The Sheet with Jeff Marek - PICKS 11-21: The Sheet Draft Special with Jeff Marek and Pierre McGuire

Episode Date: June 29, 2025

Round 1, Picks 11-21: Join Jeff Marek and Pierre McGuire for a special 2025 NHL Draft Watch Along as they guide you through one of the biggest nights on the hockey calendar. Broadcasting live throughout the entire first round, Jeff and Pierre react in real-time to every pick, trade, and surprise development, while also breaking down what it all means for each team’s future. They’re joined by a rotating cast of special guests from the player's current and previous teams.#NHLDraft2025 #NHL #DraftNight #HockeyTalk #JeffMarek #PierreMcGuire #NHLProspects #NHLTrades #HockeyAnalysis #DraftWatchAlong #NHLFutureStars #HockeyCommunity #LiveDraftCoverage #HockeyNews #NHL2025Shout out to our sponsors!👍🏼 Fan Duel: https://www.fanduel.com/👍🏼Ninja Kitchen Canada: https://www.ninjakitchen.ca/products/ninja-crispi-4-in-1-portable-glass-air-fryer-cooking-system-zidFN101CGY?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=olv&utm_campaign=25Q2-Crispi&utm_content=en👍🏼Budweiser: https://www.budweiser.ca/ca_enReach 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/@Flames_Nation🚨 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-faceoff Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of The Sheet is sponsored by the OCS Summer Pre-Roll Sale. Sometimes when you roll your own joint, things can turn out a little differently than what you expected. Maybe it's a little too loose, maybe it's a little too flimsy. There's a million ways to roll a joint wrong, but there's one roll that's always perfect. The Pre-Roll. Shop the Summer Pre-Roll and Infused Pre--roll sale today at ocs.ca and participating retailers. Pittsburgh Penguins are on the clock now. They've got two picks coming up 11 and 12. I wonder if Koshani. You're surprised they still have them? Are you surprised they still have them? I am. I thought that they would jump a little bit higher to be honest with you and not just because he's S say Marie Greyhounds But I thought that they'd be all over Brady Martin and if not Porter Marton because his dad was born in Sault Ste. Marie

But no, so we agree. No, yeah I'm surprised they still have the picks. 100% Everyone talks the game before the draft and then everyone just keeps their picks and makes their picks like that's that's the reality of it here So I do wonder if you know within Braden Yeager's turn into Red Coat McGroody, that was their first round pick in 2023, Owen Pickering. Like it hasn't been, they've had a tough time replenishing the, the, the prospect shelves here. Uh, now they've got two picks to do it.

I'm going to guess, and I don't think I'm going out on much of a limb here that Kashawn Aitchison is going to be one of these players. Big hard hitting defensemen with the Barry Colts. I'm not sure what they're going to do with their other one, but I can really see them taking Kashawn Aitchison of Barry. Do you think they take Aitchison ahead of Cameron Reed? I do. You know what?

Because Aitchison, here's why I like Cameron Reed, Kitchener Rangers defenseman. I like Cameron Reed, Kitchener Rangers defensive. I like Cameron Reed because he is some, Cameron Reed is someone that is not gonna jump out of his skates at you, but he's gonna be smooth, steady, reliable for 10 years. And maybe longer with your organization. With Kishon Aitchison, he brings that wow factor, and he does have some offense as well from the

point but Kishan Aitchison brings that hard hitting in your face and let's face it, the metropolitan division's tough. Like if you look at any division in the NHL that's loaded up and you can look at like you know the gunslingers they've loaded up with too but also that's a really physical, that's a really really physical division right and now because you're saying that because you're saying that what about with their second pick do they stay in the Ontario Hockey League and do they take Jack Nesbitt because of that nastiness you're talking about yes 100% I can see them and it's funny too because we tend to think of Kyle Dubas and we'll see which way they go here we

tend to think of Kyle Dubas and it's just about foot speed, foot speed, foot speed. And when he was the manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, you know, he would say to his staff, if the kid can't skate, put them on the do not draft. I think the Florida Panthers have shown that you don't need to outskate someone to win a Stanley Cup. And I do wonder if the Pittsburgh Penguins here evolve for Nespit, who's the big center for the Windsor Spitfires and the hard-hitting defenseman and Kishan Aitchison. Kishan, next to positive is going to go here. I got to think it's going to be Ontario Hockey League driven too.

I just have to believe that. Their intimate knowledge is all about the Ontario Hockey League and they're really good on it. They got, yeah, they got, they got sources all over the league. So I have to think that. Um, getting back to the, the team that just selected Roger McQueen a couple of seconds ago, if we could put a sort of, uh, uh, a ribbon around the conversation.

Anaheim's close man. Like Anaheim's got key players at key positions. Lucas Dostyle has taken the net from John Gibson. Jackson Lacombe, I don't know about you, Pierre, but every time I watched Anaheim last year, I said to myself, this guy's going to be a star. Like in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these of course, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these,

in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these,

in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, in these, him. And he's already played some games in the NHL. No, you're absolutely right. It's a great point. To me, the biggest thing about Anaheim is they're big, they're getting bigger, they're going to be really well coached. And I think their owner wants to make a splash. He sees what San Jose is doing. He knows where LA is. And he sees where Vegas is. And now he sees what Utah is doing. I think Dr. Sam Welley and Anaheim wants to make a big splash.

Okay, let's get to our next guest, Marty Murray of the Brandon Wheat Kings here to talk about Roger McQueen who goes 10th overall to the Anaheim Ducks. Marty, thanks so much for joining us here today, me and Pierre. Much appreciated. What should, outside of the size and the skill and all that, we've talked about the injury this year. What should we know about what Anaheim or who Anaheim just got? Well thanks for having me on guys. Yeah Rogers an exceptional person obviously we know is what he is a hockey player but he's a type of kid that just loves coming to the rink every day and getting better

and being around his teammates and you know that's what it's all about it's having fun working on your game. And Roger's a guy that, uh, you know, he loves coming to the rink and a guy you have to kick off the ice almost every day. Here, Marty, how hard was this year for him because of the injuries? Yeah, it was a tough year, pure. Obviously everybody knows the circumstances around it. And, you know, the kid wanted to play, obviously a big year, uh, being their drop here, uh, you know, and it really, it the kid wanted to play obviously a big year, be in their draft

year. And it really hurt him to not be in the lineup and be around his teammates and helping us on the ice. So it was a tough year. In saying that, I think he handled it exceptionally well. I thought he showed extreme leadership throughout the process and grew as a person. And he helped our young kids along, and you know, going through the trenches, going through the first year of junior hockey,

I thought he's a real asset today as well. You know, for Anaheim Ducks fans that are either watching this right now or listening to this on podcast, what should they know about Roger McQueen? Because they'll look at him on stage and they'll say, wow, we just got a big center. What else should they know about him?

Well, these, yeah, I think he could potentially be one of the seals in the draft here. I think obviously he's going to get a little shy with his injury history. But in saying that, I think he has the ability to be a really good NHL'er at some point. What really amazes me is how quick his hands are for a big guy. How quick he can get the puck from one side of his body to the other and get use of it to an advantage. To me, I'm astonished to be watching him practice. I think he's a real hard competitor. I think he developed kind of an edge to his game here over the last year.

I think he has the ability to be a real good NHLer and fit in well with the young, and I'm forward to having him in-house. P.A., really quickly, the Pittsburgh Penguins have just drafted. Someone that you would know quite well, Marty, Benjamin Kindle of the Calgary Hitman. Just went to the Pittsburgh Penguins at 11. P.A.? Well, Marty kind of touched on it with Roger.

I was curious, Roger, because I've seen so much of him on tape. Are the hand skills as good as what they appear? Definitely appear. Again, just watching him handle the puck and practice and his release. We've been talking about him having an NHL release as soon as he arrived in Brandon, a 16 year old, and he can rip the puck. And I think he's also established in playmaking ability where now he freezes the opponent, he freezes the

goalkeeper and he can thread the needle with the pass too. So he's got a dual threat offensively and you know I'm real excited for him and the Ducks and the Rodgers family and then he can organize games here today. Let's close with you on this one Marty, we'll let you get on with your evening. What should we know about the family? We've talked plenty about the player. A day like this, a lot of it is about the family and the support staff and sitting on

the shoulders of those that came before. What should we know about the McQueen family? Yeah, great people. Prairie type people that, you know, support their sons throughout the, you know, like Pierre touched on, the difficult season for Roger and they're, you know, incredibly supportive to Roger and us and whatever we needed to do. So real happy for the whole team family.

It's a huge day. I think he's got a large contingent of family here. So it's great for everybody to share this day together. That's awesome. Listen, Marty, this is so cool to see it. No, I was just going to say it's so great to talk to Marty again. Really nice to see you, Marty. Absolutely, Pierre. Good seeing you too. All right. You'll be well. Marty, thanks so much for hopping on. Thanks for having me on, guys. Take care. There he is. So Roger McQueen goes to the Anaheim Ducks. Benjamin Kinlo just gets drafted by the the Pittsburgh Penguins

We'll stand by for Paul McFarland who's a head coach of the of the Calgary Hitman They get a really skilled player here in Kindle from the Hitman So we were talking about how big and hard and nasty Nice player though is the Metro and then Benjamin Kindle goes to Pittsburgh. We don't know what we're doing. Nice player though. Oh, I was just gonna say that talent level's excessive. There's no question about that.

So my biggest thing on him is when you watch Benjamin Kindle play and you're so good at this stuff, I think Marco Rossi, what do you think? Ooh, the thing about, the thing that I've always and I'm not saying that that Kindle doesn't work as hard as Rossi. But to me, the calling card of Marco Rossi is just that that motor. And that goes back to the days when he played with the Ottawa 67. And he just he just had a work ethic,

and actually a workout routine that was quite unique too, but he just had a work ethic like nobody else. But this guy, listen, Paul McFarland is one of the most demanding coaches in junior high. Oh, is he ever? And I know Paul, we used to work out at the same gym, and even when he wasn't playing, he would still lift heavy. And I remember I remember pulling him aside. I'm like,

are you still playing Paul? Like, are you trying, is there another league that I'm that I'm unaware of? Yeah. And the things that he demands of players, like he puts himself through too. He's like that guy that does it along. And he, but the thing is like McFarland demands that from players, like that is his expectation. And I find that a player like Kindle meets that expectation for McFarland. That makes sense? That's a great endorsement. Yeah, that's a huge endorsement for Benjamin coming from you like that

because Paul is a stickler for a guy that's working hard. There's no question. Yeah, that's Paul McFarland. Oh, we have a trade in the NHL here. We'll see what this one ends up being. We thought the Pittsburgh Penguins were going to make two picks. Instead, we have a trade. We will stand by to see what the trade is. What the trade is. Pittsburgh in true Kyle Dewis fashion, Pittsburgh's moving down. Okay. They're moving down from 12 Philadelphia for 22nd and 31st. So Pittsburgh moves down from 12, Philadelphia, Philadelphia with the pick. For 22, 12 for 22 and 31. So they take 22 and 31. Pittsburgh takes 22 and 31, correct? Yep, for 12. Got it. 12 goes to Philly. Now is this a place where I blather on about Ka'Shawn Aitchison and how good he'd look in orange on that Philadelphia Flyers

blue line? Is this the part where I say this or is this the part where you talk about Jack Nesbitt? No but this is you know with Dickie he wants a tough team Rick wants a tough team. You know he does. Of course. I mean he does. So. This will be interesting. This is going to be interesting. This will be interesting to see which way the Philadelphia Flyers go on this one. Let's not forget too, it's a Keystone State Trade. Remember once upon a time like this didn't happen?

