32 Thoughts: The Podcast - It Must Have Been the Ice Cream

Episode Date: June 7, 2025

In this edition of 32 Thoughts, Kyle Bukauskas and Elliotte Friedman revisit an electric Game 2 between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final. The duo then moves on to news and notes from around the league. They unpack the Dallas Stars firing Pete DeBoer (19:33) and delve into potential replacements behind the bench (26:27). Elliotte discusses Alex Pietrangelo's uncertain future in hockey (32:26) and provides the latest updates on the Buffalo Sabres (35:11). The hosts also talk about Derek Lalonde joining the Toronto Maple Leafs (36:20). The Final Thought focuses on top prospect Gavin McKenna (38:53).Kyle and Elliotte answer your questions, emails, and voicemails via the Thought Line (41:18).In the final segment, Kyle and Elliotte sit down with Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner (1:00:04).Email the podcast at [e-mail] or call the Thought Line at 1-833-311-3232 and leave us a voicemail.This 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

Brad Morchan has won it for the Panthers. His parents celebrate his second of the night, shorthanded early and a game winner in the second overtime period. Welcome to 32 Thoughts, the podcast presented by the GMC Sierra 84X11. The Stanley Cup final through two games as it shifts to Florida for games three and four. Elliot, history has shown some of the great games over the course of time have ended in a 5-4 score line.

We will get to game two in just a moment, but first you have some thank yous you want to get off your chest before we proceed. Yeah Kyle, as you may be aware when I'm walking I'm not, I'm kind of a space cadet and I don't often pay attention to what I'm doing. That doesn't just apply to walking. No, that's true. Actually, that's very good. There's a lot of those situations in life I kind of put myself in. And I'd like to thank two members of Edmonton's Finest, Brad and Jordan, who helped extricate

me from something I shouldn't have gotten myself into. So I wanted to say thank you very much. And also I wanted to shout out Gabriel, one of the elevator operators here at Roger's Place because Dave Amber and I took the elevator down from our perch to the dressing rooms after the game. And he looked at Dave and said, are you the anonymous caller? Oh, yes.

I loved it. I have to tell you, I think there were at least four times tonight during the game, somebody came up to Dave and asked him if he was the anonymous caller. And he was getting, with each time time he was getting exponentially more annoyed we'll talk at this talk about this a bit more in the thought line but Kyle once again our listeners have outdone themselves nobody wants this to end more than Amber does

and he remains a key suspect in this mystery. Man. Well now it makes sense. Cause I thought, you know, David seemed rather short with everybody when you were making your overtime picks in the intermission on Friday night. And now I know why. He took out practically the entire overtime when he did that. Exactly. Yeah.

It was Ms. Marshaan's goal. Wow. All right. Well did that. Exactly. You almost miss Marshan's goal. Wow. All right. Well, that's great. Sounded like another fantastic night in Edmonton Elliott. Epic.

Wow. What a start to this series through two games here now. Brad Marshan, the hero, 63 career playoff goals for number 63. Over the last three years, Elliot, we've talked about, the Panthers are the great closers in playoff time. That streak came to an end in game one. You could say that they blew the save late in game two, but in extra innings or double overtime in this case,

Marshand, the hero, they head back home with a series split. And you're kind of sitting there thinking, yeah, it's fitting given what we've watched through the opening two games of this final. What an epic start to the final, Kyle, all you ever hope for as a fan of a sport or someone who's covering it or someone who's invested in it in any way shape or form is that your biggest games Live up to what you hope they will be and we were lucky with that in February with the Four Nations tournament We got an epic series and an epic few games and an epic final

And a great Saturday night and here we have three over times in two games a phenomenal start to the final you couldn't have asked for anything better You know, I thought Matthew Kachak said it best after this game. It's been two great games You could be 2-0 you could be 1-1 you could be 0-2 Like there's not much different between these two teams and you know one thing we're learning Kyle is that In each of these games, it's gonna be punch counterpunch There's gonna be times the Panthers dominate. There's gonna be times the Oilers dominate There's gonna be times the Oilers look like they're playing the old Muhammad Ali rope a dope There's gonna be other times the Panthers look like they're doing the Muhammad Ali rope a dope and then the counterpunch comes the momentum shifts and

There's there's no difference between these two teams. Like there's very, very little to pick between them. It's a series where everyone's contributing. Everyone's throwing hits. Everyone's, you know, throwing their bodies in front of pox. Nobody's taking shortcuts. Everybody's trying to cheat the officials and icings and everything like that. Like every advantage people are trying to get, they're trying like the

between the referees and the goaltenders. Everybody is trying to do something to gain that little extra one or two percent. And it's great hockey. You cannot say that these players are cheating anybody, anybody in these two games. No, it's been fantastic to watch and it was fitting that you showed the video during one of the intermissions of Marchand scoring 14 years ago to the day the shorthanded goal in game three of the 2011 final against Vancouver because Roberto

Luongo, who of course is now part of Florida's management team, puts out the post after he scores the winner that he's his favorite player of all time. How about that for a full circle moment? So I guess some of Kevin's former teammates texted him and said, can you believe Elliot just really showed that? And there are some people who say to me, you let Kevin get away with too much against you, and you have to start hitting him below the belt more. And I always say the difference between Kevin and I is I have a governor and he doesn't.

And I thought we had to air that because shorthanded breakaway goals 14 years apart on the exact same day, you can't not show that. But I made myself a point, I'm not gonna take a shot at Kevin. The honest truth is, that is the one thing I will not poke fun at Kevin about, because going to the Stanley Cup final, game seven and losing like that, it sucks.

And if our shoes were reversed reversed Kevin would probably trash me anyway if our situation was reversed Kevin would probably trash me anyway but that is one I'll show the highlight but that is one thing I will never take shots at Kevin for never that's too that That's that is over the line for me. So it wasn't actually a shot at the exit. It's just like it happened. You have to refer to it. Yes, very fair. I'm with you on that one. And the one thing with Marshawn is like, and it started really, you got the sense during all the great media he did through the four nations and now during this playoff run he's

talked about this stage of his career and he's not the only player that arrives at this conclusion when he gets to kind of where Marshawn is at here now but appreciating the moments that he once used to take for granted and it's not that he didn't appreciate it maybe necessarily back then, but he says as a younger guy, you're so wired all the time and focused on, okay, what's next, what's next, what's next, as opposed to taking a deep breath and just enjoying where you're at for a few moments. And that whole headspace has really fueled, I think, what's been great about him.

