Four countries and a "rest of world" squad will clash in the 2027 NHL All-Star Game tournament. Gary Bettman, Bill Daly, Marty Walsh and Ron Hainsey discussed the new weekend format and Russia's participation.
RALEIGH, N.C. – NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and his deputy, Bill Daly, held their annual Stanley Cup final availability hours before Game 1 began between the Carolina Hurricanes and Vegas Golden Knights.
Among the items revealed, with the help of NHLPA head Marty Walsh, was a new All-Star Game format for next season, where the event will be hosted by the New York Islanders.
Most notable for Islanders fans will be the skills competition, which will only feature players 25 and under – which, of course, would include Calder Trophy winner Matthew Schaefer.
But the format of the games themselves will be dramatically different as the NHL returns to an international scheme: five teams of 11 players from the U.S., Canada, Sweden, Finland and, for lack of a better term, the rest.
That last entry, according to Daly, will include Russians.
Russia, of course, has been locked out of international competition since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, though the IIHF Council will be evaluating Russia's eligibility on a tournament-by-tournament basis.
This becomes particularly relevant for the NHL's planned World Cup of Hockey in 2028, but there is still more information needed from the IIHF on the Russian eligibility front.
"I don't think there's complete clarity on what they've (the IIHF, that is) done," Bettman said. "So that's why we'll have to wait and see."
Bettman and Daly also nixed any rumors that European nations, such as Sweden, Finland or Czechia, would boycott the World Cup if Russia participated.
In the meantime, the likes of Kirill Kaprizov, Andrei Vasilevskiy and other superstars are indeed eligible to play at the 2027 All-Star Game, which goes international for the first time since 2002. Walsh noted that all-star games can get stale in any pro sport, so this twist intrigues. His lieutenant agreed.
"We've put a lot of brainpower behind coming up with the next look and what the best format would be," said NHLPA assistant executive director Ron Hainsey. "This is a little different with the countries, adding some flavor as we head through 4 Nations, Olympics and towards the World Cup."
The NHL and NHLPA will select 30 potential players for each team, then turn things over to a fan vote. The fans will select eight of the players on each squad, while the NHL and union will pick the final forward, defenseman and goalie.
Each team will play four five-minute games in a round-robin, with the top two teams advancing to a 10-minute final with a $2 million purse on the line. In total, there will be 10 round-robin mini games and one final.
In other news, Bettman, 74, was once again coy when asked about his future as commissioner. As per usual, he was mum on any succession plan.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. See more of The Hockey News on Google and save us as a preferred source. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.