Like the Penguins did not deal with the Flyers, the Habs didn't deal with the Nords, the Oilers didn't deal with Calgary Flames, and the Allenders didn't deal with the Rangers. Remember those days, Pierre? I do, but I was in the league when it actually did happen, and Craig Patrick, masterful trade, traded Mark Recke and Paul Coffey to Philadelphia. We got Chels Samuelson, Kenny Raggett, and the aforementioned Rick Tocket. We ended up winning the Stanley Cup. Coffee and Recce both ended up going to the Stanley Cup years later with different teams and both being inducted into the Hall of Fame. But in that year, 1992, we needed Tocket's toughness

and the ability to play with Mario Lemieux. We needed Shel Samuelson to be a shutdown guy, which he was, and we needed Kenny Reget to be a goalie, in case Tommy Barasso got hurt and he was. Even though we didn't get the bigger name players in that one, Craig Patrick won the trade, because our team won the Stanley Cup. So, real quick reset here, as we're waiting for the Philadelphia Flyers to execute pick number 12 here in the first round.

Hang on, let me do a quick screen check here. Oh, matter of fact, before we get there and do the reset, let's bring on the head coach of the Calgary Hitman, Paul McFarland, who joins us just after Benjamin Kindle gets selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Paul, first off, thanks so much for joining me and Pierre. It's great to see you again. I was just extolling your gym virtues to Pierre

a couple of seconds ago saying, everything this guy asks his kids to do, he'll do as well. What can you tell us about... I'm getting a little older now, I don't do it as much anymore. Farley, I used to watch you squat with plate after plate after plate. I won't listen to anything of what you're saying here. Tell us about Benjamin Kindle. What should we know and

does he work as hard as you in the gym? Great kid, fantastic player obviously had a great year for us I think what separates Ben which has been talked about a lot is his hockey IQ he seems to be a step ahead both with and without the puck quite honestly so he was a player that we moved around played center in the wing for us but his hockey sense combined with his competitiveness made him exceptional player for us this year. And I have no doubt he's going to be successful

at the next level. Paul, where do you see him fitting in more, on the wing or as a centerman? I probably like him better at center. I know this year we had Oliver Talke as a 19-year-old center and we ended up playing both of them together and they really took turns alternating each night, like center and the wing, just to make everyone happy.

But I see, I like him more in the middle. I think he gets the puck more. He's able to build speed from the defensive zone, better than most young players for me. And he's able to get to the right spots. You know, today's D zone, I think a lot of teams now are playing a layered system where it's not necessarily having to wrestle a guy

one-on-one in your own end. So the more he has the puck, the better. Is there, I'm sure there are. But like what are some of the things that in order for him to take the next step to the next level, what does Kindle still need to work on? Well, I think all young players, I think just having a little more pace, consistent pace, you know, at the next level, the game's fast. You have to be able to, you know, beat people with with the planning,

with that pace, with the puck, whether it's making a play quickly or obviously having the puck on your stick and having to skate so i think that'll come with time and just with reps you know at the end of the day i think ben because of his iq the better players that he plays with he's only going to get better jack nesbitt by the way just got sorry for the um jack nesbitt just got drafted by the philadelphia flyers i apologize continues want to make sure i got that out there yeah no that's, that's good. That's good. So yeah, I think he's going to be a guy that only gets better

with the experience of going to his first NHL training camp, obviously getting an opportunity to see some of the great players they have there in Pittsburgh. And it's going to be a great learning experience for him. Pierre? Can you imagine going into Pittsburgh and get to learn from Sidney Crosby as a center iceman? It's a pretty cool thing.

Oh, smokes. Nothing better, probably, right? As a young player, I mean. So Paul, I just wonder when he comes back from camp, what do you pick off his brain when you talk to Benjamin? 100%. I mean, hey, coaches can learn. You know, we always said that even my time in the NHL, you know, you're always learning from the best players. So I'm sure, you know, what's great about seeing some of those top players for me, as much as it's the little details in the game, it's also their habits, their habits right and how they prepare how hard they practice No, the routines both on and off the ice on a daily basis

That's usually the things that the young guys get wowed by you know even watching the Four Nations Seeing McKinnon and Crosby go out there by themselves basically working on their game, right? those are the little things that I think you learn from the greats and Obviously, he's gonna have a great experience there in Pittsburgh to do that. Before we let you go, I always want to ask you about the families on draft night. What can you tell us about Kindles? Yeah, great family. Super athletic. I know it's been talked about a lot but mom and dad deserve their credit as both great soccer athletes. Sarah and Steve and his sister is definitely a great athlete in her own playing I guess miles ahead in her career. I think they're probably, it sounds like they're

going to have a tough decision for her soccer career as to what's going to be next for her as she moves forward in her career. So a family that's you know is surrounded by athletes and really down-to-earth people, great you know great parents. I don't think they put too much pressure on Ben other than just to have fun and be himself. And this is a great day for them. And I really hope they enjoy the moment. Absolutely. And he's in good hands in Calgary. Thanks for doing this, Paul.

Much appreciated. Enjoy the rest of the night. Thanks for having me, guys. Appreciate it. There he is. Paul McFarland is the head coach of the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League. Jack Nesbitt goes to the Philadelphia Flyers. So, if you want to- We were a little bit right? We were a little bit...

You were right! I'm still going on about Ka'Shaun Aitchison. We're a team! Come on! We were a little bit right? I'm not pulling my weight here because I keep waiting for Ka'Shaun. Every year there's one guy. Every year there's one guy that slips and you say like, when is it going to... Remember how, where did Jacob? Remember that year, it was the Buffalo Draft, the Austin Matthews Draft where Jacob Chickren just went down and we all felt like there was a time

where Jacob Chickren was going to go second overall. I mean it happens all the time, Cam Fowler's. Cam Fowler's the one that I really remember. Cam Fowler to Anaheim. Cam Fowler went really slipped a lot. And this year does it not feel like Aitchison might be that guy? Like here we are at 12.

Let's actually park a little bit of time here. I mean, the Philadelphia Flyers now, you mentioned Rick Talkett a second ago. The Philadelphia Flyers now, you want to talk about picking up size? They pick up Porter Martone from the Brampton Steelheads, six foot four. And now they pick up Big Jack

Nesbitt Center for the Windsor Spitfire. That is a large team by the way. So what they did was which is really kind of neat it shows how aggressive they want to be they traded 22 and 31 to move up to 12 so they could get Nesbitt and it speaks to your point Jeff about the size quotient of the Philadelphia Flyers. They want to have an organizational identity. They're tired of being a small team that gets pushed around, and they're addressing it right now with this draft. It's pretty interesting to watch.

It really is. Yeah. Is this the, like, Daniel Breyer has final say. He's the general manager. I do wonder how much of this is. You mentioned, and rightfully so, the Rick Tauke effect. How much is this the Keith Jones effect? When Jonesy played, it was the land of the giants. So I worked with Keith for 16 years. And the one thing that I know was really important was when he worked with Mike Milbury, they

talked about size a lot as people working on TV and they weren't wrong. The NHL was changing and a lot of fast guys were coming in but you still saw when push came to shove in the playoffs, you needed to have size, you needed to have grit. I think Florida is speaking to that right now and I think people are seeing that and Philadelphia sees where they are. And you made the great point before about the Metro. The Metro's a whole lot of nasty. Your neighbors aren't nice. Oh yeah. Like your neighbors are mean people. They are. You know, so if you're Philly, you're

looking at Jersey, you're looking at New York, you're looking at the Islanders, you're looking at Carolina, you're looking at Columbus. Hey, Columbus is no pushover anymore. Like you start looking at it all. Washington Capitals, you've got to take the train to go down there, the bus and play them. That's not a whole lot of fun to go down there and play anymore. So I think what Philadelphia is doing, it actually is really smart. Now did it cost them an extra pick? Yeah, it did.

It cost them 22 and 31 to move up, but they got a guy that I thought would go at that position I thought Jack Nesbitt would go at that position but I thought Pittsburgh would take him I think Billy would you got the the wrong team in Pennsylvania here's the other thing too we mentioned his name earlier on on the program and that is jet luchenko's coming to like jet jet luchenko's on the horizon as well for the Philadelphia Flyers and he played a handful of games for them last season. Do you have a thought on this one now Pierre? You brought it up a couple of times and you're bang on. Ten of the first twelve picks for CHL. Yeah I'm really impressed

by what's gone on with the Canadian Hockey League. I'm really impressed by what's gone on. Now Nespit, another Ontario Hockey League guy goes. They had back-to-back Western Hockey Leaguers with Kendall and McQueen. It's really impressive. It's really, really impressive. It's not a good year for Europe. I think you would agree. I know that Frondell's gone, but it's not a good year for Europe. It's a real good year for the CHL. Really good. It's a real good year for the CHL. Really good. Did you know socks are one of the most requested clothing items by organizations addressing homelessness?

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And again, like the number is 22. That's the record for the CHL back in 2013 in the Nathan McKinnon draft. The Detroit Redwings are on the clock now. And their pick is in. This could be Sweden. Their pick is in. This could be Sweden. I was gonna say, don't be surprised here.

This could be Sweden. The only thing we know about the Detroit Red Wings. This could be Victor Eglin. It wouldn't surprise me. Listen, I think they're they're making way now for Axel Sandin Pelika to make his way to the Detroit Red Wings. Ross, this is one that's always had the pipeline to Sweden as well. We'll see if it ends up being Eklund here. The other guy, and I really like this pick, and you started to see it this year specifically. Just how good a center Marco Kasper is and is going to be further at the NHL level like right

behind like they've got their number two center there if you look at our board it's a 20-22 first first round draft pick eighth overall Marco Casper who again we talk about players that are well mature beyond their years Casper was that guy and boy did he have a really good season. I watched him play in Sweden before he got drafted and I'll just tell you right now you could tell and as a staff identifying on Marco Kasper. They're not a lot of Austrian guys that come in and play, as you know. True. And he's a kid that left home to go play in Sweden, and he did, he's done spectacular stuff.

Pierre, I think he left, correct me if I'm wrong, was he 14 or 15 years old when he did that? He picked up and left really young. He was young, he was really young when he left, yep. up and left really young. He was young. He was really young when he left. Yep. The Detroit Red Wings have drafted Carter Baer. Oh, there you go. He did not go to Sweden. There you go. Well, you know what? Which is pretty cool. They go with a W.H.L. player. That's really good. Good. He is a really nice player who is really miserable to play against.

You know, there was the Achilles entry this year for Carter Bear. Yeah. Here's my question. Is he this year's draft version of Brandon Hagel? Cause when I look at Carter Bear, I see Brandon, I see Brandon Hagel. Do you see that too? No, that's a good one. I like that. That's a good one.

I was thinking along the lines of, you know, a pugnacious guy. I thought Sorelli a little bit, but no, I think Hagel's a better, I think Hagel's a better comparable. I like that a lot. Wow. You know, Carter Bear's a real real nice player tenacious player and

yeah am I oversimplify okay let me just oversimplify something here for you because we're waiting for the Red Wings take their next step and get into the playoffs and Ottawa got there Montreal got there that's things for the Detroit Red Wings they They got this beautiful building that hasn't seen a playoff game yet. Is it too simplistic to say the only issue they really have is goaltending? That that's that that like they have like like all the other pieces are in place but they're getting scotched by goaltending. Is that oversimplifying this?

