Real Kyper & Bourne - Mike Keenan's Life Behind the Bench

Episode Date: October 10, 2024

Nick Kypreos and Justin Bourne are joined by former NHL head coach Mike Keenan in-studio to chat about what it was like to coach Nick with the New York Rangers, his coaching styles with 'star' players, before jumping into his newest book "Iron Mike: My Life Behind The Bench", what got him interested into writing about his career and life off the ice and some behind the scenes stories from the 1993-94 Stanley Cup winning team. Then, Nick, Justin and Sam McKee take a look at the Vancouver Canucks blowing a 3-goal lead in their home opener to the Calgary Flames, Linus Ullmark's real-life comparisons to a start of a new year, and the Ottawa Senators' bad track record to begin the regular season.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.

here we go it's the national hour on real kipper and born we are live on sports at 650 in vancouver and sports at 960 in calgary this hour of kipper and born brought to you by bet 365 as promised mike keenan 15th winningest coach in nhl history stanley cup champion with the rangers and now an author of iron mike my life behind the bench with scott morris and welcome in coach keenan how are you super how about you i'm good i'm good listen i'm i'm excited about you coming in. As you go through your tour for your book, you're going to have many people interviewing you. But how many that got to play with you or have you as a coach?

You're the only one. This is it. I don't know if that's a good thing or bad thing for you right now. I think it's all right. I'm dying to find out. I mean, this is great for me, and I'm fully entertained. Thank you very much for joining us today. An incredible life in the NHL.

Before Kip gets into his questions, I just got to know, what was it like coaching Nick Kiprios? Can I not start there? Oh, my gosh. He was easy to coach, actually. Was he? Yes. He is very respectful of his teammates and was a big part of our team.

I could say that about Kiprios, but also we had a team that, a group of hockey players that really respected each other. They all bought in. I didn't have anybody that was really a complainer. Lots of guys wanted to play more, but nobody was a distraction, put it that way. The sense that I had out of you in the short period that we had together was that you've had some of the toughest guys in the history of the game play for you right and if you want to go back to philadelphia from dave brown to rick talkett to

joey kosher for us uh gino ojic in vancouver i mean you're still in chicago in chicago um the tendency i think for you in st louis Louis. And St. Louis, Chaser and Twist. Oh, my God. But you tended to kind of leave us alone. You didn't mess with the tough guys too often. Did you feel like you didn't have to? Because obviously the challenge for a coach, especially with your style, was to maybe have more of a confrontation with your star players. I don't know if the star players, but I'll back it up a bit.

For the guys that were in that role that were tough and had to be ready, I didn't have to try to help them get ready for a game. I knew they'd be ready because they had to be ready or they're going to get knocked out. Right. So, I mean, that's a harsh way of saying it. But the tough guys, like you said, just leave them alone because I knew that they were preparing themselves.

If anybody on the team was, they were. Because that's a tough role. I had a fight with Chris Simon at Madison Square Garden one night. And after the game, I'm getting stitched up because he cut me. He nailed me with one, but it was a good fight for me, and you made it abundantly clear that you came into the room. You were with me with the doctor stitching me up. You patted me on the back.

You loved it, and I'm like, oh, my God, he noticed me. I've done something I need to do again um the book tell me what it was like for you to go back and justin and i have written books as well so we kind of have your book on my counter oh do you all right thanks um just the whole process for you for you know going back and peeling the onion back and you know now you've got a magnifying glass you're you're starting to remember stories just the whole process for you how did you find it it was a long tedious process i was hesitant to start the book because i said who really wants to read some of this and it started started with Jay Greenberg. Jay Greenberg, God bless him, died of all things West Nile disease.

And then Scott Morrison was editing the book. So I asked Scott, would you pick it up? But it took a while. He wanted to reshape it a little bit and certainly write it in his style, which is different than Jay's. And Jay was the fellow that I talked to initially and certainly write it in his style, which is different than Jay's. And Jay was the fellow that I talked to initially because he was a beat writer in Philadelphia in 1984, and he said, one day I want to write a book with you.

I said, okay. Not thinking I'd ever write a book. And so that's the process. So as you go through it, it's interesting. Even yesterday, I went to dinner with Scott and Mike Polino, Dave Jameson, who played for me, and Jameson brought up a story about Boston Bruins. I said, Scott, did we put that in the book?

He said, no. I said, oh, my God, that's a good story, but I forgot all about it. So when you're trying to recall your life over and then your personal life and then your professional life over that period of time, five decades of coaching, you miss a few things. But you do at the same time unfold things that you say, oh, why did I do that?

Or I could have done that better. Or, oh, that was really good. So it's a process. It's a thorough process. And kudos to Scott because he just kept poking the bear. And, you know, asking for more and more. And I don't know if you read the introduction from Mest. That was incredible.

