John Scott had a weird and difficult road to this year’s NHL All-Star Game in Nashville, but, when all was said and done, he made the weekend more fun than it’s been in years. Maybe ever.
By now, you probably know the story, or at least part of it. The 33-year-old enforcer was fan-voted into the All-Star Game as somewhat of a joke (he only has 11 points in 285 career games) and the NHL responded by trying to remove him from the event by any means necessary. They asked him to bow out, and did so in pathetic fashion. When he declined, they orchestrated a trade that stashed him in the AHL. When fans caused an uproar, they let him back into the game.
And, boy, are they ever glad they did.
Sunday’s @NHL All-Star Game on @NBCSN delivered a 1.17 overnight rating – NBCSN’s best on record for an NHL All-Star Game
— NBC Sports PR (@NBCSportsPR) February 1, 2016
From the second he stepped off the plane in Nashville, Scott was an attraction.
He crushed it on the red carpet.
Scott’s media scrum was outrageously large, so much so that he felt compelled to document it.
He finally got to put on that jersey and take his All-Star glamour shots. Crushed his Blue Steel impersonation.
Scott had the attention of his most talented peers during the Hardest Shot Competition.
He enjoyed some quality time with some of his former teammates’ kids.
He also tried his hand at the breakaway competition.
Shockingly, it didn’t work out too well for him.
But he was the real star of the show during the actual game on Sunday, when he scored two goals in the Pacific’s opening round matchup.
He celebrated the first goal with an awesome celebration, one that really felt like an “eff you” to the NHL after all he’d been through.
Scott also brought his enforcer skill set to the ASG and “fought” former teammate Patrick Kane.
He was all smiles while captaining his team to a victory in the final game.
His performance earned him MVP honors…
…and the Rudy treatment from his teammates!
It also earned him a new car (courtesy of Honda) and his share of a million dollars to split with his teammates.
He shared a great moment with coach Darryl Sutter’s son.
Overall, it seemed like a pretty great weekend for Scott and his family, who didn’t seem all that ashamed that daddy showed up to play in the All-Star Game. Weird how things like that work out, huh?
