Halford & Brough in the Morning - Can Toronto And Winnipeg Get Past The Second Round?

Episode Date: May 5, 2025

In hour two, Mike & Jason set up the Leafs Panthers series with Florida Hockey Now's George Richards (1:58), and also look ahead to Jets Stars with the Winnipeg Free Press' Ken Wiebe (24:29). 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.

7.03 on a Monday. It's an 80s Monday here on the Haliford and Bref Show on Sportsnet 650. I like it. I like it. I don't know. You might have oversold me on it a bit. It's pretty good. For unlicensed music. I want this on my Spotify. Like, this is great. You are listening to the Haliford and Bref show on Sportsnet 650. Haliford and Bref this morning is brought to you by Sands and Associates, BC's first

and trusted choice for dead health with over 3,000 five-star reviews. Visit them online at Sands-Trustee.com. We are now in hour two of the program. George Richards from Florida Hockey Now is going to join us in just a moment here to kick off hour two. It's the Panthers, it's the Leafs tonight, 5 o'clock from Toronto, Game 1 of their second round series. Hour 2 of this program is brought to you by Jason Hominuk at Jason.Mortgage.

If you love giving the banks more of your money, then don't let Jason shop around to find the perfect mortgage for you. I am just joking, let him do that. Visit him online at Jason.Mortgage. We are coming to you live from the Kintec studio, Kintec footwear and orthotics, working together with you and step Shout out to Kevin and port Moody who texted in he said I missed our one Did you guys do anything on the Washington Capitals? I replied nope. He replied weak. I replied bro. They haven't played since Wednesday. I don't know

What would we talk about? Yeah, I haven't played any hockey. They are gonna play Carolina yeah on Tuesday, right? And we'll talk about them on Tuesday right now. Maybe well, maybe I don't want to promise anything But right now though, we're gonna talk about the Florida Panthers in the Toronto Maple Leafs joining us now from Florida hockey now George Richards here on the Halford and Brough show on sportsnet 650 morning George. How are you? Good we can talk about the Capitals if you want. I mean, you know, I mean, the old southeast division, you know.

Man, rest in peace. Rest in peace, the southeast division, the Atlanta Thrasher's and the southeast division, man. The Thrasher's, oh boy, I miss those trips to Atlanta. I'll tell you that. Let's set up this series here. Let's talk about the earlier series though. Florida rather easily dispatching of Tampa Bay in the Battle of Florida.

What was your big takeaway from that first round victory for the Panthers? Just the way that the Panthers completely smothered the Lightning I think was the biggest thing. I mean you look at that line up for Tampa, and they've got some real firepower there. But Florida's depth, going into it, I don't think people understood how good Florida is and how deep they are. They legitimately are rolling four lines. Their defense is maybe not as strong as it was last year,

but it's still pretty good. Um, and they won three games without Aaron Echblad in the lineup because of the, because of the, the various suspensions. So, um, you know, Florida Tampa Bay just, just couldn't answer me. Florida's third line, um, with Lundell, Luz, Serin and, and, and Marsha and Tampa Bay had no answers for it. For the Tampa Bay had no answers for Florida's fourth line. So, um, you know, the Panthers were just able to take Tampa Bay out of their game. Uh,

they made Kuturov extremely uncomfortable and he, you know, had a couple of sifts, but really didn't do a whole lot. And, uh, yeah, I don't know if it was, you know, I don't know if they, they blew that series out. They won won in five the games were all close except, you know in the third The Panthers were able to ease away in a couple of them But yeah Panthers looked really really good in that series was Vasilevsky off in that series I mean had an 872 in the series or was there something that Florida did or was that the guys in front of them because it's I know goalies go up and down and sometimes you can have a short sample

in the playoffs, but 8.72 for Vasilevsky really stands out. Yeah, he wasn't great, right? Game one, the Panthers really made him uncomfortable. The Panthers were crashing the net. They got, in the first period of game one, they got two deflection goals to take a 2-1 lead into the second. And that seemed to really rattle them. period of game one, they got two deflection goals to take a 2-1 lead into the second. And that seemed to really rattle them. And then Florida did a real good job of getting

in his face and getting some things through traffic. And yeah, that's just the way that kind of went for Vazzy. We're speaking to George Richards from Florida Hockey Now here on the Haliford and Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. What are you seeing from Matthew Kachak? How's he looking? He looks okay. I mean, you know, he's not, I don't think anywhere close to 100%. I wrote about this last week. I won't be surprised if, you know, when all things are said and done that they announce that he's gonna need surgery on something. I mean, we've assumed that this is a groin injury. It could be something else.

You know, because he got hurt. He got hurt, you know, at the Four Nations and they've been kind of mum about what it is and, you know, there were rumors that he flew to, you know, Germany to get checked out. So that doesn't sound like a normal groin injury to me. Those are, you know, those are things that I think you can kind of fix with a, you know, your team doctor, but he went and saw some specialists about it. So I think it's probably more serious. I saw him on the ice. I believe it was Saturday where he was just, you know, doing long slow strides up and down the ice,

trying to get that feeling better. So yeah, but he's, you know, he's a gamer. He's going to play, you know, the Panthers, you know, Paul Maurice said they weren't limiting his minutes in the final three games of the series, but he's still, you know, only average what, 11, 12 minutes in the entire series. So they're definitely keeping an eye on him. That's for sure.

