Inside Scoop: All-Star Skills
Coyne Schofield became the first woman to participate in the NHL All-Star Skills as she took part in the Fastest Skater event, filling in for the injured Nate MacKinnon. The Fastest Skater event was the first of the night, and Coyne Schofield was the first to go. As she lined up, chants of "USA! USA!" echoed throughout the SAP Center.
Coyne Schofield, who was teammates with Amanda Kessel when they won gold at last year's Winter Olympics, went on to skate an electrifying lap and crossed the line at 14.346 seconds. She may have had some nerves - as she put it, "if you're not a little bit nervous, you don't care, right?" - but more than anything, she believed in herself.
"My first impression was like, I can do this," Coyne Schofield said. "My speed is definitely my strength. Obviously, I was a little nervous, but I knew it was a moment that was going to break a lot of barriers and a moment that would change the perception of our game and show support to our game."
Coyne Schofield ended up finishing seventh of eighth in a field that also included Connor McDavid, Cam Atkinson, Mathew Barzal, Jack Eichel, Miro Heiskanen, Clayton Keller and Elias Pettersson, and made a statement by standing out amongst hockey's best of the best - as she is one of the game's best.
"It shows the top players - men or women - belong," Coyne Schofield said.
McDavid, who eventually won his third straight title with a time of 13.378 seconds, said he thought his reign could be in trouble watching her fly. Once Coyne Schofield finished, the players on both benches, who wore big grins and amazed expressions, tapped their sticks in appreciation and reached out for high fives as she skated by.
"When she took off, I was just like, 'Wow,'" McDavid told reporters. "I thought she might have won the way she was moving. She was a really good skater, and that's an amazing thing for the game, when people can see her participate like that in an event like this."
It really is. It was, quite honestly, the coolest moment of the night, and one that proved Hockey really, truly is For Everyone.
"You cherish these moments," Coyne Schofield said. "That's what I tell kids all the time. When I first put on a pair of hockey skates when I was 3 years old, I didn't think I would go to two Olympic Games, get the education I received and be sitting in front of you here today as the first woman to compete in the All-Star competition. It's amazing what this game has brought me, so it's pretty cool."
* With Sidney Crosby missing the NHL All-Star Skills due to illness, Kris Letang thought he would replace his teammate in the Accuracy Shooting event and maybe earn some bragging rights.
"I thought I could replace him and maybe beat him at his own competition, I guess. I don't know," Letang said with a laugh.
Letang didn't quite get those bragging rights, but he did produce a strong showing, finishing second behind Boston's David Pastrnak with a time of 12.693 seconds. Letang displayed some impressive poise and patience despite having some trouble with the target on the lower right-hand side.
"I was pretty calm but I was also nervous," Letang said. "I didn't seem like it, but I was. As long as I don't finish last, that's the main goal. But I felt pretty good at the beginning, so I thought I could go for it. But I missed the last one and that kind of cost me. I told 'Flower' (Marc-Andre Fleury), low glove, I don't shoot there (laughs). It's always blocker."
Old friends Letang and Fleury walked the red carpet together before entering the arena to do media, where a light-hearted moment occurred when the first question to Fleury was, "Marc, what does it mean to be an All-Star and come down here and represent the Penguins?"
Everybody burst out laughing, including Fleury himself.
"The Penguins? Oh, that's funny," he said.
