Pacific Division takes NHL All-Star Game

TAMPA, Fla. _ Nothing about the National Hockey League All-Star Game qualifies for superlatives such as, say, "Olympian," but it still is fun. It has a quirky format and funky uniforms. And when it comes right down to it, players do bear down and try to win.

This is what happened at the finish Sunday of what is actually a mini-tournament involving four teams in three 20minute games of 3-on-3 skating. The Pacific Division defeated the Atlantic, 52, in an event that became increasingly serious down the stretch.

"The first one, you kind of go out and play," goalie Marc-Andre Fleury of the Vegas Golden Knights and the Pacific squad said of the opening round against the Central. "When you're in the final you say, 'Hey, let's go out and win this thing.' You see everyone plays a little more defense.

"Guys have more room. There's only three of them out there so it seems like they all work a little harder. It feels more like a game. It's good, you see more of the skills," he said.

Among the most skillful was Brock Boeser of the Vancouver Canucks, who scored two goals and became the first rookie named the NHL All-Star Most Valuable Player since Mario Lemieux did it in 1985. Boeser, a Minnesotan and potential rival to the New York Islanders' Mathew Barzal for the Calder Trophy, had won the Most Accurate Shot contest Saturday night. Not bad for someone who said that his goal coming into the season was "just to make the team."

"Good for him," Fleury said. "Seems like a great kid and obviously he's got a great shot."