All-Star Solution to the All-Star Problem

photo credit:  Justin Sabau/Getty Images

 The NHL had gone so long without an All-Star Game that people apparently forgot how terrible they are. Yes, this most recent edition in Columbus was particularly bad, setting the record for the most goals scored, but the minimal effort exerted is nothing new. Still, people clamored in the press box and all over social media to voice their displeasure.

 Nowadays, the NHL All-Star Game is more about a weekend of thoroughly entertaining festivities than one meaningless game. It's a great concept. It works, for the most part. The only (and biggest) problem with this model is that the weekend is climaxed with its undoubtedly least entertaining event.

 To reiterate: THE ALL-STAR GAME SUCKS, but it's not completely beyond repair.
 If the All-Star Weekend is all about entertainment, the NHL can turn to the simplest form of entertainment North American television has ever seen: the game show.
 If you take away the different bells and whistles that set one game show apart from another, their general concept is to take an ordinary person and give him/her an opportunity to win a ton of money. The NHL can easily adopt this and implement it as a way to get more eyeballs on the game.
 This solution scenario would require a lot of moving parts to work together in order to be successful, but I don't think there's any doubt that it will at least make the game more interesting.

2015 World Junior Championship Ultimate Guide

ROSTERS, SCHEDULES, PREVIEWS, AND PREDICTIONS

 Montréal and Toronto are the two cities with the greatest amount of hockey history. Countless legends have played for the people of those fine cities, and a pantheon of storied contests were played on their ice. This year, the hockey world will converge on both of these puck-head havens for the annual gut-wrenching, heart-racing, awe-inspiring tournament that is the IIHF World Junior Championship.
 With games split between Montréal's Bell Centre and Toronro's Air Canada Centre, 10 countries' finest young men will compete for national pride, glory, and hockey immortality. Every team will have its fair share of obstacles if it wants to reach its ultimate goal, but no matter how much they all want it, no matter how hard they work, only one team will have gold draped around their necks after the final game.
 In this, your Ultimate Guide to the 2015 World Juniors, fans can find complete rosters of every team and its corresponding group stage schedule, a preview of all 10 teams, and predictions as to who will end up with individual honors and what country will be the one singing its anthem at center ice with new hardware.
 The tournament runs from Dec. 26 through Jan. 5. Games will air on TSN and its affiliates for Canadian audiences and on NHL Network for those watching in the United States.

LIVE 2014 NHL Entry Draft Blog

 This blog will be updated live during the 2014 NHL Entry Draft in Philadelphia, Pa. Every selection, trade, or transaction of any kind will be updated instantly as it is announced and posted to this page.
 Any transactions that take place during the draft will be written in italics and highlighted in yellow.
 Every draft pick will also be accompanied by a brief description of each prospect for a better understanding of what any team has added to its system.

The Inimitable HARTY Awards

 Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 2014 Annual HARTY Awards, where the NHL's finest are honored with prestigious accolades that every young child with a hockey stick in his hands has dreamed of winning since two years ago.
 Now, this is the internet's premier red carpet awards event, and while there is no invitation necessary to attend, this is still a black tie event. The Hart of Hockey would appreciate it if you dressed appropriately for such an occasion, and show some respect to the players we all tore apart on Twitter the past season and look your finest. If you have to alter your attire for the event, now's your chance.

Final 2014 Cumulative Draft Rankings

 The draft is upon us, and 210 young men's lives will be changed forever on Friday and Saturday in Philadelphia.
 As always, The Hart of Hockey will be live blogging the event, but no draft coverage would be complete without a final edition of the blog's signature cumulative draft rankings.
 If you are unfamiliar with The Hart of Hockey's rankings, I'll be happy to give you a quick rundown of the system. If you are already familiar, just skip to the table below, but I'm sure you've already done that.
 The cumulative rankings take an individual player's rankings in various pundits/scouting services publications and then finds the average score from combining all the rankings. In this addition, the outside ranking lists used were TSN's Bob MacKenzie and Craig Button, NHL Central Scouting (CS,) The Hockey News (THN,) International Scouting Services (ISS,) Red Line Report (RLR,) McKeen's Hockey, and HockeyProspect.com (HP). Since Central Scouting separates its rankings by European/North American and Skaters/Goalies, its numbers are only used as a tiebreaker if the values of two players' or more average score is the same.
 Lastly, this is the time where I remind you that these rankings are not to be interpreted as a mock draft, but rather a different way to value the prospects heading into the draft and potentially project when their names will be called on draft day.
 Things get progressively crazier outside of the top five, but The Hart of Hockey is very proud to have collected enough data to present you with 60 players ranked with the cumulative system, starting with Kootenay's Sam Reinhart.