Real Kyper & Bourne - Leafs Hour: Tampa Turnaround

Episode Date: November 7, 2023

Nick Kypreos, Justin Bourne & Sam McKee start with last night's rollercoaster win for the Leafs over the Lightning, the team's poor first-period effort, the look of the first line with Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews' torrid goal-scoring pace. Then, on the Leafs' goaltending, Samsonov's start to forget, his confidence issues and another strong relief effort for Joseph Woll. Later, they look at Jon Cooper's post-game comments, Ryan Reaves being phased out of the lineup and penalty kill problems.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.

welcome into the studio for the real kipper and born show toronto maple leaf edition for the next hour i'm nick kiprios justin born sammy mckee we welcome back off the ir, Derek Brandeo and Jen Rolnick. We are on Sportsnet 590, Sportsnet 360, and Sportsnet Plus from 4 to 6 p.m. And always grab our pod when you can, wherever you download. And Texas 590, 590, and maybe you can explain to me why last night I watched four teams play at the scotia bank arena last night is that how it felt yes i saw one side of the toronto maple leafs team leave come back and then i saw a tampa bay lightning start yeah and then they left and then a poor version of the tampa bay lightning finished the game maybe it was two teams and they just switched jerseys halfway through the game something yeah something happened where it was it felt like a freaky friday but nevertheless for lee fans

watching this team rally back from a 4-1 deficit uh left people feeling a lot better than they had the prior two games particularly the buffalo sabers and the la kings yeah but i mean it got the wrong game to go to kippy yeah you did you went to the wrong game monday monday night seemed like a better more fun than than saturday i'm wondering how many people were tempted to maybe leave after the first period well in which they were booed off the ice sammy well i was gonna ask you guys you know i don't know if we want to reveal our group texts from that moment when it was four one but it was pretty bleak like they had you know had lost four games in a row just looking to see what oh they were they were ready uh Leaf Nation was ready to write them off.

We suck. Complete war check. Write them off. I said something to the effect of I was going to have to brush up on the rest of the NHL because when they cut our Leafs hour to a half hour, I'm going to need a lot more content. This is, okay, I'll read it. I said, boys, this is for me. Boys, this is bad.

Scary bad. Kipper responded, scary. And then I said, summer may start early for us. And then you said what you said there. It looked really bad there for a minute. That power play looked like the Harlem Globetrotters. It did. Against the generals.

And then I sent a beautiful picture of your guys' face on the Jumbotron. Yeah. At Scotiabank Arena. At Scotiabank Arena. That was the highlight after the first period. No question. No question. So then for Leaf fans, a typical look.

Matthews and Marner in this instance. Matthew Nyes saves the the day they're like mighty mouse coming in there and punching yeah and they do it without the punching they do it i forgot no punching they do it a very different way but i mean let's just take a moment and uh the first thing i need to do is just kip. This season so far in Austin Matthews, we've said he doesn't make his teammates better. His plus minus isn't good enough. No, it was good enough last night.

He has 13 goals in 12 games. We got to give him his due here. Plus four. All day long. Yes. Score. Yes. Don't shovel pucks out of your own net.

He is scoring at a historic pace. And I mean, has been since he came into the league. But it's like Piko Bechkin, this Matthews, taking games over. I don't want to regress or take this away from you, but you brought it up. Yes. It's great. Last night was great. He did what he had to do.

There were plus. He was the instrumental guy with marner and nice for the win for sure i get all of that yes but it has kind of been proven and we're not going to get into the edmonton oilers at all here but this is hockey at the end of the day matthews only plays a third of the game correct he can go and score his 60 or 70 goals like connor mcdavid did last year go get 150 points it won't matter unless it has a ripple effect through your team and your team's well balanced and yeah this isn't what we really saw last night again because we drew the same recipe we have in the past. But this is a separate critique.

This is a roster critique. I'm just saying we got to hand a bouquet to the guy here. No, I'm not ready to hand any bouquet. What does he got to do? Without them, they're a lottery team right now. I don't know. Get them to a Stanley Cup final. He can't last night.

He can't in the first 12 games. So great. I'm so happy that you're happy for Austin. Yeah. But that's, in a small picture, it's good. We are watching one of the greatest goal scorers in the history of the NHL, which over 100 years long, or however long the league's been around for, one of the greatest of all time in his prime on the team we cover.

If they can't get out of the second round, then what? Then we're just going to carry him in on our shoulders at Scotiabank years later for what? This is about Stanley Cups. Don't get caught up in just one guy going on a historic run while the rest of the team kind of burns in flames. The last year of the Hall of Fame inductions was Sedin, Sedin, Luongo, and Alfredson who had combined for zero Stanley Cups.

