Troy Terry had to earn his way into the NHL All-Star Game on Saturday afternoon in Las Vegas.
He struggled to make an impact his first four seasons with the Anaheim Ducks, but a 16-game point streak by Terry early in the season helped the Ducks to a 10-4-3 start and they’ve continued to be one of the NHL’s most surprising stories.
The point streak remains the second-longest in the NHL this season and Terry is up to 25 goals, tied for sixth-most in the league.
Terry didn’t initially earn an All-Star nameplate, but fans voted him onto the Pacific Division team in the “Last Men In” competition.
When the Pacific Division drops the puck against the Central Division in the first semifinal beginning at 3 p.m. ET, Terry should find plenty of open ice in the 3-on-3 format.
Playing with dynamic offensive players such as Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers might feel too good to be true.
“It’s not lost on me how cool this is,” Terry said. “I don’t know if justice was served because there were some really deserving players, but for me, I’m just extremely happy. It’s pretty cool for me.”
Terry is one of six first-time All Stars on the Pacific team, joining forwards Jonathan Marchessault and Mark Stone of the Vegas Golden Knights, Timo Meier of the San Jose Sharks, Adrian Kempe of the Los Angeles Kings and goalie Thatcher Demko of the Vancouver Canucks.
The Central team has eight first-time All-Stars, including Kirill Kaprizov of the Minnesota Wild, who led NHL rookies in goals (27) and points (51) last season.
“It’s a lot of fun for me, a lot of fun for all the players that get to participate,” Kaprizov said.
Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, who leads NHL defensemen with 18 goals, will make his All-Star debut along with teammate Nazem Kadri, who is tied for third in the NHL with 60 points (19 goals, 41 assists) through 41 games, but had to win the “Last Men In” competition to make the Central team.
Nathan MacKinnon was set to become the third Colorado player for the Central, but won’t play after breaking his nose against the Boston Bruins on Jan. 26.
–Field Level Media