Halford & Brough in the Morning - The NHL Entry Draft Is Finally Here!

Episode Date: June 26, 2026

In hour one, Brough and guest host Josh Elliott-Wolfe look back at the previous day in sports, they hear from Canucks General Manager Ryan Johnson ahead of round one of today's NHL Entry Draft (3:00), plus they discuss what has been a busy off-season for the Caps thus far, as Washington Capitals insider & Monumental Sports Network's Tarik El-Bashir (26:36) joins the show. 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 Halford and Brough. I do want to slowly chip away as I don't want to just sit with the same group. I think by even small changes, you had a different energy and an excitement. Robertson leaves for Sagan. Cross the line, four-star Sagan, and right side, Robert. Jason Robertson. The Seattle has a plan for your contract to renewal, but do you have a plan? Would you do it for a 15 million dollars?

Don't you think we should maybe ask for more? Good morning. Welcome to Halford and Brough coming to you live from the Kintech Studio on Sportsnet 650. No Mike Halford. He has been taken hostage by South Africans on Twitter, courtesy of Jason Brough. Good morning, Jason. Good morning. How are you doing, buddy?

I'm good. I'm Josh Elliott Wolf. by the way, filling in for Mike Halford. Good morning, Andy. Good morning. Good morning. You called me by my legal name. I know.

I'm going government name today, guys. That's what I'm doing. Howford and Abruff is brought to you by Sands and Associates. Their clients often say, I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off me. If debt is weighing you down, click sands dash trustee.com. Hour 1 of Hufford, Abruff is brought to you by North Star Metal Recycling. Vancouver's Premier Metal Recycler pays the highest prices on scrap metal. North Star Meta Recycling. They recycle. You get paid 1170 Powell Street in Vancouver.

We are coming to live from the Kintech Studio, Step Strong with Orthotics and Footwear from Kintech. If you want to text into the show today, it's Ask Us Anything Friday. Text into the Dunbar Lumber Text Line at 650, 650, trusted by contractors and DIY champions across Metro Vancouver for generations. Find them at three convenient locations or visit Dunbar Lumber Online. today. Correct me if I'm wrong. A.J.'s pizza gift card on the line for the best one. You are not wrong. Wow. You are not wrong. You're already ahead of Halford in that you are not wrong. Great start. A big show today. It is day one round one of the NHL draft. It's also a five guester on the Halford & Brough show. We'll start with the guest list. It's the Duick Morning Drive brought to you by the Duick Auto Group at 630. Tarich Al-Bashir, Washington, Capitol. Capitol's insider for Monumental Sports Network and Rinkside reporter for NHL on T&T will join us. A lot of moving and shaken around the NHL and they are one of the biggest movers and shakers

adding Alex Tuck, Jordan Cairo, Trading Away, Hendrix Lapier. What happens with Alex Ovechkin? We get all the answers in about half an hour when we talked to Tarek at 6.30. At 7, it's AJ from AJ's pizza. 705. Joshua Cloak, staff writer for the athletic covering the Canadian men's national team.

Canada, they play quite a big match on Sunday against South Africa in L.A. 730, Sam Cozantino will join us. He covers the NHL draft and prospects for Sportsnet. Who will the Vancouver Canucks take? Not only third overall,

but 24th overall. Have you done all the, have you read all the mocks? There's so many mocks. No. Oh, okay. I've read a few and I'm like you know what

you know what draft I'll pay attention to the non-mock draft oh the real one the real draft the real draft the actual draft that starts later like I wonder what all those people think that do their mock drafts and then the real draft happens and it's like pretty different and they're like oh nuts

that was a waste of time are you mocking the mock draft yeah why are we mocking into like the 25th pick what's going on on there. It's exciting. It's not excited. They're just getting the first round. You didn't like Corey Promon's seven round M-HL mock draft. What the hell are we doing here?

Who's reading that? Who's reading that? You're just reading that? You're reading that and they're like, I think they'll take this guy. Some people really like the draft. I guarantee Zack read that whole thing. It's, it's, okay, well, whatever. We got too much to get into for me to get too upset about mock drafts. I didn't think it would set you off like that. 8 o'clock. Final guest

of the show, Rick Dollywall, one half of Donnie. and Dolly on Check TV? We'll join us. Do the Canucks have any moves in store as the day goes along? That's what's happening on the show. Zachary, 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'm moving. We know how busy your life can be. What happened? Missed it? You missed that? What happened is brought to you by ATS traffic. Start a career path in traffic safety.

competitive wages and training at one of Canada's best managed companies online at ats traffic dot c a's we've got a lot of reeds don't we there's dude every time i do the show it's like oh there's seven more reads you have to do today yeah yeah you gotta be on your toes well actually you don't because halford isn't and we still managed to get through it by the way someone texted in uh ask us anything where is halford who skips draft day yeah i know right and you know And also draft reaction day on Monday. Yeah. On Monday, too.

