Real Kyper & Bourne - Will Vegas Take Control in Carolina?

Episode Date: June 4, 2026

Nick Kypreos, Gord Stellick and Sam McKee look ahead to Game 2 between the Hurricanes and Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Final. To help tee it up, the Athletic's Jesse Granger joins the show (5:31) to share his impressions of Game 1, John Tortorella's impact, how William Karlsson's return balances Vegas' lineup, and the team's confidence in Carter Hart. Then, Nick, Gord and Sam react to Dylan Larkin requesting a trade from the Red Wings. Finally, Canucks Central's Satiar Shah stops by (34:25) to discuss Manny Malhotra being hired as head coach in Vancouver, the organisation's process, what he brings to the bench, whether the hire pushes them to pick Caleb Malhota in the draft, and the pressure on the Sedin twins.  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.

Gearing up for game two of the Stanley Cup final. Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes. Resuming battle tonight. 8 p.m. on Sportsnet. It's the real Kipper and Bourne show. We are live on Sportsnet 590, The Fan, Sportsnet 960 and 650 in Calgary and Vancouver. Sportsnet 360, Sportsnet Plus, YouTube, you name it. We're on it.

Nick Kiprios in for Justin Bourne. The wonderful. the talented put your hands together for the lovely Gord Stelick. Kipper, Sammy. And Sammy

McKee Frank the Tank Derek Brande what more do you want Gord in the next jam-packed hour than that? There's not a single thing I could ask for.

I've got it all. I've got it all. This hour of Real Kipper and Bourne brought to by Bet 365. All right, Gordo. Expertise time. Okay. Does Carolina find a way to get back into this thing?

In a few minutes, let me just tee up Jesse Granger from the athletic. Golden Knights coverage does a terrific job. He'll join us as well. And Sat Shaw will join us in about 35 minutes because a lot of news out in Vancouver, led by Manny Mahaltra. But let's tee up game one, Gord. Carolina off to that fantastic start, which had people thinking this is their year,

they're destined. We saw this shift in the second period of Vegas. What can we expect in the first five or ten minutes? Well, there's no question. It is rather dire if you go down O and two. But you're talking to a team that's only lost. They've only lost two playoff games so far. So you put that in context.

But it is similar to the challenge that they realize, against Montreal when they came back. And I think, I don't know what you think, Kippey, but Rod Brindamore, it's kind of like Connor McDavid's put the Edmonton orders on notice in a big picture. When Rod Brindamore got asked the question about the line, the supposed big line,

the line that gets the most minutes, Ahos, Fetchinochoff and company, and Jarvis kind of said, yeah, they got to start doing something. And I got to think he's putting them on notice and everyone to notice that he's not going to wait long. You know, maybe he'll try to get Nick Eilers on that line or something. Like they got to get secondary scoring from what's supposed to be their first line to go along with the Stankovine line.

So when I say it's that simple, I don't mean it that way. But I think that's the one big thing that Carolina will look to address tonight in game number two. Maybe you go. Oh, yeah, we go. Absolute must win. There's just no way around it. You can't lose two. Go down.

I mean, it's not obviously over, but it just feels like going back to that building. Have to win. And their top guys have to be better, like you said. And he's called him out multiple times. But you can only do it so many times. It's not working. I don't know what you do as a coach, but you just hope that your top line guys can come through.

Should be a good game tonight. Really good team, Carolina, up against the wall. You know, I'm looking forward to it. Sebastian Ajo is their best player for the most part, right? At least he's the highest paid. Okay, we can go down to that blue line and certainly talk about who's more important with the lakes of a slaving.

But that guy is the guy. He's the face. He's the highest paid at almost $10 million. he's locked in for probably another five, six years on a contract. Feshnakov doesn't appear to be going anywhere with his contract still up around 28, 29. But we did Gord experience it for many years in Toronto when the big boys don't go. They hear it. And I don't know where you are on Montreal, but there's no question that Suzuki and

Coffield felt the noise when it wasn't going well. But they may be in the best market for the star players having an off-season or an off-series here so far. Well, no comp. You're right. You're right. First of all, you're right. These guys are locked up long-term.

They got a good core there. And the thing is, when they lost to Montreal, it came up that graphic. Oh, they're one in 17 in their last 18 championship series game. They've been swept four-nothing twice. They lost four-one. once. Then all of a sudden you got that pressure again. And these are the guys that are wearing it. It's not like saying the Leafs haven't won a cup since 1967.

The grandparents of these guys don't wear it. These guys were wearing it. So all of a sudden they got over that hurdle, Kippy and Sammy. And the next one now, you're one step further down. And yeah, this is great. You've gone to the final. You got over that hurdle. But why you hadn't gone over the hurdle in previous years,

those guys aren't doing it again. It was the new guys, Stan Kovin and Taylor Hall and Blake that were doing it. And the other thing I will say quickly about Montreal, Cole Caulfield maybe fell on a sword a little bit too much, but there wasn't enough of that with the Toronto Maple Leafs, playoff disappointment after playoff disappointment, particularly when they blew the 3-1 series to the Leafs, and they talked about the process,

and we're just going to go back at it again. No, no, like that's where you could have had more of, this is unacceptable, this is untenable, we can't let this happen again. Covering the Stanley Cup playoffs, let's welcome in Jesse Granger, Golden Knights coverage for the athletic NHL Network, Vegas correspondent.

