The world’s best hockey players are heading to Toronto for the 2024 NHL All-Star Weekend and fans will have the opportunity to be a part of the action all weekend long. From Feb. 1st to 4th, action-packed celebrations and festivities will take place across the city, destined to fulfill a bucket list item for every hockey enthusiast.
NHL All-Star Thursday
The weekend kicks off with the new NHL All-Star Thursday which will include a plethora of events happening at Scotiabank Arena.
The evening kicks off with the player draft, as the four team captains – Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and co-captains Jack and Quinn Hughes – along with celebrity captains, will draft their teams from the pool of all-stars.
From there, the night continues with a ceremony commemorating the NHL Alumni Keith Magnuson Man of the Year, which will also celebrate the 1967 Stanley Cup-winning Toronto Maple Leafs.
Day one of the weekend concludes with the PWHL 3-on-3 Showcase as top players from the Professional Women’s Hockey League, the new women’s hockey league in North America, will showcase themselves and promote the women’s game.
NHL All-Star Skills Competition
The celebration continues Friday with the newly revamped NHL All-Star Skills Competition.
12 NHL All-Stars; David Pastrnak (Bruins), Nathan MacKinnon (Avalanche), Cale Makar (Avalanche), Leon Draisaitl (Oilers), Connor McDavid (Oilers), Jack Hughes (Devils), Nikita Kucherov (Lightning), Auston Matthews (Maple Leafs), William Nylander (Maple Leafs), Quinn Hughes (Canucks) and J.T. Miller (Canucks) will compete in eight events.
The events include the fastest skater, hardest shot, passing challenge, one-timers, stick handling and accuracy shooting with the top eight advancing to the seventh challenge, one-on-one shootouts against a goalie of their choosing, before the top six compete in the final challenge of the night: an obstacle course.
The winner of the competition will earn the $1 million prize.
NHL All-Star Game
The excitement from Friday’s skills challenge will carry into Saturday afternoon when the four drafted teams will compete head-to-head looking to earn All-Star Game supremacy.
The game is split into three “mini-games” of 20 minutes, comprised of two 10-minute periods, as each of the four teams will compete in the semifinals with the two winners advancing to the finals.
Each game is played 3-on-3 and is destined to produce an assortment of wild and wacky skills, nifty stickhandling, pretty passing and most importantly, highlight-reel goals.
Will Auston Matthews’ team, with co-captain Morgan Rielly and celebrity captain Justin Bieber, be crowned champions or will one of the other three teams spoil the hometown squad?
NHL Fan Fair
All weekend long from Thursday to Sunday, the Metro Toronto Convention Centre will be altered into a hockey sanctuary, hosting interactive games, NHL mascots, all-stars, Hall of Famers and the coveted Stanley Cup for all fans to enjoy.
This once-in-a-lifetime experience will bring hockey fanatics deeper into their love of the game as they may get the chance to see their favourite player up -close and personal.
The Fan Fair runs from 2 – 9 p.m on Thursday, 1 – 10 p.m on Friday, 10 – 6 p.m on Saturday and 11 – 4 p.m on Sunday, and you won’t want to miss it!
For more information on NHL All-Star Weekend, head to nhl.com.
