32 Thoughts: The Podcast - The Battle of Ontario is Back, Baby

Episode Date: February 12, 2024

Jeff and Elliotte look back at the ending of the Maple Leafs-Senators game on Saturday night that saw Morgan Rielly cross-check Ridly Greig in a fit of rage. They discuss how many games they believe Rielly should be suspended for and the impact it'll have on the Leafs. Plus, the guys get into the reaction from the fans and how this has reignited the Battle of Ontario. Jeff and Elliotte move on to the surging Calgary Flames who now find themselves back in the Western Conference Wild Card race (26:30). Next, could the New Jersey Devils pry Jacob Markstrom out of Calgary (31:59) and Jeff asks Elliotte about the trade buzz around Guentzel, Tanev, Hanifin, and Henrique (38:32). Jeff then ponders whether Boone Jenner could find his way to the Buffalo Sabres (44:48) and Elliotte provides the latest information he's privy to around the Arizona Coyotes (49:040). Finally, will Doug Armstrong lead Canada into the next international best-on-best window (52:56)?The guys answer your questions in the Montana’s Thought Line (54:29) and finish the podcast by sitting down with New York Rangers bench boss Peter Laviolette (1:03:54). Email the podcast at [e-mail] or call the Montana's Thought Line at 1-833-311-3232 and leave us a voicemail.This podcast was produced and mixed by Dominic Sramaty and hosted by Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman.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.

You know, Jeff, I don't disagree with you. That's why kindergarten has teachers. You don't let these kids go off into the wild, right? That's why kindergarten has teachers. I just thought of that. I think it's pretty good. Again. Tickled my chin. That was good. Okay. So first of all, thanks for joining us here on the podcast. What I'm wondering about is what do you do when you have a situation where people say the action could be fine and the response was fine or the action was dumb and the response was dumb or the action was dumb, but the response was fine or the action was fine. But I think you know where i'm going here welcome to 32 thoughts the podcast presented as always by the gmc sierra america alongside friedman and dom schramatti you know what i'm getting at here and that is morgan riley saturday night toronto versus ottawa the hit to the head of rigley greg after the slap shot heard round elliott's the hockey world an in-person hearing

for the toronto meet beliefs number one defenseman we're going to paint with a roller first and then drill it down and pull out the brushes but wide brush thoughts here on what we just saw on Saturday and what we heard on Sunday I was surprised it was a potential of an in-person I really was I look a lot of this is tribalism and we'll get to the tribalism aspect of this shortly. I mean, my bottom line opinion is if I was a player on the ice playing for another team, when a player scored an empty net goal like that, I would be furious, but I still thought that Riley crossed the line and he deserved a suspension. I just don't think it should be at least potentially, potentially, they don't have to do it, a six-game suspension. And here's why. And the reason I feel this, let's go back,

and Dom's got the audio for you here. A couple years ago, Blake Lizotte was suspended one game for cross-checking Josh Morrissey. And listen to the audio of the explanation. Expecting an altercation, Morrissey drops his stick and gloves. Then, Wazant raises his stick with two hands and delivers a blow that hits Morrissey directly in the face. This is cross-checking. It is important to note that this is not a case of a stick directed towards the body that materially rides up the opponent. This cross-check is delivered cleanly to the head of Morrissey. So that's Blake Lizotte, one game on Josh Morrissey.

Here's one this year. It's Andrew Mangiapane. He got one game for a cross-check against Seattle. And again, it's very clear that they hold Mangiapane responsible for the force of the cross-check. But again, they talk about, well, you'll hear it yourself. With McCann on the ice, Mangiapane shoves McCann in the upper back and neck, which causes his head to strike the ice. This is cross-checking. It is important to note that we accept Mangiapane's contention that he does not intend to drive McCann's head into the ice on this play. In addition, we acknowledge that this is not a case in which a player uses the full extension of his arms or his body weight

to strike an opponent or intentionally drive him violently into the ice. However, Mangiapane is in control throughout this sequence and makes the decision to deliver a reckless cross check to a player lying vulnerable on the ice, which causes McCann's head to impact the ice. I understand that sometimes people roll their eyes at this kind of stuff, but this is the kind of thing that I really try to look for when it comes to explaining rules or what further decisions might be. Like if you take a look at Austin Matthews, two games on Rasmus Dallin, the moment that happened, I checked with someone. I said, Matthews is in trouble because there's no write-up. It's directly into the face.

And that's exactly what happened. And if you listen to the video, that's exactly what they talk about. So, you know, with David Perron and the one earlier this year against Ottawa, that was not a write-up. Even though it was Perron's first career suspension and it was harsh, six games, he goes right into Zub's face. He doesn't write up. So that's why I was so surprised today, Jeff, because I try to look for the consistency.

And one of the things I've always been told about crosschecks is, the consistency and one of the things I've always been told about cross checks is does the player go directly to the head or does it hit something else first so like I said I thought Riley was going to get suspended because he was careless like Mangiapane but I thought we were looking at two three four games I was not expecting this and i would expect that whoever's defending riley in this hearing is gonna go hard at that uh because if i know that i assume that they know that i i can't elliot be surprised until we find out what the number is. Like to your point, the in-person hearing just gives you the potential for something. So who knows, like maybe Riley comes in and they end up settling at one game or two games or three games, whatever it is, and it doesn't approach that five or six games threshold or territory. I think that there's a number of unique things about this too. And this is where,

you know, you mentioned tribalism before, and I can't help but thinking that if their roles were reversed and it was Matthew Nyes, who scored an empty net goal, a slap shot at Scotiabank Arena and Brady Kachuk went after him, the roles would be completely reversed between Maple Leafs fans and Ottawa Senators fans. It's almost like, you know, one of those exercises you do in high school where it's like, okay, this is the position you have to take. And this is the position that this side has to take. And then you flip it halfway through the debate. It's a standard exercise that a lot of high school students do. The unique part about this one is it opens up all kinds of conversations about things like the code and appropriate behavior and appropriate response. I thought it was really interesting.

And I was glad you guys had Claude Giroux on hockey night right after the game. Claude Giroux, as we all know, a veteran hockey player, been around, seen a lot of things, understands, you know, the game within the game. And, you know, he was really reluctant to comment much on this at all. But I walked away. I'm curious what you think, Elliot. I came away from watching that Saturday night and saying, I don't think that Claude Giroux was cool at all with what Ridley Gregg did. He wasn't cool with what Morgan Riley did afterwards.

Maybe he understood it from an old school point of view, but he didn't want to bury a teammate. To me, that was one of the most compelling things that I've seen on hockey TV all season long. Just a quick little departure from the event itself. What did you make as you're sitting there being part of it, the Claude Giroux interview on hockey nights? When Claude Giroux played in Philadelphia, who was their leader?

