Real Kyper & Bourne - Leafs Hour: Rally in DC + OEL's Milestone

Episode Date: November 14, 2024

Nick Kypreos, Justin Bourne, and Sam McKee look back on the Leafs' 4-3 comeback win over the Capitals and discuss Bobby McMann's play in the top 6, Alex Steeves & Jani Hakanpää's season debuts, and John Tavares stepping up in Auston Matthews' absence. Then, they review the Leafs' three disallowed goals. Finally, Oliver Ekman-Larsson (35:42) joins the show following his 1000th NHL game and he reflects on the milestone and his unique career path.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.

all right let's get her going here leaf hour edition we're talking come back nick kiprios justin bourne sammy mckee live on sports net 590 the fans Sportsnet 360 and Sportsnet Plus along the ride Derek Brandeo and Jake the Snake Schultz the Leafs rally back boys

down two and you just heard all of those back channel conversations either from the three of us to all of you listening, they can't score. They can't.

Where is the secondary scoring? They can't score. Oh, yeah. No, I believed in them all along last night, Kip. Let me tell you, when they were down two, I think in our group chat halfway through the game, I said, if they get hot, they might get to 18 shots. They finished 36.

Yeah. Yeah. They came on strong. One of the segments that I've always thought about would be great for a sports talk radio show, and this is included for this one, would be group chat confessionals where you

put out some of the things that were said at particularly dire moments of games that would have ended up flipping I gotta tell you there was some text sent last night to in multiple group chats about the validity of the Leafs actually maybe sucking

that was getting sent around it was being talked about to be fair it's coming off a The validity of the Leafs actually may be sucking. That was getting sent around. It was being talked about. To be fair, it's coming off a really, really bad look against the Ottawa Senators. And then not that they were horrible, but it just seemed like they didn't have the juice in the first half of the game. They go down 3-1, and you think,

could it end up 4-1, empty net, 4-2? But there was just no sense that a comeback was coming last night. They ended up winning 5-3 in overtime last night, boys. Up until Tom Wilson. The worst giveaway. He actually missed the Four Nations face-off on that play. Everyone saw it. It was against the Leafs.

Sorry you can't be on our team. That was a tough play. All right, let's go to Craig Berube and get his thoughts of last night's game. And no sense of panic in the first half, right, Craig? I mean, they just kept working. I thought that pretty much the whole game I wasn't, you know, I was pretty happy with how we approached it and how we played it. I mean, we got behind, I get that,

but I thought in the second period from the 10-minute mark on, we started to really press and do some real good things in the offensive zone and get some opportunities and carry it over in the third. Now, to be clear, the criticism about the offense from this team over the last week or so, including an article I wrote, was about the lack of guys behind the big guys, right? And the guys who end up scoring the goals are Nyes, Marner, and Tavares. It didn't really get all that.

Bobby McMahon, he scored a goal. Okay, no, McMahon is the one. And Lorenz. That part didn't exactly get cleaned up either last night. No, it was the big boys. The big boys. The big boys came through when it counted, which we've seen them do because they can do that.

They're very good. What? It's just, I'm just laughing at the conversation. Yeah. Because it's just it's i'm just i'm laughing at the conversation yeah because it's it was a gutsy win sam it was a gutsy win it was i know but the thing is it's that it always just comes back to this like we can talk about all the minutiae we spend an hour a day talking about them good players score win bad players don't score like good players don't score lose good players don't score lose bad players don't score lose yeah that's what it comes down to every time you can't handle the

truth well that is the reality mcmahon scores man was excellent last night as a top six winger yes which may have been suggested by a few people on this show we have been saying give him that chance up with a couple of players uh yeah he looked good he was very involved i know uh that line was was excellent with marner and tavarez and him they they were the best line on the ice i thought particularly in the second half of the game so uh a very positive uh piece there and then obviously matthew nize thought, the game turned on him. You know, he made plays and everything that was impactful from the goal, the tip in, a screen, a drawn penalty, all sorts of good plays from him.

He took over, quite honestly. I thought he was pretty, pretty good in that third period. Like their best guy. The play he makes on the empty net where willie kind of falls asleep and then in the he comes back on the huge back check to keep it out to have to go and shoot it off the side of the net makes a great play there tips when in the net doesn't count power moved to the net like he took over that game i thought and i think they should get a ton of credit because they did have the built-in excuse of four and six and coming off of a late night.

