32 Thoughts: The Podcast - A Shook Trade Market

Episode Date: December 2, 2024

In this edition of 32 Thoughts, Kyle Bukauskas and Elliotte Friedman lead things off by discussing the 4 Nations Faceoff Roster unveilings. That is followed by an in-depth discussion about the NHL trade market, and how the Rangers' memo leak fallout shook managers around the league (11:14). Elliotte expands on the tampering story that he outlined last podcast (22:21) and they delve into the Columbus Blue Jackets a bit as they've gone 4-0-2 in their last six (27:10). Kyle unpacks some interesting notes from his trip through Florida following the Leafs (36:45) and The Final Thought  focuses on the Boston Bruins' centennial anniversary game between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens (50:00).  Kyle and Elliotte answer your questions and respond to your voicemails in the Thought Line (1:00:24). In the final segment hear Ron MacLean and Dick Irvin Jr talk about the history of the Bruins-Canadiens rivalry (1:19:20).Email the podcast at [e-mail] or call the Thought Line at 1-833-311-3232 and leave us a voicemailThis podcast was produced and mixed by Dominic Sramaty and hosted by Elliotte Friedman & Kyle Bukauskas.The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.  

So, now that I ran the truck over you, I will resuscitate you by saying you have a point. Well, you're right. Why don't you give me a nice paper cut and pour lemon juice on it? Yeah, thanks for that. And yours is coming here somewhere. Okay, I know. I'm learning my words. Welcome to 32 Thoughts, presented by the GMC Sierra AT4X. Sharmati, Bukaskis, Friedman, all with you. Elliot, were you the one that orchestrated Creed provide the tease for Hockey Night in Canada this past weekend solely for the reason of bringing up Dom's musical choices back into the news cycle for 24 more hours?

You can really tell who listens to this podcast and who doesn't, Kyle, by the people who got my tweet and the people who did not. There were a lot of people, they're not from Seattle. They're not a grunge man. That's who I knew. That's who I knew that you people,

shame on you, do not listen to the podcast. Actually, Brian Spear, the Hockenheim Canada producer, was the one who called me and says, you're not going to believe,. Actually, Brian Spear, the Hockey Night in Canada producer, was the one who called me and says, you're not going to believe, he called me on Friday, and he goes, you're not going to believe who's doing the tease this week. And I go, who?

And he goes, Creed. And I go, you're joking. And I do believe an attempt was made, or at least I don't know if the band was asked and didn't do it or the request was never made but I knew there was a there was a thought about do we ask them to do a promo for the pod but but but I have a suspicion that if they were gonna be asked to do it they might as to be asked what this was they were being asked for and I don't know that anyone wanted to explain it they might as to be asked what this was they were being asked for and I

don't know that anyone wanted to explain why they were going to be included on the podcast you imagine well this is the reason Creed because yeah because a producer club claimed you guys were a Seattle grunge band and then claimed that he did it on purpose but it was a lie with Jared Bednar in Colorado but anyway his hair but it was a lie anyway anyway it was it was a lot of fun when I heard I was laughing I was laughing pretty hard apparently the producer who set it up was a guy by the name of Matt Kostick, and he was really excited that he could get Creed.

And I'm not sure he realized how hilarious the rest of us found it, considering what had happened on this pod. All right, let's get to it. Yes, okay. All right. No, I was just going to say one last final thought on that. It was a great, if you hadn't realized it already a great reminder of how good creed music and hockey footage goes together it was a heck of a way to

kick off the saturday night um okay four nations elliot we had a lot of fun with david amber last pod going over our rosters comparing notes and contrasting as this pod drops here Monday morning, two days away from the official rosters being unveiled. Did you get any reaction to our discussion and maybe just further discussion around those that are involved as we are coming down to crunch time? The deadline is Monday and so close to the unveiling. Yes, so I know one of the things the league was concerned about was that the league was concerned about the names leaking, as has happened before. You know, in this particular situation, I'll be free and transparent.

The handcuffs are on me. And I think a lot of the people we work with, Kyle, you know we're involved in the announcements actually the NHL network is doing the announcement of the Sweden and Finland team on Wednesday and we're carrying that on Sportsnet and then we're in Canada doing the Canada and the US announcement and I will freely admit I don't mind saying it being honest about it the handcuffs are on us when it comes to that, but they're worried about names getting leaked. And as a matter of fact, I know that one of the things they were considering was making it so that the players couldn't be told until Wednesday, but I don't think that's happened. I think people kind of know who's getting picked and who isn't beforehand. I don't think that'll be until Wednesday.

So we did get some interesting reaction, not so much from the Finnish team, not so much from the Swedish team, but definitely for the Americans and the Canadian team. And one of the things people really felt was, you know, we had some players that weren't even mentioned as kind of names that were considered. And I think the one that most people felt we really whiffed on, not even mentioning him as a consideration, was Rob Thomas of the St. Louis Blues. Because there were a number of people who felt that he would be on the team.

I, cause I, there were a number of people who felt that he would be on the team. And there were a number of people who felt that even if he wasn't on the team, he would be very seriously considered. So there was, there was some, uh, Thomas, there was some, uh, Stephen Stamkos. I had a few people say, um, how could you not even consider him? Um, I'll say this. Um, there were some people who felt that I was wrong to be as strong about Tage Thompson as I was. You didn't have him on your team. Dave and I did. There are some people who said that they didn't think his spot was as secure. And, you know, one of the other

things I think people felt was that the U.S. blue line that we kind of put together was quote-unquote too offensive and would especially when you look at some of the players who are already there you know I mean I think Wierenski's had a dynamite season I know we're going to talk about Columbus in this pod but I did have a couple of people say to me that your U.S. defense is way too quote unquote offensive. I mean, we'll see. We'll see who's right and who's wrong. I think the only thing that people really came at us from a point of disagreement as you guys are wrong, as opposed to just debating, was they felt we really missed on Rob Thomas. And that was one thing that was said to me.

Well, it was interesting. A good conversation after the game Saturday down in Tampa with my broadcast colleagues, Chris Cuthbert and Craig Simpson. And Cuthbert had the great line where as he's going through his names for Team Canada and he's going, well, you've got to have this guy, you've got to have that guy. And then he realizes he's probably at 28 names when you can only have 23. He's got 36 players on his team.

Right, right. So it echoes just how difficult it can be to finally make some decisions and can only imagine what, you know, Doug Armstrong and Don Sweeney and John Cooper have been going through over the last few months. But that was a funny one there of, like, as you're trying to think of the locks

and there's only so many spots for the locks so that's uh all part of it what about uh joey d'accord there you got to the bottom of that on headline saturday you know it was really funny one of my buddies called me after that segment and said you made it very clear to understand for about the first 25 words and then you made it worse. So let me try again. So Joey Decord, as of Monday morning, does not have a Canadian passport. And I had people writing to me like, you can go. I'll say someone I know, I won't say who because they may kill me, was taking a trip to Italy once and the day before realized that their passport had expired and you know you for now you can pay to get your passport done in one day and they said that you know why didn't Joey Decord do that or why doesn't he do that and you know basically because I did

ask the same question it was this kind of came across everybody's lap late and at that point in time like Joy to Court and the Kraken a between schedule and b between other things there's more important stuff for him to do with his NHL team than race to Canada and get a passport so he won't have a passport by Monday And it was decided that because that was not the case, and initially, basically the concept behind it was, what passport do you hold that Canada could not take him, that he could not be selected on Monday? Now, one of the things I kind of did was clarify what the injury rules are.

And that is that if a player has a legitimate injury, then they can be replaced up to and including February the 12th, which is the first official day of the tournament. So if one of Canada's goalies that gets selected is injured between being named and then, and if Canada wants to cord to be the guy he can go get a passport and as long as he has one by the start of the tournament he could be named to Canada he just can't be named officially on Wednesday the other thing that was interesting about is normally if you declare yourself for an international ice hockey event for a country you are with that country and because this is not an official IIHF event it's an NHL NHLPA event who if the court was to play for Canada or the United States

here it doesn't bind him to that country internationally and as you may have known by now Switzerland is also a team interested in Decord because his mother was born there so if he was to play for Canada it doesn't mean he would be locked in into Team Canada for other events like the World Championships or future Olympics. So it's an interesting one, but the bottom line is he cannot be put on the roster by Monday's deadline, and he cannot be announced on Wednesday, therefore,

because he does not have a current Canadian passport. And by the way, Kyle, so our producers were having a bit of a laugh with that. And Saturday night, they played against San Jose. And boy, the Sharks are becoming one of the most fun teams in the league to watch quickly and kind of surprisingly. And he kind of, I don't know what he tripped over, but he tripped and fell going back behind the net to play the puck. And one of our producers was like, he just got knocked over by the Canadian passport office. They were having some fun with that. Oh, man.

