Halford & Brough in the Morning - Can The Canucks Handle The Scrutiny Of This Market?

Episode Date: March 28, 2025

In hour two, Mike & Jason chat with the Columbus Dispatch' Brian Hedger (5:52) ahead of the Blue Jackets home matchup tonight versus the Canucks, plus they discuss more of the latest 'Nucks news with analyst Bob "The Moj" Marjanovich (24:38). 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.

7.05 on a Fiesta Friday here on the Halford and Brough show on Sportsnet 650. Halford and Brough of the morning is brought to you by Vancouver Honda, Vancouver's premier destination for Honda customers. They have a friendly, knowledgeable staff that can help with anything you're looking for, sales, financing, service, or parts. We are in hour two of the program. AJ from AJ's Pizza is going to join us in just a moment here, kick off hour two. Hour two is brought to you by Jason Homonuck at j Jason.mortgage. If you love paying too much for your mortgage then don't let Jason shop around to find the perfect mortgage for you. Visit him on the internet at Jason.mortgage. We are coming to you live from the Kintec studio,

Kintec footwear and orthotics working together with you in step. To the phone lines we go now I love AJ for a lot of different reasons, but one of the big reasons I love him is as an international jet setter, he always gets to do and see and experience cool things. He joins us now fresh off the heels of a visit to the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas. AJ from AJ's Pizza on East Broadway joins us now on the Halford and Brough show on Sportsnet 650. What up AJ? What's going on? Broadway joins us now on the Haliford and Bruff Show on Sportsnet 650. What up AJ?

What's going on? My voice might seem a little raspy. Someone sounds like he spent the week in Vegas at the International Pizza Expo. How was it? It was great. You know what? It's, I mean, you know, it's just a fun time.

It's crazy though. It's massive. I mean, there's probably throughout the three days, 60, 70,000 people, you know, it's all, and that's in 2019 when we went. That's when the Detroit was born at AJ's. That's where we brought it back from. And I will let you know that it's Adog's birthday

on Sunday, by the way, and he has consumed approximately three Detroit pizzas in his birthday week to celebrate turning forward. I heard it's Adog's birthday month. I heard he goes for the month. Yeah, he does. You're correct.

Right. So what, so what kind of like, like it's a conference, like what kind of breakout sessions do you have at the pizza convention? So, well, it's all about process, right? So like, yeah, I mean, that's the thing. I mean, when people take it as seriously as obviously we do, and a lot of people do. So, it's seminars on dough and how to make it and how to fermentation and the whole process is,

but then you get the end product. So yeah, when a dog, when he called me this morning, he's like, what do you do? Is it like, is it like when you go to a winery, you'd take a bite of pizza and spit it out? No. You eat it. Now there is, there is, I walked around with obviously a glass of red wine the whole time, but yeah, you're just, you're eating product, you're meeting people,

you're looking at new ovens, you're looking at just, you know, I mean, it's not a ton of new technology. It's not like Microsoft. Right. I'm going to do this crazy new thing with breadsticks. Yeah. The AI pizza maker. Right. But no, it's a lot of fun.

And I get to see people that have been going for years. And it's nice to catch up with them. So yeah. And it's in Vegas. But again, I'm 54. We're close to 54 like I'm in bed by 9. Yeah, you know, I'm up it. I'm up at 6 a.m It's just different times different times and not in my 20s Okay So for the listeners that weren't able to go to the International Pizza Expo and join they had a podcast live

the hot slice podcast everything about It for the people that aren't able to go, but they want to go eat some pizza, today, four o'clock puck drop, Canucks, Blue Jackets. So that coincides with Happy Hour at AJ's and Canucks game nights. So $6 pints. And then Sunday as well, because we get a neuter on Sunday. So what's going on Sunday? This is the sprint guys, right? This is it. 10 games left. The marathon started in October. We need these games. We got happy hour all day Sunday.

And let's cheer on the Canucks. Let's get in here. All right, buddy. Rest up. Get that voice back and we'll talk again next Friday. Take care, everybody. Have a wonderful week. Yeah, you too.

Thanks, bud. That's AJ from AJ's Pizza on Broadway. The hot slice podcast is killing me right now. Probably better than this show. You guys like pizza? Oh, Greg. Greg's still upset about the Blue Jays from yesterday. I'm surly. You are surly.

One game, there's 161 left. They ruined the season. Yeah. Tell the folks about Tyler O'Neil. Six home runs and six opening days in a row. Maple Ridge is very own. Now how many different teams has he hit the home runs for? I know I'm throwing you on the spot.

Three, I believe. Right, so. Boston, St. Louis. There's a lot of pressure on you when you got a streak like that. I know. Tyler, you ready? Facing Barrios.

