Halford & Brough in the Morning - New Canucks Defenseman Vincent Desharnais

Episode Date: July 3, 2024

In hour two, Mike & guest host Jamie Dodd discuss a Steven Stamkos-less Tampa Bay Lightning with TBL insider Erik Erlendsson (3:00), the boys debate if they'd trade Petey for Crosby 1-for-1 (20:00), plus they're joined by newly-acquired Canucks defenseman Vincent Desharnais (27:00). This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

You know, after the season, I knew both sides were going to want to try to get something done and do something that was mutually beneficial for both sides. It just felt like, you know, I was the one that was making a lot of the concessions and that certainly came into play. 7.01 on a Eurodance Wednesday here on the Halford and Brough show featuring Jamie Dodd on Sportsnet 650.

That voice you just heard, that was Steve Stamkos. Nashville Predators forward, Steve Stamkos. That's going to take some time to get used to. We're going to be joined by Eric Erlandson, Lightning Insider,

in just a moment here to kick off Hour 2 and to talk about Stamkos. Hour 2 of this program is brought to you by Primetime Craft Beer. Meticulously brewed for quality and taste, Primetime is full flavor without compromise. You can get some, get some, at a liquor store near you. Or you can visit the brewery to see how it's made. The Halpern Brough Show in the morning is brought to you by Vancouver Honda. Vancouver Honda is 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. Jamie? We are coming to you live from the Kintec studio. Kintec, Canada's favorite orthotics provider, powered by thousands of five-star Google reviews. Soar feet, what are you waiting for? Kintec, that's What are you waiting for? Kid Tag. That's what you're waiting for.

I just love how random sound effects just start appearing in these songs like two minutes into the review. I don't want to fade this out. I'm really feeling good here. Bring it up for a sec. And now bring it down as we are joined by Eric Erlandson, lightning insider here on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Good morning, Eric.

How are you? I feel like I need to jump around and dance here a little bit. It's almost like uro-aerobics. Pretty close. Pretty close. I'm doing a bit of chair dancing here as we get into hour two of the program. Okay, so you've been on this beat in Tampa Bay for the better part of 20 years. You've seen players come and go, beloved players come and go.

I remember when Marty St. Louis got traded to the New York Rangers. This one, though, to me, anyway, feels different. It feels like there's a certain level of animosity. Not that there wasn't when St. Louis left, but it feels like a bad breakup. It feels like Steve Stamkos is very hurt by this. Again, as a 20-year veteran of this beat, am I wrong in my assessment or does this one feel like it really hurts for the Lightning and for

Stamkos? Yeah, it's different. There's no doubt. I mean, the one other quote that he gave, you know, he talked about he was the only one making concessions. He also said it feels like you're trying to hang on to something that doesn't want to hang on to you. And, like, you know, I put that quote out on my Twitter feed, and, like, people are reacting to it. Like, oh, my God, I can't believe that. I mean, there's no doubt. He wanted to stay.

And it's not that the team didn't want to keep him. They didn't want to keep him at a high cap number. I mean, we know the cap issues that the Lightning have had throughout the years to try and keep this team competitive and everything else. And, you know, and then Sergeyev gets traded and you're thinking, okay, they found the cap space to keep Stephen Stamkos. And then Julian comes out and says, no, we did not make a more lucrative offer. You know, you just kind of, it's almost like they were showing him the door,

but they didn't want to push him out of it. Right. It just kind of, it's almost like they were showing him the door, but they didn't want to push him out of it, right? It just kind of felt that way. And, yeah, he's an iconic figure, not just for the Lightning franchise, I think for Tampa Bay sports in general, in, you know, the face of the franchise for 16 years and such a great ambassador for the team and the community in the area that, you know, he didn't want to leave, but he kind of saw the writing on the wall. And, you know, he said it too.

He said there was some bitterness. There was some, not animosity, but, you know, he kind of felt dejected from all of that. And that's certainly understandable. And I think the fan base in particular feels that same way. I can understand if a player is losing a step or there's a sharp decline or the production falls off, but Stamkos had 40 goals and 81 points in the regular season last year. And then I followed that series against Florida fairly close.

There was a lot going on in the first round, but a lot of people that I talked to said that he might have been their best performer in that first round. But a lot of people that I talked to said that he might have been their best performer in that first round series against the Florida Panthers, which again begs the question, like, why didn't they find a way to keep him around if he was that important a performer for them last year? Well, and it's not even just the performance. I mean, obviously, look, it took a great end of the regular season to hit the 40-goal mark.

I think he probably had, you know, about half those goals in the final month of the regular season to hit the 40-goal mark. I think he probably had, you know, about half of his goals in the final month of the regular season as he kind of willed the team into the playoffs. But it's that willing the team, just like he did in the playoffs, and it's the leadership skills and everything else that comes with the package that is Steve and Stamkos that they're going to miss as well. You know, I don't know if anybody saw Nate Thompson's comments the other day. Nate played here obviously a couple years with Tampa Bay. He said the Lightning were going to regret this.

