The Athletic Hockey Show - Flawless Panthers punch ticket to third straight Stanley Cup Final

Episode Date: May 29, 2025

Is Connor McDavid destined to sign a free agent deal with his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs in the summer of 2026? Jesse Granger and Rob Rossi welcome Sean McIndoe to discuss. Before that, Jesse and Rob marvel at the powerhouse Florida Panthers who disposed of the Carolina Hurricanes to advance to their third straight Stanley Cup Final, and the guys wonder if the Dallas Stars have it in them to extend their Western Conference series with the Oilers.Hosts: Jesse Granger and Rob RossiWith: Sean McIndoeExecutive Producer: Chris FlanneryProducer: Jeff Domet Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the Athletic Hockey Show. Welcome in, everybody. It's Jesse Granger along with Rob Rossi, and we're filling in for Haley, Salvean and Sean Jantilly for another episode of The Athletic Hockey Show. Today on the show, we're going to talk about the Panthers advancing to the third straight Stanley Cup after they eliminated Carolina in Carolina last night in game five. We're also going to talk about the Oilers, minus Zach Heimann, trying to advance to their second straight Stanley Cup final with a win over the Dallas Star. tonight. Also, could the Maple Leafs be targeting Connor McDavid and Free Agency in two seasons? We're going to bring in Down Goes Brown to talk about that. But first, let's welcome in Uncle Rob from Pittsburgh. How's it going, Rob? Well, kids, no, it's going well. We're anxiously awaiting a

penguin's coach to be hired here by June 1st. So, and watching the Stanley Cup playoffs and hoping that the stars can maybe stretch it out just a little bit since the NHL is intent. I'm not starting the Stanley Cup final until the 4th of July. How have these last couple summers been for you? I feel like you were in the stretch that I'm in currently covering Vegas where it's like I almost never get an early summer. But now you've entered the stretch where you actually get early summers every year. How has this been for you?

Yeah, well, we like to say that penguities are never boring. So this one's been a little different. They haven't really done a coaching search in a long time. They did one kind of for Jim Rutherford when he was hired, but the reality was in 2015, Rutherford was hired in June, so they just had to find somebody. And you could argue that Mike Johnson wasn't even that. But yeah, it's, it's,

Look, I've said for years, I think it's more fun to cover a team when they're at the stage the penguins are than it is when they're winning. Because when a team is very successful, you turn every mild disappointment into the end of the world. But when a team is, even if they don't want to admit it, rebuilding or struggling, I think they're more compelling in a lot of ways. That might say a lot about my personality. but so I think this is this this is more fun fun for me in a way makes a lot of sense cool well we're actually going to get into that coach and search later in the show but let's start with the game we saw last night which I think is the best hockey game we've seen in weeks it's these conference finals have not been the most competitive we've had quite a few blowouts but last night's game

was really good it was back and forth it looked like Carolina was in control Florida ends up storming back to win the series in five games. And this team just looks unstoppable right now. I, prior to this series, was the most I've ever believed in the Carolina Hurricanes. Like, this team has been so close for so many years. And I've never felt like they were ready to take that next step more than I was prior to this series. And then Florida just came in and stomped them into the mud.

So what's your biggest takeaway now that we've got Florida in the cup final for the third straight year after a five game win over, over Carolina. I think Florida has a real opportunity to establish itself as the best team of the cap era. I've said that if you gave me, you know, a final four of the capped era teams,

it would probably be the 2008 Red Wings, the 2015 Blackhawks, 2016 penguins, maybe the 2014 kings. I think those 14, 15, 16 years were sort of the peak of those kings, penguins, Blackhawks runs. I don't put as much stock into Tampa. They had a big break before their first cup that was won in a bubble. It was a shortened season the second year.

I'm not taking it away from them, but I just think it's more impressive what the other teams did. but I don't think I'd pick any team that's won the cup over this Florida team in a seven-game series. And even if it is Edmonton and McDavid and Drysidal, I just wouldn't be able to pick against them. They are flawless. They are a flawless hockey team. When I was a kid growing up in Pittsburgh, 92 Penguins, which I believe is Pittsburgh's best ever team, won 11 in a row in the Stanley Cup playoffs after going down two to one to the president's trophy winning range. in the second round. And they won a lot of those games without Maryle of Mew.

He had a broken wrist. But in that final, they met a team that was the Chicago Blackhawks. And Blackhawks had won 11 in a row going into that. And they won four different types of games. They want a one-nothing game in Chicago Stadium. They want a six to five game that was just a barrage of scoring chances to win the cup. In Pittsburgh, they came back from two goals. twice in game one.

And I think they won a four to two game that was a lot tighter than that in game two. And I remember just thinking, if you're a really great, truly elite historic team, that's what you do. You can win any type of hockey game. And I'm not saying that Edmonton and Dallas couldn't, but I know Florida can. And the way they take the life out of opponents, they do it in so many ways. They can do it with their penalty kill. They can do it with their power play.

