Transcript of The Hockey Show: Blubbering in Boston

Now is a good time to remember where tequila's story truly began.

In 1795, Cuervo invented tequila. Cuervo.

What are you doing here? Cuervo. Anytime someone says Cuervo, I show up.

Well, I do know that to be true, but even during an ad, reads like...

Cuervo.

I think he could lay out, especially for one of our great partners. Sweet, delicious Cuervo. Since then, Cuervo has stayed true to its roots.

The same family, the same land, the same passion.

Cuervo. So enjoy the tequila that started it all.

Cuervo. Cuervo. The tequila that invented tequila. Roximo.

Cuervo. Com. Please drink responsibly. Cuervo. A Hero's Return happened in Boston. This is The Hockey Show. His jersey will go to the top of this building someday. A beloved player here in Boston.

Man, that's great stuff. It really is.

David Droger, the Hockey News. Our producers have left us. My name is Roy Bellamy. This is The Hockey Show. You can watch us on YouTube. Please follow us there at thehockeyshowdls. You can watch us on TikTok at thehockeyshow7 and on X Instagram and threads @hockeyshowDLS. We have a producer. Do we not? Yes. We have a filling producer right now, Behind the Wheel of Steel.

Hey, everybody. What's going on?

Doing good. He watched one Panther game this year.

Is that good? My ratio, one for seven. I think it's a decent ratio, considering you're not a hockey guy. It makes me qualify. I'm a Panthers fan. I don't exactly watch all... How many they play? 82? Yeah, 82. Okay. Look at that. See? I watch the big games. I saw the game on ESPN against the Bruins. Did you?

You didn't watch opening night, huh?

I did not watch opening night. Oh, boy. I'm excited to hear your hockey takes based off our off-air chats. Now that I think about it, I saw them raise the banner, and then I changed the channel.

Oh, wow. All you saw was the banner. You didn't stay for the game.

No. Just assume the win. Did they win? I have no idea.

They did win. They won the first three games of the season. Great.

And they're not looking so good so far, huh?

No, they are not. All right. They are not. Let's get into what happened in Boston. We'll talk about the game a little later. But the Panthers strolled into Boston on Tuesday to play the Bruins. And it was a big deal. It was a gigantic deal because it was the return of Brad Marshawn, their former captain. Last year, the Bruins front office and Brad Marshawn did not agree to a potential contract extension, and it hurt Brad Marshawn. It fell apart a little bit. Yes, it did. If you guys remember during the Four Nation tournament, he and Sam Bennett buried the hatchet. For some strange reason, it was that hatchet burial, which is why Brad Marshawn decided to go to the Bruins front office and said, There's only one place for me to go if you're going to trade me, and that is to the Florida Panthers.

That's smart, though.

Very smart. The defending champions at that time, they were on the up and there's a good chance that they might repeat, and they eventually did.

Well, he didn't want to go somewhere else just to lose to Florida. He could have stayed in Boston for that.

Or lose in the first round.

Well, that's what I'm saying. The best case scenario is either go to the Panthers and win Stanley Cups or go somewhere else and probably lose to the Panthers over the next decade.

Yeah, that's true. Now, he did not play the Bruins last season after the trade deadline because he was injured. He returned a little bit before the playoff started. And as we said, the rest is history. Now, going into this week, Paul Maurice decided to start Marshawn's Line. He was out there on the ice during the national anthem, which was really a really good moment there.

Not his national anthem.

Yeah, well, I mean, he is Canadian, so he just stood there and like, Okay, I'm getting ready for the game, blah, blah, blah.

That's such a It's not for today's discussion, but it's such a silly thing that they still do that.

Yeah, it's stupid. It's stupid. And what they did in Texas is even dumber. Now, they made it mandatory via law in Texas to play the National Anthem at Sporting Events, but whatever. That's another discussion. But the big moment happened during the Bruin's tribute video to him. That was really nice. Everybody stood, they applauded, and Brad Marshawn was a blubbering mess. He was tearing up. It makes sense, considering that he spent 16 years in that city winning one Stanley Cup in 2011.

Very classy by the Bruins, by their fans. Just overall, it's a really cool moment by everybody involved. I like what I saw. I mean, I don't know how much hockey fans in general, and we'll toss it to Danny here for his take on this, but to see a tough hockey player, not just any tough hockey player, but Brad Marshan has been one of, controversial for a good chunk of the first part of his career, but certainly one of the toughest guys in the league.

Plays bigger than his body.

Oh, absolutely. But the waterworks were flowing, Danny. He was a big, blubbering mess, Roy. You took the word from me. It was excessive. Okay, let me just say it was excessive. He's not the first legend to return back to... Is he even from Boston? Did he grow up to Canadian?

