32 Thoughts: The Podcast - Olympic Ice and Hughes Price

Episode Date: December 8, 2025

In this edition of 32 Thoughts Kyle Bukauskas and Elliotte Friedman check in from Colorado Springs at the Board of Governors meetings, where Olympic participation is once again a talking point. The guys get into contingency plans if the Milan arena isn’t finished in time, league revenue projections, and early salary-cap estimates, plus where expansion chatter truly stands with a potential $2-billion price tag per team. Kyle and Elliotte dive deep into the escalating Quinn Hughes trade discussion, the Devils’ dollar-in, dollar-out cap constraints, New Jersey’s interest in Ryan O’Reilly, and how conversations between Vancouver and other clubs may have progressed after the Canucks’ internal memo circulated (18:43). The fellas touch on Tristan Jarry being linked to Edmonton, why salary retention is a non-starter for Pittsburgh (31:57), and the growing possibility of a Phillip Danault trade (37:51). They also break down the Hagel hand-pass no-goal review and compare it to the Florida–Columbus situation involving Brad Marchand (40:41). The Final Thought looks ahead to next season’s Heritage Classic returning to Winnipeg (56:12).Kyle and Elliotte answer your emails and voicemails in the Thoughtline (1:03:02).Today we highlight Winnipeg's Ariel Posen and his song Future Present Tense. Check out his music here.Listen to all the 32 Thoughts music here.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

Norm from Perth. Not sure if it's Australia or Ontario, but here we go. We're going to go with Australia. The always default to Australia. We want to be seen as international superstars. So we're going with Australia. Welcome to 32 Thoughts, the podcast to kick off a brand new week. Dom Elliott, Kyle, back with you.

Elliot, you and I are on the road together again. We are in the shadows of, of Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado Springs. For the Board of Governors' meetings, they'll be taking place over the next couple of days. Now, you've been here before for NHL business, correct? Yes, they had NHL business meetings here probably around a decade ago, and I came to host a panel.

And it's a beautiful part of the country. And I came here in the summer, well, not Colorado Springs, but Colorado in the summer, or I would say fall a couple years ago, if you've never been to Red Rocks, we saw Arcade Fire there. I took my wife and son for our 15th wedding anniversary, and if you've never been to Red Rocks, just find a concert and go. It is an incredible experience. I love this part of the country, and even though we're headed into a cold spell, pre-creas, Christmas across much of North America, the air is fresh here, although I saw you in the gym, Kyle, and you did the Bexadryl, and you looked like you were going to need mouth to mouth,

which I was looking for other people in the gym to provide. I don't think anyone was rushing to raise their hand either. Doing it at altitude. Yeah. It's something. It was cruel. It was cruel. Thanks again for that, Kevin. Putting that into our brains a couple years ago.

So I have to say this. I have to say this on Sunday night, you and I, along with a newly minted Hall of Famer, Francois Gagnon, teammate Eric Engels, and Renaulte LeVois of TVA. We found a sports bar and we went to go watch Montreal, St. Louis, a great sports bar in the area. And I have to say, I am going to shout out Renaud LaVois. because as he was gorging himself on pizza and chicken wings, he had a notepad out, keeping notes, writing down times of the Canadians game against the blues, which they lost. It takes great concentration to eat and work at the same time.

And Renault, A-plus effort, man, A-plus effort. Yeah, that was excellent. So Colorado Springs, Elliot, as you know, a lot of rich history here. actually was the first U.S. Olympic Training Center was set here in Colorado Springs. And naturally, as these BOG meetings get going over the next two days, Olympics cannot, cannot escape the conversation and the discourse here right now. We've been talking about it for a number of weeks on this program. You were all over it on headlines again this past Saturday.

The arena, the structure is one thing. now the conversation a little bit is shifted to the quality of the ice and you can only imagine even if it may not be an agenda issue particularly Elliot there's a lot of owners around the league that are here now in town that are going to have some questions about what exactly is going on and the plan over in Milan and February Kyle you're right and this is generally a financial meeting finances usually dominate the December Board of Governors get together And agenda-wise, I think that might still be the case. But there's no doubt that the talk of the league right now is about the Olympics. And there's a few things here that need to be discussed and remembered. Number one, a lot of these owners don't like sending their players in the middle of the season. Number one, there's the payoff. Hey, players love going to the Olympics.

We love watching them at the Olympics. but the owners have always felt do they really get bang for their buck at the Olympics. Now, one of the things I think is unique about this one, Kyle, is I believe every owner gets some sort of package to attend the games, tickets to games, availability of hotels, things like that. I've heard that that's part of the deal that the IOC and the double IHF made with the NHL is that their owners have access to the event if they want to go. So that's something I thought was really interesting. But the biggest thing they have is the players that play for them.

And if you go back through history, there was John Tavares breaking his leg in 2014, and the Al-Nairs were furious about that. And, Kyle, you reminded me that in 2006, Dominic Hoshick got hurt at the Olympics. And John Muckler, who was then the Senator's GM, he felt that. cost the senators the Stanley Cup, that if Dominic Hachuk was around in 2006, he always thought the senators would have won. So I always remember that. And there's also the fact that it's not happening right now, but they've moved the World Cup, which was last held in September. They've now moved it to February 28. And before you were the co-host and Jeff was the co-host with me,

we didn't interview with Luke Robatai, who was one of the people who was really pushing for that. And Luke Robatai argued very strongly that the schedule in the sports schedule in September was too stuffed with football, the baseball stretch run, everything. He said that was a bad time to have a major hockey event. And so his argument won the day. If they really wanted to capture the sports calendar, they really had to move it to February. And the risk was always injuries that made some of these teams and owners nervous. Now, we know about the situation with the dimensions and the fact the ice is a bit shorter. And what is stunning to me in a lot of ways is sort of the communication breakdown.

You know, Canada knew about it. They talked about it. Doug Armstrong didn't interview about it several months ago, but not everybody realized it. And I think that's kind of stunning. I'm just shocked at how this wasn't clear. But the fact is that, as you heard, I talked to Ron Hainsey, who's the assistant executive director of the Players Association, and he pointed out that the players have dealt with this in European games before. They shorten the neutral zones.

They keep the offensive zones the same. And as he said, the most important thing is the players don't complain about that. They're not worried about this. What Hainesi admitted they still are worried about is the quality of the ice. And he made it very clear that they would not sacrifice or endanger the health of the players with bad ice. And I also have heard that when the teams have met to talk about the Olympics, like the individual countries, the ice has been the number one concern. And the fact is, there's nothing that they're going to do, even with the test events and the women's games they have coming up, that are going to prepare it for five games of mostly NHLers in 30 hours on February 11th and 12th. And I think that that is the biggest concern of all.

And again, as you said, Kyle, it's not an agenda issue, but I do think it's going to be discussed. What are our options here? I don't believe there's a plan B. As we said on Friday, it's not the NHL that can say, okay, plan B, it's the IOC. There was another Zoom call on Friday. The League and the Players Association were told this was going to get done. They both believe a lot of work still needs to happen. But I think what some of the owners here and the governors here are going to want to know is what are their options and please tell us the truth about what is really going on here.

