OverDrive - OverDrive - February 19, 2026 - Hour 1

Episode Date: February 19, 2026

Join Bryan Hayes, Jeff O’Neill and Jamie McLennan for Hour 1 on OverDrive! The guys discuss Canada's gold medal game overtime defeat against the USA, Sidney Crosby's injury timeline and his status against Finland, how Canada stacks up in the semifinal and the keys to the win for the team. They also dive into the season outlook for the Blue Jays, the roster without Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. looking for another level and the overtime heroics for the United States.

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All right, here we go, overdrive, off and running TSN 1050 on the TSN app, your home smart speaker up on TSN5. up on YouTube live on TSN's YouTube channel. Brian Hase, O'Dog, Jeff O'Neill, Jamie Noodles, McClennett. It's going on today. Well, not good.

That one hurt. That one hurt. The U.S. I'm like brokenhearted. Oh, God. It's just, I was like these girls are going to hang on and win the gold,

but it just was like, it was just won too many times they couldn't get it out and they made a play to win the game and then they made another one to like I don't know it was it was tough to watch I was devastated when that puck went in the no it's crushing man because it was it was what you expected to an extent I mean Canada showed up for the game right yeah you're just tuning in the Americans won in overtime three on three on three on three in overtime always have always been against it yeah in the biggest games and Canada had to lead the whole game the whole your girl O'Neill scored short-handed

I know. And they were holding on, and it was a tightly contested, tightly checked. The Americans didn't give up a goal the whole tournament, you know. So Canada's up won nothing. They pulled a goal. He shot from the point. Of course, Knight tips it and goes to overtime, and Canada had a lot of opportunities in overtime. Yeah, they did.

Like they had a 2-0, they got checked. They had multiple odd women rushes. They had a lot of opportunities. Odd woman rushes. You got to make sure I get the language right. Yeah. And in the end, an American dances on a one-on-one goes five-hole, and you're coming home with silver.

Yeah, I don't know who she danced there, but that's a tough one to... Yeah, you got to... I mean, three-on-three is a... It's a roller question. I get it, though, but if you got to live with that, like, I'm the one that she dangled around to get the golden goal. Like, that's just a tough pill to swallow. Yeah, it hurts, because that goal will be played for the rest of time.

That's right. Yeah, it was... It's hard, but, you know what? listen, he'll take a silver. They played well. I don't know. Did you get the sense that the Americans were kind of the better team? They were the favorite, don't you think?

I mean, I know Canada showed up today. Yeah, they were the favorite, but, you know, I mean, it speaks to what we've been talking about. A one game wins all scenario. Does it matter who would win a best of seven or who's won what leading up to it? You knew both teams were going to be amped up, which they were. You knew it was going to be tightly checked and contested. and a short bench, which it was.

And it was going to come down to who could be a hero. And what's unfortunate is, you know, Marie-Fa-Peloup Palin, has been a hero so many times for Canada. And we have had so many heroics on both the men's and the women's side. Yeah, she just needed a sidekick today. Just needed someone else to put them over the top. Make it 2-0 in reg or find a way to win in overtime. And Canada couldn't find it.

And, you know, it's, you know, you need. knew it was going to be the Americans on the women's side, you knew what was coming. It was this game was going to happen. It was a lock. It'll be a lock in four years, you know, and I think it's safe to say that four years from now they'll play again. You just, you got to find a way to bring your A stuff on that game. That's the game that matters.

You know, that's the one you've got to get to. You know, you're going to get to it. And it was a great game. They lost an overtime. You know, it's not, they didn't get blown out. And that was the anticipation. I think that's where you're speaking to, noodles. Yes.

was they lost 5-0 in the group stage. I got pumped. Yeah. And that wasn't the case today. No, it was coin flip game. They gave themselves an opportunity. You have a 2-0 in overtime. You didn't get a shot off.

How did she not pass? I'm yelling at the screen. Like, pass. You've got a 2-0. You allow yourself to get checked on the short side. I cannot believe she didn't make that play. But anyway, it's, you know, it's a thing. and they're going to review the tape and we're going to have to live with it for four more years.

Yeah, and they got a silver medal. I hear you. Those girls were not playing for a silver medal. But they were always getting a silver medal. You start the tournament with a silver medal for the most part. You know, on the women's side, Canada and the U.S. know what's coming. You know, Canada's their eight straight Olympics in the gold medal game. You know, they were fairly confident.

I think they knew take care of business will get there. And you're right, oh, it's not like a silver is still a silver. It's still a great accomplishment. They had no interest in it. They want a goal. Both teams, and that's the beauty of that competition and that rivalry, is that you just know it's going to be a brawl to see who comes out on top and who gets to hang that gold medal over the other team for the next four years.

Yeah. And that's what's coming. You know, and you're going to have world championships, and you'll have Summit Series, and there's other ways that you can get them, but this is the one. This is it. Every four years you've got one big game, who's going to win it. Yeah.