Well, other than that, he's had a pretty decent start to the year, even though it hasn't gotten great for Seattle lately. How about other trade chatter around the league, Elliot? So we had the David Juracek saga comes to an end. He's off to Minnesota for a number of picks and a player going back Columbus's way. We had a goalie trade, Scott Wedgwood and Eustace Annenen between Nashville and Colorado, trading places over the weekend as well.

What else are you hearing out there in terms of movement and interest on GMs and trying to make their teams better? The Eurocheck one, that one had been brewing, and finally everybody got their wish that it was just time to move on and start somewhere else. that it was just time to move on and start somewhere else. You know, I think, you know, Don Waddell, the GM of the Blue Jackets, can let everyone know if he feels otherwise,

but there were some teams in the Eastern Conference that really felt that Waddell's preference was not to trade him around them. It was definitely they felt that he preferred to trade him to the west um um like i i think there were some teams in the east that were that were part of this and were interested uh pittsburgh was one i think philadelphia was one and you know those are two teams that are also in columbus's own division and uh i i i think there were some teams in the East who felt that it was Columbus preference to just send him elsewhere. You know I think it's an interesting player because he was a sixth overall pick not too long ago. There are clearly some questions about his skating but it's way too early to give up on him and Minnesota is really assembling some really good young defensemen and you can never have too many of

those so we'll see how it turns out the one thing that's really interesting to me about the trade market is what happened last week with the Rangers where Truba's name got out and Kreider's name got out and the fallout after them you know so I mentioned on Saturday night that you know they beat Montreal and the Rangers were just trying to calm everything down and someone said to me like do you think the Rangers are okay now and I said it's not that they're okay. It's that this week has been about containing and repairing the damage, right? Like they still have a season to play. They've still got 55, 60 games to go. You know, they're still trying to accomplish something this year.

You know, they want to kind of calm everything down so I don't think it's over I don't think it changes how they feel about some of their flaws and things they might have to address but basically what the Rangers want to do is they want to calm the noise they just want to slow things down. And what happened with them last week, it either spooked some teams really badly, or it gave even more strength to the teams that feel if you let something get out there it can destroy your dressing room like there were people who were pointing and saying see that's why we so carefully guard our secrets look what happened to those guys this week and you know i i had I had one team tell me that you've got teams out there who are saying,

yeah, we're interested in doing something. Okay, well, what are we talking about? And they're preferring to talk in generalities because they saw what happened on the Rangers and they don't want that to happen to them and there are teams out there that don't even want to mention names there are teams out there that are like like look we know who's kind of out there right I think the Canucks are out there because they've got some injuries on their blue line. They want to see what they can do. Obviously, Nashville's been out there because the season has been such an enormous disappointment for them. I think Philly's been out there because, you know, obviously they've got Frost out there.

They may have some more players out there that are looking for a center. They're looking to change their mix a little bit, potentially. I think another team that's been around there is Carolina, looking at the goaltending. Even though Kachekov's coming back, Anderson's still out. I think they've been weighing options that they could consider and what's available to them or not.

Ottawa's won, although I get some really interesting comments about Ottawa. What is that? Well, it's just that some people are saying like Ottawa is willing to make changes, but it's difficult to tell how deep. Like, do they really want to touch their core yet? Or do they want to just kind of either replace Zub or kind of move around the fringes, right? You know, Ottawa has already made some big moves

are they people are wondering are they really ready to make another big one but I think Ottawa was one of those teams in a Canadian market very careful about what they say so I think that's the kind of that's the kind of message I get about Ottawa I think they're one of those teams that's very very careful about what they admit like a couple weeks ago Steve Stahos had the had the media conference where he says the answer's got to come from in here and that may be true because they either are not ready to do anything or nothing's close but it doesn't necessarily mean that he isn't calling around and seeing what's out there so the kind of sense i get on the senators is that they're looking around but they're being very

careful about what they say publicly and privately um you know, for example, there was, you know, I heard some teams that when Nashville said, okay, we're kind of open for business and we're looking to do some things. I know he's hurt right now, but he's the kind of player. I think a lot of teams would like would be Jeremy Lausanne. But, you know, then I had pushback. I had people saying to me like Nashville doesn't want to trade Jeremy Lausanne. He signed at a good number and he's a good player for them. And, you know, he's a player that ice time I think there are some themes that are very interested I think Pittsburgh would be one of those teams you know he's signed and Pittsburgh

makes a lot of sense you look at the players that Pittsburgh is collecting Hoaglander fits it and I can see why people think they're very interested but I just think this whole thing with the Rangers has spooked teams. And I could tell just last weekend, as you know, Saturday is a big phone call day for me, Kyle. Just people are being really careful because they saw what happened to the Rangers, and they're like, we don't want that to happen to us. We saw how damaging that could be. And it makes my job harder but I

I understand it I absolutely do do you think there is a lot of trust within the general managers in the league I mean you mentioned that kind of almost a group chat that they have about ongoing questions or business as the season progresses like Like, is there a lot of trust within, you know, the 32 managers that when things are discussed there, it can stay tight? Or are people, when they do put something out there in that space, are they going, there's a pretty good chance that this could get out somewhere?

You know what, Kyle, it's a really good question, and it's kind of a hard one to answer because I'm kind of in the middle of it like you could tell this week like Saturday is one of my big call days and you could tell people were really really guarded about it they weren't happy you know years ago it used to be pretty loose like i wasn't the only reporter that would get eventually figure out who was on it or get told who was on it um other guys would get it too and i remember the gms got really mad about it there was one in particular who sent a really snarky note to everyone on it and it kind of calmed down a bit and then there was a situation

a couple years ago where like three three Toronto Marlies got on it. I think Kyle Dubas sent out a note saying that Jeremy Bracco and I think a couple other guys had asked for trades, wanted to see if there were other options outside of the Maple Leafs organization. And, you know, I reported it and I actually didn't even realize at the time that they were specifically on the list, but there was a lot of anger after that one. And the general managers did a really good job of clamping down on it and it became much less frequent. And, you know, I think they were very serious about, I think there was a concerted effort to make that list sacrosanct and the names weren't supposed to get out. So it happened much less often. And then, you know, last week was obviously a big one. There were two big names, big teams, and you saw the damage it did. So I have no doubt there'll be an effort to keep it much more quiet again.

But there's no doubt that some of them were pretty upset about it. And you could tell, as I said earlier, they're very careful because they saw the chaos it created for the Rangers last week. So now, as you say, that there may be a little more tendency for the managers to speak in generalities I'm just picturing I'm sure you're familiar with the fake Elliott Friedman long winding quote that sometimes makes the rounds on social media. Managers just speaking to each other like that like I've got some things I want to do and there's some players I'm looking at but i'm not too sure what i'm willing to give up and back and forth they go well you know first of all i don't

know who wrote it i do think it's really creative and really funny i do get a laugh out of it whenever it gets sent to me the best thing for me to say about that would be when I know something I'm pretty direct when I don't know something exactly I live in fear of what we call radioing ourselves and some of that is my own fault but some of that is the way things get aggregated particularly on social media so if you do hear me talking like that it's because I'm afraid of getting radioed. That's the only time I think I really talk like that. Well, one story you definitely did not get radioed on. You had it on the pod here on Friday and then went into more detail on Saturday headlines with Ron on Hockey Night in Canada was the tampering story, the warning that the league

put out to the 32 clubs, the memo, in fact, that went out. Did you get some pretty good reaction from certain sectors on that report? Yeah, it was interesting. There were some people who were happy that that got out because they want they wanted people to know that the league is not happy with all this. And I think even some of the teams that really consider themselves sticklers for the rules, they like that it got out. I mean, it remains to be seen, Kyle, does this really have teeth to it? Like there are some people

that are just rolling their eyes at it, so we'll see. But what was interesting is I got some response from some players and some agents about it because they weren't aware of this, obviously, and some of it, while some of it is targeting like team hires like coaches or front office people a lot of it is clearly directed at July 1st and they were curious about how the NHL thought that they could do that voiding contracts expulsion and the you know the memo points out that the commissioner has some very broad powers um so you know it was just interesting the reaction

