Some of the world’s best hockey players gathered at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena on Friday for the NHL All-Star Skills event, which preceded Saturday’s All-Star Game. The crowd in Toronto didn’t appear to like one player’s effort, which ESPN’s John Buccigross also noticed.
Nikita Kucherov, of the Tampa Bay Lightning, took the ice for the passing challenge. It was evident early on that he wasn’t especially excited to be there.
That resulted in whistles from Toronto fans and comments from Buccigross.
That resulted in whistles from Toronto fans and comments from Buccigross.
What’s particularly interesting about this is that as Kucherov began the competition, Buccigross and his broadcast
partner, NHL legend Mark Messier, were discussing the hard work Kucherov put in during the offseason, after the Lightning were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoff in the first round by the Toronto Maple Leafs, failing to reach the final for the first time since 2019.
“Last year, his season ended, and they lost to the Maple Leafs.” He took roughly a week off. Buccigross said he rented a rink in Tampa and was on the ice every day for practice.
“Yes, and it’s shown this year,” Messier said. “He had a fantastic opportunity to rest because they didn’t advance far into the playoffs.”
At that time, Buccigross couldn’t help but interject.
“I don’t sense a lot of intensity here, Mess,” he added.
“There isn’t enough intensity here,” Messier said, chuckling. “But I appreciate how he plays the game.”
At this point, Kucherov was almost done. With the crowd rejecting his performance, Buccigross couldn’t help but express the obvious.
“This is not a good appearance,” he said. “The fans are booing him. And that’s what happens when you don’t give your all in a hockey city like Toronto.
