The Sheet with Jeff Marek - Player Safety Under Fire ft. Aaron Portzline & Greg Wyshynski

Episode Date: March 16, 2026

Jeff Marek is joined by Greg Wyshynski and Aaron Portzline on today’s episode of The Sheet to break down a busy weekend around the NHL. Marek and Wyshynski open the show with a deep dive into the fallout from the suspension handed to Radko Gudas, examining how the league’s discipline process continues to spark debate across the hockey world. The conversation also touches on recent comments from Connor McDavid about the NHL’s Department of Player Safety and the broader conversation surrounding consistency, accountability, and how player discipline is handled in today’s game. Later in the show, Portzline joins to discuss the challenges facing the Columbus Blue Jackets, including ongoing frustrations with officiating, the team’s season-long struggles, and what it all means for the organization moving forward. It’s a wide-ranging conversation covering league discipline, star player reactions, officiating controversies, and the latest storylines shaping the NHL right now.#TheSheet #JeffMarek #GregWyshynski #AaronPortzline #ConnorMcDavid #RadkoGudas #BlueJackets #CBJ #NHL #HockeyTalk #NHLNews #PlayerSafety #NHLDepartmentOfPlayerSafety #HockeyPodcast #NHLDiscussionLeave a voicemail: https://www.speakpipe.com/TheSheetEmail us: [e-mail] TO OUR SPONSORS!!👍🏼 Fan Duel: https://www.fanduel.com/👍🏼Uber Eats: https://www.ubereats.com/caReach out to [e-mail] to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!If you liked this, check out:🚨 OTT - Coming in Hot Sens | https://www.youtube.com/c/thewallyandmethotshow🚨 TOR - LeafsNation | https://www.youtube.com/@theleafsnation401🚨 EDM - OilersNation | https://www.youtube.com/@Oilersnationdotcom🚨 VAN - CanucksArmy | https://www.youtube.com/@Canucks_Army🚨 CGY - FlamesNation | https://www.youtube.com/@FNBarnBurner🚨 Daily Faceoff Fantasy & Betting | www.youtube.com/@DFOFantasyandBetting____________________________________________________________________________________________Connect with us on ⬇️Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/daily_faceoff💻 Website: https://www.dailyfaceoff.com🐦 Follow on twitter: https://x.com/DailyFaceoff💻 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dailyfaceoffDaily Faceoff Merch:https://nationgear.ca/collections/daily-faceoffReach out to [e-mail] to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yeah, you know, I think the player safety has done their best. It's not an easy thing to do. You know, with that being said, I think that there is reason to take a look at how the whole process works. You know, every time there's a suspension, everybody complains about it. Well, why don't we take a look at the process and figure out if there's a better. way to make sure that both parties are happy because, you know, it seems like there's a lot of frustration there. I think there's mainly interest around as well, the owners, the GMs, they're in it too.

You can't suspend our player for too much, so they've... I can't speak to that. I can't speak to that. I'm not an owner. I'm not a GM. I'm a player, and I can say that from the player's player perspective, I think every time there is a suspension. Most times there's a suspension.

There is a lot of frustration from the player. our side. So why don't we take a look at the process and figure out a way that works for everybody? Okay, so that was pulling the pin out of a grenade right there and just rolling it into the NHL offices. And more specifically, Greg Wischinsky, rolling it into George Peros' office. And by extension, probably the end, not just the NHLs, but also, even though I'm sure he didn't intend to the NHL Players Association's office. We have a lot to get to on this one. So let's do the blueprint. Here's what's coming up on the program. because we're going to chomp into this one like a mule eating an apple.

Mule eating an apple. The blueprint is powered by Pac-Man in my background there. No, that's Greg Wyshinski. The blueprint is powered by Fandul. Download the app today and play your game on Fandil. Coming up, we're going to talk a lot about the DOPS. The Department of Player of Safety with Craig Wyshinsky from ESPN and ESPN.com. World Cup of Hockey, that announcement made today.

More on that. Congratulations, Alberta. Congratulations Prague. Aaron Portsline, because today's not just about the DOPS. It's also about the officials and power plays and Columbus versus the refs and the Columbus playoff push. And if we get a chance, I would like to make a point or two about Jet Greaves and his glove. He may have, I swear, we'll get to this with Portie coming up later on, he may have the fastest glove in the NHL already.

More on that, as the program glides through this Monday, March the 16th. All right, where do you want to begin with the Conner-McDavid? comments. And mind you, these comments are made right before the general manager's meetings. This is, of course, in response to the Radco Gud is five-game suspension by the Department of Player's Safety. We should point out as well. I mean, Judd Moldaver, Austin Matthews agent, is also the agent for Connor McDavid. That is the same agency, formerly Wasserman, now the team. And so that is probably part of this two. Moldaver made headlines late last week. One, you know, with the offense and then with the same.

suspension as well. But anyhow, where do you want to begin on this? And there's a number of different entry points here. I mean, Connor also has some beef with player safety, too, for the way that he was treated in the past according to how he saw things. First of all, was that Connor McDavid or Leo DiCaprio in one battle after another? He's a lot of revolution. Finally.

He's finally becoming the Chris Chelyos of his generation. Well, he's not threatening the commissioner like Chelyos famously did in 90s. not, there's none of that. But hang on to say, that is a good point. We never heard Gretzky talk like this. You know, the biggest, I can recall, this would have been the 94-95 lockout, the most defiant we ever saw Gretzky, one, when he was owed money by the coyotes, but two, during the lockout, he grew a goatee was his protest.

He wasn't going to make himself marketable, damn it. He was growing a goatee. And him and Messier were going out of Barnes. storming tour. Anyhow. Yeah, McDavid. I mean, do respect to Conner for saying something. At least he said something. Let's not treat this like it was a, you know, a treatise nailed to the front door of NHL headquarters or anything. I mean, he basically said people get upset when there are

suspension, so let's take a look at it. Well, okay, that's a start, which we'll get to in a second. I wanted to start with the actual suspension, because we obviously haven't talked since the five games for Guttis for ending Austin. Matthew C's season. I think we all think it's low, but I also think that we have to kind of look at what it was, which is that kneeing is tricky. Neying is typically one of those things. I think neighing and sucker punching are two of the things

the NHL is always low on. And neighing in particular, they're low on because, like, you got to have a little bit of intent to injure in order to get your six, seven, eight, nine, ten games, right? And I think that with neighing, even more so than boarding, there's a lot of nuance. If you watch the play with Goudis, there's a certain amount of defense he's trying to make there.

He's lunging with his knee. It looks like he's genuflecting in church as he's skating in on Matthews. Like it's a reckless play. But it's not like he went coast to coast and need the guy, like on purpose, right? He's trying to make a defense of play. And that was his argument in the hearing. Should it be more than five games? Of course it should be.

But they don't go more than five games. The NHLPA told the hockey news, there's only been one ban greater than five games for a knee-on-knee hit in like the last 15 years. And that was Matt Cook in the playoffs in 2014, which you'll remember they were just trying to suspend him for another round, which is why he ended up getting like seven games. So it's a tougher call without intent to injure.

And that's why I think they end up there. But the other part of this, too, that we've got to talk about. And I'm sure we're going to get into the nuance of this stuff, is that this is another five-game suspension. Just like Malkins was a five-game suspension. Just like every other time there's a five-game suspension. Alarine bells go off and siren star, blaring about how the NHL knows that if it's six plus, then it goes into a different arbitration

process where you're not appealing to the commissioner. You're appealing to the commissioner. And then when he says no, then you appeal to a neutral arbitrator who undoubtedly is going to knock this thing down. And so the NHL, I truly do believe the player. Well, I truly believe that player safety isn't sitting in a room being like, I don't know, guys, if we go six, they'll go to the arbitrator. but there's no question that they know how it works and that it has to certainly be a cap on things at some point, especially because they know the NHLPA is going to appeal it because they've just appealed everything under Paro

since Marty Walsh took over. The point that I've always made about all of it, first of all, the GMs can turn the heat up on this kind of stuff anytime. Mm-hmm. Right? And this is going to be that this is a point of discussion of the GM's meetings right now in Florida.

