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John Scott, voted to NHL All-Star Game as joke, wins MVP

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NASHVILLE – It’s a good thing Jeff Gorton is the Rangers’ general manager now or Glen Sather would have no one preventing him from trading for John Scott again.

The All-Star enforcer, who was voted into Sunday afternoon’s exhausting 3-on-3 tournament as a joke by thousands of prankster fans, owned the moment that was supposed to embarrass him – a moment Scott said recently that one NHL official had urged him to turn down.

Scott, 33, who has five goals in 285 career NHL games, scored twice in the Pacific Division’s opening 9-6 win over the Central and was named MVP of the entire tournament after the Pacific won the final, 1-0, over the Atlantic.

The fans at Bridgestone Arena chanted: “M-V-P!” Scott’s teammates even briefly lifted him onto their shoulders during a postgame interview.

John Scott celebrates his goal which ties the Pacific's first game with Central at 1.Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

John Scott celebrates his goal which ties the Pacific’s first game with Central at 1.

“Thank you so much. You guys have blown me away,” Scott said to the fans. “I love this city and thanks so much.”

The poor-skating journeyman once was Sather’s lone trade deadline acquisition on Feb. 27, 2012, in a deal that sent a fifth-round Rangers draft pick to Chicago. Scott currently plays in the minors for the Canadiens, but he represented the Pacific Division because he was on the Arizona Coyotes’ NHL roster when he was voted in, prior to a Jan. 15 trade to Montreal.

Sunday, Scott embraced being a fan favorite in festive Nashville, where he was cheered wildly all weekend.

In the semifinal win, Scott humorously knocked down former Chicago teammate Patrick Kane and then dropped the gloves in a mock fight against the skilled Blackhawks star after Kane answered with a goal.

Scott’s on-ice exploits were so entertaining that he accomplished the impossible: He made typically stoic Los Angeles Kings coach Darryl Sutter smile. Scott reached all the way down to the ice and scooped the shavings with his right mitt to celebrate his first goal in style, which Islanders captain John Tavares particularly loved.

“I saw he scored, and that was a great celly, too,” Tavares said. “It’s great to see him have a great moment. He certainly enjoyed the weekend, and everyone really enjoyed being around him.”

Scott's teammates carry him off the ice after he is named MVP.Christopher Hanewinckel/USA Today Sports

Scott’s teammates carry him off the ice after he is named MVP.

Scott had plenty of doubters. NBC analyst and former NHLer Jeremy Roenick admitted to being one of them in a bench interview with Scott, who was ready with a snappy response:

“I didn’t think you should be here … I was wrong,” Roenick said.

“Not the first time you’ve been wrong,” Scott replied.

Scott became a media-fabricated pariah the last couple months as fans took both sides of a nonsensical online debate about whether Scott belonged in the game, whether the NHL was actively trying to keep him out, and whether the fan vote should have been honored. Many fans and some so-called media even believe the NHL was behind the Coyotes’ trade of Scott and demotion to the minors to try and keep him out of the All-Star tournament.

Scott told the Players’ Tribune that an NHL official did try to discourage his participation by saying: “Do you think this is something your kids would be proud of?” He said he was ready to pull out of the weekend until that comment made him change his mind.

It was a feel-good ending Sunday, though, and a hilarious moment as Scott accepted a huge million-dollar check at center ice on behalf of his team while standing next to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, who on Saturday would not deny that an NHL official said those words to Scott.

“It’s gonna go 100 percent to me,” Scott joked of the $1 million payout, before adding seriously: “It’s the best possible outcome. It was a great weekend and everyone had fun.”

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