It’s been just a handful of years since the NHL updated its All-Star Game format. So, naturally, they’ve gone and changed it all over again!
Which division is the strongest under the new NHL All-Star Game format?
Let’s have some fun with premature speculation.
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
The Fantasy Draft is gone, and 3-on-3 hockey is here after a wildly successful first month of the new overtime rules. But the style of the game hasn’t just changed. So has the format.
The All-Star Game is now a tournament featuring four teams made up of players from every division. The Western Conference teams (Central and Pacific) would play a 20-minute mini-game. The Eastern Conference teams (Atlantic and Metropolitan) would as well. The two winners would play a winner-takes-all 20-minute mini-game.
That sounds fun! It also sounds different than anything we’ve seen from an All-Star Game in any sport. I wonder what the rosters would look like under the new format and which division would be the best or most fun to watch playing 3-on-3 hockey.
So let’s speculate! It’s mid-November, so it’s probably way too early to project which players will make the All-Star Game.
I don’t care. Speculation is fun.
Atlantic Division
Forwards
| Steven Stamkos, TBL | Max Pacioretty, MTL |
| Patrice Bergeron, BOS | Jaromir Jagr, FLA |
| Ryan O'Reilly, BUF | Henrik Zetterberg, DET |
Defensemen
| Erik Karlsson, OTT |
| P.K. Subban, MTL |
| Victor Hedman, TBL |
Goalies
| Carey Price, MTL |
| James Reimer, TOR |
Karlsson and Subban make the Atlantic’s blueline the most threatening in this 3-on-3 format, though Karlsson is on record as hating 3-on-3 so don’t expect him to enjoy carving up opponents in Nashville. They’ll make up most of the entertainment on this Atlantic side. Jagr is great, but the speed of 3-on-3 hockey doesn’t suit his game. In fact, none of the Atlantic players most likely to make the All-Star Game right now scream “3-on-3 thrills” aside from Stamkos.
Watchability factor: 6/10
Metropolitan Division
Forwards
| Sidney Crosby, PIT | Alex Ovechkin, WSH |
| Claude Giroux, PHI | Mats Zuccarello, NYR |
| John Tavares, NYI | Mike Cammalleri, NJD |
Defensemen
| John Carlson, WSH |
| Justin Faulk, CAR |
| Ryan Murray, CBJ |
Goalies
| Henrik Lundqvist, NYR |
| Marc-Andre Fleury, PIT |
It's already clear this new format is going to leave out a lot of worthy players. Brandon Saad, Evgeny Kuznetsov and Evgeni Malkin all deserve All-Star nods any other year. The divisional format is too crowded to include them.
But the Metro will be exciting without them. Crosby and Ovechkin playing on the same line? The NHL’s dream scenario. Giroux and Zuccarello make for an interesting pair. All three defenders are good puck movers. And both Lundqvist and Fleury have enough personality to up the comedic factor from time to time.
This division fits the format like a glove. They will have fun and you will have fun watching them.
Watchability factor: 9/10
Central Division
Forwards
| Jamie Benn, DAL | Tyler Seguin, DAL |
| Patrick Kane, CHI | Jonathan Toews, CHI |
| Vladimir Tarasenko, STL | Nathan MacKinnon, COL |
Defensemen
| Ryan Suter, MIN |
| Shea Weber, NSH |
| Dustin Byfuglien, WPG |
Goalies
| Pekka Rinne, NSH |
| Devan Dubnyk, MIN |
This is the one division where the lineups just write themselves. Kane, Toews, Benn and Seguin will almost certainly make the team and play on the same 3-on-3 lines together. The remaining spots to fill highlights the other problem with this format. The NHL (like most leagues) likes to have all of its teams represented on All-Star weekend. Someone in this uber-talented division will get left out to make room for a Winnipeg Jets player.
It might just be Dallas Stars defenseman John Klingberg since Seguin and Benn are already locks to make the cut. And an All-Star Game in Nashville without Shea Weber just isn't going to happen.
The Central is loaded with enough talent to replace any players above who regress to the point of missing the All-Star Game. James Neal, Blake Wheeler, Alex Pietrangelo and Thomas Vanek are all playing extremely well. With this format, the Central will be the odds-on favorite to win the tournament no matter how the roster shakes out.
Watchability factor: 8/10
Pacific Division
Forwards
| Taylor Hall, EDM | Joe Pavelski, SJS |
| Johnny Gaudreau, CGY | Tyler Toffoli, LAK |
| Henrik Sedin, VAN | Ryan Getzlaf, ANA |
Defensemen
| Drew Doughty, LAK |
| Brent Burns, SJS |
| Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARZ |
Goalies
| Jonathan Quick, LAK |
| Martin Jones, SJS |
Certainly the biggest mishmash of forwards in the tournament. Everyone brings something different, from Gaudreau’s craftiness to Hall’s speed and Getzlaf’s physicality. That could make the Pacific a tough out. With the players eligible to make this roster I could see the Pacific trying to cycle endlessly in the zone waiting for a good opportunity to shoot. That’s not fun. That’s not high-octane. Give me caffeine hockey, Pacific, or give me death.
Watchability factor: 5/10
Wait. I just remembered Brent Burns’ beard.
Watchability factor: 5/10 7/10
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