He's from Nova Scotia.

Exactly. It's not even like his hometown. He's not the first legendary player to go back to the city that drafted him. It was a little much. I'm a Panthers fan. I like Brad Marchand. I was happy when we traded for him last season, but I was watching the game with my wife, and even she was like, Why is this dude crying so much?

But does she know that he spent 16 years playing for the Boston Bruins?

It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if he played there for one year and he won a cup. It was a lot. It was very dramatic. Would it be allowable if it was his hometown? If he grew up in Boston, played his whole career there, the trade? I equate it to LeBron going back to Cleveland. I could obviously understand That's very emotional. Grew up there, drafted by the team, won championships, whatever. But it's not like this guy is even from Boston. What's going on there? It was very excessive. He was a big blubbering mess. He's got a point. He does have a point. Do I necessarily agree with him? I don't know, but that's a very valid point by GQ.

It's very smart for Paul Maurice not to put him back on the ice immediately after that video tribute because the tears would have frozen on the ice. It would have been bad. But he had to get himself together, and he did. And he did very well because he had two assists in that game, and he got the first start. But that game was a mess, especially in the third period. And we'll get into that a little bit later. But there was a good story out of Buffalo this week because of rookie goaltender Colton Ellis.

Yeah, that was cool.

Buffalo Saber's goal tender situation is an interesting run.

Our old boy Alex Lyon is doing okay. Yeah.

Yukapega Luka then is hurt, and they waved Alexander Georgiev, sent him to Rochester. They claimed Ellis after the Blues waved him. After that, it's him and Alex Lyon. Those are the two goal tenders that the Buffalo Sabers have right now. Alex Lyon came from Detroit via free agency. So Those are the two goal tenders. Ellis made his debut when the Sabers beat the Red Wings 4-2 on Wednesday. The Red Wings did not have a shot on goal until 10 minutes into the first period.

That's so tough from a goal tending perspective, too. Your first game, you're so jacked up. The emotions are flowing. All you want to do is stop some pucks, and then you're just standing around.

He eventually stopped 27 of those pucks out of 29 shots on goal by Detroit, made 10 high danger saves out of 12. Those two goals came in a high danger area and stopped six shots off of rebounds, got his first NHL career win in his first NHL career start. Up all is close to returning for the Sabers. So again, the Buffalo Sabers goal to this situation is interesting, and they are going to have to make some decisions.

The UPL has been the goalie of the future for a while. When is he going to be the goalie of now?

The goalie of the current? Kind of like Smiths of Night in Chicago.

Well, and the Sabers, I mean, Alex Lyon, we love Alex Lyon, but I feel like he's almost, for a lack of a better term, a placeholder because they got UPL. Devon Levi is still floating around somewhere. And this is a team that's been stockpiling future assets, drafting all these young talented guys, waiting for the Sabers to turn the corner. It's like that meme, looking at your watch.

Down the street from the corner, the way things are looking like.

They're right there. But that was really cool by Alex. He said after the game that he found out the day before that he was starting, so he was able to get a bunch of his family members into Buffalo, and they kept showing them on the screen. They all had their Sabers jerseys. You just love to see that.

A bit of an update here from our friend Emily Kaplan, who reported that the event that was scheduled to happen on what would have been NHL All-Star Weekend this season is an Olympic send-off. That has been canceled. That event was supposed to be held at UBS Arena in Nassau County on the island. The NHL will hold the All-Star Game in 2027, next season at UBS Arena. Now, if you remember back in May, New York Governor Kathy Hochul sent a strongly worded letter to NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman about this season's All-Star Game being canceled and urged him to create an event that's equal or greater to that. Well, now they only have one of it, and that's next season.

Equal to.

Equal to. That's your All-Star game.

It'll be fun in 2027 to drag your ass up to the home of Islanders.

Me?

Yeah, you. We've covered All-Star games before, sir. Yes, yeah.

But you want me to go up to New York?

I do. We have fun in New York. We don't have to hang out in Uniondale the whole time. We don't have to hang out in Long Island or wherever the new arena is. Is it Bay... God, I want to say Bayfront Park. I'm still Miami. Bayfront Park.

No. Belmont?

Belmont, thank you.

Because Miami back up behind us. You want to bet on the horses over here.

You know that? God, that sounds like fun.

Betting on horses?

Yeah, go to the track.

So I can lose money. I did that for Kenny Maine, by the way.

You've got to be undry, though. But if we're going to go betting on horses.

I got to drink the bet? Really?