My point is... And you don't want to be a 65-goal scorer. They have one already. They had a historic guy. His name was Rick Vive. Yeah. Okay. Austin, are you going to be the next Rick Vive,

or do you want to be the next Sidney? I don't think Rick Vive ever won the Hart Trophy. I don't think that's the tier of player we're talking about here. I'm just talking about scoring goals. I'm just saying if we do this show and we don't acknowledge what we're watching, we're not doing a good job. No, we are acknowledging it.

And it was great. I told you, if he scores a hat trick and he's still even, it's no good. Last night, plus four. That was a good one. Good one. Marner, plus four. That's the difference. Yeah.

How did you like Knives there? I have no doubt in my mind. Knives is a number one destined left winger for the Toronto Maple Leafs for many years. I'm just a little nervous that it's too much right now. And I'm all about protecting these guys and including Joseph Wall. I would have preferred

Nyes to work himself in there much later in the season. He was fantastic last night. He's doing everything that we thought he could. Puck protection. The guy's a hunter on a four check. The guy gets the puck in and he hunts yeah not many hunters right now on the leafs using his but he's in his size last night a couple hits

one of them and separated the puck the thing you got to protect with matthew nyes is just the process of learning how to be a pro in your first full season at 82. He's going to hit walls. He's going to be mentally tired, physically tired at some point. Do you want the weight of the world on him already to have to be the guy to constantly feel like you've got to get Austin the puck or Mitch the puck this early in the season? That's all.

Yeah. And it wasn't designed for him to be there now. They're going to him because they've run out of ideas between Bertuzzi. It's almost like they've run out of ideas because the bottom six has been so bad. They're like, I don't know. We just need to change things.

And he's still holding the spot for Bertuzzi, by the way. You think so? You going to give up on Bertuzzi? No, but he's currently on the second line he's not he is but he's got to get himself back to where 5.5 million dollars is supposed to be right and that's on that line do you think nize then would play with tavarez and neilander at some point i would think that he he definitely is a a top six guy right now under the circumstances yeah but i i'd like to see him i'd like to show i'd like to see sheldon flexible for him to say i'll work him up and down the lineup

and not just lock him in in any particular place yeah the uh the first period last night you know had that excitement that lines were different and nize is in that spot and all that. And our boy Samsonov just really took the wind out of things, didn't he? Like, I don't know how you feel about his status as the guy here. I know we'd wanted to do, you talked about doing a tandem thing or whatever, but boy, that was a tough look last night. It's hard to imagine that back-to-back games against Tampa Bay can look identical. Identical.

Yanked, wall goes in, shuts the door, come back, Coop cries, I assume. We haven't got to the clips yet. Oh, yeah. So in Tampa, it was 3-1 on 3 out of 4 shots or 3 out of 5. That's right. I think the first 4 went in. I think it was 3 out of 4 shots or 3 out of 5. That's right. I think the first 4 went in. I think it was 3 out of 4.

And this one, he almost looked identical. Yeah. Was it Hedman's first goal? The one that tied it up 1-1? He did not know where his net was. No. That's the first sign. The, like, overpushing.

That's the first sign that Sheldon should have said, this might be a short night for him. Yeah. When you know, again, we're not goalie experts, but I know as a shooter, when a guy has his net and when a guy doesn't have a clue where that net is. No. And he just overplayed.

It could have been 12-1. Like, everything was just going through. Like, it was really as bad as he's looked. Like, I guess since the last Tampa game. I hate the decision, in retrospect, hindsight's very easy, but hate the decision that Saturday night wasn't wool. Or, sorry, vice versa. It wasn't Stamsonov on Saturday night after playing well

and then giving wool this game. Okay, let's go to our first Kippers Clipper. And while we're on the topic of Samsonov, let's hear from head coach Sheldon Keefe. You don't like the game. You don't like how it goes. But, you know, you have confidence in that. He has had nights like this, not just tonight,

but even last season, and he has responded. Talk about our team responding today. Sammy's responded. I mean, he's just played a tremendous game for us out in Boston, and let's focus more on that. Feel good about the fact that our team came back here tonight

and got two points, so it's easier going home and then just get back to work it's great he's asked about his goalie and he's like let's focus more on the fact that we won well it he's he's really trying hard to protect him and we know there's he's a sensitive guy right now yeah that's quite the tantrum so that that is that is clearly Sheldon saying, I need to protect him. And I can't argue that. I can't.

At the same time, what, two weeks ago? Just can't let in three goals on four shots. Yeah. I mean, last night would have caused a similar reaction, but based on, I think, the understanding of where he is between his ears right now yeah it called for uh sheldon to pass it's funny because you you didn't you mentioned that he gave him a hard time after the tampa game last time and all of a sudden there's articles in the newspaper about his mental health in decline it's just like okay well that's not the button

to push with him i guess we'll try a different button this time well it's a little bit of a slippery slope because if there are issues and he's heads not on straight then you know the next question is okay are you helping him or hurting him here well you saw the them flashing to him after he smashes his helmet on the bench. Yeah. They show his face on the bench. Under normal circumstances, if you're not dealing with someone who may have some issues going on right now, that's unacceptable.

