from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

- ... On another channel there is football Hall of Famer and Super Bowl champion, Troy Aikman, calling a game. And when baseball playoffs were on just a few months back, there was Frank Thomas on the panel with Alex Rodriguez and Big Papi, David Ortiz, three of the greatest hitters in recent baseball history, now broadcasting.

The new star of hockey broadcasting in Canada is Kevin Bieksa. He is refreshingly honest, original and quirky, and once he finished 18th in Norris Trophy voting. The more established star broadcasters among former players are Ray Ferraro, Eddie Olczyk, Craig Simpson and Keith Jones. All of them decent NHL players themselves, none of them all-time anythings.

Which begs the question: What is it about hockey — the sport, the culture, the product — that doesn’t attract playing stars to the broadcast booth?...

- The NHL season will be five days old on Sunday and I’ve already watched Leafs, Habs, Oilers, Canucks, Jets, Flames, Senators, Blues, Avalanche, Flyers and Penguins — some of them twice, some three times by Sunday morning. I’ve never consumed this much hockey, this quickly, this enthusiastically.

- I seem to be in the minority on this, but I would have brought Mike Milbury back to NBC hockey. I thought he brought an edge to their between-periods panels that they don’t have anymore.

more on the first topi and other notes too...