There was every reason why they should have faded off to the sunset and find an L waiting for them. It didn't happen. Now, granted, I'm not going to sit here and say that the Washington Capitals and their lack of focus or concentration to close out a game. I mean, against a team that's focused or a team that has a better way to finish a game, would they have found themselves a crack to get back into the game? But the Washington Capitals we saw in the second half of that game last night

was the Washington Capitals we expected all season long. For sure. And I do want to get to Spencer Carberry on that because that team was really bad. But I do want to say this about the Leafs. I think that's a massive win for them. And if you're other teams that want the Leafs to fail, that was a really discouraging win

because it really proved, I i think internally if you're the leafs they stuck with it in a tough spot yeah on the road so they proved to prove to themselves that like that no matthews but more importantly that they can win with the barubi way sure no you know but that could be part of it is like when they lose we're like you know they don't like barubi's way and they're they're too gifted and they're too good for dumping chase and they didn't get the puck all night because they were giving it away when they dumped it in you know they score a power play goal and a three on three goal and i'm not sure that that changes a ton about the five on five conversation but i think from a mentality position, I believe in momentum, like a positive momentum, the snowball of the season. And this, to me, is like a really good vibe if you're them.

You know you can do it from those tough spots. But let's listen to Carberry. Oh, yeah, go ahead. No, no, let's save Carberry. Let's go through the Leafs, and then we'll tag on head coach of Washington. All right, do you want to get to the reviews? I do think that was a huge win. Like I,

I will say that I was standings wise. I was sitting up a little bit during that third period and they get the, you know, it gets my attention when the rents, I guess bunts went into the net with his leg. I don't know. We can get into that later. You know,

you get really excited when knives ties it, they take that away. And they kept going. I was on the edge of my seat. Like, I was Jonah Tobacco yesterday. Like, I was into that game. It felt big. It felt important.

The way that Brubay coached the third period made it feel like he thought it was like that, too. Well, they started the third period, top two lines, back and forth. Over and over and over. It was like a beer league game. Just two lines, over and over. He's like, we don't get one here.

We're cooked. And I thought it matched. They matched his desperation. They're great in the third period. Okay, let's go to Kipper's Clipper here on the head coach on the shuffling of the lines you just mentioned. Well, JT and Mitch

have played together before and you know, Domi and Willie have played together before and I threw Camphor up there. I thought that line was really good for us today. Camphor, Holmberg and Steve's. You know, they controlled a lot of the play when they're out there. Strong thought that line was really good for us today. Camp, Holmberg, and Steve's. You know, they controlled a lot of the play when they're out there. Strong on pucks and controlled it

down. So, you know, Stevie Lorenz played center for us most of camp. I mean, these guys, they're all fine with that. He loved camp last night. He put him out in three-on-three ahead of Matthew Nye. When there was no face-off. It was just like, Kampf came over the boards.

And it was like, what? Sitting in my living room alone, I would... He mentioned Steve's as well. And you're coming off a lack of energy the night before. I thought it was great that he put him in. And even Hawk and Paw. New blood. There's no excuses for these guys to be tired.

They've been waiting all this time. Yeah, you get a little bit of energy from some guys who are happy to be there, not like, oh, back to back. Like they're eager and motivated to go. What did you guys think of Hawk and Paw's debut? I know this is not a key story. So, I mean, he's with Morgan, right? Yeah, he was.

Didn't play much in the third, it felt like. How many minutes did he end up with? 15-something. Yeah. right? Yeah, it was. Didn't play much in the third. It felt like. How many minutes did he end up with? 15 something. Yeah. Sounds about right. Just big and large and kind of got in the way sometimes. And then sometimes he got in his own way. I would say the flexibility of an iron rod.

He played 1536. Yeah. Yeah. Look at old Steph out there. I think that's, that was my take too. I thought he was fine. Totally fine.

Fine. He's not graceful. No. No. He's like a guy that hadn't played since March and has a think that's my take too. I thought he was fine. Totally fine. But he's not graceful. No. He's like a guy that hadn't played since March and has a knee that's bone on bone. Yeah, he's 6'7". John Tavares, let's go to the head coach and get his thoughts on his number one centerman last

night. Yeah, he was excellent again. I think he's been playing really well and he's just a competitor. He's so good with the stick and tight areas and winning battles and stick battles and stuff. It was great to see him get that OT

winner. I thought he had a heck of a game. He led the charge along with Mitch Marner and Willie. 21 minutes last night. Well, guess what? No 34. He's the number one centerman. Yeah minutes last night. Well, guess what? No 34. He's the number one centerman. Yeah, I guess.

I think it is interesting when you talk about the guys and who Brewery is going to like and not like. It's interesting to me that he likes Tavares. You know, he does. He trusts him. He thinks he's a competitor. He's been pretty effusive with his praise of John Tavares. Right from the start of camp all the way through the season and into that clip. I think he's probably got respectusive with his praise of John Tavares all like right from

the start of camp all the way through the season. And I think he's probably got, he's also watched him get stripped down to, I mean, losing the captaincy is a big thing and, you know, he's handled it really gracefully and classy and whatever other words you want to describe it.