I don't think anything. Anything comes of it whatsoever. Because at the end of it, we already went through massive suspensions. Remember when Brandon Shanahan through 25 at Rafi Torres, I got negotiated down to 21, right? And there were a number of, there were a number of suspensions like that.

And that was Shanahan trying to, quote unquote, I suppose, correct the system, get players to pay you know suspend them into obedience was the was the idea the repeat offenders yes and and no this wasn't like all of a sudden

like first offense like you're getting 15 games so I'm not I don't want to misrepresent what Shanahan did but for repeat offenders yeah absolutely you are you are getting rung up and what did the managers do whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa now it's usually when it's your bowl that gets scored

I get that that's that's that's tried and true. You know, it's the, you know, your problem is your problem, but my problem is our problem. Like, that's always been the philosophy of general managers in the NHL. Your problem is your problem. My problem is our problem. So at any time, they can turn the heat up on this thing and say, we want more, we want heavier suspensions. But at the same time, the Players Association, who've always been able to duck and cover

on these things. And it's a tricky spot because they're representing both the player getting suspended and the player that's been injured. So right away, they're put in a conflict of interest situation.

Well, who are you defending here? But they have to be a part of this as well. Unless, and I can't see the NHL going for this, unless I can't see the PA going for this, they want to entertain the idea of a consistent, neutral third party, which I can never see in the end. No, that's, I'm saying.

But I'm saying, Hang on. I'm trying to figure out like what because I hate just like bitching at things that stare at me in the face. I always try to present a solution. That could be one of them. But I don't see any other way where the players association wiggles out of this one without a conflict. I'll give you two solutions. And then we can talk about what they actually should do. The first one's fire paros. No, that's like what everybody's writing. It's stupid and lazy and it doesn't really fix anything. But I do think he was a little low on this one. one.

Hang on. Pause on that one. I think he was low too, but not by much. I would look at like seven for this one. Eight. Seven or eight. So we're, we're equivalent over one game here.

But that is low. That is three games lower than where they did. But that that leads me to my first point, which is that these guys got to care more about optics. And they got to care more about vibes. And I know that they want to structure things and be by the book and try to make their precedent air tight. but it's okay to occasionally be like,

let's give this person an in-person hearing and that way people know we take it seriously and if we settle on five, it'll be five. But they basically said, we know what's going to be five. And so let's not waste everybody's time. You need a little dog and pony show. That's why people are so pissed off.

Like at least go through the motions that you think this is as serious as we all think it is. And the second thing is with the vibes argument, there's no way to quantify what a star player or important player is in this league. You can't put it in the CBA. You can't take like three years worth of points per game average and say that this person

should receive a different level of treatment than other players. I completely understand that. But this guy ended Austin Matthews season. I understand that. So then. So then. So then. So then.

So then. Maple Leafs and he's extremely important to the National Hockey League. He's coming off a gold medal with the United States. Maybe somebody would like to pay to watch one of those guys. Come to your town. Like, there's no getting around the fact that this wasn't Max Domey. Like, it's Austin Matthews.

I get that. Okay, so, you got injured on this play. So who makes the list. Okay. So then that's what I'm saying. I completely understand you can't quantify it. I completely understand that. That's the thing. Like, who's going to make that list? Like, show me the list of players where

you have to do, okay, we're considering, like, why can't, some of it, some, some of it is self-evident. I get that. Okay, obviously, Austin Matthews. Thank you. Conner-McDadegh, I get all that. But like, show me the list. Show me the list. Why do you need the list? Like, I understand that's the counter argument. Like, where do you stop? Like, is it the 30th leading score or whatever? Why can it just be going on art? Zachorenski. Why can it just be like, art, art is, I know it when I see it. Like, why can't we just be adults about this and be like, Austin Matthews is a much more important. player than 95% of the league.

I get that. We can just say that. We know it's true. I get that. You can't suspend to that for that. Of course you can. What's the thing? The law. Like we're talking because we're talking about taking money out of people's pockets here.

And if there isn't and if you don't if you cannot show that you have a logical consistency where everybody is treated equally, you make yourself vulnerable. you do it's first of all it's not the law it's fake it's fake hockey law like we don't actually have laws in hockey it's not like you can go to go to the constable what do you know what do you montreal fans trying to arrest no what isn't i oh yeah got about that my point but my point is this though i'm glad you got us there because if you really want the nchlpa to be part of this solution you have to drag them into the fight yes the way you drag them into the fight is by handing out suspensions that are egregious and that are over the top and that are here's eight games for taking Austin Matthews out of our league for the rest of the season

and then the PA has to come back and be like well we're going to appeal this and we're going to appeal that we're going to appeal that give them something to actually appeal if you look what's happened under marty walsh by the way they've appealed five times in three years only two of those appeals have been for suspensions of six games or greater the other ones are kind of like the T-Rex testing the electric fences on Jurassic Park to see how good they are when Marty Walsh took over the PA. So if you want to drag the NHLP into this fight, and I completely agree with you, and I think Pierre LeBron had a piece this morning on the athletic that said the same thing. You've got to start handing out the suspensions that are bringing them to the table and change the public perception. Because what is the public perception right now for five games for Goudis?

It's that paro should be fired and the NHL doesn't know what it's doing for player safety. So if you want to change that narrative, start doing something for player safety and put the onus on the NHLPA to be the ones that are saying, no, actually, this guy doesn't deserve this many games for taking out one of the top stars in the world from the rest of the season. Okay, you've got us up another rung here. Okay, good. So now we're growing this thing. So now what should the follow-up to Connor McDavid have been? The obvious follow-up question is, have you? talk to Marty Walsh about this.

Correct. Does this mean, Connor, that you are going to call someone at the NHL Players Association to discuss this? Like, again, no one wants to do the boring stuff. CBAs are boring. Negotiations are boring. I get it. It's, ugh. But this is what it leads to.

Like, you just went through a round of negotiations with the NHL. You want to look at player safety? Go look at the CPA. You just went. They just signed this. Mind you. I think they signed it early. I think a lot of us are all in the same page.

Like, what's the hurry? Signed. But they just went. No. Who did? Connor, have you looked at the CBA?

Guys, have you looked at the, like, that's the problem. All the cookies are in there. Like, that's where it is. Were you part of it?

Did you want to be part of it? Did you insert yourself into the process? Or, uh, uh, Austin Matthews got hurt and Goudas only got a five game suspension. Now I want to do something. something about it. You had a chance to do something about it.

They're like 50-50 escrow, how are our hotel rooms, and are we going to the Olympics in 2030? Oh, and one more, one more. And contracts. No, and dress code. That's right. Dress code and contract term. Here's an interesting, because I think you're right. And if you go into the CBA and you look at what it says about player safety, you'll get a better idea of why, as much as we can kill the NHL

for some of their decisions. And again, they were laid on Goudis. There are things in there that handcuff them. One of the things that always handcuffed them is fines.

The CBA, okay, says that players can be fined up to one half of one day up to $10,000 with a hearing and $5,000 without a hearing. But a lot of people don't know this.

If you go above... Take the CBA to the beach. $5,000 on a fine. Next summer. Take the CBA to the beach. you do a hearing, which is why all the fines end up being $5,000 fines, is that if you go above that, then it's got to be treated like a suspension. And so a player who makes $800K, let's say it makes $4,000 a day,

that means the NHL can fine him a maximum of $2,000. Like the math is screwed up in the CBA, and the idea that you can appeal a fine, like, which is essentially pocket change for these guys, is also nonsensical. So we've all, you and I are aligned on this, I think, for years, which is that if you increase the ceiling for fines, then maybe, maybe hitting these guys in their wallet without having to suspend them, would, would help the education process with some of these guys. That means guys like Connor McDavid got to go do the boring jobs. Sorry.

