The Sheet with Jeff Marek - Ducks Even Series, Sabres Take Game 1, & Gavin McKenna ft. Pat Brisson & Greg Wyshynski

Episode Date: May 7, 2026

Jeff Marek is joined by Greg Wyshynski for another MvsW on The Sheet to break down everything unfolding in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The guys dive into the Carolina Hurricanes and Colorado Avalanche jumping out to 2-0 series leads, the Buffalo Sabres taking Game 1 over the Montreal Canadiens, and the Anaheim Ducks evening their series against the Vegas Golden Knights. Greg also shares his firsthand experience from Tuesday night’s NHL Draft Lottery, offering insight into the buzz around the league. Later, CAA NHL player agent Pat Brisson joins the show to discuss top prospect Gavin McKenna, the fallout from the lottery, and what to expect at the upcoming NHL Draft, while also pulling back the curtain on the evolving landscape of the NHL agent world. Subscribe for more NHL coverage, playoff breakdowns, and insider analysis.#TheSheet #NHL #StanleyCupPlayoffs #Hockey #JeffMarek #GregWyshynski #GavinMcKenna #NHLDraft #HockeyTalkSHOUTOUT TO OUR SPONSORS!!👍🏼 Fan Duel: https://www.fanduel.com/👍🏼 Ninja: https://www.sharkninja.ca/ninja-crispi-pro-6-in-1-countertop-glass-air-fryer-rose-quartz/AS101CRS.html?utm_source=Meta&utm_medium=Paid+Social&utm_campaign=H1NinjaCrispi&utm_content=NinjaEN&dwvar_AS101CRS_color=cdb9b8Reach out to [e-mail] to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!If you liked this, check out:🚨 OTT - Coming in Hot Sens | https://www.youtube.com/c/thewallyandmethotshow🚨 TOR - LeafsNation | https://www.youtube.com/@theleafsnation401🚨 EDM - OilersNation | https://www.youtube.com/@Oilersnationdotcom🚨 VAN - CanucksArmy | https://www.youtube.com/@Canucks_Army🚨 CGY - FlamesNation | https://www.youtube.com/@FNBarnBurner🚨 Daily Faceoff Fantasy & Betting | www.youtube.com/@DFOFantasyandBetting____________________________________________________________________________________________Connect with us on ⬇️Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/daily_faceoff💻 Website: https://www.dailyfaceoff.com🐦 Follow on twitter: https://x.com/DailyFaceoff💻 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dailyfaceoffDaily Faceoff Merch:https://nationgear.ca/collections/daily-faceoffReach out to [e-mail] to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Okay, I am Jeff. He is Greg. This is once again the MvSW edition of the sheet. Let me turn the sound down on my laptop. There we go. Be a professional man for the first time in your life. Welcome to the program for this Thursday, May the 7th. Glad to have you aboard today. Whether you are using your ears, whether you are using your eyeballs or whether you are using both for maximum effect. Here he is, Richard Wischinski from ESPN. We've got a lot to get to today. And I'll go over that in a couple of seconds. We'll talk about Gavin McKenna with his agent, the one and only Pat Brisson of CAA. In the meantime, just a little quickie here before we get to get to. to the show. How was the draft lottery, Greg Wischinsky? Oh, right. We haven't spoken since then. No, we haven't. I got to tell you, I got a little frostbite because obviously when they took the balls out of the freezer that came up for the leaves, the blast of cold air singed my fingers. Balls out of the freezer. Are you having a vasectomy? Sorry, go ahead. And then obviously all my pocket change being sucked out by the magnets inside the balls was also a problem. But look, man, It's funny. I'm with you.

I'm with everybody. It's shocking. It makes you think, how could this not be rigged when you think about what the Leafs experienced 24 hours before the draft lottery? And then they win the draft lottery. And the entire conversation changes. Like, we're not even talking about Steve Simmons anymore. We're creating memes around Matt Sundeen's reaction to winning the draft lottery. Right.

It's as we've talked about, Merrick, not my choice. not your choice, but a fascinating choice that the hockey gods have bestowed upon us. I will say, of course, the draft lottery is not rigged. And I will say also that in the pantheon of things that the NHL does write, making the draft lottery live and adopting the live odds that change on the fly with each ball being selected kind of World Series

poker style, it's really great. It's so cool. I think they made this event so incredible. incredibly cool. I know that people were kind of like, our friend Mike Harrington with the Buffalo News was like, how do you possibly go to a commercial before picking the final ball? Now everybody thinks it's rigged.

Whatever. It's for the drama of it all. And I think it works. The answer after this. The answer in moments. Stay tough. After the break. Yeah.

To show. It's a show, man. They've done a great job. I talked to Gary Bettman about why the ratings are up, by the way. If I'm back, just a pensive to give for a second. He gave me four reasons. And he reiterated this on Pat McAfee's show yesterday. Do you want to guess any of the four reasons why ratings are up in the NHL this year?

I'm going to guess he said playoff format. He did not. He said, are you serious? That would have been, I would be. If I'm the commissioner, I'm crowing about this, all of you, one versus eight, two versus seven people, have a look at the numbers. I know. That's a bad guy. That's why I didn't bring it up because I knew that's not my year to bring it up.

No, I think we were talking about the season as a whole, and he said four things. He said, first of all, I think it started with four nations, and they started to see an increase in interest because of what happened in four nations between the USA and Canada. He said the Olympics did give them a bump, you know, as we see the Americans win gold for the first time and actually get a palpable increase in interest from people. Hang on, Paul. What have I been saying forever? If the USA would have won gold medals,

the NHL would have been at the Olympics so much sooner. And there would be no discussion. But there we go. Okay. So Four Nations fights, Olympics, USA Gold, yep. The quality of overall play in the league, the way that the game is played, the speed with which it's played, the offense that we have, the superstars that we have in the league right now, many of them young.

And you're the thing. One more thing that we've seen a lot of this season. because the speed and the plane making and the pretty passing has always been there. It has a return to violence. Well, he didn't mention that, Merrick. That's right. Hang on. We frame it a different way now.

The rivalries. Yep. Well, I'm glad you said that because the fourth reason why Gary Betman believes that the NHL's ratings have been so strong this season is because of a little program called heated rivalry. He has said that. He is listing that among the four reasons why the NHL has gotten a bump is because of the popularity of heated rivalry on HBO, up in Canada, and bringing an entire new set of fans to the game for the first time.

And it's really fascinated to see the commissioner of the National Hockey League acknowledge a show like that on many levels, but also that he believes that it had a palpable difference in the popularity of the game this season. First of all, good for him. Second, I don't disagree whatsoever, but good for the NHL for acknowledging that. Yeah. And now we have to.

Now the follow up to that is how are we going to help create and foster more of an environment where we as a sport can attract more people from the gay community to watch hockey? What is the, what's the follow up? it's women. I mean, it's women who watched heated rivalry and love the show and then came to watch the boy aquarium. How do we capture them and keep them watching the National Hockey League? I mean, first things first is the commissioners should give up the opportunity to hand out the Stanley Cup and give it to Connor's story in Hudson Williams.