A big, tall defenseman who's in the Hockey Hall of Fame who wasn't shy about cross-checks himself. Well, that's the thing. It was Chris Pronger. And if that had happened and Chris Pronger was on the ice, what do you think Chris Pronger would have done? This is a recording. Same thing. was on the ice what do you think chris pronger would have done this is a recording same thing

there there might have been never mind uh an in-person hearing it might have been a felony if chris pronger had been playing flap foots hit the ice let's look let's talk about the tribalism for a sec okay sure and that's because you can't you cannot take that out of this 95 to 99 percent of the people who are arguing on social media about this if you reverse the two teams yes the Leafs take that slap shot into the net and this Ottawa player commits the cross check they have the all these people are going to reverse their positions they are not arguing so much what they believe they are arguing the bias that they have which is they're pro ottawa or pro toronto and that's why i brought up kachuk and nize and this is the this is a constant refrain around actions like this or

suspensions or injuries it's only a problem when your bull gets gored that is the history of this right say if nick robertson did that the ottawa fans they would want brady kachuk leaving the ice with blood coming out of his teeth like one of the vampires and i am legend that is just the way life is more More and more, and especially now in the social media era, people don't see or argue what is real. They argue their biases. And I see it everywhere all the time. And even though I try not to be guilty of that, there are certainly times I am guilty of it too. And the other thing to me that's really fascinating about this is sort of like the journalists and the former players a lot of the media don't like this and like I said I think Riley deserves a suspension I don't think it should be six games but he deserves a punishment but it's very interesting how many of the former players saw Greg's slap shot and said oh yeah I get it and even guys like who are pro Ottawa guys

like our former teammate Jason York and Mark Mathot who works for the evil telecom like those guys are guys whose opinions I really respect their former players they understood why he reacted the way he did. But you can't go over the line, and Riley went over the line. So when you talk about Giroux there, and knowing that Giroux is a pronger disciple, he played for the Flyers, if that happened against Philadelphia, like I said, there'd be ambulances at the arena, particularly if it was in the 1970s or 80s. Gritty would hit the ice. Gritty would be let out in handcuffs

if somebody did that against the Flyers. So it is all tribalism. I try to separate myself as much as I can. And look, I have been a player in a game nowhere near as high stakes at this who has gotten angry in a tough, tough game, a really competitive game when you feel that somebody is showboating you, right? It doesn't excuse going past the line, but I understand how it happens. And the other thing too is there's a lot of people

out there on Twitter or on social media and they're like uh it's just a slap shot to an empty net what's the big deal I see some of these people go into rages when somebody sends a mildly critical tweet at them don't tell me you're gonna handle it any better than Riley did come on you know I'll say this the other story that develops out of this is this is now a huge deal for Toronto as much as people are debating the play and the reaction to it oh yeah more Morgan Riley is Toronto's best defenseman and this year arguably their best player like it is amazing to me that Toronto has a 600 winning percentage with the way their season is gone the goaltending ups and downs a total roller coaster the thinness on defense the fact that they're basically a two

line team like they've got a better winning percentage within Detroit and Tampa because they have games in hand, but they're now in a fight with these teams to make the playoffs. If you lose Riley for argument's sake six games, that could be your season. So you can only imagine the angst and the concern, and I think that Maple Leafs is an organization are furious about this um but you know they have to they have to put together the defense of all defenses because another thing

that i looked at jeff is how often do you find players who get in-person hearings that don't get six games and i i went through the list and I found Dmitry Kulikov in 2015 when he played for Florida. He clipped Tyler Sagan, got offered an in-person hearing, waived it, and got four games. John Moore, then of the Rangers in 2014, he hit Eric Holla,

in-person hearing, didn't get six, got five. But the idea of being offereda in-person hearing, didn't get six, got five. But the idea of being offered an in-person hearing and like this turns, like I thought it was going to be two to four games. That's what I thought. I thought two was the low end and four was the high end. But six to two, I did a check on Sunday afternoon and I didn't see anything like that. So if you're Toronto, you are beside yourself

that this could cost you Morgan Rielly at this point of the season. And the NHL can't worry about that. They have to make the decision as they feel right. But I do think if you're the Maple Leafs, you are apoplectic about the possibility. One other sidebar to this. I'm just curious your thoughts on it. I got a note from someone asking why nothing for Sheldon Keefe,

who after the event said the act was appropriate. We've seen coaches. He's defending his player. I get that he's defending his player, but we've seen coaches and I'm not, I'm not, I'm just asking the question that someone asked me, like we've seen coaches fine,

certainly for blasting officials. How about coaches uh no i'm just asking it no i'm saying but i'm saying to you you have to tell the person who texted you about that and say i we wouldn't even accept that question on the montana's try the ribs line that is such a bad question well like what do you expect Sheldon Keefe to do if he doesn't defend his player he completely loses his dressing room of course he's gonna Morgan Riley has been like I said is arguably his best player this year and you know even with Matthews at 42 goals you could argue that Morgan Riley is his most important player this year

he's going to defend Morgan Riley I think that's crazy you like if you don't understand that you don't understand teamwork or sports and also too it's not like he said anything inflammatory he just calmly said I think it's appropriate the point that the person who texted me, who is a prominent agent, by the way, I think the point they were trying to make is he is supporting a suspendable act publicly. Come on. I mean, come on. Like, Jeff, you don't talk to me, Elliot. This isn't me saying, no, you can't. I am.

I am bringing this up as a point of discussion. But if you are going to be the proxy guy, then you have to take the proxy beat down. I'll stand here and you have a swing at this pinata. That's right. I can't hit the agent with a lead pipe because he's not here, but I can hit you with it. Okay.

Or she's not here. First of all, with it okay so the other she's not here one of the other first of all you don't even know the sidebar to all of this is you always sort of okay i think we all wonder what the next game is going to be like between these two teams bracket that conversation for a second but if you're a maple leafs fan i I know that Morgan Rielly and the suspension is going to hurt the Toronto Maple Leafs. I understand that. But how do Maple Leafs fans feel about Morgan Rielly now? Well, this is the thing too here.

Are you a Bill Burr guy? Are you a Bill Burr fan? I love Bill Burr. I do too. I listen to his podcast. I just drive and I cackle. I love Bill Burr fan I love Bill Burr I do too I listen to his podcast I just drive and I cackle I love Bill Burr so one of the first Saturday Night Lives when they started bringing an audience back after COVID he was the host yep and he he was talking about there was a story where a guy was walking down a street in Manhattan and out of nowhere someone punched him in the face and he told and he talked about that story and he just

yells you know in a way only bill burke can new york we're back baby we're back random punches in the face we're back and that's what i thought about the battle of Ontario on Saturday night with that it was back and yeah look if you're an Ottawa fan you love what Ridley Gregg did you love it yep he buried the Toronto Maple Leafs the team you despise the most you saw the Sanders fans in that building they were going crazy like that is red meat to the Ottawa Sanders. And like I said, because of the tribalism, they will defend Ridley Gregg to the end of the world on that. It's not that bad.

It's not that bad. Don't be a wimp. Don't be soft. It's just a slap shot. But of course, if it was the other way around, and it was, say, robertson they'd be destroying nick robertson and the maple leafs but that's tribalism like we all get that with riley of course the maple leaf fans love that what's the biggest critique of the toronto maple leafs

that they're a bunch of overpaid emotionless automatons. He showed passion. Soft skill too. Soft skill. Yeah. Yeah. You want to say whatever you want. He showed passion. He showed pride.

