Greg Wyshynski

with a big contract and trade protection.

In this case, he wanted to play... I had heard that it was important for him and his family to play in a place that they wanted to live, and clearly Los Angeles is a place they wanted to live.

That's a huge factor for him, maybe even more so than winning, unless you're bullish on the Kings' prospects post-Andrzej Kopitar this season.

And that's just how it is for some guys.

Hockey players are just like this, man.

You guys know my bit.

Whenever they re-sign, whenever a guy decides to stay in Winnipeg, his stuff is there.

That's how they think sometimes.

And in the case of Panarin and his family, the beach is there, I guess we could say.

He certainly ain't signing for tax purposes.

Maybe we could put that to rest for a second in the NHL.

Going from playing in New York to playing in California, clearly he's not looking for the old Florida-Dallas discount like other guys were.

Let's not talk about the NHL.

Let's just talk about all the NHL players in Italy.

Correct.

110% correct.

Listen, man, here's where I am as an American hockey fan.

I would be shocked if Canada didn't play for gold unless their goaltending just turns into a giant pile of poo-poo, which I don't think it will because if Jordan Bennington ain't the solution, Logan Thompson or Darcy Kemper could be.

I think they've got a better group of goalies than they had in Four Nations behind Bennington.

But as an American who would love nothing more than to never have to think about or hear about or talk about Mike Arruzzione again and have a new beautiful legend to hang on to as an American hockey fan of winning gold at the Olympics.