Right now, I don't think it is. I think you're actually telling the truth. Now, what happens with Sebastian Casa long-term? Does he evolve? It's fair to ask. I mean, are they deep enough on defense too, Jeff? That's another question you gotta ask. I know Simon Edmondson is really good.

We know about Moe Sider. I mean, there's some really good pieces there, but how deep are they on the back end? You know, that's another part of it. They're not, and that's why I wonder about this. And Axel Sandin-Pelicca was a standout again at the World Juniors. I don't know if he gets in. gets in, you know, the Detroit play, which is always,

you go into GR for at least a year, son. And then, uh, and then we'll call you the, the, the season after, but Pelika looks fantastic. We'll see if that, and how quickly that translates in North America. I just wonder like at, at what point, and maybe we're already there now, like at what point is there real pressure from the Illich family? Like, Hey, th th this has to end now, you know, Ottawa got there, Montreal got there. This is, this has got to change.

So here's the one thing I think that's going to save them long-term. Trey Augustine is owned by them. I was really surprised he went back to Michigan State this year. But I think in goal, there's gonna be a long-term battle between he and Sebastian Casa. But I'm surprised that Augustine didn't leave Michigan State this year.

To do what you just said, to go spend a year in Grand Rapids and then be ready for when this team's ready to take the next step. Just hasn't happened yet, hasn't happened. Let's bring aboard someone who knows Carter Bear very well. He is Steve Hamilton from Everett. He joins us now on the Sheet Draft special. Steve, thanks so much for stopping by today.

So I kind of framed it this way. Maybe you've heard this before, I'm sure you have. Carter Bear is the new Brandon Hagel. Agree, disagree? I think there's some similar characteristics there for sure. I'd say he's got a bit of grit. Well, he's got a ton of grit to him and he's competitive. And, you know, I'd say that there's a lot of similarities and, you know, Carter's really grown in the last couple of years and I think he's Carter's really grown in the last couple of years, and I think he's got a very, very high ceiling.

Steve, what's the next step for him? What does he have to do to take that step? You talk about a ceiling. What does he have to do? I just think physically he's going to start to fill out here. Everybody at this age got to get bigger and stronger. I think his competitiveness is, is elite and that's probably the strength of his game and the number of puck battles he finds

himself in. He's able to score from distance. He's able to score on the net. There's no battle he's not interested in getting involved in, which is a pretty cool attribute for a player and, and so much to like about him. And then I would say over and above all that is he's an amazing young guy and he's a leader and a huge fixture in our dressing room. Steve, what's he like day to day?

I'm curious about, you know, so many coaches will talk about, you know, what are the habits? You know, we were, Pierre and I a couple of weeks ago, we're talking about Marco Sturm and he takes over with the, with the Boston Bruins. And this is a coach that prides himself and focuses so much on consistency, not so much like achieving greatness, but achieving consistency in your life.

What is, uh, what, what's bear like day to day? I would say humble and hardworking would be like, to the best traits you can have. And in a, as a player is just show up, understand what needs to be done and do it. And don't look for a shortcut. Don't look for anything easy about it. And he just has a quiet presence about him. And he is very often a man of few words and just does his talking on the ice. And I think he's almost got a bit of an alter ego once the puck drops and that quiet, reserved,

you know, respectful young guy, he kind of throws it out the window and gets right into the trenches. And it's impressive. He's such a joy to coach and he's such a mentor for, you know, the guys in our room and his younger billet brother Landon DuPont who you may have heard of. Yeah, a little bit. Yeah. Can we do a quick detour there? Because it's not going to be too long from now that he's going to be the bell of the ball. I got a chance to meet him at the CHL awards and I feel like I already know him

because I have a 2010 who's in love with junior hockey and he sends me all of his clips all the time. So I feel like I already know Landon DuPont, but give us a quick sort of elevator pitch on Landon DuPont. I just ran a skate today that he was at and he's just an impressive guy. He's an impressive player,

but he's an impressive young man. He just is the real deal. And I just think it comes so much from what he puts into his day-to-day work and he's special. There's a reason he is who he is. He's special. Hey Steve, what does Carter Bear being drafted in the first round by Detroit mean to the Everett Soretips? Well, I think that Everett's commitment is to make sure that our players have everything they need to be successful and Carter has been such a driver for us and an advocate for Everett. I mean, he's come out publicly said how excited he is to come back

and we're thrilled to have him and really feel like organization's in a good place right now where we're competitive and we're developing players and to have a first rounder like him. And I think it just speaks to the work that's been done here in Everett for many, many years. It's been a, you know, a model of consistency and guys like Carter are difference makers.

And, you know, we've got Taryn Smith and, you know, Lennon DuPont and the list goes on and on. There's a lot of really good things going on in Everett. And it's perfect that someone whose last name is Bear wears that logo. Kind of very fitting, eh? Very, very fitting. Yeah.

It was always meant to be a tip, I guess. Born to it. Steve, thanks so much for stopping by today. Congratulations. Certainly congratulations to Bear, but also congratulations to you and your entire organization. Appreciate your time today Thank you very much. Appreciate it guys. Thanks, Steve Hamilton of the Everett silver tips, by the way right now

Meredith goudreau is on stage Announcing the pick of the Columbus blue jackets just the the model of Strength and beauty and decency and everything that's good in hockey. Jackson Smith of the Tri-City Americans just got selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in a very emotional moment on stage in Los Angeles. Western Hockey League defenseman, large defenseman. So the CHL run continues. Jackson Smith, 14th overall.

You know what, Jeff, I gotta tell ya, I thought Jackson Smith was the second best defenseman in this draft right behind Matthew Schaeffer. I know that Radim Mertke went ahead of him, but I thought Jackson Smith, he's gonna play for Guy Gadowski at Penn State University. And I had the honor of working with Guy when he was a player in our organization in Ottawa. He was down in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island back then.

And Guy's a heck of a hockey guy. No pun intended. He's an Edmonton guy that went to Colorado College. He will help Jackson Smith so much. I think it's a perfect fit and this is a great pick for Columbus. This guy's big. He's rangy. He can play.

He can shoot. He's a really talented player, very talented player. How close is Columbus right now? Like Jackson Smith's not going to walk into the NHL tomorrow. He is going to play in the NHL. Tremendous size, tremendous skill. Already has a gold medal playing with Team Canada. Nice vest as well with the Canadian maple leafs as well as he drops the hat. I was just handed to him in a great 17 year old moment for a hockey player.

How close are the Columbus Blue Jackets? I think they have a chance to be a playoff team next year. Jackson Smith won't be the guy that puts them over the top, but I think Adam Fantilli takes another step next year. I think, you know, you look at their defense, Wawrinski was a runner up for the Norris Trophy. I think they'll stabilize their goaltending situation. You see how aggressive Donnie Waddell is trying to be. He was in, you know, on a bunch of different things over the last few days. I think they're a playoff team next year.

I would be very surprised if they weren't. You know, it's interesting with the Blue Jack. It's like there's, I'm glad you mentioned Adam Fantilli. Talking to Don Waddell this year, one of the things that he brought up, and we talked about it at the end of the season, was the development of Adam Fantilli specifically. And the thing about Fantilli was he kind of he joined the NHL, and this is not a

knock, because this is this is a hard thing to get out of your game, especially when it's successful. And this one thing was really successful when he played at Michigan with the Wolverines Brandon Arado He did everything at one speed super fast Like that was everything that he did was super fast super fast super fast and Don Waddell talked a lot about how The staff there of course led by Dean Evison When you know out the door and around the block to make sure that this guy understood the value Not of playing everything the exact same way

Do you know what I'm getting at? Like you've seen plenty of kids come out of college Oh, and they're doing every temple everything high temple high temple high temple high temple I needed to get that out of Fantilly's game and you started to see that by This year when the calendar flipped and he turned into a different player and started and I guess that's what they mean by When they finally figure it out, they figure it out and he figured it out. So when you think about it Adam Fantilli was a freshman and he won the Hobie Baker. Paul Correa did that. Jack Geichel did that. Macklin Celebrini did that. Like that's not easy to do and I've said this to Scottie Bowman and I've said it to a lot of different hockey people because they asked me about Fantilli because I saw him so much and one player. And when I tell you this, you're going to say, McQuire, that's heresy. He reminds me of Mike Madonna. Madonna. Yeah. Yeah.

He really reminds me of Mike Madonna. And I said that to Donnie Waddell and Donnie said, now that you say that, I kind of see some of that. But like Madonna to me was one of the greater forwards I'd seen in my coaching career. He was an amazing player. I see Fantilly having a lot of the same characteristics. Can you get the jersey to flap like Modano did though? That's the one thing that always distinguishes Modano away from everybody.

You gotta move real fast. You gotta move real fast to get that to happen. Modano was just crazy with that. Now Vancouver is on the board now. Now the Vancouver Canucks really raised eyebrows this year at the combine because Jim Mutherford and Patrick Alveen weren't there. Now this was around the time where everybody in the organization was running all over Surrey, BC trying to find a practice facility

for the Vancouver Canucks which became a headline around the time that Rick Tocket exited the Vancouver Canucks and showed up in Philadelphia and one of the first things he talked about was how great the practice facility was in Philadelphia. It is like, oh turn the knife, turn the knife, turn the knife, and how much this is and I was gonna be great to work here. I mean the Vancouver Canucks are in a really interesting spot here right now. You know they made the JT Miller trade last year. As of right now, they've still decided to keep Alias Pedersen as no trade kicks in in

July. There was a lot of talk about the Vancouver Canucks not making this pick, that they wanted to use this as an asset to get a player or as a package to get players. The Quinn Hughes question is out there. A couple more years and he's an unrestricted free agent. Jim Rutherford has talked about this. What's it gonna take to keep Quinn Hughes in the mix when there's the lure of his brothers in New Jersey? Vancouver is always a fascinating team. Right now you could say maybe Vancouver is in its most confusing position

that we've seen in a long time. As we try to figure out if they're gonna do this, whose timeline is it gonna be on? They're all great questions. They are really in a moment of flux. It's gonna be interesting to watch. The one piece of good news, and you talked about it, and defenseman at Boston University, represented Sweden at the World Junior. He's slick, he can move the puck, he's more than robust enough. He's going to help Vancouver a lot long term.

Lekka Donake is a player that can score, he can dominate the puck. There's a lot to like, there's guys coming through the system. But what are they going to do? How is it going to all work? This is a huge coaching test for Adam Foote, I think. It's a huge coaching test for Adam Foote. I think it's a huge coaching test. One of the things I like that Adam did, he brought in Kevin Dean. Kevin Dean is a tremendous guy when it comes to teaching defensemen.

He's outstanding. I also like the fact they brought in Brett McLean. Brett McLean's really good working with young players. And finally, I think bringing in Scottie Young, a former first round pick, a three time Stanley Cup winner. I think Scotty helps that staff a ton. So, you know, players are going to have to go there and get better, Jeff. They're not just going to be ready made products. And so I think that coaching staff addresses making players better. And if they don't, then they're going to have a problem. But I think they will make them better.

They do have one problem, and it's a good problem to have, and that is too many netminders. Uh, Thatcher Demko, who you know, has had the injury issue for the past couple of seasons. Um, uh, and you mentioned Archer Shilovs a couple of seconds ago. Kevin Lankinen really did great work last year. Lankinen was outstanding for the Vancouver Canucks. Um, it's the waivers question. Shilovs needs waivers. I don't think for a

second and might just be a matter of timing and you coaches and managers know when the right time to try to sneak someone through waivers is but they're gonna have to make a decision here because someone's got to go. Braden Coots by the way just got drafted by the Vancouver. Oh, awesome. There you go. Let me throw that. All right. Cootes goes.

