The Athletic Hockey Show - Dallas Stars spoil Landeskog's triumphant return

Episode Date: April 24, 2025

Hailey and Max look back on night five of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, beginning with Gabriel Landeskog's triumphant return to the Colorado Avalanche lineup, only to be spoiled by Tyler Seguin and the Stars in overtime. They discuss the upstart LA Kings taking a 2-0 series lead over the Oilers, and the Capitals handling the Habs with ease to lead their series 2-0. Hails and Max look ahead to night six of the playoffs, with the Maple Leafs and Jets looking to put a stranglehold on their series with the Senators and Blues, the Lightning hoping to regroup after losing Game 1 to the Panthers, and Vegas and the Wild shooting to take the all important Game 3 in their series.Hosts: Hailey Salvian and Max BultmanExecutive Producer: Chris FlanneryProducer: Jeff Domet Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the athletic hockey show. Hello, everybody. Welcome to another episode of the athletic hockey show. It's Haley Salvian. I am back from Cheshki Boudiaviche. I think I've gotten better at pronouncing that. Sean Gentile is somewhere between D.C. and Montreal. He's covering that first round series.

So we have Max Boltman here this week to look back on night five of the Stanley Cup playoffs, tee up Thursday nights, games, a couple good series on tap tonight. first, Max. What are your thoughts on a good harmonica anthem? Well, now I have a lot of thoughts about it. I would have been, let's say, skeptical a week ago. Now I'm all in on it. Now I need this group to go the entire distance with the LA Kings. It seems that the big difference between this year and last year for the Kings is the Harmonica Anthem. It's really working against the Edmonton Oilers this season. We'll get to that series later on in the show, but we should start with the big story of Wednesday night max and that is Gabriel Landisog's return to

Colorado. 1,032 days. That's how long Gabriel Landisog was out of the NHL from the end of the 2022 Stanley Cup final to game three of the 2025 playoffs. A comeback that seemed very much in doubt during that recovery. But he was back on Wednesday. And as we just heard the reaction from the crowd at Ballerino was. unbelievable.

Yeah, this was one where the entire way that we've been tracking, you know, you've always kind of had this hope, oh, Gabriel Anasog, is you going to play, you know, this year was a, was a coming into training camp. Oh, there's a good chance you can play this year or at least a chance. And that was exciting to see it happen in the way it has, you know, almost three full years from his last game. And I thought he looked reasonably effective out there. Like, this was pretty amazing.

you just had no idea what you were going to get when you saw Landisog back in. You know, I spent part of last night Googling like what does knee, you know, damaged knee cartilage feel like. And then the descriptions were giving me the heby-jeebies, right? Like it did not sound pleasant. And I am so amazed. So much respect for the work that had to go in to getting him back to this moment. And really the passion to be willing to do that to get back here. So amazing.

Doesn't end. The night doesn't end the way, obviously. that puts the fairy tale bow on it all, but really remarkable. I think I actually wrote in the lineup doc, if you saw Max, when I was writing about like what happened. There is not, so I can just say it. This was my plan here. There is not a single player in the NHL's history who knows exactly what Gabriel

Landisg went through over the last three years and what he just went through on Wednesday night because nobody has ever come back and played in the NHL from this kind of cartilage, transplant knee surgery and then beside that I just put gross. Like every time I hear that like cartilage replacement, I don't, kudos to you for Googling it. I don't want to know what happened. I don't need to know what they did in his leg. I don't need to know how it feels. Even just thinking about when this injury initially happened, it was 2020 against the Dallas

Stars where like this injury kind of stemmed from, right? like he played for a couple years with this nagging knee thing that happened from a cut, accidental cut above the knee from his own teammate against the stars in 2020. And then so if we want to look for storybook things, despite the fact that they lost to the stars, but he makes his comeback against the team where this kind of whole path that he just walked, this singular path that he just walked, even started. And to me, like the determination and desire to play,

play again after all that. Like I just, that is why I'm not an elite athlete. I had a knee injury when I was a cross country runner. I was like, I'm good. I don't have to run like this any longer. I'm fine.

Yeah. And the situation that he's in, obviously now, you come back into this series that is going to be, and has been the best series of the playoffs so far. Like, you're not, there's no ramp up.

Like, you're just walking right back into the pits, basically. Like, here we go. And yeah, it's, it's been an amazing series.

This is probably the best story of the series so far. And I'm hoping that we're going to get it to go long enough that Miro Hayskin is eventually going to get back in the series too, another not nearly as dramatic and inspiring, but really cool to see Hayskin and play again if he gets back and to have those two competing storylines from what I think might be the two best teams in the Western Conference. Vegas is going to have something to say about that for sure.

Winnipeg's going to have something to say about that. But it's going to be a great series. Yeah, it's interesting because I'm curious. what you think about this, Max, because Sean and I, we had long been on the stars wagon. I think I picked Dallas to win the Stanley Cup like three years in a row. And this was finally the year when I saw like, like, Hey, Skinen wasn't going to be ready for the start of the series. I see Jason Robertson goes down and he's going to miss the start of the series. I was like, okay, like they're playing the abs. I don't think, I think I might have to ditch my stars. And I picked the abs. I actually

picked Vegas to beat the abs in the Western Conference final. Like, that's how much. I was like, okay, I'll go all in, not fully in, but like mostly in on the abs to make a deep run here. Now, they're down to one of the series. They leaves two one in overtime last night. How surprising is it that Dallas is the team that is beating the abs despite missing somebody like Miro Haskinen and somebody like Jason Robertson because I didn't predict this. I was like, fine, I'll pick Colorado. I made the exact same picks you did, but I can't say we should be like totally flawed.