Jesse, how are you? I'm doing well. How are you guys? I don't think we have... Do we have sound? I'm doing well. How are you guys? Oh, there you are. Now, we're doing that. We're doing well now. We got a bit of a return, Sammy.

Yeah, maybe we'll just reconnect here. Hold on a second. Hold on a second. Yeah, but I don't know. I had trouble with the sound. Are we okay now? Okay. Let's try it again. All right. Okay. Okay.

Well, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we're kind of, what did you bring us? I don't know. I didn't hate. Well, you never had this problem where we had. Oh, what's, oh, is he there or is he not there? Yeah, never a problem with Justin Bourne. Oh, he's there. He's here.

We have him. All right, Jesse. Good thing we got you back because I was about to blame Gord Stellick for all of this. Yeah, we're just, we're just fighting through the traffic like the goalies in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Exactly. Exactly. So just your quick thoughts, Jesse, of, of Vegas certainly has the reputation for never being out of a game and their, you know,

their comebacks in their third period. But just the surprise in the first few minutes of Carolina getting out of the gate and maybe eventually it catching up to Vegas. But what did you get out of game one that that leads us into game two tonight? Yeah, I mean, that's what Carolina does. They will jump all over you with their forecheck early in the game. And they certainly did against the golden nights. This Golden Knights team has come back so many times this year.

I've said the stat before it's they trailed more than any team in the league except for the Vancouver Canucks this season. And the Canucks and all those other teams at the top of that list didn't make the playoffs. And the Golden Knights are using that experience. They have gotten comfortable playing from behind. And I think it's not just the mentality of it, but they know how to play from behind. I talked to Mark Stone yesterday and he said, it's hard. Like if the human nature is to try to make plays, to try to take chances to get back into it. a game and you've got to fight that urge and the Golden Knights have done it so much that they've

gotten good at fighting that urge. And I think that they also just have a really high IQ team that they can process in real time in a game. What is costing them and how to turn it around. And you watch early in that game, both of the early goals by Eilers were preceding them were risky lateral passes across the guys kind of hope place. That's what players like to call them. and they both ended up in the back of their net really quickly. There's a TV timeout. John Tortoella calls him over. He didn't have any major changes to make.

He said, just play our game. Let's not take chances. Let's chip the puck over their defensemen if we need to. And they just stuck with that. And they came back again. I mean, this team just keeps doing this. And it is really simple. You just have to keep playing your game and not let that score dictate you taking more chances than you need to.

Because if you do that, you can get buried real quick in a hurry. So, Jesse, from afar, like tell me, close to the team. You mentioned that style of play, which really wasn't that evident for the first, what, 60 games. And it's kind of like Connor McDavid did as a favor with the pillow fight division. As we said, wow, look at the central division with Minnesota, Dallas,

Colorado. It seemed though once Vegas turned it on, they got that swagger back that you could only have if you got Stanley Cup rings. Like it just seems a whole different aura around them. Do you sense that being up close? Yeah, definitely.

And you make a good point that they didn't do this all season. It's very odd because I can remember, I can't tell you how many times they lost a game and fell behind early. And Bruce Cassidy would come to the press conference. And he's saying these same things. He's saying, we've got to take what they're given us. If there's no space to make plays at the blue line, we've got to chip it behind him and we've got to forecheck the puck back. And for whatever reason, that message was not getting through. They were not able to do that. John Tortorella comes in. He is more of a motivational guy. He's not as X's and O's as Cassidy. And I think that that did help them.

I think that maybe they were thinking a little bit too much. John Tortorella comes in and tells them how good they are. And telling players they're good is one thing. But a coach with the reputation and the cachet that John Tortorella has, I think he's a little more believable. He comes in. He tells them, hey, you guys are a good team. We're going to play. If we're going to make mistakes, we're going to do it on the front foot.

We're going to make aggressive mistakes. We're going to play on instinct. And all these things that I think Cassidy had been setting up and laying the groundwork for, I think Tortorella came in. And honestly, it sounds weird, but I think Bruce Cassidy deserves a lot of credit for the success they've had because I do think he laid the blueprint for this team. And they just needed a different voice to come in and snap them out of the funk that they were in. And John Torturella did. And now we're seeing the best of this team.

And like you said, the experience in the Stanley Cup playoffs, the experience of winning a cup, a huge group of these players have been to have won at all. A few of them, Braden McNabb, William Carlson, Shea, Theodore have been, this is their third. third Stanley Cup final in the last nine years. They've got all the confidence in the world right now, regardless of the score on the scoreboard. We've got the NBA final going on as well. And the feeling is that one guy can control that championship a lot more than one guy could for a Stanley Cup team.

And I'm looking at Vegas right now. And you just mentioned the coaching change. But William Carlson, for me, has completely revamped this look. and how it's now turned into three really good lines and not to take anything away from Dowd right now and what they did in game one. But William Carlson comes in now, and all four lines, if I'm not mistaken,

contributed in game one. And I'm looking at Mark Stone and Hurdle on the third line, and I'm going, man, that's tough on Carolina right now. But your thoughts on Carlson and what he's really done. Yep, you nailed it. He's a huge piece to this team. He is one of the best shutdown centers in all of the NHL, and he's been doing it for years. I mean, you go back to that 23 cup run.

He was shutting down Connor McDavid. There was a point in that series where the Oilers were actively, like, avoiding that matchup, which it's hard to believe you would ever avoid any matchup with a player as good as Connor McDavid. But that speaks to how good William Carlson is defensively. He is an elite skater. He, his instincts for where to be defensively are, as good as it gets. He's never on the wrong side of the puck.