Oh, no, I've been through the book. Yeah, he was pretty generous. I liked the start of the book. To those I've pissed off or disappointed, I meant well. Who are the people that you're you're you think about when you made that comment well there's a lot of times uh my impatient self took over and I could have been more patient in the process and probably had the same results but it's a result-oriented business. And the immediacy of it to win every night is the expectation. When I first came in, I had a real strong feeling that I owed the owner something

because he hired me. And then you get into the process with the players, and the players owe you, or don't owe you, You owe them the guidance. But I felt we all owed the owner until you get into getting fired and negotiating and then how tough it is to deal sometimes with the owners. So I shifted my thinking a little bit, but there were times that I thought I could handle. And I'll give you a specific example, is Brett Hall. Brett Hall didn't want a coach. He was the first to mention it after we've had a nice relationship since.

He says, I didn't want any coach to tell me what to do. And that was obvious. But I said, Holly, you have to have a little bit of guidance and structure out there. He says, yeah, I know. So I could have, and from my teaching background, there's lots of, I think, students that I had either at university and or in high school where I taught that you had to be patient with them because they were different and the ones that were different uh you have to handle them in a certain way and you have to always be the adult

in the room and at times i was too emotional and got upset and frustrated with him and i could handle it probably better and got better results i didn't Jimmy Papp, and God bless Jimmy, was working with him. He said, Mike, give Holly a couple of days off, just as I throw him a bone. And I said, no, that's not right for the rest of the team, and I'd have to do it for everybody. He says, no, no, this guy's different. You should do that to get him more on your side.

And I didn't. But that's an example of people I could have handled better. And I'm not pleased with myself that I didn't. Well, you know, you handled enough people well that you worked in a lot of great places. You won a Stanley Cup. I believe you're the 15th most winning coach in NHL history. You know, obviously enough of those relationships and the coaching went well for you you know i hear you say um talking about preparing

players you knew the tough guys were going to prepare themselves is that how you viewed your role in terms of pushing guys was a preparation and making sure everyone was ready was that a priority of yours no the priority was winning yeah and how did priority of yours? No, the priority was winning. Yeah. And how did you get there? And today the league's got 32 teams. So how do you, and back in our day, I went through periods of time through expansion and so on, but how do you get your team to be different?

How do you get your team to separate themselves from the rest of the teams in the league? Because that's what it comes down to. You're all competitors. You're all trying to do the same thing. And some teams are more ready to win than others, and that's developmental and all that aspect. But how do you find a difference?

And the difference is in preparation every night. So my first start was 80-game schedule. So we had the youngest team in pro sport. We're not supposed to make the playoffs. Win the President's Trophy and go to the Stanley Cup Finals. And it was preparation. Just, you know, young kids, Peter Zezel, God bless Peter, Derek Smith, Taki, you mentioned.

Kids are 18, 19, 20 years old. The oldest forwards were 26, Poulin, Propp, and Kerr. How was the oldest player on the team with McCrim in 28 and 29? So that's just an example of I came into the league and said, to be in pro sport, the whole objective here is to win. And that's your profession. You've chosen a profession of competitive in a competitive sport to win the toughest trophy in sport.

And that's extremely difficult to do. Coaches, players at the National Hockey League all have that feeling of wanting to win, but, you know, your style. I want to talk to you about your style and how you push the envelope in those relationships that you've just mentioned moments ago, some moves or some things that you probably said or done you regretted um the one line in the book mike that kind of stood out for me was um predictably um unpredictable unpredictable yeah and like is that something that you you you learned through the process of teaching is that that something that is just subconsciously coming to fruition

the moment you start coaching these kids to say, you come to the rink, you won five games in a row, I don't care. I'm not satisfied or I'm going to keep you on your toes. It's a long season. For you to constantly be unpredictable, how did that begin? Good question. And at different levels, like I'll refer to Forest Hill Collegiate. I didn't coach those kids like I coach pros.

They're high school young men that enjoyed playing hockey in the Toronto Hockey League with the Toronto School Board, and they're students. But when you move in, and then I coach junior, and that's a little bit different, and then you coach major junior, and they're now getting closer to being pros. They want to be pros. And then you start, I coach the American League, they're pros. That's their profession. And now they're, at that level, trying to step up to the big league

and play in the NHL. When you get there, then you have to, I felt you had to provide an environment that would be something that was different every day. It was never complacent, never the same, could never be boring. You don't get people to respond. And the idea is to get better every day. And that's a tough assignment. That's a really tough assignment.