And you know, you go back to the Dairy Queen comment with the interview we did with him last round that caught like wildfire online. And as you're kind of scrolling through some of the comments that come in from fans from around the world, how many of them are like, man, am I actually starting to like Brad Marchand? Or I used to really hate Brad Marchand, but you know what? Now I'm kind of starting to be a fan of him. It's becoming the ultimate heel to baby face turn unless you're a fan of the Oilers, of course. But it's just been a remarkable run that he continues to be on.

Kyle, you're more of a contemporary wrestling fan than I am. Most of my wrestling knowledge is old, old, old. What would be a comparable heel to babyface turn that Brad Marshand is doing in the NHL right now? Yeah, I mean, the one like one of the great ones and it's a little bit different because he started as the ultimate babyface, but Hulk Hogan, right? He goes NWO, he leaves for WCW, he comes back and at WrestleMania 18 in Toronto, he fights The Rock in the main event.

And it was like during that match, what started as Hogan heel rock face, by the end it had flipped. And it was like the WWE crowd had fallen back in love with Hogan over the course of that match, which I don't think the company, the wrestlers, not many people saw going into that night at then Sky Dome. That's one that comes to mind.

And I will say there was a good 10, 15 years that I was kind of removed from the wrestling scene. So I'm sure there's other things that happen in there that the hardcore fans are going, how could you forget about that? So I apologize. I mean, there's been some great turns the other way, but it's just not as often that you see like the ultimate heel suddenly turn face. Say this, some of the rumors about what's going to be available for Marchand after this

season gonna be interesting. As he told you, everything's on the table. Yeah, gonna be interesting. And did you see Katie Engelson, the great ringside host for the Panthers put out the report after the game that apparently not before game one but before game two there was another run to Dairy Queen for members of the Panthers in Edmonton. We have to start doing our own runs to Dairy Queen. Yeah.

The Sportsnet Dairy Queen run. There was also a great shot at the end of the game. Kevin Marsh and Brad's dad shaking Brian McDavid, Connor's dad. After it was over, shaking his hand. It's just a great, great shot. I mean, I don't know what else you can say about these two games. McDavid Dry Cytle had an absolutely incredible goal. But all the top players are playing great. McDavid's playing great. Dry Cytle's playing great. Seth Jones is playing great.

You know, Barkov... I will never question his will and his desire. He hasn't yet put his stamp on the series. Reinhardt. I'd say the whole line yet. You're right. You're right. Reinhardt, you know, he had a chance to score in overtime. He didn't score.

I can't help but look at Reinhardt and think whatever that injury is he came back from shockingly only missing a game. It's still a problem. Like obviously whatever Kachak is dealing with, he's still not anywhere near 100%. I can't help but watch Reinhardt and think he's not anywhere near 100% either. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's the way it looks like. Seth Jones is playing phenomenal. Forsling is having an unbelievable series. Verhege, I think, has been really good. I mean, we all know what Bennett is doing.

Bennett is having an epic postseason. Bouchard is playing fantastic. Bouchard has been excellent for Edmonton. Kane has been really good for Edmonton. Just, you know, a lot of guys in this series have been really good. I think if you're Florida, the one guy you're looking at and you're saying there's room to go here for what his ceiling is, what he looks like at his best, it's Barkov. I think that's the one thing, if you're the Panthers and you're going home and you're

saying we're tied at 1-1 and Barkov has kind of had the start he's had, you're feeling A, really good about it that you're tied and B you're feeling really good that he's too skilled he's too talented he's too determined it's not going to last like this. Both goalies have had moments and Bobrowski and Skinner made some unbelievable saves in this one. Skinner also got some incredible luck, but that's part of it. It goes your way that sometimes, but neither goalie has yet really put their stamp on the series. Neither goalie has really out-dueled the other one and you expect at some point that's going to occur.

The bottom line for me, Kyle, is that we're all on a great journey together. I don't think there's a lot to analyze yet here. I mean, the one thing is with the long change in the second periods of the first two games, Edmonton hasn't been very good. I think they've got to fix that. But there's not a lot to complain about in the first two games. And you really feel we're on a fantastic journey together. I thought it was interesting.

The refereeing and the officiating from game one to game two game one Bennett gets knocked on to the goalie and the goal counts game to Bennett sees that contact falls on or feels that contact falls on Skinner and gets a penalty now he did an intermission interview With Renault Lavoie of TVA and he said he was surprised to get that penalty now I understand why he would be surprised to get that penalty because he didn't get it in game one You know me I've been consistent. You've got to protect the goalies There were some other situations later in that game where Bennett was very, very careful

about where he was in relation to Skinner. I always think you have to protect the goalies, but I think it's really interesting that they clearly dialed that back. They said, you almost wonder now if Edmonton had challenged that kind of a goal in game two, would it have gone the other way? Yeah, that would have well, yeah, we talked about it after game one, if that's going to be the standard, you've kind of

got to stay consistent with it. Like I understand why Bennett would have been confused about that one, Kyle, because he says, in his mind, that's the exact same thing that happened in game one. But if you're gonna protect the goalies, I don't like the inconsistency, but Kyle, I'll allow it. The other thing I thought was interesting was clearly Edmonton did not like Kevin showed this in game one Florida was brilliant at Manipulating timeouts and icings To get more rest the referees were on top of them. Mikala tried it once he went to the bench on an icing and Chris Rooney was right there and pulled him off the bench. He's like not tonight

That's not happening on my watch get right back back out there right now. Look, in overtime, it's no autopsy, no foul out there. The penalty in game one, you had to call it. I thought Arvidsson was really angry when Ekblad got hurt by the shot Arvidson was really angry when Ekblad got hurt by the shot and Edmonton got a chance. Arvidson was furious. He felt it was too many men. That's the one Florida got away with in this game. Now it was funny, Florida got so many penalties in the first period that someone from one of the teams, the Panthers beat earlier in the playoffs, sent me a text and said, oh now they're calling penalties

against the Panthers. And I'm sure the Panthers were sitting there saying, what is going on tonight? But in overtime, the one I thought they got away with or anybody really got away with was that. That was a pretty obvious too many men. And that's one like puck over glass that you could make pretty easily, but they didn't call it and that's the way it goes. One one series, great games, great hockey, two worthy finalists, legit champions. We'll see where we go.

