Spittin Chiclets - Spittin' Chiclets Episode 201: Featuring Stu Grimson

Episode Date: September 16, 2019

On Monday's episode of Spittin' Chiclets…the boys are back! The guys return to two episodes per week and kick it off with a great interview with Stu Grimson. Stu talks about his career as a fighter, some insane stories, his book and a bunch more. The guys also get some major NHL news and discuss the signings of Mitch Marner, Charlie McAvoy and the few other NHL players who signed this past week. The guys wrap up with a hilarious story about something called the “Top-Dog Pizza”.You can find every episode of this show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube. Prime Members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. For more, visit barstool.link/schiclets

Hey, Spittin' Chicklets listeners, you can find every episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube. Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. Hello, everybody. Welcome to episode 201 of Spittin' Chicklets, presented by Pink Whitney, the pink lemonade-flavored vodka from our friends at New Amsterdam Vodka. We're back to two eps a week now, and just over two weeks till opening night, so we've got some hockey shit to finally talk about, some big signings coming your way. We'll get to it in a little bit, but let's say hello to the boys first. Mikey G., producer down in NYC.

What is going on, brother? We're back, boys. We're back. Two episodes a week. Let's go. I'm ready. And this is a surprise. I thought we said it last week, didn't we? No. I can't remember fucking yesterday. But anyways, Biz, what's going on? The host, what's going on, brother? What are you up to? Well, at this point, everyone knows the surprise. We didn't tell anyone that we were going to two episodes this week. We mentioned that we were going the following week. But hey, we we got a couple good interviews in the bank we want for you people to hear them i'm

excited to get back to two uh two times a week and also listen we had some fun stuff going on this summer we talked about our personal lives a lot but now that the hockey season's back on it's gonna be nice to just focus a decent amount on hockey if we got some funny stories which we have another one later in the episode coming. So make sure you listen all the way to the end. Very good prank. And I'll throw it back to you, R.A., to tee up our last host. Our last guy, the wit dog, Ryan Whitney.

What's going on, my man? You've been out fucking hitting the sticks all weekend or what? Yeah, two beautiful days of golf. Great little tourney we played in. We ended up winning a little money. We finished like fourth. We had it. We could have won it.

But golf is coming to an end. Although I will say, hockey's alive. Oh, first off, this week being a special episode, everyone I know, all you guys out there are going to think, we just dropped because Marner signed and McAvoy signed and everything went down. No, we said before, you have to believe us. We were dropping this episode. We were meeting Sunday night,

no matter what. So it just so happens we do have a lot to talk about. So it was the perfect time to go back to two. Summer went by pretty quick. I don't know. And the last thing was that for all you people that, you know, maybe chirp hearing about our, our personalized, my AKA, my golf, I get 10 people that tell me they love it for every one that bitches and complains. So it's going to continue. It's going to stay. There's more hockey to talk about, but don't you worry. You'll be getting hole-by-hole breakdowns all winter long.

R.A., would you not agree it's the hockey gods knowing that we are coming back to two episodes a week and kind of maybe nudging those guys to sign those contracts just in time? Dude, we've got to give Torts credit, man. He gave Wierenski, he signed, everything fucking happened after that. I think we've got to give Phil props to Torts. So are we a

Torts-heavy podcast or a favorite of Torts? Yeah, I mean, he's a character. He's great for the game and it is funny just the way after he belly-ached and then Wierenski signed, and then it just kind of had a ripple effect since then. So we'll give credit. I wonder if I saw Torts.

If I was like, hey, Torts, what's going on? Like, any chance you call him a podcast? I have with Bissonnette, R.A. and Mikey Canale. Like, I'm going to guess he'd say no chance. I'm just wondering how he'd say it. Would he say, oh, no, I don't want to. Would he say, fuck off. I'm just wondering how he'd say it. Would he say, ah, no, I don't want to. Would he say, fuck off. I'm not going on your show.

Well, the reason why I asked if we were a torts podcast, because if one of those times where let's say I was down there by the coyotes locker room and we were playing against Columbus, if I did ask him, I had the feeling that torts might look at me and be like, who the fuck are you? And fuck no, I ain't doing the podcast and say it exactly like I just said it. And I feel like it would crush me and I would have to deliver the message to the podcast

and all of a sudden everyone would hate him. So do we even go down that road? Do we ask him? You just try to find a Brooksy's number and so you can just talk and like, man, what do you do? What did you do when he just abused you publicly? That was probably one of the all-time hockey riffs

between coach and media. Yeah, that was right up there. Before I forget, because we usually do it right before we bring the interviewee on, we got a fucking doozy tonight. Anybody whose nickname was the Grim Reaper has to be a great interview, and we're bringing Stu Grimson on later, one of the greatest fighters

of his era, one of the greatest fighters of the last real true era of fighting in the NHL. Some outstanding stories. Had a blast doing that, so we're going to be bringing that to you later. But first, let's get to the signings. And just to go back to Stu Grimson, that guy was fighting the big boys in the

big boy era. And I was a pussy compared to him. And then he went off to be a lawyer after his career. I can't even fucking read. How the fuck did he survive like that yeah he fought some bad motherfuckers back in the day so i just want to give a shout out to stew grimson for still having a melon inside his head first time i saw him he's a greek god he walks around he's taller than me he's ripped he's just in unreal shape i'm thinking

this guy's a machine good good hair, great hair, great head of hair on him. Very friendly. So right away I knew at some point when we talked, he said, I got a book coming out. We'll wait till then. So that'll be great to let everyone know when that will be released. And I think everyone should enjoy that interview. It was a blast chatting with him. Sure was. Well, our long provincial nightmare is over as the Leafs have finally signed Mitch Marner. The deal is for six years, just over $65 million. It's a $10.893 million average annual value. No surprise that it's front-loaded with a shitload of bonus money,

almost $39 million in the first three years. It's got a no-move clause in the last two years. Interestingly, almost $150 million of the $180 million allocated to Tavares, Matthews, and Neyland in the recent contract has all been signing bonuses. So Toronto's got the money to do it, and they're doing it. Biz, what do you got on this one, my man? He's going to be getting the same size biweekly paychecks as I was, Mitch Marner. The only difference being the bonus money at the start of every year.

But great structure for him, guys. I mean, fuck. I want to say just the media in general kind of inflated that contract with all the drama that went on. Like, I'm thinking he's a million dollars overpaid, and I don't think a winger should be paid as much as he's making. Now, saying that, he made a very good case um with with with what happened with the Matthews contract and how Matthews has missed some time over the past two years with

injuries and and Marner fucking got 90 points like I mean what are you gonna do you're gonna tell the guy that he can't make you know like half a million less than what what the guy who you signed before him's making so I think think that Marner's play along with the media put the Leafs in a very difficult situation. I think that moving forward, hey, now you've got your core locked in. I mean, I guess other than your stud defenseman, which has to happen next offseason. So Dubas is going to get right back into the mix.

But, hey, listen, you got your money. Now it's time to go show your stuff and a lot of comments underneath that are people chime in going back to the kneelander deal saying like kneelander is a bargain compared to that it's like whoa pump the fucking brakes the first year of his seven million dollar a year contract he didn't play up to that so stop telling me how much that bargain is now if these guys can put their shit together and get to work and, and at least get, go make a deep run in a playoffs,

let alone winning a one round, then, then, Hey, maybe they weren't grossly overpaid, but now they got to fucking prove it. Yeah. Here's when the deal came out right away.

I said, that's it. Like not that's it in terms of that's what he's making. Like it took him, it took, that's it? Like, not that's it in terms of that's what he's making. Like, it took him that long to figure this out. It didn't seem the craziest, like, ordeal or numbers-wise, years-wise. It makes total sense. It's right where we kind of guessed he would come in at.

Just funny it ended up taking as long as it did. But it's nice to know for Leafs fans that there's no drama moving forward because it just would have been such a gong show like the first few games of the year. If he's actually missing games, it would have taken away from the entire team. It would have been distractions. Nobody wanted, nobody needed. So you could say what you want about overpaid, underpaid.

If he goes and has six years similar to the last year, no one will bitch or say a word. They'll probably say it's a great deal so it all comes down to what's he going to do now and what that team's going to do moving forward if Morgan Riley ends up being the same situation I mean one maybe they can get him signed during the season maybe he's agent and as a player he doesn't want to do it and he'll do the same thing next summer but they do have some key guys locked up their key guys and it's just fun and not fun but it's good for maple leaf fans to know that there's just no bullshit going forward they're just happy that

the team is set in stone and another thing all right i'll toss it over to you because you usually give more of a fan perspective i i feel that he's lost the the court of public opinion a lot of leaf fans are not excited about this deal a lot of these fans feel like really a lot i i'm a lot of people are being vocal about a lot online now there might not be the majority of people but they feel that he's handcuffed them a little bit moving forward and and especially at the point when i think everyone caught wind that they were offering like 10 and a half for or no sorry it was like what was what was the deal like three years at 10 or a year yeah well there was a couple different offers that got leaked and who knows how fucking true those are too when they get leaked though correct but i do believe that

that there was word coming from toronto that they were offering a very sizable contract where it's like buddy you're fucking you might be missing out on three, $4 million here that you're asking for, but like, you're going to remain a leaf. Like it's clear that you really don't want to play for us. If you won't take a little bit of a hometown discount. So, like I said, nothing against the guy. He's an incredible player.

I do think he handcuffed them a little bit. Things should be interesting moving forward. And he even said a comment. He said he was, you know, when he was out in public, he'd have like 13-year-olds being like, sign your contract, sign your contract. And it got to him a little bit. I don't know if you read that online. He's gone up this year.

Sorry, Ari. He's gone up all three years. Goals, assists, points, obviously. And if this year he goes out, he's coming off 94 points and played every game. If this year he comes out, plays 80 games and gets, I don't know, 71 points, what are people saying in Toronto? They're fucking losing their minds. They're fucking bitching.

So it's kind of a – I'm not going to say it's a no-win situation because the man just became set for life and rich as hell, and I'm happy as hell for him. But go out, get 95 points points you won't hear from anyone do anything less and you'll get chirped it's just that's the way it is that's the way the same kind of reason on a different scale we talked about uh gardner not wanting to sign in montreal there will be pressure i think the kid knows that he's from there and understands it but it's going to be a whole different ballgame approaching the season and within games for him. I mean, the rest of his career is a leaf. And Witten,

I mean, it doesn't help. And I know we're going to talk about this moving forward. But then you got Wierenski signing a nice team-friendly deal, bridge deal. And then right after Marner signs, you get McAvoy. Yep. Chucky Mack, Charlie McAvoy signed a three-year, $14.7 million deal with the

Bruins, $4.9 million average annual value. Similar to the amount of things, Biz, I think there's a lot of posture on both sides. It's like, you know, people kind of bullshit. And then once camp starts, it seems like everybody gets down to the nitty gritty. And this was another case of the team wanting the guy, the guy wanting to be there. It was just a matter of coming to the number, And this was another case of the team wanting the guy. The guy wanted to be there. It was just a matter of coming to the number, getting the term. McAvoy loves it here.

He's the team's number one D, led the team 22 minutes, 10 seconds of ice per game last year. And like I mentioned last week regarding Wierenski's deal, that third-year salary is huge because it sets the qualifying off of the next year. And McAvoy's going to make $7.3 million that final year. So he's only going to be 24 when this deal expires. As a Bees fan, I love it. It's a very friendly team deal right now. And like he said, the sky's the limit.

He's only 21. He's already playing at this level in the NHL. What's up, Whit? The number, you know, if not now, the future number one D-man in Boston. And I like his quotes when he signed saying, you know, to become the best defenseman in the world. He said, I think the sky's the limit. I'm pretty sure he said that. That was a quote on Twitter, which is great to hear him say. And he understands how good he can be. The interesting thing is, I don't know for a fact, Biz, I'm wondering your opinion. I'm

guessing, though, that Columbus and Boston offered them long-term deals. This is a guess by me. And I think you look at it and you say, all right, well, the new TV deal is coming in. The CBA is going to change. The cap's going to go through the roof the way this league's going. And I'm going to make big money the next three years and then sign a monster deal when I'm 24 years old. Like, to me, it makes total sense for them.