Like I said, he went over the line, but he showed passion. He showed pride and he showed that he really cares. And in Toronto, if you show that you care, they will love you forever. And the Leafs fans, they loved it. And they will defend Riley to the end of the earth on this. Even though, again, if the situation was reversed and that was a senator who hit Nick Robertson, they'd be destroying that guy and clobbering that guy. But they will say that's the kind of pride we need and in their

eyes Morgan Riley is you know he's he's the oppressed person here he was standing up for his team and he's being victimized that's the way the Toronto fans will see it. And so, yeah, I totally understand why. And also, too, if the Maple Leafs had done nothing, their own fan base would have ripped them as soft. You know it. I know it. And broadcasters would have done it, too. They would have said, how do you let that happen? So, like I said, I look at this incident as Greg did something.

He shouldn't have been surprised that a Maple Leaf player retaliated on him. And if Morgan Rielly just throws off his gloves and jumps him, nothing happens here. Remember two years ago, Morgan Rielly didn't like a hit that Josh Morrissey put on Robertson, Leafs Winnipeg, and he jumped him and fought him. If he jumps and fights Greg here, we're not in this situation. But he used the cross check.

Again, it's a write-up, so I'm surprised we are where we are. But, you know, the thing is, the toughest thing is, and I'm sure Riley feels this. I'm sure he's angry about the position he's in. I have no doubt he thinks this is too much. But he's probably also saying, I lost my emotions and now I've put us in a really bad spot. So, you know, I think that's the overall situation here do you think anyone is considering the vancouver canucks off for not reacting to jake wallman the pride of armor heights for hitting the gritty hitting the gritty after the overtime winner pride of armor

heights yeah you know what like i i know people who were like and by the way credit to friend of the pod uh ryan hannah who pointed out the second time he's done it to casey de smith de smith should have charged up the smith should have charged the second time i have no doubt i have no doubt that there were people yeah who said that they should have done something about that or the next time they play they should do something about that or the next time they play, they should do something about that. But I guarantee because of this, both those teams are going to be worn before that game.

Yeah, there is a great line in hockey. We have to do something about all this fighting or we're going to have to build bigger arenas. What does next season look like between these two teams and if you're george larocque or tony twist should you uh renew your gym memberships and maybe start taking boxing lessons in the offseason or maybe it's that that one game where it's like slap shot oh man frege he's had it. Yeah. We got to text PJ. Come on, Stock. I wouldn't have thought about him.

Come on, PJ. You don't think about him with the Sanders and the Leafs. It could be like one-game tryouts for Chris Neal and Ty Domi and Tiger Williams. Not bad. Tough guys from Ottawa and Toronto passed for one game only. Honestly, I think it'll be wild. I know both teams are going to be, I think it'll be wild. I know both teams are going to be warned, but I'm not so, the only thing that, that I'm kind of upset about is you try to

draw this sort of perfect scenario for this. Kind of upset that the Islanders hired Patrick Waugh and not the Ottawa Senators. Can you imagine the dynamic next season? The first game between the Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators and it's Patrick Waugh behind the Ottawa bench. I mean, I don't even think you need to add anyone to it.'s it's just gonna be a crazy environment but again like Jeff I'm sitting here and you know after the game on Saturday night and into Sunday morning I was thinking you know what a what a great thing it is for the Ottawa Toronto rivalry to be white hot again like the league is better when the rivalries are like this. And I'd forgotten until Kevin mentioned it.

It's the first time in five years Ottawa's beaten Toronto in a season series. That's not a rivalry when the same team is winning four years straight. So now you've got all of this. But after the in-person hearing the offer was announced like to me the storyline shifts to what is on the line for the Maple Leafs here this is like this is a massive massive deal for them imagine you went to the New York Islanders and and had like Matthew Barzell in this situation or the Devils and Jack Hughes in this situation. Well, they have.

They didn't like it and they fell out of a playoff spot. Yeah. Or, you know, like some of these teams are really balanced. I think they could handle a loss of a major player. No, hang on, hang on. You know what the best example is? Last year, Washington, John Carlson. There's your example.

Yeah, they really lost it without him. And the other thing too about it is with an in-person hearing is, look at what happened with Perron. He got six games. They're in the second appeal process, but you can't get the games back. Now, Toronto did have a situation a couple years ago where Spezza, on a first-time offense, got a six-game suspension and Bettman lowered it to four.

Now, that is very rare, but it does happen. But if you're Toronto right now like you cannot overstate the critical nature of this hearing in this decision so initially i was thinking about that was incredible to watch now i'm thinking about what's on the line for them right now as they find themselves battling for the playoffs the story is not going to get any calmer once the suspension is revealed leaves play tuesday by the way against st louis to throw that out there but like oh man like i have to tell you is you will as you can imagine um you know like in this situation you hear it from sans fans you hear it from leaf fans i kind of laugh it all off because without that passion that you

know we don't have jobs uh but you know like if if the toronto ottawa rivalry was dormant for a little bit of time that's over that is over o-v-A-H. Over. And all it took was an empty net goal. I always think of the great story of Mickey Ions, legendary NHL official, who used to have a saying. He would call the linesman to center ice before the game.

He would hold up a puck and he would say, gentlemen, one thing we all need to remember here. The moment I drop this, the three of us become the only sane people in this building. Think about this, Elliot. The Battle of Ontario is on again because of a empty net goal. Enjoy. Okay.

Meanwhile, elsewhere around the NHL, Elliot, a few things from headlines on Saturday. And I want to start by talking about the Calgary Flames and the New Jersey Devils and the conversation that you had with Ron yesterday. But I will point out as well, we had a really unique looking game sheet last night in this one um flames five new york islanders two and it's bizarre but there it is on that mackenzie wieger goal where he went end to end gorgeous play like gorgeous um jacob markstrom with the primary assist and blake coleman with the second assist on the you do not see that very often elliot's no i i have to say like all credit to the flames all credit you know actually i had i had a player text me uh on sunday morning i woke up to a text and a player said to me this is a player from another team, he said, you know, I watch Saturday nights, he says, like, every week,

and he says, you're not the only one, it's the Flames every week. And it's not just you, it's all the other people who report on the league. It's basically the Flames every day. And there's a cloud around just, like, what is the future of this team. It's been around 10 of like Zdorov, they sorted that out. Lindholm, they sorted that out. And I have to tell you this. Someone did tell me, and they weren't ripping Lindholm as a person,

but they were kind of saying like that guy was in a funk all year all year he's been and I think it's perfectly normal Jeff it's you know like I know in situations I don't mind being uncomfortable I've learned over the years um you know like one of my first bosses my first actually my first boss in tv was it was a guy by the name of lee herberman and he could be a really tough boss like a really tough boss and but it was in a lot of it was in a good way like he really um you know he like like nelson millman was my was one of my first bosses and he always, and he could be tough when he really needed to be,

but mostly he was very encouraging. He was like, Elliot, I see, I have a belief in you and I'm going to teach you. He could be blunt and honest when he needed to be, but he was like, I'm going to teach you to be better. Lee Herberman was a tough boss and he taught me a lot. He once told me, he says, Elliot, I don't think people are always at their best when they're their most comfortable. It's like Ken Hitchcock, really. He would say, sometimes I'm going to make you uncomfortable

so that you have to fight to make yourself comfortable and in the long run it will make you better at what you are and he was right about that. Linholm this year he was uncomfortable all year like I said I think right before the season the last time the Flames and Linholm really looked at that I think they were more than a million a year apart. Like that's a really tough, tough bridge to make up. And he was struggling and it was weighing on him. And, you know, he was miserable. And even though he still doesn't have a contract, I just think it's going to be a better situation for him.

