Does anyone care at all about the All Star game?

[yave1964]

  The All Star Weekend will be in Columbus at Nationwide Arena this coming January 24th and 25th. It is a bit less than an hour from my home.

 

  My wife asked me if i would like tickets to the All Star game this year, i told her no. Frankly, it is boring, a 13-11 squeeker usually resembling Hockey as much as it resembles marbles. I have zero interest in going and seeing the game, AT ALL.

 

 Two years ago the Jackets were supposed to host but the lockout ended that. The wife and I were signed up on the volunteer list to work during the skills competition which i truly believe would have been a blast. This year we were late signing up, they had more volunteers than they needed. She also asked me if i wanted her to pick us up tickets to the skills competition and i told her no, i lie the competition but i feel it is one of those things that will be much better on TV. My almost 13 year old daughter who has zero taste an roots for the Jackets, even going so far as to taunt me when they play my Wings, is exasperated, she wants to go and I simply have no interest.

 

  The one thing i wish i had made i to, a few years ago olumbus hosted the NHL draft and i didn't go, God i wish i had. I turn 50 this month and i would have still been running from table to table getting autographs from the old geezers, no need to go around the kids, lol. If i ever get another chance to go to the draft, damn skippy I am going.

 

  So yeah, the All Star weekend. I will watch the skills competition, i shamefacedly admit i enjoy watching the players cut up and laugh and joke and watch as Weber or someone tries to unseat Chara as the hardest shot. And i love to see what stupid silly thing Patrick Kane is going to do. Is he going to wear a cape and Clark Kent Glasses again or is he going to go into the stands and rob a beer vendor?

 

 But the game itself, nah. I have things I am doing that day. Like watching paint dry or snails race. Much more entertaining.

[nossagog]

I'll watch the skills competitions, but I have no interest in watching the All Star Game.  Its a game that you aren't allowed to play defense in, so its not really fun to watch. 

[yave1964]

I'll watch the skills competitions, but I have no interest in watching the All Star Game.  Its a game that you aren't allowed to play defense in, so its not really fun to watch. 

I put this on here for you, i agree, the All star game is usually about as much fun as visiting with my brother in law and hearing him brag about his kids.

[ruxpin]

No interest in the all star game whatsoever. I'd rather watch Bob Villa broadcast in Portuguese

[JR Ewing]

I haven't watched the All-Star game since it was played in Edmonton and I attended: 1989. I just didn't find it interesting. But, then the Skills Competition came, and I thought that was pretty good.........

For a few years. But honestly, I find that pretty boring now, and I haven't watched for 7 or 8 years. For me, the All-Star is just that: a break from NHL hockey.

[hf101]

I think the availability and the ease of watching every team, favorite players throughout the NHL has really changed the dynamic in the All Star Game for the fans.  For the home town fans sure it is a chance to maybe meet and get autographs with your favorite players.  And I can see why families would try to bring kids to the game and surrounding events.

 

I think the parity and increased talent level throughout the NHL has made All Star Game irrelevant for a fan maybe hoping to watch some awesome play by the best skilled players as they now get that on a nightly basis flipping channels or via highlights.

 

The game itself has no meaning especially as a East vs West game to the league as far as who wins or loses and the fans pick up that as well.  

 

Maybe if the winner of the All Star Game has home ice advantage for the Stanley Cup --  ok there is then a reason to try to win and maybe a bit more interest to watch.  

[ruxpin]

Maybe if the winner of the All Star Game has home ice advantage for the Stanley Cup --  ok there is then a reason to try to win and maybe a bit more interest to watch.  

 

Maybe.  Although I have to admit, their doing it in baseball has not helped for me.  Just as an aside, quickly, the MLB All-Star game was fun for me back in the day when each league had a president and that meant something. And players didn't move around so much, so there truly was an AL vs. NL feel to it and some bragging rights.

 

Now, it's all blurred together because of player movement, lack of separation of the leagues, and interleague play.  But it is still largely batter vs. pitcher and nothing really changes from a regular season game (other than it has no bearing on standings.  The home-field in the WS tries to compensate for this, but it's hardly an immediate bonus for most fans for whom the World Series is still months away and who knows if "your" team is going to be there for it to matter).

 

For hockey, I completely get the home town fans thing.  But the game itself is so neutered.  And I still don't want MY team's player injured "really trying" to get the win so the conference has home ice.  It doesn't matter ultimately for a Pens' fan, for example, if the East has home ice if they've lost Crosby in the AS game and they have little to no hope of getting that far as a result.

 

The East vs. West format works better for me as a somewhat parochial Flyers' fan than, say, the old NA vs. the World format because I don't end up with Flyers on both teams and not being sure who I'm cheering for (not that this would be a problem THIS year). 