The only risk, and it makes total sense for the team. So, Wierenski and McAvoy, same thing. I think if you're a Bruins and Blue Jackets fan, you love it. And I think if you're a player, thanks for the $15 million. That'll be invested forever. And then the only risk being if they weren't able to stay healthy. But these guys are looking at it like, I'm just starting my career. I've already proven myself as an elite puck-moving defenseman

who are the people who get paid. Thank you. Look at Witt. And so if they just play well and continue to grow, the deal will be out of this world. So why try to force it's going to be the deal will be out of this world so why not why try to force it right now um well i think uh two different situations for them is is boston isn't kind of in a win now mentality because their core is not getting any younger and by the time that this

mcavoy deal is up i believe that marshawn and bergeron are up in 2022. So they're probably going to be, you know, Bergeron might get paid the same he's making now because he's on such a fair deal and how much he's done for that organization. And Marshall might be in the same boat. But they're not going to be getting their big tickets at that point. They're going to be too old to be getting that. So in that case, McAvoy can step in and he's going to say, hey, I took a fucking nice discount on the first one in order to have team success and for us to add some other pieces to keep making runs and doing what we've been doing.

But at that point, unfortunately, our core who has been making these runs is going to be on the way out. And now I want my payday. Whereas Wierenski, I was just they're not in a win now mode. They had a really tough offseason as far as losing some guys. They do have cap space to work with. And the money he's sacrificing, it's not like they're just going to go spend it on another guy because they really can't win in free agency. It's a tough market to win in.

So I commend McAvoy. And the reason why I love this move is now, I mean, it's kind of the opposite of the Marner situation. If McAvoy has a tough, little bit of a tough start to the season, everybody's giving him benefit of the doubt saying, hey, this fucking, this is our number one D-man who just signed a three-year bridge deal for $4.9 million. We can fucking ease off on him.

And the court of public opinion can be very difficult for some guys to play through and some guys that's watered off a duck's back and i commend those guys i know i was too much of a mental midget where if my you know fuck you oh i mean well i mean wit and asking you personally like was that difficult for you to go go through and and when you're getting overpaid especially when when you demanded it in free agency, I mean, the crowd could fucking get on you and affect your career. I remember clearly having dinner with my dad.

I think I've told this before where I was playing so bad and making that much money that it kind of is a horrifying feeling. And like you said, Biz, there is some guys that don't care, and great for them. I wish I had that in me. And I remember at dinner, I said, I almost kind of feel like I could give some of this money back. This is tongue-in-cheek, right?

I probably already had spent it. But it was more me trying to say, this is the worst feeling, not playing up to what somebody paid you to do, to have the honor and to, to make it sign an incredible contract and then not to live up to your end of the bargain. You feel like a piece of shit. And I remember he snapped,

he's like, shut up. They gave you that. They gave him where you think they'd give you more money if you were playing better. Like it, which is a great point. I mean,

he snapped me out of it very quick, but the reason i bring it up is because i was personally one of those guys you start thinking about this is what i'm supposed to be doing making this money i'm not doing it i'm starting to hear the the chirps i'm starting to hear the boo birds and it just can really change and an approach to a season it changes every day. It changes the way you go into a game and one mistake. And all of a sudden you're like, everyone noticed that mistake. This is me. And this is stuff I battled and I wish it was different, but it's definitely realistic to other people that have been through it as well. Now saying that that's you feeling guilty for not earning that money that you didn't, you didn't sit out. You didn't, you didn't hold out and say,

no, I want this much much could you imagine dealing with that on top of the feeling that you had so that's you wait you wait you actually want more than this exactly so when you when you lose them in that regard on top of the fact that you're losing too much money that you demanded that much oh fuck man out. Marner seems like the type of kid who will go get 105 points, though. He gives off the whole vibe of not really giving a shit, knowing he's that good. That's where some of these young guys and their cockiness is a good thing. They know how good they are.

They don't give a fuck. Now, saying that, is Marner even going to spend that? He's going to be driving around in a fucking Ford Windstar van. He's probably wearing Maple Leafs t a fucking Ford Windstar van that Ford gave him in Toronto. He's probably wearing Maple Leafs t-shirts to the bars at night. Yeah. What does he even need that money for? Give it to a guy like us who can party. Like Biz.

Give more to Bugsy. He should be sending some out to Bugsy. Could you guys imagine, since we told Bugsy, he's going to have his little segment, like what he's been thinking at night. He's like, oh, God, I think of this. What are we doing tonight for the Bugsy. Could you guys imagine, since we told Bugsy he's going to have his little segment, what he's been thinking at night? He's like, oh, God, I think of what are we doing tonight for the Bugsy Corner? I can imagine his brain, the hamster in the wheel, just running, running rampant. He calls me once a week now.

Yeah, he's into it. He loves it. But he needs some frigging ideas. I'll tell him that. Well, back to the signings. Team blocking up uh important defenseman is a little bit of a theme this week uh the winnipeg jets signed 24 year old defenseman josh morrissey to an eight year 50 million dollar extension that kicks in next season

he's got a 6.25 average annual value he would have been a rfa next summer restricted free agent after the first two years of the new deal and no move clause kicks in for three years then a modified no trade for the final three. This is a guy who chips in offensively. He's great in his own end. He's got some snarl to his game. You know, and for your top pair left-handed D, that's a pretty nice price for the Jets, eh, Biz?

I love this kid. You don't hear a lot about him either. He just flies under the radar. He gets the job done, puts the work boots on, lunch pail mentality. And you said it, R.A., just really no weak spots in his game. He chips in offensively, makes a good first pass. He does have a little bit of chippiness to his game, solid defensively. So I like this signing.

I think he's one of the more underrated defensemen in the league that no one hears about. Obviously now with the money he's making, I'm sure people will be keeping a closer eye. I was surprised enough when I saw the deal to text a couple guys around the league and ask their opinion on him playing against them. And several people said he's best demon on Winnipeg and that everyone thought it was a really good signing.

So it's one of those guys that is being out of the league as long as we've been now. Because you don't hear about him, because I don't see a ton of Winnipeg games, you see the numbers and you question a little bit. And then the minute you talk to guys who play not only with him but against him, right away they validate every dollar he kind of signed for. And it makes sense as a former player hearing what he does well and why he deserves that money. So I think there were definitely people like you and I that maybe said,

whoa, you know, hefty, you know, a lot of years, decent, good, not decent, great, great money. And is he going to be worth that? Is he worth that? And players that play against him know right away he is. So that's kind of all you need to know about him. All right. Handsome kid too.

Yeah. Is he? Let me Google him. A little handsome fella. Never hurts. Never hurts. Another big D, man. I know Wits is high on this player. Minnesota Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon. He signed a seven-year, $53 million extension that also kicks in after this season. It's a

7.575 average annual value. It was the largest in wild history. New GM Billy Guerin wanted to get things done and keep him there, and Spurgeon didn't want to go anywhere else. Everybody that Guerin talked to in the organization said how important it was to keep him there, not only because of his play, but because of the kind of person he is. He's beloved in that organization.

Interesting, Michael Russo, who we had recently, wrote in The Athletic that there was, quote, maybe one conversation between Spurgeon's agent and former GM Paul Fenton, and that was way at the draft. So Billy Guerin's come in. He's kind of kicked ass, taking names, getting things done. And, Minnie, I know you've been high on Spurgeon. What do you think of this deal?

I think that he should go to a local liquor store and buy 5,000 cases of Pink Whitney because I've been stroking that kid off. and buy 5,000 cases of Pink Whitney because I've been stroking that kid off on this podcast since I was on Ari's couch in Southeast sharing a microphone. So happy for a guy like that that comes in the league. Nobody knows who he is. So undersized, skates like the wind, and plays huge minutes while also playing great offensively and defensively. Huge on the PK. He can do it all. I mean, the contract shows he can just under what 80 year math guy. Thank

you. Was it seven, seven a year? 7.575. There was a seven, seven. There was just the five in between math guy was pretty close. I think that the move makes total sense. And it's true already that Fenton was all over the map. We went over a couple episodes of that. And Bill Guerin went in, probably talked to the people he really trusts there, figures out, what do I need to do first? I've got to lock this guy up. We can't lose a guy like this. He's going to be UFA.

Let's get it done now. And that became clear, too, that Spurgeon's willing to do it now and not wait. It means he probably loves playing in Minnesota. So what else are you going to say besides happy for a guy that when he got into the league probably never even imagined signing something like this no I'm just gonna piggyback what you said it's funny because we talked about Morrissey being being an underrated guy I think more people knew who Spurgeon was and just talk about a guy who you you know exactly what you're getting year after year. Very consistent numbers, plays a little bit bigger than his size too, and worth every penny. I mean, he's just, I mean, other than Morrissey, he's just proven he's done it longer,

more and more consistently over time. So worth every penny and congratulations to him. I agree with you, Whit, about the Pink Whitney comment, but I don't think there's any left in the state of Minnesota. So they're going to have to start making some more and send it out there to the state of hockey. Some liquor store near my house, this was told to me by somebody else. They went in there and said, do you have any? They said, we got six cases Friday and Saturday night by 9 o'clock,

they were gone. So if that's similar to Minnesota, Spurgeon, drive to Wisconsin and do your diligence there for me helping you get this contract. Get a driver to drive you. Get a helicopter. Get a helicopter now. Get an Uber

chopper. Uber copter. All right. Did you see that one picture with one liquor store actually had your picture from your St. Louis training camp posted like where the Pink Whitney should go? Oh, my snarl. Oh, yeah. That's like that. That's called the PTO Pink Whitney.

Somebody tweeted a picture at me. I remember I think it was a school visit in Pittsburgh. I had on a brown checkered hurley hat on backwards, and then like a Volcom. Oh, I think I saw that picture. With big old Jamal jeans. I probably had airwalks underneath them, too. It was the worst look. Wheelies.

I was like 24. I looked like older than I do now. Scumbag Steve with that hat on. I looked like a scumbag. Oh, shit. Well, Billy Guerin wasn't done. Minnesota also signed their last restricted free agent as Kevin Fiala re-signed for two years, $6 million, $3 million average annual value.

Got to always note that because it's so big with the cap. He came over in the February deal at Nashville for Mikael Gremlin. Last year, the 23-year-old Swiss forward had 13 goals, 26 assists, total 39 points, and 83 games played between Nashville and Man Utd. You don't see that too often, 83 games played. This was probably pretty much expected, right, Biz? Around this, you didn't expect much more or less for this kid, did you? If you're Billy Garin and you look at Nashville and Granlin,

that's one you're probably like, God damn it. This is kind of one of the reasons I think I have this job. That was a bad trade. I don't love that trade. Fiala could go light it up, make me sound like a fool, tap it many times before, it'll happen many times again. But in terms of those two players, I don't think that Fiala has the same type game.

The thing I'll say is he broke his femur. I mean, you saw that happen. I think it was the playoffs two years prior. So the fact he's back and he's skating is his biggest weapon. I mean, I don't think he's lost a step. It's hard to believe he hasn't. But maybe, you know, as the years go by and you do come back from such a horrific injury, it could be a huge year for him if he gets some good chances in many.

But that was a head scratchscratcher at the time. And when we talked to Russo, he brought it up as well as it really making no sense. Yeah, I would agree that's a loss on the Granlin deal. I don't know if they were expecting not to re-sign him just because they'll be tight on cap space. I don't know. Fiala, I'm still waiting for him to pop off.