Because look, I mean, all of us can look online and see the standings. There's a lot of teams that still have playoff hopes. And there's a lot of teams that are going to be holding their breath or rubbing their lucky charm, whatever they do, that their players don't get hurt. So even though it's not supposed to be what we're talking about here, it's going to be a thing for sure. And the quote that Hainesi gave you on Saturday about how the health of the players not going to be compromised. You want to dig into that a little bit in terms of kind of from an owner's side going, all mean exactly? I think that's exactly what they want to hear. I mean, they all saw that quote.

they all heard what Hainesi had to say and read it because we put it on a board, I think they're going to ask the commissioner, okay, from our side, what does that mean? Because, you know, the League and the Players Association have been pretty much lockstep on this. It was a big part of the CBA conversations. Betman has pointed out several times. It was very important to the players. But ultimately, the league can say, you know, we don't think this is right.

right or we don't think this is safe. And then what happens? That's, I think, what some of the owners want to know here. All right. That topic doesn't seem to be going away anytime here soon. So what about some of the other business that could be going on and discussed here over the next couple of days? I mean, you mentioned off the top there, the financials that usually is a checkpoint here at this

point of the season, salary cap as well. Like we're kind of in an interesting time now in the league, LA, where we know where the cap has been agreed to for next year, the season after that. But as you have talked about earlier in the year, the idea of maybe it could go up even a little higher than what they've agreed to right now. So where do you think that's all going to go? This one is usually about revenues. You go over, you know, where we are, what was predicted, is the NHL ahead of its revenues? Are they equal with the projections?

Are they below? I don't think they're going to be below. But that's what this meeting is usually about. And in the past, when we didn't have the cap set in advance, this is where Betman would usually come out and tell the governors, our early projection is the cap next year will be this. Now, as you mentioned, there's a deal. The cap is supposed to be $104 million next year.

And, you know, when I mentioned earlier this year that there was some talk that could go higher, there were a couple teams that reached out to me and said, really like you're hearing this already and remember a year ago Kyle we talked about this and betman kind of poohed it and it happened and the reason he poohuted at the time was he hadn't had he hadn't had the ability to prep the owners that this was going to occur so i don't think there are a lot of teams that want to see this number go even higher and bettman has said that he doesn't think it will uh i'm curious to see if his opinion has changed I doubt it.

I don't think the teams will want it to move. But because there is room to move potentially, I think it's going to be interesting to see if somewhere down the road. And people told me I was premature. They said, if it's going to happen, we're going to know more later in the regular season towards the playoffs as opposed to now. But it's going to be interesting to see, you know,

if they get asked, could it move and see what Betman has to say about it? because I still think there are some agents who believe that there will be the possibility for it to move later. But we'll see. Because like I said, if that's going to happen, we probably won't know it until later in the NHL season. Although I don't think the teams want it to move at all. I think they feel it's high enough. Other things, Kyle, I'm sure they'll talk about bidders, bid cities for the 2028 World Cup of hockey. And the other thing we're going to have to figure out pretty soon, Kyle, is who's going overseas next year?

You know, we just had Nashville and Pittsburgh. Who's going to go overseas next year? And remember, they just came off doing a pretty big study on where they need to take the game internationally. And I know Germany was a big focal point of that study. And I said it a few times, and I think they've probably got to be thinking of going. And, you know, that probably means the Oilers. that probably means, I've wondered about the sharks because their owner is German. It probably could mean the senators.

Just look where all the big German players are and who's out there. You know, I'll tell you something interesting, Kyle. Another thing I heard is that in the past, the NHL, when you got one of these games and you lost a home game, you were paid your gate. Right? Yep. So, for example, say Pittsburgh gets taken overseas, Pittsburgh and Nashville. They play two games. Each team is the home team for one.

You would get bought out of one home game each to go over there. Right. Kind of like an average revenue on a home game, right? Yes. I've heard that formula has changed that in the new CBA, especially with 84, games that's not the case anymore and that it's not you're not bought out of a full home game and instead you're expected to sort of give up a game once every few years and I don't think everyone was happy with it but ultimately it was agreed to it's a it's a it's a

new rule that came in. Really? Yes. And I suppose the league looking at where revenues across the 32 teams are at built their case to say you don't need to be bought back to go over. Well, I think it's also now, since it's 84 games instead of 82, you have 42 home games instead of 41, I think the league's argument was we should have to buy you out of a home game you're still getting 41 yeah I suppose I heard not everyone was thrilled about that sure and I think it's come up already there's been some pushback in some of these situations where teams are either playing outdoor games or international games

but as someone kind of laughed and said to me if you think you're going to win this argument you're not. Yeah. Understood. So before we move on from this, like just expansion, is that something that kind of on the outside continues to be a talking point? Do you think there's, we're at a stage yet where that'll be taken seriously when the governor's meet where things stand? I think the issue with expansion is that if you look at the last two teams that came in,

Vegas and Seattle. It was more like the NHL picked them as opposed to there was an expansion process, right? Like they came out, they said Vegas is ready. They did a lot of work on Vegas. Vegas is really one of the great success stories in sports. The NHL was not convinced it was going to work. And they set what they thought was a pretty high fee

and Bill Foley made it. And he's turned it into one of the NHL's most successful. franchises, but the NHL wasn't convinced about that. And then what they've kind of done since then is they said, okay, now they always wanted to go to Seattle, then Seattle was ready, and they said, okay, we're going to Seattle. So it's more like the way I see it now with the league is, it's sort of like they'll do expansion when they think they have something or they're ready, right?

It's more like there's no formal process, but bang, you're ready, we'll take you. I have heard the issue with expansion right now is this. They're looking at $2 billion a team. And when you think about it, it's $2 billion, a lot of money, plus to build an arena, plus your operating costs. That's a lot. That's a lot. And to me, that's as much the issue now as the NHL finding good options. Like, I think there are interested parties.

The NHL takes meetings. But I don't think they're going to do it unless they have someone who meets their price, and that's a big price. So even if you move the expansion fee for argument's sake down a bit, still between what it's going to be, it's going to be close to $2 billion, if it isn't $2 billion, you add the arena in your operating costs, that's a big chunk. Yeah, you haven't even dropped the clock yet. That's a lot. Yeah, that's a lot. Take care of. Yep, that's part of your operating costs.

Like that's, that's, so that, that's where I think that is. And we'll see who meets what they, what they want to do. All right. So those are just some of the things we'll be watching and trying to pull more info from over the next few days here in Colorado Springs, Elliot. And from B.O.G to the Quinn Hughes conversation, Elliot. And I know the podcast that we do is just audio form that we put out, but we are on video right now. So I made a little sign here. I don't know if you can read it, Elliot, but it says days since Elliot disrupted the city of Vancouver, and there's a big zero next to it.

That's like one of those worker safety boards. Days since workplace accident, zero. Yeah, like in the office, yeah. Back to zero. You know what? I'll say this. People don't want to talk about it in the league. They don't want to talk about Queen Hughes.

And I think it's because they know how big a deal it is. And so let me take everybody through it. You know, when Ron and I started headlines on Saturday, you know, he threw it to me. And I just said, you always ask, you know, who's busy this week? Who's the team that's out there? who's the team that's active and the answer was devils and you sort of work your way backward and if you're a devil's fan you know there because of the injuries and you know i'll say this the devils showed a heck of a lot of fortitude early in the year they were one of the first teams

really to start losing a lot of bodies and i think they started 13 4 and 1 and they were really missing guys, including, you know, they won their first game after that weird Jack Hughes injury, right? And they were showing a lot of big guts, big guts. You know what? I think when you have that amount of injuries, eventually it reaches a point where it catches up to you and the devils are going through that spin cycle right now. Like they're not out of the race as we wake up Monday morning. They're one point out of the playoffs. but they've lost five in a row. So they're in it right now.

They're really going through a tough phase as every team does. And I think Tom Fitzgerald was looking for help. He's looking to see what's out there. And I think that's where a lot of the noise came. And because of all their injuries and their cap situation, the devils are dollar in, dollar out. And so what that means is if they're going to try, to trade for someone, if the team that, if they have a target and the team isn't willing

to take close or equal dollars back, they have to find other deals to clear their cap room. And my educated guess here is that exactly is what's going on. So not only are the devils trying to make deals to add, but if they can't make the salaries equal on these trades, they're looking for ways to move a player or to to somewhere else to clear up their roster. And I believe 100% that that is one of the things that Tom Fitzgerald is trying. Where can I do if I'm going to make, for argument's sake, let's just say, I'm going to use Ryan O'Reilly because I do think he's a legitimate target of theirs.