And it's just been, it's been better for them. And like Tanev, I think this is making him crazy but he's just a positive guy and he's gonna go through it um Hannafin it's been up and down but he's played great and now you know we kind of threw Markstrom into it a bit more on Saturday night or not we I did it but he has been unbelievable and oh yeah I just think that the flames even though there's still a lot of noise around them I think a lot of those guys now they're like either they're playing through it or they're just not bothered by it. And someone just said to me, it's just a less stressed atmosphere. They really don't like it for Tanev because they think that deep down,

like it's making him nuts, but he just, that guy just battles through everything. Like there's nothing that can stop that guy. If I told you in the summer that the Calgary Flames are going to trade by you know the second week of february they were going to trade tyler toffoli nikita zadorov elias lindholm you probably would have said okay so they're a lottery team right they're right around the wild card yeah like they're they're like i'm with you like congratulations calgary flame this is impressive

like coming back from all-star and going on this winning streak here and beating some impressive teams along the way too this is this has been great okay um sticking with the calgary flames uh headlines was fascinating and featured a very prominent calgary flame one that should be in the vesna trophy uh conversation i'm sure he already is I think by now people have clued into the fact that Jacob Markstrom, Elliot, is having an outstanding season and Jacob Markstrom is valued not just in Calgary but elsewhere as well, most notably perhaps within the Devils organization.

So I think we've all known that there's kind of been this, it's like that awkward high school dance, right, Jeff? It's, you know, the boy sees girl, boy wants to dance with girl, boy's kind of shy, girl wants to dance with boy. Are you confusing me with your therapist, Elliot? I'm your co-host. I'm your buddy. I'm not your therapist, Elliot. Believe me, this did happen to me a few times.

I'm not going to lie. I was the shyest of teenagers. Girl says, I wish this guy would ask me already. And, you know, like eventually you get there. I think that the devils and the flames have been awkwardly looking at each other. I just heard it got pretty serious. You know, I've talked before on this pod about how the Flames have, I believe, only kept money once.

And I think that was David Riddick to Toronto. And that was a deal that had no term. So again, I think the surest predictor of future events is past events so teams know that the flames are not crazy about this right so I do believe that is a major hurdle and was probably the major hurdle and I think the package was I think they were closer on that I'm not 100 sure but I think they were closer on that it was not 100% sure but I think they were closer on that it was they weren't it wasn't perfect but I heard the retention was the much bigger problem the much bigger problem and like I had people telling me it's it's falling apart it's over but I don't

know that I don't like to say that because I've learned in this business that just because something is true one day doesn't mean it's true the next day but I do think the devils are looking at other possibilities now what this says to me like a rental makes no sense for the devils they're probably not making the playoffs this year but I think they're looking at guys with term. And this, as I was told, and I heard it from more than one place, was a real legit attempt at Markstrom. And again, I don't know that it ever went to him. I don't know the answer to that. But I do know that the two teams made a real serious try.

And, you know, I'll just say this. Like, again, those Calgary players, they are playing their hearts out in the middle of a crazy season. And everything I always say, Al McInnes, Al McInnes, how is this going to go over in our room? And I think the flames think about that. If you're going to give up Markstrom, it better be good. And I think that's, that's what governed this as much as anything. You see, I can see these two teams i think

we've talked about this before on the pod or the radio show they all sort of bleed together in some ways i look at these two teams and i say these two teams together given what where both are in their winning cycle given where both are in what they have and what they need these might be the perfect two teams elliot not for a trade but for a block buster now it would have helped if new jersey was in a better position in the standings certainly but i look at new jersey and what they need short term long term again as we've mentioned before that the dougie hamilton injury might be the most underreported story of the season in the nhl period yeah but that's but that's a whole um i look at new jersey and i say this is a team that doesn't capital n need a lot of draft picks right now like a lot of the key pieces for the new jersey devils

are already in place. Like there are some players coming up and certainly some polish for young guys, but basically like all of what you're going to see with the New Jersey Devils is kind of all in place except for the goaltending. And that's what the Calgary Flames have.

And the New Jersey Devils have the ability, whether it's with young players, specifically defensemen, where they have a lot, or draft picks. And draft picks can be used to get teams to retain on money. And that's where the Markstrom conversation, to your point, comes in. These two teams have the potential to have an absolutely blockbuster deal. to have an absolutely blockbuster deal. But again, I'll swing back to your point. If New Jersey was in second place in the metropolitan, maybe we're talking about this a little bit stronger because they also do have Noah Hannafin. Honestly, Elliot, I look at these two and I say, because you've done this before too, marry two teams and say which teams based on what they have and what they need, marry that to another team where you can see a blockbuster deal. I keep swinging back to Calgary and New Jersey.

So I was happy to see you talk about that on Saturday. But you think this is scuttled at this point or at least on pause? That's what someone said to me. More than one person said to me. Like there was a lot. This really, it just happened. The two teams were in the same city and I just think it added to it. Look, like I said, I had a couple people say to me they think it's scuttled,

but you know how careful I am. This is a funny league. Like, sometimes when you lay the groundwork, yeah, it falls apart, but sometimes you can go back to it. And, you know, like And people grind in negotiations. Tom Fitzgerald, Craig Conroy, these are former players. And this is their competition now. And they battled just as hard in conversations as they did when they were both on the ice.

And both of those guys were really competitive players. Okay, here's what I want you to do, Elliot. I want you to do me a favor. I want you to do, Elliot. I want you to do me a favor. I want you to stop being careful. And I want you to, I want you to treat this next topic like you're, like you're roller skating down a gravel road. How about that? Let's see.

