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The NHL may have solved its issues with the All-Star Game by getting rid of it entirely. However, if it does end up returning, the league needs to take a page out of the KHL’s playbook and add a hardest shot competition where goaltenders get the chance to put their skills on display.
Most of North America’s “Big Four” sports leagues have found themselves grappling with an All-Star Game crisis in recent years. The MLB is really the only one that has been immune, as the NFL has essentially put the Pro Bowl out to pasture as the NBA gears up for yet another experiment in the hopes of making fans (and, more importantly, players) care again after following in the footsteps of the NHL.
The last organization on that list also spent some time tinkering with its All-Star Game format before swapping it out for the tournament that’s officially known as the “4 Nations Face-Off,” which was greeted with an overwhelmingly positive reception when it debuted during the 2024-25 season.
The decision to forgo the All-Star Game (which is also nowhere to be found this season due to the Winter Olympics) also led to the loss of the skills competition. However, both of those events are still alive and well in the KHL, which managed to spice things up with a new competition that gave goaltenders the chance to rip some shots at the nets they’re normally tasked with protecting.
The KHL debuted a hardest shot competition for goalies at its All-Star Game and it was everything you never knew you needed
The KHL All-Star Game festivities kicked off last week in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, and the KHL RUS Stars made easy work of the U23 squad they faced off against in the main event while cruising to a 9-2 victory (the Ural Stars defeated the World Stars 9-6 in the third-place game).
The gathering also featured a skills competition where skaters were judged in categories including the shootout, fastest skater, and hardest shot. The goaltenders also got the chance to showcase their skills in the crease, but the league spiced things up by adding an event where they got the opportunity to fire the puck as hard as they could.
Note to self: It was a good idea to add “Hardest shot” to the “Goalies contest”.#KHLAllStar pic.twitter.com/YSYE8CVo9a
— KHL (@khl_eng) February 9, 2026
Vladimir Galkin of Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg, the hometown team, ended up in the top spot with a shot that was measured at 106.67 KPH (66.3 MPH). As you can probably guess, that had nothing on the one that won the more traditional contest, as Traktor Chelyabinsk defenseman Grigori Dronov topped the field at 154.88 KPH (96.2 MPH).