It's kind of crazy that David Pastrnak's fate had to be left to a fan vote in the first place, but at least the fans got it right.
The NHL announced Thursday night that Pastrnak has been elected to the Atlantic Division All-Star Team, where he will join Bruins teammate Linus Ullmark. Boston coach Jim Montgomery will also be there as the head coach of the 11-man Atlantic team.
Pastrnak currently ranks second in the NHL in goals (35) and fourth in points (63). He is three goals behind Edmonton's Connor McDavid for the league lead.
This is Pastrnak's third career All-Star appearance, as he also made it in 2019 and 2020. He won All-Star Game MVP in 2020.
Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews and Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy joined Pastrnak as winners of the fan vote to grab the final three spots for the divisional team.
Along with Ullmark, the other seven who had already been announced were Buffalo's Tage Thompson, Detroit's Dylan Larkin, Florida's Matthew Tkachuk, Montreal's Nick Suzuki, Ottawa's Brady Tkachuk, Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov, and Toronto's Mitchell Marner.
Hampus Lindholm and Patrice Bergeron had strong cases to make the team as well, but with the NHL requiring every team to have one All-Star, it has become extremely rare for any team to get more than two.
The NHL All-Star Game format is a 3-on-3 tournament with the two winners of the first-round matchups then meeting in the final. The game will be played on Feb. 4 at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Florida.
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