Real Kyper & Bourne - Leafs Hour: Locking In the Opening Night Roster

Episode Date: October 7, 2024

Nick Kypreos, Justin Bourne and Sam McKee kick off the week with reaction to the Leafs signing Steven Lorentz & Max Pacioretty to round out their season-opening roster. Then, they share their thoughts on the projected lineup for opening night, McMann on the outside looking in, an increased role for Holmberg and the players trending up and down Berube's list of favourites. Later, they address blue line depth, the intensity of the Leafs' camp and Cowan getting sent down.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 affiliate.

All right, let's get her going here as we close out training camp on the Real Kipper and Bourne Show. Forget about the Toronto Maple Leafs. Forget about any other team. We alone are closing out our kind of shorter training camp than most hockey shows. You know what? Because we just... It's the right amount.

We just started last week. Yeah, and we had a menu of items to get to. We got a few left. Just in time for hockey to start. We nailed it. So the NHL and the Toronto Maple Leafs have to submit their final roster to opening season tonight at 5 p.m. I see where this is going.

I know where this is going. Where's it going? You have no idea where it's going. Don't say I know where it's going when going. I know where this is going. Where's it going? You have no idea where it's going. Don't say I know where it's going when you don't know where it's going. Is he getting caught? I knew where this was going. I knew where it was going. Where's it going?

That you were going to cut me. No. That I was going to go on LTIR. No. Okay. No, no, no, no. They're going to bring up a younger, fresher disco Dan. No, no, no.

That's not to say that you're not on the bubble. Oh, okay. Fair, fair, fair. Constantly. Yeah, fair. But my point is that when does our training camp end? Like, I'm going to be honest with you, man. I'm still a little rusty.

Yeah. You know, camp, I think, for these guys has ended. Even though the regular season has started. Like, they've made the team. They guys has ended. Even though the regular season has started. Like, they've made the team. They've broken camp. It's time now. So, I think today.

I think today camp's over. You can be rusty for a few games. There's 82 of them. How are you? How am I? Yeah, your reads sucked last week. I'm great, to be honest. I had an awesome weekend. Saw Lionel Messi in the flesh on Saturday afternoon.

That's pretty cool. Yeah, came and played against TFC for Miami. Four separate people ran on the pitch to try to get a picture with him. I did see that. It was quite a scene at the old BMO Field. Yeah. Yeah, had a good weekend. Great concert Friday, refreshed, ready to rock.

How do you feel like your real Kipper and Bourne game is right now? Are you game ready? Are you game ready for the season? No. No, but, like, listen, most people would game is right now are you game ready for the season no no but like i listen most people would say that i'm never really game ready like i still see clips of myself on tv i'm like wow they did that that's a choice they decided to make so i'm ready to rock i'm as ready as i'll ever be but you know i'm fine that's the answer it's i'm as ready as i'm gonna be yeah you know but we're getting fired right into the narrative blender. Like, immediately out of the start, right?

Because the first game's against Jack Guy and all that drama with the Habs. Second game of the season against Sheldon Keefe and the Devils who swept away the woeful Sabres in Czechia. And then home opener against Kyle Dubas' Penguins and Sidney Crosby. It's a narrative week, boys. It's a big three and four. So it's exciting.

Very exciting. It's going to be a great start. All right, I'm Nick Kiprios. He's Justin Bourne. He is our producer, Sammy McKee, Derek Brandeo, Jake the Snake upstairs, pushing all the right buttons for us. This is the Leaf edition of the Real Kipper Inborn Show.

In the national hour, we're going to welcome in Andrew Raycroft, retired NHL goalie, retired Toronto Maple Leaf as well, Nissan studio analyst. So we'll get all the goods out of him over the signing. Maybe surprising signing of Jeremy Swayman to a $66 million contract with the Boston Bruins. It's just surprising because it's like, if you're that close, do we have to know?

Did it have to go public? Okay, save it. Save it. Disgusted that it happened. Save it. Anyways. It's a national hour conversation here. Let's focus in on the Leafs locking in their roster.

More specifically, Max Pacioretty signs a one-year deal with the Leafs worth $873,770,000 and no sense. You want to try that again? You want to try that again? Also, Steve, now we're back over is it Lorenz or is it Lawrence what is going on with this guy's last name we haven't even started the season and

you're bouncing around on me Sammy I checked in with some people that would know and it's Lawrence we're going with Lawrence so here's my issue we're going with it was Lawrence and sports're going with Lawrence. So here's my issue. We're going with Lawrence. It was Lawrence, and Sportsnet called him Lawrence in playoffs last year and all that. Then he changed it to, like, Lawrence,

like Jennifer Lawrence sort of thing. And now we're back to Lawrence. So we'll just do Lawrence. I feel like he's... We'll do phonetic until told otherwise. After hearing everything from him in the preseason, I feel like if somebody just gets his number and texts him, he'd be more than happy to tell you.

