Texas A&M wins the Cotton Bowl, Team USA wins Gold at the World Juniors, the Texans beat the Bengals, and now the lockout is over. Best. Weekend. Ever.

DUCKS NEWS

• As expected, the Ducks are thrilled to have the NHL back. [The Orange County Register]
• As we all know, John Gibson was an integral part of Team USA's World Juniors victory. [Anaheim Ducks]
• Sometimes, the Flying V just doesn't work. [Puck Daddy]
• Updates on the Ducks' prospects (this was composed earlier in the week).[Ducks Daily Blog]
• The case for including Paul Kariya in the Hockey Hall of Fame. [The Hockey Writers]
• Matt Beleskey "could not have asked for a better finish" to his time with the Coventry Blaze. [Coventry Telegraph]
• Bruce Boudreau reminisces about the day he was hired as the Washington Capitals' head coach for the Ducks' website. [Russian Machine Never Breaks]
• The Fort Wayne Komets rallied to beat the Cincinnati Cyclones, 5-4, on Saturday. [News-Sentinel.com]
• The Ducks have added Lakewood Ice to THE RINKS Development Program. [Anaheim Ducks]

AROUND THE NHL

• Your friendly collection of "The lockout is over!" articles. [Backhand Shelf][Arctic Ice Hockey][LA Times]
• There are still a number of restricted free agents remaining, including high-profile names like Michael Del Zotto, P.K. Subban, Jamie Benn, and Ryan O'Reilly. [My NHL Trade Rumors.com]
• An exhaustive list of provisions that made the NHL lockout necessary. [Hockey Wilderness]