 lbs. Forward
Favorite Holiday: Halloween
2114Luke
Warner
5’11” 200 lbs. Forward
Favorite Book: “Lone Survivor”
Favorite Thing I Own: My dog
“Ferris”
Adam
Courchaine
6’2” 200 lbs. Goaltender
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3Reid
Campbell
5’10” 185 lbs. Defense
Favorite Book: “The Giver”
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3. SPHL Teams
Team MRK PEO FAY HUN KNX LOU PEN COL MAC
Mississippi
RiverKings 463 742 207 403 425 430 367 454
Peoria
Rivermen 463 856 555 567 886 885 793 774
Fayetteville
FireAntz 742 856 561 373 957 697 480 352
Huntsville
Havoc 207 555 561 212 558 354 243 264
Knoxville
Ice Bears 403 567 373 212 718 507 307 297
Louisiana
IceGators 425 886 957 558 718 318 513 605
Pensacola
Ice Flyers 430 885 697 354 507 318 252 336
Columbus
Cottonmouths 367 793 480 243 307 513 252 102
Macon
Mayhem 454 774 352 264 297 605 336 102
Use the chart below to answer the questions. Distances are miles from Southhaven.
1. Which team is closest to the RiverKings?
2. Which team is farthest from the RiverKings?
3. How many miles round-trip is it for the RiverKings
to travel to Pensacola to play the Ice Flyers?
4. If the RiverKings played Knoxville and Columbus
in one road trip, what would the team’s total
mileage be?
5. How many miles is it round-trip for the RiverKings
to travel to Fayetteville, NC to play the FireAntz?
6. If the RiverKings travel to Peoria to play a game, then travel from there to
Huntsville, then make a final stop in Louisiana before heading home, how many
miles will they have traveled in total?
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4. All About Landmesser
Read the following and answer the questions below. Underline where you find
your answers.
This season marks Derek Landmesser’s 15th season with the Mississippi RiverKings organization, his fifth as the
team’s Head Caoch. Landmesser started his professional career in 1996 as a defenseman with his hometown team,
the Thunder Bay Thunder Cats in the Colonial Hockey League. He went on to play 15 seasons in professional
hockey, 10 of them with the RiverKings.
For the RiverKings, Derek registered 101 goals, 462 assists, and 953 penalty minutes. Landmesser holds many
team records, including: season points by a defenseman (81, 2005-06), season plus-minus (+59, 2000-01), career
regular-season games played (624), career assists (462), career penalty minutes (953), and career points by a
defenseman (563).
He was named the CHL’s Most Outstanding Defenseman for the 2000-01 CHL season and was named to the All-
CHL team three times. In addition, he was a key player on the CHL Championship team in 2002-03. In 2009-10,
Landmesser led team defensemen in goals scored (11), assists (40), and points (51). He also led the team in plus-
minus (+10),power play assists (27),and game-winning goals (4).His 51 points ranked him second in the CHL and
his 40 assists put him in a first-place tie among league blue liners.
Another milestone Landmesser reached during the 2009-10 season included reaching 400 career CHL assists,
becoming the 10th CHL player to reach that achievement. Derek was also the RiverKings’ representative in the
CHL All-Star Game that year, his seventh All-Star appearance. During the 2009-10 season, he was also named as a
starting defenseman to the CHL All-Decade team.
Following Landmesser’s retirement in 2011, the long time captain accepted the offer to become the 13th Head
Coach for the RiverKings. In each of his first four seasons as head coach, he led the team to the playoffs. In 2015,
Landmesser coached the RiverKings to their first finals appearance since he won the CHL championship as a
player in 2003. Landmesser enters the season with 113 wins, 15 wins shy of Doug Shedden’s franchise-best 128
wins.With a record of 113-94-17,Landmesser aims to bring a championship back to the Memphis area and cement
his legacy as one of the city’s all-time sports greats!
1. When did Landmesser begin his professional hockey career?
2. How many assists did Derek collect during his playing
career with the Mississippi RiverKings?
3. List two of the accomplishments Landmesser achieved
during the 2009-10 season.
4. How many All-Star games did Derek appear in?
5. Which of Landmesser’s records was the highest, numerically
speaking: games played, assists, or penalty minutes?
6. How many seasons has Landmesser been the head coach of
the Mississippi RiverKings?
7. How many wins did Landmesser have as a coach before the
2015 season started?
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5. Hernando de Soto
Hernando de Soto was a Spanish explorer and conquistador
who led the first European expedition in to modern-day
United State. De Soto was the first documented European to
have crossed the Mississippi River.
Hernando de Soto was born on October 21, 1496 in Jerez de
los Caballeros, Spain.
He was born to parents who lived in Extremadura, an area
of great hardship and poverty. Growing up he achieved
military fame exploring new lands.
In May of 1539, de Soto, 620 men, and 220 horses land at
Charlotte Harbor, Florida.The expedition then traveled
north through the peninsula of Florida where they endured
native ambushes along the way. By 1540, de Soto had
reached Georgia and South Carolina, in pursuit of gold mines rumored to exist in the
region. No gold was found in these regions so de Soto and his men traveled to North
Carolina then Tennessee to continue their search for gold.
After the winter, de Soto’s expedition traveled southwest. On May 8, 1541, Hernando de
Soto discovered the Mississippi River, although de Soto was not exactly thrilled with the
finding. It took them over a month for them to cross the river. Once across the river, the
expedition continued into Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. On May 21, 1542, Hernando de
Soto himself died of a fever.
1. When and where was Hernando de Soto born?
2. How many men did de Soto bring with him on his expedition?
3. What was de Soto searching for in his exploration through America?
4. In total, how many states did de Soto travel to?
5. How old was Hernando de Soto when he died?
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