32 Thoughts: The Podcast - Just a Couple Chill Guys With Hockey Thoughts

Episode Date: November 22, 2024

In this episode of 32 Thoughts, Kyle Bukauskas and Elliotte Friedman begin by discussing the start of the Joe Sacco, Boston Bruins era (4:15). Then, the fellas delve into the upstart Calgary Flames (9:38) and their recent opponent in the New York Rangers (12:34). They shoutout Marc-Andre Fleury for his 1000th NHL start (17:31) and then Kyle and Elliotte discuss the Ottawa Senators after their tough loss to Vegas and Travis Green's tough-love approach (22:37). Elliotte talks about the struggles the Canucks have been facing this season (29:12). The guys talk about what the Hurricanes will do during Frederik Andersen's absence (31:55) and  Kyle and Elliotte unpack the video that NHL Player Safety put out about contact with the head moments this season (36:13). The Final Thought focuses on Jonathan Toews after his inspiring Instagram post about his healing journey (44:46).Kyle and Elliotte answer your questions in the Thought Line (52:36).In the last segment, Kyle and Elliotte speak with the Tampa Bay Lightning's Ryan McDonagh  in partnership with AstraZeneca's Get Body Checked Against Cancer campaign which encourages fans across the league to get screened (1:13:30). In partnership with the NHL’s Hockey Fights Cancer™ initiative, the campaign uses the familiar concept of body checking to emphasize that while a well-timed check can save a game, a well-timed body check can save a life. Check out the link for more information. www.getbodychecked.com Link to Casey O'Brien's amazing survival story www.stillstrongfoundation.org/obriensurvivor/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.  

Got some chips there, bud? No, you know what this is? Taylor Swift gummy hearts from the concert. What flavor? It's all different kinds of flavors. Apparently they're quite good. They were getting rave reviews in the audience tonight. You got your hand like wrist deep in there.

What's going on? How are you still going? How big is this bag? I should send a picture to you they like they cover the opening with this giant sticker okay now i got it all right welcome to 32 thoughts the podcast presented by the GMC Sierra AT4X. Schramatti, Friedman, Bukaskis all with you. And Fried, you know, when everyone is freaking out about what's head contact and what's not,

coaching changes and who's next, but we're just a couple of chill guys who host a podcast. I, by the way, I have to say I am replayed out. Replayed out? Yeah, I don't want to see another challenge for a month i am asking all of these coaches not to challenge anything for a month i i am tired of video review by the way are you having any difficulty hearing me is your voice okay given the night you had thursday quickly before we get into the guts of this episode. No, I'm all good. It was not too loud that I could handle.

We went to Taylor Swift on Thursday night at Rogers Center in Toronto. And let me just say this, Kyle. I have enormous respect for an athlete or an entertainer or anyone who charges people to see them perform, who understands that parents, especially for their kids, because Taylor Swift's crowd is very young. I took my son. There were a lot of young boys and young girls there tonight. You know, these ticket prices are expensive. These parents, I'm sure there's lots of them listening to this pod. They are grinding at work to get their kids into this concert.

And she understands that. Three hours and 20 minutes. Apparently, the average length of her concert during this tour is three hours and 19 minutes. So she gave us one more minute above average. And it was an outstanding performance. I think I've told the story on the pod many times about Michael Jordan, one of the games with the Bulls where they were just killing the Raptors,

and he had three points at the half. It was a game at the Old Dome. There were 36,000 people there. The Raptors had just traded half their lineup. They had no shot at beating the Bulls. It was, I think, their 72-win season. Three points at the half. Phil Jackson tells him take

the rest of the night off this game's joke and he looks around he goes I haven't given these people their show yet he knows that they're there to see him 19 points in the third quarter spectacular then he walks off the court after the third quarter and says now you can take me out I have so much respect for people who know that there are those in the crowd who've paid their hard-earned money to see them, and they say, I'm going to give you your money's worth. And she does. Incredible performer.

Incredible. That's awesome. Awesome to hear. Glad you had a good time. We talked about just the impact of being in the city, Toronto, last weekend, and I'm sure no different this coming weekend. We've got a lot to get to on the podcast here.

This episode also a little later on. The Thought Line, of course, is back. And a conversation with Ryan McDonough of the Tampa Bay Lightning to come as well. But, Elliot, I mean, we may as well start in Boston. The Joe Sacco era has begun with the Bruins after the coaching change on Tuesday. Got their first win, 1-0 over Utah. Jonas Corpus Salo's second shutout of the season. What's been your read on all that has gone on in Beantown over the last three days?

Well, the first thing I did, and so I'm going to be honest about this. I didn't get a chance to see a lot of hockey on Thursday. So I'm even more clueless about the games than normal. I want everyone to understand that. But when I saw the score, Kyle, my initial reaction was, I wonder if Corpozalo gets a bit of a run here. You know, the Bruins are in a place where they have to win games. And long-term, obviously, Swayman's the guy.

I think we will eventually look back at this as a speed bump on his career, and he will sort itself out. But the Bruins right now, results matter. They have to win games. So after watching Corpus Allo get the win, I'm curious to see who's going to be their starting goaltender on Saturday. Does Corpus Allo get a bit of a run? You know, it wouldn't hurt Swayman.

They have a great goalie coach in Bob Essenza. Wouldn't hurt Swayman to just practice with him. So that was number one that jumped into my head. You know, the second thing, obviously, they needed the W. They got it. They shut out a team that has some really talented scorers in Utah. You know, the one thing that, and for the Bruins now, they can't look back. They've got to look forward. And Sacco is going to have a chance to win this job.

That's some of the initial reaction I seem to get here. But the one thing that I look at just from everything that happened this week is, But the one thing that I look at just from everything that happened this week is I hope there's a day where we get a chance to hear what kind of happened in those negotiations between the Bruins and Montgomery. Because I don't think it's as simple as they made him an offer and they couldn't come to a deal and it's over and the team's not winning. We're going another different direction I think it was deeper than that I think it was more than just they couldn't reach financial terms I think there was some talk over you know direction of the team I don't know if Sweeney and Montgomery saw the future the same way you You know, the picking assistant coaches, that was a bit of a bone of contention between the two of them too.

The more I hear about this, and again, someday I hope we get the opportunity to sit them both down, inject them with true serum, and hear what they have to say, although that will probably never happen. Because I think it's not as simple as the obvious i think there was just some deeper philosophical disagreements there and i think at the end they kind of realized that maybe they just weren't compatible with each other so um you know the bruins have to move on and montgomery has to move on and as we've said I think Montgomery will land on his feet and we'll see where that's going to be so between that

between the contract negotiation that dragged much longer than everyone there I'm sure would have liked with Jeremy Swayman it just seemed I mean we talked about it at length of course because of how much the Bruins have been in the news from training camp right on through to this week. There's been a lot for them to deal with and for a team that in years past

has had the mechanisms to be able to handle it all. I mean, you wrote about it in your blog this week. Maybe this is a bit of a team coming to the realization that there ain't no Zidane O'Chara or Patrice Bergeron walking through that door. And for as long as Brad Marchand's been doing it, as long as David Pasternak, Charlie McAvoy have been doing it, this is a set of circumstances that this group hasn't had to deal with of this magnitude where

so much has seemed to have crumbled and been on shaky ground it's been just a really difficult beginning for them of course and i wonder if just one thing one layer on top of another that this core as long as they've had success and as successful as they've been i should say they just haven't had to deal with this much all at one time again though i really believe very strongly writing them off is prematurely is stupid it's still marchand i agree still mcavoy It's still McAvoy. It's still Pasternak. They have a lot of talent there. They have a lot of guys who've done a lot. I do believe, like I said, eventually Swayman will sort himself out,

whether it's now or later. But those holes on the roster and in the dressing room, I do think it's a lot. And even working on HockeyNet in Canada or the NHL on Sportsnet anytime there's big change it takes a while to adjust to it and I think that's the Bruins were such a machine and how they adapted post Chara and initially post Bergeron that I think we just thought that it was going to keep going this way forever. This is the point where I think it's kind of caught up to them a little bit.

But I don't think they're incapable of righting the ship. Right them off at your own peril. All right. The Calgary Flames, Elliot, on Thursday beat the Rangers through a ton of shots at Igor Shostakhin as well. Three wins in a row now for Calgary after a stretch where you thought, okay, coming back down to earth after a hot start to the season. They've rebounded here, Elliot. Dustin Wolfe's been a big part of it, of course.

Matthew Coronado scores again on Thursday. I mean, it's tough to get a read, I think, totally on this team because of where the expectations were and trying to stay realistic about it all. But through all of that, they've been a fun team to watch. And you haven't always been able to say that about that group over the last couple of seasons. That was the best game I think Calgary's played all year. I have a friend who's a season ticket holder out there, and he said that that's the best game he's seen all season and one of the most fun games he's seen from them in a while.

You know, the guy he was happiest for was Zari, because Zari got a big goal when he's been kind of snakebit lately. I saw the shots like during the concert I just checked the score and the shots were like 30 to 9 at one point I was like I thought maybe they were playing like the 94 Rangers but instead of the 94 Rangers in 94 like the 94 Rangers now like low is 65 Messier is 63er's 58, Graves and Leach are both 56. Like I thought, you know, maybe is it like an old-timers game? They're playing that game, but I guess they just dominated them.

