32 Thoughts: The Podcast - McDavid Wants a Winner

Episode Date: June 20, 2025

In this edition of 32 Thoughts, Kyle Bukauskas and Elliotte Friedman react to the end-of-season media availabilities for the Edmonton Oilers. They take a moment to reflect on what the Panthers can do to maintain their run (19:03) before delving into the NHL's investigation into the Oilers' alleged misuse of LTIR with Evander Kane (25:15). Kyle and Elliotte discuss the Mason Marchment trade (30:15). The hosts also talk about Nick Bonino retiring from pro hockey and joining the Pittsburgh Penguins (36:10). They discuss Noah Dobson's future as an RFA (39:12) and touch on the Senators signing Fabian Zetterlund (42:50). The Final Thought focuses on several other UFAs: Mitch Marner, John Tavares, and Nick Ehlers (47:15). Elliotte also drops a quick note on Brock Boeser and Conor Garland in Vancouver (52:02).Kyle and Elliotte answer your voicemail and email submissions in the Thought Line (54:07).Email the podcast at [e-mail] or call the Thought Line at 1-833-311-3232 and leave us a voicemail.This podcast was produced and mixed by Dominic Sramaty and hosted by Elliotte Friedman & Kyle Bukauskas.The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates

We all know the situation with Connor. What are the conversations like? How do you kind of talk to him about trying to make a similar commitment to this team? I'm gonna be honest. I haven't I haven't really talked to Connor about it yet There comes a time where we we talk about it But there's nothing that I can tell you right now that you want to hear or you need to hear you know, that's that's his situation and and he will do what's best for him and his family. And I mean, do I want him here forever? Yes, of course. I think everybody does.

So, yeah, there's not much I can give you there. Welcome to 32 Thoughts, the podcast presented by the GMC Sierra AT4X. I'm Sramati Elliot Friedman, Kyle Bukaskis with you again. Elliot around this time of year, there's always that feeling after covering four rounds of the playoffs, the fatigue is right there and the thought of I'm so tired, I don't understand how the players played and went through all of that over the last two months. I didn't have a shift and I'm wiped.

How was the first day back for you after the grind of four rounds? Not too bad, Kyle. I slept a lot more than I normally do. I will say that. But as I often tell people, what I'm doing is not rocket surgery. So it's not that hard. Yes, that's right. The boyfriend had gathered his things. They got out by the time he got home.

He's gone, he's gone. No trace of him, no socks left behind. Like desperate housewives where they find a sock under the bed. Right, right, right, right. Oh, good. And the cleaning lady has to clean with socks because that's the excuse.

That's crazy. I saw that clip online somewhere today. I was. Did you really? I was never a desperate housewives guy, but that just popped up out of nowhere. So I didn't. I remember watching an episode once, and that was the episode where the cleaning lady has to clean with socks because they found one under. I think it was Eva Longoria's bed from the guy she was having an affair with.

It was pretty funny. Great scene. J.P. Any other day in my life prior to this one, I would not have known what you're talking about but today of all days. A.D. The sun's aligned. The stars aligned.

J.P. That's good. All right. So back in Edmonton Elliot there everyone's still coming to grips with what happened in the six game defeat to the Florida Panthers and a second straight trip to the Stanley Cup final without a Stanley Cup to lift over their heads on Thursday. They had their end of season availabilities back in Edmonton. And naturally, the majority of the attention went to what was Conor McDavid's thoughts about the series and his future. If you haven't heard he is eligible to sign an extension in just a few days from now on July the 1st.

Among the things that he said, well, actually, you know what, why don't we let you hear what he said earlier on Thursday? Winning would be at the top of the list. And then, you know, winning would be the it's the most important thing. If I feel that there's a good window to win here over and over again, then signing is no problem. So Kyle, do you want to hear my theory? Always.

I don't think Connor McDavid is eager to flee Northern Alberta. I don't think he's really interested in doing that. I think he's got a good setup there. You know him and dry side. You need depth, but you also need superstar talent and you can't do better than dry side and McDavid to start right. They like each other. He's got good relationships with a lot of players on that team.

And he also sees that they have been to the Stanley Cup final two years in a row, and they've lost to an absolute buzzsaw. And so I think he recognizes all of that. I think also, too, he recognizes that before they ran into this multi-year juggernaut from South Florida, they lost the first two games of the playoffs to the Kings, and then they went 12-2. And they just didn't beat the Kings, Vegas and Dallas.

They dominated them. Remember how, remember what we felt about the Oilers when they beat Vegas? We were like, holy smokes. Nobody beats Vegas like that. Remember what we felt about the Oilers when they beat Dallas? We were like, holy smokes. Nobody beats Dallas like that to the point where Dallas imploded internally and they had to make a coaching change that they weren't expecting to make. So I understand McDavid's frustration. The thing that stood out to me still about this final Kyle is not what McDavid said at all on Thursday.

It's what he said after game six. That line about trying the same thing over and over again, just banging our heads against the wall. Like, to me, that's still as interesting as anything he said on Thursday. Because what it says to me is this is not only a roster thing that McDavid is talking about, but it's also maybe a philosophy in terms of the things they did best in the first three rounds was move the puck out of their zone. Statistically, they did that as well as anybody. And then they ran into Florida and they couldn't do it anymore. And you know, you talked about the Alfredson comments last game, last pod after game six. I think that's part of what he's talking about. I think what he's saying is I'm all in every year and everybody knows that.

I need to make sure that everybody here is all in every year. And I think they are. I have no doubt they are, but I think this is his way of saying, I expect the Oilers to be wired the exact same way I am. And you look at it, they gave Skinner another shot. I don't know if they're going to bring in another goalie to go with Skinner or they're going to move on. But one thing I do believe is that they have to end the uncertainty. Teams that win the Stanley Cup, you don't have as much turnover or upheaval

in that the way Edmonton's had the last two years. And I could see McDavid and the organization saying, enough of that. We have to end that one way or the other. Whatever you do, this ends now. So that's number one. Number two, he talked about Bouchard and he wants to see Bouchard get signed. And I'll say this, one thing Edmonton is very lucky about is the cap is going up now. It's not stagnant anymore. And it gives them a better chance.

