56th National Hockey League All - Star Game The 56th National Hockey League All - Star Game was held on January 27 , 2008 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta , Georgia , home of the Atlanta Thrashers , during the 2007 – 08 NHL season . Atlanta had originally been scheduled to host what would have been the 55th NHL All - Star Game in 2005 , however that game was canceled due to the NHL Lockout of 2004 – 05 . Players in this game , like the 55th National Hockey League All - Star Game , wore Rbk EDGE jerseys . The jersey logos have been redesigned , showing a simple logo that displays East and West on the respective conference jerseys , captain and alternate captain patches on the right side ( instead of left ) , and the player ' s number below the logo . Diversity honored . As Atlanta is a place of significance to the American civil rights movement ( among the hockey - related achievements is John Paris Jr . becoming the first black to coach a pro hockey team , the Atlanta Knights of the International Hockey League ) , and 2008 is the 50th anniversary of Willie O ' Ree breaking hockey ' s color barrier with the Boston Bruins , the NHL chose the All - Star weekend to honour the diversity of the league . Changes in the All - Star program . The previous year ' s YoungStars game and skills competition , which lead up to the main game , were criticized for the lack of excitement : the YoungStars game saw a lack of effort by the players overall , while the shootout portion of the skills competition was criticized for being too boring - in the previous year , at three different points in the skills competition , each goaltender would take on four opposing players in regular penalty shots - which in itself is not too different from what was seen in regular - season play . For this year , to raise interest in all - star festivities , no YoungStars goaltenders were named - instead , the YoungStars played in a three - on - three game ( of two running six - minute periods ) halfway through the skills competition , with the regular all - star goaltenders in net . There was only one faceoff at the start of each half - if the puck goes out of play , another puck was thrown onto the ice . If a goal was scored , the three players retreated to their own side of centre ice before being able to attack again . For either side to win the YoungStars game , the team must score greater goals in both halves . Brandon Dubinsky of the New York Rangers was named the Youngstars MVP for scoring 2 goals and an assist . Furthermore , the skills competition itself was changed dramatically - the Fastest Skater competition is now a sprint instead of a lap around the arena ( a final showdown portion has also been added ) , while the traditional Puck Control Relay was changed to the Obstacle Course event , where stick handling , saucer passes , one - timers , and goaltenders attempting to score by shooting pucks the length of the ice into an empty net ( itself a former All - Star Skills event called Goalie Goals ) is featured . Both changes were made to further reflect game conditions . The traditional Shooting Accuracy remains , though a final showdown stage ( consisting of having to shoot four targets in nine seconds with only four pucks , and if still tied , one shot in three seconds at one target ) is held to determine an individual winner . Hardest Shot is the only event unchanged from previous years . But by far the greatest change is in the shootout portion : two events are based on the shootout : in the Elimination Shootout , skaters shoot against the all - star goaltenders , with a skater being eliminated if they fail to score . The second shootout - based event , the Breakaway Challenge , incorporates elements from the National Basketball Association ' s All - Star Slam Dunk Contest : three players from each team ( as selected by the all - star team captains ) will be judged on their style and creativity by a panel of four judges as they attempt to score on the all - star goaltenders . The judges may award up to nine points , and a bonus point is added should the skater score . The judging panel this year consists of Dominique Wilkins , a former two - time Slam Dunk Champion with the Atlanta Hawks , former Thrashers captain Scott Mellanby , Canadian actor Taylor Kitsch , and broadcaster Bill Clement . The two skaters ( one from each team ) with the highest scores face off in a final showdown to determine the winner of the event . < / div > < br clear = " all " > Box Score . W - Tim Thomas L - Manny Legace