So he's not even, he's not even like, it's not like, oh, I went down to watch Canada, the World Cup. He's got something to do. And he's like, oh, I got to take Friday off. I'm like, you mean draft day and prep for Canada's knockout stage game in the World Cup? But he's like, yeah, I also got to miss the Monday, too. Oh, do you mean when we react to draft weekend and what happened there with the Canucks and also look back on Canada's

knockout stage game at the World Cup. He's like, yeah, that sounds like a lot of work. I was so surprised when I got to ask for both of these. Yeah, I can't make that either. Okay, the Vancouver Canucks will pick third and 24th overall today in Buffalo. It's the first time. They've had two picks in the first round since 2014

when they took Jake Fretanan and Jared McCann. The former never turned into much of a player. The latter did, but not for the Kinnock's because they traded him pretty quickly for Erica Branson. So those were some bad calls and part of the reason they're back rebuilding again. Josh, who do you think they're going to take today? I think they're going to take Hila Maltra. Yeah.

I just kind of feel like, so the smoke around him, well, like, I don't know, I feel like we've been talking about him for months now. And now it kind of feels like in the last few days, Chase Reed smoke has taken over. And that feels more like a fake out. I feel like the layup is Caleb. We heard that report from Dave Panyoda at the fourth period. It was like, I do not expect the Canucks

to take Caleb Malhotra third overall. And that was the first time I'd heard anyone say that. Push back on it. So I was kind of like, oh, all right. So what do you think is going to happen? Just first four picks, even. First three picks. First four picks? I mean, I think Gavin McKenna, number one. Yeah. Ivar Stenberg,

now number two. Right. Because of all the shaken that San Jose did. And then I would go Caleb, number three. I kind of think maybe Vigo Bjorko is number four to Buffalo. Yeah. I feel like Buffalo's got some funky stuff in store. Yeah.

I feel like Buffalo could even trade that pick. Yeah. You know, there could be. I think, first of all, I think this is going to be a really fun draft. And I think there's going to be some stuff that happens during this draft. And I hope I'm not wrong about that. because there have been a few drafts in the last little while that I've watched and you know your seven hours into the first round or whatever it is you're like

this is the most boring draft they're doing a weird zoom I've ever seen on a stage there's too much nonsense going on like I think I also hope from a broadcast perspective they're kind of like chop chop let's get to the next pick so I I'm really excited about watching this draft and not just because the Canucks have two picks, but I, you know, Ryan Johnson actually said this when he first got the job, as general manager of the Canucks, he said. I feel like there's going to be some stuff happening in this draft. You know, there is more cap space now,

so there's more creativity to be done on the player side. But that also means that sometimes you have to throw in these picks to make those trades happen. We've already seen it. We've already seen the fourth overall pick traded quite recently. Speaking of Ryan Johnson, he met with the media yesterday to discuss not only the draft, but the red hot trade market in the NHL, which so far has not included the Canucks. At the very least, Johnson has been forced to consider whether his players may have more or less value on the market.

And, Zach, can we play the clip where RJ talks about seeing, the value of your players? Well, I think you have to. Certain types of moves change the value of players depending on their age, their contracts, their value as a player and where they slot into a lineup. So when you see these other moves going on,

yes, it does make you internally look at your own players, their value, where they fit in possibly to other teams that have those needs. So it has been, you know, a crazy few weeks in the sense of not the players, but how players are being moved around and some of the first round picks that are, have tended to be untouchables are now seem like they're moving around pretty, pretty frequently, which tells you a little bit of where the market's at. So for those who are worried that the Canucks aren't going to make enough changes

to the roster this offseason, I get it. haven't done anything major yet. And there are some no move clauses involved with a bunch of the players that could be traded. But I'm not sure that worry is justified. Johnson wants to make changes. He just wants to do everything with patience and accordance with the vision he has for the rebuild. and patience is part of that rebuild or part of that vision. By the way, we are going to hear the vision a lot out of Ryan Johnson.

