Kukla's Korner

Sports Illustrated’s NHL All-Star Selections

by Forechecker on 01/23/09 at 02:04 PM ET
Comments (0)

Fan balloting for All-Star roster spots is always a hot topic, and this year’s controversy has probably been the most heated, between the dominance of the Montreal Canadiens in the starting lineup, and the absence of Alex Ovechkin or any of the defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings.  The natural result of this has been a variety of calls to eliminate fan balloting or restrict it in some fashion.

Until that day comes, we can at least consider the selections as they would have been made by relatively neutral observers.  For that, let’s take a look at Sports Illustrated’s choices for the All-Star starting lineups, as presented in the issue currently on newsstands…

SI’s All-Stars

A lineup with only one Canadien (four were voted in by fans) is matched with an unheralded goalie and his single-Wing offense.

Eastern Conference

G Tim Thomas, Bruins
D Zdeno Chara, Bruins
D Andrei Markov, Canadiens
C Evgeni Malkin, Penguins
LW Alexander Ovechkin, Capitals
RW Alexander Semin, Capitals

Western Conference

G Steve Mason, Blue Jackets
D Dan Boyle, Sharks
D Shea Weber, Predators
C Pavel Datsyuk, Red Wings
LW Patrick Marleau, Sharks
RW Jarome Iginla, Flames

Frankly, these are much more compelling selections than what the fans came up with.  For this listing as well as a feature story by Michael Farber about the dominating performances of the San Jose Sharks and Boston Bruins during the first half of the season, feel free to pick up the latest issue or read the PDF on your computer.  Special thanks to SI for making that PDF available to our readers!

 

Filed in: NHL Commentary, | On the Forecheck | Permalink
 

Comments

Be the first to comment.

Add a Comment

Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.

Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.

Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.

Commenting is not available in this channel entry.