I mean, the strength and the hallmark of this Dallas team already coming into this year was their depth. And that's how they've been built. That's been their calling card. They don't have. They're one of the teams. You know, when people ask me about the Red Wings, oh, how can the Red Wings, like, get out of this without the number one overall pick kind of thing. You know, Dallas has stars for sure. Haskinen is a star.

But by and large, coming into this year, they were the team that was like, well, they've done it with having a bunch of really good players, right? And you go and you find them all these ways. You can merge two cores. They're not this kind of traditional, oh, we tanked for six years and got three number one picks or whatever rebuild that, you know, seems to work for a lot of teams, work out for a lot of teams, but doesn't always necessarily translate into a Stanley Cup at the end. They've just done it very differently. And that depth is paying off for them, you know, even without Jason Robertson, you look at them and there are three lines really deep. And I like kind of the identity of their fourth line, too. You see who gets the game winning goal last night.

It's not the guy that we all look that the stars are counting on for offense anymore. and Tyler Sagan, but he's still a really good player, right? And so I don't, I'm not, I can't be shocked by it because they're, they're that team. They're really good. But I was right with you. I thought Colorado, because they've become a team with significant depth to go McKinnon, Nelson, coil down the middle. I thought they'd be, you know, ahead, but they could be.

This series has been that close. And I think this series can and I hope we'll go seven still. What I wanted to ask you about on this series is Miko Ranton and how big it was for him to make the play that ultimately said it's a little play it's not the like high skill play but it's a hard play it's a playoff play that sets up the game winning goal for his first point of the series that has to be a massive relief for him especially in that building yeah i wrote that down to ask you about too like i think one of the big takeaways for me after this game other than landa scott coming back other than the depth of the stars because last night was an example

or a reminder of exactly why I was all in on this team for three years is that they have, oh, by the, oh, yeah, there's Tyler Sagan. Like, oh, yeah, there's Mason Marchman, even though Marchman seemed like he doomed the team with that penalty with 40 seconds left on Brock Nelson. But, yeah, on Miko, Randen, I wrote him down as someone like he didn't score. But this seemed like his best game of the series, five shots on goal. he draws the first point on on that game winner. And it just seems like he's starting to heat up and cook a little bit.

Like I know it's been frustrating that he hasn't scored, but this is a guy who's like scored more points in the playoffs than a lot of people. Like he had 25 points and 20 games during that cup run in 2022. And he'd never gone three straight games in the playoffs without a point before. And he obviously, he's still never because he gets the point in game three. I thought he was buzzing. I thought he was generating a lot of good chances. I think the fact that it was like a really good play in the trenches that he gets the puck out.

He beats Jonathan Druin on that puck battle, pulls it out. And then Mason Marchmont makes the play to say again, like that's the kind of thing where, yeah, it's not the big flashy high skill play. But I think those are the plays that will come. I don't know. I think he's heating up. And that should be an even, like, scarier thing for the abs if, if Randon starts cooking.

And then Robertson comes back. And then Hayskinan comes back. And by the way, we can get to this after. And Jake Onger is Jake Onger. Yes. I think it's actually better that he gets the point this way, right? Because it reinforces a bunch.

I'm sure the coaches will be thrilled with it, right? Because it's a play they can use in video and be like, look, defense bleeds to offense. And it's real. But, you know, that's, that's kind of definitely coach. He's doing what, even though he's not scoring, he's doing everything else, whatever. But you know for a guy who's had that kind of production, especially in the playoffs, you know he sees himself as a guy who should be producing at this time of year.

And I think what is good about it coming that way is it's going to engage him in all those little things that will just kind of take his mind, take the overthinking out of it, right? It's race still, so races in battles, right? Go win a battle to get the puck out of your zone and watch what happens and you're going to get a point. Okay, great. Yeah, I can create offense that way. And then you just lock in and you become Miko Ranton and again without thinking in your head so much. Okay, we're in the offensive zone. Time to be Miko Rantan. And let me find some ice to get open for a big shot or, okay, give me the puck and let me try to make something happen with it, all of which is real,

but so hard in the playoffs, right? And you can't have your whole game be in your head trying to do that. So it come in like this, I think is perfect in a lot of ways. And we'll see where it takes I mean, it's not going to be an easy road to finish us out. It's 2-1. I fully expect Colorado to come out like a force in game four and get this series back to 2-2. That's really what I would think they would be in trouble as if they can't do that. But right now, I think this is still shaping up to be the exact series we wanted it to be.

It's, yeah, it's such a shame that this is the first round matchup. I would love for this to be the Western Conference final or even just the second round. Like, just give us a little bit more time. But the second round, we'll get one of the first round. of these teams against the president's trophy winner in Connor Hallibuck, right? That's great. And then potentially we get the winner of that against potentially Vegas or Edmonton or even this LA team that's exciting. I think this is a great West bracket. The West is awesome. The West is going to be fun for most of the way, at least if our, you know, predictions or prognostications on these teams stay true.

I don't know if the East will be as interesting in round two or round three depends on how this first round ends up. But I think the fact that, I think you're right, Max, and like the fact that he got this point in this way in this series. Like, there was no room out there at five on five. Like, it's been, it was, like, this is, these are two teams with a ton of stars with a ton of depth. And it was one, one heading into OT. Like it was such a defensive game last night.

There was absolutely no room to cook. So for Miko ran into, you know, be frustrated with the fact that he's not scoring, but still make that play. Like those are the kind of plays that are going to matter most in a series like that. I guess the only other thing

that we should mention in that game, I guess I didn't even bring up when we were talking about Landisog hits ran in on his first shift. He played 13 minutes. He led the aves and hits last night was six,

no shot attempts. But the abs did out attempt the stars with Landisg on the ice. 18 to 5, they outchance them 7 to 1. So when we're talking about Landisg and what he brings to the lineup, there's still a question of what kind of player can he be now? Will he return to top line form? Will he be a middle six guy and just be happy to be back?

