Halford & Brough in the Morning - The Best of Halford and Brough 12/22/25

Episode Date: December 22, 2025

Guest hosts Josh Elliott-Wolfe & Israel Fehr look back at a busy weekend in sports, they preview tonight's Canucks matchup at Philly, as Vancouver looks to make it five wins in a row, plus the boys do some Christmas-themed Ask Us Anythings since there's no show on Friday. 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're listening to the best of Halford and Brough. You're listening to Halford and Brough. Geeky, wide right wing, in on Lincoln and shoots. The Kinnock goaltender stopped him. Vancouver wins. They picked up their fourth full. victory in a row. So what you're saying is

indestructible. Oh, no, no. And in fact, even a slight breeze. Indistructed. Dekad, Mattcath, and mixing up with someone in the stands. Oh, my gosh. And that, oh, not going to have great consequences for the Steelers in Metcalfe.

This is not kumbaya? Welcome to Halford and Brough. No, Halford, no brough. they're gone. Not forever. Just for a bit. It's Josh Ellie Wolf. It's Israel Fair filling in.

Izzy, how are you? Good, Josh. Bright and early. I got to remember how to do all these intros. A dog? You're still here. Good morning. Good morning.

Zachary. How are you? Good morning. I'm great. Good morning. All right. We are coming to you live from the Kintech studio. Happy holidays.

From the Kintech, but we're in orthotics. Family. And this hour of Halford & Brough is brought to you by North Star Metal Recycling. Vancouver's Premier Metal Recycler pays the highest prices on scrap metal. North Star Metal recycling, they recycle. You get paid 1170 Powell Street. Halford & Brough is brought to you by the Duick Auto Group. Find out why nobody beats a Duick deal since 1926.

Visit Duick GM on Marine Drive downtown in Richmond and at Duick Auto Group. dot com and Halpert & Brough is presented by Sandson Associates score debt freedom Hattrick, no more interest, much lower payments, and financial peace of mind visit sands dash trustee dot com. We are filling

in for the next couple days. We'll keep the regular Halbro shenanigans going so you can get your what we learns in on the 650 650 Dumbar Lumber Tech line. I'm going to make an executive decision as well that I discussed with nobody before the show. We'll do ask us anything

today and tomorrow, because we're not here on Friday. Is that okay? Are we cool? It's actually an inspired idea. Wow, thank you. It's almost like you were a producer at one point. And I was like, you know what we should do to fill time? We'll do that. And in Halbroro tradition, you should get all these submissions and then read none of them

and just talk about yourselves. Yeah. But then the listeners get very upset. That's the dream. You said you'd read our submissions and then they'd like read one. I promise you I will read some of them maybe if you text them in right now, 650, 650. is the Dunbar Lumbertack slide.

Today on the show, a lot to get into it. It's a Canucks game day at 6.30. We're going to talk to Charlie O'Connor from Philly Sports covers the Flyers. We'll talk about them being in a playoff spot now. Rick Tocke, his impact, everything going on there. What's up with Matt May Mitchcove? At 7, we're going to talk to Mike Tenier from the two deep zone. A big weekend of NFL action and a lot of,

of playoff implications as well. Teams that I feel like my theme for the NFL this week is going to be like, is this team for real? Because I feel like there are a lot of teams that I just don't really believe in, but... You mean the entire AFC? The entire AFC.

And then like most of the NFC except for maybe two teams. And then at 8.30, 830, we're going to talk to Kevin Woodley from Ingole magazine and NHL.com about everything going on with Vancouver Canucks. Thatcher Demco has been just unreal for the last week And we'll get into that with Kevin Woodley

So at 8 o'clock we'll do what we learned So get those in 650 650 is the Dumbar Lumber text line That's what's happening on the show Zach let's tell everybody what happened Hey did you guys see the game last night No what happened I missed all the action because I was We know how busy your life can be

What happened? Missed it? You miss that? What happened is brought to you by the BC Construction Safety Alliance, making safety simpler by giving construction companies the best in tools, resources, and safety training. Visit BCCSA.com. A couple Canucks games since you've last heard from the Halford & Brough show.

Friday night, the Vancouver Canucks go into New York, not to play the Rangers because they had already beat them 3-0, but to play the New York Islanders. And they beat them by three as well, 4-1. And then on Saturday night, they go into Boston. And they win in a shootout, which Kevin Lankan is just incredible at. And they beat the Boston Bruins five to four. And all of a sudden, since trading Quinn Hughes, Izzy,

the Canucks have won four games in a row. They're undefeated in the Quinn Hughes-Liss era. Was Quinn Hughes the problem? all along? He might have been. All the evidence points to yes based on the record probably not. But the Canucks are, the Canucks are

4-0, they play again tonight since they've traded Quinn Hughes and I think my question that I want to pose to all three of you and the listeners as well is how are people feeling about this run? Because the people I've talked to, it seems like, hey, on one

hand, you're a Canucks fan. You want to see the team win and it's fun when they are able to win personally. I think it's been the most stress-free, fun enjoyment I've had of the Vancouver Canucks and maybe a year watching this team over the last week. But at the same time, I talk to people and they're like, well, it'd be nice if they like mixed in a loss because you want to see them at the bottom of the standings if you're on Team Tank. So it feels like a conflicted week, I guess, for Canucks fans. Yeah, it does, because the vibes were so low post-Hughes trade. Although Kinnucks fans, experienced Kinnock's fans saw this coming.