And shout out to our colleagues, Cheryl and Kenzie. Kenzie, they did a great job calling the game. Yeah, it was an unbelievable performance. It was a great atmosphere in the building. You could feel it. You know, it was what you would expect for a gold medal game between the two biggest rivals in the sport. Yeah, the two powerhouses.

And like I say, predictable or not, you knew they were going to be in the final, but it was a heck of a game. And, you know, both sides deserve a lot of accolades, but it's the USA that comes out on top in this one. and you know what? Now you shift to the men. Well, I was going to say, the men's side have an opportunity to get gold, but they've still got to get through Finland.

You know, you've got to be careful there. Well, I mean, I wouldn't say this puts more pressure on, I don't think it's possible to have more pressure than what the men are dealing with and the women. I mean, but now the women's been settled. It's silver for Canada, gold for the U.S. I don't think this will have any bearing on the pressure on either the Canadian side on the men's side, the U.S. side on the men's side, like both teams know they're there

for gold too, you know, and that's just going to be what happens over the next 24 hours. I do think the U.S. against Slovakia sets up as probably an easier route, you know, certainly historically and definitely on paper, but I don't think there's any doubt in that, Brian. There's no doubt in that. No doubt, but Slovakia has been very good. You know, so you get to these tournaments and there can be teams that just connect and are pesky and fight and start to believe. And I'll bet you they make it a game.

But, you know, Finland, they have more on H.O. players. I think Soros will be a net. Soros is obviously a really good goalie. There'll be a challenge for Canada tomorrow morning on the men's side. Can't take them lightly. The last thing you do is take them lightly. Good sign, though, on a positive note, let's try and spin it positively. 87's not ruled out the rest of the tournament.

So maybe there's a chance. Spend. Doogie reported that 87 might take a spin tomorrow. Yeah, Cooper said by no means ruled out, we're not going to put anyone in harm's way, but if he can play, he's definitely going to go. We'll know more in the next 24 hours. That, to me, is code for if we get to a gold medal game, he'll put his gear on and go out there, but not before that. I don't think he's playing it tomorrow.

No. I think it's still a low percentage place, period, man. I think what this means is it's not a catastrophic injury. Right. If it was, they would just say it. I mean, if he's not, if he needs surgery or something, then just come out and say he's done. But Hayes, I think if the case, I think if he wasn't going to play, won't you think Cooper would say that? Like, what would be the sense of saying there's a chance?

You think other teams are going to be like, oh, I wonder if Sid's going to play. Don't you think if he was done for the tournament, Cooper would say won't see Sid the rest of the tournament? I think it's out of respect to Sid that he's going to try. I guess that's the point I'm making. I'm not suggesting Cooper's being disingenuous or playing head games. I think it's like, I don't, it's one of those he ain't playing, but man, I'm not telling him. You know, like he's going to rehab and skate and battle and do everything he can to get there. I just, I'm bracing for him not playing.

You know, and I think that's probably what Canada's camp is thinking. Brace for him not playing. Certainly not tomorrow. If he does play. Bonus. It's exactly. It's a cherry on top, man. But it does bring up a question.

Like, if he does play, what if he's at 80%? Like, where is the line for you for Sid to be in the lineup? Is it if he's at a 1% he still plays? It's 50 for me. Because the leadership, just being around, my understanding you got hurt in the second period, he still addressed the team after the second period at 2-2. Like that type of stuff, the intangibles, they can go 11-7. You know, they can go 11-6.

You can dress extra forwards. You can dress a 13-forward. But you're right. I'm not dressing the guy to put him on the bench the whole game. And the other thing is, Jamie, he has to be able to move. But if he's 50%, you know what adrenaline's going to do. He'll be able to grind it out. And the thing is, if he can somehow play, he's playing.

We know that. That's Sidney Crosby. The guy literally lives hockey. We know that. We don't know anything about Sidney Crosby. Personal life, nothing. You know what we know about? This guy, 21 years in a row as a point of game.

Shows up every night, plays every night. We thought his career was done with how many concussions showed back up again. Like, this guy is resilient. I'm telling you, 50% I'm on the bench. I want him on the bench. He's the face of the program. He's a captain. He's an aura about him that is unparalleled.

And I understand what you're saying. Here's the other thing. You can give the extra ice time to 97. Like 97 can play 24 minutes in a gold medal game, and he'll be fine with it. If anything, he'll be asking for more. So you can bleed him into the lineup if he's available to go, and then 97 and 29 will take over the rest. Is a forward ever played 30 minutes?

Like, I think McJesus could play 30 minutes for fun. Well, in this tournament or ever, he's played 30 minutes. I don't remember. I think he's played 30 minutes? That's an interesting question. I mean, Phil Esposito has played 30 minutes. You know, like, if you go back 50 years, remember, he famously would have, like, four-minute chefs. Doogie, you got to look that up.

When the last forward was in the NHL or, like, Olympic, to record a 30-minute, I can't remember. In regulation. Like regulation? In a 60-minute regulation game. Who was the last guy? Now, again, there may be, well, one guy got suspended, another guy got injured, and you're down to 10 forwards. Right.

