Photo: NHL.com
No Weber? No Chara? With those two not selected for the NHL All-Star Game this year in Tampa Bay, Alex Ovechkin sure took advantage at the All-Star Super Skills Competition on Saturday night at Amalie Arena. The Capitals captain followed the All-Star record this year with 99.8 mile per hour bullet with a 101.3 mile per hour slapshot.
101.3! #NHLAllStar #ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/wtv6GEpJUv
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) January 28, 2018
Central Division captain and Nashville Predators defenseman P.K. Subban was the closest to beating Ovechkin with a 98.7 mile per hour slap shot.
In the only event that a Capitals’ player participated in at the Superskills Competition, Ovechkin already clinched the hardest shot title by the time he shot for the second and final time.
Unfortunately for Ovechkin, he’ll have to wait another year for a shot at cracking Boston Bruins’ defenseman Zdeno Chara’s record with a 108.8 mile per hour rocket he set in the Superskills Competition in 2012 in Ottawa.
He became the first forward to win the event since former-Capital Sergei Fedorov did it in 2002 when he was a member of the Detroit Red Wings. The fellow Russian shot it at 101.5 miles per hour back then.
With the title, Ovechkin takes home $25,000.
Triple digits got it done for @ovi8 in the PPG NHL Hardest Shot (101.3 MPH). #NHLAllStar #NHLStats pic.twitter.com/LpfmpiQicE
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) January 28, 2018
Ovechkin, who became the first player in the NHL to hit the 30-goal plateau this season in a 4-2 win at the Florida Panthers, leads the Capitals with 53 points. He also tallied his 500th career assist on Thursday night.
Ovechkin and teammate Braden Holtby will seek to guide the Metropolitan Division to its second consecutive All-Star Game title when they take on the Atlantic Division at 4:30 tomorrow. The All-Star Game kicks off at 3:30 from Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay. Capitals’ coach Barry Trotz will coach the Metropolitan Division team.
Hardest shot champ! @ovi8 pic.twitter.com/hlgsRvJlTp
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) January 28, 2018
By Harrison Brown
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