They were obviously going to rattle off some wins. You look at the roster and you add the players added from the Hughes trade, right? It's not like they traded Hughes for pure futures. It's not like a baseball trade where a star goes and it's four minor leaguers coming back who aren't going to play for a number of years. you get three guys who jump into the lineup they have even what their floor is

is still NHL player so that has helped this team for sure and the idea that there was going to be a fire sale post-use trade was right because it's like they're at the bottom of the standings they're going to trade all these other veterans that we've been talking about when that doesn't happen

their floor is still not great but they're not awful it's the conversation that we've had around the league, that there's no truly, truly awful teams this year, unlike past years where you've seen the teams like Chicago and San Jose be really, really bad. So this was kind of bound to happen. And I do think that Canucks fans, the ones that I engage with as well, Josh, they are not disappointed because the games have been fun. They've been competitive. They've, you know, played physical. That's something that Connucks fans always want to see the team do. But when you

saw the team at the bottom of the standings. I think people did take a deep breath, a bit of a sigh of relief as well, well, they're so bad in terms of the standings that they have no way of avoiding this. And now they're just quite, they're not quite as bad, even if they're still not great. And we still know, I think the question the fans will have post trade freeze going into the new year is, this is only a problem if they don't end up trading the pending UFA's, which at, you know, a week ago, two weeks ago was a foregone conclusion. They're going to trade these guys. They have to trade Kiefer Sherwood first and foremost.

Now, if they're back in the playoff mix, if they move off that position, I think that's when people are going to start to be frustrated. Yeah, that's the, I don't want to call it panic, but maybe the panic that I've seen from fans is like, hey, are they going to get close enough that ownership and management go, you know what? We got two first round picks. We could go for this. And I just don't think that I do think there was an acceptance from the organization that was echoed by fans a week ago when the Canucks were in last and they traded Quinn Hughes and it was like, okay, you know what?

At least this year, based on what we've heard from management, they are willing to accept that this year is going to be a down year. Now that being said, hey, if you win three more games in a row, does that change? I don't know. I hope not because to me it's you've kind of made your bed. once you made the Quinn Hughes trade but it has been if we're talking about the way they're winning especially on Saturday and we talk about the new additions

like Liam Ogren had a great game on Saturday. He had a goal where he just kind of bodied Hampus Lindholm out of the way he had that great shootout goal he had a good assist as well like it feels like he may be something that we didn't really look at

as a key piece of the trade but he might end up being something for the Canucks down the stretch. Marco Rossi I know he only has one point but he's playing a lot of minutes and any center on the Canucks right now is vital. Yeah.

And then we've seen the flashes from Booiam, right? So the fun part of it has been, hey, at least it's the new guys that are winning you these games and not, well, I guess Keeper Sherwood kind of scored a hat trick on Friday and kind of won you that game. But for the most part,

it's been the new guys having a big impact and Thatcher Demcoe kind of winning them these games over the last week. So if you are Team 10, And if you are someone that's looking more towards the future, I think that's a positive of like, hey, if you're going to win games, at least win games like this with the young guys making an impact. Yeah, and you look at the standings, right?

It's not like they've jumped way up the standings. And that whole bunch at the bottom of the Western Conference, frankly, in both conferences, all of the teams below the playoff line, they're all tightly bunched, right? Like, there's not, there's not, yes, there's six points. out of the playoffs, but it's not like they're right there. They're the first team that needs

to make up ground. They'd have to hop over like five or six teams to get there. In the east right now, Buffalo has now won six in a row. The Buffalo was just here and they were the bottom of the standings, the Sabres, and now they've won six in a row and they're still just they're like the Canucks, right? Their second

or their third last in their conference. So it's not like, even at this point when you get so far behind like the Canucks did, even this mini winning streak. And look, I mean, if they went on a real, like a 10-game winning streak, at that point, I think you just have to ride with it. Fair enough, man.

You did it. You did it. You know, the Oilers did that the last couple of years. Obviously, different stratosphere was like, they got off to a slow start. It's like, yeah, well, they've got two of the best players in the world. They'll probably figure it out. Fastest rebuilding history, man. Fastest rebuild in history.

They did the unthinkable. The rebuild is officially over. They just won 10 games. I don't know what to tell you. It would be incredible. It would be. It's a hybrid build executed to perfection. Yeah.

