The Athletic Hockey Show - Craig Anderson joins the show, the Chicago Blackhawks set a dubious record, the Toronto Maple Leafs are in trouble already, Multiple Choice Madness, and much more

Episode Date: October 25, 2021

First, Ian and Hailey discuss the Seattle Kraken’s first home game, whether the franchise retiring jersey No. 32 for their fans was a cool move or not, and if the Minnesota Wild retiring No. 1 for their fanbase in their inaugural season was worse, the Vegas Golden Knights struggling with injuries, the Toronto Maple Leafs not looking right, the Chicago Blackhawks setting an NHL record for the longest start to a season without holding a lead, the San Jose Sharks unexpectedly getting off to a good start, and more.Then, Buffalo Sabres netminder Craig Anderson joins the show to discuss the mood around the team right now, as they’re off to a nice start in the early goings of the season, Don Granato as a head coach, how the team is blocking out a lot of noise around the organization, Kyle Okposo’s resurgence, thoughts on a return to Ottawa against the Senators in January, and much more.Plus, to close things out, Ian and Hailey run through a series of Multiple Choice Madness questions including which goalie not named Carey Price would inspire the most confidence for Team Canada heading into the Olympics, which team will be the last to lose this season, and what’s the most surprising thing to start this NHL season.And, don’t forget, you can sign up for an annual subscription to The Athletic for just $3.99 a month when you visit http://theathletic.com/hockeyshow Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back, everybody. It's a Monday edition of the Athletic Hockey show. Ian Mendez-Haley-Salvian with you for the next hour or so. Ahead on this podcast, Sabres Net Minder Craig Anderson drops by to talk about the surprising start in Buffalo and whether or not he actually considered retiring this past summer. We'll hit on some of the bigger stories as the month of October comes to a close, including significant tension in places like Chicago, Toronto, and maybe even Vegas.

terrific starts with teams like St. Louis and San Jose will wrap it up as we always do with some multiple choice madness looking at some options for goaltenors and team Canada for the Olympic Games. Which unbeaten team do we think is going to stay perfect the longest this season? So we got a whole bunch of things to get to coming up

hitting the next hour or so on this Monday edition of the show. As we say hello to Haley Salvean, who is our Calgary-based reporter, but we're finding you in Pittsburgh, right? The Steel City is where you're at right now waiting for the flames to arrive in Pittsburgh. So what, this was your first post-pandemic road trip, right? Like covering like, you know, work-related trip. Come on.

Do you got any great stories being held up at the border? Did you get tasered? Anything like that? No, I wasn't tasered. I mean, you weren't tased? I wasn't tased. Thankfully, I'm, you know, in one piece. But it's weird.

I mean, I haven't traveled for. work since the trade deadline in 2019, 20. So that would have been Columbus and Nashville with Ottawa senators. And so that would have been, you know, when they traded Jean-Gabiel Pajot and that was kind of the last wave of that crew of Sends fans. So that was the last time I was on the road for work. So this has been a lot different. I think the process has been a bit more stressful. I mean, like getting the COVID tests and just being extra careful that, you know, I'm always careful and safe. But like if you end up getting COVID here, like you can't go home. So I'm not trying to stay in Pittsburgh for an extra like week. I would like to go home and see my

dog and be back in my apartment. It's a, so it's been a little bit more tiring. I don't know if anything crazy has happened though. You know what? The Detroit airport was incredibly stressful. like I got there two hours early and it was an early flight and it was kind of stupid of me. Like I booked a 7 a.m. flight from Detroit to D.C. because I was like, well, the flames are going to practice. So I should get there early. Make sure I can get to the practice rank. Like get all my stuff together. So I booked the 7 a.m. flight because that was the only one that would get me there in time for practice to get to the rank. And then I realized like, oh God, if I have to get there at 5 a.m., I've got to leave my hotel at like 4.30. And I finished filing my story at like 2.30.

I was like, do I sleep for two hours? Or do I just stay awake? So I'm sitting in my hotel in Detroit. Like, I just stayed up. I didn't go to bed. And it was a mistake. I was very tired. Booking mistake. Like, I know. It's so bad. I'm so bad at booking travel. I remember the first big trip I booked. James Myrtle, our boss was like, what the hell are you doing? Like, I was staying in Brooklyn and my flight flew into like Hoboken or something. He's like, what are you doing? Like, why are you in, why are you in New Jersey? I was like, I don't, I don't know. It's the flight I booked. And he's like, you're terrible at this. And I haven't gotten any better. So I didn't sleep the other day. I just stayed awake all day. And that was not good. Okay. So it's, it's 2.30.

You know you've got to get up at about 4.30. So you've got a decision to make. And obviously, now, first of all, Are you setting backup alarms? Like, are you setting your iPhone alarm for $4.15 just in case you nod off? Because it all happens to us, right? We're debating, should I stay up? Should I sleep? The next thing you know, you're asleep. So did you set a safety alarm?

I think so. I think I set a safety alarm for like, I don't really know. Because I stay, like, I'm good at that. Like, it's a thing that I do now if I'm just awake really late and be like, I'm just going to stay awake. It's a really horrible habit. Okay. And now what are you doing?

Like are you reading? Are you watching shows? Are you just on social media? Are you texting people in a different time zone? Yeah, because I'm on the Eastern time zone. So now I can bug people on Pacific like, hey, what are you doing? Hopefully people are just kind of like out drinking or something in a wake to entertain me. No, I got some work done. I've been working on a couple of stories. So I was like, I guess I'll just keep working. Pack my stuff. Make sure everything's like organized and I'm ready to go. There was this weird thing, though, like after all that, after me staying up to make sure that I'm going to get there on time for my flight to D.C. because of all the extra like checks and stuff, the Uber surge, right when I was trying to leave to get there two hours early, went from $30 to $95 to get to the Detroit airport for my hotel. And so I had to, yeah, it surged like crazy, probably because there's a lot of flights leaving at seven. And so I waited it out for like 15 minutes, waited for it to drop back down to 30 bucks. The Uber driver took 15 minutes to get to my hotel. So I end up getting there 90 minutes early. And Delta, because it's so early, had like one person working. So the line to just check in was like completely out the door.

And you can do the online check in now, but they still make you like go up to the front to like get your bag tags and stuff. Like it made no sense. and then they had a drug dog. So before you go to the security line, you have to wait in line to get the dog to sniff you. So there was like the four different insanely long lines. I'm there a half an hour late. I haven't slept and I'm like,

I might cry at the airport. If I miss this flight, I'm going to cry. Because if I miss a flight and I miss. In those situations. Don't want I'm going to cry at the airport again. I'm going to cry. Yeah. And then three hours later,

he'll write back. But I'm like in the line waiting for the drug dog. and my boarding starts in like 15 minutes. Like I still got to get this drug dog and go through security and get to my gate. I was freaking out. I was like, after all this, I stayed up all night just to be stressed out anyways. But I made it and it was fine. Do you think the DEA agent and the dog were looking at you sweating on the verge of tears and thinking,

for sure, this one is definitely going to be pulled over for some secondary screening? I probably looked so suspicious. I'm like like shaking my leg like looking around like I probably looked like oh my god we're gonna have to we're gonna have to check this girl out because I'm looking around and all nervous they probably thought I was nervous for the dog to find something in my bag yeah no just anxious just don't want to miss my flight yeah but it's been fine it's it's been a little bit different but it's been really nice to get back on the road like I'm the only person from like outside media traveling so like the flames TV people are here

but then it's just me. So you're getting like real face-to-face one-on-one time with people that you don't get that anymore. Like that's not a thing right now with the protocols and stuff. So, you know, it's just me and someone being new on the beat and, you know, wanting to do the stories that I like to do, which are like features and deep dives. It's been, you know, even if I don't write a game story and even if I'm like crying at the airport, there's so much value and just being around and getting to say, oh, hey, my name is Haley.

