NHL All-Star Weekend: Player Draft, PWHL Showcase Among Plans for 2024 Toronto Event

The NHL All-Star Player Draft will be back after a nine-year hiatus.

The NHL announced its plans for the 2024 All-Star Weekend in Toronto, scheduled from Feb. 1 to Feb. 3. For the first time since the 2012 All-Star Weekend in Ottawa, the event lasts three days, beginning with an extra evening of festivities and a PWHL showcase on "NHL All-Star Thursday."

Starting at 6 p.m. ET on Feb. 1, the captains of the four all-star teams will select their teams with a celebrity captain in the return of the player draft.

After that, there will be a ceremony announcing the NHL Alumni Keith Magnuson Man of the Year, presented to a former NHL player who had a successful post-career transition by applying perseverance, commitment and teamwork. 

NHL All-Star Thursday is also planned to feature some of the best women's hockey players in the world in a 3-on-3 PWHL showcase to cap off the evening at Scotiabank Arena, home of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Professional Women's Hockey League is preparing to begin its inaugural season in the New Year with six teams.

Friday's slotted to have the usual All-Star Skills Competition, while the game takes place on Saturday, Feb. 3. 

The all-star fantasy draft has taken place three times before, giving fans another evening of entertainment and celebrating the NHL's best and most popular players so far during the season. 

When Raleigh, home of the Carolina Hurricanes, hosted the first all-star player draft in 2011, each team had a captain and two assistants who selected their rosters. Eric Staal, captain of Team Staal, picked Hurricanes teammate Cam Ward first overall to the delight of the home crowd, while Team Lidstrom's Nicklas Lidstrom selected Steven Stamkos second. At the end of the draft, Alex Ovechkin had his phone out recording Phil Kessel as he was selected with the final pick of the draft. Unlike the annual NHL entry draft, where many players go unselected, the player pool for the all-star drafts is already determined, meaning Kessel sat on his own waiting to be picked.

The 2012 all-star player draft in Ottawa also had its own share of memories, with then-Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson going first overall to Team Alfredsson and Pavel Datsyuk heading to Team Chara. Due to rivalries between the Senators and Maple Leafs, as well as the Boston Bruins coming off a Stanley Cup victory against the Vancouver Canucks, Daniel Alfredsson passed on Leafs players Kessel and Dion Phaneuf, while then-Bruins captain Zdeno Chara stayed away from the Sedin twins and Alexander Edler.

While Ovechkin filmed Kessel getting picked last in 2011, he begged to be selected in the final round of the 2015 draft in Columbus so he could win a car given to the final two choices. Right before the final round, Team Foligno selected Ovechkin. After the festivities, Ovechkin revealed he wanted to donate the car to a local hockey team, so Honda donated a car to him after all.

Let the speculation begin on the rosters for the NHL All-Star Weekend and the PWHL showcase as well.