Real Kyper & Bourne - 4 Nations Aftermath + Trade Buzz with Ren Lavoie

Episode Date: February 24, 2025

Nick Kypreos and Justin Bourne welcome in TVA Sports' Ren Lavoie (5:15) to chat about the fallout of the 4 Nations Face-Off, future injury risks with the Winter Olympics on the horizon and Matthew Tkachuk's health status for the rest of the season. Then, he gets into which direction the Montreal Canadiens will take ahead of the trade deadline, Brad Marchand's future with the Boston Bruins, why Elias Pettersson isn't untouchable, and the Edmonton Oilers' path back to the Stanley Cup Final. Then, Nick, Justin and Sam McKee discuss Alex Ovechkin closing the gap to Wayne Gretzky's goal record, Trevor Zegras's three-game suspension for interference against Michael Rasmussen, and concerns for Auston Matthews' scoring woes.The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

With the four nations face off in the rearview mirror, we are right back in the thick of things in the National Hockey League. Welcome into the Real Kipper and Bourne show. This is our national hour. We are live on Sportsnet 650 in Vancouver, Sportsnet 960 in Calgary. This hour of Real Kipper and Boran brought to you by Beth 365, Nick Kiprios, Justin Boran, Sammy McKee. In a few minutes we'll welcome in Renaud Lavoie, hockey reporter for TVA Sports. Lots of talk around the National Hockey League as we wrapped up our Leaf Edition hour. We got into a few things including Matthew Kachuk's injury.

Paul Maurice spoke on that and we'll get to Renault to dive a little deeper into it. But some teams paid a hefty price for a lot of fun during the Four Nations Tournament. But did anyone pay a bigger price than maybe the Florida Panthers with Matthew Kachuk out? What we believe may be a long-term situation. I can tell you that The word on the street is he tore a groin To what degree we don't know I don't know there are partial tours tears sorry, there's partial tears there's complete ruptures there's

First grade which could cost you two to three weeks. There's a second grade that could cost you maybe two months What's what's the one that cost you seven weeks and get a playoffs game one grade three, baby? April 19th. I think. Great threes. Call it a hunch. Great threes four months possibly. So, I don't know. I hope the tournament was worth it for Florida Panthers.

Oh, maybe not for them. Florida Panthers sent. Their fans. Most of their team. They sent eight players to that event. So they had the highest risk, and yeah, I'm sure looking around it, Ottawa, Detroit sent zero.

Ottawa sent three. Do you think playing in that game, like that he further, it was already really bad before he played in that game on the final? When did he play? Five minutes? I think it was just over six

Yeah, just over six didn't play after the first You know you couldn't find two more emotional guys than the brothers right and Matthew and Brady and You know, I probably went a little over the top last week you know when I mentioned that it was a little selfish of him, but listen Kipper, let's not judge each other on what we said last week a little selfish of him but listen Kipper let's not judge each other on what we said last week last week was an emotional I like Matthew yeah Brady Brady's learning how to control his emotions and be a leader I think there's lots of growth there for him too two guys I would love to have on a hockey club but in hindsight not a chance Matthew Kachuk should have played Thursday night.

Well, hey, there are injuries that you can't injure further by playing with them, and then there's groins, which is the complete opposite of that. That's like any getting up from a chair too fast, miming a golf swing while talking to a friend. I mean, it can get worse at any time. It's the definition of an injury that needs rest and needs to heal before you push it again. So that, uh, I'm sure Kachak was not cooperative with the medical staff, but ideally the medical staff would say you have a groin injury. We can't have you playing. You can't play. But then I guess it's not your player emotion, the passion, something took over.

Sullivan after the game said that like, you know, he's their emotional leader. We wanted to have, even if he couldn't go, we wanted to have him on the bench. I'm sure Palmer is like, oh, did you? Yeah. Did you want to have him out there? Also in the press box, Kyle Conner is just like

playing mini sticks, ting ting, like could have been out there helping. Jeez. Good player. Connor's so good. Connor. By the way, Jetstock time. What a hockey team.

They've won nine straight games, I believe that's plural. Like, love Morrissey, love Connor, Hellebuck is best going. This team has a very real Stanley Cup chance Cup chances here 83 points from 57 games this year They are humming no one even close and they're looking They're looking for depth to right. Yeah, they'll they'll they'll get better the deadline here They'll add a little something something think only Washington is anywhere near them for the president's trophy. I'm not mistaken

They're buzzing Brock Nelson you think he's gonna sign in love your them. He's a wood is he Minnesota? Where's he? Yeah, he's from war road. I think his knees in Minnesota guys close. Yeah, thank that counts like home sure whole mask Yeah, that that would work. I would love that for Winnipeg anyway, all right waiting on Renault Lavoie to join us. Sammy, we got him or we we're setting him up.