Let's be nice and sloppy. I can already feel the stitches. Okay. Okay. Let's be like that about this next topic. Market clog in the NHL. like that about this next topic market clog in the nhl genzel tanev hannifin and adam henrique you mentioned on saturday roller skate down a gravel road on these four okay uh i can do that um you know hannifin i don't have certainty on um but you know teams are teams are certainly under the impression that look he's not signed so we

you know we better be in on it um and you know there's been a lot of interest in Tana for a long time I think it's growing on Hannafin the guy's played really well I think it's growing but we'll see um Tana there's a lot um you know obviously Toronto's there obviously Dallas is there like to me what Calgary is trying to do here is they know they can get a second for Tanev I think the question is can they get a first does somebody just say we've got to have this guy and so there I I'll say I'll say this though you made a point on the podcast and i mentioned how he's only missed about 20 games but you said it's like almost a live wire act with the way that tan of plays that you you have to make the deal look like he went down the tunnel what twice on thursday in new

jersey um i do think there is some of that here i I do think that, like, this is the challenge for the manager in this case. And that is, I think I can get more versus do I wait too long? And I think the Flames as a management group are kind of going through that. But look, I think there's a lot of interest in Hannafin. I think there's a lot of interest in Tannafin I think there's a lot of interest in Tanev I think there's quite a bit of interest in Henrik and Gensel the thing about Pittsburgh is like someone said to me you know Dubas right I he's done his research what did close your root get a first rounder and owen tippett now don't forget florida was kind of down on tippett at the time

but he's turned out to be a great find for philly if jeroux had gone to Colorado, it was a first rounder and I think Barron. And so it was a first and a good prospect in both those cases. Look at the Tyler Toffoli deal. When Tyler Toffoli got traded from Calgary to New Jersey, he was traded for Sharon Govichovich who's turned out to be a really good pickup and a third rounder now obviously Dubas is going to look at the Giroux deal as

opposed to the Sharangovich the Toffoli deal because the Giroux price was a little bit higher but Dubas is sitting there he's saying look if you want Gensel I want the Giroux price was a little bit higher. But Dubas is sitting there. He's saying, look, if you want Gensel, I want the Giroux deal. So he can wait. Like, everyone's looking at Gensel. And the teams who want him, they know whether Kyle Dubas waits. And a really tough weekend for the Penguins. Bad loss in Minnesota. No points against Winnipeg. So, you know, like, look, like, I think Dubas is prepared to let this play out

because he knows the comparables, and everybody else knows the comparables too. To me, it's just simply a question of when does Dubas decide if he's going to do it. And now if Pittsburgh's in the race, I still think he does it. But, you know, as I say, the math isn't very good for them. But I think everybody knows, like, that's what the Penguins are going to be asking for when the time comes for Gensel. Now, the other thing, too, Jeff, that happens here is there's going to be some teams who say, I'm not, I I can't either I'm not

or I can't pay that price for any of those players so they go and search what else they want but those are kind of the four guys that the people who have that want or are willing to pay that price are waiting on. Adam and Rick. Well, again, two of the centers are gone, right? And, you know, I'll say this. Now the question becomes the centers with term. Nick Dowd, one more year. Nick Bukestad has term.

Nick Bukestad has term you know I think I've mentioned you know Jenner I just mentioned it if and I'll just say that again but like that's the thing here like all these

GM's are looking at first rounders going for rentals and they're saying what about our guys with term here All these GMs are looking at first rounders going for rentals. And they're saying, what about our guys with term here? If that's what the rentals are going for. So again, it's who's willing to pay that price. I think one of the things that's been a bit of a challenge this year is that some of the teams that are obviously selling, they don't have a lot that people really want

like i'm not convinced there's a lot in san jose that people really want or are willing to pay the top prices for you know chicago i think one exception could be a guy like connor murphy and he's still got term but other than that they've either signed their guys or you know I just don't know how much the interest is there Connor Murphy has you know two more years although he again he has a modified no trade but like that's that's what I see here is look at what the rentals are getting so what are the term guys worth and and how many players from teams that are out are coveted I I think the number this year is lower than it has been in past years. Okay.

A couple of things here. I'm curious about this one, always around trade deadline time. Maybe call this the wildcard factor in all of this. And you mentioned Boone Jenner. And I had a conversation with someone last week, and I brought up Boone Jenner's name because I figured that this team would be interested in Boone Jenner. And this person said to me, you know, one of the things that he wonders about Boone Jenner is, does the owner really like him? Because there's always players where the owner really has a fondness.

Does that matter? Does the owner have any power? Well, maybe it's, you know what it's the uh it's it's the golden rule he or she who has the gold makes the rules um so i would use that line a lot it's a good line that's a fantastic line um so uh in that scenario this person said to me you know there's a belief that that ownership loves boone jenner And don't just treat this particular situation like it's any other potential trade. When the ownership gets involved- Well, what's not to like, really?

Oh, listen, I'm with you 100%. And I think of other owners, and I'll think of someone like Terry Pagula, who's always really liked Zemgis Gergensens. He's really liked the player, really liked the person. And you talked about the Buffalo stabers on Saturday as well. And you talked about,

you know, them wanting help. Now they are not in the send us kids. They are in the, we have our kids. Now we need to compliment them. You know,

Jeff, I don't disagree with you. That's why kindergarten has teachers. You don't let these kids go off into the wild, right? That's why kindergarten has teachers. I just thought of that. I think it's pretty good.

Again. Tickled my chin. That was good. Again, like, and you brought in Buffalo at the end. You know, they're talking about we need help now and we have mentioned about how they're taking a look at some of their kids and i i don't think maybe some of the ones that haven't made the nhl yet and i don't think coolidge is one of them i i i had some people who specifically told me that that they were they were asking about coolidge and they're like no um and he and you know like I completely agree with you you got

to have veterans around some of these guys like there are people who say to me well you look at Chicago they won three Stanley Cups and the kids were all the drivers and I said yeah they were and those a lot of those kids are going to the hall of Fame. You know, Keith was a little bit older. But I think that team is more the exception than the rule. We get caught up in exceptions a lot as opposed to the rule. And you have to have good veterans. By the way, you know, the other thing I heard actually on the weekend was I think some teams had asked Buffalo about Tuck,

and I think Buffalo just said, we're not doing that. The middle stat one I think is really interesting. I'm big, as you know, I'm big Andrew Peters and Craig Reve fans. Yep. And they have Middlestad out there. And I think the Sabres, I privately have pushed back on the idea that they are actively shopping them. But I think everybody can see here it's pay them or move on. Like that's, if you ask people around the league you know buffalo's

at that point are you committing especially as we said on friday with everybody else getting paid you basically have to make a choice and it's going to be a big arb number too big yes it will yes it will uh okay a couple more things here before we get to our uh our mont line and our interview with Peter Laviolette. Probably should have mentioned that earlier. Peter Laviolette, we sat down with last week at All-Star, that conversation coming up with New York Rangers bench boss. Geez, I don't even know how to phrase this other than maybe this. When's the next news day for the Arizona Coyotes? When do we expect to hear something? I honestly don't know. I had heard that there was going to be some announcement around the Super Bowl. Frank had reported it. Craig Morgan had reported it. And I think Craig Morgan is the most plugged in guy in all of this by like a mile and and someone

told me on Saturday I don't think so and I think this is someone who would know and also I think the other thing here too I had another person say to me what's next weekend what's coming up this week and I temporarily forgot but it's the two outdoor games in new york right yep and the league is not going to want anything to overshadow that um plus also i don't think there's exact clarity on what is going on with the coyotes so i don't think we're getting anything right now. I still do think, though, there better be a serious plan soon. Like, I don't think that's changed. But I think the league is prepared to let it be presented.