So that's another Western Hockey League player. Yeah. So that's 13, 13 of the first 15 picks are CHL players. Now, they're all Western Hockey League and Ontario Hockey League. No, sorry, Dane Wye is the one. Dane Wye is the Quebec League.

So we're waiting for Carboneau to go there too, but 13 of the first 15. So Braden Kutz is now a member of the Vancouver Canucks. Do you have a thought on this one? Um, energy competes, not overly large, gotta get bigger, get stronger, but he's a guy that definitely competes. You know, I think they're looking long term on this. This isn't a player that's coming in next year and playing. It's a couple years down the road. You know, uh, this is the second, um, Seattle Thunderbird player. Radam Mertka goes and now Braden Kutz goes.

So a defenseman and a center, uh, go here. Uh, we are hoping to get Matt Odette, uh, their head coach here, uh, coming up in a couple of seconds, uh, to talk to us about, about both these players, really. Um, so Kutz goes, um, I'll be honest with you that Jeff, though, I'll be in a couple of seconds to talk to us about both these players, really. So Coots goes... I'll be honest with you, Jeff, though. I'll be honest with you, I did not have him rated this high. Did you have him rated in the first round or low first round? I had him rated at the bottom of the first round.

To the draft of center. Yeah. This is not exactly a, like look, I think Leckar and Mackey is going to play next year with the Vancouver Cougars. He has to, I think he has to play next year. And we'll see what your mother, Fred, can do and Patrick Alvein in the off season, Coots as you mentioned, is not stepping into the NHL anytime soon. And that pipeline isn't exactly robust. I mean, this is, I'll be blunt, like this is tough sledding for the Vancouver Canucks, trying to get back to prominence here.

But 13 of the 15 CHL players. Amazing. In the draft. It's awesome. It's fantastic. It really has been a run. Really quick, we're seeing a sort of run on Western Hockey League players right now. Outside of Jack Nesbitt, it's been Radé Myrka, it's been Roger McQueen, it's been Benjamin Kindle, Carter Behr, Jackson Smith and Braden Kutz. Goes to the Vancouver Canucks. Itucks to run on the West.

Guess who's on the clock now. Back to back Jack, the New York Islanders. They got those picks from Montreal. The Montreal picks from today. I keep going back to the same question, man, if they, if they only knew that it wasn't going to be enough, would they still have made the, uh, made the deal? It's one of those that I'm sure the media is gonna ask Matthew Darsh. Yeah.

And I'm gonna say they probably tried with Boston. I felt that all along. I really felt there. And I told you when we opened the show that I thought he'd go at seven and I thought he's either gonna be Boston or the Allens. That's what I thought. So. Can Sean Aitchison go here? He could. One of these two picks I believe he could. Absolutely.

Especially with the Allenders who are now, they're making three picks. Oh, speaking of which, one thing that I did want to mention, and there's one thing that I really wonder about. So the Philadelphia Flyers, who traded picks 22 and 31, one of the things that I wondered about with the Philadelphia Flyers, and they went out and selected Jack Nesbit and also took Porter Martone. They seem to be one of the one team that perhaps was most aggressive. On someone that I really wonder about in this draft,

the defenseman for the Oshawa Generals, Chinese-born Simon Haksoi Wang, it seemed like if they were going to keep those three picks, that maybe with pick 31, Haksoi Wang was going to go, because it's probably going to be a team that has multiples, that takes a flyer on the kid, loaded with potential, massive defensemen, you know, showed up in Canada at the age of 12, uh, from China, played the OJ with King. And then, uh, and then he got signed by, by Roger Hunt with the,

with the Oshawa generals. I really, I really wonder if, if he's, cause I thought Philadelphia was going to be that team. I wonder if there is another team out there that takes a, pardon the pun, takes a flyer on, uh on Simon Haxway Wang. Where did you have him rated? Did you have him rated anywhere? Low first round. Low first round bordering on the second round. I'm in the middle of the second round but that doesn't mean I'm right either. But I get your point. I think it's a very good point. You know you take a flight. It's a little bit like big Zidane O'Chara

when he went to Prince George, you know, Mike Milbury took a chance on him and they got this guy that was a workaholic that was six foot nine that just didn't want to quit the game. And look what happened 25 years later, 26 years later, he's in the hockey all the same. Is something happening here? Hold on one second here, Pierre. Unless the islanders are making a move in Boston to get Hagen. We have a trade. Okay. So let's see what's going on here. Or is this just the formalization of the Montreal trade? It could be, but I would have thought they would have had a trade call before so they

would have got that done. Yeah, so they had it that Montreal had the pick and then they tried. So the picks are going to be 16 and 17, both of the New York Islanders. I don't know that there's there's picks here for the Islanders to hit home runs. No, I think the home runs are gone. Now you're looking long term. You're not. No. I will say this Columbus getting Jackson Smith, as I told you, I thought he was the second best defenseman in the draft. That's not to take anything away from Radim Mertgem. But that's a good pick for Columbus.

That's a really good pick for Columbus. Okay, so as we have a second here, I want to get to something. We were just talking about defensemen a second ago. I want to play this interview that Stephen Ellis did with Sam Dickinson. Zach, do we have this one as we stand by for the Allenders to make one of two picks here? This is Sam Dickinson from a couple of weeks ago in conversation with Stephen Ellis. Sam, of course, a first round draft pick last year at the draft in Las Vegas of the San Jose Sharks. Here it is. From a personal level, would you say this was an easier season not having to worry about the draft?

Um, I think it's a yes and no. Obviously, you know, there's it feels like there's added stress uh going through your draft season and worrying about all that stuff, but at the same time for me every time I go out on the ice, I want to do my best. I think everybody does. So every time I step out, sometimes just gotta block out the outside stuff. My draft season, it was blocking out whatever stuff was going on there

and focus on playing hockey. Even though you were the top defenseman, some guys had to get past you at some points this year. Who would you say is the toughest player you had to defend against? I hate that I have to say this guy, but it's Beckett Saniki. Everybody saw that the one goal he scored on me.

But yeah, I grew up playing with Beckett. So I've stopped him a lot in practice when nobody's seen it, but he got me that one time. And when we played in the finals, it's not fun matching up against him. What are your thoughts of his reaction at the draft when he got taken that one time and when we played in the finals, it's not fun matching up against him. What are your thoughts of his reaction at the draft when he got taken? He seemed surprised.

Yeah, that was funny knowing him as well. It's just like such a such a reaction you get out of him. But I mean, you look you look back now, people are really surprised. But you look back now, you can obviously see why I went that high and really deserving of it. You see kind of all the success you've had on the ice and all the awards and obviously everything that's gone on in London. Are you thinking about the fact that you might not be too far away from being a full-time

NHL player? Yeah, I think that stuff's always in the back of your mind. I think everybody after they get drafted is looking forward to the potential chance of being able to suit up for the NHL team that's picked you. And for me in San Jose, it's always been, you know, I wanted to be there as soon as possible. It's been a dream of mine to play in the NHL.

Everybody who gets drafted, it's their dream. So it's exciting to think that, you know, like you said, it could be pretty close, but at the same time, I know there's a lot of work to come. The full interview by the way is available at our daily face-off youtube channel right now. Steven Ellis in conversation with Sam Dickinson. In the meantime just talking about Seattle a couple of seconds ago they have two first round picks already in their hip pocket with with Radim Mirka going to the Buffalo Sabres and Braden Kutz going to the Vancouver Canucks. Joining us now is Matt Odette.

Matt, first of all, thanks so much for stopping by today. And Walt, you sent two into the first round. How does that make you feel? Well, it's a great night for the Thunderbirds. Obviously we're very proud and happy for our guys. You know, obviously they worked really hard to achieve this goal and it's nice that they get to celebrate and enjoy this with their families. Matt, what does Braden have to do to take the next step to get to the national

hockey league? Well, I think in my opinion, there's, there's no real deficiencies in his game. He's a very well-rounded player, but I think he can improve in all areas. First and foremost, get bigger and stronger, faster, to get himself ready to compete with the men. But this is a very high-end player with high compete, does everything well, you know, a guy that helps your team win and you know, obviously a great pick for Vancouver. Where does he shine the most? Like what's the one thing that you notice that Vancouver Canucks fans should be aware of? Like what's the one factor that wows you? What's the one factor that wows you? Well, I mean, he's got elite skill, which I think is is overrated by his elite compete.

This guy, you know, works extremely hard. You know, he's like a dog on a bone on the puck. Real 200 foot player with tremendous character and leadership capabilities. You know, it's just a complete package. When I talk about Braden Coots, he's just a hockey player that summarizes him to a T and a guy that's gonna be there for you in the playoffs. Did you know or did-

We also had it. Sorry, go ahead, go ahead. Go ahead, Jeff. No, no, go ahead, Jeff. I was gonna say like, did you, did Braden, did anybody in the organization have an idea that it was going to be Vancouver? We had an idea.

I mean, obviously at this time of year, we're talking to several teams. They're getting Intel on our guys. You know, we obviously knew that Braden, you know, went out for dinner with Vancouver and we, you know, we're in contact with Scouts throughout the year. And, you know, I know that several teams were very high on Braden, just a rare combination of skill and compete, very attractive attributes to have that combination. So we're just a matter of who's gonna step up

and make the pick. And I think Vancouver obviously did an incredible job selecting Braden and he's gonna do some big things for them Matt Braden wasn't the only player picked from Seattle in the first round yet. Redim Mertka. Who does he remind you of? Is there an NHL player he reminds you of? Well, I think as far as compared to you obviously think about all the big defensemen I think Redim likes to say Sider from Detroit, which is a very good comparable. Myers, the big players throughout the league. To me, just recency with Florida, Miko.

recent, recency with Florida, Meekola, you know, I think he's a unique guy, obviously a six, six player that can move the way Redeem does. I mean, that's very unique. Um, you know, even at the NHL level, there's not many guys that can move the way he can with that size. And especially as a 17 year old kid, you know, we see big players at that age a lot, um, at our level, but we don't see guys that can move like him. Very mobile, you know, plays a two-way game and, you know, lots of upside there with him. Well, walk us through his season because we always talk about risers and earlier, you know, Pierre and I were talking about Brady Martin and Reddy Mertka fits that mold, you know, to a tee.

Yeah, I mean, you know, he's a guy that when we picked him, you know, we knew he was going to test out the pro game in the Czech Republic, Czechia there. You know, so we were patient with him. We had no, and we didn't know if he was going to come. So we stayed patient with that. And, you know, we're, we're happy that he decided to come join us mid season there. And I think his game really took off from there. He's well suited to the North American game. I think it suits him perfectly with his ability to move the puck on the smaller ice surface. he can make decisions under pressure, can really manipulate the forecheck.

He's got escape ability and with his size and reach can really fight off forecheckers and make really strong plays with the puck. So the North American game really suited him. I took to it right away and I think it was a big part of our second half. We struggled in the first half. Um, and in the second half, we weren't, we were one of the better teams in the league and, and made a really big push to the playoffs and gave the first C ever ever at a really good run for their money.

And I don't think we would have done that without redeeming his contributions. Uh, he was exceptional for us. Is he close? Close to playing. his contributions. He was exceptional for us. Is he close? Close to playing? In the NHL. Yeah, I mean he's still a young kid and he's got some development to do, but he's got all the tools to do it. We're going to work with him on his game. Obviously there's, I think he's got really good

offensive upside that's continuing to develop. I think he needs to work on his defensive or his physical game and, and you know, playing with somebody which came a long way this year. And you know, he's going to be a top four guy that's going to play for a long time. I think in Buffalo, they're really happy to have him, quite frankly, if you want to know the truth, Matt.