All right. We'll give him a few seconds to get settled in and then we'll bring him in. Renny, how are you, buddy? I'm really good. It's always a pleasure to talk to you. You know that. Did you catch your breath on the weekend or did the NHL schedule not allow that NHL schedule

doesn't allow it. And it was, you know what? It was a good thing. I really, I was not a wall for the senators and the Canadians game. And I'm telling you it was a really good hockey game. The pace of that game was unbelievable especially in the first period. I like the way the Montreal Canes played in that game. Obviously there's tons of injuries right now with the Ottawa Senators which is an issue but my understanding is quite everyone could be back Wednesday for so so for the next for their next game Wednesday I believe that the majority of the injured players are gonna be back, which is a good news So so we'll see how you know, these centers are going to play between now and the end of the season Hopefully they're gonna make the playoffs and for the Montreal Canes

Hopefully they're still gonna battle for it it that's that's the hope right now ready uh you touched on injuries let's start with the uh the injuries coming out of four nations face off here uh before we get into specifics on on players or what's happening with their respective clubs uh where do you think we are in terms of moving forward here on the intensity and in the future putting guys at risk to come out of the next 25 games of the remainder of the season? You think clubs will be comfortable moving forward with the risks? Will the players be comfortable with the risks?

What are your thoughts coming out of this thing? Well, you know what? One thing for sure. This was an NHL event. The Four Nations face off. An NHL event. The players were involved emotionally, physically. Some of them are injured. My understanding is even before, you know,

the games on Monday, a week ago, I had a report that there's a lot of injured players on teams that are playing that tournament. But at the same time, it's an NHL tournament. So the NHL and the NHLPA are going to share the money that they made during that tournament. And my belief is they they they they're happy they they made a lot of money during that tournament which is a good thing my concern is next year I understand that the players wants to go to the Olympics but the bottom line is you need to shut down the season for two weeks two weeks and a half, some players are going to come back injured again.

And for what? What, what is the NHL getting in return? Like nothing. And I understand. And the players wants to go, they want, they wants to play in the Olympics. And I agree with them. That's the thing to do. But if you're on the, uh, you know, on the NHL side, if you're owner of RGM, you wonder why we're going to Italy. And I can understand, to be honest with you, that both sides in this matter,

I don't like to see players going down during a tournament for a bunch of time. I really don't like it because at the end of the day, 10 days of really good hockey and like we had is fantastic, but there's the reality after that, the bubble is over, the bubble burst and now we're looking at what's going on around the league right now and we're like, that was fun, but what's the on around the league right now and we're like, that was fun, but what's the impact in the long run? And that's a question that a lot of people are asking right now. You know me personally, Renny, I feel like the impact in the long run is going to be a good

one. I feel like there's a lot of positive buzz around hockey, which is nice to have. But I get your point about the season, about teams, about ownership, and so this year I'll ask you what are you hearing on this Matthew Kachuk thing because as someone who follows the Leafs that's pretty relevant. It is relevant, really relevant, and it's in a way you have to wonder why he played that last game. I would have preferred to see, you know, other players in the lineup than him. And if he is saying, I want to be there, I want to play or I want to be with the guys. Okay, no problem. Be on the bench, be a coach, you know, be a guy who's going to, you know, tell a few

things to your teammates and try to motivate them if they need any motivation. I don't think so, but anyway, be there, okay, but in a suit and let Kyle Connor play. That's one thing. Second thing, I think Paul Maurice today on the radio was crystal clear. He's going to miss some time. Hopefully he's gonna be back at one point. Yeah, one point could be the playoffs. But what I reported on Saturday during the game is, you know, the rumbling right now and the concern right now in Florida is that he could miss the rest of the season. That his season could be over. I didn't report that he's, you know, he's y

going to play during the talk about the possibility over. There's still a win chance that it won't be t a concern on saturday for Now there was some other tests today. Hopefully the results are going to be positive for him and for the Panthers. Fingers crossed no one wants to see Matt Yuka Chuck out for a long time. This is not something good for the game. I think the game is better with Matt Yuka Chuck in the lineup. So hopefully things are going to be good for him. Maybe

he's going to miss, I don't know, a couple of weeks. If it's the rest of the season, it will be the rest of the season, but hopefully he'll be ready for the playoffs. Suspected groin tear is what I heard you getting those same rumblings? Yeah, yeah. So that happened Saturday night in Montreal, right? So that's close to, what now, 10 days ago? I don't understand why he played on Thursday. And he practiced on Wednesday, I saw him practice, he was only able to push on one leg.