Like almost every question he's going to be asked, he's going to be like, let me just bring you back to the vision. But something he said yesterday about wanting change, honestly, I'm not trying to put words in his mouth, but almost for the sake of change. really stood out for me. He does not want the same group of players coming back next season. And that might sound obvious to say,

but the way he dealt with the UFAs, he might like Teddy Blugher. He might think Teddy Bluger is like a decent, you know, 4C or on the Canucks, I don't know, 2C. But he might also like his character, but he wants to change the group. group. He wants to move out a bunch of the old and bring in something new just to add a little bit of a different energy to the Canucks. I think you have to be prepared for that. I think one thing

I do want to slowly chip away is I don't want to just sit with the same group. I think by even small changes, you had a different energy and an excitement and a so, I do it. Do I want to keep just rolling it back with the same, preferably not to, but you can't rush the process again to say, well, I'm going to make a rash decision that maybe isn't best for what we're trying to accomplish. But I do want to add, even if it's in, whether it's via trade, via free agency, even if it's a small piece to start the rollover of people that I think are going to help us short and long term deliver to the environment. we want to build, how we want to play, and all the things that we've already talked about. Okay. So, Philip Peronik. He was asked about Philiperonek. And while he didn't speak deeply about Philiperonek, he did say he has an approach any player about waving his no trade clause. Now, he didn't say he would never approach a player about waving his no trade clause, but what you need to do

typically first, well, not in all cases, I suppose, but what he's doing is if he's got an offer on the table that he wants to go forward with, then he'll approach the player. But he hasn't gone to Philip Horanick and said, you know, what about this and what about that? And, you know, I think the word that comes to mind is balance. He's got to balance a lot of things. The Canucks have a lot of needs. They need draft picks. They need a future.

They also need good veterans to mentor the kids. They need to have patience. Now, that doesn't mean passivity. They also need to take advantage of selling and buying opportunities. It's a balance. And they're in a very tough position. They're in a very difficult position. but what he doesn't want is for the Canucks kids to be exposed to just a terrible time next year,

and in his words, to have their teeth kicked in. Yeah, it's something you consider. I've said this, yes, are we in a rebuild? But it's not sell off, get as young as you can, get your teeth kicked in, and think that things are just going to naturally happen. You want to insulate players, not just with good players, but with great people. I've been very clear that the people that will walk into these doors are great people that have the engine, that have the professionalism and the room awareness that we're looking for.

So it's not just about strip it down as fast as you can, and it'll automatically grow on its own. That's not the approach here, but it's something that is in consideration of every, we do. What are you truly subtracting just besides the hockey player? Okay, Josh, I've spoken a lot. What stood out to you about RJ's press conference and feel free to comment on any of the three clips we've already played? Yeah, I mean, honestly, I don't think a crazy amount stood out. And I think that's by plan, going according to plan for Ryan Johnson and this management team, because they do feel like a very guarded management team.

And I think we're still trying to, like, would Jim Rutherford, and especially Jim Rutherford. It was like, ah, I kind of know what you're thinking about, this player, that player, or what your plan is going to be. And I think we're still trying to get a read on what that's going to be for Ryan Johnson and the Siddons, who obviously haven't talked as much. That might come more when they make some actual moves. And we can look back at some of the comments and what they may have been hinting at

when they spoke prior to whatever moves they end up making. But I think for now it's kind of difficult to get a read on. what these comments mean outside of like hey i don't think he's happy with where this team is at i don't think he's happy obviously not yeah with where the core is at and it does i know some people saw the the comment about hey we we don't want to sell off and they they haven't approached anybody about waving their no move clauses as a negative to me but to me i read it as like hey they're open for business and anybody is on the table we'll see you know how proactive they are in moving these players? Obviously with

Heronic, it doesn't feel like they're going to be too proactive. I don't think you should group all the three players, Besser, Petterson and Heronik, into the same group. I don't think it's the same situation in all those. From what I can tell, he wants to trade Pedersen, but that's easier said than done. I don't know about Besser, but it feels like they want to keep Heronic.

They think that at least for the next little while, he's an important part of resetting the culture. And I think that they were impressed with how he, I guess, performed in his enthusiasm down the stretch and the way that the young defenseman looked up to him. And they think that he's a good role model.

Now, you have to remember some of the things that the Siddins have said about their entry into the NHL. And what they said was it was really important to have good veterans in the room that you could look up to and learn how to act. They said that for most of the, you know, most of the time when they were first starting in the NHL, and I'm not talking about six months, I'm talking about years and years, they didn't say anything in the room. they observed, they listened, and then when it was time for them to become leaders, they felt like they had gone to school and learned from these guys.