I want to talk about two new additions to the Panthers, lineup Brad Marshawn and Seth Jones. Let's start with Marshawn. What's he brought to the team? He brought Brad Marshawn to the table, right? I mean, he's a guy that, you know, when you heard about it, when I floated the idea a week before the trade deadline,

people were like, come on, that's not going to happen. He's not going to play for the Panthers. How's that room going to react to them? And you know, the first thing the guy does is get on the team techs chain and start chirping guys. I mean, they loved it. I mean, he's, he's fit right in. Um, he does his kind of things.

And I'll tell you what, he's really awoken. Uh, I think he's kind of awoken the beast of Anton Lundell and that to Luster Reinen those two are solid defensive players with a little bit of offensive punch but Paul Maurice has said that though you know those two guys have a lot more to offer offensively and Brad Marsh and really opened that up Luster Reinen had three goal and three assists the other night L Lindell's got a couple goals in this series and you know they're crediting a lot of that to Brad because you know Marshan's just you know driving and making these great plays. He's been a terrific addition to the Panthers.

Is Lindell one of the most underrated players in the league? Yeah I mean you know like Marshan set, he said when he got here, he thought that Lindell was 2829 years old because he's been around the Panthers so long. He's only 22. You know, first round pick in 2020. Bill Zito's first overall pick first first draft pick as GM of the Panthers. Yeah, I mean, he was he was going to be be, you know, Florida second back, you know, the number two center behind Sasha Barkov. They call him baby Barki.

He's a Barkov kind of player. And then Florida went and got Sam Bennett, you know, during that COVID 21 season. And so he's been, you know, he's been the third center. So, you know, a lot of an abundance of riches for the Panthers that down the line, when it talked about the center position. OK, let's talk about Seth Jones. What's he brought to the Panthers? I think Seth Jones was a guy that they wanted to ease in.

They were going to have him be the second right-handed defenseman behind Ekklad and, you know, pare back from what he was doing in Chicago, right? He was playing 25, 26, 27 minutes a game in Chicago. They wanted to keep him around 20. And then two games later, Eklad gets suspended. So now he's playing 25, 26, 27 minutes a game with the Panthers. And I'll tell you what, I think it was kind of a blessing in disguise, um, because he had to be, he had to be forced into more things with Florida that maybe they didn't want him to do. And now that Eklat's out again, um, you know,

Seth Jones has stepped right in. He's been terrific in these playoffs. I think it took him a minute to adjust. Um, and he's still adjusting to the, to the Florida system and the way that Paul Maurice plays. Um, but he was terrific and he was terrific with Gus Forsling, um, in that five game set against Tampa Bay. And he's been a great addition. And again, I got, I got you bring in at the trade deadline.

He's got five years left on his contract. You're only paying him 7 million a year because Chicago's picking up $12 million of his salary. I mean, I mean, just a, just a great move and a great fit. Um, what does the future hold for, for Sam Bennett in, in Florida? Uh, a lot of zeros. I mean, he's going to get a nice paycheck, right?

I think he stays. I think Florida had this same issue last year with Sam Reinhart and I don't think anybody outside of the Panthers ever was worried that Sam Reinhart was gonna go chasing that bigger payday somewhere else. Reinhardt, if you remember, played in Buffalo and was miserable with the losing. I think Bennett remembers a time in Calgary where he wasn't very happy. He wasn't happy with the way he was playing and the role he was playing. Ever since he's come to Florida, things have really changed for Sam Bennett. So he's going to get a nice paycheck with the Panthers. He could probably get a million bucks, maybe a million and a half somewhere else.

But I think at the end of the day, he resigns with the Panthers and they keep the band together. So everything is going so well for the Panthers and you look at this lineup and it's hard to find much of a weakness. Just to play devil's advocate here, if you were to think of one thing that Toronto could take advantage of in this series, what could it potentially be? Well, their power play, right? They've got their five top scores on that top power play unit. If that thing gets going, because Florida does take penalties. I mean, it's just the way they play. Um,

but Florida killed off 16 of 18 against Tampa Bay, but, but, but Toronto runs a completely different system. Um, they take a lot more risks, which, which could lead to, you know, some shorthanded chances for Sam Reinhart and company the other way. But I think if the power play gets going, it continues to get going. They had six goals against Ottawa. So Toronto can bring it when they've got that man advantage. And if they can get that going, yeah, Florida, yeah, they could

definitely push the Panthers here. Yeah. So it's a tough situation then when you go into a series because the Florida Panthers would not be the Florida Panthers if they didn't play physical and if they didn't play aggressive and they played right up to the line, but you don't want to get to the point where you're given that Leafs power play too many chances. So what do you think the message is going to be to the Panthers? Well, you know, the officiating is different in the playoffs though too, right? So

