All the bus rides, all the broken bones, all the long penalty-kill shifts merely mean that Chad Starling made the ECHL All-Decade Team the hard way.

No defenseman has played more regular-season games in the league from 2000-01 to 2009-10 than the 30-year-old Starling. Of his 503 games played, 153 have come in a Reign uniform, making him the only player among the 13 named to the All-Decade Team to play for Ontario.

Starling, who has also played for the Cincinnati Cyclones, Utah Grizzlies and Peoria Rivermen since 2001, said – unprompted – that “the best place to play by far is Ontario.”

“Coming to California, this was definitely a highlight. Winning the Kelly Cup (with Cincinnati in 2008) is a highlight.”

More from Starling in tomorrow’s editions of the Sun and Daily Bulletin. Here’s the rest of the team, which was announced today:

Forwards:
Scott Bertoli (Trenton, 2000-07)
Luke Curtin (Atlantic City, 2001-05 and Fresno, 2005-08)
Barret Ehgoetz (Utah, 2005-06 and Cincinnati, 2006-present)
Marty Flichel (Idaho, 2004-present)
Wes Goldie (Pee Dee, 2000-04; Victoria, 2006-10 and Alaska, 2010-present)
Randy Rowe (Peoria, 2001-05; Johnstown. 2005-09; Charlotte, 2009-10 and Toledo, 2010-present)

Defensemen:
Darrell Hay (Florida, 2000-01; Columbia, 2001-03 and Idaho, 2003-05 and 2006-09)
Peter Metcalf (Atlantic City, 2002-03; Trenton, 2003-04; Idaho, 2004-05; Alaska, 2005-08 and Florida, 2008-10)
Matt Shasby (Columbus, 2003-04; Long Beach, 2004-05 and Alaska, 2005-09)
Chad Starling (Peoria, 2001-05; Utah, 2005-06; Cincinnati, 2006-08 and Ontario, 2008-present)

Goaltenders:
Marc Magliarditi (Florida, 2000-01; Louisiana, 2001-02; Richmond, 2002-03 and Las Vegas, 2003-07)
Scott Stirling (Trenton, 2000-01 and 2005-06; Peoria, 2001-02; Atlantic City, 2001-04 and Fresno, 2006-07).

Coach:
Davis Payne (Pee Dee, 2000-03 and Alaska, 2003-07).

Here’s a brief bio on each player and the coach, as provided by the ECHL:

Scott Bertoli scored 461 points (161g-300a) in 442 games during the decade. He ranked second in the league during the decade in points and was third in assists. He is tied for 14th in ECHL history with 344 assists and is 19th with 526 points in 507 games, the most in Trenton history. He was a member of Trenton’s 2005 Kelly Cup championship team, finishing tied for the league lead in playoff scoring that season with 24 points (6g-18a) in 20 games. Bertoli participated in the 2001 and 2006 ECHL All-Star Games scoring one goal and adding two assists, and he was named to the All-ECHL Second Team in 2006-07. He is Trenton’s all-time leader in games played, goals, assists and points and is the only player in team history to have his number retired.

Luke Curtin was second in the decade in assists (312) and fourth in points (445). He is fifth in ECHL history with 384 assists and is 11th with 577 points. He finished tied for second in scoring during the 2003 Kelly Cup Playoffs with 20 points (2g-18a) in 19 games as he helped Atlantic City to the Kelly Cup title. Curtin was named All-ECHL Second Team in 2003-04 and All-ECHL First Team in 2005-06. He was named Most Valuable Player of the 2006 ECHL All-Star Game after scoring two goals.

Barret Ehgoetz had 263 points (95g-168a) in 335 games with Utah and Cincinnati during the decade. He was named as the ECHL Sportsmanship Award winner in a vote of the league’s coaches for the 2009-10 season and captured two Kelly Cup championships with Cincinnati in 2008 and 2010. Ehgoetz scored 47 points (18g-29a) in 74 Kelly Cup Playoff games during the decade and also played in the 2009 ECHL All-Star Game, tallying two assists.

Marty Flichel scored 343 points (122g-221a) in 351 games during the decade and was named All-ECHL First Team in 2006-07 when he finished fourth in the league in scoring with 87 points (39g-48a). Flichel helped lead Idaho to the 2007 Kelly Cup championship scoring 22 points (9g-13a) in 22 Kelly Cup Playoff games. He scored 44 points (17g-27a) in 52 Kelly Cup Playoff games during the decade.