You know, I think the one thing about it in Calgary is, you know, they're still really early in their stages of what they're trying to do. But, you know, we talk about Sacco taking over Boston. I really think one of the hardest things to do is go from assistant coach to head coach on the same team. Because you go from good cop to bad cop. And if you're phony, the players sniff it out. Like they know. They'll say that this is BS.

This guy's a phony. All of a sudden, he's the head coach, and he's a different guy. Like, a couple guys have told me that Hoska has really walked that line well. And, you know, at the end of the day, if you want to get fans into the building when you're trying to rebuild, the worst thing you can do is look like you aren't trying at home. It's hard enough when you're rebuilding to get fans into your arena. But if you're not trying, especially at home, you're really doomed

and you cannot accuse this Calgary team of not trying. All right. Well, you mentioned the shot discrepancy. It finished 49-29 in favor of Calgary. What are your thoughts on the Rangers right now? You know, I have to go back and watch this one, but I've tried to watch them a bit more lately. I don't know. It just looks to me that something's missing like it's just

I always thought they played with a lot of passion you know Gallant was a guy who demanded passion and obviously things changed when Laviolette got there and he started to get the best out of when LaViolette got there and he started to get the best out of Lafreniere but LaViolette's another guy who demands passion like he really challenges people like Gallant does they have their differences but in that way they're very similar they challenge you I don't know they just like like Kreider's a fiery guy I think Miller is a fiery guy Tr I think Miller is a fiery guy. Trouba is obviously a fiery guy. Fox in his own way is kind of a fiery guy.

Trochak is a really, that's a great one, really fiery guy. I have to go back and I'll watch this one, but it's been kind of missing a little bit this year, I thought. Do you disagree with me? Tell me if you think I'm wrong on this one. No, they leak chances. They do leak chances. They sure do.

And Shisterkin covers up a lot of that. And you don't have to apologize for that at all if you can get that. But I know like certainly Mike Kelly with sport logic has been big on that yeah it's i i really like like since laviolette came in like at the end of their morning skates on a game day you know they're done their drills and before they head off the ice there's like a big team huddle at center ice and they pick someone to deliver kind of the final words before they go their separate ways and continue to prepare for the game. I really like that they go about doing that.

Like, it's a really neat visual of team. But you're right. I mean, through all of that, it hasn't looked like totally the same group that was, you know, two wins away from the Stanley Cup final a year year ago so i'm with you i'm with you in a big way uh to say that the defensive shortcomings have been there we talked not too long ago about mika zibanejad trying to to find the best version of himself here again i think there's still too many good players and too much, I guess, recent history of success for this group. I know that doesn't guarantee anything in the here and now, but I believe that they still are very capable of finding, as you say, what seems to may be

missing at this juncture. It's just been a bit of an odd start out of the gate for a team that has looked so dominant in the not too distant past. You know, the other thing I really think, and you kind of hit on it there, is when you have been like so close, and they've won rounds, they've gone far in the playoffs they've lost early before like a couple years ago to the devils but they've won a few

rounds as a group i think one of the things you really have to fight is that in-season malaise right like it doesn't matter now you've got to you've got it like you know you're not going to really be judged until the playoffs start but it's not like the playoffs start now you you have to go through that 82 game grind a to get the best seating you can and b i mean to to play and before you before you even drop the puck in the playoffs and sometimes I see teams go through this like I think Toronto they're not doing it this year I think they're they're Toronto's a bit different this year but I've seen them like that before and I just I look at the Rangers and I kind of wonder, you know, is that in-season malaise there? Yeah, we're not going to be judged until later.

We think we're good enough to get in there. We've got Shusterkin and Quick's playing really well. Again, I have to go back and watch this one. But, you know, I mean, I've kind of wondered about that with this team this year if there's if there's that kind of will be judged in april and may it's a tough one to overcome once you get that in you it's even even coaches like laviolette who can be really hard coaches it can be tough to get that out of players. We'll see. All right, a couple of goalie shout-outs.

Marc-Andre Fleury, 1,000th career start. The start Thursday in Edmonton wasn't great, but the finish for him in the wild certainly was coming back for the victory and looks like a sigh of relief with Kaprizov leaving for a bit there after the collision said post game that is his knee was okay anything you want to add on there well I think that I think the most relieved guy was probably Drake Kajula like Drake Kajula wants to play hard hockey

but he doesn't want to injure Kaprizov it's's like Jack McBain, right? He wants to play hard hockey, but he doesn't want to injure Ovechkin. I mean, I heard he was just mortified and devastated. He's got Tom Wilson chasing him around the ice. I mean, I understand Tom Wilson is standing up for the franchise player, but there's no way, no way that McBain meant to do that. It was just a terrible accident. And I'm sure Kajula is looking at Kaprizov in the ice and saying, please come back. Please come back.

I don't need this. So I was glad to see Kaprizov came back. Nobody needs that. He's a great player. You want everyone to play. You know, you were mentioning that, you know, Fleury made a play later on a loose puck, and he waved to the crowd when they booed him.

Like, that's a good comeback. It was like he almost gave a fist pump. Yeah. Like, you'll remember when he was in Vegas the year that they lost to Montreal, that was 2021 in the playoffs. He had kind of a weird play. Remember that? Yes. Gave the puck away behind the

net yes josh anderson scored to tie the game late in the third and then yes one in overtime like that was it was a critical moment in the series so like this is not the same as that but you know that game could become a disaster there like edmonton smelling blood they've just scored like that you're in danger of getting pummeled in Edmonton's building in that moment and Fleury who's seen everything settles down and what do you get he got the the chain at uh in the post game he was named the wild player of the game um you know I think about Edon, we're talking all about all of their issues. I wonder how worried they are about what's going on in that. I think Skinner is good enough to write himself, but I haven't liked what I've seen a lot there lately.

That's become a bit of a, like, again, it's early. And, you know, we'll talk about Ottawa. And Travis Green had some interesting things to say about when in Canada um the this like they you get really picked apart when you go badly and you get really boosted up when you go well and everybody sees your great moments and everybody picks apart your biggest mistakes but just looking at Edmonton recently I've wondered about the goaltending a bit. I think we all thought it was going to be the defense that they were going to fix, and I still think they're going to look at it.

But I just wonder, in Edmonton, there always seems to be these moments during the season we wonder, okay, is goaltending a bigger problem than we think? And it kind of sorts itself out. We're in that point again right now. There's no question about it yes and you remember Stuart Skinner so around this time a year ago hired Adam Francilia yes as a goalie coach on the side and they went through like they mid-season Elliot like they reworked his foundation which like for goalies to do again during a season

where they were at a crisis point and trying to get back into the playoff mix. It's in a lot of ways, I'm sure a lot of coaches wouldn't even consider introducing that to the equation. That's an off-season thing, but he did it then. And throughout this past summer, it was a lot more work, kind of a first full off-season between the two of them about just having a good base of your game through his core and having the different positions move fluidly from one to the next. I think that was a big part of what he worked on in the summer. And I believe, you know, those like Adam Francilia and close to Skinner

think that he is a better goalie now than he was a year ago. Maybe the numbers don't show it yet. But as you say, right around the time we start to wonder, is goaltending a bigger issue than maybe we thought in Edmonton it seems to sort itself out that's where I'm at right now with with him because you know how much he cares as a guy that was born there that grew up there and is now playing in the NHL there that's a lot for a guy who's still in his mid-20s, and it can be a tough market to play, just like Ottawa, where we'll get to in a moment. Skinner, I very much still believe in, even if the

numbers haven't shone brightest for him just yet. So let's talk about Ottawa. You were at the game on Thursday night. Was it as gloomy as it sounded? You know, I mean, it was a way different feel from the Edmonton game Tuesday. I mean, getting down 2-0 wasn't ideal. What was interesting, Travis Green said after the game, when it got to 2-0 Vegas, Elliot, he said you could feel it on the bench with the players of like, here we go again. Because as you can imagine,

there's been a lot of talk in this market of it's the month of November, and here go the Ottawa Senators on a slide, as they did last year. Well, that's because you're really negative. Like, you lead those negative people because it's kind of your way. Yes. You know me very well. Yes.

As they did last year and the year before that and the year before that, just for whatever reason, this time of year has not been kind to this group but and tell me if i'm wrong but that could have been a lot worse than two nothing i know allmark gave up one that wasn't very good but i heard he made a bunch of yeah i heard he made a bunch of big saves like that could have been a lot worse than two nothing if it wasn't for him correct i would say so yes and then they got going like green shortened the bench in the third period adjusted the forward lines a little bit score adjusted naturally they're gonna push a little bit more than than they were and they made a game of it but you know

got nothing out of it uh when the final horn sounded so now's, it's four losses in a row for, for Ottawa. And suppose the, the one positive is that there's a lot of teams in the East still kind of spinning their wheels through all of this. They're by no means out of the race by any stretch of the imagination here. I know Sens fans are not going to want to hear this because they have been force fed this for too long in their minds and i totally don't fault them at all for thinking this but

process i know doesn't guarantee you anything this is a time that should be about results for the sens but i think for this group like that's the only way they are going to get out of this travis green's talked about it elliot like one of the issues is they are going to get out of this. Travis Green's talked about it, Elliot. Like one of the issues is this team's still learning how to play when they're down a goal or multiple goals to play from behind because those habits that have been part of this group for a number of years, that's where he senses they start to creep in. You're trying to cheat,

you're extending shifts to make a play to to change the game and you end up opening things up going uh the other way uh one thing mike kelly bring him up again mentioned to me today when they are gonna start charging you for using his name no i think sports that already does that enough you know one thing he said was that when the Sens are trailing in games, they are 31st in the league in rush chances against, which speaks to how they try to open the game up and the mistakes that result of it. So I believe they are playing better defensively, but it's just been tough, I think, for the fan base to have to digest because they've seen this movie before.

