Along with the annual naming of the NHL All-Star teams comes a rite of passage that is arguably as interesting.

Related: Ranking the 2018 All-Star teams

All-Star rosters were revealed by the league on Wednesday, so, naturally, the heated debates surrounding which players perhaps should have been chosen to compete in Tampa Bay at the end of the month will now begin.

Here's a look at each division's biggest snub.

Atlantic Division

Most notable snub: Jonathan Huberdeau, LW, Florida Panthers

Leaving a Panther off the list of All-Stars is never exactly a glaring omission. But, in the case of Huberdeau, the argument can be made that his name should be in the mix.

Huberdeau leads the Panthers in assists (27) and points (43), while also rocking a stellar Corsi For percentage of 54.5 in just over 20 minutes of ice time per game. Factor in that the Florida winger is red-hot of late, notching 11 points in his last eight games, and his exclusion becomes even more notable.

Snub honorable mentions: Morgan Rielly, D, Toronto Maple Leafs; Mark Stone, RW, Ottawa Senators; Patrice Bergeron, C, Boston Bruins.

Metropolitan Division

Most notable snub: Phil Kessel, RW, Pittsburgh Penguins

OK, look. You're never going to catch us spitting such blasphemy as "Sidney Crosby doesn't deserve to be in the All-Star Game," because Sid is still very much the real deal, despite an up-and-down season. However, with that said, his Penguins teammate Kessel is perhaps the sole reason Pittsburgh still finds itself clinging to playoff contention.

Kessel has been nothing short of sensational so far for the Pens, currently sitting 11th in the league scoring with 18 goals and 29 assists to go along with a positive Corsi For of 51.5.

There is no doubt Crosby deserves a spot among the best in the business, but on the back of his solid 2017-18 campaign, so does Kessel.

Snub honorable mentions: Sergei Bobrovksy, G, Columbus Blue Jackets; Jakub Voracek, RW, Philadelphia Flyers; John Carlson, D, Washington Capitals; Anders Lee, LW, New York Islanders.

Central Division

Most notable snub: Vladimir Tarasenko, RW, St. Louis Blues

Tarasenko's run of consecutive All-Star nods ends at three, as the Blues sniper was left off this year's squad despite registering yet another solid offensive season of 19 goals and 25 assists, so far.

The Russian talisman might be on pace for his lowest goal output (33) since he entered the league in 2012, but Tarasenko has evolved his game this campaign, becoming a more complete player while also logging more minutes and making his teammates better around him. Case in point: Brayden Schenn is having a career year playing on Tarasenko's wing and will be making his first-ever All-Star appearance.

A collection of the league's elite just isn't complete without one of the best pure scorers in the game.

Snub notable mentions: Jamie Benn, LW, Dallas Stars; Ryan Suter, D, Minnesota Wild; Roman Josi, D, Nashville Predators.

Pacific Division

Most notable snub: Jonathan Marchessault, C, Vegas Golden Knights

Seemingly unable to earn any respect despite putting up strong offensive numbers in back-to-back seasons, the criminally underrated Marchessault continues to produce despite getting little love from fans around the league.

Across the past 113 games for the Panthers and the Golden Knights, Marchessault has 46 goals and 45 assists to go along with seven game-winning tallies.

Marchessault has been Vegas' best forward so far this season on a team that has easily been the feel-good story of the year, making his omission that much more puzzling.

Snub notable mentions: John Gibson, G, Anaheim Ducks; Clayton Keller, C, Arizona Coyotes; Sean Monahan, C, Calgary Flames.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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The Chicago Blackhawks have traded forward Richard Panik and Laurent Dauphin to the Arizona Coyotes for Anthony Duclair and Adam Clendening, the teams announced Wednesday.

Duclair is believed to have recently requested a trade out of the desert, seemingly in search of a fresh start after struggling to regain the fine form of his rookie year that saw him record 20 goals and 24 assists in 81 games.

The 22-year-old scored nine goals and added six assists in 33 games for the Coyotes this season, and he's set to become a restricted free agent this summer.

In return, the Coyotes receive 26-year-old Panik, who has this season and next remaining on a deal that carries a $2.8-million cap hit.

In 37 games this campaign, he contributed six goals and 10 assists.