Wes Goldie led all ECHL players in the decade with 286 goals and was third with 457 points. He has scored 40 or more goals for each of the last four seasons, tied for the most consecutive seasons with at least 40 goals in ECHL history, while his four 40-goal seasons are tied for the third most in the league history. Goldie’s 292 goals are eighth in ECHL history and he is 12th in games played with 564. He was named All-ECHL Second Team in 2008-09.

Randy Rowe was sixth in the decade with 401 points (183g-218a) in 435 games with Peoria, Johnstown and Charlotte. He was the Most Valuable Player of the 2004 ECHL All-Star Game with two goals and an assist and led Johnstown in assists (44) points (68) and plus-minus (+21) during the 2007-08 season. Rowe ranks sixth in Chiefs’ team history with 79 goals.

Darrell Hay scored 224 points (50g-174a) in 387 games during the decade with Florida, Columbia and Idaho. He was a part of Idaho’s Kelly Cup championship teams in 2004 and 2007 and was named All-ECHL First Team in 2007-08. Hay was named to the starting line-up for the 2007 ECHL All-Star Game and was selected to serve as an alternate captain at the 2008 ECHL All-Star Game.

Peter Metcalf led all ECHL defensemen during the decade with 245 assists and 297 points and was tied for fifth with 52 goals. Metcalf was named ECHL Defenseman of the Year in 2007-08 and was the Plus Performer of the Year in 2005-06. He was named All-ECHL First Team in 2006-07 and 2007-08 and All-ECHL Second Team in 2005-06 and 2008-09. Metcalf won two Kelly Cup championships during the decade, winning with Atlantic City in 2003 and Alaska in 2006.

Matt Shasby was fifth among defensemen during the decade with 231 points (45g-186a) and 363 games played. He was named to the All-ECHL Second Team and was the Plus Performer of the Year in 2006-07. He tallied two assists in his lone ECHL All-Star Game appearance in 2009. Shasby scored 32 points (10g-22a) in 69 Kelly Cup Playoff games during the decade and was a member of Alaska’s 2006 Kelly Cup championship team.

Chad Starling led all ECHL defensemen in the decade with 503 games played over nine seasons with Peoria, Utah, Cincinnati and Ontario. He was the 2008 Plus Performer of the Year when he finished +48 which is tied for the fifth-highest plus-minus rating in a single season in ECHL history. Starling helped lead Cincinnati to the 2008 Kelly Cup championship and appeared in 58 Kelly Cup Playoff games during the decade.

Marc Magliarditi was 150-77-22 in 258 appearances during the decade with Florida, Louisiana, Richmond and Las Vegas. He was named All-ECHL Second Team in 2005-06 when he went a career-best 34-11-5 in 51 games with Las Vegas. Magliarditi is first in ECHL history with 25 shutouts, second with 217 wins and tied for 12th with a 2.55 goals-against average.

Scott Stirling went 129-56-19 in 215 games during the decade with Trenton, Peoria, Atlantic City and Fresno. He won both the Rookie of the Year and Goaltender of the Year Awards in 2000-01 and added a second Goaltender of the Year in 2003-04 when he was also named the league’s Most Valuable Player. Stirling was part of Atlantic City’s 2003 Kelly Cup championship team, going 8-4 with a 2.07 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage in 12 appearances during the Kelly Cup Playoffs. He is ninth in ECHL history with a 2.42 goals-against average and 10th with 129 wins.

Davis Payne was 289-142-45 as head coach with Pee Dee and Alaska from 2000 through 2007. His teams qualified for the Kelly Cup Playoffs in all seven seasons as a coach, advancing to at least the second round on all seven occasions. Payne led Alaska to the 2006 Kelly Cup championship. He is second in ECHL history in both playoff games coached (85) and playoff games won (50). Payne was an assistant coach with Peoria of the American Hockey League in 2007-08 before taking over as head coach for the 2008-09 season. He was named interim head coach of the National Hockey League’s St. Louis on Jan. 2, 2010, and is currently in his first full season as the Blues’ coach.

Nominations were accepted through ECHL.com during the month of September and voting was conducted throughout October. In order to be eligible for the All-Decade Team, players or coaches must have made a significant impact on the ECHL from 2000 through 2010. An individual must have played or coached in parts of at least four seasons from the 2000-01 season through the 2009-10 season to be eligible for the All-Decade Team. Only those accomplishments, statistics, awards, honors and achievements earned during ECHL play are taken into account for the All-Decade Team.