I understand, I saw him practice. He was only able to push on one leg. I understand, I understand. The guy wants to win. They wanna be there for their country and all this. But you're putting your body in jeopardy here. And probably the chances for him to make it even worse were really low, but still, it's not a good look. Let's put it this way. You're watching and listening to Renny LeVoir from TVA

and NHL Network as a correspondent. Did you hear lots of talk between teams during the Four Nations? Was it quiet? Is it picked up as early as this weekend? What's the latest you're hearing and as we close in on it on a major trade deadline day? Yeah, it's coming. Yeah, it's right there in front of us I think it was a quiet deadline to be honest and not a quiet deadline but a quiet Freak tournament, but you know the GM's they add talk tos, they had time to make some phone calls,

but the real question here is who's a seller and who's not, right? Look at the Montreal Canians right now. Are they ready to pull the trigger and say this season is over? No, not really. They want to see what's gonna to happen to Monite against the Hurricanes. And on Thursday, the Sharks are in Montreal. And after that, they're traveling

to Buffalo for a game on Saturday in Buffalo and on Monday in Montreal against the Sabres again. These four games are huge for the Montreal games. Another thing here is, you know, Kent Hughes, like let's say a team is asking for Christian Dvorak, hey I'm gonna give you a fifth-round pick. No, I'm not gonna take a fifth-round pick, not even a fourth-round pick. If that's the price that you're giving me, he's staying. The Montreal Canines, they have enough picks right now. So it's going to be interesting to see what, you know, this, the Keynes are gonna do.

Hopefully, hopefully they're gonna win all their games and they're gonna go to the deadline with some confidence. And if they're not in, maybe two points back and say, you know what? We're not gonna trade for rental players because we have in a way rental players with the vorac with David so bar's going to happen with Jake Evans if there's no extension for him? And obviously there's a lot of teams looking at him right now hoping that he's going to be available. What is it going to cost? The first round pick? Really? I don't believe so. Is it going to be more a second round pick? If it's a second round

pick, I believe that Kent Hughes is going to listen, but if we're talking about a fourth round pick or a fifth round pick, I believe the Canadians again are going to say, you know what, we're going to finish the season with Jake Evans and it's going to give us more time to resolve his contract issues and we'll see what's next for him. So I think that everyone needs to have an open mind right now and if you know the Keynes are thinking this way there's probably a good majority of other teams are looking at the standing like the Boston Bruins. Are they sellers or buyers? You know that's not a big question and I believe that if they're sellers what's gonna happen with their captain Brad Marchand? Kipper that's that's you know

I won't rule out the possibility that Brad Marchand is not gonna finish the season with the Bruins even if My understanding is he doesn't want to go anywhere So let's talk a little bit more about that. There's a cluster of teams there with the Montreal Canadians Let's talk a little bit more about that. There's a cluster of teams there with the Montreal Canadians Detroit Ottawa Columbus Boston the Rangers the Islanders and Philly are all kind of in a little pack there It's funny the Bruins are one point out of a playoff spot and we on this show before you came on Said they're missing the playoffs like they're without McAvoy. They're without Lindholm if that's the case Do you expect Sweeney to get active and move? They have some very appealing assets from Trent Frederick to Brandon Carlo, Charlie Coyle. There's good players there.

Really good players. Really good players. We were mentioning Brad Marchand as a possibility. Let's say the Orders are calling for Brad Marchand. What do you do? And if you're Brad Marchand, what do you do? You have a chance to go win a Sandlick up in Edmonton with Connor McDavid and Leon Dreisaitl? Come on. I'm pumped just thinking about it. So the reality is, yes, the Boston Bruins, they had a lot of assets and I don't believe that they're far away of being you know really good contender eventually. Is it a real retool on the fly that maybe I don't know but at the end of the day go tending wise they're good. They have a really good decor. What's missing is probably a little more firepower upfront. So if you can get rid of some salaries open

some cap space next year, the cap's gonna go higher next season. You're looking at a possibility that the Boston Bruins are going to be relevant again, but they need to make the right decision. I believe July 1st what they did was a big mistake, big big big mistake. You can't repeat a mistake like this one. Ronnie, I'd be remiss if I didn't ask you for Vancouver Canuck fans, what the heck's going on with Petey, Eliza Pederson has not been exactly shot

out of a cannon since the tournament ended here. How healthy is he? Is there a chance these trade rumors could start up again or are we past that with less than two weeks to go? You know what Kipper? I'm looking at him right now. I'm looking at the Canucks. We're talking about a young player here, okay? Who's supposed to be a better player than he's showing right now. Okay, we all know that. Is it time to panic? Is it time to say, you know what, we need to turn the page on him too? Already JT Miller was traded to the Rangers. If you're

traded him, I think it's going to be a big, big blow for this franchise. I don't believe that there's a lot of team excited about him. I'm not saying that there's not probably someone out there saying, you know what, I'm going to give you a high pick and I'm going to give you maybe a prospect that you're going to like. But I believe that he's a better player than that. And if I'm the Canucks, I don't think I'm trading him before the deadline. That being said, during the summer, you need to see what's out there. You need to listen for offers that are probably are going to be better than what they can get between now and Friday next week.

So let's wait and see what's gonna happen, but I don't believe it's going to be traded. So we've been giving you sort of a cross Canada test here. But the one other team I need to hear you on is just the Oilers. You mentioned like, hey, Brad Marshand, an interesting name for them. Stuart Skinner's name kind of I see it on Twitter these days as, hey, is he going to be good enough for them? What do you expect the aggressiveness level will be out of Edmonton? That's a really good question. And you need to understand one thing.