I think those are questions for a later date, and we can just appreciate that he was back last night. And Pierre LeBron, by the way, has a really nice piece on his three-year-long journey on the athletics website. If you want to read more about that, Gary Roberts, he worked. with that crew. So there's some stuff from Gary Roberts and his trainers in there just about exactly what Gabriel Landiscag went through. But I think the fact that he comes out his first shift, there's all that excitement, all that attention. And he knocks Miko Ranton and down. I was like,

oh, cool. Like, he's back. That's great. I love that for him. Sorry, Biko. Like, welcome back to Colorado in the postseason, I guess. You know what I was thinking, like, how could you, if you're an an avalanche player and you see Landiscag come back? By the time he's on the ice at all, mentally, You have to just, you can't give yourself any excuse to not lay out for a shot, to not like take a hit to make it. Like, you have to do absolutely everything. If you're looking over at what he just went through, you have to be the most inspirational thing on the planet to be like, okay, I am blocking every shot I can laying my body on the line, whatever it takes, uh, because of what this guy just went through. Yeah, absolutely. Like, oh, did you just get high stick in the face?

Like, well, I had my knee cartilage replaced, like, get up. Yeah. Get some water. We'll do it again in two minutes. Yeah, literally. Jake Ottinger was great, especially in the third period. He stopped all 12 shots that he faced there. McKenzie Blackwood was great, too. Like, it was a good defensive battle, but a good goalie battle as well. I thought the stars were the better team in the first period, actually. They just couldn't beat Blackwood in the opening frame. Obviously, they only do it once in regulation. Then Tyler Sagan gets the OT winner. But to the point on why I always loved the stars, Jake Ottinger was a huge part of that. that. I'm not giving up on my abs pick yet. Like I, I don't have regrets. I need to just stick with it. I made the choice. But like I said, I think Dallas showed us last night and in these first three games, like why I kept picking the Dallas stars all the time. Yeah, it's a big counterpoint.

I'm fine. I'm fine. I don't care. I don't care that much. To be in that 0.1 hole and lose the opener at home. And then, you know, they get it back at it, but that's really salvaging it in game too. But to come out and land that win in game one in, or game three, the first game in Colorado is big because it gets you home ice back. It kind of reestablishes, hey, like, we are absolutely good enough to still be here with or without Miro, with it without Robertson. Yeah. And they're right back there.

So, no, it phenomenal series so far, my favorite series so far. Yeah. With an extra day before Saturdays game four, there is maybe a chance that Hayeskinan would be available. he participated in morning skate on Wednesday. Before game two, he was mostly working on his own before game three. Wednesday, he's rotating in for some power play work. Pete DeBore said they're incorporating him more and more into things.

He's looking more and more comfortable and he's getting closer for sure. So something huge to watch is his return. Let's take a quick break. There was two other games last night from two other series when we come back. We're going to talk more about the harmonicas in LA and Logan Thompson in DC that'll come next on the athletic hockey show. All right, welcome back to the athletic hockey show. It's Haley and Max here. The LA Kings took a two nothing series lead with a six one win last night over the Edmonton Oilers. I have a lot of observations here from the series Max and not many of them are

positive about Edmonton. And I think we need to start with the special teams because the Kings are just completely picking the Oilers apart. Five goals and two games on the PowerPlay. The Oilers, by the way, 0 for five in the series on the Power Play now. Very different than last year where the Oilers were just destroying the Kings and special teams. We're seeing like a real role reversal here in this series.

What do you think about the special teams and how the Kings have been cooking against Edmonton? Well, this is the most surprising storyline of the series so far for me, right? I mean, obviously, Edmonton being down O2 is surprising, but the Kings are the high seed here. We knew Edmonton came into this game kind of at a questionable level of health a little bit. L.A. was like a bottom six power play in the NHL during the rear season. They were a 17.9% power play. So to see them clicking at 50% through two games is garring. I think there were three for five by the end of the game last night.

That is the biggest surprise of the series so far to me. And it's certainly a big part of the story of the series. There is more to it than that. But yeah, that's something I never saw coming. It's something that Chris Knoblock said post-game that really stands out to me. And he basically said, not basically, he said, it's not like they're making all these great plays on us. We are gift wrapping it to them. And I think that probably speaks a bit to like the power play wasn't great in L.A.

this season. Like their P.K. wasn't great in L.A. this season, but the oilers just don't look good. And I think that's worse. Like, I think if you're an oilers fan, you can live with like, oh, well, L.A. is just like playing unbelievable. What are we supposed to do? And you do have to give the Kings credit because like that finished by Quentin Byfield on his goal was unbelievable. Like, Brant Clark made a good play on his goal. Like there were nice plays made by the Kings, but more often than not, they came on the back of a really bad Oilers, or just really lack sedesical play in their own zone.

Like, Kings forwards were getting behind the Oilers D so easily. I don't remember which I think it was maybe the Kempe goal. It was one of the goals after the Oilers started the comeback. And then someone ends up, like, right on the doorstep, like right behind one of the D and just like easily taps it in. It's just like, man, like you just made it three, too. And now you're just letting, I'll say, Kempe, like, right in on the doorstep, back door with a piece of the empty net. Like, it's just the oilers don't look good.

But neither to Stuart Skinner. Like, I just don't. I'm feeling doom and gloom about the Edmonton Oilers right now, Max, if you can't tell. Yeah, and I think it's fair to feel worried. I mean, we have not seen them in Edmonton. And I would remind everyone, it wasn't that long ago that we saw the Edmonton Oilers dig themselves quite a whole. in a series and make it extremely interesting by the end. So I'm not going to count out.