Nice to meet you after a year. half. Like it's, so there's been a ton of value in it. I'm, you know, really grateful that we're allowed to travel and stuff this year. We're going to make sure we tag the, uh, the episode that says, even though I'm crying at the airport, it's worth it. That's going to be on the, uh, the description of this. So, Bailey cries again. Yeah. It's, look, like, now we're starting to travel again. And, you know, I've got a trip coming up too. And I think everyone's kind of looking at some, some trips. If you had to pick. And this is a question too for our listeners, not just for us because we're in the industry. But if you had to pick one place to visit in the NHL this year to catch a game, has Seattle

and the climate change arena now rocketed to the top of the list after watching that home opener against Vancouver on Saturday? Like, is Seattle now the place to catch a game in the NHL? I mean, it looked really cool. It probably has to be. Like, I don't think the, the atmosphere in Seattle is better than Vegas. Just because of everything. that the Golden Knights put on, like the crazy light, the crazy shows and stuff. Like, I think Vegas is still probably at the top of that list. But, like, you know, there's got to be, like, the recency bias of saying, like, I've got to go check out this new arena and watch this new team and, like, look at this really cool

barn. And, like, the fans up against a glass just, like, adds to the whole environment. Like, it's really cool. It looks awesome. The game looked like it had a great atmosphere. I know Thomas Drans was there. I know a lot of things. like national media were there too, just to try to capture the scene and set the scene and everything.

It seems like they really put on a good show. The one thing that I didn't like was retiring the number 32. Yeah, we need to talk about that. I didn't like it. So they retire the number 32 because they're the 32nd franchise in the NHL. And then I also believe they sold 32,000 kind of seat tickets or memberships when they first put up. So I understand the number 32 has some significance to them. But retiring the number 32, not that it's like this great number in hockey lore,

you know, it's not like they retired. 33 is probably a little bit more, you know, famous or whatever. But 32 is not really a, it's kind of a rando number. But I don't know. I'm with you. I think it's kind of weird that they retired the number 32 right off the hop. Yeah, I think it's a little bit strange. Like when I saw it, I was just like, oh, I think that's kind of corny.

Like, I just, it is what it is. It's like, again, they're trying to add to the whole environment, the whole thing. It's like, you know what, let's do this awesome thing for the fans that are in the building. They're going to enjoy it. They get to watch the banner, et cetera. It's going to add to the whole vibe of the thing. And maybe the fans who were in the audience thought it was cool. They got to see it and they got to feel like they were a part of something.

so I can understand doing it for the people in the building. But like watching from the outside, it's just like, ah, it's a little bit corny for me. I saw someone tweet and I should have fact checked it. Did the Minnesota Wild actually retire the number one for having the best fan, the number one fans in the NHL? Yeah, I'm pretty sure they did at the XL Energy Center. I'll double check it now. What's worse?

No, the number one. The number one. Like, we're number one. Don't you think that's worse? Yeah. Yeah, I'm going to fact check this. I'm sorry, Minnesota. I'm sorry.

I'm sorry. I know you've been through a lot in Minnesota sports, but it's quite. Oh, yeah. No, they did. They did. And I don't know if it was right away or if it was like a couple of years into it. And they do have good fans. Like really good fans in Minnesota.

But, you know, to retire a jersey number based on that, I think that's worse than than doing 32. No? Like... Yes. Yes. That's all I kind of... Retire numbers for players who have done something for your organization.

But see, now that sounds so rude to the fans. Like, I get it. Like, fans are such an important piece of the product and, like, what the league is and what these teams can become. But I just don't. Do a fan appreciation night. Do something tangible for your fans other than putting a banner in the stands. Like, do something for them. Other than that.

Is this now... a message to Nashville about putting banners in the stands? Yeah, I like it. I like the predators. I think they're fun. They've like now started poking fun at themselves with the banners. I think they like, their social media team made like a fake banner online being like gave the Seattle crack in their first win, which I can appreciate.

Now they're poking fun at themselves. Exactly. So you know what? It looks like it was the first season. The Wild did this right off. the hop. Like, so kind of similar, like, like as an expansion team does a banner.

Yeah. Oh, God. So maybe Seattle, like, got the idea from Minnesota. Yeah. So they, they held a ceremony to retire the number one to honor the fans in their first year of existence. And look,

they, like, Minnesota has a hockey mad state, right? Like, the state of Minnesota is right up there with like Michigan and Massachusetts or wherever. Like, wherever you want to say is the most kind of hockey mad state Minnesota is right there. So, and they used to have a team, the North Star, so I can get, I can get behind the idea that they have amazing fans and they might be as passionate as any fan base in, in North America. Yeah, that's great.

Like, we're not saying anything again about the fans. Yeah. Like, we're not, we're not guessing the fan bases. You're awesome. Fans are important. Fans are the game or the reason we have jobs covering the game. But, yeah, the banner thing is a little weird to me. It is.

But you know what I thought was cool from Seattle, Haley, was they have at the climate change arena, if you're a person like a pedestrian outside, there is like a big glass atrium that allows you to look in and you can actually see the ice surface. Like, you know, and some baseball stadiums are set up like this where, you know, Wrigley Field is probably the best example, right?

If people on the outside getting an opportunity to watch from the, you know, what's going on behind the ropes. so to speak. Yeah. I think this is kind of cool. Like, I don't know what you think, but I think it's pretty neat that you could just be walking down the street and be like,

oh yeah, the Crackenter play. Let's go take a peek. Not that you're going to watch an entire game from there, but I think it's a pretty neat little feature to the rink. Yeah, it's really cool. And I think it just kind of shows the passion that that city has for hockey already,

right? Like you have all these people, you know, walking to the arena or like going up to the glass and trying to like catch a a peek of the game and catch a little piece of the environment and to try to be a part of the, of it. I think it's really cool and it speaks volumes, I think, to, you know, what hockey in Seattle's going to be like the fact that you have people, you know, pressing their noses up against the glass to watch

a hockey game. That's great for an expansion franchise. And it's like a really cool design element. The arena looks cool. Like from a design perspective, it's awesome. And the way it just, you know, invites the fans in, whether you can be inside or not, you can still be there and be part of it. And I think that's really cool. Yeah. And look, like, Seattle loses their, their home opener, but I think nobody really seemed to care. It was looked like an awesome atmosphere. And, you know, they're off to the kind of the start we thought they might be. They're kind of languishing at the bottom of the standings of the Pacific.

But as they look below them, Haley, there's the Vegas Golden Knights. And that's not a thing that I thought would happen. Vegas has only won one of their first five games. Did I not say? I'm sorry. One power play goal. Did you kind of, did you not ring some warning bells about Vegas? I said this.

Earlier, and I don't know, I even said, I think I said, like, I don't know why, but part of me thinks that the Golden Knights might take a step back this year. Yeah. Like, I was not sold on them winning the division like everybody else. I thought they'd be somewhere at the top because the division's so bad. I didn't expect them to be, you know, below San Jose and Anaheim and Calgary and Seattle and everybody in the division. But I did wonder if some of that magic was going to start to wear off and people would

start to come down to earth. But, okay. Robin Lennar, without the safety net of Mark Andre Fleury, I was, you know, what's he going to look like without Mark Andre Fleury there and having a guy to push him? It's, it wasn't just a safety net. He was like a, I'm going to keep pushing you forward. We're going to fight for this spot. It drives you to be better.

And so far, I mean, you can't. Those injuries are awful. And that's probably a huge part of why they've taken this step back. But I'm surprised that that prediction has come true so quickly for me. Yeah, and we do have to preface it by saying they're without some of their best players. Patcheretti is out. Stone has been out. Alex Tuck is out.