The one thing that you could do with the pros that you couldn't do with the students was threaten to trade them. You did that a lot. You did it in New York with Leach and Chelios. I know you, Brendan Shanahan in St. Louis, you threatened to trade him too. him to that i'll back that that little comment up a bit because again it goes back to all the circumstances in the environment you're in the ownership in st louis were really strapped for money and uh shanny hull and mcginnis were all making three million dollars at the time and the ownership committed you must trade all three of them i said you're going to have a mess here with your fan base they said we don't care we can't afford them

i said well i'm going to start with brendan because he's the youngest and he's going to be the easiest to trade i traded for pronger seven years younger so in the general manager's role it looked like i had a an issue with brendan i didn't have a issue with brendan as a player he he was one of our best players when we were in a vancouver series he broke his leg and that was the reason we didn't win the series but but they're vulnerable the players are you couldn't trade everybody so what what were you doing? Were you looking to see their reaction, how they handled the adversity of the threat? Like what is, what was the purpose behind it

besides dealing with ownership? That's an example. I didn't threaten them, but yeah, there were some others. The whole idea was to try to make them step up or buy in or adjust their game to fit more into the team that we were assembling and to play better. I mean, the structure, I don't know if you remember this, Nick, but with Brian, I said, Brian, this is the way we want to play. And you got the green light. You're an exceptional player.

You go when the situation arises. But when we first started, I don't know if you would realize this or know it, but he would always, not always, but often be ahead of the play in the neutral zone. I said, Brian, you got to wait, and then you can go. And you understand? Yeah. So he did it. I said, Brian, no got to wait and then you can go. And you understand? Yeah. So he did it. I said, Brian, no. Let me review it with you again. I reviewed it. Do you understand? Yeah. Does it again? I said, Brian, one more time. Do you understand? You've got the green light. You're our best defenseman, one of the best in the league, but you have to be more patient and wait. But he was never held back or maybe taught that before.

I don't know. So then I benched him and I said, when you're ready to play the way I'd like you to play, let me know. Do you remember what happened? Yeah. So during the first period of the next game, he didn't say anything the rest of the game. He just sat there.

Next game, I didn't put him in a situation where I wasn't going to play him. That'd be really silly. But he was dressed and finally messed it up and said, you better do what he tells you to do. We need you. He turned around and he said, I'm ready to play. I never talked to him again

after that. There's a good chance that would have ended ugly if it wasn't for mark messier absolutely absolutely so but i knew mark and i had a bond and relationship that i often he would come in i said can you look after this he said i absolutely will and as you know, a real strong leader with the group, but he wasn't afraid to go to any player and say, look, I'm going to assist you with your relationship with Mark, but you've got to adjust your game a little bit too.

We're joined by Mike Keenan in studio. The book is called Iron Mike, My Life Behind the Bench with Scott Morrison. In the book, you also talk about, again, the leadership of Mark Messier and specifically in the playoffs when he came to you and addressed the team's feelings where you were sympathetic enough to come and apologize to us. Is that the only time you've ever apologized to a team? No, I think I've done that before. But it was important at that time.

And I trusted Mark's relationship with me, obviously, but also with the team. He knew the needs of the team. And he had a finger on but also with the team. He knew the needs of the team, and he had a finger on the pulse of the team. So that's important. I mean, I go back to your father's team with the Islanders. I mean, Dennis Povman will tell you that Al Arbor was really tough on him. Yeah, my dad was tough on him too. Really, really tough on Dennis. Dennis, my dad was tough on him too. Really, really tough on Dennis.

Dennis is a superstar defenseman on the team, but I know Dennis well too because I was with him a lot when I was in Florida. He was a color guy. He's a strong-minded individual, and it would be tough to get him to adjust his game. But Al was really a lot tougher on Dennis than I was on any of our players. Can you share with Justin the meeting that you had with Glenn Healy when you called him in? And Glenn Healy was – we were about to play the Islanders.

This is humorous. I'll tee it up for you. And Glenn Healy was, we were about to play the Islanders. This is humorous. I'll tee it up for you. We were about to play the Islanders. And Glenn does a newspaper article in the Post talking about Al Arbor and what Al would do in certain games or situations. Yeah. So Iron Mike calls in Glenn Healy. And I'll let you take it from there.

So I said, so what's the difference between myself and Al? He said, Al's won four cups. You haven't won any. Yeah. Atta boy, Healy. Yeah. That changes it a little bit, I suppose. Get out.

And then Healy says, the next two words were, get out! Actually, that was witty on his behalf. He's sharp as you know it. I actually closed the door and started laughing. I do have questions, but you have such background with him, and I don't want to take it. If you have things you want to get to. All right, well, I just want to know, the uh the evolution of being a coach has changed you know the way that players are talked to handled whatever what are your thoughts on where it's gone well i could say

this that uh and this would be interesting for you to hear, but if you don't evolve with the generations, I coached in five different decades. Not pro, but I started with the high school teams, and if you don't make the adaptation, then you're out. I came to a point, I guess it's my own fault, but I could have coached 10 more years in the NHL for fun. But they lost confidence that I would be able to adjust. I proved that I could.