So true. World's nicest guy. Yeah, he seems like a great guy. Okay, I wish we had more training camp games to kind of get accustomed to throwing Kippers Clippers to Craig Berube and not Sheldon Keefe, but this one's going to take time here, guys. I don't know whether I need another week, two weeks, a month,

but there's a rhythm to our Kippers Clippers. We've got to pick up on it, but in the meantime, let's grind it out with Craig Berube on Lawrence and Patcher 80 signing. Yeah, I'm happy about that. I thought both of them had good camps. Again, they got size, skating. they're different players i get that but uh both very important so pretty happy about that is there a chance that he will never be excited about anything this season unless you win games yeah the last game of the the season i think that's probably the case i don't think

he's ever gonna get on the mic and be like who were we good last night you guys like that boys they never get it boy how are we good yeah it's pretty good hey yeah you know i'm happy about that i thought you sound happy there okay so no real surprise no no real surprise except the surprise is steve lorenz uh had himself like one hell of a training camp yeah really a training camp i think they had some intention to having him be here and i think he answered the bell and did his job even contributed a little bit offensively which i don't think is the reason he's here. So that's nice. He feels like a good depth guy down the lineup. I would say I'm more surprised at the structure of Pacioretty's deal. 873 gets the Leafs to within $1 of the salary cap.

That's Price is Right stuff right there. Nice work by Brandon Pridham. I didn't buy that for a dollar. And you did. But he is entitled to two salary cap bonuses, about $310,000 each, one for playing 10 games, one for playing 35 games.

Those two are performance bonuses that would be on next year's salary cap. Kick it down the road. Right. So $600,000 on next year's cap if he plays 35 games for the Leafs. I'll love it. They'll love it,

but I do like how cheap it is for this year. And safe to say that if they don't like what they see in the first nine games, they punt. Well, that's an interesting point, too. You have two pressure points to say it ain't working. One is early, and one of them is 35 games. Good amount of games. Game 33, you're like, eh, maybe we're not going to see this through.

You can make that call. So they do have some time to see how it plays out since our first show you were rather skeptical of max patch ready here excluding watching him wear number 67 where are you today on his training camp i thought he kind of faded a little bit towards the end here and maybe that had a lot to do with being in a lineup that didn't include matthews and marner and nylander yeah tovaris well i think he said something interesting so i don't i like that he's 873 i like that he's cheap you know i think he's a veteran guy who's not going to hurt them my issue is taking away a spot from a guy robertson ends up sticking around why don't we listen to the patriotic clip that you got for us on his role okay with the team patriotic clip one please at this stage of my career the most important thing is winning and uh i feel that this group

has a chance to win there's a lot of strong players and uh, and you don't just want to be along for the ride. You want to contribute, and you want to help, and I feel like there are areas, some areas that I've played in my past that can help the team win, and some new roles and whatnot that can help the team win, and it's a new challenge for me, and I'm excited for that.

Saying all the right things. So roles that he's played in the past, that means being an offensive producer, and roles that, what did he say, some new roles that he's not as... Which would have him in the bottom six. Right. And that does show some self-awareness

and maybe a willingness to try something different. You know, I guess it's going to be interesting to see how he's used and how he fits in. As of today, game one for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Bobby McMahon looks like he's a healthy scratch. Pacioretty is going to be in the lineup. Yeah. You know, like it's never been about Pacioretty for me.

It's been about I just like Bobby McMahon. Scored 15 times last year. He's younger. He's on the come up. He's big and strong. Yep. Four checks. So for me, it's denying other guys opportunities.

Not about Pacioret Patrick. I know, but this is also having to make hard decisions quick. So when you make the commitment to invite him to training camp, and I'm sure between Pacioretty and his agent, I think it's Alan Walsh, I think it's his agent, that there has to be some sort of kind of understanding that he'd get an honest look early to come in and find a role or a place early. Bobby McMahon you could be a lot more patient with. And as a young guy, he can handle it be a lot more patient with and as a young guy he can handle it probably

a lot better than a guy coming in like that and starting the season with I'm already didn't get a fair shake and you know they do say and maybe you've seen this but like veterans take longer to find their footing to get up to game speed you know so for patch ready i think it's reasonable to say let's give him a fair shake let's see how his skating is after the achilles injuries after year last year can he get up to speed and be a useful guy i think to the point the conversation we had before maybe you know after 20 games it's just not there and you can make that decision but yeah i forgot like mcmahon he's probably fought for every bit so far not the worst thing to hit for him to have a reality check that you're a fringe guy just a reminder you're a fringe guy

like it's amazing to me that and this is not really necessarily about his role but what he said in that clip that these veteran guys still keep saying like i want a chance to win and it's like they still like people still believe that they actually have the chance to win yes and it's like they still, like, people still believe that they actually have the chance to win. Yes. And it's just like this fan base is what they think about this team versus what others think about it. There just couldn't be more, like, from the outside looking in, maybe it looks like that. And then the fan base is like, what are you talking about? Win?

Like, win? Like, that's always, it's amazing to me that, like, he says that in that clip. Maybe he's just trying to get a contract or whatever. No, he already had a contract. I don't know. Does that surprise you that these guys still stay that? No, because, I mean, Max has made a lot of money. And he's holding on for dear life to a career.