They really nailed all aspects of the hybrid build. But yeah, it's there is the, so we get a text, 650, 650 from Mark and White Rock regarding the Canucks winning too much, mentions the flames and the predators. Like there is the aspect that any bad team, especially in a season where you mention it, there aren't truly bad team. So any team that's kind of having a bad season, you're still going to go on a run. And look, it does coincide with a convenient timing in regards to the Quinn Hughes trade. But it's, even if the Canucks were a bad team all season, there's going to be a four or five, maybe six game winning streak at some point.

And you're going to win seven out of ten games at some point. The Canucks are in that right now. And I think while it's happening, you just got to enjoy the good vibes of what the Canucks are doing. Now, the thing I would say is, and we kind of brought it up with the Keeper-Shirwood aspect to this, there does have to be a level of commitment to this season still not being one-way game for the playoffs from management. There still has to be a level of patience, and I know they brought up hybrid build, or they haven't, but it's been reported that they've talked about a hybrid build and not a full rebuild. in regards to the Canucks plan moving forward.

But that being said, part of a hybrid build, in my opinion, is this season still going poorly. And this season ending in a spot where you're able to pick in the top three or at least the top five. And the way to do that is still to be measured in how you approach the trade deadline.

And so when it comes to keep for Sherwood, I think we can look at him kind of single-handedly winning the game on Friday with the hat-trick. Yeah. As a positive because it's like, hey, this guy is 16 goals. and you're still in the market to trade him and we saw a couple other trades

that we can get into around the NHL Friday night but if anything he's just driving his price up right now and that's great for the Canucks but so as long as we see a sure what trade happen and then maybe another trade on top of that I think regardless of how much you win there's still going to be a level of like okay things are still going according to plan

for the Canucks as the season goes on Yeah, the pending UFA, so Sherwood, first and foremost, Evander Kane is thrown into that conversation as well. It feels like, based on the reporting since the Hughes trade, and particularly over the last week, that the veteran defensemen are here to stay because there is an emphasis on developing the young D that are here now. So William, Patterson, and Valander. And they don't want to mess with that mix too. much. I think you would argue that those contracts are also all pretty fair in terms of value. So then it does become a conversation about the forwards with term. And at this point, it seems kind of unlikely that someone like Connor Garland or Brock Bessor or Jake DeBrusk would be on the move,

but that's obviously sort of the second tier beyond the UFAs. But if we are, and we're not saying, we're not sounding the panic here that they're not going to trade these guys, really feels like, unless they do go on this mythical 10, 14 game win streak, that the plan's not going to change, that they have to move these players for assets, especially Sherwood, his value is so high, that that's going to be the bar. It is just interesting. I think the Hughes trade, the timing of it changed the parameters of how the Canucks were going to do business, right? Because we went, the memo sent across the league. The veterans mentioned, are everybody but Hughes? Then Hughes ends up being the first one traded. So it kind of puts the

Kinnock's back in a position where they can maybe wait and Sherwood has had a very nice season. His scoring was predictably dried up for a short period of time. So to get that hat trick is really nice just for the counting stats anyway. But they've got time, obviously. The trade deadline is still months away at this point. Yeah. And it does feel like they're kind of waiting for their price to be met, which I mean, it could be higher because on Friday around the NHL there were a couple trades and the first one Friday night before the trade freeze kicked in the roster freeze which is in effect until December 28th um philip deno heading back to Montreal from the LA Kings for a second round pick and then also I think the one pertaining more to

the Canucks just because he's a winger mason marchmont going from Seattle to Columbus for a second round pick and a fourth round pick, which, I mean, so Keeper Sherwood makes $3 million less than Mason Marchment this season. They're both pending UFAs. But Keeper Sherwood, I know the track record isn't as high as Mason Marchment, but Keep for Sherwood, this season has 12 more goals than Mason Marchman does. So I just think from a pending UFA, and also, I mean, there's the aspect that Sherwood is a pest, he kind of hits everything in sight, talks a lot on the ice, which I know Marchman does too. Yeah.

But all those aspects tend to lead me in the direction that if the Canucks are looking for a first round pick for keeper Sherwood and the Crackham were able to get this for Mason Marchment, I think I'd be disappointed at this point if the Canucks aren't able to get a first round pick for keeper Sherwood. Yeah, it feels like it's trending that way. And as long as he keeps scoring doesn't need to keep scoring hat tricks, but that would be nice too. That would be cementing a first-round pick value,

but I think even if he's just a consistent player, and as you said, Josh, all the other things that he brings to a team. And he's been that way throughout his time with the Canucks and had the season with the Predators prior to joining Vancouver where he was establishing that kind of reputation. So there are a few years here where teams are getting familiar with this player, and it does feel like, yeah, with the cap implications and the way he's playing, that the value feels like a first.

that the Canucks would be able to get, I guess, either a third first this season or another first in the following season, then that's where they have to be from an asset building perspective. It's also the other part that is going to be interesting to me in terms of how committed they are to a rebuild is what the return for a Sherwood trade looks like, because there have been reports out like, hey, if you get a good roster player back, obviously they want to get younger, but if you get a good roster player back, that might be enough to get it done. And I think if you're trying to show that you're fully committed to this being something that at least is a two-year project of like, hey, you're taking a step back this year and you're kind of looking towards the future, it has to be a pick or a prospect coming back and return.