But we all know how much it crushed him and made him feel and i guess it's a tough pill to swallow so i think there's a sensitivity towards john that we know he's in his last year we'll know what we know if in fact if he's going to continue here he's not going to make the money that he's made before come playoff time it's still debatable where his role is and where his strengths are and it's just not a given that he's going to be the second line centerman come playoff time so they are sensitive to towards him in in terms of knowing that he's not going anywhere at 11 million dollars for this year and we still need him to produce so let's let's handle him the way we need to to get the most out of him it's crazy he's got 61 shots in 17 games which is well over three shots per game like he's you know kind of

jt point per game he's jt he gets his points he gets his regular season points he's going to have gone through this contract with the Leafs, you know, kind of being what you thought you'd get. He'll probably average really close to a point per game by the time it's all said and done. It's funny. I'm happy that it's a little longer. They were expecting more, though.

Well, okay, that's fair. At $11 million at the time when he was, like, the second highest paid guy in the league, you thought maybe 80 could turn into 100 or 120 with some yeah that first year at 47 young young talent but yeah that's fair it's last night was what you needed out of him with no austin and lack of production coming from other places he needed the he is their big gun last night, along with Marner and Nylander.

And he makes a great move. He won a great face-off. How many times during a key power play, a face-off was lost and you killed the first 25 seconds. That was the face-off you needed for the play. It happened to be on a power play scenario.

So it's a six on four. Bang, bang, bang, Marner. Yeah, that, the game, it happened to be on a power play scenario, so it's a six on four. Bang, bang, bang, Marner. Yeah. The game, that's it. I know you guys know he's good. Where do you think he is in face-offs in the NHL? Best. Real close.

I think he's third. Yeah. He was fourth yesterday. Then every once in a while, the timing of them, it's not necessarily just the number. It's just when you win them. Last night he had to win one. Had to win one. And he did.

It's nice though that he because the start of the year I guess he got very sick and he looked very bad. Like very bad. Like it was over. How bad he looked to start this season. So maybe you got to give him the benefit of the doubt on how sick he was. And I remember just talking. The conversations we had about him to start the season but now he's john tavaris yeah so yeah and listen he he's gonna go down as a very very good hockey player but is he gonna go down as a hall of famer is he gonna go down as one of the better ones of his generation that's the knock against him that

he's been around for 15 16 years and he really hasn't led anything anyone or anything it's funny though he is one of those guys that like let's say he's joe thornton at the end of his career and he wants to be somewhere where they have a chance to win and he finds it he's ray bork at the end of it or whatever. And all of a sudden you tack on a Stanley Cup and you look at the rest of it. I'm sure he's won Olympic gold, maybe world championship. Bobby Hall or Brett Hall.

Brett Hall didn't win as the go-to guy in St. Louis. He goes to Detroit. Luke Robitaille doesn't get LA a cup leading the way, but he goes to Detroit. Like we've got ample examples of these. Yeah. And maybe. Tavares does it this year and they get 15 points in the playoffs or something.

All of a sudden it's like, boy, that resume looks a lot different now. A lot different. And then Sammy wakes up from his dream. Yeah. Yeah. Can we talk about the reviews now? Yes. Okay. Thank you. First off, more credit to the reviews now? Yes. Okay.

Thank you. First off, more credit to the Leafs for playing through that. For sure. Were they going to cry? Were they going to go home? Oh, yes. I mean, emotions exist. And I think when you get up and you think you've fought your way back

and you get it taken from you, it's easy to go, ah, nards. Let's just forget about it. They went into one of the better teams in the league to start the season on the second half of back-to-back with an AHL bottom six with two goals taken off the board in the third period that looked like they both should have counted. And then they still find a way to tie it and win the overtime.

This is entirely too much praise for Kip. Listen to that. This is a great win. I'm sorry. It's a good win. I'm sorry. It's a great win. It's not a good win. That's a great win. I'm sorry. It's a good win. I'm sorry. It's a great win. It's not a good win. It's a great win.

But like, I didn't expect them to... I didn't expect them to quit or lie down or mope around when they got a goal disallowed. I've even watched a different team the last four years. I thought they were going to quit. Keep playing. Keep playing. Reviews.

The fact that they have struggled to create offense to keep scoring goals impressed me. Okay. All right. Let's talk about it. Which goal you want to go? Now, I am the boring guy. First off, Sam McKee had more tweets last night that I couldn't have disagreed with more. Like every single one, I was like, nope.

So we went back to the Brett hall days with the foot in the crease you're not allowed to uh that washington callback is absurd like i can't believe they called that gold dinner interference like that's i believe the guy in the crease who touched as he scored hawk and paw was as much in the fault as was a dowd that went through there like uh no he barely grazed. The puck was in the net. It doesn't matter. You want to skate in the crease to count from the other side that's not affecting the play, but actually touching the goalie bothers you.

Make it Brett Hall rule. No. So we don't have to have these stupid debates. We had the Brett Hall rule, and it was embarrassing. And now we're back. And now we're back. And now we're back. No, he hit the goalie in the crease.

