38 replies to this topic

[GMRwings1983]

Seems like the enthusiasm for this game wanes every year. For me personally, I used to love the ASG when I was a kid, but now it’s become too repetitive and boring. Maybe a lot of it has to do with the shootout, simply because 10 or 15 years ago, the skills competition was the only place where you could see star players taking staged penalty shot situations. Now it happens all the time because of the shootout.

Also, maybe these are just my impressions, but it appears that star players miss this game more frequently now than they used to. This year especially, about half of what I deem the 10 best players in hockey aren’t even in this game. And the older guys who have played in many ASG don’t seem as excited to go back there nowadays than in the past. For instance, guys like Lidstrom and Selanne are healthy but decided to skip the game.

So what are your opinions on the game and the skills contest? Should the league scrap the whole thing? Should they go back to a North America vs. The World format? Does the skills competition need improvement? Should they have an annual Canada vs. United States game instead of the ASG? Should they make the game have meaning somehow? Or would you keep it the way it is?

[VM1138]

I think it's just that we're not kids anymore. It's a lot of fun seeing superstars playing together when you're a kid. But now there are international competitions, Olympics, etc. And the game is not a real game. Too many people are too busy to watch a game that doesn't matter or in which the players don't take it seriously. It's not that the game is decaying, just that it's no longer enough to entertain a lot of us.

[GMRwings1983]

I think it's just that we're not kids anymore. It's a lot of fun seeing superstars playing together when you're a kid. But now there are international competitions, Olympics, etc. And the game is not a real game. Too many people are too busy to watch a game that doesn't matter or in which the players don't take it seriously. It's not that the game is decaying, just that it's no longer enough to entertain a lot of us.

So is there a way to make it matter?

In MLB, winning the ASG means home field advantage for that league in the World Series. I think that's pushing it too far and its ridiculous, but it seems to have worked and players take that game seriously.

Can't the NHL come up with something to make players care about the game more?

[T-Ruff]

Yeah, the All-Star game has always been for kids and sponsors.. I care about it less now and I believe it's simply because I'm not a kid anymore.

I think they need to loosen up a bit to make it more exciting... I hate when the linesman calls a close offside in an All-Star game. What's the point? Just let them play pond hockey.

I read an idea on another forum that they could breathe life into the All Star fantasy draft by running a sweepstakes for two lucky fans to be the ones who make the draft selections, it would get rid of the staleness of Alfredsson taking all his teammates and Swedes etc. The two winners also get to set the lines that the coach works with, and perhaps stand behind the bench for the game because why not.

[Bring Back The Bruise Bros]

I used to love watching the All-Star game as a kid. It is the same thing every year, it seems. To be brutally honest, I don't even know who made the All-Star game. Neither do I know what the team matchups are. No way I'm watching it. Not sure what to do about fixing it, but I'm just not interested in it at all anymore.

[T.Low]

It is what it is. It's a Dog and Pony show. I'm not sure it can be improved. And so what.

I really like the fantasy draft angle, and it's a formula that really can't get old because you never know what you will get from year to year. I actually think it's great that Chara didn't want any Canucklelheads and Alfie got all the Swedes, that's great fodder for a good pissing contest. And imagine if Crosby and Malkin are captains next year, or Datsuk and Lidstrom, or Henrik and Daniel Sedin had to pick against eachother, that's fun stuff.

It will start slow like always and then as the game goes on they get more competitive. I will record the game and watch at a convenient time, but really only to see Datsyuk.

I really enjoyed seeing Lidstrom and Weber be a combined plus 15 or whatever it was last year.

Out of all the sports all star games, it's by far the best.

Edited by T.Low, 28 January 2012 - 12:42 AM.

[MabusIncarnate]

I'm much more attracted to the skills competition personally, I really haven't watched more than a period of an all-star game in a few years. I think with the recent addition of the Winter Classic it's suffering even more because the Classic does matter and counts as a regular season game, and there's a genuine excitement from the players and they go at it hard. Look at how many hits were in the Flyers/Rangers game this year, it was like a playoff game. With this event now taking place annually, i'm not sure there really is a need for an all-star game altogether. I prefer the Winter Classic much more as an overall NHL event.

[wings87]

Play the game at the end of the year when players won't be as scared of full contact. Yes I know it's a pipe dream, owners would never allow that and players would still be afraid of injury. But hey I can dream.

[dat's sick]

First of all there needs to be more prestige about being picked to go to the game. The fans should have very little or no say in this since they ruin it, they made it better this year but still look at what players they voted for; Phaneuf and Karlsson were the top D-men and Michalek was ahead of Datsyuk and Malkin. I'm not sure there's a foolproof way of ensuring no one declines like Ovie, Lidstrom etc. but I believe the All-Star spots were voted on just like the Hart/Norris/Selke/etc. trophies are it would be one step on the way. The # of All-star games you've been to should be something to be proud of, but it's not if the fans of one or two teams skew the voting in their favor.

Now, the Draft is imo a GREAT idea. I wish the players didn't have to be so politically correct about everything, but still, it's fun. However, I think it could be improved upon a lot. Since the goalies are kinda useless and are just 'filler' picks, I'd think it'd be kinda cool if they were the ones picking the teams. Like, 'what team do you want in front of you in the game?'. That would leave all the skaters for the actual draft, so some of the most interesting guys aren't already tied up as Captains or Assistant Captains.
Or what if you got retired players, preferably Hall Of Famers, to pick the teams? Basically I think the Draft NEEDS to stay but there is a lot of potential there to make it better.