What happened? What are you talking about? It didn't get the job done, but they made it real interesting by the end. Who won the Stanley Cup last year, Max? Yeah. No, for sure. But my point is they're not a team that's going to count themselves out at

2002 or even 03. Like they're going to be right in this. I'm worried about, you know, if McDavid and Drysidal are not fully operational, right? And we know they've both been banged up. Is this a team that's really? really built to get we talked about it with Dallas right like you lose hayeskin and

Robertson this is still a really deep team that can beat you in a lot of ways I'm not sure Edmonton is built like that that they can and I don't know if it's like a superstar effect like you you get so used to depending on those two guys for offense or if it's something else I mean obviously people can bring up the cap and whatever I don't think it's at this point that big of a cap strain on them to have you know those who are taking up the space they are it's not that bad. I just don't see a team that can win if they're not getting significant production from McDavid and Drysiddle.

Yeah, I would agree with that because who was their big off-season signing that was like, ooh, this could be their layer of secondary scoring. It was Jeff Skinner. Whereas he's not playing that poor dudes in the press box right now. And who's like outside of the forwards other than McDavid and Drysidal? It'd be New Jersey Hopkins and Hyman, probably. Next in scoring is Corey Perry. Oh.

Like, so no, I don't think they're built to sustain McDavid or dry sidel, not playing super well. And when the Oilers were having a ton of postseason success, two years ago, it was dry sidel going crazy, right? In 2022, 23, he was unbelievable in the postseason. Connor McDavid has been the guy the last couple years. I don't remember the last time it was someone else who was cooking. But you're right. Like other than those two would be Hyman or Nugent Hopkins, Evan Bouchard. But yeah, if McDavid and Drysiddle are hurt or just not putting the puck in the net,

then what are they going to do? And if Stuart Skinner is allowing six goals, five goals against and then Calvin Picard letting in one, And, like, I think the Oilers can win games three to two or whatever if McDavid and Drysidal are scoring three of those goals. But, like, the King scored six last night. That's just not a recipe for success. No, I mean, what you have to be hoping for here if you're a King's fan, or sorry, if you're an Oilers fan is that while you've been in L.A., L.A.'s picking the matchups, right? And I looked at the ice time. And they're playing their harmonicas.

Well, yeah, there's, that's impossible to overcome. think we can agree on that. You're cooked, Edmonton. The Oilers are so happy to be having to. No. Going home gives you the matchup advantage. And last night, the Copa-Tar-Kempe line got like two minutes against the McDavid line, right? McDavid-Divine and Drysidal.

Obviously, that's who you want on the Cop-a-Therkampi line. That's the line's going to do the bulk of L.A.'s damage, although, again, some of that coming on the power play. In game one, it was closer. I think it was like five minutes, which isn't a ton still, but it's some. It makes me think that, you know, Edmonton sometimes will do some things with McDavid and Dry Settle shifts to try and force the matchups they want because those guys are used to playing ridiculous minutes.

And if they end up playing 26, 27 minutes, Edmonton does not mind that if it helps get them the matchups. So that happened a little bit more in game one and obviously game one way closer. Last night they just didn't see him at all. I expect that you would see Drysidl and McDavid way more on the Kopitar line. And hopefully that helps because I don't think it's certainly not sustainable to go through this series with McDavid and Drysidal, producing the way they have so far,

particularly McDavid, it's especially not going to work if Adrian Kempe is getting three points per game, which is what he's doing right now. So you're going to have to put the big line on them, I think. Yeah, Kempe's been great. Like Copa Tar, still great. Again, I thought Quentin Byfield,

like that the finish on his goal in the second period or the first period was unbelievable. I think the matchups are one thing, but if the Oilers can't clean it up in the D zone and the neutral zone, like this series is going to be over pretty quickly. But maybe I'm not giving them enough credit. Maybe I'm panicking after two games here. Maybe I'm panicking because Stuart Skinner looks terrible.

And I was one of those people who said like the oilers should go out and get a goalie. Jordan Bennington specifically, that was like my trade deadline wish list was like, You cannot go into the postseason praying, sending out Hail Mary's that Stuart Skinner's going to figure it out. You can't not with Connor McDavid and Leon Drysidal. They didn't do it. They didn't make meaningful improvements. And now they're down.

O2 in a series against the Kings who everyone was going into the series being like, poor L.A. They have to face the Oilers again. I don't know. Maybe I'm hitting the panic button. Maybe I just lived in Calgary for a couple of years, and this is just my Oilers bias coming out. We have a crisis line clip. Let's see if Oilers fans feel the same.

Are we freaking out in Edmonton? Because I might be. Hey, guys, it's holding from Edmonton. Obviously, a little bit concerned about the series so far with how L.A. was playing in the first game, how we just could knock anything going. I feel like we're being counted out too early, but I don't know. I just want to know what you guys think. Thank you.

Yeah, I wouldn't count them out. I mean, but I think it is fair to be worried. I mean, I am. Yeah, for sure. Apparently I am. We are talking about it like McDavid and Dry Settle have been like ghosts or something. McDavid did have a couple points in the first game. Dry Settle's got, I think, three points in two games.

It's not like if you look at that raw, right, it's still perfectly fine. But I think the bulk of that coming in the third period of a blow, what was a blowout at the time in game one is coloring it. Now they tied the game. So you don't just get to wipe it away. Like that's, that happened. And I think that can happen in any period of the series for Edmonton of any game. And obviously that means it can happen in the series at large because their stars are that good that when they're going, they can crush you.

The problem has been, A, can you get those stars going earlier in the game before you're in this huge hole? And B, I think can you get them out in the matchups you want? You will obviously be able to do that better now game three and game four. But what happened after the Oilers tied the game? No, I know. Of course. Conn McDavid has that great play. It's 5-5.