Have them come out with the Stanley Cup. Everyone will cheer and what a moment it will be for the Stanley Cup champion. I've told you before. I've told you my idea, and this is just my stupid thing about hockey lineage. I still think the captain or a representative from the team that won the Stanley Cup previous should be the ones handing it over. I don't disagree with that idea, but that means that they'd have to like travel during the final to the different cities in case one person gets one. This is an obligation of captaincy. They have to put off their trip to, you know,

Bora Bora to try to just like acknowledge the fact that they're no longer champion. There's a lot of things that are in motion here that I don't think you necessarily think about. But hang on, but hang I don't say. Like maybe this is just like the whole pro wrestling of it, but I always look for ways for the NHL to be first to do something, to be first in on an idea. Do you know any other sports that have the loser of the last championship, the winner of the last championship hand over the trophy?

I don't. It's one of the coolest things in sports. And NHL can be in first. I think it's a cool idea. I actually think it's like kind of what people like out of the, the handshake line, but in this case, it's more formal and regimented. I think it's the kind of idea, Merrick, that if they were doing it since 1917, we'd all think it's the greatest thing in the world.

But if you try to institute it now, I'm not sure if it would work logistically or realistically. But the thought is... Flying one person around starting in game four? But doesn't it have to be the captain? And it also has to be somebody who's under contract for this. No, but here's the thing. It might not be the captain because the captain by then may have been traded. It's like, 1961, the Hawks win the Stanley Cup and Ed Litsenberger gets moved.

Okay, let me be more current. Okay, Wayne Gretzky wins the Stanley Cup. Wayne Gretzky gets moved in August. This is also part of the thing I have to ask you about, because your idea demands, I think, a certain level of player to represent the other team. Like, would it have to be Brad Marchand? Would it have to be Sam Bennett? Could it be? No, Bark off.

Evan Rodriguez. Barkoff. No, no, no. It's got to be a bar. Ideally, it's a captain. It has to be a tip-top guy. Right. Yes, 100% it does.

But I'm just saying that when teams have to go through the obligatory process of sending their players out, let's say, to talk to the media on an off day in the Stanley Cup final, it usually isn't Sasha Barkoff. It's usually, you know. That's fine. Also pointed out in the chat, sorry, guys, pointed out in the chat. This wouldn't be the first. The Masters does this with the green jacket, actually. There you go. There you go.

There you go. So that be our green jacket. Golf Scott Hockey Beat. Now, but you also might be able to make a compelling case because the guys respect golf at least. Like if you tell them this is like the masters, you make it a few of them being like, oh, that's pretty dope.

I love the master. All right. Let's start the campaign now. Let's get the, I've been screaming about it for years. You know, just, I might as well just be talking to my dog. I don't know that it's going to go. The key to anything and the key to this is we need to figure out a way. so the NHL feels that it's their idea.

And they came up with it, that it can't come from somewhere else. Come on. You know what the key to this is. The key to this is the mass mutual cup handoff. The sponsorship. The weed whacker cup handoff. That's the key to it, is finding someone to pony up the money to sponsor it. You know what?

You're not wrong. Your cynical is all hell, but you're not wrong. Like, you're not wrong about this at all. Here's us coming up on the program. More with Greg. The Blueprint, powered by Fandle. Download the app today and play your game with Fandle. Coming up on the program, yours truly and Greg Wyshski will talk to Pat Breeson from CAA.

Why are we talking to Pat Breeson? He happens to represent amongst other superstar players, oh, I don't know, Nathan McKinnon, Sidney Crosby, also represents Gavin McKenna, who's kind of been the source of a lot of conversations, specifically around Toronto. We should also get into some agent issues as well with Pat coming up towards the bottom of the hour. And that is your show today. We really hope you enjoy it. And there'll probably be some goofy ideas from yours truly and Greg Wyshinsky along the way as well.

In the meantime, anything else you wanted to add from your day at the lottery? My Day at the Lottery by Greg Wichinsky. Anything else? No, nothing really. I think it's a really cool event. My heart goes out to the people of Vancouver who had to not only see their team not get the first overall pick, but then watch Toronto get the first overall pick. That's a bit of a kick in the, you know what? I'll say this, though, and I'd be curious about to get Pat's opinion on this as well, which is

given the thinness of the UFA market, and given that the salary cap is continuing to rise, it'll be up another, what, like, 8 million this next season, the amount of available players and available assets to get players continues to dwindle. And so I do wonder if all of this leads to draft picks becoming more portable. Like if you're the San Jose Sharks, there's a number of guys that you'd love to probably select at number two. But there's also probably a number of players you'd like to add to your team so Macklin Celebrity can get into the playoffs next year.

And so whether it's trading down a little bit or flipping the pick for, you know, a really good defenseman in his mid-20s, I do wonder if draft picks become a little bit more portable now that there are fewer ways to improve your team otherwise. Or I wonder too if draft picks, and normally we look at the draft and we always say the same thing,

oh, everyone's going to be moving up and moving down and draft picks are flying out the window and then the guys just go and make their picks. I wonder, and I say it every year and here I go again, I wonder if it's going to be different this year in that picks are going to be part of bigger packages because there's more space and there's no one to spend money on.

And you've got to trade your way out of your problems. You're so much more in tune with, like, the junior hockey world than such than I am. That's always been the case. I think we balance each other quite well. You know all this stuff by heart. I learn it in the week leading up to the draft to get angry at, why didn't the devils pick this Latvian at, like, 14? Oh, Albert Smith. He's good.

He's good. Albert Smith's fate of him. What percentage chance do you put on McKenna being drafted number one by the Leafs? I mean, 90. Okay. Because I think it satisfies two things for MLSC. One, they're getting a really good player. And two, like, this is going to be a marketing bonanza for the team, too.

And let's not forget here as well. Like, part of the reason why John Chaco was hired is not just because of his hockey acumen and how well he thinks. He thinks strategically. And his belief is that whichever way he thinks strategically can be applied to anything, most notably, in his case, hockey. But also, he has a strong business background. and part of business here is the business of marketing the Toronto Maple Leafs and Gavin McKenna satisfies both. Like if it's just purely, purely a hockey decision,

you can still make the argument that is Gavin McKenna. You could also talk about Yvars, Stenberg here. You could also talk about one of the many defensemen that are available. And I would still submit you could talk about Caleb Malhotra, even in that number one spot. But everything from what MLS, I just think the player is phenomenal. I think we're looking back at this draft. Holy smokes.

It would take a few years before he's up, though, right? Two. Two. Two. Two. Right now he's committed to BU next season. There's all kinds of crazy rumors about like a handshake deal that he's going to go to Guel and the OHL. I've gone to sources on that one, nothing to it.

Right now committed to BU. But I think ultimately for Caleb Malhotra, he's going to go, it's going to be a decision with him and the team that drafts him. Like what if the Vancouver Canucks? You know, want to stay in the O HL and go play for a question. A discussion between himself and his father, the new coach of Vancouver Knicks. Is that your chance? Dad. But dad, I want to play the NHL.

I know there's a whole Skylar Bremdimore thing of it all, too, with the Carolina Hurricanes, but I don't know that Vancouver wants to do that. Yeah. I have dad coaching kit. But nonetheless, yeah, I think it's like, I think it's like, I think it's like, And again, John Chaker said they haven't even have the scouting meetings yet, but I think it's sort of overwhelming that the Maple Leafs select.

Gavin McKenna, and he lives with John Tavares. You know, another CAA client. So there you go. It's all working out hand to glove. Neelander, Austin, assuming he's going to be there, Matthew Nyes. I did some calling around on Austin, by the way. And it is interesting that I don't think that the,

I don't think the Leafs grabbing the first overall pick has necessarily changed dramatically Matthews' thinking going into next season or going into the off season. Like it is very, I mean, it's like all the stuff that CJ wrote the other day and the athletic is legit. That's all true.

