Halford & Brough in the Morning - Are The Canucks Going To Trade Arturs Silovs?

Episode Date: July 9, 2025

In hour one, Mike & Jason look back at the previous day in sports (3:00), plus the boys discuss if the Canucks will be forced to trade Arturs Silovs, what with the news yesterday of them re-signing Nikita Tolopilo (27:00). This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

Da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da- Whoa boy, the 3-2 hit to deep left field and well gone. Me and my family and everyone is kind of part of my circle. We all decided on the best spot for me in the next year will be Penn State University. This game is ours. Game is over, game is over. Everyone, the game is over. Good morning Vancouver 601 on a Wednesday. Happy Wednesday everybody. It is Halford, it is Brough, it is Sportsnet 650.

We are coming to you live from the Kintec Studios, a beautiful Fairview slopes in Vancouver. Jason, good morning. Good morning. Adog, good morning to you. Good morning. And basketball fan, good morning to you as well. Good morning. Gator, good morning to you. Good morning. And basketball fan, good morning to you as well. Good morning. Halford and Bref for the morning is brought to you

by Sands and Associates, BC's first entrusted choice for net help. With over 3,000 five star reviews, visit them online at Sands-Trustee.com. We are coming to you live from the Kintec studio. Kintec footwear and orthotics working together with you in step. I say this every morning, but we do have a lot

to get into today on the Haliford and Bref show on Sportsnet 650 on a Wednesday. Three guests today on the show. It'll begin at 6.30. We're gonna check in and go to Pittsburgh. Penguins beat writer Josh Yohei from the Athletic is gonna join the program. Recently, Josh has been putting on work, no vacation for him.

He's written about Gino Malkin's playing future trade chatter regarding Brian Rust and Ricard Raquel. And of course why Sidney Crosby wants to continue to stay and play in Pittsburgh anytime anything happens with the penguins. We always find it pertinent to the Vancouver Canucks, given the ties to that organization. So we'll get into all that with Josh Yohei at 6.30 this morning. Seven o'clock, Chris Peters is gonna join the program.

He's the content manager at Flow Hockey. He also doubles as their prospect expert. So what a great time to talk to Chris. We can get reaction to the news you heard in the intro. Gavin McKenna officially announced his commitment to Penn State yesterday, live on ESPN we now live in a world where college hockey commits are announcing on ESPN nationally across the US he put the Penn State hat on and everything with Kevin Deghandi we'll talk to Chris about

that and 95% of the viewers of ESPN are like who is this kid what are we watching here what's going on don't blame them for asking it's a baseball Chris about that. And 95% of the viewers of ESPN are like, who is this kid? What are we watching here? What's going on? Don't blame them for asking. There's some baseball. Penn State plays hockey? I didn't know that. So we'll talk to Chris about that. Also a very interesting trade last night between Edmonton and Tampa Bay involving the reigning Hobie Baker winner, Isaac Howard. So we'll talk to Chris about that. That's all coming up at seven o'clock. At eight, we're gonna go to Vegas. Golden Knights reporter for the athletic, Jesse Grainger is gonna join the program.

We're gonna check in on yet another Pacific division foe for the Vancouver Canucks after looking at Edmonton and Calgary already this week. The dust has settled on the Mitch Marner acquisition. Also the news that Alex Petrangelo is unlikely to play this season in Vegas. So how does Vegas look in the aftermath? We'll talk to Jesse Grainger about that

at eight o'clock this morning. That's it for the guest list. That's it for everything on the show today. We're gonna be talking lots of hockey. There was a fair bit of news last night. We got three guests working in reverse. Eight o'clock, it's Jesse Grainger out of Vegas. Seven o'clock, Chris Peters from Flow Hockey. And 6.30, Jesse Granger out of Vegas 7 o'clock Chris Peters from flow hockey

and 6 30 Josh Yohei out of Pittsburgh that's what's happening on the program today Ben let's tell everybody what happened hey did you guys see the game last night no what happened i missed all the action because we know how busy your life can be. What happened? Missed that? What happened? What happened is brought to you by the BC Construction Safety Alliance. Making safety simpler by giving construction companies the best in tools, resources, and safety training. Visit them online at bccsa.ca. We are going to begin with the Red Hot Toronto Blue Jays though. Six strong innings from Chris Bassett. And that's all he needed.

A rained shortened 6-1 win for the Toronto blue Jays over the Chicago white Sox. Last night in a game that was shortened in the seventh due to a downpour of rain. Not unlike what we had here in Vancouver. It was all sunny and nice and summery. And then boom, rain. Shut the game down last night.

No problem for the Jays though. The Jays have now won 10 in a row. Their longest winning streak since they won 11 straight back in 2015. Now I bring this up, go ahead. No, go. I bring this up because 2015, and we're jumping ahead of the narrative here,

although I've already seen one article written about it. 2015 was the year, quite infamously, that the Blue Jays pushed all their chips in at the trade deadline. They went crazy. They picked up Troy Tulowitski, they picked up David Price, which worked out in the regular season

and then the playoffs came around. But everyone right now is eagerly anticipating this year's trade deadline to see if history will repeat itself 10 years later, Jason. It just seems like everything is working for the Jays right now. Like even last night, the way they won, getting the, the range shortened game, like they were able to get, I guess you could call it a, a complete game out of their starter. So they got to reset their bullpen as well.