If it is a roster player that isn't significantly younger, then I'm going to have some concerns about how committed to this whole rebuilding this management group really is. elsewhere around the NHL. The Toronto Maple Leafs are imploding. They have lost three in a row. Every comment coming out of the Maple Leafs right now feels like, ah, things are going sideways. But Craig Barube is still working. He still has a job.

And the Toronto Maple Leafs find themselves second last, second to last in the Eastern Conference right now, one point up on the Columbus Blue Jackets, who, I mean, they're making win now trades, trading for Mason Marchment. So, I mean, everybody's in it in the Eastern Conference, but things are going really poorly. The vibes are off in Toronto right now.

Yeah, always a good side when the coach says take it up with the players and then the players are kind of like, eh. Yeah, it's fine. It's not good. Yeah, no, it's not. And it doesn't help when, like, so there's the whole Mitch Barner aspect to this over the off season where it's like, okay, now the Leafs can, they're going in a new direction, right?

And they're going to be fine now. And I know for a lot of people listening, like, This is great. You want to see the Leafs lose. To me, I want to see the Leafs lose. Like, this is great to me. But I am surprised at just how poorly things have gone. And it does feel like they're a team that I, especially with the issues like Austin Matthews just hasn't been himself.

I do wonder if there's a coaching bump to come at some point for them. They do feel like a team that would just benefit from some kind of change right now. Yeah, for sure. And I mean, the Pete, the Pete DeBore rumors are connecting him to. Toronto has been a thing now for a while. And I mean, yeah, they're a weird team from a roster make-up now because when they dedicated, and it's, you know, not this management, but the prior management dedicated so much cap space and contracts to the previous

core, and a lot of those players are still there, right? Marner's the only one gone, but the, you know, Brad Tree Living comes in a couple of years ago, he puts his stamp on the team, which is a lot of defenders that don't necessarily move all that well. They've gone in a completely different play style. They bring in a coach who's known for being a bit more of a tough guy and someone that's supposed to keep the players accountable. I mean, you mentioned Austin Matthews. Obviously, that's a huge part of it. Two years ago, three years ago, awesome Matthews looked like he was in the conversation. He's scoring almost 70 goals. It's like this guy's right next to McDavid. And he quite frankly hasn't been that now for

a season and a half. He's still pretty good, but he's not at that superstar level. And then everything around there makes it a lot more difficult to compete a few of the leaves. Elsewhere, since the Quinn Hughes trade, the Minnesota Wild were also undefeated. Like there was a stretch of both the Canucks and Wild being undefeated for a week since the Quinn Hughes trade. But The Minnesota Wilde lost their first game with Quinn Hughes in the lineup, the Colorado Avalanche, who are just a buzzsaw. They're good. They're so good at hockey.

They beat the Minnesota Wild 5-1. And yeah, the Avalanche are just, they are scary good. And even when teams are making trades, and I know that I believe the Wilde were on the second half of the back-to-back. It's tough to get the Avalanche in that spot. But that being said, it's just like, it still feels like there's levels to go for a lot of teams to get to the level the avalanche are at right now. Yeah, they're far and away the best team in the league.

And I think the teams in their division, like Dallas and Minnesota are not, I wouldn't say they're pretty close, but they in another season might feel pretty good about themselves, but the abs are just, they're just on another level. I mean, you just look at the goal differential. They're a plus 61 through 35 games. That's crazy. And Dallas is second. in the NHL at plus 36 through 37 games.

So we're talking almost double. They are blowing teams out, blowing out a Minnesota team that was playing well, right? And riding their Quinn Hughes bump. Yeah. They're having an insane year. And then also the Buffalo Sabres, who mentioned it, they've won six in a row.

They're three points out of a playoff spot. I hope they figure it out. I hope this all works out. I hope Yarmel Kek-a-Lyin goes all in. I want the Sabres. I mean, they've, you know, we talk about the Canucks. they make the Quinn Hughes trade.

What does that mean? What kind of more trades are they going to make? What kind of direction are they going in? The Sabres make a GM change. And within the week have almost already restructured their front office with, you know, Bergevin coming in, Flynn coming in from Columbus. So Kekeleinen gets the job on Monday, like a week from today, a week ago last week, and is within the week like, okay, I'm bringing in these guys.

I'm already aggressively changing the mix of the front office with the Sabres. Yeah, and they're winning six in a row at the same time. So it'll be interesting to see what they do as the season goes on because they are just longing for the playoffs at this point. You're listening to the best of Halford and Brough. You're listening to the best of Halford and Brough. Welcome back to Halford & Brough. It's Josh L.A. Wolf, Israel Fair, filling in for the next couple days here.

And we are coming to you live from the Kintech Studio. You can text in 650-6-50 is the Dunbar Lumber text line. seeing a few ask us anything's come in. We'll try to hit them as the show goes on. And if you got more, you can text them in right now. 650, 650. 650. Halford & Brough is brought to you by Sands and Associates.