This is kind of your day, right? Facing Barrios certainly helps because opening day he's atrocious. Barrios throwing up meatballs sure made it easier for Tyler O'Neill yesterday. Six consecutive opening days, Tyler O'Neill's gone yard. And now he's- They talked about those meatballs

on the Hot Slice podcast. Tyler O'Neill, by the way, one of the most, the fittest player in the league, I'm just gonna say it, like he's jacked. He's swole. I wouldn't go that far. Like he, he's jacked. He swole. I wouldn't go that far. He's yoked. That's what the kids say, right?

All right, we're jumping around here on the Halford and Bref Show on Sports Night 650. We will regain focus because it is a Canucks game night. Tonight, four o'clock, our time puck drop, really early one. It is the Vancouver Canucks in Columbus to take on the Blue Jackets. So let's get a preview from the Blue Jackets side of things.

Joining us now, he is the Blue Jackets beat writer for the Columbus Post-Dispatch. Brian Hedger joins us now on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Morning, Brian, how are you? Hey, good to join you guys. Yeah, thanks for coming on, we appreciate it. So I remember going back a few weeks now,

I heard you on SiriusXM radio right around the time that the Blue Jackets had their outdoor game, talking about all the festivities and things going into the game, but also, how well the Blue Jackets were playing going in to that game, which eventually they won, and you know, playoff positioning was looking pretty good. Then the Four Nations break happened,

and then the post Four Nations break happened, and it's been a tough go for the Blue Jackets as of late. Can you kind of give our listeners an idea of what's gone on the last couple of weeks? I know the losing streak was snapped on Monday with a win over the Islanders, but prior to that it was six straight losses for the Blue Jackets, fell on some pretty tough times there in mid-March. Yeah, well coming out of the Four Nations tournament, they actually won four straight games coming out of that and they did really well. They actually won back-to-back games. They're not really back-to-back on days, but you know it was

going into the outdoor game against the Red Wings and at that time, so they went to Detroit on the Thursday before the outdoor game and they blew their doors off basically. I mean they were playing really well and then you know you knew Detroit was going to have a really good pushback in the outdoor game because Todd McClellan really got into the Red Wings about not playing enough defense and the effort and all that stuff. He moved Dylan Larkin down to like the fourth line in that game and really kind of lit him up in the post game. So you knew Detroit was going to have a really good pushback, but, you know, the Blue Jackets end up winning the outdoor game as well.

And that was, you know, as an aside here is one of the my most favorite events I've ever covered. They did a great job with it. It was exciting. So it's really, you know, there was a feeling after that game in the Blue Jackets locker room, like they really did something, right? And that's always a dangerous thing in the middle of the regular season. I mean, it felt like a playoff game for a number of reasons. They won their only outdoor game.

There was 95,000 people there. It was on national television, great ratings, all that stuff. And by beating the Red Wings in that game, they took control of the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. So it felt like a playoff game, like, hey, they're in good shape here. But you look down the road and you saw their schedule, and especially the next couple games, like they had to go immediately from that game, the high of that game, they had to fly down to Florida and play both of the Florida teams.

I mean, that was just really, really difficult because those teams are both just beasts right now. They're playing really well, the Lightning and the Panthers, and they had to play them in successive games, and they lost both of them, including the second one was their former goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky shot him out I mean it was it wasn't great but then they had it like a little they came back home had a little break and they had two more games and they went to New York and they actually

blew out the Rangers and we thought okay everything's fine and then they lost the that next game after after blowing the Rangers out to the Devils and that started that six game Losing streak that you Allude to there and it was more than just a six game losing streak It was a six game losing streak, but they you know coming out of the outdoor game. They had nine games They lost eight of them, you know like that You can't be doing that if you're trying to win a playoff spot. So they have gotten fortunate as well.

If you look at the Eastern Conference race, they're getting a lot of help from the, doesn't seem like there's, there's like five teams separated by about three points for one playoff spot, the second spot. And it doesn't seem like anybody truly wants it, you know, like who's going to step up and actually take control of that spot because the Ottawa Senators Right now appear to have the the first wild card locked down So that's kind of a situation for the Blue Jackets going into this game tonight. Yeah, that's Stadium series game I watched that game and it was great to see it was it was quite the spectacle but I

also noticed that like did the Blue Jackets actually play all that well? I mean they won five to three, but Merzlikin's had to make like 43 saves. I thought on that day the Red Wings were actually the better team, although they lost the game, and I'm wondering if the Blue Jackets might have just been too happy with the result and not looking enough at the performance. Yeah, it's interesting because that was, uh, you know, it started this string where, well, it actually didn't start a string.

