After a humorous All-Star player draft on Thursday and a thrilling night of All-Star skills on Friday, it’s time for the final event of 2024 NHL All-Star Weekend: the game(s)!
It’s a simple format: two semifinals of 3-on-3 hockey, followed by the winners of those games squaring off in the final. First up will be Team MacKinnon vs. Team McDavid at 3 p.m. ET, then Team Hughes vs. Team Matthews at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the championship game at 5 p.m. ET. All three games will be broadcast on ABC, and simulcast on ESPN+.
Before the games begin, which line combinations are we most excited to see? Which draft selections were the most questionable? And who will win it all?
What lineup trio are you most excited to see?
Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporter: Any combination from Team Hughes that features some mix of Quinn Hughes, Brock Boeser, Kyle Connor, J.T. Miller, Brady Tkachuk or Frank Vatrano. That amounts to six elite American players, and any one of those three who are on the ice further justifies what makes the United States look extremely promising in the buildup to the 2025 4 Nations tournament and the Olympics in 2026.
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Victoria Matiash, NHL analyst: If tossed together, give me Nikita Kucherov’s vision and playmaking abilities in harmony with Kyle Connor’s knack for putting the puck in the net, along with everything Brady Tkachuk does superbly, when others on Team Hughes are resting on the bench.
Arda Öcal, NHL broadcaster: Nathan MacKinnon-Sidney Crosby gives us the Nova Scotia connection, buddies who party at each other’s Stanley Cup celebrations back home over the summer, and two of the best players in history. Add a human highlight reel in Kirill Kaprizov — yeah, that’s a heck of a trio right there.
Kristen Shilton, NHL reporter: I’m feeling a David Pastrnak-Connor McDavid-Leon Draisaitl situation. It seemed like Team McDavid was the quieter group in Thursday’s draft, but their squad is sneaky good. And given the history between Draisaitl and…
Source link : https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/39445764/nhl-all-star-game-2024-lines-players-predictions-picks-teams
Author : ESPN staff
Publish date : 2024-02-03 12:06:43
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