Like everything. The white Sox are terrible. They looked at it. They're like, let's just call it. Let's just not bother playing anymore. And the Ump's were like, fine. That's great. Yeah. We'll move on to the next one Do you think anyone stayed at the ballpark and they're like, do you think there's that one person? Yes, so there's always one That was like I paid for my ticket. I'm here I mean if they did probably get mugged if I leave knowing the neighborhood. Well, that's the thing I'll just stay here for the rest of my life. Maybe I'm never gonna leave

It was a 90 minute rain guy on the stands booing and see yeah, it was anybody else is there You know, there's all if you see it I mean, it's one of the great things about baseballs There's the one guy even after a 90 minute delays like you never know they might come back out Well, I think it's because if you've invested that much time at this point you you're thinking in the back of mind if I leave Knowing my luck it'll start a little second. I leave. Yeah, I've Trucked it out for this far, I might as well just stay here.

But that was not the case last night. So the Jays win in a range shorten game. I'm gonna be very curious to see what this team does at the deadline this year, because that was sort of Alex Anthopolis' signature trade deadline. And that was the year of course that the Jays beat the Rangers in one of the most electric playoff series in recent memory. Of course then they went on to lose to the Royals one of the most electric playoff series in recent memory.

Of course, then they went on to lose to the Royals back in 2015, but that, that Ranger series has so many iconic moments from it that I think a lot of people are gonna project 10 years ago onto this team, even though they're fundamentally and dramatically different teams. It'll just be really interesting to see if the Jays decide to go all in because they have not had a run like this

in a decade and The energy is back in Toronto the idea of playing and not just getting into the playoffs But maybe the way that they play making some noise in them I mean who knows there's a real optimism there because this is the best baseball that this team has played in the last ten years So good on the Blue Jays for winning last night, 6-1 over the Sox. We move on now to the other startling news of yesterday. And it wasn't so much the news that Gavin McKenna was committing to Penn State.

That was widely out there. Multiple sources had reported the day before. But the fact that Gavin McKenna from Medicine had, by way of Yukon was on national television in the US on ESPN with sports centers, Kevin Agandhi, to announce his college selection. Ironically enough, 15 years to the day

that LeBron's decision aired on ESPN, equal weight for both, I would say. I really wish he just said, I'm taking my talents to State College, Pennsylvania. I thought he was gonna do it. I thought he might. He did not, however. Let's play the audio anyway,

just so we can hear what it sounded like. This is live from ESPN last night. Gavin McKenna announcing that he will be joining the Nittany Lions next year of Penn State. Yeah, it was a super tough decision. Obviously there's a lot of great options out there, but I think me and my family and everyone who's kind of part of my circle,

we all decided the best spot for me next year will be Penn State University. Yeah, I think Penn State is a great spot for me. I got to kind of get a taste of what it's like there and got to bring along my dad and we both thought it was a great spot for me. That awkward pause you heard mid clip was Gavin McKenna putting on the Penn State hat on camera. And then Kevin Agandi saying, ah, there it is.

So was he just like holding it the whole time? Yeah, right off camera in his lap. Kids are pro already. He knew not to have it on camera before the announcement. Pretty slick, Gavin McKenna. This is I never thought I'd see the day where a collegiate hockey recruit was announcing his decision live on ESPN.

I know it's the summer. I know it's slow. I know that this probably doesn't make the rotation if there's a lot of other things going on, but it is still crazy to me I feel like the college hockey landscape is shifting in a big way big way because one thing Oh a couple of the couple takeaways here one I did not realize that aside from McKenna, like Penn State has really loaded up. They've got a defenseman named Jackson Smith, who was taken 14th overall by Columbus in this year's draft. They've also got Luke Misa, who's a Calgary Flames prospect.

They've gone in the span of just over a decade, 12 years of existence from being a fringe team, a club team, playing in the ACHA or whatever it is, to being a Frozen Four team and now the landing spot for the biggest collegiate hockey recruit ever. Well, it just goes to show and this is the lesson that we always like to tell kids. Money means everything. It's everything.

Follow the money. And Terry Pagula, you know, they play in Terry Pagula Arena there. They made a big donation there and... Now is that named after him? Yeah. No, okay. It's called Terry Pagula Arena. Yeah. I guess if you make enough of a donation, you can have it named after you. Well, that's the whole idea. Yeah. It's your legacy. It's rich guys who don't think they really die. Yeah. Even after I'm gone, I'm still in Arena. Yeah. I'm really looking forward to seeing how this works out for McKenna.

And I know the CHL is, you know, I've seen some people downplay all this. You should not be downplaying. They're like, there's still lots of good players in the CHL. I'm like, yeah, but the best one just left. So that's maybe a problem. Like you don't, you don't sell tickets to see every player in the CHL, right? Like guys like Gavin McKenna, you know, they can make a break a franchise or a league in terms of making money. And just the landscape is shifting right now. And it seems like the NCAA is the clear winner in all this.