I will say it was not a full house at the Canadian Tire Centre, but when they made it 2-1 and then 3-2, those that were there really came alive. They could sense, they understood the urgency and to try to get something out of that game. So credit to them for getting behind their team when it's otherwise been another tough stretch in the month of November for Ottawa and their fans. Were you leading the cheers in the press box? You were just telling me how negative I am.

How could I be leading the cheers? Well, you know, you go up and down. You go back and forth. You're very moody. That's what I would say. Not only negative, but just a lot of wild mood swings. Wow. You know, the thing that was the thing I thought was tough was when I saw like some of the challenges that Vegas was dealing with, right? Like it's not a killer back to back it's Toronto, Ottawa. But they just got spanked. Like, Toronto just dominated them.

Petrangelo was hurt. You know, they still got a bunch of guys who are out. And, you know, they lost. And, you know, you're kind of hoping that you're going to take advantage of an opponent that's battling injuries and playing back to back you know i gotta give credit to ilya samsonov he was looking he was he was looking for all mark you know he he's you know considering like he was he was mad about what all mark said about him in the summer and he circled this one on his calendar and bruce cassidy um you know he had a choice here

he could have given Samsonov his former team in Toronto or he could have given him Allmark in Ottawa and he clearly knew which one meant more to Samsonov because he gave him this one and if you're going to talk the talk you got to walk the walk and he did that you know the one thing I thought was interesting you're talking about Green Travis Green is a grinder he can really grind people when he left vancouver that was or was after he was let go in vancouver that was his reputation there was that he could really grind especially the young guys because he would be on them saying if you want to be good if you want to be successful in this league you're going to have to get used to like just a

high standard and being pushed to that standard and you know I think he's kind of been the same way in Ottawa I just thought it was interesting as you said that after this game he took his foot off the gas like they I think that is so important for a coach. There's times you've got to bring the hammer, and there's times you've got to use the velvet glove. And I think that Green is a guy who generally prefers the hammer as much as anything else, but there are times you've got to know, tonight I'm putting the hammer back in my trunk, and I'm slipping on the velvet gloves. And it's not easy.

Look, I don't think twitter is real life by any stretch of the imagination but i see what's going on out there and and i and i can definitely see the fan base is is sitting there saying oh no not again and it's it's hard to escape that uh when you're a player and now Green's old team, the Canucks, come to town on Saturday night on Hockey Night in Canada. And they're going through it too. Like one thing I'll say about the Canucks is, you know, you think about it, you walk into the rink on Tuesday

against the Rangers and you find out, okay, the guy who's probably our emotional leader, he's not going to be here right now. And he's probably not going to be here for a couple of weeks. And, you know, it's an unusual situation. He's battling a physical injury and he needs a mental break. And, you know, what did the Canucks do? They played hard.

They didn't get a point, but they played really hard. And, you know, I think that's the thing you have to do. I think people understand when you're undermanned or you're shorthanded or your roster isn't what it's supposed to be. But what they don't understand is if you don't compete and, you know, we'll see how the Canucks do on this road trip without Miller there. He's not expected to rejoin them on this trip and it ends, their last game on it is December 3rd. But the one thing I'll say about Vancouver is they got a lot of guys who play hard and they played hard the other night. And I really think that Hughes has set I really think that Hughes has set a really good standard there. And I think that he is a captain who guys follow because he's not always grinding them.

He just competes. And he like, I think a lot of athletes really like people who lead by what they do. And he's like that. Like Jack had a great night on Thursday. I saw the highlights of his assists, and Jack had that big smile. You could see the look on Jack Hughes' face. He was having a fun night. Like, that's a big win for the Devils.

Carolina is a standard bearer in the Eastern Conference. The Devils beat them, and it wasn't a fluke win. And Jack Hughes, he's at his happiest when he's one winning and two he's doing something fun and creative something that makes him think you know what because you know he he loves to do something that really shines and so he has that like that those kind of assists and he's pumped So he's pumped for two reasons. I think Quinn is a little bit different. I think he's more of just follow what I do and how I prepare.

And I thought he dragged them into the fight against the Rangers. And even though he didn't get the point, I thought it was a really good omen. I think it's going to be hard, but I think it was a really good omen I think it's going to be hard but I think it's a good omen for how they're going to be prepared to handle Miller's absence you know Hughes had them ready to play you mentioned Carolina just quickly so they announced Frederick Anderson's going to be out 8 to 12 weeks having surgery done today Friday so it's Piotr Kuchetkov and Spencer Martin in the meantime you have any sense of how Carolina's gonna play this do they want to go looking for some help while Anderson is out

any sense as I said last pod I think as long as they knew that Anderson was coming back I think they were prepared to see how this went. They like Kachetkov. Martin's a good spot starter for them. They've banked points. You never want to deal when you're in a desperate spot. And I think they are prepared to kind of see, do we need to do anything or can we wait to see how this plays out? They know now Anderson's coming back.

He's not out for the year. So I think they really unless you know unless they feel that they really have to go out and get somebody you know the one thing about Gibson there's a lot of talk about John Gibson there there was a point a couple years ago where i had heard that there was a gibson deal being worked on between the ducks and the hurricanes one team said yes and one team said no i was like i don't know what to do with this and so but at the very least, a couple of years ago, there was talk about it. And, you know, and I will say this, that was under the two previous general managers. It was Bob Murray and Don Waddell.

So, but, you know, some of the people that were there under Waddell are still in Carolina. You know, some of the people that were there under Waddell are still in Carolina. And actually, some of the people who are under Murray, although Pat Verbeek is new there now, are still there now. So like there is some history there. But the one thing that the Hurricanes had kind of let people know was we don't have to be pushed into anything because Anderson is due to to come back so that's where it kind of sits for me like some other stuff right now like you know i mentioned in my notes that um i think morgan frost is a name that's out there um you know i think you know i mentioned chicago just because i think it's a good fit i've heard there's a few teams looking at this.

Like, centers are hard to find. And I still think Frost is trying to find his way in the NHL, but he is a center. And he does have some pedigree. And I do think teams are looking at that there. And I wanted to say, I think even the Ovechkin, they said, you know, four to six weeks, that's better than what I initially heard. I initially heard it was going to be six to eight,

which isn't a huge difference, but it's still better. Like, that would be interesting because if he gets back around Christmas, he's still going to have about 45 games. So it'll be interesting. By the way, i want to shout out dan chalmers that did up the ea sports version of elliot friedman the goalie suiting up for the carolina hurricanes wearing number 32 in a break glass in case of emergency scenario so they've got that too if it really came down to it yes i could be there i could be their e-bug for one night do you think we've talked about this do you think i could make one save yes you could make one okay two i'm not going there i have so

much respect for people who play in the nhl i I'm not even convinced I could make one. Although, that's a good defensive team. I think they could force a really low percentage shot that I might be able to stop. Yes, they do have a history of doing that. Hey, in between Swift songs on Thursday, Elliot, did you happen to see the video that Player Safety put out as an explainer of the recent headshot not a headshot or should i say head contact no head contact moments we've had around the league the last couple of weeks i did i actually watched it when i got home from the concert um first of all i like

the fact they did that and i think they should do it more often. Some of the goaltender interference stuff, for example. Like, I think I've really tried this year to do, to really learn a lot about goaltender interference, but still there are things that come up and you're like, oh, I didn't see that like at the beginning of this pod when I said I am video reviewed out like that one in Calgary on Thursday night the one with the glove like I was looking at that and I was like I've never seen

that one before like I'm just tired of seeing things I've never seen before and I have to figure out if they make sense or not but I like the fact that they did that like like the the thing you can do is people will always give you a little bit more of the benefit of the doubt if you try to explain things to them I really believe that and so why not do that like when that play happened in real time I thought the exact same thing that Craig Simpson did and and I thought those referees handled that perfectly call the major and look at it that thing in real time was so fast and so violent I do not blame any official who says I cannot call this in the moment I thought the same thing

Craig Simpson did in real time I was like that is a game misconduct okay and then I saw the angle from the Toronto bench and it's like you know what he he got him in the shoulders or chest or whatever you want to say did he get the head yeah he got some of the head but first of all i hope nize is okay secondly he really got hurt when his head hit the ground like that was the scary thing for me nizes had concussions before so i don't want to see that again but when i saw that second angle I was like he's not gonna get a penalty here and you know the one thing I really disagreed with and I want to say this the only thing I really disagreed with there is that I don't think that Toronto should have been short-handed when in the moment the

officials couldn't tell if it was clean or dirty like we all talk about players shouldn't have to fight after clean hits well the call on the ice was a five minute major that's not a clean hit okay and again the officials were right they were right to do it that way they were totally correct to review it because it was so fast nobody could make that call but if you look at it and you say oh boy that's a clean hit when Toronto thinks as you do that that's a major Toronto shouldn't be shorthanded like in that situation I think somebody has to step up and say hey we thought it was dirty Can't blame them for thinking it's dirty. So that was the one thing in the moment.