The skills competition is very fun imo. The addition of the Relay is awesome. I'm sure there are ways it could be done even better but I've got no real ideas right now.

There is no way you're gonna get the game to be as intense as a real game. No one wants to get injured in the All-Star game. And one part of the fun IS to see guys get to show off.

Bottom line: it's hard to *fix* the ASG. It is what it is. And I don't think there's that much wrong with that.

[RusDRW]

Use Eastern/Western format and let them play for home ice advantage in SCF. Schedule the game a bit earlier in the seasons (e.g. Christmas time) such that all the players are interested. It is THAT simple. Still we will not see it.

[FifeHockeyNut]

Use Eastern/Western format and let them play for home ice advantage in SCF. Schedule the game a bit earlier in the seasons (e.g. Christmas time) such that all the players are interested. It is THAT simple. Still we will not see it.

Think the system we have for playoffs works fine and makes for a more interesting season. I see no reason for restructuring our playoff qualification system in order to make an exhibition game more interesting.

[Detroit40oz]

Think the system we have for playoffs works fine and makes for a more interesting season. I see no reason for restructuring our playoff qualification system in order to make an exhibition game more interesting.

It wouldn't restructure how teams qualify for the playoffs, it would only determine what conference has home ice advantage in the finals.

[FifeHockeyNut]

It wouldn't restructure how teams qualify for the playoffs, it would only determine what conference has home ice advantage in the finals.

I understood that, but surely the overall standings are a better way of deciding which conference winner gets home ice?

[Wing Across The Pond]

Two ideas, one speculative and a bit unfair, but would balance itself out and would make players more interested. The other idea purely to increase fan interest.

1) Make the host city play their team against the leagues best: Ottawa vs NHL All Stars. Next year in New York, say, New York Rangers vs NHL All Stars. Unfair on the home team as they have to play an extra game in the year, plus it means less good teams would get pummled, but it'd be more exciting to see a good team play the league's best. Or how about the Stanley Cup winner (so therefore with a pretty good team to begin with), vs the all stars? Boston vs. NHL All Stars is a game I'd watch. Would make the players work harder to get one over on the champions, or to show that they really are the league's best. Just a though but as I said, unfair.

2) Make the tickets all $10. It's not as though the game is needed to keep the league afloat financially. Why not give something back to the fans who want to see it?

[dat's sick]

I understood that, but surely the overall standings are a better way of deciding which conference winner gets home ice?

Yes, the President Trophy winner should have home-ice. If the All-Star game decided home-ice in the SCF it'd be the stupidest thing ever. I can't imagine all the bitching it would lead to.

Imagine The Wings come 1st in the league, 5-10 points ahead of the best Eastern team. Still that team gets home ice because of an exhibition game played 6 months earlier between vastly different players? How would you even go about making the teams evenly matched enough for it to be a fair matchup?

No, you're looking way too hard at a way to give the game meaning if you want that to happen. The ASG doesn't NEED to be a game of critical importantance where the players give their all and risk injury. If you can get the players to care atleast a little bit about winning, great, but not at the cost of ruining other aspects of the league.

[cusimano_brothers]

At one time, the All-Star Game saw the defending Stanley Cup Champions playing a team of All-Stars. Something is wrong when one of the League's "showcase" events has to rely on player's tweets to stir up interest. There is a subtle difference between a circus and a carnival.

[rage]

i would fix the allstar game this way,

lidstrom vs the east/west, lidstrom will then score 19 goals to smear the east/west team. game over. and i took a ten thousand dollar loan out and picked lidstrom. then i win some money and me and lidstrom hang out and then my life would rock forever.

[robb himself]

I do not really care about the actual All Star game...

As for the Skills Competition, If it were me, I would have each team send one player from their roster to represent them for every skills competition event.

for example example:

Fastest Skater : Darren Helm
Break Away Challenge : Pavel Datsyuk
Hardest Shot : Nick Lidstrom
Shooting Accuracy : Henrik Zetterberg
Elimination Shootout : Todd Bertuzzi
Skills Challenge Relay :(made up of players selected for the other events)
Goaltenders : perhaps the top 6 goalies in the NHL in wins? something like that.

if they did this they could have as many heats as they needed to truly discover which team has the best in each category.

also the league could select 2 Captains out of all the players selected to compete in the Skills Competition and they could draft their teams from the 150 players sent or something like that.

This is just my opinion...

[GMRwings1983]

Yes, the President Trophy winner should have home-ice. If the All-Star game decided home-ice in the SCF it'd be the stupidest thing ever. I can't imagine all the bitching it would lead to.

Imagine The Wings come 1st in the league, 5-10 points ahead of the best Eastern team. Still that team gets home ice because of an exhibition game played 6 months earlier between vastly different players? How would you even go about making the teams evenly matched enough for it to be a fair matchup?

No, you're looking way too hard at a way to give the game meaning if you want that to happen. The ASG doesn't NEED to be a game of critical importantance where the players give their all and risk injury. If you can get the players to care atleast a little bit about winning, great, but not at the cost of ruining other aspects of the league.

Believe it or not, that's what they started doing here with baseball several years ago.

There was a lot of bitching at first, but it seems to have died down. I still think it's crazy.

[haroldsnepsts]

Believe it or not, that's what they started doing here with baseball several years ago.

There was a lot of bitching at first, but it seems to have died down. I still think it's crazy.

And it's just another reason I don't follow baseball.

It would be insane to have the All Star game decide anything like that. And the biggest fear is Bettman is crazy enough to do something like that.