Get out of the penalty box of debt and back in the game with a financial fresh start. Visit sands dash trustee.com. This hour of Halford & Brough is for jason. If you love paying too much for your mortgage, then don't let Jason shop around to find the perfect mortgage for you. That's jason. dot mortgage. Good job on the music today, Zach. I'm feeling festive. Yeah, I can tell. Based on all the holiday music. And that's the conclusion I came to. You were feeling festive. But you're doing good songs too because APM music sometimes.

You can just go down, you can go down a bad road on APM. Well, especially with Christmas songs, there is some shocking material in here. Yeah. Some people just make horrible music. There's a couple Christmas raps in here that should not be played. Okay. Well... Oh, well... Yeah, maybe we should play them. Why did you say that? Obviously, they must be played. At 8 o'clock, I definitely want you to play one of those. Yeah, if they're as bad as you say,

they must be put on air. Yeah. 650, 650 is the Dunbar Lumbertax line. This one comes in. I think if everyone did the ad reads with the same energy as Josh, I'd have way less money. Am I... I'm just excited about ad reads. I'm mainly excited about how many there are

and when I'm able to, like, do them properly because there's so many on this show. Yeah, this show has a lot of them. They do. Yeah, you really put all your energy into them. I know. And it leaves... That's a good thing, though.

It leaves nothing for the rest of the rest of it. You read every single one like it's the first time. Yeah. In a good way. You always remember the first time. I can't wait to go home and do my homework. This year, give her English muffins. Uh, okay.

So we got some ask us anything's coming in. I'm just going to move off. One from Comox. Uh, what would... would be on the Christmas wish list for all Vancouver sports teams. So should we start? I'm going to start with the obvious. Vancouver White Caps.

A stadium. Stadium. Yeah. That's what they want. That is all they need. They've taken step one. Canucks, that one, I guess it might be tougher, like long term. Well, obviously you say the cup, but I mean, in the short term practice facility is probably number one.

Oh, yeah, I guess. It's got to be the practice facility. Yeah. Not the number one. That's what I was going to say the number one. one pick. But that's like a June. Oh, number one, sure, yeah, number one pick as well, absolutely.

Yeah. Or just like, I don't know, I guess. I mean, we started the show with it. It's not more wins necessarily. So that always makes it a little bit more complicated. Yeah, because I would say like, hey, 10 game winning streak, but I don't know. I don't know. And then the Vancouver

Golden Eyes to win a road game. That would be nice going back on the road. Because they've won at home. They lost on Saturday, but they've been able to win it home. And then the BC Lions to make a big addition? I don't know. I don't know. I don't know if the BC lines are pretty chill right now. I think they're fine. Stay at BC Place. Yeah. Sure. Nathan Rourke, stay healthy. Yes, that would be nice. This one, Ash from Surrey, I've made it to the fantasy football finals. First game is on Christmas Day. How do I convince my wife to watch the game?

Also, if I win this year, it will be my third straight championship. Congratulations, Ash. Nice. I didn't think about that when I answered the question about watching games on your phone Oh now he's changing his mind Because I didn't think Because I didn't make the fantasy football finals

And so for me it's like Well I just didn't even factor into my decision But now if you have like Yeah but it's not it's it's the You know the first games of the week So it's not like it's going to decide the It's not necessarily going to decide your But if you got like Bonix and Cortland Sutton

You're making the championship game with Bo Nix and Cortland Sutton? I think he could. I think you could. I don't know. I think picking up Kansas City QB3 off waivers for the championship. Sometimes things get tough. You got to do what you got to do.

Maybe that changes things. If it's really... You're not benching Travis. If you've made the championship game and you happen to have Travis Kelsey, he's got to be benched. I don't think you benched Travis Kelsey. With QB3? With QB3?

He had two points this week, Josh. You're benching him. Who am I going to throw to? to Travis Kelsey. The other team. Yeah, exactly. Maybe if you have Broncos defense, then I got

criticized by our good friend Bick Mazar the other day for being in a fantasy league that has defense. I do hate the leagues that have defense. So if you're in a real league, then you're the type of person that's going to watch these games during Christmas dinner, you're not in a

league with defense, Josh. Right. You're fraudulent. Your league is fraudulent. Because I have, in my league, I have Seahawks special teams and defense, and they've been awesome this year. They've been great. I dropped them early in the year, like a fool. This one from Justin and East Van, ask us anything. Does Liam O'Grane deserve an audition in the top six for the Vancouver Canucks? Why not, to be honest?