Like, you're Connor McDavid. Go do the boring job. Be part of the CBA negotiations. Go, go be part of it. Like he swings a big hammer. He's Connor, look it. Connor says one thing in the dressing room. And it's editorial after podcast, after radio show, after TV intermission, like all of it.

Like McDavid has brought this up. So now the follow up is, and what are you prepared to do about it? Like, again, I think that's, like, I always, whenever, whenever an agent will talk about the Department of Paper Safety and being more proactive about fines and suspension. and these types of things, I always wonder, like, and I don't disagree with them, but I always say, like, you know,

agents have skin in the game, too. Like, would you drop a client who concussed another player? Hmm. Okay? No. You can complain about the DOPS.

No, of course. Of course they wouldn't. Unless it was a repeat, repeat defender that could only find work in the KHL. But, like, of course they wouldn't. But, like, there's a lot of different layers

where people have skin in the game. game here. But I do think the big one is the players association in this. I'm with you on that one. Like, you can, the sidebar of like agents dropping players that concuss other players are violent. We know that's not going to happen. But the players association has to have some skin here. And the players themselves do too. Like if you want to go back, like, Kahnemikab is talking about going through the process or redoing the process. That's fine. So his next phone call is to Marty Walsh. Marty Walsh to Gary Batman, some of our big players here have a problem

with this process. Okay, let's talk. Here's what we have a problem with with the players association. And then it becomes a negotiation. Because you've already gone through this process of determining this is how we're going to conduct ourselves in the players association and the majority

of players could not be bothered to glance at it. Well, now there's an issue. And now it's going to be a negotiation if you want to change it. Here's the problem with that. Sorry. Here's the problem with that. It shouldn't be a negotiation. The saint, the saint,

escrow. It is. You know it is. But it shouldn't be though. You know what it should be? It should be the Shannahan submit. It should be the rule summit that we had during the lockout in 05 that made the game better.

It was two sides coming together and we're like, you know what? Let's just figure out some solutions to lingering problems. The players didn't have to give up the Olympics to get the trapezoid. Like, you know what I mean? Like, why does it have to be a negotiation? Why can't these guys like get Ron Hainsey and the player safety people

and Connor McDavid, maybe an agent or two just stick them in a hotel conference room and suss out what you guys want from both sides for player safety. If it ends up being the system we have now, so be it. But at least again it's all about making the effort. You know, make the effort to give the suspension you

want to give because you took out a star player. Make the effort to have a symposium of guys to see if you can come up with a new rule. Do something more than what you're doing and we'll all feel maybe better about all of this because we are constantly, as Connor noted, pissed off about all of this. The thing is about the NHL Players Association

is going to fight tooth and nail to make sure suspensions aren't high because it is their job as the players association to keep as much money in the pockets of their players as possible. That's just it. Unless you need is all of the guys that become victimized.

by those players to rally together and be like, actually, maybe maybe just once, maybe just once you tell someone no. There has been 11 appeals in nine years under George Perros. Okay. Maybe just say something. You know what, Ryan Hartman? Nah, what you did on the face off was pretty shitty.

You know what, Tom Wilson? After all this time, maybe don't do that. Then the PA could just say that because they also represent the hit-e and not just the hitter. That's what I'm saying. They are in complete conflict here. Complete conflict. And honestly, I cannot see a way unless they're going to go to an independent third party, which we're on the same page.

Anyone watching and listening will say the same thing like fat chance, Marik. No chance. Tu de van Kulur, you dream in technical America. No chance. Not going to happen. But outside of that. But we pause on that for a second. They won't do it because.

because they already feel that the neutral arbitrator, that in that process, the NHL does at least, doesn't know anything about hockey. It doesn't know anything about player safety. It doesn't know anything about anything. Hey, how about this?

Anything about anything. How about this one? Here's one. Okay. See, I love the idea. I love, and this is why you've seen all my stuff about,

like pick your opponent in the playoffs and all these types. I love moments where you force decisions. Okay? Like this is, you know, I read a lot of like war books and stuff like that because like that's like, life at its extremist, right?

We're like life and death decisions, right? So here's not that this is life and death decision, but forcing people into this, hang on, forcing people into decisions. How about using a formula the way that baseball does arbitration? How about each side comes in with a number? And the arbitrator decides

which number is closer to what the actual number should be. Instead of looking at the number that's already been assigned. That way, no one comes in too low and no one comes in too high. Because if you're coming way too low,

you ain't getting your number. You're not getting no. Like arbitrators, go look at that, go, get bent, no chance. And no one's going to come in too high. It's like, no, man, you're swinging for the fence.

No way. Uh-uh. No way, no how. And you pick the number that's closer. So both sides have to have like a real good look at themselves. What's the number I'm coming in with? That's, it might be a better system than what we have now

than the question that becomes like, who's the arbitrator because it does come back to whether or not they actually know anything about hockey, which is the NHL's contention about this process. I'm torn on to this whole thing, Merrick, because I generally think that player safety does a good job, and I generally am a fan of them being able to reach back into their history and offer precedent as to why things are ruled a certain way. And so I'm completely contradicting myself here by saying, yeah, it's Austin Matthews. You shouldn't be slavishly locked into only five games for go-goodus because that's how much

Nying gets. And it brings us to an interesting thing that. This is why, hang on, pause on that. That's why the managers in Florida right now need to be asked about this one. Because they're the one that can turn the heat up on the boiling frog. They're the ones that can do that. Okay. They, again, like if you want to like completely change the system, okay, then it's the

NHL and the Players Association getting together doing what Connor's talking about the process. That's going to maybe feature and probably would. feature a reopening of the CBA. Which they can do. Which they can do. Absolutely they can do. They can do it. They can do it.

I wanted to ask you about how they approach things because there is a philosophical question about what the NHL does with player safety. A lot of people saw Goudis as the deliverer of this hit. And they said that this person is a repeat offender. He's not. Not by their definition. He's not by their definition. But also it's been 2019 was his last suspension.

If you're somebody who's like, we should get, we should harken back to the days of Brandon Shanahan. Well, the days of Brendan Shanahan were you punish a guy to change his behavior. And, you know, a seven year stretch of not being suspended is a pretty good stretch of time for somebody who had four suspensions. So from that aspect, you got to say that player safety did something right. You know what? That's a good point because if he's like no suspensions for how long did you say it was, 2019? Seven years. So if he hasn't had a suspension for seven years, and then you just turn around, you know, he's cleaned up his behavior,

you turn around like whack him for 20. Like what's the message to everybody else in the NHL? Don't bother. It's, yeah, it's don't bother. That's exactly right. It's don't bother. But the thing that the NHL does, and I wanted to get your take on this, Merrick, the thing the NHL does is they do a thing that I colloquially will call stacking. Tom Wilson boards a guy.

He boards another guy. He gets four for the first one. and he gets eight for the second one. If he board somebody again, it's probably going to be 12 or more, whatever. You know, that's the way they work it. But if Tom Wilson boards a guy, boards another guy,

and then hits a guy with a stick, well, the previous two instances aren't going to necessarily factor into the third unless it's a timing thing, you know, where it's like all these things happen in the same season or some shit like that. Yeah. Like, because they see it as a different kind of infraction.