You know, I think Alec Martinez has been banged up. So it's not like the Vegas Golden Knights are at full strength and they're struggling. Look, they're not the Maple Leafs in some ways, right? The Maple Leafs are a team that is off to a bad start, but there's not really any, I don't think there's any mitigating circumstances there. there is in Vegas with all of those injuries. But it's certainly interesting to see Vegas off to this flat start. And Toronto, though, it is become a toxic mess again.

I mean, years ago, there was the situation where, like, Randow fans were throwing waffles onto the ice. And this weekend we saw a jersey thrown onto the ice. And this is a team that has been a perennial playoff team now for five straight seasons. they've got their core locked up and they look like they're spinning their tires and they're spinning their wheels and I don't know if you feel like something is going to happen

if they're just going to let this play out for a little bit longer but something is a skew like something is a miss in Toronto whereas Vegas I can say yeah yeah yeah let's see what they look like when stone and patches and all those guys are back I don't know what to say about Toronto what about you

they look broken again you know they look like the penguins team that they lost to in that fashion, I think Evan Rodriguez was their number one center. There was no Crystal Tang, no Evgeny Malkin, no Sidney Crosby, no Brian Rust, no Jeff Carter. Like Evan Rodriguez is your number one C. Like Casperi Kappaninan's on your top line. Like you're, you lost to second line Teddy Bluger, who's good player.

I'm a fan of his game. He's not a second line center. And that's who the Toronto Maple Leafs lost to, 7-1. And, like, Myrtle did a really great piece on this saying, you know, essentially the Leafs are broken again. And if this continues, the solutions aren't very simple. Because one of the big problems you look at it, like Mitch Marner looks like he did in the playoffs, which was a huge problem for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

And that solution, like in the interim, get them off that line, you know, get Matthews clicking with somebody like William Nealander who's been playing well even in the playoffs. Like Neelander is a good player and he probably took more, more crap than he deserved. Get, get Marner off that Matthew's line because Marner's not playing well. Matthew's not playing great with him. Like the chemistry is not clicking. So that could be like a in the interim solution. But like if Mitch Marner continues this and like this is like a long term side effect of like the

vitriol and the fan base and everything that happened in the off season and everything that happened in the offseason. everything that happened with his contract leading into to another year. Like, how do you solve that problem? How do you fix Mitch Marner? How do you get rid of Mitch Marner who's low on value and making way too much money for the way that he's playing right now? It's not easy. Like, I don't know what you're supposed to do.

I think Mike Hutchinson was in net again. Get a different number three. I don't know why they went back to the well with that. It has not worked really ever. Great guy. I wrote a story about him. when he first got picked up, when the Marley's traded for him. I wrote a story about him, being a Leafs fan growing up,

and to finally maybe get a chance at the NHL and his home team was a dream. And I wrote that story, and he got called up hours later. And it was great. And he's a really great guy. Hasn't worked. I think Myrtle had the stat. Overall, with the Leafs, he has 10 wins, 17 losses, and an 8-9-8-saved percentage as a Leafs goaltender.

I think you can find someone better. Yeah. The blue line hasn't been great. The fan base is clearly fed up. Like, what comes next? I don't know. I don't know. But, you know, we had Myrtle on the show, and he said, like, this is a hard team to cover right now because none of this matters until the playoffs.

Well, are they going to get there? Yeah. It's way too soon for these kind of proclamations. But I feel like with the Toronto Maple Leafs and what the fan base have seen from them, it's not really too soon to freak out at any point with this group because of the like frequent disappointments. On paper, they should be way better than their record is. And it was only two big losses, but two big losses that have completely shook the fan base. Yeah. And I'll tell you, the game I'm, one of the games I'm looking forward to this week, maybe in kind of a,

you know, you know, the gallows humor kind of approach, Chicago, Toronto. Wednesday night. Chicago, Toronto, Wednesday night. As bad as Toronto fans might think they've got it, Chicago fans are probably feeling a little bit worse. We were following around along with Mark Lazarus, who does a terrific job as part of our team covering the Chicago Blackhawks.

And on the weekend, he noted a couple of things. Number one, the extra long sellout streak at the United Center has come to a crashing halt. So they have ended their long, extended streak of selling out games in Chicago. and they have set a new NHL record, and this is not the type of record you want to set. It's kind of a dubious distinction. And they are now the team that has gone the longest in NHL history

without ever holding a lead to start the season. Chicago's played six games. They've lost all six of them, five in regulation time. And at no point in any of those games, Haley, have they had a lead? Not even a 1-0 lead at any point in a hockey game. So obviously things are getting tense in Chicago. there's a lot of people saying it's time for Jeremy Colleton to take, you know, some heat.

Maybe Stan Bowman, the general manager. Seth Jones is certainly taking some of minus nine to start the season in the first six games for him. He's logging 25 minutes of ice time per night. There's lots of blame to go around in Chicago, but do you feel like the Wednesday night game, Chicago, Toronto, might be a tipping point moment for whoever loses that game? maybe i like it it's going to be an interesting game um i guess if you're a leaps fan you can look at it i don't even know if you can i was going to say like if you're a leifs fan you could at least look at chicago or like montreal and be like well at least it's not that bad but you know chicago was a

team that it was never a sure thing that the things they did in the off season were going to work whereas the leifs it's like you know we've got all these players that were running it back to to make this work because it has to because this is all where we put all We put all of our eggs in these baskets, right? So I don't know. Like, I honestly can't see Sheldon Keefe. Like, if the Leafs lose that game, like, you're going to fire Sheldon Keefe? Like, after he has a winning record still, like, what's firing Sheldon going to do?

Who are you going to hire? Who's going to fix that group? Like, I don't think it's a coach's fault. Like, if the players aren't playing the systems or the players. players aren't, you know, playing with a passion or heart. Like, I don't know if I look at the Toronto Maple Leafs and say, like, Sheldon Keith, you are the problem. You are gone. So I don't know if it's like a coaches or, you know, axes are going to go down on coaching staffs. I feel like for the Blackhawks, it's maybe a little bit different. Like, uh, that might be, uh, you know,

okay, now coach is gone. We've, what, lost seven games straight. Um, like the ownership has, they're going to have to do something at some point. They went and spent so much money, gave up all this draft capital for these pieces, and they have not won a single game. So I think it's a little bit different for the ownership in Chicago, like if Rocky Wirtz is looking at this, and it's like, how much money did they spend on Seth Jones? To be on the ice for like five goals at five on five against in one single game against

the Detroit Red Wings. So I feel like the stakes are a little bit different, I think. I mean, if the Leafs lose an embarrassing fashion again, maybe something could happen. But I feel like the stakes are a little bit different for the Blackhawks because they went all in with this money. And like just an aside, I think it's important. We say we talked about this off-camera too, Ian, like it's a little bit rich that we're talking about make these sweeping changes, get rid of the coach or get rid of the GM because they've lost six games. You know, now that's enough. You know, you lose seven straight and that's enough.

Stan Bowman, you're gone. Now you're done. This is where I draw the line with Chicago. Not, you know, everything that we've talked about in the summer with these accusations of sexual assault from one of their training staff. So that's one of the important things. I think we got to, you know, there's the hockey that we're talking about, but like we've got to keep the perspective, too, of like, that's not the biggest problem with this organization. But when we're talking about on ice, yeah, they're probably going to make some changes. it'll just be so very hockey if like losing seven games is what creates change in that front office. Yeah.

