Sunrise, FL – what once started as a benefit for injured hockey players in need of financial assistance has evolved into a celebration of the fastest team sport in the world, a collection of the game’s brightest stars, showcasing their talents over a long weekend and a celebration of our great game.
It wasn’t long ago the league struggled to make the mid-season classic relevant, a worthwhile experience which once showed similarities to meaningful games, but drifted away from resembling the sport which many have embraced. Accepting this change is half the battle. For this writer, it took awhile to get comfortable with it.
I remember right at the drop of the puck drop in Columbus at the 2015 game where quiet came over the crowd, so much so you could hear the players on the ice from my seat in the first row of the upper deck. It became a yawner of a game with Team Toews defeating Team Foligno 17-12. The teams were assembled by way of a draft in a new and clever way to advance change and something which would garner a little more attention.
I was fortunate to witness several previous All-Star Games, St. Louis in 1988 with my good friend Mike Miano, and Chicago in 1991 with a former girlfiend, being the first two. Wow how things have changed.
In 1988, the host Blues held a dinner for the All Stars the night before on a Monday with the game the next night. It was the perfect match-up, Gretzky vs. Lemieux. The Magnificent One netted 3 goals, including the overtime winner, and 6 points to take MVP honors.
Three years later, the Iraq Gulf War broke out days before the hockey world descended upon Chicago Stadium. The game took on a patriotic tone and while there were several ancillary events around the Windy City, it was just a slight upgrade from the relatively obligatory mid-season showcase.
It wasn’t until 2015 when I was fortunate to attend my next All-Star Game in Columbus where the league arranged for appointed captains to select players from a pool of predetermined skaters and goalies in a live event. It was a nice change of pace from the previous arrangement, but the game was dull.
Four years later the defending Stanley Cup Champion Blues hosted the game in the Gateway City and it was nice to be in a city still riding a first-time high of having hoisted the chalice just seven months earlier.
There were a series of events leading up to the game, a fan festival inside and a number of new skill competitions embedded in the night before the game. You could tell then the league was trending toward making this far more of a celebration of the game and less about the tradition, hard-hitting competition we expect in the regular season and playoffs. The edge is taken off a little more than usual during this week.
Now in Florida, more improvements which include an expanded fan festival right on the shores of Fort Lauderdale, charity endeavors and social initiatives sprinkled in to bring awareness to this great game. More unique skill competitions which tie in the indigenous qualities of the host city while creating compelling reasons to watch on television. The NHL just keeps getting better at this.
The appeal is getting more widespread. Thursday when I spoke with fans at the Beach Festival who came from far and wide, dressed in their favorite team’s attire and soaking in the spectacular environment outside with perfect weather and a unique backdrop for a celebration of the game, there was unanimous excitement over just celebrating the game and experiencing it in new ways.
The red carpet event is scheduled for Friday afternoon as a lead up to the Skills Competition on Friday night at 7 PM ET while the 3-on-3 games, three of them, are set for Saturday afternoon at 3 PM ET.
Fast forward eight years later and the NHL All Star Game in Sunrise, Florida will be a celebration of the game, the expectations of a competition containing speed and scoring, but ultimately, fun, the game, the greatest on ice.
Dennis Morrell has enjoyed many years of experience in the great game as a hockey writer, photographer, goalie coach, player and currently active USA Hockey-certified referee with over 1,600 games in his striped jersey. His passion for the game began in the early 70s with his first glance at skaters in Clayton’s Shaw Park. He can be reached at dennis.morrell@prohockeynews.com and you can follow him on Twitter at DMMORRELL.
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