Pinned
Link copied
Team Matthews has defended home turf and won the 2024 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto. Auston Matthews and his team took down Team McDavid, 7-4, to win the $1 million in prize money.
Much like the two semifinal games, this one was evenly matched with the teams exchanging blows for most of the contest. Things really heated up when the teams combined to score three goals in 20 seconds late in the first period.
Among that trio of tallies was Matthews, the Maple Leafs superstar, potting his first of the game.
This weekend can sometimes make goalies look bad, but Team McDavid netminder Sergei Bobrovsky deserves some credit for making a show-stopping save at the first period buzzer. Even Mitch Marner had to tip his cap.
The championship game was tied at 3-3 going into the second period, but that is when Matthews and his side started to pull away. Filip Forsberg broke the tie by picking his spot off the rush.
Not too long after that, Matthews scored what would wind up being the game-winning goal to put the cherry on top of an awesome performance at Scotiabank Arena. Matthews took a feed and blasted a one-timer over the shoulder of Connor Hellebuyck, a perennial Vezina Trophy candidate.
From there, Team Matthews was able to hang on for the win, and they didn't even need to go to a shootout. In a not-so-shocking twist of events, Matthews himself was named All-Star Game MVP after a three-point performance in the final.
Matthews and his teammates get to give $1 million to the charity of their choice, and the Maple Leafs fans will go home happy.
Semifinal: Team Matthews vs. Team Hughes
The game between Team Matthews and Team Hughes started and ended with a frenzy of goals. The teams combined for four goals in the first five minutes of the game, including Frank Vatrano picking the corner for Team Hughes.
The scoring slowed a bit after that with no goals in the next seven minutes of game time, but the players turned up the intensity late. That began when Mitch Marner walked down main street and potted a great shot to get the Maple Leafs fans going.
There were three lead changes in the final eight minutes of the second period, and Team Hughes held a late lead thanks to a pretty finish from Vatrano again.
Just 33 seconds after that, Filip Forsberg finished a filthy deke that sent the game to a shootout.
Igor Shesterkin and Thatcher Demko elevated their level of play in the shootout with both players denying the first three shooters they faced. However, it was Demko who blinked first when Alex DeBrincat buried a shot to the far side.
Semifinal: Team McDavid vs. Team MacKinnon
In the first semifinal matchup, Team McDavid defeated Team MacKinnon, 4-3, in a game that required a fantastic comeback from McDavid's side.
As the team captain, Connor McDavid and his side got off to a slow start. Nathan MacKinnon opened the scoring and had what looked like a dagger late when he scored a gorgeous goal against Sergei Bobrovsky. Despite the result, this might wind up being the goal of the day.
Team McDavid was down 3-1 with under a minute left when they finally kicked it into high gear, and David Pastrnak sparked the comeback with a snipe against Boston Bruins teammate Jeremy Swayman.
Team McDavid still needed one more, and McDavid came through for his team with just six seconds remaining. Team MacKinnon made the interesting defensive decision of leaving McDavid all alone, and he did not miss an empty net.
McDavid and Pastrnak, the heroes at the end of regulation, also scored in the shootout to win the game and send Team McDavid to the championship game.