Again, it goes down to what we've been talking about. If Bettman is going to have to do something with this franchise, he's not giving any legal reason for there to be a feeling that he did anything improperly or wasn't 100% encouraging. And that governs everything here. So no roller skating down a gravel road. No roller skating down a gravel road. No roller skating down a gravel road. By the way, what did you think of the Hurricane Whaler stuff?

I mean, I'm a sucker for it, but I don't want to go off on a big tangent about how I think there should be more green in the NHL, but I think there should be more green in the NHL. They looked, and I love the call, Hartford penalty too. Oh, it was so great, Elliot. I'm a sucker. I'm a, I'm a, I'm a,

I'm a big sucker for, for they said, I grew up in the, in the seventies. I love the headband. So I love the, all the headbands were great. I just think the colors look fantastic.

That logo is iconic. And that's why it's still one of the great sellers for the NHL. I don't know. I I'll just be blunt. I wish there was still a Whalers team with that logo and that color combination in the NHL somewhere. I love it.

I love everything about it. Did you ever wear a headband when you were younger? Were you a headband guy? Only when I took tennis lessons at Miss Bronkowski's. Was it Bronkowski or Brankowska? I think she was out of Thornhill. I don't know how to fact check that one. Nobody's going to know if you get this one wrong, Jeff.

Okay, very good. Well, she was a noted tennis instructor. My mom loved tennis and she wanted her son to be not just a hockey player, but a tennis player as well. And I liked tennis. Didn't love tennis. I would love to get back into it now because it's such a cool sport.

But no, that was the last time I wore a headband. What about you? Well, I used to wear a headband because I loved Bjorn Borg until, I can't remember if it was a friend or one of my sisters said to me, you know, you look really stupid in a headband. And that was kind of the end of that.

You can bring, you should, you know, you should do, because you're working out a lot now, you should bring it back in the gym as a tribute to Rick Dudley at the Cincinnati Stingers. I don't have enough hair to wear a headband. Oh, I think the other thing I just wanted to mention too is, I know there's a lot of talk about Jordan Eberle. I think the Kraken take a a run it at uh at trying to sign him we'll see where that

goes but i i would be surprised if they didn't try to sign him first real quick before as we uh as we head to break doug armstrong team canada well doug armstrong was like you're checking because bill garren got the u.s job right so So you just look around and I don't think that there's a set time for them to do it, but Doug Armstrong was supposed to lead Canada at the last Olympic games and had to step down when the NHL players didn't go. So I've always kind of assumed that he was the person if we ever went back there. But like, and like I was saying,

is it going to be Armstrong? And people were like, that's a good guess. Like as in, it makes a lot of sense, but there's nothing confirmed at this time. Okay. Before we go to break shameless plug,

the return of rink fries is now my weekly blog at sportsnet.ca where Elliot, you can learn about things like traveling minor penalties. What is it? Check out sportsnet.ca and the Rink Fries blog. It's returned. It's a weekly. Here we go. Nice.

Welcome back. Yeah, thanks. It's nice to be back. It's nice to spend Saturday writing. It was kind of cool. And spending the whole day chasing phone calls. That was a lot of fun. And that will continue.

On that, we'll take a break. Montana's Thought Line coming up here in a couple of moments and then our interview with Peter Laviolette, head coach of the New York Rangers. Back in a moment. Listen to the 32 Thoughts podcast ad-free on Amazon Music, included with Prime. Time now, Elliot, for your favorite segment where you get to say your signature line.

The Montana's Thought Line. Montana's barbecue and bar. Canada's home for barbecue, Elliot. Try the ribs. 32thoughts at sportsnet.ca. 1-833-311-3232. Hi, Jeff and Elliot. This from Tim Watoski in Victoria, BC.

We were just there and loved it. Lifelong hockey fan, recent 32 thoughts subscriber. Love the show. Thank you, Tim. My question is regarding the reverse hit play that seems to have become a standard move in the league. But my issue is why is it not viewed as interference? Why is that not interference?

You're hitting a person, Elliot, that doesn't have the puck clearly. Well, it's a good question. I think, Jeff, that the reason is it's been taught as a defense mechanism for a long time and that especially as players started if they crack down obstruction and players could come at these defensemen with a lot more speed they realized that the defensive players had to be able to protect themselves in a certain way and you know for example Claude Julian was a guy always used to talk to me about this claude was so good about teaching about the game but he would tell his defenseman if a guy's coming at you put your stick up he'd say don't kill the guy but just get it up just get it up because you have to defend yourself you know you

can't have guys getting pasted off the wall all the time and this was especially a big deal after interference and obstruction was really taken out and i I just, you know, you don't know or realize, Jeff, it's been 20 years now since that lockout, right? It's amazing. Yeah. Every year, people have gotten better at it. And over time, the line moves. You're taught how to do it more. And now it's become a weapon initiate the contact

now i do think this is going to be a conversation at the gm meetings in march about what to do about this because it's come a lot farther than i think it was originally intended it was initially taught as a defensive move now it's an offensive move now it's not protecting yourself from contact well it is a little bit but it's more initiating the contact right so i think the question is a really good one but when this first came it was about how do we allow our players to protect themselves a bit it's evolved beyond that so i do think we're going to have that conversation excellent one okay voicemail this is about goal horns check it out elliot gentlemen this is tim from oxbridge jeff i grew up in stouffville love it beautiful town my question for you guys who was the first

team to use a goal horn i grew up watching hockey in the 90s. I don't remember much goal horns until maybe mid to late 90s. Who was the first one? And did it annoy the other teams when stores would adopt the goal horn? Gentlemen, keep up the great work. Try the ribs. Elliot, what are you doing eating ribs? Not supposed to. They're tasty.

That's because we're doing the 3,000 push- push-up challenge here we got to get our diets right oh um it's uh i know you're beating brody now that's good elliot i'm proud of the proudest days of my life um the you know what i was thinking about that when before you get the answer when he was asking the question the first team that reacted uh when they heard the goal horn they probably cross-checked someone in the head just to keep him at the theme of this pond that's hockey um okay so you know who it was it was chicago blackhawks it was the 1973 stanley was it the oregon did they use the organ it was not the organ but this is a very specific uh uh goal horn 1973 montreal and chicago blackhawks stanley cup final it was bill wirtz's idea and do you know where the horn was from you'll love this it was the home it was the horn from Bill Wurtz's yacht oh he had it he had it in stuff that's very bourgeoisie that became that became the goal horn

here comes the proletariat revolution and that was and that was the first as a matter of fact that was the first one 1973. Yeah. I thought it was the Buffalo Sabres. Oh, yeah, yeah. I remember that as a kid. Do you remember that too? Am I making this up? I thought it would have been the Sabres. Watching the Sabres as a kid, that horn was so loud,

you thought it was in your living room. I loved it. I know. It was great. Oh, I know. And the voice of Ted Darling calling the goal, and there's the horn. Like, oh, that's sitting on my couch Wednesdays watching Sabres.

