With All-Star weekend in Los Angeles, Justin Bieber is taking advantage.
The pop sensation and pride of Canada is taking part in Saturday's All-Star Celebrity Shootout, and made sure to get a picture with a couple of handsome Swedish defensemen before hitting the ice:
The San Jose Sharks head coach indicated that he took issue with Joe Thornton's omission from the NHL's "Greatest 100" players list revealed Friday in Los Angeles as part of NHL All-Star weekend.
"I did expect him to be there," DeBoer said Saturday, according to Yahoo's Greg Wyshynski. "I was actually shocked that he wasn't there."
Forever underappreciated, Thornton is a top 25 scorer in the history of the NHL and second to only Jaromir Jagr among active players. And there's plenty left in the reserve.
Thornton tumbles below recognized forwards Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, and Patrick Kane when comparing production on a points per game basis, but his numbers are superior across the board to that of Jonathan Toews - one of three members of the Chicago Blackhawks dynasty to make the list.
Thornton isn't the only active player with damning evidence to suggest that he's deserving of one of the 100 slots. Evgeni Malkin's 1.178 points per game is 14th all time, and ahead of Ovechkin, Jagr, and Kane; Jarome Iginla ranks 16th all time in goals; and Zdeno Chara racked up six Norris Trophy nominations in the space of 11 seasons, wherein which he ruled with an iron fist.
Winnipeg Jets rookie Patrik Laine has set his mark as he prepares for his first career All-Star Skills Competition.
Laine will be among those taking part in the accuracy shooting contest, and - with a certain swagger - is hoping to improve on his time in the Jets' skills contest.
"I think I'm pretty good at it, but there are a some others guys who are pretty good too," Laine told reporters. "So, let's see how good I am against these guys. Try to improve my time from the Jets' skills competition."
Of course, that will be easier said than done. Laine torched the Jets' skills competition going 4-for-4 in a time of just 8.4 seconds.
John Tavares might simply be repeating cliches, but he hasn't ruled out the idea of staying with the New York Islanders for the long haul.
The captain told reporters gathered at the All-Star festivities in L.A. on Saturday that he's open to discussing a contract extension with the Islanders this summer, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.
Tavares is under contract for one more season at a cap hit of $5.5 million. He'd become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2018 if no extension is consummated beforehand and would surely command a hefty price tag on the open market, but he says he's encouraged about the Islanders' future.
"I’m excited about where the Islanders are headed and hopefully we can work something out," he added Saturday, according to Newsday's Mark Herrmann, who made it clear that this isn't the first time the star forward has implied he'll consider re-upping with the Islanders.
Tavares told int'l media (i.e. Toronto) what he has consistently said: He is open to talking extension when it's allowed on July 1
Islanders general manager Garth Snow said last July that he plans to reach out to Tavares' camp to discuss an extension this summer, and the club's co-owner, John Ledecky, insisted shortly thereafter that Tavares would not be a free agent in 2018.
New York languished in or near the basement of the Eastern Conference for much of this season's first half before firing head coach Jack Capuano earlier this month, but the Islanders have gone 4-0-1 since Doug Weight took over as interim bench boss.
That turnaround has them five points out of a playoff spot with three games in hand on the Philadelphia Flyers, who occupy the second wild-card spot in the parity-riddled East.
Tavares has eight goals and 13 points in his last eight games, leading the Islanders with 19 and 40 in those categories this season, respectively.
The Metropolitan Division will be under the command of The Great One on Sunday.
Wayne Gretzky will replace absent Columbus Blue Jackets boss John Tortorella as Metropolitan Division head coach for Sunday's All-Star Game in Los Angeles, according to numerous reports.
Gretzky has played a big role in festivities this weekend, as the icon has been front and center for the league's centennial celebration, including the unveiling of the NHL's Top 100 players, which took place Friday night.
The news comes just months after Hurricanes' president Don Waddell denied Karmanos had interest in selling, potentially to a buyer planning to relocate the franchise.
Karmanos added that he's still interested as well to keeping some of it but more and more open to selling all of it as times goes on
The "NHL 100" list is stirring plenty of debate, but it's also creating an opportunity to let the imagination run wild.
When Wayne Gretzky joked Friday night that he, Mario Lemieux, and Bobby Orr "would have been pretty good at 3-on-3," that got us thinking: Who else among the league's list of its greatest players could form tantalizing trios in the relatively new overtime format if it had existed in their day?
Here are three of the many dream combinations that could be assembled from the NHL's centennial collection of modern superstars and past legends:
Sid, Ovi, and Kane
Let's begin with the current crop, and this triumvirate is as good a place as any to start.
Picture Alex Ovechkin on the left wing, Sidney Crosby down the middle, and Patrick Kane blazing down the right side and you have an unstoppable line that would simply be as unfair as they come.
Crosby and Ovechkin might get the chance to form two-thirds of this hypothetical trio when they suit up together for the Metropolitan Division All-Stars in the 3-on-3 tournament this weekend.
We may never see Kane play with them, but as Meatloaf once sang, two out of three ain't bad.
Bure, Hull, and Sakic
Seriously, how amazing would it have been to watch Pavel Bure in 3-on-3?
Lining him up with two of his legendary 1990s contemporaries would be icing on the cake, and imagine how dominant the "Russian Rocket" could be playing on the left side with Joe Sakic in the middle and Brett Hull on the right wing.