And look, we'll have to see what happens there in Chicago. Like what's the protocol here if you're Duncan Keith? Duncan Keith is on the Edmonton Oilers. They're five and oh. Do you, are you, if you're Duncan Keith, do you send anything on the group text chat with your old buddies, your old teammates? You just ghost them right now because there's nothing you can text that's going to. make them feel better. You're 5 and O playing alongside McDavid and Dryside Loo's or off to their usual terrific starts. Your team hasn't lost. And you look at the standings and your old team is at the bottom

and they're struggling. I don't think if you're Duncan Keat, you don't text your old teammates right now, do you? I don't think there's anything you can say other than like, sorry boys. Yeah. And even that, it just comes off his instance here being like, ha-ha. Our records are almost completely opposite. Tough one. That's why I got out. You know? You know, and look, as much as we, I think sometimes as hockey fans, we gravitate towards the kind of the smoldering fires and the negative stories. Like, look, and obviously Chicago, Toronto, and we mentioned Vegas,

they're off to bad starts. So sometimes we're more naturally, I find we'll gravitate towards those stories. But I want to hit on a couple of kind of upbeat stories so far this season. And I think that's going to serve as a perfect segue when we bring Craig Anderson onto the podcast here in a few moments, Haley, because Buffalo has been a great early season story. But what about San Jose? And yeah, I know they lost on Sunday to Boston.

But sharks are 4 and 1. Logan Couture, Timo Meyer, off to great starts. Eric Carlson, more than a point of game. Are we starting to rethink San Jose in that Pacific Division, given the fact that Vegas is off to a flat start? Seattle maybe hasn't sort of come out of the gates, you know, with any sort of authority. that maybe there is an opening in that Pacific Division

and maybe just maybe Cature and Timo and Thomas Hurtle and, you know, Burns and Carlson and company, there's enough talent there that maybe San Jose can put this together because they are really, they've been fun to watch, they've been a surprising team,

and I think they deserve a lot of credit at four and one. Yeah, I think so. I think, you know, James Reimer had a good game the other day. He had like a 30 save performance. I think against Toronto. So like getting good goaltending, which they did not have last year, that was a big problem. Getting good goaltending has been good for the sharks. And I think they've just kind of created this identity for themselves, which I think we can probably say they didn't have in years previous.

Like we didn't really know what the sharks were. When we talked about the San Jose sharks in the past, it was like, oh, man, they're handcuffed these bad contracts. And like they're going to be bad for a while. And like Doug Wilson's not going to be able to get out of this. But now we can kind of look at the sharks and say, like, this is a competitive group. Like, they're really, they're kind of feisty and they're working hard. And, you know, they're playing pretty gritty and they battle. And those all sound like hockey cliches.

But those are things that they're doing that work because they haven't lost a game yet. So, you know, I think it's probably too soon to call them like a Stanley Cup contender. It's hard to, you know, do the standings watch early in the season. because, you know, we're about a weekend and, you know, things have been so chaotic. I think it's been kind of awesome to watch the chaos to start the year with the teams that are winning games that we probably didn't expect, like Buffalo and San Jose. I think the sharks, like I said, have created this identity for themselves early on in the year. And it's obviously working for them.

I think they've probably been energized by their early season efforts. And they're kind of buying into the systems and the style of play that they know they need. to do to keep winning and it's easy to keep playing that way when you're when you're winning games. So I'm not going to call them a Stanley Cup contender yet. I'm going to say it's been fun to watch and I enjoy the chaos. But, you know, I think, yeah, there could be a chance to sneak in in the Pacific Division like we've said. It's not a great division. We don't know what Seattle's going to be if they're going to start to get better throughout the year once they get more chemistry and they've played together more. Maybe they'll start to take steps in the right direction and maybe a team

like Anaheim will start to get better once their younger players get more games under their belt. I don't really know what some of those teams in the Pacific are going to be in a couple of months. And same goes for San Jose. Is this just early season hot streak or is this for real? It's way too soon to tell. But it'll be kind of interesting. That's going to be one of the really interesting ones to track. Yeah.

And the other one I want to hit on before we get to Craig Anderson here is in the Central Division, where Minnesota in St. Louis, I wasn't sure on both of these teams. I didn't know what to expect. They're both 4 and 0. Minnesota, obviously in the off season, significant changes. They said goodbye to Souter. They said goodbye to Parisi. They signed Caprizov to the big contract. He hasn't scored a goal yet, and I'm sure that's going to be fine. He's got five assists in five games.

But they're off to a 4-0 start. I wasn't sure about St. Louis, Haley. I almost thought they were giving me some San Jose vibes where it was like, they got a lot of really good players, but maybe they're ready. ready to start, the arrow was going to point downwards. Yeah, Teresenko is there. Does he want to be there? He's got four points in four games.

And St. Louis is unbeaten. Like, I think those are two great stories to start the season. Minnesota and St. Louis, both being four and oh here in the first couple of weeks. Yeah, I mean, it's other ones that are just, it's just cool to see, like, the teams that we probably didn't expect were going to be like, like this performing well. I think, you know, it's funny saying that, you know, we were focusing on the negatives, but I saw a tweet from Dom this morning saying, like, scrolling a timeline looking for the temper tantrum for the one, four, and O, Vegas Golden Knights. Like, I feel like some, I don't know, I don't know what people are maybe paying attention to because I really haven't seen that many people freaking out about Vegas. I haven't seen that many people talking about St. Louis specifically, you know, off to a hot start.

It's been like, I've seen a lot of Edmonton. I've seen a lot of Chicago, a lot of Toronto Maple Leafs because, you know, Leafs are such a loud voice in this hockey space. But yeah, I think these teams deserve a ton of credit. It's not easy to go on a win streak to start the year. I think we're probably seeing the benefits of like full training camps this year. I think it was so hard to like, I think one of the reasons why maybe we're so surprised at a lot of stuff that's happened to start this year is because we've all

put a little bit too much stock into what happened last year. And to me, what wasn't like a real hockey season, 56 games, teams are playing the same six, seven teams all season. You're in this bubble. Players can't even, like, meet each other half the time. Like, I don't know what it was like in Ottawa, but the Flames dressing room was split into two. So you had guys coming in, signing in Calgary, who barely got to actually meet their teammates, except when you're on the ice at practice.

Like, you're completely split. So a lot of the stuff that happened last year, I just don't think we can put a lot of weight in it. So, you know, Montreal not being very good, only winning one, they're one in five so far. I mean, they don't have carry price. They have, you know, no Shea Weber. They've got significant injuries. Pieces went out the door. Philip Dono is gone.

Thomas Tatara's gone. Like, I don't think we would probably expect Montreal to be good this year. But maybe some people work. They went to the cup final. And what was a really weird season with. the North Division. So I feel like some of the reason we're so surprised with a lot of this stuff is that we're focusing on what happened last year instead of looking at like, hey, the blues probably had a really good training camp. They made some, you know, they did some stuff this

summer. They've got all their guys there. You know, they got everyone re-signed and they're just a good hockey team. So they've won all their games. So I don't know if the blues are something that's like overly surprising. I think they just, they did what they needed to do this summer and they're just good because they're a good team. All right, Haley, this is a great treat. Great treat for me because as a member of the 40 club, I'm in my 40s now, it's rare that I can bring in an active NHLer who's in kind of the same boat as me. But I've been a huge fan of this goaltender for a long time. Always treated me with the utmost respect. And you got one season, right, Haley, with Craig Anderson as a beat writer, if I'm not mistaken, right? Yeah, like one season that ended early. Yeah.

Due to COVID-19, so one partial season, yes. I'll tell you what. Let's bring him in. He is a now the goaltender with the Buffalo Sabres off to a terrific start. And I would say this has been one of the best stories of this season. We say hello on the Athletic Hockey Show to Buffalo goaltender, Craig Anderson. Andy, how are you doing? Good.

How's it going, guys? Thanks for having me out here. Hey, listen, thank you. Thank you for taking the time. So listen, Haley and I were kind of, you know, batting this around last week as we're thinking about potential guests. and we just thought, you know what, you're a great story, the savers are a great story. Can you maybe give our listeners a little sense of how, what's the mood like right now inside your locker room as you guys are off to a terrific start this season?

I think right now, I think we're, you know, the mood has been light and it's been good. I think right from the start of training camp, the way we've been treated from the coaching staff, management, you know, ownership right, right all the way through. It's been a nice treat. You know, I think, you know, the message has been clear, you know, from the coaching staff with the guys on how we want to play. And it's okay to make mistakes. And, you know, guys are playing with, you know, a loose grip, so to speak, as opposed to, you know, stress in every little play and every little detail and every mistake.