So it's, that's my youth right there, man. I do think by the way. That's a great story. I'm not surprised I didn't know it and you did. I have to say. Well, it's because it has like, it's, put it this way. I've, I've, I've managed to leak out a lot of important information for things like life to make room for things like, you know, the Wurzes' goal horn from his yacht in 1973. Don't be too envious of me. I think, by the way, the Winnipeg Jets, someone at Winnipeg is going to correct me if I'm wrong,

probably someone from the organization. I still think they have their original goal horn. I think they're still using the original one there. I have that knocking around my melon as well. We'll see where that goes. Here's one for you, Elliot. I'm just going to hand the think they're still using the original one there i have that knocking around my melon as well we'll we'll we'll see where that goes um here's one for you elliot i'm just going to hand the recreation over to you i know about goldhorns but you know about agents here's a question this from bruce weisberber here's a question i was trying to figure out and i'm hoping that you'll be able to answer do you think that's a real name or a pseudonym? Weisberber? Bruce Weisberber.

I don't know. Cool name, if it is. Vladimir Tarasenko just switched his agent in mid-season for the fourth time in three years. With the agent getting a percentage of the deal that their clients signed, does his former agent still receive his percentage of Tarasenko's contract for this year? Elliot, the floor is yours.

That is a great question. A great question, Bruce, if that is your real name. Well, Weisberber is more in question than Bruce, but okay. That's true. Excellent question. The answer is that the agent who signs the player to the contract gets the commission. the agent who signs the player to the contract gets the commission so if if dom is representing jeff and jeff fires dom and hires me dom still gets the commission that's the way it works

so it doesn't matter how many agents come and go it's who the agent was when the deal was signed. Yes. Okay. Let's do one more here before we get to Peter Laviolette. Gentlemen, this comes to us from Tim in, a lot of Tims today. This one's Tim in Pittsburgh. Gentlemen, last week you answered a question about the availability of players with partial no trade clauses in an expansion draft. This made me wonder,

is there a limit on how many players can have full slash partial no trade clauses in an expansion draft. This made me wonder, is there a limit on how many players can have full slash partial no trade clauses for one team? I ask because with the possibility of another expansion draft looming and the proliferation of no trade clauses in the NHL, what would happen if one team had more than 10 players with full slash partial no trade clauses? If all the players with no trade clauses included the new expansion team on their respective no trade lists,

wouldn't this enable a team to protect more than the nine or 10 players they are typically allowed to be protected? Tim from Pittsburgh. Can you see no trades complicating expansion drafts in the future? No. And Tim, it's splitting hairs, but it's an important point. Again, good question.

If you have a no trade clause, you are not exempt from the expansion draft. If you have a no move clause, unless you are willing to waive it, you are exempt from the expansion draft. So a no trade clause in and of itself is not enough to protect you from the expansion draft. So a no trade clause in and of itself is not enough to protect you from the expansion draft. Now, there is no limit on a team. You can give or not give as much as you want. There's always this debate about whether or not they should ban no

trade clauses. I'm against that. I think you should be able to negotiate what you can negotiate. And also a lot of us in our own jobs would try to negotiate that protection if we could. So I think it's really hypocritical to argue that other people shouldn't have it. But the answer is only no move clauses can block expansion draft availability, no move clauses can block expansion draft availability, not no trade clauses. Excellent. Thanks again for the questions. 32thoughts, sportsnet.ca, phone line 1-833-311-3232.

It's the Montana's Thought Line, Montana's Barbecue and Bar, Canada's home for barbecue. We are back with Peter Laviolette, head coach of the New York Rangers. Welcome back to the podcast. You know, if you're like me, you're wondering, is Peter Laviolette trying to coach every single team in the Metropolitan Division? There's been the Islanders. There have been the Hurricanes where he won the Stanley Cup. There have been the Philadelphia Flyers. There's been the Washington Capitals. And now there is the New York Rangers, the biggest stage of them all. Elliot and I caught up with Peter Laviolette during All-Star Weekend in Toronto. Here is this conversation. Peter Laviolette, head coach of the Rangers. Did I mention they play in the Metropolitan Division? And what that means for Peter Laviolette's bio? On 32 Thoughts, the podcast.

Peter, first of all, thanks for joining us. Second of all, you know, everybody wonders in hockey, what's it like playing in new york what would it be like coaching in new york and you have an idea of what it might be like and then you get there was there a difference when you what you thought this would be like and what it is actually like there is um there is a marked difference from being in madison square garden and being the opposition and then being there and being the home team represented by the unbelievable fans in New York City,

the most passionate fans. I've had so many people come up to me through the course of my time and say, I've had tickets since my grandfather or my dad took me there and we're the biggest Ranger fans fans ever and there's a lot of the biggest ranger fans out there and they are extremely passionate about the New York Rangers and the team and you can you can feel that energy in the building maybe definitely more so than when

you're on the opposition bench which I've been for 20 years. Now I'm on the home bench in Madison Square Garden. You can feel the energy just during the anthem. Whenever there's a break and the fans just start, I mean, they're ready to roll. You can hear them verbally, and they're yelling and screaming, and just this quick break in the action from the anthem, it's awesome. I mean, just listening to the anthem, the anthem's great, but it's the fans that get going through the course of the anthem. It's awesome. I mean, just listening to the anthem, the anthem's great, but it's the fans that get going through the course of the anthem. It's almost like they're

ready to go. They want you to know that they are ready to roll. And that's awesome from a home field advantage. So I think the fans in New York have been unbelievable since I've been there and just getting to experience that for the first time on the home bench. You know, just working there, like even as a ringside reporter, the lighting, it's like the theater lighting. And, you know, I remember when the Rangers won the East in 2014, interviewing Lundquist on center ice and he was looking around. Like there is something about Madison Square Garden, but not only the mystique of that, but the way it's lit. You feel like you're on a stage. Yeah, it's mystique of that, but the way it's lit. Yeah. You feel like you're on a stage. Yeah. It's almost a little bit darker around the outside of the bowl.

Yes. And the focal point is the ice, the white ice and the players that are on it. But you still, like I said, you get the feeling. There's definitely the lighting. There's definitely the building and the history of MSG. There's definitely the lighting, there's definitely the building and the history of MSG. And then it's filled with a fan base that wants to go to Madison Square Garden and have a good time. They want to let it rip and they do.