Let's just say they were going to make a trade for Ryan O'Reilly. Okay, well, maybe Nashville doesn't want to take back some of the devil's salary. but the devils want the player so they have to move something else to another team. That's what's going on there, I think. So that's why I believe their name is out there because they're

talking to a lot of teams just trying to see what possible business they can do. I think they really like O'Reilly. I do. Now, again, O'Reilly has a say over this. He doesn't technically have a no move, but the predators have promised

that he'll be treated like he has one and you look at the devils down the middle he's sure they have dawson mercer play number two center right now with hughes out but even if hughes was back if you were going to go down the middle with heeshire hughes and o'reilly i think you'd feel pretty good about your chances i think that would be a really good trio um again o'reilly has to want to do it and and we'll see if the devils can make a deal Pierre LeBron mentioned Stephen Stamco's. I've heard his name with the Devils in the past.

Again, Stamco's does have control, so he would want to do it, and they have to make a deal. Now, at the end of all of this, I was asking, okay, we know they like those guys. There's got to be a Quinn Hughes component to this. And I got to tell you, Kyle, people don't want to talk about it. They really don't because it's such a hand grenade for obvious reasons. Yeah, it's like a David Blaine escape routine.

Exactly. I think that it's, I mean, you saw how careful I was talking about it on Saturday night, but then Quinn Hughes refers to Tom Fitzgerald as Fitsy in the post game. And people were like, he's a devil. he's calling the GM by his nickname. I mean, so, you know, I mean, we can all see this. Like, it's, it's a big deal. And I think for a lot of people, it's, it's kryptonite.

They don't really want to pour gasoline on the fire. But, you know, as I said, I think once the Canucks put the memo out, I think there was a conversation. And I don't know who initiated it. And I don't know exactly what was said. but I know they talked at least once and I heard it was about, okay, where does everything stand and where are we going? And, you know,

I did a podcast interview last week where I talked about Detroit and I do believe that if Vancouver and Detroit wanted to make a deal, I do believe there is a deal to be made there. And I also think they've talked. But I can tell you one team that absolutely does not

want to talk about it and that's Vancouver like they out and out refused and I understand because it's it's their backyard it's a very very sensitive thing for them so all says this I think there are talks going on around Hughes and it's just difficult to handicap how long it's going to take or where it's going to end up you know I'll tell you this the other thing Kyle it's really interesting and I have not spoken to since we did the interview at the beginning of the season in the media tour in Vegas, there are a lot of people who like to debate whether or not he wants to play in New Jersey. Like, does he want to go there right now? Is it his preferred destination? How would it affect his brother, Luke,

if Quinn's there on the blue line, be ahead of him? I don't have an answer to this question. But at the very least, least, I think the Canucks and the Devils wanted to try to find out the answer. So that's where I think it is. I think teams are talking with the Canucks about it, and we'll see where it goes. It's a whopper.

It's a potential whopper. It is. And I think it's like, and it was, because it's the, there's the hypothetical and then there's the actual and you could tell that was the big shift in Vancouver of course of like oh man the memo goes out what does this mean for Quinn what does this mean for Quinn and now it's almost it's like resigned to this is going to happen they're talking about it that's all that's as far as I'm going for now um you know I wanted to say this In the middle of all of this, I know the record isn't there for Vancouver,

but, you know, last year, when the Kinnock season kind of internally imploded, they went through a phase where they were really struggling, and they kind of had to pull themselves back together. I know their record isn't great, but man, those guys play hard. They really do. They played hard against Utah on Friday night they lost. And then on Saturday, like Joey Kenward sent a photo. You know, there's that depth chart that gets handed out

and all the press boxes before the games. So Pedersen heard something and he couldn't go. He went out for warm up and he left and he couldn't go. And so their centers won the four on Saturday night were David Camp, Atu Ratu, Max Sasson, and Drew O'Coh. Connor. And you look at that on paper against Minnesota, a team that's been really hot, and Walsstatt,

a goalie who clearly despises Canada, because he doesn't give up goals to any of them. And they go out there and they win. And that wasn't a fluke win. That was an earned win. Like, they deserved that victory. They beat Walshattu had the game of his young career with

three points, and he went 88% in the face-off circle. And, you know, like, They had every excuse to roll over in that game, and they didn't. And like I said, I know the results aren't there for Vancouver, but they've got a lot of guys who are determined to not roll over. And I do like watching them. They've got a lot of competitive players there,

just not transferring the results right now. No, but they are grinding, And, but I'll tell you, I mean, you go back to, think about how many minutes Quinn Hughes logs there, all the different areas of the game that he touches. And then there's that one 10 second sequence last week against Colorado doesn't look the greatest. Okay. That happens. And, you know, him having to explain himself after the fact, man, it just, you could see the fatigue of everything. Fatigue of everything there.

I'll say this. I understand. I understand all that. Kyle, he shows up. No question. You know, he's never run from anything. And even on Saturday night, like, you know, I, I assume that he knew that what I was doing in the, in the second remission in the headlines.

Because I'd called enough people that people knew what I was up to. And, you know, I do like to call and give heads up to people and say, like, this is coming. I like to prepare people for it. and he didn't run away. He was out there in the post game. Absolutely. He does not run. I respect that about him.

Big time, big time. But, man, you can feel it all making its way towards the head here at some point. So, okay, Vancouver. I don't know how long it was quiet for there after last season, but didn't feel like it lasts very long. You know what? I just, the final thing I'll say about it is they're probably being forced into a situation that they don't want to be in, but you're going to find out about a lot of the guys you've gotten, right? You know, you know, they traded for Marcus Patterson.

He's looked pretty good. Vielander scored his first NHL goal. He was the Walsett Cracker. You know, he's starting to look pretty good. You want guys like Ratu to get a bit more of an opportunity and see what they could do it. Like, they talked about Ratu in that Rossi deal in the summer that they were kicking around, right? And they didn't want to do it. They did not want to trade him.

They wanted to give him a chance. And, you know, we'll see. Like with Sherwood, you know, they're making some big asks. We'll see what happens. but the one thing you can do right now is you find out who's part of the problem and who's part of the solution. No question, no question. All right.

So that's the story in Vancouver for now. Yeah, yeah. Another name that had been out there, if you were looking around online the last few days, Tristan Jari. Yeah. Being linked to the Edmonton Oilers. I mean, there was that shot of the hug between Stuart Skinner and Calvin

Picker that seemed to link. linger a little bit after that went against Seattle on Thursday and everyone's trying to decode, okay, what does that mean? What does that mean? That was another part of headlines on Saturday for you, Elliot. Jari and the Oilers. What's going on, if anything? So there was a there was a post on Friday night that indicated a deal was done with 50% retention. And, you know, the one. thing that is absolutely true is that Edmonton showed a lot of interest in Jari. Like, that's real. I can't remember who was the first to report it, but it's true. And what I kind of had to work through was what was fact and what was fiction. And I'll tell you that what was fact is that the others liked the idea.

And what is also fact, and it really explains. a lot of this pickard stuff to me, Kyle, that you and I have talked about and that he admitted to you that he kind of knew. I think he knew that if they had gotten jari, he was out. That because I've since found out, it wasn't going to be jari for Skinner. It was going to be Jari and Skinner, which, you know, one of the things we've talked about a lot is that the Oilers weren't going to make a change in goal unless they really believe they could have improvement. And I think you would make an argument

that a Skinner-Jari combination, assuming both could stay healthy, it was an improvement. And they were hoping that that's what they could do. And the two of them would push each other and force each other to become better. That was their goal. Now, what happened...

that has ended things for now, is that I'm told Pittsburgh is absolutely unwilling to retain. Jari has two more years at just under $5.4 million, and the penguins have made it very clear that if they were going to do this, there was going to be no retention. And if you're an oiler fan, you know that that's going to be very hard for them to do the oilers are cap tight and right now they've got a lot of injuries and guys just in and out and they're barely carrying extra players like their roster is stuck so they really couldn't do a lot of stuff even if they wanted to uh without dollar in dollar out kind of like we discussed with new jersey so that i'm told that that has made that trade

almost impossible to do unless the oilers do surgery of their own. And I'm not convinced they want to do that. So basically where we are is, yes, they do like jari. Yes, they would love to have a jari-skinner combination or like to have it, but no, they can't do it in their present situation unless bodies go out. So basically what I was told was, could it happen? Possibly. Would they like it to happen?