Look, they've got Dry Cytol at 14. McDavid's going to sign for some huge number, which he deserves every penny of. Remember last time, McDavid didn't sign for as much as he could sign for. So I think I don't expect it to be any different. Like the maximum he can sign for, I think is like 19 million. I don't expect him to sign for 19 million. Now, do I still think it'll be a big number?

Absolutely. And again, no one's complaining about it. But if history is any indication, he's not going for the max. Bouchard, I could see him being an eight figure guy easy and we'll see what happens around him with Kane, Arvidson. Connor Brown is a guy who might be looking for some term now. He's taken a couple one-year deals. He's been a good fit. They have a bunch of defensemen, Kulak, Ekholm, Wallman who can be extended. What are they going to do? So all of that is a long way to say, Kyle, I wonder if McDavid goes short term. This is purely my opinion. My opinion. I wonder if McDavid goes short term. I wonder if he signs for only a couple years, a few years. And it's like Matthews. Matthews has done three, five and four, right?

Yes, but yeah, the motors would be totally different. Yeah, the motors would be totally different. Kyle, I think you're totally right. And you know, it also, one of the reasons could be that we just don't know where the cap is going beyond three years. But I just wonder if McDavid says, this is not about me leaving Edmonton, because again, I don't think he's eager to flee there. It's about me saying, I want everybody sharp every year. You know, for example, he's going to be 29 in January. What if he's extended for two years? And then he can sign again at at 31. That means his commitment to Edmonton at the time is 13

years. Right? Wow. Yeah, no, you're right. It's just that's amazing. That makes him an oiler for 13 years. 13 years. 13 years. And what it does also is it says, hey, I'm here, but I need everybody to be, I don't let anyone get complacent. I'm just, if I was in his shoes, I would consider that. Wow. Cause I'm totally with you on

trying to read between the lines here. I mean, I don't profess to know him particularly well on a personal level, but you always got the sense that he is well aware, certainly as he's gotten older, the kind of weight that his comments can carry when he decides to be honest on certain things or to weigh in on certain topics. And you know, this was going to be one where everyone's hanging on every word. I didn't for a second look at this as, Oh, is this any type of negotiating tactic? Is it a threat to none of that, like, the contract when it comes time for it, will all take care of

itself that way. Listening to that on Thursday to me was like, it was, okay, what is this organization thinking? What is their plan to ensure we've got an opportunity to win again next year and the year after? You heard Leon Dryside will say, Core's not old, very much still in our prime. So how are they helping that group right now? That was my thought, listening to all of

that. And now the idea of a short term, man, it would be in a way unprecedented, but I totally see where you're coming from. Let's, you know, again, I want to stress that this is my opinion. Yeah, yeah. My opinion. I just. And I'll say this, if I was the Oilers, first of all, the oilers are going to do whatever he wants to do. It's like Matthew's last contract, the least asked him for five years.

He said no for they did for right. Like he he he gets to write his own ticket. They're going to do whatever he wants. And again, if I was the others, I wouldn't be afraid of it. No. Because you've got that. I mean, obviously, you want him for eight years if you can get it, but you've got the best player in the game that wants to win there. Yeah.

I just want to make sure everyone is aligned and that thinking. Yeah, I got to tell you, like I said, just my thought. But watching that, that's what jumped into my head. And maybe two years is too short. Maybe it's three or four or whatever. But if you told me this was not gonna end up at eight and was gonna be much shorter than eight after that press conference, I could see it.

And I'll tell you this, again, if I was the orders, I'd roll the, even if it was just two year extension, if I was the others, I'd roll the roll. Even if it was just two year extension, if I knew I had three more years at McDavid, I am all in and I am going to work and I believe I can win. You've been three wins away from the prize the last two years combined. Right there. Wow. And he very much confirmed what his tone was suggesting in the aftermath of Game Six, that last year it was heartbreak, this year it was anger. It's a completely different feel

in listening to the Oilers this year as opposed to one year ago. You know what I wonder about too, I have to say, like you saw those videos of Kachak, right? Where they're dancing the Pink Pony Club and, you know, Greer was like the comment about the Oilers. Yes. Like I got to say this, I think the rivalry between Kachak and the Oilers is very real, I think the rivalry between Kachak and the Oilers is very real. Very real. And it goes back to that Battle of Alberta, that playoff series where the Oilers won in five games. Right. And even before that.

Well, yeah, I mean, absolutely. Like you're right. Like some of those games were awesome. Just like the Cassian, Kachak stuff and Mike Smith and Kam Talbot. Oh, those bring back such great memories. Those broadcasts, Kyle. Thank you for making me smile tonight. But in particular, when when Calgary lost to Edmonton in that playoff

battle of Alberta, I know that the flames. The Oilers felt that they broke the flames. They ended that group, right? That team was pretty much broken up after that. Some of the flames told me that they knew that the... I've talked before that the Oilers had kind of discussed that and the Flames knew the Oilers felt that way. And as, so we talked about that once on the pod, I think Kyle, and one of the Flames players from that team told me that the worst thing about it is like we have to eat it because they're right. They beat us so badly that we were never the same team again. The team was gone.