They're so good five on five. They're trees. Like there's just so many big guys on the back end. They can shut down almost any great score. They have great scores and skill of their own, as we saw last night. I don't think people realize because he's such a great two-way player, how immensely skilled Barkoff is. And they have the best goalie in the world. I mean, you may disagree with that, but he's in the conversation. And I just, what they did that Carolina was impressive because, like, I know Carolina gets dunked on a lot. Carolina was really good the last two games. And it took everything they had to win the first game. And I just think this Florida team is special and they're frightening.

And I don't think they care where they play. And, I mean, just look at their record when they, under Maurice, when they leave. after any period, it's game set match. Yeah, very well put. They are such a complete team. The Bobrovsky narrative is so fascinating to me because before I covered hockey when I was just a hockey fan, Sergei Babrovsky was my favorite player to watch. And he was on the Columbus Blue Jackets back then.

They weren't a very good team. There wasn't a lot of excitement around him. But I used, I've watched more Blue Jackets games than just about anyone who's not a Blue Jackets fan solely because of Sergei Babrovsky. And every time he'd get to the playoffs, they'd lose in the first round. And he wouldn't have very good statistics. And the narrative for so long was kind of similar to what we're seeing with Hellebuck now, maybe not quite as pronounced, but there was a narrative that this is the goalie who

is great in the regular season, but can't get it done when the games are most important and on the biggest stage. And then he goes to Florida, he gets that massive contract. And speaking of dunking on, that was everyone's favorite contract to dunk on with Sergei Babrovskis. And now here we are after three straight cup final runs, the first of which I thought he carried Florida to the cup final, the first year, the year they lost to Vegas. Now they've got a powerhouse. They're just a wagon and he's just one wheel on that wagon. But it's so much fun for me to see this guy who I, like, he is one of the best goalies of this generation

to finally, it's odd that it's happening in his like mid to late 30s and not when he was like maybe at the peak of his powers, but to see Sergei Bavrovsky play his best on the biggest stage and have all this postseason success has been a lot of fun. And it's completely flipped the narrative of his of his career. Because now you see in the regular season, he's not really in the Vezna conversation for the most part. He's kind of just biting his time. He's winning enough games. This Panthers team was not running teams over in the regular season. They were kind of just waiting to get to the playoffs. And Bobrovsky did the same thing. And now he turns it on. And yeah, it's like I said, he's, he's changed the narrative from being the guy who can't

get it down in the playoffs to being the playoff performer. Like, if you, you say he's the best goal in the league, well, you could argue Hellebuk, you could argue Shestirkin, you could argue Vasilevsky, but the guy who's getting it done in the playoffs every year is Sergei Bavrovsky. And that's such an opposite take of what used to be for his career. When the lightning were going on there run, I asked if Gettie Malkin, who would be the the number one goalie for Russia in an international tournament. He said he would pick, he would hope it would be Brobowski. I was surprised because at that point,

Fasolevsky was the guy. And he said that Barbarowski's every bit as good. And I brought up the playoffs stuff. And Homo can smile and said, we had pretty good teams that knocked him out. And he was right. And I think, I don't know a lot of,

about goaltending. I probably know next to nothing. But to me, the challenge for a goalie is that when you play in the regular season, even if you're playing a divisional team, the scouting isn't quite the same as it is when you see a guy every other night. I think you see that with hellabuck. And I think great goalies in the regular season. And I think this is why maybe you see guys like Bobrovsky get better with age is when they go through that crucible over and over again, they get used to the moments. And to me, something that scout told me was really interesting, early in my career. We were talking about Mark Andre Fleury. It was during the 09 playoffs. I was talking to a scout when I was trying to make my cons my Smyth sort of list as that series went on.

And he said, well, if the penguins win, would you have flurry? I said, I don't know. I said, his numbers aren't great. He goes, look at the goals. Look at the numbers in the wins. Those are the only ones that matter. And I went, what do you mean? And he said, any goalie in the playoffs that is concerned about his numbers and losses is

missing the point. You worry about what your numbers are in the wins because that's what you're trying to do. You're trying to win games. And that might have been just one. person's opinion, but it always stuck with me because I always feel like in the playoffs, the one stat we don't really like to talk about with goalies, which is victories, is the only one that matters. And I think Sergey Babrovsky, watching from afar, knows how to win hockey games in the playoffs. There requires a sacrifice of ego. There requires a calmness in the trusting of your

process. And there requires, like we saw last night, when he was just being peppered with shots on those Carolina power plays, just an ability to find pucks and let them hit you. I think we get caught up in a lot of high danger save and all. There's so much data. Sometimes we forget that the job of that position is to not let the puck go in the net. What Sergei Bavroski really does well is he just, he finds a way to let the puck hit him a lot.

