10 Things NHL Fans Have to Look Forward to in 2015

Looking back at the NHL season over the Christmas break, there are plenty of positives to take from the first third of the schedule—not just individual highlights, but great comebacks, tight division battles and wild-card swings.

There is plenty of hockey left to be played too, which means a lot for NHL fans to look forward to in the new year. We take a look at some of the big events and storylines to come.

Click ahead to get started.

The Winter Classic

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The Washington Capitals are hosting the Chicago Blackhawks in this year's Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on New Year's Day. The traditional outdoor game is in the nation's capital for the first time. And despite the fact some may believe the luster has come off the annual event, those who attend in person will never forget it, and many will again find themselves tuning in on TV even just to see what the weather is like.

Cold and sunny is the forecast at the moment, but fans shouldn't give the game a cold shoulder despite the six outdoor games last season admittedly saturating the market a little bit. The league scaled back to two this year—with the Stadium Series featuring just one contest on Feb. 21—and the Hawks vs. Caps should be a fun way to kick 2015 off.

A Potentially Exciting Trade Deadline

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There are some intriguing names on the pending unrestricted free-agent market in Columbus Blue Jackets winger Nick Foligno, the Arizona Coyotes' Antoine Vermette, the Carolina Hurricanes' Jiri Tlusty and Andrej Sekera, the New Jersey Devils' Jaromir Jagr, Michael Ryder and Marek Zidlicky, the Winnipeg Jets' Michael Frolik and the Buffalo Sabres' Chris Stewart.

Those are all teams either outside or on the bubble of the playoff picture. There are bigger names that could be even more attractive on the trade market before March 2.

If the Hurricanes are looking to make major changes there would be more than a few suitors for Eric Staal or maybe goalie Cam Ward. The Coyotes could look to dump salary and depart with the likes of defenseman Keith Yandle, which Ottawa Sun reporter Bruce Garrioch wrote about recently.

The Edmonton Oilers have not had success despite the apparent riches at the forward position and could exchange one of their young former draft picks in order to start a culture change in Northern Alberta.

Monday, March 2 could be an interesting day for player movement.

The Art Ross Race

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Gone are the days when Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr strung together dominant stretches atop the scoring race. Since the lost lockout season there have been six first-time winners of the Art Ross Trophy and two repeats (Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin).

There are plenty of first-time possibilities making waves through to the Christmas break, with Tyler Seguin, Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek, Ryan Getzlaf and Vladimir Tarasenko among those lighting it up with regularity. Malkin and Crosby are both in the top 10 as well but are far from locks to add a third scoring title.

The top 13 scorers so far this year are playing at a point-per-game pace or better.

All-Star Weekend

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The lockout in 2013 left the NHL All-Star Game off the docket two years ago, and the Sochi Winter Games meant no room for the NHL's exhibition break last season. So this year's celebration of the game's best in Columbus, Ohio, will be the first since 2012.

Put me in the absence-makes-the-heart-grow-fonder category. I'm looking forward to the Skills Competition on Saturday, Jan. 24 and the game itself the following day. 

The NHL.com team has projected the rosters for the Eastern and Western Conferences, and the star power is incredibly strong.

More Firings

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Two down. Who's next?

The Ottawa Senators turfed Paul MacLean, and the Edmonton Oilers bid Dallas Eakins adieu this season. But there are other candidates who could find themselves looking for work before the end of this season. New Jersey Devils bench boss Peter DeBoer is leading a group of underachievers after taking the team to the Stanley Cup Final in 2012, but the Devils are on pace to miss for a third straight season.

Philadelphia Flyers brass told The Associated Press (via ESPN.com news services) that Craig Berube is safe, but ask general manager Ron Hextall that question again in a couple of months if the Flyers are still among the teams in the lower third of the Eastern Conference points race.

The McDavid/Eichel Sweepstakes

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Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel are quite the consolation prizes for the worst two teams in the NHL this season. We're talking Sidney Crosby hype and Nathan MacKinnon talent—or better—with these two kids.

First, we get a great preview of what they offer during the World Junior Championship over Christmas and into the new year. Then, we get to keep a close eye on the Toilet Bowl—the unofficial battle of the league's cellar dwellers.

McDavid and Eichel are different players, but each offers elite skill in different size packages. Whatever teams land these guys will be sorely in need of that kind of addition, whether it's Carolina, Buffalo, Edmonton, Arizona or another of the struggling squads this season.

Outdoor Hockey in California

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The Coors Light NHL Stadium Series is intriguing for more than the awful uniforms unveiled by the Los Angeles Kings. What separates it from the Winter Classic is the less hockey-friendly confines of California that will play host to the game between the Kings and San Jose Sharks.

Santa Clara, California, will see Levi's Stadium host the state rivals on Feb. 21 rather than its usual guests, the NFL's San Francisco 49ers. The Kings played the Anaheim Ducks last year at Dodger Stadium in the first outdoor game on the West Coast, with the Ducks winning 3-0. But the defending Stanley Cup champions got the last laugh in winning the title last spring, which included a first-round victory over the Sharks.

The visuals from last season's Ducks-Kings clash were striking. It's not often you see green grass near a hockey rink.

More Plays Like These...

Whether it's Alex Ovechkin dipsy-doodling around a couple of defenders and roofing the puck into the top shelf with a backhander as he's falling to the ice or Vladimir Tarasenko tucking in a one-handed shootout-style goal at full speed with defenders attempting to get in his way but failing miserably to stop him, the NHL has had some great highlights this season.

There will be plenty more in the new year.

Frederik Andersen robbing Marian Hossa with an arm across the goal line, P.K. Subban's looping, self-made breakaway score, Nazem Kadri's toe-drag and John Tavares' nifty stickwork on a shootout may not be duplicated, but they could be outdone.

The Playoffs

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There may be nothing better in sports than the passing of the Stanley Cup from player to player on the ice surface after weeks of blood, sweat and tears.

Last year's playoff tournament was spectacular, from the Los Angeles Kings' first-round comeback against the San Jose Sharks to the seven Game 7s that took place throughout the spring. Despite the fact the Kings have won two of the last three titles, parity is rampant these days, and anything can happen once the final 16 teams are decided.

Good teams like the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks are no longer safe from meeting each other early thanks to the divisional format that began last year.

We can't wait to see what the spring brings this time around.

Big Spending

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With the salary cap expected to jump up to about $73 million, teams with the luxury of being able to spend that kind of dough can be expected to do just that.

So get ready for overpayment on those marginal free agents set to hit the market next summer.

OK, maybe this isn't exactly something to look forward to from a fan perspective. But it does at least mean the game is still healthy—until the next lockout when owners will let you know how much they need to scale back to fix things.