So in fact, this is the first knee-on-knee kneeing suspension for Goudis. How do you feel about that? Do you think that a bad egg is a bad egg, that a bad actor is a bad actor, or do you like the idea of them parsing out certain offenses and then building up the games of suspension

based on that offense versus saying overall bad behavior in a period of like five or six years? Just trying to see how I can make that sympathetic with how the game itself is called. Like if you keep taking tripping penalties, the most you're ever still going to get is two minutes. Right. It's not like, okay, we got, this guy's a tripper. Like, okay, like, two minutes was yesterday's price.

Like, okay, we're three. Like that, that doesn't happen. I don't know if that's like a faulty analogy, but that's the first way. Okay, how do I make it sympathetic? How the rest of us the league works here? I think you're dealing with the person. I think you're dealing with the individual. Like there's a whole bunch of different things you can get suspended for.

And the common denominator is that person doing them. A knee here, a cross-check high, there, our rule 48 here, it could still the same, the same person. Right. So I look at the person as opposed to the infraction. I'm torn on it. Because like I've always been a huge. It's not easy. But if you're like, okay, force, go ahead, choose Merrick, the thing you love doing.

that's the way that I would lie. I've always appreciated the Shanahan ethos of we're trying to change behavior and that's great. That's how player safety should work. And so I kind of veer towards the idea that I like that setup. But ultimately, if people are like,

why aren't the suspensions longer, I think that's one of the reasons they're not longer is because they don't look at the totality of the player's actions. In many cases, they just look at, you know, this is his first high sticking. This is his first kneeing. And so if we're talking about salient changes that could be made to the way they do player safety,

that changing that philosophy would probably be one of them. Hmm. I wonder where this goes now. Because we've seen this before, right? Like we's like the most famous one right before a manager's meeting was Milan Luchitch running Ryan Miller. Then all of a sudden everything was like clutching our pearls about protecting goaltenders to wander out of their net and then give email. interviews afterwards.

I said that for you because I know you love it and it'll make you giggle and it did. Like the thing is like if Connor didn't say that, it'd still be an issue but not as big as it is. Like this is like the biggest player in the game. I'm saying this. So there's going to be more weight behind it.

Ultimately and maybe it's just like I'm so cynical about all this stuff just because been through so much with this league and these issues. I just don't think. anything comes of it. I don't. I think this one just sort of comes and goes like the breeze. I do. I tend to agree with you for one specific reason, which is that if they do the thing that I said,

if they have a player safety summit between the NHL and the NHL and the NHLPA and the players and the agents, that would be the admission that something's wrong. And one of the reasons why, for the most part, Gary Betman, rules in favor of player safety on every appeal is because I don't think that he wants the impression that he's a check and balance on something that's malfunctioning. You know what I mean?

Like what they say goes, and if you have a big summit symposium, whatever you want to call it on player safety, that would be an indication that you believe there's something wrong with it. And I don't think the NHL would want to put that impression out. there. I do understand that, but also at the same time, I mean, all companies, all corporations,

you know, go through, you know, audits. And we're going to have a look at, you know, you can position, you know, again, if you want to give it cover, we're having a look at all different departments here at the National Hockey League. It's time. You know, it's a moment of change in the NHL and blah, however you want to frame it, right? And Steve may not do it that way. Like, what did I do?

What did I do? Don me up, Steve, just work with me here, all right? Just bobblehead this one, okay? All right. Um, like you, you can't, you can't do it that way. If you're that concerned, but I don't think there's, I don't think there's ever, you know, like, look, in our industry, we used to get something called air checks, right? They don't, they don't happen anymore because no one's got the time for it. Everyone's way too busy to do it. But in, in radio and television, we would always get air checks. Like every, I used to get air checked every week at the fan. Um, and then after about four or five years, it just sort of stopped.

And the whole industry has stopped doing it because the idea of, you know, mentorship or helping people is, it's, completely gone. But this is nothing more than just an air check for your department. Right? Yeah. Everyone should be used to this. I just want to finish by the way, what do you, what do you like about? I think about my idea of like, oh, too many tripping penalties. This is now a three minute penalty. You trip too much. I mean, it's like diving, right? It's like, you know, the escalation of fines. And I just want to say like, I know there's probably a lot of people out there in the Ken Campbell mindset of like, we've got to get the violent gentleman outside, out of the chair on player safety. And that's fine. And that's fine.

I mean, if you guys think Peros is the problem, then he's the problem. I think that there's a, I do think that there's, I like Ken. I like Ken, but he's, I, I love, I have a, I have a great Ken Campbell impression, but it involves the F word a lot, so I'm not going to do it here. But listen, I think that there's a streak of old school thinking in the NHL that sometimes leads to some really specious decisions on player safety, not necessarily on length of suspension like this one, but in suspending at all. Like, there's certainly been instances in the last couple of years where I looked at a play

and I'm like, lots of hearing, and then there ain't one. And I think that has to do with some real old school thinking. I don't think I need to spell out who I am talking about in some of these instances. And I think that there is some self-reflection that could happen inside the National Hockey League with regard to should be more progressive in our thinking in suspending players or at least having hearings for players. But that being said, it does take a village. And I think we spelled it out here pretty distinctly that the NHLPA and the GM

and the players all have to be a part of this. And if there is a problem with player safety, it's going to take more than just simply changing the guy in charge to really fix the system. Again, read the CPA. They can have a hearing for a fine over $5,000.

Get yourself some suntan lotion and take the CBA to the beach and enjoy your summer reading the collective bargaining agreement. It's all in there. And it's really really, really boring.

But that's the gig. By the way, you know what I, and we're going to get to the airport sign here on this final point. The one thing that I still don't know why they don't suspend. And we don't see it very often. When we do, it's like, oh, geez, cowbells.

I still don't know how cowbells don't get a suspension at. We all just sort of laugh at it. I was like, ah, ha, ha, ha, cowbell. That's awful. Yeah, I just, I, yeah. And I would love to see that just to hear the video. This is nuts,

The cowbell. Can you bring Brandon back for one more video just to do that one? As the video shows. It's important to note that he got mostly thigh. Glancing blow reduces it from five to two. But let this serve as a warning. All right, let's get there, Aaron Portsline. Speaking of justice.

Columbus ain't get none. Aaron Portsline from the Athletic joins us. Sorry, sorry you had to put up with like that nonsense. before like Aaron Ports on he's like a serious distinguished guest like he has a serious report and he's got to listen to us talking about cowbells and sticks on the sack and the thigh.

I rather enjoy it. Oh God. Well, so we've chummed the waters by talking about the DOPS and we'll localize it even more now and talk about the officials. I had no idea. Like we used to always sort of look back at the Calgary Flames after the Wyden incident with Don

Henderson and say, oh, they're paying some they're paying some uh some uh some some some some tax on this one right where what they used to get the wideman tax is what they used to call it like oh yeah calgary's paying wideman tax here for a while i had no idea that the columbus blue jackets felt this way until i read your piece this morning 40 oh well thank you yeah it's it's been with us for a while uh bonus has figured it out i think the one thing that that backdrops all of this is there if you've spent time here and i know you guys have we have a bit of a inferiority complex

as a city yet. No, no, no, no. Oh, yeah. It's a great city of experiments. It's where things get tested. You get things early, everything, all products before it's unleashed on the market. Columbus is the focus market.

You get everything first. There will love Columbus. Taste setters. As proof of this, there was an unfortunate, huge glowing. It was kind of cool actually because it was so classic, Wonderbread, which is like that's not what you want broadcast about your

your town not wonder bread but yeah so this inferiority complex always John Tortorella is wired that way anyways but it goes back way before him to Hitchcock to Dave King the early days of the franchise that was more rooted in we're an expansion of franchise we're not getting

anything more than it was nobody respects the organization i've heard theories that it's it's still persists because of how doug mclean treated officials i find that he loved officials what are you talking about wow he did depending on the officials oh um yeah so and now uh rick bonus is at it right i've gone through i wrote this a couple years ago just kind of updated it now maybe two weeks ago And there's a lot that goes into this, of course, but Columbus, and in the last decade, has had 600 fewer power plays than the Colorado Avalent. 600. Now, I am not naive to say that Colorado Avalanche are really hard to defend.