And, you know, do you end up trying to go to Columbus, Anaheim? The Leafs are a legit contending team. There's only eight teams that have a chance. There's six or eight teams, and we all assume that the Leafs are in the mix. If we were going to pick six or eight teams that have a legitimate shot at winning the Stanley Cup, we'd put the Leafs in it.

That's what he's doing here. Okay. And I get it. The jokes are, come on, it's the Leafs. You can't get out of the first round, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And yet, you know, we think that the Leafs will be a 100-point-plus team in the standings. Could they win the Atlantic?

Yeah, it's a possibility. Will they? Who knows? But he's not wrong on saying that at least i'm a part of an organization that have incredibly high expectations he could have picked six or eight teams that would assure him probably 60 to 80 games and i'm not even sure that they were out there that they existed because like to sam's point your point, put a young guy in there. Why do I want a Max Pacioretty on Anaheim right now? There's no purpose.

So it's really a small window of how many teams could do this for Max Pacioretty. The Leafs know that they need some scoring. And for 873 or whatever, you know, for under 900 grand, it's like he's probably, no, he definitely could do more for you than your average guy making around league minimum. I will say that I think this is going to work. Okay.

I don't think it's going to be. I'm skeptical. I don't think it's going to be like a, you know, he's going to score 25 goals or something. But I think he's going to be a guy that's a contributor and is not a total zero on the team. I wonder how do you think it looks, works? Like what does it look like what's a positive outcome the lines this morning at practice which seemingly could be an opening night lineup potential the top two lines are very familiar to people with the the core four and then domi and

nize on the other side but pat shreddy holmberg robertson to me that's a line that you know both those guys on both wings can shoot in the net. They're both, you know, you got the veteran guy in patch ready, Holmberg, who's a good skater. Robertson has had a really good preseason. To me, that's a line that could potentially score some goals. I just don't think it's going to be a disaster like some people are trying to paint it out to be. Like you, maybe.

I think it's 50-50 he's here in playoffs. Okay. I'll hear that. Yeah. Is that my? I think it's 50 50 by christmas really yeah huh okay so let's give it a run let's give it a run see what it is there okay um why don't he was very just one more on patch ready he was very complimentary about uh the team this weekend

with his comment you have the clip where he talks about this is the hardest? I do have that clip. Yeah, can we hear? Yeah, Patrick, clip two there, Derek. Yeah, there's a reason why they have success. This is the hardest group I've ever been a part of. I've seen it, saw it from day one. These top guys, it's not a fluke why they're the top guys.

They put in the work. They take care of themselves. I saw it within, you know, two minutes of being here. But you see it every day, every morning. And it's really nice to be around. It's an incomplete quote. When I heard it, I'm like, what does hardest mean? It's the hardest group I've been a part of.

Yeah, like hardest on the head? Well, I've seen people in writing it, you know, put the brackets in and say working. As in they're saying it's the hardest working. But I don't think that's what he's saying. I don't know.'s what he's saying. I don't know. I think he says. I think the assumption is that he just forgot to say working. Right.

That's what people are implying. But, like, you've been a part of all these different teams and groups at the start of the year. What else? Well, challenging. It's been a hard camp or it's like a hard group to be a part of because they're pushing each other. I do believe that he means working i do believe he did made it yeah what else do you think there's no other reason it's a hard group he said god these guys are hard to be around but but he also spoke of watching

like matthews or marner or nylander go out and and do hard drills for an hour before even practice started so I do believe that he is leaning towards that yeah you know I mean he's supposed to be one of those guys he's a fitness guy and all that isn't he who's that I'm patch ready I don't know I mean did we like for me from afar like not knowing everybody around the league but I think we can generally say that we know that we could think about guys that have reputations for being really hardworking and then others that maybe don't. Yeah. You know, I don't know where Max Pacioretty falls into the, you know,

being a good judge of, like, how many teams has he been on? How many games has he played? He's come here for three weeks and he sees in three weeks that they're the hardest working group he's ever been around i'm questioning the groups he's been around he did say that uh pre-contract that was before the contract i can't say that's not a factor here uh to answer your question interviewing for a job and all these interviews and to answer your question kippy're interviewing for a job in all these interviews. To answer your question, Kip, he's played 902 career games. 902 games.

That's a lot of teams. Montreal. Montreal, Vegas, Carolina, and now the Toronto. And just Montreal and then a couple years here and there. I think it's nice if he's trying to kind of like, you know, make the guys feel good or appreciate it for their hard work. Maybe it's a hardworking group, Kip. Maybe it's a hardworking group. I got news for you. They're their hard work. Maybe it's a hard-working group, Kip. Maybe it's a hard-working group. I got news for you.

They're all hard-working. They're all hard-working. All these guys go to camp and they work hard. The guy that got traded from Buffalo to Colorado and he was like, this is an actual team. This is brutal. He was middle stat, right? This team works hard. They practice really hard.

Maybe, you know, you guys are hardworking, and maybe they are. Maybe they're ready to go to another level. Boys, there's a first time for everything, and it's that you guys couldn't figure out what somebody meant in a clip. Yeah.

