Leafs' Matthews, Nylander give home crowd lots to cheer for at All-Star Skills

TORONTO — To the surprise of absolutely no one in the building, it was Connor McDavid who finished the night crowned as the most skilled of this absurdly skillful All-Star bunch.

But while the Edmonton Oilers captain was the undeniable star of the 2024 NHL All-Star Skills Competition, dropping jaws every time he stepped to centre ice to put on a display for the Scotiabank Arena faithful, the hardest cheers rained down on the two phenoms with the maple leaf on their sweaters.

It was an eventful night for Auston Matthews and William Nylander, who’ve embraced their role as hosts this weekend — along with fellow Toronto Maple Leafs All-Stars Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly. Friday night, with the silly, haphazard joy of the All-Star circus in their home barn, Nos. 34 and 88 gave the home crowd plenty to cheer for.

“I thought it was a lot of fun,” Matthews said of the night after the event had wrapped and the fans had streamed out of the building. Much was made of the new format of the skills competition, which aimed to make the event more competitive for the players involved — count Matthews as a fan of the changes. “It was pretty competitive for the most part. As it started to wind down, you could see guys were putting in some pretty big efforts. I thought it was cool. It’s the first year doing this — it’s never going to be perfect, but I think it’s a good base for the future, and we can continue to have skills competitions somewhat like this format, and keep it competitive and fun for everybody.”

Added his fellow Leaf, in true Nylander fashion: “I didn’t really watch the Skills before, so I don’t really know how it was working before. But I think it was a pretty cool concept this year.”

The pair were all laughs throughout the night, enjoying the moment and the comfort of the familiar territory. Of course, a rocky start in their opening events took the wind out of those sails for just a moment.

“I was a little nervous after that poor start by me,” Matthews said Friday night with a chuckle. “I thought I was dead in the water after the first event, the one-timers. I didn’t do too well on that. But I really wanted to do well on that accuracy shooting — I had to do something there to make it to the second round.”

The Maple Leafs sniper — who’s pacing the league with 40 goals to his name this season — wound up finishing last in the one-timers event, fresh off Nylander placing last in his own first event, the fastest skater competition. As the night wore down to the final few events, though, Toronto’s All-Star captain managed to give the Scotiabank Arena crowd some signature moments — nearly claiming the accuracy shooting throne by shattering his four targets in just over nine seconds, before McDavid bested him by a hair, snagging the title.

Then came one of the most interesting events of the evening, the one-on-one, which saw skaters pick the goalie they would face, and then tee off on them for as many attempts as possible for a full minute.

The crowd roared with approval as the ever-nonchalant Nylander stepped up first, chose netminder Cam Talbot simply because he was the goalie standing across from him during the selection process, and wound up winning the event — and providing one of its slickest finishes.

“I just tried to get as many shots in as possible,” Nylander said, simply, of his winning run. “I was pretty tired by the end of it. … When you go from resting for 45 minutes, to going full speed, you’re pretty gassed after a minute.”

Matthews finished right behind him, in second place, in the one-on-one, the pair earning a shot at the final event — the obstacle course — for the $1-million prize. 

There was little chance anyone was besting McDavid in an event that tested how well players could sprint down the ice, weaving and darting around all manner of barriers — No. 97’s bread and butter. But for just a moment, it seemed Nylander had a chance at putting up a time that would be tough for even McDavid to top, as the quick-footed Swede whipped through the course with ease — before, ultimately, stumbling on the final step.

“We were cheering for him, and then when he missed the net it was like, ‘Ahhh, come on,’” Matthews said with a laugh. “But he did great. He’s a special player. I think all the guys that participated tonight, you can see why they’re some of the top players in the world. Extremely skilled in different ways. Hopefully, the fans enjoyed it.”

At the very least, No. 88 did.

“I think the last one was probably my favourite,” Nylander said of the new addition to the skills competition itinerary. “It was a combination of everything, in a way, so that was lots of fun. … You had to be versatile in everything.”

For everyone other than McDavid — who will head back west with an extra $1 million in his bank account — the results matter little, of course. On a night that offered the crew of All-Stars a chance to build some camaraderie with their fellow phenoms, it was just about trying to take in the moment, Matthews said.

“In the end, you’re just enjoying your time, enjoying your break, getting to spend time with friends, buddies that you’ve played with in the past, or play with now, or new guys that you’re getting to know,” said Matthews. “All in all, it’s a great experience. … Especially to have it here in Toronto, and have the hometown support, everything that goes along with hosting this event. It means a lot.”

The two-time Rocket Richard winner paid tribute to Toronto on Friday night with a pair of custom skates, and a custom stick, emblazoned with the city’s skyline and decked out in the colours of pal Justin Bieber’s brand.

“With the jerseys being a collaboration with Drew House, I just kind of did Drew House-inspired skates and stick for tonight,” Matthews said of the custom All-Star gear. “It’s cool to be able to participate in events like this and be able to do cool stuff like that. I’ve been fortunate enough to be in a couple of these, and it’s always special to be a part of.”

With the skills competition out of the way, attention now turns to the finale: Saturday’s All-Star Game, a 3-on-3 tournament with another $1 million up for grabs.

“I think the 3-on-3 will be lots of fun — a lot of competition, money on the line,” Nylander said of the weekend’s closing event. “We’ll be competing for that money.”