He can make big plays when you give him the chance. He obviously scored a huge goal the other night in game one. He just does everything. And then like you said, not only do they add his talent, but it also kind of shuffles the deck and puts everyone else in a better spot. You see the ripple effect of now Tomas Hurtle and Mark Stoner on the third line, and that's a tough matchup. It allows Mitch Marner to go back to the wing.

He had been playing center. And he played it well, but it's also a position he hadn't played in the NN. in his entire life. So you get him back onto the wing. Jack Eichols, obviously manning that line up top. It allowed Vegas to spread the wealth a little bit more and not rely so much on because for a while there when Carlson was out, they were basically loading everyone up on that top line. And that line was doing well, but they weren't able to roll the four lines the way that they like to, the way any team likes to. So yeah, Carlson has been huge. He's big on the penalty kill. He helps their second power play unit. Hard to say enough good things about what William Carlson does for this team.

So when John Tortoella got hired, Jesse, first thing everyone said, can John Tortarella play goal? Okay? And because that was the biggest problem. Now, the Carter Hart story, if Bruce Cassidy was there, would he have had the same confidence in Carter Hart as say John Tortorella did? Would he have been able to a chance to take it or run with it? And really, was this the first time Carter Hart had his game back and sink and was healthy all year? Yeah, it's really hard to answer that hypothetical because Carter Hart was hurt when Bruce

Cassidy was here. Like I've seen people say like why didn't Bruce Cassidy play Carter Hart more? He couldn't. He was injured. And when Carter Hart first came back after the league ruled him eligible to play on December 1st, he wasn't great out of the gates. Like he had some big saves because he's an athletic goalie who can skate and he made some big stops.

But his numbers were not good. In fact, his numbers were worse than Aidan Hill and Akira Schmidt when he first came in. Then pretty quickly he suffers a serious lower body injury that held him out for months. And he was hurt actually when Torterella got the job. Aiden Hill started the first couple of games. Now, what I will say is Bruce Cassidy had a loyalty to Aden Hill because they want a cup together. When a goalie, and it wasn't just like Aden Hill was on that team, he was a big

reason they won that cup. He was third in Kahn Smythe voting that year and deservedly so. He was amazing. So when a coach has a goalie do something like that for him, you look at Jordan Bennington in the Blues, like they believe in him, coaches are going to stick with the guy who won the cup. Would Bruce Cassidy have gone to Carter Hart? I don't know. I think there's a chance he would have because Hill was not having his best season. But then you bring in a coach in Tortorella who has the opposite bias. He coached Carter Hart in Philadelphia and he had no problems.

He came in and the moment Carter Hart was healthy. Not only did he play him, it wasn't like he alternated the two and said, let's, let's see who is the hot guy going to the playoffs. No, he came in and gave Carter Hart the starting job immediately. And we saw a different version of Carter Hart. And I think it took all the way until the second round of the playoffs for him to really find his game. Obviously, he hadn't played hockey in a long time. He gets hurt.

There's going to take some runway for him to get his timing back. And I thought that late in the regular season, he showed some flashes. He went six and O down the stretch, but I didn't think he was particularly sharp himself. In that first round series against Utah, it started a little rough. They lost two of the first three games. One of them up in Utah, I thought, was on Carter Hart. He let in a few softies and they only gave up like, I think, 12 shots that night and they lost. but then you start to see it.

As that series goes on, he starts to find his game against Anaheim. He was lights out against Colorado. He was great. He was okay, game one against Carolina. It was a rough start. I thought he could have had a couple of those. But then he makes that huge save on Jarvis right before Hurdell's game winner. So I think it has taken some time for him to find his game,

which isn't really surprising considering how much time he missed. And the fact that that position is just all about timing. You're watching and listening to Jesse Granger, covers the Golden Knights for the athletic game two set tonight on Sportsnet 8 p.m. As far as what it says on paper in terms of the size and how heavy each team is, I don't know how it really plays on paper. For me, at least to the naked eye, it looks like there's a size advantage for Vegas. Is it playing out that way for you?

Does it appear that Vegas is the bigger, heavier team from top to bottom than Carolina for you? Yeah, they are numbers wise. Obviously, like, I think they're the tallest team in the league. They're, I think, the third heaviest team in the league. And they play that way. Vegas likes to lean on teams. Taylor Hall on the off day yesterday, I thought it was interesting. He said they're big and they're bigger than anyone we've played.

So they clearly noticed it in game one. But what's interesting is I thought Carolina was maybe the more physical team. In terms of the big hits in the game, I thought most of them, the hurricanes were the ones dealing out those hits. So it'll be interesting. We've seen Vegas get stronger as series have gone on. Like I remember the Utah series early on, Logan Cooley and Dylan Gunther were flying all over the place. By the end of that series, they were zapped. Vegas had leaned on them, grinded them down, and slowed them down and took them out.

The same thing happened with Anaheim. The first two games in Vegas, the ducks looked like they were going to skate circles around this team. And it wasn't the case by the end of the series, the avalanche. it was obviously over quicker, but it will be interesting. I think Carolina is a deeper, more, like just more evenly based team that can maybe hang with Vegas if the series goes deep better than those other teams could. So it'll be interesting. I can see why Vegas, they do look bigger.

