Friends now

Much to the disbelief of the hockey world, the two most unlikely Toronto Maple Leafs have made their peace with each other. Michael Peca and the 'bad guy' who almost ended his career - Darcy Tucker, claim they have made up for bad blood and all and made up for the lost time between them:

"Sometimes, if you go through something like that, our friendship now seems to be stronger than most friendships I've had because we've had that past and we were able to kind of make up from that," Peca said yesterday. "It was never an issue, and if anything, not just Darcy and I, but our boys, our wives and our families have become very close."

The net profit of this change in the Leafs dressing room and on the ice is clearly visible. Peca has brought a huge boost to the slumping Toronto penalty kill and is indispensable in the face-off circle, while Tucker leads the team in goals scored with 12 in 21 games. They have also played on one line together and shown good understanding and discipline.

What makes a turnaround like this happen? Is there still place for f-o-r-g-i-v-e-n-e-s-s in the new NHL? What else could it be?