And so I think the feelings between Kocak and those Oilers are very real. And some of the other players who are on that Flames team and those Oilers are very real. So Kocak beats them twice in a row, and it's a little bit of revenge for him. Don't forget in that series, the Battle of Alberta, Kane got the better of him. He took him right out of the series. This time, Kachak gets the better of Kane. And I would bet seeing those Pink Pony Club videos and things like that it it grinds on the

Oilers that Kachak got them again it's hard enough to lose the Stanley Cup final but I would bet it grinds on those guys that Kachak got them again like it's it's I've heard between the players on those teams it's very real very real well you saw it on the I mean, that was another nasty, nasty series. Yeah, in a lot of ways. And by the way, as the Panthers have remained in celebration mode, like remember last year, it was kind of a, oh, how cool is that? Like they've brought the Stanley Cup to the elbow room. Hey, did you hear they brought

the Stanley Cup to the elbow room. Hey, did you hear? They brought the Stanley Cup to the elbow room. Everybody in South Florida knew where to be the moment the final horn sounded in game six. Yes, yes, they jammed. A lot of that stuff was really good. Like Barkov, the ring, doing the doorbell. Yes, at five. And the guy saying last year year you didn't bring it by this time. Bring it by. So Barkov comes at five a.m. Yeah, I'll tell you something else to Kyle. I forgot to mention this last pod, but just talking to a couple of the Panthers on and off the ice after that game. They're not going to let up.

They're going for three. It's amazing. Like they, that organization, they're like, okay, we won two, we won two, it's hard to win two, other teams have won two, No one's won three in a row since the Islanders, right? Yeah, like not even the Oilers in the 80s did three. That's 40 years ago. Well, we talked about it earlier in the playoffs, Elliot, like just with how that team priorit some guys back, if that's the road they want to go. But I heard you on the radio, I can't remember where it was,

maybe the interesting point where, you know, you look at a guy like Seth Jones and how many other players in the league were looking at him going, well, I could be that guy. I could be the player that maybe in my situation isn't the best where I am right now, but I could be the guy that's going to be the best players in the league were looking at him going, well, I could be that guy. I could be the player that maybe in my situation isn't the best where I am right now, but I could be part of a solution in a place like Florida for when they go to find the next version of Seth Jones or a Brad Marshawn or somebody of that ilk next year when they try to do it a third time. So, Kyle, Bill Zito, after they won the cup,

he says, I'm going to try to keep everybody right. And, you know, sometimes I think that's the emotion of the moment. You know, what are you going to say? You've just won the Stanley Cup. All these players have gone through a wall for you. Well, we're going to get rid of two of them. It's a tough thing to say. So I could I could totally understand. I have no doubt we're going to get rid of two of them. It's a tough thing to say. I could totally understand. I have no doubt they're going to try. Like we talked about with Edmonton, the cap's going up. It's not like all these teams had to deal with four and five years ago, or even two years ago, where the cap was flat. It's an advantage at this time for the

Oilers and the Panthers as compared to other teams who competed for the Stanley Cup in recent years. I would not underestimate the Panthers, but I got to think two out of three potentially is more likely. You know, Bennett, I've talked before eight times seven, Verhege was the offer. And I think Bennett is going to bend. He's going to take less money than he can get on the open market to stay with the Panthers. I think this is one where the Panthers have to bend a bit and I expect they are going to bend a little bit.

I'm going to go with this is going to get done until somebody convinces me it's actually not going to get done until somebody convinces me it's actually not going to get done. Remember last year, Reinhardt got signed right before midnight on June 30th. I guess it could always come down to the wire. Marchand, it's such a tough one because I said at the beginning of the cup finally, he was getting a three times eight. And now I've had people telling me you're gonna be off on this one, he's gonna get more. And maybe the magic number like that's 24 million, maybe he gets

more than that in another structure, or maybe he gets more than three times eight AV. But his he did nothing in the Stanley Cup final to hurt his worth. And I think Utah's in there. I think Toronto is going to be in there. And I think there's going to be other teams there as well. And it's going to be very interesting to see where Florida, an analytically heavy team, feels that it can go here.

So I think that's going to be fascinating. Echblad, you know, Kyle, I don't know how much they've really negotiated with him. I think they did last year around the draft free agency. It was not anything that Echblad was willing to do. I have to think that as important to him as anything is term. He's 29 years old and his body's been through a heck of a lot. So I've heard the term is going to be a big one for him. And this is a big opportunity for him too, because he played the best hockey of his life.

And I think there's going to be a lot of interest in him. And you know, the other name we shouldn't forget, Nate Schmidt. You know, Nate Schmidt had a great year and a great playoff and a great final. I think them keeping him depends on what happens around him. But, you know, I'm sure they'd love to keep him. And if they don't, I could see a lot of teams running at him as a player. Right. Well, I think it's two years in a row now, right? They brought in a defenseman coming off being bought out and have helped kind of rebuild them. Right. It was Ekman Larsen two years ago and he ends up signing for a good chunk of time in

Toronto and then they bring in Nate Schmidt. Great success. I mean, again, it speaks to the program they've got there in Florida, also to the work of Sylvain Lafay who runs the defense there with the Panthers along with Paul Maurice as the head coach. Nate Schmitz, the ladies guy. By the way, I'm glad you mentioned that because Maurice gets a lot of the credit and he deserves it. He's the head coach, but their assistant coaches like Sylvain Lafay, remember when he got traded there, we talked about how Seth Jones would benefit from him.

He did. Rob Talas, very patient over the years in dealing with Sergey Bobrovsky. He's done a great job earning. He's the guy who convinced Bobrowski that in the regular season you can play a bit less. And it's made Bobrowski a better goalie. And I think we should also recognize a person who someone joked was Paul Maurice's brain.

That's Jamie Compon. Oh, yeah. Four time Stanley Cup champion. Yeah, really good. Kings. In 12, Blackhawks in 13 and now two in a row with the Panthers. And like Jamie Compon, man,, he played when he was a player and this was in the nineties, he played in the ECHL. He looks like he could still play. He is ripped. Yes. On the ice. He's like, there's something with the, uh, the routines in the morning where

like he'll be on the ice, helping this gate and then he'll come off. And next thing you know, the room will open to the media and he's sitting with a player at their stall. He's got the laptop out looking at video and you're like, okay, now he's finished on the ice. He's doing video stuff with players. And then you go leave the dressing room again and he's back out on the ice, like working with the scratches.

