The 60th NHL All Star Game will take place at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, home of the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday to cap off All Star Weekend.
The two teams will be based on a fantasy draft by team captains Nick Foligno of the hometown Jackets and Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks. The All Star fantasy draft will take place on Friday night with the skills competition on Saturday and then the game itself on Sunday, which can be seen on NBCSN at 5 p.m. ET.
Team Foligno
This will be the home team dressed in black. Los Angeles Kings head coach Darryl Sutter will serve in that capacity for Team Foligno. Foligno is in his eighth season in the NHL and was the leading scorer for Columbus. Drew Doughty of the Los Angeles Kings and Patrick Kane of the Blackhawks are assistant captains on Team Foligno.
Team Toews
Peter Laviolette of the Nashville Predators will coach Team Toews, which will be wearing white. Toews is a four-time All Star and has won two Stanley Cups with the Blackhawks. Ryan Getzlaf of the Anaheim Ducks and Rick Nash of the New York Rangers are assistant captains on Team Toews. It will be quite a homecoming for Nash, who became a star with Columbus.
Columbus Emerges as Hockey Town
The All Star Game is two years coming as Columbus was originally supposed to host the game in 2013 but had to reschedule for this year because of the player lockout. Columbus busted out as a big time hockey city last year in the playoffs when the Jackets made a serious bid to upset the Pittsburgh Penguins that fell just short. The Jackets fans have become known as the “Fifth Line” and were universally acclaimed to have the loudest fans in the NHL.
While Ohio State Buckeyes football will always be first, second, and third in Columbus, the Jackets have finally found their place as a point of pride for the city. Columbus now has the opportunity to host what has become a celebration of the game.
Skills Competition
The only problem with the All Star Game is the game itself.
So goes the feeling of most hockey fans. But the skills competition is well worth a look. NBCSN will televise it on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET. There will be six different skills competition events: fastest skater, breakaway challenge, accuracy shooting, skills challenge relay, hardest shot, and elimination shot.
