Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy voted into All-Star Game

VANCOUVER — Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy has been selected to participate in his fifth career NHL All-Star Game, getting added to the Atlantic Division roster by a fan vote.

Vasilevskiy will join teammate Nikita Kucherov on Feb. 3-4 in Sunrise, marking the sixth straight season in which the Lightning will have at least two All-Star representatives.

The 28-year-old netminder has played in the last four All-Star games (2018, 2019, 2020, 2022); no game was held in the abbreviated 2021 season due to the pandemic.

The league introduced a new roster selection format this year to give fans more say. Thirty-two players, one from each team, were chosen by the league’s hockey operations department to make up the game’s preliminary rosters.

Two skaters and one goaltender were voted onto each division’s roster through online balloting and Twitter hashtags, allowing fans to vote in a total of 12 players, up from eight last season.

Vasilevskiy will be one of two goaltenders representing the Atlantic Division. Boston’s Linus Ullmark was selected for the initial roster.

Vasilevskiy is having another stellar season. He entered Thursday’s game in Edmonton with a 20-10-1 record, a .918 save percentage and a 2.45 goals-against average. He had won four straight starts and 10 of his last 12.

The All-Star skills competition will take place on Feb. 3 from 7-10 p.m. at FLA Live Arena, and the game will be played Feb. 4 from 3-6 p.m. with a three-game 3-on-3 tournament between divisions.

Last season, the Lightning had three representatives in Las Vegas. Vasilevskiy and defenseman Victor Hedman were selected to the initial roster, and center Steven Stamkos received the fan vote.

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