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First six NHL all-stars named
Crosby tops the list
By
QMI Agency
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  (L-R) Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Jonathan Toews round out the forward selection as the league named the game’s first six players as selected by fan balloting. (REUTERS)
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The Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks dominated NHL all-star voting as the league named the game’s first six players as selected by fan balloting today.
Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Jonathan Toews round out the forward selection, while Kris Letang and Duncan Keith will line up on defence. Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury also made the squad.
Crosby crushed the ballot, garnering the most votes with 635,509. Toews ended up with 407,676 votes and Malkin with 376,887.
Fleury ended up upsetting Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price by gaining 426,305. Price was not on the all-star ballot, but was an early leader in the voting process thanks to write-in votes. He ended up just behind Fleury with 371,854 votes.
Kris Letang was the top-voted defenceman with 477,960 tallies while Keith ended up with 382,162.
The NHL will announce Jan. 11 the remaining 36 all-stars that will join the first six.
Once all 42 players are announced, the players will decide who the team captains and alternate captains will be. The captains will be announced by the league in approximately two weeks.
Each captain will select their team through an 18-round draft. A coin toss will decide the first pick. Each team will consist of three goalies, six defencemen and 12 forwards.
The 2011 NHL All-Star Game will be held in Raleigh, North Carolina on January 30.
