Over the past four NHL All-Star Games, things may have looked a bit different. Something was odd, but refreshing, about a few players in the skills competition. The names on the back of the jersey did not register with some NHL fans, and the players had ponytails. What was going on?
Something was off, but it felt right, like these players belonged all along. For the first time in league history, the NHL allowed professional women hockey players to take part in the NHL Skills Competition at the NHL All-Star Game.
It was a welcomed addition to the skills competition, as it seemed to be getting repetitive. It started with one female taking part in one skills event but seemed to have grown over a span of a few years.
This is something that the NHL and women’s hockey needs, more exposure for both and a nationwide audience to experience the skill set.
Sarah Nurse and others permanently belong in the NHL All-Star Game.
Kendall Coyne-Schofield was the first female hockey player to take part in a skills competition. Not only were all eyes on her but she excelled in her shining moment on the ice.
Coyne-Schofield skated in the fastest skater competition in 2018 in San Jose. She was very impressive, skating the entire ice in a span of 14.346 seconds, which came in second to Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid.
She, not the All-Star Game, was the story after the festivities had ended. It was a well-deserved moment for one of the best female hockey players in recent memory.
Next was Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson. She competed in the 2022 skills competition in Las Vegas, taking part in not one, but two events She finished third in the fountain faceoff, and came close to winning the accuracy shooting event, hitting all targets in 16.253 seconds.
Then, we come to this year’s 2023 NHL All-Star Game. Not one, not two but five female hockey players competed in the skills competition. USA skaters such as Sarah Nurse, Emily Clarke, Rebecca Johnston, Hilary Knight, and Alex Carpenter all competed in the tendy tandem event.
Nurse stood out from the rest and was the star of the entire event. Nurse would go on to score a breakaway goal on New York Rangers star goaltender Igor Shesterkin.
With that said, it would be only fair to say that more women hockey players should take part in future skills events. They have proven, as a whole, that they can compete with the best of the NHL. They can skate and shoot just like their male counterparts and it showed.
Some of the female participants outperformed some of the men in these events. This group of women is extremely talented and should be showcased. The women have just as much skill and dedication to their craft.
Since women’s professional hockey is not as available on television as men’s, then why not have the women participate in a women’s competition at the next All-Star Game in Toronto? This could give them more exposure than these events did.
These gifted hockey players have given a tremendous amount to be a small part of a skills competition. If the NHL wants to promote the women’s game, then give them the spotlight, starting in 2024 with the All-Star Game.
There should be an event dedicated solely to the women and letting them shine and promote their game. The All-Star Game gets plenty of viewers, and what better way to let them have their moment? Give them a bigger spotlight next season, they deserve it.