Now that the rosters have been chosen by captains Zdeno Chara and Daniel Alfredsson, the 2012 NHL All-Star Weekend can begin in earnest on the ice with Saturday's Skills Competition. The Florida Panthers' lone all-star, defenseman Brian Campbell, was selected by Team Chara and will participate in two events Saturday evening, Fastest Skater and Accuracy Shooting. Fastest Skater is just as you might imagine, a competition to see who is the quickest skater on the ice. Campbell's teammates and competition in that event:
Team Alfredsson: Kris Letang (backwards), Jonathan Quick (goalie), Carl Hagelin (rookie), Keith Yandle, Erik Karlsson
Team Chara: Jimmy Howard (goalie), Colin Greening (rookie), Phil Kessel, Marian Hossa
In the Accuracy Shooting event, four foam targets are placed in the four corners of the goal, and players try to hit each target in the fastest time possible. The participants:
Team Alfredsson: Matt Read (rookie), Jason Spezza, Steven Stamkos, Daniel Sedin. Passing to that quartet will be Alexander Edler, Dan Girardi, Claude Giroux and Henrik Sedin
Team Chara: Cody Hodgson (rookie), Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Marian Hossa. Passing to that quarter will be Phil Kessel, Ryan Suter, Jordan Eberle.
A quick rundown of the other events:
Breakaway Challenge: A goalie and three shooters from each team participate, as players attempt three shots, looking to score a goal in the most impressive way possible. Judges vote on the goal-scoring attempts.
Skills Challenge Relay: This event consists of four separate relays, with each replay involving: one timers, passing, puck control relay, stick handling, and shooting accuracy. Players cannot move on to the next skill until the previous one is completed.
Hardest Shot: The player who shoots the puck the hardest, measured in MPH, wins. Captain Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins has won this event four years in a row.
Elimination Shootout: The basics of the game: players attempt to score a goal against the goaltender and move on to the next round.
We'll have plenty more on the All-Star game throughout the weekend here at SB Nation Tampa Bay, so keep it locked to this StoryStream. For more on the Lightning players that will be playing in the game, head over to Raw Charge. For more on this and all things NHL, please check out the SB Nation NHL hub page.