OverDrive - Olczyk on the Maple Leafs' opportunity against the Senators, the battle of the series and the Kentucky Derby picks

Episode Date: April 30, 2025

NHL on TNT Analyst Eddie Olczyk joined OverDrive to discuss the headlines around the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Maple Leafs' battle against the Senators, how the series has progressed, the stars' performances in the game, the Golden Knights' dominance towards the Stanley Cup, the 151st Kentucky Ducky picks and more.

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Here's our main man, Eddie Olchuk. How we doing, Eddie? What's up, boys? Well, to be exact, 6.57 Eastern time is post- post, uh, post break for the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby. So you talk about a appetizer for a possible game seven on Saturday night, which I don't know if it's going to get the game seven, if you want my opinion, but anyways, if it is, then you know what? You don't have to get off your couch for about seven hours on Saturday and then, uh, hopefully make a little bit of money and everybody goes home happy depending on who they're watching in the game seven.

Eddie, what makes you think you don't believe there will be a game seven needed to be played? Yeah, you know what, I just feel like any time that the Leafs this year in particular have, you know, kind of gone sideways or haven't played well, they seem to be able to bounce back. And again, look, I'm not watching just full disclosure. I'm, I, you know, I'm not able to watch every game, every shift or there may be people that disagree with that. But I just think it is a different team. I think the way they played this year, some of the games that they played, how they won the games, and I know they were up three-nothing in this series, and here we are going to a

game six. I understand all that. But I just feel, old dog, I just feel from what I've seen here recently over the course of this season and that's all you could do because obviously you have a new bench boss I think they have played better collectively and team wise and they look confident when they are playing a lower scoring game or like I mean just from the you know Jamie was talking about you know a low event type of game

last night I was trying to keep my know, a low event type of game last night. I was trying to keep my eye on a couple of games because I might have a game seven assignment on Sunday night. Uh, so I'm kind of keeping an eye on what's going on in some other games. So I didn't see every shift, but I just feel that now watching most of the game last night, Ottawa just looked like they were the faster team, the quicker team and I know that the chances weren't there a lot but they just looked like they were quicker to pucks in all three zones for the majority of the time that I watch and they

found themselves an opportunity and they were able to cash in and they're going home for game six. So I expect the Leafs to put their best foot forward in game six and you know see how it all plays out. But I just think it feels different, it looks different, you know knowing Craig Barubey like I do, I just kind of get that sense. Now whether or not that happens, only time will tell. So Eddie, that's where I was going to go with, we've talked about the Leafs.

What have you liked about Ottawa? What have you seen from Ottawa? Maybe that's a little bit different than what you expected. I just think that they're maturing. Nouls right before everybody dies, I think that they have some highly skilled players their defense They're very mobile that you know, they can keep themselves out of trouble, which is such an important part with the game You know the way that it is played today. I mean, we know that they're physical I mean, you know Greg's got a I mean, I mean there's no other way. Just got a smartness

I mean, you know, you can't be making, you know, wearing off the family box with some of the things that have happened so far in this series. I mean, yeah, I mean, discipline, I mean, I guess you'd be concerned about, but you know, you love the battle, and you love the battle level, but I mean, I think there's so many things

that make noodles. I mean, you know them better than anybody. I mean, I, like that, to I mean I like that he is a team is on the calm and you know we'll see how it all impress with their season and then how they played so far in this you know in this first round. With Eddie Olchuk so using the the pucks and pony analogies as much as I can the old saying you can you know drag a horse to water but you can't force it to drink it I think I butchered that but it's something along there in terms of the big boys in

Toronto you know the Austin Matthews Mitch Marner William Berlander the stats you're you're aware of the many you know they're 1 in 13 in elimination games since 2018 they're 0 for 30 on the power play in those games. Austin Matthews has two goals in his last 15 playoff games. What is it? Like, what do you see from these guys in the biggest moments where they have a chance to change the reputation,

that they just simply have not been able to do it? They don't seize the moment. Why is that? What do you see out of these guys? Because it is so flipping hard to win in the greatest league in the world. And it just happens. I mean, look, you guys could all go over hockey players

for any other sports about, you know, he can't win, you know, their teams can't win. They can't make it the most recent. Again, the first one that pops into mind is old. Like everybody said, oh, you know, capitals will never win. They'll never win. Never. No, they'll never win.

The guy evolved in his game. Less, uh, much more, less physical, much more selective in the last seven or eight years, you know, conserving his energy for what he does best, you know, stays away from injury. I'm just painting a picture here. Like it takes time. Sometimes it just, you got to evolve as a player, as a team, as an individual and, you know, things happen.

