The NHL’s All-Star Weekend is coming to Long Island — and with a new format.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHL Players Association executive director Marty Walsh announced the official plans for UBS Arena, the home of the Islanders, to host the 2027 All-Star Game and skills competition next season from Feb. 5-6.
Both events will feature completely new formats, with the All-Star Game notably adopting an international element.
The Feb. 6 All-Star Game will feature five teams representing Canada, Finland, Sweden, the United States and a “World” team comprised of international players from countries outside of the other four teams.
Each team — made up of nine skaters and two goalies — will participate in a three-on-three, round-robin exhibition tournament.
The NHL and NHLPA are responsible for selecting 30 players from each of the participating teams for an NHL All-Star Fan Vote. When the voting opens in December, fans will be able to choose eight players from each team. The remaining roster spots — one forward, one defenseman and one goaltender — will be selected jointly by the NHL and NHLPA.
Teams will play four five-minute games during the round-robin portion. There will also be no overtime period or shootout in the event of a tie.
The top two teams from the round robin will advance to a 10-minute final based on a point system that counts two points for a win, one for a tie and zero for a loss. A $2 million cash prize will be awarded to the winning team.
On Friday, there will be eight events as part of the All-Star Skills Competition. The NHL and NHLPA will select 10 “young stars ages 25 or younger” to be featured in the event.
Each of the 10 players will participate in four of the first six events: Fastest skater, hardest shot, passing challenge, one-timers, stick handling and accuracy shooting. They will earn points depending on where they place in each event.
The top four players will advance to a Shootout and must face one of four All-Star goaltenders.
The top two players from the Shootout will advance to the final event, the Obstacle Course.
Whichever player finishes with the highest cumulative score will be named the All-Star Skills champion and take home a $1 million prize.
The All-Star Skills Competition will be broadcast on ESPN, while the game can be found on ABC. Event times are still to be announced.
This will mark the second time the Islanders have hosted the NHL’s All-Star Weekend. The Isles held the 1983 event at the Coliseum.
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