And I think one of the best parts about him is they've identified the need for players to play on the right side on that defense, and I think he's going to fit perfectly in Buffalo. I really do. Yeah, I agree. I just think, you know, you look at the successful teams in the NHL playoffs, the Florida Panthers, they've got skilled players obviously on the back end, but they're all big guys. Mikaela, Seth Jones,

Forsling, Ekblad, they're all big guys that have a skill that can play and use their size effectively over a playoff run and seven game series. So I think Merck is in that mold and he's a guy that can really help out in a playoff grind. Listen on that, we'll let you go. Matt, thanks so much for stopping by. Two picks in the first round. Looks great on the organization. Congratulations to both the players, yourself

and the entire Seattle organization. Thanks so much for stopping by. My pleasure guys. Thanks for having me. Matt Odette. And by the way, I know why you're smiling because Sean Aitchison just got drafted. Yes. And he's wearing a great pink suit. caught me. Kishad Aitchison drafted. Barry Colts, hulking defenseman, has some, has some, has some upside to like a really, really strong, physical, old school defender as well. I like this pick for the New York. They are going to love him on the.

Yeah, they will. They're going to adore him. There's going to be a little bit of an adjustment, though. I think you would agree. He's not going there next year to play. But what I do know. No, no. He's going to make a difference with the Barry Colts again. And one of the things I'm really pumped about, Patty Sexson looks like he's going to go coach the defense in Barry. And he's going to make that young man a ton better. I'm really excited for Kashawn, I'm really excited for the Barry Colts and I think Patty

Sexton helps him a ton and the Islanders gonna get a real player, a real good player. Islanders take two defensemen in the first round. First overall they take Matthew Schaeffer and now they take Kashawn Aitchison both from the Ontario Hockey League and two very different defenders. But it's interesting too, if I were to talk to like, they're gonna take one guy who's loaded with skill and the other who has the accent on brawn, these would be the two.

These would be the two. Listen, Kishan's not a shrink in violet, I think you would agree. He's bringing the nasty every single game and he's not a popular in violet, I think you would agree. He's bringing the nasty every single game and he's not a popular guy in the ice. I think if you did a poll around the league, most players say, I can't stand playing against that guy. You know what?

Good. 100%. You know, he's kind of, I mean, he hits like, I mean, he's a more skilled version of Arbor Jack guy. Very well said. He hits like a freight train and he's got some offense as well. They are going to adore him. I agree.

With the Islanders. Still a project and listen, Marty Williamson, who's long time run that program with the Barry Colts, sends another one. And so now that is as we are keeping tally here to see if the CHL can get the 22. That's 14 of 17 picks. And again, the Ontario hockey league is just crushing it tonight. They are crushing it.

It's good. Um, so there's more to come too, by the way, there's many more Ontario hockey leaguers to come. I know it'd be really, it's, I mean, I mean, it's a really good hot house, right? Like when I, and I know that they're looking to expand, Quebec League's looking to expand, the Western League is looking to expand too, but I've always looked at the Ontario League and said, it's kind of the perfect amount of teams to have that. And when you consider the population, the population of the regions that it covers,

it's that perfect hot house, right? That's not too many, so it's watered down. The travel's not that tough. Unlike, I mean, we hear about, you know, the Western Hockey League road trips can be brutal. It's almost if the OHL is this perfect combination of high skill with players coming out of the OHL is this perfect combination of high-skill with players coming out of the the OHF, whether it's a GTHL or the OMHA, NOHA, etc. all over, and

the right amount of teams as well. It's not over-expanding. I think you were the first person though that I heard break the potential news that if there was Ontario Hockey League expansion, Muskegon, Michigan would be one of those teams. Well, there were two. Did that? There were two. I did.

So that was earlier on this year. Um, there were conversations. It was both Muskegon, uh, who ended up winning the USHL championship. We should ask as well. There was Muskegon. There was also Youngstown that were, that were looking to leave. And like they did arena surveys, site surveys, city surveys, all of that. And the OHL was, was ready to bring both of those teams in. Um, and they ended up staying.

It's a long, it's a long conversation, but they ended up staying in the USHL. Um, spent a lot of time in that rink in Muskegon cause our farm team used to be there. Okay, yeah, yeah. When I was in Pittsburgh, our farm team was there. Like I still do think that the OHL will expand and I still do think that the QMJHL

is going to expand into the United States. And right now, does it not feel to you like everything's just on pause right now until all the other issues get sorted out in this new reality, in the new development reality, which now includes four players that go to the CHL, now includes the option of going to play in NCAA hockey? I do. I know two different groups that want to buy teams in the Quebec league and moving to the United States as expansion teams. They don't want to move teams from Quebec.

They want to buy the rights to a team to play in that league. And these are prominent businessmen in Boston. They definitely, they definitely want to do that. You know, it's, um, it, it, it really is interesting. businessmen in Boston. They definitely wanna do that. It really is interesting. And then through all of this too, and there are players that are leaving, through all of this too, you wonder about what happens with the USHL,

through all of this. Like in a perfect world, everybody is healthy, everybody's a strong league, Everyone has, you know, a great development model and a great experience for players. Do you have a thought on what happens with the USHL in all of this? I think it survives. I think it does well. One of the good things is it's still a major development league for division one college hockey. Sure.

A lot of kids want to play college hockey and they think one of the ways of doing that is going through the USHL. I don't know if all the franchises survive there, but I do think the league survives. I do. I think the league survives. You know, BCHL losing Penticton in the BCHL and you know again I can speak to have my son played there for the great Freddie Arbenson. That's a major franchise to lose in that in that league. You know, it's gonna be interesting to see how things work out in the BCHL. Really interesting. Do you have a thought what this means and we're

focusing so much on you know 14 of the first 17 picks for CHL players Do you have a thought on with this new reality and we'll talk to Dan McKenzie about it later What the CHL needs to do what all the all three leagues need to do as far as the player Experience and improving the player experience So if you have a kid that's thinking about going you have something it gives them cause for pause Well, I think the biggest thing is to show the development that goes on in your league how enlightened a lot of your coaches are There's some really good coaching CHL the development ability tonight is just a massive Sales pitch for the CHL when you look at the CHL tonight. It's a gigantic sales. It's massive So this is a kind of stuff that carries favor.

And if you're a Canadian kid, I'm not saying it's always going to happen, but I broadcast nine World Juniors. It was hard to be a college player and play for Canada at the World Junior. It really was. I think playing in the World Juniors is a massive endorsement of being a really good hockey player. And so I don't know if it'll always be that way, but I think junior players have an unbelievable opportunity to represent their country.

And I think that's an important part of it. And I can also tell you this, had the rules been different, my son was drafted by Blaineville Bois-Briand. Had the rules been different and they would be like they are today, my son would have started in Blainville Bois Briand. That's where I would have put him. Really, hey? Yeah, I mean, it makes sense. I'm being honest with you. Yeah. The Calgary Flames are on the clock. Lanny McDonald is making the pick, which warms

all of our hearts. Lanny McDonald was the first hockey player I ever met when I was a kid. Lanny McDonald is the most amazing man. I worked for Lanny the last eight years in the Hockey Hall of Fame selection committee. We just exchanged fantastic texts the other day because that was his last meeting that he was chairing. So Lanny's time in the committee is up. One of the most amazing gentlemen

I've ever had the privilege of knowing in my life. He's just a fantastic human being. And it's funny too, we think of the personality, we tend to forget just how great a shooter when he played Lanny, that line with Darrell Sittler and Errol Thompson with the Toronto Maple Leafs was one of the best lines we've ever seen and, Pythagore Flames just drafted, I love this kid, Cole Reschne of Victoria.

Going to North Dakota, there you go. Going to Nodak next year, I know that really surprised a lot of people when he went, but Cole Reschne, most assists in a single season record for the Victoria Royals, 66. Reschne goes not the biggest player but you know I've had a conversation the people that have coached him before he's that instant accountability guy with his other teammates. He's not a church mouse, he's loud, he's not shy about sharing his opinion, and this guy works hard. Works real hard. He's gonna have the opportunity to work hard because

where he's going to play college hockey is unbelievable. University of North Dakota is a special hockey program, it really is. And it's not for the faint of heart. It's for guys that really want to be players. And being a kid that played in Victoria, but he grew up in Saskatchewan, I think this is an unbelievable opportunity for him to be near family and friends, but also to really see where he measures up against older players. I think it's great. Good for Calgary.

This is a player that needs developmental time and I think this will help them significantly, really will. He, you know, it's interesting. I was having a conversation last night, as a matter of fact, with Matthew Turcotte, former head coach of Blaineville, Bob Ryan, who you know. And coach. Very good friend. Coach of the U18 and he told me this one story.

I think it was a game against Slovakia. They were up one, their team Canada was up one nothing going into the third and Turcotte was in the coach's office going over something with the power play and Reshny kind of looks in and says like hey, do you mind if I do mind if I come and talk to you? Turcotte's like yeah, sure. He goes how about the power play? If I'm not on my strong side here, I go over here and I have stick down and it's, it's a different look. I'm just not feeling it over here. Next thing you know, come out, power play, open the,

open the, open the third period scores. They ended up scoring like three third period goals and just cruise. And Tercot said, I don't know how many kids, how many 17 year old kids would have done the same thing, like wandered in God said, I don't know how many kids, how many 17 year old kids would have done the same thing, like wandered in and said, can I participate in your own sort of private video session of the first couple of periods? But he said like, this is the maturity level of Cole Rushney. Calgary's getting a really good, listen, last year they killed it. Zayn Parekh, great pick in the first round. Awesome pick. Amazing pick. I think they nailed

it with Cole Rushdie too. I really. Because they're not going to rush him. You know, Jeff, you just know they're not going to rush him. There's no need to. And they trusted developmental process. Now he said major junior experience in Victoria is going to North Dakota. He's going to get pushed around in the NCHC. That's a hard division. That's a really hard league. And that's all good for them. That's what they want. And you know, one more thing on Matthew Turcotte. Can we break news on this show? Of course. Why not? So I'm going to bet money that Matthew Turcotte is going to be named head coach of team Canada for the Hylenka Gretzky tournament. That would make sense. I'd say all right.

And he's not coaching in Blaineville, Barbara anymore. But I'm telling you right now, if you're an owner of a major junior team and you want a high caliber coach, go hire Matthew Turcotte. Matthew Turcotte, 100 percent. And no longer is there the oh, he's French Canadian. He can only he can only coach in the queue. That doesn't happen. And he know his English is impeccable.

Yeah. No, no, no, no. He can coach anywhere. He's really good. Turcotte's a president. There's a little Alain, there's a little Alain Vigneault in Matthew Turcotte. I worked with Alain for two years.