It was part of a deal where when they lost Sean Monahan, I mean, this, this, a lot of this goes back to losing Sean Monahan on January 7th in Pittsburgh because he was, I mean, it's hard to tell people how valuable that guy has been to this team this year. And it's not just on the ice, it's off the ice, it's every facet you can think of. He has been fantastic for this team. And when he went down, you knew the power play

was gonna bottom out, like it was just, or you knew it was gonna have a drop. I didn't know it was bottom out completely, but it ended up doing that. Because he's just so important as the bumper position in that one three one, he's so good at it. He's one of the few guys around the league, right? When you look at a good power play,

you find a team that has one, you're like, oh yeah, they have a good bumper guy. Well, he's one of the few guys around the league, right? Like when you look at a good power play, you find a team that has one, you're like, oh yeah, they have a good bumper guy. Well, he's that guy here. And when they lose him for two months, they lost him for two months, they also lost a lot of puck possession. And they lost a lot of, you know, like a veteran guy who could help control puck possession

and, you know, prevent them from getting pinned into their own end as much as they did. So they went through a whole stretch there where quite honestly, I was a little surprised that they kept winning. If you looked at game per game, they're getting out shot, they're getting out attempted. You know, the other teams got the puck the whole night.

But to their credit, they were learning how or they knew how to defend pretty well within their own zone. So even though the puck stayed in their own zone, a lot of those shots come from the perimeter. They were coming from non-dangerous areas. And as you mentioned, Elvis Merzlikans kind of stood on his head a number of times.

Danil Tarasov also helped him out. He kind of fixed his issues that he had to start the season. So he had pretty good go tending, solid right now. But yeah, you were 100% right. Like in that outdoor game, they got outplayed. You know, but they figured out, they had become, I called them kind of like a rope-a-dope team. You know, it was like, it was one of those ones

where it was just like, all right, we're just gonna take your best shot. And eventually you're gonna turn the puck over and we're gonna go down with all our skill and we're gonna score goals. And that our skill and we're going to score goals. And that's kind of what they did in that game and then that's how they've survived through this thing, but I know they want to turn that around and change it now that they're fully healthy.

Yeah, the bad news for the Canucks is that Sean Monahan is back. He returned last game, correct me if I'm wrong, against the Islanders and what do you know, he gets to assist and Columbus breaks the losing streak and beats the Islanders. Good Branson came back too. Oh, and Good Branson is back as well. Um, I wanted to ask you about, um, Adam Fantilli, how has he been?

Because, um, there was obviously a lot of expectations for him. Um, I guess he's the two C now that Sean Monahan is back, like he's still very young, but I'm just wondering how he's tracking. Well, if it wasn't for him, they wouldn't be in this position right now. He's one of those guys because when Monahan goes down, they, they don't, I mean, Boone Jenner wasn't back yet. Right.

Like, so they couldn't go to Boone and be like, Hey, can you be the number one center again? He was out as well. Um, you know, Cole Sillinger is more of kind of like a two, three. Um, I mean, they could have leaned on Cole. He's done it before, uh, as well. He's more of a two way guy and, and, and Fantilly is becoming a two way guy for sure, but he, his offensive end is so high. And you know,

one thing you start realizing about this guy is just how determined he really is to become a superstar in this league. You know, he's the kind of person who is not going to just limit himself. He's going to set the goal as high as he possibly can and see how far up there he can get to reaching that goal. And he's not afraid to say stuff like that. He's not afraid to say things that... you know, he's confident. Let's put it that way. He's got a lot of confidence and you need that to be one of the top players in this league and to do what he did. He slides right into that number one center role after my hand goes down and basically says, Hey, I got this,

you know, and, and, uh, and then proves it with his play. Now, um, you know, over the course of time, I think, uh, he's still a young player. There are still moments in games where, you know, he's, he's still still learning still learning about this league and so I think that that was starting to grind on it a little bit there toward the end before Monahan came back but now now you got Monahan back Monahan wins a ton of face-offs you know and and he's he works really well with Kirill Marchenko and Dmitry Voronkov on that top line they were one of the NHL's most effective, dangerous lines before Monahan went out. And they stayed up there under Fantilly, but a little slightly less so.