Stuart Skinner is a beloved player. He is. Right? And you know, he's a goalie that he's a special person. And he's a friendly person. And he's a guy that and he's a friendly person and he's a guy that his teammates like to be around him. So you need to be really careful here because you can mess with chemistry and and that's something that you don't want to see honestly and I understand that right now right now for the orders

things are not trending in the right direction. And it's in a way understandable. I was not a great weekend, but is it the end of the world? No. I believe that they can do a lot of damages still. And if they get a guy like, I'm going to repeat Brad Marsha or Brad Marsha type of player, I think everyone's going gonna be excited again. And everyone's gonna say, you know what, here we go.

We're gonna make that push. And I don't think that it's gonna, you know, the chemistry inside that room is gonna collapse. It's a big problem, but goaltending needs to be better and it will. We've seen it before. They went to the Stanley Cup final and I did that mistake by saying, oh, Borders goal tending is awful.

They're going to collapse during the playoffs. They went to the Stanley Cup final in game seven. So I would make that move. You know, just continuing the buzz on maybe a potential Brad Marsham but nobody's really talking about a Vander Kane or where is he or how close is he gonna come like why why where is he what is going on there? Hey you know all it is so the train deadline the deadline is gonna go it's gonna pass he's gonna still be there.

Hey, probably there's a good chance he's gonna play game one of the playoffs. What do you say about it? It's still legal. With Marchand in the lineup as well. Oh my God. Why not? Why not, hey, by the way.

What a deep hair. Like I said, Brad, you know, he was laughing at all the rumors when we talked to him during the four nation face off and he said, I'm not going anywhere. It's all right. And I it's totally understandable. And it's his right. But at the end of the day, he's gonna still be a Bruin next year. I'm not sure that he's gonna be a Bruins next year.

Great stuff as always ready Renny, you got anything else? I just, you know, Don Sweeney is on the cusp of making some really big decisions there and there's some people who seem reasonably mad at Don Sweeney in Boston speaking for their fan base. You know, is he going to preside over some very big decisions like that? I imagine he will. There's no reason to think not but I'm just saying Bruin fans are a little upset. Yeah that question is really important here you need to understand what's going on in Boston there's a lot of people who are upset and I'll say rightly so. You fired one of the best

coach in the game okay And look at what's happening right now. Now Charlie McCavoy is out probably for the rest of the season at or if he's back, there'll be probably two weeks left in the season if the Bruins are lucky. So you have bad signing on July 1st, question mark decision regarding your coaching staff. And now you have one of your best defensemen injured. The Swainman contract has some people upset too. He's not doing as good. We saw.

Yeah, it'll be interesting. Yeah, it'll be interesting to watch it play out in Boston because they They weren't expecting to miss the playoffs under any circumstances Injuries or not ready great stuff as always pal. Thanks for joining us on our show Always good to talk to you guys and just the rest of the evening you too. Thanks a lot from TVA Always always got his ear. Yeah the ground., the Boston thing's kind of fascinating, right? He, when we had him on earlier in the year, along with you, he was one of the only guys I ever heard mention Ranton potentially to get traded.

And he had mentioned it really early on our show and he brings up ingest Marchand to the Oilers. I guess. I gotta gotta tell you nothing's ever made more sense than that to me. That is just the perfect type of guy to go in there. How about a Perry Marchand Cane line? I don't like that. What is that bug on the desk? Oh look at that. What is it? You know it must be the time of year I saw one of those earlier today too. Oh gross really? What am I supposed to do? I don't know How big is that? Is that a cockroach?

My god, we just we talk about we talk about Brad Marsh and the cockroach I can't believe you prepared for that thing That's gonna rain tomorrow No, that's if you lick Your ice cream ball on your wedding. I don't know. What are you talking about? Take a break Okay, let us get it back on the rails here Marche de l'Oeilers makes too much sense Do you think that would something that would happen? Oh, I got bug juice all over me. You gotta take a break

So we go Animal You gotta take a break so we can go watch this myth. This is a sizable animal he just killed. It is! I could have been killed! The next Steve Irwin. What happened to Kip? Oh, you should have seen it. It was awful.

An alligator? Dave Alligator bit my hand off! Am I eligible for Workman's Comp or anything? I think you are. Okay, we're taking a break. We're gonna put it back on the rails. It's not even Friday, guys. Oh my are. Okay, we're taking a break. We're gonna put it back on the rails. It's not even Friday guys Oh my god, okay. I

Don't know do we have a guest? Lots to talk about when we return trust us to real kipper born and I Unidentified bug Hey, it's a Lish for afar and I'm Justin comfort the most important sports stories of the day and tee up the biggest games of the night. It's the fan pregame 6 p.m. weekdays on sports that sports at five 90 the fan and wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back into the real

kipper and born edition of our show. National Sports Talk. We're going to be talking about the sports that you're watching right now. Welcome back into the real Kipper and born edition of our show national edition as a reminder this hour real Kipper and born brought to you by bet 365 Nick Caprio's Justin Bourne's Sammy McKee little game time as we continue to bug out here on our show. Thank you. Did you identify that thing?