Like, if you're talking 12 forwards, 60 minutes, it's a good question. I don't know the last time a guy would have hit 30. Like, that is literally more than double shifting. It's. And I don't know if you want them to with the speed of the game and all that. Like, we talked about it. That overtime could have been.

catastrophic for McDavid and McKinnon. Yeah, they lost their check badly. They were playing three-on-three NHL on a Tuesday. That's what they were doing. Cheating and trying to get bad changes. Like that was, I think they might have gone back over the tape, look back and say, we dodged a bullet there. Big time.

Thank you to Jordan Bennington. But you go back three-on-three on a Tuesday night in November, that's how you play. That's how Dryside will McDavid play. They're on the other side of the pocket and hoping Bouchard gets it up to him. Totally. And even that's how the checks played when Marner was coming down on him.

Just out for a skate. I'll pick up this guy. One on three. Yeah. So, yeah, I don't know. I think with Sid, I hear what you're saying about the intangibles and stuff. That can be there for the build-up. He can speak to them before the game.

He can be around in the intermissions. I think if he's got his gear on, you have to expect he can play. And if he's on the ice, these games are just, they mean too much for a guy that could be a liability. You know, if he can't skate well enough, I don't know how you play him. Yeah, there's other factors involved, too. Like, we don't know the injury.

We don't know how serious it could be. And if it's really bad and he's like, this might be my last game of the season type stuff, he's going to do whatever he can to play it. Like, there's all kinds of different scenarios that would alter his decision on whether he plays or not. And those are all going to come into play. You know it's probably, it is going to be a lot. He's not playing in the Olympics at 43 years old or whatever the hell it is. This is his last Olympics, so he is going to do whatever to get out there.

And there was some amateur doctors on X. I saw Greg's Street tweeting at one. They were arguing a little bit saying, No, that's all right. Arguing with a doctor on Twitter anyway. Grade one MCL strain. Why are the doctors? Like, they don't, if you're not, I think they just like getting clicks.

That's what everyone's doing online. Yeah. Everybody's doing it. They're just like, I just saw that guy go to the ground. You don't know squat. You aren't there. You didn't look at the guy's leg. Everything's different.

You can't look at a hockey play with equipment on and assess the guy's injuries and saying he's probably in or probably out. What are you nuts? People have lost their damn my. A huge following for it, though, because there's a doctor that does it for NFL guys all the time. Dude, I know, I know. Is that the guy that's not? Ryan Lee's that the guy that Ryan Leif hates?

It might be. Yeah. There's one guy that Leif just goes after as soon as he assesses injuries and then Leif. I think Leif found him at the Super Bowl right around the corner from us and chewed them out, man. Oh, really? Oh, yeah. It was a scene down there at the Super Bowl. Oh, I didn't know about that.

Yeah. Oh, yeah. Those doctors, though, they love being the one chiming in. I think that's two to three weeks. And I would not expect them to come back in this game. And then they're just off the X. That's their world, right? Like they're waiting to get in there.

They want to get in the game. MCL, I see this. I think it's an ACL. It could be a high ankle. And they obviously don't have a clue. You know, it's based on the clip and the way the guy skates or walks. But it's always just about engagement. You know, it's like we were talking about yesterday with the Marner Leaf stuff.

That's just about engagement because, you know, you're going to get it. Like if you tweet something out that's, you know, flamboyant or inflammatory or whatever, you're getting the likes and responses and follows. It may not be a positive response, but you're going to get it. Yeah, you are getting a reaction. You're getting a reaction. Exactly. That's the way it works on that.

Nick Jesus, 2945 of Ice Time in a regulation game since 2025. It was in May, 2024 playoffs. He played 29? 2945 of Ice Time. That is from Doogie. Well, someone else posting into. Google, I guess.

Who wrote this? Doogie, you better not to jamming up on that. No, this is different, though. Someone just, we could have done this ourselves, and Doogie could have, too. Last NHO board to play 30 minutes a game in regulation time. Based on NHL records since 0506, the most recent forward to play over 30 minutes in regulation is Miko Rantingan on Colorado. Wow. Yeah, played 30 minutes and 23 seconds.

And he's a big body. Like, he's not a guy that. And like that is, like for Miko Ranting. That game was overtime. Okay, so my bad. Well, that doesn't make sense. But anyway. If it's an overtime game, then that's not where we're talking about.

Yeah. And this guy, it also said that McKinnon went over 30 that game too. So there you go. Duggey's on it, man. Duggey's Googling and doing his job. So you're saying that other guy that wrote you that liar was because it was an overtime game. Yeah. Overtime shootout.

There you go. He forgot to put that into chat, GPT, saying exclude overtime. Yeah. So that's your answer. McDavid. The answer is no one. No one has played 30 minutes. The only guy close is McDavid.