to that um i didn't think much about it um because i didn't get a lot of reaction after it got out on the pod but when we put it on saturday with the particular punishments there I definitely got some reaction to it so I thought that was interesting like this again there are some people who wonder how serious the league really is about this it just says to me that if they you know if they do catch one person they're gonna make an example out of them it also reminded me of a story. Somebody called me, Kyle, to remind me about something that when the Raptors were in their first year, one of the things that was a big hit right away, well, the Raptor was a big hit. And I don't want to say his name because I don't know if it's public. So I don't want to say who

it was, but also the head of their dance team, like their dance team was very good. And they also started doing like a kid's dance team on Sundays. And I remember someone from the Raptors told me that that year they got so much tampering from other teams wanting to hire the guy who was inside the Raptors suit. And also the woman who led the dance team like teams were tampering with them like crazy like no way yeah how much do we have to uh uh like what do we have to do to get you to hire like actually I did remember I think it was in some of my old notes but I lost them in a flood I think like the the Raptors actually like complained to the league about like I think it was like New Jersey or something like that now Brooklyn that wanted to that would try to poach the head of their dance team and uh like it was like it's

like I totally for it was just funny like someone called me and when they saw this they said do you remember when this happened I was like holy smokes i totally forgot it was a great story i also whenever i see mascots i do not i don't even it doesn't even register with me that there is like a human inside there somewhere i'm just thinking that's that is its own being like you think the raptor like it's really a thunder bug like the person that's not a person inside of lighting it's really a thunder bug. Like that's not a person inside of lightning. It's actually a thunder bug. Gritty, same deal. Exactly. It's actually whatever gritty is, it's like a real gritty.

Yes. That's how I choose to interact with them. And it's great. You know what? You're very good at it, I have to say. You're very good at it. Well, a lot of the arenas that we go to work in kind of where i'm posted up oftentimes is where the team's mascot will come and spend some time trying to get

the crowd into it at certain points of the game so you get familiar with a few of them as you make your your rounds but going back to this whole the tampering memo you know what this is sounding like potentially what's that free agency cold war is the threat of what could be out there and who's gonna blink first yeah it's interesting it's it's uh it's interesting like i always tell people if you write an email or you write a text message you have to be assuming that that thing is going to end up everywhere right yes just don't put anything down on paper all right so we talked about the euro check deal a little bit earlier Elliot you want to talk about the the Blue Jackets as a team here for a moment of 4-0 in two in their last six uh emotional win over Calgary at home they They go into Calgary on Tuesday night,

but there's some really nice stories emerging as that team has battled and fought for some results. Kent Johnson back healthy, producing. Sean Monaghan's had a really nice season with everything that's going on around him. What's your thoughts and read on Columbus as they're not going away here in the East? I don't know how you can't be incredibly impressed

with what they've done. They had every excuse to have a bad season. Every excuse. And they haven't done that. And I don't know. I mean, it's still early. We've got a long way to go here. But I don't know that anybody would have thought

that they would even be in the playoff race. I think a lot of people probably thought they'd be a team that would be just so emotionally worn down that if they had a really bad year, everybody would have understood. And we talked about Wierenski early. He's been phenomenal. He's got 26 points in 23 games.

He's been a leader in every sense of the word. You mentioned Monaghan, Kent Johnson now with six goals. But, you know, all of their young players are big parts of this. Like they're all putting up really, really good numbers. They're all producing. And the other thing too is if you take a look at some of the players that Kekulainen left them like you look at the Russians Marchenko has 10 goals in 23 games Chinnikov has 14 points in 21 games and Voronkov's got 11 points in 14 games like like all of these guys are playing and Dante Fabro who was on the scrap heap in Nashville he's got six points in nine games three goals yeah and you know like all of a sudden like the

thing I think about uh Avison like first of all he is you may notice for me talking about this from pod to pod i am jealous of anybody who can keep a good tan over the winter i like to tan i know it may not be the healthiest thing in the world but i like to be tanned okay that guy is always tanned he's coached in Minnesota and now he's coaching in Columbus he always has a tan I'm in awe of anybody who can have a great tan in February in Minnesota and Columbus but the thing about Everson is is that like I remember him as a player. He was, he was like a no BS player. He wasn't the biggest guy, but he's always in great shape. He still is. And he like, he played tough. Like, you know, he knew he wasn't the biggest, so he had to be, he battled.

Like he was a, like a, a pretty competitive guy to play against. And, you know, I think as coach now, like, you've got to be careful because the team's been through an awful lot. But you watch him during games and after games, and he's always, like, fighting. He's always competing. Like, the Montreal game they lost the other night, he was furious about the non-call with Suzuki.

last night he was furious about the the non-call with uh with Suzuki and um like like he's one of those guys like he's hyper competitive he's always competing and I think it kind of draws the players in um you know I I just think that he's done a really nice job of of of getting the team to compete at a time where it would have been very easy for them not to. And I think the other thing too is, like I watch Monahan and you know, Monahan last year, we had a chance to go visit him in Winnipeg and he just talked about how for the first time in a long time, his body felt good. And, you know, I remember one time he was really struggling and I was like, you know, I wonder if he's ever going to get back there.

And Kelly Rudy, who saw a lot of Monaghan, was around him almost every day because he's part of the Flames broadcast team. He would say, you know, you just got to be careful with him. Like, you have no idea just got to be careful with him. Like you have no idea what his body's been through. And, you know, I guess sometimes we just forget how long it takes to heal, especially from some of the stuff he went through. And I watch him and I watch the way he's playing 22 points in 23 games now. And it's kind of like, you know, if he can compete at that level, and everybody knows he was the closest to Goudreau.

He went to Columbus to go play for Goudreau and with Goudreau. And if he can compete at that level right now, nobody else has any excuse not to. And, you know, obviously it's not easy. He talks about how hard it is. But, you know, he still found a way. And to me, that's incredible. Because I know if I was in that room and I was sitting next to him, that's what I'd be saying. that's what I'd be saying.

If this guy can play his heart out and compete to the level that he's competing at this year, I have no excuse not to do it. I think that sets a tone. And again, I don't know how long this is going to last, Kyle, but the way they've started the year, they are much, much more ahead of where I thought they'd be. And I'm convinced I'm not alone on this.

No, it's a really good point. And I go back to one of the things that really struck me that Dean Evason said when I went out there for their home opener at the start of the season was just the energy that they had, that the group had, how hard they were playing. Just been really impressive. One thing to do it out of the gate and to still understand there's a lot of hockey still

to be played here. But all of the emotions that they have dealt with, I'm sure will continue to deal with. And the way that they have managed to harness it in a way that has provided some pretty remarkable results for them, given the circumstances, it has all been really impressive. And as you're right, who knows where it's going to all go from here. But this is a team, I think it's at least safe to say, that are not going to cheat you on effort from here on out for the remainder of this season and that's something to be admired given the circumstances there. You know one other guy Kyle we didn't mention Matthew Olivier. Oh yeah.

I mean seven goals 47 penalty minutes true heavyweight in the NHL today, the interesting birthplace Biloxi, Mississippi because his dad played East Coast Hockey League there and you know he's an unrestricted free agent after this season and you know that's gonna be an interesting one because right now he's become a big part of Columbus's identity but you know that he's valued out there right yeah you know that that's a guy who everyone's gonna look at and say hmm you know we could use that so it'll be interesting to see what happens because he's obviously a huge huge part of their team and a big part of the Danny and the fans love him by the way as you mentioned they're

going into Calgary for what will be an emotional game two things I wanted to shut out Ryan Leslie for the great piece he did with the good Rose last week very well done very well done and, I believe that Jacob Pelche will be getting a Calgary call-up. He did not play for the American Hockey League Wranglers on Sunday. And I think that was because it was bubble wrap time. He was sent down to the American Hockey League before the season

he cleared waivers he could have pouted about it instead he's got 19 points in 20 games for the Wranglers and they need Calgary you know it's been tough like they they're having trouble scoring and they're starting to bleed starting to bleed a little bit here and they're hoping that Pelletier can inject some inject some fresh air into them and he's going to get his chance to do it also great that the Goudreau family will be going out to Calgary for the game Tuesday night as well yes mention that also before we go to the final thought Kyle I wanted to ask you you were down in Tampa for Maple Leafs Lightning this weekend.

Anything interesting? I mean, the one thing I did not expect to see was, I don't know if you saw the one sign in the crowd that said Chris Craig and Kyle are hotties. Did you see that? Well, I just assumed that either A, you paid for it. I think Chris might have. That's pretty funny. I hope he listens to that. Or somebody in there was like a pathological liar.