Because you guys can usually do that pretty well. I don't like that the answer is the easy one. It's probably just hard work. Yeah, I just forgot. It was. Yeah, I don't doubt that for a second. So Bobby McMahon's on the outside looking in. This show has been very pro-McMahon last year.

I mean, you think he should have signed a bigger contract. I've been pushing for him. I just think he should have. When he was in the AHL last year, I was writing about him. Let's listen to Craig Berube, who has him outside of the starting lineup at night one. You know, good and bad, I think. Not bad, but like like you know um there's

more there i know that uh bobby knows that so um you know i felt he maybe was a little hesitant at times you know he's a great skater good size needs to be a power forward out there and um so i'm not too worried about it he's gonna going to force Bobby McMahon to run into people. Well, now did you have, you've watched him other places or you played against him or something? Yeah, I watched him with the Marlins. Yeah, you thought he was, no, but even prior to that, did you think, maybe I'm wrong,

but didn't you think he was soft early? I don't know. Not not soft but he's not a bruiser like it doesn't come natural he's a good four checker like sticks and whatever but he's not like uh in your face okay but to sam's point it's not you think it's something that needs to be really manufactured with him or it just doesn't consciously do it and can he you think he can because judging by yeah barubi's comments it's like sometimes sometimes not yeah i gotta we gotta know exactly what we were getting out of a guy that should be a power guy i think yeah in today's nhl i think he can we've seen him be aggressive and win pucks and be in battle come

off the wall and drive to the net and, like, have four guys hanging on him. He's that kind of strong. Right. So he can do that, but I do think, yeah, in terms of the physicality, like, using all the tools is going to be, you know, it's like Pierre Engvall, right? All the tools, can you use them?

Well, yeah. I mean, there's a reason he makes, what does he make, a million bucks a year? Like Bobby McMahon, like, with a body and skating. Like, there's a reason that he costs nothing, right? There's just, there's going to be flaws in his game. The thing that I think people are going to take getting used to with a new coach is having guys that were a lock in the lineup last year on the outside, right? Like, for example, him.

Man. If you were writing this, like at the start of, or the end of last year, and be like opening night next season, Bobby McMahon's on the outside the outside looking in nobody would have believed you but it's just something you got to get used to with a new coach craig bruby's coming in mcmahon's out robertson's in i'd be like how does that make sense yeah lilligren's out uh tim and timmons is in like yeah it's just a very it's just gonna take some getting used to i think fellas one of the things that is has and is standing out for me is when i look at this lineup is tavaris back at second line sentiment yeah there he is and do you know i wrote about this today the one thing i'll ask you about it in two seconds and

the other thing is that homberg is locked in now you guys have known for a long time how I felt about Holmberg. You're the original Holmberg. Okay? Yeah, you are. And there's a sense right now that Craig Berube is really high on the Holmberg train. Really? Choo-choo.

I can see it right now. I just look at that lineup, and that guy locked in at number three right now is one hell of a statement for me. And I've said this all along, that this guy is big, he's strong, and the lack of development for him over the last two years has been a concern, but I think it's surfacing now. You know, he had guys in St. Louis like buchnevich and braden shen you know

like some big forwards that could chip in here and there but were just strong and physical and i'm sure he sees a light version of those guys in in holmberg you know he came in what a two what do you say 217 or something like he's he's a big guy so yeah when you look at the ins and outs for craig barubi holmberg up for sure timmons robertson up mcmahon lilligren down you know those are some some early returns on craig barubi's likes and dislikes yeah now does anyone envision game one that matthews tavaris end up one two again of the playoffs yeah? Of the playoffs? Yeah.

No. Of the playoffs? Because I don't. Playoffs? You're talking about a regular season? Oh, starting game one in the playoffs. Like, is there a chance that Matthews and Tavares play through the regular season, albeit healthy or, you know, maybe a night off,

that they aren't 1-2 to end the season? You think that Tavares is likely the 3-0? I think twice now that we've heard Nylander at center. Twice. Last year and this year in training camps. And yet, there he is starting at second. So there is somebody in that organization that goes we need better than Tavares at number two yeah uh yeah I agree with that that they that they do for sure and they've

bailed twice on it and so my article it's on sportsnet.ca it's exactly about this about Nylander and about his ability to be that I think when you look at it on paper in the summertime you go god he's great through the neutral zone with the puck and he's big and strong and he's right-handed. He could win draws and he could solve all our problems. And then you look at the way things shake out. One, you give up on all the breakaways. He's fourth in the NHL in breakaways last year.

He's behind the D all the time. Pulls guys out. You hate, in the article, there's a video of his like cheating goals. So good. Oh yeah. Like no back checkers. He's just gone. So you give that up.

