Vote For Your NHL and NBA All-Stars

Well since the local teams are all taking the day off, you should take a few minutes tonight to vote your favorite Capitals and Wizards into their respective all-star games. And by favorite, I mean if your favorites are Alexander Ovechkin, Olie Kolzig, Gilbert Arenas or Antawn Jamison. If not ... well ... you get one write-in vote.

Go here to vote for the NHL All-Stars. The NHL's first all-star game since before the lockout will take place in Dallas on January 24 at 8 p.m. The game will only be televised on Versus.

You can vote as many times as you want before 11:59 p.m. EST on January 2.

If you'll remember, last time I was given the opportunity to vote for a local player an unlimited number of times I voted for Orioles catcher Razor Ramon Hernandez over 1,000 times in a single day. I expect similar dedication for Olie and Ovie.

Obviously I'm voting for Ovechkin and Kolzig, but I've also been writing in Dainius Zubrus because he's having a good year ... and the Easstern Conference is filled with too many Penguins, Sabres, Flyers and Jagrs that I just can't bring myself to vote for.

You can vote for the NBA All-Stars here. The NBA's first all-star game since last season's will be held in Las Vegas (where there is no NBA team) on February 18 at 8 p.m. It will be shown live on TNT (watch me explooooode).

For the NBA you can vote once per day until January 21, 2007.

My only request as you vote for the NBA All-Stars -- other than to vote for Arenas lest he take offense, come to your house, drop 45 points on you in your driveway and flip you the bird as he's leaving -- is to recognize that Shaquille O'Neal has only played in four games so far this year. Just because he may be the only center in the Eastern Conference whose name is even vaguely familiar does not mean you should vote for him.