Again, it's like picking against them requires to pick against him for games. And that's just, it's tough to see any team, even if it's Edmonton or Dallas. Dallas is a great team too. But even if it's Edmonton, it's just, it's tough to see a team getting the best of him four times right. Yeah. And what you mentioned about the scouting, I think is totally, I completely agree with in terms of like you can you can scout for a goalie. You can find their weaknesses and you can game plan around it. But Brovsky, you can't really game plan for him, because his physical attributes are just on another level. Like the dude moves side to side in a way that no human being moves.

There isn't a way to schematically get him out of position because he just gets back into position in a way that no other person can. Like his just pure physical attributes are on another level. And he's obviously only one piece of this Florida team, like you said, they're pretty much flawless. I love seeing the deadline acquisitions showing up. Obviously, Seth Jones had a big goal. Brad Marchand was phenomenal last night.

In game five, I thought he was, other than maybe Barkov, I thought he was the best player on the ice. He's creating on every shift. He's getting the puck to the front of the net. He looks fast out there. He's dynamic. This is not like typical old star at the end of their career. Let's add him for a cup run.

Like, no, he is dynamic. out there. And to be able to throw a guy like that on your third line is just, that's an embarrassment of riches for this team. And don't you just feel that if we'll get ahead of ourselves, but if it is Edmonton, I feel like the challenge for the Oilers is, the more you play the Panthers five on five, the more likely it is they're going to just wear you down. So you need a lot of power plays. You don't even need to score on a lot of the powerplay. You just need a lot of power plays to break that up. But the other thing, if you're Edmonton, if it is Edmonton is you can't play the two big boys together because that becomes they have to do all

the scoring. But I also feel like if you don't do that, they're going to stick Marchand's line on either dry side or McDavid, right? And he's going to drive them nuts because we know that when we get to the final, the whistle's going to go like to Saskatchewan or Cuba, but it won't be in Edmonton or South Florida. And Marchand's going to get away with being Marchand. And he's just got a second lease on life with this team. And it's like, it's weird because like I'll always think of him as it Bruin, but it's like he was born to be a Panther with the way they play. And I can't that that has to anger Bruy. fans knowing the way those series have gone.

But I just, what a great deadline by Zito. I just, yeah, they're, look, I hope it's a great series, whatever it is.

I think it will be a great final. But man, the scary thing about Florida is, I don't even think this is like, oh, well, this is their chance to, like,

cement them. Like, they're going to be good for a while. They're, they're a fantastic organization right now. Yep. for sure. They look, they look unstoppable at the moment. We'll see if anyone can stop them in the final. All right. Let's take a break. And when we come back, we're going to talk Connor McDavid to Toronto with Down Goes Brown.

All right. We're back. And our writer up in Toronto, Jonas Siegel, wrote a column, came out this morning, proposing the idea that the Maple Leafs could be in play to sign Connor McDavid in 2026 when he is currently scheduled to be a free agent. he obviously has plenty of time to sign a deal with Edmonton between now and then. But for now, he is scheduled to be a free agent. And let's bring in Down Goes Brown, Sean McIndoo, to talk about this proposition of the biggest player in the world going to the market that already, I mean, we don't pay hardly any attention to the Maple Leaf. So why do they need Connor McDavid, Sean? Well, I mean, I think you always need to plug in some depth on the third line. I think that's, you know, that's important. Man, this, I love this story.

This story is designed in a lab to get people mad, isn't it? Anyone who's not a Leafs fan, you're furious. Everyone who's not a Leafs fan. So, like, the other 40% of the hockey world is up in arms over this. And I have to say, if you're listening, to this and you're already getting mad, go and read the actual piece. Because the piece is not saying Connerick David's a local guy. He wants to be a Maple Leaf. You know, this is going to happen. It's more of a theoretical exercise that I think has some value, not just for the Leafs,

which is the team that the Jones covers. So he's going to come out from that angle. But for a lot of different teams in a league where there's going to be a lot of cap space available. I think it's an interesting thought experiment of how much should you set aside, how much opportunity should you potentially pass up this summer for the admittedly slim possibility that Connor McDavid could be available next year. I think of this, as I often do with these sorts of things, my my poker brain kicks in, right? Yeah.

You know, Jesse, you're out there in Vegas. I'm sure you've been to a few poker rooms. If there's a big, big, big pile of chips in the middle of the table already, you don't have to be a sure thing to chase that pot. You don't even have to be the favorite. Sometimes the odds tell you that even if I'm only 10%, I should be calling this bet and trying to get in there. Now, I don't even think it's 10% that any individual

team other than the Edmonton Oilers is going to land Connor McDavid. But if the chance is not zero, how low of the odds do you have to realistically think you have for it to be worth it to make sure that you're at least in play? I think that's kind of a fascinating conversation to have. And yeah, if Connor McDavid were to decide to leave Edmonton for whatever reason, and there is no indication that that is the case, but just for fun, If he decided that, would the Maple Leafs be in the running? You'd think so? Would other teams be in the running?