you just have to kind of feel your way and see what's being called, what's not being called. They can't do dumb stuff. I mean, there can't be any retribution kind of stuff like Eklad did against Brandon Hagel the other night against Tampa Bay. You know, Sam Bennett had that big hit on eyes in the first time that Toronto and Florida played. That wasn't a penalty, but then that turned into some retribution stuff too on Toronto's side. So you just, you just got to be careful because you know how powerful that power play is. And special teams are so big in the playoffs because you don't get as many chances

as maybe you do in the regular season. I mean, how many games have we seen, you know, during the regular, you know, on a Tuesday night in February where you've got, you know, four or five, six penalties called in the first period, but you don't see that in the playoffs. So when teams do get that advantage, it can be a gigantic lift. Do you see the Leafs as a more mature team or, I don't know, just more of a playoff style team with Craig Berube behind the bench and some of the changes they made to the blue line?

I absolutely do. Oh yeah. I've been very impressed, um, with the Toronto Maple Leafs all year long. Um, I know they, they, they ran into some, you know, there were some bumps in, you know, bumps in the road, but that happens to every team, especially a team like that that's got high expectations and, and, and, and, that's got high expectations and they're looking to do some big things. They've got the team to do it. Craig Barube, it was a terrific addition behind that bench because he's been there, right?

He's done it. He was at the St. Louis Blues. He's been a great coach. He's kind of settled things in there. He's not a guy, and I'm not even, this isn't even a knock on Sheldon Keefe because I thought he was a terrific coach, but Craig Barube is just a different voice back there and a different kind of,

has a different kind of handle on things. And yeah, I think he was a terrific pick for Toronto and they are a different team. This is a completely different series. Even though a lot of the core guys are still there from when the Panthers played there in 2023, this is a very, very different series. I imagine the Panthers have the attention of the

local market, which must be fun for you as a guy that's covered the team for so long. And oftentimes, you know, oh, do we still have a hockey team here? I imagine, you know, you get those types of questions, but with the way the Miami Heat went out of the playhouse, which was not particularly impressive, the Panthers have to be a pretty popular group right now. Yeah, they are.

And, you know, well, listen, when the Heat and the Panthers are playing, even though they play in, you know, different buildings and sometimes they a lot of times they play on the same days. It did create a lot of interest because people were talking about both but now the spotlights on the Panthers, all the local TV stations are now focused on the Panthers and the Marlins. Let's not forget about the Marlins guys. They're still here too. How can we forget about the Marlins. Let's not forget about the Marlins guys. I mean, you know, they're still here. How can we forget about the Marlins? Nobody, nobody talks about the Marlins. Yeah. So we know it's, yeah, the Marlins are the Panthers of, you know, 20 years ago. So, um, yeah, it's been good. I mean, the, the, the, the community's really rallied around this team

because you know, we always said the Panthers have to win in a market like this, where it's a, it's a, it's a big, big event market. It's a big, you know, you've got to win, but, but not just one year. And that was the problem with the Panthers. They've winning, you know, 2012, they win and then they're a last place team for two, three years. Then they win again. Then they're back out of the playoffs.

This has been consistent, but this is their sixth straight run to the postseason. Uh, they've made a couple of deep. And I think fans down here now can believe in this team. And it feel like, yeah, this is legit. This is big. And they've jumped on. Yeah, I mean, that's what I wanted to discuss before we let you go is that you're looking at a third consecutive Stanley Cup final

if they're able to run the gauntlet this year. And for a lot of teams, you know, the challenge there is how physically taxing that would be after two long previous seasons and short off seasons. But Florida, things broke really well for them this year. Like I know the Eklat suspension wasn't ideal, but it did give them. Good rest.

Gave them a good rest prior to the playoffs. I mean, Matthew Kuchak gets hurt and yeah, you'd like him at 100%, but he also got to rest an awful lot before the playoffs started. Brad Marshon comes aboard, there's no real pressure for him to get integrated and perform right away because they've got a good cushion

and they're going into the postseason, they know this at the Four Nations break. So in a way, they're almost better suited than a lot of other teams to get back and keep this run going where, yeah, it's a third Stanley Cup final in a row which is very difficult to do, but this one feels like it's different circumstances

than a lot of the previous ones. And if Matthew Kachuk doesn't get hurt, right, you don't have Seth Jones. Sure. You don't have Brad Marchand. You don't have Nico St jones sure you don't have brad marsha and you don't have nico sturm who they brought in the tip of the at a week in a you know we have penalty

killing and and their fourth line they bring in him from san jose they were able to make you know eight million dollars worth of additions because matthew kichuck was on l t i r so they were able to improve their team uh... yeah you get a lot you lost twenty gain twenty five 25 games of Matthew Kachuk, but it was the regular season Who cared you were gonna finish in the top three in the Atlantic anyway, so and that's what they did They finished number three and yeah, they are they are pretty well suited for this There's some new faces in this but but got you know, but the core of this Florida Panthers team

We're approaching 300 games played in the past three seasons. I mean, they have played a ton of hockey, but you wouldn't know it by watching them. This team looks fresh, it looks ready to go. And you saw game one against Tampa Bay. If you watched it, there was some concern that, maybe Paul Maurice lightened up a little bit the final weeks and the Panthers were going to come in rusty.