No salary was retained in the deal, TSN's Pierre LeBrun adds, thereby freeing up some cap space for Chicago after taking on the balance of Duclair's $1.2-million cap hit.

Dauphin and Clendening are minor leaguers with limited NHL experience, with Duclair and Panik clearly serving as the centerpieces of this deal.

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The NHL announced the complete rosters for the 2018 All-Star Game on Wednesday, naming 44 of the league's best players to represent their respective divisions in a 3-on-3 tournament.

While all teams are loaded with talent, someone has to win the darn thing, and below is our list of who is most suited to do so.

Full rosters can be seen here.

1. Atlantic Division

Dream 3-on-3 trio: Auston Matthews - Nikita Kucherov - Erik Karlsson

While Steven Stamkos is a worthy candidate here, we've seen what he's done with Kucherov all year long. Pairing the league's top goal-getter with the offensive abilities of Matthews and Karlsson would be non-stop entertainment.

With the likes of Stamkos, Brad Marchand, and Victor Hedman on the bench, the Atlantic lineup will be terrifying no matter who is on the ice.

Potential X-factor: Jack Eichel

You have to think Eichel will be excited to take advantage of having good teammates for once this season.

2. Central Division

Dream 3-on-3 trio: Patrick Kane - Nathan MacKinnion - P.K. Subban

Combining Kane's hands, MacKinnon's speed, and Subban's charisma could be lots of fun, while a supporting cast featuring Tyler Seguin and Brayden Schenn makes the Central a formidable opponent.

Potential X-factor: Blake Wheeler

Wheeler's rightfully earned the first All-Star nod of his career, and will have a platform to showcase himself as one of the best wingers in the NHL.

3. Metropolitan Division

Dream 3-on-3 trio: Sidney Crosby - Alex Ovechkin - Seth Jones

As the two greatest icons of their generation, watching Crosby and Ovechkin play together, rather than be pitted against each other as rivals, is something hockey fans should cherish.

Not to mention, one of the most effective duos in the league - John Tavares and Josh Bailey - wait in the weeds should Sid and Ovi require a break.

Potential X-factor: Taylor Hall

Hall's in the midst of a career season, and the open space of 3-on-3 will make him one of the most dangerous players on the ice.

4. Pacific Division

Dream 3-on-3 trio: Connor McDavid - Johnny Gaudreau - Drew Doughty

Just imagine the potential puck movement between McDavid and Gaudreau, two of the NHL's most creative players. However, in spite of arguably the best trio available, James Neal and Rickard Rakell as depth options makes the Pacific less of a threat.

Potential X-factor: Brock Boeser

All he does is score, and there's no reason to think that will stop in a game designed for goals.

(Photos Courtesy: Action Images)

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The Buffalo Sabres had an eventful practice Wednesday.

Not only did Evander Kane and Justin Falk exchange verbal and physical blows, but defenseman Zach Bogosian reportedly suffered a significant lower-body injury.

Bogosian recorded one assist in 18 games this season, averaging 19:09 of ice time per night.

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Here are the complete rosters for the 2018 NHL All-Star Game tournament, the league's annual star-studded three-on-three event that will take place on Jan. 28 in Tampa Bay:

Atlantic Division

Coach: Jon Cooper (Tampa Bay)

Metropolitan Division

Coach: Barry Trotz (Washington)

Central Division

Coach: Peter Laviolette (Nashville)

Pacific Division

Coach: Gerard Gallant (Vegas)

* denotes captains

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Hockey Canada is almost ready to reveal its men's hockey roster for the 2018 Olympic Games.

The governing body of Canadian hockey will reveal the team in Calgary on Thursday at 12 p.m. ET., according to a release.

Sean Burke, the former NHL goaltender and executive, is Canada's general manager for the tournament, and former Vancouver Canucks bench boss Willie Desjardins will serve as head coach.

USA Hockey announced its men's Olympic hockey roster on New Year's Day.

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Just when it seemed as though things couldn't get much worse for the Buffalo Sabres, they took to the ice for practice Wednesday morning.

Following a 7-4 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday, the team underwent an intense practice, ultimately resulting in a scuffle between Evander Kane and Justin Falk.