And so he's not playing 30 minutes in rank. No, but you could get him. Could you get him to, I think you could get him to 24 and he'd be fine. Like 24, 25. Like finding extra shifts instead of a third or fourth line, you throw him out there. In Crosby spot on the third line, how would McDavid look with Stone and Marner? Yeah. You know, you go, McDavid with his regular,

line, second line, and then into a third line with McDavid again. Fine shifts. I mean, I think that's fair. I mean, listen, if Sid doesn't play, Morrissey being out as a hit too, Morrissey's the top four guy. You know, you can make a case getting Morrissey back will have more of an impact, certainly not in terms of the symbolism and the leadership, but in terms of the minutes played and the impact you might have on the game.

Especially when you need stops against the real stacked and complete. forward group. Right. Finland. I keep making a mistake. I'm bypassing Finland. Finland is not going to be easy. We just went through it with Chequia. I know.

Yeah. They're going to play the same way, except the one thing Finland, I do believe, does better than Chequia, they're a pain in the ass. You look at that leckoning in that. Like, they're rats. Like, they get underneath, and I say that respectfully. Like, they get underneath your skin. They agitate, and then you retaliate.

And if it comes down to special teams, two-two game and they get a power play because they draw somebody in. Finland plays really chippy. I like that style of play. I mean, but Canada, you know Tom Wilson, you know Marchant, you know, Hegel will be trying to get underneath their skin. Finland plays that game as well. So Canada's got to be ultra-disciplined.

Well, they're going to try to drag them into a street fight, you know, effectively. Not fighting, literally, but that's exactly what they're going to try to do. win 2-1 if you're Finland. You're going to rely on Staros to make big saves. But, you know, it's a benefit. If Sid's not playing, if Morrissey doesn't play, yet the Finns would put their hands up and say, well, we don't have Barkov over here. So we're trying to survive without our best player.

And, you know, that Oilers team, the last couple of years, has taken strays over there because I saw the Finnish coach, you know, was asked, how do you shut down McDavid? He said, I guess I'll call Barkov up, see if I can get some notes on that. He never said that. He did say that. He said, I'm going to ask Barcove how to shut him down. And you got Matthew Kachuk yelling at tricidal about being a bridesmaid. It's like, man, those Panthers, it's just.

Well, I don't think Barcoff made that. No, it wasn't. Barkop's probably what's Barcove going to say? And who's going to stop McDavid on that too? Barcobs would probably say, listen, if my knee was 100%, I could try. but my replacement probably not going to happen. Rupé, Hince, I don't think you can do it. You're a really good player, really good player,

but I don't see Hints doing it. But, yeah, I mean, you're right. I'm bypassing Finland as well, more so just hoping we get to this game. But if it gets to the gold on Sunday and Sid can't play, I mean, that's a big boost for the Americans. Like, it just is. And I think what the forward position was the one position

definitively owned by Canada, in my opinion. the Americans, I think they got better defense. I think they got a better goalie. Maybe not clutch goalie. You know, you could have that argument all day. But you take it out if he's not here. I mean, that balances it out for the Americans. So let's see where we go.

There's also a lot of people on the donkey tweets that are like, USA had Quinn Hughes, they win four nations. That one was circulating yesterday. Of course. Listen, Quinn Hughes is a hell of a player. You take arguably the second best. I mean, there were times where, you know, it's for car. You can't.

It's just such a layup to say, oh, if he was playing, the Americans would have won. He wasn't there. They didn't win. Stop with the nonsense. I'm just saying, like, there's always something. Instead of just celebrating, hey, Canada won that, it's like, well, if they would have had this, coulda, what or shoulda. That's what the women's group will be saying. You know, if Huland was 100%, maybe we win.

You know, that, because we know she's not 100%, she's just battling. She was a warrior. She was fighting it today. She didn't have a great game based on her standards. Yeah, she's a warrior. Guaranteed it's going to come out that she's pretty banged up. But at the end of the day, you know, there's people on the other side who don't win, that's for the excuse train.

Exactly what it is. When you lose, it's always, well, this could have happened or should have happened. The truth is, now Quinn Hughes is there, and he's making an impact. He's the reason they're playing in the semi. because he wanted an overtime for them. So we turned the page on the women's tournament. USA, congrats to them. They win gold in overtime.

Unbelievable game, tightly checked, close game. Canada had the lead the whole night. 2.30 left. They gave up the tying goal and they lose an OT. So more on that. And Mike Johnson coming up later this afternoon. We got John Snyder coming up. We're heading down at Dunedin.

I saw on CP2 for it last night. I guess all the faithful, the blue. Jay's faithful that lived down in Dunedden were so jacked to get the Jay's back and they had a big parade and there's a lot of you know a lot of people excited to have them down and you know we got baseball starting this weekend like they're starting ball games this weekend it's amazing i got to snide something off the hot boys and you're not going to like it i got to do it though i'm doing it i'm not going to say what it is you guys probably i know i know what i'm not going to tell you would i tell you do you want me to say it or not go out yeah did he like he did he

Lay eyes on Vladdy. No. Of course he's laid eyes on Vladdy. He's the manager. I want some of the training camp hats and a couple of the short. Don't do that. We don't need to do that. We did that years ago.