They're going to draw more penalties. But they haven't always been that in this last decade, right? The Blue Jackets have not been, this year, a bit last year, they've not been a hard team to defend. But they've not always been that. They were pretty difficult to defend during the Panarin years, four years in a row. They made the playoffs.

There are more than half of the teams in this league have had 300 more power plays than the Blue Jackets have over the last decade. Like the numbers are great. If you wanted to build a conspiracy theory, who, what? You could do it. You could do it. And Rick Bonas doesn't know all of this backdrop unless he's been talking to Schwartz or Hitch.

But he has now, this has become a thing with him where he's offering it up, even if he's not asked about it. He went one step forward in Philadelphia by saying there's a lack of respect for our team. And we're going to get there. We're going to earn it. but this is what it is right now. And I spoke to Don Waddell yesterday. He's like, we would like an answer as to why we're the team in the league that has the least power plays.

Why is that? But he also doesn't want it to turn into a circus of players diving. We've started to hear sort of Bronx cheers whenever there's a penalty called. And nationwide fans have picked up on this. Wow. Oh, yeah. Every time there's a penalty calling a game,

there's sort of like, hey, great job. I remember those things. Right. So it's very much a thing. Something to watch. My first theory is that on ice officials hate the canon so much

that they don't want to give the blue jackets the opportunity to score and then have to hear it. That's my first theory. Hang on. So with that, would that fall that was it Mike Priest, who green lighted that one?

Aaron, you would know way better. Well, Priest obviously had a role in it. You could blame, I'm looking through my message is not to be rude, but somebody pushed that very theory earlier today, wish,

and I thought of it. Yeah. Really, eh? There you go. Right? I mean, two people make, two people makes it a,

a coincidence. It's not a conspiracy. Yes, there's a coincidence. It's a conspiracy. First of all, like, I read this. the piece on the, go read the piece in the athletic that Aaron wrote, because again,

it just underscores. He's on the Mount Rushmore of Beatwriters for putting forth this information that we would have otherwise never have known about the Columbus Blue Jackets. Do you think Bones seems like a kind of guy that likes to gin up a little us against the world type mentality in his teams? Do you think that's part of it? Or do you think that it's literally he's going through the numbers and being like, what the shit? Like, why don't we get more power plays? Yeah. Well, and his thing was, I wonder why, it's three to one for the other guys in every game. Yeah.

And of course, if you go back, it really hasn't been. They've had more power plays than the other team, like four games before this. But the game in Philadelphia, it was a mess of a game. It was a mess of a game. And the Flyers had four power plays before the Blue Jackets had won. Now, I'm not one of those guys that thinks the power play should just automatically be evened up every night. I know those, I've heard hockey fans like that.

They've had three. Hey, we're do one. And I'm like, well, no, not if you don't, not if they, don't commit a penalty. You're not do one. It's ridiculous. I do think there were some moments in the game in Philadelphia where you'd say, okay, that's a penalty. That's a penalty. But, you know, they've also complained about Fantilli had a breakaway for Kachuk laid in the Florida game, and Fantilli dived. He got the puck, but he also got some skate. They complained about that when Fantili accused Kachuk of diving,

he I think he did sell it hang on I remember that like Cachuk Fantilly did not come near his skates I'm like that that was that was that would that that should not that should not be a call if like I have I have a hard time in that one I go like I Matthew Cachuck is not born yesterday Matthew Cichick no exactly what he was doing

and he's trying to draw one that's okay they're never going to not call that call I mean sweeping you watch you look at it again and from my real press box fans I was like boom power play like it was clear and even watching your view to me I go is that why could Chuck went down no are they no watch watch his skates when he turns

I understand are they ever going to watch that not call that penalty I find that in Florida come on but this gets back to because part of it is okay the Panthers have two straight cups. That's Kichuk. And we're just the little old blue jackets with this fantilly kid who's, okay, pretty big, pretty big deal in his own right. But that it backdrops all of this for sure. It does. If I can be a total click or yes, read today. But also within there, and I think I highlighted the actual breakdown of all of the disparity of, Because that's not in this one.

So I didn't want to go back and go through all that. If you tweet that out, we'll both retweet it. So people can find it. We're all about, listen, you're never going to get Russo money, but we'll try to get you as much as you can with subs and stuff. Yeah, yeah. Well, there's, I mean, Russo money is unfat. I can't even imagine.

That's that long, that's a long, quiet green that doesn't make, the money that Greg and I walk around with in our jeans, like makes noise when we walk down the street. But Russo's out. quiet, quiet bills. Yeah, I still do pennies. I still do Benis. That's me.

That's me. It's just rattling our pockets as we as we walk down the street. So Aaron, are they going to get this over the goal line, the blue jackets? Like, it's like the bubble race in the east is, I mean, it's like there's only them in Ottawa, I guess, on the outside looking in right now, basically based on the odds. Are they going to, are they going to find a way to sneak into the wild card? I mean, I hate to give you that answer, but we shall see. they've been on an absolute tear here.

It's always funny in these races where a week and a half ago, the Blue Jackets were obsessing over the Islanders. And then it was the Bruins, and now it's kind of the Red Wings, right? It keeps changing. Yeah, and they're playing really well. They've got three lines that,

really four lines that are playing well, but three lines that give you a little bit of scoring concern. None of the lines really petrifies you. Maybe Marchenko when he's going, and he is right now. Yep. So they're trying to sort of do this in a different way than maybe some other teams. But I feel like they're getting to the point now where Rick Bonas has them committed to the playing style that he wants them to commit to up and down the lineup.

The defending, defending and defending. He feels like he can play the way that these lines are constructed, he can play. Most of his lines against anybody. The second line he's got to be a little bit careful with, with the wings. The wings are light with Garland and Ken Johnson. But he loves his third line and he loves his first line. And he'll play the fourth line against anybody as well.

And just to give you an idea of how things have progressed here in the last couple of years, Boone Jenner was their number one center arguably two years ago. He's the captain, of course. He's now on the fourth line. He's their fourth line center with Lindstrom and some nights Miles Wood, some nights Dayton Hinden. So that's what's changed here for them at Forward is they have four,

they have center depth that they've never had here in Columbus. And it does give them advantage against a lot of teams. Charlie Coyle, as a third-line center, is a luxury they never thought they'd have here. It's interesting to you, like the two expansion teams that have just died for centers. Columbus got there first with this group, but the Minnesota Wild. same thing looking for centers forever it's always been Columbus can never get a center Minnesota can never get a second

Really quick you mentioned Coral Marchenko Just one thing sort of frivolously What was with the Tim Horton's cup on the helmet At the skate today? What was it? Tim Horton's? What was that? He was skating around

And he had a Tim Horton's cup On his helmet today I'm not sure if you saw that I mean Is there something missing here? That was today Yeah Okay

So Jet Greaves and Jake Christensen showed up early at a Tim Horton's on Olentanyi River Road and worked the drive-thru window. Okay. I don't know if there's something there. Jet was going on about how much fun he had, how intense it was back there. Like, those people have a lot,

this is an NHO. This people have a lot going on. He's such an erstwhile young man anyways. Yeah, I'll have to ask him. I didn't. Okay. Optional state, maybe that was still going on when we took off to go talk to guys. Okay, so let me throw one more thing out, actually, because you mentioned Jet Creek.

Sure. And the Philadelphia Flyers found this out quick on the weekend. He may have the fastest glove in the NHL. Yes. That glove is insanely quick. Yeah. Like, I know every goaltender have like one thing that they do sort of better post-play pads, whatever rebout.