And then how do you get the ice time for these guys? The way that it works. If you have them on three different lines, you're trying to get everyone involved. Keep these guys at, you know, $11 million minutes. It's a real challenge to make that work. If you want Tavaarez as your third line center then willie has to play against hard matchups and in the d zone at center and i think that scares coaches the i think the big great loss thing that we always talk about here is them not

getting ryan o'reilly back it was just like the perfect fit and they he took the contract that they offered him in nashville right like him not coming back after that season he like the perfect fit and they he took the contract that they offered him in nashville right like him not coming back after that season he was the perfect guy that can go up that can go down he was like that sort of penalty yeah like he was the perfect guy and they never really filled that in but did they get they get a pick at the draft this year the second round pick i remember from boston they made a trade to get a second round pick so they do have a second round pick like to turn into a maybe that's what they use at the deadline to get a guy that can play three two c and kind of take away to virus and it's a bit well yeah that's yeah it is it's a

work in progress yeah as you think but they can patch it with this i think even if you kept to virus and yeah there's some issues there with the skating and the movement out there and the turnovers on occasion. But as is, this team, with their eyes closed, are a top three team in the Atlantic. Right? So, at 100 points. And we'll be in the playoffs so then what's the rush into finding something that you think but that will be with our eyes are you think for come trade deadline i think i think i think for for a year now it's funny because the deer pretty good of of yeah of what do we what do we think that can can lean and and push in the one two hole for

center iceman funny because they look a lot stronger at winger now obviously marner and nylander nize domey but patch ready and robertson being pretty good guys that means you got mcmahon and yarn crock out you know those are guys that are guys that, you're pretty good at winger where you have to go. Yarncroft's fallen off. Yeah. He doesn't appear to be, like, a favorite of Berube's. We have that in common. The fact that he's hurt right now is a little, is he hurt?

I don't know. You know, he kind of had this fine lower body issue. The coach called him day-to-day day he maybe tweaked it in preseason all of a sudden he's going to miss 10 games on ltir like i'm glad he's going to have time to get it healed but this does feel salary cap related let's get your injury better see in a month for yarn crock kind of punting that down the road a little bit i've i don't know how it works with players and agents with that sort of stuff. If I'm healthy, I don't know how I would react. I'd be like, I'm good to go.

I don't know what they're talking about. Yeah, me too, for sure. But I don't know. Today's player, today's game, the circumstances. You no longer fit here, but we're trying to move you. Or, you know, can you help us move you? Does that stuff go on? I don't know.

But it just seems to me like last year with Sheldon, he was like Mr. Reliable. Put him with the two guys that you think are the weakest link on a line, and he will cover you up. Yeah, he was with a yarn foot. Yeah, exactly. Put him up, down, whatever. I don't get that sense right now with him.

And, you know, if we were talking about ways that the Leafs could, and we'll get into the defense right now, but there's ways that the Leafs can alleviate contracts and salary cap. I think Yarncrop. I think David Kempf. And I think of Lilligrant. That's a lot. Included?

Yeah, I think he's safe because, again, with Holmberg and Tavares and the unknown between second and third line, this guy is a natural centerman. And he takes face-offs. He wins face-offs. Big, too. He's big. I i gotta tell you he key guy fine i key guy i am a neanderthal after all but like that's a great fourth line it's awesome and they had that goal on saturday night i don't know if you saw like yeah just lorenz hammers a guy down the puck goes below the goal line reeves hammers another

guy like it just goes to the net still hockey you. You know, I tell you what, in playoffs, if, you know, depending how it shakes out, if it's Lawrence, Kampf, McMahon as a fourth line, that is really, really good. Yeah. And probably, I mean, Reeves mixed in and out. It's the way it'd be. He'll probably start the series there or something, much like last year.

Yeah. Okay, let's get to the blue line here because... You want to take a break and then come back and do the blue line? You're the producer. I'm just... Yeah, let's hit a break and then we'll come back, reset, talk about the... Hit the blue line here because... You want to take a break and then come back and do the blue line? You're the producer. I'm just... Let's hit a break and then we'll come back, reset, talk about the...

Hit the blue line. All right, you heard the man. When we return on Real Kipper and Board, we'll get into the Toronto Maple Leaf blue line and where ultimately does the lily pad fit in. Back after these words. Hey, it's Ben Ennis. And I'm Brent Cunning.

We got you covered on all things leafs rafters and blue jays every weekday morning six to nine it's the fan morning show sports net five nine to the fan and wherever you get your podcasts nick cabrillo's justin bourne sammy mckee big way for me to get off a PTO here. I got a big read. Oh. Yeah. You guys ready?

Okay, let's see the improvement over last week. I was practicing in the mirror. The NHL is back. You can catch all the action all season long on Sportsnet, Sportsnet Plus, and the Sportsnet Radio Network. To celebrate the start of the new season, Rodgers is giving away hundreds of prizes through a national Rodgers Beyond the Seat contest,

including the grand prize of a chance to win a trip to any NHL game this season. To enter for your chance to win, head to rogers.com slash NHL. Contest closes on October 25th. Boom! League minimum. Sign him up.

You know how I knew it was good when you emphasized all season long. Oh, it was hot. It was really good. When you stretched out the all. And he hit the all caps any NHL game. I was feeling hot.

Yeah, well done. Feeling hot. All right, back to the regular program. Okay, I don't know if there's any surprise there, but Marshall Rafai and Matt Murray both clear waivers, which leaves question marks on Timmons and Phillip Myers, who's in the hunt and a guy that I don't think a lot of people had any expectations on and is now debatably in the lineup Wednesday.

