from Damien Cox at the Toronto Star,

For starters, how can it officially be called the 2020-21 season when all the games are being played in 2021? Isn’t it just the ’21 season?

Inquiring minds want to know.

Also, how can an Art Ross Trophy winner be named at the conclusion of this season when all teams are playing against approximately one-quarter of the league? Shouldn’t there really be four separate scoring champions?

Are we wrong, or does it seem as though the seven Canadian clubs are having rather more good fortune combating COVID-19? Dallas, Florida, Carolina, Washington and Vegas have all been impacted to various extents. Up here in Canada? Nothing major so far.

What we also know is that the Maple Leafs, a franchise revitalized by Brendan Shanahan’s vision but still far from the promised land, have started the season looking very comfortable as a member of hockey’s Group of Seven. A 7-2 start has the Leafs in first place in the North Division, a position they were rarely able to even approach in recent years while a member of the currently mothballed Atlantic Division.

more on the Leafs...