I don't know if I'd ever seen before when Edmonton tried their hand at the icing shenanigans in overtime and sending guys to the bench, Chris Rooney going over to Chris Knoblock with the sheet of paper with the numbers written on it of the guys that were on the ice because they had to go back and check. Remember when they weren't sure if Schmidt had got a piece of it? Rooney skating across to the Edmonton bench with a sheet of paper going, these are the players that need to be returned to the ice. I don't think I'd ever seen that before. But yeah, it's been so good to watch. And I mean, one thing for Edmonton, as it shifts to Florida, they've shown they can, as you say, neither goalies put their stamp on a game here yet. They've shown

out of the gate that they can beat Sergeyi Bobrovsky enough to win games. But of course, circumstances do change now in a new venue and Florida having last change. Anything else you want to add on this game here before we move on to other news around the league? Anything interesting you heard at the game on Friday? Why, yes, there was something interesting I heard at the game on Friday? Why yes there was something interesting I heard at the game on Friday Kyle. I have to tell you one of the things that's being rumored around here is that Trent Frederick might be sticking around. Really? Like new contracts

sticking around? Like not leaving sticking around yes. Wow Wow. So we'll see. I mean, I can't imagine we're gonna find out during the final. They've got more important things to worry about but that was something I heard in and around the building tonight. Alright, very good and as the playoffs has gone on, I mean, he's looked more and more comfortable in Edmonton colours. And you can see why they targeted him at the deadline. And a good teammate.

All right, Elliott, let's get to some other news from around the league. On Friday, the Dallas Stars announced they have fired their head coach, Pete DeBoer, who had one year left on his deal. I imagine this was something that no one within the organization could have seen coming after they dispatched the Winnipeg Jets in round number two. And now after the way their season ended against Edmonton, the comments after the season ended against Edmonton, maybe it's not so much of a surprise in your mind, Elliot. How did the stars, Jim Nill, get to this decision? Jim Nill is nothing if not thoroughly pragmatic. He thinks things through. He doesn't act rashly.

If you look at his history as a GM, he's in no hurry to fire coaches. I think you nailed it in your preamble there Kyle. If you would have said when they beat Colorado and Winnipeg that this is where we would have been, nobody would have believed it. And I think that's one of the reasons it took a few extra days to get here because I think the Stars organization as a whole was in shock of how this all unfolded after those two very impressive wins how badly they got clobbered by the Oilers number one and number two what happened with Autinger both during and after the game and how that unfolded in the days after. I do believe and hey, Tom Gellardi, the owner of the Stars, did an interview in the Dallas

Morning News where he said, it's crazy basically that people are suggesting that Peter DeBoer could be in trouble. We plan on having him back as the coach next year. And I believe that when he said that, he was 100% being honest. Like that wasn't cover, that wasn't him trying to throw people in the wrong direction. It wasn't smoke bombs.

It wasn't anything like that. It was how he felt in the moment But the exit interviews and we talked about this in our pod earlier this week The exit interviews changed all that Kyle it became pretty apparent that the relationship between the board and the players was broken Because of how they felt Ottinger was treated and again I don't think it's only about what was said after the game. It was how Autinger was pulled, not that he was pulled, but how Autinger was pulled. And that combined with the comments, it became pretty clear that the relationship was broken. You know, here's the thing about Peter DeBoer. He can be really tough. Most coaches are. He can be

really tough. He's got a really hard reputation on goalies, which spilled out into the public forum. But one of the things he has generally tried to do is keep that behind closed doors. Like even if some of the goalies like Marc Andre Fleury or Robin Leonard weren't happy with him, DeBoer tended not to take that public. He preferred to keep it private. And some other players pointed out how even when he's been upset at them, not goalies, but them as skaters, he doesn't do it publicly. And I and they felt that the fact that DeBoer said what he said,

it was so out of character for him publicly that they think it indicated A, how much shock he was in about how the Edmonton series went, but also some of them wondered if it was DeBoer's way of saying that My run here might be done That it might be better and Peter DeBoer someday He'll be able to answer all this for himself

but they honestly wondered some of the players did if DeBoer himself was saying you know what it might be time for me here too. And he's got an incredible record. He's been to one Stanley Cup final. He's been to six out of the last seven Western Conference finals and that's a great number. A lot of coaches would kill for that kind of resume, Kyle, but there's no doubt it looks like the next job, assuming he works and I don't have any reason to believe he won't, will be his sixth in the NHL. And all of them, they kind of burn out at this time.

He's a good coach, he gets results, but there definitely appears to be an expiration date. And obviously the stars felt he hit it. The players felt he hit it. And I wonder if he felt he hit it in Dallas, too. And that's why he reacted the way he did. Well, it's interesting because Mike Fuda on Friday before you went on the fan hockey show with Marchese, he wondered if that would in fact be it for Dabour, if he would continue coaching after this.

Now, until we hear from the man directly, you can't say for sure. It was just so fast. Yes, but it was just so fast. It was interesting that he felt that way. I think he knows a little bit. I'll say this. I really do believe that the Dallas Stars plan after they lost game five was Peter DeBoer coaches next season, no extension. He goes into the season and everybody sees how it goes. Now there's a lot of teams that don't like doing that. They don't like the speculation it creates. Some teams, some GMs have told me before they feel it weakens the coach in front of the players, but

Whatever you're feeling on that. I do believe the stars were prepared to do that until it became untenable You've seen the movie super bad, right? I Have I have friends who tell me that when they see the Michael Cera character in that movie, they're like, that's your high school autobiography. Really? Yes. I can see it.