Like, I think you're kind of at the point where if you, the thing I've said is that if you tell me that, like, hey, you want to see the Canucks try whoever in a top six role or whoever on the power play, with where they are in the standing, I'm like, sure, why not? And from what we've seen from Liam O'Grath, I have been impressed by the shot. I've been impressed by his size. Yeah, he's got some juice. Feels like he's able to do things that I wouldn't have it expected

from a guy who had zero points in 18 games in Minnesota coming into this. So it feels like he's kind of gotten a fresh start. I wouldn't mind seeing him in the top six, especially if you, like, late in the season, if you call up Lechermacki after you made a couple of trades and I know they used to play together

before getting drafted. So if that's kind of your plan, you got those two guys playing on the same line. Ogrin kind of makes up for Leckermacky being a little bit smaller too. Like that to me would be an interesting duo and then maybe got Marco Rossi or Elise Pedersen if he's healthy and playing at the time.

Like, I don't know. That to me could be interesting. I wouldn't mind seeing him get a shot on the top power playing at two at some point. But I don't know that might be a situation where like, hey, if you trade Connor Garland, then you can try Liam Ogren on the top unit because that's a little more crowded than the top six for the Canucks is right now. Yeah, I mean, I think if you're trying to put a lineup together that has the Canucks best long-term interests at heart, you need to have Kiefer Sherwood in a prime slot. You need to have a van der Kaine in as prime a slot as possible. And then it's, it's quite frankly going to be pretty hard to move off of Brock Best.

Connor Garland and Jake DeBrosky in top six roles because of the contracts and what they can do. It's not like those guys are necessarily going to get moved down as well. So long term though, I mean, when Ogren was acquired, the talk was, hey, they're going to give him an NHL chance, but don't be surprised if he ends up in the HL and the first week for him has gone really, really well. So all he can do is continue to put himself in a position to push up the lineup and get those opportunities. And the thing we hear, I think Yannick Hansen mentions it often on the station. It's more in reference to a call-up when you have the adrenaline and you're like, okay, you can be good for a few games and

you can look like you're having this big impact, but it's what you do five to 10 games in. When you kind of get into the rhythm of like, okay, I'm in the NHL and I've gotten used to this. I feel like there's a similar effect when you get traded to a new team too. It's like, oh, I want to impress this team. I want to show them like, hey, they're giving me this new chance, especially for Ogrin. He was in the bottom six in Minnesota, and I guess he's in the bottom six here, but I think he probably can tell that there's more of an opportunity in Vancouver than there would have been, you know, playing behind

Caprizov and Boldie. And I know you mentioned Bess or Garland de Brusk, but clearly not the same level of those two guys, right? So I think he can view it as there's a road here for me, and that can be a motivating factor, but how long can he keep it up? And that's going to be the big thing for both him and I think Zee Boeum too, but there's also I think Boeum's just going to have a longer road than

Ogrin would. Yeah, for sure. Although I did I couldn't help but think over the weekend as Ogrin's playing pretty well that is this just going to be Neil's Hoaglander all over again where it's like let's give this guy a chance up the lineup like this physically impressive guy

and we're just going to debate this player forever and ever. Those aren't the vibes right now because it's just kind of been surprised at how well the teams played, or at least the results that the Canucks have been getting since the trade. But, yeah, I mean, he looks good. He looks like a player that could be, I'm not going to say he's going to be a top of the lineup impact player,

but seems like a guy that, I mean, Josh, you mentioned the Lechoramaki connection. That is something I could see Canucks fans dreaming on a little bit because in Lechromacki's time with the Canucks, we've seen that the shot certainly plays so it's about finding him the right fit what that looks like and at least for the Canucks you know we're not talking nearly

as much about the center depth as we were just a couple of weeks ago it's gotten a little bit better and you know the thought is when Patterson is in there as well regardless of what you think of him as a franchise building block at this point he's obviously an NHL center it would be funny if Ogrin

I mean I know you're talking about Rossi but Ogrin it would be funny if Ogrin ended up being the best player in that trade like sneaky like you're not expecting much from him he's often forgotten about because obviously booge him has such high pedigree as a prospect and and rossy's an established two C not talking about the first overall or sorry the first round pick because who knows what that's going to be but of those three players it would be very funny if ogren ended up being the best one it would be great i think and he looks like he's got like he's got the tools like yeah you could see it you could see it there like you could see why he was drafted so high if the if the reason ogren ends up being

the best of those three is because he hits so well, that would be, that would go such a long way in, like right now, I don't think we can look at this trade, in my opinion, as a win for the Knox, maybe making the best case out of a, out of a bad situation when it comes to the Quinn Hughes trade, but they were just always going to lose that trade, uh, in my opinion. But the way three or four years down the road, we look at this trade as a win, I think is if Liam Ogren hits. And then also Z. Bouillon ends up being a top pairing defenseman. Marco Rossi stays a second line center and then whatever

happens with that first round pick happens. But if Ogren hits, there's a very real chance we look back at this trade in four years and at the very least we're going, hey, that was a win win. And that's something the Canucks had to do. They made the most out of it at the time and that's, it's a lot

of projection for Ogren. I mean, there's a chance that Canucks end up winning that trade flat out. If all three of those, like if Rossi even gets better than he already is, if Ogren turns into a stud top six player and if Booiam is that you know legit star first pairing defenseman

maybe not to the caliber of Hughes but nevertheless a star first pairing D man yeah like he's like a legit number one D man if all three of those guys hit then you might look back at it four years from I'd be like you know what the Cucks might have actually squeaked out of the train with a win especially if you get someone that plays NHL games with that first round pick

too like it's going to be a late first round pick so I'm not expecting you know this home run pick but if you get someone that can tangibly play in the NHL, you got four legitimate NHLers out of that trade? That's huge. That's more than I think I would have asked for going into this whole

huge debacle is what the Canucks could theoretically have four years down the road. Now a lot of it is still projecting, right? And a lot of it is like, hey, best case scenario, but sometimes I just want to live in the world of best case scenario.