Absolutely. Should those teams make sure that they have a little bit of cap room next year to make this happen if it should drop on their doorstep? Yeah, probably. But at what cost to this year? I don't know. That's where it gets tricky. That's where you've got to think about it.

So let me say this. I agree with everything you said, except for the fact that we all know the league's going to make Connor come to Pittsburgh because that's what they do to save the penguins. But I think any team is doing a disservice to itself if it is not preparing for even the minuscule chance that they could take a run at Connor McDavid. And I don't think this is as far-fetched from this standpoint. It's two years left on his contract, okay? we don't know that he wants to leave Edmonton,

but by this time next year, if he has not want to stay in the cup and the Oilers window is not as wide, I think he has to start looking around and say, where is that championship opportunity? And the reality is, if you're going to leave your team that you drafted you and you haven't taken to the top.

I do think it makes a lot of sense to go, where is the place I could go where if I'm going to win once, that one is going to be more important than some other guys, two or three. And that's either the Toronto Maple Leafs or the New York Rangers. Those are the two teams. Or Montreal, maybe. Maybe Montreal, but I think, like, the Maple Leafs or the Rangers winning the Stanley Cup is a,

league altering event. We know this because it happens so infrequently that when it does, it catches the attention of everybody. So I don't rule it out, but I also wonder why we would want that to happen to Connor McDavid because we've seen time after time again

that Toronto is like the equivalent of the end of the Wizard of Oz for the Wicked Witch or the West. The house is going to fall on you. The monkeys are going to be hovering and like that. But I think it's a great thought experiment. But I just, I wonder, though, we haven't seen a move like that in hockey, at least in my 20 years.

That would be a, I don't know. I mean, is that LeBron going to the heat? Yes. I mean, is that the closest thing we can say? Chohay going to the Dodgers probably? That's probably better. You see it in other sports. Yeah.

Which is, is, you know, we've talked about this in different ways and different formats over the years many times. In other sports, the superstars, they want to go to the big markets. They want to have flexibility. They don't sign max length contracts and lock themselves in to one market, whether it's a bigger small market or anywhere in between. You know, you've already got this situation happening. you know, in your neck of the wood, Rob for baseball, where they've got the Pittsburgh Pirates have the best pitcher, arguably already the best pitcher,

certainly the best young pitcher, under control for years. And everybody already is like, well, he's clearly never going to sign an extension with this team. He's going to pitch for them for three or four more years, and then he will go to the Yankees or the Dodgers or the Red Sox or whatever it is. And so you've got this whole debate about do they trade them,

when did they trade them? How does that work? the Edmonton Oilers maybe not quite the Pittsburgh Pirates of the, uh, they're trying. They're trying. They're one way from the final. Yeah.

But, you know, as far as market size, as far as the importance and all that, you know, if this was another sport, everybody would just assume, of course, Conner McDavid is, I mean, he wouldn't even be in this situation because he wouldn't have signed an eight year deal to start with, but he did. And this is how it works in the NHL. So by far. are, let's be clear, the most likely outcome here is Connor McDavid signs an extension on probably July 1st or shortly thereafter, makes him the highest pay player in the history of the NHL and all

of that stuff and it'll be well deserved and we all go, oh, okay. And probably even maybe signs that or has the details leak out early enough that it doesn't even have any influence of a free agency for everybody else this year because we all know McDavid's off the table. But just if it isn't, If, you know, and, and Rob, you said, you know, if he hasn't won a cup yet, does he, does he bolt? I almost look at it the other way. I almost look at it and say, if the Oilers win the cup this year and I'm Connor McDavid, and I, I maybe have it in my head that I would at least like to try free agency. That opens the door for me a little bit more because I can say, look, I've given this team everything. I have gone as far as this team as we can go.

I've got the championship. We've got the banner. we've got the ring. Now that I've done that, I want to at least see what's out there. I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't won. If I hadn't brought a championship, you know,

and then, you know, the fans are, they're still going to be kicked off. It's easier to leave a conquering hero. Yeah. It is. I guess my question,

though, is, uh, and I'm this is, if you're Connor McDavid, uh, and if you're the Edmonton Oilers, like I,

the Oilers are such a proud franchise. can you become the franchise that lets Gretzky and McDavid get away? And if you're Connor McDavid, even if you want to resign with the Oilers, I don't see any reason why I would, they're not the same player anymore because of his age. But to me, the beauty of Crosby's two-year extension with the Penguins last year was it puts all the pressure on Kyle Dubus. Yep. Right?