And as you mentioned, maybe the reason he hasn't is because that injury is still lingering. That's a major surgery. Yeah, he's still only 23. He did have 23 goals back in 2017-18. So, you know, it'll be interesting to keep an eye on that one. One more defenseman gets signed. The Flyers signed RFA D-man Ivan Provorov to a six-year $40.5 million deal. Average annual value of 6.75 mil. This keeps

Philly's number one D locked up to 20-25. He had seven goals, 19 assists last year. He hasn't missed a game in his full three seasons. It's, you know, not a ton of games, but it's still impressive to play 82 games three times in a row. Still just 22. He'll presumably get better. But wait, did you think this is a little tad higher than you expected? Is this about where you expected him to come in or what? Yeah, it actually is. I think if you're a Flyers fan, you'd like this deal a lot. Right now, I don't necessarily

think he's going to play up to those or he has played up to that annual salary, but over time he will. You've seen glimpses of how good he can be. He's still so young, too. You wonder how he'll continue to develop. If the

way his career has gone so far continues to go on that uphill slope, then you're going to, in four years, three years, love that deal. It'll be a bargain. If he levels off, you'll wonder what happened. I think he's going to end up being a really good defenseman, a number one defenseman. Defensively, I think there's some issues,

but with the puck, moving it out of his own end, it's come so natural, so easy for him. It's a perfect example of a guy that teams just can't let go now. Here's my hot take. I think that they got a great deal for a guy who's got more than he had last year. He did regress on his numbers offensively, and that probably helped Philly lock him in for that period of time. Whereas, remember, McAvoy and Wierenski are going to be up in three years.

This guy, if he ends up getting back to the numbers he had in his first two seasons, if not improving a little bit more, I mean, that's a $9 million player, man. And he's one of their top defensemen, if not their top defenseman. I think this is a great contract for the Philadelphia Flyers, and I think they're going to be happy with him. I think this guy's going to be a stud. Lots of defensemen making tons of money, man. If you've got a kid skating, fucking turn him into an offensive puck-moving defenseman

because these boys are getting paid like crazy. Righty, too. Not many righty. Who else is left that hasn't signed, guys? Let's see. I've got the unsigned restricted free agents still. Brock Bessa, Matthew Kachuk, Kyle Connor, Patrick Laine, Rantanen, Point

and Carlo and then Malo and Fanoff, a couple old guys I was thinking the RFAs I tell you what man, the biggest one to me is, I'm curious to know what Matthew Kachuk is going to make I'm wondering about Rantanen because of that deal

that deal that McKinnon's on they're going to be like you can't make that much more than Nathan McKinnon's on, they're going to be like, you can't make that much more than Nathan McKinnon. He's in a weird spot. That guy's incredible. But Randen could say, hey, look, I got more points in less games than fucking Mata. I should get what he gets too.

So it's going to be interesting to see how that plays out either way. But lots more drama to come, certainly. I'm dying to see an offer sheet, man. Just to fucking give us something to talk about. I don't think at this point. I think it's too late. It's going to be interesting, though. But anyways, boys, I think we should send it over to the Grim Reaper right about now. Yes, we should.

Stu Grimson, again, one of the great face punches of our time. Had a lot of fun with this interview, so we're going to chuck it over to him right now. This interview was brought to you by SeatGeek. Buying tickets can be complicated and confusing, but there is a simple way to buy with SeatGeek. Buying tickets can be complicated and confusing, but there is a simple way to buy with SeatGeek. SeatGeek is the smartest, easiest way to get tickets to every type of live event, whether you're catching your favorite musician on tour, shopping for the perfect gift, or searching for a last-minute deal to see your favorite NHL team

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Our next guest protected his NHL teammates for 14 seasons in eight North American cities back in an era when the enforcer was still an essential team role. He tallied up 2,113 penalty minutes in 729 NHL games, a little under three minutes a game. He had another 120 and 42 playoff games. He fought professionally well over 300 times and was quite accurately known to most of his opponents as the Grim Reaper.

Welcome to Spitting Chicklets, Stu Grimson. Hey, guys. Thanks for having me on. My pleasure. And I'll tell you what, long time coming. I've been listening to you guys for a while and thrilled to be on. Thanks.

Well, it's very funny that, Stu, we started working together at NHL network and immediately I said, Hey, uh, Grimmery, come on, spit and shickle to one point. You're like a hundred percent. Let's just wait till the book comes out. We're going to get lead up right into this whole release. It made a lot of sense to me. So time is right. Yeah, it certainly is. Absolutely. And, uh, I'll tell you, it's, uh, well, you guys kind of fit in the sweet spot, of course. You know, the brand you've developed and the guests you've had on and the genre you guys kind of come up in. It's you know, it's it's a it's a really it's a custom fit platform for for a book called The Grim Reaper, the life and career of a reluctant hockey warrior.

That's you took the words right out of my mouth. So I was going to say, you've gone from dropping the gloves to dropping a book, the grim Reaper, like you said, the life and career of a reluctant warrior hits bookstands on October 15th. I was writing this book along with Kevin Allen. Was it a big challenge for you?

Or did it come naturally? What was that process like? You know, never, never done anything like it. I mean, you know, since I kind of post hockey dipped into a completely different career, a career in the law,

I write a lot more than I ever did at an earlier stage in my life. So I really have developed this interest, this kind of love for a passion for writing. So getting to work with Kevin on the book was just a terrific experience. work with Kevin on the book was just a terrific experience. I would rank him among the guys that writes our sport best, certainly south of the border in the United States. So Kevin, for me, was a natural to write it. And it was a terrific experience. I'll tell you, it's actually kind of an interesting anecdote, a side piece about the book. When Penguin Random House Canada and myself originally agreed to do this book, the understanding was that it would come out in October of 2020. But we were all on a conference call one day, and I had just kind of adopted the mistaken

assumption that we were releasing it in 2019, a year earlier, and everybody kind of stopped and talked about that. And we go, hell, yeah, let's do it earlier, because there aren't a lot of hockey books as we understand it. Coming out in 2019, there's a pretty, I guess, a good supply coming out 2020. There'll be a lot of other hockey books on the market. So, you know, we actually, Kevin and I rolled up the sleeves, we cranked this one out in a much shorter timeframe than we had anticipated,

but it was, it was fun and it was exciting to just kind of dive in, roll up your sleeves. And, you know, Kevin does a great job of kind of probing the inner corners of your brain, teasing out all these, you know, these great hockey experiences, these great stories. And it was at the end of the day, now that we've kind of got a finished product and it's ready to go to market, I'm proud of it. And I'm thrilled for having gone through the exercise. It's been a great time.

We want to jump ahead into your career like we do it all, I guess. There's always some interesting stories there. Now, we were told you what you were scouted i put scouted in quotes uh by the regina pats in a brawl outside a movie theater in cam loops is that is that true and if so fill us in from from what i understand every word of that is true my buddies and i i was about 16 at the time uh you know and i used to hang out with a bunch of guys. We played hockey. We also played football. And we were walking downtown the streets of Kamloops in our football jackets.

We played for a little high school called Sahali. And we're walking down the streets of Kamloops, Main Street, headed towards the movie theater one Saturday night. And we could kind of see on the opposite side of the street, walking in the same direction with us, And we could kind of see on the opposite side of the street walking in the same direction with us, there was a lot of oil rigging, like oil drilling going on in and around Kamloops back in that time. And we called these guys, they were, you know, they were guys that just worked the drill rigs. It's what they did. And they were pretty rough and tumble guys. Well, yeah.

And they, you know, we called these guys rig pigs. so these rig pigs are walking the other side of the street they cross over and we meet them in front of the uh the Kamloops the main movie theater in Kamloops and these guys are you know they're gunned up they're looking to get into it with somebody and they start mouthing off to me and my buddies Sahali sucks onions they say this one guy said Sahali sucks onions you might have said it four to me and my buddies. Sahali sucks onions, they say. This one guy said, Sahali sucks onions. You might have said it four times. Two of my buddies are standing in front of me. I grab each of their shoulders. I parted them.

I waded into the middle of the fray, and I just clocked this guy. And these guys were all, you know, five, six, eight years older than us. I walked into the middle, and I just clocked this guy right in the face, popped two of his teeth out of his face, and then it's on. We get into this big brawl. But as I understand it, right at that time, Glenn Dirk was like the head of amateur scout, or he was actually the head of scouting for the Regina Pats at the time.

He happened to be driving by the movie theater. He sees me kicking the shit out of this rig thing. And from what I understand, like I got listed with the Regina Pats. There was no draft back then. It was a list process. I got listed with the Regina Pats and, you know, the rest is history. I ended up being a Pat for three years while I played in the Western Hockey League. So, yeah, I would put quotations and an asterisk around scout.

I was scouted to the regina pad it's funny that someone sees you pummel a guy and thinks oh there's a hockey player not a boxer now i want to jump ahead a little further i saw you would uh drafted twice within three years uh first by detroit then calgary but you also played three years in juniors and then you played two years at the University of Manitoba. So can you walk us through that whole process and how Detroit had your rights and then lost them? We were trying to figure it out amongst ourselves,

but it was so long ago and the rules have changed so much, we couldn't figure it out. Yeah, and actually, you know what? It's interesting because that rule actually remains today. So when a team drafts you, when an NHL team takes you in the underage draft, they've got a year to offer you a contract, and I think this still stands up today. So when a team drafts you, when an NHL team takes you in the underage draft, they've got a year to offer you a contract. And I think this still stands up today. It certainly was the case back then. And all they have to do is offer you a contract. They don't have to sign you to a contract. And that's just to retain your rights. Well, I got drafted by Detroit after my first year

of junior. They didn't really like what they saw. was you know I was a slow developing kid I had you know I just had a couple of I had a couple of points maybe one point my first year of junior hell I don't even know if it was my point I think one of my teammates gave it to me and I ended up it ended up Detroit did not offer me a contract so what happened was I went back into the draft after my second year of junior and and then going into my third, I was essentially a free agent. I had a really strong year, my third year of junior, playing for the Pats. I got a lot more playing time. You know how they say the bigger guys are always slow to develop?

Whit, you could probably appreciate that, right? I mean, I don't know if you've even hit your feet to this point. I mean, listen, I don't think I ever developed. So, yeah, it's still out there. Remains to be seen. Those bigger guys take forever. I had like 50 points my third year at junior. Calgary liked what they saw. And then Calgary took me after my third year at junior, which I guess was 84, 85.

And that's who I eventually broke in with. I broke in with the Calgary Flames and turned pro in the Flames organization. Well, you ended up going over to the University of Manitoba. Did you fall in love with hockey again, probably because going from your last year of junior and then playing college, you probably expected a little bit less to fight. You could just actually play hockey? Yeah, well, you know know that's a great question

and that's exactly why i kind of left my opportunity to turn pro and went back to college you can probably relate to this bis i'm sure you know it's it's a hard role the role that we play as enforcers it takes you a while to kind of get your mind around you know some nights i play a lot some nights i don't play much but i'm still expected even on those nights that I don't play, I might have to get into it with somebody. And that's a really hard thing to do. And that's a role that just didn't sit well with me at an earlier stage in my life. So I actually left the Calgary flames training camp.