Now, I understand the pushback of people that say, well, then go out and get some veterans on the free agent market. Go get Luke Shen and Ian Cole, bring them back. Go get those guys. I think they're going to do that anyway. they're going to bring in some vets in free agency or a trade maybe one of them's going to be Brendan Gallagher I don't know

but I this whole thing about throwing the kids to the wolves like I understand that which veteran would you bring in to play first pair of minutes with Zeve Bouayum and at least allow Zeev Bouillon to take a breath out on the house

on the ice once in a while. I don't think there are any. And that's the thing about, so we got a text, Dave the Beer League plug. I have patience for rebuild. I have no patience for letting assets wither and die on the vine.

Action speak louder the words and all the sweet nothing's being whispered into our ears are just that. Nothing. Feeling more and more like old times. I think the thing about, we can talk about Elise Pedersen and Jake DeBrusk

and it's like, hey, you might want to get ahead of that before those assets lose value. I feel like Heronic, to your point, is in a different category where if you hold on to Philip Peronick for this year because you are worried about insulating Z. Buoyum and you want the leadership there. You want someone who can play actual top pair of minutes

to be your veteran leader. He's still going to have value next season. Probably the same value he has at this moment. Yeah. And that's why I'm not, for him, I get that people want to see like, hey, this is your big asset. This is the thing you can move. But the benefit would be, hey, you get the year.

I don't think the value is going away. And also, I kind of think there's a value to sequencing this. Like, I think if you get first round picks next year and the year after, as opposed to trying to get as many this year, that's a better way to go about rebuilding than just being like, hey, we're all in on the 2026 draft class. I also don't think he looks at a player like Pedersen or DeBrusk and maybe even Besser.

I don't have a good handle on what they feel about. Bessor is kind of weird. I don't have a good handle on that. but you know you said that you know you might want to get ahead of trading de brusk or peterson before they lose value i don't think that's so much the case i think that's more like do we want these guys around we want we're trying to change the energy around the rink okay and he mentioned that you bring in some new new guys even if it's a even if it's a small change it changes the energy. We've talked a lot about, or they've talked a lot about changing the environment. And once

training camp comes around, you're going to see a whole new environment, just the way things are. And I feel like, well, certainly with Jake DeBras, this is the easy one. You don't want to be here, see you later. Yeah. Right? That's easy. You don't want to be here? Fair enough. You're man enough to come up to us and say, you know, I don't know if I want to be part of a rebuild. Great. We'll move you along then. We don't want anyone who doesn't want to be here. Pedersen's the weird one though, because we never know what Pedersen wants. He doesn't tell us. And I don't even know if he tells them, but I think, I don't think they want him around. I really don't feel that they want him around unless he is a completely changed man and his energy changes. And I know there have been reports out there that say,

he's actually like you know like the guys are okay with him he's not a distraction he just kind of you know sits in the background i'm like that's that's bad energy that's like you're he's your highest paid player he's supposed to be your best player and he's what he's a wallflower in your dressing room like what i don't you know that i don't think they want that i i really don't what the question is is then it comes to that value, right? Okay. They're not going to pay anything to be rid of his contract, but they might retain. And I think that that news that they be willing to retain and also that their ask isn't the same as Jim Rutherford, who I was like, we want to center back in the deal, which is insane.

Because if a team is willing to, you know, add Elias Pedersen, why would they give you a good center? they clearly need a center they're clearly desperate for a center that they're going to take a risk on Alias Petterson No, you could only get a center back if you trade up on the rule. You're not allowed another position. You need four of them. But we're trying to get a center.

Not too bad. We need one back. I wonder why. But I think that shows that they are motivated to move Pedersen out of there. I would like Bester to stay only because I think he would be important for the culture. That'd be my one thing with Besser. How is he important to the culture? Because he's a good guy and everyone loves him.

He's a nice guy. And he wants to be here. But he's good in the room. He's a good player to have in the room for the younger players. Is he known as a guy that, like, works his butt off and is in the gym all the time and just loves to win. And he's just obsessed with his competitive. To be fair, they do talk a lot about his practice habits and, like, him leading the way

in practice. And, hey, maybe you can make the argument that they finish 30 seconds. Maybe they're not practicing well. Maybe it doesn't matter who's leading the practice. But I don't know. I don't think he's a particular positive or negative. like he's Brock seems to be just there like he's a good guy but I don't think he's like that guy is like we need this guy for our culture right like we need it like being a nice guy like is that is that enough

to say like you're good for our culture well if you work hard yeah I think so it's also about what's better for the rebuild as well and hey would I rather a nice guy or potentially first round pick for Brock Bessor and then oh don't be wrong if they get a first round or I would say a trade of an heartbeat but Okay, so we have a lot to get into on the show today. A lot of NHL stuff going on as well. We'll get into a lot of that, including what's going on in Washington when we talk to Tariq al-Bashir on the other side. But before we go, I got to tell you about Jampro.