His glove, man. Like I come from the era of like, you know, the wisconsin. windmill glove saves and palm tier this and all that crazy stuff but like that guy's glove hand is just flat out fast like don't shoot there guys like you're not going to score right no you're not going to school right and you won't be surprised to know he played a ton of baseball growing up yes right like the glove work was a year round practice for him even if it wasn't really practice he was doing it just out of through the sports team's playing interesting with that quick pause a lot of guys would just sort of block with their glove now because they did I remember Felix Potfan told me this. Wayne Gretzky always told me never dropped names. Felix Pottsin told me this. He said, like, so many guys, like, you can tell the goaltenders that played baseball and the ones that didn't because the goaltenders that actually played baseball, like,

squeeze and grab. And other guys are just, like, use the glove almost like another blocker. And we see a lot of that because you specialize so worldly. And he's like, ah, no one gets to puck anymore. It's Elvis Merges-Likins' weakness, I would think, the glove. Sure. And it's grieved. Yeah, grieves.

And there are times where it's almost like he would love this, but it's almost like Jeter-esque where it's just, it's so natural you don't even realize how impressed it. Now I'm unimpressed. Greg, comment on that? I have a lot of great Guter stories, by the way. I don't want to hear any of your Jeter stories. I have one.

You got any good, Rondonia stories. They paint him in a wonderful light. He was the Columbus Clipper, you know. Oh, that's great. Was he? Yeah. Yeah, of course he was. Of course.

He had to be in the minor leagues at some point. Aaron, I got one more for you. The injury around. Hang on. Pause. Pordy, have a look. The hell. He's got a cup on his head.

Clearly taped to his. Yeah. His helmet. Helmet? He's got incredible balance. I mean, so the question would have to be does he even know it's there? That's what I'm wondering. That's a great question.

That is what I'm wondering about, too, through all this. If this is like a gag, like who's the prankster on the team? Who's the Mark Andre Fleury on this team? I had a few of them. Sean Monty and jumps to mind. Was that on their social? Because I'll poke around and get back to you. I don't know.

I don't think it was, I don't think it was on the team social. No. Wow. Okay. But there it is. But there it is. The Tim Horton. It's a mystery party.

That's from, oh, hang on. Mark Sheik. Go ahead. Okay. What's that? Go ahead, Matt. That's from Mark Sheig, if I'm saying that correctly. Okay.

S-C-H-E-I-G. Yeah, there it is. Yeah. All right. Yeah, so he took the picture from the stands. He covers the team for the hockey writers. Yeah, let me, so there, you know, there is a Timmy's attached to the rink right there. Oh.

There you go. So easy gag. But yeah, let me poke around and see. I'm going to guess Monaghan. Okay. You know the team. It's always the boring ones.

Well, you would know. Yeah. And Marchenko's a fun-loving, fun-loving guy. So, all right. I'll text you guys or I'll tweet you guys. What's best? What do we get the most out of?

It doesn't matter. Whatever. Whatever you. Listen, it's a culture of attention. Just tweet. it out for everybody. I wanted to ask you, like the, the Blue Jackets got a lot of attention for not

trading their UFAs at the deadline, which I think we all said, well, okay, well, it's kind of like they're keeping them. It's a playoff race. It makes total sense. But do you think that they end up resigning all those guys? All those guys, I would take the under on four. I mean,

I mean, I think they would like to. So for me, the tricky thing with Jenner, with Goodbranson, and less so, but also possibly with coil is the term. Because I think they're willing to pay and they have the cap room, but when guys start to get into their 30s, well under their 30s, I think teams get really nervous. And, I mean, players really want term then, and teams really don't want term. then. So I think that could be the stumbling block. In terms of priorities, I think the priority

would be coil, clearly number one in that group. Marchman probably two, Jenner and then Good Branson. But I think they want to keep them all. And I must say Jenner and Good Branson, Jenner's the captain, obviously, but Goodbranson is, as guys around the league, we'll tell you, he is a hell of a dude in the dressing room. And I think he's one of those guys that if you're lucky enough to get through some playoff rounds, those are the type of defensemen that get harder and harder to play against in a series. Yep. Because that dude is huge physical. And they don't really have that element in their back end other than him, the physicality.

Let me close on. You need a long playoff run to ensure the reference. start calling penalties, obviously. Right. Point of the realm. Do you guys remember this years ago? It was when Twitter first started becoming a thing. God, I can't.

I'm getting old. I can't remember the ref's name. He called a penalty. People nationwide were pissed off. He skated away from the benches toward the crowd and started making like a crying face to the audience. Do you remember this? And I'm up to the best of us.

You're like that. Oh, wow. The ring go, whoa. And respond. And then as he's acting like he's crying and the fans are getting increasingly animated, he comes up with the middle finger and fakes that he's wiping a tear away from his eye. Wow. Now.

Yeah. Well, it sounds Tim. Wow. Wow. I don't know. I don't think Tim. I don't think Tim would do that. I got a plug.

But here's the thing. like I'd be really curious to see who that was. I could expect that at the junior level, you know, with like an official in their 20s. But by the time you get to the NHL, first of all, you've heard everything. You've had things thrown at you. You've been threatened in parking lots.

Like everything, but your skin is thick as an official. By the time you get to the NHL, that's why, Portie, that one stuns me. That at the NHL level. comment it on it. I think that official got a, I can't believe. I'm forgetting the name.

Paul Dvorse. It was Paul Dvorsky? That did, that did ref forever. Forever. The legendary, the legendary Dvorsky family whose mother was a delivering nurse

for Logan Couture. That's what I'm bringing to the show today. From the divorcee family of London slash Luke in Ontario. That's what I got for you, boys. today, yeah. But yeah, it was like, this never happened. And the fans were like, here's 71 pictures of it. You know?

Boy, we used to have refs in this league, man. Guys without helmets, guys that would make crying faces the fans. We used to be something. Look, man, I, listen, here's how old. I remember talking to Emil Francis about this. once when he was coaching the Rangers. He said, you know, one of the most disgusting things he'd ever seen in the NHL was at the spectrum.

Now, mind you, the Rangers and the Flyers, we all know about that. But anyhow, at the spectrum, what they would do is when they announced the officials, whenever they announced an official by name of Art Scove, they would also give out the record for the Philadelphia Flyers when Art Scove officially, and it was something. like 33, 2 and 1s when they had ties. And the referee got a standing ovation. At the spectum, and Kat was like, this is the most disgusting thing I've ever seen in my life.

What are we watching here? They're applauding this guy whose record when officiating Flyers games was like 33, 2 and 1? Cat was just like, I can't believe this. And obviously called the league about it and bar, bar, bar, bar, bar. Just to bring the conversation full circle, I was reading the story about the, Dvorsky incident

and it was because the Did you write about it too? No, no, no, no, no. That's a total puck daddy thing. I probably wrote about it and forgot about it. The fans were on edge because the Minnesota Wilde received

seven power plays while the blue jackets had none. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury. There you go. What other revats you need. It's official. Oh, we got it all the way back

to the beginning. Aaron, you're the best. It's always a delight, pal. Great to see you. Great to hear you. Thanks as always for stopping by. I really appreciate it. We'll find out that Tim Horton's cup on Krollmarchenko's helmet.

I'm sure you love it when you agree to come on some goofy podcast and they give you homework. So I apologize. I bet Paul Dvoriski did that too. No kidding. Everything. Everything's the son of the delivering nurse for Logan Catured of the San Jose Sharks. All right. Great stuff, pal.

You'd be good. Yeah. See you guys. Thanks. There is from the Athletic, the great Aaron Portsline, who always delivers. What? Delivers. See, I got that joke there.

