The New York Times-20080128-Fun Prevails in Eastern All-Stars- Win

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Fun Prevails in Eastern All-Stars' Win

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For a game that does not mean anything in the standings, the N.H.L. All-Star Game generated a weekend-long referendum on the sport that seemed far too serious for an event that is supposed to be about fun.

The 48-hour debate ranged from whether the sport's showcase game could stand up without its showcase player, Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby, to dismay over players who skipped the game for personal reasons, to whether the All-Star Game had lost its usefulness as a tool to promote hockey.

It took a capacity crowd at Philips Arena to put a clown's face on the game, as well as light-hearted effort from the players -- for two and a half periods at least -- to gain the proper perspective. As for the lack of star power, that issue was negated by sparkling performances from Columbus's Rick Nash, who scored three goals, and San Jose goalie Evgeni Nabokov, and by a frantic finish.

The game ended about as dramatically as an exhibition game could. Marc Savard, a former Atlanta Thrasher and current Boston Bruins forward, scored with 20.9 seconds to play to lift the Eastern Conference to an 8-7 victory against the Western Conference.

Carolina's Eric Staal, who had two goals and assisted on the winner, was the most valuable player.

It would have been nice to have Crosby here, but the kid broke his ankle, and it was still a good show, said Rangers forward Scott Gomez, who had an assist. It got close, and guys picked up the game. You could tell nobody wanted to lose. It was good.

The hometown fans make up a majority of the crowd in the N.H.L. All-Star Game -- unlike the audiences for such games in other sports. And they roared with delight when the Thrashers' Ilya Kovalchuk and Marian Hossa were introduced and took some edge off the weekend debates.

The East took a 5-1 lead after one period, and the fans seemed to enjoy chanting Osgood! Osgood! for Detroit goalie Chris Osgood, who allowed 5 goals on 16 shots in the first period.

The lively crowd begged Islanders goalie Rick DiPietro to Shoot! Shoot! when he stopped an early shot and had open ice in front of him.

Seven players who were supposed to be part of the weekend festivities did not participate. Five, including Crosby, were injured; two, the Devils' Martin Brodeur and Vancouver's Roberto Luongo, cited personal reasons.

Maybe it wasn't the ski trip or the time at the beach you had planned, but I think a good opportunity, said Mike Babcock, the Detroit Red Wings' coach and the coach of the Western Conference.

He added, I don't think you are wearing anybody out at this opportunity.

What was interesting was the presence of seven Russian players at the game, which included two of the leading candidates for league M.V.P. this season: Atlanta's Kovalchuk and Alexander Ovechkin, the wonder with the $124 million contract. They rank first and second in goals in the league, Ovechkin with 39 and Kovalchuk with 37.

The number of Russian players in the N.H.L. has dwindled from a peak in 1999 of 64 to fewer than 30 this season because of a feud between the N.H.L. and the Russian hockey federation over a player-transfer agreement.

The Russians brought the fans to their feet late in the second period. Kovalchuk, one of the league's most accurate shooters, fired a point-blank shot only to have Nabokov, another Russian, snatch it out of the air with his glove.

Kovalchuk feigned dismay by falling on his back on the ice. Several moments later, Kovalchuk steamed in on Nabokov, only to have his shot blocked as the horn sounded ending the period. He threw his stick to the ice in a mock display of disappointment.

The Russian parade was full throttle when Ottawa's John Paddock, the Eastern Conference coach, put his five Russian skaters on the ice at the same time: Kovalchuk, Ovechkin, Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar and Montreal's Andrei Markov.

I don't think you are ever going to get that opportunity again, Kovalchuk said. We need more pucks on the ice when we're going to be there, all five.

The Atlanta crowd got a charge in the third period when Hossa scored to break a 5-5 tie.

It might have been one of the last times the fans have a chance to cheer Hossa, who is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season; he could be traded before next month's trade deadline if Atlanta falls out of the playoff race.

[Illustration]PHOTO: Tim Thomas saved only 14 of 18 shots in the third period, but was the winning goalie for the East. (PHOTOGRAPH BY JAMIE SQUIRE/GETTY IMAGES)