The Martlet

In what should be a showcase of its’ brightest stars, the NHL All-Star game has had an annual tradition of being an extreme letdown.

With the 2009 All-Star game being held in Montreal as a part of the Canadien’s centennial celebration, league officials have been working hard to make it memorable.

Gone are the days when the Stanley Cup Champions would face-off against an All-Star team comprised of star players from the other squads.

That tradition ended during the 1968 season when the East-West format was introduced to promote the NHL’s six new franchises. Since the change in format, the league has tried its best to expose the game’s greatest stars to a broader audience. The All-Star game was intended to be the second biggest event of the season, right behind the Stanley Cup Finals.

But the All-Star game has stumbled in recent years, drawing negative reviews from both fans and media alike.

One of the predominant criticisms of the game is the lack of intensity.

Unlike the Major League Baseball All-Star game, there is no incentive for your conference to win the game. In baseball, the winning league gains home-field advantage for the World Series.

In recent years, the problem hasn’t been with the game itself. Attention is now being placed on the selection of the All-Star rosters, and their tendency for excluding some of the game’s brightest stars.

The recently named All-Star teams of both the Eastern and Western Conferences have arguably improved over previous years, but still remain contradictory to the league’s goal of showcasing its top players.

One of the problems is the online fan balloting system used to determine the starting line-ups. Fans are given the opportunity to vote online for their choice of players to start the game, and thus far, the system has failed miserably by allowing fans unlimited votes to stuff the ballot box.

For the 2009 edition of the All-Star classic, the 12 starters from the Eastern and Western Conference are representing four teams: the Chicago Blackhawks, Anaheim Ducks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens. Among these teams, none are higher than fourth place in their conference.

With all due respect to fans of the Canadiens and their centennial celebration, Alexei Kovalev, Carey Price, Andrei Markov and Mike Komisarek do not all deserve to be in the starting line-up, let alone the players of the sought-after All-Star game.

Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals is arguably the most exciting player in the NHL. Because of fan balloting, Kovalev received more votes and will start the game.

Meanwhile, Komisarek is one of the premier shut-down defenceman in the NHL and any team could use his grit and character. To date, Komisarek has three points, a plus/minus of three, and has only played in 24 hockey games. His selection as a starter for the All-Star team does not reflect the league’s interest.

“There are some stars but it’s not all the stars,” said Washington Capitals goaltender Jose Theodore. “The league should really review the system.”

Ever since the NHL’s lockout wiped out the 2004-2005 season, the league and commissioner Gary Bettman have been trying to increase interest in the U.S. by doing everything in their power to boost scoring in a once defence-oriented league.

Everything has been done to increase scoring, from reducing the size of goaltending equipment to increasing the amount of penalties called in a game.

The All-Star game should be the NHL’s chance to show how they have improved the league by inviting elite players.

Because of their fan balloting system and team representation policy, however, some of hockey’s best and most talented players have been left out.

Chicago’s captain Jonathan Toews was voted in as starter, but has had less-than-stellar numbers to otherwise warrant consideration.

Players having the better statistical seasons include Patrick Marleau, Daniel Sedin and Ales Hemsky.

Roberto Luongo, the franchise goaltender for the Vancouver Canucks has not played since late November after suffering a groin injury, yet was still selected into the All-Star line-up. Mikka Kiprusoff of the Calgary Flames, and Steve Mason of the Columbus Blue Jackets have both had stellar seasons, but are both excluded because every team in the league needs to be represented.

If the NHL wants the All-Star game to be a celebration of hockey, they need to ensure that its top stars are there to put on a show for the audience.

As of right now, the full potential of the All-Star game won’t be met while some of the league’s top players get a week off instead of participating in marketing the NHL to a broader audience.