NEW YORK — The NHL will play a three-on-three All-Star tournament instead of a traditional All-Star game.

The NHL and the players union announced the format change Wednesday for the Sunday, Jan. 31, event in Nashville, Tennessee.

Players will represent the Pacific, Central, Atlantic and Metropolitan divisions in the $1 million winner-take-all tournament that will have three 20-minute games. The Central will open against the Pacific, and the Atlantic will face the Metropolitan in the semifinals, with the winners advancing to the championship game.

Each team will have six forwards, three defensemen and two goalies. One player from each division will be determined in fan voting and the remaining 40 players will be selected by the NHL hockey operations department, with at least one player from each NHL team.

WEDNESDAY’S GAMES

JETS 4, CANUCKS 1: Mark Scheifele and Drew Stafford each had two goals and an assist as host Winnipeg ended a six-game losing streak.

Mathieu Perreault had three assists for the Jets.

CAPITALS 2, RED WINGS 1: Evgeny Kuznetsov scored 45 seconds into overtime to lift visiting Washington over Detroit.

Alex Ovechkin was held without a goal for the fourth straight game and remained tied with Sergei Fedorov for the NHL’s career lead among Russian players. Justin Williams scored for the Caps on a first-period power play after Dylan Larkin had opened the scoring for Detroit.

Copy the Story Link