What? Smashing your helmet? Yes. Okay, enough. It's no different than a guy coming and breaking a stick on the bench. Okay? Just you're pulled. It's over.

Just be a pro. Yeah, people feel differently about that. I think I feel the same as you. I think a lot of people say they like the passion. The guy cares. He's emotional. That's a strength of his. I don't know if it is.

Yeah. I don't know. I mean, yeah, listen, I'm just claiming how I look at it. I'm not saying it's right or wrong. Right. And everybody has their own opinion. But I just think when you're down 4-1, 18 guys don't have to pick up that vibe. Yeah.

Like, we're in a hole already, man. Just to watch you frustrated. I think, you know, Craig Simpson talked about last night, frustration, you know, when they were down. He's like, it's a wasted emotion. Yeah. And I think he's absolutely right. And we're going to have him in the next hour.

Craig Simpson, of course, former NHL and Hockey Night in Canada. By the way, the first time we've had him on the show this year. Yeah. That's crazy. We'll get into that for sure. But I thought Craig nailed that part. That it's just, there's no time for that. And there's no time for that ripple effect on your bench.

So, again, under normal circumstances, probably be a little bit more critical, but I have to, and probably Sheldon and everyone else has to be a little sensitive on what Samsonov's going through right now. So what do you think, though, like where he is for this team like you worried that he's going to be skinner campbell for lack of a better way to put it man okay well we're definitely going to talk jack campbell at some point throughout the show uh more so in our national hour but uh yeah there's a concern right now for sure if you're the tor Maple Leafs, if you're Brad Tree living, Sheldon, how do we get consistency out of Samsonov?

And how do we handle this? Time. What does he need? He needs to talk to our staff, right? Our million people on this staff? A couple of thousand cooks in the kitchen. A thousand cooks in the kitchen. Or does he need to be just thrown right back out there?

Like what is the answer for them moving forward? I'll tell you what not the answer is. Okay. Asking Joseph Wall to be the guy right now and just hold the fort. That's what I wanted to hear from you, your thoughts on this. No, not a big fan of now, oh, no, we got Joseph Wall. We'll be just fine.

Again, I'm going to stay consistent with my thoughts on Matthew Nyes and saying slow and steady wins the race when you're talking about your first NHL year. Yeah. And Joseph Wall now, is Joseph Wall ready to take on 45 more games? You want Joseph Wall at 50 games right now? If I'm answering you the question the way he looks right now, I would say yes is the answer to that question. Did you like him on Saturday? I wouldn't say I hated him, but he wasn't, I mean, let five in, so you can't be too excited about it.

I just mean, I think to your point, Kipper, that there's a lot of Leaf fans that are probably like, why not just give him the run now? Why not just give him the ball, look the way he looks? Because it was a game like L.A. where he looked ordinary. You're trying to hold the lead last night. Muffin. Bit of a bad rebound.

It just snuck through him. just uh yeah that one you just catch that please you need to make some good saves last night it's not a criticism of his overall game right yeah buffalo yeah and you worry that the more you see him the more you know you want to build confidence not based on you know a great first round on a Thursday or Friday. You want to get them ready to win Sunday. Yeah. Let's hear Sheldon on Joseph Wall, clip four. Yeah, he made some saves.

Didn't let them score the next one. And that's really what it's about. When you go in and relief like that, you can't let in the next one. That's one of the harder things in sports, certainly in our game, coming off the bench cold with the pressure of knowing you can't give up the next one. He was obviously tremendous in that fashion down in Tampa, so I'm sure he's leaning on that to a degree.

But yeah, another guy that responded beautifully tonight. It was excellent. Do you know how many times last year Sheldon pulled the goalie for performance-related issues? A handful. Two. Yeah, and already two this year after 12 games. Yeah.

Tied with last year. And we had that. That was a big complaint for us last year. That he wouldn't do it yeah he would never do it yeah you know but this year the two times where he's done it it's just like oh well obviously how do you do it like there was no question and some people thought maybe the three may have been quick but like the goals that go in last night the goals that go in it's just obvious hook situations yeah and i mean kucherov it's you know it's humming and you still can't stop it no and he

can't time his big push no you're right i said this in our group chat yesterday it was just that he's the most deceptive player in the league kucherov i don't know what he's going to do until it happens like there's no predicting he's in a really unique he disguises everything he does okay but it's it's just not kucherov they move the puck a power play power play and they disguise everything everybody is good at disguising point uh headman stamkos even stamkos they all there's no tell in what they're doing it helps them have all the ice in the world to work with against the least penalty kill so this bk's got some issues one thing i could tell you know on for samson obvious i get it buddy they're really good yeah yeah don't worry like that's not

put your head on my shoulder sammy that's not being lost in Put your head on my shoulder. Sammy, that's not being lost in all of this. They're really stinking good on this thing. I love that. And I was just talking on Twitter with people. The other team gets to have some say. They get to do things, too. And Kucherov is a special player. Yeah.

