from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

- The NHL coach of the year candidate list is long, but you have to start with Jon Cooper in Tampa, Colorado’s Patrick Roy, Anaheim’s Bruce Boudreau and Todd Richards of Columbus and that’s before you get to Joel Quenneville in Chicago or Ken Hitchcock in St. Louis.

- This is the season of hockey crisis in Canada. It’s Montreal now. Two weeks ago it was in Toronto and Winnipeg. Vancouver consistently. Calgary and Edmonton all the time. Ottawa waffling.

- When the Leafs signed Tyler Bozak as a free agent in July, I asked GM Dave Nonis: Why not Stephen Weiss, whom I thought was the better, more accomplished player?

Answered Nonis: “One, I don’t share your opinion,” he said. “And two, we got Bozak for almost a million less than we’d have to pay (for Weiss).” Three he didn’t have to say, that the Leafs coaching staff was “comfortable” with Bozak.

Bozak is having his best season as a Leaf, even though he has missed 24 games. For the first time since his rookie year, he is scoring points at first or second line level.

Weiss, who has missed 56 games the past two seasons, has done little for the Red Wings and has produced just three goals in his past 43 NHL games.

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