Gabriel Landeskog will join Colorado Avalanche linemates Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon at the 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Game at SAP Center in San Jose on Jan. 26 (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS).
Landeskog was among the four players who won the 2019 NHL All-Star Last Men In presented by adidas fan vote. The forward has 51 points (27 goals, 24 assists) as part of the top scoring line in hockey with Rantanen (68 points) and MacKinnon (66 points) who were named to the Central Division team by the NHL Hockey Operations Department on Jan. 2. It will be his first All-Star Game appearance.
The other three players voted in were forward Jeff Skinner of the Buffalo Sabres, defenseman Kris Letang of the Pittsburgh Penguins and center Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers.
Landeskog said getting voted in by the fans made his selection extra special.
"Those are the ones that support us on a nightly basis and travel all around the world to see us play," Landeskog said Friday. "Whether they are in Sweden, Canada, the U.S. or Denver, it means a lot."
MacKinnon said it was a well-deserved honor for the Avalanche captain, and said he is looking forward to having all three members of the same line going to 2019 Honda All-Star Weekend, which consists of a three-game tournament, played in a 3-on-3 format, featuring four teams -- one for each NHL division.
"[Landeskog] has been so good for us. He's a glue that holds our team together, our line together," MacKinnon said. "He doesn't get enough credit for sure, but it's nice to see him get voted in.
"I'm sure we'll have a shift together. It's something that will never happen again in our careers."
Skinner, tied for second in the NHL with 29 goals and first with seven game-winning goals, will join Sabres teammate Jack Eichel on the Atlantic Division roster. It will be Skinner's second All-Star Game appearance.
Letang, tied for third in goals by defensemen with 10 and tied for seventh with 37 points, will make his fifth All-Star Game appearance. He'll represent the Metropolitan Division with Penguins center Sidney Crosby.
"To see how much our fan base is committed to our team, they're really behind us, whether you're having a good year or not," Letang said. "It's just special. The Penguins fan base has always been good to us.
"It's fun to see that the work you put in, somebody recognizes it."
It will be the first All-Star Game appearance for Draisaitl, who has 54 points (23 goals, 31 assists). He is second in scoring for the Oilers, behind center Connor McDavid (66 points), who will captain the Pacific Division team.
"It'll be cool to have someone there that I'm familiar with and for him the same thing, probably," Draisaitl said. "I'm just looking forward to meeting the guys and being around the best players in the world.
"Growing up, I never thought about going to an All-Star Game. Probably the last thing I was thinking about. It's a big honor for me and it's exciting to be part of it."
The Avalanche are one of three teams to have three players in the All-Star Game. The host Sharks will be represented by forward Joe Pavelski and defensemen Brent Burns and Erik Karlsson, and the Tampa Bay Lightning will send forwards Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos and goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.
Over 11.5 million fans voted in the Last Men In campaign, which began on Jan. 3 and concluded at 11:59 p.m. on Thursday.
The 2019 NHL All-Star Skills Competition will take place at SAP Center on Jan. 25 (9 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS), one day before the game.
NHL.com staff writer Tim Campbell and NHL.com correspondents Sean Farrell and Dan Arritt contributed to this report
Here are the rosters:
Atlantic Division (All-Star appearance)
F Jack Eichel, BUF (2nd)
F ^ Jeff Skinner, BUF (2nd)
F Nikita Kucherov, TBL (3rd)
F * Auston Matthews, TOR (3rd)
F David Pastrnak, BOS (1st)
F Steven Stamkos, TBL (6th)
F John Tavares, TOR (6th)
D Thomas Chabot, OTT (1st)
D Keith Yandle, FLA (3rd)
G Jimmy Howard, DET (2nd)
G ¥ Andrei Vasilevskiy, TBL (2nd)
Metropolitan Division (All-Star appearance)
F Sebastian Aho, CAR (1st)
F Cam Atkinson, CBJ (2nd)
F Mathew Barzal, NYI (1st)
F Sidney Crosby, PIT (4th)
F Claude Giroux, PHI (6th)
F Taylor Hall, NJD (3rd)
D John Carlson, WSH (1st)
D Seth Jones, CBJ (2nd)
D ^ Kris Letang, PIT (5th)
G Braden Holtby, WSH (4th)
G Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (5th)
Central Division (All-Star appearance)
F Patrick Kane, CHI (8th)
F ^ Gabriel Landeskog, COL (1st)
F * Nathan MacKinnon, COL (3rd)
F Ryan O'Reilly, STL (2nd)
F Mikko Rantanen, COL (1st)
F Mark Scheifele, WPG (1st)
F Blake Wheeler, WPG (2nd)
D Miro Heiskanen, DAL (1st)
D Roman Josi, NSH (2nd)
G Devan Dubnyk, MIN (3rd)
G Pekka Rinne, NSH (3rd)
Pacific Division (All-Star appearance)
F Johnny Gaudreau, CGY (5th)
F Clayton Keller, ARI (1st)
F * Connor McDavid, EDM (3rd)
F Joe Pavelski, SJS (3rd)
F Elias Pettersson, VAN (1st)
F ^ Leon Draisaitl, EDM (1st)
D Brent Burns, SJS (6th)
D Drew Doughty, LAK (5th)
D Erik Karlsson, SJS (6th)
G Marc-Andre Fleury, VGK (4th)
G John Gibson, ANA (2nd)
* Fan-elected captain
^ Fan-voted Last Men In
¥ Replacement for Carey Price (MTL)
Entertainment Plaza - TV, Movies, Sports, Music, Soaps
http://almosthuman99.com
Babe Of The Month - Vote Now!
http://almosthuman99.com/polls/babes/babeofthemonth.html
Hunk Of The Month - Vote Now!
http://almosthuman99.com/polls/hunks/hunkofthemonth.html
0 comments:
Post a Comment