2016 All-Star Game Rosters

The rosters for the All-Star Game 3-on-3 tournament were announced some time ago, but I thought it was better to have the pool listings done during the break, just looks a little more apt that way. Oh, and of course, there are going to be roster changes, as there were a couple of players pulling out on Thursday to "injury" or "illness," which should cost each player a game after the weekend for missing out on the game.

Nevertheless, I think we're in for an interesting format this year, given that it is four teams of divisional representatives, playing 3-on-3 in hour long (or so) games, leading up to a West versus East situation.

I don't think I have to go into the circus, that was the "fan" vote for the divisional captains, which caused quite the stir, other than the NHL got what they deserved for their lack of foresight in the voting process and I'm glad they slept in the bed they made.

I think there is a real chance for another mini-game that revolves around the All-Star Game in the hockey pool, which would at least give us a reason to watch it... it could potentially make us our money back.  That's a good enough reason, right?

With that being said, let's see how this year's teams stack up and who would have had the best chance to win their money back, if it was a mini-game.

We'll start with the host team from the Central Division, who are arguably the favourites.

Player	NHL	Pool
Forwards
Jamie Benn	DAL	Brian
Matt Duchene	COL	Jeremy
Patrick Kane	CHI	John S.
Tyler Seguin	DAL	Cindy
Vladimir Tarasenko	STL	Tony
Jonathan Toews **	CHI	John R.
James Neal	NAS	Wes
Defense
Dustin Byfuglien	WPG	Eric
Roman Josi	NAS	Scott
Shea Weber	NAS	Stacey M.
Goalies
Pekka Rinne	NAS	Ryan
Derek Dubnyk	MIN	Derek W.

Even with the injury to Toews, this team is going to be one heck of a 3-on-3 team, to say the least.  I would have to think that the hometown Predators got to be pumped for this one, which will make this team tough to beat.

Staying in the West, we'll have a look at the Pacific Division team, which is the butt of all the jokes.

Player	NHL	Pool
Forwards
Johnny  Gaudreau	CAL	Brian
Taylor Hall	EDM	Stacey C.
Joe Pavelski	SAN	Eric
Corey Perry	ANA	Allan
John Scott	AHL	Non-Pool
Daniel Sedin	VAN	John P.
Defense
Brent Burns	SAN	Dale B.
Drew Doughty	LOS	Derek W.
Mark Giordano	CAL	Derek & Dan
Goalies
John Gibson	ANA	Clayton
Jonathan Quick	LOS	Brenda & Seward

So, the Pacific Division captain, John Scott, doesn't play in the NHL, let alone the Pacific Division anymore, but that's what we've got to live with or cheer on, depending on your disposition.  Otherwise, this team has its highlights, but we'll leave it at that.

Out East, we'll start with the Atlantic Division, another team that made some news, but for a completely different reason.

Player	NHL	Pool
Forwards
Patrice Bergeron	BOS	Neil
Jaromir Jagr	FLA	John P.
Leo Komarov	TOR	Troy
Dylan Larkin	DET	Grant
Ryan O'Reilly	BUF	Grant
Steven Stamkos	TAM	Wes
Defense
Aaron Ekblad	FLA	Derek W.
Erik Karlsson	OTT	Clayton
P.K. Subban	MTL	Dale B.
Goalies
Ben Bishop	TAM	Allan
Roberto Luongo	FLA	Kristy & Don

Their captain, Jaromir Jagr, was this close (pinching my fingers together) from not going to the game at all, citing his age and jokingly, his fear about being beaten up by the Pacific Division captain.  Both might be fair points, but we're all glad he's going anyways.

The last divisional team belongs to the Metropolitan Division, which has an injury of its own and it was to their captain, so a replacement needed to be made.

Player	NHL	Pool
Forwards
Nicklas Backstrom	WAS	Troy
Claude Giroux	PHI	Benson
Evgeni Malkin	PIT	Wes
Alex Ovechkin **	WAS	Neil
Brandon Saad	CBJ	Ryan
John Tavares	NYI	Eric
Evgeny Kuznetsov	WAS	Brian
Defense
Justin Faulk	CAR	Stuart
Kris Letang	PIT	Jeremy
Ryan McDonagh	NYR	Derek W.
Goalies
Braden Holtby	WAS	Jeremy
Cory Schneider	NJD	Troy

On Thursday, the Islanders' John Tavares was named the Metro captain, as Alex Ovechkin pulled out of the game with a lower-body injury.  The Metro has a pretty excellent lineup of players, which should be fun to watch and my bet to come out of the East on Sunday.

So, how does this stack up in the pool?  You would think that thanks to a Waiver Draft already having been done this year, all the All-Stars would be claimed in the pool, but oh yes, let's not forget about the "fan" vote.  So, 43 of the 44 players are in the pool and yes, there are going to be some teams that are skunked, thanks to NHL operations.  If these three teams have any complaints, they should refer those complaints to NHL head office.

Dale C., John R. and Mike were all skunked this year, not having a player chosen from their pool teams to represent their division in the All-Star Game.  That's a damn shame.

On the flip side, apparently Derek W. was all over picking potential All-Stars this year, as he is best represented with four players.  Five more teams have three players a piece, so it would be a pretty good competition, one would think, if this was a mini-game.  You could always pick the likely favourites to be there, but there are injuries and controversies, so picking at the draft before the season starts is still quite the crap shoot.

Anyways, let the weekend begin!  I know I'll be watching.