OverDrive - Colaiacovo on McCabe's return to the lineup, Marner's point production and Laine's offensive prowess

Episode Date: December 12, 2024

TSN Hockey Analyst Carlo Colaiacovo joined OverDrive to discuss the headlines around the NHL, the Maple Leafs' matchup against the Ducks, Jake McCabe's return to the lineup, Mitch Marner's performance on the team, Patrik Laine leading the Canadiens and more.

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or visit askkelvin.ca i would rather be wearing what you're wearing right now i've been outside it's so cool thank you so you're from here these two idiots finally now i have someone from toronto that i can connect with here because we have the Craig Berube. Although Noodles lives here now, Noodles has become soft. We have brought Noodles into the soft world that we have been living in. Why don't we play the Craig Berube clip? All right, let's play it one more time because Craig Berube, as we know, where is he from, Calahoo, Alberta? Calahoo.

Just north of Edmonton, north of St. Albert, actually. Beautiful suburb of Edmonton. Okay, so he's from just outside of Edmonton. Freezing cold in Toronto. By any standard on earth, it's so cold here today. Craig Berube addressing the media this morning. This is what he had to say. Are you guys okay out there today?

A little windy and cold for you? Are you all right? I had a t-shirt on you know what the best part about that clip is look at his cheeks he's got windburn he's got windburn on his face he's so cold

but he's got to admit because he's from Alberta he can't give in to really cold weather and noodles and strud just gotta talk about you know ice skating in minus 50 back in the day the jeans have to do it honestly though i have gotten soft but i when was it like haze i know it's a sensitive topic but do you remember when you and i first started like blue lunch i didn't understand when there was a snowstorm in Toronto, they called the army in? Yeah, they did. They did.

Mel Lassner, I think it was, called the military in. The military showed up in Toronto to dig people out because it was like five feet of snow. It was something gross. It was like four or five feet of snow, right? It was a bit of an overreaction, I think, as we look back on it. I would never let it go. I would bring it up every like there would be one inch of snow outside and i would say i gotta call in the military

okay hazer just get on me and and now i know like i i feel like it just i've just gone so soft now like i just i don't want that snow i don't want the wind is a pain in the ass that's the problem i can live if it was minus 15 and no wind just crisp yes i think you're fine with it but the wind goes right through you and i exactly what it is exactly what it is today in how old are you guys that's embarrassing like just like noodles you're the kind of guy that shovels the driver with one hand on his shovel and the other is on his phone right? Just stick in there. Get it done. Or he pays somebody to do it.

Fair point. And then complains that he misses a little bit of snow. Oh, he missed that one patch. I never complain. The people that do my driveway do a great job. They've got one of those trucks with the rubber thing on the bottom. It's like a scoop or something, and they do a great job. It's awesome.

All right. Well, shout out to them for do a great job. Okay. It's awesome. All right. Well, shout out to them for doing a great job. We appreciate that. Thanks for saving noodles. Yeah, you save noodles. Digging them out. You're right about the wind. And then you know what happened?

Like, we were talking about this a couple hours ago, and some guy sent me, like, a board of the weather in Manitoba, and it's minus 42 in Winnipeg. Right now? I think so. That's chilly. Like, that is not normal,g. Right now? I think so. That's chilly. Like, that is not normal, man. You can't live like that. That's Arctic, man.

Yeah. Toronto would shut down. Toronto might. It might. And it should. Stay home. And it should. So what do you think of tonight?

Is tonight a trap game? Could the Ducks represent a trap game for the Leafs tonight? Well, could it possibly get any worse than it was last game? Yeah. Right? Against New Jersey, you mean? Against New Jersey. I know they ended up getting the win, but, I mean, you did the game.

Oh, man. I said yesterday it was a controlled scrimmage in the first period. Yeah. Run by Sheldon Keefe. Yeah. Using the Leafs as defense. Yeah, I guess so. That's basically what it looked like. I mean, I think under a Craig Berube coached team,

there would, and you saw last game, they got a lot better in the third period. I don't know why they started as slow as they did, but I can't imagine that they would think starting the same way tonight against an Anaheim team that's very vulnerable, that it would be okay to do it. They got to come out flying tonight.

Yeah, I think so. But, I mean, again, Thursday night in Toronto. It's cold. It's cold. You're probably going to have a quiet crowd. Yeah. Bundled up. Bundled up.

I mean, I don't think so because when we've seen this team play like this this year, it seemed like it was a one-off. We didn't see much of this type of consistent, slow play with them under Berube. I don't think that they start the same way tonight. Carlo, this is what I see. I see this as a stepping stone for them to show they're maturing as a team and they just come out and play the way they need to.