Yeah, I think they would be interested. Can it happen? Very, very hard and may not happen. That's where we are. It's like going by the Ferrari dealership. I would really like to have one of those. But when it comes down to it, may not totally make sense financially to do.

Kind of like that. Or maybe impossible financially to do. I was trying to leave the door open slightly. But, yeah, when you throw a reality in my face, that's good. That's very good. Okay, so it seems like for now then, status quo in Edmonton, at least in goal. Yes. For now.

Can always change with one phone call, but that time is not now. A couple of things, just injury-wise, just wanted to mention before we get to. to some other stuff. Matt Duchesne returned on Sunday night for Dallas in their win over Pittsburgh, and he confirmed he'd been out with a concussion, and it sounded like it was a real challenge for him to get back. So just good to see him back. And we're going to see the Logan Cooley escaped a bad injury.

in that Charlie Horse from Toropchenko a week ago against St. Louis, but he went into the post really hard in Vancouver on Friday night. I think they're still trying to determine how serious this is or isn't, but that looked really ugly, really ugly. I hope it's not. I'm saying the same thing I said after the top. Toropchenko play, I hope it's nowhere near as bad as it looked. But I think they're still trying to determine it.

Okay. Another name we're kind of wondering about here in terms of the what does the future hold? Could a fresh start be the best solution here? Philip Deneau in Los Angeles. Like that's a guy who had been a great matchup center for the last number of years with Los Angeles. Of course, he developed into that in Montreal before signing with the Kings. 28 games into the season, Elliot, no goals, five assists.

It's just been a strange start to the year for Dunault. Hulio himself has admitted that he's tried everything he could think of. He's gone through past things when he's been struggling earlier in his career to try to work out of it. And as he has said, nothing to this point has worked. what do you think could be going on there? Well, there were some reports that he could be on the trade market and I could see this being a case where both sides would want it to happen, both the player and the team.

You know, look, you look at the base numbers. Philip Deneau is a better player than that. You know, we've seen it. Over the last couple, he's been a very big part of L.A. And in the last three years, as they've been, you know, tortured by the Edmonton Oilers in the playoffs, he has generally played pretty well against them. Like, he's been one of their betters and better players in these playoffs series, even though they can't get over this oil or hump. So, you know, there's only two ways to look at this, as if Father Time, who is undefeated, has finally gotten the Philip Dono. or his just his runway in L.A. is over.

Now, the only other way this could really change is if L.A. just says, okay, you know, we're going to jump you over Kopitar and Bifield, and you're going to be one of our top two centers. But I don't see that, at least not this year. Who knows what could happen next year? I don't see that this year. But the fact this got out, it says to me that I think the player on some level would welcome it to. Like I said off the top, like the Philip Dino, I've seen over the past couple of years,

is a much better player than the one we've seen this year. It just hasn't been good. Yeah. And that's why it's stuck out so wildly because you're going, this isn't the player we have come to know. So hopefully for the player, all of it gets sorted one way or another for the better. Okay. And it sure looks like it's been trending in this direction for a little bit.

Okay. All right. Goods a note. So this video review stuff, Elliot, we talked about it for a while, last pod coming off the night where John Cooper was beside himself with the goal caught back late in that game against Pittsburgh. There was Jared Bednar unhappy with the goal allowed Colorado on Long Island the same night. And then on Saturday, so to set the scene, so I get to the rink in Toronto late after. noon before Leif's Canadians. And usually when I get to the rink for a game, like anything else going on around the league at that time, I'm not worried about it.

I've got the game in front of me to consider. And I'm in studio and going through my notes and just getting yourself in the right headspace for the night. And Jeff Geert, our producer says, oh, man, there's a hand-pass review in the Florida Columbus game right now. And so, and they put the game on in my monitor that I got in studio. And, of course, see it, you're going, oh, there's no way that can count. There's no way that can count.

And then it does. And so I text you and you ended up calling me and we're discussing it further at that time. And holy smokes. Like Dean Everson goes full Lindy Ruff in the post game. It was, I mean, from an entertainment standpoint, great. All game was a joke. That's what I counted to. In what way?

Anyway, the entire game was a joke. Did it start with that challenge on the hand pass? It's a joke. It's an absolute joke. But you can understand the frustration there for the team. I put it out there a couple of days ago, like you're worried about things going a little bit backwards in terms of understanding what the call is going to be

and trying to have a sense of what is and what isn't. And what happened Saturday? It didn't exactly help matters in that regard. Oh, you know, the Lightning fans were not happy on Friday with my take. They let me know it when I said that I knew the moment that play happened, it wasn't going to count. And I mentioned the Blake Coleman, Connor, Zari, Michael Backland play, a Zari goal that was disallowed in 2024. And they started setting me the goal on Remembrance Day, 24, Buffalo, Montreal. Mike Matheson that we showed on Saturday night and saying, well, this one counted.

And I'm like, those two aren't even the same. Like, don't send me that. Like, it's not even the same. But the moment I, and I'll say this too, like, Kyle, when I saw that Florida goal, I was like, no goal, not going to count. And when it counted, that play hadn't been decided for 10 seconds when I got my first text from a general manager saying, explain that one. Like, everybody, everybody thought that was no goal because of what happened with Hegel.

Everybody, they couldn't believe it. Now, you know, I think one of the things here that's really interesting is that the coaches are getting bolder and bolder, right? Cooper, Jared Bednar, Dean Eveson. And I guarantee to you, I would bet. I would bet your mortgage payment, next one, which is large, that the league has spoken to all three of these coaches and either threaten them or what I said, like, one more time and we're dinging you. I would bet everything I own. Well, I was wondering, like, because there hadn't been a fine assessed either of the three here over the last few days, I was, I don't know if I was surprised or not, but you know how.

The league defends its officials and the situation room. They'll go after these coaches for this. And I called one coach, one coach I went along with really well. And I said, like, do you guys have some sort of coordinated group chat here where you're saying we're all going after this now? Like, we're speaking our minds. And we don't care if we get fined or make them fine all of us. We're speaking our minds.

And he kind of laughed. and he didn't say anything else. Like, I don't think they have a coordinated group chat. I was making that up. But I do think that. I do think some of the coaches have just said, like, to heck with it. I'm going to say my piece, and that's it. Like, because, you know, this is the time of the year where the stress really goes up.

It's supposed to be Christmas. We're all in a great mood. We're about to celebrate with our families. You love your eggnog. You're chowing it down. a gallon at a time, not for the coaches and GMs. They are more stressed out than ever. It's the Christmas episode of the bear for those that have seen it.

Okay, I haven't watched it. I couldn't get into the bear. The coaches are Alice and Janney in that episode of the bear. She's a great actor, Alison Janney. Anyway, but I think these coaches are so stressed out that they have just said to hell with it. If I get fined, I get fined. That's one thing I think is going on. And, but, you know, here's the thing.

And, you know, I showed it on Saturday night and the, the NHL had a piece of video from a Sharon Govich goal in 2024 again where Jonathan Huberto, it's almost the same play as Marchand. It's not exactly the same play, but it's almost the same play. And they let it stand. The puck hits his glove. It goes behind him. say that's not an intent, that's just a deflected puck, it gained no advantage, but Calgary picks it up and Sharon Govich scores a couple minutes later. The thing is, and this is the challenge with this, this is what one of the coaches said to me. He says, here's the problem with that.