Tired of Miss Cleans or unreliable service Jampro delivers consistent cleaning and responsive support you can count on. Start clean, stay clean, jan pro. It is Alfred and Brough, Josh Elliott Wolf filling in for Mike Alford on Sportsnet, 650. It's Canucks Central on SportsNet 650. From exclusive interviews to insider scoops and post-game breakdowns, we've got it all. Tune in weekdays 4 to 6 p.m. on radio and on demand through your favorite podcast app. Welcome back to the Halpert & Brough show. Josh Elliott-Wolf here.

Filling in for Mike Halford and Halpert and Brough is brought to you by Sands and Associates. Their clients often say there is no judgment you feel cared for and otherwise. understood. Get debt free at sands dash trustee.com. This hour of Halford and Brough is brought to 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. To the able auctions hotline, we go. And we welcome in Tareke Al-Bashir, Washington Capitals Insider for Monumental Sports Network and Rinkside reporter for NHL on T&T.

I appreciate to take the time, Tarek. It's been a very busy week in Washington, hey? Morning, guys. Morning. How's what have you thought of the work Chris Patrick has done for the Capitol so far this week? Honestly, I was caught off guard a little bit. You know, this is Chris's third year as GM. And to this point, he's been pretty conservative.

You know, they did make some aggressive moves last year trying to get Nikolai Eelers before he ended up signing with Carolina. I think they actually thought they had a deal with him or were closing in him to deal with him. He chose to go to Carolina. Of course, when a Stanley Cup, I'm sure he's not sad about his decision. They also went after our Timmy Preneran during the season and weren't able to get him before he went to L.A. So I feel like he went into this offseason really determined to upgrade. his top six forward core. I thought they were going to make a move.

They went out and got Jordan Tyroo. I'd heard his name connected to the capitals a few times late last season, and I was like, okay, all right, that's a pretty strong move. And then they went out and got Alex suck, and I was like, wait a minute, what is going on here? And then they've kept making trades ever since. I mean, they made another trade sending Hendricks LaPierre to the rival Penguins. They sent Declan Chisholm to New Jersey last night for some draft picks. I mean, hats off to Chris Patrick.

He said he was going to be decisive and aggressive, and he sure has been. I mean, they have changed in the last 72 hours now the composition of the Capitol's forward core. And perhaps the trajectory of the team for the next several years, because, I mean, Tuck signed an eight-year deal with Washington right after the trade. And Jordan Kair was under contract for five years, so they just added two 30 goal scorers in the prime of their career. you know, in the span of, I mean, back then it was in a span of 24 hours. So, yeah, a little surprised they were this productive and aggressive, but they needed it. They needed it. And if you're Alex Havetschkin on vacation on a beach probably in Turkey right now,

he's got to be looking at his phone going, wait a minute, I need to get on the phone with Chris Patrick and tell him I'm coming back. Yeah. Do you think he is going to come back? I do. I do. I don't have a direct line to him. Like I said, he's halfway around the world right now on vacation with his family. But, you know, I've been talking to people, you know, in and around the organization. And no one really knows he has not tipped his hand. But it just feels like, you know, I've covered him since, you know, he was drafted in Carolina in Raleigh back in 2004.

So I've been with him the entire time. And people in his circle are preparing as though he's going to come back. I think these moves that they've made to, you know, augment the forward group. I mean, if not remake the forward group. Yeah. I mean, if you're him, you really want to win one more time. You want one more kick at the can at 41 years old. This is the best team he's going to have played for probably since when they were, you know, making the second round every year.

And, you know, when they won the cup in 18. Does he stay on Power Play 1? He only had five Power Play goals this season. and he played all 82 games. Yeah, the power play was not good last year. It was not good. They made a change in the assistant coaching ranks, Kirk Muller, who was a great guy and obviously a very accomplished player and coach.

He just wasn't able to get the pieces to work. I think there are a lot of reasons for that. I think they just, when things, when you've been doing a system one way for a long time with the greatest power play goal score, greatest goal score of all time. You just kind of default into old habits, even though you've talked in meetings about doing things differently. You just kind of, when the pressure's on, you kind of go back to what you've always done. And it was just predictable.

