Before Game 1 of the 2026 Stanley Cup Finals between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Carolina Hurricanes, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA Executive Director Marty Walsh announced that the New York Islanders and UBS Arena will host the All-Star Game.
So, to quote Commissioner Bettman, the demise of the All-Star game has been greatly exaggerated. As many thought, the NHL had scrapped the All-Star Game in favor of the Four Nations. But when he spoke with Marty Walsh, the NHLPA's Executive Director, “The 2027 NHL All-Star Game will be a precursor to the 2028 World Cup of Hockey.”
The 2027 NHL All-Star Game will feature international talent, with five teams: the United States, Canada, Sweden, Finland, and the fifth best team in the world. And Russian athletes will take part in this, as it is an event sanctioned by the NHL.
Via NHL media release: “These five teams will compete in a competition to showcase three out of three players. Each team will play four 5-minute games during the round robin tournament. There will be no overtime or shootout in the event of a tie.
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The top two teams from the round-robin will advance to the 10-minute finals based on the following scoring system: 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss. The winning team will claim a prize of $2 million (USD).”
Both the NHL and NHLPA will select 30 players for participating teams, and fans will be able to select eight players from each team.
In addition to the changes to the 2027 NHL All-Star Game, the NHL Skills Competition will take on a different tone. No, the NHL is not bringing back the Young Stars Game, but 10 Young Stars, age 25 or younger, will participate in eight events selected by the NHL and the NHLPA.
According to the NHL: “Each athlete will participate in four of the first six events: Fastest Skater, Hardest Shot, Passing Challenge, One Timers, Stick Handling and Shooting Accuracy. Players will earn points based on their placement in each event.
The top four players will then advance to the Shootout, facing off against one of four All-Star pitchers. The top two finishers from the Shootout will compete in the final event: the Obstacle Course Final. The player with the highest accumulated points will be awarded the All-Star Skills Champion and will take home a prize of $1 million (USD).”
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When the NHL announced the All-Star Event inside the UBS Arena for the 2024 arena series. It took three years because of the Four Nations in 2025 and the Olympics in 2026, but the highlight will be the New York Islanders and the UBS Arena in February of 2027.
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