NHL Short Notes

NHL’S BEST ARRIVE IN ST. LOUIS FOR ALL-STAR FESTIVITIES

Forty-five All-Stars descended on St. Louis – home of the 2019 Stanley Cup champion Blues – for 2020 NHL All-Star Media Day presented by adidas. The Blues are the first team in more than 30 years to host the NHL All-Star Game as defending Stanley Cup champion – the last team to do so was the Oilers (Stanley Cup in 1988; All-Star host in 1989).

* Earlier on Thursday as a legacy of the 2020 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend, the NHL and Blues, along with equipment partner Bauer Hockey, announced they have made a long-term investment in girls’ and women’s hockey in the St. Louis area.

* American All-Stars Kacey Bellamy, Hilary Knight, Annie Pankowski and Kendall Coyne Schofield and Canadian All-Stars Rebecca Johnston and Marie-Philip Poulin were on hand along with more than 100 girls’ hockey players from the St. Louis area to announce the investment, which will cover equipment, ice time, coaching, and special events for girls and women of all ages. It also covers year-round programming, summer skills camps, female official development programs, female coaching clinics, and a new 3 vs. 3 Skills Development League.

SHOOTING STARS, ELITE WOMEN’S 3-ON-3 GAME NEW TO ALL-STAR SKILLS

The 2020 NHL All-Star Skills presented by New Amsterdam Vodka highlights Friday’s schedule with six events, including the debut of Gatorade Shooting Stars and Elite Women’s 3-on-3 presented by adidas. Click here to view the full list of participants for each event.

* This marks the 30th anniversary of the first skills event to take place in conjunction with NHL All-Star Weekend – the first-ever “Super Skills” competition was part of the 1990 NHL All-Star festivities in Pittsburgh and saw Al Iafratewin the first of his three Hardest Shot titles and Mike Gartner victorious in a very different looking Fastest Skater competition.

* Three events have been part of every skills competition since the inaugural event in 1990: Hardest Shot, Accuracy Shooting and Fastest Skater.

* The first-ever Gatorade NHL Shooting Stars will see 10 players – eight NHL All-Stars including Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane and Bruins forward David Pastrnak, one American Elite Women’s All-Star team member and one Canadian Elite Women’s All-Star team member – take part in the event.

* Players will be positioned on an elevated platform behind the goal, approximately 30 feet above the ice surface, where they will shoot pucks at a variety of targets located on the ice, with each target possessing different point values. One at a time, each player will attempt seven shots and earn points for each target hit.

* Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk and Senators forward Brady Tkachuk, who will both take part in Gatorade NHL Shooting Stars, will be the first brothers to compete in the same All-Star Game since Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin both represented Vancouver in 2012. While it will be the first All-Star Game appearance for both as players, they are very familiar with All-Star festivities thanks to their father, five-time All-Star and former Blues forward Keith Tkachuk.

* Two teams – American All-Stars and Canadian All-Stars – each comprised of nine skaters and one goalie, will go head to-head in the Elite Women’s 3-on-3 presented by adidas. The 3-on-3 game will consist of two 10-minute periods, with a running clock. Teams will switch ends after the first period. All penalties will be “served” with a penalty shot being awarded to the player specifically fouled.

* The two rosters have won a combined 39 Olympic and 108 World Championship medals. Hockey Hall of Famers Cammi Granato (American All-Stars) and Jayna Hefford (Canadian All-Stars) will be behind the benches.

* Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid, already the first three-time winner of the Fastest Skater competition, will look to take the title for a fourth straight year.

* The winner of the Hardest Shot competition at NHL All-Star Weekend has eclipsed the 100 mph barrier in 14 of the past 15 events. Atlantic Division All-Star Shea Weber of the Canadiens returns as a three-time winner of the event (108.5 mph in 2015, 108.1 mph in 2016 and 102.8 mph in 2017) while Metropolitan Division defenseman John Carlson of the Capitals, who took the crown in 2019 (102.8 mph), looks for back-to-back wins.

ICYMI: Jon Hamm, Jenna Fischer, Brett Hull and Wayne Gretzky were named All-Star Honorary Captains.

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ALL-STAR QUICK CLICKS
* Alex Pietrangelo’s All-Star Guide to St. Louis