The Blackhawks recalled defenseman Danny Richmond from the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL on Sunday.

More than 73,000 spectators will brave frigid conditions here Tuesday to watch the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins stage the first National Hockey League game in a US outdoor venue. The "Winter Classic" follows the tradition of the 2003 "Heritage Classic" staged in Edmonton with the Oilers playing host to the Montreal Canadiens and will shatter the league one-game attendance record of 57,167 set at that game. Only 42,000 tickets were put up for public sale and those were all purchased in less than half an hour.

Ranger Sean Avery returns to Toronto tonight as Public Enemy No. 1 not only for his Nov. 10 pregame fight with Darcy Tucker the last time the Rangers visited the Leafs but also for his reputation as a world-class instigator. While Avery's reputation as a pest precedes him league-wide, Ranger captain Jaromir Jagr takes a different view. "The way he acts, the way he is, the way he plays the game, the way he likes to talk to people, that's what makes him, and he kind of likes that," Jagr said after practice yesterday. "But I think hurting him the other way is people kind of forgetting how good a hockey player he is." Jagr admitted he shared the same general opinion before Avery arrived from the Kings last season. But it only took watching Avery in one practice for Jagr to realize he wasn't a typical instigator.

Penguins' forward Sidney Crosby and the Red Wings are looking good as voting for the NHL All-Star game winds down. The 20-year-old Crosby leads the league with 445,144 votes, and Detroit is set to have three starters in the Jan. 27 game in Atlanta with balloting ending Wednesday. Crosby's total is more than twice as many as the next Eastern Conference forward Vincent Lecavalier of Tampa Bay with 198,953. Red Wings' defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom maintained his lead in the Western Conference with 420,436 votes, and teammates Henrik Zetterberg (291,952) and Pavel Datsyuk (262,619) were the conference leaders among forwards.

Phoenix Coyotes' General Manager Don Maloney announced today that the Coyotes have recalled right wing Enver Lisin from the San Antonio Rampage of the American Hockey League (AHL). Lisin, 21, has recorded 11-11-22 and 12 penalty minutes (PIM) in 28 games with San Antonio this season. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Lisin registered 1-1-2 and 16 PIM in 17 games for the Coyotes last season while also appearing in 20 games for Kazan Ak-Bars (Russia) where he collected 6-2-8 in 20 games. In addition, Lisin recorded 2-0-2 in two games with the Rampage last season. Lisin has represented Russia in two World Junior Championships. The native of Moscow, Russia, scored two goals at the 2006 tournament while posting 2-3-5 and a plus-7 rating in six games at the 2005 World Junior Championships. Russia claimed the silver medal in both tournaments. The Coyotes selected Lisin in the 2nd round (50th overall) of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. Lisin will be with the Coyotes when they host the Minnesota Wild at Jobing.com Arena on Thursday. The game will begin at 7:00 P.M. and will be broadcast on FSN AZ-HD and The Fan AM 1060.

Blackhawks' goalie Patrick Lalime played for the Kansas City Blades in 1998-99, and his coach was Paul MacLean who is now an assistant with the Red Wings. ?I see him in Detroit once in a while,? Lalime said with a smile, ?and we have a little talk.? Although he spent just one season here, Lalime has fond memories of Kansas City. He believes that if the NHL had a team in the Sprint Center ? via expansion or relocation ? it would do well. ?I think it?s (Kansas City) a great place to play,? Lalime said. ?We were in the minor leagues there, but I had a lot of fun. It?s a beautiful city." ?We had a couple of (NHL) exhibition games there, too. I played one with Anaheim, and the crowd was unbelievable, so I?m sure it could work.?

Ryan Miller went to the Eastern Conference finals each of the last two seasons. The Buffalo Sabres fell short of a shot at the Stanley Cup in both years then took steps back after co-captains Chris Drury and Danny Briere left for lucrative free-agent contracts in the Atlantic Division. But writing off the Sabres might have been a bit premature. Miller hasn?t given up on his team, maintaining the confidence he had before the season that his club could still contend for big things. The netminder knows his role in that success is huge, and he isn?t shying away from lofty goals for the Sabres or himself. "I feel like I?m competing a lot more, lately. We?re coming along better," Miller said last week after a 42-save effort in a 2-1 win over the New York Islanders. "You play better when everyone is getting into it, and we?re there for each other. We?re showing signs of playing responsible hockey." Buffalo (19-14-1) stumbled out of the gate to the tune of a 6-10-1 mark, with Miller absorbing the loss in all but one game.

Curtis Joseph and several other former NHLers are spending the holidays in the Swiss Alps and hope to return to Canada with the Spengler Cup. It's been four years since a Canadian team won the annual event. Hockey Canada is sending a veteran squad to try and change that starting with Wednesday's game against Moller Pardubice.

Fighting heavy wind and blowing snow, NHL work crews completed the initial phase of converting Ralph Wilson Stadium into a hockey rink for next week's Winter Classic outdoor game. "The process of building the ice has begun," NHL spokesman Jamey Horan said Monday. Crews spent the past 24 hours surveying and protecting the field, unloading equipment and establishing refrigeration lines in preparation for the Sabres' game against the Penguins on New Year's Day. The game will be the NHL's second played outdoors and first in the United States after the Oilers played the Montreal Canadiens at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium on Nov. 22, 2003.

Rangers' left wing Sean Avery returned to lineup in Sunday's game against the Senators. Avery had missed 11 games since injuring his left wrist in a game against the Stars on November 25.