2024 NHL All-Star Skills live blog

Welcome to the NHL All-Star Skills presented by DraftKings Sportsbook live blog.

NHL.com senior writer Dan Rosen was in his usual spot behind the bench, and NHL.com Editor-in-Chief Bill Price was high atop Scotiabank Arena to provide all the action, behind-the-scenes stories and updates from the Skills competition.

10:02 p.m. ET

Connor McDavid is going home $1 million richer. But it was close during the Obstacle Course and it was interesting on the bench.

Cale Makar came back gassed. So did Auston Matthews.

William Nylander was looking good up until he missed the net and had to get his own rebound. The crowd erupted. So did the players on the bench.

“Oh, Willy,” Nathan MacKinnon said to him as he came back to the bench.

Mathew Barzal struggled with the little nets. He came back to the bench shaking his head.

“Oh man, that’s a gauntlet,” he said.

It came down to McDavid. He needed to finish in second place or better to win. Makar was in first at the time.

McDavid was just over halfway through his turn after finishing with the little nets when MacKinnon and Makar looked at each other and they both knew.

“Sorry, Cale,” MacKinnon said as McDavid was racing past them through the final leg of the course before ripping a shot into the net and finishing in 40.606 seconds.

Final standings

Connor McDavid, EDM - 25 points
Cale Makar, COL - 20 points
Auston Matthews, TOR - 18 points
William Nylander, TOR - 16 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 13.5 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 12 points
Elias Pettersson, VAN - 10 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 7 points
David Pastrnak, BOS - 4.5 points
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 4.5 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 4 points
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 0.5 points

Pepsi NHL Obstacle Course

Connor McDavid, EDM - 40.606
Cale Makar, COL - 43.435
Auston Matthews, TOR - 47.271
William Nyander, TOR - 49.065
J.T Miller, VAN - 49.351
Matthew Barzal, NYI - 1:16

9:45 p.m. ET

Connor McDavid is enjoying himself and he thinks this format has been better than in previous years at the Skills competition.

“It’s been fun so far,” McDavid told me before the final event. “Obviously a lot of work, but you’re seeing a lot of skill out here. It’s been good. It’s been competitive.”

McDavid was particularly impressed with the goalies coming in cold to do the One-on-One competition.

“That was tough on them,” he said. “They performed amazing. They stole the show.”

9:40 p.m. ET

The Honda/Hyundai NHL One-on-One is over and now there are six skaters left for the final event who will battle in the Pepsi Obstacle Course for the $1 million prize. They are:

Connor McDavid, EDM - 15 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 13.5 points
William Nylander, TOR - 12 points
Auston Matthews, TOR - 12 points
Cale Makar, COL - 12 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 10 points

Eliminated
Elias Pettersson, VAN
Nathan MacKinnon, COL

As for the goalies, Alexandar Georgiev took home the $100,000 prize for making the most saves (nine) against Connor McDavid of the Oilers.

Honda/Hyundai NHL One-on-One

William Nylander, TOR vs. Cam Talbot, LAK - 9 points
Auston Matthew, TOR vs. Thatcher Demko, VAN - 7 points
J.T Miller, VAN vs. Jeremy Swayman, BOS - 6 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI vs. Igor Shesterkin, NYR - 6 points
Cale Makar, COL vs. Connor Hellebuyck, WPG - 4 points
Elias Pettersson, VAN vs. Jake Oettinger, DAL - 3 points
Connor McDavid, EDM vs. Alexandar Georgiev, COL - 3 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL vs. Sergei Bobrovsky, FLA - 2 points

New York Rangers coach Peter Laviolette is enjoying himself tonight, sitting on the visitor's bench, hanging out, watching the competition and catching up with so many of his former players.

“'Subby' (P.K. Subban) came over and I was able to spend some time with him and talk to him,” Laviolette said. “I think that’s the really cool thing about this event. It breaks down walls that you build with your team because otherwise, it’s all business.”

