"For most hockey players, the all-star break is a welcome opportunity for a little rest and relaxation, maybe a quick trip to the beach or mountains.

Logan Couture wouldn't know about that.

At 22, he is taking part in all-star festivities this weekend for a sixth consecutive winter -- three as a teenager in the Ontario Hockey League, one in the minors and now two in the NHL.

That this year's NHL All-Star game is being held in Ottawa, the city where Couture developed his skills with the Ottawa 67's in the OHL, neatly ties everything together.

"It means a lot," Couture said. "I had some great moments there."

Couture, who had a potentially not-so-great moment Thursday night as the last player chosen in the all-star draft, might seem to some as an unlikely representative from San Jose. The Sharks are a team filled with veteran talent. Five other players were on the NHL's online all-star ballot -- Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Joe Pavelski, Dan Boyle and Brent Burns -- and all but Pavelski have played in previous exhibitions.

San Jose's veterans say they applaud Couture's selection -- "Very deserving and very happy for him," said Boyle, himself an Ottawa native -- yet it does raise a question:

Has Couture become the most dangerous weapon the franchise puts on the ice every night? "