Like, are they losing anything by the shifting landscape? No. So if they're the winner, you know, leagues like the CHL and the BCHL, you know, they're probably the losers in this. They're, this is quite remarkable because not only is he going to college hockey, but I want to point out like Penn State is making a big deal of the fact that, uh, instead of joining a powerhouse traditional program, McKenna is also

writing his own story and writing potentially the history of what could be a taking off point for that program. I like this is it. So how many other schools without a hockey program now go, well, maybe we should have a hockey program because we've got the potential to get all this talent out of Canada.

Yep. I know Arizona States create, there's a lot, there's a lot of schools out there with the potential to develop a hockey program. Yeah. I mean- You can have a men's program and a women's program, so there's no issues there.

And it seems like an obvious play. There's a lot of big US schools. I mean, traditionally, look, we all know the ones that kids would go to, right? It would be Michigan, Boston College, BU. Denver's had an amazing run lately, North Dakota, Michigan State. But it would traditionally be those schools. I mean, those were the ones that you'd see

in the frozen for year after year after year. I just wonder how much this is gonna open up the landscape. The money involved is wild. There's multiple reports out there that it's gonna be a seven $700,000 payday for Gavin McKenna when all is said and done and can you imagine if all those big SEC schools? Well, that's I did like that's the next great horizon on this is when do you get into the power schools that have? Lucrative lucrative TV money, have like the SEC network is the big one.

And always looking for content. Cause here's the thing, the Penn State athletic director, Pat Kraft had a quote earlier in the year talking about managing all of the money that the athletic department has so that it isn't just NIL and booster money going towards the big programs. Because the big programs, they're gonna be fine. Penn State football is not going anywhere. Like it's always gonna have booster money going towards the big programs. Because the big programs, they're gonna be fine. Penn State football's not going anywhere.

Like it's always gonna have booster money. It's always gonna have a lot of lucrative money behind it. What he, I mean, he was saying like, if there's an opportunity for us to bring in the number one fencer in the world to our fencing program, we now have the financial means to do it. And you know, someone texted in yesterday like Penn State, I was unaware of this, but they traditionally,

they have a really strong wrestling program and now they're gone out and they've even made it more authoritative by recruiting the best wrestlers from all over the world, right? If you can apply that logic of sharing the wealth to some of these other athletic departments at these huge schools in the US, I really wonder what it's going to look like. Like how big could the explosion be? Could you imagine Alabama,

Auburn, LSU, embracing those built in rivalries that they have with one another on the ice? And then seeing what Penn State didn't saying it doesn't take that long to build a program. Penn State went from being a club team to a final four team in 12 years. Frozen four team in 12 years. I was also thinking like Ohio State. Like you build that Michigan, Ohio State rivalry,

but on the- Yeah, like it got one, right? Like Ohio State's hockey program. But like even better. Well, this, that mean Jason brought it out of the point. Like money is gonna fuel all this stuff to the point where it's not just about the names on the front of the jerseys like, oh, Auburn and Alabama, for example, hate each other. They've also got, I don't know, two of the top 10

draft prospects going into 2029 or 2030. It's a brave new world out there, folks. It could be really interesting. So we talked about this yesterday, all the reasons that Gavin McKenna It's going to be really interesting. So we talked about this yesterday, all the reasons that Gavin McKenna might make this decision. And he mentioned on ESPN yesterday, it's like, oh, I get to play against bigger, stronger, more mature players. And even mentioned in the locker room, you're around older guys. So this is just going to help my transition to the NHL.

I don't doubt that's true, but I also know that 18 year old kids are probably like, and it's going to be so much fun. Yeah, it's going to be rad. Like it's going to be, it's going to be awesome. I mean, the experience of going to a school like Penn State, they asked him, you know, are you familiar with the football program?

And he said like, no, this is all kind of new to me. That's fair. New is exciting. But I went and saw the facilities, you go to that stadium, there's a hundred thousand people that can go to that stadium. Penn State is hosting Oregon in I think October. It's one of the third or fourth games.

There's going to be like so much hype around that game. And so much, it's going to be so much fun. And like the college experience for some of these guys, it's not for everyone, but it's for a lot of people. And if you can go down there, you know, imagine you're, you're a 17 year old, 18 year old kid, and you've already maybe done pretty well at the CHL level. Um, and you've got the opportunity to go to, I don't know, let's say the SEC gets

into it, right? You know, like, and you're like, like, do I want to do this or do I want to go ride buses across Canada, the prairies in Canada and the Manila winter? Like it's, you know, it's, it's, it's, it's not completely different from the conversation we have about, Hmm, do I want to go sign in Winnipeg? Or do I want to go play in Florida or Tampa Bay where the weather's better? You know, if the SEC gets into this, I know there

has been some talk about it. There has. There will be players that will be very interested in going down there. Yes, for the hockey, because the hockey, you're not taking a step back or anything. You're not having to sacrifice anything. You're still playing at step back or anything. You're not having to sacrifice anything. You're still playing at a very high level,

plus you've got all this other stuff. On a macro level, start interrupting. No, go ahead. Can it not be somewhat compared to what we're seeing at the NHL level fully with the Florida teams and wanting to play down in the sunshine and the flip flops and make some more money, not because of tax reasons necessarily fully, but just because there's more money to be made college kids going places