They flipped that switch. They look like, they look like the defending Stanley Cup champions that entire Tampa Bay series. Hey George, I asked you about Sam Bennett and you said you think the Panthers will find a way to keep them. Is the same true for, for Echblad? I would think so. The Panthers have about 20 million under the cap and their three main concerns are Bennett, Aaron Echblad and restricted free agent Mackie Samuskevich, their rookie winger, who right now is a healthy scratch these past couple games, but has had had a terrific year, his first NHL season with Florida. And then you've got to fill in the other little things. So yeah, I think, yeah, they want to sign Eklad. You know, he's not going to not here anyway, not going to make what he was making. But he's a lifer down here. I

mean, his whole life is here in South Florida. He doesn't want to leave the Panthers don't want him to leave You know there were times during the season with Ekblad out. He had an injury in January And then he gets suspended in March where you saw that how how different the Panthers play when he's not in the lineup So that was a good that was a good advertisement for the Aaron Ekblad experience, right? Because they did need him and that definitely helped his cause even though he was suspended and even that kind of thing. But yeah, I think he stays, but time will tell. Top five name, Macky Samuskevich. That's a good one.

That's a great name, right? That's a really great name. And Luis Doreanan? E2 Luis Doreanan? Yeah, that's a good one. That's Luis D name, right? That's a really great name. Really, really, and Lewis Doreenan. E2 Lewis Doreenan? Yeah. That's a good one. Yeah, that's Lewis Doreenan. Yeah.

We got some names. You got some names down there. Pretty good hockey team and some names. George, always fun catching up with you. Enjoy the series against Toronto. All right. Be good, boys. Thanks, George.

Thanks, buddy. That's George Richards from Florida Hockey Now here on the Haliford and Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. It's time now for the One to Watch brought to you by Delaney's OK Tire. Very befitting on the heels of a Florida Panthers interview with George Richards. Tonight's One to Watch, Brad Marshawn. Yeah, Brad Marshawn is 37 years old now. Yeah, he's in the twilight of his career.

Yeah, he's a third liner for the Florida Panthers, but it's still Brad Marshawn against the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight. Game one of their second round series. Here are some fun facts. Toronto has never beaten Brad Marshawn in a playoff series. 0 for 4 head to head in every single series that the Leafs played against Brad Marshawn's Boston Bruins team

since he entered the league. In 27 playoff games against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Brad Marshawn has put up a cool 29 points, 10 goals and 19 assists. Of those 10 goals that he scored against the Maple Leafs over the course of his playoff career, four of them are of the game winning variety. And here's the capper that you need to know since breaking into the NHL and

making his debut in 2009, 10, no player has recorded more playoff points against the Toronto Maple Leafs than Brad Marshawn. So he is your one to watch tonight. It's time to put on your Toyo tires, whether you drive a car, light truck or van. Toyo tires are designed to perform in all kinds of conditions. Visit Delaney's okay tire in Langley and Alder Grove. Okay tire service, repair, and tires. You're listening to the Halford and Brough show on Sportsnet 650.

Hey, it's Jamie Dodd and Thomas Strance. 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. 731 on a Monday. 80s Monday, a manic Monday if you will. You're listening to the Haliford & Brev Show on Sportsnet 650. Haliford & Brev of the Morning is brought to you by Sands and Associates. Learn how a consumer proposal reduces your debt by, hey, get this, 80%. I love the symmetry. With no more interest, of course. Visit them online at sands-trustee.com. We are in hour two of the program. Hour two is brought to you by Jason Hominuk from 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.

This is an online adjacent mortgage. This has eighties movie vibes for sure. It's like Michael J. Fox in bright lights, big city. Yeah. Well, I can't believe I'm in the big city with bright lights coming summer 1984. So I was saying that yesterday's game seven between the Winnipeg Jets and the St. Louis Blues is one of the best game sevens that I've ever witnessed. And I can say that without hyperbole and there's no recency bias.

It's tough to make arguments like this because there's, you know, the generational aspect and it was a first round series. Like, does that add or take away from it was a first round series. Does that add or take away from it? I don't know. When you try and talk about it, I usually just try and make my point by saying,

was it something unique, rare, something we'd never seen before? We need to consider that Cole Profetti scored the second-latest game-tying goal in Stanley Cup Playoffs history. The latest game-seven tying goal ever. It was also the third-longest game-seven in NHL history. So I don't know if it's the greatest game-seven

of all time, but it's in the running, just on those facts alone. Let's go to the phone lines now and bring in Ken Wiebe from the Winnipeg Free Press here on the Halferd and Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Good morning, Ken, how are you? Good morning, gentlemen, doing tremendous thanks. Wild scene for sure, and spent the last half hour

watching a bunch of the clips. Because even sometimes when you're in the building, when you're on deadline the way that I was, you see a bunch of things, but you're looking at the keyboard and you don't really catch all in the building. When you're on deadline the way that I was, you know, you see a bunch of things, but you're looking at the keyboard and you don't really catch all of the aftermath. So yeah, it was a crazy night, one of the craziest things I've ever witnessed and that's from someone guys who was in the building at Sky Dome for the Batista bat flip. I was at US Bank Stadium for the Ds touchdown unbelievable Minnesota miracle.

