from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

- Alex Edler was suspended for two games after his knee-on-knee hit on Zach Hyman last month.

So why not Ben Chiarot now?

Why not the 20-minute Montreal defenceman, who somehow wasn’t penalized for the hit that first injured John Tavares before the knee of Corey Perry knocked the Leafs captain out of the game and likely out of the Stanley Cup playoffs?...

- If I was a kid and needed a career, I’d like to come back as Kevin Bieksa’s agent. It would make both of us rich. The two American networks doing NHL games next season should be bidding on Bieksa. He’s that good and that original. And it’s hockey, so there’s not a lot of original out there.

- Carey Price and Marc-Andre Fleury will likely be Team Canada’s goalies for the coming Winter Olympics, assuming the tournament with NHL players does come to fruition. Expect Andrei Vasilevskiy in goal for Russia, Connor Hellebuyck for the USA, Tuukka Rask for Finland and Jacob Markstrom starting or splitting time with Robin Lehner for Sweden.

- Of course, Taylor Hall has come to life. We all should have known that. He’s playing with one of the great underappreciated players of this generation, David Krejci.

When you can skate the way Hall can, and cut the way he does, and pass the puck and see the ice in the way in which Krejci does, offence comes together. It’s like a smooth quarterback throwing to a bursting wide receiver. Chemistry just happens.

more on the first and last topic, plus other notes...