Alex DeBrincat thought he had narrowed the gap to just one goal with 1:51 to go, but a video replay confirmed an inbound offside and the Metropolitan Division ultimately defeated the Central Division 5-3 in the NHL All-Star game on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Posted yesterday at 6:33 p.m.
The event was presented as a three-on-three tournament, for the sixth time in a row – the 2021 edition, however, had been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. A purse of US$1 million was awarded to the winning team of the All-Star game.
Claude Giroux of the Philadelphia Flyers was named the game’s MVP. He scored two goals in the final, on the side of the Metropolitan. He had provided a goal and an assist for his team in the semi-finals.
The Metropolitan triumphed for the third time in its history, after its conquests of 2017 and 2019. It thus joins the Pacific division, which triumphed in 2016, 2018 and 2020.
In the semi-finals, the Metropolitan defeated the Pacific 6-4, while the Central defeated the Atlantic 8-5.
Nick Suzuki was cleared from the Atlantic scoresheet, after hitting a post head-on, and finished the game with a -1 differential.
PHOTO STEPHEN R. SYLVANIE, USA TODAY SPORTS
Nick Suzuki
“We conceded too many breakaways, so it’s difficult to win in this context. And our team hit three or four posts, so that could have changed the course of the game,” Suzuki said in a press briefing broadcast on the Canadiens’ official Twitter account after the Atlantic loss.
The Habs player nevertheless gave a positive assessment of his first career All-Star game.
It was really fun to be able to meet these guys and have this experience for the first time. It was pretty cool. I tried to have fun and not worry too much.
Nick Suzuki
Beyond the statistics, the only representative of the Montreal Canadiens invited to the All-Star game was able to chat with his childhood idol, Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron – he also wore the noh 37 in the junior ranks in his honor.
“He’s been great all weekend. He made sure everything went well for me. He’s a good guy, and it was good to get to know him more,” added the 22-year-old Ontarian about the Quebecer.
Internationally acclaimed DJ and producer Zedd first performed during the player introduction, then during the second intermission vocalist Machine Gun Kelly delivered a frenzied performance.
The Vegas Golden Knights hosted the All-Star Game for the first time in their short history, which began in 2017-18.
On Friday, Commissioner Gary Bettman confirmed the 2023 edition of the event would be held at Sunrise, home of the Florida Panthers. The 2021 All-Star Game was originally scheduled to take place there, but it was moved due to the pandemic.
From 1998 to 2002, the All-Star Game format pitted North American players against players from around the world.