He just, he doesn't stop. It's really impressive. He makes you look like the blob. Yeah. So what does that make you? The triple blob. Oh boy. Can we talk about this Evandra Cain LTIR situation? For sure.

The league seems to be circling back to. So what's going on here? So Cain, just to bring everyone up to speed, for those that don't remember, like last September he had a pretty significant surgery to tackle like a number of things right? Yes. And then he had all around the groin hip area. Yes. And they had another one in January, a knee surgery and you're saying that's the one that the league is starting to look are continuing to look harder at? So this is the story there. So he had a knee surgery, as you said in January, and it forced him to stop his rehab from the other surgery for a few weeks. And that is the one the league has put the spotlight on because

basically their opinion is do you really need this surgery? And if he didn't really need this surgery, could he have been back sooner? Now the Oilers, I think, believe that this was not a thing anymore. But from what I've heard, the league had indicated to them at the start of the playoffs or at least indicated the start of the playoffs.

We're not going to pursue this anymore because you guys are playing but we reserve the right to bring it back up again after you're done. So now this is where we are. I'll be honest. I don't really like it. how this is where we are. I'll be honest. I don't really like it. They're about to change this. I believe in the new CBA Kyle, like what I expect them to do

is say that in the playoffs your roster can be whatever, but your in-game lineup has to be under the cap. That's what I'm expecting. I can't say a hundred percent,. That's what I'm expecting. I can't say 100%, but that's what I'm expecting. But I just think that so many people have abused this over the years. Why should the Orthers get a penalty when so many other teams haven't?

You know, I will say that it's not my opinion that matters on this one. And I do think the league grinded teams this year, like came even when he came back, he had to miss a playoff game first. And if you look like Tyler Sagan, he came back one game before the playoffs, right? And I had a few people circling that and saying that one kind of had the league saying, well, if he can play, if he can't

play in the regular season, how do you expect them to play game one? Kind of like what happened with Kane missing that first game. So they did grind teams a lot harder this year. I just, I don't know. It's been abused so much over the years. I don't think it's right that Edmonton should pay a penalty here potentially, but obviously the league's vote matters a lot more than mine. And they have been, they have been all over that particular procedure. Yeah. And I just, anyway, I know we're not going to get to the bottom of

this, but the whole, well, we reserved to write, to look into this afterwards. So what happened? I mean, what if he ripped off five goals in the, he had a great first three rounds that he rips off five goals in the final, Edmonton wins the cup, and then they decide to come back around and punish the Oilers for all of this. Like how would the Florida Panthers feel about that? I know it's all a moot point because that's not what happened. But the whole revisionist nature of this, how it seems to be, doesn't make a lot of sense to me. But what you're saying there about this new provision that's going to be in the CBA you anticipate in terms of LTIR, because we talked, remember we had the question in the thought line not too long ago about teams that in the cup final that have been over the salary cap. And basically all of the last

five or six have been over. Yep. And so if it's, you've got to be under for the 20 guys that you address, boy, that could drastically shift some teams thinking when you get to the third week of April. I have to tell you, if this does happen, as I expect, I'm a little bit surprised because one player did tell me that there were a few of them that talked. Like, how do you explain to the guy who you're going to agree

to a rule change with and he can't play in the playoffs. Hmm. Right. Right. So I thought that was pretty fascinating, but it does look like something's changing there. Hmm. Okay. So number of things to keep an eye on in Edmonton as we inch closer to the official beginning of the offseason. Meanwhile, in Dallas, Elliott, a bit of a newsy day there on Thursday. So it started in the morning, Matt Duchenne, four-year extension, four and a half million AAV front-loaded.

This was what his wish was. He wanted to have some security in his life again with where he's at, the age of his kids, all of that. So the four-year deal there. And then Thursday night, the trade of Mason Marchment to Seattle for a third and fourth round pick. Marshmallow was entering the final year of his contract. Dallas right up against it cap hit wise. So why don't you take us through the stars thinking through what they got done here on Thursday, Elliot? Well, Duchenne was a big one for them. He wanted to stay. You know, I think Duchenne was gonna have a market out there. I had heard that, I especially heard that Duchenne had some, was going to have some offers out there that might not be as long as four years, but would have a higher AAV than he got from Dallas. I think Vancouver was one of those teams.

I had heard that Canucks were interested in him and were disappointed he didn't get on the market. But Duchenne had made it very clear he didn't want to go and Dallas made it work and and they front-loaded it too with bonuses. I think in terms of actual dollars like the total contract I think Duchenne got more money overall with Dallas but I think he would have gotten a higher AAV in a shorter term in some other places in Vancouver. But he was happy and Kyle, you know the old Bob McCowan saying, don't leap with happy. Good for him. Kyle, the reaction of the Marchman trade was really interesting. There was a lot of, that's it,

from other fan bases out there. I think the stars fans understand that they're in such a jam and with the cap situation that they were going to have to move somebody for no return. And I don't think anyone's surprised Marshman was the guy. But I think a lot of other fan bases are kind of sitting there and saying we couldn't beat that. I wouldn't be surprised if somebody did. One thing about Jim Nill is he's pretty good at, very good actually, about trading a guy like Marchment and saying, I'm going to put you in a good situation. You know, Merrick had a tweet tonight about how

he sent him to Seattle because the tax situation was similarly advantageous. The other thing, too, is Marchman is the kind of player Seattle needs the crack and are trying to build an identity. Marchman, whether you like him or don't like him, he has a big identity. I think he's the kind, he's gonna play there and he's the kind of personality they need there on the ice especially. And I think Neil recognizes that. You know, Kyle, we talked about with Marcius in Nashville, he came from a no-tax state, Vegas, he went to a no-tax state,. He went to a no-tax state Nashville and he has control over the situation and

one of the things I'd heard was that if he got treated from the Predators he would only agree or Basically say I don't want to go somewhere my more my contract could become less valuable He wanted he that's part of the equation. I think that's also what happened a little bit here. I understand why some fans are gonna look at this and say, my team couldn't beat that. First of all, he did have some small protection, so certain teams wouldn't be there.