This is Timothy Lilligran just holding the door open for anyone to have a spot. I'm fascinated by the Connor Timmons thing. Let's be real. Connor Timmons thing. Let's be real. Connor Timmons does a thing when he's healthy. He's 6'2", he's right-handed, he gets points. He sees the ice and he can make plays. He just doesn't stay healthy.

But if I'm Craig Berube coming in and watching him and going, what am I missing? Why don't we like this guy more? Like, good hockey player, just needs to stay healthy. I think there's a sense that if he was exposed, he be claimed so yeah yeah yeah i think there's an argument to say that myers has had a training camp that if exposed he would get picked up these are two right-handed D who have shown signs that they can be serviceable players in the National Hockey League. So it's just part of the depth that you hope that you can hold on to. And if both of them are in a situation where they're part of the roster or they're first man up on a call-up, that's what you need. You need those bodies in place come April,

especially when a few guys go down. Yeah. No, it is. I'm fascinated that he likes Timmons. Can we hear what Berube has to say about Timmons? He's got clip six there, Craig Berube. I think that he's a real good puck mover, for one. Sees the ice and makes plays.

Two, he's been hard in camp. I think he's been competitive defensively and done a good job. Hard in camp. He said hard in camp, too. Camp sounds hard. Hard. He said hard in camp. You're the hard leaf.

It has been a very good training camp for them when it comes to i think start to finish showing a side of hardness really yeah i do i see just from watching the games or do you get another sense uh all of it okay uh all competitive camps a lot of good players they it started from day one when he implemented maybe a day or two of those puck battle right and like you're fighting for a job and you want to be noticed like i've been in training camps over my career where it's like you're fighting tooth and nail like you're not a teammate of mine you are an opponent you're you're in my way of getting a spot That's what training camp should really be when you walk in. Not a teammate yet.

Until I'm told that we're teammates, you are a guy standing in my way. Now, it's 2024, and it ain't like it was in my day where you would just simply two-hand a guy, chop down a tree, or drop your gloves, or get into the biggest FU, you know, argument on the ice and accuse a guy of being dirty. All of that. It's not like that today. But Craig pulled it back a little bit on these guys.

Yeah, it's fascinating. Pulled it back to a little years older school where it's like nothing's given you got to earn it you got to go out there and i think i just get a sense that that was missing in the last few years you know what makes me trust craig berube more is that the people who seem to have won his trust in this camp are not just the biggest guys they have like robertson won a spot connor timmons has won a spot and he's not a physical guy but he said to these guys show me show me you're worth it and these guys did and so he said he i mean he rewarded them for playing a certain way to go

back to my point like with the new coach there's no prior like reputations and he didn't just come in like the big one the big one the big one not the little guy yeah he he set it up that like there's going to be three or four maybe one two i don't know but this this isn't going to work out for everybody for this to really kind of have a sense of continue to progress yeah there's going to be guys that just... There's got to be losers. There's got to be losers. There's got to be examples. There's got to be losers. Not everybody's going to love them. He's going to pick one or two guys,

and I don't know who they are right now. There's a sense that a guy like Nick Robertson, say what you will, that guy works his ass off. He does. And he works hard. He works hard. And it works hard. He works hard. And it's been noticed.

Walk hard. Hard. I've never heard that drop in before ever. That's Derek. That's a new one. Yeah, I guess it's because we've said hard 100 times in this thing. He just talked about Dewey Cox, I guess. So, not everybody's going to fall in.

Lilligren is the one. Lilligren, Yarncroft, I question right now. McMahon, you question a little bit. So we'll see how this thing shapes out. Is there one in Tavares, Nylander, Matthews, or Marner where he's going to have to use one of those guys as an example, or do they all just buy in? You're right.

That's the big one here. That's the big one is that you can come out of training camp and feel like, hey, we're all one and we're all going great, but lose a couple of games in a couple of scenarios where you're not getting the best out of anyone, what happens moving forward the one thing that's always bothered me is you know even when i you know you played junior hockey and you scored 60 goals one year you know i was a an all-star in a junior hockey team but you'd have

bad games and you'd end up on the third line or the fourth line you play 11 minutes one night your coach sends a message like hey doesn't matter if he's one of our best guys that just never has happened here where you've seen mat seen Matthews doesn't have it tonight, so they're just not going to use him. You know, final minutes, they're not going to put him over the boards because he just didn't have it tonight. I'd like to see that happen a little bit. It's for the greater good, not the...

So later on this week, we're going to have Mike Keenan come in, studio. Oh, my God. He's got a book out. Are you scared? He's going to wield in like Hannibal Lecter. No, I'm not. I think it's gonna be like fascinating because i'm asking them questions that may be in the book or may not be in the book i might just do my

michael jackson with a thing of popcorn gif i just sit here and watch youtube talk so here's a guy that i know would go into training camp and already it would be pre-written. I don't like that guy. That guy's not for me. He can do anything he wants in training camp. I believe I can't win with that guy. I got to get him out of the room. Crazy. So I think there are some coaches that just look at a guy and go,

that's not my guy. Mike Singletary can't win with him. Can't do it. Right? And listen, Nick Robertson has been really good, and he's done everything that's asked. The one thing that he couldn't do from last year to this year is look bigger.

