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The numbers for all North American leagues all-star games recently came in, and the NHL sat dead last among their competition.
"Hard, cold facts on the way Gary markets NHL players and sells the game", Says Allan Walsh, and he isn't wrong here. The All Star game should only showcase the greatest players the league has to offer. With a system that allows every team to send one player to the game, the magic seems to be gone.
The NHL was even 40% behind the MLS... Yes, the MLS.
Despite the MLS being a fast-growing league, it shouldn't already be ahead of the NHL in viewership. The reason for the MLS success for All-Star festivities has been the big name players they've brought in that attract a wide range of viewers from around the world.
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The main issue with the NHL is all the superstars who've been consistently snubbed from participating year after year.
Tom Wilson made the All-Star game, while Sidney Crosby did not. While this continues to happen, the NHL will always be at the bottom of the ratings list.
In true Gary Bettman fashion, players like Nick Suzuki, Clayton Keller, Jordan Eberle and Adam Pelech made the roster.
While Class-A names such as Mikko Rantanen, Sidney Crosby, Igor Shesterkin, Artemi Panarin, Jacob Markstrom, Quinn Hughes, JT Miller, Anze Kopitar, Brad Marchand and Patrick Kane sat at home.
