NHL Announces 2012 All-Star Game Rosters

This afternoon the NHL revealed the roster for the 2012 All-Star Game in Ottawa and there are more than a few things that are noteworthy:

1) In addition to the four Senators players who were voted into the starting lineup by the fans, forward Colin Greening was selected as one of twelve rookies to participate in the event’s festivities.

2) Teemu Selanne and Niklas Lidstrom were not selected for the game. Cue the hysteria. (Note: Pierre Lebrun confirmed that Selanne informed his GM that he would politely decline the invitation if selected.)

3) Three former Senators — Chara, Hossa, and Brian Elliott — were selected for the game. Sorry fans, with Mikko Koivu representing the Minnesota Wild, there will be no Dany Heatley. Playing in an All-Star Game shouldn’t be a big adjustment for Elliott. I’m pretty sure that he’s used to giving up a lot of goals while playing behind a group that’s playing some terrible defensive hockey. I just hope for his sake that these stimuli don’t cause him breakdown and relapse. If anything,  the Bruce Garrioch and Elliott reunion could prove to be the most entertaining subplot of the entire All-Star Game weekend.

4) Some influential hockey internet personalities like Greg Wyshynski were pushing for Alfredsson and Selanne to be the respective captains for the game. With Selanne declining to participate, finding an alternative should be interesting. For unintentional comedy purposes and to further the mystique of the Battle of Ontario, I hope that the league elects to name Kessel or Phaneuf instead.

5) Glad Capitals defenceman Dennis Wideman made the cut. Mind you, I’m in favor of anything that allows him him to relive this fantastic shootout effort:

Barring an injury, this is the roster that we can expect to see (note: I’ve bolded the names of the Senators and All-Star starters voted in):

Forwards

Corey Perry, Anaheim Ducks
Tyler Seguin, Boston Bruins
Jason Pominville, Buffalo Sabres
Jarome Iginla, Calgary Flames
Marian Hossa, Chicago Blackhawks
Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks
Jamie Benn, Dallas Stars
Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings
Mikko Koivu, Minnesota Wild
John Tavares, New York Islanders
Marian Gaborik, New York Rangers
Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa Senators
Milan Michalek, Ottawa Senators
Jason Spezza, Ottawa Senators
Claude Giroux, Philadelphia Flyers
Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
Logan Couture, San Jose Sharks
Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning
Phil Kessel, Toronto Maple Leafs
Joffrey Lupul, Toronto Maple Leafs
Daniel Sedin, Vancouver Canucks
Henrik Sedin, Vancouver Canucks
Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals

Defensemen

Zdeno Chara, Boston Bruins
Brian Campbell, Florida Panthers
Ryan Suter, Nashville Predators
Shea Weber, Nashville Predators
Dan Girardi, New York Rangers
Erik Karlsson, Ottawa Senators
Kimmo Timonen, Philadelphia Flyers
Keith Yandle, Phoenix Coyotes
Dion Phaneuf, Toronto Maple Leafs
Alex Edler, Vancouver Canucks
Dennis Wideman, Washington Capitals
Dustin Byfuglien, Winnipeg Jets

Goaltenders

Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins
Jimmy Howard, Detroit Red Wings
Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles Kings
Carey Price, Montreal Canadiens
Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers
Brian Elliott, St. Louis Blues

12 Rookies

Luke Adam, Buffalo Sabres
Justin Faulk, Carolina Hurricanes
Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado Avalanche
Ryan Johansen, Columbus Blue Jackets
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton Oilers
Craig Smith, Nashville Predators
Adam Henrique, New Jersey Devils
Adam Larsson, New Jersey Devils
Colin Greening, Ottawa Senators
Sean Couturier, Philadelphia Flyers
Matt Read, Philadelphia Flyers
Cody Hodgson, Vancouver Canucks

The All-Star Fantasy Draft will take place at the Casino Lac Leamy on Thursday, January 26th at 8pm. The NHL Skills Competition takes place on Saturday, January 28th at 7pm and the All-Star Game itself takes place on Sunday, January 29th at 4pm.