On horses? I feel like it would be a fun situation. You go there, have a few drinks, bet on the ponies, a couple of bites to eat. It's in March. I'm just saying, the times are ahead. You just got to get you back on the wagon, off the wagon. Which one is it?

Whatever it is, there's a wagon involved. Who knows? Danny, do you know the expression off or on the wagon?

I'm going to go on the wagon.

Okay, on the wagon.

We got to get you back on the wagon.

All right, well, there you go. The NHL, by the way, did it again. In their relentless pursuit to promote Cindy Crosby ahead of everybody else in the league, they treated this out during the Penguins Panthers game. As Crosby scored two goals and an assist, this treat happened after his first goal and assist. Sydney Crosby scored in his fourth straight game and established the longest goal streak by a Penguin player aged 38 or older.

That's so specific.

He also added an assist in the second period to record his 497th career multi-point game. He's sixth all time in multi-point games.

For people of a certain age or just of every age?

Of every age. Why are we doing this? They are doing this to piss me off. Why should I care about 38-year-old men or older?

Because the NHL says so. Because it's Sydney Crosby.

I don't care.

He's still that guy. I mean, the fact that we're still doing this with everything that McDavid has done in the last few years.

It's not even a round number, David. It's 38. 38. It's not 35. It's not 40. It's 38. It's right in the middle, a useless stat by the National Hockey League that they just decided to throw out there because they want to continue to promote Sydney Crosby ahead of everybody in the league.

Wasn't your You made a fail last week when they celebrated him moving into ninth place on the all-time assist list by players with eyebrows that don't reach more than three inches long or something?

Yeah, that was my fail. In fact, last night, I can't go over the three-star process that we do every single home game for the Panthers. Every game in the National Hockey League, journalists have to do. Go over that.

Okay, so every game, the local journalists, or whoever's there, the journalists from the teams that are covering the press box, They are handed an index card. We then write our three stars of the game up to us, our discretion, whoever we want. We hand it back to team PR. It's a pretty simple process. We usually get the cards early in the third period, turn them in, generally by the last TV time out. That's the process. So Roy got his card. You tell the story. It's your story. All right.

So I got my card. In fact, I'm going to pull up the picture so I can go off of reference. Now, when Sydney Crosby scored His goal and his assist. I did not expect him to get another goal in that situation. So, yeah, my original three stars were going to be Cydie Crosby third, Tristan Jari second, and Eric Cawson first in the Panthers loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Now, originally, I was wavering between actually turning that in and not turning it in.

I was shocked that you had his name on your card.

Yeah, so did I. But then Cindy Crosby scored. In that situation, I would have had to have made him the first star. So I abstained from turning my card in because I am a journalist with integrity.

You were going back and forth like Crosby should be my first. I'm not going to turn it in. I'm writing Crosby Crossing names out. I'm moving names around because at one point- I was going to put Brad Monchon in there as well. There was a Roy Bellamy three-star list with Sidney Crosby as your number one. That existed for a brief period of time. Yeah.

When Brad Monchon got his second goal, I crossed out Tristan Jari and placed Monchon second because the Panthers were losing. So Cindy Crosby scored a second goal, and I just crumpled up the paper. Just got to hell with it. See you later. So, yeah.

Again, integrity. Well, lucky for you. That's their only visit to South Florida. Yeah. Isn't it weird, though, that the two days- Two in Pittsburgh. Back to Back days. It's like a Saturday, a Sunday in March, I think it is. We're trying to drag you up there for that. It's stupid.

It really is.

It's weird.

We have a new segment that's going to to probably, just maybe make you money. It is time for Puckluck, sponsored by DraftKings. Draftkings, the Crown is yours. David.

Yes. All right. This week's weekly Puckluck Parlay for our Friday night slate of NHL games. I've got three pics for you. First off, from the Toronto at Buffalo game, we're going to take Austin Matthews over three and a half shots on goal. Buffalo allows the second most shots in the NHL, 33. 1 behind only San Jose. Matthews has hit the over in four of his seven games this season. Also, his career in Buffalo, he averages over four shots a game. And his past three visits to Buffalo have seen Matthews put up six, five, and five shots on goal. Then in the San Jose, New Jersey game, we're going to take the over six and a half because San Jose cannot keep the Puck out of their net. But they do score a lot. They've scored three or more in each of their past four games, and they've allowed at least three in every game this season. The Devils have won six in a row, and they average four goals at home. Final leg is Kyle Connor from the Calgary at Winnipeg game over two and a half shots. He's hit that number in three straight games and in all of Winnipeg's home games this season, where he's averaging five shots on goal.

Total odds on your parlay for Puck luck this week is plus 4. 48. So go ahead and make you some money.