Right. I just, I thought what a very flattered, but what would bring you to. Did you go to say hi to them? Well, I couldn't figure out where it was just tough to where they were seated versus where i was in the building that was the so that was i saw a photo of it did the cameras not find it there was only the photo no they did cameras did so you couldn't have asked the camera person how to get there well now you're gonna make me look bad well I'm going to make you look bad because the because so basically there's a somebody here who's got a sign that

says that you guys are three hotties and your response was yeah yeah that's true and I'm not gonna go over to say thank you that is not the case at all I wanted to go I wanted I honestly wanted to go interview the person and say what possessed you to do this but it just the game got busy third period the game got a little tighter than I think that's true it did anyway plans changed but let me let me okay let me let me now that I have like just destroyed you on this, let me defend you on it because I have been a ringside reporter many times, a job I loved and really missed. If the game does get busy, anything else that's frivolous

or just not a game part of the program, it does get thrown into the trash bin in the sky. So I could see how in the third period, if you had planned to do that when it was four, nothing Toronto, all of the sudden, when it was four to three, you're like, we can't do this anymore. So now that I ran the truck over you, I will resuscitate you by saying you have a point. Yeah. Thanks for that. And yours is coming here somewhere. Okay. I know my words. I know a couple of the things I just wanted to mention too, before we get to the final thought.

So on Sunday, Quinn Hughes and you know, the Vancouver Canucks considering everything that's going on around them they've been playing very well lately. Pedersen's been great, Hughes has been great, Sherwood's been great, you know Suter has been excellent. What a find he has been for them but you know I was thinking about this so Hughes passes Edler to become the most assists by a Canucks defenseman and he could double Edler. Edler's number was 310 Hughes is now at 312 like Hughes could get to 600 if he's a career-long Canuck but one of the things that I think about when I think about Hughes is the 2018 draft, there is so much misinformation about that draft in 2020 hindsight. Like, it makes me crazy. Like, you go back, Dallin was one, Svechnikov two, no issues.

Everybody knows Marc Bergevin was going for Kotkaniemi three. Like he was like, we need a center. We're getting a center. You can't find centers. We're taking Kotkaniemi. Everybody knew it. Brady Kachuk now, everybody for the most part loves Brady Kachuk. Few loud people in Ottawa upset, but whatever.

Everybody for the most part loves Brady Kachuk few loud people in Ottawa upset but whatever everybody for the most part loves Brady Kachuk and but when he got picked that night that pick got ripped ripped like you forget that you know he had you know the year the year he was drafted he had eight goals for Boston University and I remember Dorian got destroyed for that pick even in Ottawa they were like how could you take a guy who only had eight goals and it turned out to be a great pick Arizona was similar to Montreal they were like we need a center we have to get a center they took Barrettrett Hayton. And then all of a sudden, and the whole thing about Hughes is, there were a lot of Red Wings fans who wanted them to take Hughes.

Michigan guy, Hughes, absolutely. But what you also forget was in the moment, and I remember because I was keeping notes about all this stuff, Philip Zedina dropped. Dropped. Like, because Montreal was zeroed in on Kotkaniemi and Arizona was zeroed in on Hayton,

people were like, how could Philip Zedina be dropping? Like, these teams are stupid. How can they not be taking Zedina? And I remember, like, Detroit looked at each other and they said, all of a sudden, like, Philip Zedina's there. And he was supposed to go much higher than sixth. they took him and people praised Detroit for that. Like I remember there were people there covering the draft. I remember people writing about it. Big steal for the Red Wings and it just didn't work out and Hughes of course went to seven where he's been a grand slam

upper deck smash thousand foot home run and and is gonna go down as one of the greatest Canucks ever and it's just funny like watching this on Sunday that's why I'm so wary of draft analysis not because the people who cover prospects or cover the draft are bad I don't believe that for a second I think they cover what they do as well as anybody covers what they do. But these kids are 18, 19, 20 years old. There's so much that can go right or wrong. I'm watching right now Connor Bedard.

He's taking heat. He is by far Chicago's most dangerous player. And I wouldn't want to say he's all by himself, but there's no one at his level around him. And I just look, I listen to the way people talk about Hughes, and I just remember at the time there were a lot of people who thought Kachuk was a bad pick because he only scored eight goals and there were a lot of people who were like Detroit got the steal of the draft because Zadina dropped down to them and that's why I'm so careful with my draft

stuff because a I don't see these players as much as other people do and b these are still teenagers and so much can change but again i was just i was watching this stuff about uh hughes today and you know a guy a friend of mine who likes the red wings is like what a disaster this was we could have had hughes and this guy was one of the same guys like back then he's like zadina fell to us steal the draft and I'm like yeah get out of here with this garbage anyway it just kind of reminded me uh of it anything else happened down in Tampa uh you know what it was a grave reminder of as Tampa's had a pretty good start to this season they do not have the depth that they once did when a guy like Nikita Kucherov is not available in their lineup. That very much was evident on Saturday, even though they did make

a late push to try to tie that game. You know what the one thing I'm really fascinated by on the Toronto side as we move forward here? The relationship between Craig Berube and William Nylander. Like that's going to be a fun thing to continue to watch. I mean, there was a couple weeks ago, Nylander coming out and saying, I talked to him about wanting more ice time to get into a rhythm, and Berube had a funny line about it after they practiced in Fort Lauderdale on Friday.

But I just watched them in practice, the communication, the chatter that seems to be going on between the two of them. And talking to Berube there Saturday morning, you could tell, as he said, he goes, I really like getting to know Nylander. He's an easy person to talk to. You know, he likes that he's someone that's honest, that comes right out and says something like, hey, I want more ice time. But of course, it's a situation where you've got to earn it. Just you look at on the surface, on paper, two completely different personalities,

but they seem to be meshing quite well here in the early going. I'm just, I'm really intrigued to watch that one develop. Well, Neil Lander did a really good interview that was released last week with Sharp Magazine. It was really well done. What he said was like raw meat to the Toronto fans, right? He basically just said, I signed here because I want to be part of the team that wins the cup here. That's it. And that's the answer you've got to give. You know, I've talked about this with you before. You know, you look at New Jersey right now,

their points percentage is 630. Toronto's is 652. I think both those teams are very happy with what they've got in terms of coaches. Keefe, you know, it comes time. Like, it's time. And it was time for Keefe in Toronto, but I think he's got a chance to be extremely successful in New Jersey. I think he's a really good coach, just like it was time for Berube in St. Louis, but I think he's got a chance to be

really successful in Toronto because of his personality. I think it's really interesting when Keefe was hired in Toronto, he got when he took over for Babcock Somebody who knew the Marlies really well told me That it's gonna be interesting to see what's gonna happen between Keefe and Nylander And I said, why is that and they said because there was nobody in the American Hockey League that Keefe was tougher on the Nylander And I think that continued through their time together And I think Nylander is pretty strong headed, too. He can handle it.

But, you know, the one thing that I think is interesting is that the people who are around the Leafs, they tell me that the biggest difference between Keefe and Berube is what they're like when the games are not on. Like you have seen Berube during games getting on the players like he's pretty simple if you if you give him an effort and you work he's not going to have a problem with you things may not go right but he can you know a guy who played a thousand games in the NHL the way that Craig Berube played he could understand that things won't go right or won't go wrong right all the time but he what he can't understand is if you don't play hard and you don't compete that's what makes him mad and obviously Keefe's the same way they say the biggest difference between Keefe and

Berube is what they're like when it's not a game and you know Keefe was intense almost all the time very intense guy almost all the time Berube is not like that um you know he's when when the games aren't on he's relaxed um he's like how you doing and I think that that is probably what what people in and around the team have told me is that that's the biggest change in toronto is that when the game's not on it's just less tense because he's not wired that way and they say it not to insult sheldon keefe or to say that that makes sheldon keefe a bad guy it's just that that's their biggest personality difference um you know someone else uh said to me, joked that Berube has got no use for laptops. That was one of their funny lines about Berube.

But, you know, they just said that, you know, that's the difference. And I think that, I think you're around Toronto more than I am. And you're probably seeing that. No question. No question. And it was a little bit it honestly caught me off guard a bit initially just because so used to seeing how intense Berube can be on the bench during games and you kind of have that impression of of the guy and getting to know him

a little bit more away from that whether even just in the regular media scrums he does or the conversations away from those moments too, completely different. It's been cool. You can see why things are clicking here for Toronto and got some big help over the weekend. And the five-on-five scoring is back. Go figure. Boy, did Nick Robertson need that one.

