57th National Hockey League All-Star Game

The 57th National Hockey League All-Star Game was held on 25 January 2009 at the Center Bell in Canadian Montreal in the Province of Quebec instead.

On the occasion of their 100th anniversary, the Montréal Canadiens hosted the game. The transmission rights to the game were held in the United States TV network Versus and in the Canadian CBC and RDS for the French-speaking part of Canada.

The best players of the National Hockey League took part in the event. In a worldwide vote on the Internet, the starting formations of the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference were determined, while the remaining places in the squad were allocated by the NHL. At least one player from each of the 30 teams in the league should take part in the All-Star Game.

The coaches of the two all-star teams were officially determined on January 10, 2009. The head coaches of the teams were the coaches of the leading team in the respective conference. Prematurely was already Claude Julien fixed as coach of the Eastern Conference since his supervision Boston Bruins could be several days before the deadline no longer the top spot in the East displaced. In the west, Todd McLellan and his San Jose Sharks took first place and was thus the head coach of the Western Conference. He was assisted by Mike Babcock from the Detroit Red Wings , who were in second place. Both worked together in Detroit until the summer of 2008, when McLellan was Babcock's assistant coach for three years.

Fan choice of starting line-up

The players of the starting line-up, the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference could be chosen from November 12, 2008 to January 2, 2009 on the Internet on the official website of the National Hockey League or via SMS with the mobile phone. Each fan could vote as often as they wanted. On January 3, 2009, Jean Béliveau , who won the Stanley Cup ten times as a player with the host Montréal Canadiens and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame , announced the starting line-up of both teams.

The record set up by Jaromír Jágr for the All-Star Game 2000 , who had then received 1,020,736 votes, was exceeded by all players who were elected to the starting line-up of the Eastern Conference, as well as by another five. Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins set the new record with 1,713,021 votes. In the west of the league, however, no one could reach the Jágr mark. Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks voted the most fans in the Western Conference with 917,551 votes.

Both starting formations were provided exclusively by four NHL teams. In addition to Crosby, another member of the Pittsburgh Penguins was elected to the team of the Eastern Conference with Yevgeny Malkin . Both were supplemented by Carey Price , Mike Komisarek , Andrei Markow and Alexei Kowaljow from the Montréal Canadiens . In the West, in addition to Patrick Kane, Brian Campbell and Jonathan Toews were players in the Chicago Blackhawks. The other three places were taken by Jean-Sébastien Giguère , Scott Niedermayer and Ryan Getzlaf from the Anaheim Ducks .

Events

The NHL All-Star Game was accompanied by several events that took place on the weekend of January 23-25, 2009. The central point for the fans was the NHL All-Star Jamboree , a festival with references to ice hockey and the NHL in front of the Center Bell event hall . Highlights included the display of the NHL trophies from the Hockey Hall of Fame , including the Stanley Cup . The visitors could attend autograph sessions by current and former players, test their ice hockey skills in a special area and meet the mascots of the NHL teams. There was also a trading card and souvenir show. On January 24th, the Canadian band Hedley gave a concert as part of the All-Star Jamboree. In the Bell Center, the Cirque Éloize performed acrobatics and music on January 25th in the opening act of the All-Star Game and in the thirds the band Simple Plan and the singer Marie-Mai played .

In addition to the clash of the best players in the league in the All-Star Game, they competed in the SuperSkills Competition on January 24th. The players had to prove their skills in different areas, such as speed and shooting strength. One of the highlights of the SuperSkills Competition was a shootout competition in which the shooter was supposed to score goals in the most creative and spectacular way possible. As part of this event, the best players from their first year as a professional ( rookies ) met the best players who were in their second NHL season ( sophomores ) in the YoungStars Game .

On January 25th, the All-Star Game finally closed the weekend.