They have worn teams down. But I also think Carolina can play physically. And I don't think that they're just going to get grinded down maybe the way Utah and Anaheim did. Okay, Jesse, I got a bit of a different question. So there's 32 teams in the NHL. Vegas makes a Stanley Cup final in year one. 31 of 32 teams have had to tell their fans sometime. We're rebuilding, we're retooling, we're developing through the draft, whatever may be.

How are the Vegas populists going to take it when maybe 10 years down the road or something? They are told that and have to sit back and endure it. Yeah, I mean, it's something we don't know the answer to that. They've never had to go through it. I will say that they've got some really passionate, diehard fans. The fact that they've had success right off the bat has bought them a lot of goodwill with the city of Las Vegas. This city also has a special connection to this team because they were the first team. Like I lived in Vegas for a long time before the Golden Knights were here, and there were so many people that have lived in Las Vegas their whole life that just wanted something to represent them that wasn't the Strip.

Like it's the most famous city in the world, one of the most famous cities in the world. Everybody knows Las Vegas. But the only thing that really represented the city was the strip. And as a local, that doesn't really feel like it represents you. You don't have anything like a shirt that you can wear when you go to another city to show, to rep your town. I think there is a massive, massive part of this that because the Golden Knights were first, they were the first team that ever represented this city in a major pro sports league.

That has bought them a lot of goodwill. The fact that they've won a bunch has built this fan base and built it strong. However, it's going to be interesting to see how things go when they do go through some lean years. It's sports. They with the salary cap era, they will. will undoubtedly go through some lean years. And it'll be interesting to see how strong the fan base stays.

We've seen fan bases in Buffalo that are selling out the building and it's packed every night, no matter how bad the team was. I don't know if that'll be the case in Vegas. We'll just have to see. Yeah, I don't think it's a problem anytime soon for this hockey club. That's for sure. Jesse, got great stuff. Enjoy game two.

Really appreciate you stopping by. Thanks for doing this. Thanks for having me, guys. Jesse Granger, the athletic. So while you guys are talking about that, some non-finals-related news, Elliot Friedman sent out of tweet reporting that Dylan Larkin has requested a trade out of Detroit,

which is pretty big news. Yeah, he wasn't happy. They didn't do enough last year around the trade deadline. And then this year, he and his cohorts didn't do it. Boy, is it a mess, Kippy in Detroit? I'm not saying it is, or is it, how much do you just go back at it yet one more time with some tinkering?

I think they're young enough where we still see a lot of upside because when we talk about, you know, in this market too, when we talk about the Leafs challenges next year, we put them in there with Montreal, right, and Ottawa as up-in-coming teams. And this is their time now.

This is their future. They've went through some terrible times, now and now they're going to reap the rewards with some of these young kids and they're there but like this certainly isn't helping and I'll tell you another thing too is if Larkin if I'm not mistaken has a no move he is in year four of a eight year contract that pays him 8.7 and I'm just quickly trying to find if it is a if he has the no move clause on I'm sure he does let me just quickly find it here continue yeah so if,

if, if, if, if that's the case and he picks his spot, hey,

Stevie Y, good luck with that one. Get nothing. Good luck. Because that's, that's going to be the case for

Edmonton. It's going to be the case for Toronto. It's going to be the case for Ottawa and let's throw Detroit in the mix too. Go,

go trade the face of your, your, your franchise, your captain, and try to get some value back when he's, picking the spot in the team that knows where he's picking can now sit there and go like you well

full no move this year and next modify no trade the next year after that or 10 teams so basically no you know so there it's not it's not so much we're we're talking about austin matthews and connor mcdiv and other situations but this is kind of the quinn hughes situation the guys now are saying whoa like gillan larkins saying i didn't sign up for this but i signed long term you know I didn't sign for not making the playoffs every year, kind of like Quinn Hughes said in Vancouver. So all of a sudden you're saying, because it's funny, we were talking NBA earlier

and they've done that for a while, players trying to dictate control where they go, that, no, I want to go somewhere. Now, in the old days, Kippey, guys would say, screw you, you're going to sit, and you knew the team had way more leverage about certain things. Now, much like Jim Rutherford and Patrick Alvin

did in Vancouver about, okay, what's the best we can get back? You know, Matthew Kachuk was a little different because he wasn't the one that instigated it, but when asked, he just said, no, no, you're going to have to try to move me. And, you know, even the Randonin situation and all that, you know, came into place. So this one we weren't maybe expecting, but it kind of shows what the climate is right now for the lead players who just said, you know, some, I don't like it and I don't want to be here

anymore. You look great to center, two C behind Austin Matthews. It looked pretty good. Well, look great in a lot of places, right? Yeah. He's not coming to John. like Vegas won't even give Bruce Cassidy, who doesn't even play the time of day to talk to Edmonton.

And where's Detroit going to move him to the same division? Like, no way. No way. No shot. No shot. You keep, I mean, you think of way back when Scott Stevens did not want to go to New Jersey. Remember when he went his compensation from St. Louis? Right?

Yeah. And the devil's Lillamorello did not feel any pressure to trade up. and he ended his career, a consummate New Jersey devil, Stanley Cups and all that. Like nowadays, would a team have a, say, screw you're going to play. I don't care if you're a malcontent. You're a pro.

You're going to play. We believe in you that you're going to play. And maybe, unless we get the right price. If we don't get the right price trade-wise, that all of a sudden that throws it back instead of the teams, the few teams that could acquire him having the leverage, you're saying no, we're unwilling, if a price is not met,

we're going to keep him, I don't care what he thinks. I think the first team that jumps out to me just because I guess he's American and the connection is, but with the wild, who are screaming out for centers. Three quarters of the league screaming out for centers.

