In Montreal, there is a veteran hockey columnist named Red Fisher, who writes for the Montreal Gazette. He is 85 years old and has been covering the NHL for most of his life. He knows awful hockey when he sees it.

About Thursday night's Wild-Montreal match-up, he wrote: "What, I wonder, was going through the minds of the Canadiens and Wild players awaiting the start of a meaningless game?"

His take on the state of both teams:

"Canadiens and Wild: never have so few needed so much. Sad, really, as well as embarrassing. However, let it be said the biggest losers are fans in both cities who have watched too many millionaires deliver five-and-dime performances on too many nights."

Here's the rest of Red's report. Enjoy it while you grimace, and be happy there's a high school tournament to get excited about next week. No millionaires on the ice at the X.

And if you missed the ending, featuring Devin Setoguchi:

See something from another media outlet that startribune.com readers should see? Email it to the Upload.