And I think it was 1985 walked away from a pro opportunity because I, I just, I wasn't, I wasn't, I couldn't get my head around how to, how to play that role without self-destructing. So I went back to, I had a buddy that was playing at the University of Manitoba. His name was Bob Lowe's. And Bob told, I told Bob about what I was doing. Bobby said, you know, Hey, I talked to Wayne Fleming about you, our coach. He wants you to join the program. It's a great, you know, it's a great brand of hockey. And I really, I acted on it because one, you know, if I wasn't going to turn pro, I wasn't sure about it. This is a great chance for me to start in my education. And number two,

it's a chance for me to kind of play hockey and just play for the sake of playing. I didn't have to worry about all the other bullshit. So it turns out that it was a perfect stop for me. It allowed me to focus on the game, play the game and love the game again and not have to worry about all the other crap. And I think I grew up a little bit in the process too. So that after two years at the University of Manitoba, Calgary still had my rights. I was an amateur, sorry, playing college hockey, so they didn't have to offer me a contract. They still had my rights. And we had a conversation after my second year of college,

and, you know, it just all kind of worked out. It made sense to me and to them to take a run at the pro rank. So the rest is kind of history. I turned pro, played three years in salt lake and uh of the ihl and and that was kind of my you know my start to professional hockey after going the junior and college route when you say deal with the crap what part of the fighting got to you the most was it the leading up in the anxiety and the anxiousness before the game was it the toll it took on your body and your head taking the beating? Or was it just a combination of everything? You know, I think for me, like the physical part is really taxing. That's hard. I mean, you know, nobody wants to get clipped when

they're involved in a, you know, in a fist, you know, a fistfight with another guy on skates. The physical part of it is really hard, but I found it was the mental, it was the emotional toll that it took on you. And the fear of actually losing in front of, you know, in the junior ranks, it was three, four, 5,000 people. Come pro, it's, you know, it's 20,000 people in the building. I had this, you know, I had this fear around being humiliated in front of my peers and in front of a building full of hockey fans. And then two, Biz, it was part of, you know, I think a part of it was just the anticipation and the anxiety that comes with the moments, the hours and days that come before kind of leading up to a game

where, you know, you probably have a good idea you're going to fight somebody on the other side. So I would never liken it, what we did, to a military-type service or a military-type situation, knowing what those guys do. But you really are, at some level, you're prepared to do battle with another man your size who is capable you know, he's capable of crushing bones in your face. That's, you know, that's a good bit to get your head around when you're a young man. Dude, you had first three, four years pro, you know, a couple NHL games, but it took

a little while for you to become an NHL regular. And for the most part, that happens with a lot of players. They have to learn to become professionals. They have to learn to just become better offensively, defensively in the minors. For you, like, was fighting at that time easy? Not easy to do, but were you winning a lot of fights, like, even in the minors, and they were just waiting for your game to improve? Or were you actually improving as a tough guy

and as the guy who was going out and fighting pretty much every night? Yeah, I guess it's a really good question. I guess that the fighting was always kind of a mainstay. And that's not to say that I won every fight that I was in, but I sure won the majority of them. But like all know, but like all of us, you know, everybody's prone to getting clipped from time to time. And, and that certainly happened to me. So the fighting was always kind of a mainstay. Although, you know, even as a pro leaving college and junior, that part of your game, if you want to call it that, that develops over time too. So I got better at that as time wore on. But there's no question about it, Witt, that, you know, my skating had to improve, positional play had to improve,

because no organization wants to put you out there if every time they do, you're going to be a liability in your own end. There's a baseline that every enforcer slash tough guy has to kind of meet if you're going to be able to survive at the NHL for any length of time. So for me, no question, being able to play and play effectively, that was an important part of my development. So I noticed you racked up 113 penalty minutes in 12 games back in college in 1986. Was fighting allowed in college in Canada back in the 80s?

Or did you just take it easy? Jesus. I know. I know. I still, you know, I mean, I didn't get into it as often, but I will say this. There was a little pent-up aggression in the process. That's fair to say.

That's entirely fair to say. But there are, if I remember correctly, the answer to your question is there was no fighting. The fighting wasn't allowed. So if you got into a single fight, you got kicked out of the game playing at, I think it was called the CIAU back then, Canadian University Hockey. You did get kicked out if you got into a fight, but I got into a few scrapes that year,

but it was usually just kind of spur of the moment, you know, heat of the battle type stuff, which, you know, Bizzle attests to this. It's, you know, it's easy to get involved in a scrape that way when you're kind of, you know, you're all wrapped up in the energy and the passion of the moment. But it's quite a different thing to, you know, to kind of be sitting on the bench for long stretches of hockey at a time. And then when it's time for you to go out and, you know, provide that part of the game, it's hard to manufacture the adrenaline and just go out and do it.

But there are a few majors in there. There are a few tens in there. But I wouldn't disagree with you. 110 minutes is, that's a that's a that's a that's a busy campaign in the box for just 12 games correct now you played the ihl for a few years as well back when it was a vet well it was always a tough league but particularly when you played uh did you have one particular rival during your ihl years that you fought like over and over again like uh family guy in the chicken type thing?

Yeah, there was, I'll tell you, it was a tough league. I mean, you know, if you look back over my stats, it's kind of interesting. The first year in the IHL, I actually only played 36 games and my numbers were, I had like nine goals right out of the gate. You know, I was on the board fairly frequently, but I had like 265 minutes in half a season playing in the IHL. I was on pace for like 500 minutes. I mean, my dance card was full every damn night that I played in the IHL. And two things, really. There was this guy, Mitch Wilson. He was like, he was half my size. He was a career minor leaguer. He was tough as nails. He was made of twisted steel. And I had a bear of a time fighting this guy because he would just stand in there. He could take a punch. He'd find a way to tie you up. And he was, you know, he's pretty strong himself. Not that he was going to necessarily hurt somebody

my size, but I could just never get the best of this guy, and it pissed me off, and we fought fairly frequently. But I will say, just in terms of the teams that we played against, back then in the I, we were, Salt Lake, my team, was the team furthest west, and it was a really largely a kind of Great Lakes Eastern-based league. So we didn't really have anybody other than the Denver Rangers, the Colorado Rangers way out West. That was our closest rival. Well, I'll be damned. I mean, if they weren't, they were probably between us and the Rangers, we were two big, tough teams. And we played those guys like four times in exhibition season because

they were so close. We played them 12 times in the regular season, and then we met them in the first round of the playoffs, and every game was a bloodbath. They had guys like Rudy Pochek. Jimmy Lattice was a really tough guy. Donnie Herzig, all these guys, and it was just, I mean, every game, at least a fight, sometimes two. It was pretty goofy.

It was a tough league. It was a really tough league. But it was an interesting part of the career. So you were kind of on the fence about ending up going to pro camp and signing with the Calgary Flames. I remember you mentioned it in one part of your book. And then after you finally did make the decision to go pro, you ended up going to a skating uh clinic did

you not before your first camp because that was one part of your game that you needed to work on and there was a few pros there gary roberts was one of the names uh in the book just talk about that and did it actually help your skating ability yeah it did it really did um if i remember correctly audrey bakewell and the calgary flamesames kind of had a relationship with Audrey Bakewell. She was the power skating instructor. She did a really fantastic job with guys, you know, pros and juniors who really wanted to improve that aspect of the game. Because let's face it, you know, any scout, any good hockey man will tell you, But, you know, any scout, any good hockey man will tell you,

if you can't get for me to be in an efficient way on the ice, you know, there probably isn't going to be a place for you. Skating is critical. So I was grateful to the Flames. They did. They sent us up to Edmonton to Audrey Bakewell's camp. There was a handful of us every summer. And it was a really intensive two-week camp. But without question, I think it was really intensive two-week camp but without question I

think it was you know a real a primary source of you know of improvement and in a in an important aspect of my game so it was it was certainly it was a worthwhile experience without question a very interesting part of the book for me and for anyone who who hopefully goes out and buy this you'll see right away that each chapter has a name that makes you want to kind of hop to it and read it. And so the one that grabbed my eye was basically the entire description of you and Dave Brown and the rivalry that you guys had and people who don't know. I'd like you to fill in, everyone, about how tough he was, because there's a part of the book where you mentioned I think he was more feared than Bob Probert in the NHL at the time.

Oh, I think that's certainly true without question. I mean, so, so when I was breaking in, you know, it was through the Calgary Flames organization and there, there is no greater rival where the Flames are concerned than the Edmonton Oilers. And it may rank among the greatest rivalries in all of, you know, our sports, certainly, if not beyond. And, you know, my counterpart on the other side, on the Edmonton Oilers, was David Brown, Dave Brown. He was, you know, for folks that don't really remember that era, he was the meanest, baddest mofo on the planet. He had a left hand that hit like a thundercloud. He was this big, lanky guy. He had that look that kind of looked

right through you, right past you. And he's just a tough son of a bitch. And I remember when I got called up to the Calgary Flames, it was like 88 or 89. You know, it was pretty plain to me. If I was going to make it to the NHL, if there was a path for me into the NHL, that path ran through David Brown at that point. And I remember being out there. We played with the front end of a home-and-home series when I got called up. And we're in Edmonton. The Calgary Flames are in Edmonton.

And I'm out there in warm-up. And I'm kind of stretching around the red line and brownie's coming around every lap of his end zone and he's looping over onto my side that's fucking right he's looking right at me and i can hardly like i can hardly muster up the saliva to spit on the ice and i'm looking at this guy going like he is larger than life right now, but I'm going, fuck it. I got to fight him. I'm, you know, I, I, I know enough to know if, if this is, if this is for me, this is my moment. So warmup comes and goes and the game starts four shifts into it.

Of course, fourth line, my line gets thrown out there, brownies out there. And it's a face off outside of our blue line, kind of a neutral ice. So he and I are shoulder-to-shoulder. He's a right winger. I'm a left winger. We're shoulder-to-shoulder. Puck drops. And I give him a shot with my left arm and kind of knock him in the chest

just to kind of get his attention. Hey, this is going to happen. Before I can even get my gloves off, he's, you know, like he just kind of, I won't say he gets a drop on me. He just gets his gloves off quicker and three lefts cut the air above my head and I'm like oh my gosh I gotta do something I gotta get started here and get busy so I reached out kind of across my my body with my left hand and I got his left hand I got his left sleeve I gave it a good tug and then I came hard with two

right hands and I clocked him I hit him right on the button and I laid out for all intents and purposes. I laid out the heavyweight champion of the NHL Brownie right there. Is it, I think it's Charles Dickens who says it was both the best of times. It was the worst of times. you didn't get the best of you didn't you didn't get the best of dave brown and not have to answer it in about as short order as possible we actually fought later in that game but brownie was on queer street like he he just he wasn't himself and it wasn't much of a fight the second time but the the main event the rematch came two nights later we went back to Calgary and I didn't know it but Brownie got with his trainer he got his jersey his his his left arm and his jersey he had it stitched tight like cut it stitched tight he had it coated with silicone and then he wades out into game number two the

back end of the home and home, and he's loaded for bear. Same situation, four shifts into it. Crispy, Coach Crisp, throws me out on the ice, and Brownie comes looking for me right off the drop. And on this night, I don't get his left hand. And he clocked me about three times and bang, bang, bang, and it's right in the right eye. And he, you know, I go down on the ice.

I, you know, I got to be cut. He hit me so hard, hard enough to knock me down. I wasn't knocked out, but I was in a bad way. I go to wipe my eye because I'm sure there's blood under it and there's no blood, but there's this really deep depression under my right eye. And I'm going, what is going on? Like that's never happened before. Pick myself up, skate to the box. And I'm sitting there going to myself as I'm serving my major, I got to fight this guy. I got to straighten this out because he's just embarrassed me in front of my team, in front of the organization, in front of the entire building. And I'm telling you what, guys, as I'm sitting there, minute by minute,

my head is getting 10 pounds heavier every minute. And I'm going, something's very, very wrong. And when my major is up, I skate across the ice, and I go see our trainer, Bearcat Murray. I say, Bear, you've got to take me to see a doctor. Something's wrong. Takes me to see our doc. And within 24 hours, they had me into the hospital for emergency surgery, total facial reconstruction. Brownie

had broke my orbital in three different places, fractured my cheekbone under the eye. And guys, what they do to repair that fracture, they take a stainless steel pin. They, they go, they make an incision above your ear. They go inside your skull. They tap the fracture out flush with this long kind of instrument. They make the fracture flush, and then they stick a stainless steel pin in your face to set the fracture for five weeks, six weeks after that, looking like Frankenstein. I was in such bad shape. But I'll tell you what, it was, you know, it was odd as it may seem, it was a pretty liberating experience for me, a guy that was kind of wrestling with the role. I was able to say to myself at that point, this is a really bad beat. It's the worst beat a guy like me could suffer.