Barely. Like, it's a kiss. It's insane. First of all, if it's a kiss, it counts too. Was it Dowd? Yeah. Dowd goes into the blue paint voluntarily. Okay.

Okay. So that's not allowed? Once you go in there, then the league wants you to know that if, in fact, you go in there and you haven't been pushed in or cross-checked in, you run the risk of having a goal disallowed. And if you touch the goalie, you're not getting that call. Okay? It's been established. Okay. And that's the end of the story in your rules in the

spirit of your rules is that a good goal if i'm asking you two guys outside of the nhl if you are like justin bourne's ruled nick kiprios rules a guy blasted 95 mile an hour slap shot the goalie never sees it but he got kissed on the tongue on the skate okay it's like oh no wait i can count don't go first i would say that like if we're playing beerly, we've rented the ice, I'm going to let it count, but I mean, not if I'm running the NHL. If you're the czar of NHL. If I'm running the NHL, it's no goal. I believe that if somehow, someway, he ended up standing in front of Wall and he didn't

make any contact with him, that's a good goal. It's a good goal. And I good goal and i don't think he impede wall i don't think wall made an effort to come out any more than he already had yeah so that's not an issue for me either but you can't touch the goalie that's the rule you can't touch the goalie and white and and if you do again you run the risk but there are situations where guys touch the goalie like matthew kuchuk cross-checked Elias Sorokin four times, knocks him down, digs the puck out of his pad, and shoots it in, and that one counts.

Yeah, the goalie had time to get back. It's easier on them having it this way than your way because then we regress, and now we're like, did he touch him? How much did he touch him? Did he touch him hard? Did he touch him? And it's like, no, if he touched him, he touched him.

But then you have these guys, these refs, sitting the ipad for 25 minutes on all these goal reviews watching it a hundred times over and over and convincing themselves it's not a goal toronto situation it's a killer say on that because they can review it before they even have 60 seconds we don't you have 60 seconds they don't have well the the refs have the official word of course they do and that's what they tell you yeah okay well if they don't then that's fine but now you're talking about some freemasons i'm not aware i gotta think that there's there's stone cutters yeah it goes back it goes back to toronto and we do it's here's the information we're giving you as an official. Do what you want with it.

So if you got pulled up to one of the boss's office and they looked at you and said, hey, Justin, here's a few ideas, but just do whatever you want with the information. What are the odds of you probably leaning towards doing what they said? I will fall in line. Whatever you need, sir, yes. information what are the odds are you probably leaning towards doing what they said uh i will fall in line whatever you need sir yes that's probably the way it works when you see an official on a headset i agree talking back to toronto yeah just so you know yeah here's what actually happened i know you made the call yeah for sure um next one i guess we'll go in chronological

order the uh lorenz one. Yeah. Do you want me to go first? That was the hardest one for me. I hate the call. I agree that he propelled the puck forward with his leg. He lifted his leg. Yeah, he did try to use his leg to put the puck in the net.

You guys got it. Once Lorenz and any dog I've ever known lift their legs, I know what the intention is. That's pretty funny, buddy. Who could the other claim be like, I was taking a stride. Well, he was. Right?

It went off. I get that that one is a tougher one, okay? But the whole sphere of the rule conversation. It's just not the skate. whole sphere of the rule conversation. It's just not the skate. But sphere of the rule conversation, like the whole reason you have no kicking motions is safety. And that had no bear, like, so if that had gone up and hit him in the gut and he went like that,

would it have counted? Yes. Then it's like two feet on the body make a difference? It's like that's so. And it's not even a kicking motion when it's a kneeing motion. No, it was a nudge. It wasn't a kick. It was a nudgeudge i think once upon a time there was a thought that we don't want people kicking with their skates but it's now no nothing you cannot propel your leg purposely i

would like to change to move in the direction of putting a puck in the net yeah and that's to get it in and that's it gave it a little stupid and i'm hacky sack in there and i'm going three for three on the high stick too what i am this guy's got coley campbell online wine coley doesn't even do it anymore coley's like this close to retirement man that puck would have been a foot under the crossbar if there had been no one in the way. It was knuckling downhill by the time Nyes touches it. So there's two angles on it, though.

The one that's up. The camera from the end boards, because they have the one that shoots all the way down the ice. The one that's like looking up when it's pointing up. Yes. It clearly looks like it's a high stick, but then the level one, it is where he makes contact.

You're missing the most important. Because he called it no goal on the ice. Is that what it is? Like the referee's angle. Yeah. It was a hero call. He's the most important angle. Yeah.

