Helsinki players place in all three Skills events

The All-Star Weekend Skills Competition was a good time for all but especially for Helsinki players and fans. Not only did defenseman Jacob Moverare beat out his former defense partner in Oslo (Zach Werenski) to win the Hardest Shot competition, but forward Brock Boeser placed second in Fastest Skater and third in Shooting Accuracy.

Fastest Skater

There was some really fast skating going on in Prague and the hometown favorite Connor Bedard drew the loudest cheers. But his time was only good enough for 15th place. The 9th-fastest man in the event was a woman – Stockholm speedster Kendall Coyne Schofield.

In the end, it was Bern’s Sebastian Aho standing on the tallest spot on the podium. His win marked the first time in history that a Bern player had even made it to the podium in any of the three Skills events. His blazingly fast performance put Boeser in second place, which is the best a Helsinki player has ever done in the event. Bratislava defenseman Dante Fabbro was a surprising third-place winner.

Hardest Shot

Jacob Moverare could never even get into the All-Star Weekend Hardest Shot competition when he was with Oslo because Zach Werenski was his teammate and he always shot harder. Werenski placed second in the competition to St. Petersburg’s Patrik Laine in Seasons 13 and 14, and he was the league champion last season.

This season, he had to settle for second again, getting bested by his old pal who picked up some strength and technique since moving to Helsinki in an off-season trade. Jack Eichel of Stockholm turned in the third-hardest shot to place one spot behind Werenski for the second year in a row.

Shooting Accuracy

In the Shooting Accuracy event, Albert Sjoberg was precise and quick and he won the event wearing his Edinburgh Capitals sweater. He edged Minsk star Aaron Ekblad, the champion of the event in Seasons 15 and 16 and the runner-up last year.

It is the second time in history that a Capital has won that event. Claude Giroux won it in Season 5 and he also finished third in the Fastest Skater event that year. Edinburgh also had success in Accuracy Shooting a few years later when Jamie Benn placed in the Top 3 in Seasons 8 and 9.