And secondly, Nil made a point of making sure he went into a situation. But I would bet there's some other teams here that would also be pretty disappointed. They couldn't get Marchment. I heard there was a lot of interest. Hmm. So, I mean, basically, you bring in four and a half with the Duchenne deal. You ship out four and a half with the Duchesne deal, you ship out four and a half with the Marchmint trade. And they still got a number of decisions to make here. I mean, there's still a deal to be worked out with their captain, Jamie Ben, as we believe

they're going to look to get something done and that marriage will continue. But they still need bodies under contract to fill out their roster here, Elliot. So what else do you anticipate from the stars as we move forward? I would expect that Bork gets more of a role. The other thing about Dallas is they can always find guys who want to play there at a low price, right? Like it's Dallas. It's a good place to play. It's a good team. So I think you sit there and you say they're gonna be able to squeeze some guys in if they need to.

Look, we're gonna see what they do with Dumba. Do they move them, do they buy them out? The buyout window opens Friday and there's a few situations we're gonna be looking at there. You know, Robertson at this point in time, I expect the Stars more to take a run at signing him as opposed to trading him. But don't forget, you can go 10% over the cap in the summer, right Kyle? So it's not like you have to make those decisions now.

You can kind of see what happens around July 1 and then figure out what you need to do. The other thing also I would say about Dallas is I think they're going to interview some external candidates now for the head coaching job. I would expect that Neil Graham, the assistant, the sort of head coach at Texas, I still think he has a shot at the job. I know they interviewed Nazradin. I'm not sure about Nazradin. I think Graham does. I'll say this about Alain Nazradin. One thing that's come pretty clear in this whole coaching

situation now is people like the job he does. But I think now they're going to go to some outside candidates. I still wonder about Gullitzen. That is one I wonder if they interview him from Edmonton. And a couple other coaching things. I heard that Steve Spott, who was in Dallas, he could potentially end up in Boston. And I heard some rumors that Todd Nelson, who was coaching Hershey and won a couple of Calder Cups there, he could end up in Pittsburgh. So we'll see where all these things go.

Gotcha. And we'll end on Thursday that newly retired Nick Bonino is joining Dan Muse's coaching staff in Pittsburgh. So yeah, he, uh, he announced that that was an interesting story. Yeah. Of course. One is two Stanley cups with the Penguins in 16 and 17 and now part of the coaching staff as he makes the transition to the next phase of his career and really put Harner

Ryan sing on the map. Yes. Well, no, as he said to Harner Ryan, he goes, you made me famous with the call. So they were good for each other. That's right. Good for each other. That was a mutually beneficial partnership. Yeah, that's right.

He was a really smart guy. I could see him being very good at that. Yeah, yeah, amazing. A wrestler in high school, he was 5 foot 2 at one point, Elliott, fought in the 100 pound weight class class and then hit a growth spurt. But I mean, it's fought for everything he's gotten in, in hockey to this point. And now, now into coaching. So congrats to him on a really great playing career, 868 games.

And now to the next phase. That's interesting about spot though, Elliot, like that would be the first time since the 14-15 season he would be part of a staff that does not have Pete DeBoer as the head coach. You know, sometimes I think that's a really good thing. Look at Mike Sullivan, right? He split from Tortorella and again, it's nothing to do with with sometimes you just have to dive into the deep end on your own For sure for sure you mentioned the biowindow opening today. I mean, is there anything specific you're keeping an eye on early or do you? We just waiting a bit Well, I think the one everybody is

Kind of focused on a bit is TJ Brody from Chicago. I think incredibly highly of TJ Brody as a person. He just didn't play a lot and he'll have a close to 100% hit of a salary next year and then like nothing the year after. So I think that's one that we're all kind of looking at. Also, I think people are looking at Justin Hole, Detroit. We mentioned Dumba before. Those are some of the names we're looking at. You know, those are some of the names we're looking at. Philip Grubauer of Seattle. And Grubauer's cap hit next year is supposed to be 5.9. They actually saved $4 million next year and three the year after.

And then when the cap really goes up, they have to put on an additional 1.7, but you could handle that. Those are the names that I'm kind of looking at. Okay, gotcha. As you know, right shot defensemen are always in high demand, particularly ones that are still very much either entering or in their prime years. So that brings us to Noah Dobson, an RFA do a new contract with the Islanders one year away from UFA status. What do you think happens there? Yeah, I think the Islanders have a bit of a decision to make here. I have heard quietly

that the Islanders are testing the market on him. I think they just want to know. I know there have been a lot of Romanov rumors, but I've had a few people tell me that Dobson is the guy really to keep an eye on. And at this point in time, I don't even know if they do it. But I think, they know if he is what he can be, he's an eight figure guy, right? And since you're a year away from free agency, you know, you've got a few different things you can do. You can sign them now and then trade them later if it doesn't work. You can try to go for a one-year deal and walk them right to free agency. But that's risky because you can really upset the players. We saw

with Swamen or arbitration is a really hard thing. Or you can deal them now. And I think the islanders are investigating all possibilities. You know, I think they know he's going to be an eight figure guy. So the islanders have to decide, are we going to pay that? Or is someone else going to pay that? Hmm and you think Dobson being the one that they're looking at because in theory that could command

The type of return they may be looking for as they try to Get back to being a playoff team after What was a rough last season? Well, I I think that they intend to compete for the playoffs next year. And if you're subtracting Dobson from your team, it better be for a return that people look at and say, Whoa, that makes sense. So that's what I think they're doing. I think they're trying to find out what's out there. Now, I do think teams have asked them about Romanov. I also think that price is very high,

but also Romanov is not going to be in a salary structure that you're afraid of. And again, I don't think you're afraid of Dobson's number if you feel he's gonna produce. I just think the number you're gonna commit to with Dobson, it's a big, big, big number. And I think the Allenders wanna know what all their options are, all of them. The islanders want to know what all their options are. All of them.