Laviolette spent time with Filip Forsberg, who he coached with Subban in Nashville, and Tom Wilson, who he coached for the past three seasons with the Washington Capitals. He was also sitting with Columbus Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner, who he has never coached but was happy to talk to for a little bit on the bench.

He said he has spent time with the other coaches here too; Rick Bowness from the Winnipeg Jets, Rick Tocchet from the Vancouver Canucks and Jim Montgomery from the Boston Bruins.

“I think it’s like that in general, in the summers, but there is so much that goes into your team in the season,” Laviolette said. “It’s nice when it’s just about the hockey people here.”

9:15 p.m. ET 

Now it's time for the Honda/Hyundai One-On-One, where the players pick which goalie they will face, with the two players in last place -- William Nylander and Nathan MacKinnon, first picking who they shoot against for 60 seconds. 

This will be interesting to see who picks who. I'm sure it will lead to plenty of trash talk on the bench. 

We have had a Chester Cheetah sighting. He gave McDavid a big bag of Cheetos after that last event.

9:08 p.m. ET

And then there were eight. With the Cheetos NHL Accuracy Shooting event over, the field of 12 has been cut down to eight.

Those eight advance to the Honda/Hyundai NHL One-on-One, where they pick which goalie they will face, with Nylander and MacKinnon picking first.

Overall leaderboard (after six events; top 8 advance)

Connor McDavid, EDM - 15 points
Cale Makar, COL - 11 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 11 points
Elias Pettersson, VAN - 10 points

Auston Matthew, TOR - 8 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 7.5 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 7 points
William Nylander, TOR - 7 points

DID NOT ADVANCE
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 4.5 points
David Pastrnak, BOS - 4.5 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 4 points
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 0.5 points

As for the Accuracy Shooting, PWHL players Sarah Nurse and Blayre Turnbull and former Maple Leafs Steve Thomas and Doug Gilmour did the passing and Connor McDavid did the shooting again - going 4-for-4 to finish with a winning time of 9.158.

Perhaps the highlight of the event was Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak being booed by the Toronto crowd after getting a time of 19.67 - the last time the Leafs won the Stanley Cup.

Cheetos NHL Accuracy Shooting

Connor McDavid, EDM - 9.158
Auston Matthews, TOR - 9.341
J.T. Miller, VAN - 13.587
William Nylander, TOR - 14.099
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 14.815
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 15.958
Nikita Kucheov, TBL - 16.46
Cale Makar, COL - 19.069
David Pastrnak, BOS - 19.67
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 46.089

8:55 p.m. ET

Auston Matthews is all for the new format of the Skills completion.

“I think it’s good,” he told me from the bench. “There’s always hiccups when you’re trying something new but so far it’s been good and it’s pretty competitive out there.”

I mentioned to him that it feels more competitive than previous Skills competitions and he agreed, with one caveat.

“Maybe except for ‘Kuch,’ “ Matthews said, laughing.

Nikita Kucherov was last with 0.5 points entering the sixth event, the Cheetos NHL Accuracy Shooting.

“That’s ok,” Matthews said. “When you’re leading the league in scoring, you get a pass. You can do what you want.”

8:47 p.m. ET

The Upper Deck NHL Stick Handling, the fifth event, is over and Connor McDavid has won his second event to vault into first place with one event to go before the field is cut to eight for the final two events.

Upper Deck NHL Stick Handling

Connor McDavid, EDM - 25.755
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 26.929
William Nylander, TOR - 27.272
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 27.715
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 28.677
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 29.038
Elias Pettersson, VAN - 29.526 (wiped out)
David Pastrnak, BOS - 38.488
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 44.178

Overall leaderboard (after five events)

Cale Makar, COL - 11 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 11 points
Connor McDavid, EDM - 10 points
Elias Pettersson, VAN - 10 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 7 points
William Nylander, TOR - 5 points
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 4.5 points
David Pastrnak, BOS - 4.5 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 4.5 points
Auston Matthews, TOR - 4 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 3 points
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 0.5 points

8:40 p.m. ET  

J.T. Miller had one mission tonight. 

