from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet,

- Spoke to Vincent Lecavalier last Friday, but he politely declined to address a question we’re all wondering: Is there any chance he changes his mind about retirement? He spoke about that when he first signed, and didn’t want to go back there. He’s reborn in Los Angeles, scoring twice in Monday’s loss to San Jose. “The way they play here is very different than the way I’ve ever played or been asked to play,” Lecavalier said. “No blowing the zone. No separating yourself. Everyone stays close for support, moving together. It’s a good fit for me.” Did you have any questions for the Kings when they were trading for you? “No, not really. I was just excited for a new opportunity. They were the ones who had questions for me. Was I on-board with what they were trying to do? I told them I was. We spoke about 10 minutes before the trade happened.” I don’t think Los Angeles could afford it if Lecavalier changed his mind, even with Philadelphia keeping half his salary....

- Detroit and Montreal play Tuesday night. The Red Wings had 37 scoring chances in their last meeting two weeks ago (Montreal had 13.) Our tracking company, sportlogiq, says there have been only five games this year where a team had 37 or more. Detroit’s 43 vs. Colorado on Feb. 12 is the highest recorded total in 2015-16. The Avalanche won that game, 3-2 in a shootout.

- One NHLer on Chicago: “You wonder if all those extra games will ever catch up to them. It’s more than a full season now.” Going back to the beginning of the 2009-10 season. Keith Yandle has played more games than anyone else, 534. Brent Seabrook is 10th, Niklas Hjalmarsson 33rd, Duncan Keith 37th, Jonathan Toews 73rd, Patrick Kane 80th and Marian Hossa 143rd. Now, add in the playoffs. Seabrook moves to first, at 618. Hjalmarsson is second, Keith third, Toews seventh, Kane ninth and Hossa 37th. Those are six of the eight players with 95 or more post-season games during that time. The others are Mike Richards and Patrick Sharp. With Chicago’s depth weakened due to cap issues, Western opponents are hoping (praying?) that this might finally catch up to them.

much more