He's got a great turn of phrase about him too. I always appreciated Alain Vigneault saying things like, hockey's easy. If your goalie's better than my goalie, you win., if your goalie's better than my goalie, you win, but if my goalie's better than your goalie, I win. Hockey's really easy. I do miss Elaine Vigno here in the quips from Elaine. So that's good, like the Calgary Flames,

who by the way, listen, we think they're gonna trade Rasmus Anderson at some point here. One year left on his on his contract looks like he sort of tested elsewhere. The Dallas Stars tried to get him last year I think of a lot of teams tried to get Rasmus Anderson last season but this is a team that's that's building through the draft, building through their prospects. Dustin Wolf just had the most incredible rookie season in nets. You know, blessed Lane Hudson and everything that he did and congratulations on the Calder. Just fantastic. But as far as, you know,

effects that a single player had on a team, man, what Dustin Wolf did last year was really good. Just remember. I just want him to be able to survive long-term because he's not an overly large person. How about Matthew Coronado? How about Matthew Coronado in the season he had there? He's a heck of a player. That was a heck of a pick. That was a really good pick. Coming out of the United States National Team Development Program, goes to Chicago, steals, ends up at Harvard. That was a really good pick by then. You know, once upon a time, and maybe this is too much of the Adam Fox thing,

teams were sort of skeptical about players that are going to Harvard. Because if you go to Harvard, you're going there to get your education, so you're gonna stay the full years, four years, and guess what that means? If you stay in the full, you're coming out a free agent. Calgary kind of had a little bit of pause about that one. Like, yes, I know it's Harvard. Yeah, I know it, because Jimmy Vesey did it to Nashville. Jimmy Vesey, 100%. Jimmy Vesey did it to Nashville. He did it to Nashville, no question. But I look at some of the other guys, like Donnie Sweeney didn't do it to Boston.

You know, Donato didn't do it to Boston. Teddy Donato. There are a bunch of them that came out. Hey, Neil Sheehy. You remember, you were a kid growing up on a prairie. Oh boy, I loved them. Neil Sheehy was as tough as they came when he Calgary Edmonton series. He was a tough cat. You know there are a lot of guys that came out of Harvard that were really

good players. Really good players. You know I love Neal Sheehy. Neal Sheehy was the last player in the NHL to wear the number zero. Double zero. The zero, double zero. I think double zero was John Davidson was the last to wear double zero. JD, you're right, JD. JD was like, he had zero. And I remember I interviewed him once a million years ago. I said, why did you wear a zero? And he said, my skill level was the furthest you could find

away from Wayne Gretzky. So I tried to find a number to represent that. He's 99, I'm zero. A really good friend of mine, So I tried to find a number to represent that he's 99. I'm zero. A really good friend of mine. His name is Alan Litchfield. He's a big guy like Neil. She, they were defense partners at Harvard. And I think coach Cleary had to do everything in his power to get them

to behave the night before games. Oh, is that right? Yeah. These are this Alan Litch he's a huge man. He's as big as Neil. They were playing defense together. It's unbelievable to think about now. It really is.

That's amazing. Congratulations to the Calgary Flames. Congratulations to Cole Rushney. Cole Rushney, yeah. This is a wonderful achievement for this young man. The St. Louis Blues are on the clock right now. This is, you know what this is Pierre? This is Doug Armstrong's last pick as general manager

of the St. Louis Blues. Alex Steiner. Steiner's taking over. Takes over next season. You know what I wonder? And I don't know, I don't know, even if it's true, I don't know if he'd ever cop to it. I was having a conversation with someone in St. Louis the other day about they redid the logo and the colors and all that.

And you know, Alex Dean, when he was in St. Louis, always maintained that, you know, those colors and that logo was the favorite, was his favorite. And he thought it was the coolest look. I don't know if this is something that Alex was the favorite, was his favorite. And he thought it was the coolest look. I don't know if this is something that Alex Steen pushed for, but would it surprise you if he did?

Wouldn't surprise me at all. You know what's amazing about Steener on that, and I send him a long note about it. When he accepted the demotion from Craig Berube from the first line to the fourth line in 2019 when they won the Stanley Cup, Barbachev was one winger and Sunkwis was a centerman. That line basically dominated huge portions of games, but Alex was a driving force of that and it just showed you. He checked his ego at the door. It's a big reason why I do think he'll be an amazing manager.

And it comes by an honesty. Wasn't his father one of the most underrated players in the history of the NHL? Don't you think? Don't you think he's one of the most underrated players? Yeah. So, how old am I? I'm old enough to say I coached when Alex or Thomas Steen was playing. So, I'm just telling you, Steener was a I'm just telling Steiner was a heck of a player.

He was absolutely. We just talked about Matthew Turcotte a second ago, just because we just got picked by St. Louis. Oh, no, Carboneau. Justin Carboneau. Carboneau just got picked by the St. Louis Blues, Alex Turcotte. We think of Alex Turcotte, Matthew Turcotte here, sorry, we think of Matthew Turcotte, his former coach at Blaineville, Bob Ryan. When you think

Carboneau, you think of the shot. This guy can shoot flat out. Yep. So here's my big question to you, my friend. He can rip it. He grips it and he rips it. Is. Is he going to stay or is he going to Boston college? That is the million dollar question. He is not committed yet. Jeff is not committed and there's a big thing going on. They're not sure. So Blainville is in go for it territory. Correct. They are going for it next year. And I don't know that this team could afford to lose Justin Carboneau to Boston college.

That whisper is no longer a whisper. It's been out there. It's been openly talked about and still nothing from the player official yet. But this is a big year for the Armada. McNamara, you're closer to it, you know it better than I do. Yeah, no, you're bang on.

Everything you said is spot on. I know one thing, Greg Brown's a head coach at Boston College and I know he flew out to LA this morning. Part of it was to see James Hagens. And I guarantee you the other part of it was to see if Justin Carboneau was coming to play for him. Because you gotta remember who he lost.

He lost Ryan Leonard to Washington, and he lost Gabe Perot to the New York Rangers. And so I think he was envisioning Carboneau coming and playing on a line with James Hagens. And then you're talking about double trouble. That's a big problem for the opposition in hockey. Huge problem. James Hagens getting Carboneau the puck.

And the thing we know about Carboneau too is when he's like, I don't want to say he gets pouty when he doesn't score, but with goal scorers, something happens when they don't score. Right? Like when the puck's not going in for a guy. score but with goal scorers something happens when they don't score right like when got when the puck's not going when the puck's not going in for guy you've seen I'm sure you've seen it before with a lot of guys and so Justin Carboneau is not that different but if you have someone if you have someone like James

Hagans feeding your grapes that's what I'm talking about so and he look at Hagans got a lot of experience. You know, Ryan Leonard's not exactly an easy guy to play with. So you got Ryan Leonard, you got Gabe Pearl. So if you're not getting those guys to puck at the right time, you're going to hear about it. And the truth of the matter is, he didn't hear too much from those guys because he got them to puck on time.

James only had 11 goals last year, but he had 37 points in 37 games in Division 1 college hockey to be a point game player. And especially last year in hockey East, which was a murderer's row every night was like the Superbowl in that league. It was crazy how intense the games were. So for Higgins, if I'm carbon, I'm looking at that, but you made the best point. I think Blainville is loading up and I think it's going to be very tough for him to leave. Let's go for it. Let's go for a season there. Yeah.

Do we have, can you, Zach, can you flash up the prospect board for the St. Louis Blues? I'm curious what's going to happen with this team next. Really good season this year. Lost a tough series to the to the Winnipeg Jets. If you have a look at you know some of the the players who are to jump out right away Jimmy Snuggeroode and Dallabor DeVosky. Right like those are the those those are the two here that that really jump. How frisky do you

think St. Louis is this offseason? Last year was the offer sheets. Last year Armstrong stole the show with the two offer sheets at the Edmonton Oilers. What do you think happens this offseason? I don't think there is frisky. I think one thing they need to look at though is depth and goal. I think they're worried about maybe Holford moving on and I think that's a bit of a problem So yeah, look at that. You might get offer sheeted just as an aside. You think for might get offer sheeted you could that's why I'm saying that And I think snugga will take a huge step and I think divorce she's gonna be a really good player there

So I think internal developments really gonna help them a lot But we'll see we'll see I don't know how frisky they'll be this year. I think they were real frisky last year as the Edmonton Oilers. Yeah, what did you make of that by the way? And here's the one thing I wonder about this year. Like this year, considering how much of a jump the salary cap is gonna have in the next two years,

it almost feels like this might be the last summer of offer sheets because everybody's going to have room for a couple of years. I thought last year when they chose to bring in Victor Arvidsson from L.A. and Skinner from Buffalo, I said they're getting redundant at that position with the scoring wingers and it's going to cost them players. That's what I said at the time and it did. And I think obviously St. Louis, I don't fault them at all. They were trying to make their brand better. Broberg was a heck of a pickup and we've all watched Holloway a ton. And I just remember talking to the former coach at Wisconsin, Tony Granado about Holloway

and he's like, this guy's unimpeachable, he's fantastic, he's just a great player. And St. Louis figured that out. And I think Edmonton figured it out too. But they handcuffed themselves, and Stan Bowman wasn't there when they did it. When they brought in Arvidsson, when they brought in Skinner, they put themselves in a tough spot, they really did.

Do you think the Oilers were just, I mean obviously they were, just concerned about like, look, if we're gonna do anything, if we're gonna get back back to the Stanley Cup, we need depth and we need guys that can produce on the bottom. And I don't think they ever thought that anybody's going to offer sheet those two guys. I just don't think they did. Because offer sheets aren't a real thing. Until they are. Until they're gone. Armstrong says, I don't care. I can offer sheet the pair of them. Yeah. That's fascinating. Okay. So a quick little go over as we're at pick 20 now with the Columbus Blue Jackets,

and you get there in a couple of seconds. The story has been the dominance of the CHL, the three CHL leagues so far. I always hate to do the like who's winning, who's losing, because you don't know, this is development time here. But has anybody really turned your head? Has anybody done something? Philly head? Philadelphia. Porter Marton at six and then making the trade with Pittsburgh and getting Jack

Nesbitt. They're trying to create an organizational identity. We're gonna be big, we're gonna be mean, we're gonna be hard to play against. And we brought in a coach that did all those things. He was mean, he's hard to play against, and he had an identity, and we want players that are going to be just like him. So Philadelphia's won. I can't say enough about the Islanders. I think Matthew Schaefer's, I think you agree with me. He's just special. He's special. And they made their team better, and I also like what they did with Acheson. I do I like that You know, so I look at the Islanders. I like what they did And Sam Metropolitan team so far you like the Flyers and you like the island. Yeah so far players going into the metro

That Michael Mesa to me you put him in that situation in San Jose with some of the skill they have. Yeah. Buckle up, buckle up. How'd you, how'd you like to? It's not going to happen this year, but it's going to be in a year from now. How'd you like to run that power play, Pierre? What do you do? What do you do on that power play?

So you do what we did in Pittsburgh when you got Ron Francis, Joey Mullen, Mario Lemieux, Paul Coffey and Larry Murphy. You let them figure it out. You go to the NHL and you say, are we allowed to play with two pucks? Cause one puck's not enough for all these guys. Unbelievable. We used to have this big problem because Mario didn't want to be on the one time situation, he wanted to play on the icing line, he didn't want to play on the

hash mark. And they were like, no, no, we're going to put you on the top of the circle for the one timer. That was the underrated part of Mario's game that nobody talked about. He could really hammer a puck, like watch him hit a golf ball. He could still do that, but he can hammer a puck. And then finally we convinced them and it worked. It worked pretty well.

It had nothing to do with us. It had to do with us. It had to do with him. So let's see what has... Oh, Pyotr Andrianov is the first goaltender selected. Wow. Columbus Blue Jackets. And they just traded a goalie too to Florida. Danil Tarasov, yes, to make way for Jet Greaves, who looks like he's the goal tender of the future,

had a great back end of the season for the Columbus Blue Jackets. This one is we thought I thought Joshua Raffenspergen would would would would go. I thought he'd go on first. I did. Yeah, this one is off the board, off the board. Yeah. Now, hang on. Remember when Yarmulke Kikulian and drafted Yigur Chinnikov? I do.