I went to a foreign country and won a championship where nobody could speak English. But you make that adjustment, and then there's also the impact. When I first went to Philadelphia, the entire team made $2 million. The highest-paid player was Mark Howell at $250,000. He's a superstar. But I did coach Wayne and Mark when they were making the most money in the league.

Wayne was probably near $7 million at the time. But they were a different generation. Walter Gretzky used to ride with me when I was coaching Canada Cups. The practice is, don't be treating my son differently. He's no different than the rest. I said, Mr. Gretzky, Wayne Gretzky is different. But the generations

change, and I'm going to make a comment that I've made in the last few days doing these tours that Paul Maurice, who's a friend of mine, drove the notion with the Florida Panthers and reverted back a little bit to old school.

And they were tough. They borderline stay under the penalty box, but it was a solution to win the Stanley Cup in today's game. And I'm going to be very interested to see how many teams now make that shift. And they come out first game and they smoke Boston. And Boston's supposed to be

a tough competitive team. It wasn't even close. So those generational changes, and the players, like the guys on the fourth line are making, what, 700,000 now? 900,000?

And then the big boys are making 11, 12 million? But it's a relationship. And you mentioned, I coached 50 Hall of Famers, and they were easy to coach, for the most part, easy to coach. What do they want? They want ice time. What do they they want a little bit of organization but they also want to do their own thing right you're talented you talk about uh evolving um are we in agreement that if if uh if you coach today and said did the things that you have during your career you wouldn't last five

minutes no i'd last three minutes yeah two minutes two minutes yeah two minutes yeah but would you have been smart enough to find different ways to to reach the players without going to the places that probably you've regretted on a few occasions now yeah for sure yeah i'm bright enough to figure that out yeah yeah it is um you know the superstars in particular managing them seems to be that's you got to keep those guys happy you know superstars where do you stand on treating people differently within your room because you'd mentioned Wayne Gretzky you didn't want to treat him differently or Brett Hall you initially didn't want to treat him differently do you think you have to a little bit well

my coaching style and and Nick can attest to this is that and and I said the superstars were easy. You know why they were easy? All they want to do is get out on the ice. Yeah, okay. So I'd play them the most to a point where sometimes I was criticized for overloading the stars and playing them so much. But if you play them like that, they'll respond. That's what they love. They want to get out in the ice and play

you know one of the things that you know being a part of a championship in in new york or just in the nhl is my appreciation for how hard it is to win mike and how many things have to come together and how the stars have to align in in certain situations and where that fine line was we had paul maurice talking about game seven where the puck is crossing the goal line one second and the next you know they go down and and score a goal and that's the difference of winning and losing and we felt that probably was bar and game lafayette's goal post against the Vancouver Canucks. But, man, is it hard. Well, Rangers now are 1-84 years.

The Maple Leafs, which is in this market, is currently facing 1967. So it is difficult, and particularly becoming more difficult, they call the word or make the comment of parity amongst the group, amongst the teams now. You have to, again, I make the comment and the criticism I have had in the past and through my career is that you have to find a difference amongst your team, amongst your players. You have to somehow separate yourself from the rest of the league.

And then everything after that still has to be aligned. So it's the most difficult trophy in sport, in my opinion, to win. And you won that and the Gagarin Cup. Only guy to ever do so. Actually, I think one other now is Bob Hartley. Oh, yeah? I think he won after I did.

Two guys ever. It's a difficult trophy to win. People don't understand. You know, obviously, you know, we're all maybe gone on now, but would you, in a perfect world, still like the challenge of finding ways to win today with today's players? Is it harder for coaches now? Because, again, the feeling is that, you know, generally as a society,

I think we are all probably a little bit more sensitive to a lot of things. And, you know, would you find it enjoyable to coach today under the circumstances and the things that you couldn't get away with? I would tell you this is a difference maker or an explanation for that. When I was young and watching hockey and there were six teams and then you had the, my truck, Scotty Bowman was no angel. I mean.

Oh, you ask his ex-players, right? Yeah, I mean, so when I was coaching, that comment was, well, these players are a little bit more sensitive than the old Montreal, Toronto Maple Leafs original six. Well, they were. Yeah. So it's ongoing evolution of now the next generation is a little bit more sensitive and so on.

So I bring up your father's coach, Al Arbor. He had to make adjustments along the way as well as the sensitivity, if you like, of the group becomes more apparent. But it also is a reflection of the leadership amongst the team and the group and also the people that they acquired. Al acquired these young players called the Sutters.