So there you have it. Austin Matthews over three and a half shots, over six and a half goals in the Sharks Devils game. And Kyle O'Connor over two and a half shots on goal for a plus 4. 48 odds total. That That is Puckluck. Go ahead and win you some money. All right, we appreciate everybody who watches and listens to this show, and you guys can ask us questions on our various amounts of social media platforms. We have a question from @klaush Yes, sir. Top five goons of all time. Are they still needed in today's game? And yes to that lot of questions. So top five goons of all time. What do you got, Dave?

I couldn't put this in a particular order because it just felt weird My list, I've got Tyler Domi, Bob Probert, Terry, the Tasmanian Devil, O'Reilly, Marty McSorley, and Studrimson. Very good. My O-L-I's were Rob Ray. I wanted to throw Donald Brochier and George Lerac on there because those guys would just rumble. Yeah. In terms of longevity, I mean, just like Ryan Reeves goes into that. Matt Rempe. What else is he other than that?

He's a guy that takes punches to the face. That's who Matt Rempe is, at least.

What about you, Roy?

Let's see. I got Tiger Williams, Rob Ray, Ty Domi, Steve Grimson, Bob Probert. Those are my five. And, of course, George Leroc, and Donald Brochier, and Peter Whoyle. O-l-i-s.

O-l-i-s. Paul Loz.

Paul Loz as well. I could go with a top 10 on that one, boy. I'll tell you that. Those are some of my favorite people.

To answer the initial question, it's a very integral role in hockey, even nowadays. You need to have a guy that the other team is afraid is going to come after them if you go after their star player. It's a big part of hockey.

Like Matthew Schafer last night. Everybody went after the guy that went after Matthew Schafer. All right, it is time for Rosa in Unminuto. As I mentioned before, Rosie is not here. So we went into the office and got ourselves a sub on the fly, and that is Kristen. She's going to provide this minute update for Rosie. Hit it, Danny. Probably it would be a good idea if you turned your mic on.

It's on. Oh, it's on? It says on. All right, go ahead. Hola, amigos. Esto es un minuto de hockey con Rose. No Rose, Kristen. Los Sabers,. Buffalo congeló a los Panthers, literal. Diego, viajaron a Montreal, donde los canadienses se encendieron en tercer periodo.

Slavovski, Hudson, and Evans, were going to give them back to the goal, and even though Kulich and Kozak got goals, the Sabers dropped 4-2, but they were being spread in Detroit.

The debut, el portero Cortín Elise, who was the first in the NHL, detuvo.. Jack Quinn brilló con un gol y dos asistencias, y The One volvió a anotar. Así que Buffalo cierra la semana con dos triunfos importantes y una derrota apretada. Y ojo, porque esta noche recibieron a Toronto. Esto fue un minuto de hockey con Rose, no Kristen, donde el hielo arde y Buffalo empieza a refugir.

Very good. That sounded so nice. Such a beautiful voice there, Kristen. All right, so that was Rosa in a Minute via Kristen. And now it's time for Rose in a Minute with Kristen. Take it away. Hey, kids.

This is one minute of Hockey with Kristen. The savers had quite an event for the week. They started strong with 3-0 win over the defending champs, the Florida Panthers. Doshdwan was a star with two power play goals, and Alex Lionshine with 32 saves for his first shot out of the season. Buffalo literally froze the Panthers. Then they traveled to Montreal, where the Canadians heated up the third period. Lawasky, Hutchkin, and Evans all scored to flip the game. And although Kulich and Kozak found the net, the savers fell, too. They bounced back fast. Against Detroit, goalie Colton Ellis made his NHL debut, stopped 27 shots, and earned his first career win, 4-2. Jack Quinn stood out with a goal to assist, and Dawan scored again. So Buffalo ends the week with two big wins and one tough loss. And heads up, they're hosting Toronto tonight. That was one minute of Hockey with Rose, a. K. Kristen. Kristen, where the ice burns and Buffalo starts to roar.

That was wonderful, Kristen. We appreciate you coming in and showing your beautiful face on camera, even though you did not want to because you were complaining about your hair. That's awesome. Thank you very much. That's great.

. Gracias.

Gracias. That's how you say it? Gracias? Gracias. There you go. It is time for Wins and Fails of the Week presented by Jägermeister, serve it cold or don't serve it at all. Jägermeister. Damn, that's cold. For more, log on the jägermeister. Com. Drink responsibly. Dave, what is your win?

My win of the week is a fashion win of the week. Last night, we got an amazing taste jerseys in Colorado. It was the-Oh, the Whale. The Whalers against the Nordiques in Denver. It was very cool. The jerseys were awesome. They're the Nordiques jerseys. Gabe Landis, Todd showing them off. The goalies were wearing vintage-looking pads. It was so nice and sexy and cool. Look at that, dude. Does that bring you back? Yes.