Like he is contemplating. He's doing the same thing that McDavid did last summer, being that they share an agent. And, and, you know, like, there's a whole process he's going through in so far as like, what does the new management intend to do in the short term? What does the new management intend to do in the long term? And keep in mind, again, like you think about Quinn Hughes and where he is right now.

You know, Austin Matthews has two seasons before he goes UFA. And so you can go and chase a cup for two years with a really, really good team, get your own team a bounty of prospects and players to help them out, you know, and not leave them, you know, a barren after you leave. And then go in, you know, two years and be, you know, the highest paid UFA in the history of hockey if you want to be. So I could see why he's taking his time and I don't think anything's guaranteed. And I don't think that Matthews might be the only player contemplating these things heading into the offseason that have stature and some teams that aren't maybe as good as they should be and maybe also share an agent with Austin Matthews.

I'm going to be quiet now and see if you keep talking. No, I'm done. I don't think so. They are going to be quiet and try to let you fill the silence here with something else that perhaps you weren't prepared to say when you started the program today. No, no, fine. A couple of things about last night. Buffalo Sabers, good. Buffalo Sabers, really good.

Anaheim Ducks, they were the better team in game one. They lost. They're the better team in game two. They won. This series should probably be two nothing ducks. Going back to Anaheim. Based on how well they played in the first game, when you look at the underlying numbers, you're right. And, you know, this is.

The scary thing, two scary things for the rest of the league last night. The first scary thing is that the ducks have now put together two good defensive efforts, which I don't think anyone thought that they could possibly do, watching them in the first round and watching them for the entirety of the regular season. I think what Joel Quineville and the coaching staff has finally gotten them to figure out is that you don't have to defend if the puck's not in your zone. And they've done a really good job possessing the puck and pouring on the offense. There were times in that second period before they scored Merrick,

where it looked like they were on the power play. And it was five on five. So I think the ducks have really sort of figured out a little bit of, well, we don't have to be a bunch of Patrice Bergeron's back there if we don't have the puck on our zone. And the other scary thing is that Buffalo scored twice in the power play, which is like that was the major malfunction for this team, right? Heading into this round was being just an unbelievably inept power play in the first series against Boston. And now they're scoring with a man advantage. And that's kind of a scary proposition if you're the Montreal Canadiens. Let me ask you something.

We've always compared since he joined the NHL five minutes ago, Macklin Celebrini to Connor Bedard. Is that the wrong comparison? Should we not be having the, who would you rather have, Connor Bedard or Leo Carlson? So for me, I would probably say Leo Carlson. I mean, I think Leo Carlson, from the moment he came up, I thought he was like mini Malkin, right?

Like he's he's got that kind of game. He's got that kind of force to him, that kind of gravitas to him. I think he's clearly on track to being a huge leader for them too, learning from the veteran players that are on the roster. I think the world of Leo Carlson. So do I. So does everybody. A superstar.

And everyone's seeing it right now. Like every time he was on the ice against the Oilers in that series, he tilted the ice. And here against the Vegas Golden Knights, He's doing the exact same thing. And here's one of the, I suppose, luxuries of playing in a smaller market in Anaheim. You remember what happened when they started Leo Carlson with the Anaheim Ducks. He didn't play every game.

He did load management with him. Yeah. And it's paid off big time. Instead of dropping him into 82 games. I don't know if you'd be able to do that in Montreal, in Toronto, in New York, in Chicago, like some of the massive markets in the NHL, you can get away with it in Anaheim with your second overall draft deck. That served him really well.

And again, it's not like a one-size-fits-all solution for hockey players, but man, did that ever work for Leo Carlson? And look how good this guy is right now. It's insane. Scale of 1 to 10, how much in trouble are the Vegas Golden Knights in the series? One being, they're fine, they're going to win. 10 being, oh my God, holy shit, we're going to lose the ducks. Six, seven.

They've been outplayed. They've been outplayed both games. They've been outplayed both games at home. And unless they're going to get incredible goaltending performances, right now, this is Anaheim's to lose, obviously. Up to a two bagel going back home. So, yeah, six seven. Carter Hart played well in the first two games. I mean, like, I don't think he's been really the issue for them.

Especially first game, that was the reason they won. He was. They talked about it a little bit on TNT last night, but I wanted to bring it up here. It's going on with Thomas Hurdle. Like one of my single favorite people in the league, we'll never say an ill word about Thomas Hurdle.

Nice man. Except for the fact that he has two assist in eight games and he has a minus three, and he's a complete non-factor in a lot of these games. He looks slow. There's been nothing difference making from his game. so far in these playoffs and I think it's a big point of concern if you're the Vegas Golden Knights.

I always assume with Tomash Hurdle when he has these segments in his career that he's fighting an injury because that's the history of Tomash Hurdle. Like that's the story, even when the trade was made, right? And Bob McKenzie on TSN came in with the big mic drop at like 259 Eastern. Boom, Tomash Hurdle to Vegas. Whoa. What a pain in the ass that was. I really thought I was done writing that day.

Oh, man, I got to go out a new lead. I got to start everything again. Yeah. I think everybody's, that was everybody's concern too, right? With Vegas, like, okay, awesome player, fantastic player, highly skilled, never going to be confused with Pavel Burray with his feet or Carter McDavid, but gets around just fine, thank you very much. Is he going to be able to stay healthy?

Yeah. And whenever he goes to these stretches, I always say the same thing. He's probably not healthy. Yeah. I'll say this about the Knights, too. Like, you know, if you watch the third period of that game, there's a lot of scrambling around and swimming around and frantic penalty killing on the part of the ducks

and Dostal got a little lucky sometimes and, you know, that's fine, it's going to happen. You got to get a little lucky to win these games. I think Quenville pointed that out last night, but, you know, it's not as if they went meekly. They just couldn't execute. They just couldn't get the goal they were looking for. And I think John Tortorella said it best last night,

which is that there are some things they have to tweak, but overall you have to be able to make a play when you have the opportunity to, and I think that's where the golden nights really failed last night. Yeah. I really like Josh Stone. Let me swing to that series here. Don't and Benson together.

Don't and Benson together. Benson is just such a miserable hockey player to play against and highly skilled. Like that pass that he made to Don that cross crease. An absolute thing of beauty. And again, like this is like the last love letter that Kevin Adams wrote to the Buffalo Sabres. And whenever I see, whenever I see Josh John, I'm just like, that is such a great. Great trade. Again, nothing away from Petirca and Utah. But man, did that Buffalo Sabres team ever need someone like Josh Donne? Massive, massive deal for the source. Absolutely. And the best news for the Sabres, by the way, in the last couple of games is that Josh Norris hasn't ruined that line. And by that, I mean, that line was really, really good when Noah Ostland was in the middle before his injury. And then, you know, he gets hurt. Norris comes back. And the line's been.

like it's been producing, but the underlying numbers have been about even, maybe they're a little bit below water on expected goals. But I was really concerned that what was really becoming an engine, that was kind of becoming their like Taylor Hall, Jackson, Blake, Logan, Stankoven line when Osslin was between those guys, hasn't been derailed by the injury. And then Josh Norris going back in the middle. Can I ask something stupid or bring up something stupid? You got the right goes for that, buddy.

