University of Minnesota Athletics
Vanek, Wheeler Take Part in NHL All-Star Weekend
1/23/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Hockey
The University of Minnesota will be represented in both this weekend’s NHL All-Star Game and Youngstars Game when the world’s top players take the ice in Montreal.
Former Gopher and current Buffalo Sabres forward Thomas Vanek will be a reserve forward for the East team in Sunday’s All-Star Game, while Boston Bruins’ rookie forward Blake Wheeler, who played the past three years at Minnesota, will participate in the Youngstars Game on Saturday.
Vanek is the first former Gopher to play in the NHL All-Star game since Mike Ramsey represented the Sabres in the 1986 contest. He is only the fifth former Gopher player to appear in the All-Star game, joining Ramsey, Neal Broten, Paul Holmgren and Reed Larson. The NHL All-Star Game begins Sunday at 5 p.m. on Versus.
Wheeler is one of just 10 rookie players selected to participate in the Youngstars Game, which will be held as part of the All-Star Superskills Competition on Saturday night at 6 p.m. on Versus.
In addition, three other former Gophers will compete in the American Hockey League All-Star Classic on Monday in Worcester, Mass. Goaltender Jeff Frazee and forwards Jeff Taffe and Ryan Potulny will play for the U.S. squad against a team of Canadian-born players.
Vanek currently ranks fourth in the NHL with 28 goals and shares the league lead with 13 power play goals. He also has 15 assists for 43 points. Vanek is in his fourth season in the NHL and will make his first All-Star game appearance. He already has 132 career goals, which ranks seventh among all former Gophers who have played in the NHL. His 239 career NHL points already ranks eighth among Gopher alums.
Wheeler is enjoying a torrid rookie season, ranking second in the league in plus-minus with a plus-27 rating. He has 14 goals and 16 assists for 30 points while appearing in all 47 games and helping the Bruins to the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Vanek and Wheeler are just two of several former Minnesota players enjoying outstanding NHL seasons in 2008-09. Wheeler’s teammate, Phil Kessel, ranks sixth in the NHL in goals with 24 and also has 17 assists for 41 points to lead the Bruins in scoring. Alex Goligoski is the Pittsburgh Penguins’ highest-scoring defenseman with six goals and 13 assists for 19 points in 42 games. Goligoski also has four power play goals.
Jordan Leopold is the second-highest scoring defenseman on the Colorado Avalanche with five goals and 11 assists for 16 points while playing in all 47 games. Paul Martin is second among New Jersey Devils’ defensemen in scoring with four goals and 10 assists for 14 points in 42 games. Keith Ballard ranks third among Florida Panthers’ defensemen in scoring with four goals and 13 assists for 17 points as one of only three players on the team to appear in all 46 games.
Kyle Okposo missed several games due to injury for the New York Islanders, but has returned to the lineup and has seven goals and eight assists for 15 points, including goals in each of the Islanders’ past two games.
Frazee, who ranks second in the AHL with a .931 save percentage, will represent the Lowell (Mass.) in the league All-Star game. Taffe ranks fourth in the AHL in scoring with 18 goals and 29 assists for 47 points for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Pa.) and Potulny has 17 goals and 14 assists for 31 points for Springfield (Mass.). Taffe has played in eight NHL games with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Potulny recently joined the Edmonton Oilers and has three assists in four games. Also, Barry Tallackson has appeared in four games for the New Jersey Devils.
