Getty Lightning star Steven Stakmos is hoping to do the hometown crowd proud at this year's NHL All-Star game.
The biggest names in hockey are set to take the ice in this year’s annual All-Star weekend. So what happens when? And how can you watch? And who is even playing this year? Don’t worry, all the info you could possibly want is right here.
Let’s start with the basics.
The 2018 NHL All-Star weekend will be held in Tampa Bay at the Amalie Arena and the hometown team is well represented on this year’s roster. Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevskiy, and Victor Hedman all earned nods earlier this month, while coach Jon Cooper will also be on hand, coaching the Atlantic Division team in Sunday’s 3-on-3 tournament.
Our four will join Coop behind the bench in representing the Atlantic Division at #NHLAllStar. ⭐️
Full rosters:
All in all the league-leading Lightning boast the most All-Stars this season, but the weekend is not lacking for talent. Let’s break it down, shall we?
Atlantic Division
Head coach: Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay
Captain: Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay
Forwards
Aleksander Barkov, Florida
Jack Eichel, Buffalo
Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay
Brad Marchand, Boston
Auston Matthews, Toronto
Defense
Mike Green, Detroit
Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay ** injured, replaced by Brayden Point
Erik Karlsson, Ottawa
Goalies
Carey Price, Montreal
Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay
Metropolitan Division
Head coach: Barry Trotz, Washington
Captain: Alex Ovechkin, Washington
Forwards
Josh Bailey, New York Islanders
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh
Claude Girou, Philadelphia
Taylor Hall, New Jersey ** injured, replaced by Brian Boyle
John Tavares, New York Islanders
Defense
Noah Hanifin, Carolina
Seth Johns, Columbus
Kris Letang, Pittsburgh
Goalies
Braden Holtby, Washington
Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers
Central Division
Head coach: Peter Laviolette, Nashville
Captain: P.K. Subban, Nashville
Forwards
Patrick Kane, Chicago
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado
Brayden Schenn, St. Louis
Tyler Seguin, Dallas
Eric Staal, Minnesota
Blake Wheeler, Winnipeg
Defense
John Klingberg, Dallas
Alex Pietrangelo, St. Louis
Goalies
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg
Pekka Rinne, Nashville
Pacific Division
Head coach: Gerard Gallant, Las Vegas
Captain: Connor McDavid, Edmonton
Forwards
Brock Boeser, Vancouver
Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary
Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles
James Neal, Las Vegas
Rickard Rakell, Anaheim
Defense
Brent Burns, San Jose
Drew Doughty, Los Angeles
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Arizona
Goalies
Marc-Andre Fleury, Las Vegas
Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles ** injured, replaced by Mike Smith, Calgary
The weekend schedule gets underway at 7 p.m. EST on Saturday night with the ever-entertaining skills competition. The event will be broadcast on NBCSN in the United States as well as Sportsnet and TVA Sports in Canada. The competition includes six events: hardest shot, fastest skater, accuracy shooting, puck control relay, passing challenge and save streak.
In the past, the skills competition was broken down by division, but this year things are a little different. It’s all about the individual player this time around and there’s a bit more incentive to win – the top player in each event will receive $25,000. Not bad for a weekend in Florida.
The game itself, once again, will be a 3-on-3 tournament with two divisions playing 20-minute semifinals and the winners squaring off in another game. The two teams will play for a $1 million prize in the final and any tie games will be decided by a shootout.
The NHL All-Star game will be broadcast on NBC in the United States plus CBC, Sportsnet and TVA Sports in Canada. Puck drop is slated for 3:30 p.m. EST.
So, grab a sit, make sure you’ve got the remote in reach and get ready to cheer on your favorite All-Stars because we’re at the halfway point of the season and things are only going to get more exciting from here on out.