They have this whole catalog of plays, and they can sit there in the moment and go, oh, remember that play from two years ago. Well, that's the reason that we're not counting this. The coaches who are in the moment, they only see the Tampa play from two days ago. And they're like, hey, that's the most recent call. That's the way this is called. We have to challenge this.

And you don't have that bank. and you know so I was like I can't really argue with that in the moment I mean like part of me is like good for the people in the video room that they could go off the top of their head and say here's the precedent this is why we're calling it a goal because this one was called two years ago and but coaches will say we don't think those precedents are always linear always connected we see calls that we believe say that this is the way it is and then it changes but secondly we don't remember a call from two years ago we remember the one from 48 hours ago and so when I was talking about this on Saturday night like I don't like where this is going I you know I really don't like where this is going like in game seven everybody here has got to be thinking oh my God like what if this play like look at that game it was four one columbus right yeah that goal stands it's four to two then they score on the power play the panthers do and it's four to three like dean evison who is

hilarious like i either thought that he was going to have a heart attack on the bench or he was going to strangle someone like you in the i mean the the the post game where he's like he answered every question with that was a joke was actually the best outcome because nobody got hurt and it was very funny. Like, I thought he was going to kill someone. And. But the look on his face when they called it a goal. But like to your point, like, because that was the face of a man that go, I just saw what

happened in Tampa two nights ago. Yes. That's totally was all over his face. And you know what he's trying to do too there? because he he wants to explode, but he's worried about taking another penalty. He's, he, you know, he's trying, in that moment,

what Evanston is trying to do is he's trying to keep his composure. He knows what a disaster is. It's 4-2 and now Florida's got a power play, right? And if he loses his composure, his team loses their composure, and also he gets another penalty. So, but,

you know, and you know what I loved and what he said in the post game was he was asked about his players and he said, our players were great. Like he didn't blame them at all. He said this is not their fault. They lose the game and then they lose Sunday in a really tough game to Washington. But, you know, I thought that was the most interesting thing

that someone said to me was that, you know what? And we only remember the last play. It's, we don't remember what has, like maybe there has to be like an open resource or something where you can say, all right, here's, we all have access to this. I don't know. I don't have a good answer. But that was what one of the coaches said to me. They saw this segment on Saturday night and they're like, okay, that's wonderful.

But they're in there. They can remember 2024. I don't. I only remember what happened two days ago. We need another iPad on the bench that's just archive. Archives. You find the challenge. Yeah.

there's type of infraction so what i said was either the hand is moving or it's not because the math is in one he's his hand his hand is on his stick and he's reaching to poke check the buffalo player's trying to clear and the puck hits his hand in some of these other ones like marshan tries to hit it haigle does hit it huberto tries to grab it maybe if the player tries to make a play and it goes somewhere eliminate the judgment call just saying hey, you try to make a play or you don't. And that's the dividing line. Now, Lou Nanny reached out to me, a great guy, Lou Nanny, one of my favorites.

We always go for dinner in Florida, me, you, him, Michael Rousseau. It's a great time, and Lou is a really funny guy. He said, and I had some other people who said this to me, too, why is it that you allow hand passes in the defensive zone, but not in the offensive zone? If you're going to allow hand pass in the defensive zone, just allow them everywhere. I actually would rather do the reverse. Like, we're trying to create goals here. Don't, I don't even like hand passes in the defensive zone.

Maybe get rid of them all. But make something that is not a judgment call. Make it black and white. Yeah, I mean, that's a little wishful thinking, like in the year of 20, 25. I know, but again, it felt like at some point last year, it was like maybe we've got some traction on having a bit better understanding,

whether it was goal interference or other plays like this. There's a bit more of an idea of where you thought things were going. And it's like we've tumbled back down the hill. I'm like, all right, dust ourselves off. Time to start over again. It's been incredible.

And again, I go back to that Tampa one, because of the wording in the explanation afterwards, because of the fact that it was waived, like, if that was just, hey, it's a deflection, that's a goal. And you're like, okay. And then Saturday happens in Florida. And you're like, okay, deflection. Yep. Are you going to live with that? Like, it all kind of gets avoided. Anyway, hopefully we get a chance to talk with some of the folks in hockey ops here over the next couple of days because you just want to understand.

Like, I have no, it doesn't bring me much joy to sit here with you, Elliot, and be like, I don't know what to think. I don't know what this is, but we're back here again. Did you watch any NFL on Sunday? I mean, I know we traveled. Yeah. And we had work to do. NFL had a rough replay day on Sunday, too. And I had a friend, big sports fan, like a lot of you listen to this pod, who was texted me and said, I never thought I'd say this, but I think instant replay is ruining sports.

because you can't go backwards and also too because when you don't have instant replay like I still go back to that that Chicago Montreal

game last year the one way actually I was in the situation room where only the situation room realized that Frank Nazar had scored

like how would if that didn't get caught we'd all be screaming for instant replay it's like the original Matthews like it's like

it's like it's the original Matthew Sheenoff's side that started all of this, right? Or the Eric Carlson handpass that continued all of this. Like, you're right. You can't go backwards because then when you have those plays not caught, you're like, oh, we need replay. But boy, Colin Campbell, he always said it, the unintended consequences. But for me again, Kyle, the biggest thing is that the coaches seem to be getting bolder

and bolder. And you know who hasn't erupted yet? who mount brindamore oh could be headed there tough loss on sunday when the clouds make their way the video review clouds make their way over to because mary he's a big proponent of the things he would change about how the games officiated how many referees on the ice one time ever you interviewed a few years back oh yeah he's pretty impassioned about that stuff, which you got to respect the man for. But, oh, yeah.

Also, as one referee told me, he's the worst. And I go, you mean the best. And the guy laughed. He goes, depends on your perspective. Also, one final thing on all of this, Elliot, is that going to end up being the video review that saves the Florida Panthers season? We'll see.

They won again on Sunday, giving you the in-season cup. They did. Like I said, I put down a hundred bucks when they were last in the East. I said they make the playoffs. We'll see. The man you make the bet with, because I know you didn't want to give up the name, were they working the game in Florida on Saturday? Is that how this all happened?

No, no, no, no. No, I'm just kidding. No, that's, oh, wow, Kyle. Oh, I shouldn't go down. No, no, no. It's actually kind of funny. No, he doesn't want to say who it was. He asked me not to reveal it.

So I keep my promises. All right. So let's get to the final thought then. And, Elita, your biggest scoop of the weekend, the 2026, Heritage Classic. We're going back to Winnipeg. Princess Auto Stadium, October 25th next year. The Jets hosting the Montreal Canadiens. So yes, it's meant to be, and it will.

was officially unveiled on Saturday night. But why don't you give us the story of that announcement over the, not just Saturday, but the days leading up to it? Well, we've reported in the past that the Jets were going to be having an outdoor game next year, that they were zooming in on Winnipeg to host a Heritage Classic. And I was really happy to hear that. I really enjoyed the last one, even though we had a sun delay. You know, the funniest thing about the last one was because of that sun delay,

All the people in the stadium, they drank all the beer. There was no beer left. It would remind me of when Tamos Salani's buddies, when he went to the Stanley Cup final with Anaheim against Ottawa in 2007, his buddies flying from Finland, they drank all the alcohol on the plane. There was none left. And that day when they played Edmonton a couple years ago, because of the sun delay, the fans there drank all the beer. there was none left. It was a great time the last time we were there.