He was a hero. He waved it off right away. Hero. Did not even. He didn't see it. And he wanted to go to video review you're telling me he didn't see it i'm saying that reaction a lot of those calls now it's like so he guessed i'll do yeah yes oh no ref never guessed kip sorry yeah yeah sorry you don't react

that way when you guess that fast that guy said i want to take a look at this so let's wave it off we'll do the whole thing call six three six ten apparently he broke and he broke nick down's nose i was like he was a man and it was a fantastic redirect perfect great tip it was fantastic but if the officials right there and he waves it off and then they go back and take a look at it it's got to be really noticeable that it was underneath the crossbar and they didn't get there I don't know they didn't get there so there you go

we got comments on this nobody wants to get in there and piss off a goalie more than me no but I don't want to go back to those Brett Hall days where it's just a total embarrassment. Let's listen to Craig Berube on the reviews.

The one Loren scored, I don't understand that call. Because if you look at the rule, a kicking motion is a skate, right? This wasn't a skate, it's a shin pad. It wasn't. So I don't get it. No, no. But guys just stuck with it. They didn't... They weren't focused on it. They just were focused

on their next shift, which was good by them. It's good on those guys, you know. I thought the high stick goal was a goal. We looked at it again. I mean, to me, it's a goal. But, you know, that's the way it goes sometimes. You gotta keep battling, and we did. Can never do talk radio with Peruby. I thought it's a goal, but, you know, that's the way it goes sometimes. You got to keep battling, and we did. Can never do talk radio with Peruby.

I thought it was a goal because it was a goal. It was a goal. And it's more than just the skate kicking a puck in. Yeah, like you can make a pretty dramatic kicking motion and not hit the soccer ball with your foot. Yeah. It's just, like, okay. If it hits your skate and you make a kicking motion, no goal.

Everywhere else on the body should count. Ankles. No, like anywhere in the skate region. If it hits the boot, it doesn't count. Anywhere else, good goal. You know what the beauty of this game is? Every time I watch it, I can tell you exactly when a puck hits a boot or the top of or the bottom of a shin pad all the time it's so easy they spend 48 minutes scouring an ipad after

every goal so they'd have perfectly be able to see if it hit a skate or not it's brutal it just kills the flow of the game the game ended at 45 discussing it video reviews now last night i think uh in our telecast sam uh cosentino mentioned that he wants like five people per game working every night on each game video video yeah and i'm like do it i said to my television screen through sammy what world do you think that they're gonna go and hire 25 to 30 people to watch every game. That will never happen in a gazillion years. They have the technology now to enhance video with cameras and posts and rinks. And, like, no one's fronting that money.

They will not go there. This is it sammy good idea buddy but they will never ever pay for that i you know is that in elliott's uh 32 thoughts i think i read that in toronto situation room the decisions are made by basically four people like it's only one of four people by and large making the calls is a coley a Coley, Campbell, Rod, Pasta. So you want the... Kay Whitmore. So they want more cooks in the kitchen? They want more people in there making decisions?

Yeah. I think the less people making decisions, the better. To me. Yeah, I mean, that's probably true for consistency's sake. And I don't know how you speed it up. You don't know until you know, right? I think you put a minute on it. Do you like being rushed to make a decision?

Do you like people hanging over you? No, but I do like the idea that if you can't tell after a couple views, then just go with the call on the ice. If it's that close and the ref said, to your point, said what he said, then let's just move on. I even think it's, and I don't know, I do believe that this was an issue in the past i don't know where it is today but there's sometimes like you're at the mercy of the

television like sports net to show the find a another angle that they never saw in their war room yeah so i don't know if it if they wait for it to come or it's unavailable this is my appeal to sports net to be more biased. Like when the call is going against the Leafs, find no reviews, no replays, show nothing. And then when the call is for the Leafs, make sure you can find all the angles we need. Leafs net.

Leafs net. There's 31 teams that believe that's already happening every game. Yeah, look, there's a lot of stats to look out that say the leafs do not get the benefit of the doubt uh in a few minutes we're going to welcome in uh oliver ekman larson who played his 1000th game yeah so a toronto maple leaf on the toronto maple leaf on our show can you believe it are we okay with that yeah yes okay yeah we want few players, but we don't want a lot of them. How often would you want one? One a week?

Once every two months. Well, we're on pace. Cliff it along. Listen, if I have to tell them every once in a while, they suck the night before, I don't want them coming on the air the next day. Well, lucky you have Oliver Eckman-Larsen. I don't think he sucked last night.

No, he's been good all year. Actually, why don't we listen to the coach, Craig Berube, clip seven on OEL. Very happy for Oliver. A thousand games in a league is a special thing. It really is. It's a lot of hockey,

a lot of preparation lot of hockey a lot of a lot of preparation year in year out um throughout the whole year you know it's not just the hockey season and it's a desire to keep playing and you know playing at a high level and i thought oh had an excellent game tonight which i'm very happy for him that's great yeah and, you know, that was a tough game the other night against the Ottawa Senators, but when OEL was driving someone's face into the ice there. Yeah, you like that? Yeah, I liked it.

You know, it is funny, like, looking at his first at. Right? That was the highlight of the game for Leaf fans. He was also dash three in that game. 15 years, 1,000 games played, 145 goals, almost 500 points. Just shy of 500 points. But the one that does stand out that I never really picked up on, 650 pims.