Where they can avoid taxes and they're just kind of happier down there. I think Okay, so the I don't know how many people in like north of the 49th and in Canada are familiar with the Changes in the NCAA landscape, but it's really it's the professionalism of collegiate athletics. What was once supposed to be amateur athletics and student athletes leading the day, that's gone. This is now a money-making venture for everybody involved, whereas previously it was a money-making venture for the schools and to a lesser degree,

a bunch of coaches that could move around freely. So, Mel in Vancouver, text in to the Dunbar Lumber, text message in basket at 650-650. Text in if you want to weigh in throughout the show. Hashtag WWL for your what we learned Mel writes, Does anybody talk about going to these university programs for educational purposes as well as a great sports program? Or don't these kids ever really go to school? Mel, I'm gonna be honest with you. I think even the

window dressing of saying you're going there for the education is kind of over. I don't remember it being a talking point last night. I'll disagree with you on the majority of players. I think the majority of players that would go down there would think about school. Gavin McKenna is going to be a little bit different. Sure. If you're going down to some of these schools and you're just an average player on the team, yeah, it's a nice bonus. And I know the CHL will push back and say, we've got scholarship programs, but.

It's not the same. But well, I mean, it's not, it's just like you get your education now. Yeah. Right, and the CHL, you gotta wait because you're playing hockey. Yeah, I should rephrase. Yesterday, nobody was framing it

as Gavin McKenna going to get his like econ degree or whatever. Like it was like, Gavin McKenna is gonna go there for a year, then he's gonna get drafted, then he's gonna become a professional hockey player. So yeah, the institution is an educational one, but he's not there for the education.

If you end up going to Harvard for hockey, yeah, some of those guys, that's a good program. And some of those guys will have a pro career ahead of them. But a lot of them are going to be like, wow, I'm going to get a Harvard education and play hockey. Yeah. That's pretty cool. I'm probably going to be rich. Okay. Let's turn our attention now to the big trade that came down late last night. The Edmonton Oilers made a very, very interesting acquisition yesterday, acquiring 21 year old forward, Isaac Howard from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for their first round draft

pick in the 2024 draft, Sam O'Reilly. Now, why is this interesting? Well, Howard was taken a few years ago by Tampa Bay in the first round of the 2022 draft. Isaac Howard has subsequently not signed with Tampa Bay and recently informed the lightning that he would not be signing his ELC with the team. Howard is also coming off a year with Michigan state in which he lit up college hockey and won the Hobie Baker is the most outstanding player in the collegiate game. If he had gone back to Michigan State and played out his last year,

he would have been free to sign anywhere he wanted after the end of his four year career at Michigan State as an unrestricted free agent. So Julian Breezebois, the Tampa Bay general manager jumped the gun, made a trade right after the trade was consummated. Edmonton signed Howard to a three year entry level deal. And the expectation is Isaac Howard, the reigning Hobie Baker winner is going to be in the Edmonton Oilers lineup for game one next season.

Yeah, this is a nice pickup for the Oilers and potentially a guy that Canucks fans can really hate. Yeah. He's got a big personality and he's pretty confident. I don't know if anyone remembers when he was drafted by the lightning, but he wore a white suit with a big American flag as his belt buckle. Blue turtleneck. And he look, what was his quote? He said he was the best looking guy here, despite being taken almost at the very end of the first round. It would put it this way when I was watching that draft and at the end of the draft, the round

one, you've been there for three and a half hours, you're tired, you just want to get out of there. You're kind of shocked when anything interesting happens and then Isaac Howard comes strutting down looking like a Miami pimp and I'm like, well, who is this guy? And then his interview talking about being the best looking guy here and full of confidence. Yeah, they were asked why the belt? He's like, I love America. Yeah, and I was like, all right,

I need to hear the rest of this interview. And he went on and on and on. He also announced, courtesy of the Spittin' Jinklets podcast about his intention that he wasn't gonna sign in Tampa Bay. And he said that him and the Lightning didn't see eye to eye about his progression to the NHL. There was a very obvious breaking point where he was disgruntled

and the organization was disgruntled with him. Next thing we know, Isaac Howard is now on his way to Edmonton, so it was funny. And you gotta think to others are thinking, this guy might, this guy's gonna play right away. He's absolutely gonna play right away. And that was the thing about, now there's some debate about whether O'Reilly or Howard

is the better prospect long-term, but there's no debate about who's more NHL ready. It's Howard. And you can understand why Edmonton was willing to maybe trade futures for the present because they need wingers and they need guys that can play right now. We talked about this yesterday.

Tough couple of days for Michigan State hockey by the way, because they were hoping to land Gavin McKenna and it was down to them and Penn State. McKenna chooses Penn State. And then Howard had pretty much announced or had been reported that he's going back to Michigan State because he wasn't going to sign with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He gets traded to the Oilers. He signs with the Oilers, which ends his college career. So, Michigan State University kind of loses McKenna and definitely loses Isaac Howard.

Yeah. Okay. So we're right up against it for time. We got a lot more to get into on the program today. A reminder, in terms of topics we haven't hit, there was a bunch of Canucks used yesterday. Of the smaller variety, Tolopilo and Wu re-signed. And the announcement that training camp is on its way to Penticton. We will get into that later in the show.