Bure's dynamic scoring ability, Hull's knack for goals of all kinds, and Sakic's mix of playmaking and his patented wrist shot would give goalies nightmares for years.
Gretzky, Bourque, and Gartner
The Great One's dream trio of himself, Lemieux, and Orr would be arguably the best of all time, but there are still plenty of salivating sets of stars to ponder if we stick with our theme of using players from the same era.
How about a 1980s unit featuring Gretzky, Mike Gartner, and Ray Bourque, for example?
The most productive player ever would have a 700-plus-goal scorer on his wing and the most prolific offensive defenseman in NHL history manning the blue line.
It's also tempting to wonder how Gretzky would have fared in 3-on-3 with his former Edmonton Oilers teammates, Mark Messier and Paul Coffey.
Given the sheer number of intriguing possibilities, it's a shame that the new overtime format was only enacted last season. Now we just need to figure out how to build a time machine so we can go back and see how this all would have played out.
Add another name to the list of NHL greats that have high praise for Connor McDavid: Peter Forsberg.
Forsberg, one of the finest examples of size and skill the NHL has ever seen, crafted a remarkable career, recording 885 points in 708 games, winning two Stanley Cups along with the Calder, Art Ross, and Hart Trophy.
With a resume like that, it should come as no surprise that Forsberg was one of the 100 NHLers honored Friday night in Los Angeles.
While rubbing shoulders with the game's best, Forsberg was asked which player in today's NHL reminds him of himself. Enter the Oilers' captain.
"I wish I could say Connor McDavid, but he's better at everything than I was," the 2014 Hall of Fame inductee said, according to Matt Larkin of The Hockey News. "He skates faster. He sees the game. But I really enjoy seeing him play. He's everywhere on the ice, and he's making his team win. If I could start over I'd like to be like him."
McDavid has certainly done his part in earning the kind words, as the 20-year-old has 107 points in 96 career games, already becoming one of the most captivating players the league has to offer.
For the second straight year, the NHL All-Star weekend will feature a 3-on-3 tournament in place of the traditional two-team game.
Last year's tournament was a welcomed and thrilling change of pace to All-Star Games of the past, thanks to a cash incentive to the winners of the tournament which gave players a reason to put forth a greater effort than that seen in your local beer leagues.
Of course with 3-on-3 hockey, fans can expect speed, skill, and chaos above all else. With that in mind, here are some potential trios from each team that could make for must-see TV:
Atlantic
Kucherov, Matthews, Karlsson
This trio would make for one fun, fast, and dynamic line.
Auston Matthews and Nikita Kucherov up front represent the two purest scoring talents in the Atlantic. Enter Erik Karlsson, who along with ridiculous speed hones arguably the most lethal scoring ability of any defenseman in the league.
Metropolitan
Crosby, Ovechkin, Tavares
No defense, no problem.
Yes, in a conventional trio, coaches would like to have at least one defenseman on the ice, but hell, this is the All-Star Game and we want to see goals.
Of course, the idea of Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin teaming up is always compelling, and with Evgeni Malkin sitting the tournament out (he would have been the third member of this trio), John Tavares slots in as a very capable replacement.
Bring on the goals.
Central
Kane, Laine, Subban
Now this one would be fun.
We have the former Art Ross Trophy winner and stick-handling magician in Patrick Kane, the rookie sniper in Patrik Laine, and the new King of Nashville in P.K. Subban.
Kane can create plays, make defenseman look silly, and would serve as the perfect setup man for either Laine or Subban, who both boast incredible releases.
Pacific
McDavid, Carter, Burns
In this corner, we have the league's leading point-producer, the second-highest goal scorer, and the Norris Trophy frontrunner.
The 2017 edition All Star Game will mark a first for Connor McDavid, and unfortunately, the pressure will likely be on him to mesmerize. Sorry Connor, people can be so demanding.
McDavid can take over any game he is in with his incredible speed. He will also have one of the purest snipers in the game in Jeff Carter at his disposal. Then there's Brent Burns, who is also flirting with the NHL points lead.
Sure, there's no John Scott-type player in this year's game, but with a plethora of talented players on each squad, there shouldn't be any less excitement this year.
It might seem like a no-brainer, but Mario Lemieux appears open to the idea of Jaromir Jagr's No. 68 one day hanging from the rafters in Pittsburgh.
“Oh, absolutely. He’s been a big part of our franchise,” Lemieux said Friday when asked if he could envision Jagr being immortalized in this manner, according to Yahoo Sports' Sean Leahy.
“He’s won two (Stanley Cup championships) in Pittsburgh," the Penguins co-owner added. "He’s a Hall of Famer, by far, and I’m sure he’ll be up there eventually.”
Here's where the ageless forward sits on the club's all-time lists:
Category
Franchise Rank
Total
Goals
2nd
439
Assists
2nd
640
Points
2nd
1079
Game-Winning Goals
1st
78
Shots on Goal
2nd
2911
Games Played
2nd
806
The man ahead of Jagr in most of those categories, of course, is Lemieux himself, one of only two players, along with the late Michel Briere, to have his number retired by the Penguins.
Jagr is obviously still playing for the Florida Panthers, so it's a bit of a moot point until he retires, but Lemieux's status in the Penguins' board room means his comments are relevant, regardless of how non-committal or speculative these may have been.
