from Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press,

Like many of you, I was excited by what the league was serving up when the 2021 season got underway in January, as COVID-19 restrictions including ongoing border closure meant a dramatic realignment. Having the Winnipeg Jets battle the other six Canadian clubs for supremacy seemed like a delicious treat for a hockey-starved nation.

Now? I'm pretty much ready to hurl.

Three more heaping scoops of the Calgary Flames this weekend is my breaking point. It's the sixth, seventh and eighth times they'll have met in a 10-week span. Just as I'm sick of seeing the Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens over and over and over again.

It's nothing personal. The on-ice action has, for the most part, been quite solid. Some of the best players in the league are in the division. There have been wild, high-scoring affairs, blown leads and big comebacks, and plenty of emotion. And I'm mindful of the fact that, unlike that ice cream I gorged on years ago, this was all by necessity.

But the novelty has worn off. The same six opponents, nine or 10 times each, is simply too much of a good thing. I've had my fill, thanks.

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