Twenty five years old. In theory, a lot of good hockey still ahead for. Oh, yeah. Noah Dobson. Oh, yeah. Like, I am not saying anything negative about this guy as a player. No, no, not at all. And it's again, that's probably part of why they're weighing this, because as you say, that's a big number if he's at his potential, and could demand a very high return because of how many teams would love to have a player of his caliber in their lineup. Okay, we'll keep an eye there. Fabian

Zetterle and Elliot three year deal in Ottawa, 4.275 million AAV. I think they were very excited to get him at the deadline out of San Jose, 20 goal scorer. It seemed to be a perfect fit. I mean, it was a pretty small sample size, the 20 games in the regular season and then the first round playoff series against Toronto. Clearly they see something there in going three years. Elliott was Zetterlund. What were your thoughts on getting him into a three-year deal? We talked about all the right shots in Ottawa and he is one of them that they've committed to. Well, I just really like the player. So I think it's going to work out well.

Some people said to me they thought the number 42 was high, 4275. I disagree. Number one, you bought a year of unrestricted free agency. And two, whenever arbitration is involved and it would have been involved in this particular case, then the thing about that is that teams get a lot of help and so do agents. This is where your Roland Lees come in and the people at the league who specialize in arbitration, they know to the penny what a player should be asking for and what he should be settling for.

So I think with these particular cases, whenever players sign, like nobody's looking at this and saying it's an unheard of crazy number. Like these things are pretty scientific. I just think Zetterland, you got traded out of nowhere right by the deadline. I mean, that's why it's, remember we talked last pod about how special it was that it worked out for Marchand so well. Yes. Like more cases work out like Zetterlin did.

Like your whole life is thrown into chaos. You just got traded halfway across the continent and your slot in the lineup is a little, not less secure, but less solidified because all the right hand shots and you're not coming in with Brad Marchand's pedigree, right? So I just assume that they figure it all out and they've traded good assets for him. He's a good player and they're going to find places for him to play. I know there's a lot of angst around Giroux. We're starting to see guys signed out. Donato signed the other day in Chicago. Duchenne signed in Dallas. So we're starting to get there. But I really don't worry about

any of these things, Kyle, until we get closer to the draft. Okay. closer to the draft. Okay. Like, like the one thing is like you have to decide like this is what happened last year with Gensel and Carolina. Carolina waited and waited and waited and then Gensel just said, fine, I'm going to UFA. It's it's you always have to weigh that with the guy you're dealing with.

When you still have time. It's it's not over yet. But right before the draft, you start to worry, okay, if I don't do this, is the guy just going to say, forget it, I'm going to go to the market? That's what you have to know. So on June 20th, which is when this podcast drops, I'm not so worried about it, but on June 27th, I might be. Yeah. Draft a week from today, Elliot. And one thing I'll just add on June 27th, I might be. Yeah, draft a week from today, Elliott. And one thing I'll just add on Zetterlin, we talked about, and you pointed out,

in the information you had heard about the internal numbers on McDavid and just how unlucky he was in the Stanley Cup final. I wouldn't say it was quite, at that level, was Zetterlin coming to Ottawa, but I think that was definitely part of the production not being quite where it was. There was some bad luck involved.

I just think the team is kind of banking on, they've got a good player there, they've got a guy that can shoot the puck, got a lot of good years ahead of them. I think that's probably why they were comfortable going three years and at the number that they did. Okay, that'll take us to the final thought which is brought to you by GMC, Elliot,

few other UFA names off the board. You mentioned Donato, you mentioned Duchenne, but the headliners, questions still about them. Mitch Marner, John Tavares, Nick Ehlers, where would you like to start on those three? Well, it was funny. So Marner, on one of our last pods, we talked about how the word around Marner was that they were going to set up meetings for him, whether Zoom or in person around July 1st,

maybe July 2nd, and Marner might take a visit or two before he picks where he wants to go. And I actually heard a lot about that over the week from a bunch of different executives and teams. And they said, it's a really good plan with one major flaw. And I said, OK, what's the major flaw? And they said, what happens if a team that Marna really likes says, here's our offer on July 1st, and it's on the table until tomorrow? Because we can't afford to wait for you to go through a process like this. We have to know, because if the answer is you're not coming, we have to race to plan B. So that might be the plan, but a few teams said to me that someone is going to go in there and say,

is going to go in there and say, we're not doing this. Here's our offer. You've got X and it's going to be quick to take it or leave it. And they guarantee someone's going to go in there and force monitor, make a decision. Okay. I mean, that makes a lot of sense because they said teams can't teams can't afford to wait, right? Because if you're if you're the runner up in a two or three day process, you might be completely screwed about helping yourself somewhere else.

And in this league, you just can't afford that. Yes. It's like the housing market in the city like four years ago. Talking about Ottawa? Yeah. It was just like the whole right multiple bidders and no conditions. Right? You go well if you want to take your time going around here you're going to lose. Piece of advice I was once offered a house without an inspection, never do that. I'm glad one of the things I'm proudest in my life is I refuse to be bullied into that. If they want you to take a house without an inspection, there's a reason. Yes. Red flag. Big red flag.