Oh, my goodness. Mike Ritchie and Joe Sackik. Oh, my goodness.

Peter Forsberg, Stefan Fisce.

Stefan Fisce. Oh, my goodness. That Ranges series. That Ranges playoff series.

Oh, man. Is that '93?

Yeah, I think so.

'92? I don't know. Whenever it was, that was cool. But what sucks for the Nordites fans, the year they moved was the year the Colorado won the Cup.

Of course it was. That's what tends to happen. I'm sure the Cleveland Browns fans feel the same way.

Well, even the Whalers, right? Like Carolina, what was it? Ten years? Less than 10 years when they won their Cup?

Yeah. My winner of the week goes to the Toronto Blue Jays first basement, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Game 7 of the American League Championship Series versus the Seattle Marin. Guerrero walked in the Roger Center wearing an Austin Matthews Maple East road jersey. Now, me, myself, and I, I personally thought that this move was going to cost the Blue Jays this series. I was wrong.

No, it's only when the Maple leaves wear Maple leaves gear that the curse is intact.

Yeah. Oh, by the way, I'm sure Canada felt the same way I did. But that wasn't the case. Guerrero himself went one for four. That wasn't the George Springer hit a three-run home run to send the Blue Jays into the World Series. Now, mind you, in response to Guerrero wearing that Maple leaves jersey, Austin Matthews came in to Scotia Bank Arena wearing a blue Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Blue Jays Jersey. The Maple leaves promptly lost 5-2 to New Jersey.

It's a Toronto thing, man. It's a Maple leaves thing.

Matthews went in that game, was a minus two. What's your fail, Dave?

My fail was a game played in the dark. The other night in Calgary, Montreal and the Flames, the game was delayed 10 minutes because half the lights in the arena went out, and then they decided, Well, let's just play anyway. So then they played in the dark, and that must have sucked more for the goalies than anyone else. That seems like a massive fail. I know that building is really old, but what are we doing?

Yeah, they used the ribbon board. The ribbon board was all white just to provide enough light for them to see the pocket, apparently. So it was a bad situation. My fail of the week goes to Shox head coach Ryan Wosowski when he said this.

A lot of new players. We got to just keep working, keep teaching from the coaches. We got to keep preparing them. But yeah, trust me, it sucks. I keep telling myself, there's got to be a reason why this keeps happening in a sense. I give up one of my children for a win. So it's frustrated. I'm sorry for swearing. We're very frustrated, and we're going to keep working at it.

That's right. He said he would give up one of his children for a win. Well, his wife must win of those comments because he quickly apologized and took back what he said. He said, I love my kids. I would never give them up. I love my wife. Obviously, I'm a passionate emotional person and probably got ahead of me there. So I apologize for those comments. Luckily for him, he finally got his win. I'm sure he kept all of his children when the Sharks beat the Rangers last night. We have Johnny Lazarus coming up next. He's going to talk about those New York Rangers who finally decided to score goals. It's a good thing for them. They scored five, but they lost in overtime. There's a San Jose Sharks? What a bad situation. Johnny Lazarus is coming up next.

All right, smearing off.

Official vodka of the NFL, the world's number one vodka. Here's the deal. Game day is everything.

The noise, the rituals, the passion, the dip, the wings, the dip again.

Smirnov belongs in that mix because if you're tailgating or hosting or just sitting there checking your fantasy lineup every 30 seconds, you need Smirnov.

Otherwise, it's not a real game day. They've been doing this since 1864, which is, I don't even want to do the math, a long time.

They're award-winning. They make cocktails super easy, and they're all about bringing fans together. So, yeah, we do game days. That's their thing. And if you're over 21, you should, too. Grab a bottle of Smirnoff at your local retailer and head to smirnoff. Com to find recipes of delicious cocktails perfect for game day. Please drink responsibly. Smirnoff, number 21 Vodka.

Distilled from Grain, 40% alcohol by volume.

The Smirnoff Company, New York, New York. Please do not share with anyone under legal drinking age. Johnny Lazarus of Daily Face-off joins us here. He covers the New York Rangers, and he has a lot to talk about because the Rangers have not scoring. They did last night, though. They just happened at home. They're not scoring at home, but they did last night. The New York Rangers came into last night's game against the Sharks, scoring only one goal in four four games, and then they exploded for five goals, which included a hat-trick for Taylor Radish versus the San Jose Sharks, but they could not overcome McAlin Celabrini's hat-trick in five-point game last night.

Dooling hat-tricks. You don't see that very often.