Well, because I'm thinking of the scene, remember, and Michael Cera's in, they're in wood shop and they're devising their plan and Jonah Hill's like, what are you doing? Just drilling holes? He's like, yeah, last two weeks, F it. As everyone's trying to read between the lines of how Pete DeVore kind of wrapped up things in Dallas my mind went there. Okay so a couple other things in terms of what's next for the stars and the man behind the bench I mean Jim, Jim Nelwenn, he spoke to the media on Friday, the remaining staff, the plan for now, all of them to stay

on. They have a year left in their deals. He says he's going to look at everything internally, externally, going to be open-minded. And he pointed out, I mean, he was the one that initially hired Jim Montgomery out of Denver to coach the Dallas Stars back in 2018. Do you have any inklings initially over where they could be headed? What kind of coach they could be looking for? I sent a note to Jim Neal and he said the same thing as he did publicly that all options will be considered. I think Kyle again this is not a coaching search that they plan to have

So I think they're kind of feeling their way out, but I do believe that they are going to consider I Don't think it's guaranteed they're going after They're gonna look at it like we need an experienced guy because we're prepared to win the Stanley Cup I don't think that's necessarily the way they're going here. I one thing I did here is expect to hear some fresh names whether they do it or not. They have an AHL coach. Neil Graham. They're in the Western Conference final against Abbotsford, Vancouver's team and

Neil Graham last year went very very deep into the process in San Jose. He was a finalist there. And I've heard at times the stars have been asked if other teams can interview him for spots on their NHL bench. Not necessarily head coach, in addition to that San Jose situation I just mentioned, but we'd like to have him run or be part of our staff. So Dallas at some point in time, they're going to have to make a decision on him. I don't know, Jim Nill would know better than me.

I don't know if they consider him ready to do this job right now, but I think it's a name that should not be ignored. They've got a rising coach in their system. So that's someone I'd be curious about. He's got a really good reputation. I don't know him well. Nil, because he's been around as long as he has been, has a lot of contacts out there.

Todd Nelson has been on the Dallas bench before. Todd Nelson has been on the Dallas bench before. Jay Woodcroft, who went deep into coaching searches in Pittsburgh and Boston. Obviously Jim Nil knows him from their days together in Detroit. I'm gonna give you another name here, and this is a name I think will be a contender in this conversation and that is Glenn Gullitzen Glenn Gullitzen has been the head coach of the Dallas Stars before

Remember he coached them for two seasons 2011-12 and 2012-13 Gullitzen then coached two years in Calgary and he's been an assistant coach in Edmonton. I wouldn't be surprised if he is part of this process. He's had a lot of time to learn,

he's in a visible position here running the Edmonton power play. Some people will joke, I remember I saw Mike Yeo at a coaching clinic once and he was talking about the Pittsburgh power play and the first thing he did, I really loved Mike Yeo for this, the first thing he did was he got up in front of everybody and he said, look, everything I'm about to show you looks better because I've got Sidney Crosby and Evgeny Molkin. But the funny thing about it was Yo gave a really good presentation not only on what they did, but how when you have

two nuclear weapons like that, you have to still be able to explain to them why you might want to try things that they might not necessarily see and how to convince them of doing that. So Gullitzen, I just wouldn't be surprised considering his history there and the visibility of his spot here if he's someone that they talk to as part of this. But I do think Dallas here is going to, in addition to some of the names you might expect, I think they're going to consider a few names that you might not expect.

And they do have an AHL coach there that they know if they don't give him an opportunity at some point, they're probably going to lose. All right. Just another thing on Dallas here, Elliot. It sounds like listening to Jim Neal Friday that there's a path for bringing Jamie Ben back. I mean, the fact that he's going to be 36 in July qualifies for those 35 plus contracts that can be loaded with bonuses. It seems like something can and will be done to keep their captain in the organization. Well, somebody me, Jamie Ben did have 49 points this year in 80 games. You know the playoffs he was not as much of a factor as he or the Stars would like,

but in the regular season he definitely was and you still have to get there right? So I think the Stars, like I, and I don't know, he might not like to hear this, but he played 80 games this year. I do wonder if maybe they look at, hey, is there a way we can keep you fresher for the playoffs? But somebody said to me, you don't throw away guys who have 16 goals and 49 points in this day and age.

You need those guys. So sometimes recency bias is a thing and he's still a regular season factor. Maybe they can find a way to keep him fresher for the playoffs. All right, speaking of guys that you need, whether it was Vegas or St. Louis before that, Alex Petrangelo has long been a guy that teams need. Now Patrangelo

skipped the Four Nations this year. Canada would love to have him but he prioritized trying to get his body in the best shape possible for the stretch drive with Vegas this season. What are you hearing with regards to his future as this is a player that has logged a lot of hard miles over the course of his career? Every year Kyle, I hear oh Patrangelo is so badly beaten up and he's put his body through so much he's not going to be able to play next season and every year I get told that's wrong and every year he's back and he plays and he plays hard and he plays great. And you know he's one of my favorite players to deal with in the league because he has great answers to questions. You'll remember that the NHL and the countries have a

agreement that to name your Olympic teams the full team is the end of December but you have to name six players by the end of June. And the dates aren't set up yet, but it sounds like it could potentially be the week of the 16th, which is, you know, a week and a half from now. And I put together a long list for all these teams, like who could be on it, and I had Patrangelo on that list and someone indicated to me that it might not be available. So I don't have any confirmation on that yet and I still think it's one of those things where in at this time of year teams are trying to figure out what their rosters might look like for next year and are there any injury

concerns so we'll see what happens with Patrangelo I hope he's healthy I hope he's good enough to go but it sounds like there's at least the possibility that they're trying to figure out what his health will be like for the start of next season Wow okay that's a big one He's one of my favorite players, like I said, to deal with. He's just, he's so good talking about the game that I'm gonna hate it when he's not around. I'll say that much. Yes. Do we have any inkling on- And hopefully that's a long time away. For sure. Do you have any inkling on what it is he's been dealing with?

