Before they go out to celebrate the new year, fans can get the ball rolling with a dose of New Year's Eve hockey -- there are nine games on the schedule for the last night of 2010.
The action begins early with a pair of 5 p.m. ET games. Atlanta , a 3-2 shootout winner against Boston at home on Thursday, visits New Jersey, where the Devils will be trying to end a six-game losing streak. Montreal, a 4-1 loser to Tampa Bay on Wednesday, ends its seven-game trip with a visit to Florida in a game that can be seen on RDS.
An hour later, Minnesota visits the slumping Nashville Predators, while at 7 p.m. ET, the New York Islanders begin a five-game trip at Detroit, where the Wings are home after a 7-3 win at Dallas on Wednesday. Also at 7, Columbus returns home after Wednesday's 3-2 win at Toronto to host Ottawa, which had a day off after a 4-0 home loss at Carolina.
At 8 p.m. ET, Philadelphia continues its road trip with a visit to Anaheim. The Ducks are home for the first time since Dec. 12 -- they wrapped up a seven-game trip on Tuesday with a 3-1 win at Phoenix. Also at 8, the Stars try to rebound from the loss to Detroit when they host Vancouver, which comes to town after a 6-2 rout of the Flyers on Tuesday.
The Coyotes are spending New Year's Eve in St. Louis. The Blues have won four in a row, including Tuesday's 3-1 win against Chicago. The game can be seen on Versus in the United States and TSN2 in Canada, beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET.
The final game of 2010 begins a half-hour later, when the Colorado Avalanche visit Calgary. The Flames have been off since whipping Buffalo 5-2 at home on Monday, while the Avs come to town after a game in Edmonton on Thursday.