Yes. There's a reason. Tavares, I still think the Leafs would potentially like to do something along the Tanov line for him. But again, I had a few teams say to me and some agents too, Brock Nelson, 33 years old, just signed for three times seven and a half and he had 56 points, 26 goals and 30 assists. John Tavares, who as we do this podcast is 34 years old, just had a 38 goal season. And you know, look, they're just gonna say like these teams and these agents, they think he can get what Nelson did or right at it. So what's that? 22 million. And so I still think the key is how do you chop it up?

You can still get to that number. You can just do it differently. But I do think teams out there believe that Tavares can do that on the open market. So be up to him. What's he comfortable with? Is a deferred money a possibility here, you think? I don't know.

I think the league is taking aim at that right now. Yeah. Yes. Yes. I am very curious to see if that's going to be still in existence. I'm going to see what Come the new CBA. Come the new CBA. Okay. Well, it was fun while it lasted. Yeah.

Ehlers, you know, again, I just think he's like Ehlers is going to be a big one out there too now. Like the most, most, the more guys that come off the market, you know, the better it is for the ones that are remaining. I'm still expecting Ehlers to hit the market on July 1st and we'll see where we go from there. I had some people tweet at me asking if I thought there was any chance that Brock Besser was going back to Vancouver. I don't believe so.

Not until at least after July 1st. And I think Besser is going to have some decisions to make too. I think there will be different options open to him. Different terms, like some of the teams that are closer to winning might offer shorter term, but they're closer to winning. I've heard this in a few cases, not just Bessers. Other teams that aren't closer to winning but need good players like Besser might offer longer term. So there's going to be some options for some of these players. So that's the kind of stuff I'm looking at. But it's just interesting. I really think right now, the best teams,

when it comes to older players, even guys in their 30s, they're trying to stay away from term, Like even got like even guys in their 30s They're trying to stay away from term unless they absolutely have to give it Right and it's a lot of cases or shouldn't say a lot, but now we're seeing it more and more It's used to just bring the AAV down a bit Yes, but I think some of these teams are Are not crazy about term. I think they're trying to avoid it a bit. You know what, I actually mentioned, I mentioned Besser a second ago.

I'm curious to see if Vancouver tries to extend Garland. Sometime, he can extend on July 1st. That's what I'm curious about too. All right, that was the final thought brought to you by GMC. We'll take our first break and come back with the Thought Line. You're listening to 32 Thoughts, the podcast. Okay, welcome back. Time now for the Thoughtline. Elliot, before we get started,

I got to come clean with you about something. Are you the anonymous caller? No, no, no, no. Have you heard anything further on that? No, I did have Dennis Bayak, the great Dennis Bayak, text me to ask me what this was all about. Did he just hear a second hand or something? Yes, yes, yes. He must have missed the anonymous caller pods. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. He's going, what's all this commotion with this David Amber imposter? Yeah.

He didn't even say that. He just said, what is this anonymous caller stuff? That's good, that's good. That's great that he's asking. Dennis is a good man. Okay, I gotta come clean with you. Well, we'll see. We will see. I may have been tagged with photo radar. We'll see. We'll see. It was close. Ooh, Ledfoot McGee. I'm proud of you, young man.

Yeah. Well, if you're looking for the worst thing I've done in my life, I don't know. I'm going to be, uh, the fingers are going to be sweating when I go to check the mailbox here for the next couple of weeks. Nice. Welcome to the club. To quote your former employer, check the ticker for the latest on that. Well, I will, I promise. Okay. Today's submissions. We begin Tyson from Quebec. Uh, hello.

King Elliot the 32nd. That's good. Prince Kyle and Dom the gesture. Oh, that's perfect. I was about to say, I'm afraid to meet the first 31, but it got even better. Yes. This is Tyson writing to you from the noble land of Quebec. I was taking a hot shower with my erect nipples

when I thought about Matt Duchesne's extension with the Dallas Stars. That's what it says. My question is, with him signing the four year, four and a half million dollar extension, which I believe is a total bargain, I've got a question. Since Duchenne was bought out by the Nashville Predators with his original contract averaging around eight million per year, is he now making the eight million a year from the buyout plus the four and a half million this year in Dallas?

How does this work? Thanks, love the pod. It was an awesome year, fellas. Great question and glad you enjoyed everything. Yes, he makes both and he makes them both in no tax states too. All right, yeah. Tennessee and Texas. Yes, so he makes so add up the salaries. He makes both together. Nashville's cap is on the hook for how much they pay and Dallas's cap is on the hook for how much they pay. Yes. And next season it will be four and a half million that the predators will be on the hook for the same amount that he'll be getting AAV wise at least.

And the first year of his new contract with the Dallas Stars. Thank you for the question, Tyson. A voicemail is next, Ryan from Ottawa. Hello, this is anonymous. Sorry, had a frog in my throat. This is Ryan from Ottawa. I had a question about what poor guy has the distinction of being the ultimate runner-up

and has lost the most Stanley Cup finals. I know Corey Perry unfortunately has suffered through five of the last six but I was wondering is he the actual leader? Also I'm pretty sure anonymous is Paul Bissonnette. Thanks guys, it's been a great season. Have a good summer. Really? Paul Bissonnette? I don't think so. Okay. I mean, there's no bad answer at this point. It's not like we've got any hot tips lately. Yeah, this one slowed down a bit.

We'll see what happens. I kind of want it, if anything happens, I want it to happen organically. Good. We love the organics on this pod. Yes, we do love organics. So I would have to think, Kyle, that the true leader of this would have to be somebody who played in the original Six Era. You would be correct. And there's, I'll tell you this, there's three names that jumped to me immediately. All Hall of Famers is the Hall of Famer.

Yep. The three guys I think of are Gordy Howe, Bobby Hall and Stan Makita. Okay. Gordy Howe has lost the most Stanley Cup final series in NHL history. Seven. He's won four, lost seven. Eleven trips to the cup final. Wow. Stan Mikita's not in the top of this list. Who's going, Bobby Hall? Bobby Hall. Nope, not Bobby, Glenn Hall though. Oh, okay, that makes sense.

