from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

- From the department of the NHL not giving a damn about you comes confirmation of what you already knew: That Gary Bettman and his band of NHL owners don’t care much about their fans or, for that matter, their players. And I loved this piece of sanctimonious crapola from Bettman on why players shouldn’t go rogue and go to the Olympics on their own. “They owe it our fans,” he said. That’s funny ... If NHL players want somebody to blame for their Olympic withdrawal, try your own union boss, Don Fehr. The last collective bargaining agreement included Olympic participation. This one, Fehr missed on. And somehow, he couldn’t or wouldn’t negotiate a way in.

- What’s more impressive, Nikita Kucherov’s play or the contract Steve Yzerman signed him to? Kucherov, a longshot Hart Trophy candidate, is being paid significantly less than Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Matt Duchene, Jordan Staal, a whole lot more of those he is significantly better than.

- Really, PETA, get a life. Complaining about the treatment of octopi at Joe Louis Arena. There are real problems in the world. This isn’t one of them.

more