The swag? You want swag? Schneider's got other stuff on his mind. At the very end, I'll save it for the very end. Sure, you can fly, throw it out there if you need to. All right, John Snyder coming up. Overdrive continues. TSN app, end up on YouTube.

Live. All right, overdrive continues, powered by Fanduel. We've got John Snyder coming up here in a moment. Weather looks beautiful down and done Eden. They're starting to play games this weekend. It comes out you quick. Quickly, man. Pitchers and catchers arrived and the whole squad shows up.

Isn't that amazing how quickly that shows up or it's like they lose the World Series and then it's like, man, they have to sit on that for so long. And now they're fired up again. Right again. going again and five weeks down there and then 162 games you're back to square one like back to zero zero win loss column you're tied with everyone else and you know 94 wins last year game seven of the world series it was just a magical season and now they got to try to find a way to I guess replicate that and then get back to the dance and just get over the top

We've got to ask Schneides about that. Like, can you even focus on recreating the chemistry or do guys just have to continue to play well? Because I don't think you can ask. You can't recreate that. You've got different personalities, some big ones, some prominent people have left the clubhouse. I don't know if that's one of the focuses to, like, recreate that chemistry because that's all anyone talked about last year. But it's got to be different. But you heard him talk in his media saying last year is last year.

Don't you think that he has to have that mantra? Because if not, the team might have a hangover. The team might be going, hey, we did this last year, you know, showed up just a matter of time. Like, you know, we've seen Florida. Again, I'll bring it back to hockey. You've seen Florida. You've seen Evanton, these hangovers and, you know, they start the season slow or whatever. How does in the baseball world they avoid that?

Does it play every night? Yeah, it's, well, and, you know, conversant. Firstly, if you do, you can't panic because you do, like you said, you play every game. They didn't have a great start last year, guys. They didn't come out in where, yeah, they weren't eight and two through ten games. Jimenez was the only guy hitting for a while. Right. They struggled, man.

It took them a little while, like certainly through April before they got cooking, mid-May. And they had a great summer, great fall, and, you know, they just kept going and going and going. But it's a, it is a different clubhouse. You know, Bichette's not there. he's been there for a decade Bassett's gone Scherzer those are big personalities like veteran

personalities who spoke all the time spoke on behalf of the team all the time I'm sure set a tone in that clubhouse And Bichette dude Yeah well exactly that's what I said Beset like Scherzer and Bichette Or Bassett all gone Like those are three

prominent pillars of the organization from a year ago And how do you move on Now you've got Okamoto here. You've got a different media contingency. Like there's a ton of Japanese media that's going to be following you around. Again, I don't think that affects what you're doing clearly on the field or anything, but it's a different –

Yeah, this presents a different vibe. It's a different vibe. It's a different post game. It's – you're going to have probably media there that's asking specifically about one player every single game. You know, you got to prepare for that. I would try me nuts, dude. Yeah. Especially if he's playing.

playing poorly and you just want to just say, he stinks. That's what I think. Right. And I don't know how that would go over if it's just like he sucks right now. That's the end of the story. Like, do you want to keep asking me about that guy? There was all, like all kinds of coaches, they hate. I think Torts hated it.

I think Mike Babcock hates it. They hate when it's like, oh, how about so-and-so? I'm pretty sure Sheldon Keith got sick of being asked about Austin Matthews and William Nealander. Yeah. Like they hate it. They just want to talk about their team, good or bad. But that's the job, man.

It's the job, man. We talk about it. The skips got to come out and chat every day. For the most part, your leaders have to come out and chat. It's the pain in the ass, but, you know, Keegan, our good buddy Keegan, that's what he does. He gets in there and. Right in there.

Ask the questions. And, you know, it's, yes, it can be aggravating. And I get it because it's because it's emotional more than anything. You know, coming off wins and losses, you're heat. But I thought Schneider, you know, I think he's done a very good job of handling the messaging since he arrived. You know, as a young manager, no major league experience at all. And I thought last year he did a very good job of it too. You know, he's not a guy that generally sewers anybody, and I wouldn't anticipate that's his plan.

But last year, once everything got going and they were rocking, like, that's a great ride to be on. You know, if you're a manager, it's easy to talk when you're winning a lot of ball games, the city's captivated and you're well into the playoffs and you know where you're going and you feel good about yourselves. This is obviously a different start. And, you know, there's going to be focused on different players. I think they're still, I'm going to ask them, like, do you feel like you're a better team today than you were this time last year?

This time last year, no one was talking World Series contention. They might have been saying it in a way that, you know, everyone does. Yeah, we're here to win a World Series. But I don't know how much they truly believed it. but now that we know what we know, you've got Dylan Cesar, you got Ponsor, you got Rogers, you've bought in Okamoto, you've lost some pieces too, but how do you compare this team compared to a year ago? So we'll catch up with John Snyder here, hopefully in a few moments. I was going to say, do you think losing Bow will be a huge impact?