Outside of that hot power play, what scared you in the first period? What didn't you like? John Klingberg scares me every time. That truly is probably the most terrifying thing, is I've never seen a player with more talent make me more nervous with a hockey puck. All right, let's go to Sheldon Keefe on what was said in the first intermission, and maybe something to Klingberg as well, maybe?

Maybe. You come off the bench, you're feeling pretty sh**ty about how the first period went, of course. Everybody is. You know, and you come back in between periods, you get time, you start reviewing some video, you start looking at some of the stats of the period, you see how it goes,

and it's sort of a reflection of how I felt on the bench in that it wasn't that bad a period. Puck just kept going in the net. So that makes it really hard um and you start to think about everything else that you know that's outside your control i thought we did good things i thought we got a good start sort of great goals to get ourselves going and i thought we sagged after you know once they started scoring we made some mistakes on there that i was a little more focused on, but I was positive, you know.

I just felt that's what we needed in that moment because I thought we did some good things. We just had to win a period. I felt if we won a period, I mean, we've been in this situation a few times here. We found our way back, and we needed to build some positivity, and the guys went out and earned it. Question for both of you do you believe him

when he said he was actually positive in the first intermission i do okay for sure i do kipper yeah i do believe it okay yeah i can see him going through the game tape and being like we weren't that bad they just kept shooting it in the net that's that's makes me aware that we're covering makes me aware we're covering a game sometimes. It's like, yeah, they just kept shooting it in our net. What constitutes a bad period? The puck going in four times? Other than that.

Everything was good other than that. The puck just kept going in the net. There's other issues that I can't discuss right now because our goalies are a little vulnerable. Yeah, that's exactly it, right? I can't really say how I felt about things at that point. Okay, let's talk Nyes. We did already.

Let's hear from Sheldon on Matthew Nyes as a number one left winger. It was great. He moved his feet. He scored a great goal, but he a number of little little plays that really helped i thought all the lines today were on the bench and this includes the first period it was the best best i felt felt about the rhythm of our group i thought robertson brought lots i thought domey in the middle helped um you know yarn crock still did what he does for us. He was nice. I thought there was a lot of good things that were happening,

so we just had to stay with it and win a period there. And we were able to do that, which gave us a chance. He really liked them. Yeah, well, I think, again, once you get kind of past that first period, Max on the third line at center. Best game. Much more noticeable. Maybe second best game. Involved.

Involved. Skating. Everything kind of clicked. They just needed a bounce. And it happened with Robertson's shot on a rebound that that was the bounce on yarn croc that they've been waiting for a while on but you know what they played that line was playing really well prior to that that was in the third period i think and after two we were talking about like that they looked really good robertson one thing i love about him is that he

really cares and works and so even when it's not going his way, at least you can count on the effort, which he gives you every night. Yarncroft really moved his feet. You know, they talked about him handling the demotion well. And he was told he's going to go down off the Matthews-Martin line. He said, well, we're not winning. I understand.

So he put in the work. And that Robertson shot before Yarncroft scores, not many people can put that much pace on it and get it up, I don't think, that sort of spot. So shout out to them. If I got one knock on Sheldon, it's with about two and a half minutes. I'm not sure I want Nick Robertson out there to protect the lead. Did he have him out there?

Yeah. Yeah, he had Max, Robertson, and maybe it was Yarncroft. But, like, first of all, this is a new line. Definitely not. This is Max at center for the first time. And it's a kid that just got called up. I need veterans to take me in in a regulation situation. I want two points, and I want none for the other team.

And that's the only knock, is I wouldn't have had Nick Robertson out there trying to protect a lead with two minutes to go. Yeah. Can I just ask you, you know, you're talking about Nyes in the top line and watching him play and him taking advantage of the opportunity last night. You think Pertuzzi sitting on the bench is being like, why didn't I do that in the first few games? Like, why didn't I bang some guys into the end glass

and get the puck in front of the net and just, you know, forecheck and do, like, it just feels like such a huge missed opportunity for him. And watching what Nyes did last night, I mean, Nyes might just be way better. I don't know, but it just feels like Bertuzzi could have done something like Nyes did last night. I haven't seen anything from Bertuzzi, including last night, that makes me think he has that.

He's snapping out of this anytime soon. There's nothing about anything he's done where I'm like, oh, there's good pace to his game. There's good energy. There's passion. You know, there's not even the things aside from the numbers that make me go, that guy's having an impact.