I really loved it. And I was really excited to go back and I was really excited to hear about it. And I actually found out a few days in advance and I was sworn to secrecy that we were going to be announcing the official game, Winnipeg, Montreal, October 25th, 2026 during that headline segment. and then I think it was the Thursday. I can't remember. Whatever, it was two days before I think it was the Thursday. Someone found a page on the Jets website of information of it. And so, you know, once media found it, it got out, the story got out, and our exclusive

got ruined. And as I said on the air, Kyle to Ron, there were a couple of people that called and laughed at me about it because they're like, you've ruined our stuff before. Now you see how it feels. And it's true. Turnabout is fair play. If you dish it out, you've got to be able to take it. But the funny thing about this was, this does happen from time to time.

Years ago when Sergey Gonchar was getting traded. I can't remember what team was playing for at the time. The Maple Leafs were rumored to be a destination for Sergey Gonchar. And I don't know if it was a Maple Leafs. It was somebody who worked for the Maple Leafs. I don't know if it was a PR person. I don't know if it was a social media person. I don't know if it was a multimedia reporter.

I don't know who it was. But there was a Maple Leaf staffer who put together a Sergei Gonchar player page for the Maple Leafs. So, and basically what it was there for was if Sergey Gonchar did get traded to Toronto, they would be ready. How can you fault anybody for that? How can you possibly have a problem with some employee trying to be prepared? I say good on you. The problem was somehow that page went live.

And I don't know if someone searched out, like they went through the address bar and they looked at the code for or the link for the leaf page and they typed Ganchar's name in there instead of another player. But it existed. And for a while there, it went wild on social media. the lease have a gonchar page, they're trading for them. And they had to come out and tell some reporters, you know, hey, we aren't training for them. This was just what it was, someone trying to be prepared. And I remember after it happened,

a member of the Maple Leaf Organization asked me, would you discipline this staff member? And I said, absolutely not. Like, you know, maybe there must be better protections in place. I don't know how all this works, but how can you get someone in trouble for trying to be prepared? And, you know, they kind of said, that's what I felt, too. I'm just asking some people. And so I always remembered that.

And clearly, what happened here is somebody was trying to get things ready for the moment it went live on Saturday night, and it just got ready early. And my reaction is the same. It's too bad for us because that was supposed to be our story. And maybe there are ways that people have to be a bit more careful in the future. But generally, I can't be upset with people wanting to be prepared. Well, they were great hosts for the Great Cup last month, Elliot. Oh, right. Yes.

They were great hosts back in 2016, as you say, and look forward to another outdoor showing in the peg come next October. Very good. You know what? I think, I noticed, too, that Mike O'Shea stayed in Winnipeg when he could have come to Toronto to coach the Argonauts. And I have a theory on why Mike O'Shea did not want to come back to Toronto. Do you know what that is? Has the head coach of the bombers?

Are you guaranteed at least two tickets to this thing? No, no, no, no. That's actually a good line. That's very good guess. Very good guess. He thought he was getting tickets to the Heritage Classic. My theory is that, you know, Mike played at University of Guelph. and he was a great player.

But those uniforms make you look like you work at McDonald's. And I just don't think he wanted to look like he works at McDonald's. That's what I think the reason is. Brought back bad memories. Good. Any kind you can get a dig in there, eh? You just, you cannot help yourself. I got to tell you, Guelph, those guys could laugh last

because they beat Western in the playoffs this year, big upset. So that's my frustration at, getting back at them. Oh, I'm glad you got it out of your system, Elliot. Yeah. That was the final thought. And with that, why do we take our first break? When we come back, another edition of the thought line,

you are listening to 32 Thoughts, the podcast. All right, welcome back. Here we go. Time for another edition of the thought. And Elliot, from thought line to thoughtful, did you see what Morgan Geeky did for his teammates as a gift to the rest of the group after signing his big extension in Boston? For the first time, and I'm sure he's happy this is not the case, but I wished I was a friend of Morgan Geeky. Yeah, yeah. Those custom baseball gloves.

I'm in no danger of that. Those custom baseball gloves were outstanding. I love them. What a great gift. Gift giving is a skill, or a friend's. Gift giving is a skill. Sometimes I'm really good at it. Other times I'm not so good at it.

I once lost a relationship because I gave a bad gift. Okay, well, let's hear it. What happened? I'm not telling this story because it could out the person and they don't deserve to have this story told on the podcast. I'm not protecting myself. I'm protecting the other person. I don't know. Sounds like you don't want to say what gift it is.

I can understand why you are skeptical of this, but I think we've proven over the years if, I can make people laugh by taking a good shot at myself. I will do it. This is a case where it's just not a good idea. I thought the geeky baseball glove gift was fantastic. And what did you told me that he did it specifically? He did research into this. Well, yeah, as he was picking out the colors for the gloves for each guys,

I guess he had looked into. So Bell Fraser with the Bruins kind of did the story on it, right? And they picked the colors based on. Shut up, Bell Fraser's dad. Go ahead. Yes. loyal listener of the pod and he picked the colors based on you know where his teammates played junior

or played college or nationality like the flag of where they're from very very thoughtful and of course the custom with the last name and the number on the glove two beautiful looking and I don't think I could be provenly wrong here our listeners will let us know

I don't know if that's ever been done before A gifting of baseball gloves to the entire team. Very nice touch. Excellent touch. I remember there's been some interesting stuff over the years. One of the things I used to really like was if an NFL running back had a fantastic season, they would be responsible for giving gifts to their offensive line or the blockers for them. And there used to be some really creative stuff with that.

If you ever threw a no-hitter or a perfect game, you were supposed to do a gift for all your teammates, especially the players who were in the field on that day, who played defense behind you. I really love this kind of stuff. Now, if you could have a custom glove made for you, what colors would you want it to be? Well, minor baseball growing up,

although I never played rep ball, I wasn't good enough, but it was like red and white. And I always admired, and there was some Navy in it too. So I always admired those that played at that level. And my brother was a good ball player growing up. So he wore those colors a lot. I think as an ode to those days, I would go that route. You?

By the way, you went to Seat, right? That was your school? Yeah, the one that you ripped. Yeah, what were their colors? Red and white. Oh, okay. Did you pick the school because of those colors?

No. They were the only one that took me. I went there by the fault. Yes. I would probably have to go with the purple and white of Western. Purple and proud, Kyle. Purple and proud. Still can't believe they lost the football playoffs on a Rouge.

Yeah. They wouldn't be saying the same thing back to you if you knew you were wearing those. But the reason why, Elliot, I wanted to bring up that geeky story beyond it just being a really nice touch so david to catch sent me an instagram dm okay so geeky scores goal number 22 of the year on saturday he says hi kyle hope you're keeping well huge fan of the 32 thoughts podcast could you please rename morgan geeky to score again geeky thanks david from slovakia let's go bruins

He is on the Morgan Gigi hype train. So is everybody else. What a heater. It's not incorrect for those that wish to refer to him as score again geeky. Or scoring geeky. Scorgon geeky. Scorgon geeky. Thoughts on thought line.

I'll leave the nicknames to somebody else. Okay, yeah, a couple of things. First of all, a couple of shoutouts. You and I, as we mentioned earlier, we traveled to Denver today and ended up in Colorado Springs for the Board of Governors meeting a couple of good meetouts at the airport. I met a gentleman named Jim Janice. His daughter, Michelle, is a hockey coach. She's coached at Lethbridge before. I checked her resume.

I think she's coached at TMU before in Toronto. And now I think she coaches minor hockey just outside of Toronto. So Michelle, I always like to hear. about young people in the hockey atmosphere who maybe I'm not aware of yet and I just wanted to tell you, Michelle, your dad is your biggest fan. He waxed poetic about you for about

10 minutes. I also met a guy, I was pretty funny. I was sitting and waiting and some guy walked by me and he goes, hey, 32. That's what he called me. Like 32 was my name. And he introduced himself as Mike Deku and you know he said his brother-in-law is, Kyle,

Scott Carruthers. Oh, Butter. Yes. So Scott Carruthers, whose nickname is Butter, is one of the Hockey Night in Canada game producers. Yes, he does the late games often on Saturdays and after hours. And after hours. So Scotty, I met your brother-in-law, Mike, a good guy and a confident young lad, I would say too. And the other thing I wanted to show it out was I got an Instagram DM that really made me laugh that I wanted to read here.