But if I can come back from this, if I can find a way to come back from this, I have nothing left to fear. And I'll tell you, it was an interesting thing and people find it strange, but it actually ended up being kind of a liberating, pivotal moment for me in my career. It really did. So I was already thinking of asking you and you pretty much just answered like, I figured after a surgery like that, an injury like that, your first fight back, you're like, fuck, is this going to happen again? But it was the exact opposite. You were almost more confident going in like, all right, I went through that. I could go through it again type situation. Yeah, it's a good question, Whit. I mean, I was, you know, long term, I was able to put it behind

me. I was more confident as a fighter without question knowing hey I've been through the worst you know nothing's gonna you know I'm not gonna face anything I haven't kind of dealt with already but I will to be honest with you Whit and to answer your question there was a period for those first few fights after um you know kind of coming back from that injury I was a little you know injury, I was a little, you know, gun shy. I was a little tentative. And then gradually your confidence, you know, it builds over time because it's a nasty, nasty injury. I wouldn't wish it on anybody. Stu, your very first NHL game as a Calgary Flame, you had, I noticed, five penalty minutes. I'm

guessing that was a scrap in your very first game. And if so, who was it with? Kevin Maguire was, I would call him kind of, Kevin Maguire was kind of one of the enforcer types for the Buffalo Sabres back when I played my first NHL game. And we were on the road. It was actually the first game I ever got called up for. We were on the road. It was actually the first game I ever got called up for. We were on the road playing Buffalo in Buffalo. The flames were trailing late in the game.

And, you know, it's kind of that moment for a guy in my situation. Hey, the game's not going our way, but I can still go out there and I can do something to kind of, you know, try to turn things around, try to read, you know, try to turn the momentum in this game. And, you know, one guy, the one thing I always liked about the role was even on the nights when the team was struggling, even on the nights when you were struggling, you know, you could find, you can usually find a way to do to go out and do something physical that at

least, you know, somebody in the organization was going to recognize and make a contribution, try to, you know, help the cause in some way. So that's kind of what I was doing when I went out and got into it with Kevin McGuire on that night. But no question, that was my first NHL major, first NHL fight. So I'm guessing after 268 penalty minutes in just 37 games, you probably had somewhat of a reputation preceding you. So were you kind of looking forward to get that first one out of

the way to like show your teammates like, hey, I can do this or did it was a little more organic than that? No, I think it was a little bit of both. No question about it. You always want to kind of get your first NHL fight out of the way. And then, you know, at the same time, I was really looking to kind of, you know, move the needle or make an impression where my teammates were concerned without question. There's, you know, it's funny, you know, Biss would be able to attest to this as well. And all the guys that have kind of come before and after me playing that role. When you look at it, when you watch that happen from the stands, it seems random.

It seems arbitrary. And sometimes it is, to be honest. But for the most part, when guys like us kind of go out and do what we do, there's usually some team-related purpose behind it. And I will say that is one of the noble parts of the role, no question about it. Well, the role does include, like you mentioned earlier, nights where you're not, you know, you're barely going to play, and when you do, you do have to fight.

But rightfully so, none of the guys who ever did it should ever think that they weren't as important to the team as a guy who's playing 20 minutes a night. I mean, it was really the team atmosphere, and you talk about how you never considered yourself not as big of a deal, not as big of a deal, but not as important as a main star until one time in the locker room you and Eddie Belfort started ribbing each other, and I need to hear how all that went down because it is, reading through it,

I could totally picture you being pissed off and be like, what the fuck are you talking about? Yeah, exactly. I was really pissed at Eddie for that. I can't remember. I think, you know, it was a, it was a pregame skate one day, like a morning skate. And, uh, you know, back we're playing for Mike Keenan back then.

And even morning skates, you know, for whatever bloody reason, playing under Mike Keenan, there was always a good bit of tension in the air and for whatever reason Eddie and I kind of bumped into each other we're both really competitive guys and we kind of were you know we're believe it or not we're pushing and shoving each other on the ice at a morning skate and it spilled over to off the ice so we we're kind of, you know, it practices over, we're getting ready to leave the building. And Eddie and I start arguing back in, in the locker room, like just outside the, outside the showers. And he snaps on it. You know, for people that know Eddie, he's, he's not shy to lose it from time to time. The wires will cross even for this goaltender. And he calls me a piner.

And I'm like, wait a fucking second. Hang on. You call me a piner? Like, that was just completely offside. I was really, really pissed about that. And he could tell by the expression on my face and the words that I chose at that moment, he had kind of crossed the line. Because it's as you say, you know, Witt wit it is no matter how much a guy plays whether it's a

minute and a half or it's 21 minutes uh or you're the starting goaltender or you know you're you're the guy the backup that plays 10 or 15 games a year everybody needs to be respected for the contribution that they make because over the course of an 82 game schedule and into the playoffs should you be so fortunate everybody's going to be relied on to make a difference at some point so you got to find a way to value each and every guy in their own way for the contribution that they make so i was pissed at eddie for crying out crossing that line but i will say to eddie's credit and we get along great today in fact i just saw him you know a few weeks back, the Blackhawks, the Chicago Blackhawks have this big fan convention every year.

A lot of the alumni come back and I saw Eddie and we have a great time. But he did, I will give him credit, when he recognized by the, you know, my reaction, he had crossed the line and he was pretty quick to apologize for it. So, you know, we're all guilty of getting wrapped up in the heat of the moment, and that certainly happened to Eddie, happened to me, and, you know, we packed it up pretty quick. Well, he was probably worried about the next time he got ran who was going to have to answer the bell, so he fucking finally came to his senses.

You know, I didn't have a lot of high-end skills, but I had a pretty heavy slap shot, even in the days of the wooden sticks. And I was not shy to buzz the tower when I needed to. Yeah, three-game skate coming in high and hard. Whit mentioned one team. I'm going to mention another. You had two stints in Anaheim,

and Paul Crea ended up starting off the book. And it's kind of funny. He talks about how good of a relationship you guys have. And you're kinda ended up starting off the book. And it's kind of funny. It talks about how good of a relationship you guys have. And you're kind of a softie off the ice. I mean, you're not the same player as you were on the ice. And you ended up developing a very good relationship with Paul. So talk about that a little bit. Yeah, I guess Paul and I hit it off right off the ice or right off the bat, really.

And he's, I have the utmost respect for Paul. I think that, you know, of all the people, and I've played with some great, great players over the years, you know, guys like Mike Vernon, guys like Paul Coffey, guys like Steve Iserman and many, many others. The list is long. But Correa really was an exceptional talent. And I think the thing that, you know,

really causes Paul to stick out in my mind is that he was such a dedicated professional. Every moment he spent in the rink and sometimes even outside the rink, we're dedicated to giving himself an edge, finding an edge so that he could be, you know, a half step quicker, a single millisecond faster than his opponent. He was always looking to refine his game in some way, and he was singularly focused on it. But at the same time, he kind of had this, you know, this kind of dry, wry sense of humor, and I could usually find a way to push his buttons and to get them to smile. And, you know,

because I think it was this protector, you know, slash high end smaller superstar, you know, we kind of developed a fondness for one another and, and it remains one of the, you know, the great friendships that I value even today, having left the game, but Paul and I always said it off. You know, one of the great friendships that I value even today having left the game. But Paul and I always said it all. You want to know one of the really cool gestures? I thought this was a great thing.

Paul had, I forget what the arrangement was, but he had somebody kind of in his network that, whether he was a spokesman or a sponsor for them or whatever, but he used to get several custom-made suits done every year by virtue of his relationship with this one custom tailor around Anaheim, and he walked into the locker room one day, and the kind of the guy that took the measurements for this tailor was there to meet him. He said, screw it. Like, I got all the suits I need. I want you to make one for Stu. I want you to make one for Jimmy McKenzie, and, you know, it was just, I thought it was, you know, like these are 1200, $1,500 suits back in the middle nineties.

They're that's high-ending that's high-end cloth. And, uh, I just thought, you know, Paul was just a really thoughtful, really gracious guy. And we, we remain, we remain good friends today when he'll answer his damn phone. Watch that inseam when you measure McKenzie, I'll tell you that. That was a $2,000 suit for all that extra material in the crotch area. There's a little extra material in the gusset of Jimmy Mack's suit, no question about it.

Stu, when you first became a regular part of an NHL lineup, Mike Keenan was your head coach. I shouldn't say did he play head games with you because it sounds like he did with everybody, but what kind of head games did he play with you? And did you think there was some sort of master plan by him, or did he just like to be a dick sometimes? I would say the latter. It sure seemed to us like he just enjoyed being a dick,

but I'm sure if you asked mike that question it was all part of a master plan but he was uh here's the thing i mean i got along fine with mike um he was a really different dude he was extremely hard on it's probably one of the toughest coaches i ever played for um he was you know at the best of times he was he was he was one of the worst ball busters I ever played for. But, you know, I think if you ask him today, you know, he had some, some grand intricate scheme wired up inside his head and all the random, seemingly random things that he did to what we felt was torturous was,

was all by, by master plan plan one night sticks out for me and and i mentioned this in the book and this kind of goes guys in the category of folks the game is not all that glamorous we're playing the stanley cup finals if you can believe it or not my chicago blackhawks back in 1992 went on an absolute tear in the post. We rattled off like 11 wins in a row during the first three rounds on our way to the Stanley cup finals. And we meet the Mario Lemieux, Ron Francis, Rick talk at Tom Barrasso, Pittsburgh penguins in the first in the Stanley cup finals. And here we are game one. We're in Pittsburgh, they had the better record.

And we're actually up by like, I think, I can't remember the exact score. I got a terrible memory for stuff like this. But I remember we're up by two or three goals in game one. And I'm sitting on the bench going, there's no way. There's no way it could be this easy. I'm thinking this in my head. There's no way we're going to easy. I'm thinking this in my head. There's no way we're going to march to a Stanley Cup championship like this. Well, my thoughts ended up being actually kind of prophetic, profound at the time. So Pittsburgh ends up reversing the score on us. It's like tied by, I don't know, sometime middle to late stages of the second period. So we've given back a two or three goal lead. Pittsburgh's now tied it in their own building.

Game one of the Stanley Cup Finals. And Mike Keenan utters the following words on the bench during the Stanley Cup Finals. That's it. I don't give a fuck. Next five guys that want to play, go ahead. Jocelyn Lemieux. Not Mario Lemieux.

Jocelyn Lemieux, my centerman, and I, we look at each other, and the three of me, my teammates, Mike Peluso, Stu Grimson, and Jocelyn Lemieux pile over the boards. We all go out to take a face-off on our end. Well, who does Scotty Bowman send out? Scotty Bowman sends out Ron Francis, Rick Talkett, Paul Coffey, all these guys, just like this. Jarmer Jagger is there.

Well, Jocelyn Lemieux proceeds to lose the face off as clean as you can lose it. It goes right back to Coffey on the point. Coffey takes a shot from the point into traffic on Arnett. Eddie Belfort, thank God, stops the thing cold in the air, smothers the play, shuts it down. And then we look back at the bench and there's Keenan with his index finger motioning for us to get back to the bench. It was all over in like three seconds.

But can you imagine? I mean, where is the coaching philosophy in, I don't give a fuck, next five guys who want to play, go ahead. Well, he was probably hoping it wasn't the U3 standing up and then he couldn't say no. I'm thinking that. Exactly right. Exactly right. Hey, fellas, real quick. I want to talk to you for a second about dude wipes. As dudes, especially as hockey dudes, let's face it, we are stanky, disgusting humans. So check out the dude brand for all your hygiene needs on and off the ice.

