Americans headline NHL All-Star game

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Some of the best players in the world — Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and anybody wearing a Detroit Red Wings or Colorado Avalanche jersey — will be absent from the NHL All-Star game on Sunday.

Yet the list of American-born talent at the game is longer than it’s ever been.

When the sport’s best showcase their talents, there will be nine U.S. born and bred players. It’s the largest red, white and blue contingent since the NHL went to this format in 2003.

“That upsurge has been there,” said Nashville Predators coach Peter Laviolette, born in Norwood, Massachusetts, who will serve as a head coach for the first time this year in Ohio’s capital city.

“There’s good players all over the world, there really is. But the U.S. has definitely made strides and continues to make strides.”

The native sons include some of the biggest names in the sport: Chicago right wing Patrick Kane and Columbus left wing Nick Foligno (both from Buffalo, New York), Toronto right wing Phil Kessel and Minnesota defenseman Ryan Suter (both from Madison, Wisconsin), and others such as Winnipeg defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, St. Louis blue liner Kevin Shattenkirk, Ottawa left wing Bobby Ryan, Tampa Bay center Tyler Johnson and Carolina defenseman Justin Faulk.

“You’re seeing a lot of great players start to come up now,” said Shattenkirk, one of the game’s best young defensemen. “It’s been a great few years for U.S. hockey. It’s exciting to see that many guys here. We do take a lot of pride in, I don’t want to say proving ourselves, but just making sure that American hockey is respected.”

Consider that there were only eight American players in each of the past two All-Star games, in 2012 and 2011 (the 2013 games was canceled due to a labor dispute and there was no game last year because the Winter Olympics). Before that, there were seven U.S. players participating in 2009, three in 2008, five in both 2007 and 2004 and six in 2003.

Suter said the players grow up together, play on national teams together and those bonds remain strong.

“You’ve played with a lot of them, that’s the big thing, either in the world championships or the Olympics or growing up with the under-18s and under-17s,” Suter said. “That’s where you build those relationships. When you see them around at things like this, it’s a familiarity thing.”

On one of the NHL’s biggest stages, much has been made of those who are not participating. Crosby and Malkin, both of the Pittsburgh Penguins, are out due to injuries. The Red Wings and Avalanche do not have a representative for the same reason.

Marc-Andre Fleury, the Penguins goaltender, will be the lone representative from one of the league’s highest-profile teams.