There's been a nice sense of relief from that side of point with what these guys been able to do as far as mentioned. but also physically just to kind of go out there and play hockey. Can you maybe take us, you know, back to the summer, Craig? I mean, what made you, you know, choose the Buffalo Sabres? And did you think about retiring this summer? Like, can you just take us through your summer and how you ended up in the spot? You know, I think, you know, we ended up taking the family to Hawaii in, I think it was June or July. I think it was July right after 4th of July.

We had it out there. I was on full summer mode, full, like, relaxation, like hanging out, whatever. I hadn't really thought too much about playing. And then, you know, started thinking about, all right, well, I'm going to start getting in shape, try to, you know, if something were to happen, you know, kind of be ready just to know that, hey, like, if the opportunity arises, I know that I'm confident that I can go in there and, you know, I'm in shape to do it.

And that kind of started the ball rolling. and then, you know, free agency opened up. And, you know, just so happened that my agent and the Buffalo Sabres, you know, we're talking in the morning of

and they were in need of a goalie and, you know, they were trying to figure out what to do. So, you know, it was kind of, it wasn't expected. It was just kind of, you know, opportunity kind of came together.

You know, it was almost like too good to be true and just, you know, it was too hard to pass up. I think for me it was just one of those things where, You know, last year was kind of a great year to be in that mentor role and, you know, play sparingly. And I kind of enjoyed still being around the guys and being around the room and competing when you got the opportunity.

So, you know, I felt that, you know, I could still give back to the game a little bit and still compete and gave it a shot. And what's, I mean, what's the conversation like, I think, for people who've known you for a long time know that, you know, you're a family guy. your wife Nicole has been very much at the forefront. What was that conversation like? Because I'm sure that there's a part of your family that as much as they love, that you get to continue to live out your dream, they probably would love to have dad and a husband back full time.

What was that conversation like in terms of the family knowing that, hey, listen, I got at least one more year here as a full-time NHL goalie? Yeah, that conversation was, it was actually we had friends over, the house. And, you know, I stepped away to take a phone call and come back and say, hey, this is kind of what's going on. And, you know, everyone's got, you know, margaritas and wine and whatnot going. It was just kind of like, all right, see you later. That's pretty much how it went. He's like,

well, whatever you want to do, that was kind of the response was if you want to go play, go play. And, you know, we know how to handle it. And, you know, we'll go from there. But yeah, it was pretty much a lighthearted conversation that didn't have much thought, you know, or much, you know, restriction on the conversation. I mean, I've got to ask, and it's just funny the way that Ian introed this as like a, he says he's a proud member of the 40 club. And I saw your wife, Nicole tweet recently, you know, I keep reading about this 40-year-old man.

I mean, how does it feel when everyone is just talking about this, like, great story of this, like 40-year-old man who's still playing the NHL, like, do you hear that? And you're like, well, you don't have to bring up my age all the time. You can just talk about my save percentage if you want to. Yeah, you know, obviously, I think it's, you know, obviously as players get older,

they're, you know, I think the league's gone younger. It's rare to have a guy that's, you know, approaching 40 or in his 40s playing. And we've got several of them this year still playing. So, but it is definitely on the rarer side. there's always going to be comments about it. You know, and it's just about managing, you know, managing the game and managing your body. I mean, you don't recover the way you used to and you have to, you know, be a little bit smarter about the way you handle, you know, off days, practice days and game days.

You just your routine has to change. And, you know, I think that's kind of the thing. Is mentally, though, it's, you know, we're that much more experience. We understand it. We can, you know, we understand what we have to do to be ready. And, and, you know, you adapt. And that's what this is all about. It's just about adapting and being the best, you know,

version of you at whatever age it might be. And inside a game, Andy, is there, is there, I guess, an evolution that's occurred? Like, just in terms of in-game, if you could compare the Craig Anderson that we see on the ice now with Buffalo and go way back and whether it's your time with the Panthers or with the avalanche or even your early days with Ottawa, is there much of a change on the ice with you as you've kind of. evolved and matured in the league? You know, I think that I'm probably a little bit more aware of situational play.

You try to read the play a little bit better. I mean, you know, everybody knows as you get older. You don't move as quick. You don't, your reaction types, you know, starts to go. And you just have to be a little bit smarter. You got to try to read the play a little bit better. And you just, you know, you can't be over-exerning yourself and wasting energy. I think that's probably the biggest thing.

You've got to be a little bit more calm, a little more on a couple. control and, you know, every game, every practice, you're trying to learn and adapt, right? You go through video. You say, all right, what am I, what area your game is struggling? How can you improve it? That kind of drive to be excellent is, you know, kind of a, it's a, you know, it's a, you know, it's double-edged sword, right? So on one side, it's great.

You always want to improve. The other time, you're still mentally always battling yourself. All right, how can I get better? You know, you never really find that kind of Zen moment where you're, like, all right, you're never really content, right? You're always, you're getting pulled in two different directions at all times. You already mentioned the coaching staff in Buffalo and how great it's been working with them, but I want to ask specifically about someone like Don Granato.

I mean, we hear a lot about his ability to develop young players, obviously, his work with the U.S. National Team Development Program. What have you, I guess, kind of seen and learned about Don Granato playing for him to start this season? Don, he's, you know, very calm. His demeanor is very calm. The way he speaks to the players is very calm. There's always a purpose behind every conversation, behind every idea. There's a purpose.

And he makes his purpose known, right? It's not just, hey, this is the way we're doing it. And that's because I say so. It's, this is the way we're doing it because X, Y, and Z follows, right? So it's, it's really easy to kind of get behind that message. And understand that, hey, you're going to make mistakes. It's a game of mistakes, but you're not going to get yelled at. You're going to get yell that if you make the same mistakes over and over,

if we keep talking to you about the same thing. So, you know, everything has been quick to digest, quick to adjust. And again, allowing the guys to play with that kind of calm feeling of, hey, I know he wants him to make plays. He knows when we play with the puck. He knows we want to have the puck. you know, and in knowing that the guys can play loose, it allows guys to play their natural ability,

which allows them to grow as players and not just, you know, be tense. I did what the coach told me and it didn't work. So I'm in the clear. No, there's, there's accountability on both sides. So, like, there's a kind of a guideline to play with Hunter, but then under that guideline, you still got to make the right reads and the right plays, and that's what he allows the guys to do.

As you look ahead to the schedule, you know, last year you played in Washington, but because of the divisional setup and the COVID bubble, you never had a chance to come back to Ottawa. And that will be the case this year. January 18th is the date. And then Sabres come back the week after. Two visits to Ottawa in January.

It would seem likely that you would get one of those starts. Have you circled that date on the calendar? Have you thought about what it might be like to walk into that arena that you were a goalie here for about a decade? Have you thought about what emotions might come through when you come back to Ottawa and maybe face the senators? You know, honestly, I really haven't looked too much into it. You know, it's funny because I actually had to go to Ottawa last weekend to grab some of my

winter clothes because I left it all there. You know, so I was there with my buddy and he was like, oh, you guys are coming twice in the same name. I'm like, oh, okay. So now this is like the second time I've heard it in the last week. And I really still haven't put any thought on it. You know, I think it would be exciting. I think it's going to be, you know, obviously the fan base there is great.

You know, the town is awesome. Like just the people there support their community and the players so well. So I am looking forward to getting back there, but, you know, it's hard to say how I'm going to react or how emotional I may get. Okay. So quick follow up here. So you actually physically came back to Ottawa to get your winter clothes. Like, what are we talking about here? Sweeters, jackets.