And then, yeah. Yeah. And then Stuart Skinner gives up a nothing burger game winner to Philip Dineau. Like, so this is why I'm feeling more like, I don't know if the oilers are going to have the juice because then, again, last night, they make it three to two. The Kings end up winning six to. Calvin Picard comes in for Stuart Skinner and he gives up a goal on his first shot. Is that who's going to play game three? Like you're unhappy with Skinner.

So you're going to put in Picard who gave up a goal in his first shot. I don't know. I'm probably going to end up looking like an idiot a week from now. Well, no, it's valid. And the reason I'm focusing on McDavid and Drysales, I think you have to bake in the goaltending volatility for Edmonton. Like, if you came into this thinking that Stuart Skinner is going to carry you to a cup, I don't know what to say, right?

Like you came into this knowing that. I picked him in that everything draft this year. I think I'm just pissed. Uh-oh. Yeah, okay, that's valid. Edmonton has the team that has to overcome their goaltending.

We knew this about them. We knew this. I mean, he's had stretches where he's been pretty good in various playoffs. But he hasn't given us like this long, sustained run of it. Certainly it was not good last year. And that's why I keep coming back to the big guys because it may be unfairly,

but that's who they are. They have to bail out some of these other flaws elsewhere on the Right. So I think I, well, so this is maybe where I'm leading in with like, or this is the point I'm guess I'm trying to make with all my ranting is like, I think it's kind of unacceptable that this is where we're at with the Edmonton Oilers, where Connor McDavid and Leon Dreysidal and the roster around them is so poor that they need to bail everyone else out. And they need to, that Connor McDavid and Leon Drysidal need to overcome their volatility. And they the net. I think that that is just horrendous. And that sucks. So, but maybe I'm feeling more emotional and enraged about it than Oilers fans are. You're right. Maybe I'm not giving them enough credit. I think that if there's a team who, as to your point earlier, Max, there's a team who can come back from this whole and win a playoff series or make a series interesting, it's, it's going to be Edmonton. It's going to be the team that has Connor McDavid and Leon Dries.

that's the ultimate Trump card for them. But I think that sucks. It's 2025 and we're still having that discussion of, well, at least they have McDavid. Yeah. I might be taking it for a given that that's just their lot in life, right? I mean,

it's a good point. It didn't have to be the way that the Edmonton Oilers were built, right? Could you have gone out instead of getting Jeff Skinner, who was kind of superfluous to this team? This is not a team that lacked for guys who have some skill, right? And, you know, I'm not trying to bash on Jeff Skinner here, but that wasn't the missing piece for Edmonton. I mean, they could obviously, like I said,

they need some guys who can score when McDavid and Dressel can't. He's not going to do it when you're scratching him, right? So, yeah, try to use your resources a little bit differently and get the goalie so that this is not. It's a very good point, Haley. I'm taking it for a given that this is who they are and you're saying, why does this have to be who they are? Like, I just, I watched that. I watched the Oilers.

I watched the game and I was like, why is this happening? That shouldn't be what's happening. And it's been, it goes back. It precedes Stuart Skinner, right? You felt the same way in series when it was Mike Smith. So I've just gotten so used to, you know, yeah, it's an Oilers series. Are they going to be able to score basically five goals a game fairly reliably to get there? And you hoped, you know, they did, I think, turn over a little bit of a new leaf as the playoffs went on last year.

And it wasn't always like that. Right. But you go into this and you knew where they were at and that's just how it felt like it was going to have to be again. And so far that's been true. Yeah, I wonder if they get swept or losing five. will something actually happen this off season? Maybe that's why I'm hitting the panic button and being like, it's over because I'm just like hoping it will be so we can see the oilers actually figured out.

Let's move on to the Washington series. That's where Sean is. He's in Montreal. He's on the Caps beat. Washington beats Montreal 3-1 last night. They take a 2-1 series lead. It wasn't a great game. I thought it was very similar to game one, but like almost less interesting.

most of the action came in a couple minute pocket in the second period. Montreal opens the scoring less than three minutes later. Connor McMichael ties at 1-1. Literally one minute after that, Dylan Strohm finishes off a gorgeous passing play with Ryan Leonard and Anthony Beauvillier. I think Dylan Strom has almost been like outside of OVie, outside of Logan Thompson. Dylan Strom's almost been like one of the more interesting storylines to me.

Just like he was not tendered. Like this was a guy who like needed an NHL job and he looks great for the cap. So that was that was a great play. I like his chemistry with Anthony Beauvilliers. Those two have got something there. But then after that, it was really Logan Thompson's game the rest of the way. Montreal put the pressure on again in the third period. They tried to tie it.

Washington could not extend its lead past one goal. But the HABs couldn't solve Thompson. I think he's, I think his play. is like when he was playing as well as he was early in the season, like he was one of the vain reasons why Washington was the best team in the league, right? And then there was a bit of a dip. There was a bit of a scare there,

but he's found it. And I think the caps are the huge beneficiary of that, obviously. Yeah, Sean put a line in his story last night, I thought it was really good. I'm going to paraphrase here because I don't have it pulled up. But it's something to the effect of like,

if Logan Thompson is going to play like this, then Washington has every possibility to make a deep run. Yeah. I think he said they could move it up. Yeah. The flip side is if the guys in front of him play the way they have, they are very vulnerable, right? They could go out pretty early. And I think he even said potentially in the first round.

I don't know that I'm there. They were a post away from Jake Evans time that game. They were. I'm just not quite sure that, especially now that it's 02, I really think Washington will be able to close this out when two out of five. But Logan Thompson's been excellent. I think it's the first part of that sentence that should get people. in Washington fired up. You need the rest of it to click into gear.

I'm glad you highlighted Dylan Strome. Like, he's a guy who coming into this playoffs had, I think it was five career playoff points in 13 games. He's already up to four in the first two games of this series. Again, the Dylan Strom story is a great one. It continues. But I think it is Tom. Someone should write that story.

