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Beach Bummin’ in Skates: All-Star Game Recap, Highlights, and 3 Stars

By Jason Costa |
Clayton Keller is the top fantasy player on the Arizona Coyotes. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Clayton Keller is the top fantasy player on the Arizona Coyotes. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Three-on-three hockey with no defense? A real-life version of a game of NHL 23 played out Saturday at the All-Star game in Sunrise, Florida. Three matchups took place all of which were no defense, high-scoring affairs, over two halves rather than the traditional three periods. We recap the scoring, break down some highlights (mainly the strong showing by the Coyotes’ own 3x All-Star Clayton Keller), and pick our own three stars of the day. Video highlights can also be seen in the links below.

Game 1: Pacific Division vs. Central Division

The first All-Star matchup had the Pacific Division square off against the Central Division. In the lowest-scoring affair of the day, the Central took out the Pacific 6-4.

Scoring Recap:

1.       1-0 Central

  • Nathan MacKinnon (3:15); assisted by Mikko Rantanen

2.       1-1 Tie

  • Connor McDavid (3:48); assisted by Erik Karlsson

3.       2-1 Central

  • Seth Jones (6:52); assisted by Vladimir Tarasenko

4.       2-2 Tie

  • Elias Pettersson (7:55); assisted by Bo Horvat and Kevin Fiala

5.       3-2 Central

  • Nathan MacKinnon (8:38); assisted by Mikko Rantanen and Cale Makar

6.       4-2 Central

  • Clayton Keller (0:18); assisted by Vladimir Rarasenko and Seth Jones

7.       5-2 Central

  • Vladimir Tarasenko (5:32); assisted by Clayton Keller and Juuse Saros

8.       5-3 Central

  • Elias Pettersson (6:22); assisted by Kevin Fiala and Stuart Skinner

9.       5-4 Central

  • Erik Karlsson (7:27); assisted by Leon Draisaitl

10.   6-4 Central

  • Clayton Keller (8:07); assisted by Seth Jones and Vladimir Tarasenko

Final: 6-4 Central

Highlights:

  • Bo Horvat was introduced and played for the Pacific Division with the Islanders logo on his jersey due to the trade.
  • A goal prior to the second score was waived off due to an offside…. from a coach’s challenge…in the All-Star game.
  • Keller’s first goal was right in front of the net on a pass from Tarasenko. He puts a nice move on in front of the crease and flips it over the glove hand of the goalie.
  • Keller’s assist on the very next goal by Tarasenko was fun to watch. Keller gets the rebound off his goalie and leads the breakout, taking it end-to-end. He then dishes the puck on a pass to Tarasenko who buries a one-timer.
  • Keller scores the final goal of the game set up on a pass by Seth Jones.

Game 2: Metropolitan Division vs. Atlantic Division

The highest-scoring match of the day pitted the Metro and the Atlantic All-Stars against one another with some interesting moments throughout. In a moment of fantasy hockey come to life, we saw Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin team up for multiple scores.

Scoring Recap:

1.       1-0 Atlantic

  • Matthew Tkachuk (0:36); assisted by Aleksander Barkov and Brady Tkachuk

2.       2-0 Atlantic

  •  Dylan Larkin (4:08); assisted by Matthew Tkachuk and Brady Tkachuk

3.       2-1 Atlantic

  • Johnny Gaudreau (5:20); assisted by Artemi Panarin

4.       2-2 Tie

  • Johnny Gaudreau (5:40); assisted by Artemi Panarin and Kevin Hayes

5.       3-2 Metro

  • Sidney Crosby (6:19); assisted by Alexander Ovechkin

6.       3-3 Tie

  • Brady Tkachuk (6:59); assisted by Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov

7.       4-3 Atlantic

  • Nick Suzuki (7:55); assisted by Mitch Marner and Linus Ullmark

8.       4-4 Tie

  • Johnny Gaudreau (0:25); assisted by Artemi Panarin and Kevin Hayes

9.       5-4 Metro

  • Sidney Crosby (1:58); assisted by Alexander Ovechkin

10.   6-4 Metro

  • Alexander Ovechkin (2:21); assisted by Adam Fox and Sidney Crosby

11.   6-5 Metro

  • Matthew Tkachuk (3:49); assisted by Mitch Marner and Dylan Larkin

12.   6-6 Tie

  • Nikita Kucherov (4:31); assisted by Mitch Marner

13.   7-6 Atlantic

  • Nick Suzuki (5:51); assisted by David Pastrnak and Rasmus Dahlin

14.   8-6 Atlantic

  • Matthew Tkachuk (6:49); assisted by Aleksander Barkov and Brady Tkachuk

15.   9-6 Atlantic

  • Dylan Larkin (9:00); unassisted (empty-net goal)

16.   10-6 Atlantic

  • David Pastrnak (9:47) unassisted

Final: 10-6 Atlantic

Highlights:

  • The Tkachuk brothers teamed up on four different scoring plays. I can only imagine what it must have been like playing against the two of them growing up.
  • Linus Ullmark almost made an incredible save on Gaudreau’s second goal. He swept post to post and almost snatched it. The puck hit off the glove and went in, however.
  • Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk both ended up with hat tricks in the game.
  • Crosby stole a pass from goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy which he passed to Ovi. They then ping-ponged back and forth for a Crosby to Ovi to Crosby goal.
  • The final goal of the game came on a breakaway by David Pastrnak. He stole the puck from Ovi and a hilarious moment ensued. Ovi in an all-out defensive effort throws his stick across the ice to stop the breakaway. Somehow it fails and Pastrnak goes in for the score.

Final Game: Central Division vs. Atlantic

Here we go, the final match of the night. Anxiety riding high and tension in the air for division supremacy, the Central and the Atlantic’s best lined up (dramatic music added for emphasis).

Scoring Recap:

1.       1-0 Atlantic

  • Matthew Tkachuk (0:37); assisted by (surprise) Brady Tkachuk

2.       2-0 Atlantic

  • Nikita Kucherov (4:05); assisted by Mitch Marner and Matthew Tkachuk

3.       3-0 Atlantic

  • Dylan Larkin (9:17); assisted by Mitch Marner

4.       4-0 Atlantic

  • Dylan Larkin (2:03); assisted by Mitch Marner and Nikita Kucherov

5.       4-1 Atlantic

  • Mikko Rantanen (4:09); assisted by Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar

6.       5-1 Atlantic

  • David Pastrnak (7:14); unassisted

7.       5-2 Atlantic

  • Jason Robertson (8:47); assisted by Josh Morrissey

8.       6-2 Atlantic

  • Dylan Larkin (8:54); unassisted

9.       6-3 Atlantic

  • Clayton Keller (9:07) unassisted

10.   7-3 Atlantic

  • Rasmus Dahlin (9:24); assisted by Aleksander Barkov

11.   7-4 Atlantic

  • Nathan MacKinnon (9:39); assisted by Cale Makar

12.   7-5 Atlantic

  • Cale Makar (9:52); assisted by Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon

Final: 7-5 Atlantic

Highlights:

  • Dylan Larkin ends the night with 5 goals between the two games.
  • Clayton Keller hits another goal to finish the night with a hat trick. It was great to see a strong effort and how well he represented the Coyotes.
  • Once again, the Tkachuk brother team up for a scoring play.
  • Nathan MacKinnon also ends the night with a hatty.
  • Matthew Tkachuk is named the All-Star MVP.

Howlin’ Hockey’s 3 Stars & MVP:

MVP: Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk

Third Star: Arizona’s Clayton Keller

Second Star: Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon

First Star: Detroit’s Dylan Larkin

Honorary Fourth Star: Ovi’s stick for attempting to break up Pastrnak’s breakaway.

‌ (All record statistics were derived from ESPN [1])

[1] “NHL Hockey Scores – NHL Scoreboard.” n.d. ESPN. Accessed February 5, 2023. https://www.espn.com/nhl/scoreboard/_/date/20230204.

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