It is official.  The NHL All-Star game festivities have become very boring to me.  There is no excitement generated with the Skills Competition or 3-on-3 All-Star Game.

It appears that I am not the only one that does not think the All-Star Game is pathetic.  Here is CBC’s Don Cherry with some comments on Coach’s Corner over the weekend:

Don Cherry has a valid point in his commentary from this weekend.  Pop singer Justin Bieber displayed more effort on the ice than some of the NHL players that were featured in the All-Star festivities.  I am not a huge Biebs fan, but I guess I should give him credit for taking a bump in the corner against former NHL defenseman Chris Pronger.

AP snapped an amazing photo of Chris Pronger squashing Justin Bieber into the boards: pic.twitter.com/hhykeHh5Oh

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) January 28, 2017

Okay, maybe it was not a major bump.  However, Bieber went out there and enjoyed himself in the celebrity hockey game, and tried to score some goals.  He gave effort, and took the game a bit seriously.  Why should a pop singing celebrity take a hockey game more seriously than a professional hockey player?

No, I am not saying players need to go out there and treat the NHL All-Star game like a Game 7 playoff game.   However, I think they need to go out on the ice and play a little bit of hockey.

Did you see Braden Holtby during the All-Star game?  He was phenomenal.  He was a big reason the Metropolitan Division stayed alive and won the All-Star game.  He was making some flashy saves.  However, I cannot say the same for other goalies that participated in the All-Star game.  I think some of the players did not care if their team won or not.

Players are all wired differently, and some of them take things like All-Star games more seriously than others do.  If some of the players are not going to take the game somewhat seriously, then why should I pay attention and watch?  It is hard for me to tune in to watch a game that ultimately does not count anyway.  So, should I sit and watch a game that does not count, and watch some of the players goof around and not be serious about it?

SCRAP THE ALL-STAR GAME

Does the NHL need the All-Star game?  Does it serve any purpose, or is it just a cash grab for the league?  Does it draw new fans to the sport of hockey?  Does it help the sport grow?

I doubt very seriously new fans are drawn to hockey through an All-Star game.  Most people become fans by watching the game on TV, or attending a game for the very first time.

It is hard for me to watch the All-Star game because it is not a serious event.  Even though professional wrestling is “scripted,” it is much easier for me to watch a WWE event than an NHL All-Star game.

Why is this?  Because, at least with WWE, there is a story behind the wrestling.  The WWE wrestlers bring the story to life, and it feels like something real.  With an NHL All-Star game, nothing is taken seriously, and there is no entertainment that is worthy of making me laugh, or making me feel some sort of emotion.  I am not interested in watching celebrities I do not know, and players goof off and not care about the game.

By: George Foussekis