Somebody who's traveling for this series would write that story. Somebody who is no chance listening to this podcast right now. Why would he listen? No, he ditched us. He's probably like, I don't care. he'll listen to Frank. He'll listen to his own show with him and. No,

he's listening to Don't Boys. No doubt is he listening to Doe Boys right now. He's one. Yeah, they've done, it's Taco Bell part 17 or whatever. Yeah, so the Hab side of things,

like Patrick Lineate gets benched in the third period. That's not a new world for him. And it worked like that's, that sucks, but like Martin, St. Louis pushed the right button there because Montreal was the better team in the third period. Like we said, they were they were a post away from Jake Evans tying that game.

Logan Thompson made an unbelievable kick save laid in that game too with like four minutes left. Like if Logan Thompson is a little bit worse, Martin St. Louis did all the right things to try to get his team to like push. It's just unfortunate like you see them take the one nothing lead and they can't hold it. Like they could not hold it. Washington Tilt. the ice after that. So Frank Carrotto, I was watching SportsCenter and TSN here in Canada. And Frank he was on. And he had this great point of like, I don't know if Montreal knows what to do when they're not like the scrappy clawing. We're going to try to come back. We're going to make life hell for you. Like I don't, he was like, I don't know if they know what to do when they get the lead because they're the

scrappy fun underdog team. And I thought that was interesting of like, yeah, because they just they were so much better in the third period when they were down to one. And some of that's human nature, I think. Like I think some of that's any hockey game, the team that's trailing makes this push in the third and looks like that and leaves you wondering like, why don't you play like that the whole game?

Right. But I do think there's something real thing. I think you saw that play out down the stretch for them. I mean, when they got to clinch time and it was like, oh, they've got like a 95% chance. They just got to win one of these next four. And they lose the next three. And you're like, uh-oh.

Oops. But then they beat the canes of all teams. Like when I remember... Well, they beat the checkers. There was no canes in the line with that. That's fair. I remember like pregame being like, oh, so, because Sean was going to be on that series. Like, are you traveling?

He's like, oh, I don't know. It just depends. Like, Montreal has to beat Carolina tonight. Otherwise, it could be Columbus. I was like, oh, you're going to Columbus. But yeah, I didn't see the lineup. I didn't know who was scratched at that point in time. had a few like i think sphsf played and all that stuff but they had a lot of their big guns were not playing

by that point yeah it doesn't seem like they're going to have enough juice to to come out of this whole we'll see though like game three at the bell center and the playoffs for the first time in years that's going to be an unbelievable atmosphere um will they will they get a win we'll see i still think the caps take this one i don't know if the caps have like proven anything other than I'll rephrase this because I again, I saw this on Sportsnet. They were talking about this on the panel. I thought it was an interesting question. I thought Kevin BX's answer specifically was very interesting.

And it was like, for all the teams people are picking to win the Stanley Cup, not many people are talking about the Washington Capitals, who are the number one team in the Eastern Conference? And then the question from David Amber was like, are they proving it to you? Like, are they showing you anything that they could be the team to win it? BX was like, no. like they're up one nothing or they're up to nothing in the series but at that point in the game they're only up like two one against the lowest seed in the postseason no they should be up to nothing so are the caps proving anything to us i think the big takeaway is that if logan thompson keeps playing this way he could be the one who takes them pretty deep but they need to figure out how to put more pucks in the net and and pull away once they get the lead you can't keep it to one three one or three two for most of the games because that's just your your inches away from the game being tied or losing um let's take one more break when we come back can the jets and leaps take

a stranglehold on their series i don't know i'm more excited about florida tampa i'm not going to lie but we'll let you all that up coming up next on the athletic hockey show all right max four games tonight around the nch l is the first round of the playoffs continue its night's Florida Tampa. Florida's up 1-0 in that series. Vegas at Minnesota, that series is tied 1-1. Toronto at Ottawa, that series is 2-0. And Winnipeg at St. Louis, they're also up to nothing. Which series here are you most locked in on? Like, if we're doing a watchability rankings, we don't have to rank all of them here.

But in terms of like Thursday night, what's top of the list? Like, what's your main dish that you're jumping out here? Toronto, Ottawa, I think. Really? Yeah, it's not that it's been like an amazing, amazing series. I did like that the last one went to overtime. Part of it is I want to see, I mean, it's gotten quite chippy. So I kind of want to see what happens there.

But I also think anytime a team gets back into their home building for the first time after a long absence outside the playoffs, which is where the situation not was obviously. And yeah, like that's a pretty cool moment. And I'm very juiced up to see that. What have you thought of? let me ask you this because I really didn't like the Stolars play in game two. Everyone knows what I'm talking about here where he like in some of there's there's lines to it right.

I don't mind those first two cross checks that he gives Ridley Greg. That's the same thing a defenseman would do to him. I don't have a problem with a goalie doing that. But it's always kind of bothered me when goalies like really take liberties like that, especially like that chop with that goalie stick and then obviously he kind of hits them with that shoulder as he's coming through the crease. Like these are plays that any other player on the ice gets penalized for. and it especially bothers me when a goalie does it because goalies are these are this like protected

class that like you can't even stop too close to him or you're going to get jumped. It really bugs me that goalies kind of take those liberties like that. Yeah, but I also think Ridley, Greg is like battling in the crease and in front of the net. So I just think the fact that he didn't get any penalties, like to your point, if you cross-check somebody in open ice like that, like the, the, the, the refs whistle is probably going to go. Not the first two, but the third one that was high.

Like the third one that was around his neck, that one's a penalty. Yeah. Yeah. I think it just seemed like a goalie battling in the crease. Like I don't see that and go like what the hell personally. Because I think like if you're going to get your butt in the goalie's crease and you're going to battle like Ridley Greg has been posting up there.

