The All-Star weekend in Columbus was quite an experience, but it’s not necessarily what happens on the ice that brings fans back every year.
COLUMBUS — I was lucky enough to see the world’s best compete on the biggest stage in the 2014 Sochi Olympic Winter Games one year ago.
And I call myself extra lucky after having the opportunity to cover the 2015 NHL All-Star weekend this past week.
It’s a chance that, obviously, doesn’t come by too often. But this weekend, I was given a few chances to look past my reporting and soak in the experience.
What makes All-Star competitions so enjoyable for everyone is the entertainment value that they bring. Yes, all fans want to see the league’s best players on the same ice at the same time, but that’s also what the Olympics are for.
The Olympics truly test which country is best in hockey, with competitive games that only differ from National Hockey League contests by the rosters and set of rules. The All-Star Game, though, is a more relaxed, skill-driven event that showcases the best individual talents.
It may lack hits, penalties and defense, but what it lacks in those facets of the game it makes up for in the eye-appealing moves and actions made by the stars.
But the entertainment is key. The entertainment is the driving force that keeps these events on the yearly schedule — barring no lockouts — on non-Olympic years (for the time being).
Friday night at the NHL All-Star Fantasy Draft, the players showed a side of themselves that fans don’t get the chance to see very often.
Washington Capitals star forward Alex Ovechkin was at the focal point during the draft. Although his sobriety was in question, he jokingly (or not?) demanded that he should be picked last so he could win the 2015 Honda Civic, which is awarded to the last-overall pick in the draft as a form of consolation. He was interviewed a couple times by Pierre McGuire and jokingly kept repeating that he wanted to go last. It was hilarious.
It didn’t end there, though. The comedy and humility continued throughout the draft, with players poking fun at each other.
It then continued to the next day, in the Skills Competition. Ryan Johansen pleased the local crowd in Columbus when he broke out his Braxton Miller Ohio State jersey before dangling several times en route to a goal in the Breakaway Challenge.
Anyway, this weekend was quite an experience and one that I sure won’t forget, especially with aspirations of being a full-time hockey reporter.
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I’m leaving you with one quote from the best movie there is, Miracle. Kurt Russell, who played 1980 USA coach Herb Brooks, said “All-star teams fail because they rely solely on the individual talent.”
He was right.
It’s a sight to see when you can watch Alex Ovechkin pass to Steven Stamkos, who then scores on Robert Luongo. But in the end, the excitement comes from what surrounds NHL All-Star weekend itself.
Alex Busch is a senior studying sports management and journalism and is The Post’s assistant sports editor. Want to talk more hockey? Let him know @Alex_Busch91 or ab109410@ohio.edu