Okay. So Benson was wearing nine. Norris comes in. Okay? And I can't remember what he gave him, I think he gave him like luggage. The standard has always been the watch, but he gave him luggage to get to get the number. If you're a player, I should probably be asking a player of this, if you're a player like Benson and you've essentially sold a number to Norris, the vet, does there ever come a place where like, let's say like Benson just goes like nuclear next year with the Buffalo Sabres and becomes like a super. superstar.

Can you go back to Norris and say like, hey dude, I want to buy it back. We'd never seen it before. We've never seen it before. First of all, this is very insulting. If you check Hockey DB, you'll see Greg Wysinski played seven games with the 2003 Orlando Solar Bears. Coach by Drake Bear Houski?

Second of all. Is that you? Second of all. Second of all, if someone asked, for my number and then the gift they gave me was luggage. I would think this person is trying to get me off the team. That was my first reaction. Wouldn't it be yours?

Like, what the hell? You might need this in March. Yeah. It's like here. You might want to pack you two bags too. I'd like your number. I'm going to get you some luggage and also a premium subscription to Zillow Plus. Like, what is going on?

that'd be really funny by the way if you try to buy back their number I think both guys would have to have suffered after the number change in order for there to be like a buyback yeah we need some we need some luck here ever happened before no I'm dracking my brain thinking about this

like I don't think it ever has either wild no hurricanes play the Philadelphia Flyers tonight the Flyers chance was the first couple of periods in game two do you think this is and again the analogy that I've been using lately for whatever reason

winding your wristwatch on the way to the electric chair for the flash. I said, I said Cains in five before the series. I'll stick with it. I'm heading down to Philly for that game tonight. So if anybody's around and wants to say, hey, please do. The problem for the flyers right now is that not only are you going up against what's clearly the best team in the Eastern Conference and one that is firing on most cylinders right now,

but you're doing so shorthanded. They're not going to have nookades for the rest of the series. That impacts them in the middle. It impacts. it impacts Mitchcoff because I think that they play pretty well together. And then the other thing it does is the other injury that's really impacted him is Owen Tippett, who at the very least gives you some concern in the offensive zone and to not have him in that lineup has really hurt their chances to break through against the Carolina.

Okay, pause on that conversation. We'll pick up the playoff game tonight, the Carolina Hurricanes and the Philadelphia Flyers coming up in a couple of seconds. In the meantime, we'll shift our attention back to a conversation we had earlier about Gavin McKenna, and who better to talk to about Gavin McKenna? Well, other than Gavin McKenna, there's his agent Pat Brissons from CAA. Pat, first of all, thanks for joining us here today

and taking time out of what is a very busy schedule. Curious about Gavin McKenna. First of all, what types of conversations have you had with Gavin since the lottery? Like, that's a huge day for all the teams and certainly all the players, but your client is a presumptive first overall. I'll pick at this year's draft. What are the nature of the conversation's been like post-Maple Leafs win in the lottery? Well, overall, when you get a player like Gavin, who's, you know, rank number one like this,

it's always an exciting time. There's also other good players in the draft. And so we talked about the possibilities, you know. And then when, you know, obviously the odds with the Leafs were pretty low compared to Vancouver and Chicago. go and so you always talk about the possibilities and all that and what happens. I mean, then you start talking about what also it could be. But, you know, we haven't really dove too deep into it yet, to be honest with you.

Sure. Collectively here. So, but it was a surprise, like even the sharks moving to second, you know. You've had, and we'll think about, you know, players like, I don't know, Sydney Crosby, Nathan McKinnon, like you've had players that have gone first overall and everybody knew they were going first overall. I'm curious, like, how do you prepare a client for something like that? What do you do?

Yeah, well, you know, the opportunity with Sydney, obviously, that was like 20 years ago. Things are different today. The Combine, you know, we'll have many, many more conversations. We're going to have more discussions. There's going to be more of all of that going on between now and June 26, so to speak. So usually we have a pretty good idea. leading up to the draft like a few days before, a week or so before. But honestly, the exception of perhaps, even I remember when John Tvers went first overall,

Garth Snow kept his car is very close to his vest. Yeah, it had meant one second. And we represent Matt D. Sheen as well. And so, I don't if you recall, he had all three of him at his house somehow on a mini tour. Garth is a good poker player. But no, I would say it's a pretty. process right now. And there's going to be a lot of conversations and a lot of possibilities and all that.

So we're equipped for that. We're ready for it and excited at the same time. Can I pick up on that really quick? I'm going to hand us to you, Greg, in a second. Pat, about that John Tavares. One of the things I've always wondered about because you're right, like, Garstnow kept everything really, really close. And every couple of days there was, and you know how, you know, things get out in the media marketplace. It was like, oh, the owner wants headman.

Garstow wants John Tavares. Oh, there's a wild guy. here and, like, when you go through, when you see things like that, like, would you talk to, to John and, and Matt about it and say, like, look, just ignore all this, like, when all these things, because it was, like, so obvious that the Islanders were trying to, like, cloud the whole process and not give away in the cruise. Like, what went through your mind? Well, it was, it was amusing in a sense, not that much fun, to be honest with you, especially

the 20, it was, it was a draft in Montreal, I think the draft was in Montreal. Because Garth the night before, I was kind of chasing. Like, Garth, you got to tell me. You know, I remember because he played a good game. He played a good game. Like, even Owen Power, we knew, we knew, like, 24 hours before. But then we kept it pretty quiet with Kevin Adams, like even with the powers and all that there were rumors that he was going somewhere else to at the end.

But we have to also respect the organization and stay away. from letting the media know, so to speak, if we know, for sure, officially. We have to respect the process. But we also have to work with our clients and making sure that they're prepared for the alternative to, if there's a possibility to. Because the reactions are now so important, too, as you know, even the draft lottery. When it's live, you know, you see reactions. We didn't have that this year.

Yeah. No, we did not have that this year. No, no, no Connor McDavid memes for Gavin McKenna, luckily, at the NHDraft. Pat, when we spoke before the season, we talked about this path that Gavin decided to take going from Canadian Junior to Penn State University, the N.A.L. Money that was involved in all of that too. Now that it's all said and done, now that he's, the draft lottery has been set and all that stuff, how do you feel Gavin's journey at Penn State will have an impact on other players that might be considering that path? Yeah, I do think Again, it's part of the process It was a great experience for him Because he got out of his comfort zone

You know, he could have played another year In the Dub And it would have been his third year Essentially almost his You know, he played at 15 He played a few games So for him to get into a situation Where it was a challenge

It was a new environment It was a trailblazers decisions I do believe, Greg, It's going to have an impact On the decisions in the future for young prospects. And you know what? Every prospect's different.