And you're right. Cannot play with him. Cannot win with him. Cannot coach with him. So I do believe that there's some in that organization that sit there and go i want a bigger guy on the third line i'm sorry but nick robertson patcher eddie and holmberg as a third line against the boston bruins in the first or second round i I need heavier than Nick Robertson. Yeah.

Yeah. I don't feel that way, but I understand that people do. Yeah. So we'll see how this thing shapes up, but we're going to start the first couple of weeks, and there's going to be a few guys going, he doesn't like me. Yeah. He doesn't like me because there always is when it comes to a head

coach yeah i want winners but isn't there like the way that he is that he may seem like he doesn't like anybody well it may seem like it but he'll show you both how he rewards ice time yeah i don't know i think he's been very complimentary to this group so far and they and they've also earned they've they've also earned it i think it's been a really good camp and i i worried about the system and the adjustments i think we've got a craig bruby uh clip on adjusting to a new system let's listen to him before we we comment well there's always i think adjustments and um with the new system and um when and when the real games begin I truly believe that but even

throughout exhibition games you know we're always you know looking at video with the players and going over things and little adjustments here and there and it takes time I didn't pick the Leafs to win the Atlantic just based on my belief that it

might have taken 10-12 games to make an adjustment. You picked Florida? I picked the Boston Bruins. To miss playoffs? All right. They're very good. Boston's still very good. It didn't really matter to me for second or third.

It's just about a Leaf team that you think is built better in the playoffs than prior years but i i thought the adjustment might cost them winning the atlantic with craig brooby and overall you can see a slow start well i mean he wants to turn him to north south and dump and chase like that's not what we've seen out of the last few years out of willie and marner and it's gonna be fascinating to see which of those three guys not even tavaris they're like handling the puck they like their east west i want to see you stubborn and who's like all right doing it doing what coach says and my experience in professional hockey with certain guys is habits are hard to break oh yeah

i bet you willie dumps it in i bet you it's a matthews marner thing which one of them is how long until what he goes three or four games without a goal no because you know you only have to do it long enough for your coach to be like all right he's a guy i like and then you're fine and then you can do whatever the hell you want you just win the approval the mental approval it will be interesting so we talked a little bit about size up front we talked about um you know robertson mcmahon holmberg these guys the leafs are big on the back end this year and lilligren is on the outs we've got a comment from bruby on why do you like the size on d you said that you've never heard him excited yeah he gets excited and it's a giant demon there you

go the answer might be obvious so pardon the dumb question, but why do you like size so much on the blue line? They're getting away. Well, no, listen, like, it's not all about size, but, you know, it's, you know, when you got size, it's hard to get around you, and they're just getting away, you know, and they cover things around your net, and they've got reach with their sticks,

and it's important because there's so many quick, dynamic players now with end size up front, too. Like, you need that long reach and getting away, and they bump you, and they're just in the road a lot. So, you know, I think it's an important thing. I mean, there's obviously a smaller D that play in the league and pretty dynamic though. Man, this organization has come a long way

because it was only a few short years ago that Kyle Dubas instructed his scouts, don't care. Yeah, they've come a long way from here. 360. Don't care about size. Don't bring me size. Bring me skill, skill, skill. 5'8", 5'9".

On D, no problem. Bring them. I feel like that's hockey. The pendulum has swung back where everyone's like, it's going to be the fastest league. So much skill. It's going to be a totally different sport.

And then in playoffs, all these big Los Angeles Kings and Bruins and St. Louis Blues ground everyone to paste. And it was like, maybe big's good still? Yeah, like a Vegas when they won. Yeah. D just monsters. All huge guys. I was like, hey, maybe that's okay.

What was Colorado's D? It was Josh Manson and Eric Johnson. Kilmicar's pretty good. Yeah, he's big too, though. and Eric Johnson. Kilmicar's pretty good. Yeah, he's big too, though. Pretty good. Devin Tay's pretty good. Although they did have Girardi. Yeah.

Mostly. Yeah. No question that as a collective group, this is the best we've seen. Yes. Since. The Leafs D-Corps? Sorry? The Leafs D-Corps?

Yes. Yeah, no question. And it it's also there's so many you know riley tanov oel mccabe benoit timmons hockenpah lilligran myers myers it's fascinating like i'm surprised he's still here uh myers has had success in nashville and i think he had early success in philadelphia i think close to 200 but he the tendency with him is to fade yeah is that right yes i got a scouting report on him which is just you know not all guys who are big like to be physical per se and he's struggled handling weight and pushing back appropriately given his stature so when games get hard which is later in the year,

which is what you're talking about, he hasn't been able to stay in there and be that guy. So why don't we – we got a bruby on him. Did you see the clip of him this morning practicing fighting with Brian Reeves? Was he? Yeah, they were on the ice practicing fighting. You want to stay with the team, Pat? He was practicing fighting, and there was a great photo.