Who's that? I do. That's our guy. I don't care if you don't think he belongs in the first round. That's our guy. Now, our guy. I don't care if you don't think he belongs in the first round. That's our guy. Now it's a different general manager. It's Don Waddell. Clearly they've identified an organizational need. If you have a look at some of their first round draft picks most recently, Caden Lindstrom last year, who had the back issue and didn't play until the end of the season,

with the Madison Hat Tigers. We've talked about Adam Fantilly. David Juricek is now a member of the Minnesota Wild and Denton Matejchuk. We had waited for a long time here. Clearly they've identified netminding as an issue here. netminding as an, as an issue here. Yeah. It's in, it's interesting for sure. Trevor Timmons, if I'm not mistaken, is still a major part of their amateur staff there in Columbus. Um, he's not afraid, doesn't run with the herd.

If you know what I mean, he's not afraid to go out and pick players that other people don't have rated that high. But I, this isn't But this is definitely interesting. There's no question. You know what sometimes happens too, and this normally happens in the second round with goaltenders is once one team takes a goalie, then it's like, there's a run on goaltenders.

Oh, the first goaltender has been selected. I gotta make sure I get mine. Right? So maybe the goalie from PG, the goalie from Michigan goes now. Like I really wonder about Jack Ivan Kovac too. I really do. And here's why I know he's not a big goalie. Okay? We know that. He's not a big goaltender. But I think everybody looks at his dad who's 6'5".

And says like maybe he's gonna have like goaltender. But I think everybody looks at his dad who's 6'5". And says like, maybe he's going to have like the late growth spurt here. He's a competitive goaltender, the real battler, great anticipatory goal, like all of it. He's a really, really good goalie. Larrado's got himself a good goaltender with the Wolverines next year.

We should have asked JR when we had him on talking about Porter Martone, about Jack Ivan Kovac. Just waiting for him to grow into that size but you do wonder if you start to maybe see maybe see a little bit of a round goalies here do we or don't we? I don't I'd be surprised I got my first draft was 1990 and it was really interesting because there was a guy that went at number 20 named Marty Burdur and there was a guy I think that went at number 11s and then was Trevor and And you remember he was playing for Brandon at the time. Yep. I saw a couple of games. He went into Moose Jaw one night. I think he made like 65 saves and a two, one loss.

He was just unbelievable. How good he was. All right. The, uh, the Ottawa senators are up next. Uh, Steve Steyo's team. Um, listen, this was a good year for the Ottawa senators. That's an organization. It was, it should have been, they were on time finally. Yeah. It, uh, it, it was a good year for the Ottawa Senators. That's an organization. It was.

It should have been. They were on time, finally. Yeah, it took a while. Holy smokes. It did. But they got there. Where are you at with one of your old teams? I really like the direction they're going.

You can see what's happened. I think the biggest thing is the development on defense. They need to definitely add on the right side of their defense. They're a little like Buffalo. They're not deep enough on the right side. I think eventually they'll get there. They're deep enough, especially down the middle now. I don't know what they're doing at Clojure.

Brady's really taking another step, which is hugely important for them. Ridley Gregg is a vastly underrated player. I think he's going to have another real good year. There's a lot to like. There's a lot to like up there. Shane Pinto's he's a Patrice Bergeron type player, not as good. Can I ask you about Shane Pinto? As a third line center, do you consider that, I mean, the term that I always use is luxury item. Like I look at Brad Marsh and like he's a third line winger for you. That's a luxury item. Yep. Can you can Shane Pinto play higher? You can. He can be a second line center. He really can. And I think eventually he will.

But right now he's looking at Anton Lundell, let's do that. Let's do that experiment. Made a massive difference playing with Lusitorenin and Marchand, would you agree? I think that's what Pinto does for Ottawa right now until he's ready to take the next step. But I love what you just said, Jeff, he's a luxury item. There's no question, he's a luxury item.

Okay, so trade here between Ottawa and Nashville. Okay. So pick 21 goes to the Predators in exchange for picks 23 and 67. Okay, so 23. Is there a set formula for this, by the way? In terms of? In terms of teams understand like okay if I'm gonna if I'm gonna trade for your pick I'm gonna move up to like this is this is what the comp is there already I get a an

agreed-upon compensation or is it still done by vibes? Yeah some guys I'm sure have analytic equations now or they say, well, your percentage of getting this will be that, whatever, I'm sure they do. I didn't work in any kind of system like that, but I'm sure that there are systems like that. Okay, as we pause here, ever so briefly here, Zach has a CHL draft board that he has for us. Okay, so here's what we're looking at. 16 picks in the first 20 so far. Seven from the OHL. The OHL got added early in the top 10 and then there was that run by the

Western League as well which was quite impressive and the QMJHL. Justin Carboneau going to the St. Louis Blues and Caleb Dainwaye going to the Utah Mammoth. So 16 of the first 20. So CHL still on track here to break their record of 22. They are. They definitely are. Or come close. We still have some names here. We'll see which direction the Nashville Predators go. So this is Nashville's second pick in the first round. They took Brady Martin, who's having his draft party at his farm because he was working on his farm today. That was awesome, Viz, by the way. That was so good. That really was excellent. Well, I'll tell you what, let me blast that that trade board on. Pierre, take a pause for a couple of seconds here.

We're gonna get back to Nashville for a couple of seconds, but Zach, let me talk over this board here a little bit. Well, Pierre goes to get a quick drink of water. So Ottawa has traded this pick, so we're gonna get to Ottawa in a second. Zach, if you could flash up the CHL board really quickly. Carter Yakimchuk, by the way. Maybe we should have asked Paul McFarlane about him. Coaches him with Calgary, the hitmen.

So the CHL right now has been on an impressive run. It started off with Matthew Schaeffer of the OHL's now has been on an impressive run. It started off with Matthew Schaeffer of the OHL's Eerie Otters, Michael Misa of Saginaw. By the way, that is two American-based OHL teams going one and two in this one. So there we go. So seven for the OHL, seven for the Western League, and two for Quebec. 16 so far from the entire CHL. Like the run was Schaeffer Miesa, Anton Frondal goes to Chicago, De Noyé, Martin Marton, Higgins to BC, and then the run between the OHL and the Western League just kept going. Jake

O'Brien to Seattle, Radham Mertkota-Buffalo, Roger McQueen from the Band in Weekings goes to Anaheim, Ben Kindle from the Calgary Hitmen goes to the Pittsburgh Penguins. They trade that pick, the next pick, the 12th pick to the Philadelphia Flyers. They take Jack Nesbbit, big center for the Windsor Spitfires. Carter Baer goes to Detroit. Jackson Smith goes to Columbus. Braden Kutz goes to the Vancouver Canucks. Victor Eklund, the Swedish forward, goes to the New York Islanders who had that pick from the trade with Noah Dobson, the two first-rounders. Kishan Aitchison is the the second pick in the Noah Dobson trade. He also goes to the Narek Islanders and

then Cole Reshtey to the Calgary Flames. I really really love that pick. Justin Carboneau from the Cube, that's their second pick in the first round. Goes to the St. Louis Blues. Piotr Andropanov goes to the Columbus Blue Jackets, the first netminder off the board. And now we await the selection for the Nashville Predators. Do we have a pick yet? Cameron Reed. That's a really nice pick. So Cameron Reed is a defenseman for the kitchen arrangers. Cameron Reed is a really good, safe sometimes sounds like a pejorative, but he's a really good safe defenseman. Highly skilled.

We're going to try to get Mike McKenzie, the general manager of the kitchen arrangers on the program here in a couple of seconds as Cam Reid goes to the Nashville Predators. Kitchener's done a great job under Mike McKenzie. Joe Burch is the the president, the team president there, and he's coached by one of the most interesting coaches in all of junior hockey. His name is Usi Ahokas, who came over from Finland figuring the way to get his name known in North America, specifically in NHL circles, was to come to North America and coach junior hockey. And he coaches the Kitchener Rangers. He's a big believer in the future of hockey,

his positional hockey and he's been the coach that's helped to shepherd Cameron Reed through his time with the Kitchener Rangers. Nashville, Pierre, while you were out for a couple of seconds there, Nashville drafting Cameron Reed, the defenseman from the Kitchener Rangers. I was just going on and one of my favorite coaches that gush about is UC Ahokus. This is, I think this guy's gonna make a marvelous NHL coach one day. Do you have a thought on Cameron Reid? Real good, smart, safe defenseman.

One man breakout can really skate, needs to get stronger. Michael McKenzie's done a great job with the Kitchener Rangers. I spoke with Michael the last couple days. One of the biggest things that's gone on with his organization was the hiring of UC Ahokus, as you correctly said, and he's made a massive difference for Cameron Reed. You know, Kitchener is a really good program. It's a legendary.

It's a blue blood program in the Ontario Hockey League. They've developed so many good players over time and Cameron Reid's one of those players. He's going to play in the NHL. How long he plays depends on how strong he gets, how big he gets, but he's going to play in the NHL. This is a really good pick for Nashville. They're not afraid, by the way, in Nashville to take undersized guys that can move the puck.

I think about Sammy Girard being one of those guys. Alex Kelly is another one. Ryan Ellis is another one. So, you know, you go down the line and hey, Roman Yossi is a heck of a player, but he's not getting any younger. And so, you know, you look at it, this is a really good pick for Nashville. Barry Trotz has had a good day so far too. When you look at it, I was just thinking about it. He gets Brady Martin and he gets Cameron Reed in the first round. Those two Those are two players are going to help his team a lot. You know what this is?

This is sort of, and maybe this is just a stereotype of the, of the national predators, but for the longest time is, as you can recall, they did all their shopping in the Western league, especially with the fenceman. And now, you know, so far on this draft from the first round, they've done all their shopping in the Ontario league between the Susie Marie Greyhounds and the, and the kitchen arrangers. And now they had character. What and the, and the Kitchener Rangers. And now, They add character.

What's the, and adding character. Yeah, they really are. They, they really are. We'll, we'll endeavor to get Mike McKenzie here on the show to, to gush about Cameron Reed. You know, I, I had wondered, I'll tell you Pierre, I had wondered about him at 15 to Vancouver. Really?

That was, that was, I wondered if it was going to be between Cole Reschney and Cameron Reed with the Vancouver Canucks at 15. He ends up going 21st to the Nashville Predators, the Pittsburgh Penguins on the board next after they made that trade with the Philadelphia Flyers. Yes. And they ended up taking Jack Nisbett. So the Pittsburgh Penguins back on the board as Kyle Dubas doing one of the things that he always loves doing, trading down. That used to be Brad Trelevings by the way. The one thing that you could always guarantee in the draft was no matter what happened in the draft, the one thing you can guarantee was Brad Treleving was gonna trade down for the longest time. That was always Brad's MO, I'm going to trade down and pick up more assets.

If it works, it's good. If it works, it's good. If it doesn't work, it's not so good. I know. Where do you feel the Pittsburgh Penguins are at? I mean, there's a, Malkin is going to play one more year. After that, it's going to be either retirement or a contract somewhere else. Eric Carlson's name is very much out there. You know, there was a time where, I think there's a couple of years, when Bill Zito first took over the Florida Panthers, there was a belief that, you know, for a couple of years, he was really trying to bring in Eric

Carlson into that mix. I wonder if that gets revisited. We'll see as we don't know what's gonna happen with Aaron Echiblad, most likely he's probably leaving. But where are you at on the Pittsburgh Penguins right now? Oh, they're in a rebuild. No question they're in a rebuild. What's gonna happen with Sidney Crosby?