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Anaheim, and then you end up in L.A., and then your last year is in Nashville. Nobody ends up pretty much having the ticker tape parade ending to a career. I mean, besides Ray Bork, Stanley Cup, and you retire. How did it end for you, and how did you realize it was all over? I didn't know if that was a full season that year in Nashville. And on the back end of that that did you have any clue you were going to become a lawyer like let's be honest here when you were pounding guys heads in like

if so is it you're gonna be a lawyer like a thing on this podcast we've had one guy the bouncer ended up being a lawyer who was pounding is that a fact is that a fact well I'll tell you what you take enough blows in the head just about anything will make sense to you, including even to leave the NHL and go back and earn a law degree and then practice law for a living. But, yeah, let me address that kind of on the back end and address the first part of your question on the top end. So I spent, you know, the last contract I played under,

I signed as a free agent in Nashville. uh you know the last contract I played under I signed as a free agent in Nashville I only played about 30 some games in Nashville that year and you know I took a I took a punch from a guy George LaRock he's a big tough guy as well another left-hander biz I hate lefties if it weren't for lefties I'd still be playing today I sure of that. And I took a shot from George LaRock, and I was at a stage in my career where, like the several other fights I was in earlier in that year, my head wasn't clearing like it did when I was earlier in my career. Like when I was back in my middle 20s and even my early 30s, I was having headaches. I was having this kind of almost vertigo type feeling where I was a little off balance all the time. And finally, by the time George clipped me in

December of 2001, I got to a place where I just said, this isn't going away. I know something really sinister is going on. I got to tell somebody, I got to tell my trainer. And I went to Dan Redman, our trainer, and I said, Dan, here's what's going on. And right away, he shut me down. It was immediately, it was two weeks of nothing but rest. And we've got to see, you know, how your body's going to respond once we give your brain a chance to heal. Because it was, you know, I think I was really kind of suffering from an accumulation of, you know, many, many blows to that head, certainly prior to that year, but certainly within the context of that 2001-2002 season. So, you know, long story short, guys, you know, I was kind of

in the funk, in the junk for really the better part of a year and a half, and my head took a long, long time to clear. And during that process, it just became very clear to me that, you know, my body wasn't going to give me permission to return to play. So I eventually hung him up, probably officially in somewhere in 2002. But yeah, going back to, you know, going back to school, finishing off my undergraduate degree, I wouldn't say I really had an inclination or an idea that I was going to go back and I was going to pursue a degree in the law. But I did know this, I wanted to get a graduate degree of some kind, because I wanted to kind of, you know, boost or improve the marketable skills that I had kind of make an investment in myself,

and then go on to work for a club or a union at some point and kind of work, I guess, an executive-type job or an operations job somewhere in the game. So that was kind of the game plan, and I saw a lot of guys go before me, guys like Mike Leute, guys like Neil Sheehy, guys like Ken Dryden. And I saw them earn degrees in the lot. I saw them go on to have some really exciting careers after the game.

That was really, you know, the primary part of the thinking behind it. And I'm glad that I did. You know, it's opened up a lot of doors to me and has given me a life today that I couldn't be happier doing what I'm doing today. Maybe you can get a Tom Hagen gig where you only have one client, like on The Godfather. I like that. And I'm a wartime conciliary, I'll tell you that.

I'm a wartime conciliary. There we go. Do we just hang up the phone and let you two take over, or what? Man, the grim reaper. He knows what's up with The Godfather. Stu, I often compare fighting in the NHL today to, like, in the case of emergency break glass situation. What do you think of fighting's current stance in today's NHL game?

You know, I'm often asked that question, and I'll answer it very candidly, and I'll tell you, I love where the game is at today. Without question, I love where the game is at today. Without question, I love where the game is at today. Having said that, I still believe that the role, maybe not so much the role, but the concept of fighting needs to remain in the game today. Because for this reason, I think it is one of the things that helps us differentiate ourselves from the other sports. We love to say about hockey that it's furious, it's fast, and it's fierce,

and there is no more exciting game to see in person. And I think that is truest when, you know, there's always the threat and sometimes the actual act of two guys shaking off their gloves and getting into a scrape on the ice. And here's the thing. Let me be even more specific about it. I don't believe, I don't argue that it needs to happen randomly and arbitrarily. I like that our game retains this aspect of it. I like it when fighting is a tactical kind of strategic part of the game. And here's what I'm referring to specifically. When my team is trailing by a goal or two,

and I go out and I get into a scrape with somebody like a Paul Bissonette on the other side or a Bob Probert on the other side, it's very, very possible that the momentum in that game will turn and it will turn in my team's favor. that the momentum in that game will turn and it'll turn in my team's favor because, um, you know, my anecdotal, my personal experience has been whenever I do that two thirds of the times or 75% of the times, all of a sudden my team gets a spark when I go out and I do something like that and the fans feel it and our bench feels it. And it's an energy that kind of permeates the entire building.

And I think it still remains one of the really cool things today. It's one of the most curious, peculiar parts of the game. But there's no question that it has an impact on the game. And that's the one aspect that I really want to see continue in our game. I don't argue for one moment that, you know, I think the game is missing. Guys like me and Bess need to go out and get into a, you know, a goofy, random, arbitrary fight. You know, three minutes left in the game because one team's trailing by four goals. But I like that, you know, two guys will lock horns

because it means something to one person's team and the game can change in that moment i love that part of the game that's the part of the game i want to see preserved still during your career did you feel you ever eventually got to a level respect from your peers where they didn't even bother barking up your tree anymore kind of like i don't remember when nick fatih you fought but he was such a tough bastard in the 70s guys just stopped approaching him because they didn't want to fight him anymore. Did you ever feel like you got to that level where guys didn't just stop fucking with you because you were so tough?

Yeah, I don't know. I mean, you know, certainly there were moments when, you know, I think the respect that I had gained or garnered over the course of my career, you know, probably there were guys that, you know, may have gone or, or may have looked the other way when they could have found a way to get into it with me. It's hard for me to really, you know, to, to identify that because that's, that's more a question for the other guy than it is for, for me. But, but I, but I will say, you know, I was as busy in the latter stages of my career as I was in the early stages of my career. Because for me, you know, and I bring this up in the book, too.

It's just kind of the way I was wired. to tap me on the shoulder and kind of single me out and single me out in front of my peers and send me out to do something that I may or may not have wanted to do at that moment. So the point I'm making is I kind of got to a place where I was hypersensitive to the way the game was being played. If my guys were trailing or if my guys were getting run out of the building it came up on my radar but way before it ever came up on anybody else's radar and i went out and i got into it preemptively because i didn't want to have to have somebody telling me to do that for me i wasn't doing my job if somebody had to tell me to do that so you know that that's kind of all right that's kind of where it came from me. All right, we've asked you a lot about fighting.

I've got to ask you, what's your, what goal are you most proud of? I know I always talk about the one I scored in San Jose, knee drop, snipe, top cheese. Is there one maybe you dangled a few guys and slid one in a five hole? What was your best one? Oh, I've got to tell you, Biz, it's an easy,

when you score 17 goals over the course of your career, that's an easy question to answer. You remember all of them. Yeah, you remember every damn one of them without question. But I scored – well, let me tell you really quickly about two of them because they're both pretty humorous in their own way. One of the most memorable is the only goal I ever scored in the NHL in the playoffs.

We were playing in, like, game three versus the Chicago Blackhawks. We were trailing in the game. We were up in the series. It was the Western Conference Finals and we were trailing in the game. I'd been sitting on the bench for like a full period and Scotty Bowman taps our line and he sends us out there. Honestly, as I threw my leg over the boards, I'm going, why the hell is he putting us out here now? Like, I'm as cold as cold can be. Well, anyways, fast forward, puck drop, and Tim Taylor, my centerman, gets the puck, and he's streaking down the right side of the ice

inside the Chicago zone. Steve Smith is the lone Blackhawk defender. He's fending a two-on-one I'm the left winger Tim Taylor's got it he threads a beautiful pass over to me I'm going hard to the net all I had to do was kind of get my stick on it shovel it to the net and I beat Eddie Belfort between the legs game tying goal we go on to win the game like the whole game turned in that moment we eventually go on to win the series but it was game turned in that moment we eventually go on to win the series but it was a really cool moment kind of within the context of the series

I actually dropped on my knees like just to get that shot off I kind of had to go down at an awkward angle and I crashed into the end wall and I'm kind of standing there on my knees as Keith Brimo and Tim Taylor come in I mean I was numb as numb could be that, you know, I was able to kind of put it in the net at that moment. So that was a really cool goal. My only power play goal ever in my NHL career. Oh, you're wrong. Do you guys need a moment just to digest that?

Would the whole team get kicked out of the game? So we're playing the Tampa Bay Lightning. It's Tampa's first year in the league. They're in our building. It's their expansion year. So they're playing in Chicago against my Blackhawks. We're up by like three or four goals. The game is way out of hand, but we get a power play late in the game.

So Daryl Sutter is my coach and he doesn't want to run up the score so he goes stewie get out there go stand in front of the net i throw one leg over the boards basil mccray is on he's like my contemporary my counterpart on the other side i throw my leg over the boards to go out on the power play basil m McRae sees me coming out. He goes, oh my God, what is going on now? Like his eyes roll back at his head. So I get out to the faceoff. Back then, the faceoff starts in our zone because that's

where the play stopped. Jeremy Roenick's out there with me. JR comes over. He goes, Stewie, when I win this draw, I'm going to take it back behind the net. And when I start making my way up center ice, I want you to, sorry, when I make my way down the left wing side, I want you to hang back in the middle of the ice inside their zone. When I give you this, when I create the space for you, I'm

going to thread it back for you. And I just want you to pound it at the net. And I'm looking at them like, all right, okay, JR, JR like just like you said you bet like you know tongue-in-cheek kind of thing face-off happens puck drops I'll be damned if JR doesn't win the drawback he ends up with it behind our net and I'm like you know what should I really be doubting this kid at this moment and so sure enough I make my way down center ice, JR streaking down the left side of the ice, and it's coming together just like the kid drew it up. So I hang back inside of the Tampa zone. JR makes a beautiful pass to me, right on my forehand, right on my tape. I step into it and just hammer it right through Darren Pupa's legs. And I scored my first,

right through Darren Poupon's legs, and I scored my first, my only ever power play goal at the NHL. I about jumped into J.R.'s arms after the play shut down. It was unbelievable. It was unbelievable. And that's more a J.R. story than it is a Stu Grimson story. J.R. was one of a kind. J.R. will score the goal and he tells the story.

Exactly right. I got one more for you. How weird was Dominic Kasich? Dom was a really weird dude. A really weird dude. Let's go. Let's go to part two of this podcast. He was an exceptional goaltender without

question, but I'll tell you what i used to sit in my locker many many days and nights in the nhl inside the chicago black locker room and i would look at this thin wispy character who would sit there with his legs crossed he would have his arms folded he would have his fingers across his mouth. And he looked more like a philosopher or a librarian than he did a bloody NHL goaltender. He was just a peculiar dude. He used to have us line up after practice, all the hardest shooters on the team. He'd have us line up kind of semicircle. This is back when he was kind of backing up Eddie Belfer. He was our number two. So he was doing whatever it took to make himself a better goaltender. And here was his words to us. He would say, guys, slap shots, only slap shots.

And I want you to shoot slap shots at my head, slap shots at my head. I mean, there were goaltenders who, you know, had been there for five, six years or more, veteran goaltenders. If you took a slap shot at their head, or if you shot it at their head, you know, their, their stick would come hurtling through space at you at your head, because you took that shot at them. But Dom wanted us to take slap shots at his head. And his explanation for that was, I'm going to take them in a game.

I want to be used to them in practice. I mean, it was the craziest thing. He could have, he could have got himself seriously injured, but he was one really competitive, diligent bastard, and he made himself a great goaltender. He was exceptional. Sure was. Well, thank you so much, man. This has been a lot of fun.

I think that this will force people to go out and want to buy this book because there's plenty more stories in there. We've had the chance to read, read some of them beforehand, but we appreciate you coming on. I look forward to seeing you come October in Secaucus. I'm looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to it.

All right, biz wet. I really appreciate the time. You guys, it's been, it's been a ball. It's everything. It's everything.

It's built to be. You guys do a great job with the podcast and I wish you the best in all you do. You've been stroking us off all episode. Maybe we should keep you around more often. Thanks, Stowe. It means a lot, man. You're a guy I really appreciated your game when I watched you play

and now interview you. It's kind of a little full circle for me. To hear those words means a lot, so I appreciate it very much. I appreciate it, guys. Thanks a bunch. That interview is also brought to you by Can I Brands. Chicklets fans, thanks again to everyone who signed up for the Can I Brands first ever Feel Amazing Sweepstakes giveaway.