You could hear his scream all the way to California and home Ontario. I was going to say, I think it's still echoing through Emily arena. All right. Well, why don't we get to the final thought then, which is presented by GMC and Sunday mid afternoon, the centennial anniversary game, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadians. Oh, what a great scene. I tried to catch what I could of the ceremony

and the game as I was traveling back home to Ottawa from Tampa Elliott, but you were there working it with Ron and Kelly and Rick Bonas who did a great job again on the panel over the weekend. Double duty for you gentlemen. So the Bruins did not let the Canadians

ruin their parade like you suggested before the game, just like they did when they faced the Maroons on December 1st, 1924. They beat the Habs 6-3, Charlie McAvoy two goals, Charlie Coyle two goals. There was the lengthy ceremony beforehand that I think touched all the right notes. First off, do you have a thought on the day itself and what you saw there in Boston? Well, I wanted to say that it was really smart of, I don't often say our producers are smart cause they're not,

but I thought our producers were very, were very smart to have Gary Galley there. You know, Gary played for the Bruins. He showed the one highlight of the overtime winner. I told him, I never knew you could jump that high. And he laughed and he said once, but you know, him and John Bartlett and Sean McKenzie did a great job but it was it was really smart of our guys to have Gary Galley there it was it was a fun broadcast I really enjoyed it watching the players go out and high-five

all of the older Canadians in the hall sorry all of the older Bruins in the hallway was a really nice touch like you see them going by and fist pumping Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito and Johnny Busick and and Terry O'Reilly and and Rick Middleton like it was it was a really really nice touch And it was a really well done little ceremony. And I always love watching old hockey highlights, but the one of Milbury with the shoe and John Wenzig threatening the Hartford bench, that is one of the most,

you want to look back at like badass hockey highlights of all time that one with John Wenzink threatening the Whalers bench that is maybe the most badass hockey highlight of of all time and I just love it I every time I see that I just I'm ready to run through a wall wall but you know I really they asked me a couple of weeks ago if I wanted to work it and I was like absolutely and then they asked me to do a like my all-time Bruins starting lineup and so it was I love doing it so I wanted to do some older players and some newer players and so my goalie and and Kyle, you can tell me if you disagree with any of my selections, but my...

We just went through this. Yes, you can do it again. So my goalie, partially because he's got one of the all-time great nicknames, is Mr. Zero, Frank Brimzik. He was my Bruins goalie. Two-time Stanley Cup champion, 1939 and 41. Two-time Vesna Trophy winner, Calder winner, Hockey Hall of Famer.

Kelly and Rick disagreed. They picked Tim Thomas. Rick, for very personal reasons, unfortunately, because he was on the Vancouver bench in 2011. Ron went with Jerry Chevers, but I went with Frank Brimzik. Agree or disagree? I feel like it's Friday all over again.

Like, they're all great picks. I'm not disagreeing with you, no. Like, a two-time Stanley Cup champion. But it's okay. You can say I like someone better. Like, that's fine. No, and I always, like, it's tough. Like, I didn't watch Brimzik play.

I didn't watch Chevers play. I watched Thomas play. Well, neither did I, genius. But, like, it's tough. Like, I didn't watch Brimzik play. I didn't watch Cheever's play. I watched Thomas play. Well, neither did I, genius. But, oh, you didn't? Oh, sorry. I thought that was when you were turning 13. Yeah. I thought for sure.

No, Brimzik is a great pick, Elliot. Okay. But, like, I understand why somebody would take a different goalie. Like, I understand the other picks. For defense, you know, I took Bobby Orr and Ray Bork. Kind of tough to argue with those. But, you know, as we were talking about later, like, their second pair is probably Zidane O'Chara and Eddie Shore,

who is one of the few players to win the Hart Trophy multiple times. And how many teams, if your number two pair was Chara and Shore, they would be better than almost everybody else's number one. So Bork and Orr are, to me no brainers but as a big charl mark it was kind of tough to leave him off and my forwards i put phil esposito of course uh i put patrice bergeron and you know i was watching sean interview bergeron like i'm just convinced like when i see him, I'm not of the same species as Patrice Bergeron. He just looks too good and too perfect. We are not both the same. I'm something else.

He's much more evolved than I am. But my third, and people could say Cam Neely. People could say the ultimate Bruin, Milt Schmidt. I totally understand. But when I was a kid, I loved Rick Middleton. Like the guy who had the best flowing hair in the NHL was of course, Guy Lafleur. There was nobody better than Guy Lafleur with no helmet. But for me, Rick Middleton was close. And when I was a kid, I saw Boston play Toronto at Maple Leaf Gardens and Middleton skated through the entire team, beat the goalie, but put it off the post.

And Middleton skated through the entire team, beat the goalie, but put it off the post. And all the time, like his hair flying in the background. And I was hooked on this guy. And, you know, he had a great career. His career, he still had 900 and something points. But his career came to an early end because he took a puck off the head in practice and was never the same towards the end. ahead in practice and was never the same towards the end. But Nifty, as he was known, was such a skilled, amazing to watch player. Like, you go down a YouTube rabbit hole and watch some of his goals. Like, they are just brilliant.

And I said, you know what? It's my team. I'm putting Rick Middleton on it, even ahead of the likes of Cam Neely and Milt Schmidt. So I don't know if there's anyone else you felt was more deserving or different, but I was putting Rick Middleton on my team. Yeah, I may have leaned more towards Milt Schmidt. Yeah, I get it. I get it. But I also love the personal reason why you put Middleton down.

Unless you live that as your own personal childhood nostalgia, like no one can take that from you. That stuff is really cool. I love that. I appreciate you being so charitable, but it was fun. Like I, it was like, those are broadcasts that are really fun to do. They were really, it was,

those Bruins uniforms look spectacular it is for me like to me that's always gonna be the uniform of the Bruins they they really look spectacular and you know at the beginning we're all sitting there wondering how could they not put Marchand out there and then you realize Joe Sacco he put out six Americans. He had Trent Frederick, he had Charlie Coyle, he had Kastelik, who's been a tremendous player for them. Then he had on the blue line, he had McAvoy and Jordan Osterly, who's from Michigan, and then he had Swayman and Goal.

And I thought that was a really good touch too. Tough weekend for Montreal. Some of the reporters I know who are in New York on Saturday told me they'd never seen Jeff Gorton that mad like Marty San Luis didn't yeah he clearly had a message he wanted to deliver post game but people said they'd never seen Jeff Gorton uh that angry uh after uh a game before but um you know it was tough like they got they got bombarded right away Caden Primo he gave up uh what five goals and I actually thought he battled really hard but uh they got blown out in that one you know when you're when you're the other team on a ceremony you probably should get

bombarded early and Montreal did yeah and I if my memory serves, I believe I did two, because last year they did different centennial nights, the Bruins did, over the course of last season where they kind of honored different eras of Bruins hockey over the last 100 years. And on two occasions, on Saturdays, Montreal was in Boston for those games. And so sat through the pregame ceremony

for two different eras of Bruins hockey. And it just so happened that I worked both of those games, Elliot, and similar to Sunday, did not go well for Montreal. So they sit through the pregame ceremony beforehand. So in November last season, Boston wins 5-2. And then in January, they go back there on another Saturday, another pregame ceremony, and they lost 9-4 to Boston. And then they get beat 6-3 here.

So what you're saying is that Montreal is really happy this is all over. Yes, that's right. They may be happier than some of the Bruins fans that 100th anniversary's come and gone. And we should mention that Ron McLean and Dick Irvin did a great interview about the history of the Bruins. And Ed Hall, again, a producer coming up with a good move, which is rare, but Ed Hall...

Certainly on this podcast. So Ed Hall came up with the idea. Like, this is so good. Why don't you put it on the pod? And it's, it's, we're going to put it on the end. So if you're really interested in the history of the, of the, of the Bruins Canadians rivalry, there's nobody better than Dick Irvin and Ron certainly drew it out of him. Great. Yes, we will. That was the final thought brought to you by GMC.

We'll take our first break here. Now we'll come back with a thought line. You're listening to 32 Thoughts. Don't go anywhere. Okay. Welcome back. Time now for the Thought Line. Phone number to call, 1-833-311-3232,

or you can submit an email at 32thoughts at sportsnet.ca. Elliot, anything you need to clear the deck of before we get into today's batch? No, I think we've been clearing the deck quite a bit lately, so let's just go with what the audience has given us. All right, we'll begin with Danny. Hi, Elliot, Kyle, and Dom. Huge fan of 32 Thoughts and listen to every episode.

Thank you, Danny. Here's a question for you. How much emphasis do NHL teams place on hockey IQ during player evaluation? Are there specific traits or drills they use to measure a player's decision-making and adaptability? Also, in your opinion, who currently has the highest hockey IQ in the NHL? Thanks for the great content. I look forward to every episode.