No. no. I mean, you saw him in the playoffs. It looked like it could have been anything like knee, hip, groin. I just don't know. OK. The Buffalo Sabres, Elliot, I mean, they've come up on this podcast a few times here

as the offseason for them has been underway for a few months. Kevin Adams has added some names to his front office. There's been the Bowen Byroms of the world that have been out there. What else are you hearing about what's going on in Buffalo? I just think when you go through the combine, I feel like I mentioned this every pod, but I kind of keep saying it. Like one, I ask around and I say, who's active? And, you know, I get told Buffalo's active.

And, you know, there was the stuff about Dallin during the season, and I think they know that, you know, they're key guys, they want to be competitive, and Buffalo's trying to make that happen. And Buffalo in the past has indicated that they will deal some of their prospects for more immediate help, and I think that's the case now. We've talked about Byron. The Paturka talk has been out there, although again, Buffalo has indicated that's not something

they're really crazy about doing. But I just get people who keep saying to me, you've got to watch the Sabres because they know that their core guys they want to win not that anyone blames them they know exactly how their core players feel. Okay other news on Friday Derek Lalone now an assistant coach for the Toronto Maple Leaf. So I can only imagine after all those hours logged in the Sportsnet green room during the early rounds of the playoffs, he went to Craig Borube and said, I have all the answers to your problems.

Thanks for the scoop, Derek. I was really hoping he'd come back on the panel and maybe he could replace Kevin. Yes, that's right. Happy for Derek. Obviously you guys can tell everyone listening how much we like him. So really happy that it worked out in a good place for him. He's a great fit really really interesting to listen to when he was on with you guys and you can see why someone like Craig Borube and the Leafs would want to have his input there on a full-time basis. So congrats to

Derek. Were you surprised Kyle that Mike Andlauer and Steve Stales came out and said they told Batherson he wouldn't be dealt? Feel like this is a biannual thing that they do. It's like me asking if Patrangelo is too hurt to play. Yes, that's right. Happened at the trade deadline. There was the Brady Kachak stuff earlier in the year. I think, did you see the video of Anlauer doing the heel click walking up to do media?

I have to say more talented than I realized he was. Has to be one of the more limber of the NHL owners. That's true. I don't know how many owners or broadcasters could do that. No. Somebody said to me that one was all my fault because I talked about how other teams were looking at the Sanders having so many right shots. Yeah, right. Well, as Michael Anlauer kicked off his media there on Friday. You weren't the one that he was going after, so you can stand down on that one.

I saw that. Well, maybe I can change things next week. That's right. That's Scott O'Kline. How are you doing? I'm good, but there's still plenty of time to change that. Okay. That'll get us to the final thought, which is brought to you by GMC. So the beginning of this

week, it feels like it was a month ago, we took some time to talk about where things were headed, particularly with some of the biggest names in the Canadian Hockey League making the jump to the NCAA. It was confirmed just the other day that Caden Lindstrom from Medicine Hat is in fact going to Michigan State and a lot of eyes are turning towards his teammate Gavin McKenna who will be draft eligible in 2026. Your thoughts on where McKenna's future could be headed. I think the Western Hockey League hopes that McKenna will stay. I don't know what I would put the odds on that, but they are definitely hoping he will

stay. I guess he's going to make a few visits. I was asking a few people around hockey what they thought and informal straw poll I would say Kyle, Penn State. That's who they think the favorite is but nothing is done until it's done. I was told it would be premature to make any enormous proclamation. But I asked a bunch of people around and said, if you had to pick where he's going to play next year, most of them picked Penn State. Wow.

Well, they had the eyes emoji post over the final weekend of the Memorial Cup tournament, right? That got everybody's attention. Yes. Yes, it did. So perhaps linked to that. I think I think that's that's part of the conversation now certainly across the CHO and you're like well how good is that team gonna be next year? It's like well how many other top guys are gonna

be back? Then I'll have a good answer for you. But it's a lot of situations in limbo and certainly maybe none bigger than the Tigers with Linseam already committed. And where is Gavin McKenna going? The most likely first overall pick in 2026. All right. That was the final thought brought to you by GMC. We'll take our first break and come back with a thought line. This is 32 Thoughts the Podcast and it continues after this. Okay, welcome back.

Elliot, bravo for trying to get to the bottom of who was Connor McDavid passing to on the 3-3 goal on Friday. He didn't give you a clear answer, but all you could do is try. I'm still taking it as he doesn't want to embarrass BXA and BXA's wrong. Oh, I think he would have no issues embarrassing him But i'll keep you on that theory Anything that's bad for bx i'm good with as a theory That's good. All right, let's get to the thought line or What is temporarily being rebranded as 30 true detective.

Okay, can we talk about this for a second before we get to the viewers? Oh, certainly. Okay, so just a little bit more. First of all, I just wanna say, this is turning out to be one of the great bits in the history of the pod. People are coming up and offering suggestions and I understand

you've told me there's a bunch of stuff coming here. So I appreciate all the people who are joining us as sleuths encyclopedia Brown's as you will that last voicemail was sent to us at what, 4.08 a.m. Eastern time on Tuesday morning? Yes. David Amber flew from Toronto to Edmonton at 6.30 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday morning. It lines up. However, Amber is adamant. Adamant it is not him. Now there were some people wondering if it was Kevin Biaxa and Biaxa we asked him after the game on Wednesday if it was him when we got together afterwards and he gave the lamest denial. He had like a sly smile and

He said it wasn't him But it was not convincing amber is much more convincing. I came across looking at that saying You are the worst liar i've ever seen so but i'm I'm still not convinced because I don't think Kevin BXA knows how to do anything so in let I'd have to figure out who would be able to disguise his voice that would get him to do this. You think Amber can do it? Like that's the

whole thing. I'm not convinced Dave could do it either. Amber's kids could do it maybe BXA's kids could do it. Yes. Amber, no, he doesn't have the brains to do that either. I will say this. We had an outside name that was brought up to me because the last voicemail said if the Oilers win the cup, I will reveal myself. Someone made a guess, I don't want to say it, I want to see if this person is right, but someone made a guess after hearing that, that actually made a lot of sense to me. A person who would have the ability to do it. And finally, finally, you know what one person guessed to me? Who?