 

We were asked recently "what is hockey to you."   I think the better answer than what I gave is that hockey at least starts with emotion.  I know people like to see skill and all that, but when it is devoid of emotion and meaning, it is an empty exercise for me no matter how many pretty passes or dekes or whatever there are.  And short of this, the all star game--for me--is just an intramural backyard game.  Maybe fun to be IN but not really very entertaining to watch.

 

I don't imagine there's anyway to really know this, but I wonder how many players who aren't in it actually watch.

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

All Star Break is just that...a break, as was mentioned.

I go with that.

 

Dont' care for the actual all star game itself, except in a whimiscal "oh, let's see who is lined up with whom" type of way...but really, the outcome, the ebb and flow...none of that matters as players are out there skating and shooting..and well, that's about it.

 

Can't blame them. No one wants to get hurt in a meaningless game after all....particularly when many of those all star players are on teams with legit shots at making the Stanley Cup playoffs and possibly the Cup itself.

 

Skills competition, that is another story.

To me, very interesting.

You get to see your favorite (or non favorites....whatever the case may be) just let loose, have fun and do things outside the norm.

It's just pure entertainment for me.

I honestly don't even really care who wins any given skills competition, but they are fun to watch, and to me anyways, are a bit more legitimate than the actual ASG, simply because those guys are really trying to win those skills competitions....no one can really get hurt in them, so why not go all out?

Unlike the actual game...

 

Anyways, ASG....don't care much for it. I may peek in on it, I will watch skills competitions, but in the end, the All Star Break is just a lull in the NHL season...which can be a good or bad thing for a given team depending on their situations:

Teams with ailing players or tired out from their schedules welcome it...those who are red hot, relatively well rested, or otherwise "in the zone" abhor it.

 

Would I go to an all star game if I could?

Probably would.

Why?

Simply because I have never been to one. The novelty alone would push me to go to one.

After I've been to one, maybe two though, I may find myself declining them, as the OP did.

Fair enough, and quite understandable.

[ihabs1993]

Unpopular opinion: I love All-Star Weekend. I love it. Not because it's high-skilled hockey, or as some have suggested, even hockey at all. I love it because the players unwind and have fun. I love it when PK Subban puts on Jeff Skinner's jersey to appeal to the home team. I love it when Ovechkin and Kane use props in the shootout challenge. I love it when Carey Price does the Tebow and wears a mic while defending an unpredictable 2 on 1. I love the draft (and if they get rid of that, I'll be heartbroken). It's just a fun game to watch. So what if they're going at half speed? It's the personality of the game, not the skill level. If it were about skill level, there wouldn't be a fan vote. PK Subban is so well like in Montreal that he led the vote for a while, but Latvian prince Zegmus Girgensons has passed him in the voting. It's about the atmosphere and the fun of the event.

[jammer2]

  At the risk of sounding redundant, the NHL "really" needs to go the MLB route with the all star game. East vs West and the winning team gets home ice advantage in the Stanley Cup Finals. Allow and encourage hitting, make it as raw and savage as possible. Screw the possible injury scenario's....let them play....let blood flow.

[ruxpin]

Personality. Put them in clown suits and on tricycles and have them juggle pucks and beer bottles.

Call me when hockey resumes.

[J0e Th0rnton]

When I was a kid? Yes

We loved skills competitions and such when playing road hockey and it was a good old time watching the players.

Now? Absolutely not

[WingNut722]

I will join @ihabs1993 in the HF doghouse and say I love the All-Star Weekend as well.  

 

@TropicalFruitGirl26 is right in that it is just that...a break.  It's a chance for the players to take a break from the grueling "job" of playing hockey in the NHL and actually PLAY hockey and have some fun doing it.  No stakes, no pressure, just a reminder of why they play this game in the first place.  

 

Sure it's a publicity stunt, and a way to make a few extra dollars for the NHL, NBC, and the hosting venue, but if you stop looking for "world class play" for one minute, you may notice that they're all smiling.  They bring their families, they put on hats and capes and sunglasses and score penalty shots with tiny sticks, or somebody else's stick, or God knows what else.  They get to be people...real people...for just a couple of days.  

 

For that reason I support and watch the All-Star weekend.

[ihabs1993]

I will join @ihabs1993 in the HF doghouse and say I love the All-Star Weekend as well.  

 

@TropicalFruitGirl26 is right in that it is just that...a break.  It's a chance for the players to take a break from the grueling "job" of playing hockey in the NHL and actually PLAY hockey and have some fun doing it.  No stakes, no pressure, just a reminder of why they play this game in the first place.  

 

Sure it's a publicity stunt, and a way to make a few extra dollars for the NHL, NBC, and the hosting venue, but if you stop looking for "world class play" for one minute, you may notice that they're all smiling.  They bring their families, they put on hats and capes and sunglasses and score penalty shots with tiny sticks, or somebody else's stick, or God knows what else.  They get to be people...real people...for just a couple of days.  

 

For that reason I support and watch the All-Star weekend.