It puts all the pressure on management. I'm giving you two years. If I'm Connor McDavid, I'm never signing for more than two years with any team, especially the Oilers. I am saying you prove it to me every offseason that you are going all in to build a team deserving of me. That's what I do. Every player under 30 should be viewing it that way. And McDavid probably even pass that because his, you know, even when 20% of his game has faded due to age, he's still going to be the best player in the league. Michael Jordan did that with the Bulls.

people forget that. He just saw the series of one year. LeBron's the best. He can hold you to the fire every single summer. Exactly. I mean, and that's the best comparison, right?

Because football, it doesn't really work because the contracts aren't fully guaranteed. And then in baseball, you have that set of 50-year deals, which is ridiculous. In football, guys are always one play away from their career ending. Whereas in hockey,

we don't, like, yes, there are some bad injuries, but we don't see it the way you see in football where a guy tears every ligament in his leg and like he's never the same player again. You don't see that in hockey. If you're Connor McDavid, that's not a reasonable thing to be afraid of. It's more likely that you're going to be healthy.

And like you said, even if you lose a step, you're still probably the best player in the world. So it's more feasible to do in basketball and hockey than it is at football. Yeah. So, I mean, look, it would be just stepping back here as a fan. on one level, a Connor McDavid free agent bidding war would be fascinating. It would be something we have really never seen in this layer. The closest comparison to this would be probably the Lindrosh trade derby back in 91 or 92 rather when he, you know, because it's, it, it would be that except you wouldn't even be a trade scenario unless maybe it would be, you know, maybe the Oilers. because there's a few ways this could go.

90% chance Connery David just signs an extension in July 1st. Smaller chance that he goes to the Oilers and says, you know, I'm not quite sure, but yeah, let's put something together and maybe it takes a little bit longer than that. Smaller yet chance that he says, I want to see how the season plays out. And then the smallest of all is he goes to the Oilers on July 1st and says, I'm done. I will give you one more year. But just so you know, I am not coming back. I'm for, and again, why would that even be the case?

We have no indication. But if it was the case, you're the Oilers, then you got to turn around and trade them and then look out. But that's, that's bad news for me because I'll tell you right now, the Leafs aren't winning that bidding war. The Leafs have got one young player in the entire system in Matthew Nyes. And, you know, I feel like the Oilers probably wouldn't do that straight up. Maybe the Leafs have to throw in a fourth round pick to get that deal to work. but it's, there's fascinating ways this could go.

But again, like, it's a fun thought experiment for everyone other than Oilers fans. It's, he's just going to sign. Yeah. As Wachinsky always says, his stuff is there. Nobody, look, nobody in the NHL, no young star player uses their leverage

to get as much money as they can unless they play for the leaves. They never signed a contract that's less than eight years unless they play for the Leafs, and no big star actually hits free agency unless they play for the Leafs. You know, it does make me wonder, though, if I could go back in time and be a fly on the wall,

I would love to have been a fly on the wall in Montreal or Boston or the Four Nations because you have to think every NHL player with Clout was asking McDavid what his interest were and were making their pitches. Almost like the, hey, you know, come here. And, you know, and I mean, that's not tampering. It's just talking to your buddy.

Yep. That's it. Before we let you out of here, Sean, I want to talk to you about something that happened after the Florida Carolina game last night. I always like getting your perspective on historical things and traditions. And this combines both of those. Paul Maurice pulled Rod Brindamore aside. And it looked like they were having, at least on TV,

it looked like they were kind of having a combative conversation. But afterwards, Paul Maurice explains that he doesn't think that all the coaches should participate in the handshake line. And he was telling Rod Brindamore that that was the case. And that's why they were having that conversation. That's why the coaches didn't go out on the ice. So what do you think about Paul Maurice trying to change the handshake line tradition? I think coaches have got to love that. When you've just lost, you've just seen your dream collapse in front of you and you get pulled aside and told like, oh, by the way, I know better than you do.

how things work. And apparently Paul Maris did this with Craig Baroube, although it was implied that they had maybe discussed it beforehand, which is a smarter way to do this than pulling it out in that moment. But yeah, I'm sure that Rod Brindamore, who played for 20 years in the NHL and Craig Baroube, who played for 15 years getting his face punched a couple of times a week, really enjoy being lectured by Paul Maurice on how player traditions should work in this league. That is, that's pretty good. I don't know. I don't hate the idea that, hey, maybe we should limit these never-ending handshake lines.