I just... He's stuck on the outside. I don't see a guy who's all in being engaged. Same. So he's not bunting. He's not a guy that you plucked out of someone else's system and everything to gain and nothing to lose. This guy came from a good program and a successful one in Boston,

albeit in a short stint, and was a guy that was instrumental in that lineup down the stretch. Okay, the playoffs, but he had a good playoff. It's not like he didn't show up for the Boston Bruins in the playoffs. No, he had Seven goals or something. And then the cost of 5.5 for one year with the thought of finding ways to get this guy signed long-term. I just don't understand why all the attributes that we thought he was bringing in, including a touch around the net, including sandpaper, the grit.

Can he be our rat? Everybody needs a rat. I mean, they're beloved wherever they play. You got to have one. The Leafs were asking, could he be ours? Yeah. And you don't see any of it right now no and you know people you don't want to be an armchair psychologist and presume to know what's inside his head

you know so i can't guess but he does not seem there's been no moment where i'm like this guy cares you know and maybe he does maybe he maybe this is. Maybe it's caring so much that's making him freeze up. When I see him against Nize, and I'll go back to my earlier comment, like Nize is a hunter. I don't see any hunt in that dog. No. Tyler Bertuzzi. That Nize spinner amapast in Matthews.

And he's not getting there. He's a chip off the wall, a dump in. He's not getting there to, to win a puck. It doesn't seem like he wants. I don't know. I mean,

I've, I, I know what usually happens when, when coaches or management watch a guy can't get there who they think they can one of the first things they say is is that guy in shape i you know what i've thought that already this season and i haven't wanted to say it because it's a wild he might be the most rift guy on the leafs i have no idea but just to my eye it's like he never seems to have extra energy he always seems out of gas i think that's a

that's a fair question every time i see him i'm like he must be at the end of a shift anyway didn't even mean to talk about bertuzzi today but that's just where i've been on it i think he to me like i i want to love this guy i really do as a fan and like i know this is a popular thought amongst leaf fans he's the exact type of guy that Leaf fans love and want to love. Wow. Everyone's waiting for the next Darcy Tucker, right? It just feels like he's, especially after last night, where it seemed like the lines kind of worked outside of Reeves,

who didn't play much, and the third line looked better, and the top line looked great. He just looks like he's kind of on an island out there like he played i think he played almost 18 minutes last night and i barely had an impact i think he was minus two and there was no one i don't think there's any other minus players other than tavaris and willie was minus two until he scored they didn't have a very good game no but no well how much a couple now in a row how much of that is them playing with, like, I don't know. It's a big concern for me as a fan, watching him play.

Yeah, and I would say for the Leafs and the money they've allocated to. He's the highest paid guy outside of the core four in the forwards. Like, they need 20 to 30 out of him. And what's he at, two? Yeah, just looking at his game log. Last night he had just goose eggs across the board. He had one shot minus two yeah there is i mean there is a possibility that we look back on this these conversations in the playoffs the similar way we look back on the morgan riley conversations that we had in years

past being like yeah well those are stupid conversations what he does in the playoffs but like you gotta get there it's a long way away. And at some point, you've got to help the team get there, too. That's why you're committed to it. That's your guy, Brad Tree Living. You signed him to 5.5. You got to stick with it. I'll say, Brad Bertuzzi. You make an excellent point, Sammy, that, you know, there's something more there, and you got to, unfortunately,

you may have to just wait it out well bad bertuzzi's not much of a liability like i don't think he hurts them they just you're expecting more than don't hurt us it's just it's it's how it tacks the rest of the team throughout the process right is that what you you try to try to speed up yeah got Okay, let's take a quick break. No, we can keep going. You want to take a break here? I don't care. You're the producer.

Don't look at me. We still got a ton to get into. We have a ton. Let's hit a break, and then we can come back and do the rest. Let's do a break here. Plenty to get into, including shortening Ryan Reeves' shifts and Austin, your boy's big celebration. Don't you want to hear Coop too?

He's excited. Oh my, more Coop for Sammy. Plenty of more on the Leaf edition right here on the Real Kipper and Born Show. Breaking down the top stories in hockey and Elliott Friedman every day. The Jeff Merrick Show. Subscribe and download the show on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. We're back on the Real Kipper and Bourne

Show, talking to Toronto Maple Leafs with their come-from-behind win last night in overtime, 6-5. Oh, we've got our monitor up. And apparently... Wish it could happen in the second division. After the first period,

they flashed on the Scotiabank Arena score clock. Us. Minus Sammy. How do we get Sammy on there? I don't need to be their voice. They're down 4-1 and they're like speaking of losing here's a couple of these guys i'm gonna take a polaroid of you sammy and just stick it on the clock just tape it on there yeah but that was nice and you got a few messages off of that i did a couple

people who were at the game sent me pics and they had nothing else to do i guess cheering for nothing while losing four one nice all right so um where do you want to start you want to start uh john cooper i think so unless you want to do ryan reeves uh i had something quickly matthew starts overtime oh yeah he did yep and uh the camp guess what oh my god they scored 10 seconds 20 seconds later or whatever it was a minute. And they won the face-off. Oh, he can win face-offs. Well, I think they must do that, right? He must look at, like, the winning percentage or whatever