And I think the good teams, they understand. You don't have to be perfect, but you play a mature game. You don't have to kill them 10-1 to prove that you're better. You just do your thing. It's not even about the Ducks. I don't even show the Ducks. I just say, guys, show me. Show me you've matured.

And that's such a great point, Strutty, because you talked about good teams. Good teams know when they're playing those type of games, they just find a way to stay in it. Stay in it, stay in it. They get their chance, and then they find a way to win because their best player steps up to score a big goal, and their goaltender steals one for them.

I think that's a sign of maturing into a good team. That was New Jersey. But you could go back in the schedule here even a couple games before that. They didn't have a world-beater game against Nashville, but it was four or five minutes early in the third period where it was Marner and Matthews and said, okay, we're going to put us up 3-1 and the game's gone. You know, like that type of stuff.

And I think that's when it comes back to Strutty going, you know, saying, like, good teams do what they need to do that particular night to win or to be right there. You're not going to have a game of perfect. You're not going to have 60 minutes of just, you know, pillar to post. Once in a while you have a game of perfect where it's like that, you know, there was no chance. But Anaheim played last night.

This is a team that, you you know didn't have a great game against new jersey but they won so you can you know you can be happy with it i never criticize a win a win is a win right but i do think i do think that they if they know guys got on the plane going i didn't play that well tonight you know we'll have a better game next game i do think they should hit the ground running and do what it takes to win tonight that comes back to strutty saying like it's not even the pre-scout on anaheim it's going what are you capable of tonight that's really what it is for me well jake mccabe returns tonight and like when he was going through his contract

negotiation i don't think there was really any pushback. If anything, it was his age. They're committed to a lot of guys over 30 now, right, with Riley, McCabe, Ekman, Larson, and Tanev. And that's their top four. They've committed to it. Yeah, he was playing so well earlier in the year. He connected so well with Tanev. And then when he's out of the lineup, you can tell just how valuable he is.

And if anything, I think a lot of Leaf fans over the last two weeks have said, now I get why they got in front of this and signed him. And if anything, I don't know if they got a discount, but they did not overpay. I mean, he's a really good player and a really important piece. For a top four defenseman, that's a discount. Might have been a discount. Yeah. For the way he plays, fitting to the way the coach wants the team to play.

Yeah, when he's not in the lineup, he's desperately missed. And I think more so because of the matchup. If you're using him and Tanev as your shutdown pair, now you're sliding in Ekman-Larsen in there, maybe Benoit in there. You seem a little bit weaker, but I've been really impressed with this group of defensemen that the Maple Leafs have had all season even

when they slide in you know connor tim is has turned himself into an everyday nhl defenseman and a pretty good one you know benoit hasn't had the same consistency to his game that we saw last year and maybe it's because he knows he's the extra guy when everybody's healthy and i know that and he was playing with mccabe a lot last year he was he was the extra guy when everybody's healthy. And I know that feeling. And he was playing with McCabe a lot last year. And he was. He was the shutdown pair with McCabe in the playoffs. So I think for McCabe, we all appreciate how hard he plays. I just hope he's ready to be that guy coming back,

because it takes a blow to the head. That was scary. That was tough to watch. Tough to watch was scary. That was tough to watch. Tough to watch. Yeah, that was tough to watch. Right? And you just hope that doesn't shy him away from the game that he's comfortable playing, which is a physical game.

Absolutely. You know, I guess, Carl, I know Noodles doesn't appreciate the work Dee does. Hayes just wants Mitch Mariner to score 50 goals every year. So let's have a real talk here about the foundation of every team. So with the way Craig is getting everyone to play, I believe it's less risky for the reward they're getting.

How has that affected the Morgan Riley's, Tanev's, the D-men? Is that impacting them at all? Because they now know it's not going to be quite as, oh man, there's a turn with the blue end. Now I'm scrambling to get back to maybe defend something that you weren't perhaps seeing coming down as they're going up to the ice.

Well, look, I played for Berube and I understand the system that he's trying to preach. And a lot of it comes from being clean coming out of your own end. And I think when you watch this Maple Leafs team play, the way they break out, it's very clean. And with Sheldon Keefe coached teams, there was a lot of risk to the way they play offensively, especially. I think when you're eliminating that risk

and you're just getting guys to playing clean with structure, the confidence comes with every play that you make, which at the end of the day makes the defenseman play more comfortable with their position, if that kind of makes sense. And you see it. You don't see the Maple Leafs give up a ton of grade A scoring chances because they just have guys that know that when they have the puck, they can make a good play, but also they find themselves in good positions to make the right play.