But maybe Paul Maurice could either get that out there beforehand rather than springing it on somebody. Or maybe he should just stick to his primary. job, which is of course post-game stand-up comedian who also occasionally does a little bit of coaching. But yeah, that, once you knew what it was and you

went back and watched the footage, because I was like you, Jesse, first I'm like, are they, it was their bad blood? Is this about like some cheap hits or some, you know, something or other? Once you know what it was about, you can absolutely see. Rod Brindamore, we have all had that like, get the F out of your face

when somebody says something. Like, are you honestly doing this right now. Shut up, dude. And that's pretty clearly what it was. So, you know what? Good, good for Rod Brindamore. He gets his second win in a conference final in that exchange. Well, I feel like, to be fair, the point you hit on, if we're going to be serious about

this, is that it should, it should be something that is addressed privately before the series. Because I don't think the premise is completely assonaut. I mean, I am old enough to have covered series where they're. the handshake line was just between the players, the coaching staff, not everybody in the organization. But I also think to be fair to Paul Maurice, maybe being less serious, you know you're going to beat the Leafs because that's what happens. And let's face it, if Rod Rindamore wants to say the handshake line in a conference final, we probably should stop coaching the Carolina Hurricanes. Fair enough. Fair enough.

Jeez. Yeah, I mean, it's, again, it's the comedic part is the, Poor league fans. They clicked on this like, oh, we're getting McDavid. This is fun. And now they're just catching strays in the, uh, dude, Rob, do you not know? Respect in the handshake lane is the most important criteria for success for the Toronto Maple Leafs organization.

Don't, don't go, don't go dumping on that. I just, I will just say, I, I am, I like the handshake line like everybody else. I don't love it like a lot of people. I feel that sometimes. it is something the hockey culture celebrates when a lot of it to me is just theatrical. I don't think a lot of those guys really want to do it. I've talked to guys where they're like, look, yeah, we shake hands, but it's not like there's this great, you know, like I've, look, I covered a series once where Alex Ovechkin finally vanquished Pittsburgh and Malkin told me after the series, I told him, okay, go get yours. That's great.

but a lot of it's just like, hey, I barely know you. I'm shaking your hand because I just, you know, beat you. But I don't like, I wouldn't know you on the street. So I guess I'm, I guess I'm less, it's a handshake guy. I like the handshake line. I love Paul Maurice, but I just think it's hilarious that. And his explanation of like what the players feel on the ice and how the players should feel and what they want. And it's like, but why are you telling Ron,

and Ron Brin. What the players want? That part, I love Paul Maurice. His stand-up comedian comedy act after the games is my favorite part. Rod Brindamore, who has actually won a Stanley Cup as a captain. Yeah. He's one of only the like 25 guys to have been handed that Stanley Cup by Gary Betman. Well, he wasn't actually handed.

He kind of like just jacked it out of Batman's hands. But yeah, it's getting a lecture from this glasses wearing. dweeb. Can someone explain to me while I've got you here? What the hell was Maurice talking about when shotgunning a beer and going to church? Because I went to school in West Virginia, man, and I got to be honest, if it was going to happen anywhere, it would have been down there. I've never even heard those two things tied together. And it makes me want to know a lot more about what the hell's going on in practices for the Florida Panthers. Look, it's Paul Maurice, you get up there, you work on some material, some

Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't. He's putting together a tight five for the tonight show. And, you know, maybe track number five will not be shotgunning beers in church. All right. Well, thanks for your five minutes, Sean. We kept you for a little longer than that. But we appreciate it. Sending you a handshake from Pittsburgh, buddy. Yeah, do we shake hands now or is it a later thing? I don't know. We'll take a break. And when we come back, we'll talk about the other series that's not quite over between Edmonton and Dallas. And the Pittsburgh Penguins coaching search. All right. So Edmonton is going to try to match what Florida did last night and Ash there, take it to the Stanley Cup final for the second year in a row tonight against Dallas.

It's been a super interesting series because we've had blowouts in both directions, obviously more in favor of Edmonton. But to me, what's stood out is you look at these teams on paper and Dallas is probably the deepest forward group in the NHL, at least on paper, but the oiler's depth. And we saw it against Vegas. I saw it in person against Vegas. The Oilers' depth has been underrated all year, and they've really been awesome with Evander Cain, Adam Henrique,

Caspary Cappin, all pitching in. Obviously, Corey Perry looks like he's 20, not 40. But do you think Dallas can keep this series going? And if so, why or why not? Yeah, I actually think I'd probably pick Dallas tonight, mostly because they haven't played a good game yet. I mean, they had a good, they had a very fortunate period. I just think they're too good to go five games without playing a good game.

And they only need to play one good game and win it to make it a little bit of pressure on Edmonton. Maybe I'm grasping at straws there. I think Dallas is a much better team at home. I just can't believe, and I'm taking nothing away from the Edmonton Oilers. They have been a revelation defensively. but I don't think Skinner is quite Dominic Hasick. And I think there's a chance he could be human tonight and give up three to a pretty good team. And that might be enough in Dallas to get into a game six.

