Bruce Bennett - Getty Images
4 months ago: OTTAWA, ON - JANUARY 28: Shea Weber #6 of the Nashville Predators and team Alfredsson takes a shot during the Blackberry NHL Hardest Shot part of the 2012 Molson Canadian NHL All-Star Skills Competition at Scotiabank Place on January 28, 2012 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Shea Weber did his best, but couldn't quite upset Zdeno Chara in the Hardest Shot competition at the NHL All-Star event tonight in Ottawa. Weber set a new personal best with a 106.0 mph slapper in the final round, but Chara's NHL-record-setting 108.8 blast from earlier won the title for the 5th straight time. One of the side-stories here was that Chara switched to a different brand of hockey stick this year, while Weber stuck with his.
Outside of the Hardest Shot, there were few moments when Preds stood out. Craig Smith looked good in his portion of the Skills Challenge Relay, and Ryan Suter played a minor role in the Shooting Accuracy (as a set-up man) and Elimination Shoot Out (he missed his attempt) events.
All in all, however, it was a pretty entertaining evening. The highlight, perhaps, was the Breakaway Challenge, in which several creative crowd-pleasing moments came together (Patrick Kane's Superman dive was my favorite).
Full results from the evening are listed at NHL.com.
But what were your favorite moments from tonight?
0 recs | 23 comments
Columbus awarded next year's ASG????
Are you effing kidding me?
I know what team is going to be the next Save Phoenix candidate now.
djzielin - January 28, 2012 via mobile
remember when we were the team that needed saving and we go the all star game? oh wait….
Creeping Death - January 28, 2012
*got
Creeping Death - January 28, 2012
Weber's gotta wait until Chara retires :(
I don’t think he will be a Predator then
Bakht Khan - January 28, 2012
I really like the skills-relay stuff.
I know it’s not typically a favorite event, but I always love watching it.
However, I was REALLY unhappy with the fastest skater event this year! Why the hell did they feel the need to shorten the track??? Maybe I’m overreacting, but I usually love fastest skater, and I was really disappointed to see what they did. Did that bother anyone else, or is it just me?
davisca - January 28, 2012
(Oh, and Craig Smith was AWESOME with his one-handed puck-control moves! Huge kudos to him for finding a way show off his mad skillz during a pretty mundane task.)
davisca - January 28, 2012
I thought he was every bit as smooth as Datsyuk, and much better than Diaz and Michalek on that puck control bit.
(maybe I’m just a biased homer, but I enjoyed watching his run)
Only Fan In J.C. ? - January 29, 2012
I did too! I thought he was perhaps even smoother than Datsyuk, but I say that after having watched both of them skate it once, over 24 hours ago, so who knows how good my memory is by now.
davisca - January 29, 2012
Smith
crushed it. Your eyes didn’t deceive you. He was buttery.
Shawn Kehoe - January 29, 2012
I hate how fastest skater seems to be a different format each year. How can you compare yeAr to year?
Evanbio - January 29, 2012
Exactly. Just open the track up like last year! Let them stretch their legs!
davisca - January 29, 2012
They really need to add a defensive part to the relay. I’d go with touch-ups for icing. Suter would be awesome at that.
vols7381 - January 29, 2012
Loved the Kane “Superman” act, but I have to admit that Perry had me guessing what the heck he was doing when he reached into his pants for the mini-hockey stick………..thought something obscene was about to happen! :D
Grizzledbear - January 29, 2012 via mobile
I thought he was going to strip and then we would see this...
Josiah2729 - January 29, 2012
Goalies
Loved how the goalies got into it. Prices save facing backwards was awesome.
Evanbio - January 29, 2012
He was pretty awesome. He tebowed for one shot too.
Josiah2729 - January 29, 2012
I gotta wonder a little if he’d been drinking, haha. Doesn’t he have a tendency to do that?
davisca - January 29, 2012
Anyone have the Skill Comp recorded
That can time the puck control leg of the relay and see how Smith did against Datsyuk
IG-PRED8 - January 29, 2012
Ooh, yes please!!
I’d love to see that time.
davisca - January 29, 2012
Grudgingly...
Perry had the best shootout performance. Kane’s superman was awesome, but Perry had 2 different, really quality and funny shootouts. In the end, though, he’s still a tool.
Poiju - January 29, 2012
This says it all.
davisca - January 29, 2012
Ryan Suter places 1st in Hardest to Re-Sign Competition
cisar - January 29, 2012
ouch
Only Fan In J.C. ? - January 29, 2012
You must Login with your SB Nation account and be a member of On the Forecheck to post a comment.