Some peak at a certain time. Some, you know, we have to evaluate that as well where they're at in their development. And in Gavin's case, so we didn't have to push hard. I think when he made the decision, I know when he made the decision, he was completely convinced it was the right thing to do. Because you've got to work on your habits, too, you know, you don't want to become too complacent too comfortable because the next level is the next level, as we see now.

during the regular season and now the playoffs in the NHL, you have to learn how to do the little things right and to be coachable and all that and go through adversity. So we do, we like what he's gone through this year. He's becoming a better player and a better man for it and a better prospect. Let me, picking up on the process to something, and this is no offense to Godowski here,

whatever at Penn State, but post-world juniors, like we really saw Gavin McKenna take off. How much, how much of a factor in, even though it was only a couple of weeks, how much of a factor was Dale Hunter, Dale Hunter this year for Gavin? Anytime you can have Dale Hunter as a coach when you're going through your development,

it's a good, I mean, the guy's got such a great pedigree. I mean, he's coached all many grades, you know, so I do believe it was a, it was beneficial to see a different approach and to Gavin. I mean, unfortunately, fortunately, fortunately he may go through another five to six coaches in the NHL, who knows how it works, you know? The lifespan of a coach now could be three years, four years becomes like, so, so, you know,

and Dale is hard coach, but at the same time he understands talent and he, I do believe it was extremely beneficial. And we saw in the second half and guys done a great job too, you know, working with that. And again, the process is so important. Going through these things, it's how you go through and what you get out of it. Everything's an experience. It's what you do with it. And we do believe that GAV really benefited from his decisions.

And he did have a much better second half, you know. And so credit to him. And Penn State was, they were fantastic. The coaching staff were great to him and his teammates and all that. It was a fantastic experience. That's awesome. I want to switch gears for a second. So for two straight off seasons, we've seen a superstar player kind of take a wait

and see approach about returning to their team. It was Connor McDavid. Last year, it was Austin. Matthews now. this year apparently trying to wait it out to see what their team does and kind of holding it over their heads a little bit that, hey, I might not want to participate in the timeline that you guys are establishing. How do you feel about this trend, this sort of player empowerment trend? And do you believe that it's going to be a trend where a lot more star players are

exerting that kind of pressure on their teams to improve where I might ask out of here? I don't call it a trend. I call it more of a where the society is in general. I mean, people have, they're not afraid to express their opinions. They're not afraid to make decisions. They're not afraid to hire or fire people. It's just the world we live in now, and it's going to become more and more of that, you know, and you're going to see more short-term deals and guys moving, perhaps. And in the world, like, loyalty. I say, why is you not loyal anymore? Well, you know, we're living in the world, unfortunately, in a sense at times where people are a little bit more, it's about my career, myself. It's just the world we live in. And I, I'm careful when

I say this, this isn't about hockey only. It's just everywhere, like even the four of us, the three of us on this call. So we're going to see that where, hey, I want to see what, from an organization standpoint, where do you have in mind? What's your plan? And what, you know, how am I going to, you know, potentially benefit from signing, you know, an extra two or three years? What's coming?

Am I? Especially, especially the hot assets, the ones that are moving the needles and they have leverage and they should do it. I mean, it's a business, too. At the end of the day, and revenues are increasing. The cap now we've started at 104. It's going to be 114 next year. It might be at 125 the following year.

We're all about the revenues. We're growing the pie. And by virtue of that, two, players have decisions to make because they do have a lot of pressure. There's a lot of pressure on these guys. People don't see a lot of time. I mean, in general, we see the surface, but there's a lot of mental and the physical. We all hear about the broken jaw, the, you know, the bad hip and all that in the playoffs playing through injuries. But also, what about the men?

part. What about the pressure these pressure these players applying on themselves? So they're entitled to make decisions for what's, you know, makes them perform better and mentally and physically. I am curious about sort of what goes into the decision too. Like we've all

talked a lot about the state tax issue in the United States. And we've talked about winning and how much that matters to players. And I thought the like I'll tell you Pat, I thought the opening round was fascinating where you had the highest taxed province. in Canada beat the lowest tax

state in Tampa and I said to myself, what am I going to do with this now? So here's the question. Generally like wide brush, like what means more to players? Putting a little more money in the jeans or state tax or being competitive because we just

have Montreal beat Tampa and I don't know what to do with it. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, Montreal's got a nice young team. But you know, at the end of the day, it's a good point. It's a good point, guys. You know, like it's a, it's a bucket where in, within the buckets, the taxes have something to do with it. It's not the majority of the major decision, but the fit, the well-being and the family

on and off the ice, how the ownership and the team is treating their players? What are the odds of winning and benefiting from having a better career if I'm here, here, or there? But at the end of the day, it doesn't come down to solely the taxes. But if it's on the line, when a player has a chance to live in the Sunbelt, and, you know, whether it's Texas, you know, Nevada or perhaps, you know, Florida, I mean, there's some advantages to that. But also all these teams we just mentioned, they have great teams and really good organizations.

They've been proven teams. So, you know, winning attracts. You know, in the San Jose Sharks and the Anaheim Ducks right now, they're young teams in a state of California. They're going to be attracting talent. And I don't see that talent's going to be leaving quick unless, you know, they start, you don't do things right. So the organization has a lot to do with it as well. You mentioned Sunbelt. That's how it will pay some state taxes in California, baby.

I tell them we'll face up state taxes. They will. We have more son, but we're paying taxes. The thing that I wonder about, too, and Pat, you can speak with some authority on this because I know how much health and recovery is important to you as an individual. When you're a player, like when you play in Florida or you play in Dallas, like living and playing in the sun and you walk out the front door

and it's a shot of vitamin D and your body feels good. Yeah, you just touch a cord. Like that's like how much of advantage right there, Pat, for players. Yeah, you mentioned well-being and the recovery and, you know, biohacking, so to speak. I mean, we also live in the world right now. Longevity is important. It does.

You know, you walk bare feet in January outside to ground, do more grounding and there's some sunlight in your eyes and get more vitamin. these it does impact the the the morale it does impact the the the mitochondria and the recovery all of the above the sleep and all of that for sure yeah you know can't avoid that out that's why red light therapy there hang on hang on let pack go on red light therapy here i was going to say red therapy is a good no red light therapy is a good good thing and in canada probably they should be selling a lot more of these units i agree i agree there you go might it might also been the first reference to the powerhouse of the cell we've ever had here on the podcast,

Matt. That was a very impressive pull there, Pat Brousan. I wanted to ask you about one of your clients currently thriving in the playoffs, Quinn Hughes. First off, where's the wind blow it on Quinn potentially extending with the Minnesota Wild? It's been the status quo, honestly, from the day that he got traded there, was very clear with everyone, including Quinn, was very clear with me that this is a discussion and a topic that we'll cross, you know, we'll cross, you know, at the end of the season, so it speaks.

So right now he's fully concentrated and trying to, you know, win the cup and getting back in the series, but we haven't had any conversations about it. As a follow-up, there's been some spec, you mentioned short-term contracts before, and there's been some speculation that, you know, if anyone who can go on puckpedia knows, if Quinn takes three in Minnesota, that would bring up right up to 2030 when his brother, Jack, is a free agent for the New Jersey Devils. ever had a discussion with Quinn and Jack about the possibility of both hitting the market at the same time? You know, between brothers, there's always so many conversations. What about this?

What about that? And, you know, but we haven't really yet any specific about this one, perhaps. I mean, those are things that are, you know, those are possibilities. I'm not going to deny the fact, but when you have three brothers getting together during the summertime or the end of the offseason, rarely during the off season, we have a lot of funny conversations about a lot of funny stuff. is very unique. And all three of them are, you know, studs, you know, as we all know. It's rare that we see that combination. They're moving the needle, all of them.