I did some research the other day. The Maple Leafs have the 23rd-ranked most goals scored in the league. That's not what we're used to. They're not crushing it offensively. They would outscore a lot of their problems in years past. And now, like last game was a great example where you find yourself in a game where not much is going on, but you still find a way to win because you trust in everything that you're doing.

You're not giving up that next goal that could be crippling. With Carlo Coliacavo, you look at Marner's season and how defensively sound he is, how smart he is, the numbers he's putting up. Like, he is, I don't think there was any question that he'd find a way to work with Berube, and Berube made it pretty clear almost immediately he wants to work with Marner.

Like, there was so much noise around Marner and his future, and Berube almost immediately said, I think he probably spoke that to Tree Living. Like, don't even think about moving on this guy. Let me have a chance to coach him for a year. But the fact that he's so comfortable playing a different system, playing maybe a defensively

sound game first, yet still putting up points, I think that speaks to his all-around game and the IQ that he's got. He's not uncomfortable. Matthews looks uncomfortable at times, if that makes sense. He doesn't look as explosive offensively. He's trying to buy in to a system where Marner, I think,

is just capable of basically playing any system you want him to. When we talk about Marner, we always talk about his skill set. But Mitch Marner is a pretty damn smart hockey player and probably one of the elite hockey IQs in the National Hockey League. Absolutely. And we're seeing that now because I've talked to some of the coaches throughout the year, and the glowing praise that Marner continues to get from this coaching staff about how good he is,

not just because he's skilled, but how good he is because he can be trusted to play any position or any role that you want him to play. And I think that's what's impressing the coaching staff even more this year in a new system, is that he's still a guy who plays the most minutes of every forward,s a defensive responsibility One of their top penalty killers

Obviously one of their top point producers I think with Matthews You talked about How he looks like he's struggling in the system I think maybe you see that struggle Because I don't think he fully has 100% confidence in his health Right now

And he's still, he's missed some time. They want to make us believe that it's something that's not going to get worse, and I believe that. But if he's not feeling like himself, there's a trust thing there too. And I don't see that trust issue or factor with Marner. If anything, I see a lot of confidence. Absolutely. So then with all of this, and I don't want to like i don't don't want to

bring it up every week but it's like okay this guy just continues to chip away no matter what is thrown at him like is it do we just not bring up the contract or is it just same thing like colorado like ranton and i we don't hear noises out of colorado like what are they doing with ranton and or whatever like those are two elite players that are free agents next year because they don't have a contract for next season. So is it just, you know, I believe, is it just assumed that the can has been kicked down the road? For Marner?

What do you think of that, Carlo? Yeah, for Marner. Yeah. I mean, I think we have a good assumption as to where this contract's going to land. It's probably going to be north of $12 million. That's a pay raise. It's below Matthews. Now, I know Colorado, as people have speculated,

that they want McKinnon's contract to be the internal cap that teams like to use people have suggested that the Leafs want Matthew's number to be the internal cap but can you blame either one of these guys if they feel like they want to get paid more well you can ask for whatever you want for whatever you want yeah it's a matter of who's going to give it to you right so are you going to give it to you. Right. Are you going to win? Are you going to win? Exactly.

And I think for Marner, that needs to come in at some point. I don't know. It's kind of almost better that it has been quiet around him because he's been playing on real right now. Because he's performed and the team has won too, right? There's a lot of positive kind of vibes around the team right now. With Carlo Koliakovo in studio, first up, 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday right here on TSN Radio. Oilers wild tonight.

We were talking about this with Ryan Callahan earlier this afternoon. Are the Wild a legit cup contender, in your opinion, or just a team that's been red hot through 28 games? Well, what's the recipe you need to be a cup contender? You need elite goaltending, you need a stud defenseman, and you need a star forward. Minnesota has all that. You know, Gustafson, Noodles, you could probably...

He's been unreal. He's been one of the best. And, you know, Fleury comes in and gives them spot starts. That Brock Faber kids's a stud on defense. Now they just brought in another young guy. Yeah, Juracek. Juracek. And Kaprazov is playing like a hard trophy guy.

So I think they're a surprise team for me. I didn't think they'd be this good. They're operating with $14 million less on the cap than anybody else. Yeah. Because of the cap. Suter and Parise. Right. I mean, Winnipeg started 15-1.

Minnesota's caught them. Yeah. Minnesota's ahead of them. And Winnipeg was 15-1. Well, maybe Strutty can touch on this, too, because we're talking about Edmonton. Edmonton had another slow start again this year. You looked at the standings lately? Yeah, they're right in the mix.