So now you've got those guys back, and now Fantilly goes back down to the second line. And guess what? Boone Jenner's back now. So he's got Boone on his left wing, and he's got a playmaking player on his right in Kent Johnson who I'm sure you guys are familiar with. Yeah, we had him on the show a little while ago. Oh, I love that kid. He's such a good guy and he's ridiculously talented. He's coming on in his own too. He's coming into his own as well So it's kind of fun team to cover because you have a nice mix of veterans on this team who are getting things done

But you also have this whole like core group of young Really super talented young players who you know are gonna be good and and they're all in their own way Pointing upward the stock is pointing pointing upward and now you got Fantilly in the second line. So yeah, he's a special player. And people said it going into that draft. And if you look at it, that draft is starting to prove that people who thought it was gonna be a good draft

were probably right. You'll get to see Fantilly and Ken Johnson and all the other guys mentioned tonight. Four o'clock puck drop from Columbus. It is the Canucks and the Blue Jackets. Brian, thank you very much for doing this today. We really appreciate it. Enjoy the game tonight.

It should be a good one and enjoy the playoff chase. Absolutely. Good to be with you guys. Yeah, you too. Thanks, Brian. That's Brian Hedger from the Columbus Dispatch Blue Jackets writer here on the Haliford and Bref show on Sportsnet 650. We're going to stick in the Eastern Conference here. We have some very

interesting developments coming out of Philadelphia the morning after John Tortorello was dismissed as the club's head coach. Courtesy of Kevin Kers also of the athletic. Kers has been told this is from Twitter this morning. A team source says it's quote fair to say something happened between defenseman Cam York and John Tortorella in Toronto on Tuesday night.

Kers goes on to write that whatever happened contributed to the coach's dismissal on Thursday morning. It was put to Kevin that quote, they probably both crossed the line. Now it's interesting because. York got benched in that game. He ended up playing three minutes and 50 seconds.

York was benched for the final 50 minutes of that game. That's a long time to sit on the bench. You don't often see that. Well, Jason, that's not all because last night against Montreal in the first game under head coach, new head coach, Brad Shaw, Cam York dressed and sat the entire game under head coach, new head coach Brad Shaw, Cam York dressed and sat the entire game on the bench.

He sat, he sat, he just sat there? He just sat there the entire game. Does he, does he get credit for a game played? Cause I'm looking at his game log and it doesn't include the Montreal game. I don't know. He sat there the entire game, new head coach, Brad Shaw said after the game that it was

because of a disciplinary issue and said that York would be back in the lineup, even though he was in the lineup for the Flyers next game. Something happened. I heard JT Miller texted Cam York and it was like, I've been there buddy. They're both American. Something happened.

What does that matter? It says he played three minutes and 50 seconds on elite prospects. Against Toronto. Against Toronto. Yeah, against Montreal. But nothing against Montreal. So I guess he doesn't get credit for the game.

He doesn't get credit for the game. Did not? Okay. Who did it happen to for the contest? Was it Anton Rodin? It was, wasn't it? Yeah, but he was injured. But whatever.

No, he sat there the whole time. From the statistical side of under- Yeah, but he was injured. But whatever. No, he sat there the whole time. From the statistical side of things. Anyway, back to Cam York. So here's the thing. The comments that Tortorella made after that game clearly weren't the only reason he got fired. According to Kevin Kurz,

is that something happened with Cam York that also contributed to this dismissal. Something happened on Tuesday night in Toronto that profoundly affected this team because the remarks that Torz made afterwards were very strange and I don't wanna say unprecedented, but you don't hear someone talk like that very honestly. He was like done with this.

Yeah. Which, yeah. And I guess something happened between him and Cam York that preceded those remarks. So it's, they, look, here's the thing. They will get to the bottom of this in Philadelphia. There's too many people connected to the team and too many good reporters, Kers and Charlie O'Connor

and everyone else that have sources working this. This will get out. Also, I bet in the aftermath, there's enough people that are more than willing to speak or spill the tea, especially about John Tortorella, that we're going to find out something happened and something happened that wasn't good.

I'm looking at a new story. Sorry, I've moved on from Torts. Okay. Someone just texted in. Um. We have the attention span of gerbils here. Well, this is a big one. Okay.

Um, so Alfonso Davies, Byron Canada, Byron just came out with a statement from its CEO that says, I'll just read part of it. We demand that Canada soccer fully investigate the events and we expressly reserve the right to take legal action. So I was wondering about this. Sending an obviously injured player with a

damaged knee on a 12 hour intercontinental flight without a thorough medical examination is in our view, grossly negligent and a clear violation of medical due diligence. Because Davey's agent yesterday said that he had talked with Jesse Marsh and it seemed to be calming down a little bit. The situation seemed to, I don't want to say

blow over because Davies still has a long rehab, but now one of the biggest football clubs in the world is taking a direct aim at Soccer Canada. So when this first, the story broke that Davies had torn his ACL and that the agent came out guns ablaze. And the first thing I asked is why, why is the agent doing this? Where is it coming from? Is it coming from Davies? And then it became pretty apparent that it wasn't, this wasn't a player directed narrative through his agent. And then I was like, where is this coming from?