His Instagram name is Brian Sterno, and he had a picture of a guy wearing a t-shirt with a puma on it that said, hope I don't puma pants. And then he wrote, never have I heard puma before. It's puma. Their logo is also the animal. never have I ever heard anyone call that animal a Puma before and rant that's what grinds my gears guess I'm lucky I only have mice in my grill not raccoons love the pod let's go Rangers wow there's been a while since we've heard the Puma Puma debate but well that's because it's over like it's clearly Puma and there's no point fighting it anymore that's what you took from that DM yes yes no I think the t-shirt that you described, again, only hammers home the fact that you are wrong on the pronunciation. Man, you hear from some great people, but you hear some odd ones, too.

It's fantastic. I read them all. I read them all. I love them all. I can't always respond to them all, but I laugh. All right. Let's get to it here. How about this one?

from K. Haasbilt from Germany. Hey, Elliot, Kyle and Dom. Longtime listener from Germany, first time sending an email to the thought line. I'm a couple episodes behind, but I hear the freak injuries are still an ongoing thing. So I wanted to share this story with you. I played professional hockey for 20 years,

and in 2015 went to the Spangler Cup with Alder Mannheim. A group of our players and their wives went for a Swiss dinner of fondue. I wasn't at the dinner myself, but one of our guys got burned by a waitress with boiling oil. A fondue pot malfunctioned and she spilled the oil on his back. When we met at the rink for the morning skate the next day, we couldn't believe what happened, especially since we were going through a tough stretch at the time and it felt like, like we couldn't catch a break. He was out a while,

though I can't remember how long it exactly took for him to get back. Maybe this freak accident makes the cut. Thanks for the great work and all the best to you. Wow.

Well, first of all, I looked up, I looked up, Kai Hossbelt. First, Kai, thank you very much for the note. Kai Hosspelt, seventh round NHL draft pick,

216th overall by the San Jose Sharks in 2000. and three, and he had a long career. He played, looks like, 17 years professionally in the German League, played in the world juniors. You look at that team that played on the Spangler Cup. Did you see the roster, Kyle, who it includes?

No, I didn't. Glenn Metropolitan, Yolkin Hesched, oh, wow. Matthew Carl, Brandon Yip. Matt Lashoff played three games. Marcel Godge played three games. The late great Ray Emery played seven games there in goal. There are some names there. Yeah, no wonder they ended up winning the league championship that year.

Oh, and he had in the playoffs, Kai was their second leading score. He had four points and three games, all assists. So nice job and great to hear from you. That is unbelievable. This is why I stay away from fondue. The second reason might be my lactose intolerance, but now the first reason is going to be the burning. I'll say this.

I do know of at least one situation where something like that happened in the NHL where a player got burned by a liquid and had to miss games. I know of at least once that's happened. Oof. And clearly you can, it can happen at any time going out for dinner with the wives, teammates,

and a freak accent can come out of nowhere. Holy smokes. Oh, my God. What a nightmare. Absolutely that makes the cut. That's crazy. But, Kai, thank you for that. All right.

Thanks for the note. Norm from Perth. Not sure if it's Australia or Ontario, but here we go. We're going to go with Australia. The always default to Australia. We want to be seen as international superstars. So we're going with Australia. Yes.

Whatever benefits us better, Norm. that is where you are from. This is a good one. I have a question regarding Olympic rosters and injury replacements. We know teams need to be named soon, but they'll get another chance later to replace any injured players on the teams. So my question is, could a team intentionally name players that they know will be too injured to play in order to have more time to make the final roster to?

decisions. For example, if Canada isn't sure yet who their third goalie should be, could they name Carrie Price to the roster? They could then get a few more months of data on their other options before picking the goalie to replace them. I'm thinking a team could essentially use this loophole to delay their final roster decisions a few months. And even if it's a small advantage, I'd think they're looking for any advantage that they can get. Curious to know if there's something preventing this from happening. Thank you guys for all the Mark. Carrie Price, I could see preventing it from happening. But the one thing I was thinking, Norm, is that it's a great question. I love loophole questions. One thing that could happen for argument's sake to fit your scenario is I'm not sure that Aden Hill is going to be back by the deadline, December 31st. I heard if he was fortunate, he'd be back around Christmas. But what you could do if you were Canada is say, you know what? We really like Aiden Hill. We liked having them last year at the Four Nations.

We'll name him to the team and buy ourselves more time. Because in theory, Aiden Hill could be ready for the Olympics. So that is something. I don't think your Kerry Price example is feasible. But I think Aiden Hill, if they wanted to do that, I think that could be feasible. It is a genius diabolical idea. And I have to admit, if I was in charge, I would consider it. Oh, very good.

Okay, from Tomek, Dear Kyle, Dom, and Elliot the Oracle Friedman. Okay. Tomek from London, England here. We are international this pot. Norm, you have to be from Australia. Do you want to be boring and be from Ontario or you want to be exotic? Hey, Perth is a lovely spot. When cycling there a few years ago, great, great part of the world.

Lifelong OG Florida Panthers fan here, who is feeling his devotion to the team since 96 from across the pond has finally been rewarded in the past three seasons. Sure has. Watching the Formula One this weekend and seeing that F-1's Connor McDavid, Oracle Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen, has so far scored a staggering 396 of Red Bull Racing's total 426 Constructors points. Roughly 93% of the team's total points haul across two drivers. They got me thinking. NHL terms, who would be the equivalent of the one-man carry?

That is, which NHL player in a single season has been involved in the highest percentage of his entire team's point scored? Is there anyone surprising in the top five all time that also deserves the title of for Shoppin of the NHL? So when he said by points, I'm assuming goals, players that have factored in on the highest percentage of their team's goals, either by scoring them or assisting on them in one season. Gratzky, the years he had 215 and 220 points, what was Edmonton scoring at those times? Like, 380 goals? That's over 50%.

It is. But it's not the record? No. He's in the top 10. He's not in the top 5 because of that. He scored a billion points, but the Oilers scored a billion goals. So it was saturated a bit. He's six on the list.

He's eighth on the list. He's 10th on the list. Now, are we talking about expansion era or before expansion era? Like as in 67? Yes. All but one in the top five is post expansion. Sorry. Yes.

All but one in the top five is post expansion. Okay. So. I would have to consider, well, I would have to consider Mario Lemieux. Yes, he is in there twice. Number two on the list in 88, 89, at 57.3%, and at number four, the year before in 87, 88, at 52.7%. I will say there may be a slight asterisk next to number one on the list, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Was he traded in season or something like that?

He was not. Okay. Is Johnny Goodro on this list from that year where Calgary's... Okay, because Calgary's first line had that awesome year. Yeah. All right. Who else would I put on here? Would any of Lemieux's teammates be on this list?

From those great Penguins teams? Yes, though I believe the year that one of his teammates did it, I think Mario was not playing. Okay, so that's got to be Yager. Yes, in 98, 99. Yes, Mario was not playing that year. He carried them. They upset the devils early in the playoffs, and he played unbelievable.

So Yager's another one. Yeah. So there's two Lemieux's and a Yager. Mm-hmm. Yager was fifth on the list. So Lemieux 2, Lemieux 4, Yager 5th. Yeah. There's one guy pre-expansion.

Number three, and top of the list, post-expansion. Well, you know, I look at the guys who were scoring like close to 100 points pre-expansion. That's got to be like Stan McKita, Bobby Hull. Earlier than that. Oh, earlier? Long, long time ago. Long, long time ago. Joe Malone, like 1917?