Like not as big impact as Mitch was on the Leaps, but do you think it was, you know, this is a core guy? I personally do, Jamie. Bays, what do you think? Like, I think it's a big loss, man. Yeah, I think it has the potential. Because you were gunning for other guys and you didn't get them. And then this guy's gone, too. Yeah, I mean, it's apples to orange is the way the sport plays.

But I would challenge you on them. He is Mitch. That's what he was. Like, it was, you know, Vladdy was Austin. He was Mitch. They came up together. They were both highly promoted and elevated quickly and became young stars and people loved them. And they were, you know, attached to them.

He was the most clutch hitter in baseball last year. And, you know, he hit for power, and he was a guy that obviously had a huge presence in the clubhouse. I think it could have a very big impact. You know, it doesn't mean it's going to be crushing. It doesn't mean you can't overcome it. They have to find a way to do that. But you take a bat like that out of the lineup and a guy who plays the middle of the infield, regardless of how you might have felt about it, that's a prominent position.

that hit right in the middle of the order that's gone and that has been penciled in for years in that position. And again, you didn't fulfill his role. You brought in other guys and you can elevate other guys and they push guys around and him and has to play short. That sounds familiar. Yeah. Literally that's exactly what it is.

So, like, you know, Marne left, Bichette left, you didn't go one for one. No. That guy's out and this guy's in. If they sign Tucker, different player, different best. that hits on the other side of the play. Borderline upgrade if Tucker came in. Exactly.

You could say, hey, this is actually makes sense because of this. That didn't happen with Bichette. And, you know, speaking of Okamoto, he's going to have to hit the ground running. Like, he has to step in and hit and play and be a presence and be a guy that they can rely on because that's the bat that they've acquired in the offseason. That's who they brought in.

You know, they put a lot of eggs into the rotation. I think that's a smart play. I think Dylan Cesar would be very good for them. I think they're going to have to rely on Burrios getting back into the action. Hopefully Bieber gets healthy soon. I think that rotation's got a chance to be really, really good. Bullpen should be pretty good. But the bats, it's a legitimate question.

Are they going to be as powerful? Are they going to be as potent this year? I don't know. I mean, I'm kind of bracing for them to take a step back. So if that happens, you've got to compensate in other areas. All right, we'll try to catch up with John Schneider. We've got Mike Johnson coming up in about. about a half an hour.

And Best Betts back with the NBA. We're tracking Riviera in Genesis. I think they shut it down due to rain earlier today. I mean, it's a good thing in L.A. Like, people complain about the rain. You need the rain, considering the history of that city. Tell me we have one guy at the leaderboard. I think your boy, Akshay was back at it again.

Last time I checked. No way. Yeah, man. Well, he was leading to charge at Pebble, and he just couldn't get it done on Sunday. Yeah, and you know why? because Min Wu Lee absolutely jammed him on Saturday. I'm not sure if you got to see what he did. It was disgusting.

It was really gross what Min Wu was doing. Dude, Sammy Burns and someone else were standing there saying, we cannot believe what we're watching from this guy. It took him an hour to play 18. Yeah. And stinky old Akshay was on the T. He was freezing his ad. Did you see how cold Akshay was?

It was so windy and cold and miserable and dark. He made the football coach in Miami look like a stud, because he was freezing his adjointed. his ass off and he's like, I can't believe this guy. Yeah, Min Woo, that was a greasy play. But yeah, Akshay Batia at 3 under. Macaroy, my boy, at 3 under. Sammy Burns at 2 under.

I got Sammy. So, yeah, we've got a couple of guys on the hunt here. None of us took Mara when he's coming off a win. He's a California guy, goofy play with us. Taylor-made guy. Taylor-made guy. He's hitting the spider, the tour. He's got the mallet in play now.

People, check it out. Everyone that's winning is using a spider. Like go through the META Scotty, all of them. Literally everybody's playing the mallet. Yeah, Godorup. Everybody. Macalroy, they're all playing the tailor-made spider. All right, John Snyder and Mike Johnson coming up, Overdrive continues up on the TSN app. All right, Mike Johnson coming up, John Snyder.

John might be taking, I don't know, Japanese lessons or something, right? Like, you want to. Right after. Keep up with the Japanese media that's over here. What's with Vladdy? It seemed like Ladi last year a little bit after the contract was like, don't need interpreter. Playoffs, don't need the interpreter. Got back to spring training. Get over here and figure this out for me. I just found it odd. I thought, and I don't care. I don't generally

make a bunch about interviews, players, but I just found it interesting. Yeah, I think it's always been a comfort level. You know, that's my understanding from Latin American players, Japanese players. You know, Ichero, I believe, has said it many times. Like, Yichiro could speak fluent English. Yeah. But he always was worried about context or, you know, say the wrong word. So just for safety purposes. Yeah, I guess that would be an important thing for...

But you're right, though. Like, Vladdi corrected the interpreter the other day where he was saying something. And he's like, I got in the clubhouse. He goes, dug out. Like, he knows what's going. He knows exactly how to follow along and everything. Who was the... Was he a pitcher?