And I was in the building in St. Louis for Pat Maroon's double overtime winner to in game seven to beat the blue or beat the stars in the year they won the cup. And I'm, you know, I'm still, you know, it was just wild. The scene was wild. The prophetic triangle is, is crazy. And you know, the building went wild after the Lowry redirection. So yeah, I mean, what a scene.

I mean, this is why we're privileged to cover the sport that we do. Well, I think the scene brought a lot of Vancouver Aids back to the first round that the Canucks had against the Blackhawks in 2011 and the Canucks were up three nothing in that series. They'd won the president's trophy as well. And then Chicago came back to force a game seven

and then Chicago forced overtime. So there, there are some differences, but there was that general feeling like, oh my God, are we going to actually lose in the first round after winning the president's trophy? So tell us what the vibe was in the building when late in the third period, the blues were up two goals and Connor Hellebuck was, let's face it, a

big reason why the jets were about to lose to the St. Louis Blues. Yeah, I'd even rewind to the second period guys, just dominated the second period, but giving up the goal to fax a you know it's 34.1 to go it was a huge deflator because the Jets had played so well it looked like they were pressing, Blues had sat back and completely changed their game. Yet this is a team that has done a great job of rallying all year long they leaned on their belief system they you know cranked up

the intensity without raising the risk profile. And quite frankly, Connor Hellebuck, who is not nearly good enough in the series, went back to being Connor Hellebuck after giving up that goal. He went almost a full 60 minutes, I think it was 54 minutes and change without allowing a goal. He got back to his structure. I know he has a talk about it more with Kevin Woodley. He's more of a goalie expert, obviously than I am, but Helibut got back to being himself. He was challenging on the Kairou chance in early in the second overtime. He got out of his crease. He had played a little bit far back for a good chunk of the series, got back to being

aggressive, while not being overly aggressive. He went back to being the confident goaltender who's going to win his third Vezna and may just win the hard trophy. And, you know, I feel like this is a massive, you know, exhale for Connor Hell, not just for the Jets, Jets fans, the organization, you know, an organization that was in danger of losing three consecutive first round series, you know, once as the tide for fourth in the NHL and once as the best team in the regular season.

So, I mean, yes, Connor Hellebuck is going to have to be way better in round two. It wasn't all on Connor Hellebuck. The structure in front of them had, you know, I wouldn't say been punctured, but definitely was, you know, the blues did things to the projects that not a lot of teams did during the year. So, but again, great goalie matchup. I mean, we know there's history with Bennington and Hellebuck in terms of, you know, one series in 2019 and obviously four nations face off this year. Connor Hellebuck didn't want to lose one more time to Jordan

Bennington and Bennington was tremendous, but Hellebuck got it done when it mattered. And, you know, now he's going to have to go up against Jake Ottinger who, you know, for the last two weeks, all Connor Hellebuck's been hearing is about how Jay Gottinger should be the new starter for team USA in Italy next year. So I think it's a, another level of intrigue, but you know, you guys saw it with Scott Elk, I mean, Connor, uh, that was a mentally taxing series for him, but, uh, it feels like he maybe exercised a few

of those demons, uh, last evening and, and we'll see what it means moving forward here in the second round and beyond potentially. If you were to harbor a guess and just harbor a guess, what do you think is going on with Halibut? Because I watched the same walk-off interview that you did. There's obviously something between the ears because he addressed it right away about how mentally taxing this series was and I know goaltending doesn't exist in a vacuum. That's a Woodley classic. He loves that line and you have to account for the play in front of him.

But there's also what's going on internally. And again, if you had to harbor a guess, what do you think is going on with Hellebuck right now? Well, I mean, as someone who's covered his entire career since he was drafted in 2012 in the fifth round, Connor is very much a power of positivity person. And I would say guys, the fact that he even came out after game four is a tough

outing and getting pulled for the second time and said, I'm going to be better. I mean, for him, he's a, I like my game. I love my details no matter if he gives up zero or if he gives up six. So he was looking internally again, he's an outwardly confident person. He played like his confidence was shaken to a degree. That's what I saw. I don't think it's second guessing. This is a guy who believes in himself. He's had to believe in himself. He was passed over in the USHL draft, had to go through the NAHL in order to get to

college, you know, fifth round draft pick, a member of the Odessa Jackalopes, not a lot of Odessa Jackalopes alumni in the running for the heart trophy guys with all due respect to the program there. Connor is a guy who it's funny, maybe funny is not the right word, but for players you have to find another level in the playoffs, right? You got to raise your level. Even if you're the best player in the league, you have to do better. For a forward, that's maybe a little bit easier. You can skate a little bit harder, you can hit a little bit harder, you can lay out and block a shot that maybe you don't block in game 61. For a goalie, you just had one of the best seasons in NHL history. It's tough to ask more

of yourself. And Connor's the kind of guy that puts a lot of pressure on himself. He flat out said before the playoffs, my goal in every game is to get a shutout. And guess what? In the playoffs, that's an incredibly heavy burden to be lifting. So I do think that that is part of it. But I think Halibut kind of got to the point where he was like, you know what, screw it. I just can't give up another one after giving up the third. And that sort of allowed, there seemed to be like a weight lifted off his shoulders.

