All-Stars’ Glow Has Greater Intensity

Pittsburgh Penguin right wing Jaromir Jagr doesn’t usually care much about the NHL All-Star game. But with a new format that matches stars from North America against players from the rest of the world and serves as a prelude to the Olympics, Jagr got caught up in the spirit of the event, which will take place today at General Motors Place.

“This will be a lot better for the fans and even for the players,” said Jagr, who will start for the world all-stars with Teemu Selanne of the Mighty Ducks and Peter Forsberg of Colorado, defensemen Viacheslav Fetisov of Detroit and Sandis Ozolinsh of Colorado and goaltender Dominik Hasek of Buffalo.

“Before it was just fun. Now it will be more like a game. I’m here to win. You don’t want to go to the game to lose.”

It’s a game every player is eagerly anticipating, from first-time all-star Darryl Sydor of Dallas to New York Ranger center Wayne Gretzky, who will play in a record 17th consecutive All-Star game.

For Sydor, it’s a chance to closely observe his idol, Boston defenseman Ray Bourque. “He’s been here 16 times and hasn’t missed one,” said Sydor, who greeted his North American teammate as “Mr. Bourque” when they met in their hotel lobby. “Even if it’s just 10 seconds, it will be great to play with him.”

For Bourque, the new format adds an interesting twist to what might otherwise be a tedious trip in the middle of a hectic season. He was voted to the starting team with Brian Leetch of the New York Rangers, goaltender Patrick Roy of Colorado and forwards John LeClair of Philadelphia, Brendan Shanahan of Detroit and Eric Lindros of Philadelphia.

“The change is a definite gain. It’s going to be more competitive and make for a more entertaining game,” Bourque said Saturday. “There should be a lot more physical stuff. I’m really anxious to see how it plays out.”

So is Gretzky, who is tied with Mario Lemieux for most career points in all-star competition, with 20. “We all still have the same excitement we did the first time we came,” he said. “You still wait to get that phone call.”

Mark Messier of the Vancouver Canucks didn’t get a phone call asking him to play in the Olympics. But he did get an invitation from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to spend his 37th birthday playing for the North American team as a special selection, and he accepted gladly.

“With 30 teams coming into the league soon, you might only see the All-Star game in your own city maybe once in a lifetime now,” he said. “It’s going to be a great experience for Pavel [Bure] and myself, and maybe [the new format] will jump-start the game. I think there’s going to be more intensity than you usually will see.

“There are players in the dressing room I haven’t had a chance to play with before because we were in different conferences, so this is exciting. Instinctively, I think there’s got to be some competitive edge to this.”

That competitiveness is evident. Toronto center Mats Sundin, who will play for the world all-stars today and for Sweden next month at Nagano, joked that Swedish and Finnish players had to be separated because they were arguing so passionately over which team is more likely to win an Olympic medal.

“There have been a couple of fights already,” Sundin said.

Any show of emotion at the All-Star game is welcome.

The event has become little more than a skating exhibition, with almost no attempt at defense and even less checking. Last year’s game, won by the Eastern Conference, 11-7, over the West, featured 87 shots on goal. The teams combined for 73 shots in 1996, a 5-4 victory by the East, and for 102 shots in 1994, when the East prevailed, 9-8. There was no game in 1995 because of the lockout.

“There’s more excitement this time because this is a buildup for the Olympics,” said defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom of Detroit and the world all-stars. “It’s something new and I think everybody likes it.”

Everybody, it seems, but Lindros.

“I think the league’s got to decide whether to have an All-Star game or the Olympics,” he said. “Personally, I think the Olympics is the way to go. How much hockey is too much?

“People are paying a lot of money to see hockey players playing at their best. Not that I don’t enjoy both competitions, but if I were a fan and paying premium dollars I’d want to see the players at their best.”

Selanne believes players can give fans their money’s worth on both occasions, and that today’s game will put players and fans in the right frame of mind for Nagano.

“It’s going to be important for hockey and for the fans,” he said. “In the past, there was not so much intensity. This time I think there’s going to be a little bit more intensity.”

Said goalie Olaf Kolzig of Washington and the world all-stars, who will play for Germany at the Olympics: “I’m going to have a lot of fun with it. If I get lit up, I get lit up. If I win a truck [as the most valuable player], I win a truck. This is just a great experience.”

Times staff writer Elliott Teaford contributed to this story.

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1998 ALL-STAR GAME

* What: NHL All-Star game

* When: Today, 1 p.m.

* Where: Vancouver

* TV: Channel 11

All-Star Rosters

The North America and World rosters for the NHL All-Star game to be played today at General Motors Place in Vancouver, with NHL team and country (x-denotes voted to the starting team by fans; y-selection by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman):

NORTH AMERICA

GOALTENDERS

x-Patrick Roy, Colorado, Canada; Ed Belfour, Dallas, Canada; Martin Brodeur, New Jersey, Canada.

DEFENSEMEN

x-Ray Bourque, Boston, Canada; x-Brian Leetch, N.Y. Rangers, U.S.; Chris Chelios, Chicago, U.S.; y-Al MacInnis, St. Louis, Canada; Scott Niedermayer, New Jersey, Canada; Scott Stevens, New Jersey, Canada; Darryl Sydor, Dallas, Canada.

CENTERS

x-Eric Lindros, Philadelphia, Canada; Wayne Gretzky, N.Y. Rangers, Canada; y-Mark Messier, Vancouver, Canada; Mike Modano, Dallas, U.S.; Joe Sakic, Colorado, Canada; Doug Weight, Edmonton, U.S.

WINGERS

x-John LeClair, Philadelphia, U.S.; x-Brendan Shanahan, Detroit, Canada; Tony Amonte, Chicago, U.S.; Shayne Corson, Montreal, Canada; Theoren Fleury, Calgary, Canada; Mark Recchi, Montreal, Canada; Keith Tkachuk, Phoenix, U.S.

Head coach--Jacques Lemaire, New Jersey; assistant coach--Kevin Constantine, Pittsburgh.

WORLD

GOALTENDERS

x-Dominik Hasek, Buffalo, Czech Republic; Nikolai Khabibulin, Phoenix, Russia; Olaf Kolzig, Washington, Germany.

DEFENSEMEN

x-Sandis Ozolinsh, Colorado, Latvia; x-Viacheslav Fetisov, Detroit, Russia; Igor Kravchuk, Ottawa, Russia; Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit, Sweden; Dmitri Mironov, Mighty Ducks, Russia; Sergei Zubov, Dallas, Russia.

CENTERS

x-Peter Forsberg, Colorado, Sweden; Bobby Holik, New Jersey, Czech Republic; y-Jari Kurri, Colorado, Finland; y-Igor Larionov, Detroit, Russia; Saku Koivu, Montreal, Finland; Mats Sundin, Toronto, Sweden.

WINGERS

x-Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh, Czech Republic; x-Teemu Selanne, Mighty Ducks, Finland; Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa, Sweden; Peter Bondra, Washington, Slovakia; Pavel Bure, Vancouver, Russia; Valeri Kamensky, Colorado, Russia; Jere Lehtinen, Dallas, Finland; Zigmund Palffy, N.Y. Islanders, Slovakia.

Head coach--Ken Hitchcock, Dallas; assistant coach--Marc Crawford, Colorado.