from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet,

- We could have news on Justin Williams’ plans by the end of the weekend.

- Reminder that as of New Year’s Day Wednesday, players on one-year contracts are allowed to sign extensions. Two of the most interesting will be Ottawa’s Anthony Duclair (restricted) and Chicago’s Robin Lehner (unrestricted). I don’t get the sense there’s much yet on Duclair, who will have a heck of an arbitration case in the first All-Star season of his career. There’s time for both the organization and player to breathe, to see where this takes them....

- From what I understand on Ilya Kovalchuk, he’s hoping for some contenders to show more interest.

-When Detroit came through Toronto a couple weeks ago, I asked coach Jeff Blashill who was doing a good job of handling the challenge of grinding through a hard year. He mentioned Dylan Larkin. “He faces the media every day,” Blashill said, “and even if he’s upset after a game, he makes sure to show up positive the next day.” (Blashill’s really hung in there, too. Not easy.) At Thanksgiving, Karson Otto, a talented 2008-born defenceman for Detroit Little Caesars, suffered a viral attack on his spinal cord. He spent three weeks in hospital, and, happily, has a chance at a full recovery....

more on the 2nd and 4th topics plus additional Thoughts...