Well, they were old school. They're a new generation, but old school thinking. Yeah. From their family, from their father. So it depends on your upbringing as well. Speaking of family, in the book you talk about your dad and how he was supposed to come down for a week and ended up six weeks with you during their Stanley Cup run.

And how many of us had to babysit Ted a little bit in the dressing room. Oh, yeah. And I got to tell you, we really enjoyed having your dad around. And to the point where we're so comfortable with Ted, you know, Glenn Healy would say, how did you, how are you so nice and your dad's a dink? Yeah. Glenn Healy, right?

It's a bit of a good luck charm for us. Yeah. That was during the 94 run. He was actually in the room and all that around. That's great. One last one, too, is uh again you know a bit of an intimidating factor having you around in 94 but also with uh coley campbell and dick todd there and how if if mike wanted to go get advice on who would start a game uh mike didn't want Coley or Dick influencing each other on who said who should start first, so he had them write down on a piece of paper.

Oh, yeah. Yeah. It's an effective way to go about it. I don't know if you remember this. We did a commercial, but it was live. So I said, Coley, who do you want to start in goal tonight? He said, Healy. I said, Dick. Healy. I said, Cole, who do you want to start in goal tonight? He said, Healy. I said, Dick. Healy. I said, good.

Good. Richter started. He goes, it's unanimous. Richter started. That's great. Well, listen, we really appreciate your time and coming in. Good luck with the book. Thank you. I know you wrote a book. Yeah. It's an arduous task at times.

But it's been fascinating. I appreciate it. Some good, some bad, some ugly. But at the end of the day, it's your story. It's life in a nutshell. And that's it. Looking forward to it. Available now at all bookstores.

Iron Mike. My life behind the bench. Probably online, too. Oh, everywhere. Anywhere you get your bench. Probably online too. Oh, everywhere. Anywhere you get your book with Scott Morrison. It's a great read. Enjoy it. Okay, back after these words.

Thanks, Coach. Thank you, guys. Thank you. Appreciate it very much. The best Blue Jays show out there, period. Blair and Barker. Be sure to subscribe and download the show on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Final segment here on the Real Kipper and Bourne Show, this hour of Real Kipper and Bourne, brought to you by Bet365. So what did we have last night, guys? We had five NHL games. We had 36 goals. Yet three teams get shut out. That is truly bonkers. A bonkers scoreboard last night. Yesterday, Sam was talking about Rangers-Pittsburgh,

and I was like, Pittsburgh. Jet Pittsburgh. Sports stuff to bet on. Did the Winnipeg Jets just go was like, Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh. Sports stuff to bet on. Did the Winnipeg Jets just go, like, nobody talked about us? Like, we're making a statement. Isn't that to you about the Oilers? Oilers at home? That's a statement unto itself a little bit, isn't it?

I didn't. Buddy, listen, I all but wrote them off last year with their start. I'm not even going to think about going down that path. Right, but it is bizarre that two years in a row they come out and absolutely pee down their legs.

I thought... I was watching the game and the play-by-play guy, Jack Michaels, he's like, this isn't exactly a homecoming opponent here with the Jets.

It's like they had 110 points last year. Like, they, you know... And and I thought it's a good point. Like they are kind of slept on big time and they've got good players throughout their lineup. You know that they're going to be a six nothing. Sam, I'm talking about the Jets. I know the Jets are sure. Yeah.

The point is the Jets are a good team. Fine. They are good. It can be the best team in the league. Six nothing after you went to game seven of the cup final. Oh, they're stunk. When I saw Evan Bouchard handle the puck like a grenade and then give up the breakaway to Shifley,

I'm like, this could be a tough task. I wasn't expecting six Cobb. I made Skinner, should he get Vezna vote? I'm not saying all these predictions are up to no. They just had their way. What the hell was that? The coverage, the giveaways. What the hell was that?

Not locked in by any stretch of the imagination. Quickly, boys, we're going to do game time here before we get into more stuff, all right? So it's game time. It's game time. It's game time. God, Derek. It's game time.

Presenting my bet 365. Always cuts you off at the knees, eh? Visit the app for the latest odds and find out why it's game time. God, Derek. It's game time for the Bet365. Always cuts you off at the knees, eh? Visit the app for the latest odds and find out why it's ever ordinary. Bet365 must be 19 plus. Ontario only. Please play responsibly. He's doing it on purpose now because he knows it.