It's bad karma. I don't know if I want to go that far, but it is – there are certain players in professional sports that deserve the opportunity to play out their entire career with one organization. And look, Tom Brady left the New England Patriots. We know that better than anybody in Tampa Bay and helped lead the Bucs to a Super Bowl. But it just felt like he was one of those guys, you know, the Crosbys, the Ovechkins

and everything else that deserve to stay with the franchise that drafted them. And, you know, now that's no longer going to be the case. So obviously, you know, from a fan perspective, this is a huge impact, right? As you said, face of the franchise, iconic figure in Tampa. I'm very curious to know what you think the impact for the other players will be, right? Obviously, Victor Hedman had been there and was a close, close friend of Stamkos. He'd been there with him forever. But I don't think it can be easy for a team, for the other players on the team, to lose

a player of Stamkos' stature either. How do you mean Ryan McDonough feels? Yeah. Won a couple of Cups with him, went to Nashville for a couple of years. He leaves Nashville, comes to Tampa Bay, and now Stamkos is gone. I mean, he is one of those players that people want to play with, that other players want to play with. And, you know, not just because of the on on-ice success because of who he is as a human being, right? Like he's such a great person on top of everything else that,

yeah, you know, I know Victor, Victor Hedman who signed his extension yesterday talked a little bit about it that, you know, look, it's going to take a while to be able to move on because, you know, as much as we're talking about this now, wait till September and we get to training camp, you know, wait until Jake Gensel, big, big acquisition for Tampa Bay has to start being asked about replacing Stephen Stamkos. Like this is not a story line that's going to go away anytime soon. It is going to

linger. And there's no doubt with the void in the locker room and look, leadership is not one guy. It's always a leadership group. Any player, any coach will tell you that in the NHL locker room, but he was the centerpiece of that. And Victor Hedman's a great leader. Ryan McDonough is a great leader. They have some other guys, even Nikita Kucherov has turned into, you know, a pretty good leader as well. They have leadership guys, but there's no doubt that that void is going to be, you know, noticed for a

long period of time not just in the next coming days it's going to be there and if this team gets off to a slow start we're going to be talking about it even more so the other part of this of course is you know they go with that money they free up they go and sign jake gensel so it's kind of in one sense it's stamp goes out gensel in but of course they also had to trade a really good defenseman in mhail Sergachev to open up that space. So are the Tampa Bay Lightning better now than they were last season? Well, I don't really know who Jake Gensel is.

I think that the production that Stephen Stamkos had, I think Jake Gensel can replace that offensive production. You know, he's probably a better five-on-five defender. So in that aspect, they brought in a younger player who, you know, maybe can do a few other aspects of the game a little bit better if we're looking at the on-ice product. And then a lot's going to depend on how J.J. Moser, the defenseman they picked up from Utah slash Arizona,

fits on to this back end. You know, he was a top four guy in Arizona. I don't think he's going to be asked to play top four minutes because you have Hedman and McDonough on the left side already. So a lot's going to depend on that. They get a high-end prospect in Connor Geeky, the 11th overall pick a couple of years ago. They haven't had that type of a prospect probably going back to 2013 when they

drafted Jonathan Drouin in terms of that type of player brought into the organization. So a lot's going to depend on how those players kind of come in. I don't know if I can sit here and say that they're a better team because of the intangible stuff. You know, we'll have to see once we get and see how all of this meshes together. But what if Jake Gensel can't play with Braden Point?

You know, you don't know until you know, right? And that's kind of where we're at with this team, looking at them, whether or not they're better. I think they're better, but we'll find out. We're speaking to Tampa Bay Lightning insider Eric Erlandson here on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Julian Breezeball is the guy making all these moves and making some bold ones here to try and keep the team's

Stanley Cup window open. How is he being received? Because I understand that a lot of people appreciate that he's very businesslike and, you know, it was always about the team and not about the individuals. But at the same time, there are a lot of exoduses now, plural exodi. I don't even know how that works, but where a lot of people leaving, a lot of people leaving and a lot of fan favorites in particular especially stamko so how is julian

breezebaugh uh being received by fans right now uh there's no doubt he's taking heat i mean you know you can't let a player of steven stamko's caliber uh and look we can talk about the alex calhoun's le Palats. We all know the cap crunch that the Lightning were in when those players had to leave the organization as well. But they're not Stephen Stamkos. And that's the big problem.

So he is definitely taking heat. Certainly I've seen it on my social media feeds over the last couple days and some of the comments and the stuff that I've written on my website and everything else, there's, there's some anger, there's some angst, there's some disappointment. You know, there's are some on the other side who want to look at it, you know, and take a step back and remove some of the emotion from it and look at it.

You know, the one thing I will say about Julian in this case, we have learned in his tenure as the GM of this team going back to 2018-19, he's not afraid to make bold moves, right? When he brought in Barclay Goodrow, we were like, what are you, crazy? You're giving up a first-round draft pick for Barclay Goodrow? They saw something in him, turned out pretty well. He was a key part of two championship teams here. So he's made some really good, bold moves that didn't look like they were going to work

on paper, and he's not afraid to do it. He knew that this was going to be an extremely unpopular move and decision to put a number on Stephen Stamkos and not budge from it, and market value and everything else. He knew the number that he wanted, and he wasn't going to budge from it. So I think he deserves some credit from that aspect, but there's no doubt that he's taken some heat here for being ultimately, whether you want to look at Jeff Zinn at the owner, whether you want to look at John Cooper, the head coach,

it's not one person making his decision. It's collective. But he's the guy taking the heat, and he's taking a lot of it. What did Victor Hedman have to say about it yesterday? I thought it was a funny dynamic. It's like you never feel bad for a guy when he gets paid the kind of money that Hedman got paid yesterday. But it's like, oh, yeah, you got this new contract.