But they're, I mean, they beat Dallas. They were, I mean, without the injuries, they would have been a lot closer with Colorado. The connections with the Hughes, the connections with Garrett, Garon, that's just a team, too. I mean, don't jump out to that. You got to be careful if you also keep letting

everybody in your team to do that, that you're also saying, look, eight-year contract, if it's a Yersperry Kocken-Yemi contract, we're stuck, we've got to pay your money like he has with Carolina, versus if you don't like it, we're always going to let you out on your terms. There's another one. Obviously, Sammy isn't buying that. He's already trying to put Dylan Larkin in another jersey. We're doing sports talk radio here.

A lot of people are. I request to trade. A lot of, I know, I know it. And if you think, you know, if you think you're getting proper value, you back, then, you know, you can look at it. If you're not, if you choose to understand you're dealing from a weaker hand, if there's only one team he'll go to. I mean, anyway, interesting.

Crazy, though, because he's Michigan guy from Michigan, played for the University of Michigan, captain of the Red Wings. Like, that's got to be one that sings. L.A. is one of the finest, right? And with sources and in this information. And, you know, that's his job to do that. but this leaking out does no favors for Detroit as an organization or Dylan Larkin as a certain individual either.

This stuff somehow, some way, the clubs and their players and the agents and whoever's involved in this small, small kind of storyline, you got to keep that under wraps. You can't let it leak. does nobody any good. It just pisses off a fan base. They're going to turn on Larkin now for bailing. They're going to turn on Stevie Y for not providing him more help over the last few trade deadlines.

You're right. It does nothing for anyone. It does nothing for anyone. It makes players look like they're spoiled rotten brats. And the Leafs might have a little bit of that going on with Austin Matthews. I've never heard a group. of local fans here starting to turn on Austin Matthews

and like who is he to demand I need this, this and this before I tell you that I want to stick around it's not good for anybody Well look at what Kelly Krimman said about Edmonton leaking about Bruce Cassidy so whether they would give permission or not Vegas

obviously they're pissed about the leak the ideal situation Cutter Goce in Philadelphia nobody knew anything about it right whatever behind the scenes and all of a sudden he's traded to Anaheim for Jamie Drysdale and a second round pick. So then you find out, yeah, there was an undercurrent and whatever, but nobody said a word

and they made a deal. Here, and it's weird, because Detroit is a gold standard ownership franchise has historically. And Stevie Iversman in that, he's pretty close to the vest. But, Kippa, you're right. This is one, if it's leaked by the team, it vilifies the player. It's like, screw him. The fans will come after him now. And actually, if we trade them, they'll go good riddance.

so we can, you know, we can sell a trade to them, whatever. It doesn't, it doesn't help things at all to get it done professionally and the right way. Game time? Game time. It's game time presented by Bet365, an official partner of the NHL, most of 19 plus. And terror only, please play responsibly. Obviously, huge game. The Stanley Cup final tonight, game two.

Bet 365 thinks that Carolina should be big favorites tonight, minus 170 tonight, plus 145 for the Vegas Golden Knights on the other side of the money. money line. Big favorite, as you'd imagine, must win game tonight for the, maybe even go as far as as to say it's a can't lose game for the Carolina Hurricanes tonight. And looking quickly at my beloved Toronto Blue Jays, who, boy, things are getting ugly in a hurry. They are going up against Chris sale tonight. They are sending Mason Flew Hardy to the mound as an opener. They are plus 220 on the money line, minus 270 for the Atlanta Braves and the other side of it. Getting a little bit scary.

No. Getting late early. It's not. It is. Look at who they're clumped in with. They can lose six in a row and they're still a half a game out of a wild card spot. They all stink. They got to get hot eventually.

Somebody's going to get hot. So they got to do it. But God. I got to tell you, Alex Anthopoulos, here's a big one. He sold his house. He lived four dart, four down from us. He's headed the house forever. I know.

And he rented it. And everyone kept thinking that means he's back. That's honestly, the neighborhood. We all loved them. Of course. Our daughter was babysitter for anyway. So finally, he sold the house. He kept renting out of people.

And given what the Jays did last year, people aren't talking in that way anymore. What was the name of the thing, the pot that you? The cassadola. Yeah, easy for you to say, buddy. Easy for you to say. So, like, your daughter charged them, what, like $60 an hour to babysit? No, no, they were wonderful to Jess.

And she really wasn't a baby. I would have charged them for sure, 60. wasn't a baseball fan or son Justin loved that Anthopoulos lived four down. Yeah. And I remember once he got Jesse tickets to a game and which she enjoyed and then said, who's your favorite player? And she said, Josh Dickinson. So she kind of had the wrong, you know, whatever.

Anyway, whatever, the right idea, but the actual wrong names. We enjoyed having them as neighbors. Put it that way. That was game time. Instead of I bet 365, an official partner of the NHL must be 19 plus. Ontario only, please play responsibly. And as a reminder, this hour of Real Kipper and Born is, brought to you by Bet365.

Okay, let's take a quick breather. When we return, Sat Shaw, host of Canucks Central. We'll help us understand a little bit more about Mani Mahaltra and the future of the Vancouver Canucks. And could they be in a position, Gord, to draft his son? Does that make any sense at all? We'll ask Sat. Shaw after the break, it's real more real Kipper and born. Can I speak today?