As a writer, you crushed my soul. This man is one of the best beat writers in the entire industry. Yeah. And he comes on our show. Yeah. And you go, hey, here's a thing you'd missed. I thought maybe he wouldn't, like, if anyone's going to know. I know.

I know. I thought I was like setting up a layup. And like legitimately, I had no clue. Like, I thought I was like setting up like a, you know, two foot pot. I've been in that position before. or when I've gone on like radio shows and they'll ask me something, assuming that I know because I'm the guy that knows all the goofy shit around the league that's happening. And I just,

it won't be something I saw, you know, and I'll feel terrible about not knowing what they're talking about. You know what the trick is? Here's the trick. I can give you, share it. Here's the trick. Here's what you do.

When someone asks you something that you don't know the answer to, this comes from, by the way, this comes from years of listening to Bob McAllen, who was the master of this. When someone asks you a question, you don't know the answer to, always present a bigger question. Well, you know what?

That's an interesting question, but what it really winks at is something bigger. And then you talk about what you really want to talk about. And then the original question just sort of goes away. It's an interesting question. But what I think is that it winks at something much, much bigger. I'm sorry, I don't have my sunglasses. I can't do a perfect McCowan, but is it good enough. I know we're short on time.

Should we talk about the disrespect in not giving the United States of America a World Cup game? What, you already got gold medals. Screw you. We'll take those. Calgary, Edmonton, and Prague. They went all the way to Prague and they couldn't give Boston a game. Calgary, Edmonton winning as a joint bid. I know.

I was goofing before because this is this is two straight World Cups of hockey where not a single tournament game will be played in the United States. Theory? Theory. Theory? Theory. This is because Alberta markets, just be blunt. Because it's not exclusive to Alberta. I think it's also Manitoba. Won't get All-Star games. Because players, hey, Siri, what do you want?

That's interesting. You're not necessarily wrong. When I first saw that, that was my first thought. This is, okay, you're not going to get an all-star game because players will grump and complain if it's not somewhere warm in February. So you get in World Cup. I think it's, I mean, I think more than anything, it's just to you. graphic. Like it's, you know, they're doing this in the middle of the season. It's the same thing like

Montreal and Boston is the stones throw away from each other. That's why they did four nations in the way that they did it. And so now they could just, you know, shuttle people back and forth between Edmondton and Calgary. It makes total sense. I'm just grousing. It should be. But here's two World Cups of hockey in North America. And Nary a game. The good people of St. Paul, uh, one third filled that arena for World Junior, sir. And I believe they should get another shot to watch a World Cup game. Don't you? Listen, for how long, like going back to when we first started doing goofy podcasts together, for how long have I been saying like USA needs to win some gold medals here and carry that momentum.

Grow the sport, different markets, kids picking up hockey sticks, all of it. And so it finally happens. They don't get work up. What are we doing here? Like, as a Canadian, like, oh, yeah, that's great. If Alberta's got them too, that's awesome. Great for great for kids. What are we doing?

I think this should be like this should be like there should be U.S. cities here. Take that momentum. Take that momentum. We have the momentum. We've won every gold medal available to us. Whether it's true. It's the Olympics to the Paralympics. Sweep three.

Right. I know. And so what happens is that the, the Canadians that run the National Hockey League, and the NHLPA and organized the World Cup are like we got to do something about this American juggernaut. Let's have them play all road games. Here, that's what we'll do.

Not a single home ice advantage in the World Cup of hockey for the reigning gold medallists. You got to go play all your games in Alberta. To be honest with you, I was wondering if it would be like the whole thing was going to take place in the States. I really did.

I really thought that. I mean, again, the joke. Joe, you have the momentum. It makes all the momentum right now. All the momentum. If you're going to do it in the middle of the season. But hey, listen, we got this part out of the way. Now we just have to figure out what to do with Russia.

That's the easy part, Merrick. We'll just figure out what to do with Russia. Sure, that's a simple, that's a cozy coffee conversation. Okay, yeah. We'll smell that right away. We know you guys are steamed and frankly, we didn't give you a game either. But what say you about Russia? coming back to the World Cup.

Listen, I want to be in the room. You know, Brian Burke would always say, I want to be in the room if the NHL ever puts another team, a second team in Toronto. I want to be in the room to see Larry Tanabom's face when after writing revenue sharing check every single year, the biggest in the NHL, he said, I want to be in the room when they tell them there's another team going

to Toronto. I want to be in the room when you have. have that conversation about Russia with Sweden and Finland. They have to have some assurance that the double IHF is going to let Russia back in as a full number. That's they have to have some assurance. Yeah. Because if they, that's the old, that's the plausible that. You know, if Batman can point to that and say, hey, listen, man, what do you want me to do?

They, they reinstated. How about Diable IHF? Like, gave them the green light. That's it. I'm following. Because if they don't, the NHL has to be like, well, here's ours. solution. You're going to get, you know, a Jamaican entry into the World Cup because there's going to be so many teams that are going to duck out a fresh as part of it.

If the double IATF doesn't solve this for the ITA. No, no, then they'll just do what everybody wants and just make it USA and Canada. I mean, right. Cut to the chase. Make it a rider cup. Listen, I love the world. I love the World Cup of Hockey and concept. Like the idea of doing our own thing every two years outside of the Olympics is really cool.

Love it. It's got to make it work logistically. And by that, I mean, figure out a way to get, you know, some of your top players into the tournament while their country is at war. Now, granted, that's also my country. But that's another conversation for the other day. Yes. Okay. On that, we'll take it.

But look, like, you don't need to take this out to dinner and buy it a drink afterwards. Like, just Canada, USA. They're both good to go. You don't need to take them out to dinner. They're ready to go. Okay, you have a good few days. We'll check back on Thursday. Bye.

That was fun. That was fun with Greg Wischinsky. It always is from ESPN and ESPN.com. Thanks to Greg for stopping by the program today. Zach, Philip, did I call you Matt a second ago? Yes, but I got a text. I said, why are you Matt? I call you Matt?

That's all good. Yeah, I think so. But we powered through. Yeah. Man. I didn't get old. Getting old, Steve. Dope.

It's okay. It's all coming to an end for your buddy, Jeffrey. It's all coming to an end. Pretty soon. My son's already, we're going to have to take you for a walk behind the barn, dad. All right, son. Don't get comfortable.

Let me know when it's time, son. Let me know when it's time. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Anything you want to add to either Columbus conspiracy theories about penalties or Connor McDavid and the Players Association and the NHL and the DOPS and George Peros and pretending that anything is going to come out of the discussion that we're going to have now for the next couple of weeks.

The one thing that I did agree with wish the most on in the conversation about the Department of Player of Safety and the handling of Radco Gudis and the phone hearing versus in person hearing versus being and all that kind of stuff. was I do think that there is an element of optics to this, even if at the end of the day they were just going to hand out a five-game suspension, I think it eases things a little bit if they offer it, and people at least have that little bit of catnip before the suspension comes down, that they thought about it.

You know, there was something more they could have cooked up, and then they decided with the five, because it might not appease everybody, but I think it does dampen it a little bit. And just reading the room a little bit, before handing out the decision because I get why they came to the conclusion that they did. I agree with you guys. I think it could have been more.

I think you should have. I think it should have. Seven. But like not not outrageously bigger number, but like seven. Which wants eight? Okay. I agree. Yeah.

I agree 100%. But, you know, I talked about it in the little video that I put out for the Leaps channel that we do here in the Leaves Nation 401. And I just said the frustration for me came in that there was, no ability for it to go higher. Because I did think it should go higher. I'm not going to go up in arms and storm outside of the D-OPS office with a pitchfork and flames and that kind of stuff for five.

But the ability for it to have gone more than five, I think should have been exercised. And it wasn't. And I think that's where a lot of people start to lose their minds and say, how the hell do you watch this and watch Austin Matthews, which again, I know you can't quantify star player or not star player. And do you really want to go down that path? Who makes the list? Who makes the list?

