BOSTON — When the NHL All-Stars were announced on Tuesday, one thing was for certain -f- Bruins goalie Tim Thomas was going to be on the list. The announcement that defenseman Zdeno Chara would be joining him? Well, that might have surprised some people, the Boston captain included.
"It's just a little surprising, I guess," Chara said of his fifth career All-Star nod. "But it's a big honor and I really appreciate it. Obviously, a big thank you goes to my teammates."
Chara's offensive numbers are nothing to write home about — he boasts 6-12-18 totals — but he likely earned the nod on reputation and more importantly, his contributions to a defense that is one of the best in the league.
"My role on the team is to play against top lines every night and, shutting them down, and I take a lot of pride in that," he said. "I just try to do my best every game, and obviously, point-wise, I could probably be better, but that's not my priority. As long as we are winning, and we are on top of the standings, that's all I care about."
While not everyone saw Chara's selection coming, the selection of Thomas as one of the six goalies, comes as no surprise. The veteran goalie enters Tuesday night's game with an 18-4-6 record to go along with a sparkling 1.84 and .944 save percentage.
Even if his selection was a certainty, Thomas, like Chara, was still honored to be selected for what will be his third All-Star Game.
"I'm very happy," he said. "It's always an honor. It's a feather in your cap, so I'm very happy. … Everybody wants downtime, but for most people, myself included, you don't make the All-Stars that often, so it's an honor to give up a couple of days of rest."
"It's nice. Those guys have done well in this league and deserve it. Tim's year has been worthy of it, and Zdeno, same thing.
Heading with them to Raleigh will be 18-year-old rookie Tyler Seguin. While Seguin won't be playing in the All-Star Game itself on Jan. 30, he'll be one of 12 rookies taking part in the SuperSkills competition the night before.
Seguin said he's looking forward to being able to meet some of the game's best, but was quick to acknowledge that he knows where the line is.
"They're still the enemies," he admitted. "But it's definitely going to be a fun experience."
"Tyler is a first-year guy with a ton of potential and a nice future ahead of him, and he's going to have an opportunity to showcase his skills," Julien said of Seguin's selection to the SuperSkills competition.
The trio of Bruins heading to North Carolina for the league's showcase of stars aren't the only ones in the Bruins dressing room who got good news on Monday. Rookie defenseman Steve Kampfer also got news that he was selected for the AHL All-Star game. With the uncertainty of Mark Stuart's injury, and the impressive play of the young Kampfer, though, he may have to politely decline the selection if his services are still needed with the big club.
But as far as the actual NHL All-Star Game itself goes, this year's new format may provide an interesting scenario for Bruins fans.
The actual teams will be selected at a fantasy draft on the Friday of All-Star weekend. That means, there's a chance that Chara and Thomas are actually on opposite sides. If that happens, the ultra-competitive Thomas is pretty sure of the outcome.
"I win, he loses."