You're doing a great job. Oh, great job. You do a really good job every day. You're allowed a little slip up here. I think I miss Justin. You were very clear when you admonishing me for the technical glitch with Jesse Greer. You can say it gets an holo'n up pretty well. Back after these words.

Diving deep into Leaps, Raptors, Js, and NFL. The Jady Bunk is podcast. Subscribe and download the show on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back in studio, Nick Hipprio. in for Justin Bourne, our very own Gord Stelich, Sammy McKee. What do you have for us there, Sammy Boy?

Time now, oh, I should get my microphone right here. Holy, really high operation here. But time now, right, what's what are you going to say? You kind of know when the commercial's about to end. I wasn't paying attention at all. I heard the music and I saw you talk. There's only room for one person not paying attention.

I wasn't paid it. That role was taken, right? Yeah, yes. It's time now for the Accura performance matchup, the 26 Accura MDX, precisely premium. Stanley Cup final, game two, Vegas Golden Knights, have a 1-0 series lead over the Carolina Hurricanes, gets underway tonight 8 p.m. on sports set and CBC, pre-game at 7.30.

A few things about the game tonight. This one to me jumps out. A team that take a 2-0 series lead in a best of 7 Stanley Cup final, have an all-time record of 50 and 5, including 10 and 2 when 3rding on the road. So that is, I mean, I know, historical stats like that don't always matter, but a 90, almost 91% winning percentage is a crazy number.

It's a must win. Must. Yeah. That's my two cents. Must. I know you got more. I like when John Tortorella would not delve into history. Mike Seisberger didn't even get his question out, right?

I'm not going to look back at history. You're going to talk about the president. I listened to Torts today because I was, you know, grabbed some clips of the show, listened to Brindamore and he was, he was okay. Boy, Torts was short Torts today. I think he would did two minutes and 30 seconds. They asked him, what did they think of Carter Hart? He said, he said, and that's all he said.

So he was in a short mood tonight. Enough to not cost a draft. Is that our Torts Clip One? Yeah, you want to hear it? Yeah. Okay. Derek, Derek, let's play the Torts Clip One just here. What did you think of Carter Hearts game the other night?

Made key saves at key times. Is that Bill Belichick? How does he, how do they ever want, how did they ever want him on TV? Well, because he's good. I mean, when he sits down and he has like, you know, when he's, when they've won a game or like he's in a good mood, he's very funny, he's affable, he's a good talker, but when he's not in a good mood, he's giving you zilch.

So. Why would he be in a bad mood? I guess that's what I'm saying, Brooks. That's perfect timing for that. Jack Eichol, who has 19 points, can record 20 or more points in a single playoff team, a single playoff year for the second time in his career after previously doing so in 2023.

The only U.S.-born players with his many 20-point post seasons are Mike Madano, Patrick Kane, Kachuk, Craig Janney, Kevin Stevens, Phil Kessel, and Jake Gensel. So some of the best Americans of all time right there. Anyways, that was, let me, my stassar here. That was the Accura performance matchup, the 2026 Accura MDX

precisely premium. All right, Sammy, as promised Sat Shaw now joins us, host of Canucks Central, Canucks game host for Sportsnet, tons of news out there, all around the Vancouver Canucks naming their head coach. Let's welcome him in, Sat, how are you?

Are you guys aware out west that there's a Stanley Cup final right now between Carolina and Vegas or all Canucks all the time? I thought it was over, honestly. We were focused on Mani Malhotra being the next GM, maybe the worst kept secret. It took almost two weeks since the Siddins and our day were hired

before he was named the head coach. And we're all anticipating this was going to happen. But it's been kind of funny because the Canucks season obviously ended, you know, at the end of the regular season. And usually when that happens, there's a lot of time to kill by the time you get to the draft, you get to free agency. and the internal conversations really pick up. But because the Canucks had the GM search

because they had the coach search, they've had this going on. We've had like a month and a half of extra content. And we're slightly aware about the hockey, but it's been a lot about trying to figure out what's next for Vancouver. So we've seen a couple of markets in one in Toronto where you get leaks of who's being interviewed, who's not.

It's for some organizations, it's real important to show the process. and we're leaving no stone unturned here and we're going to throw everything out there to show you we're really busy. Did that happen with that coaching title there before Manny got it? I do think there was some level of due diligence done.

I do believe that they were curating at least a list of candidates that they would look at and perhaps talk to a bit more extensively if things with Manny fell apart. But I don't think unlike the GM search where they brought in a number of different candidates. It was prolonged. It was exhaustive. People had numerous interviews before they got to their final list.

And at the very end, it was between Evan Gold and Ryan Johnson. Whereas with this coaching high decision, I do believe, again, they had some level of talks. I don't think they actually interviewed anybody officially over this process. But I do believe they may have reached out and said, hey, we might be talking to you down the road, potentially if things get to the point where Mani's not going to be the coach or something along those lines. So it was very different, the approaches they had with trying to find the GM and find the head coach. You can look at it a little cynically and say, well, RJ was in your backyard. You did a prolonged search and you'd land on the same guy. Manny's in your backyard. We all assumed

he would get the job, but why not have the search? But I think it comes down to one simple fact that when you hired RJ and the Siddins and they already had an existing relationship with Manny and they worked with him so closely in Abbotsford that they were very comfortable with that being the quartet essentially coming forward and then being the team together. So I think that this was already kind of determined within their own minds and within this process. Even before Manny got, before R.J. got the job, I'm sure he knew that if he got the GM job, he was going to bring Manny on board.

