Kris Letang Wins NHL ‘Last Men In’, Named to 5th All-Star Game

Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang has been voted into the NHL All-Star Game which is being held in San Jose, Jan. 25-26. Letang was part of the new NHL promotion, “Last Men In” in which fans were able to select the final player for each divisional squad. Letang beat seven other Metropolitan Division players including Niklas Backstrom of the Washington Capitals.

This will be Letang’s fifth All-Star Game, which ties him with Paul Coffey for most appearances by a defenseman in Penguins history. Letang will join teammate Sidney Crosby who was selected for the Metro Division team last week.

Letang, 31, has seen a resurgence this season. He has remained in the top-10 of the NHL defenseman scoring leaders. He is currently seventh with 37 points (10g, 27a). His 10 goals are tied for third among defensemen. Letang is also averaging over 26 minutes of ice time per game (26:05).

Letang is on pace to exceed 70 points which would make him the first Penguins defenseman since Larry Murphy in 1993-94 to achieve that feat.

The current All-Star Game format is three-on-three tournament comprised of four teams representing each division. The game will be held Saturday night 8 p.m., Jan. 26 at the Honda Center in San Jose. The prior night, Friday, Jan. 25 is the much-anticipated skills competition. The skills competition will be held at 9 p.,m. All festivities will be broadcast on NBCsports Network.

Letang has become a mid-season candidate for the Norris Trophy. With some irony, he and fellow favorite Mark Giordano of Calgary were both “Last Men In” candidates. For the final spot, Letang beat Teuvo Teravainen,  Nick Foligno, Kyle Palmieri, Anders Lee, Mats Zuccarello, Jakub Voracek, and Nicklas Backstrom.