NHL All-Star Skills Competition 2023: Most Exciting Players to Watch

The NHL All-Star Skills Competition is the most unique supporting event to an All-Star Game in North American sports.

The NHL has a variety of events in which their stars can showcase their skills from the hardest shot to fastest skater to some more unique events that have been introduced over the last few years.

Unlike the NBA, NFL or MLB, all of its All-Stars will participate in some capacity, whether it is individual events or as part of a team.

Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin and Connor McDavid should make the headlines for Friday's event in Sunrise, Florida.

Each of the superstars will be involved in some capacity, and they could do something new in terms of partnerships or compete in events they have not participated before.

The 2023 edition of the Skills Challenge presents a unique angle with brothers Brady and Matthew Tkachuk both on the Atlantic Division roster. They could compete together in front of Matthew's home crowd in Florida.

Sidney Crosby & Alex Ovechkin

Joe Sargent

PITTSBURGH, PA - MAY 01: Sidney Crosby #87 of the Pittsburgh Penguins looks on alongside Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at PPG Paints Arena on May 1, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***

According to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski, Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin will participate as teammates in the breakaway challenge.

It is essentially a trick-shot competition for penalty shots.

The competitors are allowed to begin their buildup to the net in any part of the neutral zone, and they can use the area behind the net to beat the goalie on a penalty shot.

Crosby, Ovechkin and the other participants will be handed scores between 1 and 10 by the judges.

Getting a chance to see two of the sport's best players work their magic through trick shots is exactly what you want out of a skills competition.

The Crosby-Ovechkin pairing should generate buzz leading up to the event, and it will have everyone in the FLA Live Arena and at home locked into the event.

Regardless of if Crosby or Ovechkin win, the breakaway challenge will give us a chance to watch the two superstars pair creativity with their remarkable amount of skill to create some potentially memorable moments.

Connor McDavid

Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

EDMONTON, AB - JANUARY 28: Edmonton Oilers Center Connor McDavid (97) takes the puck to the net in the first period of the Edmonton Oilers game versus the Chicago Blackhawks on January 28, 2023 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, AB. (Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Connor McDavid is one of the most fascinating players to watch at the Skills Competition because of the event he is not participating in.

According to Sportsnet's Mark Spector, McDavid will not be involved in the fastest skater event. He is a three-time winner of the fastest skater competition.

McDavid said he would like to try the shooting accuracy event in which skaters have to hit four targets in each corner of the net. The winner is the player with the fastest time to knock down all four targets.

The Edmonton Oilers star has been a fixture of the fastest skater event, and he has been the favorite to win it in the last two years. Mat Barzal and Jordan Kyrou won the event in the last two years.

The 26-year-old doing something different is intriguing for the Friday night crowd because he has been locked into the fastest skater competition for most of his career.

The league's leading goal scorer this season with 41, McDavid would likely have to hit all of the targets without many mistakes. Sebastian Aho won the event last year by hitting all four targets in 10.9 seconds.

Brady & Matthew Tkachuk

Justin Berl/Getty Images

PITTSBURGH, PA - JANUARY 24: Matthew Tkachuk #19 of the Florida Panthers celebrates with teammates on the bench after scoring a goal in the first period during the game against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG PAINTS Arena on January 24, 2023 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)

Brothers Brady and Matthew Tkachuk should compete together in some capacity.

It would be a nice moment for the pair of Atlantic Division All-Stars to be used in one of the events because it is such a rare opportunity for family members.

Matthew Tkachuk should draw attention from the crowd regardless of which event he participates in because he is playing in front of his home crowd.

The 25-year-old has 25 goals and 41 assists for the Florida Panthers. Younger by two years, Brady Tkachuk has 20 goals and 31 assists for the Ottawa Senators.

The Arizona natives could compete alongside each other in any of the individual events, or they could be used as a team in the Splash Shot event.

This new event is a tournament between four two-player teams that requires competitors to hit targets that will be attached to a dunk tank.

They could also go head-to-head in the breakaway challenge, hardest shot or any individual skill challenge. But it would be great to see the two players interact together in a competition in some capacity.