William Nylander is hot.

That’s assuming he’s already here in Toronto, and I’m not sure about that. But, if he is, he’s hot because the air temperature is something like 3000 degrees outside, and it has been all week.

We’re all hot! And it’s annoyingly humid too. The central air in my relatively new apartment building struggles to keep up by late afternoon. Even when I set it to high and leave it on all day long the thermostat shows the temperature still starts creeping up after about noon. Fortunately, there’s lots of cool hockey news from the past 24 hours to take your mind off of the heat as we slowly plod through a few quiet weeks until Phase 3 of the NHL Return to Play plan begins.

Hockey News

Bob McKenzie revealed on TSN’s Insider Trading where players in the Toronto Hub will be staying. It turns out they will be in multiple locations. I’ve heard one of these hotels makes a really good pasta casserole. The players at other hotels will be missing out.

Remember when Ron Francis became a Maple Leaf? It kicked off a sequence of events that Steve Dangle covers in one of those generational trade trees.

Why NHL’s return to play will take incredible stamina — from fans - Sportsnet
Imagine being told you’re not allowed to have sugar anymore. Then consider August of 2020, when all of us are now going to be asked to snort Fun-Dips through Pixie Stix from noon ’til night, day upon day. The NHL is serving cookie dough for lunch.

Eddie Shack’s final battle - Sudbury Star
Sudbury native and legendary Maple Leaf in palliative care due to cancer.

Devils Announce Tom Fitzgerald as GM & Lindy Ruff as Head Coach - All About The Jersey
Ruff is “super excited” to be a part of the Devils.

The first step towards an ECHL team in Trois-Rivières is made official - Eyes On The Prize
No mention was made of the Montreal Canadiens, but an affiliation is expected once everything is said and done and the expansion franchise is finalized by the league.

Chris Pronger leaving Florida Panthers organization - Litter Box Cats
Former defenceman will focus on his boutique luxury travel company. [SPECIES: I wonder if Edmonton is one of their destinations?]

Playing with fire: three extra-spicy recipes from Billy Law - Guardian
Fire Dumplings in Chili Oil, Sichuan-style Eggplant, and Gong Bao Chicken. [SPECIES: This heat wave is seemingly never ending. My solution may seem counter-intuitive, but in my experience it works; when you want to cool off, eat spicy food!]

From The Branches