NHL All-Star Game 2024: Format, Rules and Full Weekend Schedule

The top players in the NHL will converge on Toronto to participate in a new All-Star Game format.

The All-Star Game moved away from the divisional format for the 2024 edition to a draft captained by some of the game's biggest superstars.

Auston Matthews, Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid and Jack Hughes will be in charge of Thursday's draft, which will split 44 All-Stars on to four teams for Saturday's All-Star Game.

The four-team three-on-three format will remain in place, but the All-Stars will not be assigned to teams by division, like they have been since 2016.

Weekend Schedule

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EDMONTON, CANADA - JANUARY 27: Connor McDavid #97 of the Edmonton Oilers celebrates after scoring his third period goal against the Nashville Predators with his teammates at the bench at Rogers Place on January 27, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

All-Star Game Draft (Thursday, 6 p.m. ET, ESPN2)

All-Star Skills Competition (Friday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN)

All-Star Game (Saturday, 3 p.m. ET, ABC)

Format

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DENVER, COLORADO - JANUARY 26: Nathan MacKinnon #29 of the Colorado Avalanche warms up before the NHL game against the Los Angeles Kings at Ball Arena on January 26, 2024 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Tyler Schank/Getty Images)

The three-on-three format remains in place for the 2024 edition in Toronto.

The All-Star Game will feature a four-team tournament with the two semifinal winners playing in the championship game.

The difference from previous seasons is that the four teams will be selected in a draft on Thursday.

All four captains already have an assistant captain assigned to them who will help with the draft process.

Toronto Maple Leafs teammates Auston Matthews and Morgan Rielly, Colorado Avalanche players Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Maker, Edmonton Oilers stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl and brothers Jack and Quinn Hughes are the four sets of captains and assistant captains.

Each team must select seven skaters and two goalies to finalize each roster at 11 players.

All-Star Selections

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VANCOUVER, CANADA - JANUARY 22: Quinn Hughes #43 of the Vancouver Canucks skates with the puck during the third period of their NHL game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Rogers Arena on January 22, 2024 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Derek Cain/Getty Images)

The Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks are the most represented teams among the 44 All-Star selections.

Five Vancouver players and four Toronto skaters will participate in Saturday's game.

The abundance of players from both teams could mean we see two teams stacked with teammates.

Matthews and Rielly could land William Nylander and Mitch Marner to join them. One of their teammates is expected to be their first selection to get as many players from the host team on one roster as possible.

Quinn Hughes has already been paired with Elias Pettersson on one roster. The Hughes brothers were supposed to top one roster, but Jack Hughes withdrew from the All-Star Game with an injury.

Jack Hughes will still pick the team alongside his brother and Petterson was added to that squad so that each team had two ASG participants to start out with. Brock Boeser, J.T. Miller and Thatcher Demko are the other Vancouver All-Stars who could be paired with Hughes and Pettersson.

The Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets also have multiple All-Star selections.