from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

- For all the smart people in the Leafs front office — Brendan Shanahan, Kyle Dubas, Laurence Gilman and money man Brandon Pridham — it’s remarkable the Leafs are in such financial difficulty on the eve of NHL free agency.

- Can’t imagine Joe Pavelski not playing for the San Jose Sharks, but it sure looks like that’s what’s happening.

- For years, the Flyers are going to be looking at Kevin Hayes and wondering — we signed him for that much?

- A great book about Scotty Bowman has been long overdue. Now Ken Dryden is writing one. Expect this to be great.

more on the the first topic plus other hockey notes...