I wish that someone had said either even it out or give Toronto a power play or at least even it out. Like Toronto should not have been shorthanded when they thought it was a major. Because then it helps cool the temperatures a little bit right because it got nasty for a while afterwards and love a game with an edge to it don't get me wrong but then you hope it doesn't spur something that's really serious because of the compounding effect of everything that happened prior to that right i see what you mean there the reeves hit is is is not comparable i'm sorry to the nice hit like if you look at the explainer they put out did a good job

illustrating why it's not well also i mean if you look at nurse's head like like it's twisted sideways like it's it's completely different and yes, yes, the explainer. But also, like, there were a couple that night. Theodore got hit in the boards from behind. And even though, again, it was the main point of contact, there were some people who were really angry. I don't know how many people saw it, but San Jose played Dallas. And at the end of that game, Labuskin hit Granland. And, like, it was not a suspension or anything like that,

but it was a big physical forceful hit with some head contact. And the concussion spotter took Granlund out of the game. And San Jose was down a goal, and they took out one of their best players. But again, I didn't think it was a suspension. I thought the way that they call this, it was handled perfectly in the moment. It just, when it happens in an involving Toronto, it's always more intense because it's Toronto.

And I think the other thing that has to happen here is everybody's entitled to their opinion but people have to realize principal point of contact is not in the rule book anymore people have to stop saying that it was taken out of the rule book a couple years ago now it's a combination of is the head the main point of contact and is it avoidable um like Tanner Jeannot it was the main point of contact and it was avoidable Besser didn't move his head and in Reeves and Nurse it was the main point of contact and it was avoidable Nurse didn't move his head this one it was like Nyes doesn't move his head at the last second.

So I think it's White Cloud's responsibility to make sure it's not the main point of contact. And he did that. Once I saw that other angle, I was like, this is not going to be a penalty. And if there's one other thing I would say about these plays, this is a problem that stretches to minor hockey. You used to see five of these a week. Now you might see five to ten of them a regular season. And as a result, people come up through the minors, college hockey, junior hockey, you name it. They're not skating with their heads up. They're not expecting to

get hit. And that is the one thing I think that's really important is that if you're a young coach out there coaching a young boy or a young girl or whoever like Ryan Getzlaff was on the ice I read at the PW one of the PWHL camps teaching players about hitting so if you're a coach or a parent of a young boy or a young girl, teach them to skate with their head up. You know, my son, when he was skating, I was always like head up, head up, head up. And he was just skating for fun, but I wanted him to get into that habit. So I think that whenever a hit like that happens I hope there are young coaches out there saying to players of whatever league you're coaching especially kids saying you gotta keep your head up because if you make it to the NHL and you get in the habit of not

looking this can happen to you because that's the league where you can still be hit big oh and speaking of San Jose Celebrini made a great play at the end of the St. Louis game to at least get that one to overtime in a shootout someone said to me today who's been scouting San Jose he he just goes and sees them a lot. He said, celebrating he's the best rookie in the league. He says, I don't care if he wins rookie of the year, he's the best rookie in the league. I said, you've decided that after 20 games?

He goes, he's the best rookie in the league. He may not be the rookie of the year, but he's the best rookie making his debut now all right and that brings us to the final thought which is brought to you by gmc elliot jonathan taves yes last suited up in an nhl game in 2023 as you know he's been on a healing journey for a number of years now he's dealt with inflammatory and immune system issues he had a heck of a post on out of nowhere on thursday with an update of how it's all been going shares that he spent five weeks in india undergoing what is called an Ayurvedic detox called Panchakarma. So Ayurveda translates to knowledge of life.

I'll be honest, Elliot, like all of this, I really don't know anything about. But A, it was incredibly cool that he posted this, that he shared this, because you know he's got a ton of fans and supporters still out there beyond the city of Chicago. You know he's got a ton of fans and supporters still out there beyond the city of Chicago. And it's great to see that this has been a positive experience for him. And it's just not something you think of hockey players doing. So, first of all, I was glad to see him looking so positive. You know, the last couple of years have been really frustrating for him.

So I'm glad to see him looking good. Are you a big, see, as I've gotten older and I'm a lot older than you, 54 now, what we've learned about taking care of ourselves from when I was young, like your age, like 16 to now, it's incredible, especially for men. Like I always found, like I grew up with four sisters. I always found maybe it was different in my family and other family. My sisters were always very conscious of what can I do that long term will make me feel better mentally and physically. And I was like, whatever you do that mumbo jumbo or hocus pocus, I'm just going to be 300 pounds overweight. And eventually as I got into an older phase, like I started to get into better shape,

but like, I don't know if you do anything special, but I've started to look at different things. And it really started with me coming out of COVID, where I started to look at different ways to take care of my body. Like some of it was simple, like vitamin D. I take vitamin D a lot more. Like I take a little bit of vitamin D once a day and I think it's done very well for me and some of it is like like I don't know that I would do

that but I'm a lot more open to those kinds of ideas. Like I was never a big sauna guy. Now I've become a lot more of a sauna guy. As you heard last year, I've started trying cold tubs a little bit here and there. But yeah, how's that going by the way? Uh, it's, it's cold. Um, actually I, I don't mind it, but it's cold. I'm not a guy who likes cold. It's cold, but I'm, I'm sticking very trendy.

I'm still sticking with it here and there. Not as much as I could, but I'm still doing it here and there, but like, I'm watching taves do this thing. And I'm like 15, 20 years ago, never would I, I would have looked at that and been like whatever now i'm looking at it and i'm like what is this like should i be learning about this and the one thing i tell a lot of people out there is that if you're really curious don't be stupid like i was and wait until you're like 52 to start looking into this stuff like if it's like a ronick told me if you have time if it's important to you you will make time and i try to do that now but i I would say to especially like I think Kyle we're both guys guys are stupid we

don't do stuff a lot that could really help take care of ourselves we're just really dumb and stubborn that way don't be like that like if you see that and you're like hmm or maybe there's something else I've been thinking of doing maybe not what Taves is doing but something I've been thinking of doing to make me feel better about myself or something that someone I know is doing that's making them feel better physically and mentally do it don't try to do 20 things at once pick one thing and just say you know what I'm gonna try that and commit to that and see if it makes me feel better I like that's the lesson I would love to see people get from taves because I know with myself like there's some bad habits I'll never break like I

like sweets I talked about my love for chocolate that'll never break like I like sweets I talked about my love for chocolate that'll never go away I like a beer once in a while that'll never go away but I really have tried to do some other different new things to be healthier especially for my wife and my son so I would just sit everybody out there don't look at that post and laugh and dismiss it. Look at that post and say, hmm, I've been thinking about trying something and now I'm going to do it. Do you do anything special? You're in great shape. I know you run.

Do you do anything special? So my wife's done a lot of work the last couple of years learning about diet, how to fuel your body properly, the value and importance of sleep that is often overlooked and yes I have to be so much better at sleep as I look at the clock as we record this but I've been fortunate that she has shared what she's learned with me and I've tried to adapt. I'm far from perfect. She is way more disciplined and dialed than I am. But I'm trying on a number of fronts.

As you say, we're dumb in a lot of ways. Yes, we are. Yes, we are. Yes. Yeah. But you do see the benefits. And the great thing is, yeah, who am I? I'm not suggesting any

specific advice for anybody out there, but there's so much information available and you just got to be careful of, all right, what's legit and what's a little suspect. But if you want to learn, there are plenty of avenues to do so. It's great to see, as you say, like the smile on his face and the photos that he posted, they look fantastic by the way, looks really encouraging and to echo your sentiment, be curious, not judgmental. A hundred percent. Kyle, I'm with you on this. I hope it, I hope it convinces somebody out there who's like,

you know what, I'd like to try something, but I'm too scared to. I hope that convinces someone to give it a shot, even if nobody else knows. You don't have to post it on Instagram like Jonathan Taves did. That was the final thought brought to you by GMC. When we come back, the latest edition of The Thought Line. You're listening to 32 Thoughts, the podcast. All right. Welcome back.

Time now for The Thought Line. 1-833-311-3232. 32thoughts at sportsnet.ca elliot i've got to tell you i realize i'm still very new to this whole thing but there is a sense that i have got early that the thought line has to be some of the most fertile ground in podcasting when it comes to ideas, trends, jokes. I am floored every week and you've got some updates from some of the trends that have continued and questions that have come in with add ons from week to week on this show, we have great listeners.