It was predictable, and it wasn't working anymore. I think that one of the discussion points, as they start working through what Alex Ovettskin's return, if it indeed happens, looks like, is going to be role. you know he'll be 41 years old at the start of next season expecting him to play two minutes on the power play like he has since 2005

that's just not that's just not a smart play and I think he gets it I mean I guess it he does he does get it because that's important I'm not saying he's going to be happy about it but he wants to win and and

if Coach Carberry sits him down and goes listen Alex you're still going to be on the power play but it's going to look different than it did last year. Your minutes are going to be our down from last year. I think he'll embrace that because he knows at this stage of his career, he wants one more chance at a deep run. And we've seen it in the past.

And you see it with a lot of different players. I mean, we see it with Alexi Prodis, Tom Wilson. I mean, anyone, any, there's like a threshold for minutes. Once you get over that threshold where you're at your peak and you start going a minute, two minutes, three minutes above, you start having diminishing returns. I think we saw that a little bit the last few years with Alex. He's actually at his best when he's in that 14, 15-minute range.

And, you know, he's 41 years old or we'll be 41 years old next year. Maybe that comes down even more. You know, it's a very delicate conversation that has to happen with the greatest goal score who's ever played. The captain since 2010, the reason the franchise has flourished the way it has over the last two decades is all because of number eight. So you have to be respectful. Like I said, Delic, it's probably the best way I can put it.

But, I mean, if he's going to return, it's a different group than he left. I mean, he's coming back with two other right shot 30 goal scores there, you know? They actually have too many right wings right now. Someone's got to play on the left side. I know Alex is still listed as a right shot left wing. He's actually been playing a lot of right wing the last couple of years. yeah, it's a good problem to have, but I think getting him to totally buy into what they envision for his role is going to be a key part of the conversation.

Like I said, he's on vacation halfway around the world right now. There is time for that conversation, but, you know, I think the cast moves here over the last 72 hours were a pretty strong message that, hey, Alex, we love you, but we can't wait for you. Like, we're going to make these moves independent of your decision. and hopefully you come back. But we have to continue to make sure that we're looking out for the team as well. This reminds me of the Christiano-Rinaldo and Portugal debates that some people had until Ronaldo scored a couple of goals in the last game.

How worried are the caps as a franchise about the post-Ovechkin era? Worried is probably too strong a word. curious you know maybe a little wary when Alex came here in 2005 his first season

remember he was drafted in 04 but there was a lockout there were a couple of pretty soft seasons in his first two years I want to say they had back-to-back 70-point seasons the attendance back in was just abysmal and he was like 6,000 7,000 fans even though they already had this this kid who was scoring

50 goals and doing it in a way that no one had ever seen before. They still were kind of struggling. But what has transpired since then is not just Alex becoming the greatest goal score of all time, but what he did and leading up to that Stanley Cup championship in 2018, this has transformed from a basketball and football town into a basketball and hockey town. And as a hockey dad, my kid now plays into AA hockey, but. I raised him in this area from, you know, he was on the ice starting at four years old. I grew up playing hockey in this area when there were three rinks and like five teams.

Now, there's a waiting list to get into House League. You know, there's two AAA teams. There's a high-level junior hockey team. So there is enough grassroots support. Or I don't think the capitals need to be worried about what the, post-OV era looks like. But I do think they have to constantly be on the lookout for that next superstar. Because right now, even with Tuck and with Kairu coming in, and, you know, and all due respect

to Ryan Leonard and Cole Hudson and all these, you know, very good young players that are coming in, they still need, and Tom Wilson and Dylan Strom, I mean, the list goes on, they've got a lot of A minus B plus players. They still need that big draw. They still need that superstar, that guy that, you know, you. You don't even have to look at the All-Star list when it comes out, because you just know he's going to be on it. That one player is going to be the All-Star representative of your team.

The question is, do you get two All-Stars? They need that guy. Do you need them now next year? I don't know. I just think at some point here in the next few years, and it's obviously tough, right? I mean, you have to bottom out to get that number one overall pick. And I don't know if that player is going to become available

in the next couple of years, I don't know, Connor McDavid and Austin Matthews would look pretty good in the Catholic uniform. But look, I don't know if any of that's going to happen. But, yeah, I would say, you know, at some point in the next few years, they're going to want that superstar, charismatic guy who can instantly put butts in seats.

But the bones, as they say in, you know, the real estate market, the bones of this house are strong now. Right. Like the roof is the roof and the, The foundation, it's there now, but it never hurts to have a guy who's a perennial All-Star. Tarreek, always good to catch up with you. Hope you enjoy the day. Anytime.

