The Atlantic Division team booked its ticket to the final of the 2020 NHL All-Star Game, defeating the Metropolitan Division contingent 9-5 in the first three-on-three game of Saturday night's festivities.
Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak and Ottawa Senators winger Anthony Duclair each recorded hat tricks for the Atlantic, while Detroit Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi and Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman tallied four points apiece.
Columbus Blue Jackets rearguard Seth Jones led the Metro squad with a four-point effort of his own, and New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier collected three points, including a pair of goals.
Tampa Bay Lightning netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy, who entered the game in the second period, stopped six of seven shots to earn the win.
The Atlantic is now 3-2 against the Metro since the introduction of the divisional three-on-three format in 2016. The Atlantic, which has never won the event, will take on the winner of the Central-Pacific matchup in the final.
After Connor McDavid went leg-first into the goalpost against the Calgary Flames last April, the Edmonton Oilers superstar says he kept quiet regarding the severity of his injuries to avoid outside noise and to be able to focus on his recovery.
"I think the main focus was just getting healthy," McDavid said, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston. "I didn't need any pressure (from the) media, I didn't need any more questions."
In a documentary called "Whatever It Takes," which was released Friday, McDavid revealed the full extent of his injuries: a full PCL tear, a torn meniscus on both sides of the knee, a cracked tibia, and a popliteus muscle that was torn off the bone.
"There was already lots of questions going on, so it was actually really nice just to be able to focus on myself and not have to answer questions and (deal with) the pressures of all the media and all the fans and stuff like that," McDavid said.
A doctor recommended undergoing surgery, which would've put McDavid's 2019-20 season in jeopardy and didn't guarantee that his knee would fully recover. McDavid had doubts about the procedure and, after a separate medical opinion recommended rehabilitation, opted to rehab his leg to avoid risking any long-term impediments from the unique operation.
"I'm a 22-year-old kid at the time and you never want to miss a season and you never want to go through a surgery that - I'm not going to call it risky or anything like that, but there's lots of questions," McDavid said. "It's not like it's an ACL where doctors can do that almost in their sleep. It's a PCL, and that's a surgery that only a few people can do and it's not been real mastered."
Appearing in his fourth consecutive All-Star Weekend, McDavid is in fine form as he looks to put the injury behind him. He leads the NHL in points (76) through 49 games this season and is on pace to tally a career-best 127.
"I feel real good. I don't think I'd be sitting here at the All-Star Game if I wasn't," McDavid said. "I feel good on the ice and I'm happy with how I've been playing."
Wayne Gretzky is keeping a close eye on Alex Ovechkin as he climbs the all-time goals list.
"I'm a big believer that records are made to be broken," Gretzky told NHL.com's Tom Gulitti on Friday. "What I accomplished, I'm very proud of. It's hard to do what I did, and it's really hard to do what he's doing now. But there's no question in my mind that he has a legitimate chance of doing it."
Ovechkin, who tied Steve Yzerman for ninth in league history by scoring goal No. 692 just before the All-Star break, is now 202 tallies shy of reaching Gretzky's mark of 894.
"The two things that you need - you've got to stay healthy, and he's proven that over his career. He plays hard and he stays healthy. And, secondly, you've got to be on a good team - and he plays on a good team," Gretzky added.
"For my success, I had to play with good players. He plays with good players, and that obviously helps."
Gretzky, who turns 59 on Sunday, has a number of seemingly untouchable records. He holds the all-time marks for goals scored in a season (92), points recorded in a campaign (215), and points posted in a career (2,857). However, his record for the most career goals is within Ovechkin's reach.
"I think it would be wonderful for the game," Gretzky continued. "Anything that's positive is always good for the game. ... From the day he came into the game, into the National Hockey League, we knew what he was. He was just a hardworking guy who loved to score goals."
The 34-year-old Ovechkin is currently second in the league this season with 34 goals and will be hoping to add his ninth Rocket Richard Trophy.
Muzzin suffered a fractured foot on Dec. 27 and has missed the club's last 10 games. He's been a key defender for the Leafs this season, leading the team in hits and ranking second in blocks. He's also chipped in offensively with 13 points in 38 contests.
Moore hasn't seen action since Dec. 21 due to a concussion. The 24-year-old has managed three goals and five points in 22 games this season.
The pair suited up for the Marlies on Friday to get back to game speed, with Moore potting a goal in a 5-2 loss to the Cleveland Monsters.
The Maple Leafs will resume play after the All-Star break when they visit the Nashville Predators on Monday.
Gary Bettman is maintaining his stance of wanting to hold the NHL and its players out of Olympic participation.
"From our standpoint, we believe and our experience, both with going to five Olympics and then not going to Pyeongchang, tells us that going is extraordinarily disruptive to the season," Bettman said to reporters at the All-Star Game on Friday, per TSN.
