Connor McDavid was instrumental in redesigning the NHL All-Star skills competition. He then dominated the new version.
The reigning and three-time MVP took home the $1 million prize as he once again showed why he is considered the best hockey player in the world. And he did it as a local hero in the arena where he grew up watching games, to the delight of his hometown crowd.
McDavid helped the league and union resolve the skills competition after thinking in previous years that it had become “a little gimmicky, a little out there.”
With his assist, it went back to basics, and the Edmonton Oilers captain shone the spotlight on him.
“I thought it was entertaining,” McDavid said. “I know from a competitive point of view it has definitely become competitive. I was huffing and puffing.
After helping improve the NHL’s skills challenge, Connor McDavid won the competition
McDavid, the captain of the Edmonton Oilers, took home a check for one million dollars
“The boys worked hard and tried to put on a good show. I feel like we’ve done that. I think we can feel good about it. Ultimately it’s up to the fans, and hopefully they enjoyed it.”
McDavid finished first among fastest skater, winning that event for the fourth time in his career and stick-handling, and he went 4 for 4 in accurate shooting.
“Obviously he exemplifies competitiveness on a daily basis, so I’m not surprised,” Oilers teammate Leon Draisaitl said.
Three players from the Western Conference rival Colorado Avalanche also put on a show. Nathan MacKinnon won the one-timers event, while Cale Makar had the hardest shot at 100.56 miles per hour. Goalkeeper Alexandar Georgiev made nine saves – on McDavid – in one-on-one and won $100,000.
“It’s a really fun challenge,” Georgiev said. “I love going against Connor. Congratulations to him. He’s amazing, so fun to watch.’
Prize money was one of the new aspects of the redesigned skills competition, which only featured twelve players, and needed to be streamlined and simplified.
“I think guys like it,” Draisaitl said. “I don’t know how it was received on TV, but I liked it.”
Fans cheered on Maple Leafs All-Stars Auston Matthews and William Nylander and booed Nikita Kucherov several times when they didn’t appreciate his lack of effort in passing and stick handling.
Avalanche players Nathan MacKinnon (L) and Cale Makar (R) won two of the competitions
Kucherov even waved to the crowd after finishing last in the stick-handling race – more than 44 seconds, well behind McDavid’s winning time of 25.755 seconds and slower than David Pastrnak, who just missed out.
“You sit there for about three hours and then you get to work,” Kucherov said. “That was quite tough.”
Unsurprisingly, Kucherov was one of four players eliminated after the first six events. The Tampa Bay Lightning winger and 2019 MVP enjoyed being booed.
They also cheered on McDavid, a resident of Richmond Hill in suburban Toronto who advocated for the Leafs as a child.
“Toronto fans have always shown a lot of love for me when I’ve been in town, and that means a lot,” McDavid said. ‘The building means a lot. The fans have always treated me very well and it means a lot to hear them cheering.”
Connor Bedard, the Chicago Blackhawks’ top draft pick and frontrunner for NHL rookie of the year before breaking his jaw on January 5, made a surprise appearance as a passer for the one-timers event, along with Sidney Crosby, the player that he grew up with. Bedard was chosen to participate before the injury.
“You feel for him,” said McDavid, who like Crosby, Bedard and MacKinnon was a No. 1 pick. “I’m sure he wishes he could participate in some events.
“It was great to see him on the ice and looking healthy and looking like he’s close to coming back.”
McDavid, a Toronto-area native, greeted the crowd in an All-Star homecoming of sorts
Leafs alumni Doug Gilmour and Steve Thomas and Toronto Professional Women’s Hockey League players and Canadian Olympians Sarah Nurse and Blayre Turnbull served as passers in accurate shooting.
Nurse and Turnbull were among the players who took part in the PWHL 3-on-3 showcase on Thursday night.
On Friday evening, Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly presented McDavid with a large novelty check. He gets real money, and the modest 27-year-old said he hadn’t thought much about how he would spend it.
“I’ll have some teammates at home who will be very interested in what I do with it, but I’ll have to try to figure it out,” McDavid said.