Maybe as a jumping off point for some Canucks conversation. Also, the NHL and NHLPA ratified the CBA. We can take a deeper look at what's going on. The new changes that are going to be on the horizon for the collective bargaining agreement. But coming up on the other side of the break, we are going to go to Pittsburgh, a fascinating team. This off season kind of understood as the only selling team, a clear defined seller in the NHL and questions about the future of Jenny Malkin and of course, Sidney Crosby. Josh Yohei from the Athletic in Pittsburgh is going to join us on the other side. We got a lot more to get into on the program. Don't go anywhere. You're listening to the Hal Ferdin and Brough Show on Sportsnet 650.

6.31 on a Eurodance Wednesday here on the Haliford & Brough show on Sportsnet 650. Haliford & Brough of the morning is brought to you by Sands & Associates. Learn how a consumer proposal reduces your debt by up to 80% with no more interest. Visit them online at Sands-trustee.com. We are in hour one of the program. We're working on getting Josh Yohei from the Athletic in Pittsburgh on the show. Hour one of this program is also brought to you by Sans and Associates.

BC's first and trusted choice for debt help with over 3,000 five star reviews visit them online at sans-trustee.com. Any word on Josh yet? That's a negative. Okay, we do have some other things that we can get into here. We can do CBA, we can do the Canucks News.

So choose your own adventure book here on the Haliford and Brev Show. Well, I wanna read this text from Dalvier. He said, feels like when I was a kid, the NHL and NHLPA ratifying a new CBA was this massive news and a massive victory for fans. Now it's much smaller news. Obviously this negotiation didn't lead to a lockout so it's not like a light at the end of a tunnel but I almost feel as though this

time is more deserving of celebration because of how well the CBA talk supposedly went. Yeah I think we just generally expected this negotiation to be easier because the NHL is happy with how things are going. And, you know, I could say the players are happy with how things are going, but generally like, it doesn't matter what the players think. It's all, it's all about the owners.

Right. And, um, if you think about how the previous work stoppages went, the big one in recent memory was the one where they went to the hard cap. So that was going to be difficult to get that. The players were going to put up a fight, they didn't put up enough of a fight and they got that hard cap.

But the split at the time wasn't enough for the owners. So the next time the negotiation or the contract was up, the owners went, yeah, you know what, like we've got the hard cap, but we want a better split. And then it went to 50-50. And I think that's, you know, a number that just,

just makes sense. It's hard to argue for either side of that. Right. The players were making a bigger split before, and I think a lot of people at the time predicted, at some point that'll be 50-50, because the owners will do it. And guess what?

And guess what? It is. And now the league is making money, franchise values are skyrocketing and the players have accepted it. It is the way it is and half the time the players are happy if the owners don't want anything from them. Is it right the way that is? No, not really, but it is the way it is because the owners will always have

an advantage in that they are billionaires and they can wait out the players. Yeah, it doesn't matter how old they get. And the players are sitting there going like, listen, I've only got a few years of being an elite athlete, I gotta play right now. It's why the NFL has such an amazing grip over the NFL PA there to the point where the agreement is like, we can cut you anytime.

So I think this one was like, there wasn't really much to complain about. There wasn't anything. The players had received a guarantee that the Olympics would be part of it and the international calendar was back on, so what were they going to fight about? So this will, for the listeners out there who are like, what does this mean for me, the listener, the hockey fan out there? Well, one means that you've got labor peace

all the way through 2030, which is a good thing. This agreement kicks in 2026, 27. The biggest change you're gonna see as a listener and as a viewer of the National Hockey League is that the NHL regular season is going to expand to 84 games up from the current 82. That means you're going to get one thousand three hundred and forty four total games during a regular season and less

exhibition games. All 32 NHL teams are now just going to play four games in the preseason. Now you might be asking, well, what's with the addition in games? Does that start this coming season or the next one? No, 2026, 2027. The addition in games is because right now, within the division, there's not a balance of how many games you play against your divisional foes.

Some you play three times and some you play four. For example, the Vancouver Canucks last year only played the Edmonton Oilers three times, whereas some of the other Pacific division foes, they played four times. So this balances that out. It also goes back to the 92, 93 and 93, 94 seasons when the NHL dabbled with an 84 game regular season.

So, look, as a consumer, if you want to watch more NHL games, you're happy with this because you've now got more NHL regular season games. And I think importantly, less of quite frankly, the useless exhibition games that we were subjected to. I think, I mean, you're going to see it this year because this is going to be the last year of the quote unquote old model of the exhibition campaign. But there's too many games. There's too many nights where there's too many NHLers taking the night off.

