No. No, we do not need to do this. When the playoffs start, the country should not be under the misapprehension that we are all in this together, hockey-wise. We are not. If you cheer for one team you naturally cheer against the others; you can be happy for the fans who get to feel their city come alive in the spring, but that’s as far as it goes. We currently have six distinct societies of hockey disappointment, and one distinct society in a place where the team is good and the provincial election has been so utterly appalling that it makes you wish the current Parti Quebecois could be rendered separate from the rest of Canada. As the old saying goes, ain’t no Parti like a race-baiting Parti, ’cause a race-baiting Parti don’t stop. Well, until Monday, maybe.

Everyone else enjoys their own individual misery, much like Leafs players trying to get organized in their own zone. Ottawa has the disappointment of suddenly awful goaltending, combined with shots-against totals that illuminate this rather glaring flaw. Plus, there’s the Senators’ internal budget, which is a rarity in this country. Whereas in Winnipeg, the payroll is middling, but the goaltending remains a problem. Ondrej Pavelec is not the solution, if the question is worth asking.

Arthur continues...