It's our producer, Dom Sramatti. Oh. Just quietly, quietly in the backgrounds. It's not you. I can confirm it's not me. OK, because apparently around the Vancouver station You tell people I'm very high maintenance. Why are people lying? You know you working with you so easy So you don't ask you don't ask any questions and you tell people I'm high maintenance

I'm Elliot's yes, man Yeah, all right, so let's get to. You got anything to add before we go here? Well yeah I'm starting to have some theories. It's becoming the Masked Singer. This is what this is. It is the Masked Singer. The disguised voice that we're trying to get to the bottom of. And we've got, there were a number of entries into the thought line. So we'll start with Josh from LaDuke. Hi guys, love the pod. Just wanted to float the idea that it is actually Kyle sending in these voicemails with the voice changer.

It's the perfect plan and nobody would suspect him except for me. Free David Amber. There were a few of those with a finger pointed at me. I am not the voice. I am not the voice. Oh, you're not? No, it is not me. It is a good plan. Yes, I can see why someone would think that but I would not be the driver behind something like this. I'm all for the organic, the organically driven sidebars for this podcast. John from Ohio, Hi 32 Thoughts team.

I know exactly who the anonymous voice is. This year, your podcast has spent many an episode talking about game pucks and the trackers inside of them. Well, the game pucks have become sentient and have called into your podcast. They have spent much time listening to David Amber on the air. They have mimicked his talking cadence and have fooled you into thinking it's him. The puck on the mantle has formed a hive mind with the other game pucks around the world.

The pucks called into your podcast using an AI voice This is basically the plot of the Terminator It's a bad side for humanity. That's good. I like that Right or Terminator 2 right with the the sequel opening that Ron had you guys going on with the quote? Oh, yeah, before game one, which is so good. Yeah, great movie. Jonathan and Newmarket, Kyle, Dom, Elliot, the way that caller purses their lips between words during pauses, it reminds me of Elliot. I think Elliot is doing some Kaiser Soze type shenanigans calling in pretending to be David Amber. Why? Only Elliot would really know how this might tweak

his colleague, a guy who claims to never listen to this podcast. It's twisted. But I think Elliot is the caller. There were a few with the fingers pointed at you as well. Really? Oh, yeah. There were? First of all, I appreciate all of you thinking I could do that.

But I'm just as dumb as Dave and Kevin. I could not do that Okay, one more on this topic. It's a voicemail an old friend of the show Elliot broken-hearted in Boston Gentlemen no longer broken-hearted in Boston. You're asking today who left that mysterious message the other day. I Think it was Celia. I Think she still has the heart beating. You know, after I broke up with her, after I paid for all her relatives' operations, she said she was going to go back and try to hook up with Elliot. Good luck, boys. Best time of the year. Stanley Cup final.

Unbelievable. Let me just say for the record, I am happily married and I could never do better than I already have done now. Let me just state that for everyone out there. Right. Well, that all started with you. You got a message from Celia. This is like a great season finale where all the characters from for throughout the season all come back.

All the threads are being tied together. All of them. Yeah. So there's tied together all of them yeah so there's there's some good theories out there but we still haven't found the culprit what we're looking for no no few other hockey related thoughtline submissions another voicemail this is Buddy from Edmonton. Hello from beautiful Edmonton, Alberta. And I'm not just saying that in the summer, this is a genuinely nice city. So I was just noticing that since the Oilers have now moved on, going to play Florida again, this means that they have played, you know the same They played three of the four teams from last year

So my question is is three the most that a team has ever repeated in back-to-back playoff runs or there ever been a team? That's played all four teams in consecutive years Anyway, love the pod. I'm Buddy from Edmonton. Thanks, bye. I assume, Kyle, that you looked this up, but I can't think of a situation where a team played the same four back to back off the top of my head.

No, and that's because it has never happened. Never. And there's only two. There's three, okay. Two times? Well, there have been two other instances different from Edmonton last year and this year where a team has played three of the same four opponents

in back-to-back playoffs. I'm wondering if it was one of those times where the playoffs were in the division, like when Philadelphia and Edmonton played in Stanley Cups finals and Edmonton would be playing Winnipeg and Calgary all those years, was it something like that? You're very warm. Think earlier than when it was the Flyers emerging from that side of the league to meet

Edmonton. So, Islanders and oilers? Yes. Correct. Same two years, 83 and 84. Edmonton played Winnipeg, Calgary, and then the islanders, the islanders, Washington, the Rangers, and Edmonton in the final. Those are the only times.

Wow. It's never been four. I figured it had to be something like that. Glad I was close. Yeah, you're right on it. Thank you buddy for the question. Up next, Ludd in Houghton, Michigan. The birthplace of professional hockey. Though I think that has been disputed as time has gone on, but nevertheless, it was one of the original spots for pro hockey. Gentlemen, in the interest of brevity, I will forego the cutesy nickname game and get to the point. I know Elliot is a father and Kyle is due, not sure of Dom's status. Neither is he. Dom, would you like to clarify? No? No, no, all right. Are you sure?