Teams

Eastern Conference Head coach : Claude Julien ( Boston Bruins ) Assistant coach : Guy Carbonneau ( Montréal Canadiens ) # country player Item team goalkeeper 31 Carey Price Montréal Canadiens 35 Henrik Lundqvist New York Rangers 30th Tim Thomas Boston Bruins defender 79 Andrei Markow Montréal Canadiens 44 Mike Komisarek Montréal Canadiens 3 Jay Bouwmeester Florida panthers 33 Zdeno Chára Boston Bruins 15th Tomáš Kaberle Toronto Maple Leafs 2 Mark dispute New York Islanders attacker - Sidney Crosby 3 C. Pittsburgh Penguins 71 Yevgeny Malkin C. Pittsburgh Penguins 27 Alexei Kovalev - C. RW Montréal Canadiens 4th Vincent Lecavalier 3 C. Tampa Bay Lightning 7th Jeff Carter C. Philadelphia Flyers 51 Dany Heatley LW Ottawa Senators 17th Ilya Kovalchuk LW Atlanta Thrashers 8th Alexander Ovechkin LW Washington Capitals 9 Zach Parise LW New Jersey Devils 26th Martin St. Louis 3 RW Tampa Bay Lightning 91 Marc Savard C. Boston Bruins 12 Eric Staal C. Carolina Hurricanes 20th Thomas Vanek LW Buffalo Sabers

Western Conference Head Coach : Todd McLellan ( San Jose Sharks ) Assistant Coach : Mike Babcock ( Detroit Red Wings ) # country player Item team goalkeeper 35 Jean-Sébastien Giguère Anaheim Ducks 32 Niklas Bäckström Minnesota Wild 1 Roberto Luongo Vancouver Canucks defender 51 Brian Campbell Chicago Blackhawks 27 Scott Niedermayer Anaheim Ducks 22nd Dan Boyle San Jose Sharks - Nicklas Lidström 2 Detroit Red Wings 3 Stéphane Robidas 2 Dallas Stars 44 Sheldon Souray Edmonton Oilers 6th Shea Weber Nashville Predators attacker 88 Patrick Kane RW Chicago Blackhawks 19th Jonathan Toews C. Chicago Blackhawks 15th Ryan Getzlaf C. Anaheim Ducks 24 Dustin Brown LW Los Angeles Kings - Pavel Datsyuk 1 C. Detroit Red Wings 18th Shane Doan RW Phoenix Coyotes 23 Milan Hejduk RW Colorado Avalanche 12 Jarome Iginla RW Calgary Flames 10 Patrick Marleau 1 C. San Jose Sharks 9 Mike Modano C. Dallas Stars 61 Rick Nash LW Columbus Blue Jackets 97 Joe Thornton - C C. San Jose Sharks 7th Keith Tkachuk C. St. Louis Blues

• Fat: player in the starting line-up
• G = goalkeeper; D = defender; C = center; LW / RW = winger
• ¹ Pawel Datsjuk was unable to play because of an injury. Patrick Marleau was nominated for him.
• ² Nicklas Lidström was unable to play because of an injury. Stéphane Robidas was nominated for him.
• ³ Sidney Crosby was unable to play because of an injury. Martin St. Louis was nominated for him. Crosby was replaced in the starting line-up by Vincent Lecavalier.

Controversy about game cancellation

Before the All-Star Game, Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Pawel Dazjuk and Nicklas Lidström of the Detroit Red Wings announced that they could not participate due to injuries. The NHL then set up a new regulation that players who are called to the All-Star teams but cannot play due to injuries must still appear for the game in order to take part in events such as autograph sessions or interviews. Anyone who violates this rule must suspend the first league game after the All-Star Game. While Crosby was traveling to Montreal, Dazjuk and Lidström stayed away from the event and were absent from the Detroit Red Wings' next game a few days later.

SuperSkills Competition

In the SuperSkills Competition, which took place the day before the All-Star Game, the players had to prove their skills in the various areas of speed, creativity, precision and shot strength. The conclusion was an elimination competition in the shootout . In the run-up to the event, however, the format was changed compared to previous years. Instead of letting the All-Star teams from the East and West compete against each other in the individual competitions and thus have an overall winner of the SuperSkills Competition, only the players competed against each other. The winner of the respective competition received a crystal trophy. So far, every player had to take part in at least one competition, even if he was not a specialist in any of these competitions.

In the first competition, six players, including two participants in the YoungStars game, had to prove their speed when they once had to go around the playing area along the boards.