And then I thought, is this guy getting heat from Byron? Has Byron already complained to Davies agent about what happened and this is his way of trying to get out in front of it? I guess that's the answer. I guess that's the answer because the agent. It's one thing for an agent to take a shot at you. It's quite another for Bayern Munich to heavily criticize you in a statement and threaten legal action.

Speaking of legal action, Moj is going to join us next on the Halford and Bruff show on Sportsnet 650. Hey, it's Jamie Dodd. And Thomas Strantz. Get your daily dose of Canucks Talk with us weekdays from 12 to two on Sportsnet 650. Or catch up on demand through your favorite podcast app. It's the Moche.

I did not eat four burgers. Yes, it's the Moche. I don't want to go to Winnipeg. Nobody wants to go to Winnipeg. Yes, I love food. It's the Moche. I went online and kind of did a little surfing. Jamalania.

Yes, it's the Moche. Halperd's fine, but you know, Bruffa's just grumpy all the time. Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche.

I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moche. I'm going to go to the Moalaniha. Yes, it's the Moj. Halperd's fine, but you know, he's grumpy all the time. Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, Moj, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, moach, It's been a lot of internal strife on the show this morning. Well, Bill and Suri is mad at me for cutting you off. Yup. And getting to the Davies story when you were talking about torts. I thought I'd been much ruder to you in the past,

but I would like Bill and Suri to be happy and I would like to apologize for you for seeing a very big breaking news story and saying, sorry to apologize for you for seeing a very big breaking news story and saying, sorry, I know you're talking about torrents. Do you want to know how the chain reaction of emotion works? So, Bruff, cut me off. No, he brought up the story and then because you brought up the story, we were late going to break, so I forgot to do a read. Then Laddie got mad at me because I forgot to do the read. And then I got mad at Laddie for getting mad at me for getting to do the read. I lashed out at Laddie because I forgot to do the read.

And then Bill and Suri got mad at you. This Davies injury is just tearing us apart. And then Maggie laughed. She's such a trooper. And in this case, that was a dog. He just sat there and smiled the entire time. Anyway, well, I think we're going to get over it though. It's a Friday. We're all going to go to the weekend and we're going to be okay. I'm not over it with Bill and Suri. Well, you know what's going to make everything better. Talking to Moj, Bob the Mojmar Jonovic joins us now on the Haliford and Brough

show on Sportsnet 650. What up, Moj? Man, with these clock management skills, this will be a shorter segment than me taking off a YVR. All right. See you later Moj. Yeah, it's been a, it's been a morning. It was fine up until the Alfonso Davies story ripped us apart. Oh man. But anyway, let's focus on the Vancouver Canucks shall we?

Rick talking. I don't know, have you caught the latest out of Philadelphia by the way? This Cam York story now that we were talking about prior to going to break? Missed it. Okay. I haven't seen it yet.

Uh, Cole's notes version, that game against Toronto, which led essentially to Tortorella getting fired. Apparently there was some sort of incident between Torts and Cam York that saw York benched for the entire game. And then according to sources of Kevin Kers from the Athletic, whatever happened

between Cam York and Tortorella in part, had a role in his dismissal. So there's a lot going on the Philadelphia side of things, but there's also the Vancouver side of things and Rick Tauket, who as you know, is a pretty popular guy in Philadelphia. Yeah, it's interesting. You know, when you look at Tauket,

I mean, it's kind of flown under the radar this year. And you have to ask yourself this question, why hasn't he signed a contract yet? I mean, he's the guy coming off of Jack Adams award winning season as a coach. And, you know, he's got the golden ticket with that for at least for a little bit. And for whatever reason,

he hasn't been able to agree to terms with the Connect. I don't think it's a situation where perhaps they're playing hardball. I mean, you'd like to have some job security as a coach, would you not? So I've been really surprised that they haven't come to an agreement and now, you know, people start connecting the dots as you know,

we've talked about, I mean, Philadelphia, I mean, the one thing about being a player in the national hockey league is that first team that you play for, and if you have success with that team, if you're there for five, six years, you can go all over the NHL, but you usually identify with that team. And I know Rick Tocket had success with the Penguins, but I wouldn't doubt it at all if he kind of identifies as a flyer.

