(Toronto) In connection with the All-Star tournament, the NHL announced Monday the return of the captains’ choices and the holding of a 3-on-3 women’s game in Toronto.
Early February festivities will include events on Thursday, in addition to the Skills Competition (Friday) and All-Star Tournament (Saturday), at Scotiabank Arena.
On Thursday, the captains will select players to assemble four teams.
There will also be a match with players from the Professional Women’s Hockey League.
The circuit has clubs in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Boston, Minneapolis-St. Paul and the New York area. The league schedule is scheduled to begin in January.
The NHL used a draft in two-team All-Star Games in 2011, 2012 and 2015, before moving to a section-based formula in 2016.
The event was canceled in 2013 due to the lockout, while the match did not take place in 2014 due to the Olympics.
Public voting for 12 player spots will begin in January for the NHL All-Star Weekend, which runs Feb. 1-3.
The league will decide the rest of the guests.
Thursday’s programming will also include a tribute to the 1966-1967 Maple Leafs – the last champion edition of the Toronto team.
All-Star Weekend hasn’t been presented in Toronto since 2000, but the city has hosted the event on eight previous occasions.