Noon Numbers for 7-8-2013: 0, 40

0 games lost due to suspension, and 40 penatly minutes.

While Cooke has a largely checkered history, it certainly would appear that all of what he's been saying is true: He's worked to clean his game up, and has done so with success. And he's managed to do this without sacrificing the physical aspect of his game. In a league that is trying to remove reckless/dangerous plays from a physical game, Cooke should be at least begrudgingly recognized for doing just that- showing that reform is possible.

Look, I don't like the move, either. I think 2.5 million is too much for Cooke. I think three years for Cooke is just silly. And I'm sick of seeing Fletcher overpay for a bottom-six guy year after year, while seemingly never getting any tougher to play against.

But I think the hand-wringing over that guy Fletcher signed being Matt Cooke is just a tad ridiculous. The notion that he's the biggest scumbag in the NHL just isn't supported by anything he's done in the last two years.

Unless you really think that he planned to sever Erik Karlsson's Achilles, that is.