The SuperSkills Competition was continued with the Breakaway Challenge, a shootout competition in which six players had to prove their creativity in scoring goals. Each shooter has one minute in which he could use any number of attempts to defeat the goalkeeper in the most original way possible. The year before the winner was determined by a four-person jury made up of celebrities from the world of sports and entertainment, in 2009 the fans will decide by SMS who was the most creative participant in this competition.

The third competition decided who was the most precise shooter of the All-Star players. Four targets were attached to the goal posts, which the shooter had to hit in as few attempts as possible. This was followed by competition for the hardest shot when the players shot at the empty goal and the puck's speed was measured.

The final competition was an elimination shootout in which all 36 field players and the six goalkeepers took part. The shooter ran alone towards the goalkeeper and had to try to score a goal. If the shooter scored, he reached the next round, otherwise he was eliminated. The shootout continued until there was only one player left.

winner

Andrew Cogliano , who competed for the Sophomores in the YoungStars Game, won the fastest runner competition. In the Breakaway Challenge, Alexander Ovetschkin won the votes of the fans when he competed with two clubs and a cowboy hat and received 42.8 percent of the votes for his creativity. In the competition for the best shot accuracy, Yevgeny Malkin and Dany Heatley did not need a failed attempt to hit the four targets. In a decision-making round, Malkin was ultimately victorious with three of four goals hit against Heatley, who only scored twice. Zdeno Chára was the player with the hardest shot for the third year in a row and also broke the record of Al Iafrate , who had shot at 105.2 mph 16 years earlier, at 105.4 mph . The final elimination shootout was decided after seven rounds and Shane Doan , who at the end only had Marc Savard as a competitor, won the competition.

competition	winner
Fastest runner	Andrew Cogliano
Breakaway Challenge	Alexander Ovechkin
Shooting accuracy	Yevgeny Malkin
Hardest shot	Zdeno Chára
Elimination Shootout	Shane Doan

All-Star Game

The Eastern Conference was able to win the All-Star Game for the second year in a row and beat the Western Conference with 12-11 after penalty shootout . Already after the first third the east of the league was in the lead with 4–2 and even increased by two more goals shortly after the start of the second period. They managed yet another hit, but the Western Conference had already equalized the game in the middle of the second period with 7–7. Alexei Kowaljow managed yet another opening goal, but this was followed by the equalization by Jarome Iginla , so that both teams went into the second break with a score of 8–8. Shortly after the start of the last period, the Western Conference took the lead, but the Eastern Conference team equalized the game a little later. The West took the lead two more times, but the East responded with the equalizer each time, so that after 60 minutes it was 11-11. In the following five-minute overtime there was no hit, so the decision was sought in the penalty shootout. After the first shooter from both teams had awarded, Alexei Kowaljow took the lead for the east. When Rick Nash then forgave for the Western Conference, Alexander Ovetschkin decided as the third and last shooter for the Eastern Conference the shootout with his hit to the unassailable 2-0.

After the game, Alexei Kowaljow received the award as the most valuable player in the All-Star Game, which he earned with two goals and an assist as well as the decisive goal in the penalty shoot-out.

January 25, 2009 6:30 p.m.
	Eastern Conference	12–11 (4-2, 4-6, 3-3, 0-0, 1-0) after penalty shootout	Western Conference	Center Bell Montreal , Quebec
	A. Owetschkin ( M. Savard ) (6:26) E. Staal ( J. Bouwmeester , A. Kowaljow ) (9:30) A. Kowaljow ( T. Kaberle ) (16:34) A. Markow ( A. Owetschkin , M. Savard ) (19:23) M. St. Louis ( T. Kaberle ) (21:21) Z. Parise ( M. St. Louis , M. Streit ) (22:11) J. Malkin (27: 45) A. Kowaljow (33:35) D. Heatley ( M. Savard ) (42:17) M. St. Louis ( M. Streit , J. Bouwmeester ) (53:19) J. Bouwmeester ( A. Owetschkin ) (56:21) A. Kovalyov ( SO )		K. Tkachuk ( R. Nash , M. Hejduk ) (1:16) Patrick Marleau ( J. Thornton , S. Niedermayer ) (19:48) S. Souray ( M. Hejduk ) (23:29) D. Boyle ( S. Doan , B. Campbell ) (25:14) Rick Nash (28:27) Milan Hejduk ( D. Boyle , R. Nash ) (29:02) S. Souray ( J. Thornton , P. Marleau ) (30 : 34) J. Iginla ( J. Thornton , P. Marleau ) (36:46) S. Doan ( M. Modano , D. Brown ) (40:32) J. Toews ( P. Kane , S. Souray ) ( 42:32) P. Kane ( R. Getzlaf ) (55:19)

YoungStars Game

After the format of the YoungStars Game in 2008 saw a change for the first time since its premiere in 2002 , the format was changed again in 2009. So far, the best professionals under the age of 23 have competed against each other in a comparison of the Eastern and Western Conference .