Now talk about your departed captain. Well, I'm not even sure he talked about the contract. That's how much of a topic this continues to be, right? Yeah, you know, it was like talking about, like you would expect, a best friend who's leaving town and you're not sure how often you're going to see him in the coming years, right? You know, when both their careers are over, it'll be a different story and everything else. But yeah, everything was about the absence of him. You know, you can see, and that's the human aspect of it, right?

We can talk about players and everything else. There's a human aspect. And, you know, those two guys having played together for as long as they have and best friends, their families are about the same age in terms of their kids and everything. There's so much between the two of them that there's no doubt that the human side of it is like, man, I can't believe my best friend isn't going to be four spots down on my locker stall anymore. It's going to be weird when we get to training camp and start the season.

And it's October 28th, so you don't have to wait long to see Steve Stamkos return. Again, so weird to say as a member of the Nashville Predators. That's when Stamkos will make his return very early in the season to Tampa Bay. Eric, thanks for doing this today, man. Really appreciate you taking the time. Enjoy the offseason. I appreciate it. Give them the good work, boys.

Be well. Yep. Thanks, Eric. We appreciate it. That's Eric Erlinson, Tampa Bay Lightning Insider here on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. So I was watching the headman presser yesterday so for those that missed it he signed a four-year extension we get good money on the deal he kind of gets a deal that a lot of people were saying why couldn't steve stamkos get a deal and

then has the zoom call and no one's asking about the contract everyone just wants to know about stamkos and his relationship with him. It reminded me kind of a, do you remember when the Detroit Red Wings signed Dylan Larkin to that eight year, $69 million extension, but they also traded away his best friend, Tyler Bertuzzi. So he went up there and he didn't do a zoom call. He was at the podium in front of all the reporters and he's crying openly

because he's so upset about Bertuzzi being traded but it's also like I also just made 70 million dollars there's a very weird juxtaposition wiping your tears with money yeah the dollar bill just dabbing away at his eyes and I was like this is very awkwardly timed they probably could have done this better but it is a very interesting comic because you know we had when Brough and I would talk about it, we said there was a similar situation with Vancouver with the Sedins where it was always understood that they were going to play out their careers here. It just wouldn't be right to see them go anywhere else. And there was the remarks made by Trevor Linden when he was involved with the organization that he couldn't walk into the room and look the Sedins in the eye and say, I'm going to keep you here while we're tearing this down or starting something new or moving on and it it is interesting because there's another one looming right now about a guy that spent his entire career with one organization

a looming specter not a looming specter okay it's just looming okay but it's hanging out there now it's not a specter yet could be though yet okay sy Maybe. Okay. Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. We talked about this yesterday. I do want to reiterate it because a lot of people have said the biggest story for Pittsburgh this season isn't about free agency, and it's not about the draft, and it's not about trades. It's that Crosby is eligible to sign an extension on July 1, and that is going to be the definitive move for the Kyle Dubas era in Pittsburgh because it truly signals what direction this team is going to go in I understand that trading Jake Gensel might have been a nod to what direction they're going in but hindsight being 2020 they had to make that move they weren't going to be able to give Gensel the money that he got from Tampa Bay

and they knew that they weren't if they were going to be a playoff team they were barely going to be able to give Gensel the money that he got from Tampa Bay. And they knew that if they were going to be a playoff team, they were barely going to get in. And they needed to try and rehoop some assets, which they did. But it's now two days past when Sidney Crosby was first eligible to sign a deal. And you might say, well, these things take time. Well, look at the statement that Montreal made with Slavkovsky. That was intentional. The first moment we can sign

this guy to an extension, that's our priority. That's what we want to do. And it's not like unrestricted free agency where theoretically you have to wait until the market opens before you can talk to these guys. When they're your own player, they're not eligible to sign the extension until July 1st, but you can talk to them before that. So they've had a long time here

to talk to Sidney Crosby about what would work, what would make sense. Now, I still think a deal time here to talk to Sidney Crosby about what would work, what would make sense. Now, I still think a deal is going to get done here. And Josh Yowie at The Athletic has a column up, who, of course, is all over the Penguins beat. And he says, don't worry about Sidney Crosby's contract. There's no reason to believe it won't get done. And with all due respect to Stephen Stamkos, Sidney Crosby's on another level. You cannot let Sidney Crosby leave the Pittsburgh Penguins. If Kyle Dubas in any way presided over Sidney Crosby going to another team, that's Kyle Dubas' legacy.