So it's, yeah. So it'll be a great, you know, fascinating summer. Looking forward to all the, what we have coming up here in the next two months. Okay. Last one, because I know you have a meeting to get to and we appreciate your time and want to be respectful of it. I think a lot of people have always been curious, bat. Um, about you specifically, you know, like the idea of, of agents working in management for

teams, listen, Ken's done a wonderful job with the, with the Montreal Canadians. That's the, the obvious example right now. Um, has that ever been a temptation or an interest for you? I'm pretty sure that teams have been interested and, you know, uh, having to look at, you know, maybe Pat Brisson fits here. Would that ever be of interest to you? Or quite bluntly, could you, could you even afford the pay cut? considering all your superstar clients you have.

Well, you know, I see general managers and team presidents of hockey ops are getting good money right now, too. I mean, everything's going on the rise from a financial standpoint. But like a player, like all of us, we have to always look at our options. We have to evaluate ourselves. We have to see what makes us stick and what's important to us. And if you don't have any options in life, I wouldn't say you're in trouble, but it's not the kind of life I want to live. First of all, I'd like to have options. I like to, so what I mean by that, I'd like to re-evaluate,

readap myself, reinvent myself. And we've done that with the agency the past 35 years. We've been able to readapt ourselves and always get, you know, separate ourselves in many categories. And so I'm always intrigued to what's best and continue to grow, you know, our career, my career, my family's career, so to speak. And so, but as far as I've had opportunities, I've had discussions that, you know, I was listening to.

And perhaps I want to grow as a person too. and I want to understand. But again, I'm so fascinated about the growth of our business and what we've done, what we continue to do. I mean, if Gavin goes first, obviously, it's an exciting time. And it's going to be a 10th first overall pick the last 20 years. As an agency, it's very exciting. And for us, what we've done with our group and continue to grow.

And it never gets any better. I tell people you never arrive, you know, you keep pushing yourself. and I think I'm working harder now and I did 15 years ago. And you always take time for us. With the cap going up in your agent fee, you'll be able to buy an expansion team within the next five years, Pat.

You'll be fine. You can just run a team. What do you want? What do you want? What do you want? What do you want, Pat? You know, Greg, you know, the TV buys the values of the franchise in sports.

It's gone. I mean, we could have bought it. You know, the Pittsburgh Penguins were for sale that 99 went in the 05 for what, $110 million, and now they just went for $1.7, or they're going for $1.7, and so it's only going to go.

So Blinkin'I is going to be the values of these hockey franchise will between $3 to $5 million within five years. Absolutely. Always appreciate you popping by. Pat, thanks so much for this. Enjoy the rest of your day. There is. Pat Brissom from CA.

Thanks, Pat. I think we've always wondered whether Pat would ever take that jump to go teams. I know teams have been interesting. did before. Oh, yeah. I mean, go. No, I was going to say, don't you think that he was probably first choice in Montreal

before they went down to Kent Hughes Road? I always assumed that. I always assume that, but don't know. But again, that's just, that's just assumption like, okay, I can see Pat Prey Song going there. Wouldn't you love to see Pat take over the L.A. Kings? Doesn't that make the most sense? He's such a, give them the Kings.

He's such an L.A. guy. He's such an L.A. guy. LA guy. He's got like the great look. He's super smart. Like he knows the industry inside and out. I don't know. The two questions I wanted to ask him that we didn't get time for. One was I'm dying to know what offers are coming Jack Hughes's way after the gold medal thing. Like, you know, movie roles. Like what what's coming Jack Hughes's way now that he is like the most famous American hockey player in the country? And the other thing is too, like, Sid made the playoffs.

After all that, Sid made the playoffs. And one assumes that that means that the fires are out regarding like him moving on from the penguins. He made the playoffs. One assumes that he'll flex and Gino will be back on some sort of, you know, reduced contract. And maybe that whole situation has resolved itself thanks primarily to Dan Mews, but maybe also Kyle Dubas.

Interesting times, hey? Interesting. I thought the, again, like, I really don't know from a player's point of view. And I think the past point, like, everybody's a little bit different. Like, I don't, like, one story that I don't think has been given enough concert here is Montreal beat Tampa. High tax beat low tax. No tax. Yeah.

High tax beat no tax. That's not supposed to happen here. I'm, to be honest with you. I'm kind of surprised that the NHL hasn't, and Gary Betman hasn't sort of crowed about that one. Although it is now another bullet in the chamber for the NHL whenever, anyone brings up state tax. Well, they're too busy talking about the playoff format working.

So what do we got? Vegas, is Vegas the only team that's left from a, from a no-tax state? I think that's right, right? Dallas is out, Panthers are out, Nashville never made it.

Yeah. Seattle, Seattle, yeah. Seattle's not going to be a no-tax state anymore. Oh, that's right. That's right. So there you go. Vegas is the last.

last tax benefit team standing, as it were. I wanted to mention the Norris Trophy voting. I saw that. I was really surprised that Dahlene made the cut. I got in. I got in. Why? Why are you surprised?

I'll tell you why. The Bachelors were the biggest story in the NHL and he was right front and center. We have done the NHL Awards Watch every month. We poll and canvas dozens of voters for what their current ballots were. Werenski was a lock. and I think he'll probably win. McCar was a lock because he had been on that in the top two, the entire season, basically.

The last one we did, it was Evan Bouchard that got the third spot as the finalist. He got the most support. And then behind him was Quinn Hughes. With the second most support of the ones behind Werenstki and McCar. So when I saw Dahlene, first of all, pat to myself on the back, because one of my bold predictions before the season,

Jeff Merrick, was that Rasmus Dahlene would, would be a Norris finalist. That's you and me both. I'm on record, too, on Daily Faceoff.com. I had Razdalen. And I was surprised he got in. I'm dying to see what the ballots look like. No, you know what?

It wasn't that he got a bunch of first place votes, but he got a lot of maybe like seconds and thirds. He's everybody's second favorite defenseman. And because like, if you're Kail McCar, if a Kail McCar person, like, okay, yeah, Kale McCar, but man, I want to give something to Rasmus Delian in the Buffalo Savers, he becomes number. I can see that.

He is everybody's favorite. favorite number two. It hasn't gotten up to that. I'm curious to see where the balloting is and how many second place votes, because I'm with you 100%. He's everybody's second favorite player, a defenseman. But I mean, again, I'm not trying to say that he wasn't deserving. I mean, like he had an amazing great season,

both ends of the ice, driving the bus to get them to end the playoff drought. And also really came to the forefront, I think, as a agitating physical defenseman more so than maybe in years past. I think that reputation was sort of forged, especially in those battles against the lightning. Hang on. Brad Marchand ripped his helmet apart in the penalty box on that Saturday. It was a Saturday afternoon? On a Saturday afternoon.

Like, just like, if you can get under Brad Marchand's skin that much, Brad Marchand skin that much. That's a statement. That's a real statement. So congrats. We knew he was going to be a Masterserton finalist after all that tragedy that was going on with his fiancee. and they're you know all that and and and to get him a norris nomination is really cool i don't think he'll probably win but i'm i'm really happy he got it yeah absolutely um anything before we punt anything from you and then we leave out in the ethers

nothing really we i mean we tied colorado's a wagon um obviously minnesota's in a spot of trouble there especially with yeah i actually i don't know if we talked about it like i think john hines really screwed up not getting philip gustus in some time in game one i really do Like, guy hasn't played since, like, like, maybe April 13th or 12th or something like that. We were all wondering. We were, we're, we're, action. All wondering.

