COLUMBUS, Ohio It'd be really, really easy to bury the NHL All-Star Game.

In a way, thatwouldn't be completely out of line, either. The game featured 29 goals, Tobias Harris Jersey the most in All-Star history. The final score was 17-12.Every playeron the winning side, Team Toews, had at least a point, and six had four or more. There were zero recorded hits. Saying the players skated at half-speed would be overly kind.It wasn't hockey, really.

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"Theres a lot of breakaways, a lot of odd-man rushes," said Blackhawks winger and Team Foligno a sistant captainPatrick Kane."I think as the game goes on it gets a little bit more competitive and you probably see a better game from a fans standpoint."

Maybe. Whether he was right or not is irrelevant, though. Exactly zero breaths should be wasted on concerns about the quality of the play, or the effort exerted. This is a to s-off and that's fine. High-end hockey between the best players on Earth comes in late April and lasts for two months.As long as funny, memorablestuff is happening during a weekend in January as long as fans have fun and players enjoy themselves there's no need for hand-wringing. At all.

Think of it this way: If the league tried tofabricate competition between the sides, it'd end up in an MLB-style me s, where actual competitive advantage is gleaned from an arbitrary set of events at the end of a weekend-long carnival.

Just let the game be what it is; cotton candy. Marshmallow fluff. Nothing Avery Bradley Jersey substantive. If it organically a sumes a different form down the line, fine, but right now, take it at face value. The fantasy draft, at long last, is a blast. The Skills Competition is guaranteed to provide a few memories. That's enough.

Sunday's MVP was decided via Twitter vote, for god's sake, and in a stunning twist Wesley Johnson Jersey of events, hometown boy Ryan Johansen was the champ. If it matters, we'd make a case for John Tavares and his record-tyingfour goals, orJake Voracek's record-tying six points. But it doesn't, so we won't. Congrats to Johansen and his shiny new Honda Accord.

If we did have a vote on a hypothetical ASG MVP ballot, though, here's how it would look.

3. Voracek. It's not that the Flyers winger came into the weekend anonymously; he's leading the league with 56 points and came into the season with an already solid reputation. He's a blast to watch and has personality to burn. We saw that on Saturday during his duet with Johnny Gaudreau.

Doing all that on a relatively big stage doesn't hurt, though. Plus, he tied Mario Lemieux's points record. Not bad. And, maybe most importantly, he's got some ammo to use on his captain.

I can give it to (ClaudeGiroux)right now. Hes been all over me the last seven years for beating me in juniors in the playoffs," Voracek said. "I got something in my hands now.

Plus, he made this face:

2. Tavares. TheIslanders captain has some of the best hands Montrezl Harrell Jersey in the league, and the total lack of defense allowed him to show off a lot more than usual. He scored four times, and his first was the best.

He was cool with losing to Johansen, too:"I had my parents, two sisters and girlfriend here, and they all said they wanted a new car," he said. "So it's almost good I didn't win."

1. The Nationwide Arena cannon. Ah, the true star of the weekend. A replica Civil War-era cannon sits in the concourse of the Blue Jackets' arena.It goes off when the home team scores and at random intervals.

On Sunday, it fired after every Team Foligno goal but one; there was a presumed malfunction after Goal No. 11. A source Chris Paul Jersey close to the cannon told Sporting News that the noise you hear on TV and it is much, much louder in person doesn't come from the barrel itself; the action is largely there are mortars in the rafters. That's boots-on-the-ground journalism.

Source: The cannon itself makes a very, very small amount of noise. It's not what you are hearing.

Full disclosure: I actually screamedwhen it fired during the pregame stuff. It was extremely embarra sing.It happens, though,on Saturday, it scared the bejeezus out of Gaudreau. Everyone saw that. It alsogot Brent Burns and Phil Ke sel, according to Toews.

"It startled pretty much everyone in the building," he said. "I dont think anyone saw that one coming.

"I hate it," Giroux said. "It scares me," Drew Doughty said.Roberto Luongo was actively campaigning on Twitter during the game for its removal. , cannon.

Honorable mentions: Luongo. The tweets were great, as usual. He was good on the ice, though; four goals on 17 shots was borderline miraculous, and he had a couple nice ones mixed in there, too. ... The participants in the fake post-whistle scrum, particularly Alex Ovechkin. Ovechkin in general, actually; his"I need a car" bit during the draft, Paul George Jersey when the last pick got an Accord, was apparently because he wanted to give itHonda took care of it....The kid in the background of .

And, finally,Columbus. The city did a great job.It's been a fun weekend full of nice people and that's all anyone should expect.