I might just be hoping for this. I think Ottinger is capable of stealing a game. And I don't care what you are. When you're up three to one and you're going on the road for game five, you know that you have game six in your back pocket. I can even make the argument that, I mean, I'm not saying,

you know, this is certainly not a team view, but I could even make the argument that the best thing for the Oilers would be to win this in six and just not be off for quite that long because I think an extended break hurts a skilled team more than a team like the Panthers. So I don't know.

That probably, means oilers six to one. But I think I would pick Dallas tonight. Ottinger is the best player in the game and the star's power play comes alive. And Edmonton doesn't have quite the desperation that you'll see. But, you know, I thought the Kings would take out the Euler. So what the hell do I know? Yeah, it makes a lot of sense. I love what you said about Edmonton's defense. To me, that's what has stood out. This team, two years ago, they lost to the Golden Knights in the second round, and they changed their defensive system to, when Knoblock came into a zone defense, which was similar to what Vegas has played, and it's been really successful, and I've watched

it up close here covering the Golden Knights. And Edmonton has switched to that exact defensive structure, where it's a tight, compact, layered zone defense, where they all just hover around the net and don't let you anywhere near the middle of it. I've also seen, Pete DeBoer's system up close when he coached the Golden Knights and obviously the shark's going against Vegas quite a few years. And I've seen that system really, really, really struggle to get inside in the playoffs. When it's a seat, when it's a playoff series, I think during 82 games, Pete DeBoer's system is flawless. It's really tough to prepare for. But once you get a seven game series and you can focus on an individual opponent, kind of how we were talking about with

the goalies earlier with Bobrovsky, I think Pete's system struggles. to get to the inside. So you've got one team that has a system that makes it incredibly difficult to get to front of the net. And their defensemen, to the Oilers personnel credit, the defensemen are playing it flawlessly. And they might even get at homeback, which would make it even better. And then you've got a system in like you look at the stars forwards. They should be producing points. This team should be putting up goals, but they aren't.

They aren't getting to the dangerous areas. Even Miko Ranton, who was on fire. And it looked like he couldn't be stopped, suddenly can't score. And I just think that I just think that these two systems, these teams play favor Edmonton in a big, big way. And it's allowing them to keep this. I mean, the stars have been one of the highest scoring teams all year. And they just cannot get chances because like you mentioned, Stuart Skinner is not

Dominic. He hasn't needed to be. The shots are coming from the outside. And his Stewart's credit, he hasn't had to make those grade A 10 bell high danger saves. But what he has done is when he faces those like, it's not a grade A chance. It's like a beach. It's a B minus chance.

He faces those B minus chances. He doesn't turn them into chaos in front of him. He doesn't spill a rebound in front where all of a sudden you've got extra chances. He's absorbing the rebounds. When he can't absorb him, he's kicking him into the corners. He's keeping the puck out of danger along with his defenseman. I think it's a team effort between he and the defenseman. They're just doing a phenomenal job.

So in the end of the day, he ends up with all these awesome stats. He's not making these impressive looking saves, but the numbers have been, I mean, it's hard to deny. you look at that third period. You mentioned the stars had a fortunate third period in game one where they scored a couple power play goals. They scored an empty net goal. If you take away that, I think the Oilers have given up like two goals in the last like nine periods.

It's an insane run that this team is on in terms of not allowing goals and not allowing chances of any kind. And I just think, I think it's a combination of the systems and the fact that this Oilers defense has really committed to keeping guys out of the middle. So the dirty secret. of a Stanley Cup host season is that the best team doesn't always win the series because it's a matchup. And some teams just match up better.

And I think you're right. I think the Oilers are just a very tough matchup for the stars, which is not to say the oilers aren't a great team or won't be the best team. I know this. The Oilers are the, because I live in Pittsburgh and I covered the penguins for so long, the Oilers are like the twin flame of the penguins in terms of their DNA. they're thought of as this scoring star-driven franchise. Both franchises, though, when they have had championship teams

have had this ability to have goaltenders get a lot of credit for just making the saves they should. And have had unheralded defense cores play well within a system. And I think that's so important because the oil don't need much defensively or goal-tending-wise to beat you. Yeah. And they're getting a lot more than much in both scenarios. And I saw up close when DeBur coached the Sharks.

By the end of that series, the Sharks could not generate any offense against the Penguins. And I think it was another case of they just, they had good scorers. They just couldn't get to the front of the net. I don't care how good you are, you're not going to score from the perimeter in the Stanley Cup playoffs. You're just not. 100%. All right. Well, it should be fun tonight.

Before we go, let's touch on the Penguins head coaching search because they and the Bruins to premier franchises right now are in the middle of coaching searches and they seem to be tied. We saw a report from our Flutototianzua that Marco Stern, the King's assistant who's been down in Ontario. he's one of the finalists for the Bruins job, and so is Mitch Love, who's been a assistant in Washington under Spencer Carberry, working with the defenseman. How does that tie into what the Pittsburgh Penguins are doing and what do you expect?

