Holiday best wishes

Christmas is a pretty rough time for a lot of families, whether it's those that have to spend the holidays a few thousand kilometres from home (hi Mom!) or if major crises come up right around the holidays.

Here are a few hockey-related best wishes for today:

• Best wishes to Montreal Canadiens GM Bob Gainey and family, who are dealing with the loss of Laura Gainey a few short weeks ago.
  
  
• Best wishes to Jeremy Roenick, who will be taking some time away from hockey to tend to his ailing 13-year-old daughter Brandi. I recall reading about the Roenicks being quite the equestrian family, with JR's wife Tracy attempting to qualify for the Olympics in the past as a rider and young Brandi being a high-level competitor at U.S. national competitions. It's a real shame to hear something serious has beset the family, especially at this time of year.
  
  
• Best wishes to rookie Phil Kessel as he deals with the aftermath of a testicular cancer diagnosis and surgery.
  
  
• Best wishes to Minnesota Wild winger Stephane Veilleux, who had his face crushed by a puck in Friday's game and spent the night in a Detroit area hospital.
  
  
• Best wishes to Toronto Maple Leafs centre Mike Peca, who is laid up for the season with a broken leg after taking an ugly hit in a game against Chicago on Friday.
  
  
• Best wishes to the entire Mirtle clan, whooping it up back in Kamloops without me. I'll be home next year gang!
  

And finally, of course, best wishes to Team Canada in the world junior hockey championship that begins tomorrow (not that they'll need it).