I'm sure, I'll see if you agree with this or not, but my sense is with that stuff, because it's a little abstract, Elliot, it's, I mean, it's a lot of, it's not an exact science for scouts and people in management when trying to identify players, particularly when getting ready for a draft. So it's a lot of just watching. And the thing is back in the day, you don't have to go that far back. You know, there was some separation with skating ability, with shooting ability, and that kind of helped differentiate. But now everyone can skate. By and large, everyone can rip the pill.

So you're just looking with the eyes a lot of the times. How are they handling certain situations? Where do they go in certain situations? Different sequencing on the ice and try to make your best judgment from there. But as I say, it's definitely not an exact science for a trait that is so hotly talked about and coveted. Well, I remember a few years ago, Arizona, they started bringing like video into their interviews and they would ask players what are you thinking here like what are you doing here or i i can't remember was specifically that player they would show them video of their own plays and say what was what was your thought process or they would just show them plays in general and say what would you do

in this situation but it was something like that and at the time other people kind of made fun of them and now more and more teams are doing that I think one of the ways they try to test hockey sense is is an exercise like that one I think hockey sense is considered very important. I know there are GMs who think that that's the most important thing that you need to deal with, that you need to see in a player is hockey sense. It's interesting. Like I know people who think it can be taught. I know people who think it can't be taught, but one of the things they definitely do in interviews is kind of say, okay okay here's a play what would

you do or what are you thinking in the middle of this so i i definitely think they've come a long way in trying to quantify it and they absolutely do think it's very important do you have a pick for who would be at the top for you in the league today? I mean, geez, like there are some geniuses out there, but I've always been a big Patrick Kane guy. I would have to say, I think there's probably people around his level, but Kane to me is a guy who's still at the top of the game the way he thinks it. Yes. You?

I'd say there's a lot of answers you could go with. Eileen Nikita Kucherov in Tampa. That's a good one, too. I can't argue with that. Like, remember the interview you did with Nathan McKinnon last year? Who was his favorite player to watch? He said Kucherov. What did you say?

Like, the top player's favorite player kind of thing? Right. Right. And we've heard John Cooper go on and on about you know the meetings with kucherov over the years where they're sitting in his office and his they're watching video and his suggestions are what he's seeing and he's going i didn't even realize that was an option he was just operating and continues to operate at a different level it still bugs me that i asked him last year at the All-Star game

if he would come on the pod and he says, I don't like podcasts. That was a deep cut. Yeah, it was. I still feel, oh, the stitches, they still haven't healed. I'm sure you're not the first he's turned down. No, I know, but still, it's funny. Yes. All right, Danny, good question.

Thank you for that. Up next, Nate from Nashville. Hey, Elliot, Kyle, Dom, and the illustrious Griffin. Two simple questions today. When does the rule book get reviewed? Yearly? Only during CBA negotiations, yearly GM meetings, et cetera? Has there ever been a time where

the rule book is reviewed without any changes being made love the pod keep up the great work and go preds first of all great question secondly there is a process that you have to go through to change the rule book i think the short answer was they look at things all the time they will say okay what do you think about this what do you think about that like this year was actually a a really busy year they made a whole bunch of recommendations and rule changes that took effect this year one of them was coach's challenge adding some situations to it another one was the line change following – I mean, the defensive team could not make a line change if the goalie accidentally dislodges the net.

And they also changed the sitting on the boards thing with you getting one warning, and then if you did it again during play, it's a bench minor. And one of the things that came up was they wanted to change that rule last year during the season. But there's a process you have to do for this. First of all, it has to go through the competition committee, which involves players and managers and a coach. And if it's approved by them, it has to be approved by the GMs. And then it has to be approved by the Boards and then it has to be approved by the

board of governors although that's generally a rubber stamp so you have to go through a process like they wanted to change that player sitting on the boards one during the season last year but they were reminded you can't just unilaterally change the rule without going through this process so there is a way you have to do it now one thing that happens from time to time is that um as someone said to me sometimes this process is a pain in the butt like you just don't want to go through it and you want to be able to change something without quote unquote fundamentally changing the rule so you don't need the all the approval but you can change in the interpretation and where that happened an example of that someone sent me a note

if you go back to last season they did what was called a clarification of the offside rule and for who shot the puck into the netting. Like before that, it didn't specifically say which team was eligible to challenge for sending the puck into the netting. was eligible to challenge for sending the puck into the netting and they basically added in that both teams are eligible to challenge and that was not specific to the rule book before so they just threw it in there the other one that was changed was the offside rule it was they said it was updated or clarified and there was new wording when a player goes off for a line change in the attacking zone during a delayed offside and that one they didn't have to go through a formal change or the formal process it was just an update or a clarification so that's the way it works they look at these things all the time this year had a really high number of changes,

but if you're going to actually change a rule book without what's called an update or a clarification, you have to go through the proper process. Great. Great insight, Nate. Great question. Yeah. Very good question. All right. Up next, Lucas from PEI. Ring a bell, Elliot? Uh-oh. Uh-oh. I know where this is going. Lucas is going to be in a foul mood, right? Well, here we go. You ready? Yeah.

Hello, Kyle and Leadfoot Friedman. This is Lucas from Prince Edward Island, a.k.a. Andrew's co-worker. Firstly, I guess I now owe Andrew a coffee or maybe even a cold one. Secondly, Elliot, you have nothing to worry about in PEI. We would welcome you anytime to enjoy our amazing seafood and scenery.

Oh, because I'm actually going there this summer. You are? My wife has always wanted, yes, my wife has always wanted to go to the Inn at Bay Fortune for one of their meals there. And it's taken me almost 16 years, but I'm finally getting around to doing it.

So we're actually going in July. So Lucas, I promise to obey all speed limits and rules of the road. I think between him and Andrew, you're going to have an escort right to the hotel. So Lucas goes on to say, to add to Andrew's question about players scoring on Hockey Night in Canada,

I was curious if you guys knew which broadcaster has been on the most Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts. In recent memory, Ron McLean seemed like the easy answer, but with his long history, I suspect it may be someone else. Thanks guys. And would love to finally get on the pod, even though Andrew beat me to it.

Lastly, go Leafs go. And you know, it's funny in PI, you never know. Are these Leaf fans? Are these Canadians fans or Bruins fans? Cause the Bruins have a huge maritime following.

Well, I would have to say now, I would have to say Ron. First of all, Ron's been in the air for now almost 40 years. And he's on every night during the playoffs almost. And there's a lot more broadcast than there ever were. Like it used to be, there weren't anywhere near as many as there are now. Like I can't see anybody who has been on more broadcasts than Ron has. The only one that would challenge him, I think, would be the late Bob Cole. Well, you know what? Bob Cole was who I thought too, because he was around for 40 years.

You know, the thing is Bob was on almost every Saturday. So was Ron. And then Bob in the playoffs, you know, he'd be on a lot, but not as much as Ron is. So I wondered if with all the playoff broadcasts, Ron would have caught him. I agree with you that Bob is probably the next likely answer, but I would say that Ron has probably caught him.

So have you ever stumbled across or seen, they've got social accounts and also a website, unnecessary sports research? No, I haven't, but I love the idea even without knowing what it is so i'm not sure who is behind it but it is effectively an entire database keeping track of which broadcasters are working nationally televised games hockey or everything? Canada, US, hockey, basketball, football, baseball. And so their NHL counts in Canada and the US. And you're right, there's an asterisk with Ron's name because they don't count studio stuff at the venues. So they've tracked the days when Ron would work sidelines.

And I'm not sure how accurate these numbers are, but they do a lot of work in keeping track of everything. So for instance, like they've got for Canadian NHL play-by-play broadcasts in history, Bob Cole is at first 1,723, Cuthbert in second, 1,373. You can even slide over to reporter host. Number seven on the list, Elliott Friedman at 412. Really? I'm surprised I would be that high. You think?

Because you've done it for quite a while. Yeah, I've 20 years now um but i but think of all of the people at hockey night who've been around like kelly's been around longer than i have um then you think of like you think of ron you think of danny gallivan don cherry uh bob cole harry neal um i i you know i would think even you know chris cuthbert was there and came back jim hewson um you know i was thinking you know even one of your regular partners craig simpson like you know he's been around for a long time now yes and also worked in the states at fox when it first launched that's right i forgot about

that so i i think the thing with me is i've been in the rink and i've been in studio um and i'm on a lot during the playoffs but i would like i wouldn't if like off the top of my head i i wouldn't think i'm in the top 10 well according to what that necessary sports research you are you know you know what that means kyle what's that people have been unfairly subjected to me for a long time well i'm glad you're starting to realize but anyway yeah that's an interesting question. Very good question. But I don't think Ron is a

bad answer at all. No, I have to think I really have to think that Ron would be number one. I would be surprised if he wasn't. All right. Lucas, way to stick with it.