The Blue Jay who had the broken English who said he had to go to the bathroom. I had to take a crap. Do you remember that years ago? No, that was a Japanese. He was a Japanese guy. Yeah. There might have been a Jay. I don't remember that.

I remember there was a famous one with the Yankees. What was his name? Because Rivera's in the background. Was it Matsui? I don't know. No, it wasn't. It was a pitcher. I'm blank.

I'm watching. I think he was a, he said he was dehydrated. and they said, you have to eat bananas, except saying you've got to eat bananas. Like, that guy was really funny. He was a J. I can't remember his name. Somebody will send it to me, but he was funny. It was Kawasaki who JP is saying.

He wasn't a pitcher. Oh, he wasn't a pitcher. I don't remember that. I mean, I could picture that, but there was a famous one with the Yankees. Yeah, I remember. The guy was like, I had diarrhea. And then he's like, what's so funny? And Rivera's in the background, like, looking at him,

dying, die and laugh at him. I'm out of here, see you later. And he just kept going and going. He's like, no, this is what is happening. Good telling you. I had diarrhea, yeah. And it was actually really kind of refreshing because people like, wow, no American would ever say that. And he was just, no, he was like, Lucy, you asked me, and I told you, man, that's why I left.

Right. Why couldn't you pitch in the eighth? I'll tell you exactly why. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. We got to find that clip.

It's a great, great. It's very funny, very funny. But I think we're talking about two different players. You're talking about something different. I don't recall that one with the Jays. I'm not saying it didn't happen. I just, I don't remember that one. Yeah, but.

Yeah, it was Chanho Park. Chanho Park. Chanho Park. Yes, Chanho Park with the Yankees. And Rivera's in the background. It's so good. We got to find that clip. We've got to play it.

Yeah. But, yeah, Vlad, I don't know. It's also a long season. You know, you're getting asked a lot. Like, I thought he did a great job. the playoffs. Like his post game on the field interviews, some of the stuff he did with Hazel May was phenomenal, what he did with Fox.

He was winning, Brian. That's why it was so great. It was so great. He had a performance for the ages. Yes. Like, that's the thing. So what, I guess, are you worried that he starts slow? Like, what is regular season, Vladdy?

Because we saw a playoff Vladdy. Like, that's a monster. He was an absolute monster. But regular season, Vladdy, like, what is he? can he get to 40 dingers? Yes. That has to be the ambition. You would like to think so because what did you get last year?

23. 23 home runs. I think that is clearly the bar that has to be set. You should be hitting 40 home runs. You know, you got to have an OPS, somewhere in the mid-nines, maybe chase a thousand, get on base a ton. And it's not obviously realistic, nor does anyone expect him to do what he did in the playoffs and just, you know, do that over the course of 155 games.

But let me ask you this, Hayes, do we focus too much on, you know, what are you doing as an individual? We've done it with McDavid. We've done it with Austin Matthews. Like, do we really care if Flattie hits 40 dingers if he performs like that in the playoffs? Honestly, like, what do we really care about it? I know there's people that go to the ball game every day that want to see him play. and obviously more than 23 would be ideal.

But if he hits 30 and he performs like that in the playoffs, although I think it's a little bit unrealistic to wish for that, because it just doesn't happen every year, especially for the Js. But it's almost like we put all this focus on, you better get your 50, you better get your 100 points, your 50 home runs, when ultimately what the hell does it really mean? What is it important for? Well, regular season stats,

You're right. Oh, if you have success in the playoffs, nobody cares. It's just get through. And that, actually, it's funny. That's where you went at the start of the season, Brian, with McDavid. You're like, this guy doesn't care about her trophies and winning, scoring titles, and that. This guy just wants to try and win a Stanley Cup. And I think, but with Vladdy, with Austin Matthews, with all of these guys, the regular season still matters.

You've got to make the playoffs is the point. Exactly. Like, 23 home runs, nobody cares because they won 94 games and made the playoffs. So you afforded yourself the opportunity or your team did. And he factored into the success. Like, Vladia had a really good year. 23 home runs, hit almost 300, I think, like a, you know, sub-90 OPS, played every day, played well defensively. You know, like, he factored in greatly to their team success.

But it wasn't like what Aaron Judge does for the Yankees, where it's like the reason they have 94 wins is because of that guy. Like his wins above replacement was like nine or something. Vladis was like four, four and a half. I guess you're right. It's tied to the team's success where they got to produce. Yes, that's it. Like, if the team is flourishing, just factor in, be great, and elevate at the right time. If the team is not flourishing, you better step your ass up and get something done here to get them to the finish line.

But it's where people are like, maybe that's unfair. Well, then don't sign the $500 million contract. That's it. Like, I think you give them that kind of deal clearly for the playoffs success, but they're not making the playoffs 14 years in a row. That's not happening. He's not going to the playoffs every year. There's going to be some lean years. Yeah, of course.

There's going to be ups and downs and ebbs and flows. But what you need from him, what you would expect, and you've seen it, he's got the capabilities of kind of chasing down. Yes, 40 home runs and being a potent hitter all the time. And yes, you can have slumps and off days. That's natural. But in the American League, it's like Aaron Judge is so further above anyone else and has been for a few years.