Can I Brands and I are excited to announce that Zach Osterberg is the winner and will be joining me, Biz, in Arizona for a hockey experience of a lifetime. As you know, Can I Brands is a CBD company creating all natural hemp derived products for athletic wellness. Started by athletes, built for performance and puts wellness at the core of everything they do and stand for. Whether that's giving your day a boost, getting a better sleep, mending an injury, or refreshing your mind and body, Can I Brands has a balm, cream, spray, and oils made for you. We're also excited to announce that Can I Brands is also screening official partners to sell with in store. spa or therapy clinic and interested in carrying can i brands balms creams oils and sprays in your stores email info at can i brands.com that is info at can i brands which is c-a-n-i-b-r-a-n-d-s.com

to learn more you have to love it you know you want it go online and hit up www.canibrands.com and use promo code biz20 to receive 20% off your next purchase live life feeling amazing and follow canibrands on instagram to stay tuned for upstates and sweepstakes contests and promotions coming soon there might even be a contest being announced next week so keep your eyes on canibrands instagram page for details can i brands the company behind your favorite all-natural cbd creams balms sprays and oils another congratulations to zach and looking forward to seeing you down in arizona can i brands feel amazing big thanks once again to stew grimson man he was such a like i said earlier such a fearsome

fighter back in his day man they just don't make them like they used to anymore. So great chat with him. Always love talking to the old fighters. A few other NHL news and notes. Evgeny Kuznetsov, who pissed positive for Wolf at the World Championships back in May, was suspended for three games without pay for what the NHL deemed inappropriate conduct. I couldn't keep it it in i love it man uh you know normally test the positive for uh for blow up bud means the league substance abuse program might reach out with recommendations but it's not required because you know they're not peds but what you know it appears basically that koozie misled the caps in the nhl about what happened you know he kind of bullshit them so he's really getting punished for not being truthful more than the actual use of fucking drugs, I would say,

because, you know, the NHLPA could say, hey, no, he didn't get drug tested by the league. This isn't right. But I think he felt changed. I think he was ashamed of what happened. You know, he stood there. He took the questions. He fucking took the he fart.

And he's, you know, taking his lumps. He's not appealing it. He knows he fucked up and he's going to take the hit. What do you boys think? Should he have appealed it? Should he have not? Of what? What do you got with it? No, I think he He's not appealing it. He knows he fucked up, and he's going to take the hit. What do you boys think? Should he have appealed it? Should he have not? Of what?

What do you got, Whit? No, I think he's got to eat it. You guys got me. Shit. It was a hell of a night, though. I'll take the first three games off anyways. I'll still get 95 points. This is no worries.

I would have. Biz lost money. He would have, I would have lost money. He biz would have a hundred percent appealed it. First of all, I hate that that video came out. Cause those are, that's as personal life. Like we shouldn't be seeing that shit. That's his business.

It's just a shame that it came out and, and, and it sucks. Cause like there might be some, like some kids and some parents out there that like, you know, expected him to be a role model when in fact, listen, you should be your kid's role model. We won't, we don't need to get into parents out there that like, you know, expected him to be a role model when in fact, listen,

you should be your kid's role model. We won't, we don't need to get into that, but just like, you know, it turns them into like a bit of an enemy according to some people where all they want to do is have a little fun on his own and get into the booger shirt. Yeah. No judgment here. GM Brian McClellan wants him to address the team at some point. Sorry for ripping it up at the world's guys. I mean, does a team just kind of care?

I mean, do teammates get offended? I mean, they just had a little fun at the world. They'll chirp them. I would guess they just get chirped a little bit. Hey, this is what's going to happen. Kuzi's going to get up and address the team, and half the guys are going to have their mouths inside their their their practice jerseys or or their or their ginch and then in the shower after or whenever like no one of of any authorities around oh the fucking jokes will be fine every game before we take takes a

couple ad bill before the game oh you're not going to crush it up and wolf it up today he's getting everything. Free game meal. Guys are going to... Oh, man. Is there dust in here? Anytime he gets the sniffles in the winter, they're like, oh, Jesus. Koozie's went out. I swear I'm sick.

Somebody's holding. So, Whit, I understand you have yet another crazy prank story for the crew here. Hey, before we go to that, Koozie's new Sally instead of the bird dance should be putting snow on his thing and just ripping his arm. Just a little tootski. A little tootski. He brings the blade to his nose. Then he's just ripping celebrations as he pumps it.

Rips his platinum credit card out of his pants and just chops it up. Goes over the goal. You want me to put some snow in front of him to reduce the chance of a goal score? Anyway, sorry about ruining your prank story. You say he brings out his black card. He's

popping it up on the puck he just scored with. Fuck, Kuzi's at it again. He's got his 49th of the year. Now we get the cocaine celebration. Okay, so this prank... We've been waiting a week for this because we were going to tell the last episode.

We ran out of time. Look at Weeger. I mean, the poor guy is the perfect example of how a good prank story can get told on chicklets. And people just love it. So what happens? Brian Foley, the guy that always is doing the pranks. Menace.

His cousin is a Boston police officer, Nolan. So this fucking family, they just love messing with people. So this is Boston Police Department. There's a guy in the Boston Police Department who you'll hear an audio soon of. We can't say his name. So I'm gonna go by, for the rest of the story, Officer McGruff.

Okay? I'm gonna go Officer McGruff. That'll make a little bit more sense as we go forward. So Officer McGruff is a great guy. Like, Foles' cousin's telling me they love him, but they also kind of love to fuck with him. So it's one of those boys, everyone has their boy, right, that you love the guy to death, but you can rattle him so easily that you just gotta tee him up all the time. So, so Officer McGruff is obsessed with food, guys. This guy, he lives for being a police officer and for eating food.

All he does, and I'm telling this secondhand, I hope to God I do a good job, but I'm being told this guy is the ultimate foodie. He proclaims himself that he knows all these places nobody else knows. And by the way, I'm also told as he tells everyone all about the different restaurants he likes, his favorite restaurant's like Fuddruckers. So he tries to act like this true big-time hipster foodie, but deep down we know Officer McGruff isn't. Well, there's a place in the city, Florian Hall it's called.

Officer Ross Yandel, he got married there. Tons of weddings there. I swear to God, every person from Dorchester gets married there. They might have 5, he got married there. Tons of weddings there. I swear to God, every person with door dresser gets married there. They might have 5,000 weddings a year. It's the Firefighter Union Hall. Firefighter Union Hall. So they have lunch, dinner. It's a bar.

Right, R.A.? There's this food there. Yeah, there's a bar and a restaurant. So what Florian Hall does is they're really nice. They fax over their menu every day to the district that this guy's at, Officer McGruff's at. Maybe they fax over their menu to all the districts. Yeah, fax, dude.

I think they do fax it legit or email it or whatever. So Florian's a solid place, man. You'll get a good meal, but you don't really need to see the menu every day. You know what's on there. You get your chicken parm. You get whatever. You don't really need to check in. Well, McGruff, every day this guy would just wait at the fax machine for the menu.

People are like, this guy, he's got nothing else to do but just wait until the Florian Hall daily menu comes in. And then he'd walk around the station. You guys see this menu? Look how unreal this is. This is incredible. And everyone's like, Jesus Christ. So I'm being told that McGruff's trying to basically talk like he's cooking the food,

like he's an owner almost. Like, what is going on? We got to fuck with him. And what happens when you get a group of guys and girls in the police department together and there's the one guy you like to mess with? Well, fuck, man, you can you can pull up some amazing cranks. So another guy, another cop, a police officer that's in this station is unreal at Photoshop. So this kid's known as the Photoshop master. So what him and a couple other buddies did including false's cousin is they created a fake menu okay and they created a couple things on the menu

dude i'm gonna really struggle getting through this story they created a couple fake things on the menu and they thought about it and this kid's photoshop work we can post the menu as well as we can post the audio so we'll post the menu on the instagram this kid did such a bang-up job it looks like the owner of florian hall did this menu himself i mean it couldn't look any more legit so what they did was they went to the girl that works whatever near the near the fact machine whatever where the menu comes menu comes. And they said, hey, January 1st. Give them this menu, flip out the menu they send and give them this menu. And what they did is they said, hey, McGruff, did you hear Florian? They revamped the menu for the new year. It's 2019, dude. They're going big time. Apparently they got a bunch of

new things. So McGruff fucking barks his way over to the factory January 1st, and the girl who's a part of the prank hands him over this menu, and he's looking at it, and he's like, holy shit. Look at this menu. He is ranting and raving about this menu. Now, here's the one part of the story that I don't really understand. The way I was described is it all came together so perfectly. But the one thing that they added on the menu that they really,

really wanted him to order just so happens to be the thing that McGruff wanted. So it worked out to perfection. So after ranting and raving about Florian's new menu and what it can, look at the changes 2019, they changed everything. He goes in the car with the guys working with that day

and they're about to order and this guy knows what he's going to order. He's a part of the prank too. He gets his phone out and he fucking records this guy no no mind you mind you before you listen to this video what he's ordering you're going to hear him ordering the top dog pizza so this is what it says let me read you the first few meals from the menu.

Grilled flank steak with garlic, herb, butter, pickled red onions, and spinach. Sounds great, right? Choice of crispy shrimp or vegetarian tacos with fresh salsa, Asiago cheese, and Florian special sauce. Right, not too bad. Well, then third down the list, you get the top dog pizza. Not too bad. Well, then third down the list, you got the Top Dog Pizza.

The Top Dog Pizza. Pizza with hot dog, relish, sauerkraut, mustard, bacon, ketchup, mild chili, and provolone. Disgusting. So, listen. Hold on. Hold on. Yeah, I've heard the video You haven't heard the video. You haven't heard the audio. So Top Dog Pizza is the grossest description of a pizza I've ever read in my life.

And not only did McGruff fall for the new menu, but he ordered the Top Dog Pizza. So I'm going to play the video or the audio. Excuse me. I keep mistaking that for everyone right now. Here we go. And I love how you guys haven't heard this yet either. Yeah, can I please know who we picked up, please? Okay.

Can I get the Top Dog Pizza? The Top Dog Pizza, the special today? The top dog pizza that's special today? Yeah, they said it's like a top dog pizza or something like that? It's really about training and nutrition, and I tell you, you really need to do this because it's time. I'm already waiting for it. It's one of the specials on the... ...one-term solution for weight loss. Five locations.

On the... The newest at Littleton. Or for their worldwide program online at Awaken 180. No, it's at Wednesday. And own your own business. Find the hottest new money making franchises. Plus free seminars for aspiring business owners. Right.

At the franchise show. Oh. Oh, okay. All right. Maybe that's what it was. Maybe we had an old one. Yeah. Okay, maybe I'll call you back in a little bit then.

No, no, no. It was a top dog pizza that I read. It was definitely... Okay, alright. Alright, bye now. There's no way. There's no way. Coach, we were going to give the first question to Tim McCone

today, who was... They're saying they don't have any of that shit that was on that menu. there's no way. Happy New Year, guys. There's no way. Coach, we were going to give the first question to Tim McCone today. They're saying they don't have any of that shit that was on that menu. He was going to make it personal. So throughout the video, you can hear the guy recording. He's coughing because he's trying to hold his laugh. I think he did. He say top dog pizza seven times. Holy shit.

So what happened was he gets the video to everyone else behind the prank. They are losing their mind laughing dude. So the next day falls cause Nolan another guy. They make another fake menu, but they make it so blatantly obviously

fake to just see if he would fall for it again. So he reads it and he starts, and he starts, something starts clicking in his brain, in his brain and detective McGruff, he's on the case.

So he gets the menu with the top dog pizza that he got from the day before. And he storms down to Florian Hall and ask some, what is going on with this menu? You said you didn't have the top dog pizza. He storms down to Florian Hall and asks him, what is going on with this menu you sent? You didn't have the top dog pizza when I called yesterday. And Florian, apparently he's the only guy that's ever ordered pickup from there. So they knew right away when he called and ordered it, someone was just fucking with him. And they went along with it.

And so it turns out the guy leaves, finds out there's a video of it, and went silent. Didn't talk to anyone for a month. I think I know that voice, man. R.A. knows this guy. I know exactly who it is and he's going to fucking hate the world once this fucking episode drops. I mean, you gotta

laugh at yourself sometimes. Officer McGruff doesn't laugh at himself all that too much. Top dog pizza is how perfect. Dude, it had relish, hot dogs, sauerkraut, provolone,

and he was dying for it. He's going to be pissed when he hears that. So apparently he gave the okay that his name will not be used the video will not be used but the audio can be played it that was okay was given because yeah even even nolan said this guy's gonna want to murder me but he convinced him to let it go down and it's just the phone call to hear somebody say top dog pizza seven times and to know how gross the top dog pizza is.