Thanks for joining us. You may call anytime. Okay. Cheers. Tarreek Elbyshire, who's been covering the Capitals forever, it seems like. I mean, Josh, this might be before your time, but I remember when the Red Wings played the Capitals in the Stanley Cup final. and the Caps had made a bit of a Cinderella run to get there.

And the arena, when I think the Red Wings swept the caps in game four was in Washington, and the arena was legitimately half full of Red Wings fans. This is the Stanley Cup final, and that's pre-OVie. And I can't think of one player in the NHL that has changed his market as much as Ovechkin did, even Sid and Pittsburgh.

He kind of just saved them, but I wouldn't say he changed the market. Right? Like Sid and Pitt, like the Penguins. Yeah, yeah. The Penguins were on a tough track there for a bit. But the Penguins had also won Stanley Cups before with a superstar like Mary Lemieux.

Yeah. Washington, Washington, when I was a kid growing up, they were always good. They were in the Patrick Division. They were good. They had some good players. But they could never win a Stanley Cup. And they never had a guy like Alex Oveckerman.

and then everything changed when he got there. And this is a great opportunity to talk now about the Seattle Cracken. Because I know they've only been in the NHL for a few years. And it's unfair to be like, where's your superstar, right? You want to talk about the Vancouver Canucks. I don't know. They didn't have a superstar until Pavel Burray. And that is when the franchise changed a lot.

when they got, first of all, it was Pat Quinn, then Trevor Linden, and then they got the superstar in Pavel Burry, and they've been the top dog in Vancouver ever since. What is Seattle going to do and tell the listeners about what already happened with Jason Robertson? Yeah, so Elliot Friedman reporting last night that the Seattle Cracken were given permission to speak to Jason Robertson. and they offered him $15 million

per season over eight years. Quick math on that. That is $120 million. Am I wrong? Zach shaking his head. No, no. I was like,

did I do run that? And apparently a package including seventh overall would have been heading to Dallas. The contract offer was rejected by Jason Robertson. So that's the second time.

because they tried to get Artemi Panarin. They tried to get Panarin and Panarin took less total money to go to the LA Kings. He was like, yeah, what is going on? So, because theoretically like Seattle is a nice place to play, right? Like Pacific Northwest, hey, it's a nice city. It is tax-free for now. I was doing some reading and I guess it might not be tax-free for millionaires in a couple years. Yeah, yeah.

But they are just such a boring team. And it's like, I wish they weren't because as like someone that follows the Canucks, I want them to be interesting. I want them to be relevant. I want them to be a rival for the Vancouver Canucks at some point. But I feel like the Cracken are falling into that category very quickly that. They're Columbus now. I was going to say Columbus or Winnipeg where it's the only way you're going to get real talent

outside of drafting is for, trading for players with term and they're like, oh, nuts, I got to go to Seattle. Like, I'm stuck here now. And I mean, someone like Jason Robertson isn't going to go there if he has a choice because he knows, like, hey, I could take $13 million per season and stay in Dallas or go somewhere else.

Like go somewhere I have a chance to win. Because to the point that we're kind of making about Washington, who is in a difference base, to win in the NHL, generally, unless you're the Carolina Hurricanes, you need a star player. And you need a reason, I think, for players that are coming in in free agency or trade or whatever, it's going to be to look at and be like, okay, I can win with that guy.

Yeah. And Seattle does not have anyone close to that at the moment. And I don't know how they go about getting it because it doesn't feel like they're really inclined to tank all that much. Yeah. Speaking of the hurricanes, what did you, what do you think about the rumors that it might be them that get Connor Hellebuck out of Winnipeg? I guess the narrative is that could have been Florida and then Florida spent all their assets

on getting Brady Kachuk out of Ottawa and now Carolina, which has been kind of known as the place that, you know, doesn't want to go after the big money one name goalie.

Yeah, especially a goalie. Yeah. And then they finally win the Stanley Cup and they do it with two guys, Bussie and Freddie Anderson, and then they're like, okay, now we're going to go out. Yeah. Connor Hellebuck. Is this one of those things where it's like you can't be too, you know, you can't be overly committed to just one way of doing business, right? Sometimes you have to weigh, like, all right, well, I know we haven't done this before, but this could be a very unique opportunity

to get what many consider to be the best goalie in the world right now. I kind of think that's more of what the Hurricanes approach is. As much as we talk about, they're not going after, like, especially in net, they're not going after one big guy. I can feel like their approach is, hey, we can get this player for who we think is, or for what we think is low value for what they're going to bring to our team. Now, the thing about Connor Hellebuck is it doesn't really feel like he'd be low value. I mean, when the Buffalo Sabres traded for fourth overall,

then the links to Connor Hellibuck started coming up, and it was like, well, it would include fourth overall to go get Connor Hellebuck. Yeah. I know Alex Nick Kishen, one of the higher hyped defensive prospects, has been linked or at least has been reportedly out there for Carolina, plus some of their picks. It really just doesn't feel like a Carolina move, though.