And if that's the case, why wouldn't that job be something that maybe he covet, right? So it's going to be interesting to see how the situation plays out. Moj, I remember last year, before last year, one of the things that Rick Tauke had wanted to do was empower the leadership group. Do you remember that? He wants to empower the leadership group and he wants these guys to not take control, but I suppose take more

control of the team and, uh, keep everyone accountable. And last season we were all like, man, this is working great. Quinn is being a great captain. JT Miller seems like a perfect right hand man for Quinn Hughes and, uh, Elias Pedersen up to a certain point was playing really, really good

hockey. Now you're kind of like, we still love Quinn Hughes as the captain, but everything else seems to be in flux. Um, what do you think the Canucks can do about the leadership group this off season? I think it's going to be a priority for the hockey club and talking to people within the

organization, I'll tell you right now, it will be a priority. And it's not to say that, you know, the people that they have are aren't leaders or aren't great fits, but you just need a really strong leadership group. And right now, I think that's something that's lacking with the Canucks. And there's been a lot of change. I mean, you know, you lose JT Miller, don't kid yourself about the losses of guys like say Ian Cole and Zdorov, right? Those guys have voices in the room and right now this is a team that's kind of lacking that type of leadership and you know the other thing

too is when you lack a really strong leadership group and a really strong room, it kind of almost impinges sometimes on player acquisitions, right? I mean, sometimes you might be willing to take on a project, a guy who perhaps, you know, might not be a fit somewhere, but if you have a strong enough group, you know, maybe you can get him to conform and be a productive member of your team. If you don't, well, then that's a concern that, you know, it comes in and might be a guy who has a negative influence on the group.

So I know I'm talking to people with the Connect organization, that is going to be something that they really focus on this year in the off season. And you know, they might even sign a guy who the fans might say, what are they doing bringing this guy in for? But I think that'll be one of the keys that they address this year, somehow, some way getting that leadership group stronger.

Do you think there has to be some self-reflection from the management group about how they let things spin so out of control this season when it comes to Miller and Pedersen? Well, there better be. Um, any management group, any team, any coaching staff worth its salt, uh, in football, you always hear the term self-scouting. Well, you do that both in terms of what you're doing in competition and also in terms of how you're running your organization. You have to. I mean, you have to look at some of the mistakes

that were made, address those mistakes and learn from those mistakes. So to ignore that, to ignore what happened and not learn from it, for me is it's a huge mistake. It's something that they have to do. Do you think that might help them deal with the scrutiny that the team is going to be under just because they are the top dog in town in terms of sports in Vancouver and Canucks fans are very, very passionate about this team?

Well, I mean, it's the world that we live in, right? I mean, this is a Canuck team that is, um, with so many vehicles now that, you know, fans can get their message out or the media can get their message out, whether it's, you know, whether it's podcasts, whether it's YouTube, whether it's Twitter, I mean, it's, everybody has a voice, right? And I think the one thing that the organization has to do is try to, how would we put it, be careful in terms of not having any self-inflicted wounds.

And we've seen that this year a couple of times, right? So it's a situation where, yeah, again, they're gonna have to go back and look at this and learn from this. And you know, it's a situation where, yeah, again, they're going to have to go back and look at this and learn from this. And, you know, it's interesting you mention that, because one of the things still about Rick talked about that no one's really talked about is this guy who's been in the league for what, since early 80s? So we're talking close to 40 years, maybe a little over 40 years. This is the first time he's ever played or coached in a Canadian market, right? And, you know, he talks about embracing the pressure.

And I know that Rick probably, you know, loves the city of Vancouver, loves the fans, loves the passion. You know, at the same time, I don't know if Pocket or any member of that organization really enjoys the scrutiny that this team comes under. I mean, you say one wrong word and, you know, people are talking about it. So, um, it comes with the market. It's, you know, there's pros and cons to it, but I mean, that's another thing that I think maybe comes

into play with talk it. I think one of the things that I hear from the media that I actually disagree with a lot is when they talk about, you know, and I get it. And I think we've had this conversation and I guess I agree to a certain extent. They talk about the lack of actual media, traditional media coverage compared to 15, 20 years ago. And I'm talking about the number of reporters that go in the dressing room after a game,

at home games, or maybe the lack of reporters on the road, which we're seeing right now. Like yesterday, I had no idea what happened at Canucks practice in Columbus, no idea now. Like yesterday, I had no idea what happened at Canucks practice in Columbus. No idea. I was actually wondering, I was like, I wonder if Quinn Hughes got the day off.

I hopefully he got the day off. I couldn't find the information. Like there was no media covering. I know a lot of guys were traveling, but that was like almost a practice done in secret for the Canucks, but I do think with the proliferation of social media, and as you mentioned, all the podcasts and just the direct contact that fans have via social

media to the players and to the team, I think that more than makes up for the lack of reporters that are going in and asking questions after the game, because we all know that these young guys, just like every young person and every frankly person, is glued to their phone, right? And it must be very, very difficult to constantly have to deal with the scrutiny that you see online. You have to be very, very disciplined to ignore it. And in some cases, it's impossible to ignore because you've got people sending you stuff that they saw online. So I do think that they need to bring in leaders,

but also maybe role players that just naturally handle that better. And let's be honest, I have wondered how Elias Pedersen handles all that. Yep. You know, and I think it's one of those things where it sometimes feels like, you know, there are people that are just like, well, I wish it went away or, you know, it's wrong that this happens.

