ST. LOUIS -- Boston Bruins winger David Pastrnak was surprised he won the NHL All-Star Game Most Valuable Player award, and the new Honda CRV that comes with it, because it came on a losing effort.
"Definitely surprised. I would expect the winner should win MVP, you know?" said Pastrnak, who had four goals and two assists in the two 3-on-3 tournament games at Saturday's All-Star event in St. Louis.
Pastrnak had a hat trick in the Atlantic's opening 9-5 victory over the Metropolitan, and then he had a goal and an assist in a tightly played 5-4 championship game loss to the Pacific Division.
"The first shift of the Game 1 against Metro, he back checked all the way to the goal line. I was like, where was this all year?" said Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy, who coached the Atlantic All-Stars. "Nah, he was good. He was chatting with the guys. He enjoyed the moment. They're all good guys."
The MVP voting was done online during that final game, with Pastrnak getting 36% of the votes from fans, followed by Calgary Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk (27%), Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl (20%) and Ottawa Senators forward Anthony Duclair (17%).
When it was announced he won the MVP award, Pastrnak received some boos from the home crowd -- no doubt due to lingering feelings from the Blues' seven-game battle with the Bruins last postseason.
"If I was voted in by fans, I appreciate the love, you know?" Pastrnak said. "Probably wasn't any fans from the St. Louis building who voted, but for the fans that did, I appreciate the love."
The Bruins return to action on Jan. 31 at the Winnipeg Jets. Pastrnak has 70 points in 51 games this season, including a league-leading 37 goals.