Set in stone forever. You're the guy who drove Sidney Crosby out of Pittsburgh. And so Kyle Dubas understands that he is going to do what he has to do to make sure that doesn't happen because again, he's on another tier from Stephen Stamkos. You just simply cannot let that player who's meant that much to your team ever leave. So it is going

to get done. It's just going to be fascinating to see what they do around that, right? And you know, I mentioned the Josh Joey piece and I loved this is one of the greatest backhand compliments I've ever seen. He says, I don't recall seeing a roster that's showcased more quality fourth-line centers

than the Penguins' current lineup. Like, okay, so day one of free agency, the Penguins sign Blake Lazotte, Matt Gryzlik, and former Vancouver Canuck Anthony Beauvillier. It's just very underwhelming right now. And those are the moves of a team that isn't making a huge push to get better all due respect to Anthony Beauvillier.

That's filling out the margins. That's adding complementary pieces to your complementary pieces. Those are not difference makers. And I wonder a couple things here. One, what the conversations look like between Dubas and Crosby. Because there's an understanding here that the Penguins might be moving in a direction further away from the cup than closer to it. I also wonder that after the Gensel trade and in light of where they're going,

if Crosby wouldn't at least entertain the idea of a second chapter of his career that's not as a Pittsburgh Penguin. Because there are a handful of players that are going to spend their careers with one team, but he's such a unique figure because he's still elite. That's the big difference here. When Canada is naming you as one of the first six for international competition, and I mean, all due respect to the Four Nations tournament,

that's a nod to the 2026 Olympics. That's those six guys, right? I mean, things can change between now and then for sure, but that's a nod to who we still think are the elite of the elite and the best of the best, and Sidney Crosby's right in the middle of that and this texture texts in what if Crosby just doesn't want to be there their future prospects are low they have no cap space it will never be Pittsburgh dumping Crosby it could be the other way around which is very real I have a hard time seeing it he strikes me as a guy who is pretty intensely loyal to that organization.

He has such a legacy there. Maybe if things like I could see it if Kyle Dubas was coming in and saying, you know, Sid, we want to keep you. We're going to give you a nice deal, but we are stripping this to the studs around you. It's going to be a bad team. And you, I can see Crosby being like, well, hold on. No, I have no interest in that. But what they're doing is they're kind of just treading water. They're not, they're not going to tear it down.

They're not going to go full on rebuild. But they're also not close enough to winning the Stanley Cup to really push all in and try to take that next step. So I think what you're going to have is a team that's going to be on the much like this last season. That's going to be deeply flawed. But because of Sidney Crosby, they're going to be on the fringes of the playoff race. And I think that probably is just enough to keep Crosby happy to stay there, given all of the connection and all of the history with him in Pittsburgh. You want to get nuts? You want to fire up?

You want to fire up? Hell yeah, let's go. You want to get crazy? In a hypothetical, purely hypothetical world, I'm just saying because Bruff and I have talked about it on the air, off the air in a very hypothetical way but also kind of real. Would you trade

Elias Pettersson for Sidney Crosby? In a hypothetical world, I understand that Crosby's going into the last year of a deal with a no movement clause and he's going to need a new contract and I understand that therosby's going into the last year of a deal with a no-movement clause, and he's going to need a new contract. And I understand that the parameters of actually physically trading Elias Pettersson are very narrow because his no-movement clause

will kick in relatively soon. Could we punt for one more year? Nope. It has to be right now. Let's say that this – and it's like all the intangibles were in play. You'd have to figure out an extension for Crosby. You'd have to just in terms of trading the young cost control, because you know what you're getting. You're getting Pedersen and the bow on top is the contract's done.

You don't have to worry about it. As opposed to a 36-year-old all-time legend who is still playing incredibly good hockey, but does not have nearly as long of a shelf life. Is not going to play hockey, barring some sort of crazy injury to Pedersen. Is not going to play hockey. It's tough because if Petey bounces back and has an amazing year,

I'd probably say no just because of Crosby's age. But if he has a really bad year. But you've got to make the decision before you know that. I know. That's why it's tough, though. Why would you do it in a heartbeat? Wow, this is a real stumper. It's like if Petey's cooked, then it's like, well, yeah, do it. But I don't know. Petey's not cooked. That's why it's tough, though. How do you do it in a heartbeat? He's like, wow, this is a real stumper. It's like if Petey's cooked, then it's like, well, yeah, do it.

But I don't know. Petey's not cooked. That's what I'm saying, though. That's not even the question about. I know, but I need more information before I can answer that question. I don't do it. I don't think I would either. I don't think I would either.

Let's say Pettersson continues. Just because he's 36. That's the only reason. Calm down. I am calm. Take some. Just relax. I'm very calm.

This is really flummoxed. I'm going to put the parameters. I don't like this question. I'm going to put the parameters on it. Pedersen remains a 90 to 100 point guy. Then I wouldn't do it, no. Only because of Crosby's ability. Okay.

Now, Laddie. Then I would do it in a heartbeat, I think. Okay. Well, I would look at it, you know, is this a good move for the team 10 years down the road? No, obviously not, because Crosby's not going to be there. But is this good for the team in this window that they're in right now? Absolutely. You get Crosby.

I think the big intangible is the impact and legacy they did have on the remainder of the guys there. How many times... This is not meant as a slight against Petey, but there's a chance you'll play with another Elias Pettersson at some point during your career. I don't know if there's a chance for those guys that you'll play with

Sidney Crosby. I'll also say this. If it were this hypothetical crazy scenario were to occur, which is awesome, I wouldn't be like upset by it because it is Sidney Crosby. You know what I'm saying? And I do agree with Laddie because yeah, they're in their window and yeah, it could potentially make them way better and get them to a cup.