It's gross. Your mic's on. Turn your mic. I put it at the very front there if anyone. It's very quite gross. I think they can get a close-up of it. I don't know if we can do that. I don't know. Oh! It feels like we're getting ready for one. It feels like we're getting ready to the very front tip here. I don't think we're getting fair enough. It's just a squish bug To move it where's that's in front of your computer Good job guys way to go TV. Good TV. Yeah, it's game time presented by bet 365 Is it the app latest odds and find out why it's never ordinary.

Beth365 must be 19 plus, Ontario only. Please play responsibly. So just a couple futures things, because there's only two games on the ice tonight. If we sit here right now, who do you think the two favorites to win the Stanley Cup are? And there's, sorry, there's one, two,

I, this is a terrible way to form that question, because there's one, two, three, four teams tied at the second highest odds, and there's one two. I this is a terrible way to form that question because there's one two three four teams tied at The second highest odds and there's one team that has the highest odds. Is it Washington Winnipeg? Nope It is not the Edmonton oil Edmonton Oilers are still the favorite to win the Stanley Cup plus 700 the next four teams Carolina nine to one Washington Capitals nine to one

Toronto Maple Leafs nine to one and Winnipeg Jets nine to one. Washington Capitals, nine to one. Toronto Maple Leafs, nine to one. And Winnipeg Jets, nine to one. Oh yeah. You're not showing the Capitals any love. They just absolutely ate Edmonton up on the weekend. They were so good in that game. And you're just not, you don't like them. They're not flashy enough for you.

I don't, I look at their roster and I don't go, yeah, that's a cup winning team. Like Rasmus Sandin, top pair, sure, they're gonna win the cup. But they turned him into a defenseman. Ah, okay. No. If he was here in the Leafs, you'd be saying something about him being top pair.

You know, yeah, like Chickren, they're fine. 20 goal score, Chickren. Okay, he's having a career year. No, he's great. He certainly has done great for them. They're good. They're good. I watched that whole game yesterday.

And Ovi's on pace for how many goals this year? 50 plus? Yeah. No, I'm not buying it. Okay. We should mention that he's now what? 13. 13 away.

I'm just going to... Look how excited you guys are. Oh, I just can't wait yeah around the ceremony for every goal from here on do we tell people yet a great chase just want to bring up looking down the list a little bit love the Vegas Gold Knights of 13 to 1 yeah that's it you know that's really really good good value on that one Winnipeg ones my number and the two other things I was gonna bring out there's two games on the ice tonight the Winnipeg Jets are hosting the San Jose Sharks

Believe that's the Amazon game tonight minus 450 minus 550 If you want to wager on the win-win, they just are minus 550 you could do worse than a shark Plus four four to one. That's like a good parlay on one game And then there's a really good game later on 1030 puck drop and I'll keepip will be watching this entire game. The Vegas Golden Knights in LA to take on the Kings. Hey, our boy Kevin, his team won in the big. Yeah, Kevin Zeigars.

Yeah, in their big. Yes. That LA Strong event was fantastic. Did you watch it? I did, I watched a little. It was really well done. Yeah, Snoop and Will Ferrell. I feel like we under-sloaded a little bit.

How good it was. Yeah. Yeah, Steve Carell's out there playing, Bieber's playing, that was a big deal. Yeah Danny DeVito. Yeah, DeVito's on the bench. Is he on like a crate behind the bench? Maybe. He could be a listener so I don't know you know we got all these actors out there. Wow I think he knows he's short. I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think he had a, I don't think it was breaking news, Sammy. I just couldn't believe the talent and then the participation from, you know, we had our own BXA and Ron McLean were involved and that was a really well done thing for a very important cause. That was great. And I wanted to do one more quick thing as I'm trying to make the playoffs odds. Looking at the bottom of the list here,

I'm trying to find the Vancouver Canucks. The Vancouver Canucks are still minus 200 to make the playoffs. The Calgary Flames plus 260. So those, they still believe in Vancouver and we're gonna probably talk about Vancouver coming in. The Flames are plus 260 to make playoffs? They are.

Plus 260. You should take that bet. So in our first hour we were talking about. I'm gonna wrap it up here then we'll get into everything else. So that was Game Time presented by Bet365. Visit the app for latest odds and find out why it's ever ordinary at bet 365. That's my 19th plus. Ontario only. Please play responsibly. Ovechkin good enough at this age to win a cup is their first line left wing?

Well, he's just gonna play two minutes on the power play. I know that. I play two minutes on the power play, I know that. Just be a sledgehammer over there. Find ways to maybe some nice play 15 minutes, 16 minutes. He's not 20, he's not 22, but he can still shoot it in the net. God, it was good to see him hit a classic OV. Like, A, when this happens, I just hope he shoots it in that way.