Bettman added, "I know it maintains itself as a priority for the players' association, but having said that, we're very comfortable with not going."
The NHL commissioner has been keen to hold his players out of the Olympics since barring them from participating in 2018. After taking office in 1993, Bettman permitted players to attend each quadrennial tournament from 1994-2014.
Trips to the Olympics have typically caused the NHL to shut down for several weeks in February while teams worry about their players potentially facing injury. When the league last went to Sochi in 2014, John Tavares, Henrik Zetterberg, Aleksander Barkov, and Tomas Kopecky all sustained season-ending injuries.
While Bettman doesn't appear ready to budge on the issue and give in to the players' desires, the NHL is aiming to organize a World Cup of Hockey in 2024 and make it a more regular tournament.
The 2020 NHL All-Star Skills Competition featured several memorable moments, including the dethroning of a defending champ, a previous king reclaiming his crown, and a historic showcase for women's hockey.
Here's what happened in each event:
Fastest skater
Brian Babineau / National Hockey League / Getty
It was Connor McDavid's event to lose, and, as it turned out, that's exactly what happened.
New York Islanders speedster Mathew Barzal upset the Edmonton Oilers superstar, beating all of McDavid's times from previous years by flying around the ice in 13.175 seconds before the 2017 Hart Trophy winner even got a chance to take his turn.
McDavid - who won the contest in each of the previous three years - went last but failed to match Barzal's time, finishing in 13.215 seconds. Barzal also came oh-so-close to setting the all-time record, falling only 0.03 seconds short of the mark set in 2016 by Detroit Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin.
Save streak
Patrick McDermott / National Hockey League / Getty
The hometown hero prevailed in the third annual edition of this goaltending-focused event.
Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy posted nine straight saves as the penultimate participant and Frederik Andersen of the Toronto Maple Leafs managed seven consecutive stops of his own as the Atlantic Division backstops finished second and third, respectively.
Accuracy shooting
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images Sport / Getty
A late addition to the All-Star festivities took home the accuracy event, as Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin won by hitting all five targets in 9.505 seconds. He was the only shooter to finish his round in under 10 seconds.
Hertl hit the first four of five targets consecutively but then struggled to nail the one in the top right corner, finishing with a time of 17.161.
Ironically, the new electronically projected targets drew plenty of criticism for not being accurate enough, as they occasionally failed to register as being hit and also credited several shooters when it appeared they actually missed. Bring back the foam targets, please and thanks.
Elite women's 3-on-3
Scott Rovak / National Hockey League / Getty
The historic and eagerly anticipated All-Star clash between the women's national teams of Canada and the United States more than lived up to its billing.
Team Canada goaltender Ann-Renee Desbiens put on an impressive display, making several highlight-reel stops among her 18 saves, including a big-time denial with the glove at the buzzer as Canada held on for a 2-1 victory.
Hilary Knight cut Canada's lead in half midway through the second period but Melodie Daoust's earlier marker held up as the eventual winner. Rebecca Johnston opened the scoring in the first period of a showcase that was indeed a "big step forward" for the women's game, as Wayne Gretzky opined beforehand.
Hardest shot
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Shea Weber reclaimed his title and won for the fourth time in the process. The Montreal Canadiens rearguard fired home a 106.5-mph bomb on his second and final attempt to restore his status as hardest shot champion after being unable to take part in the two previous editions.
Washington Capitals blue-liner John Carlson did his best to defend his 2019 title, posting a 104.5-mph howitzer on his second attempt. That shot bested all others in the field except for Weber's efforts.
Seven-time winner (and long-retired legend) Al MacInnis got the event started, turning back the clock and taking a shot of his own with a wooden stick to get the crowd going.
Shooting Stars
Scott Rovak / National Hockey League / Getty
No one quite knew what to expect heading into this new event, and reviews were mixed when all was said and done.
Chicago Blackhawks dynamo Patrick Kane edged Maple Leafs winger Mitch Marner and Blues forward Ryan O'Reilly in a tiebreaker. Kane picked up a pair of points in the extra session to become the first-ever winner of a spectacle that will probably endure a few tweaks if it's kept in the rotation next year.
At least Keith Tkachuk and Brett Hull got in on the action to give the home crowd even more reasons to cheer.
The NHL unveiled a new digital product for the shooting accuracy contest at the skills competition on Friday night, and it's safe to say it didn't go quite as planned.
Florida Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau was credited for hitting a target he clearly missed.
There was also a lengthy delay after Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi caused the device to malfunction. From this angle, it's also clear fans sitting behind the net had an obstructed view of the contest.
I don’t wanna be that guy, cause this electronic board thing is quicker and all that (and I guess who cares?), but boy is there something more satisfying about watching a guy blow up a real target.
Accuracy Shooting needs to have the exploding red circle targets back in action. The sound it made when it hit the target was awesome. I think Draisaitl wins this one.