Wow, nicely done. Well, you know, I'll tell you this. 19, 20. Okay. Okay, because there's one year, and if you go through, the real hockey historians will know this. There's one year where Joe Malone has 44 goals, and the next place guy has like 17. So that, I wouldn't have gotten it without your hint. Is he number one?

He's number three on the list with the Quebec Athletic Club Bulldogs. So number one, how recent are we talking here? in the if you look at the context of the history of the NHL quite recent really Mm-hmm Current player

When you say there's an asterisk Is it because of one of the COVID seasons Mm-hmm Ah Okay Well I remember That this

This second year which was the one where they played 55 or 56 games or whatever it is. McDavid won the scoring race by like 20 points. So it's got to be him. It's him, right? Because he eclipsed 100 in the 56 game season. So that was the record. That's a record holder, right?

Narrowly edging out Mario. So he was 57.3, McDavid was 57.4%. That is a great trivia question. I'm slightly proud of myself, I have to say. You had some good polls there. Minds were in the right place. Tomick, that's a great question. And the one I always remember for this, and it's not hockey,

but one of the great sports seasons for a player who was great on a terrible team. And I'm going to look up the year is Steve Carlton, the Hall of Fame pitcher. Steve Carlton in 1972, one led the major leagues in victories with 27 on a Philadelphia team that won 62 games. Wow. Sorry, excuse me, they won 59 games. That's incredible. So he won just under half their games. Yes.

You know how many innings pitched? that year? Like, it's so crazy when you think about it. Oh, boy. How many? Like, guess a number that nobody would pitch now? Nobody. 350 things? Like, what are we talking? You're right there, 346 and a third. Holy. Yeah. He had 30 complete games. Like, that's just crazy. That's like, I can see he gets taken out of the eight. They'd be like, oh, it was a tough, tough outing for Steve Carlton. Clearly didn't have it today. What a stiff couldn't get through the eighth. You know, it's, but that's the one I always remember. When you talk about great seasons on bad teams, that's the one that pops into my head, 27 wins on a 59 win team.

Golly, that's a great one. Okay, one final one here. Jeff from Newark. Good morning, 32 thoughts team. A Viking, a cheesehead, and an eagle, sales, rolls, and fly. flies into a bar. I was going to say this sounds like the beginning of a joke, yes. But I think he means a jet, though, not an eagle. In reference to our fearless leader. No, but he must be an Eagles fan living in New Jersey. Oh.

I think he's talking about himself. Okay. So Don wasn't invited. Sorry, Dom. First and foremost, as a longtime listener, wanted to say thank you for the content over the years. Thanks for all the hockey talk, the trivia, the laughs, and the banter. the three of you have made me laugh, smile, and make my work commutes more tolerable.

I think he's written into the wrong show, Elliot. I think this is the wrong thought line. Thank you very much, Jeff. That's kind of you. As someone who went to school for broadcasting, and I've had the amazing opportunity to meet and interview legendary broadcasters, including Jim Jackson, Kenny Albert, Chris Cuthbert, and Doc Emmerich, what is your all-time favorite gold call? Keep up the incredible work and have a wonderful holiday season with family and friends. How do you pick one? It's a great conversation.

But it's so hard to pick one. You know, I was at the game, so I didn't see the goal call till later. But I always loved Bob Coles on Joe Sackick at the 2002 Olympics. See, that's where I was going. Joe Sackick. That was. You know, a very impressionable time of life. Obviously, the stakes were incredibly high.

It was a great call. All for, you know, could be a break. It's going to be a break. And it not, like there was the Joe Sackick after the goal goes in. And there was, it's Joe Sackick, like as he's breaking in on Mike Richter. Yeah. Expertly, expertly delivered by the late Bob Gold. That's honestly where mine went to.

I'm trying to think of one in particular when I was when I was really young because you try to remember ones from when you're a kid and goals that really stood out to you I still think like I've always I mean Cuthbert doing the Primo goal the Keith Primo the Marathon Man Yes That's a good one.

Also the one he had Brendan Morrison's car. Was it triple overtime or quadru? I think it was triple overtime in 2004 against Calgary to Force Game 7. Vancouver jumped out to that big lead. Calgary Stormback tied it. Then they're in overtime, late in overtime. And Brendan Morrison, a silencer, because they were in Calgary. Yes.

That's a good one. Really good one. You know what? I would say two, and again, this isn't one I didn't really watch. live because I was too young I was I turned to the day before it was scored but I think if you go back to Foster Hewitt and Henderson takes a wild stab at it and then Henderson scores for Canada it's such an enormous goal the world has changed so much I mean I lived I'm old enough to remember before the Cold War ended

and before the Berlin Wall fell but for people who are really alive during that time and how different the world was, I think that's a monumental call in the moment. Yeah, that is a good one. Another honorable mention, a little bit before my time, but Gary Thorne, when Messier ice is game six against New Jersey with the hat trick, and he starts yelling, do you believe it?

Do you believe it? It was after the guarantee. And that was just talk about, Summing up the moment there. It was, that was a good one. I always loved Gary Thorne's colleague. We were spoiled as kids growing up when he did, like Jim Houston and Don Taylor did play-by-play for the EA sports

NHL video games for a time. And then it was Gary Thorne and Bill Clement for a while. And that was like such a treat, such a treat. I was never a big video game guy. My parents were very anti-video games. And I just never really got into them. Yeah. Now it's everywhere, man.

Yeah, no, Max is big. He loves his switch. Yeah? But you don't, you leave it to him, though. You don't jump in with him? No, no, no. It's for him. That's his thing.

He likes doing it. Yeah. All right. Jeff, thank you for the walk down memory lane and the invite to the bar. That'll do it for another edition of the thought line. 1833, 311, 321, if you would like to leave a voicemail. Or, as you know, you can email. us at 32 Thoughts at Sportsnet.com.

One final break on this edition of 32 Thoughts, the podcast. We'll be back after this. Okay, before we go, I wanted to give you a heads up. of what's on tap for Scotia Bank Wednesday night hockey this week. A bit of a unique start time on the air with the pregame show Hockey Central at 8 Eastern 6 Mountain Time with David Anver and Company Mountain Time because it's the Red Wings in Calgary to face the flames puck drop a little after 630 Mountain Time from the Scotia Bank Saddle Dome. Taking us out today, a track from Ariel Posen, whose songwriting and guitar playing have always got. gone hand in hand. He spent a decade building a bridge between those two worlds, balancing his work as a hotshot instrumentalist, including collaborations with everyone from John Mayer to Tom

Jones with solo albums rooted in melody and autobiographical storytelling. The result is a career that's every bit as diverse as his music. With performances at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival, his own Fender Stratocaster's signature model, and a powerful a voice that matches his fretwork, Posen explores uncharted territory, blurring the lines between genre and generation along the way. Upcoming shows include December the 12th at Park Theater in Winnipeg, and he's also got some additional dates scheduled in Europe in 2026. Here's Ariel Posen and Future Present Tense on 32 Thoughts, the podcast. one i keep on running too only thing i got to have is what i have with you

make me want to lose my self-control i don't need a head if i can't hold you only thing i got a hand if i can't hold you is what I have with you. Take me somewhere I have never been. We want to go back there again and get them better in future presentance. When did it get written in the stars? If it never ends, when did it start? Only thing that matters is now and what comes after.

Take me somewhere I have never been there. and again, living in. Future presentance. Future present is. Future present is. I'm going to be. I'm going to be. I'm going to be.

So, you know, we're going to be able to be. It don't matter where we've been, we don't need no common sense. Time is worth more if it's spent in the future present tense. It don't matter where we've been. since time is worth more if it's been Take me Somewhere I have never been They want to go back there again

They need Somewhere I have never been They need Wanna go back there again living in Future present End Future presentance