You don't see that very often. Losing an overtime 6-5. That is the Sharks' first win of the season. And again, the coach can give up his kid now.

Yeah, he can keep his family together. That's really refreshing.

Yeah. So, Johnny, you covered this team. What exactly is going on with the Rangers? Is it getting used to Mike Solomon's system, or is there something worse? What are we expected from them for the rest of the season?

I think last time... First of all, Roy Dave, good to be here with you guys.

Thank you, Johnny.

But I think Last night was... And JT said it. He said in the locker room after, I don't think we really respected our opponent enough. It's a similar storyline. I mean, you look at team's records and guys Guys always say there's no easy game in the NHL, and coaches say that, too. But sometimes it's human nature, I feel like, to go out there for a game and just expect it not to be playing against the Florida Panthers. At least three of the goals last night that the Rangers gave up were mental errors and just a team that didn't look mentally engaged. But that hasn't been the case for the majority of this season. The Rangers, through their first eight games before last night, really, were the better team, I thought, in six of those eight games. They came out flat against Minnesota after going up one-nothing on that Panarin goal early in the game, but then the Wild took care or took advantage of the first period and then ran with the rest of that game. And the home opener was a disaster, too. But last night just seemed like a team that thought it was going to be an easy 60 minutes.

And I look at the first goal, Mika Zbange and Gavrja and Gavrja both checked the same guy behind the net, Colin Graff, and he finds Adam Godet wide open in front. The third goal of the game, Sam Karek doesn't really support the 50-50 battle and stay below the park as a center. He gets off with about 15 seconds left in the period. And McEncelebrini, well, Cooley doesn't win the battle on the boards. And Ceelebrini finds some open space, and he beats his Sterk on top shelf. But Lafineera's Puck Management at the end of the second period. Again, just guys that did not seem mentally engaged in that game. And I think it's just because they looked across the ice and saw a zero, four, and two record and expected it to be an easy 60 minutes.

So one guy who I think has been outstanding for the Rangers this year so far, Johnny, is Ben. You just mentioned him, Igor Shisterken. Last year, coming off the big Vesina campaign, definitely wasn't what we were thinking and hoping. But this year, while he's only got two wins, 1. 86 goals against an awesome safe percentage of 9-30. He's already got a shutout. I think he looks just as good as he did in his Vesina a year. But are you seeing similar? And is that a reason for optimism for the Rangers amid this not-so-great start?

Yeah. The only thing I would argue against that is saying in the Vesna year, the Rangers were being totally outplayed, especially in their own end. And Igor had to put up with a lot of crap, where this year, for the most part, there hasn't really been a lot of loud chances against. The Rangers have done a pretty decent job in their own zone and not getting hemmed in and not, honestly, allowing a lot of odd man rushes. Last night was the first game I can think of where the chances against were really noisy, and it seemed like they were coming nonstop. So whilst Shazerkin has certainly been great this year, I don't think he's been tested as much as he was in that Vesna year. Granted, it's still nine games in, and that could certainly become a trend. But the Rangers have really done an excellent job, for the most part, at defending in front of him. Last night was not one of those cases, and that's why each other's Sharks put up five goals. But in the previous eight games, while he's had to come up big in a lot of those games, I don't think it's nearly the workload that he's had in years prior.

You noticed that's in the ice last night during pregame skate, Ryan Reeves, and I believe it was all Timmy Panarin having a nice conversation. As they wrapped up as Ryan Reeves was about to skate away, Matt Rimpe skated over and must have said something to Rebo because those two got into a pretty massive fight, a couple of heavyweights going at it. It was It was just haymaker after haymaker. Matt Rimpe ended up leaving the game early after this fight with an upper body injury. Clearly, it was because he took a couple of haymakers to the head because Rimpey is a terrible fighter.

Rimpey is the only guy that I've ever seen make Ryan Reeves look anything but massive. I always used to look at Ryan Reeves like this guy is like Frankenstein on the ice. He's huge. But then I look at him next to Rimpey and holy cow, he makes Ryan Reeves look normal-sized.

Yeah, he managed to pull the Jersey off of Reevo's head and put some hammer fist on him, but that's pretty much it. Describe the scene for us. What exactly happened?

Well, the warm-up conversation, again, I I think everyone knows the relationship and friendship between Ryan Reeves and Arturian Panarin, especially after, I think it was on Missing Curfew, where Ryan Reeves was talking about him and Panarin used to play basketball or something and drink some Vaca after games. Those two guys, that was clearly a friendly conversation happening at center ice. And Rempe took his opportunity to get Reeve at the red line and give him a heads up that he wanted one. And those two have had some, I guess, previous history going back to the Rangers in Toronto a couple of years ago when Reeves was there and Reeves is put in a lineup basically to fight Rempe. But again, whenever you see a heavyweight on the other side, it's somewhat anticipated that those two are going to go at it at some point in the evening. And I think last night, Rempe went at a perfect time. The Rangers had a really slow start to the game. Ryan Reeves throws a big hit on Usopp-Harson, and Rempe steps up for his teammate and tries to get the crowd going because the crowd last night and warranted, they were dead because the Rangers came out.