So I mean, it's not like I'm going to be, like, totally upset by the thing, but it's just, oh, man. It would be, like, the wildest trade, or not the wildest, but one of the wildest trades we've seen in the NHL in a long time. The wildest trade is obviously Wayne Gretzky, so I don't want to put that right up there. But number two, it could be right there. So, I mean, from a broadcasting perspective, like, that would be amazing.

Can you imagine doing the shows the day after that deal went down oh my god that would be fantastic but I just don't think it like because really the question is how much do you increase your chances of winning the cup next season making that deal right because you're giving up chances later on down the road so

how much do you increase it by next season I don't think it's enough to justify the deal it might not be now but I think it also might be. Jamie Dodd. Crosby. It's just not enough. Sidney Crosby, overrated. That's what I'm saying, though.

It depends on how Petey performs, right? I think he would be so jacked at the prospect of being like the road in the West for him. It's like you got the new bucks. Yeah. It's McKinnon and it's McDavid who you'd have to theoretically go through to win it. And he'd be like, alright, bring it. I'm still Sidney Crowley. I think that would be amazing. The other part of this is, conceptually

speaking, it does make sense from a Pittsburgh perspective. Of course it does. It does. It makes way more sense for them than the Canucks. The Canucks would be harder to press to the same time. But at the same time, there would be, like, riots in the street in Pittsburgh if they did that.

Oh, big time. Absolutely. They were like, at least... Who? What? We don't care about this guy. We want Crosby. I would also say, as a devotee of the YOLO philosophy...

Like, I mean... As an agent of chaos. I just feel like if that deal was on the table, and you're Jim Rutherford, you're sitting in your office, you're talking to Patrick Alvin about it. Like almost you. I would just be like, we just kind of have to do it because it's awesome. You know what I mean? Like just for the experience of doing it,

we have to do it. I'm glad you brought that up because the other part of all of this is I don't think there are two hockey individuals that love and respect and admire Sidney Crosby more than Jim and Rick talk it. Like if you listen to Rutherford talk about Crosby, that is the guy that they want all of their players to emulate. He's the gold standard. When they talk about the Pittsburgh way

and the way we did things in Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh organization, it all pretty much starts with whatever Sid did. Organizing the summer skates, being the leader, setting the tone, setting the identity, the way that he carried himself. Like that's the Pittsburgh Penguins identity is Crosby. Never pouting.

His motor's always at 100. And you've got all these executives that came from Pittsburgh, right? Yeah. I mean, I've thought about this probably more than any 45-year-old man should with regularity, with a variety of other things going on. But every time I think about it, I'm like, you know, I know it doesn't make sense but it does make sense and i know it won't happen but what if it did happen and it's

great sports talk fodder surely july 3rd surely neils hoaglander or atu ratu in a second we'll get it done though right why are we overbidding for sydney crosby right so now we go to break this is your chance to throw ridiculous trade offers in which we can lowball the Pittsburgh Penguins. We've got a lot more to get to on the program. Speaking of your Vancouver Canucks, coming up on the other side of the break, newly minted defenseman Vincent Desharnais signed on the first day of free agency.

He's doing his media avails with the media, and then he's going to join us on Sportsnet 650. So we'll talk to Vincent about his road that led through a bunch of different places before going to Edmonton and now to Vancouver. New Vancouver Canucks defenseman Vincent Desjardins next on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Hey, it's Jamie Dodd and Thomas Drance.

Get your daily dose of Canucks talk with us weekdays from 12 to 2 on Sportsnet 650. Or catch up on demand through your favorite podcast app. 7.33 on a Eurodance Wednesday here on the Health and Breath Show on Sportsnet 650. Sometimes you learn lessons along the way when you're doing this show. And one of them is if you ever want to get instant engagement on a relatively slow Wednesday, propose an Elias Pedersen for Sidney Crosby trade. That's what Ruff would have wanted. That's so true. First time he's out of the chair.

Boom! Make it sound like he's dead. It's like we're doing this in Ruff's memory. Rest in peace. He wanted it this way. This is what he would have wanted. He's actually just on vacation. That's why we're doing the Euro music. He's currently in Europe dancing to this song right now. You are listening to the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650.

Jamie Dodd in for the vacationing Jason Brough. We are in hour two of the program. We are waiting on new Canucks defenseman Vincent Desjardins, who should be joining us shortly. We're just waiting for him to call us. In the interim, we'll take care of some business. I need to tell you that Hour 2 of this program is brought to you by Primetime Craft Beer. Meticulously brewed for quality and taste,

Primetime is full flavor without compromise. You can get some at a liquor store near you, or you can visit the brewery to see how it's made. This entire show, all of it, the ridiculous discussion. Someone texted in and said, I'm glad that there's not an open segment right now so we can stop this ridiculous discussion. Friend, if DeJarne doesn't call us,

we are doing this for another half hour. You better hope that he calls in soon then, buddy. Strap in, homeboy. We're doing this for a little while longer. This entire program is brought to you by Pacific Honda, North Vancouver's premier destination for Honda vehicle sales and service. They have a friendly, knowledgeable staff that can help with anything you're looking for.