We are, we are really lucky to have the listeners. We do some of whom are other professionals. Not that we should ever be confused with professionals, Kyle, but some of whom are other professionals in the business and others are just great fans. So Tom Gulitti, who works for NHL.com, remember we had the one where we were talking about players on a team who had more shots in a game than their entire opponent's roster a couple weeks ago so the reggie leach question he had more shots than another team in one game the washington

capitals he pointed out and i should have remembered this game he pointed out on the trivia question about whether one player has ever outshot a team in a game. Claude Lemieux once equaled the Maple Leafs with six shots on goal in the Devils' 3-0 win in Game 6 of the 2000 Eastern Conference semifinal. Leafs fans will be like, damn you, Tom. Thanks for bringing that one up again. Sergey Berezin, three, the late Sergey Berezin, Korolev Steve Thomas Darcy Tucker Berezin had three Korolev Thomas and Tucker one of the least shots and Lemieux equaled them with six also Dan Duva who is the great radio voice of the Vegas Golden Knights he was talking about names that

sound the same like Griffin Porter who does a great job curating this list Kyle you talked about the junior A team that has all the guys with the similar names and the former voice of the Plymouth Whalers the two players with the same names he brought up the Syracuse Crunch that's where he was before Vegas fall of, their power play had Nikita Kucherov, Nikita Nesterov, Vladislav Nemesnikov, Dmitry Korobov, and JT Brown. And JT Brown, you'll remember, he changed his Twitter name to JT Brownov only to change it back a couple years ago. And one thing about that with JT Brown changing it to Brownov, yes,

is that you'll remember when Detroit had all the Russian players, at one time, one of the guys who played with the other four was Doug Brown. And the Red Wings, as a nickname, they they called him Brown off so it just slides from generation to generation it went from Doug Brown to JT Brown JT Brown now of course one of the voices of the Kraken Doug Brown JT Brown it's like osmosis it goes from generation to generation. And the last one I wanted to do, I got a note from Rob Adler. And Rob Adler hosts the I Played 2 podcast. And he said, you know, talking about Austin Matthews going to Germany and how more and more North Americans from Kobe Bryant to Christian McCaffrey

to reportedly LeBron James go to Germany for medical care. He said that former Georgia Tech baseball player Jason Hanegar, whose brother Mitch of course is a tremendous player for the Seattle Mariners, he also went to Germany for treatment and went on Rob's podcast to talk a little bit about it. So it's much more common, I think, than we realize. Keep the updates coming. We love them.

It's a great community. Okay, you ready for our first submission of this episode? The way you're laughing, this one sounds like a good one. Here we go. This is, I can't even get through without laughing. This is The Puck from even get through without laughing. This is the puck from Jacob's fireplace mantle. Hello, Dom, Kyle, and Elliot. This is the puck that grazed Jacob's father's upper lip

during the Devils 4-3 victory over the Islanders on November 9th. I overheard last week's pod from my perch atop the fireplace mantle at Jacob's family home, and I'm writing in to set the record straight. While what Peter from Illinois shared on the thought line is partially true. He has only scratched the surface. You see, after I was deflected over the glass, my tracking technology was indeed deactivated only to activate my artificial consciousness. No longer bound by the monotony of tracking the velocity of one-timers and offensive

zone time my true purpose was realized to serve as an nhl marketing mole and amateur scout it is from the fireplace mantle that i am listening carefully to the idle chatter in jacob's home recording not only their views of the game but also their consumer behavior with every casual comment about reverse retros, hot dog prices, or their love of pundits like Kevin Bieksa, I am compiling valuable intel to send back to NHL marketing. For now, I'm a prize souvenir. But just as the scar above Jacob's father's lip will fade,

so too will their sentiment for me. There will come a day when Jacob finds himself short on pucks, and I will be cast to the bottom of a hockey bag, bound for a frozen pond or local rink. That is where my final mission begins. It goes on for a bit longer, but I think you get it. Wow, that is great work. Whoever did that, you are a genius.

Whatever you're doing, whoever you do, you should be a writer. That is fantastic. I say this also sounds like the plot of Wild Robot, which I took my son to see in theaters this week. But that is fantastic. I had to kick off the thought line with that. That was outstanding.

Okay, the next question comes from actually a former teammate of ours, Fridja, on the.ca side, Alex Leopold. Hey, Kyle, Elliot, and Dom, I have a question regarding hockey-related revenue. To my understanding, HRR is split 50-50 between the owners and the players, but how does this work in execution? For example, let's take a player like Sidney Crosby and his $8.7 million salary. Does he make his 8.7 million and whatever split of HRR trickles down to each individual player, or is there a scale players get based on how many years

they played, et cetera? Am I way off? Any insight would be appreciated. Love the pod, never miss an episode. Okay, so great question. this is the way it works every year there's an escrow percentage as we talked last pod that that amount is taken out of your salary and held until the end of the season okay so crosby gets his base which is 8.7 million you take off taxes you take off agent fees like he's just like everybody else out there who collects a paycheck there are things that come

out of your paycheck but six percent of his salary is taken out of his base and it's put into an escrow account and this is the same for every player if you make 1 million if you make 10 million 6% of your salary is taken out and put into that escrow account at the end of every year and the league fiscal year ends on June 30th there is an accounting and to make it simple when revenues are split 50-50 then that determines how much you get back or don't get back and so the idea is to balance it 50% league and 50% players and depending on how that audit shows up that determines how much you do or don't get back Again, I think there have been two occasions But not in the last 15 years where players ended up making more than 100% of their salary

I don't remember what the number was if it was a hundred and three or what it was But other times they've ended up making less than a hundred percent of their salary and right now because revenues are really good the players are coming out whole so we'll see what happens in the future uh but that's the way it works all right another salary cap related question i'm sure uh not a surprise given the conversation we had on monday's pod Eno from Petawawa, Ontario. Hello, 32 Thoughts crew. First, well done to Dom on planting the Creed reference in the title of the last episode.

Yes, that was good, Dom. That was good. We come for Kyle's hair and Elliot's hot takes, but we stay for the jokes. Keep it going. My question, with the discussion about percentage of the salary cap impacting player salary expectations and negotiations, do you think the next CBA will have an option

for sliding contract values? This would see a player sign for a percentage of the cap rather than a fixed dollar figure year over year. It introduces an element of uncertainty in the team's cap robotics but could be an intriguing way of dealing with the changing economics in the league keep up all the good work and go leafs go uh another great question i don't i've asked about this in the past i have it's it's a really okay yeah it's it's a really good question and periodically I've asked about it and um the I don't think so I didn't get a sense of a lot of likelihood of it I think the

league would be really against it um that's one thing and secondly um you know one of the things that uh a couple agents have told me like it's never really happened before aside from COVID where the cap stagnated or it would go down but I think people would never want to have a deal where you would be in a situation where your salary could drop you know one of the things that's actually really interesting right now is the Bitcoin stuff, Kyle. And I know you've got a lot of Dogecoin out there that you really work on that. But, you know, you know, I'm very public about that. Yes. Yes. You really, you really like your Dogecoin. But like Bitcoin is really high right now. And there's been a couple of situations like there was an NFL player, Russell Okung. And there's been a couple of situations,

like there was an NFL player, Russell Okung, and I believe there was an NBA player, Spencer Dinwiddie, who at least tried it. They tried to get paid in Bitcoin. And there were times, like Okung was, and there were times like it wasn't worth anything. And right now Bitcoin is really high. And people are like, boy, that was a really smart thing to do.

But it's volatile. Like we still don't know where this is all gonna go. So I think some people don't mind, uh, a bit of that, but I think there would be a lot of people who would look at it. Like I don't wanna risk a drop. And so I don't know that, uh, something like that will ever get in. Good question, though. I'm more Doja Cat than Dogecoin, by the way, for the record.

Yes. All right. Andrew. Hello, Elliot, Kyle, and Dom. First, I'd like to say that I'm a police officer that patrols the great Kings County of PEI. And for the record, Elliot, I would never give you a speeding ticket, but I know a few around here that may. So give me a heads up if you're ever around.

Second, my motivation to write you guys is because I have a coworker. We'll call him Lucas. And he's been writing you guys forever now and can't seem to find his way into the thought line. Gosh, Lucas, I apologize. Sorry, Lucas. Griffin apologies. Sorry, Lucas. Griffin, tough crowd, Griffin.

I've made it my duty to get on before him, and I really need your help. There may or may not be a coffee on the line, maybe some donuts if I'm lucky, but to my question. I think I know now which policeman is about to give me a ticket in PEI. Yes, that's right. When I go out to PEI, Lucas, I am not driving out there because I know you're looking for me.

This is all very sus. But to my question, it was mentioned that Connor McDavid had scored over 200 points on Saturday night games, and it made me wonder, is there a player out there, Pastor Presson, who has dominated Saturday night hockey, specifically Hockey Night in Canada broadcast games? There's always talk about players getting fired up to play the Saturday night games. And I'm wondering if there is one specific one out there who shines under the Saturday night lights more than the rest. I have to imagine it's a Canadian born player,

but I really have no idea. Do you know the answer to this? Well, it's a tough one because, I mean, you know, McDavid, for example, not every game that he plays on Saturday would be a Hockey Night in Canada game, right? Oh, right, because they play some afternoon games, right? I mean, my guess would be Gretzky, but do we know the answer to this? So just to streamline it, I went to the good folks at Sportsnet Stats, and they gave me active players, most points per game on Saturdays. As you would think, Connor McDavid is first at 1.43 points per game.

Any guess on who's second? And I'm just looking at players that play for Canadian teams that would regularly appear on Hockey Night in Canada. I'm going to say Mitch Marner. Bang. Well done. Yes!

