Leafs were never interested in Peca

LOS ANGELES (Aug. 22) -- I'm happy that Mike Peca has found a place to play this coming season, and a bit saddened that he'll no longer be in the dressing room of the team I cover. Mike is one of the class acts in the game -- he endlessly makes himself available to chat with the media and he almost always has something to say. When he was healthy and playing a regular shift last season, the Maple Leafs were among the best penalty-killing teams in the NHL. The ghastly leg injury he suffered at Chicago just before Christmas -- which sidelined him for the remainder of the schedule -- was a key factor in Toronto missing the playoffs.
- Howard B.