You think he's gonna wanna stay to go through the rebuild? I'll tell you what. I think that's a big question. It's a massive question. And look, look, like the goal of the future, because I think they're probably going to end up moving Tristan Jarre, Joel Blomquist is going to be their guy. I like Harrison Brunneke a lot. But the thing about the Penguins is like one of the jobs now is to restock the cupboard for so long. Specifically under Jim Rutherford it was, we have Crosby, we're going for it, we have Crosby, we're going for it, and now oh Bill Zonin. Bill Zonin from the QMJHL just got picked. From Ru-Anne. From Blaineville now too right he's he's yeah from that oh wow look at that all right Bill's on and that's who Pitt took on yeah Bill's on and so that is from the queue so now it's

you know what's interesting about that I was gonna run a name by you. I know it's amazing. I was gonna ask you, is Lakovich from Moose Jogging going to Pittsburgh? I was wondering if he wouldn't go to Pittsburgh. I gotta think he's coming closer pretty soon. He's a real nice winger. Bill Zonin here who has played in Rue Amp for the last three years, I want to say Pierre and now I was a member of Blaineville, Bois-Briand, Armada, the team that we just talked about who were in the, and in go-for-it mode with Justin Carboneau. Good for him.

That's a real nice spot for Bill Zonin. So like, look, like the Pittsburgh Penguins, picking up draft picks, picking up prospects and, and stock on the shelves. But back to your question about Sidney Crosby, it's one that we wondered about last year, even before trade deadline. Like you remember the day where things got a little bit crazy and the Colorado avalanche suddenly traded Miko Ratanen to the Carolina Hurricanes. And we knew that Taylor Hall was on the move, but didn't know that he was going to be involved in that package and was going to be a three-way deal.

And then there were all kinds of rumors about Eric Carlson, which I checked on, that got shot down. And then there are all sorts of, you know, various media members tweeting out pictures of Denver and wondering about Sidney Crosby. I think it's a legitimate question. Like honestly, Pierre, I go back and forth on the Crosby question. One, he's super competitive and wants to win and it was great watching him at the Four Nations, Crosby playing games that were meaningful. It was awesome. We'll feel the same way next year the Olympics in Italy. And the other side of me says as intensely competitive as Crosby is, he's also intensely loyal. And I think if you're Kyle Dubas, Jason Spezza, the entire management staff for the

Pittsburgh Penguins, if something is gonna happen with Sid Jason Spetzel, the entire management staff for the Pittsburgh Penguins, if something is gonna happen with Sidney Crosby, he has to initiate it. I don't get the feeling that anyone there is gonna go to Sid and say, would you like to go somewhere else? I think if something's gonna happen, it has to be initiated by him.

I don't think the organization would go to him proactively. No, I agree with everything you just said. And here's the cool part about what you just said. He hadn't played a playoff game in three years. That's significant for somebody that's as competitive as he is. I think the Four Nations was a great respite for him.

The fact that they won was huge, but knowing the intensity of the player and the person, I have a hard time believing he wants to go sign up for this the rest of his career and not have a chance to win the Stanley Cup again. I have a hard time believing it. Yeah, there are just some guys though that don't even think that just, I don't know, maybe they want their hockeydb.com just to have one team. So let me, I hear what you're saying. And then, you know, like as you mentioned, like with Dan earlier, it was like Minnesota, Minnesota, Dallas, Dallas, Dallas, Detroit. So let me throw this one at you. Okay. Was Raymond Burke a great player?

Of course he was Hall of Famer. Look at his career. Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, Boston, oh Colorado and then Colorado again. Two Colorado's. But he picked how he wanted to go out. Raymond did. I have so much respect for Raymond.

You know, when you drop a game plan, whether it's in the playoffs or the regular season, heated rivalry type situations. So when I was in Pittsburgh, Boston, Pittsburgh was a whole lot of nasty. And we played them two years in a row in the Eastern Conference Final. When you help drop a game plan to basically annihilate another player, and you see how the guy comes out of it with so much class and decorum and athleticism, you say, man, oh man, that guy's special. And that to me, that's what Raymond Bort personified. And then I had to do it again when I went to Hartford. And trust me, in those days, and I think you remember, Hartford Boston was not for the faint of heart.

Oh, no, no, those are great games. Those were intense games. And so I'm just telling you, I have so much respect for him. If he could do that, Jeff, if he could do all that time in Boston and then go to Colorado, I Don't know why Sid couldn't do that in Pittsburgh and I'm not trying to run sit out of Pittsburgh when it's all said and done I'm a penguin. Okay, I'm not trying to I'm just telling you the truth. That's what I see myself as but I just know how intense it is. It's really intense But I just know how intense it is. Sid's really intense. Yeah, he really, again, that's going to be by his hand and that's going to be his decision.

And if he wants to stay, I'm not going to fault him. And if he wants to leave, I'm not going to fault him either. Let's get to our next guest. We just talked about him a couple of seconds ago. He is Mike McKenzie, the general manager of the Kitchener Rangers, Cameron Reed, now a member of the Nashville Predators, selected 21st overall. Mike McKenzie is poised to join us now. Mike, are you there? I'm here. Can you hear me all right?

Yeah, I think we kind of got you. Okay, so Mike, first of all, congratulations. It's always good when your player goes in the first round. Can you share a thought or two on Cameron Reed defenseman Nashville Predators? We're just really happy for cam and his family. He had an unbelievable season for us, and he's such a great kid That we thought this would would be the end result when we picked them a couple years ago But it's been a long journey for him and his family and everyone that supported him. So we couldn't be happier for Cam and we're super excited to see his name pop up there.

Michael, as an NHL player, who do you see Cam Reid being like? There's a couple of guys that come to mind, you know, pretty high praise some of these guys, but guys like Josh Morrissey, Duncan Keith, Gustav Forsling. They're all guys that maybe aren't the biggest guys in the world. They're not 6'4", 6'5", defensemen, but they use their feet extremely well. Such fluid skaters, they can provide some offense, they can move the puck. They have a bit of bite to their game. So I think he's in the mold of those guys. And obviously, if he can be one, they have a bit of bite to their game so I think

he's in the mold of those guys and obviously if he can be one of those guys he's he's going to make a lot of money and be in pretty good shape but those are those are the kind of profile of players that I would I would put him in. I think I speak for Pierre we respect how you think. By the way Ottawa just drafted Logan Hensler from Wisconsin so two goals 10 assists in 23 games with Wisconsin last year. What can you tell us about, because we've talked so much about Cameron Reid the player, what can you tell us about the young man that he is and what can you tell us about the family? He's an awesome kid. He's a kid that guys in our locker room gravitate to even as a younger player.

Very mature, very comfortable in his own skin. I think that's a big reason why he's just continued to get better. Comes from a really good family, Bill and Tanya. Real good support system, great people. Um, so it's no surprise that, uh, he's a character guy. He's, he's going to be a leader on our team this coming year. We're the letter for us for sure. Um, but yeah, really mature beyond his years and just an overall great character kid. Hey, Michael, you were a star player at St. Lawrence University. Now you're running a major junior team. How are you seeing things evolve

between the CHL and the NCAA? Star player is, you must be using star very loose. Nobody knows your game better than me, Michael McKenzie. So I'm going to call you a star player. I'll take it. I'll take it. Yeah, it's definitely interesting times. There's no doubt. I think it's one of those things that Every month or two it continues to change and it's a very fluid situation So we'll see how it shakes out. It's You know, it's obviously important that you know when we get players in Kitchener Our job is to you know Develop them and make them love playing for Kitchener

and want them to stay. But I think everyone now in the CHL is going to be forced to really do a good job with their players and treat them the right way. And that's something that we've always tried to do. But we're even we're going to have to up our game here and make sure that Kitchener is a place they love to play and they develop when they're there. You know, it's interesting that you mentioned that because I was going to come back and talk about, you know, as far as player development goes now more so than ever, it's important to have the right coach and you and I have talked about this before countless times. I have all the time in the world for you, C. Ahokus,

your head coach in Kitchener. Do you have a couple of words about someone who has as bright a future as someone like Cameron Reid has with the Nashville Predators? Ahokas has a very bright future in professional hockey one day. Yeah, he's done a great job for us and he's a great person and a great coach and we're lucky to have our whole staff. He's obviously the leader of that group and the man in charge and gets a lot of the recognition. But we've got great assistant coaches, great strength coach, great goalie coach, and the list goes on and on.

But yeah, UC has been great for us. You obviously want coach every year, but coming over from Europe, that was a really big step for him and a big risk that a lot of guys, you know, aren't willing to take. And he put himself out there and he's done a great job for us. And it's shown in our results over the last two years, winning a lot of hockey games and being right in the mix every year. So we're really fortunate to have him and the rest of our staff. I just want to tell you how proud I am of you.

What a program you're building there. You already built there. And I love the fact you don't run with the herd. That means a lot to me. Thanks, Pierre. I appreciate the kind words. Well, listen, Mike, yeah, on behalf of all of us here, thanks so much for stopping by.

It's a great day, certainly for Cam and Reid, great for his family, and it's always a great reflection on the organization from top to bottom. Yourself, UCA Hocus, Joe Birch, everybody involved. Congratulations to everybody at the Kitchener Rangers today. Yeah, thanks for having me, guys, and enjoy the rest of the drafts here. Awesome, thanks. Mike McKenzie, who's the the general manager of the the Kitchener Rangers, the son of legendary hockey insider who

invented the position, Bob McKenzie. Michael was a heck of a player, you know. So Michael was a heck of a player. I saw him a little at St. Mike's. I didn't watch a ton, but you've obviously watched him a lot more than I have. Give us a scouting report, Pierre. He was a good grinding winger. He got to the front of the net. He was not afraid. He had an amazing old Langsine tournament with now Hall of Fame coach Jack Parker saying,

I can't believe how good this McKenzie kid is. It was unbelievable. Michael had a really distinguished career. He played in the East Coast League, played in the American League a little bit, but Mike was a really good college hockey player. He really was, and a leader. You always knew he was gonna be involved,

whether it was coaching or managing, because he was really into that game. Not, you know, his father was an insider. Michael was into the game. He was really good at it. You know, I remember talking to Bob about, about Mike once and he talked about, you know, he, Mike never cut corners. Mike, you know, tried his hardest, like he gave this everything. So at the end of it, he really, he couldn't look back with any regret. You know, there's a belief that I always have, I think he's getting a little soap box here. There's a belief that I have that when it comes to sports,

hard work doesn't guarantee you anything except for one thing. Like hard work doesn't guarantee you championships, doesn't guarantee that you're going to get drafted, doesn't guarantee anything. Hard work doesn't guarantee you anything except the answer to one question, and that is, how good am I?

And if you completely apply yourself and go for it and do everything at your ultimate ability, You're going to get the answer to a question that a lot of people who don't apply themselves will never get. And that is, how good am I? And how many players have you seen, Pierre, that they may have been skilled and all that, but they didn't apply themselves completely, so they'll never really get that answer. They'll never really know how good they were. And I remember talking to Bob about this with Mike. Like, he gave everything.

So he got the answer. But generally, a lot of guys don't get the answer. Because they don't apply to themselves 100%. That's so well said. That's so perfect. So close. I'm like, no, man, that's fine. I'm not against those methods, but I knew. It's me, myself, and how this gonna be fixing my mind. I turn on the back end.

I turn down the music. I turn on the back end. I turn on the music. It's enough that I'm out of it You're sometimes losing Helping on the days that went wrong