The east / west format was discarded in 2009 and instead the best rookies (players in their first professional year) faced the best sophomores (players in their second professional year) in a 3-on-3 comparison over three thirds of six minutes.

The teams were looked after by Luc Robitaille and Pete Mahovlich , who were appointed honorary coaches.

The MVP was Blake Wheeler from the team of rookies, who scored four goals.

Rookies Head coach : Luc Robitaille # country player Item team goalkeeper - Steve Mason 1 Columbus Blue Jackets 35 Pekka gutter 1 Nashville Predators defender 8th Drew Doughty Los Angeles Kings 2 Luke Schenn Toronto Maple Leafs attacker 21st Patrik Berglund C. St. Louis Blues 19th Mikkel Bødker LW Phoenix Coyotes 67 Michael Frolík C. Florida panthers 18th James Neal LW Dallas Stars 91 Steven Stamkos C. Tampa Bay Lightning 32 Kris Versteeg RW Chicago Blackhawks 26th Blake Wheeler RW Boston Bruins

Sophomores Head Coach: Pete Mahovlich # country player Item team goalkeeper - Erik Ersberg 2 Los Angeles Kings 31 Carey Price 2 Montréal Canadiens defender 58 Kris Letang Pittsburgh Penguins 18th Marc Staal New York Rangers attacker - Nicklas Bäckström 3 C. Washington Capitals 36 Dave Bolland 4 C. Chicago Blackhawks 13 Andrew Cogliano C. Edmonton Oilers 17th Brandon Dubinsky C. New York Rangers 10 Bryan Little C. Atlanta Thrashers - Milan Lucic 4 LW Boston Bruins 57 David Perron 3 LW St. Louis Blues 21st Mason Raymond LW Vancouver Canucks 16 Devin Setoguchi RW San Jose Sharks

• Fat: player in the starting line-up
• G = goalkeeper; D = defender; C = center; LW / RW = winger
• ¹ Steve Mason was unable to play because of an injury. Pekka Rinne was nominated for him.
• ² Erik Ersberg was unable to play due to an injury. Carey Price was nominated for him.
• ³ Nicklas Bäckström did not take part in the game for personal reasons. David Perron was nominated for him.
• ⁴ Milan Lucic was unable to play because of an injury. Dave Bolland was nominated for him.

result

January 24, 2009
	Rookies	9–5 (3-1, 4-3, 2-1)	Sophomores	Center Bell Montreal , Quebec
	1–0 Patrik Berglund 2–1 Blake Wheeler 3–1 Steven Stamkos 4–1 Blake Wheeler 5–3 Blake Wheeler 6–3 Luke Schenn 7–4 Steven Stamkos 8–4 Blake Wheeler 9–5 Drew Doughty		1–1 Dave Bolland 4–2 Marc Staal 4–3 Mason Raymond 6–4 Marc Staal 8–5 Devin Setoguchi

Web links

• Official website of the NHL All-Star Game
• Official website of the Montréal Canadiens
• Official website of the Center Bell

Individual evidence

1. ↑ nhl.com, Bruins 'Julien, Sharks' McLellan will serve as All-Star head coaches
2. ↑ nhl.com, Habs quartet add hometown flavor to All-Star Game
3. ↑ nhl.com, Lay's NHL All-Star Jamboree tickets on sale soon
4. ↑ ^{a b c} tsn.ca, All-Star Weekend will have a different look
5. ↑ ^{a b} nhl.com, Trick shots, sophomores vs. rookies and breakaways galore highlight the 2009 Honda / NHL All-Star SuperSkills Competition
6. ↑ nhl.com, Datsyuk, Lidstrom to miss one game for skipping all-star weekend