Another Saturday with no Leafs hockey, so we need to find something to do. Your weather in Toronto is going to be a bit brisk, but with enough sun to fool you:

Maybe what you need is a good hot bowl of soup to warm you up after you try to wear shorts outside when it’s 13 degrees.

My favourite soup is homemade mushroom soup with some cream and cheddar melted in at the end. So that’s what I’ll be making.

In other news, the Bruins got a win, and some games happened later on of which I know nothing. You don’t need PPP’s help to know the scores of games though.

We have afternoon hockey today, though!

Florida @ Washington is at 1 pm
Colorado @ Nashville is at 4:30 pm
Rangers @ Pittsburgh is at 7 pm
Calgary @ Dallas is at 9:30 pm

All are tied at one game all except Colorado and Nashville, because I’m not sure what would have to happen for Nashville to win a game.

Gary Bettman spoke to the media from the Toronto - Tampa game:

Nothing exciting was said. As for the playoff format, the best way to surf the wave of fan emotion is to talk up wanting more teams in the playoffs at the end of the regular season as the close races lead to hotly contested games. Then once the playoffs start and you realize there are two or three really crappy teams that don’t belong even in this current format, everyone shuts up about it.

You want close races? You need parity for that. But you don’t want parity for your own team, you want your team to spend like a teenager with their parents’ credit card. This is the tension that means you’ll always hate the NHL, no matter what they decide to do.

Scary thing in the Boston game:

That’s it from me, have a good Saturday, and see you Sunday night, at 7 pm for a change, for game four of the only series that matters.

From The Branches