Fox on NHL skills competition: Fun for all
Posted January 28, 2012 9:54 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Ottawa – The 2012 Molson Canadian NHL All-Star Skills Competition on Saturday night was about the thousands texting and cheering around the rink, not the dozens tweeting and skating on it. Which is how it should be.
Too often discussion surrounding what’s best for the National Hockey League is from the point of view of the players and coaches, or even the general managers and owners.
“We have to start backwards and think about the fans, not the players and coaches,” argues San Jose Sharks and Team Alfredsson coach Todd McLellan.
McLellan, the father of two such young NHL fans himself, believes that the Fantasy Player Draft and Skills Competition are perfect fodder for fan engagement. And despite some hockey folks pointing out the pointlessness of All-Star Weekend, judging by the enthusiasm with which the jam-packed Scotiabank Place cheers its Senators and jeers the trio of Toronto Maple Leafs, the fans are into it.
“The fans want to see the nice goals and the fast guys,” Nashville Predators defenceman Ryan Suter says. “I’m just happy to be a part of this.”
The first event of the evening was the Bridgestone Fastest Skater, a series of one-on-one footraces. Team Alfredsson outpaced Team Chara 5-1, with New York Rangers rookie Carl Hagelin being crowned the quickest skater of all. The Quick-est goalie, as always, went to the Los Angeles Kings’ Jonathan Quick, who flew past Detroit Red Wings’ Jimmy Howard in the comically slow goalie race.
The Allstate Insurance Breakaway Challenge opened up the opportunity for the shootout artists to get creative and goaltenders Brian Elliott and Carey Price to play dupes.
Marian Hossa draped a red cape on his teammate Patrick Kane, the loudspeakers blared Eminem’s “Superman,” and Kane dove towards the goal, hand-passed the puck to his stick and beat Elliott, earning the greatest cheers from the crowd. On his next attempt, cape still a-flow, Kane blasted an exploding puck.
“It’s a tough event for us, too, ’cause you don’t want to look stupid,” Kane said after the fans crowned him the winner of the contest. “They gave us some time, so we came up with a few ideas.”
In terms of slam-dunk-contest-style trickery, Kane may have been outdone only by Corey Perry, who stopped mid-approach, threw aside his stick and gloves, reached into his pants to reveal a mini stick, and deked out Elliott.
It was the New York Islanders’ John Tavares, however, who showed the softest hands, scoring on both of his attempts. His only gimmick? Silky dangles.
In a nifty play to the crowd, the Sharks’ Logan Couture donned his old Ottawa 67’s jersey and beat Price, who had hammed it up earlier by Tebowing and making a save with his back to the shooter.
Late addition Jamie Benn of the Dallas Stars, obviously feeling sharp after his recent appendectomy, dominated the Canadian Tire Accuracy Shooting contest, busting all four targets in 10.2 seconds. Benn’s win for Team Chara knotted the Competition at 6-6 at the halfway point, but the highlight may have been watching Steven Stamkos, the league’s leading goal scorer with 32 at the break, get frustrated by his uncharacteristic inaccuracy.
After a flood and a hot dog, the all-stars returned for the G Series Skills Challenge Relay, which tests the teams in variety of skills: passing, puck control, stick handling, shot accuracy, and one-timers. Team Alfredsson won the event, taking a 9-6 lead in total points. Perhaps the highlight of the relay was seeing Nashville Predators rookie Craig Smith’s ridiculous puck control.
Easily the most anticipated event of the six was the BlackBerry Hardest Shot contest, everyone in the rink clamoring for another Shea Weber-Zdeno Chara showdown. The two were strategically slotted in their respective teams’ anchor positions.
With the Senators’ Jason Spezza (100.3) and Daniel Alfredsson (101.3) winning their respective heats, the stage was set.
But even Shea Webber’s blinding 106 mph blast was no match for Chara’s performance (106.2, 108.8, 106.9, 107). Last year’s record was 105.9 mph, and 6-foot-9 Big Z put his head down and broke his own 2011 record with all four of his shots, jacking the bar to 108.8. The Sens fans gave Chara a standing ovation.
“He’s all business. It’s not a funny thing with him. He’s a pro,” Team Chara coach John Tortorella says. “I think that’s the highest compliment you can give him: he’s turned himself into a pro both on the ice and, sometimes more importantly, off the ice.”
The score was 11-9 in favour of Team Alfredsson heading into the final skills event, the Tim Hortons Elimination Shootout. The pressure was placed on the goaltenders.
Team Alfredsson’s Jonathan Quick made the save of the night on Toronto’s Joffrey Lupul. While Alfie’s shooters had their way with the trio of Price, Tim Thomas and Jimmy Howard. Stamkos redeemed himself in the shootout, scoring a trio of pretty goals for Alfredsson. The Lightning star was the last man standing in the Shootout.
“There’s less pressure in events like this,” Stamkos said. “You just gotta have fun with it.”
That Team Alfredsson-a squad composed of four Senators, roughly 76 Swedes, and zero Leafs-claimed the Skills Competition with a final score of 19-12 was a fitting end to an entertaining night. The fans got what they wanted.
