The National Hockey League announced on Tuesday that it has changed the format for next year’s All-Star Game at UBS Arena in New York.
After not holding an All-Star Game in each of the past two seasons due to the Olympics and the 4 Nations Face-Off, the NHL will keep the international theme going for the event which will take place Feb. 5-6, 2027 at the home of the New York Islanders.
Five teams — the United States, Canada, Finland, Sweden, and a World squad — will compete in a three-on-three round-robin tournament on Friday, Feb. 5. The teams will be made up of 11 players — nine skaters and two goaltenders — with the league and NHL Players’ Association choosing 30 players who will feature on a fan vote beginning in December. Fans will be able to vote for eight players from each team with the remaining three players jointly chosen by the NHL and NHLPA.
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Each of the five teams will play four 5-minute games with no overtime or shootout in the event of a tie. Teams will receive 2 points for a win, 1 point for a tie and 0 points for a loss. The top two teams will advance to a 10-minute final with the winning side claiming $2 million (USD).
2027 NHL All-Star Game schedule
Game 1: USA vs. Canada
Game 2: Sweden vs. Finland
Game 3: World team vs. USA
Game 4: Canada vs. Sweden
Game 5: Finland vs. World team
Game 6: USA vs. Sweden
Game 7: Canada vs. Finland
Game 8: Sweden vs. World team
Game 9: USA vs. Finland
Game 10: Canada vs. World team
The night before the All-Star tournament will see the NHL Skills competition, which will also see change.
Ten NHL players ages 25 and younger will compete in eight events with each player taking part in four of six main events: Fastest Skater, Hardest Shot, Passing Challenge, One Timers, Stick Handling and Accuracy Shooting.
The top four point accumulators will advance to a shootout where they will face one of the four All-Star goaltenders. The top two players will then move on to the Obstacle Course Finale. The player with the highest total score will win $1 million (USD).
The NHL has had international themes to its All-Star Games in the past. The 1998 event took place a month before the Nagano Olympics and saw a North America vs. World format that lasted through the 2001-02 season.