He just throws you off. He knows. Montreal Canadiens in Boston tonight. Montreal in the second half of back-to-back. Massive underdogs for the Boston Bruins. Plus 240. The Boston Bruins are minus 300. They obviously think the Boston Bruins are going to get back on track. show in the second half of back-to-back massive underdogs for the boston bruins plus 240 the boston bruins are minus 300 they obviously think the boston bruins are gonna get back on track after getting smoked mason lower eye sitting tonight you guys were killing him he was not on

air you didn't he was uh i know he was awful but group chat was alive with the talk of Mason Lowry. It's okay to say on one particular night a guy stunk. Guys have bad games. It's okay. There might have been something about clearing waivers in that group chat. I'm not sure what that was. Anyways, and the other one I wanted to bring up, the Utah Hockey Club plays their first road game of the season. They're going to play against Borny's Islanders.

They're plus 130 underdogs. The Islanders are minus 155 on home ice. What are you expecting from your islanders this year borny well patrick walk came in and made them a better hockey team no question so i would say you know they got into playoffs last year just over 90 some points give me a 95 six point team sorokin uh potential vesna candidate arzal has a career year. So very Islandery. Very Islandery. Do we not think make it hard on someone in the first round? This is a make or break for

Lou Lamorello holding on to that position. Buddy, the Engvall thing has sparked more Lamorello chat in my phone than anything ever has before. What was the weirdest contract in NHL history? I don't know.

That is the conclusion of every chat so far. No idea. You know what it is? You know pre-Moneyball, before they come in, they say they care about how a guy looks or whatever. It's like, Engvall, he's got a hot girlfriend. Like, he must have confidence. You know, that was the assessment on Engvall.

He's 6'5", He looks like Greek God. Give him money. Look at those shoulders. You're 7 years. Yeah. And the last one I'll bring up, my goal-scoring parlay. Tough one last night. The biggest odds, Jake DeBrus scored for me,

but Matthews couldn't put one in the net. Drysaddle couldn't put one in the net. Tonight, I'm going with Macklin Celebrini in his NHL debut on home ice against the St. Louis Blues. An anytime goal at plus 260. By the way, the Bruins being minus 300 is wild. Yeah. It's too much, but they're probably going to win.

Oh, they're winning. They're winning for sure. So, yeah. Give me a Macklin Celebrini anytime goal tonight against the St. Louis Blues. And that was game time. Presented by Bet365. Visit the app for the latest odds.

Find out why it's never ordinary at Bet365. Must be 19 plus. Ontario only. Please play responsibly. Last night, Vancouver and calgary what a game oh my god it would look like vancouver was in control a great start a 4-1 lead vanishes now i don't know know, a little more nervous with Demko nowhere to be found. What stinks is, like, if he plays, they win that game. Not that Shilov's is terrible or anything, but, like, he makes one more save. The things I noticed, it feels like Shilov's in the playoffs last year and early,

tracking the puck from the point seems like a bit of a buckaboo of his. Yeah. And I don't know, it just seems like a bit of a buckaboo his yeah i don't know it just seems like it they get through a lot on him not sure what it is about him but he just feels like they get through a lot on him uh love the tying goal by jt miller though we had a pretty in-depth conversation about goalies yesterday and you know she loves has had a great finish to his season last year, taking over for Demko. But there's something to be said about coming in with zero expectations

and now coming in and knowing that you have to be the man now. That is a game changer for some guys who make this their profession in the National Hockey League. Perfect example here in Toronto. Samsonov last year. Remember the year before it was Murray that was starting and Samsonov was kind of the guy that came in and saved him a bet. And then last year, Samsonov comes in as a starting goalie

and it wasn't good. I think last night was at least partially about Calgary, not just Vancouver. I don't know if you heard any interviews after the game, but Zari and Mantha and these guys were like... What a finish he had on the overtime. Yeah, I mean, great goal. Mantha, by the way, showed flashes of the guy that makes everyone salivate.

Great backhand, gentle hands at that size. You know, fights. Miller and Miller didn't get hit with one, but Mantha swung Gordie Howe Hattrick so those guys were like no one believes in us and the predictions think we're any good I think every guy believes in this room we're standing up for each other so Calgary got some fight left in them which I think is good Vancouver you know we're not going to say it's part of a greater trend it's one hockey game but disappointed to let that slip away I did manage manage to flip over and caught a little bit of the Rangers and Pittsburgh.

I'll be honest. I didn't see any of that. I saw the highlights. The building was empty with about, I don't know, half a period to go in the third. I don't know like this is a very proud sports market and i don't know how they're going to handle if pittsburgh might be as bad as they portrayed as early as game one how can they be bad like really bad like i just don't see it with that roster. I know. I won't even say it. Well, the goalie stunk last night. Yeah, but he's not a stinky goalie.

Which makes the defense look stinky. Right. Or is it the stinky defense that makes the goalie look stinky? Which one is it? I don't know, but I like some of their D-men. Like, you know, LeTang and Carlson and Ryan Graves I like. Like, they got some guys who can play D. Nice start for Geno.

