Read up on the latest tidbits and trends as Hockey Night in Canada's play-by-play voice Jim Hughson takes you behind the scenes and into the game.

This week's work: Edmonton Oilers at Toronto Maple Leafs: March 13, 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT (CBC, CBCSports.ca).

The script:

OK, roll out all the jokes about this potential national classic but when the schedule came out there was reason to think it would be an  important all-Canadian battle for playoff spots. Well it won't be for the playoffs but, if you're so inclined, the race to rebuild is an interesting one to watch.

The Leafs and Oilers are the bottom two teams in the league with a combined 43 wins between them. Chicago, San Jose and Washington have as many wins on their own and that's where Toronto and Edmonton aspire to be.

The Leafs are a more entertaining team to watch now than at anytime this season. They're young, energetic, play a quick, attacking brand of hockey and we're starting to see some keepers.

• Tyler Bozak may not be a long-term no. 1 centre, but he's fast, patient and can make a good play. 
• Nikolai Kulemin has played his best games as a Leaf in the last 10 days. 
• Luca Caputi might just be a good solid return for Alexei Ponikarovski.

The Oilers have already had a pretty good look at their youngsters because they've been playing them this season ... and last.

Brian Burke got a head start on the remodelling, so the Leafs seem further advanced  towards being something different, but Edmonton will have a high draft pick. In the coming months, both teams will be more interesting to watch off the ice as they try to fix what's gone wrong.

So while it may seem like a 2010-11 pre season game don't tell Burke or Steve Tambellini there's nothing at stake in this season's remaining games.

On the Hotstove:

As General Manager of the Canucks, Pat Quinn was obsessed in his search for a big first-line centre. So much so that he drafted Libor Polasek, Rob Murphy and a few others who never made an NHL impact. He also let crafty Cliff Ronning walk as a free agent because he thought he'd be overpaying a midget.

In Toronto, Quinn inherited Mats Sundin and now in Edmonton he looks down the bench and can't see a centre who's half Mats' size. 

Shawn Horcoff often plays in the no. 1 spot but should probably be a no. 3. Sam Gagner is gifted but diminutive. Andrew Cogliano is fast with flashes of brilliance and Ryan Potulny is a proverbial work in progress. None of them make anyone forget Crosby, Malkin and Staal but one of them has to click with Ales Hemsky next season and form a number one line or Tambellini has to find that player somewhere else.

ISO camera on:

The Leafs down the middle aren't that much different and it's particularly interesting to watch Bozak and his work with winger Phil Kessel. You can see why Bozak has been a top scorer at every level. He battles hard for face-offs, sees his teammates quickly in traffic and more importantly he gets Kessel the puck as he did brilliantly for an overtime winner against Tampa Bay.

It was probably the right thing to have him spend most of the season in the AHL and you wonder if he'd wear down over an 82 game NHL season. He's listed at 6-foot, 165-pounds but he's not afraid and will doubtless put some more muscle on that frame. In Bozak, the Leafs  seem to have a solid NHL player plucked as a free agent from college who may just be the equal  of a top draft pick .

Tape-room topics:

When Robert Nilsson scores a brilliant goal as he did in Montreal on Thursday, it makes you think he has limitless untapped talent that just needs to be cultivated. Problem is he may have another 17 game drought before he scores another and then he'll be seen as just another undersized forward like too many other Oilers.

Whether he needs to apply himself or just has to be allowed to be himself, you have to think Nilsson is one of the most likely players to find a new home if goals like that don't come more often in the next month.

Unlike the Leafs, the Oilers have their first pick in the coming draft but - with all due respect for Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin - this is a year when there is no Ovechkin, Crosby, Malkin or Stamkos in the draft.

And isn't it frustrating to see all of the top young superstars playing in the U.S. instead of Canada? Can you imagine what Crosby would be like in Toronto or Jonathan Toews in Edmonton?

Canadian teams have such a sense of responsibility to their fans that they never bottom out. Even in bad years, they try so hard to stay in the playoff race that they end up with a seventh pick instead of a first. The last time a Canadian team had the first pick was 1996 when Ottawa drafted Chris Philips and an Oiler win against Toronto could contribute to the pick going south again as Boston has Toronto's first.

From the stat pack:

Dustin Penner looked to be having a breakthrough season for the Oilers - through the first three months, when he was one of the leagues top scorers. Now, though, he's struggling mightily which muddles decision-making about who's a big-league gamer and who isn't.  Penner comes to Toronto with one goal and two assists in his last eight games and here's a breakdown of his 'two seasons' this year.

First 41 games                                 19-19 38     +12
Last 26 games ( Since Jan. 1st)          5-6-11        -10