And that would be, if we're looking at Ogren as a top six winger, in the future. I think that is the case for that trade being a win. It definitely helps dull the sting of losing someone like Hughes. Yeah. It would also... Franchise demand, which you may never get again. Yeah. It would

also, to make it a win, I think you might need Hughes to not sign a Minnesota. But I guess it doesn't matter. Like, even if he signs Minnesota, it's still you got whatever you got back. That's not changing. 650-650 is the Dumbar Lumber Text line. This one, Ask Us Anything.

Bruce in BC Why is Jake Debrusk Still in the top six? What does he do? He is the definition Of a passenger I think he's fine I don't know I've got no

I've seen some complaints going around About him and Brock Besser And I think this is Well they're very similar players They're both very streaky That when they're They have these runs where they're doing great Then they kind of disappear for a little while

But they have enough consistent runs That you're just like All right they're good Yeah and there are going to be moments during a season where you look at each of them and you go, oh, what is this guy doing right now? And I can see why you would be frustrated, but at the same time

there's going to be runs, especially for DeBresque, where it's like, oh, he scored seven goals in the last 10 games, because that's what he does. And so, I get the frustration, but I don't know, I still think he's fully worth his contract. He's, he has his moments. He's been playing

even some penalty kill minutes, too. Like, I don't have... Also, who would you replace him with? Exactly. Like, I don't have a lot out there. I mean, I guess you give Ogren more minutes. You could argue that, but I mean, he's maybe deserved it. If someone wants to make the case that like, hey, you want to see him play less, sure, but I don't know. I don't have a problem with him. No, I mean, this is what he is.

This is a talent level. Same with Brock Brasser. They're not playdrivers. They are guys. Passenger is obviously pretty derives of term for a player. It's more complimentary. But that's the truth. And then Connor Garland is a play driver, but needs help because he's.

not a shooter and there would be some version of this team that is more competitive where they could move some of the players around you might like you know what what garland brings is best in a certain role right it's best as a guy who's getting decent matchups in a middle six where you don't need that that shooting pedigree and besser and de brusk have that and they do it I guess in slightly different ways but that's their skill set that the issue there with those three is that none of them are bona fide first-line wingers, right? Like, legit, you talked about Caprizov and Boldie with Minnesota. Those guys are legit, number one line players you don't have to think about.

And DeBrusc and Bessor, I get the frustration. You're right, because it's exactly the case. I was at the game against Detroit a couple of weeks ago, which now feels like ages ago because Quinn Hughes played in the game for the Vancouver Canucks. And that game, Besser and DeBersk were, in my view, pretty bad. And the whole team was bad. And they were getting a lot of shots, but they weren't really creating a lot. And they get shut out at home.

That, you know, felt like a low point just a few days before the Canucks end up trading Quinn Hughes. And that was a game where I was at. And I was like, well, this is a game where neither guy is doing much. And Garland was good that game. Carried the puck a lot, made a lot of things happen. But the flaws in his game, not being able to, you know, be the guy that's going to drive the scoring chances outside of making passes. limits the impact that he can have. And those three guys were front and center, right?

Because that was a game with No Patterson. Yeah. And this is also why when we talk about, especially when we were talking about the Quinn Hughes trade, it was just like, hey, get, it doesn't matter what position they play. Just get as much talent as you can right now for the Canucks. Because you can look at the wingers and you can say,

hey, they have a lot of wingers and they're in a good spot. But also at the same time, when we talk about the high end wingers, the Canucks still need more help. And down the middle, clearly they're still going to need more defensively maybe you feel fine but you're still going to need more down the stretch like they need more talent everywhere so when we're talking about trades leading up to the trade deadline when we're talking about the draft and i i bet

unless they're picking first or second overall the the question about hey should the kinnocks target a center specifically or targeted defenseman specifically that conversation is going to come up and i just don't think it matters i think you got to in a trade get the best player available in a in the draft get the best player available and you know this year it might be Gamma McKenna might be Stenberg like those two guys are wingers I'd have no problem with either of them on the Canucks because they just need help they need help in every facet of the lineup and whatever you can get you got to go get yeah front frontline players those are those are the ones and yes of course if you're deciding between a center and a winger you're going to take the center