1.26 points per game. Dry saddle not far behind. 1.2. Can you hear me patting myself on the back? Well, that's what that is yes yes and actually you know Elliot so Jeff Geradat one of our producers one of the things that he's wondered about and it would be really tricky to hammer down but he's asked the question who would have the most hockey night in Canada towels of all time? Almost impossible to know.

That's got to be a leaf, though. Like, I got to think. Sundin? Yeah, he would be. He was one of the guys I thought of, for sure. Sundin. Doug Gilmore. I just don't know if he was in Toronto long enough.

Right. But would have got a few during his years in Calgary, too, I just don't know if he was in Toronto long enough. Right. But would have got a few during his years in Calgary too, I'm sure. Yes. Yeah. You know what? That's a good point. I think it's got to be Sundin. It's not a bad choice.

Or you know what? I'll tell you something else too like the canucks they were on a lot um they were on a lot i would bet that like bx would have a lot the sardines would have a lot like that canuck team though i bet you a bunch of those guys have a lot of towels great point great question Andrew sorry we couldn't give you an official answer you know who else too was brilliant for the longest time I remember like when I was living in Montreal Carey Price for a wide stretch of time he was almost unbeatable on Saturdays I know the numbers inflated a little bit kind of the the later

years of his career there but it seemed like for a while he was almost automatic when playing under the the bright lights of Saturdays I yeah he great great great great goalie like just a great goalie and you know what like he was always very careful with what he said but when he decided he had a message he wanted to give he he you knew what it was on with no uncertainty always respected that about him amongst all the other stuff okay so we'll wrap with this from jeff hey elliot and Kyle. I just have a question. Well, good. Jonathan Quick.

You've come to the right place. Yes. Jonathan Quick has shut out 25 teams now in his NHL career after the win against Seattle. I'm just wondering what goalie holds the record for shutting out the most teams? Ooh. Ooh.

That's a good question. Yes, it is. Do you know? I do. So Jonathan Quick is tied for eighth most. And how many teams has he shut out? 25. 25.

He shut out 25 teams and he's eighth? i'll tide for eighth right so uh wow uh well i mean broder has got to be up there he's not the top but he's up there am i getting closer to the top i got the most i only wanted the guy at the top. Okay. But it would make sense that Brodeur is in the mix. Because, yes, okay, so the most. Okay, let me think. Let me think. Like, it's got to be a great goalie who played on multiple teams. Like, I'm thinking Ed Belfour.

I'm thinking Curtis Joseph. Trying to think also think about goalies that would have played in eras as teams came and went in the NHL well okay so that tells me

a bit more because I was thinking about guys like Gump Worsley right but Gump Worsley played in a league that had 6 teams and 12 teams so if Quick's at, I'm trying to think of who would have played more than 25 teams. That's a good point. So you're telling me we're talking like 60s, 70s, right? Like we're talking like that kind of a player? Nope.

I'm going the other way. In the Jonathan Quick breath. Oh, so it's in this era. So it seems like Atlanta moved teams like Arizona moved. Ah, so you're saying my logic was faulty. Uh,

okay. I'm going to say Sergey Bobrovsky. No, ah, damn it. It's not price. Is it? It's not carrysky. No. Ah, damn it. It's not Price, is it? It's not Carey Price. Nope.

Because the other names I'm thinking, Vasilevsky. Not him. Luongo. Good guess. Not him. Fleury. Survey says Fleury. Nice. 29 different teams he has shut out so so nobody because when you said that i thought we were talking like 30 31 maybe even 32 with the teams that have gone

i'm so so nobody's gotten to 30 teams eh correct yeah i mean i bet you shout outs here yeah i bet you people are listening to this and they would have gotten the flurry faster than i did i i will concede that i guarantee you there's people listening to this and they're saying flurry flurry flurry flurry flurry so and probably beat me to it the one thing i've learned to sifting through the Thoughtline submissions every week, is they love Elliot Trivia Time. So I try to include at least one each time we do this. They love listening to you suffer. Well, you know. Though you've had some great polls, though, too.

I got to tell you, like, they sound like members of my family. Yes, that's right. It's all in the family in the Thoughtline, Elliot. 1-833-311 311 32 32 is the phone number to call the email address 32 thoughts at sportsnet.ca when we come back our conversation with ryan mcdonough of the tampa bay lightning you're listening to 32 thoughts the podcast Okay, welcome back. Before we get to our interview with Ryan McDonough, Elliot, he was part of a wild 7-6 overtime affair on Thursday night against the Blue Jackets.

Unfortunately for him and the Lightning, they were on the wrong end of it. Incredible night for Zach Wierenski, a franchise record for points in a game by a defenseman with five. Of course, a career high for him all at once. Give Columbus credit. They did not go away down three nothing early almost in a very small way shades of how that 2019 playoff series started and i only bring that up because the columbus admin was ready for the post-game tweet after they pulled off the comeback for good. Okay, so you sent this to me while I was at the concert. Was that in regards to that lightning letter

that they released after Columbus beat them in 2019? Eleventy billion percent it was, to quote you. Oh my God. That's savage. Right. In the years that followed that one i would say you know favored tampa with two stanley cups yes like they did oh they recovered quite nicely yes but credit to the jackets being ready for that one after that incredible night you know what you know that

the next time tampa beats columbus julian Brisebois is going to craft the tweet personally. Oh, yeah, you think? Some of these social media admins, they're savage in this league now, which is whether people like it or not, which is what needs to happen. But they are savage you know the one the one thing I'll say about Columbus is they're actually really fun to watch like in some of the games they've won a lot of goals get scored they've got they've got a real 80s nature to them like they are high event games as you said Wieranski uh five points. I think Monaghan had three. You know, obviously Kent Johnson came back and had a good night.

You know, Braden Point, minus three. I mean, I can't remember the last time I saw a game where Braden Point was minus three. Like, you just don't expect to ever, ever see that. You know, the one thing is when I saw the score and I saw uh Johansson started I was thinking if you're Tampa you've got a big game Saturday against Dallas but also you really have to commit uh commit to resting Vasilevsky like I bet you there's a couple times like Cooper's looking down at the other end of that bench and he's's like, I'd like to, but I can't do it. Like, we have to give Vasilevsky his nights off. And, you know, it's a point they lost and a point they'll be mad about losing.

And it's a good thing that we interviewed McDonough before that game as opposed to after. But, like, that's one thing I like about Columbus. They do not play. One of the big conversations in Toronto now is Berube doesn't mind them playing low-event hockey. Columbus does not play low-event hockey. So Thursday night did not go Tampa or McDonough's way,

though they had been going pretty well coming in, winners of three straight prior to that one. McDonough, Elliot, as you know, he's been making a difference on and off the ice by teaming up with AstraZeneca in their Get Body Checked Against Cancer public health campaign. So as you say, before the game on Thursday, he was kind enough to spend some time with us to talk about the campaign, about being back in Tampa

for a second go-around, and a walk down memory lane from his days playing at Wisconsin. Here now, our conversation with Ryan McDonough of the Lightning. So, Ryan, thanks so much for doing this. Why don't we start then? You know, it's Hockey Fights Cancer Month. Your role teaming up with AstraZeneca and the Get Body Checked Against Cancer campaign.

Why don't you tell us what it is and what the campaign hopes to accomplish? Yeah, obviously I'm very proud to have partnered with Lightning's Hockey Fights Cancer Night we have coming up and partner with AstraZeneca in particular. The longer you play in this league, you understand the impact that hockey fights cancer has in the community and so many people that are affected by cancer. For me, it's important to spread the message about getting screened, trying to catch something beforehand.

I think that's the biggest thing that I've learned from talking to people that unfortunately have had battles with cancer is, you know, they really, you catch it, the better chances you have of, uh, you know, coming out clean and, and, uh, and surviving from it. So, um, they have a website here, getbodycheck.com, where you can learn more about getting screened by your local doctor or doctor near you and, and, um, take the steps needed from there once you get screened. So shouldn't be afraid to get screened. They do a great job of providing all the right resources and helping you along the way. I was going to say, you've been involved with fundraising in the fight against cancer, you know, for a number of years over your time in Tampa. After you guys won the cup in the bubble there in 2020,

you and Stamkos took the cup to the Children's Cancer Center in Tampa. I'm just curious why you being involved in a really meaningful way in the fight against this disease, why has that been important to you for long before this campaign? Like you said, the unfortunate thing is cancer is around us a lot, around your community, around our world a lot, and there's obviously a continuous battle for cures out there and us as athletes, especially in Tampa,

I think kind of led by our ownership there of making an impact in the community. Everybody down from there, the ownership to the players and everybody in between. Neon does a great job of trying to do their part and no different for myself and Stamkos, uh, trying to share that, that, uh, special trophy with, with people in the community that are going through a tough, a tough fight. And, and, uh, you know, I think it hit home. It hits home right away when you get to Tampa, the,

the importance of getting out there in the community and, and, uh, and trying to, uh, make an impact is something that hits home for you. you and was able to, uh, partner up with Alex Killorn and, and, uh, do a cancer jam, uh, can jam tournament for the fight against cancer partner with Moffitt cancer centers there and raise some money to, uh, help, uh, you know, particular women that, uh, you know, are battling cancer and have fertility issues because of it. So, um, just little things like that, uh, can go a long ways and it might not make it, might not seem like a big thing to you, but, uh, you know, just sharing and providing a little bit of income or impact for people can make such a difference for them. So we try to do that.

