ASG_Skills_Blog

Welcome to the 2022 NHL All-Star Skills Presented by DraftKings Sportsbook.
The NHL All-Stars put on a show in Las Vegas with seven events held inside and outside of T-Mobile Arena: Verizon NHL Fastest Skater, Dunkin' NHL Save Streak, Discover NHL Fountain Face-Off, EA SPORTS NHL Hardest Shot, adidas NHL Breakaway Challenge, Las Vegas NHL 21 in '22 and Honda NHL Accuracy Shooting.
The Fountain Face-Off and 21 in '22 were new events this year and the Breakaway Challenge was back for the first time since 2016.
NHL.com senior writer Dan Rosen was down by the benches, and Editor-in-Chief Bill Price was high atop T-Mobile Arena to provide all the sights, sounds and stories form the Skills.

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9:58 p.m. ET

The final event of the night is over and Sebastian Aho of the Carolina Hurricanes is the winner of the Accuracy Shooting.
Aho hit all four targets in a time of 10.937, barely defeating Jake Guentzel of the Pittsburgh Penguins (12.017).
It was fun night in Vegas, setting the stage for what should be a great 2022 All-Star Game on Saturday.
Honda NHL Accuracy Shooting
1. Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes - 10.937
2. Jake Guentzel, Pittsburgh Penguins - 12.017
3. Troy Terry, Anaheim Ducks - 13.491
4. Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres - 17.205
5. Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames - 17.811
6. Clayton Keller, Arizona Coyotes - 18.997
7. Patrice Bergeron,Boston Bruins- 20.947
8. Jonathan Marchessault, Vegas Golden Knights - 27.782
9. Leon Draistail, Edmonton Oilers - 36.543

9:52 p.m ET

Victor Hedman never clocks his shot unless he's in a hardest shot competition like tonight.
"I was hoping for over 100," he told me.
He shot 102.7 mph and then 103.2, the two hardest shots in the competition.
"Still not close to 'Big Z' or Shea Weber but I'll take it and it was fun," Hedman said.
Zdeno Chara shot 108.8 in the 20212 Skills. Weber shot 108.5 in 2015.
Hedman had no clue how fast he really shot until tonight.
"Usually it comes off a one-timer and it's pretty heavy so you can tell it's a good one," Hedman said. "But when you have to step into one like that you can't really tell.
"Once I saw Adam (Pelech) shoot 102.2 I knew I had to bring it."
He did.

9:39 p.m. ET

Joe Pavelski is the King of the Vegas Strip.
The Dallas Stars defenseman won the Las Vegas 21 in '22 on the Vegas Strip.
Pavelski won becuase he got the highest card - a queen - in the final round, defeating Tampa Bay Lightning forward Steven Stamkos, who hit a four.
All five players - Pavelski, Colorado Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri, Ottawa Senators forward Brady Tkachuk and Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews.
The event was held on Thursday, with part of Las Vegas Boulevard being shut down.
One event to go - Honda NHL Accuracy Shooting.

9:31 p.m.

Kirill Kaprizov had the idea to dress, act, shoot and celebrate like Alex Ovechkin earlier in the day Friday.
The Minnesota Wild forward didn't find out he would be in the Breakaway Challenge until Thursday and he had to come up with something. He approached Capitals forward Evgeny Kuznetsov with the idea.
Kuznetsov called Ovechkin, who had to skip the All-Star Weekend because he is in COVID protocol. Ovechkin gave the thumbs up.
"He said absolutely go for it," Kuznetsov said.

9:25 p.m. ET

The Breakaway Challenge was over and wow, was it fun. It involved a mini Jack Hughes, Carrot Top, a blindfold, and odes to the movies "Dodgeball" and "The Hangover."
When it was all over, Alex Pietrangelo of the Vegas Golden Knights was the winner, getting egged on by Carrot Top to take a Vegas-style shot, which he did by going through the Vegas Drum Bots to score.
It didn't hurt that he got a score of 19 (out of 10) from actor Jon Hamm, who showed his allegiance to Pietrangelo's time with the St. Louis Blues.