It's like, why didn't you just ship them down to Buffalo? Honestly, because, well, there's a second side of this. And if you know me, my racing simulator was still sitting up there that I had to go grab. So that was kind of the main purpose. But yes, there was multiple winter hats, winter scarves, gloves, etc. That needed to come down as well. But shipping a full sim was not in the cards. And it was only about four and a half hours to get there from here, Buff.

You know, I was trying to do the Spine Lund as best I can. but, you know, it's, you know, it felt like it felt weird kind of going back and crossing the border and kind of driving through the same area again. And, you know, it was kind of like nostalgic, but at the same time, I was like, all right, this is, you know, it's, it's, I'm not here anymore. And that's, that's just kind of the way, you know, the hockey world goes. And sorry, when you, when you go through customs and they're like, reason for visit, do you say to pick up my racing simulator and some scarves? I did not say racing similar. I did say I left all my winter clothes and stuff belongings there when the season ended there in March a couple years ago and I've never gotten back for it.

So it was kind of funny. That was like the only car that crossed within an hour. And the guy's like, I know who you are. I know what you're doing. It's not a big deal. But when I put your, you know, the information on the computer and hit the enter button, you're randomly selected for a COVID test. I'm like, okay.

Probably used to those this season. I would have to. I mean, I had like two in the last two days, right? It was one of those things where like, hey, I know what you're doing and I know, I get it, but at the same time, I can't override the computer. So, yeah, go stop and line up there. It was just kind of comical the way it all played out. At least it wasn't like you're trying to get your turtles across the border or something.

That was. Yeah, Braden Holby. Yeah, no turtles, no snakes. I got nothing. Just some hats in a racing simulator. You know, one of the things I want to ask, just there's, There's been a lot of noise around the Buffalo Sabres with Jack Eichael, with players who left in the offseason with, you know, this second attempt or revamped attempted to rebuild. How do you and the

team block all that out? Obviously, you're off to a great start. We already touched on that. And everyone seems to be very surprised by it. So how do you guys approach a season where there's just so much external noise? I think the biggest message for anybody that's, you know, It's kind of in our room and whatnot. It's not what you don't have. It's what you do have. And if you focus on what you don't have, nothing good can happen. You know, so I think as we kind of turn to each other and look at each other,

it's what can we do with the 20 guys or 22 guys in the room, what can we do as a group to come together and play well as a single group? If you start worrying about what you don't have and you worry about what other teams may have, you're not focusing on the proper message. And that's, that's, you know, like I said, that starts from, you know, Don Granato, you know, and what his message is to us. And that kind of trickles down. So his message to us was, you know, we've got, we've got players to play.

We've got players that want to play. We've got, you know, a great bunch of guys that support each other. You know, he never, ever talks about what we don't have. And he never talks about how great some other teams are in what they have because it doesn't matter. It matters what we do and what we collectively do as a group. And that's that's the message and that's how we're doing the daily approach. And did maybe quick, did some of those last, your last couple of years in Ottawa where you guys went through a little bit of some tough stuff in terms of on the ice,

does that sort of prepare you for a season like this in Buffalo where you, you know what your role is and you know you've got experience in blocking out the noise, I guess. Yeah, I think that's, you know, as far as from the management standpoint and coaching standpoint, They rely on the older guys in the room to try to, you know, continue the message, right? You know, so as soon as the coach leaves the room, it's real easy for everybody to go, well, that didn't make any sense and screw this guy and that guy and whatever. And then that kind of gets lost, right? So having a good veteran presence in the room allows the coach's message to continue, right, with the players that, you know, have been there, done that, that allow,

don't allow the negativity to creep in. And that's, you know, it's a role that, you know, not everybody can do. Not everybody is expected to do, but, you know, when a guy does it well, you know, magical things can happen and the group becomes close and you start playing for each other. And you never know if you could be a pesky cent or not, you know, based on, you know, again, that year we went to the playoffs with the pesky sends. We were missing two of our best players with injury all year. So, you know, again, it's not what you don't have.

It's what you do have. and you make the most of it. Pesky sabers? Pesky sabers? It doesn't have the same ring. No, it doesn't. I'm trying to think. This is Ian's thing.

Ian's the like punny guy. Usually it's not, not my forte. I don't enjoy the dad jokes. But, you know, just sticking with the players that you do have, Craig, is there anybody who stands out for you on the team as somebody who could have a real breakout season or just a standout season? Because I guess breakout kind of is usually for a younger player who hasn't really announced themselves yet. But is there anybody who you can see early on that's going to have a

big gear for the Sabres? It's hard to tell. I mean, like I said, I think the way things have kind of gone, you know, we've got, you know, I think two power play units, right? We don't rely on one too many, you know, that each one kind of shares equally. There's not really a powerhouse loaded up one. And I mean, you know, I think it's just, it's hard to say. There's a bunch of young guys that they're stepping up that might have, you know, breakout years. It's hard, it's, it's, it's really hard to kind of narrow it down to just one guy. So, you know, I'm kind of, there's going to be weeks where one guy maybe gets hot, and then there'll be another week where another guy gets hot and you just, you know, you kind of enjoy the moment for those guys and you kind of try to

build off of it. But, you know, putting something together for 82 games is, is definitely difficult. You know, you try to ride the waves, make the mountains as big as you can, and make the valleys as small as you can. So, you know, we'll just have to kind of wait and see how things play out. But as of right now, you know, we're just trying to do this as collectively as possible. You know, and Craig, you've lived in a bunch of cities now. And I've always thought Buffalo is actually sneaky good. Like, it's underrated. It's a nice city. And sometimes I think externally, there's not a great reputation in a place like Buffalo, but it is. It's a nice city. I think the people are super friendly. What's it been like just from an off-the-ice perspective, kind of

moving to a city like Buffalo and moving into western New York? So far it's been great. You know, I know, obviously the crowds have been, you know, half full type thing, you know, due to whatever, you know, has been going on. You know, obviously we've got COVID and, you know, expectations, etc. But, you know, they bring good energy, you know, every fan that I've had an interaction with off the ice as far as it's been, you know, positive and encouraging. and that's great to see.

You know, so far, you know, I've been able to find some great restaurants. You know, I guess there's a lot of Italians and Irish people here. So there's a lot of great things to do as far as for food and entertainment. So and then you got the Bills Mafia to kind of get behind as well. So there's there's tons to do here. You know, we've got some great weather too so far. So, you know, I'm not looking forward to scraping 16 inches of snow off the car. But, you know, when that time comes,

I got the winter clothes now from Ottawa, so I'll be ready to do it. You have your scarves. Yeah, exactly. Are you going to jump on the Bill's bandwagon or are you football guy, Craig? I think you have to. I think they've played well. They're energetic. They've got great fan base.

I think it's one of those things where, you know, you support the local team. And, you know, like I said, they give you a lot of good things or a lot of reasons to cheer for them. The fan base, they're animals. I've been to Bill's games and you're walking up to go to the field and guys are like jumping through tables and I'm like, oh, okay. I remember the first Bill's game I went to. It was wild. Like the fan base is pretty fun. Yeah.

Now, are you, as you move into Western New York, Buffalo is known for chicken wings. Is Craig Anderson a chicken wing guy? I have not had any chicken wings in Buffalo yet. There's one place that's really famous apparently. Anchor bar. Anchor bars. Apparently, Anchorbar is like the original or the oldest, but apparently it's not the best from when I hear from some of the locals. So I don't know.

Haven't tried them all out. I might, you know, we'll have to start dabbling into that market here soon. I guess the last question for me, just back to the team here, last one is just, you know, one of our colleagues here at the athletic, John Vogel did a great piece about, you know, Kyle Okaposo's kind of resurgence so far this season. and what stands out to you about Kyle? His work ethic, he brings it every day. He's a guy that's been around a long time and he understands that, you know, don't take any day for granted.