Not even funny. He's the guy, though, that's most likely or has the ability to possibly push him a little bit. Not necessarily catch him, but who's number two? Bobby Witt Jr., you know, Ramirez in Seattle, or Rodriguez in Seattle? Like, who is it? Is it, you know, I don't know. I don't know who the next guy would be that you would look at and say he can chase down judge. I think what Vladi did over that month in the playoffs would suggest it should be him.

So go do it, man. Go chase it if you can. All right. So I think we have, do we have the Chanho Park? Do you guys want to go forward? Yeah, I want to hear that. And if people were writing, it was Kawasaki who was talking about the bananas and stuff like that. He was so funny too.

Banana never cramp. Exactly. He played short at times. That guy was so funny, like really funny too. Our guy, Barry Davis, he was talking to Barry Davis. Manana never cramp. He would do post-game interviews all the time, and everyone was like, I got to hear from Kowisak. That guy.

It was so funny. I was watching clips of him the other day. That's why I'm like, it was a blue jay. I thought it was a pitcher, but he's not. Apologies, but it was so funny. Like, he just, he was a character. I would love the, in his, in Japanese, I guarantee you he's the funniest guy. Like when he's comfortable in his own language.

So funny. Yeah. So, yeah, this is, what year was this from, Chanho Park? Probably. 80s, wasn't it? That was yeah, I don't know.

Yeah, I mean, Rivera was still pitching. Yeah. All right, let's throw to the Yankees Clubhouse back in the day. I had a lot of diarrhea.

That's what you want to know? You managed that you were sick. Yeah, I had a lot of diarrhea. No. I told me, man. I had a diarrhea and then

Why? It's funny? I mean... Save it. Save it. Yeah. Off day, I had a diarrhea. And I feel very full.

And then yesterday I'm fruit too. give a lot of cough, and chest towers, and if you're dehydrated, something like that. All right. There you go. There you go. So, yeah, that was 2010. Yeah, he was with the Yankees for a brief period of time.

He wasn't with the Yankees long. But he was in the majors for a long time, man, Chano Park. But, yeah. Just being honest. I love it. That's what we're looking for. You guys always say, don't jump on a guy for giving the honest truth. I'm not.

But the thing is, I guarantee you, Vladie's like, I never want a sound clip like that. I don't want to, you know, misinterpret something or, you know, say something. So he's like, I'll use the interpreter, even no, good chances he understands 90% of it. Yeah, I don't think he's... There's only so many ways you can break down diarrhea. I don't know what an interpreter is going to... Yeah, I wouldn't be worried about that. And spit it out a different way.

Do you think that was his teammate last... I think it was his teammates last time? No, that was a reporter. I think it was a reporter that was like, okay, because I think that was Rivera behind him. I'm pretty sure it was. All right. So anyway,

hopefully John Snyder will join us in the next hour. Mike Johnson coming up. The Americans beat Canada in overtime today. If you're just tuning in, it was a great game. Canada had a 1-0 lead, basically the whole game. About 233 left from the clock. I broke my heart.

I was crushed, man. And it was crushing. And, you know, Hillary Knight, it's her last Olympics. Poulant's her last Olympics. Olympics likely we'll see i mean i i'm curious what happens over the next four years but uh she tied the game with a great tip in front and three on three on overtime it's a wild wild roller coaster like it we just saw yesterday on the men's side finland got through an o t canada through an o t the u.s through an o t and you drop the puck with that kind of talent three on three there's

so much ice dude anything can happen anything can happen and it ends quick right like it ends quick Canada, U.S. played for like maybe five minutes in O.T. Maybe. Yesterday was a second shift. Marna was the second group out. You know what I liked about, especially the women playing today, there was not the circle back and the circle back. It was like, let's go and try to end this.

I thought it was, the shot selection was unique too. Like, down the wall, it's like, I'm going to shoot this. Get it on that. Exactly. Like, it was just a little bit different from if a guy, you know, in the men's hockey guy down the wall, they're looking for the perfect. perfect play. And with women, it was straight line, use your speed, trying to get to the inside. And they made it happen. Unfortunately, it was on the wrong side for us. It stings, man. The Americans,

now they get to hold that over us for the next four years. But credit to the U.S. winning gold earlier this afternoon. All right. Mike Johnson, John Snyder coming up. Best Betts coming up. Overdrive continues. TSN 1050 and on the TSN app. You've been listening to Overdrive, powered by Fanduil. FanDuel, bringing you everything from the opening line to the final score. I'm Dylan Playfair. And I'm Tyler Smith. We're putting loneliness in the penalty box by talking to some of our favorite athletes about the importance of friendship.

This is Bromance. Bromance is brought to you by Charm Diamond Centers, proudly Canadian-owned and operator. Charm has been part of your love stories and bromances for over 50 years. And you can find Bromance on the IHeart Radio Network or wherever you get your podcast.