And I think the Siddings were very much on board with that as well. So the last couple weeks was simply about we're going to take our time to figure out exactly what's happening with the entire front office. RJ had some logistical stuff to do, I had to go back to Nashville because he lives there, trying to get his stuff back to Vancouver. and the Siddines, of course, they've been active. Daniel went to the World Championships to do a little bit of scouting. They're at the Combine.

They're also looking at adding to the management group and putting together the entire new organization's front office. So I think a lot of moving parts were going on, so they didn't rush to the coaching decision. But I think all along, they knew Manny was going to be the guy. And unless Manny changed his mind or something unforeseen came up for the past couple weeks, this was always going to be the inevitable hire.

So the big picture in general, like last time is Jim Lerner, brother for it comes in from the outside Bruce buddra comes in from the outside Patrick olivine comes in from the outside he hires a couple of female assistant general managers kind of a landmark decision so in some ways to me the sedans and maybe Ryan johnson took a step maybe a little bit sideways there whatever so a couple years later hiring from within which i have no problem doing do you think is the public buying and do it saying you know what we like this we're comfortable with the sedans they're comfortable with ryan johnson he's comfortable with Mani Malhotra. We like this way this is gone.

Well, no fan base is monotone, right? They all have different voices and you hear different pitches that come up here and there. And you certainly have a segment that bring up the exact same point you did, Gore, that why aren't you not, aren't you looking at perhaps bringing people from outside the organization and also look at changing things dramatically? And at the same time, this is the first time that connects up internally hired a GM since Dave NONUS became the GM after Brian Burke left in the early 2000. So it would have been. has been quite a while since the Canucks did promote internally. Travis Green was the last coach they had. He was a part of their minor league team that they promoted to make the head

coach of the major, the national hockey league team. So it had been a while from the GM standpoint of things. I do think overall, though, where Vancouver found itself and where the Kinnock, where Kinnock fans are at, I think that there was a level of disconnect between how Rutherford conducted business, how he viewed himself and how he viewed the position versus how Kinnock fans attached to him. I think early on there was a lot of excitement because he came in and, you know, they shook things up. The team had some early success in the second season. And then after that, I felt like there wasn't this connection that we've seen in the past between certain managers and the market. Like we saw with Brian Burke, for instance, we even saw with Mike Gillis to some

extent. We certainly saw it with Pat Quinn back in the day. Now, I don't think that ever really happened with Jim Rutherford, but now that you're bringing along the Sedeans, Ryan Johnson, And the Siddins especially that carries so much weight and so much credibility in this market, they're so beloved that there's the majority of the fan base is really on board with this. And they kind of feel like we finally have, as in the collective fan base, we finally have people representing the organization who truly understand what it takes to be a Knoch and the value of playing in a Canadian market. And there was a sense that perhaps the people part of the organization, not just Rutherford,

but even with some of the players with Quinn Hughes wanting out, other players not wanting to stay, that the value of being a. Kinnock had diminished in the eyes of many fans. So I think now that you have these people that bled the colors, people that are in the Hall of Fame, the numbers are hanging in the rafters, that there is this level of calm and I think safety that a lot of fans feel about the people representing the organization. They feel like the character is there.

They feel like they're good people and they feel like they're people that are going to make fans proud again of being Kinnok fans. At the same time, nobody can say with certainty that these individuals not only have the acumen or but are able to execute. on their plan to bring success. And that's ultimately the most important thing. Right now, the honeymoon phase, most fans are excited, they're happy,

that love the local representation. But if you don't deliver results over the next couple of years, and if you don't hit your draft picks and don't hit your trades, I think then that can turn. We saw what Trevor Linden to some extent when he took over.

Initially, there was a lot of excitement, and then when a team started going through the longer process of a rebuild, there was a lot of criticism and skepticism around Trevor and the entire front office. So these things can share. shift as soon as the results aren't there or the success doesn't come. But I'd say overall the fan base is excited that they have people they're proud of representing

the organization. You're watching and listening to Sat Shaw, host of Canucks Central. Also does a terrific job on game nights on sports net. So Sat, if it wasn't hard enough for Manny to come in being named a first-time NHL coach in a very tough market, maybe on and off the ice in Vancouver, His son Caleb is one of the highest touted eligible draft picks in the world in what, three weeks? How hot of a topic or conversation is this out in Vancouver? If possibly you could take a rookie coach and a rookie player who happened to be father and son.

Oh yeah, it's like getting third-degree burns just looking at it. That's how hot the conversation has kind of been around this, right? And I think a big part of it too is it's natural. And even Manny today when he was asked about it, he said he understands why people ask. And it's an obvious question. Would it work? Does it make a lot of sense? And based on the answers we've heard from Manny and R.J.,

there doesn't seem to be any fear, at least publicly, about drafting Caleb, if it does come to that. I think locally there's the fan base is generally split for the most part. I think there's an excitement about, well, we'll be great to have a father, son, duo and find this center who has a lot of ability. Then you have another segment that, and I'm kind of part of, I wouldn't say I'm against the idea. I would say I have my concerns about the point you just laid out. Rookie NHL head coach, you're going to bring in, you know, a rookie player potentially. And Caleb most likely is going to college next year anyways, but nonetheless, you're talking about a year away from playing in the National Hockey League potentially. Is that the best environment to bring somebody in?

are you setting everybody up for success? Not that it's not going to have, not going to work, but I do wonder about some of the complications and some of the challenges that that does pose. Ultimately, though, I think the connection is so early in their rebuilding process that now that you've hired, manager as they had coach, even if you have some concerns and questions

about how this may work, if you truly believe Caleb Malhotra is the best prospect at third overall, and you believe and have conviction that he's going to be a top line centerman, then you've got to make the selection. There's no guarantee Manny's going to be here in three to four years. There's no guarantee where the team's going to be at a few years from now. And when you're this early in the process, I think the talent accumulation,

obviously setting the culture and setting standards, all those things are important. But ultimately, the true lifeblood of success for any organization going through a rebuild is the actual sheer talent that you have. So if you believe in the player, don't let these things deter you from selecting that player. But I do have some questions about how it would work. And also, do you get to a point where if the coach, does get let go in a few years because we know that NHO coaches are hired to be fired.