See you in July, Lucas. OK, we're going to wrap with a voicemail. Bob from Richmond, B.C. Love the podcast. Listen to it all the time. I just wanted to ask about the Joe Thornton getting his jersey retired by San Jose. Obviously, Patrick Marleau's already retired by that franchise. I recalled both players went 1-2 in the 97 draft.

Has this ever happened where two successive players chosen in the draft had their jerseys retired by the same franchise? I thought that was a very unique thing. Anyways, hope all is good and thank you for taking this call all right do you want to guess first yes that first of all i like i love that question like that is a great question great question okay so i'm gonna say by your reaction that yes it has happened before no it. No, it has not happened. It has not happened by players going one, two in the same draft,

having their jerseys retired by the same team. But does it happen with players being drafted one spot apart or right next to each other being retired by the same team? Well, I didn't get the answer to that but i do have so thornton and marlo in 97 there were two other draft years where the players that went first and second that year have their numbers retired somewhere not by the same teams but their jerseys are retired in the nhl uh by a franchise so what he's asking has never happened but it has happened before in different markets in different markets all right okay so let me think one eternity later

mike medano trevor linden very nice nice what year was that 88 or 89 what year was that 88 it was such conviction yeah i did because you know what the first one i thought of was actually the one of the loaded drafts 79 but you know one two was rob ramage and i think perry turnbull was second so that wouldn't be it okay um okay i need i need i need help is it before or after Lyndon Medano? Before. One hour later. You know what? I'll tell you this. You know what else I thought of? But it's not correct because you forget he wasn't drafted by the Kings.

Guy Lafleur, Marcel Dion. Because Dion was drafted by Detroit. That was the other one that popped into my head but that's the that's the correct answer because he does have his number retired even though he wasn't drafted by the Kings oh my god yeah talking about walking through the back door into a right answer nicely done all right so that was what 1971 71 my goodness that's impressive i i was so confused by the end of what i was thinking i thought i got the wrong answer it was right i feel that's not the first time this has happened too or it was either you thought you were wrong or you misheard the question but still found your way to the to the pot of gold at the end. This is very on brand for me, Kyle,

is to get the right answer with a totally horrendous methodology. Believe me, that works for me. Yeah. So great question by Bob, and he was right to thinking it was unique in that it has never happened before. Thornton and Marlowe, 1-2 in 97, and now both their numbers hang from the rafters in San Jose. That'll do it for this edition of the Thought Line.

A reminder, 1-833-311-3232. 32thoughts at sportsnet.ca. Thank you to Griffin Porter, who helps curate these each and every week. He continues to tell us, Elliot, that the inboxes are jammed. So thank you. Thank you to everyone that takes time to write in. We apologize we can't get them all on the pod,

but we just, again, we've talked about it before, but can't stress enough, we appreciate your dedication and interest to interacting with us each and every week. Back to wrap after this. All right. welcome back. As promised, in case you missed it on Sunday and you haven't had a chance to catch it anywhere online yet, in the lead-up to that Centennial Celebration game in Boston

on Sunday afternoon, Ron McLean spent a good chunk of time chatting with Mr. Dick Irvin Jr., a longtime broadcaster, part of Hockey Night in Canada for so many years, called so many great Montreal Canadian Boston Bruin contests over his time behind the microphone. 92 years young, Dick Irvin Jr. is, and just as you'll hear, unbelievable recall and memory he still has for all of the stories and the legends in the game over the last hundred years in Boston. So here now,

the conversation with Ron McLean and Mr. Dick Irvin Jr. Well, if it's an occasion show on Hockey Night in Canada, such as a hockey day or a tribute to the Rocket or Jean Beliveau or Guy Lafleur, guess who comes on the show? Dick, so great to see you. What are you feeling when we celebrate the matchup, Boston-Montreal today? Well, thanks for having me back home, as it were. Few feelings, Ron.

I started to think about the wonderful players that were in the uniforms of both teams, going right back to, well, the first time that they played, Howie Morenz was playing for the Canadians. And two years after that, when the Bruins were in business, Eddie Shore joined the Bruins. So in the early days of this rivalry, you had Eddie Shore and Howie Morenz playing against each other. Now, if you're going to make a Christmas tree out of legendary names, that's

a pretty good way to start. I'll tell you that much with those two. And it sort of just continued over the years. I mean, the first I can remember, being of an age that I am, is in the 40s. And, you know, the Boston fans had the Kraut line to cheer for, Schmidt, Dumart, Bauer. Montreal had the punch line to cheer for, Locke, Blake, and Richard. And so it went into the, you know, you had the Esposito and Orr era when John Beliveau was still playing. You ended up with Raymond Bork. You're doing the games with Raymond Bork on one blue line, Larry Robinson on another.

There always were, at so many times during this rivalry, the best players at their position. Now, there's a lot of other best players around the league, I grant you that, but it's just when those teams would play, there was so often that they were, incidentally, Milt Schmidt might have been one of the great, or was one of the greatest hockey players I ever saw. He was absolutely wonderful. He dominated. The first All-Star game was played in 1947 in Toronto, All-Stars against the Leafs. And my dad coached the All-Stars and he made Milt Schmidt the captain of the team. He was just an absolutely wonderful hockey player. And to me, he set the tone for

the Bruins for years to come. You know, apparently Elmer Locke and Milt were like buddies, the bitterest of rivals, but buddies. And I think of Johnny Bauer and Gordie Howes, the only other pair I can think of like that. Was that true? Oh, yeah. They used to holiday together with their wives in the summertime. And yet in the wintertime, when they were playing against each other, number one centers on each team, it was war.

And yet, you know, in fact, Milt Schmidt told me when Elmer Locke scored the winning goal in 1953 in overtime to win the Stanley Cup for the Canadians against the Bruins they faced off and Milt told me when I wrote one of my books he said as we're waiting for the referee to drop the puck

we're talking about where are we going to go for our holiday this year we better get working on it now they dropped the puck and about a minute about a minute and a half later Elmer Locke about where are we going to go for our holiday this year? We better get working on it now. Isn't that something? They dropped the puck and about a minute and a half later, Elmer Locke scores the goal that won the cup for the Canadians. So, yeah, that was, but they were the best at their positions at that time. And, you know, it just seemed if you want to just sit down and go through year by year, there was a lot of good ones.

Well, 42, the Kraut line being paraded and serenaded off to war. Were you old enough to have a grasp of that? Tell the viewer about how special. Well, I was 42. I was 10 years old going to school in Regina. So I really didn't get to see him. And in fact, when I moved, when we moved to Montreal, Bobby Bauer had retired, but Woody Dumart still played. He was one of the best defensive forwards. Used to check Gordie Howe and the Rocket all the time later in his career. And, of course, Milt was Milt.

I sort of saw him toward the end of his career, but as I say, he was magnificent as a hockey player. He was really good. And then along with the players, there's the games, certain games. The first time that I saw Montreal and Boston play, I was 10 years old. We were down for Christmas from Regina to visit my dad who was coaching the Canadians. He was in his second year of coaching the Canadians, I guess it would be. No, third year, third year.

And they were having a rebuild. It sounds familiar today. you and they had a they were having a rebuild it sounds familiar today um and there was young players would play a few games here and there to try out uh for the team and this one night the night that we were there first game after christmas one of the new players scored a goal on frank brimsey who was the goaltender for the bruins they called him mr zero what happened to nicknames and he scored a goal in the second period. Later in that same period, he was body checked by a Boston defenseman named Johnny Crawford, right at center ice, good stand up, clean body check. The kid went down, didn't

get up. He broke his leg. So his career was, his season was over because the seasons would end in the end of March in those days. You told me Brimstone. And so. Maybe the best, the best Boston goalie. They have a few. Yeah. Hold on. He was terrific.

And so the kid doesn't play the rest of the year. Came back the next year. Good thing he did for hockey. Changed his number from 15 to nine. That's right. And his name was Maurice Richard. Changed his name to Rocket a little later after that. And the rest is history, as they say.

