Central defeats Atlantic, will play Metro in All-Star final
Jordan Kyrou collected two goals and two assists as the Central Division dispatched the Atlantic 8-5 in the second semifinal of the NHL All-Star tournament on Saturday.
Roman Josi buried the eventual winner off a feed from Kyrou about seven minutes into the second period.
Alex DeBrincat notched a pair of goals and an assist of his own in the victory. Kyle Connor produced a goal and had another disallowed following an offside review.
Jonathan Huberdeau, Auston Matthews, and Rasmus Dahlin registered a goal and an assist apiece for the Atlantic.
Earlier on Saturday, the Metropolitan Division earned its spot in the final with a 6-4 victory over the Pacific.
Enforcer Tom Wilson opened the scoring just 13 seconds into that matchup. Timo Meier netted the equalizer a couple of minutes later, but the Metropolitan squad carried a 3-1 lead into the intermission.
The Pacific Division tied things up midway through the final frame, but a pair of goals from Jack Hughes and Jake Guentzel ultimately made the difference.
The Metropolitan has won the All-Star Game twice since the NHL adopted the divisional format in 2016.