short takes

Wins might reduce stress

The one thing you hope is that hockey can be a solace for Zach Parise, who lost his father, J.P., on Wednesday. The Wild has been so lousy the past six weeks, even coach Mike Yeo said last weekend that it's eating him up that the rink has been a place that has caused more stress in Parise's life.

You'd hope the Wild can rally around Parise now.

Last month, the Chicago Blackhawks dealt with a tragedy when one of their equipment trainers died unexpectedly. In the context of Parise losing his dad, Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews talked about the family that is a hockey team.

"It's brought us closer together," Toews said. "It's made us understand our time together is precious and short and we've got to enjoy every moment we get to play hockey and lace it up together."

Kessel criticized

After Randy Carlyle was mercifully fired by the Maple Leafs last week, former Toronto coach Ron Wilson went on TSN Radio and ripped into some Leafs, most notably former Gopher Phil Kessel.

"He shows obvious signs of brilliance throughout the year," Wilson said. "But Phil's problem, and I think it's pretty much the way Phil's been his whole career, he's two weeks on and two weeks off. You just hope that you can get him playing his best hockey for as long as possible. You can't rely on Phil. It's just the way it is. He comes and goes, and he gets emotional. He lets that affect his game and his relationship with other players."

You've got to love Twitter, by the way. It's not just the average Joe who trolls.

After Carlyle was canned, boxer Riddick Bowe tweeted, "BYE BYE PANZY RANDY."

Sharks goalies defended

After giving up seven goals to the St. Louis Blues twice recently, Sharks coach Todd McLellan came to the defense of goalies Antti Niemi and Alex Stalock.

"Before we go and throw darts at two individuals, we've got to look at the other 18 that are involved," McLellan said.