9:00 p.m. ET

I watched the hardest shot competition with Frederik Andersen and Jack Campbell and it was, shall we say, a unique experience to get the perspective of the two goalies.
What do you think when you see these guys shoot?
"We need less padding, smaller gear," joked Andersen, the Carolina Hurricanes goalie.
"Fred and I have old chest protectors," said Campbell of the Toronto Maple Leafs. "We probably should go get those patched up."
Victor Hedman had the two hardest shots to win it, his first at 102.7 mph and his second at 103.2.
"I'm just glad we don't give up one-timers too often," Andersen said.
Campbell was laughing when Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson was getting booed.
"I guess there are fans from every team here," he said laughing.
Wilson shot 96.8 on his first shot and 101.1 on his second.
"I mean, 97 is pretty good," Campbell said. "You know when someone can T it up pretty good but you don't know how fast. You just know when it's one of these hard shooters you better be ready."

8:55 p.m. ET

Victor Hedman won the Hardest Shot event, with a winning score of 103.2 miles per hour.
In fact, he had the two hardest shots, his first attempt coming in a 102.7.
That barely defeated Adam Pelech of the New York Islanders, who hit 102.2 on his second shot.
Here are the results of the Hardest Shot.
1. Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning - 103.2
2. Adam Pelech, New York Islanders - 102.2
3. Tom Wilson, Washington Capitals - 101.1
4. Timo Meier, San Jose Sharks - 100.1

8:43 p.m.

Ok, now the night has really taken a Vegas turn with the Discover NHL Fountain Face-Off, held in the Fountains of Bellagio, the luxury hotel on the Vegas Strip.
The players were on a platform in the middle of the fountain and had to shoot pucks light up pucks into four of the five goals in the fastest time.
Columbus Blue Jackets defensman Zach Werenski won the first Fountain Face-Off, defeating Nashville Predators defenseman Roman Josi in the final round.
Wereski had a time of 25.634 in the final. Josi's time was 47.454
The two of them reached the final with the best times of the nine participants in the first round.
Here are the results:
Final round
1. Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets - 25.634
2. Roman Josi, Nasvhille Predators - 47.454
First Round
1. Roman Josi, Nashville Predators - 11.855
2. Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets - 15.16
3. Jocelyn Lamoureux-Davison- 16.253
4. Nick Suzuki, Montreal Canadiens - 22.155
5. Claude Giroux, Philadelphia Flyers - 22.688
6. Nick Suzucki, Montreal Canadiens - 22.155
7. Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights - 24.696
8. Jordan Eberle, Seattle Kraken - 27.934
9. Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers - 39.9 seconds

8:35 p.m. ET

Andrew Brunette played 1,110 games in the NHL but the Florida Panthers coach never got to experience an All-Star Weekend until now.
"This is really a dream come true," Brunette said on the bench. "It's a nice thing to put on your resume."
Brunette spent most of the first two events sitting on the bench and shaking hands with all the players he doesn't know.
He retired after the 2011-12 season and the only players here that he recalls playing against are Joe Pavelski, Steven Stamkos, Patrice Bergeron and Victor Hedman.
"I feel I haven't been retired that long and almost everyone has changed," he said laughing. "Really I'm just shaking hands and saying hello and telling them it's a pleasure to watch them, because it really is."

8:20 p.m. ET

Atlantic Divsion goalies Andrei Vasilevskiy and Jack Campbell won the Dunkin' NHL Save Streak with a streak of 9.
Unlike the Fastest Skater, this one was not close, with the goalies from the other three divisions only getting a streak of 3 or two.
The crowd did go crazy when Mark Stone and Jonathan Marchessault took their shots on Central Division goalies Cam Talbot of the Minnesota Wild and Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators.
Here are the results of the Save Streak:
1. Atlantic - Jack Campbell, Toronto Maple Leafs, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning - 9
2. Pacific - Thatcher Demko, Vancouver Canucks, John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks - 3
2. Central - Cam Talbot, Minnesota Wild, Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators - 3
4. Metropolitan - Fredrick Anderson, Carolina Hurricanes, Tristan Jarry, Pittsburgh Penguins - 2

8:15 p.m.