I know he put in a lot of off-season work and that's starting the show and come through. So like I said, it's a guy that's, you know, we all kind of look to, you know, from the skaters standpoint. You know, I know he takes his role and does it well. You know, I think, you know, and play some par, play, play some PK, plays whatever, you know, whatever the role might be,

you know, he does it to the best of his ability and gives it 110%. So there's no, like I said, no off days for him. And he leads by example and a guy that we all kind of look to for, you know, for experience and, you know, guidance. All right. Final question here for me. And I'm going to ask you this, Craig, because Haley now covers the Calgary Flames. And I don't think enough people in the hockey world since this is a national show, understand or remember that not only was Craig Anderson drafted by the Calgary Flames, Craig Anderson spelled his name differently when that happened. So if you could, Craig, for the benefit of our listeners and for Haley, who probably doesn't know this story, can you explain why you spelled your last name with two S's when you were drafted by the Calgary

Flames back in the day? That was like three decades ago, guy. Um, well, When I was in, what, grade six, I think, we went on like a hockey tournament trip to Sweden. We spent, you know, 10 days there lived with a Billet family, etc. You know, coming back from Sweden and, you know, we have a, my family's got a Norwegian history, etc. You know, my dad and I thought it was a great idea. I don't know if it was a great idea. It was just an idea that put two Ss on the name just kind of to be a little bit different. You know, so from pretty much grade seven through the OHL into the draft year,

I played with two S's. And then, you know, I think since it wasn't a legal registered name, the NHL went back to one S there, I think, in Chicago after my first year. So what, like, when you were drafted by college, like, do you still have the jersey, the Anderson with two S's from draft A with Calgary? No, so the draft, since it was 99, there was no name and number on the jerseys. they were just blank numbers. I've got, you know what, I don't even know.

I know my dad just bought the Calgary jersey on eBay that I wore in training camp. I don't know if there was number 60 or what number it was. I have to go back and look. And honestly, I believe that had two S's. And even my first year in Chicago, those in Norfolk, those jerseys all had two S's on it. So, yeah, it's like I said, it's one of those things that's in the past. You know, and it's never really brought up until, you know, someone that's my age decides to go back in history and live in a time machine here. See?

It's our glory days. Like, now you're- It's what Ian brings to the podcast is the- Exactly. I have great. And Seinfeld jokes, Craig, that go right over Haley's head. Okay, I'm not that young. I've seen Seinfeld.

I'm not. Are you guys on the curb your enthusiasm bandwagon too? Oh, yeah. That's Haley's show. I really, honestly, I, I watch. some of the things that Larry David does. I'm like, yeah, that seems like me. That's my personality.

Very cranky and dry and sarcastic. I love it. Yeah. I've smashed a few, you know, smoke detectors in my life. I'll tell you that. Oh, yeah. My smoke detector, Askeon, we'll be recording the podcast, the smoke detector starts going off, like, every time we record.

So I've gotten very close to, like, full herbier enthusiasm. Well, Larry on it. Yeah. I might soon, if it happens. happens. Yeah. Hey, listen, Craig, really appreciate you dropping by the athletic hockey show. Like I said, it's always great to connect with you. Best of luck as you guys hopefully continue your terrific start to the season. And then fingers crossed, we'll see you in Ottawa, in January, with your scarf, with your winter stuff. We look forward to that visit. All right, sounds good. Thank you.

All right, Haley, that was a great conversation with Craig Anderson. I love that he kind of retold the story of being drafted by Calgary. And having a last name with two S's, so Anderson with two S's, so that it looked like he was a Swedish goaling. And until the league was like, when they went to register the contract or everything, and they're like, you can't be doing that. It's so funny. Just like, that's not your legal last name. We're going to drop that ass. Yeah.

Yeah. I thought that was great. I also thought the, his anecdote of, I just drove up to Ottawa to pick up my winter clothes and like, yeah. Obviously it's going to get cold in Buffalo, but at least he has his scarves now. Yeah. Yeah. And he is such a, for people who don't know, he's such a fanatic about race car driving. And so he has that full simulator inside of his house. And so that's what he was, I guess, bringing down to Buffalo. So anyway, it's, there was a great conversation in Lightning. And I just, just a great start to the year for the Buffalo Sabres. And we really thank Craig Anderson for taking a few minutes. So Haley, we're going to wrap up the show.

Speaking of the goaltenders. My first question in multiple choice badness, is goaltender related? So let me ask you this here, Haley. If Kerry Price can't play for Canada, and we've got to give some credit to Pierre LeBron, our senior writer with the Athletic, and Pierre was able to obtain the list of goaltenders that Hockey Canada submitted to the IOC saying,

these are the goalies we want to be considered for the Olympics, and we'd like an exemption because Kerry Price's status is uncertain. So they were able to get five additional goals. on top of Kerry Price to potentially be in their pool of goalies. And these are goalies who now have to be consistently tested and a myriad of things that they're subjected to now in the next few weeks before they make a decision. Here's my question.

If Kerry Price cannot play for Canada at the Olympic Games, Haley, which goalie would instill the most confidence for fans north of the border? Is it, A, Mark Andre Fleury, B, Jordan Bennington, C, Darcy Kemper. D. Carter Hart or E, McKenzie Blackwood. All of them are on the list. If Price can't go, who should be backstopping Canada at the Olympic Games, Haley? It's really hard to answer that right now because, like, you know,

I think maybe some people would, you know, based on reflex, say Mark Andre Fleury, it's flowery, he's got this like great history, you know, he won the Vezna last year, but, you know, he hasn't been playing very good in Chicago. and he had, I guess, a history of, you know, I think people always just think back to that world juniors where he, like, went out and played the puck and, you know, gave it away and lost the game. So I don't know if Mark Andreke Flurry is someone who would instill confidence in terms of the national team. Like, I just don't know if that's a thing for flower. And I'm a big fan of his. I think it'd be great if he can rebound. That would probably require the Blackhawks to rebound also. And we don't really know if that's going to happen. So, you know, if his stats are, you know, continue. to be poor. I don't think he's going to instill much confidence. Playing for Team Canada with a blue line that Team Canada is going to have would be completely different than playing for Chicago. So maybe, but maybe that's just like a bias that I have and a lot of people probably have for Mark Andre Fleury, that he's just the nicest guy and everybody likes him so much.

Right now, like I wonder if Jordan Bennington's a guy that people look to. I mean, he was great in that Stanley Cup playoff. He's, he's, you know, four and oh so far. his individual stats are fine. His save percentage is around 920 right now, I think. So maybe Binnington. He's a younger guy. He's won a cup. He's had a good start with the St. Louis Blues.

Maybe I'll go with Bennington. Nobody jumps off that group for me right now being like, yeah, like Darcy Kemper. Nobody is jumping off the page is like, yeah, that's the guy. So maybe I'm just going to default to Binnington because he's had a pretty good start. Yeah. And you know what? I want, if Kerry Price has played on the Olympic stage multiple times. He's, right?

And he's won a gold medal for Canada. Or 2014, I guess it was his only Olympic experience. But he won a gold medal. He's played in the pressure-packed environment of the Bell Center. I want somebody who's going to be somewhat pressure-treated. And as I look at this, I think it might be Jordan Bennington. Because, and I know that flower has obviously done it, but like you said, he's off to a shaky start.

There's been a little bit of history where sometimes in big pressure moments lately, he's been replaced or struggled. So I'll go Bittington. He won a Stanley Cup. Kemper Harton. I feel like Harton Blackwood would be great third goalies. They're young, like maybe down the road, they could be your guy. Mackenzie Blackwood, we should point out on Monday, was reported that he did, in fact,

receive his first dose of the COVID-19. vaccine. And I think that's largely done, Haley, because if he didn't get vaccinated, he wouldn't be eligible to play for Canada at the Olympic Games. So that's obviously a storyline. I just think it might be Jordan Bittington for me because he's played in the Stanley Cup final and he's won. Whereas, like, Kemper wouldn't have played too many meaningful games in Arizona, even though he was very good there. He wouldn't have played too many games that really mattered. Carter Hart, same thing. Mackenzie Blackwood, same thing. Signed me up. I'm with you. I'm with you, Haley. Give me Jordan Biddington. Yeah, you can pick apart

different guys from that group and maybe ways that you can't can't with Jordan. So we're on the same page today. Yeah. Okay. Well, we're also on the same page when it comes to our love for the Florida Panthers. In Florida off to a terrific start this season. They're one of only four teams, Haley, that has a perfect record.