Is against the Colorado avalanche? When, come on. I, I, I, I, I don't disagree.

I don't disagree. I think we were all wondering that when it was happening. Like, okay, you want to maybe get the other guy a little bit of something here. Give him a taste. Get his feet wet. And you throw him into the fire like that.

Um, yeah, they, they look, they look so good right now. It's, you know what, Colorado is doing whatever they want in the neutral zone, whatever they want.

And Nathan McKellen, Nathan McKinnon is doing to Americans what David Bacchus once did to Canadians. Just one by one. You remember that when Bacchus was mowing through Canadian Olympians? I just I just hope that every time he goes to like hit Queen Hughes, the image of the little stuffed animal flashes in his mind. It's like his anger totem. It's like this thing that was handed to him that he'll never forget. And it just has come to represent all the bile and vitriol flowing through his veins as he takes home with silver medal in the Olympics.

I wonder if he puts it in his locker, just as a reminder. Like Joe Boo and Major League. Yeah. I remember like before Salt Lake, Salt Lake, Salt Lake Games, at the World Championships, it's when USA beat Canada on the women's side. Cassie said, and she's never told me who the player was. One day I'm going to get it out of her, but she's never told me who the American player was. In Handshake Alley, one American player said to Cassie,

bitches never win. And she said she wrote that down and she put it in her locker every single game she played. Wow. So I'm wondering if Nathan McKinnon has that little stuffy that he carries around with him, just as the reminder, just to get like the hockey hate going again.

Speaking of the Olympics, by the way, Jim L. St. Nico Ranton had, I guess, what was it, MCL in the Olympics. I mean, this is the thing they're all worried about when they commit to it is something like this happening. And he wasn't the same player in the playoffs this year. But that's big thing.

By the way, it's always fun here. That's baked into the pie. That's baked into the pie. Yeah, sure, sure. It's always fun, by the way, I don't know if you get to see it in Canada, but here in the U.S., on television, there's a series of commercials that are shot well before the playoffs that you could tell the marketing firms are all like,

yeah, these are teams that are in a thorough while, so I feel good about one involves the Florida Panthers and one involves the Dallas Stars. Yeah, I know, tough one. Yeah, tough one. I guess, no, I don't. I can see a firm that may not know the NHL, just looking at last year's Stanley Cup champion two times.

And going like, yeah, Panthers, go, everyone. No. Some Don Draper like walking into a room being like, one word, gentlemen, three Pete. All right. Well, I'm going to Philly tonight. It should be. I still think you're going to get one in Philly. Maybe gentlemen sweep, some such.

but I mean, I hope so. I think Carolina wins this. I think Carolina sweeps this thing, but I hope that Philly makes it interesting. As someone that just enjoys hockey and likes a lot of players and people in that organization, I hope they win at least one here. Carolina looks tremendous.

I think Carolina versus either Montreal or Buffalo is a great conference final. Just a really fun conference final. Yep. Don't disagree. I look forward to. But not counting out the flyers yet, ladies and gentlemen. Dan Vlodar will find a way. your fifth vote for heart where did you have my fifth my fifth place heart trophy yes

Dan Vlodar Dan Vlodar will find a way I'm with you on that one all right uh do you have any rituals for uh going to games in philly by the way oh as far as no no most of my road rituals to the shock of no one involve food um I've not gotten a chance to get so real quick a lot of people believe that the cheese steak is the quintessential sandwich in Philadelphia. Stereotype. This isn't true at all. This isn't true at all. What is quintessential sandwich in Philadelphia is the roast pork sandwich with broccoli rob and sharp provolone cheese. You can get it at the Knicks inside a terminal market. But I've also heard the Tony Luke sells one as well. So don't, the cheese steak is just like, it's a cliche. You don't have to get a cheese steak in Philadelphia. Get the roast pork

with broccoli rob and sharp provolone. That is the actual quintessential. Philadelphia sandwich. I'd love to get one, maybe Saturday before game four. I don't know I'm going to have time today, but that's my, I'd get that before a game. Hmm.

Do you ever go to ECW in Philadelphia? I did not. Oh, dude, it was the best. I did not. I know, I wish I could have. It was incredible. It really was. I would have wanted to see that.

I would have wanted, and I would have wanted to go into a Lucha Underground tape at the other things that I wish I could have gone to as well. Yes. Yes. I know. Ifson Butts, Ifson butts, if some butts. Did I mention Danhausen

was on the ESPN campus today and I wasn't there? The sensation. Are you serious? The Cerey W.E. Censation, Danhausen. Yeah. He was apparently working at the Starbucks inside of the ESPN campus cafeteria.

And I was just like, of all the day. I was just there yesterday to do a tipping of the drop and I didn't get to see Danhausen. He wasn't there at Lottery Day to curse the Vancouver Canucks. Once again, this has Danhausen written all over it. It does have Danhauser written all over it.

He's the new Etsy witch. You can hire Danhausen to curse your team. That's exactly right. It's awesome. I'd love to meet that guy. Love to. I'd, I had a DM relationship with him for a little bit on Twitter. Because when he was coming up through the Indies, I said, look, I don't know if you know anything

about hockey or even give it. shit about hockey, but I would love to do something with you. And he came back and he pitched something about like, you know, cursing a hockey team, like, as you just mentioned. Vancouver. He's already done. He didn't really go anywhere. I knew it. I knew it. He's cursed Vancouver. It didn't really go anywhere, but like he was a delight. And if you don't know who we're talking about, he's like a face painted comedy wrestler. And he's just delightful and really funny. And he does his voice that's inspired by Conan O'Brien. He's awesome. And he's a guy that like came up with a gimmick, trademarked it, paid his dues and now he's, you know,

he was in the ring at WrestleMania with John Sina for God's sakes. So. And now he's on the campus at ESPN today and I am not there. Alas. But you get to be with me? You know what? There are consolation prizes in life, Jeff Merrick.

Danhausen go on a pod with Merrick. You know. Okay. There you go. We all make choices. All right. Enjoy the rest of your afternoon. There you go, Greg House.

Take care, everybody. Thanks for watching. There is. Greg Wischinsky from ESP. and ESPN. And ESPN. Not app. Missed out on Danhausen.

How about that to do that? And I guess you didn't know. But, um, oh, nice Bulldogs had, by the way. Yep. Bulldogs out. Kitchener beats Barry last night, by the way. Game one. Yes.

I know. I just, uh, want to wear the Bulldogs hat to shout out the brand for Bulldogs. Amazing season. Nice hat. So I wanted to wear a program. Get some representation. Absolutely. And that is, I know everyone's expecting them to like stink next year.

I can't see Spencer Hyman not going like above and beyond to try to restock this thing. We shall see what the bulldogs have up their sleeves. Anything from that conversation with Pat of particular interest to you or anything from Greg or talk about Danhausen? I don't know. It's up to you. I thought it was kind of funny how he answered the Hughes Brothers stuff that Greg posed at him. And the Minnesota thing is obviously, you pretty much want to do that. A lot of conversations.

Translation. I'm not going to like pick them apart for it, but I did think it was funny. I was listening to it in real time, I'm like, okay, all right. You know, other brothers, they hang out. Could this happen? Could that happen? You know, things with players all the time. Who's to say?

Pat, I knew you were an agent for hockey players. I didn't know you could stick handle as well. Oh, nice toe drag there, Pat. Good job. Okay, yeah, go ahead. I just wanted to ask you, like, what is it with agents, former agents, if that's what you want to call them transitioning into GM roles? What is the fascination behind it?