Yeah, okay, just checking But as fathers you surely understand the need to not embarrass a guy in front of his child Well on a recent pod you took a question from my daughter Lena from Eau Claire, her very first submission and a very good question I might add. However, you have ignored all of my previous submissions making me look like a hockey loser. Oh, I'm sorry about that. This treatment only fortifies the image created by my being a lifelong Sabres fan and a very late blooming hockey player

that cannot skate and I'm therefore relegated to goalie and not a good one. I need a lifeline here so I will merge an ongoing question with one of the recent comments on the pod. As a goalie in training I watch everything the pros do and I see the backup sitting on the bench with a ball cap and with both gloves on. My question is, as you guys tend to have unequaled access to the players bench area and the backup goalie specifically, what is the craziest routine you have witnessed for a backup sitting there preparing for an event that's statistically not likely to happen, as in getting the call to go in during the game. In beer league, we get to work the door,

but how do you pass the time as a pro? Keep up the good work and always make your peers, meaning other fathers, look as good as they can be in the eyes of their children. First of all, Lud, I'd say this. I have more respect for the people that aren't great and are taking the chance Than those that have played hockey for a long time so the fact that you're even putting on the gear and

Going out there as a goalie no less even though you really don't have the background for it in its own way That is even more impressive in the eyes of myself, Kyle, Dom, and Lena. So look at the positive side. Look at the good side. Secondly, the guy I always fascinated with watching was Steve Valakett, who's now a great broadcaster on the Rangers games. Steve Valakett, when he would back up Henrik Lundqvist, I would watch him, particularly in games in Toronto where I worked ringside, and he would sit on the bench and involve

himself in the play as if he was playing. He would move to kind of make the saves. He would watch the play and say, and we showed it once, he was making the saves as if he was actually in goal so that would be the one that stood out to me was Valakett involved himself in that way. Wow that's a good one so the only it's not a crazy routine but just recently working the conference final in the east in Carolina how it's set up my position during the game is right next to where VTEC Vanecek was backing up Sergey Bobrovsky would sit during the

game, right? He's cross ice. He's not on the bench on the visiting bench there at the Lenovo Center. And down to my right is where we had the monitor setup that had our show. And he was so locked into the replays and just seeing what was going on. Like, so he would kind of look over my shoulder and peek down and there was the one, that goal in game one that went off Ajo's skate

that got reviewed. Like he like crouched route down and got right in front of the monitor to try to get a good look at it. So I just thought that was interesting. It's not often you're, yeah, it's not often you're sitting that close to the backup goalie during a game, but just the way it's set up in that building I was and

yeah, he was he wasn't you know, looking around for is there where's the nearest hot dog vendor to get a bite to eat during the game he was locked in. I like that story. All right, last one from Jack. Hello, Kyle Dom and to whom it may concern. Oh, come on. Geez.

As a lifelong Ducks fan who hasn't been able to enjoy playoff hockey for the seventh straight year, I'm amid my annual tradition of rooting for Corey Perry to chase down another cup. Perry was a peach fuzz face 22 year old when he helped the Ducks bring home California's first Stanley Cup and is still searching for his second 18 years later. My question is, what's the longest gap a player had between winning the cup?

If the Oilers win it all this year, I'd have to imagine Perry's 18 year gap is up there, if not the longest. Keep up the great work boys and if Perry gets his second cup, my nipples will be erect. No one to blame but yourself. Yeah, I know that is true. Do you have a guess? Was it 18 years? It will be, yep. If they do it this year. Oh, you know who it has to be? It has to be Mark Recchi. No.

Ugh. Because remember, 06 in Carolina. Right. But before that, don't forget he won with Pittsburgh. Yep. In the early 90s. 15 years. Is there a longer one that you know of? Oh.

The current record is 16. One eternity later. Okay, so let's just let people know how this pod worked. We taped this segment earlier and I had to do an NHL Network hit at 310, Edmonton time. So Kyle told me the question and I had to do an NHL Network hit at 310 Edmonton time So Kyle told me the question I had to run and while I sat down on the set it popped into my head It's gotta be Chris Cellios nice. Yes. It is has to be because it is It took now hold on it came to you or did Mike Rupp float that to you?

No, no. I didn't tell anybody because I was there to talk about Dallas and I didn't want to distract myself any further than I was already distracted. So I was like, 1986, which way? And then you remember 2002, that's all the Hall of Fame Red Wings. And then Chelyos came. I think I've told this story in the pod a while ago, but I remember reading a story once about a Yankee pitcher who came in, they were doing trivia in the bullpen and the question was name all the US states that end with S. While they were doing it, that pitcher got called into the game and he like,

and they said that he gave up like three bombs, like three fly outs to the warning track. And like, he's terrible. He walked back into it. I think I can't remember who it was, but he walked back in, he grabbed the bullpen phone, he yelled Arkansas. So it was totally distracting while he was trying to pitch. So I guess the fact that you got it when you sat down, I mean, I shuttered to thinking you had to go through that whole hit. I wouldn't be able to focus.

I wouldn't be able to focus. Yeah. Huh? Dallas? Jim who? That's good. No, you nailed it. 86 with Montreal, 2002 with Detroit.

Okay, that'll do it for another edition of the Thought Line or what it's being renamed as over the course of the Stanley Cup final. 30 true detective, 18333113232 or the email, 32thoughts at sportsnet.ca. We'll take another break and come back with our interview with Stuart Skinner from Media Day from Edmonton. That on the other side. All right, welcome back as promised, Stuart Skinner, who has been through just about every emotion you can think of as a goaltender, not only through these playoffs, but the last couple in the crease for the Edmonton Oilers.

He was the winner in backstopping Edmonton in game one of this final. And he, along with both teams remaining in the series, three wins away from a Stanley Cup. Ellie and I had a chance to sit down with him on media day before the Stanley Cup final got underway. Here now is that conversation with Stuart Skinner of the Edmonton Oilers. OK, well, Ellie, I think when we have Stuart Skinner here, naturally, the first question has to be about coffee. Coffee, yep. Yeah, let's go.

You know you love a good cup. So what's been your go-to lately? What's the setup like at home right now? How are you consuming it? Yeah, I got a good Breville machine at home. I'm making the wife Americano with a little bit of cream, which is pretty easy. Americanos, I feel like, are pretty easy.

And then myself, I'm in the flat whites right now. Yeah. I kind of started on it two weeks ago, flat whites. In Dallas, actually, is where it started. And so now I'm trying to make a really good cup of flat white. So I'm doing better. Elliot loves a good Americano.