Rangers forward Chris Kreider sat down next to Steven Stamkos before the Save Streak competition and had to relay one thought.
"Dude, 'Goody' is amazing," Kreider said. "Everyone could use five of that guy."
He was talking about Barclay Goodrow, a Rangers forward who won the Stanley Cup with Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning the past two years.
I couldn't overhear the whole conversation but Stamkos agreed.
"Really good player," the Lightning captain said.

8:03 p.m.

Chris Kreider said he was nervous to compete in the Fastest Skater competition.
"Yeah, I mean, being the first guy to go and being relatively cold too and just letting her rip, definitely," the New York Rangers forward said. "We joke about getting out in one piece but that's a real thing."
Kreider finished third with a time of 13.664 seconds.
"Everyone made it out in one piece so that's a good thing," he said.
Kreider said it was a lot of fun to do. And also had this thought:
"I don't know what else I could do in this unless they added a tipping pucks competition."

7:53 p.m.

The first event is in the books and Jordan Kyrou is the winner of the NHL Fastest Skater. The St. Louis Blues forward finished with a time of 13.550, barely edging Adrian Kempe of the Los Angeles Kings, who had a time of 13.585.
Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid, who had won the event three times but was defeated by Matthew Barzal of the New York Islanders in 2020, finished fourth.
Here are the results
Verizon Fastest Skater
1. Jordan Kyrou, St. Louis Blues - 13.550
2. Adrian Kempe, Los Angeles Kings - 13.585
3. Chris Kreider, New York Rangers - 13.664
4. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers - 13.690
5. Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche - 13.834
6. Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets - 13.851
7. Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings - 14.116
8. Evgeny Kuznetsov, Washington Capitals - 14.559

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7:45 p.m. ET

Rod Brind'Amour is basically just as excited as any fan would be to have his access and vantage point this weekend.
The Carolina Hurricanes coach said he just wants to be around all the players.
"I don't know them at all," Brind'Amour said while walking to the bench for Skills. "I feel like a kid in a candy store right now. I can get to know them and then get to hate them when we play them."
Brind'Amour also joked he may pick up on some things this weekend that he can use against some of the players.
"You never know what you might find, when and where you might find it," he said.

Aho_BrindAmour_Skills
7:20 p.m.

Jonathan Marchessault has two of his boys down on the bench and said that alone was the biggest reason the Veags Golden Knights forward returned from a trip to Mexico to be a part of NHL All-Star Weekend.
James, 7, and William, 3, are wearing gold Golden Knights jerseys with Marchessault's 81 on the back and DADDY on the nameplate.
"You never know when it's going to be your last one," Marchessault said. "That right there is the biggest reason I came back from Mexico."
Marchessault said he got back to Las Vegas from Cabo San Lucas on Friday morning.

7:10 p.m. ET

Alex Pietrangelo came out for warmups and the Vegas Golden Knights defenseman immediately grabbed three pucks that were still on the dasher.
One each for his three kids, three year old triplets Evelyn, Theodore and Oliver. His 16-year-old nephew Aiden was with them.
"It's so much more fun having them here," Pietrangelo said. "That's the great part about it. They get to see dad and they may not really appreciate it now but they will keep those pucks and it's a way to remember it. That's the great part about this, getting to know guys' families."
Pietrangelo's kids and nephew were also on the bench at the 2019 All-Star Game in St. Louis when he was with the St. Louis Blues.

Pietrangelo_Blog
6:45 p.m. ET

We are about 45 minutes from the start of the Skills, and it's clear this is going to be different than any other All-Star Skills. First of all, it's in Vegas and everything is always bigger and flashier here. Case in point, the Fountain Face-Off and the 21 in '22, which were contested on the Vegas Strip on Thursday. Yes, Las Vegas Boulevard was shut down Thursday for the 21 in '22 event.
Also, the NHL has announced the 2023 NHL Winter Classic will be played at Fenway Park in Boston, the 2023 NHL All-Star Game will be hosted by the Florida Panthers, and the Carolina Hurricanes will host the 2023 NHL Stadium Series outdoor game at Carter-Finley Stadium on the campus of North Carolina State University.
And we've heard there are plenty of surprises in store for tonight.