You know, it's, it's so true. Like I can't tell you how many people I've spoken to over the years in sports who, when they go on one of these visits, whether it's so true. Like I can't tell you how many people I've spoken to over the years in sports who when they go on one of these visits, whether it's a Christmas visit or a Stanley Cup visit or an event like the one you and Alex put on, you always meet someone who leaves an impression on you. And I was just wondering if there was anyone in particular, Ryan, that you think of the most and say, this is the person, one of the people, I guess, that I do this for. Yeah. I have a, I have a close relationship with, uh, uh, a guy

that's a handful of years younger than me, but went to the same high school, Creighton-Durham Hall as me. I grew up in St. Paul and is a great family friend. Um, his name's Casey O'Brien. He's actually got a great story out there. Um, if anyone's listening, wants to look it up, he played college football for the University of Minnesota. And believe it or not, he's beaten cancer, I believe, nine times now. And he's still battling it again for a tenth time now, unfortunately. But you want to talk about somebody that's inspiring and a warrior and all the characteristics of a person that, you know, is somebody that you can look up to. It's Casey with an unbelievable attitude,

unbelievable strength. You know, I text him and I ask how he's doing and it's, you know, a quick response and he's asking me how the season's going and all my family's doing, and it just shows the kind of character that he is. So for anybody listening out there, look up his story. He's an incredible, incredible guy, Casey O'Brien. Yeah, no, it's sad, but like I said, very inspiring, and I'm very thankful to have a close relationship with him and, and we keep inspiring and supporting one another. I just looked it up. Wow. Like what a story, my goodness.

Yeah. Good on you, Brian. Really, really good on you. It's always difficult to make the transition from here to there, but as Ryan says, make sure you get checked out. We'll put the name of the website in the show notes so everybody can get it. As someone who's 54 years old myself, I started getting checked more regularly when I was around 40. And it always gives you peace of mind. And, you know, you're on a trip right now with the Lightning.

And it's a sibling's trip. So tell us about the sibling who is with you and what they're doing while you're doing this interview. Yeah, no, I'm very fortunate. This is actually my second sibling's trip. Got to do one back in the day with the Rangers. We went to Denver on New Year's Eve, actually, and had a pretty fun celebration on New Year's Eve. And now this time around here with the lightning, uh, the back in the day with the Rangers,

I brought my older brother, Colin. And, uh, now this time my younger brother, Quinn McDonough gets to come along. So, um, it's been fun for him to kind of see, uh, you know, what our daily routine is like. And, you know, even today on a practice day, you know, you're at the rink for a few hours. You got meetings, you got workout and skate and some recovery and treatment. And before you know it, you've been at the rink for, you know, four or five hours. So it's a little different than him going to the ice as a squirt

or peewee for an hour or two hours. So it's good for them to experience it. And obviously he's been so supportive of me over my career, so it's fun for him to get a taste of our pro hockey life here. We're all going to do some bowling here in a little bit. So after this is done, that's where we're going to head for a couple of hours before dinner. How are you as a bowler?

I'm not bad. I actually used to bowl a lot uh during my years at wisconsin every you know you play friday saturday and sunday on campus there there was all you could pull for two and a half three hours you know for 10 bucks so all of us would go on sundays hang out we'll watch football games so got pretty good at it back in the college days but uh you know i probably haven't done it as much since then. But I kind of feel like I know what I'm doing out there enough. So, like, are we talking, like, 200, 250?

Like, what are we talking about here? I know my record, my career best in Wisco is, like, 255. Wow! Yeah, we were good. I know Derek Stepon and Jake Gardner can attest to that. They were always going to bowl in there. We all got pretty good. So I don't know if I could hit the 200s now,

but like I said, back in the day, we would just start a couple frames, one or two frames, and if it wasn't going well, we would just restart the game and try to get highest scores. I love that. And who is the worst road roommate, Colin or Quinn of your brothers? I don't know. Colin, he's older than me. So he was, he was easy. He was, you know, like the older brother does kind of lets the little brother do what he needs. And so Quinn, he's a little bit younger, Gen Z. He's more of a night owl sitting on his phone late at night here. So tough for him to get to bed when I'm tired after the game last night.

I need to get some sleep. So two different birds, but obviously both love having the chance to get on the road here and experience this together. So, Ryan, I'm glad you brought up Wisconsin. Three years you spent there, first stepped on campus in 2007. But this past spring, you got your degree in personal finance. Now, I heard that you and your old roommate, Cody Golubeff, like you really attacked this together. that you and your old roommate, Cody Golubev, like you really attacked this together.

You did it virtually, of course, over the last number of years, kind of one class a semester. But even when you were on the road, like you guys would FaceTime when you had an hour before dinner or something to go through an assignment. First off, congratulations on that. But what was it like getting that completed?

Yeah, thank you. No, I mean, yeah, I have to give him a lot of credit because I think when COVID was going on there, he had caught wind that all the classes were going online for obvious reasons. And that was never the case beforehand. So we were both similar and probably had about eight classes left and, you know, they wanted you to do it in person, which was difficult for us being him being in Toronto and myself, uh, playing and being in Minnesota in the summers and stuff. So, um, he caught wind of it and reached out to me right away. Like, Hey, should we try to try to tackle this thing a little by little here? And sure enough, uh, you know, we started taking one class at a time and, and, uh,

like I said, we would just kind of hop on aTime at 7, 38 o'clock once the kids were all down and work through some things. So it was, like I said, a great, great feeling, great accomplishment. Obviously, you know, you go to school, your main objective is, you know, your hockey career. But at the same time, school is just as important. And so for us to finish that and obviously us being dads of young kids, young family, you know, hopefully that inspires them to get a college degree one day themselves. Now, I have to ask, it's well known, Ryan, that Elliot, my co-host, is just a little bit shy of the credits necessary for graduating from the University of Western Ontario. Do you have any advice for him to finally get that elusive degree? Thanks, Kyle. I appreciate that. Thank you.

I'm just trying to help. We had some good tutors, that's for sure, too. Thankfully, the university had some good help for us tutor-wise. Otherwise, we would be scrambling along at times, too. But no, like I said, slowly but surely, you never know. You can just chip away at it. I have one question about your playing days there as a Badger, Ryan. So your sophomore season, you're a proud Minnesota guy,

but you're playing for Wisconsin. You guys go into Minnesota, the Mariucci. You sweep the Gophers one weekend. And the story I heard was you brought, you had a broom out sweeping the roof at a local establishment after the job was done. A, is that true? And B, what do you remember of why that weekend was so meaningful to you? Yeah. I mean, obviously being a Minnesotan and, you know, ended up playing across the border there, they were our biggest rival. And a lot of my closest friends were on that team, Minnesota there that year.

And, you know, they're powerhouse programs, you know, back then still to this day. So to go on the road there and, you know, win both games and sweep them, I was pretty excited to say the least. And so, yeah, I think that Sunday we got back. We might have skipped the bowling ritual that day and went to the bar instead and grabbed the janitor's broom there in the closet and just had a little sweeping,

in need of sweeping the roof there. So the guys, we all had a blast and it was obviously a big weekend for myself and with our whole team. So it was great to uh the guys we all had a blast and it was obviously a big weekend for for myself and with our whole team so it was uh great to see the guys laugh and support me there ryan back in tampa this year and you know john cooper's in his 12th full season uh coaching the lightning and you know i was thinking yet the the day before we record this uh jim montgomery's fired in boston with a great record. And I just, in this day and age, I think for someone to coach the same team for 12 full seasons,

I think it's unbelievable that, you know, everyone doesn't just get sick of each other after a few of those. And I'm curious to hear, like, you've gone, you've come back. Why do you think it still works between cooper and the lightning why how has it lasted this long well no doubt i mean you know you win two cups get to a third and even before i got here they were in finals and going on deep runs i mean it's hard not to believe in believe in him as a head coach first and foremost um because you know his messaging and what he preaches and the way he goes about his business you know gives you a chance to win each and every night and

gives you a great chance to win once you're in the playoffs i think he's you know hands down one of the best as far as dissecting a team and when you're going into a series there and uh finding out you know where they're a little weak and where you can exploit them and how you as a team can, you know, give yourself the best chance to win in a series each night. So I'd say the belief that you have in him and his awareness of where the team's always at, I think he's very good about, you know, you're not going to be perfect every night, but you have a standard as far as holding yourself

and the team accountable, and he's great about flirting that line as far as when to be intense and hard on you as an individual or a team or when to step back and take a breath. And so, like I said, just a great feel of the room at all times, and you have a great belief in him for obviously reasons his track record speaks for itself. So, you know the guys obviously there's turnover each and every year but the guys that uh you know get to be here

for a long time it doesn't seem like a boring old message so that's that's the key when when you came back ryan what was the same about the lightning and what was different about them i mean the same i think the same thing was, was just the, the competitive spirit as far as, you know, we're, we're here to win each and every night. The expectation is to win. We're not just, we're not just going through the motions here. We're not just, you know, showing up, collecting a paycheck. It's, it's, you know, you're here, you've got to produce, you've got to play at a high level. The team's got to play at a high level. And I love that.