That's the other thing is like that. Anytime I hear that. Does Edmy get need for the Red Wings? And then it's like, oh, no, that one, he's done for the season. But that one's only four games. Matthew's 7. No, I know. But that's the thing.

Where do you go? My first thing would be like, pull it a notepad and say, like, okay, that's cool, Connor. Give me the names. Give me, like, let's make the list. Let's make the list. Give me the names. but I just agree optically. You could have handed out five.

Okay. Give them the in-person hearing. You know, make people think that you've gone above and beyond here. Give them that little bit of reassurance. Hey, we really looked into this thing. Oh, five games. Done. Hey, we looked.

We talked to him. We had the hearing. I get that it's just like a margin. Yeah, we had a bit. We've served a level thing, but. We brought him in for the face-to-face, but he said he was really sorry. It's always just going to be five.

Look, I'm not trying to say that whatever he's going to say or do in there is going to change things. That's not my point. But he said he's like really sorry. For the outrage that ensued after the fact it turns down. Yeah. No, no, he was on his hands and knees. You should have seen him. I didn't mean it.

It was an accident. I'd even know that I had knees. I don't know what happened. I didn't realize it was Austin Matthews. I thought it was Max Stomi. Oh, brother. All right. Let's get to the shine spot.

By the way, congratulations on getting out of prison. What is that behind you? What is that? So I don't know if you're familiar with the Leafs. Oh, I remember this. I remember this. Oh, yeah. I'm trying to make sure people can see all these.

pictures here while I kind of lean. So what happened was, just brief backstory on this, I'm getting pictures reframed to go up here in the office and around the apartment. Because I've got a bunch of those. My grandparents gave them to me as a gift, but in true

sense of what my grandfather does is none of the frames were the same sizes. Some of them were actually different, Jeff. Is that where you got the Alan Stanley jersey, by the way? Was the Allen Stanley jersey your president from your grandparents? My dad and my grandpa went to the same event and got it there together.

Yeah. Very. And the Rick 5 won for that matter. Yes. Oh, you know, I thought of you. They got this. I was cleaning up my space here because it's a disaster. So I was cleaning up and I found something and I thought of you because I got this from,

it's one of the great moments in your team's history. It's, I get the glare off. This is Rick 5 scoring the first. 50th goal on Mike Lute. You'll notice who flipped the pass over, Bill Delego, Billy D. Look at that, eh? That's beautiful.

From Ricky. Isn't that great? I love that. Yeah. Yeah. That's amazing. Yeah. Good shot, eh.

Yeah, okay. That's nice. Anyway, I thought I put it aside. Like, oh, I got to show Zach. I got to show Zach. He'll love that. He'll love that. Hope he's wearing dark pants.

See, he's that Rick five goal of the first 50. Barely enough skin to blink. That's right. Call me when the swelling goes now. Yeah. But I got them reframed, and so they're in there right now, putting the proper sizes on everything. And when the lady undid the current frames and pulled them out, this was in the back of one of the pictures. So she's like, I think you should keep this.

It's a cool thing. Oh, that's awesome. Until I get something behind me so that I don't look fully like I'm in prison, I'll put this up. And it kind of fills some space. That's awesome. It looks great, pal. It looks good. All right, here we go.

The sheet is powered by Fanduel and Zach's creativity. Play your game with Fanduel. It's the NHL season and Fandul is your home for all the action on the ice. From Blue Line to Betslip, we've got you covered all season with unique promos, live offerings, and more features to let you play your game. If you miss Puck Drop, don't sweat it with a live same game parlay. You can build your bets up until the final buzzer. It's true.

Download Fandul's Sportsbook today and play your game. Please play responsibly 19 plus and physically located in Ontario. If you have questions or concerns about your gambling or the gambling of someone close to you, please contact Connects Ontario at 1-866-531-2,600 to speak to an advisor free of charge. The poet laureate of the sheet. The Attila the pun around these parts is the one and only Zach Phillips. Over to you, Zach Root. A lot's been made of the Radco-Gutus situation, and specifically, I think, the response here in Toronto.

At least that's what I've been talking about is the response, even more so than the suspension and everything, Jeff. There was the lack of responses. Did you at the Boston Street against the Victoria yesterday? That was that was a response. Yes, correct. Anyhow, lack of response. But, you know, I watched that and then I saw all these interviews of the players on Toronto, and they just kept talking about this, this is before the incident, mind you.

They kept talking about this tight-knit group, and everybody loves everybody in the room. They all enjoy playing together and stuff like that. And I kept thinking after the incident happened back to those comments. And Jeff, you know what? Yep. At the end of the day, I don't care if you guys in that room have guys who are Finney or share laughs in order to win, you need grits. Suck. Emmett Finney.

Ars need grits suck. And Alex, I think is it laughing you're the first star of the week? That line. Him Zabanajad and Gabe Perot have been in. All of a sudden, like the Rangers have stumbled into a beauty line here. And I don't know, this is like Johnny Lazarus be more of the authority than me. But like, this looks like the best we've ever seen, Alexei Lafranier. Just like such a tease, eh?

I can do this for like the end of the season. Emmett Finney, Alexei Lafranier and Arsenie Gritzik, $5 wins $294. $7.1. I don't care if you have guys who are Finney or show. laughs to win, you need grits. You know what they say about the good guy in the room? Zach, you know what they say with a good guy in the room? They don't flood the room.

They don't flood the room. They don't flood the room. I've never seen the Zamboni in the room. They don't flood the room. He's great in the room. They don't flood the room. Give me players. You know, by the way, just quickly before I get out of here,

I realized I've been stealing a lot of phrases from you subconsciously. And people in my chat, I've been pointing them out. Oh, yeah? Yeah. Which one specifically, as we see in the Atlantic? Because there's one, too. Well, the one that was called to my attention last night was, I don't want to lead the witness. You use that one a lot when you're phrasing the question.

And I just said it. And somebody came on later in the show, like a next caller, like two or three later. And he said, oh, I love that you said, I don't want to lead the witness. And I went, oh, my. I did do that. That's not my line. I know, but it's because you say it. I hear it from you.

I also say, thank you kindly, sir, she's smile, but the money on the table, that's for the beer. But, like, it's just an old saying. Get off the table and Mabel of five bucks is for the beer. Like, that's just an old saying. Yeah. And then the other one was, the other one is they don't flood their. I've said that a bunch of times.

They don't flood the room. They don't flip the room. That's always, that's always a show on some of those. Stopper right there. Well, you know what they say? Greatness Borrow's, but genius steel. So as you were What else they say?

What else do they say? A mediocre man is always at his best. I like that one too. Yeah. Rising to new depths and sinking to new heights. It is the sheet here on the Nation Network. Just bad cliches here. It's great promo for the show.

Thanks, man. I worked on that one. I workshoped that one all weekend long while I wasn't staring at the Rick 550th Cole against the St. Louis Blues. Nice bag and sauce pass from Builder Lego. It is a beautiful. picture too. All right, that's it. Zach, great job again. Continued success in

decorating your new space. Thanks to Greg Wyshinsky for stopping by as he does each and a couple of times a week. He's back on Thursday. And also the great Aaron Ports line read his latest on how the Columbus Blue Jackets are getting jobbed on power plays and also some great notes about Jack Reeves, who has the fastest glove in the game.

I think I'm already comfortable saying that. Thanks to you for watching. Thanks to you for listening. Thanks to you for chatting. If you've already subscribed to our YouTube channel, thank you. If you hadn't, if you haven't, please consider doing so. You'll thank me later, as they say, you'll thank me later. Meantime, enjoy the schedule this evening. We'll talk again tomorrow, 1 o'clock Eastern for the sheet, as you will.