I don't know who took it. One of the least beat reporters of Max Domi, literally on a knee with, like, the big no-teeth smile, just looking at them. Like, from knee to your way, knee, just watching them fight. It was great. It's great. That is great.

I liked it. Let's listen to Berube clip three on Myers. I think competitiveness is number one for sure in effort. I mean, this guy competed hard in camp, in the games, in training camp, in practices. You know, big guy, takes the body, you know, he's got a good stick and, you know, blocking shots, penalty killing, things like that. So, you know, he impressed us. Impressed us. Was that he pressed us or he impressed us?

He impressed us. All right. 27-6. was that he pressed us or he impressed us he impressed us all right yeah i think 27 six the other good thing to come out of this training camp is a few names that have kind of stepped up and made noise for them to take second and third looks and i i think he'd be one of them for sure yeah that's crazy he played 16 playoff games for the flyers in 2020 yeah so like he's got real experience he's got something yeah uh quickly before we go to break because we got to go to break soon well no we still got five minutes i want to go ahead where you want to take this i wanted to know if you guys watched the amazon thing yet but you don't want to do that yes is that where you wanted

to go kipper where do you have i was just going to mention Easton Cowan. That is a guy that we have not mentioned. Has he been sent down yet? Yeah, it's official. Okay, today he got just the comment about fighting with this guy. This guy's the CHL Player of the Year. MVP. A guy that many thought would start here.

I was one of them. When I heard he ain't going to training camp for the London Knights and he's been here all summer kind of training and hanging out with the big boys and set up shop to stay not in a hotel, that it was just a foregone conclusion that this guy was going to start here. He had a place here?

I don't know if he had a place here or he had a living arrangement other than a hotel. So my point in all of this is, like, you know, is this a guy that missed a window here or is it okay here? You know, he didn't make as much noise as he did last year. Luke Fox has an article out right now. His article, it's Maple Leaf Notes,

and his stuff's always great, obviously. The quote he shared was an Easton Cowan quote where he says, I feel like adding a bit more sandpaper in my game, maybe fighting a bit more. He carries on to say whatever. And it's just like, if I'm the Leafs, I'm like running to catch him in person. I'm like, stop, stop, you got the wrong impression. That's not what we want. I don't know, I'm the Leafs, I'm like running to catch him in person. I'm like, stop. Stop. You got the wrong impression.

That's not what we want. I don't know. I'm not sure. I'm not sure if that's the case or not. Again, you got a head coach that has 3,000 penalty minutes or 2,000 penalty minutes. You can't tell me that that doesn't make him feel like, you know. We didn't have Robert Thomas fighting guys. He knows good from bad no i'm

not saying that that's what he wants out of him i'm saying that i could see him saying that based on looking at his coach yeah for sure that's a young kid being a young kid saying coach likes fighting coach fought likes fighting yeah meat and potatoes guy. Maybe I got to do this. Yeah. No, you need to go back and have the puck for an entire year. He's just going to go have a kipper in the AHL year? Just 300 PEMs? Yeah, don't want that for Easton Cowan. The one thing that is a little concerning is if one of the big boys goes down,

lose significant time, Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Tavares, right? If you lose one of those guys, like who in the lineup steps in? I thought like Cowan, if his game evolved, you could see in a position to have the skill to step up like that. But you just wonder, if they lose one of their big boys, how do you fill the void?

You don't. Yeah, I mean, they were second in the NHL in goals last year. I think you can live with being sixth in the NHL if you don't have one of your best guys. And hopefully Nick Robertson scores a bit more, Nye scores a bit more, and you try to fill it that way. I do wonder with a guy like Cowan why teams seem adverse to trying different ways.

Like, he's done everything you can do in junior. Shouldn't he go play in the Swiss League like Matthews did or, you know, go play against men at some different development level? You think the Hunters are taking their meal ticket back to the Memorial Cup and letting them go to the Swiss League? This isn't about the Hunters. Oh, yeah, it is. This is about the business, pal.

He's money to them. Sure he is to them if I'm Cowan. Just a reminder, if you're listening, you're not owned. It's CBA driven. That's what it is. I'm sure the Leafs could say we want him in some different. But it seems like he's going to go back to where he had a pile of success. I don't want to say this too loud,

but it's probably good to have a good relationship with the London Knights. For sure. The other thing, don't underestimate the influence of Matthew Kachuk, too, to Easton Cowan. How so? Look at Matthew Kachuk to Easton Cowan. How so? Look at Matthew Kachuk. Big scorer. Top player.

Fights every once in a while. Maybe that's his role model. What are you talking about? Oh, yeah. How tall is Easton Cowan? Matthew Kachuk is a large person. Well, Matthew Kachuk's probably 200 pounds. What's Easton Cowan?

Buck 80? Generously. Okay. Well, hey, beef up, pal. Maybe he could be. 5'11", 185. He could be a little bit of, a little more Matthew Kachuk. Okay.

What do you think? We all could be. All right. We'll take a quick break. We're back. We go national. Andrew Raycroft, coming up next.