Sales, financing, service, or parts. A couple quick news and notes around the National Hockey League that we can get into. Macklin Celebrini, North Vancouver's very own, is coming up to close to the end of his development camp experience with the San Jose Sharks. The number one overall pick in this year's draft is currently in San Jose, taking part in development camps, signing autographs, kissing babies, doing all that stuff

that a number one overall pick might do. But the number one overall pick might not play in the NHL this season. He said that he's still got to make a decision on where he's going to play hockey next year, be it BU or San Jose. So we wait and see on that one. We do have some other news and notes that we can pick up as we move along this segment,

but we're very excited. Joining us now, newly minted defenseman for your Vancouver Canucks, Vincent Desjardins here on the Halford & Bras show featuring Jamie Dodd on Sportsnet 650. Good morning, Vincent. How are you? I'm great. How are you doing? We're good. Thanks for taking the time to do this. So first things first, congrats on the deal.

Must be very exciting for you and your camp and your family. Walk us through the last little bit because I imagine this deal with the Canucks must have come together pretty quickly and at a pretty hectic time because you were, you know, in the midst of a Stanley Cup final not too long ago. Then comes the offseason, then comes free agency. So walk us through how you came to a decision to sign with the Vancouver Canucks. Yeah, so yeah, obviously the last few months, last few days have been very busy.

You know, during playoffs you try not to think about that too much, about contracts and all that. But the second season ended, it's a heart-breaking loss. You lose game six in the Stanley Cup Finals, one shot away from going to overtime, and it's over. You're sad. It stings. Next thing you know, an agent is calling. He's like, hey, this is what's happening here and there.

And then, yeah, during pre- for agency uh uh waited a little bit and then once my agent called uh i think uh an hour and 10 minutes after uh he called me for the first time i was trying so i happened pretty quickly uh had a few offers and obviously played in Vancouver a few times this year, seven games in playoffs. I knew they were well coached. I knew they had a very good structure, good team, great fan base. For me, it felt like it was a good fit and I'm very excited to get going in September. You saw the Canucks a lot over the last couple years, obviously playing in Edmonton and then, of course, the playoff series. What stood out to you about playing against Vancouver

over the last couple years? I'm not going to lie, it sucks. It sucks when you get Vancouver. Good answer, good answer. Just the way, just how hard the team works. All four lines, they're in your face. They finish it. They force it hard.

And as a D-man, it just sucks, you know. It's not a team that's fun to play against. You know it's going to be a long night retrieving pucks. And then obviously their decor last year was that they had some big guys. And they gave our best players in Edmonton a little bit of struggle to get to the net, to get in the O-Zone, to create offense. So that's something that is kind of part of my identity of being hard to play against in the D-Zone. And I thought that the coaching staff in Vancouver is doing a great job at being hard to play against.

So that's something that I was really looking forward to. I'm a defense-first kind of D-man. So I'm very excited to get going and to start working with Adam Foote. I've heard nothing but good things about him, and I'm sure it's going to help my game get better. Yeah, you mentioned the size on the blue line here in Vancouver. Of course, you're 6'7". Now, Tyler Myers is listed at 6'8".

Can you remember the last time you weren't the tallest player on your team, Vincent? No, I don't, actually. It's been probably 10 years since I've been the tallest player on my team every year. But I'll make sure that I go next to him to make sure he's 6'8". I will make sure that he's 6'8". Make sure he's not cheating. And, you know, was that attractive to you, right?

Because as you said, you saw up close and personal just how hard that Canucks blue line was able to make things on, you know, not just the Oilers, but teams they played throughout the season. Did it feel to you like, okay, they have an identity that really fits what I'm able to bring on the ice as well? Yeah, for sure.

I mean, I'm not a crafty player. I'm not a skilled guy. So, obviously, when you can join a team that's kind of north-south, that works really hard, that, you know, every player, especially playing down in playoffs, you know, every player, they just put their heads down, whether it's the first line, the fourth line, the first D, the sixth D. Everyone got their heads down, and they just worked for a full 60 minutes. And that's something that's very attractive to me.

It's a hard-working team, and it kind of matches the type of player that I am. And, yeah, it's going to be a great season. I know it already. I know it's a great group of guys, the main part of the state. And, yeah, I've heard really good things about Vancouver, about the city, about the fans. And everyone that's been reaching out so far since I've signed,

they've said nothing but good things about the team. So, yeah, it's a lot to take in in just a few days. But every day I'm just more and more excited. I'm sure then two months once I get to Vancouver, it's going to be an even better feeling. We're speaking to new Canucks defenseman Vincent Desharnais here on the Health and Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Vincent, your road to the NHL went through Bakersfield,

Wichita, Providence College, Chilliwack, of course, so you're familiar with the area back when you played in the BCHL. You said on a few occasions it took 10 years to get your shot in the National Hockey League. How did that forge your identity and the style that you like to play, knowing that it took an awfully long time to get to this point and to get rewarded with a contract like you just got on July 1?

