NHL All-Star team

Lore & Background

The National Hockey League All-Star teams were first named at the end of the 1930–31 NHL season, to honor the best performers over the season at each position. Representatives of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association vote for the all-star team at the end of the regular season. The career leader in selections is Gordie Howe, who was named to a total of 21 all-star teams (12 first, 9 second), all with the Detroit Red Wings.

Reader's Guide

The NHL All-Star teams represent a long-standing tradition of recognizing the top players at each position for an entire regular season. The selection process, conducted by the Professional Hockey Writers' Association, has been in place since the award's inception. Notable historical facts include that Alexander Ovechkin is the only player in history to be named to both all-star teams in the same season (as a left and right winger respectively) because of a voting error. The career leader in selections is Gordie Howe with 21 total selections, all with the Detroit Red Wings. John LeClair holds the record for the most selections as a player without being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, with 5 total selections. Every winner of the Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's most valuable player was selected to one of that season's all-star teams, except Al Rollins in 1954 and Ted Kennedy in 1955 (though Kennedy was named to all-star teams in three prior seasons).

Did You Know?

• Gordie Howe is the career leader in all-star team selections with 21 (12 first, 9 second), all with the Detroit Red Wings.
• Alexander Ovechkin is the only player named to both first and second all-star teams in the same season, due to a voting error.
• John LeClair holds the record for most all-star selections (5) without being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
• Only two Hart Trophy winners were not selected to that season's all-star team: Al Rollins (1954) and Ted Kennedy (1955).

Origins and Evolution of the Honor

The NHL All-Star teams trace their roots back to the close of the 1930–31 campaign, when the league first recognized its top performers at every position. This initial recognition set a precedent that would endure for nearly a century of professional hockey. Over the decades, the honor evolved alongside the league itself, passing through distinct eras that mirror the sport's growth. The early years stretched from that inaugural 1930–31 selection through the 1941–42 season, a period defined by a smaller, more intimate league. The Original Six era, spanning 1942–43 to 1966–67, locked the competition into a stable group of franchises, creating a familiar landscape for voters and fans alike. The 1967 expansion shattered that stability, ushering in a new wave of talent and competition that continued through the 2004–05 season. Finally, the post-lockout era, beginning with 2005–06, brought a reshaped league into the modern age of the all-star designation.

The Voting Mechanism

The selection of the NHL All-Star teams rests in the hands of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association, whose members cast their ballots at the conclusion of each regular season. This writer-driven process means the honor is not determined by a single spectacular game or a playoff run, but rather by sustained excellence across an entire campaign. The association evaluates performance at every position, assembling two distinct teams that collectively represent the league's elite. The fact that a group of journalists, rather than coaches, general managers, or fans, holds this responsibility gives the selection a particular editorial character. It rewards consistency and dominance over a full schedule, making the all-star designation a cumulative judgment rather than a snapshot. This structure has remained the backbone of the honor since its inception in 1930–31, providing a stable and recognizable framework through which each season's best players are formally acknowledged by the hockey writing community.

All-Time Records and Anomalies

No player in NHL history has accumulated more all-star selections than Gordie Howe, whose remarkable 21 total appearances on the teams—twelve on the first team and nine on the second—were all earned while wearing the Detroit Red Wings sweater. His record stands as a testament to extraordinary longevity and dominance at the highest level. A far more unusual entry in the record books belongs to Alexander Ovechkin, who became the only player ever to appear on both all-star teams in a single season. This extraordinary occurrence was not the result of splitting a position between two teams in the traditional sense, but rather the product of a voting error that placed him as both a left winger and a right winger across the two rosters. Among players who never received the ultimate honor of Hockey Hall of Fame induction, John LeClair holds the record with five total selections, comprising two first-team and three second-team nods.

The Hart Trophy Connection

The NHL All-Star teams and the Hart Memorial Trophy, awarded to the league's most valuable player, share a remarkably tight link. With only two exceptions in the entire history of the honor, every recipient of the Hart Trophy has also earned a place on one of that season's all-star rosters. The first exception came in 1954, when Al Rollins captured the MVP award without appearing on either all-star team. The second occurred the following year in 1955, when Ted Kennedy won the Hart without an all-star selection that particular campaign. However, Kennedy's omission is somewhat softened by the fact that he had already been named to all-star teams in three separate prior seasons, demonstrating that his overall career recognition was not in question. These two rare instances underscore just how closely the all-star designation and the MVP award tend to align, reinforcing the all-star teams as a reliable barometer of a player's peak individual season.