Exactly! It's like watching them play pond hockey all over again and they get to be kids again. You don't see a ton of smiles during regular season games, but during the All-Star weekend, the players are all smiles. It's fun to see and I think it recharges the players whether or not they actually play in the game.

[ruxpin]

No doghouse.  @ihabs1993 I'm sorry I responded negatively to your post.  I would think you guys have to be in the majority or they wouldn't spend as much effort as they do on it and it wouldn't get televised.

 

I really enjoyed it as a kid, although to be honest (70s-80s) I don't think I remember the skills competition part of it.  That part is kind of fun for me with them all mic'd up and goofing off.  It kind of makes you remember they're human.  It's easy sometimes to boil them down to a uniform, logo, and number.  So that part's cool.  For whatever reason, it hasn't been "Must-See-TV" for me in some time.

 

To be honest, though, the regular games themselves are no longer as must-see for me as they used to be.  I like to blame it on the rule-changes, etc., but most likely it's just aging and kids and all the other nonsense that goes with that.

 

Absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying any of it.  That's what it's there for. 

[Podein25]

It's easy sometimes to boil them down to a uniform, logo, and number. 

 

 

It would be nice to boil a few players down to glue.

 

RJ Glueberger

[ihabs1993]

It kind of makes you remember they're human.

No offense taken! Everyone is entitled to their opinion and this seems to be a topic that people feel very strongly one way or the other. What you said about their humanity is the exact reason that I would be devastated if we lost the all-star game. It's a nice break for the players and for the fans who can put their differences aside to watch exhibition hockey.

[WordsOfWisdom]

  The All Star Weekend will be in Columbus at Nationwide Arena this coming January 24th and 25th. It is a bit less than an hour from my home.

 

  My wife asked me if i would like tickets to the All Star game this year, i told her no. Frankly, it is boring, a 13-11 squeeker usually resembling Hockey as much as it resembles marbles. I have zero interest in going and seeing the game, AT ALL.

 

Agreed. The all-star game hasn't been interesting to me since I was 16. Even the skills competition has become so much of a gimmick that I haven't watched it in over a decade.

 

What saddens me is that the all-star game used to be good. The skills competition (when it was first introduced) was intriguing. But it's like the league can't resist milking something for all it's worth until it's ruined. The skills competition today is like the 5th Batman movie with Mr. Freeze: everything about it is too much. Can't take it seriously and it's not funny as a comedy.

 

So long story short, I won't ever be watching an NHL all-star game or skills competition again. It has absolutely no appeal to me.

[flyercanuck]

Agreed. The all-star game hasn't been interesting to me since I was 16. Even the skills competition has become so much of a gimmick that I haven't watched it in over a decade.

 

What saddens me is that the all-star game used to be good. The skills competition (when it was first introduced) was intriguing. But it's like the league can't resist milking something for all it's worth until it's ruined. The skills competition today is like the 5th Batman movie with Mr. Freeze: everything about it is too much. Can't take it seriously and it's not funny as a comedy.

 

So long story short, I won't ever be watching an NHL all-star game or skills competition again. It has absolutely no appeal to me.

 

 

Sadly I feel the same way about the outdoor game. They took something that was kind of special and made it not.

[WordsOfWisdom]

Sadly I feel the same way about the outdoor game. They took something that was kind of special and made it not.

 

Yep. The NHL has killed the golden goose on that one. All they ever see is dollar bills (short term) and don't have any forsight or long term thinking behind it. One outdoor game per season (at the absolute most) has some appeal, but this is crazy.

 

Same thing happened to the skills competition. They started with the basics (fastest skater, shot power, accuracy, goaltending) and it was just fine. Then they started having goalies race and having players do trick shots on breakaways (as if this were a slam dunk contest) and that was it for me. It lost all credibility.

[JagerMeister]

I just hope that Dany heatley and Jagr get in just for shits and giggles

[WordsOfWisdom]

I just hope that Dany heatley and Jagr get in just for shits and giggles

 

Do you think Jagr will catch Ron Francis in points? It's getting close.

[JagerMeister]

Do you think Jagr will catch Ron Francis in points? It's getting close.

Its very possible for him not to, he hasnt been playing too well in NJD and his ppg pace has been going down everygame, But he could get there. Then maybe play another 10 years to catch up to Messier 

[WordsOfWisdom]

Its very possible for him not to, he hasnt been playing too well in NJD and his ppg pace has been going down everygame, But he could get there. Then maybe play another 10 years to catch up to Messier 

 

It's hard to believe that Ron Francis was the #2 centre in Pittsburgh. That's the kind of talent the Penguins had in the 1990's. The Leafs have never had a #1 centre as good as Francis.

[JagerMeister]

It's hard to believe that Ron Francis was the #2 centre in Pittsburgh. That's the kind of talent the Penguins had in the 1990's. The Leafs have never had a #1 centre as good as Francis.

Mats sundin is the most comparable player to francis in terms of stats. But francis played 1700 games and somehow still managed to stay a ppg