I mean, I've kind of mentioned it already, but my biggest strength is my work ethic. I've been through adversities throughout the last 10 years of my career, and a lot of people told me I wasn't good enough and I wouldn't make it. And, you know, a bunch of people told me I wasn't good enough and I wouldn't make it and you know a bunch of negative stuff and for me just believing in myself and just keeping my my head down and working you know I've my mantra is just to focus on what's in my power and work ethic is, and that's what I've been doing the last 10 years,

and I think that's what got me here. You know, I have a great support group, and they've been there along the ride with me. They've been great to me. But I think my biggest asset is my work ethic. It's going to be very exciting in Vancouver. I know I've mentioned it before, but I'm very excited about the coaching staff. I know how much they do video, how much they care about details.

I think that's the difference between a good player and a great player. It's just small details. I'm a detailed, oriented guy. And, yeah, there's no really other word than excited and grateful for a great contract. And I'm proud that I got this contract, but I want more. I want to win. Yeah, and you've earned this thing 100%

because we talk about it coming full circle. You're back in British Columbia now, having been here. I mentioned with Chilliwack way back when. That was over a decade ago. So go back to that. You're playing with the Chilliwack Chiefs. You're playing in the BCHL. You're younger than you are now.

What is Vincent Desjardins thinking about where his hockey career is going to go at that time? At that time, I was still figuring out life quite a bit. I knew where I was going. I think my biggest focus at that point was just to go play college. And I remember that year, you know, it was a slow start of the season. I started as a 7D man, and the coach wasn't sure if he was going to send me down to Junior B because he wasn't sure if I could play in the B-shaped shell. So it was definitely a slow start in the season.

But as the season went on, it got better and better. And, you know, my dream, one of my dreams was to play college hockey. It doesn't happen for many Quebec-born hockey players. So it was a dream of mine. And after the season, I was able to get a commit in Providence. So the whole season, I would say, was just to try to play the best I can just to get some looks from colleges. And I love my time in Chilliwack.

I'm still in touch with my Bill's family, which I can tell you when I text them to tell them I was signing with Vancouver, they were going nuts. They were very happy for me, and they were happy that I was going back to playing D.C. But yeah, I really love Chilliwack and everything there was awesome, the fans.

I'm pretty excited to go back to D.C. And I've had quite a bit of people from Chilliwack reach me already and tell them how happy they were. Vincent, you've mentioned a couple of times how excited you are to work with the coaching staff here, and especially Adam Foote. And we've heard from players this past season, you know, how much Adam Foote has helped them on the blue line and helped develop their game.

What specifically are you kind of hoping to grow and develop in your game with the chance to work with Adam Foote? I've kind of touched base a little bit on it. And he's very detailed. I think, you know, we've talked a little bit before I signed. I talked to Adam. I talked to Rick, too. And the biggest thing were details, you know.

And I think that's what makes the difference, you know, small little details. And I know that Adam is really good at that, finding the small details that can make your game just a little bit better. But when you get all the small details together, it makes a pretty big difference. And, yeah, I know he's been working with a lot of great players before. And, you know, just seeing how he's been working with Tyler Myers, I think he's been doing a great job with him.

And, you know, we're kind of the same physique, same size, and we will have kind of the same issues with, like, the long skates, the big boots. So, yes, I'm very excited to work with him. I know we've talked about D-zone positioning and where the stick is and having good gaps

and not lunging too much to get out of balance those are all small little things that a lot of people won't see but a guy like Adam Foote will definitely mention it and work on it and make sure that I get better at it.

Well, Vincent, we're excited for you. It's a great thing that you got to land this contract. Excited to see you in Vancouver this year. Thank you very much for doing this today. We really appreciate it. Once again, congrats on the new deal. Awesome. Thank you so much, guys.

I can't wait to meet you and can't wait to get started. Thanks, buddy. Looking forward to meeting you as well. That's Vincent Desjardins here on the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. We're now buddies. I just cemented that. Boom. You guys can't wait to meet.

You didn't use his nickname, though. Your buddy's buddy. It's not his nickname. I don't know. You coined it yesterday. You really got to lean into it, I think. I didn't coin it yesterday. You did.

Stop backtracking. Stop backtracking. You're already in the hole. You might as well keep digging up. There's no hole. There's no hole. Big Thumper's a sick nickname, first off. I know.

What we were talking about yesterday was I said the Canucks somehow managed to get bigger and taller despite losing Zdorov and Cole. And then I said, now they've got all these big thumpers on defense. And Brough was like, ha-ha, thumpers. And then one of you was like, ah, Vincent Desjardins, the big thumper. I'm like, not his nickname. It's like Cal Rally, big dumper. This is our version of that.

It's big thumper. But it's not. But it is. But it's also not because no one's calling him the big thumper. I just love that. You just got to keep it going, man. Tyler Myers not only signing the new contract here, but like magnetizing other giant defensemen to Vancouver

Vincent Day or not explicitly like I saw what happened for Tyler Myers with Adam Foote and I said I want that who would have believed that years ago that people will be looking at the Tyler Myers experience in Vancouver and be like that sounds awesome. Sign me up. That's perfect. I want to play like him. Yeah, I think

I think it's going to be really interesting to see a team that's got this much size on the blue line. They have to be collectively the tallest group in the National Hockey League, right? So you've got Myers. Technically, Myers is 6'8", although DeJarne was willing to challenge. More than willing to challenge. And then he slipped in at the end. He was like, we're the same size. I was like, are you, though?