There's no point in having to be a tip in or something. Or an empty netter. Oh my God, you're you're Empty netters I get tip ins you're not happy with a tip in no, I want an Alex Ovechkin Classical gosh the goal. I think it really matters. Well, it doesn't really matter as long as it's not an empty net You'd like to see him bomb one. That's a goalie and get to like empty net. Yeah, I empty listen I've never Zillow over the course of my career that I've played or I've watched as a broadcaster Once again watching on the weekend people get like freebies two goals a game three goals a game empty nets

I don't get it. I don't get it. You're the games over You don't need to pull the goalie anymore and just give up another freebie Kind of bothers me. That's bothering you. The second, the Carolina one where they at least got the six three was an absurd empty netter where it was like there was five three, there was a under a minute left and they get another one. It's like, come on. It was at the home bird.

Yes. You get to tell people we won six three and like, oh, you smoked them. It's like, no, we almost lost the game. We almost blew it. Yeah. Um, yeah, I don't know. I have no, we almost lost the game. We almost blew it Yeah Yeah, I don't know. I have no idea what point I was making But no, we just you want OV's goal record-breaking goal. Oh, yeah to be a hammer I was gonna say so like a right now he's scheduled by pace to take the record over

Like April 10th or something. It could be a very meaningful hockey game for someone. What does he have? 26 games remaining? So he just needs to score a goal every other game basically? Yeah, that sounds about right. They've played 57, so he's got 25 games to go. 25. Needs 13 goals to get there. Like they're gonna shut down whatever game he scores it in, I presume. To tie it or to beat it Well, they which is the big deal be beat. I think I think probably both. I do think they'll make a big deal Oh to imagine. Yeah, I think so, too And you said what he's on pace for April 10th

Is that yeah, I read that somewhere today that that was the date caps gotta and grass. He's got to follow him around I think Commissioner Batman's got to follow him around right He's got to follow him around. I think Commissioner Bantman's got to follow him around. Right? Yeah, like Gretzky, I presume, wants to be there. And with Ovi, once he's within three, you got to be around. All I remember when Gretzky did it in Buffalo, I think, a record breaking goal, I think, 76 to beat Phil Esposito.

Goldie Hawn and Burt Reynolds were there. Oh yeah? Hey, that's a big deal. That's a big deal. Oh yeah? Hey, that's a big deal. That's a big deal. Those are big names. That's a big deal. You got the cap schedule going? I'm looking at it right here.

They play the Carolina Hurricanes on April 10th. And that is, is that a home? It's a home game. April 10th. There you go. And then they go on the road to play Columbus the 12th and then back to back with Columbus. Does he do it this year? Yes. No question. Yes. Yes. No question. Yeah Yeah, yeah, and he should do it next year because there's more money to be made for

Washington in the league if you drag it out. Oh, yeah Right. I think they're making any money off this. I don't know. I got a logo for it it the great chase any sponsor on it I don't think so and in his in his career He has not scored he scored the most goals of his career against the Carolina Hurricanes 51 goals in my mind By the way, Alex Ovechkin could have 13 goals by March. So The Winnipeg Jets is the number I agree with these be the Thrasher's Yeah, anyways, all right, there you go Is the number I go to with these be the Thrasher's. Yeah. Yeah. Anyways, all right, there you go

Some news and notes to clean up Trevor Zegras Suspended three games on a hit on Detroit's Rasmussen, which is a shame that his first Professional hockey hit get suspended It was it looks like a guy who doesn't throw a lot of hits. That's a bad hit. It's late, it's blindside, it's to the head. It's a bad, bad hit. Yeah, if Kaidri throws out when he gets 10.

Yeah, oh for sure. This is like you've never been in trouble yet. Yeah. Is it, yeah. I didn't watch the game so I don't know how the hit kind of came about but he just seems to be probably a little frustrated over maybe his season or his career. I'm not sure. Yeah, that one really felt out of context to me.

I don't really have an answer for why it happened but he is under a hit per game in his career so it doesn't throw a lot of it wasn't that long ago we're talking about him being one of the most one of the brightest stars in our game and of course the magic around a Michigan or pass over a net oh my god that's still one of the most right that's still one of the most amazing like Sonny Milano batted in midair but you know what Kip I Believe now more than I've ever believed in this soon Too much cover cover of a video game, you know

Yeah And you know you've talked about giving guys money before they've earned it like the young contracts again We're gonna pay this guy because the Jack Hughes contract looks amazing and everyone thinks they have Jack Hughes but then like the Sabres end up paying a bunch of guys who did it once and haven't been able to replicate the best of it and it does feel like sometimes these guys think it's gonna be easy and maybe Zegris is one of those. Maybe we're to blame a little bit too, just from... You and me? Media, maybe World Junior coverage, because we hype them up like crazy,

and they're these can't miss superstars. Uh-oh, who are you talking to? I think we could kind of look at Zegras and Bedard a little bit too here going, I watched Bedard against the Toronto Maple Leafs and I'm like, I don't really get the excitement just yet at the pro level. I watched them do amazing things in junior hockey, but I've also seen other guys do amazing things in junior hockey in their careers.