“Beat 'Petey' in the hardest shot,” Miller told me. 

Mission accomplished. 

Miller didn’t win it but his shot of 102.3 mph was better than Elias Pettersson’s best of 98.4 mph. 

“Made my night,” Miller said “That’s worth a million bucks to me.”

Miller said it’s “crazy and awesome” to be on the ice tonight. 

“I haven’t watched a lot the past few years with the guys and their props, but this year it’s competitive and guys are human and want to win,” Miller said. “I am honestly just happy to be here. I pinch myself still. It still doesn’t seem real to me.”

8:26 p.m. ET

The Rogers NHL Hardest Shot belongs to Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar, who registered a shot of 102.5 miles per hour, barely topping J.T. Miller of the Vancouver Canucks, who hit 102.3. Elias Pettersson of the Canucks, who won it last year, was third at 98.4 mph. Auston Matthews of the Maple Leafs was fourth with 96.22, while David Pastrnak of the Bruins finished fifth at 95.27.

Rogers NHL Hardest Shot

Auston Matthews, TOR - 96.22 mph
Cale Makar, COL - 102.5 mph
David Pastrnak, BOS - 95.27 mph
J.T. Miller, VAN - 102.3 mph -
Elias Pettersson, VAN - 98.4

Overall leaderboard (after four events)

Cale Makar, COL - 11 points
Elias Pettersson, VAN - 10 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 7 points
Connor McDavid, EDM - 5 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 5 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 4.5 points
David Pastrnak, BOS - 4.5 points
Auston Matthews, TOR - 4 points
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 3.5 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 3 points
William Nylander, TOR - 2 points
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 0.5 points

8:20 p.m. ET

The Rogers NHL Hardest Shot is next. If you want to know how these guys hit the puck so hard, check out this story from Amalie Benjamin on the science of the hardest shot.

Here is the lineup for the Rogers NHL Hardest Shot:

Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs; Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche; David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins; J.T. Miller, Vancouver Canucks; Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks.

8:15 p.m. ET

P.K. Subban just skated over to the bench (he’s on the ice reporting for ESPN) and wanted to know how he’s doing with his picks.

So far, Subban has one out of three correct.

He accurately picked Connor McDavid to win the Fastest Skater. But he was wrong on the One-Timers and Passing Challenge.

Subban picked Elias Pettersson to win the One-Timers and Quinn Hughes to win the Passing Challenge.

Pettersson instead won the Passing Challenge and Nathan MacKinnon won the One-Timers.

When told of his .333 shooting percentage through three rounds, Subban grimaced, shook his head and skated away.

8:14 p.m. ET

The third event, the Scotiabank NHL Passing Challenge, is over, Elias Pettersson of the Vancouver Canucks is the winner, going 3-for-3 on his last passes to get 25 points and edge Cale Maker of the Colorado Avalanche by two points.

There is a break in the action with singer Owen Riegling taking the stage.

Scotiabank NHL Passing Challenge

Elias Pettersson, VAN - 25 points
Cale Makar, COL - 23 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 21 points
Auston Matthews, TOR - 19 points
William Nylander, TOR - 16 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 15 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 13 points
Connor McDavid, EDM - 12 points
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 12 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 7 points
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 0.5 points

Overall leaderboard (after three events)

Elias Pettersson, VAN - 7 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 7 points
Cale Makar, COL - 6 points
Connor McDavid, EDM - 5 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 5 points
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 3.5 points
David Pastrnak, BOS - 3.5 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 3 points
Auston Matthews, TOR - 2 points
William Nylander, TOR - 2 points
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 0.5 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 0.5 points

8 p.m. ET

The Upper Deck Stick Handling competition is coming up so I asked Brady Tkachuk, Alex DeBrincat and Sam Reinhart to make their picks.

