Highlights from the 2011 AHL All-Star Skills Competition

Photo by Brian Mills

The 2011 AHL All-Star Classic was the news of the day in Hershey.  A large crowd gathered to witness the best players in the AHL show off their skills in an assortment of events.  Unlike recent years, the format this year is an East versus West match up.  One player from the Western All Stars received a loud round of applause.  That player was former Bear, Alexandre Giroux.  Of course current Bears Brian Fahey, Andrew Gordon and Braden Holtby also received large show of support.

The First event was the “Sher-Wood Puck Control Relay.”  The East took two out of three heats to get an early lead.  Up next was the “Reebok Fastest Skater.”  The RBC Future Stars gave the West a point, while the East got points for the fastest individual and fastest team average.  The “RBC Rapid Fire” competition was next on the agenda.  The goalies from the East came up big.  Martin Jones and John Curry had to split duties because Holtby sat out the events with a sore knee.  The East got another point thanks to fabulous goal tending.  The East picked up two more points in the “Reebok Hardest Shot.”  The East had the highest team average and Fahey led all contestants with a shot of 96.9 mph.  In the “Reese’s Accuracy Shooting” the East yet again prevailed gaining two more points.  The “Reese’s Pass and Score” also belonged to the East when they won 4-2.  The last event was the “Panasonic Breakaway Relay.”  Again, the goaltending from the East was the dominant factor.  The offence from the East also produced 4 goals.  After all events were done, the East outscored the West by a score of 19-7

For a full score sheet from the competition, check out the results on the AHL’s official website. After the jump, make sure to check out our extensive photos from the day.

SHOE’s Photos by Kyle Mace and Brian Mills (click to enlarge)