Quite a few pims. Yep. For a guy that you don't think of as being overly. Any majors? Aggressive. I don't know. Just a lot of hooking. I don't know.

A lot of hooking. Hey, look. Do your stats. I'm curious how many majors. Before we get to OEL, quick thoughts on, oh, I want to hear Carberry and quick thoughts on the goaltending. Which one do you want to do? Let's do Carberry for sure.

Because the Capitals stunk out loud in the second half of that game. So let's listen to Spencer Carberry. Second half of the game, I thought, yeah, not good at all. Embarrassing for that matter, the way that that game played out, just embarrassing, flat out. I mean, that's unrecognizable from our team, playing a team on a back-to-back third period, the way that that looked with the two goal lead

um embarrassing on home ice oh my god three embarrassings embarrassed and we had him on the other day i think he's done a terrific job i like him i do like him he's won me over but not necessary oh yeah they blew it i know they it. I know they blew it. But overall they've been pretty good. It's okay if you want to say that in the draft room. I just after watching them start this year

I wouldn't have gone down there. And I think this is just my opinion but I think it may have had to do with against the Leafs, knowing that maybe his comments would be seen up on all the networks here in Canada and a little extra oomph out of him because he was so pissed off that he lost to the Leafs in the way they did, that he gave it the extra.

You don't think he'd have done that in a Columbus game? I'm pretty sure he would have passed he'd have done that Columbus game? I'm pretty sure he would have passed on that off of a Columbus game. On the triple embarrassing? But listen, overall, really good start out of this hockey club. Yeah, yeah, no, they've been great. I do want to throw in there watching Rasmus Sandin and his whatever his $4. million dollar salary for the caps last night didn't have a moment where I was like god it'd be nice if he were still he did have an assist on

one of their yeah yeah I mean he does some stuff yeah but there I mean the play he makes on the McMahon goal where he drifts towards Tavares and just it's a two-on-two yeah you have one guy and he's just like oh look the puck I was like. I was like, ah, I remember that. I also got a kick out of last night watching a lot of people upset in the Twitter world or whatever you want to call it that Joseph Wall didn't get an assist. I think I did that. I spurred that on.

Is this you? Uh-oh. Somewhere along the way, we stopped giving assists to goalies for saves. And that is really, really sad. Oh, I didn't say that. That's dramatic. You double-reallied me. I single-reallied you.

Oh, okay. Really sad. Yeah. Like, did you cry sad? No, it's sad. These goalies are awesome. What an unbelievable. Alex Ovechkin in the slot.

You can't tell me he didn't assist the goal. What is an assist? Why would you care? Have you ever talked to a goalie in your life? Is he going to arbitration? Did you play with any goalies? Did you go to arbitration and go, you know, I had that assist taken away. But, you know, my numbers are pretty good.

In the American Hockey League, when I was a video coach, I had goalies come to me constantly and be like, Hey, I made the save before that went up to the D. You don't get paid for anything having to do with assists. Everyone wants the credit. Why do they shoot it in the net then? Why are goalies happy when they score? What's the point? Goals don't matter.

Who is the all-time leader in points for a goalie? It's got broder gotta be broder right are you gonna petition it or you like help him out then i did i did my tweet now we're talking about it i've done my part fight him goalies not me uh he was quietly very good too yeah yeah that was nice um there's really none of the goals that were stinkers, I don't think. Berdour is not the all-time leader in points. Who is it? Tom Barrasso. What did you just Google that? Yeah.

Stat news. I hope they're right. 48 points for Barrasso, 47 for Berdour. Do me a favor. Look up most assists in a season. I'm thinking Grant Fuhrer had a big year i know mike palmatier had one where he had like eight or nine assists one year grant fuhrer is tied for second all time with martin mordor so you're probably right quick search reveals that timothy lilligran has a few

more points than barrasso i was wondering if it was next uh i'll try to find that for after the break all right okay we'll take a quick break we'll calm down here what are yelling at each other in that segment after they won i agree with boarding though he deserves an assist you'll stare down the number one goal scorer according to you guys of all time even though he doesn't have the most goals uh he scares him down kicks it out and leads the puck down the other way. They score the goal. It's definitely assist. Nice play by Marner, too. And I was really sad about it. That was really, really sad.

Really sad or really sad? Pretty sad. Okay, let's take a quick break, and when we return, we'll welcome in Oliver Ekman Larson. Is that the longest name in the league? We'll look into that for you. We will.

After the break, more real kipper and born 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 kiprios justin Bourne, Sammy McKee. In a few minutes, we'll welcome in Leaf defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsen, who played his 1,000th game last night. So it sounds like after the game and listening to Neil Enders' interview that OEL is going to take the team out to dinner.

