Cold Steel On Ice, Outside

We'll get to the All-Star lineups in a moment. First, who's stoked at the thought of hockey outside on New Years Day? The Tribune reports that the Black Hawks and Red Wings will face off at Wrigley Field in the follow-up to this year's amazing Penguins-Sabres matchup in Buffalo. It's yet another coup for the Hawks as they quickly climb back to respectability. Club President John McDonough lobbied NHL commissioner Gary Bettman for the game almost from the moment he signed on with the Hawks.

It's a perfect storm moment: two of the NHL's "Original Six" teams — one of them the defending Stanley Cup champions — facing each other in one of most hallowed venues in professional sports while Pat Foley calls the game on WGN radio. It's like a dream come true.