And there's too many exhibition games where guys are just out there for a beauty league version of the NHL skate taking the night off and there's too many exhibition games where guys are just out there for a Dubuque League version of the NHL skate, right? I finally remember the 10-1 I wonder what a Calgary put on Vancouver a couple years ago. I remember that game What does it mean for season ticket holders? like do they get an extra regular season game and then minus a preseason game because I Always thought it was crazy that, correct me if I'm wrong here, but the full season ticket holders

also have to pay for the preseason, right? And the preseason tickets aren't cheap. No, and I do, I mean I- I remember looking at the price of a preseason game, I'm like, what? Yeah, it should have been to scale. It should have been a dollar to get into a preseason game based on the amount of entertainment that you get out of it

But it wasn't now you want to jump in that easier for like the packages though Like they sell quarter season packages because then you get 21 games in the regular season and you get one exhibition game Right like I don't think yeah, I think given that the deal was only ratified and not made it officially official They probably haven't figured out the ticket angle yet But I would imagine it'll be something along that line, uh, where you just, yeah, you get an extra regular season game out of the deal. Okay. So, uh, we're having trouble getting, getting in touch with Josh. So let's go over the, the little bit of Canucks news that we had. Yeah, sure. So yesterday,

of course appropriately, right after we got off the show, three bits of news from the Vancouver Canucks came out. They announced the signings first of defenseman Jet Wu and perhaps more importantly, actually definitely more importantly, goaltender Nikita Tolopilo. That was on Tuesday morning. Wu gets a one-year two-way deal. Tolopilo gets a two-year two-way deal. Now with all due respect to Jet Wu, he's 24 years old right now. He will be 25. He's yet to make a mark at the NHL level He's gonna probably be an NHL defensive in next year

If you see jet woo in the NHL next year probably means something's gone very very wrong on the Canucks blue line So I know I know Abbots for just one the call to cop and I'm sure that was a good experience for him. He played 22 games in the playoffs probably likes that group of players. But if you were Jetwoo, you're turning 25 in July and you were a second round draft pick and you've played hundreds of games in the HL, why is he staying with the organization? I'm curious about that. Like wouldn't you be like, well, maybe

another team will give me a, give me a chance. Yeah. Cause I mean, look, you're playing for an organization where their lone strength, their lone strength is the depth at defense. And he's been obviously. He's been overlooked constantly. And he's been surpassed by a lot of younger,

more tantalizing prospects already. I mean, and you know, like Mancini comes along midseason. He's jumped them in the depth chart. D. P. D. has a great year where he really blossoms in the American League and then gets NHL reps. Go down the list. It's a it's a crowded blue line. I was of the same mind. I do wonder if there is a comfort level and a familiarity there where unlike other guys like Sammy Blay and field DGC, who wanted to apply their trade elsewhere

after having good years in Abbotsford. Maybe this is just a place where he's comfortable and he wants to stay. There is something to be said. As Greg Wyshinski from ESPN always says, well, just stay where your stuff is. Right. And I got something to be said for chasing your NHL dream. Right. And I wonder if that's in the cards for him, if though, if those minutes are ever going to be there. Uh, the goal-turning situation, um, is one that I

feel like the Canucks have, have really signaled to everyone that they really like Tolopilo and Ty Young. And it feels like they want those two to be the goalies in the AHL next season. They also drafted a goalie in the second round this season. And it just makes me wonder what the future holds for Arthur Silov's because,

you know, in some ways it might be a good idea to try and hold onto him because what if Thatcher Dempko all of a sudden, oh wait, he's not that healthy. Sure. Early on. Sure. It would be nice to have Silov's as an option. I know that Silov's had a tough time in the NHL

last season, but I think we'd probably all trust him more than a guy like Tolopilo to be the backup to Kevin Lankinen. At the same time, Canucks management knows that it'll take a PR hit if they lose C-Lavs on waivers. Yep, and that's fair. And then they'd also have a three-goalie problem in the AHL if Sealovs goes through waivers and clears and he's still with the organization.

The unfortunate thing is if Sealovs is traded, what are you going to get from that? Fourth or fifth round pick, maybe? You're not going to get much. 20, 27, sixth round pick. And I know some people right now are shaking their fists at the radio saying the Alfred and Brush Show doesn't know what it's talking about. He's an American hockey league goalie. He had a nice run in the playoffs,

but I, the body of work at the NHL level is still going to skew what his value is worth league wide. There's not, look, let's just be real here. There's not a team in the NHL that's thinking that they're going to pick him up and he's going to contend for their starting job. Like that's not an option, right? There's no team out there. I bet there's not a lot of teams other than think he could be a full-time capable one B style backup who's playing 20, 25, 30 games at the NHL. Especially, especially if you're a team that says we need to make the playoffs this year.

Cause the one thing that he's had an issue with is understanding what it takes to be a backup at that level, which is you are going to play sporadically. All of C loves his best runs at the NHL level in the American league level has been where he's been run out every single night and has played a lot in a short period of time. I think it's why he succeeded when he took over from Casey to Smith in the playoffs two years ago. And I think it's why he succeeded this year in the Calder cup where you were

playing every other night. He's a guy that needs to be in that rhythm and in that rotation some NHL goalies Find a way when they get to the highest level to be backups because they understand This is how my life is gonna be this is my profession now as I play sporadically Yeah, and you need to be ready at a moment's notice some guys really do well with it some guys don't and at a moment's notice. Some guys really do well with it, some guys don't. And Seelov's in the course of his NHL career showing that it's tough for him to do that. Now, someone might give him another kick at the can to try it again. That option's still out there. So what do you think happens here? Do you think they-

I think they're going to have to trade him. I wish we had, I don't think we, the audio was from last week when Jim Rutherford, president of hockey ops for the Canucks was on fan 590 in Toronto. And he said clear as day that Se loves is going to be the odd man out going into the fall and that they're going to have to, I've, I'm going to paraphrase here, but they're going to have to figure it out. Meaning it's going to either be, we move this guy for a pick or, and I think the worst option is you expose them to waivers and risk losing him for nothing. I could see someone plucking off waivers and just giving it a shot.