There's an S and an N in the network to blame and it ain't us pal. Am I wrong on saying that maybe the over hype on some of these guys have set them up a little bit? But it's hard. He's had good years. Who's that? Zegras. Like when he came into the league he scored 20 goals good years. Yeah in years, but not Superstar no and certainly not I Don't think what's funny. I don't think the words generational wherever followed up with Zgress like they were Connor Bedard But certainly one of the the best young players in our game He sat very much near the top of the list I do think and this is a genuine question Not a rhetorical how are Taylor Hall's first couple years in Edmonton? I genuinely don't remember

I'm sure there's some oilers fans who are incensed about that my point with this Yeah, I think it's really hard when you play on a really bad team And I'm trying to think it would have been terrible teams now from Taylor Hall was very similar It would have been terrible teams now from Taylor Hall was very similar Output wise to what Zegris was in his yet 22 goals yard here Oh, yeah, yeah, he had 22 goals and 27 goals in his first two years in Edmonton Yeah, I've been hitting that over the few years so I can't really remember but Taylor Hall obviously in Edmonton Was a great young star, but I'm not sure he sat at the top of the mountain.

He's a first overall kid. The way that Bedard does? Like the way Bedard did or Zegras with their respective clubs. If I'm not mistaken, Taylor Hall, Eberly and Nugent Hopkins all got the same contract. I think they all went from like whatever they were at to $6 million and I think they were all kind of equal. So there wasn't necessarily like, you know, you're well above everyone else.

My poorly crafted point is just, I feel like Badard is dying in Chicago. He doesn't have a guy to play off, you know, like I know So it's that the role of long be good. It is you celebrate. He's doing pretty well in San Jose He's playing with Will Smith. He's got you know, like that's a young guy that's coming up the same age He's in like you watch but our last night and you can see the habits creeping in here boys Like it's playing on a bad team losing every night. It's it's even where he is in certain areas the ice and

Like nothing really stood out for me Like you don't need points to follow someone that go. Oh my gosh. You see that you see that Oh that there's signs there like a previous point that celebrini you're that? Oh, there are signs there. Like I just- To my previous point, that's Celebrini. You're watching San Jose of Stinks and you go, oh, but just watch that. Yeah, and I don't get that out of Badaard. And again, it's hard. He's got national commercials. He's been on covers of magazines and billboards,

and he's built as the greatest thing for Chicago. And it's like whoa comes out and plays 21 minutes his first like 100 games of his career with nobody around him and it's like now they're taking a few runs at him he's been bounced around he's broken his jaw he's hasn't been a ripper orange start for this guy in his career. It's crazy. Like last year, he's 22 goals 61 points, which is fantastic. This year's already got 50 for any first round pick.

That's fantastic. You know, 25 games to go and he's at 50 points. Like he'll end up with whatever, you know, roughly 70 or 60. I've 70 somewhere in that range, which good year. But to your point, maybe it feels like the ceiling of what he'll be is one of the really, really good players in the league and not like cross. Not to bring it back to my beloved team, Canada, but I'm about to. You know, you looked ahead to the Olympics next year.

I just can't picture him, like, could you picture him anywhere near that game we watched on Thursday night? It's just like- Well, to Justin's point, how much better is Chicago gonna get between now and an Olympic break? Oh, right, so what's his chance of looking like a hockey player? Yeah, in 10 months, nine months.

Is he gonna look a lot stronger? Is he gonna turn that into more goals? Like none of me sits here today and go, God, he'd have been better than anyone on Canada. You know, like I think he's probably outside the top 30 forwards for Canada right now. You're missing Hyman, Shaisley, Wilson, you go to the guys who weren't there.

He'll have lots of time to build chemistry with Mitch Marner though, so maybe. There you go. They'll have a good half a year or something. Or Ranton and or both. You know, if they move Seth Jones' money, they could get both. I mean, if they move Seth Jones' money, they have to get to the floor. They honestly do. Okay, a few other things. Vancouver?

Or Edmonton. Yeah, okay. Also Hartman's suspension got dialed back. Oh, we were talking about Matthew's inconsistency with producing for the Toronto Maple Leafs and our Leaf Edition Hour. Where are you with Petey now and coming back and maybe he should have taken the weekend off?

I asked the question on Twitter today. If your team could take on Pedersen for no asset right now, 11.6 million for eight years, would you do it? Which is an insane thing to ask because years ago, I mean, not that long ago, he scored 102 points and 40 goals. It's crazy. Would you want them for free right now, that scored 102 points and 40 goals. It's crazy. Would you want him for free right now, that contract? I don't know.

I don't know. I don't know if you do. I think you do. Oh my gosh, I'd take him free in a heartbeat. Yeah, and just hope that it's eight years, Kip, the deal. I know, I know. So you think it's coming back. Right now, he's 11 goals and 35 points in 51 games.

