St Louis Blues speedster Jordan Kyrou on Friday upset three-time champion Connor McDavid to capture the fastest skater competition at the NHL All-Star Game weekend in Las Vegas.
The 23-year-old Canadian finished in a time of 13.55 seconds to edge out runner-up Adrian Kempe of the Los Angeles Kings, who crossed the finish line in 13.58 at the T-Mobile Arena.
Edmonton Oilers superstar McDavid was the last skater to go and flashed across the line in 13.69. McDavid won the event in 2017, 2018 and 2019, but finished fourth on Friday.
Photo: AFP
Last year’s winner Mathew Barzal of the New York Islanders did not compete.
“It’s always fun to do it,” McDavid said. “It’s a tough thing to go out there cold and skate as fast as you can go, but Kyrou did a great job.”
The fastest skater event was one of seven events to lead off the NHL All-Star weekend. The All-Star Game was set for yesterday for at T-Mobile Arena.
The All-Star Game was not held last season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kyrou, who was drafted 35th overall by the Blues in 2016, is competing in his first All-Star Game.
Detroit Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin, who set an NHL record in 2016 with a time of 13.17, could not recapture the magic and finished with a time of 14.11.
New York Rangers forward Chris Kreider, who skated first, completed the course in 13.66. He also finished third in the event in 2020.
In the hardest shot event, Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman finished atop the four player field with a 166kph blast on his second shot.
The players were given two shots from 9m using a glow in the dark puck and Hedman posted the two hardest shots of the event. His first shot was clocked at 165.3kph. Hedman is competing in his third all-star game.
“I was hoping for over 100 [miles per hour, 161kph],” the Swede said. “Usually it comes off a one-timer and it’s pretty heavy so you can tell it’s a good one, but when you have to step into one like that you can’t really tell. I knew I had to bring it.”
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