Confirmed with Link: Gaudreau, Giordano named to NHL All-Star Game

[Yung Rotini]

Congrats!

Second All-Star game appearance for both of them.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/m_news.htm?id=796221

Click to read more...

 

[Ynnek]

I'd have put Brodie first but still nice to see.

 

[Unlimited Chequing]

I wonder if there will be a sequel to their VISA commercial last year.

 

[Flames Fanatic]

I'd have put Brodie first but still nice to see.

Me too.

 

[LetsGoFlames]

Great to see! Congrats to Johnny and Gio. And if not for the games he missed due to injury earlier in the season, Brodie would likely be there, too. Next year, TJ.

 

[ChaoticOrange]

Congrats - looking forward to seeing Hall and Gaudreau hopefully playing together.

 

[Anglesmith]

R-r-r-r-reeeeeepooooosting this:

Johnny and Gio make the all star team kind of surprised Gio got in instead of Brodie haha

I'm kinda disappointed, to be honest. But at the same time, Brodie has many years left for that, and Gio not so much.

 

[AgeOfBennett]

R-r-r-r-reeeeeepooooosting this:



I'm kinda disappointed, to be honest. But at the same time, Brodie has many years left for that, and Gio not so much.

Yeah I agree, just shows how underrated Brodie is in this league, the guy has been lighting it up offensively this year

 

[Anglesmith]

Brodie's hype is starting to catch up league-wide, though. It's like how Giordano played Norris-calibre hockey in 2013-14, but it wasn't until the next season that people acknowledged it and he got recognition.

 

[Calculon]

Should have been Brodie. Not that it's worth a whole lot, but he's +7 to Giordano's -7.

That being said, Giordano still has 10 goals and is on pace 21. And he's starting to rack up the assists now too. Can see why the NHL went with him instead of Brodie.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

It's cool that Gio's name holds as much weight as it does. He has not had an Allstar worthy season IMO, but I'm super happy he made it. As others have mentioned, Brodie should have got the nod.

Congrats to Johnny, hard to argue that he is not the best 3 on 3 player in the game. Hopefully he lights it up.

Final comment, I think this years event will be a circus.

 

[SmellOfVictory]

I doubt I'll watch much at all. The draft was the best thing about the ASG, and with that gone it just got a lot less entertaining.

 

[StreakingRed]

Good on them both.

 

[Anglesmith]

I think it's actually going to be way more watchable than any of the past few years. The biggest problem with the ASG in recent years has been that when you're playing 5-on-5, any amount of actual effort put in by players results in physicality and therefore risk of injury. So everyone is playing scared, not wanting to look like a try-hard. It's painful to watch players trying so hard not to try.

In 3-on-3, though, the game is inherently non-contact anyway. There's too much open space out there for board play to happen or anything like that. There isn't really much risk to skating fast or cutting across the slot. I think players will feel more comfortable trying to actually make plays. The tiny aspect of motivation will help with this, too.

Also, everyone out there wants to look unselfish, and therefore you never really see them taking the initiative and try to make plays. The only time they kind of "switch on" is when they have an odd-man rush. Then their eyes light up and they know they have the green light to try to make a good play. But they never wanted to try with any conviction to create these opportunities. It ended up being that every opportunity that came up was a result of the defence on the other team purposefully making it happen by allowing a guy to walk through.

In 3-on-3, just about every rush will be 3-on-3. Players don't need to create opportunities through offensive effort or lack of defensive effort, they're going to come about organically.

 

[Calculon]

Flames pair stoked to fire up All-Star Game

Johnny Gaudreau is no stranger to torching the opposition.

But in regards to a failed bid to light his stick on fire in the breakaway competition of the 2015 All-Star Game skills competition, Gaudreau was extinguished.

Not this time.

Not yet, at least.

And he’s still fired up.

“We’ll see,” Gaudreau said. “We’ll see what activity I do in the skills competition. If I’m in the same thing, maybe we’ll talk about it and hopefully they’ll let me do it.

“Last year, [Mark Giordano] and I were on the bus to the skills competition and he’s like, ‘Let’s light you stick on fire.’ and I was like, ‘Let’s do it.’ We got into the locker room and they shut it down.

“Who knows? Maybe we’ll practice it in a couple days and see if it works. I have no idea. I haven’t tried it. Maybe we’ll give it a go in the next couple days.”

For Gaudreau, it’s his second appearance at the All-Star Game in two seasons of pro hockey. He attended last year under the Western Conference vs. Eastern Conference format.

So too did Giordano, who also earned his second invite in as many years, too.

“When I first started playing in the NHL, I would have never dreamed of getting into All-Star Games and stuff like that,” said Giordano, a nine-year NHL veteran who originally went undrafted and signed as a free agent in 2004.

“I don't forget about those days. For me, this is a huge accomplishment. I think it's a fun, exciting thing to be a part of and it's great for family and friends to come. I don't want to miss opportunities to have people there that I want around. I won't take it for granted at all.”

Especially, Giordano suggested, if he and Gaudreau can finally get that stick lit.

“We’ve got to do something,” Giordano said. “We've got to plan in advance if they have that shootout again. We'll figure something out, for sure.

 

[SaintMorose]

Any chance being the all-star game that Scott drops the mitts and pretends to fight Gaudreau?

 

[Unlimited Chequing]

Any chance being the all-star game that Scott drops the mitts and pretends to fight Gaudreau?

... they're on the same team.

 

[SaintMorose]

... they're on the same team.

That's right I keep forgetting we have Arizona now and I cant think of a better mismatch from another division.

 

[Snazu]

Any chance being the all-star game that Scott drops the mitts and pretends to fight Gaudreau?

What would be funny in the most train wreck way possible is if someone like, lets say Ovechkin, is joking around and pretends to drop the gloves with John Scott and he goes all Happy Gilmore on him and just starts throwing hay makers and ends up getting ejected from an all-star game.

 

[1989]

What would be funny in the most train wreck way possible is if someone like, lets say Ovechkin, is joking around and pretends to drop the gloves with John Scott and he goes all Happy Gilmore on him and just starts throwing hay makers and ends up getting ejected from an all-star game.

As inappropriate as it would be in the setting, that's probably the best-case scenario for Scott. I'd rather see him doing that that trying to keep up and skate during the 3 on 3 or any skills competition. No hate for guy, just the truth.

 

[InfinityIggy]

... they're on the same team.

Wouldn't that just make it funnier?

 

[Ynnek]

Congrats - looking forward to seeing Hall and Gaudreau hopefully playing together.

Johnny will play with Scott otherwise its not fair for the other teams.

 

[Deen]

Johnny is a such a gem. Appreciate the kid being on this team so much that I'm actually dreading the day he retires.

 

[Dack]

Johnny will play with Scott otherwise its not fair for the other teams.

Agreed Scott is too powerful

 

[SmellOfVictory]

Johnny is a such a gem. Appreciate the kid being on this team so much that I'm actually dreading the day he retires.

lol you've got a lot of years left to dread.