Tkachuk and DeBrincat picked Nikita Kucherov.

Why?

“So silky and smooth with it,” Tkachuk said.

“I’ve seen it up close too much,” DeBrincat said.

Reinhart picked Nathan MacKinnon.

“He has the speed and the feet to match it,” he said. “Deception is everything and he’s so dynamic.”

Since asking them, they were joined on the visitor's bench by Jesper Bratt, Filip Forsberg, Boone Jenner and Tom Wilson.

Connor McDavid, Quinn Hughes, Elias Pettersson, Leon Draisaitl, David Pastrnak, Mathew Barzal and William Nylander are also competing in the stickhandling competition.

“You really can’t go wrong,” Tkachuk said.

7:50 p.m.

Upon further review, Nathan MacKinnon wins the Tim Hortons NHL One-Timers, which is one of the several new events this year. And though Connor Bedard of the Chicago Blackhawks was unable to play in the NHL All-Star Game because of an injury, he was a passer for the event, along with Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby.

It appeared as David Pastrnak had one on a four-point shot on his last attempt, but video review knocked it down to a one-pointer, making MacKinnon the winner.

Order of Finish

Nathan MacKinnon (from Bedard) - 23 points
David Pastrnak (from Bedard) - 22 points
Leon Draisaitl (from Crosby) - 22 points 
Elias Pettersson (from Crosby) - 20 points
Nikita Kucherov (From Crosby) - 19 points
J.T. Miller (from Crosby) - 18 points
Mathew Barzal (from Bedard) - 17 points 
Auston Matthews (from Crosby) - 15 points 

Overall leaderboard (after two events)

Connor McDavid, EDM - 5 points
Nathan MacKinnon, COL - 5 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 4 points
Leon Draisaitl, EDM - 3.5 points
David Pastrnak, BOS - 3.5 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 3 points
Cale Makar, COL - 2 points
Elias Pettersson, VAN - 2 points
William Nylander, TOR - 1 point
Nikita Kucherov, TBL - 0.5 points
J.T. Miller, VAN - 0.5 points
Auston Matthews, TOR - 0 points

A view from the visitor's bench:

I have Canucks coach Rick Tocchet and Jets coach Rick Bowness behind me. They were talking before about Mike Gartner, Pavel Bure and Paul Coffey and how they used to compete in the fastest skater competition.

On the other bench, I can see Cam Talbot, Boone Jenner and Tom Wilson.

Vincent Trocheck and Tomas Hertl are on the stage that’s on the ice with their kids.

P.K. Subban is taking video of everyone in the One-Timers competition.

Oh, and Sidney Crosby and Connor Bedard are on the ice passing to the players competing in the One-Timers.

Jeremy Swayman and Jake Oettinger just snuck in behind me on the bench and walked onto the ice to sit next to Elias Pettersson. They’re wearing slides.

The goalies aren’t involved in this until the seventh event.

It’s a scene down here.

7:35 p.m. 

The Vancouver Canucks have two players in the Rogers NHL Hardest Shot competition, J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson, who won it last year with a shot at 103.2 mph. 

Canucks coach Rick Tocchet described the differences between their two shots.

“Miller can really shoot it, it’s hard and heavy, like a thud,” Tocchet said. “Peter’s shot rises.”

Who wins in the competition that also includes David Pastrnak, Auston Matthews and Cale Makar?

“I gotta go with one of my guys,” Tocchet said. “Miller has never done it so I would like to see his shot in this.”

7:25 p.m. ET

The first event is in the books and the winner of the Fastenal NHL Fastest Skater is, who else, Connor McDavid of the Edmonoton Oilers.

He finished with a time of 13.408, topping Mathew Barzal of the New York Islanders, who had a time of 13.519. Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks was third with a time of 14.088, barely topping Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, who had a time of 14.089. William Nylander of the Toronto Maple Leafs was fifth with a time of 14.164.