So that was the first time I saw those two teams play. And Maurice Richard broke his leg in the game. Incidentally, Johnny Crawford, the defenseman for Boston that delivered the check, was the only player in the league at that time wearing a helmet. And he wasn't wearing it for protection. He wore it because he was bald. And he didn't like people to see him bald playing hockey, so he wore a helmet. That's why I have one on at Hockey Day in Canada, Dick. You know, your dad got hired in 40, as you said. Worst team in the NHL were the Montreal Canadiens. That's really hard for folks to imagine,

but he transforms them. And now 52, you were telling me the rocket scores the winning goal after being KO'd in the same game 52 the goalie for you go on you tell the whole story well it was game seven semi-finals at the Montreal Forum and in the second period rocket has a collision with a Boston player named Leo Labine. And I don't know if it was Labine's stick that hit his head or he hit his head on the ice, but he was not cold and he was gone. He wasn't playing. Now, here they are, game seven. Their best player is somewhere getting treated and he's not playing in the game. And they figured he was gone for the night. And my dad used to tell me the story how he was behind the bench at one end and the other end of the bench was led to the dressing room and so on and suddenly with about

three minutes to go in the game he looks down to that end of the bench and here comes rocket out of the the hallway and sits down at the end doesn't say anything to him doesn't wave at him he just sits down so my father went over to him and he said, are you okay? And he said, yes, I'm okay. So the next stoppage in play, my dad puts him on, face off in the Canadian zone on the right wing. They go up the ice. I think it was Butch Bouchard, the defenseman who started the play. And Rocket gets the puck on the right side, swings wide around the defense, Boston defense, Bill Quackenbush and Bob Armstrong, and goes right into the goal crease against Sugar Jim Henry, the Boston goalie, and scores what most of us thought, think is the most memorable goal of his career.

He scores. He comes, he's been knocked cold, and the Canadians win the game and move on to the Stanley Cup Finals, which they lost to Detroit. But the atmosphere of all of that happening, and to his dying day, Ron, Maurice Richard did not remember the game, the play, or the goal. So, you know, he wouldn't have scored it today. He'd have been in concussion control, or whatever they call it. Yeah. Led to the greatest photo.

That was amazing. Yeah, yeah. Well to the greatest photo. That was amazing. Yeah. Yeah. Him, well, two good ones. Him scoring the goal at the crease. But the better one was him and Sugar Jim shaking hands when the game was over. Two battered warriors.

Both had black eyes. I think it was Jim Henry got a black eye somewhere. Remember you and I were at a centennial sports dinner in Winnipeg in the year 2000. And Sugar Jim Henry was in the audience that night. And what a thrill it was for me to meet him. He was a terrific guy. Right.

Yeah. So that was, and then Sugar Jim was also the goalie when Elmer Locke scored the goal we talked about before that won the cup for the Canadians. And that was the very next year. So there you had those two teams and big playoff series so many times in my broadcasting days i probably did okay the montreal forum was my home rink for my the team i was involved with but i think the second rink that i did most of my broadcast had to be boston the old boston garden really and a couple of years toward the end in the new building but

because they were always playing in the new building but that because they were always playing in the playoffs those teams you know people don't realize it now but you take in the in the 50s when there was a six-team league the teams played each other seven 14 times and when they would play in a playoff series seven games as the canadians and the bruins did many times they would play each other 21 times. You know, when you think about it, that's the times have changed, obviously. Chicago Blackhawks play here once this year,

and I think it's the last game of the season in Montreal. So yeah, that was, so you got to know these players and the big rivalries. And so you didn't see Milchmidt and the Bruins this week. They're back in two weeks. It was great to see that sort of thing. Well, first on Sugar, Jim Henry, so excited to see you in Winnipeg. That was amazing. Rainer and him, there was a school for goalies up in Kenora, right? Lake of the Woods. So they all, I mean, a lot of the best went through and met with Sugar

Jim. Okay. We got to go to Bellevue and Boston, and that'll lead to a little bit of Bork as well. But 1971, Dick, you and I agree on this. The greatest playoff series of all time is the first round series between Montreal, Boston. Bruins have won game one. They're up five to one in game two. And you take it from there. Well, I don't know the greatest. Yeah, it was pretty good. Yeah, 5-1. The Canadians had a rookie goaltender named Ken Dryden. And Al McNeil, the coach, used him in game two after they lost the first game. I think it was 3-1.

And 5-1 Boston, two minutes to go in the second period. It's all over, right? And the game's in Boston. And Henry Richard scored a goal for the Canadians right at the end of the second period to make it 5-2. Okay, big deal it's uh the big bad bruins are leading uh 5-2 with one period to go final score montreal 7 boston 5 and i think that was the game they were they won the stanley cup was that night and uh beliveau took over big john that year phil esposito had scored 76 goals in 76 games. And it was Jean Balibu's last year.

And Jean had scored 76 points that year to lead the Canadians. And Esposito had 76 goals. But Jean was magnificent in that third period. And he scored a goal. And he set up, I think, Frank Mihaljevic and maybe John Ferguson. I don't know. It was quite a game, as it turns out, obviously. And Montreal went on to win the Stanley Cup.

So, yeah, because that was the Orr Esposito era in Boston, which was fabulous for the Bruins and their fans. And so you had those two guys and one. So I kind of looked at that as, you know, the old lion left the scene, Beliveau. The young lion, Esposito, and then Bobby, they established themselves as the new superstars of the game. Quite a time in hockey at those particular years, early 70s. And lastly, Dick, why I mentioned Ray Bork in that connection is Beliveau, of course, when he was captain of the Habs, Louise reshaded his fan mail. And when he moved up to the second

floor and became an executive with the Canadians from 71 to 93, Louise became his executive assistant. When he retired, he presented her with something he knew she would love. And it was a signed, autographed photo of a player. And it was Ray Bork, of all things. It wasn't a Montreal Canadian. So he gave a Team Canada jersey photo. But that's how much he thought and she thought of Raymond Bourque. And you kind of picked that out of all your Bruins goals. For some reason, Bourque, why? Well, there was a game and I don't know the year or anything. It was a midseason game, regular season in Boston. It was an afternoon game because I think it was

President's Day in the United States. It was a holiday of some kind. And it was a very good game. And at the end of two periods, Montreal is leading by two goals. Boston comes out, totally dominates the third period. And the Bruins tie the game. And the crowd is very, the atmosphere in the old garden is electric. It was a great afternoon for hockey. And with about a minute or so to go in the game ray bork gets the puck they're tied now and he starts off in his own

end and i don't know why i all the games i broadcast this is one i really remember this play and he starts and he beats a couple of canadian players on the way up the ice and as i'm calling the game on the radio at that point um i funny thought i had a funny feeling i said he's going to score and he's can't remember how he used to win the target shots in the all-star game four pow pow pow pow rama he would he would win those things it was amazing how he could get there and he must have a comfort zone somewhere around the blue line because instead of carrying it all the way into the net for example he just winds up sort of just like he was in the all-star game and he just lets it fly and in it went Bruins win game over a play that as I say everybody probably has forgotten it

but me it was but that's kind of a player he was and he was he was one of the best and the Canadians are playing against a guy who grew up in their backyard here in Montreal. And he ends up being a superstar for the Boston Bruins. Well, it's funny. I asked Rick Bonas on Saturday night about best shot he ever experienced, either as a player or in his 2700 games behind a bench. And he picked Bork. So you're on to that. Listen, between your father, Hockey Hall of Fame father as a player,

and yourself as a broadcaster, you've got the century covered. You've laid eyes on every moment in Boston, and you had that little perch at the garden, right? Couldn't be better. So thank you. So great. Any chance to get to hear from Mr. Dick Irvin, Jr.? Thank you, gentlemen, for that conversation.

That'll do it for today's episode of 32 Thoughts, the podcast. A reminder, live show coming up in January out in Canmore in the lead up to Hockey Day in Canada. We are giving away 10 pairs of tickets to that show. If you want them, here's the criteria. It's very simple. You phone into the thought line 1-833-311-3232. You leave your best either Elliott Friedman impression or Kyle Bukoskis impression. We'll pick the winners and the December 23rd edition of the podcast and hope to see you in Canmore at silver tip golf resort for the live show.

All right. A couple of things to keep an eye on the network this week in terms of hockey to watch the Edmonton Oilers are in Vegas Tuesday night. Big game there. 10 o'clock Eastern, 8 o'clock Mountain Time. That could be seen nationally on Sportsnet One. And this week's edition of Scotiabank Wednesday Night Hockey. Nashville is in Toronto to face the Leafs.

It all gets underway. The pregame show, 7 Eastern, 4 Pacific. Enjoy the hockey this week, and we will talk to you again on Friday.