So that's the key to his heart. I can make a mean Americano. Yes. And now when you're on the road, like do you go to cafes locally or do you bring stuff to do it in your hotel? Oh yeah, no, I go, I try out different cafes. I love going to, I love the experience of a cafe.

Being able to go sit there for a little bit, just to experience, I don going to, I love the experience of a cafe. Being able to go sit there for a little bit, just to experience, I don't know, the energy, I guess you'd say, and the different types of cups of coffees that they have. There's a spot, me and Brett Kulak, Brett Kulak is also a huge coffee guy. He makes his own coffee on the plane, like on flights. Seriously.

Yeah. How does he do that? And it's amazing because it smells fantastic. Right, right. So does he grind the coffee fresh there too, the whole bit? Yeah, yeah. He does all of it. I love that smell. Oh, it's fantastic.

Yeah. But we went to, it's called Devotion in New York. And it was one of the best coffees I've ever had. Wow. So other than that, like is there a favorite spot or like one that maybe you went through during the playoffs or anything recently that left a mark with you? Right now, like in Edmonton, I'd say Columbian

is my favorite cup of coffee right now. Been there a handful of times. I spent a good amount of money on coffees over there. Okay, thank you for entertaining me on that. When Kulak breaks out all his equipment, are guys like laughing or are they groaning? Like what is it? When he brings out the coffee? Yeah. Some guys are laughing but like it kind of

helps the smell of the players. Especially when it's a six hour flight right? It's nice to get him you know brewing some coffee. Is there anybody who says okay Brett if you're gonna do that you're brewing me one too? Like you have. I've tried but so he's pretty smart with it because he's he grinds just enough for him Sorry guys would love to so it's yeah, it's great for him, but I sit right behind him actually So every time he brews it I'm like I'm kind of peeking over. I'm like hey like did you bring enough for me today? Yeah, sorry of peeking over him like hey like did you bring enough for me today? Yeah sorry man I should have. True veteran. So last question is it an aero press that he uses or what does he

bring on the plane? Yeah I think you're right I think it is an aero press. His wife actually got it for him for one of his birthdays I think a couple two years ago because he's had it for two years I believe but yeah I can tell you exactly but he does good though. You know Stuart I just wanted to say like as we talk about the series I have great admiration for you. We have you know I tell people who go into media and they're gonna be on social media that the thing you have to understand about choosing this life is that everyone's gonna see your best days and everybody's gonna see your worst days and you have to be prepared to deal with that. I have huge admiration for the way you've handled it. I think

your interviews with Gene and even one with Emily Kaplan, like they were fantastic and you know I think it's, I think a lot of people out there really, they really identify with how you don't hide, whether it's up or it's down, like you're out there and you're telling everybody what you think. Yeah, absolutely. Thank you very much. That's very kind of you to say.

I've been working really hard on that, through my whole career playing hockey. I think it goes back to even junior days. I mean, I think it's life too. Not everything is sunshine and rainbows. I mean, everyone can attest to that. I think you guys can attest to that. So it's been a lot of work to being able to kind of be

where I'm at now. I think it's important for me to have that integrity of owning what's going on. Sometimes I don't play great, sometimes I do. And I think it's better if I just own that than pretend that way I'll actually get better from it. When you said, I think it was after the game five in Vegas that you had a feeling of peace going into all of that.

What does that feel like? Because the position of goaltending, none of that appears peaceful. No. No, it's a very stressful job. I think for me in that moment, I mean, I strive to, you know, find that sort of peace every game that I play. Now it doesn't always happen. But yeah, I think in that moment if I look back on that game,

it was really just a sense of peace and that's more so just a feeling of that calmness that, you know, win or lose we're gonna be alright. How I'm playing I was very grounded throughout that whole day. I wasn't too worried, wasn't overthinking things and I think that's kind of where I found my peace. Again that doesn't always happen I mean it's easy to overthink especially as a goalie. You know, I remember Braden Holtby, he always had the routine, like, when he gave up a goal, he would flick the water bottle and focus on a drop. Like, even if you're away from the rink, is there something that is sort of like your comfort zone?

This is where I go when I need to be grounded. I mean, yeah, absolutely. My family. I mean, my two boys and my wife, they give me the most comfort. Absolutely. Even days where we're playing, like I remember last series playing against Dallas, I think it was game two. That day I just needed to FaceTime them really quick before I got on the bus just so that I can feel some comfort because I was nervous that day. So yeah, they gave

me a ton of comfort. I always tell my wife that too. After games, especially like game two or days you know you're going home the next day after a flight or after a game, sorry. And you're just like, I can't wait to see you guys. I can't wait to be back home and, you know, be back in life. Do you think like years ago, would you have done something like that on a game day? Or would you have thought that like, oh, I've got to be just like a FaceTime with family? Yeah, years ago, I would not have done that. I think if you go back to me playing in Wichita,

East Coast, I would have been a serious, very strict on routine. I have to nap for this amount of time and all that. I will say what's really helped is having a kid. It changes things, right? Because he needs you, he needs you more. If he wakes up from his nap and mom's not there, you can't just be like, oh, no, I'm going to leave you.

I got to do my own thing. You got to go get him. You got to feed him, take care of him, change his diaper. So I think having kids has been the best thing for me because it's kept me very adaptable through these past years. Here's my last question. How differently does this team play in front of you now? Because it looks different.

Yeah, yeah, I think, again, it's clear to see that. It's so visual. The work that they're putting in right now, the discipline, the fight to block shots, the grind around our net, the scrums, just the willing to battle, the willing to do anything we can to win a game. I think it's huge and to be honest, that can be tough to do when there's one second left and we're up three nothing and Freddy blocks a shot.

That just shows you right there, like he didn't have to block that shot. It was one second left. We knew we won the game. So it just shows the commitment to the guys and how much love we have for each other. Okay, thanks once again to Stuart Skinner for lending us his time. Two days off now before game number three from Florida,

a chance for everybody to shift from Northern Alberta down to South Florida. So we wish Elliot safe travels, the whole crew, everybody making their way down to sunrise. We will talk to you again post game three on Tuesday morning.