Even if you try and move them early in the preseason, early in the training camp process, I mean, the Canucks have had success with that before. Jacob Markstrom many moons ago. Yeah. They moved them really early and we're able to see them through. But it just takes one team that's willing to say, okay, well, let's say it's, I don't know, San Jose or Chicago.

I don't even know what their goaltending situation is. But like those teams aren't going to be competitive next season unless there's some sort of miracle. So maybe they sit there and go, this guy could be the answer. Like we could get a future starting net miner. So let's, let's pick them up. We can carry three goalies for a bit. Doesn't really matter.

Yep. You know, um, now some people have suggested, well, could the Canucks carry three goalies for a bit, doesn't really matter. Yep. You know, now some people have suggested, well, could the Canucks carry three goalies? I guess they could, but it's not ideal. It's not an ideal situation. It becomes a bit of a distraction and you really want to focus on your two goalies, Demko and Lankton and make sure that they're getting the

work at the NHL level and that the practices aren't complicated or anything like that. And it's also a roster spot that you're taking up with a goalie. So John Owen Nanaimo texts in, he says, he's that much worse than Asgaroff. He went for a first. Yeah, Asgaroff was a very highly touted goalie. Asgarov was a very highly touted goalie. Mm-hmm. Seeloff is still a guy that's done well in the NHL. Yep. I mean, it's not fair.

Asgarov hasn't shown a ton at the NHL level, but he was the 11th overall pick in 2020. And those guys have pedigree and their reputation precedes them a lot. And I know that the numbers at the NHL level, especially in San Jose last year, weren't great for a scar off. And I mean, part of that had to do with the fact that he was playing for the San Jose Sharks. But it's John, it's almost apples and oranges at that point. Last year, I cannot deny that last year C-Lob's games in Vancouver were it got to the point

where it was you were worried going into them. Yeah. There was a trepidation and oftentimes the results weren't great unless he was playing against the Chicago Blackhawks. And it got to the point where he kind of became unplayable. Right. Especially when the team was in the throes of either a losing streak or understood that because they were in a playoff chase early, which ultimately fell short, that was part of the reason why they had to run out Lankton in so many nights in a row.

And part of the reason why Lankton faded down the stretch is because you couldn't play him at the NHL level. There was too many shots, and the ones from distance were a real problem, right? The inability to track the puck from distance. There was too many times where the Canucks kind of needed a save that you need to get at the NHL level that he wasn't giving them. I mean, we're not talking about egregious errors or huge gaffes or where you make misplays

of the month on Sportsnet. It was the ones where five goals on 27 shots and those, they're not NHL level numbers and they weren't NHL caliber goaltending. So Bill from Buffalo, who is a huge Sea-Laws fans based on his, uh, text history, he texts in, so his playoff performance with the Canucks, that doesn't count. Well, he played 10 games and had an 898 save percentage. Like we remember that performance more because it was courageous considering the situation he was put into, but at the end of the day, his numbers are the numbers.

If you're a Canucks historian, you put that run of where he came in as the number three. And I don't mean to be dismissive of it, but it's along the lines of when Archie Urbe got a run in Vancouver or backup Bob Ascenza gotensa, you know, it was like that. It was like, it was a cool, feel good story. It was better than expected. And you admired what he did.

But he didn't like, he made some big saves. Yeah, he made some big saves, but it was the backup to be in the NFL who goes on a little bit of a run Yeah, and he wasn't terrible. Yeah Why were those years where Ryan Fitzpatrick would you know get a few starts under center and you'd be like wow Ryan Fitzpatrick This guy could really be something maybe we could and then it would stop he'd throw 18 interceptions in three straight games And he'd be back on the bench. And again, I know it sounds dismissive and I'm sorry if it does But I think that's really how this picture

is gonna be painted. The Connacks goaltending though going into next year. I know we've talked about it at length on this show and with good reason. I mean, we just had a huge extension for Thatcher Demko who is someone astutely pointed out the other day is now one of the highest paid players on the team and he with a eight and a half million dollar cap hit.

Not yet though. No, but when it kicks in. Yeah. And it's going to be the year after he, you know, is, he's not in prove it mode anymore. It's, oh, let's make sure that you're healthy and you're ready to go. Cause you've got the contract.

It's a huge dynamic for this team moving forward. I know people, uh, yesterday we're discussing who might be moved out if the Canucks want to clear some cap space, just so they have the flexibility to add a centre. If, you know, they see something in free agency or there's a trade to be made. And, uh, you know, Joshua is the obvious first

choice, I think, because he's got a, you know, a significant, fairly significant cap hit. And I think there's a lot of people that are very hesitant to move Bluger considering the center depth that they already have right now. I mean, they've got Ratu as the three C and also Bluger was a big part of the PK and they're already losing Pugh Souter from the PK.

So there's some hesitation there. The other candidate is Hoeglinder. And, uh, I agree with the people that would be hesitant to move Hoeglinder as a salary dump. I think he's really got the potential to bounce back this season. I mean, this is a guy that scored, what was it? 21 goals or something, a couple of years ago, and a lot at even strength.

