After reportedly undergoing an MRI Thursday, Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon will not participate in the 2019 All-Star Skills Competition in San Jose, Calif., Friday night.

Kendall Coyne Schofield of the U.S. women's national team has been chosen to replace him in the fastest skater event, the league announced.

Coyne Schofield will become the first woman to ever compete in an event at the NHL All-Star weekend, but she is no stranger to playing against men at the professional level. The forward suited up in the Chicago Pro Hockey League this past summer, the lone woman in a league composed of 80 professionals and 80 amateurs.

The 26-year-old won gold with the United States at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics and silver at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

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The NHL is poised to make a major leap in analytics by implementing puck and player tracking for the 2019-2020 season, league commissioner Gary Bettman announced Friday during the All-Star weekend in San Jose, Calif.

The league is partnering with German company Jogmo World Corp. to insert microchips in players' shoulder pads as well as the game puck. These new tracking devices are designed to provide a near-exact calculation of player performance and ability.

"The puck and player tracking system can track pucks at a rate of 2,000 times per second in real-time with inch-level accuracy," Bettman said. "We'll instantaneously detect passes, shots, and positioning precisely. It will be equally accurate in tracking players - their movement, speed, time on ice - you name it."

The league will not permit the leveraging of this new data when it comes to salary arbitration, contract negotiations, and other player-related decisions and transactions, Sportsnet's John Shannon reports.

Fans won't have to wait until next season to see this technology in action, as the devices will be used during this weekend's All-Star Game.

The technology has been tested on multiple occasions, including the 2016 World Cup and the 2018 All-Star Game. The tracking system was also implemented during two regular-season games in Las Vegas in early January.

"Amazingly, within the confines of our 200-by-85-foot rink, Brent Burns and Jonathan Marchessault each skated more than three miles," Bettman said. "William Karlsson skated over 20 miles an hour.

"And this is just the tip of the iceberg. The applications are endless."

With these advancements, the NHL joins the NFL as the only North American professional sports leagues to implement wearable tracking technology.

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John Tavares is set to represent the Toronto Maple Leafs for the first time at this year's All-Star festivities and is looking forward to another three-on-three showdown.

“The competitiveness amps up a little bit,” Tavares said, who is making his sixth All-Star appearance. “You try to score a few goals, make a few nice plays, and try to show that side of the game.”

The NHL has struggled to come up with an All-Star format that best engages the fans and players, but with the modern day game trending toward speed and skill, the three-on-three play has become a great way to showcase the NHL's elite.

“Also, with the more space and more room, and with the creativity and the speed of the game ... guys can really go out there and put on a good show for the fans. Because I think that’s what it’s obviously meant to be about,” he said.

The 2019 All-Star Game will mark the fourth consecutive season the NHL has used this format while splitting teams by their respective divisions.

“You go to battle so many times against those guys over the years, that sometimes it’s kind of nice to be on the same side for a little bit,” Tavares said. “I think you have to enjoy that, put the competitiveness aside for a day and show that mutual respect you have for each other.”

The Maple Leafs are currently one of the league's deadliest teams at three-on-three play with a record of 5-2 in overtime this season.

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The Colorado Avalanche aren't taking any chances when it comes to the health of superstar Nathan MacKinnon.

The 23-year-old will undergo an MRI on his foot Thursday and could be held out of this weekend's All-Star festivities in San Jose, Calif., Sportsnet's John Shannon reports.

MacKinnon logged 18:39 of ice time and added one assist during Wednesday's loss to the Minnesota Wild.

With 27 goals and 44 assists in 50 games played this season, the Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia native was selected to captain the Central Division team in what would be the third All-Star appearance of his career.

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For the first time in his career, Alex Galchenyuk will skate under the bright lights of the Bell Centre as a member of the visiting team on Wednesday night.

Selected third overall by the Montreal Canadiens at the 2012 NHL Draft, the then 18-year-old star was labeled as a blue-chip prospect that many thought would undoubtedly be a part of the team's long-term plan.

Despite posting 108 goals and 255 points in 418 career games for hockey's winningest franchise, Galchenyuk had trouble taking the next step in Montreal, a city that expects excellence from the Habs.

"I never felt pressure from the media," Galchenyuk told the Canadian Press. "It was just normal. I thought it was like (how) it's supposed to be."

Six years later, the Sarnia Sting product found himself traded from one of hockey's hotbeds to one of hockey's hottest cities. The Arizona Coyotes acquired Galchenyuk from Montreal in exchange for winger Max Domi.

The swap has granted both players a fresh start, but as is the case with many trades, the two have become inexorably linked - a notion that Galchenyuk is quick to dismiss.

"Everybody's their own player," he said. "Max is doing great and I'm happy for him, but we're two completely different players. I can't really compare myself to what he's doing."

In 38 games for the Coyotes, Galchenyuk has tallied eight goals and 25 points, despite a 16-game goal drought in which he recorded just four assists.

"I always put pressure on myself to be productive," Galchenyuk said. "That's my job, to create offense. When I came to Arizona, it stayed the same."

Galchenyuk is unsure of the response he will receive from the crowd at the Bell Centre, but he has no hard feelings towards his former club and the success they've found this season.

"I have a lot of great friends in Montreal," he said. "I'm definitely happy they're doing good."

Despite hovering around the .500 mark, the Coyotes find themselves just four points out of a wild-card spot in the Western Conference heading into Wednesday's action.

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The Edmonton Oilers signed rookie goaltender Mikko Koskinen to a three-year extension worth an average of $4.5 million per year, the team announced Monday.

The contract includes a 15-team no-trade list, according to Cap Friendly.

The 30-year-old Koskinen has made quite the impression since joining Edmonton on a one-year, $2.5-million deal last May. In 27 appearances for the Oilers this season, the Finn owns a 14-10-1 record with a 2.78 goals-against average and a .911 save percentage.

The netminder's latest flash of brilliance came Saturday night against the Calgary Flames when he put forward a candidate for save of the year.

Koskinen made four appearances for the New York Islanders during the 2010-11 season. Eight years later, he's officially found a home in the NHL.

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Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour didn't hold back when assessing his team's performance following Friday's 4-1 loss at home to the Ottawa Senators.

"We were so bad, I almost dressed and got out there. I might have been as good as what we were throwing out there," Brind'Amour told the media postgame, including Fox Sports Carolinas.

After a 6-2 loss to the New York Rangers on Monday, the Hurricanes were looking for a bounce-back performance. However, they were in a 3-0 hole midway through the second period on Friday night.

"We just didn't want to play the way we were supposed to," Brind'Amour added. "I didn't know what I was watching. That’s the first time all year I can say that."

It's been an up-and-down season for Brind'Amour's squad. The Hurricanes struggled while posting a 4-8-1 record in December, then bounced back with a strong January, winning six of their last eight games heading into Friday.

Carolina now heads to western Canada for a three-game road trip before the all-star break.

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