So the standings after the first event are

Connor McDavid, EDM - 5 points
Mathew Barzal, NYI - 4 points
Quinn Hughes, VAN - 3 points
Cale Makar, COL - 2 points
William Nylander, TOR - 1 point

Before the event began P.K. Subban, here reporting for ESPN, gave me a rundown of his picks for each of the first six events. He's 1-for-1.

Fastest skater: Connor McDavid

One-Timers: Elias Pettersson

Passing Challenge: Quinn Hughes

Hardest Shot: Pettersson

Stickhandling: McDavid

Accuracy Shooting: Auston Matthews

7:10 pm

One of the best things about the Skills competition is to visit with the All-Star coaches who have nothing to do but watch and enjoy.

Jim Montgomery is standing behind me on the bench with his 12-year-old son Colin.

“I feel like a kid in a candy store getting to be around all the best in the world,” the Boston Bruins coach said. “I’m just so happy to hear.”

Colin told me, “It’s just so cool.”

Colin and Jim were at the All-Star Game in Florida last year. Colin even made some line changes for the Atlantic Division team.

He said he hadn’t met Sebastian Aho and Cale Makar so that was a thrill for him along with being around Connor McDavid.

“He met Wayne Gretzky at the hotel last night,” Jim said. “He couldn’t sleep last night."

6:50 pm

Cale Makar isn’t trying to play favorites when he tells me Colorado Avalanche teammate Nathan MacKinnon can win the Tim Hortons NHL One-Timers, the second event of the Skills.

“Placement wise, it’s Nate,” Makar said when I asked him who among the eight players in the competion has the best one timer.

So he should win it?

“That’s his thing,” Makar said. “He can get it up and under the bar.”

The other seven players in the competition are Elias Pettersson, Leon Draisaitl, Nikita Kucherov, J.T. Miller, Auston Matthews, Mathew Barzal and David Pastrnak.

6:45 p.m.

Elias Pettersson of the Vancouver Canucks stopped to do an interview with Kevin Bieksa for Sportsnet. When he was done, I showed him my notepad that had the names of the players listed in the Fastenal NHL Fastest Skater.

Who wins, I asked him.

“McDavid.”

I pointed at his teammate Quinn Hughes’ name and said, “Why not him?”

“He’s fast, but no,” Pettersson said. “Come on man, it’s McDavid. I think even he (Hughes) would say it too.”

For what it’s worth, Hughes is certainly warming up to be ready for the fastest skater competion. He’s basically sprinting from one end to the other repeatedly.

McDavid had a quick warmup and left the ice.

6:40 p.m. ET

Quick one here before warmups begin.

It isn’t often people are rooting for or defending the goalies in a Skills competition, but there is a fan behind the net closest to the Maple Leafs bench that clearly is.

“HERE FOR HELLE” a sign reads.

This fan is here for Connor Hellebuyck. Maybe he will steal the show. Who knows.

The goalies will be a part of the Honda/Hyundai One-on-One, the seventh event.

6:30 p.m.

The crowd is still filling in here in Toronto for what should be a memorable night. Instead of all the All-Stars taking part in the Skills, only 12 skaters will be vying for the $1 million prize.

Here is the Skills lineup for Friday.

One of the events will be the Rogers Hardest Shot, which is more than strength; it's also science. NHL.com staff writer Amalie Benjamin goes behind the scenes to get the lowdown on the Hardest Shot.

And though it's the 12 skaters going for the big money, the eight goalies will also play a hand in the Skills and one of them will walk away with some cash, too. NHL.com columnist Nick Cotsonika checks in with the goalies' perspective.

There was also some big news here in Toronto today, with the NHL, NHLPA and IIHF announcing NHL players will be going to the Winter Olympics in 2026 and 2030, and the NHL and NHLPA announcing the 4 Nations Face-Off next February.