The NHL All-Star Game is headed from one Bay Area to another.
The San Jose Sharks will host 2019's All-Star weekend at SAP Center from Jan. 25-27, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman announced Saturday during this year's All-Star festivities in Tampa Bay.
The skills competition will take place Saturday, Jan. 26, while the game itself will occur Sunday, Jan. 27.
"We are thankful and thrilled that the National Hockey League has decided, once again, to bring one of its premier events to San Jose," Sharks Co-President John Tortora said in a statement. "NHL All-Star Weekend is for our loyal and outstanding fans, who have eagerly anticipated the return of this event, and for the city of San Jose as the hockey world descends to shine an international spotlight on our great city."
This is the second time SAP Center will hold the event. San Jose last hosted All-Star weekend from Jan. 17-18, 1997.
Owen Nolan. then in his second season with the Sharks, energized the hometown crowd with three goals. He scored twice, eight seconds apart in the second period, and capped off the hat trick with one of the All-Star game's most iconic moments.
With a little over two minutes remaining in regulation, Nolan corralled a loose puck in the neutral zone, and skated in on a mini-breakaway against goaltender Dominik Hasek, who would go on to win the Vezina Trophy that season. Nolan then "called his shot," pointing at the top right corner before snapping the puck into that same corner past Hasek.
San Jose was originally supposed to host the game in 1995, but the game was cancelled due to the lockout during the 1994-95 season. The city is one of 10 that has hosted two or more NHL All-Star Games since 1969, when the league changed formats to feature two separate All-Star teams instead of one playing the reigning Stanley Cup champion.
This is the second time in three seasons a California city will host All-Star weekend. Los Angeles hosted in 2017.
"We look forward to welcoming the world's greatest hockey players to San Jose for the 2019 NHL All-Star Game," San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo said in a statement. "On behalf of our entire city, I look forward to working with the Sharks and the NHL to create a special experience for the thousands of rabid hockey fans who will be in San Jose for this marquee event."