and be like, all right, Matthews is winning tonight. Well, Camps has got cleaned out the last two times they've gone. Yeah, that's probably what it is. Like, if you're out there to win the draw and you can't win the draw. I don't know where they are on draws, but I have not been impressed with them at all on draws. Matthews got last night crunched against is it last night they're above 50 on the year but not last night i don't even think last

night they were on the year they're they're like i don't know average in the league yeah they're around average but typically they've been a top five team the last few years in face off so devaris is clean of people i think he's 61 something this year is he really yeah okay let's uh let's go to john cooper because that's where producer sammy wants to go because he gets tremendous joy out of hearing thanks for cooper thanks for doing this for me guys not i don't know get his way sammy yeah pretty much yeah okay let's uh Let's get John Cooper on clip one on the Leafs turning it around. Well, the Leafs turned it up a notch, and we sat back and watched them. That was pretty much it. Well, he's not wrong.

Oh, that is. That's my. He sat back and watched. Listen. The best listen in sports. Said it once, I'll say it again. That's my Abbey Road, baby. You got one more that you like from John Cooper?

I got one other one, yeah. You play these on the way home, too? Oh, yeah. Well, no. I got this morning. I went on the morning show with my friends Ben and Gunner and fired up the computer and just started listening to old Johnny Boy talk. All right, let's go to Johnny Boy for clip two.

It was, they had some big players make some big-time plays, but again, I thought we kind of delivered it for them. You know, we gave them an opportunity, and they seized it. That was pretty much it. I don't sit here and say the guys are trying to game it out. We just did some dumb things, and they ended up in our net. So it's another one of those things. You're going to give up six goals in a game.

It's kind of miraculous that we got a point out of it. Where he's not wrong is that contending teams at 4-1 shut it down it's over yeah I agree and you know it's crazy you know watching the goals the nice spinorama pass to Matthews Sorelli's just kind of dogging it

on the back check and he's like a Selke trophy nominee right Sorelli and then the Robertson shot before Yarncroft taps taps it in sorelli's just kind of sagged off him and not defending well like they have great players who i would agree with cooper made enough mistakes to give the leafs the openings they needed so i was sent a a screenshot of a wonderful screenshot i might add of the last four games the toronto maple leafs have played against the tampa bay lightning in which the tampa bay add, of the last four games the Toronto Maple Leafs have played against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In which the Tampa Bay Lightning, in the last game that they, in game three, where they trailed 3-2, with a minute left in the third, they won 4-3 in overtime in game three of the playoffs. Serge, do you have a comment? In game,

in game four, sorry, they trailed 4-1 going into the 10 minutes of the third period. We won 5-4. They were trailing 3-1 going into the final 10 minutes of the third period earlier this year, 1-4-3, and then, of course, last night. So this is four straight games where the vaunted Tampa Bay Lightning have blown massive leads to the Leafs. They got the yips. I can't recall. They got the yips. Somebody said

that this is all off of a Sergeyev cocky comment. It was Hagel. Was it Hagel? It was Hagel. I remember this. What did he say? In the intermission of the 4-1 game, he said something dumb about how it was over. Was it Hagel? Yeah, it was Hagel. hagel yeah it was hagel yeah

what did he say yeah he's god that's it right now that's the curse yeah i couldn't have him to a nicer guy hagel but it's just this is bad for them this is a bad reputation you now have the reputation of blowing leads to the number one franchise that blows leads like they have completely flipped the script on the Leafs. Where they're now, the Leafs are like, we're down 4-1, doesn't matter. And I think Jonas Jonasson or whatever net there helps. It's a little different than Vasilevsky.

I think that's a big part of it, yeah. But still, they did it twice with Vasilevsky last year. Cooper telling everybody that he believes that Vasilevsky could come as early as U.S. Thanksgiving. No. Oh. Which would put him probably four weeks ahead of schedule, maybe longer. They must set these timelines.

Johansson, okay. He's hung in there for them. Yeah. Probably giving them way more than actually anyone would have thought, but they need their big guy back but they're they are not i said this after the last time they're not the same team defensively they are leaky they're leaking chances all over the place like they are not the contending team that they've been the years past i think they'll still be in the playoffs i still think

they'll make it but like they're not the same that's some mcdonough in his prime at 24 25 minutes just that one extra guy yeah no you're not wrong but also they had was it yan ruda who played with headman a lot who now plays for i think san jose maybe but but they they've had some d that they've missed um and i'm not sure what to make of sergachev like how really like he's considered one two with headman but there's some nights i watch him and it's it's not all there i wonder if he's having a pout last year he played on the power play the top unit a lot almost like they handed it to him this year headman's there again i wonder it seems like the type that could pout. For sure.

