BY DEREK CARSON – FAN FUEL BLOGGER
The NHL All-Star Fan Ballot is back, and I’m here to break down the players you should be sending to the big game in Ottawa from each Canadian team.
Now with seven teams, this is a daunting prospect. So all this week I will profile one Canadian club a day, today it is the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Who’s on the ballot:
James Reimer
John-Michael Liles
Dion Phaneuf
Joffrey Lupul
Phil Kessel
Who the fans should write in:
Cody Franson or Luke Schenn
First, I have to say, James Reimer? Really? His record was pretty good until he got injured but his stats weren’t All-Star calibre. Unfortunately for Reimer he’s been sidelined for some time and I think that hurts his chances at being voted in. Maybe if Brian Gionta hadn’t concussed (or whiplashed) him we would have been able to see Reimer rack up the wins and make a case for himself.
James Reimer (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn)
The defencemen on the ballot, Dion Phaneuf and John-Michael Liles are both having really good years. Phaneuf has been a physically dominating force on the ice and that serves to boost his All-Star credibility considering he’s also been racking up lots of points. John-Michael Liles is also having a great year but I don’t think he’s really All-Star material. Leaf fans should be voting Phaneuf all the way but leaving Liles to watch the festivities from home.
Dion Phaneuf (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese)
Then we have Joffrey Lupul. This guy is really good at hockey. He’s only behind Phil Kessel for points on the team but his totals are more than a lot of team leaders. I have to say I’m surprised at how good Lupul’s been this year and he’s definitely worthy of a nomination to the All-Star team.
Joffrey Lupul (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young)
And oh what a difference a year made for Kessel. It’s unbelievable that this guy was the last player picked for the 2011 All-Star teams. He could very well be the first player picked this year. This guy has been dynamite and he’s making a strong statement to the league that he is an elite superstar.
Phil Kessel (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young)
Now for my first write in pick, Cody Franson. Don’t get mad! I don’t mean any harm. But seriously, can you imagine how much fun it would be to nominate Franson to the All-Star team when the rumours are that he’s asking to be traded because he’s not playing? Imagine the steam coming out of Ron Wilson’s ears when Franson goes to the All-Star game?
Cody Franson (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young)
I think nominating Franson is comedic gold and we all know that laughter can heal the world. So save the world Leaf fans and nominate him to the All-Star team.
Or just write in Luke Schenn, who probably actually deserves to go. Stick in the mud!
Monday: Canadiens
Tuesday: Senators
Thursday: Oilers
Friday: Flames
Saturday: Canucks
Sunday: Jets
IN CASE YOU DIDN’T KNOW:
The All-Star festivities will be held in Ottawa during the last weekend of January 2012 and you have until January 4 to vote for your favourite players.
To be eligible to vote you have to register online. Each registered user can vote up to 30 times for their favourite players to become All-Stars. To be a registered user all you need is a working email address. I’m not saying that you can create a new email address to create a new registered user to vote 30 times more. I’m not saying that.
Each time you vote, you get to vote for three forwards, two defencemen and a goalie. You don’t have to choose a player for each position if you don’t want to, but if the name of the game is getting the most players from your team to become All-Stars, why wouldn’t you? You can choose any player you want. The NHL has pre-selected 127 players for the fans to vote on, but you can write in players of your choice too. You can write in five different players 30 times if you feel like it.
Every Thursday, the website will update the ballots to show who’s leading and how many votes they have.
Click here to register and vote
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