And we know the impact that a true number one D-Man has on a team. But if the Canucks are in a position in the draft to get a winger, that's a legit first-line winger, right? Like the caliber that changes the dynamic of your lineup. That's obviously still a good thing to have. 650-650 is the Dunbar Lumbertack's line. It is Halpern and Brough, Josh Elliott-Wolf and Israel Fair filling in. So earlier in the show, we started talking about the Canucks

on a four-game win streak right now, trying to make it five tonight when they take on the flyers in Philadelphia, but the question coming out of it is just how are fans feeling about this win streak? Winning four in a row, especially after a Quinn Hughes trade, where people kind of, it felt like there was an acceptance of this team is going to be bad, I'm okay with it, it's fine. Well, you know what's going to happen, right? I mean, the Canucks a Lock you talked about in the first segment, they're going to win just enough games to fall out of a top three or even a top five pick. Maybe 9th, 10th, 11th in the West.

You know what's going to happen. Just prepare for it now. They're going to pick 7th or 8th. Yeah, and that's okay. Just prepare for it. I mean, you know, obviously you know you want them in the top three, especially with this draft being how deep it is, but just, just expect it. Expect that they're going to get enough wins somehow.

Demko's going to go on a couple of heaters himself. I mean, he's already playing great, but he's going to continue to play as Demko plays when he's healthy. And they're just going to squeak just enough wins in there to get out of that tough. Is Demco a liability right now in terms of like, too, In terms of the tank, yes. In terms of the tank. Yes, he's too good for a tanking team.

It's also, so the one issue I've had, especially with the four-game one streak, and I don't know if it changes much, but Thatcher Demko coming off injury, start a four games in a row. And if you're a team that, to me, should be concerned about his long-term health, especially since you gave them a contract extension

in the off-season, and if you're talking about a hybrid build, you're not expecting to be good this. year but you might be expecting to be good next year the year after like if that's in the in the cards for you if that's your plan i i feel like there should be a more conservative approach when it comes to thatcher demco and then you reap the benefits from it because a it gives him a little bit more time to rest he's an oft injured goaltender and that that can only help b if you're talking about tanking not having a great goalie in there that's going to help too you might lose another game here too

here or there. And then the third reason Kevin Lankanin is also getting paid four and a half million. Yeah, he's a capable starter. And so I don't know maybe there was a reason he started four games in a row but I don't know if I want to see that more often than not down the stretch. No, it has to go back to

what the original plan was. You know, couple games. Lankin gets a game even if Demko is on an incredible heater because you're not And, of course, the Canucks themselves as a team that is not embracing a tank, and they still have a goalie of Thatcher Demko's caliber. If he's playing well, the instinct is going to be to keep him going out there. But they have to weigh the injury concern. They have to weigh.

Well, maybe it's 40 Chess. They're playing him so much to try and get him injured again. Oh, my God. Yeah, but then you can't trade him. Yeah, you know, under the scenario where. You think they trade Demko this season? Not necessarily, though. I don't know.

I'd be very surprised. He has to stay healthy this season to have. any value. Otherwise, you're not, yeah. The thing, like, if he gets injured one more time, I don't think he can move him at all. Because then it's two starts, yeah, if he gets hurt, let's say, in the next couple of months again, it's two straight years of not being able to stay healthy. Yeah. With a new contract coming in at an inflated cap hit. Yeah. And to answer the question, I don't know if they move him this year, I would entertain it. Like, if team comes to you and they say, hey, here's a first round picker. Hey, it'd be fully on board. I just don't

think that Canucks are on board. I mean, I'd be fine with it. Yeah. That's exactly the kind of movie you'd want to make to try and get a high draft pick is moving that guy that's preventing it from happening because he's such a good goaltender but I don't know I'd be very surprised with the Canucks did that deal. As would I but we do get some texts about how fans are feeling about

the wind streak. This one, Tatiana and Langley I am fully enjoying this win streak. I think it's great for morale and getting the new guys comfortable. Obviously it won't last so why not just enjoy it for the moment? The season has sucked so bad this is fun right now. I do get that. Like you

I mean, it is fun. I won't disagree with that. It's fun to see the team play well and win. Just in the background, you're just like, couldn't you've done this to start the year? Why are you doing it right now? This would have been more fun when you had Quinn Hughes. Yeah, exactly.

You could have just started the year like this. You can go to run. But I do get it. The morale and getting new guys comfortable thing, I think is a good point in terms of it's just a better environment for guys to try to integrate into if you're winning games

as opposed to losing four in a row after you make a big trade like that. But, yeah, enjoy for the moment. I'm not going to fault people for enjoying the wins right now. I know we've got to go to break, but can I just say how impressed I am with Booiam's, like, confidence level as a young kid? Like, he's so well-spoken, he talks like a leader. I mean, I've been really impressed with him so far, just how he carries himself. And he seems like he has a good head in his shoulders and, again, very well-spoken guy.

Yeah, I would agree. I would agree. It's been fun so far. I do wonder what it's going to look like. Does he keep the confidence when they go on a losing streak? Because that's going to happen at some point. You're listening to the best of Halford and Brough.