Dash three. Was he? Yeah. Carlson dash two. Both those guys are bad they're in real trouble yeah at least if we're talking about the wash playing with o'connor washington where do you guys have washington compared to pit so similar i had them below pit you do i do i think i'll stick with it i I'm not going to change. They did make some. They have good additions.

Matt, they got Chikrin and Matt Roy on the back end really makes their defense better, for sure. They got PLD, so maybe Dubois gives them something. They got better, but let's not mince words. They were brutal last year. They were a minus 37 goal differential last season. The Capitals. And made the playoffs. And made the playoffs and looked like they deserved to, which is terrible.

So they're a lot better than minus 37. Maybe they're an even team. Don't like them. I think Pittsburgh's a little better. Did you guys mention Swayman getting the nod tonight? Didn't mention it yet, no. Then, too early? Are you okay with it? What's he been doing? What's he been doing? I don't know. He's been

University of Maine, hanging out. Is that right with it? What's he been doing? What's he been doing? I don't know. He's been University of Maine hanging out. Is that right? Maine? Yeah, in the cafeteria. I don't know. Just eating chicken tenders and lobster in Maine? What else do you do on campus? Well, I think if you're going to pay him, how much did he end up getting?

$8.25? Yeah, $66. You'd like him to be able to start the home opener against a much worse team a historic rival yeah you trust the guys are in shape he's obviously been taking shots yeah you need to him to start the game tonight but you'd hope a couple early don't go in they were brutal against florida so i actually think montreal is gonna take a lick in tonight back to back for the habs coming down off a high, beating Toronto. You know, Boston looking to get their pound of flesh

after a loss. I think this is a pretty lopsided affair. And the Habs were quite bad in long stretches of that game last night. Were turning the puck over. Yeah, so that could not be great for them. Did you see the clip of Linus Allmark, Kipper? I did not.

So they're playing tonight. I think he's a Linus. What did I say? I think you're Linus. What did I say? Not Linus. Linus Allmark, Kipper? I did not. So they're playing tonight. I think he's a Linus. Is it? What did I say? I think you're Linus. What did I say? Linus.

Linus? What do you think? He's got a blanket carrying around him? That's a dated reference, but I get it because I want it too. Is that Charlie Brown? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I got that.

Anyways. Wah, wah. Yeah. Anyways. He talked about the start of the season and what it's like at the start of the season in one of the weirdest clips I've ever heard. So would you like to. He talked about the start of the season and what it's like at the start of the season in one of the weirdest clips I've ever heard. So would you like to hear him talking

about the start of the season? Linus Allmark? Yes. Okay, let's hear it. Allmark clip on the start of the season. Well, we can wait for that and discuss. You built it up. I'm like... Oh, no Allmark clip. Okay. All discuss. You built it up. I'm like.

Oh, no Walmart clip. Okay. All right. That was my fault. Okay. Here's what he says. He says. Just put it in there.

Oh, you did? Yeah. You can. I can do it right now. I always see the beginning of the season as someone that's from the north and has been around a lot of farm animals. You know, when they let out cows in the beginning of spring that's kind of like how i see ourselves now we're just going to go out there jump a little

bit more jump in our steps and running around hopefully we can calm it down and you know use our brains and keep ourselves to the game plan and bring a 60-minute game you know what he means with the cows in the springtime in In the north? In the north. The way they jump around, but they need to rein it in? I hyped it up being weird. And I don't think I hyped it up enough by the look of Kit Mercer. That's a lot to digest. Can we have that one more time, Drake?

Yes. Yeah, one more time. I always see the beginning of the season as someone that's from the north. Okay. And has been around a lot of farm animals. You know, when they let out cows in the beginning of spring, that's kind of like how I see ourselves now.

We're just going to go out there, jump a little bit more, jump in our steps and running around. Hopefully we can calm it down and use our brains and keep ourselves to the game plan and bring a 60-minute game. The universe is like humongous. Thanks to Linus Brzezgalov for that diatribe.

It's really too bad the Leafs have the milk endorsement. They're Oreo now. Ottawa should have it. No, the Leafs are milk and Oreo. Which is really good. They're milk and cookies. So that was really weird. You know, I like it really good. They're milk and cookies. Yeah. So. That was really weird. You know, I like it, though.

Let it go, son. We're all farmers out there. You know the way cows react to the spring. The funny thing is to say that. Right. Like, you guys know what I mean. No, no, no. You're from the West.

You wouldn't have any idea what's going on here to start the season. Who's from the north? Yes. You know what I'm talking about, right? Ian Mendez is from the north. You got to know his guy. A big game for them tonight. You know, they're starting the season on home ice.

