Following last year’s debacle of a skills competition that flitted from event to event and was difficult to follow, the NHL has returned to a more bare-bones format that is more focused on the participating players and proper hockey talents. There are no events at external venues, but competitions to find the best player at a series of individual hockey skills — which is what the event is about in the first place.
How to watch
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
Venue: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario
In Canada: Sportsnet (English), TVA Sports (French)
In the U.S.: ESPN
Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
The change that has been made to the format is that only 12 players have been selected to compete in a tournament, using their results from the first six events (each of the 12 players has to do four of the six skills) to determine who moves on, Points will be awarded based on the results — five for first place down to one for fifth place — and the top eight will continue on to the next round.
Participants
Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks
Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
J.T. Miller, Vancouver Canucks
William Nylander; Toronto Maple Leafs
David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins
Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
Events
Fastest Skater
Five of the 12 players receive a timed lap around the rink in their direction of choice. The fastest player received five points toward the tournament standings.
Participants
Connor McDavid (event 1 of the required 4)
William Nylander (1/4)
Quinn Hughes (1/4)
Cale Makar (1/4)
Mathew Barzal (1/4)
One-Timers
Players have to take one-time shots and hit the net from sharp angles.
Participants
Elias Pettersson (1/4)
Nathan MacKinnon (1/4)
Leon Draisaitl (1/4)
Nikita Kucherov (1/4)
J.T. Miller (1/4)
Auston Matthews (1/4)
Mathew Barzal (2/4)
David Pastrnak (1/4)
Passing Challenge
Players try to hit small targets with passes from distance.
Participants
Nathan MacKinnon (2/4)
William Nylander (2/4)
Cale Makar (2/4)
Mathew Barzal (3/4)
J.T. Miller (2/4)
Nikita Kucherov (2/4)
Quinn Hughes (2/4)
Connor McDavid (2/4)
Elias Pettersson (2/4)
Auston Matthews (2/4)
Leon Draisaitl (2/4)
Hardest Shot
Players fire a puck as hard as they can into an empty net.
Participants
Auston Matthews (3/4)
Cale Makar (3/4)
David Pastrnak (2/4)
J.T. Miller (3/4)
Elias Pettersson (3/4)
Stick Handling
Players manoeuvre the puck along a set course.
Participants
Quinn Hughes (3/4)
Connor McDavid (3/4)
Elias Pettersson (4/4)
Nikita Kucherov (3/4)
Leon Draisaitl (3/4)
Nathan MacKinnon (3/4)
David Pastrnak (3/4)
Mathew Barzal (4/4)
William Nylander (3/4)
Accuracy Shooting
Players shoot at targets inside the net. The clock stops when all targets have been hit.
Participants
Nikita Kucherov (4/4)
Cale Makar (4/4)
Connor McDavid (4/4)
Quinn Hughes (4/4)
J.T. Miller (4/4)
David Pastrnak (4/4)
Nathan MacKinnon (4/4)
William Nylander (4/4)
Leon Draisaitl (4/4)
Auston Matthews (4/4)
One-on-One
The top eight point-getters from the opening six events advance to the seventh round. This round consists of breakaways against a goaltender of each player’s choosing. The goaltender who makes the most saves earns $100,000. This event is worth double points, with the player scoring the most goals earning 10 points.
Goaltenders
Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins
Alexandar Georgiev, Colorado Avalanche
Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
Sergei Bobrovsky, Florida Panthers
Cam Talbot, Los Angeles Kings
Igor Shesterkin, New York Rangers
Thatcher Demko, Vancouver Canucks
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
Obstacle Course
The top six scorers from events one throug seven advance to the final for the chance at $1 million. They will work their way through an obstacle course attempting to set the best time. Again, the points are worth double., and the player with the highest point total from all eight events will claim the prize.
