Coyne Schofield, Poulin headline women’s 3-on-3 game at All-Star weekend

Kendall-Coyne-Schofield-skates-during-the-skills-competition-at-NHL-All-Star-Weekend

Kendall Coyne will be PWHL Minnesota's inaugural captain, the team announced on Wednesday. (AP/Ben Margot)

The NHL has announced the events for the upcoming NHL All-Star skills competition, with women’s players and new challenges highlighting the announcement.

The first new event is the Elite Women’s 3-on-3 game, which is a Canada vs. USA clash featuring some of the top female players in the world. Each team will feature nine skaters and one goalie, and the game will be two 10-minute periods with running time.

Team Canada features star players like Marie-Philip Poulin, Natalie Spooner, Renata Fast and Rebecca Johnston, while Team USA includes stars such as Kendall Coyne Schofield, Amanda Kessel and Brianna Decker.

Fast, Johnston, Decker and Coyne Schofield were all invited to participate in last year’s All-Star skills competition.

“I am honored to receive the invitation from the NHL for the 2020 All-Star game along with the amazing group of players selected,” Poulin said in a statement. “It is a chance for us to showcase our skills and continue to gain exposure.

“To all the little girls out there who dream of one day playing professional hockey, these are the small victories along the way that we need to celebrate. You can count on me to bring my best on the ice next week and leave people wanting more of what they will witness.”

There will also be another new individual event, the NHL Shooting Stars, which will take the action to the stands for the first time. In the event, eight NHL players and two female players, will fire pucks at targets from a platform approximately 30 feet above the ice. Each player will get seven shots and be awarded points for every target hit.

The NHL is also bringing back four classic events for the competition: fastest skater, save streak, accuracy shooting and hardest shot. The player that wins each of the five individual events will be awarded $30,000.

Players competing in each individual event have yet to be announced.

The NHL Skills Competition will take place on Jan. 24 at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT on Sportsnet from St. Louis. The All-Star game will follow on Jan. 25 at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT, also on Sportsnet.

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