Like that's his thing. When he got drafted by the Sends, the scouting report on him was like, that's like little baby Brad Marchand. So I think there's like a game within the game there. But I think it's going to be interesting to see how the referees handle that going forward. Like I think if Stolar's like hits Greg or someone else like that, like with another high cross check, then maybe the reps will actually do something. With the shoulders, he's coming back through the crease.

Like, come on. Yeah. I don't know. I don't know. I don't feel as strongly about it because I just think like I don't know I feel like goalies just get away with more because they're just like protecting their creeds

but that's what I'm saying that's what I have a problem with is like why are goalies do that stuff because they have no risk of anyone doing it back to them because they would be murdered on the ice that's true like if Ridley Greg went up and like slashed stole ours he's in the box if not in the hospital I mean imagine if you like took a whack at a goalie like that. That's true.

Jumping. Yeah. You're right. I don't, I don't know why I don't feel as strongly about it. I'm just like, yeah, that's just the way it is. Yeah, you're right. That's it. I'm going to piss off all the goalie.

Yeah, like, I'm going to piss up all the goalie union. Protect your goalies, Max. Show up at my house and a grim reaperhood tonight. Well, I don't have a problem with a goalie. That's the thing. I don't have a problem with a goalie protecting themselves. You know, I know, I know Ridley Greg's been a pest in this series already, but he's gotten it from plenty of places.

I didn't think he needed the extra chop with the goalie paddle or the stunner. I can live with the cross-checks to your point because you go to the crease. Someone is cross-checking you. Whether it's a deer or a goalie, who cares, that's happening to you. Like, that's part of why we admire your guys who go to them that, right? I don't have a problem with that. I just have a problem when you do things that like no one else on the ice is allowed to get away with and you do it just because you're a goalie.

I don't know. Yeah, I don't know. I think Stolars was letting Ridley, Greg, no, like watch it. like kid like you're hanging out in here a little too much he was that's for sure what it was and i think but yeah there's a line there of like okay you gave him too you gave him too like you're fine it's the third you're right where it's just like all right is some okay is anyone the high one yes exactly and now i don't know did rithly gregg go down then maybe i'll change my mind but as of game one i'm just like eh but i've enjoyed the storyline right i mean

Really Greg is good for a playoff series. We knew this would be the case with Ottawa. And I thought, frankly, Ottawa was kind of Ottawa-ness cost them game one. I mean, they came out way too juiced for that game and took a bunch of penalties trying to live up to this. I told Laz, like it felt like they had heard and seen so much about this playoff whistle. Then they went into the game expecting it. And they're like, uh-oh.

Oh. And that's where Sends fans across the globe are like, of course the reps pull the whistle. back out when it's Sends Leaves. Tonight's going to be exciting, though. I made the joke when I was on with Sean. You'll catch me on the Sends mile. Like, I'm driving to Ottawa when the show's done. I'll go hang out and watch the game with at Byword Market.

In saying that, like, I am going to start my evening with Florida, Tampa. I'm glad that there's a little bit of the 30-minute pad there. And we'll see how the Battle of Ontario goes. but I think there's a, there's a world in which I'm locked more in on Florida, Tampa than Toronto, Ottawa, which is why I was kind of surprised that you said that was the one for you. Because I picked Tampa to win the cup. You and Sean remember when we did our preseason thing. I ditched the jets and was like, I'm all in Tampa Bay.

Like no one's respecting them enough. They're my team now. And then I saw our podcast predictions, like everyone was picking them to win. I was like, what the hell? This was my thing. We all thought that. We all made that pick. like, I'm going to be different and pick the lightning.

I know. I was actually so rattled. I was like, oh, I guess I've never had an original thought in my life because everyone picked Tampa and then Florida wins game one. Will they take a, not a commanding series lead because it's still two, but will they go up to nothing? Will Tampa fight back? That series is, is great.

Obviously, Matthew Chukh loves to play the villain role. Much like the Dallas, Colorado series here. like this is a spot where I do think Tampa has to win this one in Tampa, right? Because I don't think you want to let Florida go home with a two-o lead here. You know, honestly, the biggest shocker to me here was Vasilevsky giving up as many goals as he did. I think it was 17 shots in game one. Like that was one of the big reasons I felt so good. And I'm sure that one of the reasons you felt so good about Tampa is Vasilevsky has felt like

Andre Vasilevsky again. Yeah, he's back. Yeah. Absolutely. And then they too, very deep team. They've replaced some of the guys that they were missing. in past cup runs. They get Gord back.

They get McDonough back. They're starting to look like the lightning again. Right. And by the way, like Nikita Kutrov led the league in scoring again. I don't think people acknowledge that enough throughout the season. And we didn't know. Like my expectation was that Florida was going to have some of the same kind of issues. You know, they're a deep team.

But like with Edmonton, we talk about, you know, we don't know how healthy their stars like really are. Right. We didn't know how healthy Florida's. stars really were. Matthew Kachuk being the main one, right? And so for him to score two goals in game one, that's like a huge deal. I just, I stayed away from Florida because I was like, I just, you know, they played a lot of hockey the last two years going deep in the, uh, the cup final two years ago. And then they go to game seven last year. It's a lot of hockey. So it would make sense if they were a little warm down. But yeah, I think we all may be big brained

the Florida thing a little bit. It's like, oh, we haven't seen their whole lineup. Yeah, it's early. I still like Tampa for all the reasons we've listed here. But the Panthers obviously are not going to go lightly. And I think this series could go the distance. I think it could be unbelievable. So that's my number one.

Winnipeg, St. Louis, I'm sorry. Like, if I'm, if I'm locking in, I'm braving through my jet leg for a late game, it's going to be Vegas, Minnesota. I think that series has like more. juice and potential to be great than I maybe gave credit for before the playoffs started. It's tied one-one. I picked Vegas to go to the cup final, but the Minnesota Wild are not going to. I don't think they're going to be an easy out despite their wild card status.