There's very few. There's a couple obviously in terms of a Cooper and Bednar that I've been there for over a decade and if I had a lot of success. But they're very much the exceptions in today's national hockey league. How would that complicate the situation? Ultimately, it comes down to professionalism, comes down to talent, comes down to your organization being on the right track. And I do think those things can be managed.

But it is a fair question. And we did see going back to the Jim Benning, Trevor Linden, era. Trevor Lyndon was the first time president. He had obviously worked as part of the PA, but he wasn't working closely with the league when he was hired. Jim Benning had been an AGM in Boston. Well, they Deja Radan head coach had medicine had, but never an NHL head coach. And they had success in their first year, but then a lot of challenges started happening. And we've seen that happen in the past where you put a lot of inexperienced individuals together. There's a lot of learning, there's a steep learning curve, and that can go in a multiple of different ways.

So it's a fair question to ask about it. But I would say, given where the Canucks find themselves so early on in this rebuilding process that I can understand taking some risk, I understand taking some chances, but ultimately you just got to make sure you nail your draftics no matter who they are or where they come from. Sat, great stuff. Thanks for making time for us today, pal.

Really appreciate it. Anytime. Anytime, guys. Satchalk, over in the Vancouver Canucks. Let me go to you real quick. Good idea, bad idea. About internally? About drafting your son. Oh, drafting your son?

Well, decades ago, Bernie Boom Boom, Boom, Jeffriand coached his son Danny Jeffrion in Montreal, and that kind of, whatever, it caused Bernie resigned after 15 or 20 games, okay? So. Was he a top pick too? In the first round, not top, we're not number one overall. No, no, but first round pick. Yes, yes. And so, but I think this one's a lot more structured.

And I, you know, it becomes a thing in kids hockey all the time, right? You know, about the- Minor hockey. I know. The coach's kid, whatever, because I did, I did coach Justin and whatever it. And you got to be cognizant about it. I know it's not the NHL. I heard your kid never came off the power play.

Yeah, 35 minutes a night. And he goals sucked all the time too. He just held her by the, no problem. Not to back check or anything. Now, the big thing is, well, Mani Mahhot will still be the coach when his son has flourished and his regular NHLers. So I like the answer that if he is, the number three overall pick, if that's the scouts who deem it, then that's the player take.

I mean, sad mentioned not even making the team next year, which... I don't think they're counting on him next year. And then Caleb was sitting there going, don't draft me. I want to play in the NHL next year. I don't want to go to a team, the last place team, and have you... I don't know if the number... Would he play on any team next year?

Would he play on any team next year? I don't know. The number three overall pick doesn't always play. They all play. They all can start the first 10 games. Oh, that's a different question. Okay, that's a different question. Okay, but yeah.

And if he scores a couple goals and he stays. Yeah. And he shows he can handle it. He stays. Maybe he's got another kid coming a year down road. Whatever. Just kind of angle for that. Angle for that.

All right, boys. What's going to happen tonight in the hockey game? How do you think it's going to go? I'd like to see Carolina win. I think going down to nothing ends up being in jeopardy of a sweet. or five-gamer, and I'm hoping that goes six or seven. Well, I think we're all neutral who we want or whatever. All we saw last round is, no, we didn't, we don't want a four-game sweep and you don't want a five-game series.

I don't want to talk to Sammy about the Leafs for like 14 straight days. I need the Stanley Cup final to go seven, Gord. I met about the two teams right now. We know where, but I'm just saying, yeah, we wanted to go six or seven. So I'm saying Carolina, finding a way otherwise. Oh, and two going into Vegas, man. I don't like that at all. But I think they'll find a way.

And part of it is Brindamore kind of fair warning. I'm going to shake the lines up a little bit if we're not getting team offense. Freddie would worry me. I think it's been, I think since the first two rounds, Wish asked a question today. It's below 900, say, percent. Can he win and have 25 shots on him? Like, we know you can win with 12, but can you win if they've got 24?

shots on goal? No, absolutely. Absolutely. He can? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Like the whole team has never done it

beyond the third round until this year, whatever, and he's part of that team. So he's got to prove he can do it. Sometimes having 12 shots is more difficult on a goaltender than having 30 shots. Always great having you in, Gordo.

Thank you, Kipper. Sammy. Let go, Gordy. It all gets started tonight, 8 p.m. Game two on Sportsnet. Our thanks to Jesse Granger and Sat Shaw. Justin coming back tomorrow?

Yeah, and I'm gone. Where are you going to? I'm going to Quebec for my wife's grandma's 99th birthday. Wow, 99. Yeah, getting up there. Wish you're happy birthday. All right, happy birthday, grandma. Thanks for watching.

Thanks for listening. Have a great night.