"Shut the (expletive) up, you selfish (expletive)," Falk reportedly yelled at Kane before shoving him, according to Bill Hoppe of BuffaloHockeyBeat.com.

The coaches separated the two before things got out of hand. Falk downplayed the incident after the session saying it was a case of emotions boiling over.

"It's just spur of the moment, emotions are running high," Falk said. "This time of year, where we're at, everyone's got a situation they're in, just heat of the moment boiled over."

Unfortunately, that wasn't the only sour news to come out of Sabres practice. During a drill along the boards, defenseman Zach Bogosian got tangled with Kane and left the ice struggling to put weight on his left foot.

An update on Bogosian is pending, but the Sabres will hope to channel this intensity and get back in the win column Thursday against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Buffalo has lost five straight and seven of its last eight.

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If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Colin Campbell, the NHL's director of hockey operations, says he'll once more attempt to impress upon the league's general managers that a player's skate that's in the air, but not over the blue line, shouldn't be considered offside.

"I’ll try it again at the March (GM) meeting(s),” Campbell told The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun on Wednesday. “I think I’ll try to buy the managers over again as a group. People might say, 'Who cares about one inch?' A whole city would care in the playoffs about one inch if it was offside. That’s why we have the offside coach’s challenge."

Connor McDavid expressed displeasure with offside challenges as a whole Tuesday after the Edmonton Oilers' late tying goal against the Nashville Predators was overturned upon review that showed teammate Jujhar Khaira with his back skate lifted as he entered the offensive zone.

Campbell also brought this up at last year's meetings, and the GMs couldn't reach a consensus at the time, but he's hopeful it will resonate among more of them this time around.

“I’ll try it again, because I think it’s an adjustment to this rule that we experienced," he said. "This is our third year with it where I think we’ve experienced it enough where you can put some goals back on the board. The basis of it is, the player is still onside because he hasn’t crossed the blue line. I don’t think you need to be touching the ice.”

Campbell told LeBrun he counted eight times this season that a goal has been reversed on a skate-in-the-air call.

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If Sidney Crosby were in charge of naming the NHL All-Stars he would leave himself off the Metropolitan squad.

The Pittsburgh Penguins captain recently spoke about the potential of playing at this year's installment of the 3-on-3 tournament, frankly stating he doesn't feel he's played well enough to earn an invitation.

"I don't expect to be there, to be honest with you," Crosby said, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I haven’t even thought about it. I don't feel like I've had an All-Star first half."

While Crosby might be critical of himself, he has been far from awful this season. The 30-year-old has tallied 43 points in 44 games, good enough for second on the Penguins.

Instead, Crosby feels that the team's leading scorer - Phil Kessel - is more deserving of the nod.

"I mean … Phil’s had a really good first half," Crosby said. "There’s been a lot of guys within our division that have had some great first halves here so far: Tavares, Bailey, and Ovechkin. These guys are all right at the top of the scoring race. I haven't given it any thought, only because of that. I just don't expect to be going."

Crosby has been named to the All-Star Game six times during his career, but played in just two, having missed the event in 2008, 2009, 2011, and 2015 due to injury.

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After the Edmonton Oilers had their tying goal against the Nashville Predators in the final six minutes wiped out by an offside review, captain Connor McDavid sounded off on the rule, calling for it to be canned completely.

"I ultimately feel they should just take the rule out," McDavid said, according to Rob Tychkowski of the Edmonton Sun. "The number of calls that are a millimeter offside 45 seconds before the play don't have much of an effect on the goal itself. I think the fans want to see offense."

A millimeter appears to have been the margin of error for forward Jujhar Khaira, who entered the zone with his back skate slightly off the ice. It was so close that even the linesman, who was within arm's reach of Khaira, originally ruled the play onside.

The call was especially aggravating for a team that played one of its better games after entering the contest with losses in six of its last seven.

"We battled back hard and found a way to tie up the game and the guy's an arm hair offside and they call it back," McDavid said, according to Marc Ciampa of EdmontonOilers.com. "It's obviously hard to agree with the rule and the video challenge but it didn't go our way, but if it's on your side you love the rule."

The Oilers will enjoy two days off before having another chance to get back in the win column against the 31st-ranked Arizona Coyotes.

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