It's the eve of Christmas Eve, and all of those traditional signs of the season are evident. Christmas trees adorn front windows. Christmas lights shine on houses and businesses. Shoppers are cross-checking each other at Easton. It really warms the heart . . . In fact, it puts me in such a Christmas mood that I'm going to play Santa for the day.
During our recent sojourn in the Southern Hemisphere, we managed to keep tabs on the Blue Jackets' activities -- and the fan reactions thereto -- as well as the more general rumblings in the world of NHL pundits.