Well, it might be wrong. Some of the things that happen on social media, but it ain't going anywhere. So you either have to accept that it's going to happen and that maybe your words are going to get twisted or you're going to have haters that just hate you. Like they just don't like you and they're never going to be convinced that they

like you and you have to be comfortable with that. Does that make sense? Yeah, it doesn't. You know, I'll leave it out to that. And you know, you went to a game this year, you saw the media setup that they have now, um, compared to where it was, whatever, 10 years ago, 20 years ago. I mean, you know, previously you could walk into that connect room after practice and just have a conversation with a player, right? And you kind of got to know some of these guys, you got to build some rapport with these players. And as a result, I don't think the relationship seemed quite as adversarial as it does now in certain instances?

You know where I'm going with that? Yeah. Yeah, I know. And I think it creates a separation and maybe even more of an adversarial relationship with the media when, you know, like, listen, you walk into the room, you start talking with guys, like everyone likes Moj, right? Maybe not me. Well, not everyone, but yeah. But I think a lot of the players like you, right? And if you can go in there

and kind of be a representative of the media, like I think that does help. And it also helps you, well, it maybe even convinces you to talk a little more positively about the guys in the room and maybe stick up for them a little bit more. Yeah. I mean, that's a fair point, right? I mean, if you develop a relationship with anyone and you kind of, you know, like that person or enjoy

their, you know, what discussions that you have, whatever the case may be, yeah, you're going to give them a little rope. I mean, that happens in everything, right? I mean, nevermind just in terms of that you have, whatever the case may be. Yeah, you're going to give them a little rope. I mean, that happens in everything, right? I mean, nevermind just in terms of, you know, dealing with the Vancouver Canucks, it's any sport, any team anywhere. So again, it's like I said, it's just, it's the

dynamic of it now, I think probably hurts the team more than it helps the team in terms of, you know, the stuff that gets out there sometimes. Okay. So JDog, the car hog, one of our favorite textures texts in with something that I'm going to push back a little bit on. He says, who gives an F about social media?

I couldn't care less about what strangers say about me on the internet. First of all, JDog, I don't know your real name and how often is it that you've had to deal with literally thousands and thousands of people criticizing you and saying mean things about you on social media? Like it's different when you're famous.

His name's Jordan. Okay. So like I don't think that a lot of the fans can actually relate to being able to, for example, search their name on social media and see hundreds of messages all coming up and criticizing you and ripping you like until you're in that situation, I think it's really hard to pass judgment. Yeah. And it is, and you know're in that situation, I think it's really

hard to pass judgment. Yeah. And it is, and you know, I'll be perfectly honest. I mean, anyone that's had a show on any radio station, um, and you guys know this, there are times when you go in your inbox, um, and you look at some of the messages, at least I know I did. And I know, I know Donnie Taylor did, when we did the show together,

and even doing a way back with Pratt, I mean, some of the stuff that was written in there, you're like, are you kidding me? Right? It's just like, and the crazy thing is, in all the years that I've been doing this, and you guys probably the same thing, I'm sure you can attest to,

you've seen so many nasty messages in that inbox, so many people calling you an idiot, this, that, you know, ripping your character, ripping your integrity. And I would probably say, Oh, let me get zero is the amount of times you've had people that actually come up and said anything like that to your face. Yeah, agreed. I've never had anyone say anything like that to my face. And let's not compare ourselves to professional athletes like the Kinnots.

We, we handle maybe like 0.1% of the hate. But on a much smaller scale, we see it, right? And yeah, sometimes it's, it's personal. And sometimes you're like, what are you thinking? You don't even know me, right? We're talking sports and here you are criticizing, you know, the, the very fiber of who you are. So again, as a professional athlete, like you said,

multiply that by a thousand and you could see how it impacts somebody. But there are professional athletes that handle it better than others. And I think even when you go back to honestly, like a draft interview, that should be, you want to try and want to like drill down and see. I mean, it's very tough with an 18 year old,

but see like, is this guy going to be able to handle the scrutiny of a Canadian market? And in some cases, it puts you at a disadvantage because there might be some very, very talented players that you have to say, you know what, I think you're really talented. I think you're going to be a good hockey player, but I think you're going to struggle in this hockey player, but I think you're going to have

and you're going to struggle in this market. Well, you know, if the Canucks did some due diligence and never mind the Canucks, but any team that's, you know, concerned about that, maybe go talk to some organizations like, I don't know, the New York Yankees, the New York Jets, the Boston Red Sox, teams that have unbelievable media pressure and scrutiny on them in major markets and find out what they do to see what tells they have in talking to prospects or players that would make them fit in that market, perhaps it wouldn't make them fit in that market.