Also, DeHaan did not have a very good night for Tampa Bay. Domi tried to fight him there. Kind of tried to... DeHaan wanted nothing to do with it. Just kind of... Took three punches straight in the face. Interesting the refs didn't decide to call him on anything there. But yeah. We mentioned Ryan Reeves.

On average, maybe close to eight minutes this season. I'm not telling you, you know, I'm not patting myself on the back, but I told you guys yesterday or the day before, he doesn't have to play all the time. He just doesn't. I mean, I've seen this role before. And sometimes it's okay if you just think that your secret weapon, if things get a little crazy, you can always just throw him over the boards,

but he just doesn't have to play all the time. And last night, didn't see much ice time after, what, midpoint of the second period. Ended up playing four and a half minutes. Yeah. So let's go to Sheldon Keefe on Reeves, and then we'll have your thoughts, JV. Well, listen, I thought Reeve, I thought first period,

I thought he did a good job for us, so that that line had some good shifts, some good moments for us. You know, I thought it was a positive game for them. It's just the way the game goes. You're losing them. You know, as we started to come back in the game, they're using their fourth line less. I don't know what Watson's minutes ended up being,

but it was kind of a tradeoff in sort of how the game was going. But I thought when I was using Revo in the regular rhythm, I did a good job. I just got to shorten things up and try to win the game, and that's the decision I made tonight. Yeah. Pretty good decision. And it was funny, too, because it wasn't like Reeves did anything terrible.

He was like, I just, we're trying, we're chasing the game a little bit. We need offensive players out there. And you know, what's funny is how different to me that fourth line looked. The second it's Kampf, Greger and Jarnkrok when they would double someone or it's Kampf, Greger and even Robertson.

You know, every time it wasn't with Reeves, it was like, actually, that's not a bad line. I didn't hate that mix a bit. It's eye-opening to me how much Reeves to me bogs down that line. They need to work on him in his own zone and just simplifying your responsibilities, body body position, maybe board work, but he just, he's got to find a way to spend less time in his own zone when he's on the ice for those average seven or eight minutes

if they do climb back up. He's averaging, I think, 730. Isn't it, do you guys share this opinion that Tampa Bay, 738, they moved on from that fourth line 7.30. Isn't it? Do you guys share this opinion that Tampa Bay. 7.38. They moved on from that fourth line of Maroon, Perry, and Belmar. And they built a very good one, I think, in Janot, Glendening, and Watson. But they just don't have that personality that made Tampa Tampa.

To me, Pat Maroon really defined. It's Corey Perry, guys. Perry and Maroon together. Those personalities defined. Don't sleep on Kalor Perry, guys. Perry and Maroon together. Those personalities defined what... Don't sleep on Killorn, too, in terms of his grittiness and his dirtiness and his... Just that face. Just that Killorn face.

Scoring 100 times in playoff. They're missing identity, guys. They're not the same. To me, to watch Corey Perry still do what he does, and this was an MVP once upon a time. This was a 50-goal score. But Tampa couldn't give him $4 million. No.

But my point is that he can still go and play for Tampa and help them under 12 minutes and be an integral part of the game somehow because he figures out where he can move the needle. Make an impact. Yeah. And that's hard. Really hard.

Tremendous feel for the game to figure out where to insert himself. There's some guys that can play 15, 17 minutes and you're like, I don't know. I don't remember his name. What's funny is that guy scored twice for the Leafs last night in Yarncroft. There's others that can go out there and in seven or eight minutes make you feel like they played 17 minutes for sure i i totally agree it is funny yarn croc was the guy we actually have a yarn croc clip for the first time by the way i think i know it's yarn croak like cuthbert calls

him yarn croak that way okay whatever and let's listen to it on... Flexcroke. Flexcroke on secondary scoring. Yeah, I mean, it's tough for Manny to have a hat trick every game. So, I mean, I guess it's good for the rest of us to get a couple in, too. He's like, thanks for the 10 schmil. I'll chip in a couple. It's a tough time. Matthew's have a hat trick every game yeah good for us to get a couple in so he is the first leaf with 13

goals in 12 games since rick vive in 83 84 is that right more goals in the sharks he has more goals than the sharks oh other sharks had like a come to Jesus meeting. Greer came down. Can we rip on the Sharks in the next hour? Of course. We'll hang on to that. We can do that every day if you like. Okay.

Let's go to the emotional celebration of Austin Matthews last night. Yeah. I mean, after the first, just the energy and, you know, the booze and stuff, rightfully so. But, you know, didn't want them to go to sleep quite yet. See how smart he is there? Rightfully so. That rightfully so is a crucial. I mean, I'm glad that he said that because he gets it.

Yeah. He understands the market. He understands that these people care. I mean, he understands how much they're paying to be in the lower bowl for that one. And he understands that they have the right to boo, just like the people in Ottawa have a right to boo. And Brady disagrees.

