Blackhawks Place 5 In All-Star Game In Initial Voting By Fans
(CBS) Fans have voted the first six players into the NHL All-Star Game in an initial round of balloting, and five of them are Blackhawks.
Chicago center Jonathan Toews, winger Patrick Kane, defenseman Duncan Keith, defenseman Brent Seabrook and goalie Corey Crawford were leading vote-getters along with Buffalo center Zemgus Girgensons.
Girgensons -- who is 132nd in the NHL in points scored -- led the way with 1.57 million votes, getting huge support from his native Latvia. Kane was second with 1.23 million and Toews was third with nearly 1.22 million.
The rest of the All-Star roster will be determined by the NHL and announced next Saturday.
The All-Star Game will be held Jan. 25 in Columbus, with a skills competition held the day prior.
Opposing teams will be determined when a fantasy draft to choose rosters is conducted on Jan. 23, so the Blackhawks won't necessarily all be on the same squad. The NHL also didn't use the term "starter" in explaining the six players who made the initial cut.
This will mark Kane's fourth All-Star appearance, Toews' third, Keith's third and the first for both Seabrook and Crawford.
Kane leads Chicago with 41 points, while Toews is second with 32 points. Keith, Seabrook and Crawford have been vital components of a defense that leads the NHL with a 2.11 goals against average.