Does it not? But they've got a ton of cap space. And to bring in a guy like Hellebuck, I mean, look, maybe they're thinking, okay, it's great, we won the Stanley Cup this year. But if we're going to be honest with ourselves, we did it when Florida was having a down year. And Florida was the team that eliminated them two years in a row. And next season, things are going to be different. So we need to be even better than we were this season.

So how can we do that? We've got to make a decision on these goalies anyway. So what if we were able to bring in Connor Hellebuck? How good would we be in the system that we play with one of the best goalies in the world? And with a cap hit that we can afford because we just won the Stanley Cup with cap space to spare. To spare. Which was really, honestly, very impressive. Yeah, I just, to me, that when I look at that team, at least, I'm like, hey, you have a system, especially with, you know,

your coach is going to be in place there for what feels like forever. You have a system that you know a Freddie Anderson or Brandon Bussie or whoever it's going to be can just go in and they're going to have success. I just feel like that money and those assets would be better spent elsewhere if I were Carolina. So Rick from Colonna, Texan, I'm so curious to know what team Robertson wants. Yeah, me too. And I wonder if you could still sign in Dallas, to be perfectly honest with you. I kind of think he wants to stay in Dallas. I'm surprised Dallas is, I know they have Miko Ranton in and he, maybe they don't want to pay another winger, 12 plus million, 13, 14, whatever it's going to be.

But there were also reports that the St. Louis Blues offered a package, including multiple first round picks because they have four. Yeah. Four first round picks today for Jason Robertson, but he is also not interested in signing in St. Louis. So I do wonder, I have no idea what team he's looking for. I would assume it's just like a competitive team that's in the playoffs. Yeah. Maybe I would have said the tax-free thing, but Seattle has that. I don't know.

Maybe he's looking for the mix of everything that, or he just wants to go to Vegas or Florida, like every other player. I wonder if you could go to Colorado now. That Nchuskins been traded. That'd be fun. Colorado's got something up their sleeves, right? I know Nachushkin has a history, but he's a really good play.

They need a top six forward. When he's on. And so they've traded him to Columbus for draft picks. Joe Sackick's going to do something in response to this, especially after having that disappointing playoff exit. Like you would have already thought, okay, well, he's going to try and improve the team. This has to be just the move that you've got to move something out

in order to bring something big. And I feel like there's so many guys out there, so many GMs that want to do something massive. you hear about Yarmalkelein in Buffalo, you hear these whispers that John Chacon wants to do something massive in Toronto. I'm honestly not just hyping this up. Like, I think there's some guys. Well, look, we've already seen some big swings out there.

And I think there's a lot of GMs out there that now that there's cap space and now that the market has started to move, the market is moving, things are happening. they want to do something big and I got to think that Colorado is a place that a lot of guys would say yeah I'd love to go play there I would assume so

and the thing that they're going to have to deal with is they do have a decent amount of cap space I think it's over almost 11 million right now but they also only have four defense been signed at the moment 11 forwards Kael McCarr has one year left he's going to need an extension so

they have stuff coming up that might make it difficult for someone like Jason Robertson to fit in, but it does feel like there's another shoot-a-drop for a lot of teams, including the Colorado Avalanche. Okay, before we go to break, do want to mention the Duick Auto Group is the official automotive sponsor of Halpert & Brough. Find out why nobody beats a Duick deal since 1926. Visit Doick-GM on Marine Drive, downtown in Richmond, and at Duick Auto Group.com. And also, Halford & Brough is brought to by Sands and Associates, and their clients often say there is no judgment. care you feel cared for, heard, and understood. It's why they're known as being debt smart

with heart. Sands and Associates offers a no judgment, no cost, and no obligation initial meeting to learn all your options, like the consumer proposal where you stop the interest, freeze collection calls, and wage garnishments, and can often reduce your debt by up to 80%. Sands and associates have helped over 50,000 British Columbians get debt free and they're ready to help you to click sands trustee.com. Okay, on the other side, we're going to talk to AJ from AJ's pizza. Also, Joshua

Cloak, Canada, playing a huge match on Sunday. Round of 32 against South Africa in L.A. will get into that. It is Halford and Brough. Josh Elliott will filling in for Mike Alford on SportsNet, 650.