Meaning, they haven't lost the game at all. Regulation, overtime, shootout, what have you? So here's my question, Haley. Who's going to be the last team standing? Who's going to be the last perfect team? I know this isn't like the NFL where not looking for somebody to run the table. But who's going to be the last unbeaten team in the NHL? Is it A, the Florida Panthers,

B, the Carolina Hurricanes, C, the St. Louis Blues, or the D, the Edmonton Oilers. Who's going to be the last team standing? Perfect, this season. Hmm. Like, kind of my gut instinct is to say Edmonton, just because they have a line that can, you know, it's one of the things that Daryl Sutter was saying the other day,

is you can't outscore your problems. And that was a problem that the flames were having is, you know, that Calgary Flames cannot outscore their issues. The Edmonton Oilers have a line that can absolutely outscore any problems that they might be having in a game. And so that's why my gut says Edmonton, because they've got Connor McDavid and Leon Dries Heidel. And then they've got a second line that has, you know, Yessie Pooley-R-V and maybe is Yossi on the top line now? Anyways, they've got like six players. Zach Hyman's up there, right?

And he's off to a dynamic start. Right. And they've got Zach Hyman and Jesse Pooley R.V. And Nugent Hopkins. I mean, they've got a legitimate top six with absolute firepower on their top line who can outscore their problems. If they have bad goaltending one game, well, Connor McDavid can probably deal with it. Defense is looking pretty bad. Nah, Connor McDavid and Leon Dreishead can probably deal with it.

I think you can, that's one of the things Daryl said, too, is like there's very few teams in the league who can outscore their problems. and unless you have a Connor McDavid or Nathan McKinnon, you can't. And right now I don't think Nathan McKinnon's back yet. So, you know, I look at these teams, and I'm not sure, I guess, just, like I said, my guts to say, Edmonton, I think Carolina is going to face a good Boston team coming up. And, I mean, then they've also got Chicago and Arizona, so they could probably realistically lose one of those three, but Boston's the first one. Florida probably has a good chance, but again, they're going to be facing a good Boston team.

Detroit's been playing really well. They only have lost one or two games in regulation. St. Louis will probably be okay against the Kings. Colorado hasn't been great to start. But again, that's probably due to injuries and COVID protocol, et cetera. And the Oilers got Philly and Vancouver. So Oilers probably have the toughest schedule of those teams, but the Oilers have just been so dynamic that I'm probably going to go with Edmonton.

I'll probably be wrong, though. Well, no, but the thing is, Edmonton only plays two games this week. And like you said, yeah, it's Philly and Vancouver. But look at a team like Florida. They got four games this week and two of them are against Boston. So the odds that we come back next Monday to do the athletic hockey show in Florida's unbeaten. Ooh, that looks tough to me because two dates with Boston, four games in total.

Odds say that you lose one of those games. Carolina is interesting, though, because if they can beat Boston, I love their odds against Chicago and Arizona. So I'll say Carolina because they get Boston, but it's going to be fun. And these are four teams that are, I think, off to, obviously off to terrific starts. But in the case of Florida, I think, and Edmonton probably, there's a real sense of we want to just kind of stake our claim as like an elite team. Like there's been, I think Carolina has probably put themselves in that conversation already. And St. Louis has got a Stanley Cup in recent enough history where I think we can say, hey, this isn't a mirage. but Florida and Edmonton are teams that, you know,

they have had a hard time hanging out at the top and having people believe in them. And I think people are absolutely believing in both of them with the way they started. But I'll take Carolina because they got dates with Chicago and Arizona this week. All right. Last question to wrap up the Monday edition of the Athletic Hockey Show, Haley.

I'm going to give you four things, okay? Four things. You tell me what's the most surprising thing that has happened to start the NHL season. Is it A, that the Vegas Golden Knights are in last place? Yeah, they're even behind Seattle. Okay, so Vegas, last place. Is it B, I looked at the list of everybody leading their team in scoring so far this season.

The most surprising name, Kevin Chattonkirk, is leading the Anaheim Ducks in scoring. So how about that? Kevin Chattonkirk, with six points, is leading his team in scoring. Is it C, speaking of the defenseman? No defenseman in the NHL at the time of this recording has more points in the power play than Tony DiAngelo. That's right. Controversial defenseman for Carolina is leading all defensemen with four power play assists so far this season. Or is Dee Haley?

The last three Vezna Trophy winning goalies in Andre Vasiliski, Connor Hellebuck, and Mark Andre Fleury, all have saved percentages below 900 to start the season. Vasilowski, Hellebuck, Flurry, all have sub-900 saved percentage. which is what is the most surprising thing off of that list? Yeah, I mean, goalies are always difficult to predict, but I've got to say D, you know,

just because going into this season, you look at a lot of those teams and you say, if you look at everything that we were talking about, we probably looked at Winnipeg. Like, I really like the Jets. They've got good depth up the middle, and they've got Connor Hullabuck, who's a great goalie.

And you look at Tampa, and they've got Andre Vasseleski, who's the best goal in the league, and you look at Mark Andre Fleury, and you look at the Chicago Blackhawks, and we were all saying, like, wow, did the Blackhawks just get good? Like, what are they going to be with all these additions

and Mark Andre Fleury on the team? Like, are they going to become a contender? Are they going to be on the bubble? Are they going to be that dark course pick? And for all three of them to have slow and in bad starts is pretty surprising to me. Yeah, it is. It's nuts. All of them have sub 900, say, percentages. So, yeah, I'm with you.

But you know what? I'm going to say Tony DeAngelo. I think there was a lot of people wondering how he would fare what he was going to be like. And for power play assists to start the season, I would say is pretty surprising. And off to a great start. Remember, he basically didn't play last year, right? Basically didn't play for a whole year. And he's off to a great start. So that's, that's going to get my vote. All right, Haley, we'll leave it there. This was fun. Listen, enjoy. So what does the rest of your week look like? Do you got any more early morning airport trips that we got to be,

that we've got to be worried about? And are you setting an alarm already here? No, I'll be, I'll be sleeping properly for the rest of the trip and, you know, the flames are in Manhattan right now. And then, you know, I just thought, you know, doing five cities and eight days was going to be a bit too much for me. So I came here to wait it out, get some work done, do the podcast. And then the flames will be here in Pittsburgh and then I'm going to fly back home to Calgary and get my dog. I have a great dog sitter, which is nice. But then I'll go back to Calgary and get back to work there. So nothing, nothing crazy. Just going to be here. in Pittsburgh for a few days before going back home.

Okay, well, listen, safe travels. We hope when we connect with you next Monday for the Athletic Hockey Show, maybe you've got some more airport tales or, you know, fun stories to share with us. And hopefully, hopefully you get some, like you said, you're going to be getting some good sleeps, but hopefully you got a nice relaxing rest of your trip. So listen, this was great. We want to thank everybody for listening to this Monday edition of the Athletic Hockey Show.

Our friends, that's right, there are friends from Team USA. Craig Custace to John Gentile. I know they don't think that we're their friends, Haley, but we look at them in friendly terms. They're going to have David Backus on tomorrow's on the Tuesday edition of the Athletic Hockey Show. By the way, Eddie Lack, longtime NHL goalie's going to join the roundtable show we got going on the Wednesday edition of the athletic hockey show. We want to remind all of our listeners, too. You can subscribe to the Athletic Audio Plus on Apple Podcasts. Get all the bonus content from our entire network.

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