The first two minutes, San Jose dominates, and they score a goal, and that quiets the crowd. So We didn't ask Mike Sullivan what he thought of the timing of Rempey's fight. I would have imagined he would have said it was necessary because it did give the guys a boost a little bit. I mean, Radish did score. Actually, I think the shark scored the next goal after the fight, but That was a weird bounce in the power play. And then Radish came out and scored a couple of minutes later. But that said, obviously, you don't like the result of losing a player for the rest of the game. So it's tough. It's part of hockey. I know some fans like it, or some fans don't like it, other fans do. I think it's great theater always if guys are willing to put their body on the line. Sometimes that does sacrifice a little bit, but it's always been a part of the sport, and it's a part of the beauty of the sport, too. That's what separates us, I think, from the other sports. So I was I'm a fan of it. It got the building going.

Ryan Reeves and Rempey were both great showmen. Obviously, Reeve had that great quote after the game, too, just talking about how it all went down and basically told Rempey off the draw, Let me run somebody, and then we'll go. But yeah, who doesn't love a center ice fight like that?

Looking at the standings right now, we're about, what, two and a half weeks into the season. I like how many surprises we're seeing, Johnny. Looking in the Atlantic, Montreal and Detroit, both leading the way, young players. It's fun to see the excitement from there. Over in the West, Chicago looking really good. Spencer Knight, great and goal. Our boy Frank Nizarr looking spectacular, along with Conor Bedard. Then the Oilers and the Kings, the other side of the spectrum. Maybe not where we expected them to be. So as we talk about surprises early in the season, anything jump off the page of you?

I mean, honestly, does it have to be a team?

No, no, no.

It could be a player, it could be a team. It could be whatever.

It could be a favorite I think this Matthew Schafer story has been unbelievable. Obviously, the Islanders had a big 7-2 routing win last night against a team that was pretty hot in Detroit. They were on a pretty good run before losing to Buffalo the other night. But the Islanders, again, were a team that I don't think many people thought would make the playoffs or even do think will make the playoffs. But the fact that they're 4, 3, 0 right now and their 18-year-old first overall pick has been their best player. With Barzal, too. I'll give Barzal a lot of credit also. I don't think anybody could have anticipated an 18-year-old defenseman to step in and do what Matthew Schafer is doing and the way he's doing it, too. He might be the most unhatable player I've ever seen. Obviously, his story going into the draft was very well documented. The loss of a mother, I think everyone can sympathize with and feel. But also just his ray of positivity that he continuously brings away from the rink. His postgame interview with Shannon Hogan the other night was unbelievable. And you see a mature kid, but you do also see a kid who's just so excited to be here.

And not just to be here, but to Excel. And we talk about Maclin Salbrini and how he got off to a slow start before the last couple of games. And Bedard last year got a lot of criticism. But the personality Schafer has shown, I'm not saying he won't get any criticism ever, but it's going to be much harder to give a guy like that a hard time when he's just so damn lovable. And for an Islanders team that's been known as old and boring and doesn't do media and doesn't highlight their players' personalities over the past seven or eight years or however long it's been, You can sign Tony DiAngelo. Yeah. Listen, I like Tony. I've gotten to know him now.

Oh, good for you.

Yeah. Obviously, I didn't know him when the narratives around him were coming out, and I had my judgments. But when you get to know somebody, I think that changes judgments a little bit, too. So from my perspective, I happen to like Tony, and I'm not going to argue if people don't like him. But I do think the Islanders, as far as their whole media perspective and highlighting their team and their players, it's changing, and they're fun now. And I think that's something that Islander fans have always had to argue about by saying, We're not boring. We're not boring. Stop hating on us. But right now, for the first seven games, they are the furthest thing from boring.

All right, let's put aside the Calder Trophy, right? Does Matthew Schafer have a chance to win the Norris Trophy?

Does he have a chance? I mean, maybe. I don't think he has no chance, but Kael is already off to a great start. Lane's off to a great start again. It's tough to say he has a real shot, but I'm not going to... He's definitely in the conversation so far, for sure.

Which is pretty impressive, considering he's played, what, five NHL games or whatever it is.

Eighteen years old, that thing. It's just a crush. He's showing signs of somebody who can actually be an excellent defenseman in this game.