So you're talking about 20-somebodies. Oh, we got them on the phone. Why dinner so you're talking about 20 somebodies probably oh we got him on the phone why don't why don't you uh introduce uh let no no oliver no oliver eckman larson everybody coming off his big night and bigger night what's bigger a thousand games or a comeback win oliver i think the comeback win or. Or the bill last night. What was bigger of the three? No. You know what? It was a special night, obviously, playing 1,000 games in the league

and getting a win. So it was a good night. But, yeah, move on. Oliver, when you started your career, obviously it looked like you got a few playoff games early in Arizona with the then Phoenix Coyotes, if I'm not mistaken, and then there was this huge, huge drought of many years and not being in the postseason.

And lo and behold, last season you end up winning the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers, and here you are on a contending team. But does it sum up your 1,000th game in terms of really not taking too much for granted when you're early and good as you were at the start of your career? Yeah. I mean, obviously it's hard to kind of, you don't really think about the thousand games. And then last week you kind of start booking the flights for your family and your friends.

And yeah, it hits you, but it's hard to kind of go back and kind of remember everything. So I think it might take some time to settle in and kind of, yeah, appreciate it. It might not be the word, but I know I appreciate it and I know that I'm not taking anything for granted because you dream about playing one game in this league and I've been fortunate enough to be in the league for a long time

and 1,000 games is something special, that's for sure. Oliver, if the rookie version of you signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs today and was made your D partner, what would you think of that player? How have you changed from that version of yourself um i i think i've always been the same same guy um hockey player i hope i'm better now than i was when i when i first broke into the league. I would like to think so. And that comes with a lot of... Yeah, I mean, you've been in the league for a long time.

You pick up on a lot of stuff. So you try to get better every single year. You go through tough times. But I think the tough times have kind of helped me go through it and kind of get better and came out better on the other side, I feel like. So I've always been a guy that picks up on a lot of stuff, kind of have an easy to pick up on reads or small details?

And I think that has helped me a lot. And I feel like the work you put in in the offseason, I feel like I've already picked it up a lot the last five, six years. So I think that's why 1,000 games in the body is feeling good. But yeah, it's hard to know. I remember coming into Phoenix and Shane Doan is telling me my second or third day, hey, enjoy it because it's going to go fast. So I know what he meant now uh that's for sure

so uh but yeah i think he is trying to get better every single day but obviously i i thought i was a pretty good good player coming into the league but i feel like hockey has taught me a lot of things, and I've met so many unbelievable people along the way, so I'm very grateful for that. And in Phoenix, sixth pick overall in 2009, we knew you as a highly skilled player, defenseman, but it's only really for me anyways in the latter part of uh the last few years i've i've watched you play with this edge and not a lot of good things happened uh the other night

against the ottawa senators but you driving that uh uh that guy's face into the ice was a highlight for me um did you did you all did you always have that in you like you're like you're like almost they could play on a fourth line with me like in the 90s uh no i i feel like i've always had that in my game uh we always joke around about it my dad spent a lot of time in the penalty box so um i I got that from him I don't know if it's a good or a bad thing but I think it's good to have it in your toolbox I think that's kind of how you get into games I feel like I can deal with about everything defend it and that's one one thing that i like about the game i like hitting i like that physical play so i'm i'm not um yeah i'm not backing away from that when i get a chance so it's fun it's a

fun way to kind of get going and a fun way to help help out your team too oliver how is uh toronto different from some of the other stops you've had around the NHL? I know you once had a fashion line. I feel like I hope there's better style here than in Florida where it's all board shorts. Yeah, well, it's a lot of, it's warmer clothes here for sure. But yeah, it's great. Toronto has been unbelievable. The guys on the team, the organization have been welcoming me and my family. So that's something that kind of made that transition a lot easier.

So I'm very thankful for the great people that we have here. So I'm very excited about the future and what's ahead of us. So I couldn't be more pumped. Sandwiched between your Stanley Cup was a couple of years in Vancouver. Now you're in Toronto. Did Vancouver kind of prep you a little bit with the way people in Canada treat the players, watch the players, talk behind their players' backs? You know what like i i don't i think it's great that the fans are passionate about the team and and their players i i love

that and that's why i love playing hockey so much but i think bottom line i think i put the most pressure on myself to be honest with you. And I just love that people care about you in different ways. So that kind of gives you that extra edge to kind of do something good and be better, you know? So I think I have nothing bad to say about Vancouver. Our time there was great. Fortunately, it didn't work out the way we wanted it. But I feel like everything happened for a reason. And it took me to Florida.

It took me here. So I'm very pumped to be here with an unbelievable, talented group of guys that we tried to do something special, and I really believe in this group that we have here. So last night you guys spent the night in Washington and everybody showed up at your dinner? Well, we haven't had a dinner yet. Oh, that one's coming up.