I don't think it's the weight of expectation, but I do think it is something, you know, where he was just trying to do a little bit too much. And I guess it's a natural feeling. You guys saw it too with Luongo, right? I mean, I was in the building too in 2011 in game seven. I think Luongo had a great series. And when the other guy at the other end, Tim Thomas, is playing the way that he did, it's almost impossible not to put a little extra pressure on yourself. So again, I'm fascinated to see how it goes from here. Connor knew he needed to play better. He did play better, but you know,

if the Jets want to win the Stanley Cup, which is their goal, their goal wasn't just to get out of the first round here, guys. I mean, that's the thing that I know, you know, as someone who writes in this market and has for a long time, the first step in the narrative was show those folks that you're not going to crumble under pressure in the first round. But that's just the second round win since 2018, the magic carpet ride to the Western

Conference Finals. So four out of 16 is a start, but I mean, their ultimate goal for the Jets is to win the cup. So I don't think that Connor Helbook is going to be parading around and saying, Hey man, I beat Pennington in game seven, I'm good now. Like he wants to win the Stanley Cup and he knows that in order to do that, he needs to be elite level Connor Hellebuyck.

Um, Ken, I'm always fascinated by the way these guys think, especially the goalies with all, with all the pressure on them. Um, tell us a bit more about when you talk about he's a power of positive thinking guy. Um, what do you mean by that? Well, I mean, it's, it's, I'm going to struggle here with an actual title, but it's all, the root

of it is, is a book about positivity and self belief, and it's sort of has been at the core of Connor Helbuck since he was a teenager and he sort of leaned on those principles throughout, uh throughout and for folks in your market. I mean, early in his first year as a starter, he just went through a stretch that year. He got pulled eight times by Paul Maurice. And every time, one of the, one of the classic Hellebuckian moments is after getting pulled twice in two games, he came out to the media and said, I love my game.

I feel like I'm going to win multiple Veznas. And everyone who was in the scrum is looking at each other after it's over and we're like, what planet is this guy living on? It was one of those things where you love the confidence and you need to have it because guess what? If you don't believe in yourself as a goalie, you're not going to last in the league at all. But everyone was kind of like, it just seemed like it was from a strange place. And the other one too, 2018, Marc-André Fleury rocked about a 960 save percentage in the

series with the Jets. And between one of the games in Vegas, Hellebuck said, I like my game more than Fleury's. And everyone in the scrum is like, but how, how can you like it more than the other guy that is, you know, up three, one in the series and is rocking a safe percentage that's, you know, 40 points higher than yours. But you know, it just, he loves to compete. He's an incredible competitor and you know, his self-belief is what's got him here guys. And that's again, some people, if you don't know Connor Hellebuck, you're thinking, oh man,

what is this guy talking about? But if you've been around him for 10 plus years, you're kind of like, well, that's just on brand for Hellebuck. I mean, just like the other day, I mean, it was great that he said, um, I'm gonna, I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be better. But you know, everyone else is scratching their head saying, I studied gold tending more than anybody in like basically in the history of hockey. So if you don't know how to help, but you think

there's this bravado and there is confidence, but this is a guy who is a very studious person. It has allowed him to get to where he is. Uh, and you know, it's conceivably what's going to get him over the top if he can get there. Um, yeah, it's, the, the self-talk and just the refusal to, uh, let any of the negative thoughts in despite it all. Um, let's talk about the health of the Winnipeg Jets.

Uh, take us through the biggest concerns right now. Sure. I mean, Josh Morrissey leaving that game in the first period with what looked like a left shoulder issue is obviously a massive blow. Um, the five D that played were exceptional Neil Pionk over, it was a Kevin Biax tonight, uh, 46 plus minutes for Pionk in that game, assisting on the game winner, three assists in the game.

Um, Mark Shifely skated briefly. I was at the rink guys on Saturday morning when Mark was out on the track suit and a helmet, you know, raising the, you know, the anticipation that maybe he can be ready for game seven. The Jets have not confirmed anything, but to me that looked like a guy in concussion protocol trying to clear one of the next steps. You know, because it happened in game five and the series starts in game seven, I think we see Mark Shifely on the ice on Tuesday when the Jets get back here to practice. Will it be non-contact or regular jersey? That I'm not certain, but I do think that if it is a concussion, and again,

not confirmed by anybody, could be any number of things based on the hits from Shannon Foxa. confirmed by anybody. Could be any number of things based on the hits from Shannon Foxa. I do think that Marc Schafer will be available early in the series with Dallas if it's for game one. I couldn't say for certain at this moment. Ehlers just back for his second game, Velarde for his third. Obviously Ehlers had a hand on the third goal, coughing up the puck at the offensive blue line, but he also made one of the most exceptional passes, you know, that you will see. Yes, there's luck involved because he flubbed the one timer shot.