And so there's a lot that goes into that presentation. But I do agree with you that some buildings now they have that new modern feel to it. It's got the square and it's got the fans. It's well lit. The lights are great. And then there's something about Madison Square Garden that makes it extremely special because of its history and its character. Well, you know what you get, I know we're going off on a tangent here,

but you know what you get with that type of lighting and a little bit of dark and you get shadows. Yeah. And you don't see, like you look at old hockey photographs. Part of the shadow game is so fascinating to watch. Now every arena is well lit and it's, you don't see shadows on the ice anymore, but at MSG, I mean, it might really be the only place where you get shadows on the ice. Yeah. It's, uh, it's definitely a different feel to it. Um, we were just walking through the rink and you just see the pictures. Sometimes you look up on

the walls and you see the pictures of who's played there, who's been there. I mean, this, this, if this building could talk, you know, it's pretty hockey but just like you look at the concerts like it is really it is fantastic you know i i was looking back like sort of like through your bio last night and you kind of forget like just how how many places you've been yeah well everything you've seen and you still love coaching yeah like that's one of the things i'm really the coaches who've been around with your experience it would be easy for you guys to walk away say i've had a great run but none of you guys want to leave why is that i'm not sure if it's a compliment or it is it is it's a the well-traveled coach no but like the thing is like that's no i i know what you're saying and i knew as i was saying

it no no no no no i totally agree with what you're saying i think about my family and my kids and what i put them through yeah you know and uh it's but then they they love it my wife's here at this all-star game and she just she's been such a big part of it. We made a pact a long, long time ago that no matter where I went, she would go and the kids would go. And it's not always that way, but we were going to keep our family together. And I think about my kids and my oldest son, who's 26 now. I think about the amount of times that he's moved inside of his career,

inside of my career, how many times he's moved in his lifetime. It's amazing. But then I think about, you know, my kids are pretty well-rounded, and I'm proud of that. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that they've had to be adaptable. They've had to make friends. They've had to go to different teams. It's never been just set in stone that this is their,

they're going to go to this high school school and this is going to be their high school that they go come back to 20 years later and cheer on the Thanksgiving Day football game. It's always been movement for my kids. And I'm not sure that they have, outside of the team that I coach, I'm not sure that they have a favorite football team. I'm not sure that they have a favorite baseball team because of the transient nature of the business. And so, you know, with regard to the amount of teams and the time,

I do love what I do, and I do love the game. You can see it. But more than anything, and this is the truth, I feel so incredibly fortunate to, I'm going to be just this year, I'm going to be 60 years old. I cannot believe that I've been involved in pro hockey since I left college at 21 years old. And so for me to be able to play and then coach a game that I grew up playing, my dad got me playing when I was four on a pond behind his grocery store. And yet here I am, and I'm still working in the game that I love so much.

And so for me, more than anything in that story is just a fact. I can't believe I'm still here. I can't believe how lucky I am. I'm still part of a game where I get to feel wins and losses and shoot for something great and experience the good times, experience the low times and the bad times. there's all of it in there but uh more than anything it's just been an unbelievable ride i'm just forever grateful for the opportunities that i've had let me pick up on that i'm curious about that because in our industry like in in broadcasting

you know when you get to a certain point you always got to remind yourself you know like people helped you along the way don't kick the ladder down um as you mentioned you've been in pro hockey since the age of 21 right and you still have a passion for it clearly you still love it do you think you owe hockey anything like is there anything that you say to yourself you know what i owe blank to hockey like i have an obligation to do blank i really like right right now sometimes that some of the coaches that I work with, I get to see them get opportunities and come on and move on in coaching. My wife, like I had mentioned, she's been with me for a long time. I love the fact that we together and a lot of her have been able to help a lot of causes and do a lot of different things through organizations.

My wife's done an amazing job at connecting inside the organization and helping charities and helping kids and a lot of work that's been really good for organizations. I don't really look, I haven't really looked at it from that standpoint that you're asking, like, what do I owe or where do I have to go? I feel grateful that inside of the organizations that we've been to, we've been able to try and help that team be successful, do good in the community, try to be good representatives for that organization. I wanted to ask you specifically about the Rangers.

Right at the top of your division, came out. There's been a little bit of a struggle the last little while. What do you see? What are you seeing there? So I think that you're right. Once the season started, I think we came out maybe 2-2 or 500 in the first five or six games. And then we had a push where we went on a roll,

and it was probably early to mid had a push where we went on a roll and it was probably you know early to mid-December where we were first in the league and sitting on top and things were I don't want to say they were easy but things were were good and our guys were working hard for wins as you know and I certainly know that inside of this league with so many good teams and so many players most likely the odds are that you're not going to have a season that just continues to climb where you know you beat the next team in line by 30 points there is the odd time it does happen it might happen last year but usually that's not the case usually it's a battle and it's a grind inside of that. You know, the last 20 games or so, we've been battling around 500,

which is not where we want to be, especially after the start that we've had. But I do think that part of me sometimes is glad that we're dealing with some adversity because we have to work a little bit harder in the room. We have to figure out things a little bit more as coaches and players in an organization in order to get back to a level where you are winning consistently. There are times I feel like if you don't go through some of that through the course of the year,

then maybe you're not preparing as best you could for the playoffs. I remember watching when I was not working and I went back to Florida, I was watching the semifinals and the finals, especially the finals. And it's just a reminder of how hard it is to get there and how hard you have to play in order to be successful. And if you're not playing that way in December or January, it's for me, it serves as a reminder that there is a definite path to become a Stanley Cup champion, and you have to be down a road where you feel you're on the path to do that.

And so to have some struggle and adversity through the course of the season where now you can say, okay, we've got our game back on track or where we want to be, you have to work for that sometimes and you have to fight for it. So I don't think it's such a bad thing. Obviously, you've got to come out of it and start pushing in the right direction again. But I'm okay with having a little bit of adversity, having to fight for something right. Last one. You've been in the Stanley Cup final three times. You know what it takes. You've won one. Do you look at this team

and say, we can do this? We're capable of this. Yeah, I definitely do look at it like that. I look at our goaltending. I look at our defense. I look at our group of forwards, the skill level that we have. Just a great group of guys that I get an opportunity to work with in New York. And so there's a lot of things that are in place. It's a hard journey. I did learn this along the way. It's a hard journey to get there and put your hands on that thing.

And like I said last year, I made it a point to watch every game when I was out of it, just as a reminder for myself on what it takes to be there and become Stanley Cup champions. There's also, you know, there's probably a dozen coaches or teams that you could sit in my seat right now and you could ask them that same exact question and they're going to answer exactly like I like I did which is what makes the Stanley Cup playoffs incredible you know it's the best it's the best sport it's the best round of playoffs in sports and um you know to be a part of it is is awesome I think we have great pieces and we have a great opportunity to do something great in New York we're going to have to we're going to have to go through the hoops to get there.

Thanks very much. Yeah, welcome, guys. Pleasure. Great, thank you. That's Peter Lavulat, head coach of the New York Rangers. We thank him for making himself available and the Rangers communications group for making him available as well.

I really enjoyed sitting, I always love sitting down with coaches. It's kind of a pet favorite thing that I do. General managers, certainly as well. I'm really enjoying it. I always love sitting down with coaches. It's kind of a pet favorite thing that I do. General managers, certainly as well. Owners rarely make themselves available. Coaches is always fertile ground. They're communicators. They're built and hardwired to talk.

And we are only too happy to open the door for all of them here on the podcast. Again, shameless plug, my blog, Rink Fries, has returned to sportsnet.ca. The maiden voyage of this year's incarnation of the blog is available now.

In the meantime, on behalf of Elliot and Dom, have yourselves a wonderful hockey week. We rejoin once again Friday morning for the next edition of 32 Thoughts, the podcast. Be good.