Well, yeah, I mean, look, when I was a young reporter on the Penguins beat, they were competing with the Bruins for a GM. Peter Shirelli and Ray Shiro were both finalists for both jobs. And Shirelli was the Bruins pick, so Shiro took the Penguins job. He ended up being the guy they were going to offer the job anyway. I say that because Mitch Love seems to be that guy right now for both the Bruins and the Penguins only as their head coach.

The Penguins really want Mitch Love. They really do. They view him as the ideal guy. They view him. They view that he would command respect from their veterans who have won because of his resume as a player in the league. but they view that because of the success he's had in the AHL and on the bench as an assistant with Washington, that he would be perfect as they are trying to bring a lot more young guys

into the lineup and from their perspective, hopefully drafting some over the next few years that will make an impact. So if you're Mitch Love, you're in the catbird seat right now. What's interesting to me about this situation is, and look, there's a cyclical nature to this. I don't know of two more challenging jobs. right now than Boston or Pittsburgh.

I don't think either team is anywhere close to competing the way they want to, which is for championships, not to just get in and win around. When you become the head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins or Boston Bruins, you're usually in a cup or bus situation. And this will not be that for Mitch Love or whoever gets this job. But if, you know, the Penguins would like it to be Mitch Love. and Kyle Dubus has said he wants a coach in place by June 1st.

Well, time's ticking on that. I think if you're Mitch Love, this gives you an opportunity to maybe extract from either franchise, if not more money. I think maybe more commitment in terms of term, which I think is very important for either one of these jobs because the next couple of years for teams that have black and gold in their DNA are going to be bleak. Yeah. The thing I'll add. I apologize. Not for the other type of gold that's in Vegas. You mentioned it's cyclical and Vegas is not quite to that part of the cycle, but the way they've traded away draft picks and first round picks, that part of the cycle is coming eventually. You pay the Reaper eventually, yeah. What I love about this is that Mitch Love is the prize coaching process.

of this of this cycle. And I love that because he's an assistant who hasn't had the chance yet. And I don't know if this is the Spencer Carberry effect because finally a team took a chance on an assistant instead of just recycling the same 10 guys over and over every year. Someone took a chance on a highly thought of assistant and he's been brilliant right off the bat. I think more assistance should get opportunities like that. We see it in other sports where the top assistant, especially the NFL, where the coordinators are constantly the prize of every coaching search.

I love that we're seeing assistants get these chances. And I think maybe Carberry's success might be playing a factor in this, but I'm just excited to see some new names in this coaching carousel. I agree with you. Look, I think the success of somebody we talked about last segment with Maurice shows you that, you know, having that experience for a certain type of team is invaluable. Like, you know, I can say that I don't know what the Rangers will become under Mike Sullivan, but he's absolutely the right code for that situation.

But when you're a franchise where the penguins or the Bruins are at or where the ducks were, you know, a couple of years ago or where the Blackhawks are, I don't understand not going with an assistant who is going to treat that job like that might be their only chance. I get the experience. I get that you want that guy that because so much of a head coach is about, you know, Jesse, and you know this from covering from the nights. What we find out is when we're around a team every day. So much of the head coach isn't about strategy.

It's about the organization. It's about being able to delegate. It's about the relationships. It's about keeping structure. Yep. From a day to day basis, right? But when you get an assistant, there's just an inherent freshness. There's a newness.

And I just, and I also think there's a work ethic that's built in when you're that guy because you've seen your boss do it and you have ideas that you're like, hey, this guy I worked for in the case of Carberry, I like what he did. But also I like, I might like to do it this way. Yep. And I just think to me as a GM, I would want that with the type of teams that Pittsburgh or Boston have right now. And that's why I'm puzzled that Chicago went with Blasheel.

because I just feel like with that type of team, I think I probably would have liked Mitch Love. Yeah, yeah, I totally agree. And it's fun for us to see some new names in there. What a great name, too, Mitch Love is. Like, can you imagine in either Pittsburgh or Boston, the talk shows, you know, Pittsburgh would like, ah, Coach Love, you know, and whatever they would say in Boston.

Like, I won't even try that accent. You see your right, the deadline. Mitch Love is like the perfect hockey coach name. It is. All right. Well, that'll do it for us today. Thank you, Rob, for coming in. Thanks to Sean McHen-Doo for joining us to dunk on the Leafs.

And his five-minute stand-up comedy act was great, as always. Thanks to everybody out there for listening to the Athletic Hockey Show. The Prospect Series has a new show tomorrow. Enjoy the hockey tonight. Haley and Sean return next Thursday.