I'm not trying to put this question positively or negatively on agents transitioning into that role, but what is it from an organizational person? perspective, what is it from their backgrounds that's so intriguing for people for them to fit into that role? Because there is a lot of crossover, but there's a lot that doesn't necessarily translate one to one. When you're an agent, you have to have a full 360 view of the entire industry. From a player's point of view, you need to understand the financial landscape under the CBA. You have to take the CBA to the beach every year. You have to know the ins and the outs and you have to know the internal workings.

of every single NHL team. Agents understand all of it. Not to disrespect anybody else in the industry, but generally agents understand the full kaleidoscope of what, including media too, right? Like they work with general managers. They work with players. They work with media.

Like they understand the industry on so many different levels that it's actually probably more surprising that more agents haven't gone the GM route. Like I think of like Mike Gillis did. Brian Burke was an agent once upon a time too. When he first started, Kent Hughes, of course, the obvious one. Mike Barnett, like there have been plenty that have done it.

I'm actually surprised that more don't. And I think part of it too is, I think secretly everybody wants to be a GM. This has always been my belief. I don't think everybody always has always fantasized about coaching. certainly playing, but when playing is no longer an option, I think always in the back of everybody's mind, man, I wish I could, I wish I could put together a team. I wish I could like, I wish I could have that experience and that level of, what's the best way to phrase it, that level of competition

in my life. Right. Because when you're an agent, you're competing to get your clients the most compensation you can. But it's not like you're, I mean, you are competing for money, but you're not competing for like a championship. And I still think these guys like that juice. I still think they like that flame. And I really, really think that that's attractive. Because these people generally are all alphas, right? Like they're wired to compete.

And I think secretly, and this isn't just true of agents, I think everybody wants to be a GM. Like if I could say tomorrow, like, you know what? The Maple Leafs have reconsidered their new general manager, Zach Phillips. Oh, you're speaking my language. Oh, that's right. I read that wrong. It's Nick Alberger. Sorry, I apologize.

Nick Alberger running that. Be careful. Be careful. I still waiting on my call from Vancouver, so we don't want to, you know. Right, of course. Yes. You don't eliminate any options, yes. Forgot about that.

For God about that. Okay, really quickly, Zach's Parley coming up in a couple of seconds. after these brief messages from our friends at Airbnb. Feeling at home when you're on the road. For me, that's the way to travel. You know, Zach and I have been doing a lot of travel lately, mainly to Western Canada for hockey games and interviews.

Penticton and Colonna were gorgeous. If you've never been to the Okanagan, do yourself a favor, no matter what time of year. Highlights from the Okanagan for you, Zach. It was my first time out there, and I can't wait to get back. it was amazing trying to go in the summer and see some of the national parks and those kinds of things. You know, if you're heading out there, I've had great experiences staying in local and unique places on Airbnb.

You know, you can really find something that fits what you need. And, Zach, because we do our shows and podcasts on the road a lot, we need a lot of space for our equipment. We can't be cramped. And we need to feel comfortable. Plus, it's always nice to find a place with cool amenities like, I don't know, a pool. table, outdoor space, or, I know you love this, a hot tub. It's also always nice to feel like you're going home as opposed to just going back to your room. Yeah, I think we all know that feeling.

You know, I remember thinking this while we were at that cottage we booked on Airbnb last summer. While we're out on work trips like that, our place back home is just sitting there. So hosting our place on Airbnb could be a way to make use of that space on our own schedule. and maybe have a little extra coming in while we're gone. In Zach's case, maybe that means a few more additions to his junior hockey hat collection. What do you have now, Zach? I'm stocked up now.

Kitchener, Brantford, Colonna, St. John. I'm hoping this isn't the end of it, and I've got a lot more coming. We all need passions, folks. We all need passions. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at Airbnb.com. slash host.

And you've got Everett coming. That's what I'm waiting for. I got one more. It's a beautiful green one. I facetimed you from the gift shop. Me and Zoran were there, the C.O of the Everett Silver Tips. Which one do you want?

You settled on a gorgeous green, old school silver tips ad. You paned over to that green one? Oh yeah, I'm never going to get this now. Day late, dollars short is going on. And I was like, that's the one. You know, right now, I consider myself fostering that hat right now, and I may just adopt it. I may just adopt.

I don't know. You better, you better and get it quick because this is going to be one of like fosters that just ends up staying with the family. That might be me here. Okay. Might just happen. I'll work on it. One game. One game tonight, eight o'clock Eastern.

It is the Carolina Hurricanes facing off against the Philadelphia Flyers. Very much looking forward to this one. And looking forward to getting a little bit wealthier, courtesy of our friends, Zach. Phillips. The sheet is powered by Fanduel. Play your game with Fanduel. It's the NHL season, and Fandul is your home for all the action on the ice. From Blue Line to Betslip. We've got you covered all season with unique promos, live offerings and more features to let you play your game.

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Make them rich. Let's try. I'm now three, two, two and a half months into my new apartment here. And as you can kind of see, I've moved forward away from the wall. I got some decorations behind me. I really started to settle into this place. But the one thing that I've taken a little while to get used to is, there's a lot of dogs and people that have dogs living on this floor that I'm on.

So the one thing I've realized over the last like couple weeks, it's really become more prominent when I leave to go to after Oster in the morning is I have to tiptoe down the hall because if I march, the dogs get real barky. Okay, so Denver Barkie, Taylor Hall, Porter Marr as in March. Okay. I'd tell you that. I had to stretch that one. I was trying to pull something in.

Creative license, we call that in the industry. It's taking creative license. Taylor Hall, Porter Martone, and Denver Barkie. $5 wins $626. And 37 cents. That makes noise in your jeans. Very good, Zat. Well done.

Thank you. Thank you. The other ones worked pretty well, the Hall and the Barkey. Yeah, Hall and Barque is a little bit of a tap. coffee poll there, but that's okay. We'll go along with it and we'll look the other way on that. We're in creative license for the artist, creative license for the artist. Okay, that's it for us here today.

Who do we have on the show tomorrow? Is Dave stopping by? Do we have pegs? Dave will be here, yes. Okay. We'll be here. And then you've got to work on someone else to come on as well, but Dave will be here. Maybe this guy over here, behind me over there, maybe that guy.

We're flying at all. Because rates are good. coming up on the show tomorrow the chimp yeah people in the chat right now are like there's two of them on the screen right now hey chat jerks

I love you jerks jerks thanks for joining us here today thanks to Greg Wischinski for stopping by as he does each Tuesday and Thursday for MBSW Redux and thanks to Pat Briseon from CAA for stopping by to talk to us about Gavin McKenna amongst other things so thanks to Pat

for making himself available. Thanks to you for watching. Thanks to you for listening. Thanks to everybody roasting us in the chat. Did I mention jerks? We love you. You're all beautiful. Thanks so much for being part of this.

And if you haven't subscribed already to our daily faceoff YouTube channel, please consider doing so. If you haven't subscribed to the podcast on your favorite podcatcher, please consider doing so as well. The show returns tomorrow. One o'clock Eastern right here

on our daily faceoff YouTube channel and wherever you get your podcast. Enjoy the Carolina Hurricanes and the Philadelphia Flyers game tonight. We'll talk to you tomorrow.