Rick Nash Booed, Walks Away with NHL All-Star Game Win
The 2015 Honda NHL All-Star Game took place in Columbus, Ohio, where Team Jonathan Toews (white jerseys) faced Team Nick Foligno (black jerseys). New York Rangers‘ Rick Nash served as an Alternate Captain for Team Toews. For the full rosters, click here. The following is an abridged recap due to the sheer amount of goals; For the boring box score click here.
FIRST PERIOD: It was more of a back and forth game than tennis as goals were scored literally left and right. Team Foligno’s Radim Vrbata grabbed the very first goal at 3:09. Nash failed to put an equalizer past goalie Carey Price on a breakaway. However, Ryan Getzlaf was able to elevate the puck into the net to tie the game. Jakub Voracek then brought the score up to 2-1 for Team Toews until Ryan Johansen‘s one timer tied it up again. Patrice Bergeron then tried a wrist shot, taking the lead back for the guys in white. Goalie Roberto Luongo robbed Bobby Ryan with a quick glove save but couldn’t stop Kevin Shattenkirk and then Johansen again and Team Foligno quickly gained the lead at 4-3. John Tavares then found net to bring the score up to 4 goals apiece. The period ended with teams close in shots, no hits and no penalties, but entertaining fast-paced hockey nonetheless.
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SECOND PERIOD: Just 24 seconds in, Team Toews pulled ahead 5-4 as Ryan Suter shot the puck past goalie Marc-Andre Fluery. Literally eight seconds later, goalie Corey Crawford failed to stop Claude Giroux. Then Tyler Seguin took his turn with the puck and set Team Foligno back, 6-5. On a breakaway, Steven Stamkos went top shelf and the game was tied once again. Nash finally got on the scoresheet with his goal and the boos were piled onto the former Columbus Blue Jacket: all in good fun…maybe…probably not. Interesting enough, this is when Team Toews started to dominate on the ice. Filip Forsberg found a rebound, John Tavares lost the puck on a breakaway but scored anyway, and finally Voracek took a wrist shot to bump up the score, 10-6 for Team Toews. Captain Foligno didn’t seem to like that as he scored on a drive-by through the crease and hacked down the lead to 10-7. Johansen was then robbed of a hat trick and Alex Ovechkin reacted by grabbing the first guy in white he could find, a huge fight breaking out. And when I say fight, I mean a huge group bear hug and a few good laughs. Stamkos and Tavares then logged another goal each, bringing the score to 11-8 in favor of Team Toews.
THIRD PERIOD: Nash collected his second goal at 1:29 into it, increasing the lead to 12-8, the boos not as loud this time for some reason. Huh. Patrick Kane then scored the record breaking 27th goal of the contest for Team Foligno, but Team Toews responded with two goals in a row: one from Tavares for his fourth (tying the ASG record) and another from Voracek’s hat trick. Team Foligno tried to bounce back as Bobby Ryan whipped the puck past Jaroslav Halak to make it 14-10. But then Seguin and Kane each hit twine, the scoreboard reading 15-11. Captain Toews got his first of the evening on a snap shot. Forsberg and Brent Burns took the last goals of the game and the score was held at 17-12 by the end of sixty minutes, Team Toews winning it all.
Stars of the Game:
Everyone, really.
But mostly Nash for, you know, shutting down the haters.