So there's an idea there because there are markets, like you said, that have had successful teams and you wonder what type of markers they're looking for in terms of prospects and players that can play in those markets. Before we let you go, it's not quite a food related ask us anything on a Friday. It's more like a tell us anything. It's an anecdote from Moj. Two of our Friday favorites met this week, Moj and AJ from AJ's Pizza on Broadway. I almost found out who Jimmy Ace is, by the way, but anyway, I'll get to that in a second.

So last week at a meeting, downtown Vancouver, and a business meeting, so I figured, you know, be a nice guy, I'm gonna bring a pizza from AJ's, right? Because the meeting was in Mount Pleasant, AJ's is right there on Broadway in Kingsway. So I phoned in, ordered my pizza, said I'm gonna pick it up at one o'clock,

I get in there, and AJ sees me, and AJ walks over, goes, Moj, she goes, I'm so glad we finally meet and we start chatting. Lo and behold, we played on four of the same slow pitch team, the legendary Squids, which ruled Riverway Park in Burnaby after crushing everybody in North Van and Mahon Park. Anyway, the Squids, I'd left the Squids, and the year after, the year after that, AJ had come and played for the squids, and he played with all these guys that I knew,

and we sat there for like 15 minutes, just talking about all the guys that we knew on that team, and one of the guys on our team actually would partake, the odd dad or so, and I asked AJ if it was Freddie, if that was like, you know, Jimmy Aces, he said that wasn't Jimmy Aces, so anyway, it was, uh, we had a really good time. And by the way, the pizza is phenomenal. Absolutely phenomenal.

The few, the proud, the squids forever bonded in time, forever bonded in time. I'm glad you like the pizza. It is the best pizza in the city. I'm telling you, the pizza is phenomenal. Yep. I agree. Moj, this was awesome, dude. Thanks for doing it as always. Enjoy the weekend.

OK, guys. Have a great weekend. Yeah, you too. Thanks. That's Bob the Moj Marjanovic here on the Haliforne and Bref Show on Sportsnet 650, a presentation of the Clayton Public House. Vikingstad texts in.

There's a really good text. He said, for me, I feel for the players because they're kids. None of us handled things tremendously well in our early to mid twenties. These guys already do a pretty good job staying professional in the face of huge pressure and scrutiny. Once you're in your thirties, forties, and now fifties for some of us, it's a lot easier to not care about everything, but for me, I do have a lot of empathy

for Elias Pettersson as he's clearly a sensitive and cerebral guy and being 26, I don't care how much money he makes, it's not as easy as people think. I found it very difficult to cover this because I do have a lot of empathy for Pedersen as well, but I also want the Canucks to win. And so it's one of those things where you're like, yeah, I have empathy for the situation that he's in,

but maybe this situation isn't for him. And I think one of the big tells for me is his go to phrase, I don't want to create a headline. And he says it almost every time he talks to the media. He goes, I don't want this to be a headline, but, and then he says his piece, it's going to be a headline. And there needs to be acceptance there. And until there's acceptance there, I think it's going to be acceptance there. And until there's acceptance there,

I think it's going to be a problem. Yeah, it's one of those very hard, there's very few black and white, like conversations to have where you can just kind of say it is or it isn't, or, you know, this is this and this is that. But I think that is one of them, that this team in this market is the be all and end all. And people are gonna talk about it, whether there's a million people at practice covering it,

or like yesterday where there was zero people at practice. I don't wanna cut you off here, and I apologize for cutting you off. I don't even care if you cut me off. Here's a good text. Okay. Or it's not a good text,

but I wanna read it anyway. Here is a text. Here's a good text. Okay. Or it's not a good text, but I want to read it anyway. Here is a text. Here is a text. The issue with the Vancouver market is the media in this town is they feel they are the show like this. There are bigger scumbags in this market than any other NHL city. Okay. First of all, I disagree with that.

Well, some of them. Keep going. Some of them. But here's the thing. To quote a former Canuck, it is what it is. This is the market and you can't change it. So you either accept that and you have that thought and you go, there's a lot of scumbags in this market.

And you go, I can deal with it or you can't deal with it because it's not going away. There's always a new scumbag that's ready to rise up from the gutters. Look at Josh Elliott-Wolf, young guy. Great scumbag potential. Huge, huge, huge scumbag potential. Rick Dollywell is coming up next on the Alfred and Bruff Show on Sportsnet 650.