It was incredible. It was incredible. Well guys, and here's the other thing. That was intentional I'll say. No, no, but the stones that it took for him to go cross to Kyle Connor, like for anyone who didn't see it, go look but the stones that it took for him to go cross to Kyle Connor, like for anyone who didn't see it, go look at the replay. Braden Shen is in position.

He's not, he's not, he's not, it's not a missed assignment play. Braden's like, there's no way this guy's going to try to pass it across because I'm here. And he got it passed him to Kyle Connor for that cold for Fetty redirection. So Ehlers continuing to kind of work his way back from a lower body injury and obviously big huge impact in the game and Valarie starting to get back up to speed. I thought that was Gabe's dust game since being back. I mean it's only been a couple but he changes the dynamic especially on the power play when he's out there. His hands down low are exceptional. So on the health front, I would say they are improving but similar to Dallas, you know, with Haysken and Robertson, you know, kind of on

the verge of coming back, whether it's game one or early, both teams dealing with some serious bumps and bruises. On the other part, everyone who watched the series knows how physical it was. So obviously there'll be some guys banged up and the fact that they start on Wednesday should be beneficial and I mean Adam Lowry who came through with one of the biggest games and You know his Jets history also has looked banged up to a degree from that series in the physical toll, but you know looked Obviously, he's feeling a little better. Your health feels a lot better after you tip in the GWG. That's for sure I'm glad you brought up Lowry because that's exactly where I wanted to go to finish this hit.

Um, so on that sequence we were just talking about, it was actually, so Lowry picked up the flub puck from Ehlers, if I'm not mistaken, and made the bold decision to give it back to Ehlers. I'm like, go anywhere else with the puck right now. Ehlers looked like he was handling it like a live grenade, but it was a pretty sharp play to make because obviously it led to the 3-3 goal. Then Lowry comes back and scores in overtime. It was funny, I don't know if you caught it, but TNT did an interview with him and Rick

Bonus was on the desk. They had a really nice moment where they were both telling each other how much they loved each other. Then Lowry went on like minute long explanation about the city of Winnipeg and how it gets a bad rap and you know how he loves playing there and the guys love playing there. And you know, I don't want to put too much into like the vibe check and the magic and the mystique and everything, but it does feel like something happened last night that's special. If they can get healthy, I do wonder if that's gonna be a catalyst for them moving forward in terms of vibe and momentum

and everything else. And I do wonder if the captain, the way that Lowry plays and the way that, you know, he's not a typical captain and he's not their biggest scorer and he's not their first liner or anything like that. But he's a heart and soul guy for a heart and soul team and a heart and soul city.

And I do wonder if there's something there moving forward. Yeah, well spoken and well said. I mean, Adam Lowry is, you know, at the, he would, you know, he doesn't get all the credit, but he gets a lot of the credit and Rick bonus when he stripped the captaincy from Blake Wheeler and named Adam Lowry, the captain after one season after that, uh, he embodies

and, and when he sees it, I saw the interview, he embodies what the Winnipeg jets are, what the city of Winnipeg is, what the province of Manitoba is, he is a working class player who works his behind off every single game gives you what he has. He is an inclusive person, uh, allows other voices to be heard. He is, uh, for the majority of the year guys, he played on the best checking line in the national hockey league. guys, he played on the best checking line in the national hockey league. Yes, there were injuries to others and you know, there's

other other lines that have great players on it. But this is a legit selkie candidate who you know, comes up big in the biggest moments and is someone who's appreciative of the community he lives in. He's a ton of does a ton of stuff off the ice with a bunch of different charities here and is a guy who absolutely loves what it, you know, what loves the culture that's being built and he's right at the heart of that culture. And also he's been a big performer on the ice and, you know, delivered the biggest moment and you know, again, it's not the biggest moment in franchise history because they have

a game seven victory on the road in round two against the president's trophy winner in 2018. They won game one against Vegas in the Western Conference final, but there's no more dramatic moment than that. For the Jets 1.0 fans, they have the Dave Ellett goal, but that's in game four and gave the Jets a 3-1 lead in a series they lost to the Oilers in seven. Vancouver fans would know about Vancouver beating the jets in a game seven.

And, you know, again, if I'm going to the memory bank as a teenager, I want to say Greg Adams, but, uh, I'm not, maybe I'm not a hundred percent. It was either Adams or Courtney who had a massive goal in that series. So I allow her just an incredibly great human. What you, what you saw from him on TV, that's what he's like. He's very respectful to deal with.

He's one of the most insightful players in the NHL. He could either coach or be a general manager currently. He knows everything about every player in the league, but he's still a pretty darn good player and I don't think he wants to get into either of those things until after he's done playing, but a great person, great leader. And, you know, again, he is at the heart of the culture change with the Winnipeg Jets and, you know, he, he's a, he's a great person who came up with a great leader. And, you know, again, he is at the heart of the culture change with the Winnipeg Jets. And, you know, he's a great person who came up

with a great moment. Ken, awesome stuff today, man. Thank you very much for doing this. Let's do this again. When the Jets Stars series gets underway. Sounds great. Always great to be with you guys. Have a great day here and enjoy the rest of the rounds.