And then when he hangs up to look at his partner and say, go fucking away. They're saying they got none of this. But hey, we got to open up a pizza place and do this top dog pizza. We wouldn't sell one of them besides McGruff. That sounds like when you come home in a blackout and put like trying to fucking get everything in your fridge and put it on one pizza. That is absolutely repulsive.

You know, one of our fans is going to be fucking sending us a video of them eating a top dog pizza. That's happening. It's it's in the mix. I would be shocked if a pizza place in Canada didn't have that as a special by the end of the week. It's just incredible that I said I said, how did you guys know he would order the top dog there was a couple other things on there but nothing's funny and they just said man it just it was meant to be

it was meant to be that he wanted the top dog that's like Picasso shit right there when I was originally told that whole story it was two weeks ago I was crying laughing we were having beers I was like this is insane so it was McGruff It was two weeks ago. I was crying laughing. We were having beers. I was like, this is insane. So it was, it was McGruff.

Thank you so much for your service. Boston police. We all, we love, we love all police out there. So thank you for that. But that story was too good not to be told on, on our form. I can't wait to see him in person. We got to get officer McGruff t-shirts made crushing a hot dog, covering a slice. Oh man. what else do we got in the hockey world great prank story thank you Whit I was I was having a good time before you go any farther

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Give that one a whirl if you haven't yet. One more time, audible.com slash chicklets. Well, speaking of top dogs, the San Jose Sharks named Logan Couture as the 10th captain in team history. He was an absolute assassin in the playoffs last year, led the NHL with 14 goals. The Sharks are also going to do that weird four rotating alternate thing as well that Grinnelli poked fun of on Twitter feed,

which is absolutely hilarious. Thornton, Hurtle, Burns, and Carlson are going to be the four. Biz, I want to ask you guys, Biz, we'll go to you first. Let me ask, do the letters really matter as much as fans think, or does the players' performance and resume carry more weight, Biz? I think it does matter to some guys, especially when they do deserve it. What I love about the San Jose organization is it seems that the leadership role happens very organically.

And they kind of – I mean, Logan Couture, I mean, think of how long he's been in the league, but now finally he's stepping in as the captain. And I mean, this guy is a proven player in times in need. I mean, this guy is the ultimate playoff performer, probably one of the best of his generations. When the stakes get higher, he rises to the occasion and lets his play talk for itself.

And to me, there's no better leadership than that. And, of course, it's probably nice for him knowing that he does have other guys in that locker room who, when something does need to be said, it can be said. And there's not just one guy pulling the rope. You know, Joe Thornton is an obvious other candidate, but, I mean, he's probably got one or two years left. It makes perfect sense. And I think he was asked about that certain situation.

He said, me and Jumbo have an incredible relationship, and we're essentially both going to be in the top dog leadership role because I think Joe's more of a vocal guy, too, in the locker room. And when certain guys feel natural doing that, let them do it. Whereas, like, for instance, and I'll shift it to the Arizona, is when Oliver Ekman Larson was named captain, he didn't change who he was. He doesn't bark in the locker room as much as a Joe Thornton would. And to me, I see Logan Couture as similar to that,

where he lets the play do the talking. Yeah, I want to have him on here, I want to have him on here. I want to have him on here. He's been somebody who we've looked to grab a bunch of times, and now he's the captain. It makes sense. The funny thing is that people did shit on him. That tweet was funny.

I don't mind having assistants on the road at home. It just makes people feel a little bit more involved. I know that may sound stupid, but if you're wearing an A on the road, you feel great. I mean, you'd love to wear it whenever you can. And, oh, I didn't tell you guys, Grinnelli sent me an unbelievable gift, dude. A wooden fucking design of me wearing an A on the Edmonton Oilers, this, like, painting thing.

It was unbelievable. Thank you very much for that, Mikey. I wanted to say thank you. He said congrats on 200 episodes. Wow. That was unbelievable. Thank you very much for that, Mikey. I wanted to say thank you. He said, congrats on 200 episodes. Wow, that was classy. And Grinnell, you knew what you were doing in terms of picking that picture because it had an A on it. Thank you, buddy. Now I can have it up and every person that you were and you were an A at some point. Well, what I was going to do, since it was a picture of you and Edmonton, I was going to say something along the lines of times were hard back then, but now things are much better.

Thanks for having a successful podcast. Something along those lines. Well, either way, thank you. And congrats to Logan Couture. Makes a lot of sense. The perfect fit there. I got to follow you. I'll leave with Grinnell.

Thanks a bunch. I got one as well. It was the picture. That's actually my blogging picture from Boston, which I think encapsulates me pretty good. I got the Boston shirt, the Scali, and a Simpsons T-shirt on underneath. So thanks, Mike. 200 episodes.

It's flown by. We always say this has exploded any expectations we have had. So thanks for the gift. Very thoughtful of you. Is this episode 200? Yeah, shout out to Gaylord Hardware for putting that together. This Greg Gaylord drove down from Canada, drove those down to me from New York City, him and his wife.

Wow. Yeah, I can't thank them enough for doing that. They actually gave me some edibles too. Get the fuck out of there. And some maple syrup. So it was the most Canadian thing ever. So shout out to Greg Gaylord. Looking right.

That's unreal. That's a good little story. Just going back to the Shaq thing for a minute. Wait, I wanted to ask you, Kevin Kerr is in the Atlantic. He wrote back in 2015, the primary reason that Patrick Milo asked to be traded was because he wasn't named an alternate captain. I want to ask, is that common for guys to get pissed not getting a letter?

Is that something you ever experienced? Either one of you have. No. I've met Patrick. I went to a preseason before training camp thing and vailed with Patrick Milo. That's surprising. I mean, granted, I was with him five days.

I don't know the guy very well at all, but he didn't come off as somebody who would request a trade because of that. Who knows? I can't remember any time a guy was, like, openly mad about not being named a captain or an assistant captain. I think that it is important to certain guys to make them feel relevant and that they're appreciated on the team. I think certain guys are more sensitive to it than others.

And, I mean, guys, I'm not trying to humble brag here. I wore a C in junior. I wore an A in junior as well. And, yeah, it made me feel good. And to criticize myself, don't i was not ready to be a captain i was i was too much of a a snapshot i was a very intense player whereas i think that leaders are should be guys who are able to play at a high level and yet always remain even keel and and i've been fortunate enough to play with a lot of good leaders. And to me, it's something that should be earned

and it should come off as genuine. But if you have to include one guy in the mix in order for him to feel more appreciated and to get more involved, it's not going to hurt you. Even if the other guys are like, yeah, he's not the captain. I mean, he does have an A on his jersey. I mean, leadership doesn't always mean you need the a on your jersey but hey if a guy needs it in order to feel relevant i say fucking

slap it on if it's going to benefit the team yeah not that big of a deal a couple other small notes real quick we're going to go over uh winnipeg defenseman dustin bufflin was granted a personal leave by the team and we're just passing along for news reasons paul marie's did note that there was quote nothing sinister to this which is kind of a weird word to use, but it's called personally for a reason, none of our fucking business. We'll move on to the next item. The Ducks will be without Ryan Kessler, Ian Patrick Eves this season. Not a huge surprise.

35-year-old Kessler had resurfacing surgery on his hip back in May. He's not ready to play. GM Bob Murray said he's doing well. The resurfacing has worked. I'm not going to comment on the rest of his career, but it's very doubtful at this point. Eves is also 35. That poor guy's battled a bunch of shit the last few years, including some weird muscle disease that doctors had a hard time diagnosing. Murray also said about him, I won't say he's retiring, but he's out for the year. Whatever you want to call what he had, keep resurfacing. He's trying

to come back. He's got one more year left this season at 3.15 mil, so we want to send best wishes to those guys. Hope they're feeling better. These guys are warriors. They've been around for a long time, and I hope they're feeling good, and who knows, maybe we'll see them again. We got a little quick note from Russia over in the VHL,

which is basically the AHL of Russia. I'm going to totally butcher this name. Ishtal Izhek. They have a pretty atypical player of the game trinket to pass along after wins. It's not a Broadway hat. It's not a gold chain. It's a fucking AK-47. I don't know if it's real, if it's a replica.

It looks pretty real, and given it's Russia, it's probably real, and it's probably loaded. Mowitz, did you get a look at this or what? I did, and I've actually heard of it before. Many teams do this where in Russia you get player of the game AK-47s, and if you get player of the game 10 times and you get 10 AK-47s, you're actually allowed to pick somebody on the team you want to shoot and you can shoot them.

So it's great. It's a great system. I get player of the game 10 times, really hate someone. You're allowed to legally murder them. And, yeah, it's great. Then the next day at practice, you say a prayer for them, and so it goes. Team camaraderie would be at an all-time high if that's how things worked, and maybe it should.

They might have to modify it. If I was playing, I'd have, like, seven guys. I'm like, man, they cannot get 10 players a game. All right, what were you going to say? I said they might have to modify Ice Cube's song. Today I earned the post-game AK. I got to say, it was a good day. I just threw up. Is this episode over?

Speaking of throwing up, what did you think of my beanpot picture that somebody unearthed off a nesting the other day? Is it true? You were 20 years old in that picture? Actually, I was 18. I was going to be 19 in three more months. You were in high school or college?

That was my freshman year of college. And crazy, dude. They happened to be playing the beanpot from 91. And my buddy Tommy, who grew up with Big Walt Medford, he happened to have it on. He recognized me, and I was like, oh, my God. That night, we went to the dugout to party after. Me, Big Walt's brother, and two of his cousins,

we drove from the city all the way to Bill Ricketts to get beers to Salem State. I woke up on a couch, didn't know where I was, and went right to fucking school. I was going to Northeastern to take a final. Same clothes, bedhead, stinking like a fucking brewery. Some dude's like, I seen you on TV last night with those clothes on. And I had never seen the actual footage until that dude took the picture

that day. Get out of here. And I was getting chirped hard. People are like, what happened to you, R.A.? I'm like, brother, check back with me in 30 fucking years and let's see what you look like. All right, pal? It's like, I wasn't too bad. And by the way, I was better looking than Peyton Manning fucking when he was 19. I heard that enough for sure, Biz. I think somebody had a good comparison.

They said Peyton Manning and Matthew Perry had a baby. Yeah, Matthew Perry, I've gotten that one. I like that one a lot better than Peyton Manning. Whoa, whoa, whoa. You can't have one without the other. It's a mix, okay? Don't combine. You can't just take Matthew the other. It's a mix, okay? Don't combine. You can't just take Matthew Perry.

Yeah, I sure look like Matthew Perry. Yeah, I mean, I always knew I had a big forehead, but I was like, damn, I was fucking, my fucking power alleys were already going even back then. But anyways, any other final notes, boys? Any last things you want to share with the crew? I don't think I have anything written down on my notes. They're like, wait, you're a combination between Tom Brady and Tim tim hunter i'm like yeah yeah i look like brady like no no no

the tim hunter part it's part of it all right boys that's gonna wrap it up for this week but like i said earlier we're back to two episodes a week every monday every thursday kicking off in a couple weeks open night we're ready to rock and roll we're gonna be down new york city next week as well getting some tons of interviews for you, a bunch more content. We're fired up for that. Probably going to get banged up a little too well down there, but everybody, have a great weekend, and we'll check back with you Thursday. And I'll see you at the

Saskatoon Blades game this Saturday, too. Guys, and real quick before we go, special thanks to our sponsors. Without them, we wouldn't be able to do any of this. So check out SeatGeek, promo code Hockey, Can I Brands, promo code check out SeatGeek, promo code Hockey. Can I Brands, promo code Biz20. Dude Wipes, promo code Hockey20.

And Audible, promo code Chicklets. You can also text Chicklets to 500500. So have a great week, everyone. It was 1989 My thoughts were short My hair was long