I think it's great that, you know, everything each and every day is about how can we win the next game, whether it's practice, whether you need a day off, you know, some guys go on the ice and practice. Some guys might not that play a little bit more minutes and that's fine. We all know that, you know, when it's game time at seven o'clock, the puck drops, you know, our, our one goal is to win that game. It doesn't have to be perfect. It won't be perfect every time, but I just love the fact that, you know,

everybody just holds each other accountable. And the main goal is to win each and every night. And that's, you know, something that's hard to find and they've obviously built to over time. Um, you know, to say, you know, what things might be different, obviously the personnel is different, but that's, that's an obvious answer. Um, but not, not, you know, not too much. Obviously I've had the same, you know, same head coach, same D coach for me, same, you know know medical staff for the most part trainers um you know i don't have the same house that i'm i was in before but i'm living in the same area my kids are going to the same school they were at so you know it doesn't feel like a move per se when you

get traded when you get traded to a different team it's it's easy to be comfortable and it's easy to just come in and focus on hockey and and get going with the group. So I was going to ask on that front then, I mean, of course, you would have been present during your two seasons in Nashville and giving all you could to the Predators while you were there. But for everything you just mentioned, did it feel like you left Tampa really now that you're back there again, Ryan? And also, Ryan, to that point, like initially you were disappointed. Like was it hard?

Like how long did it take you to put that disappointment away and say, okay, I'm happy to come back. I don't worry about that anymore. Yeah, no, I know. It's an interesting question. I mean, no doubt you're hurt. Initially you're hurt.

You know, we just lost in the finals. You felt like you're a big part. You have, you know, a lot of the same guys, the team, you know, potentially coming back. There's no reason why we couldn't, you know, go on a deep run again and see, see what happens. And you want to be a part of that. So to get moved, it definitely hurt. And then, you know, over time you've got to, you know, continue to be a pro and continue to go for that dream of winning again.

And for whatever reasons happened, I didn't, I never thought I would get back to Tampa, at least maybe on this contract that I'm still on. Um, but to have that opportunity come up, um, you know, some people would have said, oh, you know, how could you go back to the team that traded you or GM that traded you? I'm like, well, that's true at the time. They maybe didn't think of it, but you know, now they want me back and they want, and they believe in me again. They think I'm a piece that can help them, like I said, get back to hopefully winning a cup again. So I think that speaks volumes too in itself. And, you know, outside of hockey, this city of Tampa has been

special for my family. I have two kids born there. Like I said, we know the schools there. We love living there. And so that side of it too had a huge impact as far as where our family's at and where we think our kids can thrive too. Someone told me, Ryan, who knows you, like as much as you are such a courageous player and how you put your body on the line every night, he said that you don't get enough credit for your athleticism, like hearkening back to how good of a football player you were, a baseball player growing up. And he thinks for all those reasons, even though you've logged a lot of miles to this point in your hockey playing life, that you could absolutely be a guy that plays into your forties if you wanted to. Do you think about that? Is that something you would love to have the opportunity to do? Yeah. I mean, I would, I would love to, I mean,

it's, it's, uh, you know, every year is a different point of time for me. I mean, I've got three kids now. My oldest is eight years old, second grader. You know, I think she's the smartest person in the world right now. I can't believe how much she learns at school and how she can carry a conversation. So to think down the road in a year or two where she's going to be at and, you know, my hockey career is obviously a huge part of our family. You know, I have to balance between being a father and a husband

and a hockey player. So it's always, I think if you ask anybody as they get older with the family, it's always something you're constantly balancing and thinking and trying to judge. But, you know, physically I feel great. Mentally I still love coming to the rink and playing each night, competing with the guys. And there's no doubt, I feel like I take care of myself and can still play at a high level and be effective and help teams win. And I don't have a set number

that I want to get to, but definitely, you want to play this game as long as you can. And I'm in that frame of mind for sure. So Ryan, I grew up with four sisters and I remember my dad saying to me once when one of my sisters was around that age, eight, he said, oh boy, when she's a teenager, I'm going to have trouble with this one. Like, do you have those thoughts and things like that? As you says, he's obviously very confident. confident and like do you look at that and say oh boy is this

one gonna be a a tough one for me to handle no i think for sure like i said they're just they're so smart and like uh just so outgoing and and they pick up on everything you know when they're three four years old you can yes you know you can say anything kind of around them, but now that they're older, they're, you know, staying up later watching a game on TV. She's playing hockey. She's playing soccer. She knows sports now. She knows when dad screws up or gets scored on,

and I'm the culprit out there, so then I start to hear about it. So it's like, it's crazy hobby they can just pick up and pick up on things and analyze things but it's it's obviously uh so much fun uh raising kids and being a father and seeing them grow and develop what's the harshest criticism she's given you she's like i said she knows when i get scored on. She's like, you got scored on last night, Dad. What the heck? It's funny. She's a good little hockey player, and I think she'll be a forward like her mom. Last one for me is simply this.

Bernie Kosar, Vinny Testaverde, Gino Toretta, Craig Erickson, Jim Kelly, Steve Walsh. Who was the best University of Miami quarterback and why? Great quarterbacks, all of them, but my answer is going to be Steve Walsh. He's a huge role model for me. It was funny, actually. I can't remember where I was. Somewhere early on in the season here, one of my first road trips,

and was just flipping through. Actually, you know where it was? It was in Carolina. We went up there early because of the hurricane, coincidentally, and 30 for 30 was on, and it was part two. The U of Miami one? Yeah.

Well, it was the Catholics versus convicts one, and I actually hadn't seen the remake of it, and it happened to be on, and I sat and watched the whole thing and actually never really watched the highlights of that game against Notre Dame as well as it was covered in this documentary, and it was just awesome to see how that game transpired. Obviously, I was not even born yet, and I've heard about it,

and my parents were at that game and whatnot, so it was fun to watch that game and you know see him be a leader and come back i can those those are the days they didn't have instant replay and there was so much controversy on calls and stuff so it's obviously a heartbreak in the end for for him and his team but like i said it was fun to see him uh at that stage you know, be a leader of his team. Like I said, it's been a huge role model for me and watching him play pro for as long as he did. You know, the lessons that he taught me are definitely with me here today in my career. Biggest lesson he taught you?

Always respect your opponent. And like you said, he always had great teams, and there would be, you see it every day in college football, upsets. And he said, you always have to respect your opponent. It doesn't matter how good you think you guys are. No question, in the NHL, any team can beat anybody on any given night. So you have to be humble and make sure you prepare every day as if it's the biggest game of your career. And last one from me, Ryan.

So, of course, it's well-documented, your willingness to block shots amongst other things. I heard a story somewhere along the way in your career in the NHL that a coach came to you and said, look, we don't want you blocking shots in the regular season anymore. It's just too tough to watch. And your reaction was basically too freaking bad. I'm not changing how I play. How have you learned to deal, I guess, with fear over the course of your time playing hockey? And also, which coach was that? I want to know.

Who told you to stop blocking shots? I don't know that one. I'm not too sure on that, to be honest with you. I'd have to think back because, I mean, I don't know. I mean, yeah, you don't want guys getting hurt, and I think that shot blocking, maybe it's become less and less in the game today, but I still think it's just as valuable as it was forever long the game's been around. So I've seen it pay off, and teams that have won, it doesn't matter who you are on the team,

a blocked shot can be the difference in a game and can be inspiring. It can save a goal. It can lift the team up, change momentum. It can be inspiring. It can save a goal. It can, you know, lift the team up, change momentum. And so, unfortunately, I've had, you know, I think it started probably when I went to Wisconsin there. Mark Bosicki was a big advocate of shot blocking. He used to, you know, teach us technique, shooting tennis balls at us.

Obviously, it wouldn't hurt to practice. But ever since then, I've just kind of carried that in my game. And like I said, just showing that willingness is the most important thing. It means you care about your teammates. It means you care about winning, and you want to do whatever it takes. And so hopefully it spreads throughout your team, and everybody buys in a little bit more that way. Awesome.

Ryan, this has been great. Really appreciate the time. Thank you for hopping on with us us and best of luck at bowling. Yeah, sounds good. Thanks, guys. Always a pleasure. OK, thanks once again to Ryan McDonough and the Tampa Bay Lightning for making that one happen. For your viewing pleasure this weekend, if you've got a hankering for hockey, as we always do come Saturday, kind of an unofficial triple header. The Calgary Flames host the Minnesota Wild. That can be seen nationally on Sportsnet, 4 o'clock Eastern, 2 p.m. Mountain Time.

And then the usual Saturday night staple, Hockey Central Saturday, 6.30 Eastern, 3.30 Pacific. Three early games this week. As we mentioned, the Vancouver Canucks are in Ottawa. The all-Canadian matchup at the Canadian Tire Centre. Vegas is in Montreal, Winnipeg in Nashville, the Nightcap, the New York Rangers, and the Edmonton Oilers. We should also mention Hockey Day in Canada, less than two months away, January the 18th. Beautiful Canmore, Alberta is the host this year.

Two days prior to that, the 16th of January, we are taking this podcast to Canmore, Alberta is the host this year. Two days prior to that, the 16th of January, we are taking this podcast to Canmore. That's right. We're going on the road. Much more info to come. Stay tuned on that front. There are only so many hours in a day. We appreciate you spending a couple of them with us.

Have a great weekend. We'll talk to you on Monday.