I think there's still value there I know it's expensive but I'm a billionaire I own an NHL team I don't really care yeah you're right you're right you don't really care but do the Canucks value him over what they would value the money well they hang on I think there's a reason why Miller's gone and he's still here and age is one of them. There's just way more still upside for a much younger player. And I just, I just think it's too early between now and what the trade deadline is what 10 days, you're going to make this major decision.

You're in a playoff fight. You're never getting better by trading. Not a snowball chance. Like you said, with Matthews and Morgan Reilly, they're not their best so far this year, but all you can do is cross your fingers and hope it gets better. Yup, exactly. Nothing else you can do. Gary.

Oh, sorry, I was just going to say, Taukeit, after the game yesterday, this is from Ian McIntyre's piece on Sportsset.ca after the game, said, we've talked about how he has to move his feet and can't double clutch. Canucks coach Rick Tauke it told sports that Sunday after his main press scrum ended. I think he's waiting for something. I don't know if it's a lack of confidence in his shot, but as soon as he has room, he's got to take it.

He's just got to blast it. I'd rather him just rip a puck right now. He's not moving his feet. I thought today some shifts he was moving his feet and it looked like we had some glimpses on six on five at the end. It's the same thing waiting. If he just takes three or four strides I don't know if it's a mental block right now all year, but he's got to move his feet boy

Talk it's like I'm sorry, but talk it's like please let me coach the flyers He's just begging them to be better. What else can you do? In other news, Ryan Hartman's suspension went from 10 to 8 on NHLPA appeal, which is quite convenient during CBA negotiations under the radar CBA Negotiations making nice is that what you think? I Don't think it's so much making nice than making a point that if and Supplemental discipline is negotiated. Mm-hmm

Right, you got to agree to a CBA with it. So if the feeling was that the appeal goes to the commissioner only and not an independent arbitrator, I have to show that it can work in your favor sometimes. Yeah, that's good, Kip. That's good. That's a good angle. Right? If every time you appeal to the guy who made the decision in the first place, you get shot

down, what's the point of this process the point? So let me throw you a bone while we're negotiating So the next time it comes up I can tell you it works Yeah, you know we changed a peon suspension we we bend we'll bend for you. We'll work with you We don't need to change the process. It's fine. Only you would think of that That is the most kipper angle I've ever heard. For someone who's always got an angle, he sees the angles. What the hell? I can think of that one.

No, the reason is because I didn't think you shoved his face in the ice as hard as everyone else did. You know, that's a great point, too. It was probably a 10-game suspension. 12? Yeah, it could have been a couple more than that. 14. Oilers, you sent that tweet earlier to our group. Also in our group is who's that golfer that hit a thousand miles to the right and it kicked

back into play. Yeah, Brian Campbell. Not to be confused with the former NHL defenseman. The tweet was from, here it is, Chris Jastremski, he's a TNT guy I believe, against the top two teams in each division this season Edmonton is now 1-8 and 2 and have been outscored 45 to 27. So point being the Oilers against good teams haven't been very good. In the playoffs you can play a lot of good teams. I just worry about their depth everywhere. Everywhere. Outside of the net. Yeah. Yeah. So their only problems are goal-tending defense and forwards? I'm not as concerned as the goal-tender as I am their blue line.

Yeah so the blue line. Klingy's been okay. I didn't you know. Two and five in their games with him. Have they? Yeah, it's not great. But he's starting to move a little bit. There is a... Like my 85 Volvo in high school. It gets around. Matthew Kachuck ended up going to see some doctors,

I think in New York. And there is a buzz coming out of New York City that he may end up on the Jimmy Fallon show tonight. Really? Really? Matt, you're check's gonna be on Fallon, huh? Go talk about that big fat L they took. That'd be great. Hey, how'd it feel to lose?

Like you always do to Canada. Aw, he's growing the game. He's growing the game. You'll be a hater about this. I can't stand him. Of course I'm gonna hate on him. Oh yeah, sure, good for him, good. But what's he gonna talk about? I seen his greatness, you know what? He should have an ice pack he should be getting treatment while he's talking to him. That's a tough

Is that not like a tough? Spot or like Fallon not Fallon is a hockey guy though. Hey, like those Rangers. Yeah Or like Fallon, not Fallon is a hockey guy though. Hey, like those Rangers. Yeah. Interviewing. Oh yeah. He loves MSG baby. I guess.

Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Great. No, it's all about growing the game. No hockey go. Yeah. No, listen, roll with it.

We got to sell this game in the US. HRR baby. Speaking of a speaking to US enjoy your vacation. He's gone for a week. That's right. Tomorrow. We bring in Gord Stelick to replace you. You're going to take some time off.

I'm jealous. And he's going to come back broke. Disney baby. All right, everybody. Our thanks to Renny Lavoie from TVA for joining us. Enjoy your quiet Monday night. We're back again tomorrow on the real Kipper and born show. Have a great night everybody