The NHL All-Star Game on Feb. 5 will be a celebration of the next generation after 18 of the 36 players named to represent their respective divisions by the league’s hockey operations department were chosen for the showcase contest for the first time. The midseason game at Las Vegas still will have its fair share of star power among the four captains selected by fan vote. Selected to head their squads were the Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin (Metropolitan Division), the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews (Atlantic), the Colorado Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon (Central), and the Edmonton Oilers’ Connor McDavid (Pacific). Players not selected All Stars included the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby, the Boston Bruins’ Brad Marchand, the Maple Leafs’ Williams Nylander, the Nashville Predators’ Matt Duchene, the New York Rangers’ Artemi Panarin, and the St. Louis Blues’ Vladimir Tarasenko. Ovechkin, who is tied for second in the NHL with 24 goals, …