I got something for you. Who's coming to town? Brother Matthew and the Panthers. Yeah, what a tough start. They got the Sens, got Florida right out of the gate. So I'm going on the television after this. I'm actually on in 40 minutes in a suit. And one of the things I'm going to talk about is the Senators

and their starts and how they need better starts. 20 games into the season, going back five years. Yeah, it was over. Over. Over. Over. Here's their rank in the Eastern Conference the last five years. Yeah, it was over. Over. Like, over. Over. Here's their rank in the Eastern Conference the last five seasons.

15, after 20 games. 15th, 7th, 16th, 16th, 16th. Three straight years they've been dead last. The year they were 7th, that was the North Division year, COVID, weird year. So. Wow. Yeah.

That's 7th, so they were 7're seventh in the division so really they've been dead last for four straight years wow listen so you just need a better start between ottawa and buffalo detroit like there's a ton of pressure on these three clubs a lot of talk about every year you know this year the atlantic you know they kind of make that change so what has to happen then for me is jake sanderson needs to become a star um stutzla needs to take a step you need like the top end guys to be the top end guys on toronto and boston and florida like elite players to drive the bus for them so we'll see what kind of start they have tough draw getting getting Florida out of the gates,

but maybe that'll just make them a little bit sharper playing against such a good team to start. They could use a few more saves from Allmark too. It would probably help a lot. Allmark being good would really help. Like the North cows out of the barn. Yeah. That's what they need from him.

He needs him to be a barn cow. What else we got? We got Stamkos tonight. Oh, sorry. Just Booneenner out yeah most of the season now uh waddell mentioned that he may be able to return later in the season i think so yeah he i think he may be back later in the season but yeah the surgery or something yeah okay like man oh man i feel for this hockey club no kidding kidding. Mm-hmm. So it's, you know, they signed Van Riemsdyk

at the end of summer. He's in their top six. They signed LeBanc on a PTO. I think he's top six for them. You know, and then it's Chinnikov, Monaghan, Marchenko is their top line. Mm-hmm. Van Riemsdyk, Fantilli, LeBlanc,

and then Michael Pithia. Anyway, you guys know where I'm going from there. They should go get Phil Kessel. Phil Kessel is actually headlining a poker event. I know. I saw that. The World Poker Tour.

Yes. I mean, we tried the Phil Kessel thing last year. Who's we? The Canucks. Yeah. They brought him there. But that's a deeper team than what columbus is going through now he couldn't like he couldn't skate in the with the abbotsford guys like he was sucking wind after

10 minutes it'd be a long fitness there's a reason he's not i listen i love phil kessel one of my favorite leafs ever big Big Phil Kessel guy. Awesome career. All right. I just threw it out there because I know he was playing poker. He's the man. Love Phil. I just think it might be over for Phil. Yeah.

But to your point, Columbus is going to have to get creative about waiver claims, perhaps some transactions. One thing I will say, I really dislike when teams just kind of go, ah, we're hoping to get a high pick, so we're just going to play the year out. You still have to compete. You still have fans. You still have players on your team that are young who deserve teammates that can play.

I think they need to make some moves. They're still going to finish bottom five if they traded for five good players. Yeah. So I'd like to see them not just be complacent here um hurricanes uh hurricanes and lightning uh postponed it was the wishinsky tweet on that yeah wishinsky you give him credit great tweet hurricanes and lightning postponed due to hurricanes and lightning yeah so quite good uh see the roof of the trop, of the Tropicana Field? Yeah.

Oh, my God. Looked like paper mache on the field. Oh, my gosh. Ripped up. Yeah. Thoughts with everyone in Florida dealing with back-to-back hurricanes? Yes. And obviously the southeast in general there.

You want a quick read off of a giveaway? Rogers giveaway? Sure. I can do that for you you uh pay the bills sammy on the spot here pay the bills all right well i had no time to practice this in the mirror this is a cold read wasn't expecting to do it so here we go the nhl is back you can catch all the actions this season all season long on sportsnet sportsnet plus and the sportsnet radio network to celebrate the start this season all season long on Sportsnet, Sportsnet Plus, and the Sportsnet Radio Network. To celebrate the start of the new season, Rogers is giving away hundreds of prizes through a National Rogers Beyond the Seat contest, including the

grand prize of a chance to win any NHL crap, a chance to win a trip to any NHL game this season. To enter for your chance to win, head to rogers.com slash NHL. Contest closes on October 25th. You know why I did that? Because it was your birthday yesterday. You didn't mention it.

You didn't mention it to us. No, I know. You should just know that, Kimmy. Happy belated birthday, Sammy. Thanks, man. Young guy. Thanks. Thanks.

All right. Our thanks to Mike Keenan in studio. Nine games on tap. Find yours. And we're back tomorrow to discuss them all. Have a great night, everybody.