But it's going to happen at some point. I mean, I believe that. I mean, those guys that you mentioned, Brian, they're, they're too good a players now, whether or not they're doing it all together or not. I mean, that look at it. I, you know, I could, you know, I could argue with that too, but, um, I just think is, you know, it, it, it happens. I think they're too good a players not to be able to show up at the biggest time to make a play. Look at it. It's just hockey. It's just the way that it is. It's the ultimate team game. I know what the numbers are. You can't escape from it. You can't hide from it. I just think that at some point it's going to happen. I

think for obviously Leaf fans within that room in the organization is that they're hoping for a monster game from one or two or all three of those guys and, you know, maybe somebody else pitches. I mean, I mean, how good, again, you guys tell me. I probably saw seven shifts of the fourth line for the Leafs last night and I was like, and I'll be honest with you, when I saw some of those shifts I went, get those guys out there. Get them out, you know what I mean? Like ride them, like ride that horse.

There's another Pucks and Ponies analogy there, Brian. Right, I mean, ride it to the finish line and you know, look at, you know, people may get upset or whatever, but you know, I think that Craig Ruby played those guys probably a little more than he probably anticipated, but those guys had it going and that's okay, right? Like that's okay, so maybe if you give those guys probably a little more than he probably anticipated, but those guys had it going and that's okay, right? Like that's okay.

So maybe if you give those guys a little bit of a breather somewhere and they get a little bit of a blow and then all of a sudden they have a little bit more energy and they get away from a matchup and they have a big shift and they draw a penalty. Now the one thing with the power play I will say is look, my guy didn't get any time and oh Doug you know this because you have a tremendous goal score. I used to watch you when I was a little kid, you know, growing up and trying to do like an Old Dog. Even though you shot the wrong way, but that's for another story.

Like, you've got to simplify. Like you can't try to pass east-west, you can't try to go west-east. It's got to be downhill, it's got to be... And then, and then even if they block a shot or two, whatever it be, think you're going to go there, then you have to ad-lib. I mean, it's the one thing that I think is a broadcaster now for too many years, but like on the power play, it seems like that in noodles you call games. So I think you know what I'm saying is that when the schematics of a power play come out

and you know what the strength of their power play is but teams take away those options. You gotta be able as a power play guy, that's why you're making the big money. You gotta be able to add lift. You gotta be able to say, okay, if they're taking away the half wall or they're taking away the middle of the ice with a point shot you got to get the

puck it you got to get it down to the goal line in old-fashioned meat and potatoes say you know what I'm gonna go to Matthew Nise on the goal line and all you're not gonna look the path you're gonna take the puck right to the blue paint I don't care what happens with it it's going there so everybody's got to go there like I don't see I'm not just talking Leafs here, I'm just talking in general of a lot of power plays in the national hockey. It's like this is what we do best and if they stop us, okay, we'll tip our hockey helmet to them and then we're going to wait for the next power play. That can't happen 25, 30 power, you know what I mean? Like

you've got to be able to go and ad lib and say, that's not open. The perfect example, I did two of the first five games in the mini Vegas, I'm sorry, one of the five games to the mini Vegas series. In game three, Vegas went half off to the point, shot, missed the net, they kept going to that, going to that, going to that, and I just was like, okay, I got a little emotional. I'm like, look, you've got to go from the goal line out here. Like you got to change it up every once in a while. So what that

does is it draws the penalty killers down and an old dog, you know, this, then all of a sudden, then the half walls open, then you can maybe pass through the box or if they're killing like a diamond for the formation. So I just think that they got to do what's natural. Don't worry about what the game plan is. Those guys are good enough. Five forwards, five defensemen, three and two, four and one, whatever it is. Take what the other power plays give it. Yeah, you want to go to your strength right off the bat, great. But if it ain't working, you got to do something different. And if

I'm going to go down on a power play, instead of continuing to just, you know, go the same way all the time, you got to change it on a power play, instead of continuing to just go the same way all the time, you've got to change it up. And look, some of that is coaching 100%, but I always blame whatever is... I should say blame. The end result, I always put it to the skates of the players because those are the guys out there driving the bus when you do have a man advantage. Yep.

It's not the jockey, man. It's got to be the horse, Eddie. I mean, that's the reality. Oh, I mean, the jockey helps. Oh, I mean, the jockey helps. Yep, it's not the jockey man, it's got to be the horse Eddie. I mean that's the reality. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the jockey man. I mean the West Dallas is up 3-2 on Colorado, Vegas up 3-2 on Minnesota, Edmonton up 3-2 on LA. Of those three in the lead which one do you think is most comfortable? Like who do you who are you looking into the future saying okay Edmonton, Vegas, Dallas that's the team that's in the lead that's the team I know that's going to the second round. I'm gonna I'm gonna say I'm gonna say Vegas okay I just I just think with their experience the back end their big boys are heating up Jack I goes play two really really good games and again another adjustment right Bruce Cassidy he finally broke up

