Brock Boeser becomes the first rookie in 32 years to be chosen as MVP of the All-Star game.

TAMPA, Fla. — Vancouver’s Brock Boeser was more than happy to just be at the NHL All-Star game, mingling with some of the high-profile players he grew up admiring.

Leaving Amalie Arena on Sunday as the first rookie to take MVP honors since Mario Lemieux in 1985 far exceeded anything he imagined possible.

“Shocked,” the 20-year-old Boeser said. “I never would have dreamt this any time in life.”

Rickard Rakell scored two goals and Boeser, Johnny Gaudreau and Drew Doughty also scored to help the Pacific Division beat the Atlantic 5-2 in the championship game of a four-team divisional tournament played in an entertaining three-on-three format adopted for the All-Star game in 2016.

The NHL’s leading rookie scorer with 24 goals and 19 assists, Boeser also had an assist in the final after scoring the go-ahead goal in a 5-2 semifinal victory over the Central Division.

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“I was definitely nervous coming into it,” said Boeser, the only rookie among 15 first-time All-Stars. “(I said) enjoy this, just have fun, smile. That’s what I did.”

Goalies Marc-Andre Fleury and Mike Smith teamed to allow just four goals in the two games the Pacific won to claim the $1 million winner-take-all prize.

Mike Green scored both goals for the Atlantic.

Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov scored three goals in the Atlantic’s 7-4 semifinal win over the Metropolitan Division, but the Lightning’s young star was shut out in the championship game.

Boston’s Brad Marchand, Tampa Bay’s Brayden Point, Toronto’s Auston Matthews and Buffalo’s Jack Eichel also scored for the Atlantic, which rallied from a 3-1 deficit after early goals by Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby, Philadelphia’s Claude Giroux and Washington’s Alex Ovechkin.


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