The Colorado Avalanche trio of Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen made a splash at the 2023 NHL All Star Weekend in Sunrise, Florida. Taking part in the Skills Competition, the trio strolled the red carpet in Fort Lauderdale, catching up with former teammate Nazem Kadri, and then participated in the Fastest Skater, Tendy Tandem Challenge and Slap Shot Challenge events.
The Fastest Skater event saw Makar take the ice first, and he was off to a superb start until he lost an edge while turning the corner behind the net and fell into the padding along the boards. Despite the misstep, Makar finished with a time of 23.04 seconds, and Andrei Svechnikov went on to win the event with a final time of 13.699 seconds.
In the Tendy Tandem Challenge, MacKinnon and Makar scored on a 2-on-0 breakaway as Makar sent a cross-slot feed to MacKinnon, who faked a return pass but instead, wired a wrist shot off the crossbar and in to solidify the Central Division’s winning 13-11 score.
The Slap Shot Challenge featured eight shooters, two from each division, beachside with the goal of hitting five surfboards and an NHL logo that would consequently dunk their opponent. Makar and Rantanen were paired and MacKinnon was in a duo with his close friend and fellow Halifax, Nova Scotia native Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Makar and Rantanen beat the MacKinnon and Crosby pairing as Rantanen knocked out all five surfboards and even hit the sixth NHL logo to send Crosby into the tank. In the Final, Makar and Rantanen had success in knocking down all five surfboards and the NHL logo to dunk Adam Fox of the New York Rangers into the frigid water.
The Avalanche’s trio also enjoyed some downtime with the other ‘best players in the world,’ catching up and taking in the moment. They also had some fun watching the young sons of Alexander Ovechkin, Vladimir Tarasenko and Brock Nelson skating around with the All-Stars or embedded with them on the benches and in the dressing rooms throughout the event.
The All-Star Weekend will conclude on Saturday night as all four divisions compete in the three-on-three single elimination All Star Game on Saturday, Feb. 4 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET. Be sure to tune in and watch the Avalanche’s trio and the rest of the NHL’s best players in the world battle it out for the win!
Source: www.nhl.com