And, you know, I really hope they don't give up on Holglunder unless there's a significant upgrade coming. I feel the same way about Joshua. I don't. Why? What's the difference there? I think Holglunder has more talent. Okay. I feel the same way about Joshua. I don't. Why? What's the difference there? I think Hoaglander has more talent. Okay. I can live with that. I also think that

Joshua has better net front presence and better hands in front of the net. Yeah. And I think that that might be something that this team lacks maybe more than what Hoaglander gives them in the sort of like, we're lacking in this department. Now that being said, I think Hoaglander gives them in the sort of like we're lacking in this department. Now, that being said, I think Hoaglander is a better option to ride shotgun to Petey. Yeah.

And I think that if the revival. I think they need his speed. I think they need his talent. Well, I think. There's not enough talent up front. I think if there's going to be a revival of sorts, I do wonder if the Ascension chart might have like Pederserson and Hoaglander kind of going up together. Like they play together, they both have bounce backs together. They both

realize that 2024, 25 was a bad year for both of them. Yeah. Hoaglander going from 24 goals in 23, 24 to eight last year. I think the coaching change might be able to, might help. I don't think Tauke loved Hoaglander. And sometimes I got the feeling that he wasn't a huge fan of Pedersen.

No. There's no evidence to that. Are you sure about that? Yeah. I mean, Foot's got, Foot does have an opportunity here to still play good cop until he has to play bad cop, which is sort of inherent in being the head coach.

But he, cause right now. He's going to be almost a hundred percent good cop to start the season and into training camp. Yep. We're going to have, we're going to have positivity crammed down our throats and for good reason. And I think it's the right call. Like I'm not being cynical here. I think, um, three games into the preseason, you smoke and darts in the bench.

I hate all of you so much. Well, than talk it hated you. Can you imagine the first preseason game where Pedersen's in the lineup and people are like, okay, what are we going to see? Are we going to see? Because that'll be it. I mean, that'll be the first sign of, okay, well, did he have a good camp and did he, did he find, or not a good camp, a good off season? Did he get stronger? Did he work on his skating? Did he rediscover the magic?

And, you know, I think, you know, I think we'll be able to see in that first, like you can just watch the game. Well, does he have confidence with the puck? Is he moving with the puck? Is he moving those feet back or not? Back on the subject of foot though, like there is a pathway. Here's the thing, for him on a personal level in terms of his trajectory of where he's gonna go, what he's gonna be as a NHL head coach moving forward, there's a lot riding on his first year. Everyone's first job, there's

a lot riding on it. The blueprint I think for him right now, especially when it it comes to Pettersen is you almost just kind of do the inverse of what happened last year, right? And like maybe don't publicly declare that you're in a reprogramming effort with the player Yeah, even if you don't necessarily believe it don't say it and don't do it because You're in a don't do it. Don't he don't does I'll just do the opposite of what happened last year instinct you had was wrong don't do it because you're in a don't do it, Donnie, don't does kind of situation. You're like, I'll just do the opposite of what happened last year. Every instinct you had was wrong.

Then you should do the exact. Exactly. Like even if you in your heart, you're like, we do need to reprogram them because he can't go like this. The messaging to him is going to have to be one of like, we're in this together as opposed to we're two opposing forces, which I think happened between Pedersen and talking last, is there was a lot of push-pull, I want you to do this and you're not doing this.

Well, and Petey Miller, obviously. So that's gone too. So there's a bunch of things that are different in that room now. So it's kind of a real basic playbook for Foot. It's just do a lot of the opposite of what happened last year. You know what's funny is we went into last season

with the excuses are gone for Pedersen. They went out and got him some wingers, they got him to brusque, all that stuff. It's over, the excuses are over. And then we found some new ones. And then heading into this season, definitely the excuses are over. Like, he's healthy.

Yeah, okay. This time. This time. And Tomer with the chips. And Tauke is gone, and JT's gone. Yep. You know, like this, the, no, so what, what, what, what will we need to go back to if, if he doesn't perform?

Ah, you just blame the head coach. That's my, that's the de facto one, I think, for most people. Right, yeah, yeah. He wasn't enough of a change from Taket. Yeah, no, he doesn't like the system. And then you go, and then he never started fresh. He needs a a change from talking. Yeah, no, he doesn't like the system He needs a coach that understands him. Yeah, what's Woodrow doing? Okay We got to go to break our one is in the books and I need to tell you about Jan pro from the board room to

The break room and everywhere in between Jan pro keeps workplaces tidy clean and disinfected for a free quote visit them online at Jan pro dot CA I have no idea what's going on with Josh Yohei. He is joining us at 7.30. Beautiful. Who's coming up at 7 then? Chris Peters is coming. Oh, you're moving everything around today. No, Chris Peters is always at 7.

Okay, so we got an open segment at 7.30. You know how we eat the rundown I send you? I thought Peters was at 7.30. No, he's not. So now we got Chris Peters coming up on the other side to talk, Gavin McKenna and Isaac Howard and all the stuff that's going on in the NHL. 7.30, we're gonna go to Pittsburgh to talk to Josh. Yo, hey,

the show is set. Our one is in the books. You're listening to the Halford and Bref show on sports net six 50.