He is one of three guys that are one in six in cup finals. Corey Perry's one in five. Glenn Hall only won one Stanley Cup in 1961? Uh-huh. Wow. So him, Bush or Jackson. I guess that makes sense.

I wouldn't have thought. Bush or Jackson, that's a bit before my time. That's the 30s. And Red Horner. Also the 30s. The All-Original Six. But those are, along with Burt Olmstead. Hall of Famer.

Four guys that have lost six Stanley Cup Finals. Gordie Howes at the top with seven. And Corey Perry is amongst a whole host of names that have lost five. Is is there anybody else who is contemporary or modern like Corey Perry is? No, no one would think so. Close. Brian Prop was 0 and 5. Brian Prop made five Stanley Cup finals.

Wow, that's impressive. Brian Prop is pretty I mean, he's not modern like now, but that's 80s. five Stanley Cup finals. Wow. That's impressive. Brian Prop is pretty I mean, he's not modern like now, but that's 80s. Yeah. I didn't realize Brian Prop made five finals. Oh, because he went to the Bruins. That's right. Yeah. Wow. Good on him. Yeah, it's an achievement to get there. So. Yeah, Corey Perry does not top this list, but yeah, who would have thought, Corey Howe? I mean, it makes sense. Again, 11 trips there to the final, one, four of them. But I wonder how many of those seven losses, how many of those games did you go in the scuttlebutt in the local papers in Detroit legacy game for Mr. Hockey?

Maybe not. Less sports radio back there. That's right. Yeah. That other things to worry about. Back when life was a bit simpler. to worry about. Back when life was a bit simpler. Ryan, thank you for the clever voicemail and good question. Okay, Riley from Goderich. I have been thinking about a moment that happened a few years ago at the draft and can't remember who the player was and where they are playing today. Not sure if you remember, but the Columbus Blue Jackets selected a player early

in the draft that was a complete shock. And I remember the guys that were on the panel were scrambling to find notes and information on this said player. He was not on anyone's mock list. If you do remember who this is, what is his name? And did he end up making it to the NHL? his name and did he end up making it to the NHL? He is in the NHL right now. It is Yigor Chinnicov, and I was on the air when that happened. And that was one of the more ultimate bus driving a bus over someone and then backing over the moments I have ever been a part of on television.

So I was on the secondary panel with Mike Fuda and the first panel, I think it was Merrick, Sam Cosentino, and I can't remember who else was there. But it's Yarmoukhek Alana and Vili Sirin. They get up from the blue jackets and they select Chinakov, 20th overall, 21st overall in the 2020 draft and nobody knows who he is. And Sam Cosentino is like, I can't remember exactly who said, but it was something like, well, Columbus likes to throw curve balls at us. Let's see if Mike knows anything about him. Like he totally bailed.

He absolutely bailed, he absolutely bailed. Which I guess is the smart move. Basically Sam said, if somebody's gonna look dumb on this show, it's not gonna be me. So he throws up to Mike and Mike totally freezes. Like he freezes and he has no idea. And I had like no idea, cause I'm not a draft guy. And I remember the best thing about it was that at the time,

Chinnikov had been playing in Russia and the guy who knew him was Bob Hartley. And Bob Hartley, we interviewed him later and he told us he saw that and he was laughing his head off because how stuck we were. And this was actually a player he knew. And he talked up Chinakov. He'd said that Chinakov was a really good player and he's now a member of the blue

jackets. He's had seven goals last year. He had 16 goals the year before. He's got, I think, 70 points and like just under 200 games. And he's a player. He absolutely is a player. I remember that very well. Goodness, goodness. Yes, me too. That was that was just good TV. I mean it was just a strange time back then and anyway it was a good little bit of levity. That was a fun night on the internet because people on social media had a really good time with it in a fun way. Like they were,

like sometimes when things like that happen, I feel badly for guys like Sam. And first of all, it almost never happens because these guys do like Sam and Mike and Jason Buchla, they do their work, right? They really know it was off the board. Yes. Sam looking at it going, no, so when your draft guys have no idea about a player, like they really it's not for lack of preparation. And most people had a lot of fun with it. I really like that about it.

All right. That was the thought line. One eight three three three one one thirty two thirty two. If you'd like to call and leave a voicemail like Ryan from Ottawa did today, or you can email us at 32thoughts at Sportsnet.ca. Thank you once again to Griffin Porter for helping curate these lists. One final break and back to wrap on 32 Thoughts, the podcast after this. Okay, welcome back. Before we go, so even though the playoffs may now officially be over. The seemingly undefeated and untouchable run that Brad Marshon has been with the Can't Miss content, oh that has not stopped. I'm sure

you have seen the videos, the images from the Elbow Room and along the beaches of Fort Lauderdale as he and his teammates are well into enjoying for the organization a second straight Stanley Cup championship. His latest bit of brilliance, if you happen to follow Marshawn on Instagram, his story Thursday night, so hopefully you catch it in time before they disappear, it's just photo after photo of his Panther teammates and And as you know, a lot of them came via trade. Photos of them with thanks, tagging the teams of where they came from. So Sam Bennett, thanks, at NHL Flames. Kachuk, same deal. Reinhardt, thanks, Buffalo Sabres. And you get the picture from there. Boy, just when you think surely he's run out of good content,

no, Marshine continues to find great, great stuff for people to eat up and they will continue to do so. So as we move forward into the weekend, and as we say now, one week away from the 2025 draft, next week, we'll start to shift a little bit more of our focus towards that. We hope to have some draft related special content for you on Monday's pod. So stay tuned on that front. And it's the first day of summer. So hopefully you got some sunshine to enjoy this weekend. We appreciate you taking some time out of your day to listen to us once again,

as you have done all season long and a little bit more to go yet here before we officially enter offseason mode. Have yourselves a great weekend. We will speak to you again on Monday. you