Eichel and Stone for the first couple of games of the series wasn't going well just it just wasn't. All of a sudden, a little bit of a tweak in the middle of game four, all of a sudden now, it was, you know, Ikel Mckinn. Ikel's the key. I mean, he's an awesome 200-foot player, obviously, just like Austin Matthews. So I just would think that, you know, if I'm looking at that series, and Minnesota, man, I mean, they've done a hell of a job in the series and we know how great to Kaprizov is and the type of team and the style that they play I just I just feel out of those three series because I can't believe that Edminton's got a 3-2 lead in that series I can't I

really can't when I when I saw what happened in that series especially when it went to Edminton and then dalit you're going to do with the five five games about one of gap the game one i thought well jesus might be over in three games the series i think it wasn't even close to game one and they're doing this balance is doing this without robertson it's been a skater that you know who don't think he's going to come up with it play in this game six

but uh... i would probably i had game six, but I would probably, not I'd probably, I would lean more towards Vegas than those other two series, because I could easily see LA going to Edmonton in winning and forcing a game seven, and we all know about Colorado with McCarr and McKinnon. They can certainly do that, and Dallas,

you know, both those teams, obviously they want to eliminate those extra games, but especially in the series, because, you know, those are pretty damn competitive series. With Eddie Olchuk. All right, Eddie, one of my favorite, you know, moments of the year on this program is when we get to the Derby and we start to lay down some bets or at least take a look at certain ponies that we like walking into a triple crown. This is the big one.

It's the big party, obviously down in Kentucky. Journalism appears to be the favorite. I think they're three to one, Dougie, I believe so, and they want a lot. That horse won a lot coming down the stretch here. Are we all in on journalism? Do we like other ponies? Set the scene here for us. Yeah, well, yes, yes, yes. There are other ponies that I like. It's going to be hard to beat journalism. He will be my pick. Hoping for three to one, which is not a bad investment. If you bet old dog's money, if you bet $2,000 to win, you might get back $8,000. So that's a pretty

good return on investment in about two minutes and maybe less than two seconds. So I just think, I believe, Brian, that he he just journalism that is just breeze different air it's almost the aspect of All these other these other horses when they're running that he's facing again look at this this is stiffest competition You've got a great post position number eight is that the other horses take one step Journalism has to step he takes two steps You know what I mean? Like he just has that incredible ability to gobble up ground. He had some adversity in his last

race out in California. It was only a 500s field. Now he's gonna have to go up against 19 opponents which, you know, look at 19 opponents, Churchill Downs, 165,000 people going a mile and a quarter, which a lot of these sources, quite frankly, might never run again. So there are a lot of question marks, but I do believe he should be the favorite. He will be the favorite. But I think if you could get anything, you know, if you could get two and a half to one or seven to two or the three to one morning line, I think that you should.

I look at that's where my money's gonna go. I've got future wages on this horse at around 12 to one, so I could use a line from the late great, my former partner, the great Mike Lang, the voice of the Pittsburgh Penguins. I'm smiling like a butcher's dog right now with those future tickets on journalism. Another horse I'm gonna use, let me say that, I think

there's a lot of pace in this race. I think it's going to be for the horses I like. I like number 14, histastic, that's with a T, histastic, and I also like number 17, the Sandman, Sandman number 17, and I have to say this because I have to know there's 20 horses scheduled to them right now. But in between now and Friday morning at 10 a.m. scratch time, there's an also eligible horse that will come out of it will be saddle cloth at bedding number number 21. The name of the horse is by Aza. If If Baeza happens to draw in to the field of the Kentucky Derby, I believe Baeza has a chance to be one of the top three or four betting favorites in the running of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday night. So you have to use the

21. If he doesn't run, obviously you don't have to worry about it but I would keep that number handy so my numbers are 8, 14, 17 and a highlighted number 21 if he draws in the the field of the 150 first running of the Kentucky Derby. I love it lock it in man you're just never gonna get better info than that like I love that Eddie you're getting a future on a pony back in the day. That is outstanding. Also, now, you tell me this, because you're the basketball guru, we're there, at least I think you are. Yes. I got a future.

I got a future at about 12 and a half to one on a Celtics Thunder final. Oh, I love it. You like it? I love it. I adore that. So don't cash out is what you're saying. I'm saying just that. Yes I think you know you're gonna get Tatum healthy, Celtics are gonna be fine. I'm not buying Cleveland. I'm not buying the Pacers, Knicks or Pistons. I love

Boston and East and I think I like Oklahoma City. I mean I think you look what they've done in the first round man. mean yeah i really like that that i like that future they're onto something and alright okay well uh... will try to go pay will try to get back even over the last couple weeks yes that's the beauty of the chase man will get there we always do we always make it and it's all good uh... enjoy the playoffs as always will do it again soon i know it's a busy time. We always love having you on and say hi to

everyone down there in Kentucky for us. It's always great to be on with you guys. Thanks a lot. Keep up the great work and I look forward to talking to you real soon here. You got it. You got it. There's Eddie Olchuk, Pucks and Ponies. Hey, who invited climate action to the party? We did! Hey, I'm Shannon Burns and I'm Sarah Christie. Dude, that is... we hear from David Suzuki. This is a party where everyone is invited. The Earth Day Party Podcast on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.