They're only four points back of the division lead. Yeah. How are we feeling out there, Strut? You think they're going to win the Pacific or what? Well, I don't know if they're going to win the Pacific. And history suggests this team doesn't do anything the easy way, this team being the winners, right? Like they've never won the first place.

They're always kind of starting on the road. And even their series, they kind of start and get back from, you know, they have to crawl back from behind. So I don't think they are going to. They're playing like a team that knows it's a long season, and they're managing, you know, their effort, even the physicality. You know, Conor and Leon aren't hitting like we've seen them hit in previous years. So I think that they're

managing it, they understand the road and they're going to keep going at it. One comment I'll make, and I'll kind of chime off of you there, Carlo. I think that the reason I can't have many as a cup contender is the reason you mentioned. $14 million. That's

two or three really good players that other teams have. So you get deep in the playoffs, other teams have that. And I know they have some good young players that are cheaper, but I would just think that eventually the other top teams have that. The Wild doesn't. It's a great story. A lot of money, yeah.

A lot of cash on the sidelines. I just had one question, too. How did you pronounce it? Is it Kaprizov? Or what did you say? Kaprizov? Kaprizov. Is it Kaprizov or Kaprizov?

Now you got me thinking like, you're like Kaprizov. I'm like, who the hell is Kaprizov? Kaprizov. Carol Kaprizov. Carol Kaprizov. Carol Kaprizov. Carol Kaprizov. Graves is on with us.

Honestly, I will say this, though. If you're voting for the heart today, he might be. He's the favorite on FanDuel right now, Nunes. He's the favorite. So you're right. Strutty, you make an unbelievable point because depth is always challenged deep into the playoffs, and you need guys in your third and fourth line that probably make more than the league average or the league minimum but you know the d the goalie and and the forward like they've got a vesna finalist and a heart finalist right now on their team if you're picking the awards

point day yeah so i i i don't think you can look past them because they might just have this like this weird like mojo, like, hey, we've come together, we play as a team. Now, Faber's on a low contract. You look at it. Marco Rossi's been great. Yeah, Rossi's cheap right now. So you're looking at it like, now, do they have enough to push you through into a deep run?

I don't know because we haven't seen it, right? We haven't seen him. But at the end of the day i i think uh i i look at this right now i think they are uh uh like a cup contending team but you got to give them more time like this is i'm sorry sample size 30 games right i i need to see more from that that's what i well i'm with you i mean if i were ranking teams i think could win the stanley cup within their division they're fourth for me. In that division?

Yes. I'd still have Dallas, Colorado, and Winnipeg ahead of them. I don't care what you've done through 28 games. I'm taking those three other teams. If the Stanley Cup playoffs started tonight, I would take those three teams. Maybe they're a playoff contender. They're playoffs for sure.

If they screwed this up, it would be crazy. Could they win a round or two noodles? Be competitive, sure. But I don't if they screwed this up, it would be crazy. And could they win a round or two, Noodles? Be competitive, sure. But I don't know of a cup contender quite yet. I'm taking – right now, if you just had me ask, it's Colorado. Colorado just went and changed their goaltending. Now they've got a team in front of them. Have you ever seen that before, Noodles?

A team just shuffle out both of their goaltenders a quarter into the season. No, not a quarter into the season. I've seen turnover. I've seen it here in Toronto. They've turned both goaltenders over in the offseason. It's like, that's not working. Two new guys. I get that.

You're right. A quarter of the way into the season, like, nope, Georgie Five, you've got to go. And we're trading for you know anan in where you're out you're a young guy like now it's uh blackwood and wedgwood yeah the mileswood there's a lot of it out there um you guys see the story that teddy bluger's mom won the 50 50 out in vancouver what yeah she won unreal It was $100,000 or something like that. Wow. Yeah. So she won the 50-50.

What's the reaction like if you come out through the tunnel or whatever, you got your suit on, your families are waiting, and your mom's like, I won the 50-50. How would you react if that happened? Give me a fun Christmas this year. I guess. I mean, that's crazy.

It's a cool story. And you know people in Vancouver are like, it's rigged. How did that happen? How did the player's mom win it? Yeah. They don't make enough money. Exactly. But it's her money.

