Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
The results are in!
The NHL unveiled its ‘Last Man In’ winners for each division on Tuesday afternoon, announcing that Colorado’s Nazem Kadri, Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos, Anaheim’s Troy Terry, and New York’s Mika Zbanejad will be heading to the 2022 All-Star Game in Las Vegas next month after earning the most fan votes.
Zbanejad, however, is reportedly unable to attend the event due to personal reasons, with Pittsburgh’s Jake Guentzel taking his place in representing the Metropolitan Division.
While it’s a crime that he wasn’t selected to the game outright, Kadri’s inclusion in the All-Star festivities is more than deserving. The 30-year-old is currently scoring at a 130-point pace, sitting fourth in the NHL in points with 49 in just 33 games, and has blossomed into one of the league’s best forwards this season.
After fighting injuries the past few years, Stamkos has exploded back on the scene for the back-to-back champs, racking up 46 points in 39 games thus far, including 18 goals, to help the Lightning sit second in the hotly-contested Atlantic Divison despite losing a number of key names over the summer to free agency.
Terry is having quite the breakout of his own over in California, with the 24-year-old scoring at nearly a point-per-game pace through 38 contests that is helped largely by a whopping 22 goals.
And while Zbanejad will ultimately not attend the All-Star event this year, it doesn’t mean he’s unworthy of the selection. The 28-year-old has continued his torrid production this season, putting up 35 points in 39 games thus far for the divison-leading Rangers.
His replacement, however, isn’t too shabby himself, with Guentzel out-scoring and out-pacing Zbanejad at the moment with 20 goals and 38 points in just 32 games.
Regardless of how you look at it, there is a lot of skill at play here. And thanks to the voting done by passionate fans, these four stars will be taking their talents to Vegas in a few weeks’ time.
