Nikita Kucherov mercilessly booed for subpar effort in NHL Skills Competition: ‘Not a good look’
The NHL’s redesigned All-Star Skills Competition brought a $1 million prize and renewed excitement to one of the league’s tentpole events of the year.
But you wouldn’t have known all that watching Nikita Kucherov.
In the rebranded event, which had just 12 competitors, the Lightning superstar was eliminated from the competition after just six mini-games.
Kucherov, 30, finished in the middle of the pack in the one-timer challenge, but it was his next time up in the passing challenge where things went poorly and the Scotiabank Center crowd in Toronto let him hear it.
As he skated down the ice in the event, even the ESPN broadcast noticed Kucherov wasn’t close to pushing things near his full speed and didn’t seem to be trying to hit the passing targets in any meaningful way.
“I’m not sensing a lot of intensity here, Mess,” play-by-play man John Buccigross said to analyst and Rangers legend Mark Messier.
A rough showing from Nikita Kucherov in the passing challenge and the Toronto crowd lets him know#NHLAllStarpic.twitter.com/mhBNWzjne1
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) February 3, 2024“Not quite enough intensity here whatsoever,” Messier replied with a chuckle.
“This is not a good look, quite frankly,” Buccigross added as the crowd began to grumble as Kucherov was near the end of the challenge. “The fans are booing him, and this is what happens when you don’t try your best and you’re in a hockey city like Toronto they’re gonna let you know.”
Kucherov’s half-hearted attempt put him in last in the passing challenge, which was 20 points behind the top point-getter, Elias Pettersson.
Nikita Kucherov competes in the NHL All-Star Skills Competition. Getty ImagesThings only got worse in the stick handling challenge, and with still little effort, Kucherov again finished at the bottom of the table at 44.178 seconds, the only player to finish above the 40-second mark.
Connor McDavid, who won that challenge and later the whole $1 million prize, finished at 25.755 seconds.
As boos appeared to get louder, Kucherov held up his left hand and waved to the crowd as he finished the event.
Nikita Kucherov was booed by the Toronto crowd in the competition. NHLI via Getty ImagesYou sit there for like three hours and then you get to go stick-handle, Kucherov said, per the Associated Press. That was kind of tough.
He got one more chance in the shooting accuracy challenge, finishing seventh out of 10, ending his dismal night.
Kucherov will get one more chance to have a better weekend in Ontario in the All-Star Game a game he was drafted first for earlier this week by Jack Hughes’ team on Saturday.
Share this article:
- Copy
Filed under- nhl all-star game
- nikita kucherov
- tampa bay lightning
- 2/3/24
Read Next NHL superstar wins skills competition he helped design // set a default widget id var ob_id = "AR_3"; // Select the proper template to use if ( nypost_screen == 'mobile' ) { ob_id = "MB_2"; } OB_elements = ( typeof( OB_elements ) !== 'undefined' ) ? OB_elements : ; var OB_element = {}; // Editable section OB_element.containerId = "outbrainContainer0"; OB_element.widgetId = ob_id; OB_elements.push( OB_element ); (function() { var zergnet = document.createElement('script'); zergnet.type = 'text/javascript'; zergnet.async = true; zergnet.src = (document.location.protocol == 'https:' ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//www.zergnet.com/zerg.js?id=33405'; var znscr = document.getElementsByTagName('script')0; znscr.parentNode.insertBefore(zergnet, znscr); })();
How many decks are used in poker?
In most popular poker variants, such as Texas Hold'em and Omaha, a standard deck of 52 playing cards is used. Each deck contains four suits (hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades) and consists of 13 ranks (Ace, 2 through 10, and the face cards: Jack, Queen, and King).
What is the bonus code for WPT Global Poker 2023?
The best bonus code for WPT Global is WPT777. By entering the bonus code, players will get a welcome bonus 100% up to $1,200 on the first deposit. The minimum deposit is $20.
What is the best WPT Global bonus code?
Use the WPT Global bonus code WPT777 when registering to get a 100% deposit bonus up to $1200 plus a $100 No Deposit poker bonus.