Hold on. So you got Myers at 6'8", DeJarne at 6'7", Soucy at 6'5". I mean, that right there is like a skyscraper-esque. And Derek Forbort comes aboard at a mere 6'4". There can't be a group in the National Hockey League that's that tall. There just can't be. And it's very interesting because what we brought up yesterday was,

does it come at the expense of puck movement, which is obviously a huge thing in a league that, you know, has such good transition play across the board. Does puck movement matter, though, if you just thump everyone into oblivion? You can't thump everything, Andy. They don't call him the big puck mover. Yeah, if you just knock everyone over, then eventually you'll have the puck anyway,

so what does it matter? It's an old hockey adage. Even the biggest thumper needs to be able to move the puck from time to time. Classic saying. So, you know, it'd be curious to see what direction they go in here because I think the dogs were saying yesterday, I think Andy in particular,

you'd like to see a guy brought into the top four. Yeah, I'm not comfortable with the defense as it is at the moment. I don't know between available guys and price point and acquisition cost if that's going to be feasible. We were talking about do they add a guy like a Boquist who would come here on the cheap and also sort of be a plug-and-play guy. If you needed a puck-moving influence in your group,

you could spot him in. We actually kind of said maybe what Broberg did for Edmonton in the playoffs was like, okay, instead of going with size tonight, and it's a very sort of rudimentary way to change your look. Do the Canucks have a bona fide 3-4, though? In my eyes, they have a 1 and a 2, and then they have a bunch of 5s and 6s.

It isn't awful, but it's not... 3-4 right now is Soucy. I know, but that's what I'm saying. You're first pairing 28 minutes a night, and you're good. Carson Soucy and Myers are not 3-4. Carson Soucy, if he was your number 4, and you had a good number 3, that's fine. You would live with that.

So he could be a number four. And you could probably say that about most of the guys. It's just they're really missing that number three defenseman. That's what they need more than anything is a clear cut number three. You feel really good about this guy in the top four. And then I think if you had that, everyone else slides really comfortably into whatever role is left for them. Agreed. Yeah.

I mean, I just I don't know if it's there, what you're suggesting. It's available. No, it would have to be by trade probably. And that's tough because who do you move? Right. Yeah. Right. Like you can like hold under and that's like your only movable asset.

Well, even then, I don't know. I mean, maybe go younger. No, the X factor in all this. I don't know if he would. The X factor in all this is if you keep the group as currently constructed and you split up the Hughes-Haronik pairing and give them their own. Well, if that works, that's amazing. Then you become a very different looking blue line.

But what if that doesn't work? Well, and I do wonder also who's the right shot guy that goes with Quinn Hughes in that scenario, right? Because is there a lot of appetite to try Tyler Myers there? I don't know. We've seen that over the years. Maybe not with this coaching staff, so maybe you can give that a shot and then vincent de harney i'm excited to see what he brings here but i don't know that you're plugging

him next to quinn hughes either so it would be a tall ask yeah i don't think it's out of the realm to try it i think you i think one of the the things that we thought was going to happen last year was that they were going to do more platooning. But then when they got, again, and last year was a different animal and beast and scenario because the team was all about proving itself and showing that the early start wasn't a fluke and that getting off to a 12-3-1 trend to start the season

wasn't just dumb luck or them riding a wave. It always felt like there was a prove-it moment. So keeping Hughes and Hronik together made that happen, right? They were the best defensive pairing in the first half of the season by, I would say, a good margin at times, and that was a big reason why the Canucks got off to the start that they did. You allow yourself a little bit of leeway and luxury here to try some things and play with your lineup,

play with your pairings, play with your forward groups. Not at the expense of, well, we're going to cost ourselves a playoff spot, but you're not going to be in prove-it mode every single night anymore. Now, that being said, teams aren't going to take you as lightly as they took you last year in the first part of the season, right?

They are going to say, this is a 100-point team from a year ago. This is a team that won a playoff round and took the Western Conference champions to seven games within one shot of sending that seven game to overtime, like DeJarne said there. So there's an entirely different dynamic, but I think it presents a great opportunity for this coaching staff to try some things, to get creative with how they're going to do their deployments. I also think, and hearing DeJarne talk about it, presents a real challenge and opportunity for Foote as a coach who has gotten results out of guys. And in the case of Myers, really turned him into a different sort of player in a lot of different ways. Deployment is a big part of it.

The way that he goes about his defensive duties is a big part of it. I mean, for how much criticism the guy got through the years 1 through 3, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 of his deal, to have the year 6 that he had, I think that says a lot about the way that the coaches viewed him, used him, and then ultimately deployed him in the regular season and the playoffs. Yeah, and as you heard, Vincent Desjardins saw that and said, hey, that sounds like something good. And I think that

I know Drance has reported that Canucks management sees Desjardins as a player with some upside that they can work with and maybe find another level that he's not necessarily going to be that third pairing guy for the entirety of his career. Okay, before we go go to break i need to tell you about the bc lions the roar is back at bc plays for the bc lions 70th season get your tickets now at bclions.com from one former edmontonian to a current one louis de brusque sportsnet edmonton and of course the father of another

new canuck jake de brusque louis will be joining us next on the halford and bruff show featuring jamie dodd on sportsnet 650