TAMPA, Fla. _ Nothing about the National Hockey League All-Star Game qualifies for superlatives such as, say, "Olympian," but it still is fun. It has a quirky format and funky uniforms. And when it comes right down to it, players do bear down and try to win.
This is what happened at the finish Sunday of what is actually a mini-tournament involving four teams in three 20-minute games of 3-on-3 skating. The Pacific Division defeated the Atlantic, 5-2, in an event that became increasingly serious down the stretch.
"The first one, you kind of go out and play," goalie Marc-Andre Fleury of the Vegas Golden Knights and the Pacific squad said of the opening round against the Central. "When you're in the final you say, 'Hey, let's go out and win this thing.' You see everyone plays a little more defense.
"Guys have more room. There's only three of them out there so it seems like they all work a little harder. It feels more like a game. It's good, you see more of the skills," he said.
Among the most skillful was Brock Boeser of the Vancouver Canucks, who scored two goals and became the first rookie named the NHL All-Star Most Valuable Player since Mario Lemieux did it in 1985. Boeser, a Minnesotan and potential rival to the New York Islanders' Mathew Barzal for the Calder Trophy, had won the Most Accurate Shot contest Saturday night. Not bad for someone who said that his goal coming into the season was "just to make the team."
"Good for him," Fleury said. "Seems like a great kid and obviously he's got a great shot."
The most talked-about shot was the one with which Nikita Kucherov of the hometown Tampa Bay Lightning scored in the first round as the Atlantic knocked out the Metropolitan Division (featuring Rangers and Islanders stars), 7-4. Kucherov broke in alone on Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby, carrying the puck. He pretended to switch from his forehand to his backhand but instead just let the puck slide ahead of him. It went through Holtby's pads.
"If you're going to do that, I tip my cap," Holtby said. With a grin, he added, "You go in there with an open mind and hope you guess right. No one came here to watch saves anyway."
As is the custom for hockey all-star contests, there were no penalties. There was no checking, no physical play, no shot blocking. But in adopting the 3-on-3 format, the league did introduce competitiveness that was lacking when the all-stars featured traditional 5-on-5 skating. The slow-moving game was comparable to baseball's batting practice.
The subtext this year, though, was the knowledge that there would not have been an All-Star Game had the league allowed its players to take part in the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. To the players' disappointment, the league's owners decided against that, citing concerns about travel, potential injuries and disruption of the regular season.
"I can't lie to you, we wish we could be there. I'd love to have that opportunity again," said John Tavares, who missed the end of the Islanders' 2014 season after being injured during the Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.
Central Division coach Peter Laviolette of the Nashville Predators, captain of the U.S. hockey team in 1994 (the last before NHL players were included), said: "There are different ways to look at that. The Olympics are a pretty special event. The best players in the country representing their country." But he added that not sending NHL players "probably does provide more stability, and the players will be fresher when it comes to the playoffs."
In any case, the league and the players made the best of it this weekend _ regardless of the odd touches such as the unusual Pacific uniforms of white tops, white pants, white gloves and black-and-bright-orange trim. "I like them," Rickard Rakell of the Ducks said in the winning locker room. "They're special and I think I will remember wearing this uniform forever."
.jpg?w=600)