Yeah, I put a dinner yet. Oh, that one's coming up. Yeah, I put a dinner up on the board. So we'll see what the guys want to go for dinner. So I owe them a nice dinner, that's for sure. They have been great to me and my family. So they deserve probably more than a dinner. So it doesn't scare you when Willie goes, I'm going to order really expensive wine? No, I actually,

somebody told me about that, so Willie, I told that to somebody else. Willie might have to chip in a little bit. Yes, we know how much Willie makes. I might have to cap him.

That's a good idea. That's right's right okay oliver really appreciate your time uh best of luck uh this weekend against the edmonton oilers and the rest of the season man thanks for joining us thanks guys thanks for having me yep thank you oliver eckman larson everybody yeah he's just been a a treat to watch in terms of like last night really i really thought like in that at that 10 minute mark that we heard craig brew we talk about it like when when oliver had a chance to to push pace of play he was up he was up including the one where he took a pretty solid whack at the other team's goalie you guys are just the biggest goalie defenders that was the biggest flop in league history if anyone swings at your goalie who's holding the puck the puck is sitting there he hits him that's nice subjective opinion lightly in the blocker and he goes down like he took it i'm with samuel it was absurd i didn't

hit him hard but you don't take a whack at a goalie without expecting someone to be upset. No one did anything. Like, they looked at him sideways. Tom Wilson was out there. I thought the old Tom Wilson would have jumped him. There was nothing. They just did nothing.

I don't know. That Logan Thompson, a lot's happening in there with him. He actually had a tough night, even though he only gave up four recorded goals. He looked behind him a lot. Up 3-1, I thought he was good good he's looking behind him quite a bit yeah i know but it's still three one you're still in charge and uh he did make some good saves i think he's a third goal for canada i wouldn't want to watch that in that for canada but i guess you have to watch

number one goalie for the washington cap? Yeah. That's what we ask. He is. Who's their other guy? No, I'm just saying, though, is he legit? Oh, I don't know. Right? Who knows? I've never been a Capitals guy.

I know they made some nice offseason moves or whatever, but I'm still, that team is still. They did look as slow as we thought they were going to be last night. Yeah, they have that in them. I understand Matt Roy is a nice defender. Chikrin, I think, is a nice player for them. He looked a little lacking confidence on a touch or two last night. But, yeah. Anyway.

So now, this weekend, big one. We'll tee it up more tomorrow, but oilers coming to town well just think about the energy that a loss would have done last night going into that game it's just as you mentioned it's it's a big it's a big energy swing it's a big we're looking at the game a little differently and i i expect austin matthews to play in that game do Do you? Yeah, I do. I do. Okay. So hopefully he didn't wake up as stiff as he probably was a week and a half ago, and he's good to go. When you said energy on Saturday night, I thought you would have meant that the Leafs playing,

as well as the biggest superstar on earth playing a concert at Rogers Center at the same time. I thought that was the energy you were talking about. Sam got kicked off the highway for taylor swift today i did pushed off by the motor she crossing the street no i i don't i think it was her i don't know what other reasons possibly could have been the hat would have happened but i got pulled up on by like 15 or 16 uh cops on motorbikes i'm like oh my god was i texting am i about to go to the clink what's going on 15 cops pulled you over for texting they kind of they eased everybody off the highway so there was like they they pulled up and the guy like almost skidded and they pulled everyone off at spadina and then

like as so the gardener was pretty much empty and i looked back and i saw like a like a bus in the distance so around two o'clock it would make sense for old taytay to be showing up right seems like it could have been her. Or maybe it was just her dog walker or something that they were giving a police escort to. Holy, we are shutting the city down. It's incredible. Bringing the dollars, I guess. Bringing the dollars.

Most important person on the planet right now. Just for fun, I went and looked on old Stubby Hubby to have a look at what it costs for a ticket. You can stand behind a wall for three grand if you want. I ran into a friend this morning. Two to three grand to stand behind a wall. Yesterday, a neighborhood friend of ours said they looked and it was $2,300 for a

standing room only, partially obstructed. I heard like hotel rooms are like three grand. How fast would you sell that ticket? I mean, immediately. I don't know if I was handed a free ticket if I would go. And that's not like... Well, you didn't...

I've spoken like a guy who didn't enter the Rogers contest. I haven't won anything, but... Oh, if you sell that ticket from Rogers, you won't be working here anymore. I would take my sister 100%. I'd go. I'd go. If I got a free ticket and I couldn't sell it, I would obviously go. She's the biggest star on earth.

I don't even really like her songs, but... To me, it's like that's a lot of crowd. I couldn't sell it, I would obviously go. She's the biggest star on earth. I don't even really like her songs. To me, it's like that's a lot of crowd. I don't know. Oh, you're such a baby. If I had to name five songs, I'd shake it off. Because, baby, you're a bad boy. All right, join us, you Swifties, for the next hour on our national program. Sammy's going to find you two tickets from Rogers here for you.

You just need to call them. All right, let's take a quick break here. And when we come back, general manager of the New York, New Jersey devils, Tom Fitzgerald.