And I think we have a note from the crisis line we can get to here quickly from a Minnesota wild fan. Hey, I'm a Minnesota Wild fan. I have been a Minnesota Wild fans since they became an organization. I was there, 11 years old, screaming when the Open Exile Energy Center. When and how can this team get past the first round? It seems like an impossible struggle every single time. I don't know, Haley, are you ruling them out yet this year?

Because they look pretty darn good in game two there. Matt Boldie, who was, to me, one of my big takeaways out of the Four Nations was how good Matt Boldie was and how ready he was for big games has been every bit that good in these playoffs so far. And most importantly, the guy that I think we were thinking might be the, league MVP this year when he went down, real Caprizov looks sensational. And I remember when we were doing our kind of preview, like if the playoffs start today,

we were talking about Caprizov and I was like, well, he didn't play great in the postseason last year. Like, is he going to be the savior this year? He looks, he looks great. He had the two goals. One was an empty netter and that five two win. I think what impressed me the most about the wild is that they got off to such a fast start.

They go up three nothing in that period. and they don't just hold it out, but they add to that lead. They win five, two. Like, it wasn't a white knuckle. Let's, like, I'm, let's just grind it out kind of win. Like, I was really impressed with the Wild, the fact that that series is even. Like, it shouldn't be a huge surprise because, like, the Wild have these pieces that you mentioned. I just thought Vegas has been so good that I was like, I think this will be a five game series,

but I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being a really long grind. I think it will be harder for like to the crisis lines point. And if you guys are listening and you feel like you want to have your voice heard on the show too, you can dial into the athletic hockey show playoff crisis line. It's 321, 222-9-72. But to that fan's point, like, what are we going to have to do to get out of the first round? I guess like copy and pace from game two. I just think that this year is a hard year to have that conversation when you're playing.

against Vegas, quite frankly. Yeah, it's a tough matchup. I mean, I'm not picking them to do it this year. But I'm just saying I'm not ready to write it off either. I thought they've looked really good in game two. And I think their stars look really good. In terms of the big picture, like I actually am pretty encouraged by Minnesota.

You bring in a guy like Z, obviously you got to keep Caprice off, right? That underpins all of it. But you're going to free up so much cap space when Prisay and Souter's drop to like 800,000 from 7.3 million each right now. like they have room to add, right? And whether it's Brock Nelson, Brock Besser,

like there are free agents in this class. We'll see who actually makes it to free agency, like especially with regard to Nelson. But Besser certainly is going to make it the free agency. And they're going to have a path to add guys in this class who I think will help them. Way more than dead caps helping them, right? And they're not that far off now.

Like I think what's encouraging is that the guys they have are look like playoff players. And that's the biggest thing you can ask. so that when you start to sprinkle that extra talent, and Zeeb Williams is going to obviously get significantly better between now and even a year from now when I fully expect the wild to be back in the playoffs again. I think they can do it this year. They can win around this year.

I'm not picking it, but it's possible. But I like where they're headed with the young guys that they have and how they look. Very quickly here, if the Minnesota Wilde beat the Vegas Golden Knights, to me, more than just Kareil Kapriza going off, more than just having that bully on the roster, it's going to be because Philip Gustafin

wins the goalie battle. He was so much better than Aden Hill in game two. Philip Gustafin made 30 saves on 32 shots and 938 save percentage. Aiden Hill led in four goals on 16 shots with a 750 save percentage. Like I didn't even recall. You look at the score line on like line A

and it's 5-2 win. And then you look, they had 17 shots on goal. They scored five goals on 17 shots, 16 of which were on Aden Hill. Just not a good game from Vegas is number one. He's going to need to be better. But if there's a world in which the wild have the upset, it's going to be because they, they win the battle in the crease. I do think some of that shots is score effects. When you're down three, oh, after one, you're the team that's going to push really hard in the second. So I'm not as totally like, oh, they were, you know, two to one of them in shots. Like, this was their game and Hill blew it. Like,

I thought Hill had a couple of spectacular. on 10 shots. Three goals on 10 shots in the first period. Okay, but I mean, okay, yes. I'm not saying he was great, but I'm saying like, 10 shots in the first period is not like, that doesn't translate to 17 over the whole game, right? So the final line reflects that, you know, Vegas was in chase mode for the last 40 minutes of that game. That's why Minnesota only got seven shots the rest of the way. Is that sustainable for Minnesota?

No, they got to be able to tilt it better than that. You got to be able to play with a lead better than that against the Vegas Golden Knights. Yeah, they had three shots in the second. I thought Minnesota. Again, they scored on one of them. Minnesota, I did think, was a good first period. It wasn't probably a 3-0 first period, but they deserved to be winning after that first period, certainly.

Yeah. Yeah, I think Aiden Hill was concerning in that game more than anything. That's my takeaway. Aacular sequence, right, before the goals start going on, you thought at the start of that game, Aiden Hill might be unsolvable. It turned out he was very solvable. Turns out there was some swish cheese in the net.

Couldn't stop a beach ball, et cetera. etc. I'm sorry it wasn't good. You have to be better. This is just me being like very personal and emotional because I picked them to go to the cup final and I'm once again pissed off with the goalies. I'm pissed at all the goalies except for Anthony Stollars

apparently. The one goal you should be pissed at. Nope, apparently not. All right, that's all the time we have Toronto, Winnipeg. They can take commanding three nothing series leads tonight. Tampa Florida is going to be unbelievable. Vegas, Minnesota looks like it's going to be unbelievable. Max, thank you for doing this. I think Sean's back next week.

We'll see how that goes. Max and Jesse will have the next athletic hockey show on Monday. Thanks everyone for listening. Thanks, Max. Absolutely.