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Team Chara and Team Alfredsson ended up splitting the weekend victories, as Alfredsson’s team swept the competition with a score of 21-12 at the Skills Event and Chara’s team scoring twelve times to win the All-Star Game.

It all began with the announcement from Gary Bettman that the 2013 NHL All-Star game would take place in Columbus, Ohio and that the NHL Awards would once again be hosted in Las Vegas.

Once the pomp-and-circumstance ended,including a performance by Canadian- born superstar Drake, the best of the NHL were finally able to show off the talent that has landed them a spot in the league.

Friday was the skills competition, where the All-Stars got the chance to participate in six different events: the Bridgestone NHL Fastest Skater, the All-State Insurance NHL Breakaway Challenge, the Canadian Tire NHL Accuracy Shooting, G-Series NHL Skills Challenge Relay, the Blackberry NHL Hardest Shot, and the Tim Horton’s NHL Elimination Shoot Out.

Team Chara, captained by Boston Bruins’ star Zdeno Chara, and Team Alfredsson, led by Ottawa Senators’ Daniel Alfredsson, went head-to-head with some of the best hockey players in the world.

NHL newcomers dominated the first event, the Fastest Skater competition. Team Chara's rookie Carl Hagelin and Team Alfredsson's rookie Colin Greening qualified for the final heat of the Fastest Skater competition after finishing the course in just 12.993 and 12.963 seconds, respectively.

According to NHL.com, “One skater from each team is positioned side by side on the start line, both skaters race towards the same end zone, both turn outward, skate to the opposite end zone, turn back and skate past centre ice to the finish line.” Goalies Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings and Jonathan Quick of the Los Angeles Kings made triumphant appearances clocking in at 17.514 and 16.939.

Hagelin was the official winner of the final speed skate by just the skin of his teeth with a .1 second faster time of 13.218 seconds.

Fan favorite Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks, playing for Chara, stole the show in the Breakaway event with his Superman routine.

Each player was given three attempts to score in the most creative and grandiose way they could conceive. Kane donned Clark Kent glasses and a Superman cape and sped down the ice, ultimately soaring to the ground and sending the puck to his glove, then back to his stick, then to the back of the net.

Anaheim Ducks’ Corey Perry also entertained the crowd with his mini-stick.

Audience members both in the arena and back home voted for their favorite breakaway attempt via mobile text messaging. Kane won by a landslide after obtaining 47% of the votes.

Team Chara player Jamie Benn of the Dallas Stars stunned the crowd after he completed the Accuracy Shooting event in just 13 seconds. The same event took young NHL superstar and Team Alfredsson player Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightening 44 seconds to complete.

The basis of this event is fairly simple, as NHL.com explains, “Four destructible styrofoam targets 15 inches in diameter are attached to the goal posts of both goals, one target in each corner.Two players, one on each side of each goal, alternately pass pucks to a shooter positioned 25 feet out from the goal line. Shooters compete at one end, alternating attempts. The shooter who hits each of the four targets in the least amount of time wins the match.”

Team Alfredsson stole the Skills Challenge, in which sixteen of their players participated in various events: 1) the one-timer passing, where three shooters and a passer must score three goals; 2) passing accuracy, where one passer is expected to successfully pass a puck into six nets; 3) puck control, where one skater has the challenge of successfully maneuvering a puck through an obstacle of cones; 4) stick handleing, where a skater must move a puck through a series of pucks; and 5) target shooting, where a shooter must effectively hit four targets.

Team Alfredsson was the team that finished all these tasks in the shortest amount of time – a quick two minutes and eight seconds.

Zdeno Chara proved his captaincy of the All-Star game when he not only won the fifth event, but broke his own record of having the Hardest Shot. Chara stunned the world, and intimidated goalies everywhere, with a slapshot that sent the puck soaring at a breathtaking 108.8 miles per hour.

Steven Stamkos was the final victor of the sixth and final event – the elimination round. Eleven all-stars, one rookie, and three goalies participated in round-after-round of shoot outs. Stamkos got the winning goal against Boston Bruins’ goalie Tim Thomas.

Team Alfredsson beat Team Chara by a landslide with a final score of 21-12. 

Saturday, Team Chara made a comeback as they went to battle on the ice at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa, Canada and won 12-9.

Marian Gaborik of the New York Rangers was the All-Star MVP after he scored three goals and exhibited fierce and passionate play out on the ice for Team Chara.

Eight other all-stars rallied together and scored in Team Chara’s success.

Daniel Alfredsson, captain of Team Alfredsson, scored two goals for his team, while brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin scored a goal a piece. Five other all-stars scored for Team Alfredsson.

The only player who visited the penalty box was Dion Phaneuf, who was called for a hooking penalty towards the end of the first period.

Clumsy Scott Hartnell of the Philadelphia Flyers decided to take the opportunity to use his maladroit tendencies and have them benefit charity. Hartnell announced that he would donate $1,000 to charity. His four falls throughout the game raised $4,000. Players had no problem admitting to attempting to trip him while out on the ice in their own personal attempts to raise more money for charity. “I got him once in the first period...this is great," Lupul said, according to NHL.com.

Overall, the All-Star game was a fantastic success leaving fans ready and anxious for the remaining part of the season and, ultimately, the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Dustin Byfuglien, Mikko Koivu, Alex Ovechkin, Jonathan Toews, Adam Henrique, Adam Larsson, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins were all originally given All-Star nods, but had to not participate due to various circumstances. 

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