from Michael Arace of the Columbus Dispatch,

It is over now. The Detroit Red Wings finished off the Pittsburgh Penguins and, three days later, there is that hollow feeling in the pit of the stomach. The next game isn’t until October, and even the draft can’t cover the expansive void. Scouts don’t check one another.

There is a particular letdown this spring because the final was so compelling. It’s tough get off the couch and clean the garage when all you want is more damn-the-torpedoes hockey.

“Having gone through deep runs a few times before, what happens is that by the end there is nothing left,” Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock said. “What impressed me this year was the level of play (in the finals). Both teams got through the first three rounds relatively rested, and relatively healthy. And it was a real good final.”

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