How about that Miko Rantanen? Yeah, no kidding. Talk about him next. Yeah. Thanks Ken. Appreciate this bud. Cheers guys. Ken Wiebe from the Winnipeg Free Press here on

the Halford and Bref Show on Sportsnet 650. So I do want to play the audio cause we isolated it and clipped it. This is the TNT panel with Paul Bissonette and Liam McHugh and Ace, Anson Carter and Rick Bonas. Does anyone else call him Ace or just him? Just him. Just him?

What's up, hey dog, it's Ace. Who? So they go through about half the interview and then Rick Bonas jumps in and I think it starts with, hey Adam, it's Bones or something along those lines. I don't know how well it's gonna resonate on radio because you could actually see both of them kinda getting just a little misty-eyed when they acknowledged that they were talking to one another after this big moment.

This is Rick Bonas and Adam Lowry, of course. But we'll try it anyway. Here's the back and forth between Bones and Adam Lowry after Adam Lowry's double OT winner in game seven to send the Winnipeg Jets onto the second round. It's Bones, listen. Oh, Bones.

You know what I think of you. Oh, you'll bring a tear to my eye. I know, man, I know. Listen, that's why you're captain. That effort and that gutsy effort from that team tonight personifies you, your work ethic, your team commitment, your compete. Man, I couldn't be happier for you. You know I love you, you know personifies you, your work ethic, your team commitment, your compete. Man, I couldn't be happier for you.

You know I love you, you know I miss you, and I couldn't be happier for you, man. You're doing a great job, keep it going. Good luck against Dallas, but man, I'm very, very proud of you. Thanks, Bones. Those words mean a lot to me. I love you, I appreciate the relationship, the time we got to spend together,

even getting to catch up at the end of March. And glad Judy's doing well too. So we miss you in Winnipeg. I know you might be a little torn, two former teams, but we're going to always take care of our cornicles. No, no, we're Jets, man. We're Jets all the way. Yeah. No, I appreciate that. I was going to have to send a care package. Ask these guys. They know it's Jets all the way. Oh, he's been living and dying. care package. Ask these guys, they know it's checks all the way. Oh, he's delimited dying.

You know, it is cool when you see, especially with a former coach and player, because sometimes those relationships can be pretty adversarial. I think you saw that locally, maybe, throughout the course of a season. But sometimes you always get the relationships between players, right?

Players reunite and they talk about the battles and the wars that they went through another and the guys in the room and there's the friendship, the coaching relationship, you know, sometimes you run afoul of your coach or vice versa. Like, you don't like each other at the end of the day, right? You don't know decisions that he's making or he's not playing me enough or he stole my power play time.

And then you watch something like that and you realize that it's, there are like those moments where, you moments where everything clicks and I know that Rigbonus is beloved in Winnipeg. Like there was, it didn't end great because there was the playoff disappointment and they never got over the hump. But he talked about taking the captaincy away from Wheeler.

Now I remember when they gave it to Lowry, like he's a heart and soul guy, but he's not a 40 goal score or a hundred point guy. And you know, it's, it was very much, he was the embodiment. And I think bonus got it of like what Winnipeg was kind of about, right? What they needed, right? Leaning it all that stuff, right? Like maybe it didn't have to be our best player, but it had to be our heart and soul. And you could see how much that meant to Lowry in the moment that his coach trusted him with that captaincy. That's a bond for life, right?

It was very cool to see it play out on television yesterday. And like everyone loves Rick bonus. Like that's a thing, right? Like a hockey lifer. Everyone loves him. His players love him. And that was, yeah, that was a really great Testament, right? Like two guys just being like, love you buddy.

Love you buddy. And then they get all misty eyed and then he had to remind him not to cheer for Dallas in the second round because he also used to coach the Stars. Ken brought me back to 1993 when Greg Adams scored and I think it was in game six. You're down the rabbit hole, aren't you? Yeah.

You're on YouTube right now, aren't you? No, I haven't been able to find the goal. I actually can't remember the goal. Game six, 1993, it's the first round against the Jets. Uh, Greg Adams scores in overtime. That was a long time ago. I mean, last year, Canada won a cup in 1993. Quite a while ago.

I do remember the next round, the Canucks losing in six to the LA Kings. I remember that. Yeah. All right. We are up against it for time. Final hour of the program. Final hour is a little different than usual because we have two guests. So I don't know what we're going to do with what we learned today. Maybe we up against it for time. Final hour of the program. Final hour is a little different than usual, because we have two guests. So I don't know what we're gonna do

with what we learned today. Maybe we'll bank them for tomorrow. Maybe we'll try and squeeze some in here and there. Eight o'clock, kevinwoodleynhl.com and Ingo magazine is gonna join us. And then at 8.30, we're gonna talk to Mark Lazarus from the Athletic. He was on the beat for the Colorado Dallas series,

which we have not talked enough about. A fantastic game seven on Saturday really only upended by the fact that there was an even better game seven on Sunday but the Miko Ranton and Heroics will talk about that. Also what comes next for Colorado after a stunning first round exit. You're listening to the Halford and Brough show on Sportsnet 650.