It's hers. She bought a ticket. She didn't do the raffle. You buy a ticket, you deserve to win. All day. It's fair and square because there's not like, I don't know, what was the NBA that that people thought was rigged uh the ewing draft for the next patrick ewing right like that's but i yeah these 50 50

these like these 50 50s like you're buying from you know somebody in a vendor walking up the stairs exactly i think now you can buy it on your phone yeah you can now yeah you can so i'm pumped for her it is a bit awkward because what is bl because Bluger doesn't make league minimum, does he? I think he makes a couple sheets a year, doesn't he? I would guess. He's been in the league for a few years. Okay, so this is what I want to ask. You brought up 50-50.

Strutty, how does the Alberta, the Edmonton Oilers game, get up to hundreds of thousands? Millions. Is it millions, 50-50? It's millions, Carlo. Millions. Is it millions? 50-50? It's millions, Carlo. Millions. How? I'm telling you all, because everybody in Alberta, it's like scratch tickets, Lotto 649.

Everybody plays Lotto like it's their job. We love it. I love it. That's your thing. That is what I define Alberta. Go ahead, Strud. Can you hear us? Strud, he's having serious technical issues.

He's on the phone. He's staring at us. I'm like, has this guy decided to just quit? Gordon Gekko. He's on his cell phone. I want to weigh in on it because I have friends in Alberta that we have a little pot going. So I will send them money, and the three of us go in. We'll go in on it.

Because you have to be an Alberta resident to buy. You're just investing in the group. Right. So I will just email money in. And in the group chat, they're like, Noodles, you're buying tickets today. It's Dan's turn tomorrow. It's Shayla's turn the next day. Is there an opening in that group?

I'd love to check. I don't know. You know what's going to happen. They're going to win. Noodles, these two will disappear. They'll be in Hawaii. Noodles isn't getting a penny. You're not getting a penny if they actually finally win.

You think Dan and Shayla would jam me up? Yes. You know what? I mean, the joke is if I don't hear from them and all of a sudden I see on their Instagram or something they're in Turks and Caicos or in Hawaii, you know that they're gone. You know they want it. There's doodles being like, what happened to those tickets?

Yeah, exactly. It's a lot of money, man. It's a lot of money. Shout out to the Bluger family. Shout out to the Bluger family. And that's tax-free, right? I think up here, generally, it is. In the States, I think you've got to pay tax on that.

In the States, you've got to pay tax on that. So you're doing the panel tonight, Habs-Pens. You've got Sid at the Bell Center. You know what, man? Habs games have been a lot of fun to watch lately. Freewheeling out there. And Liney's been a great story. Liney has re-energized that team and re-energized that fan base.

The goals this guy is scoring, like I exaggerate when I say this, but he actually blows the roof off the building in that place. That's crazy, man. I hope they have good arena insurance, because if he scores again tonight, he's been on fire. And what that's done is it's given them more balance. Now they've got a second line of line A doc and slavkoski so and lane hudson elevating him to the power play uh top unit power play they've been a fun team to watch lately yeah

line a man he goes far down as well as anyone in the league like he just snaps it he's got the chain under his neck guard that you don't see too often from the back from the back you can see the chain under his neck guard that you don't see too often from the back from the back you can see the chain he's got the chain he's like i'm wearing his chain i'll wear a neck guard yeah but i'm rocking that chain too it's a big it's not it's not just goals like he's going like bar down oh i know exactly like he is wicked he is he looks like vintage lining man it's a it's a really really cool story yeah that's where i was gonna go hayes it's a great story because man. It's a really, really cool story. That's where I was going to go, Hayes. It's a great story because it's a feel-good story. There was a time there early in his career where we were expecting this guy.

It was 40, what, for his rookie year, and you're going, okay, this guy could be a 50-goal score in his sleep once he settles into the league, and he just never got there. He never got there, and then it's Columbus, and he doesn't like it it and i don't know what's going on and then he has a mental health struggle and now it's just a great you know him even to start this season with montreal and then he blows his knee out you know like it just pre-season game i know your heart hurts for him but it's just a feel-good story and obviously it's given juice to the team a little bit right you know that helps their power play it kind of just gives them you know to me it's just a great

story where you need there's two positive things in montreal actually i'll give a third montain ball montain ball has been incredible since you called that making on canada man we were doing that this summer i was like i don't see it but you were out in front of all that. And then Lane Hudson and then Lane. Patrick Linus. You've got three nice stories there. And Caulfield scored a million goals this year. Yeah, he's got 17 or 18 right now. He's scored a lot of goals.

All right, Carlo. Good seeing you, man. Thanks for doing this. Great seeing you, too. Can I borrow that hoodie on my walkover? Yeah, you need my hoodie? Stay warm, big guy. Stay warm, man.

Stay warm out there. Good seeing you guys. There's Carlo Coliacolo. First up, he'll be on the panel tonight. Habs Penns on TSN.