Matthew said the right thing. And he said he wanted to make sure they didn't go to sleep just yet. He was doing the... Get on up. Love that. Yeah. You know, good to see in game 12 of the season, you know, finding an emotional way to get involved.

You know, Kipper, I have to just say, like, for Leaf fans to have this guy in the Maple Leafs, and, you know, Cups, whatever, you could talk about going to the playoffs. This is beyond everyone's wildest dreams. He is legitimately going to be... Oh, he's one of the... He is arguably the best goal scorer on the planet.

He is going to be in the conversation. If he plays a long career, he is going to be high on the rankings of all time in scoring goals. He is unbelievable. Sammy, he, it needs to come with a championship. Of course. I'm telling you. Yeah, but it's 12. He can't win a championship 12 games into the season here.

Like it's 12 games, right? No, it's seven years it's seven years well yeah but it's seven years with him i understand that but we're talking about it right now and he i think he's at his best he's ever been goal scoring wise right this second he's in his prime he just signed a five-year contract like well listen when when him and marner are going and like all of these come with Marner beside them, guys. Let's not forget here. Okay? Definitely. Where was Marner last year? With Tavares.

A good portion of last year. Not the whole year. 40 goals. I think they played together quite a bit. Yeah, I feel like I... I don't know. I remember... I don't remember a full season together. They weren't stapled.

They weren't stapled. Marner hasn't budged. And we've all watched the season where we're like, eh, they're not right. Change it up. Spread it around. Uh-uh. It is amazing.

Well, it's not amazing. No, it's amazing that we had these conversations that they're not right. Right? Matthews has 12 goals and 13 goals in 12 games and Marner's got 17 points in 12. But we know this city. We know this city. We know you.

He could have 12 and 17 and your hair's on fire. That don't impress me much. Marner? Marner? No, Matthews. No, it impresses me much. That does impress me. That does impress me much.

He could not score in five games and everybody's calling for changes. We know how it works around here. Not with Matthews, man. How about Leon has been, was he eight games without a goal in Edmonton? One and eight? Or one and seven now? Like that? In his first goal last night? Yeah, he just now? Like that. And his first goal was...

Last night? Yeah, he just shot it into an empty net after the goalie got tripped. But Matthews, he won't allow Sheldon to get rid of 16 on his flank. Yeah. I mean, yeah. I imagine that 34 has earned some points

for 16 across 16's career. They work well together. They're one of the great duos. Penalty kill? Penalty kill? We also have some nigh stuff. We want to do nigh. No?

We nighed out. We're done on that line. Penalty kill's bad. Okay. Yeah. Is it, is it, like,

has Kemp lost something here, guys? Feels like it. Yeah. Justin Williams did an awesome job on the broadcast last night, and he broke down that penalty kill word. Yeah. Where he's got his stick along the boards, opening up a wide open lane to give it out to Hinton.

Covering nobody. Covering nobody. He was covering the sideboards. Yeah. Was it Kemp and Marner as the first pair last time, or last year was it Yarncroft with them? No, it was Kemp and Marner. Kemp and Marner. Yeah, pair last time? Or last year was it Jarnkrok with them? No, it was Kampf and Marner. Kampf and Marner.

Yeah, and I think he's going back to that. Less of Matthews now, right? Yeah. He did kill last night. A little bit. The game before, he didn't. And he didn't before. Yeah.

But it just seems to, they didn't pick up that rhythm off of last season. No. It is, to me, it's a problem of the defense more than the forwards, really. Whoa. And there's some music for you. A little guitar riff. They're telling us to go away for a commercial break? Is that what they're doing, Sammy?

I think, well, he's starting the bumper now. Oh, okay. We got 96. We're good. So, in terms of fixing the PK, it's got to be a personnel thing to me. Like they just don't have the guys to do it. Unless you think Gregor can be effective there. Gregor closed the game last night for Keefe.

Put him out there with Tavares at the end of the game. Yeah. I still think he's the guy to get more opportunities. Like all he does is play well and we just talk about him like. He can't score. No, he's. He needs to. You know what he needs to do? Yeah, do yeah get a soccer net no take it across the net he's got some shots from the outside beats guys wide and he shoots he needs to take it across the crease

every time a little mckev little grabner ask both those guys score 30 goals in a year but he's got some speed and he yeah he can get the chances he uh's a hunter, too. Giving 15 minutes per game. I'll give him some love for sure to start the season. Okay, just like that, our first hour is over. All Leafs, no guests, too. You had so much to say. I told Sammy, we can't guest it up in this hour. JB's just chomping. All right, we're going to take a quick break,

and when we return, Craig Simpson, our Hockey Night in Canada analyst, will talk Leafs, Oilers, and where these teams are going, as we thought to a stand like a final about a month ago. More Real Kipper and Bourne after these words. We'll be right back.