Well, would it be surprising to see Schafer, legitimately, in that McCar-Hugh's conversation in the next, say, three years?

Before that, maybe. Yeah. Wow. I think Was Lane in that conversation? I don't know if Lane was.

He got some Norris votes last year. Didn't he get a couple? He was right up there.

Yeah. But I still don't know if in that... Those two are so different, the Hughes and McCars. While Lane is still an incredible skater, the explosiveness that those two still have over every other defenseman is insane. Mourensky has shown it a bit at times, too, but that's more north-south versus lateral hip mobility. The way that Kael and Quin can do that Mohawk and turn their hips and just beat guys, honestly, with their legs opened up versus just going straight down, it's wild. The talent it takes to have the skating ability of those two is something I have not really seen. But again, Schafer is very special, and I don't think we've seen an 18-year-old defenseman step in and look like this ever.

Hey, Nattie Hattie for Logan Cooley in the first five minutes. Are we expecting big things from the Utah Mammoth?

Yeah. Also, again, on Home Ice, I think they're perfect so far this year. And nick Schmaltz, Dylan Gunther, Clayton Keller, those three together have been on fire as well. I know Logan Cooley, obviously, is the highlight, but you look at the top guys right now for Utah and just the overall camaraderie around the organization. That's a city that's so bought in on that team. And an owner that's going to do anything he can to get them into the playoffs because they build a brand new facilities. Obviously, they have this new mascot, Tusky. I think that everybody's falling in love with. They're just doing things the right way and marketing their organization the right way. And when you have the players on the ice that are performing, it's lovable. Tusky. It is Tusky, right? Yeah, Tusky. Yeah. Again, though, Clayton Keller, to me, I said it all summer, one of the more underrated guys in the NHL, I don't think gets talked about nearly And he's off to an incredible start this year. And obviously wants to make that team USA roster for Milan. But we're talking about a guy who's put up three straight 30 plus goal seasons, 90 points last year.

I think was around 90 points two years ago. He's a star. And I don't know if Utah or Arizona at that time had been... Well, they definitely had not been. Appointment television. But Utah right now, and again, watching them, especially at home, it's a good watch. It's a fun watch. That game against Colorado the other night was a really fun game. I think Avalanche fans are still a little pissed about that offside review and how it was explained. But you got to credit the Mammoth for bouncing back and being able to come back in that game and find a way to win. I didn't get to see last night's game, so it's hard to speak in detail about last night's win. But they're off to a great start so far. I think they've won five in a row now.

Johnny, you spend a lot of time with hockey players, with NHL players. One of my favorite things the last few years have been your open skate videos where If you guys haven't seen them, Johnny basically states a lap with every NHL player. I wish I had that idea, man. Every big name you can think of, they're in their full gear and just shooting the shit. It's really cool. And as a hockey player yourself, obviously, you get it. You get how hockey players are. The reason I'm forming the question like this is I'm thinking ahead to the Olympics coming up. Hockey players, they're rich, they travel well, but at the Olympics, they're going to be in dorms. It's going to be a totally different situation. The Olympic Village. Yes, exactly. The Olympic village. It's like summer camp.

Yeah, carry your condoms.

We don't want to talk about that part, dude. Jesus, that's not where I was going with it.

I've definitely heard some stories.

They haven't gone in so long. This is going to be a new generation. Obviously, we're going to have the Crosby's and the guys that have done it before. But most of the players are going to be from a different cloth a little bit. I just wanted to get your take on, how are they going to handle it? Is it going to be an issue? Is it going to be a non-issue? The traveling? The traveling, the dorm situation, It's the less luxurious life of being in the Olympics.

Yeah. I mean, less luxurious when you're in Milan, Italy is.

The fast food is probably spectacular, too. Yeah.

I don't know. There's definitely worse places to be. But again, Dave, to your point, did you play junior hockey? Yes. You did know? Yeah. So you know. You're on the bus, you're eating shitty subs or Water burger.

Water burger.

I'm not a Water burger guy at all. I hate that food. But these guys have all gone through it. I think junior hockey versus the NHL, it's obviously the NHL is a massive step up. And junior hockey has certainly come a long way from where it was maybe 10, 15 years ago. But when you're also in the Olympics and representing your country and doing all that stuff, I don't think these guys give a damn, where they sleep, where they're staying. I think it's all about being on the ice and the bonding off the ice. And even if it's not as luxurious, that's still something to bond over. I know a lot of guys had... I think in the Peewee Quebec tournament, you're supposed to stay with random people and stuff when you're young. You're in seventh grade, but I'm sure a lot of these guys have experienced something like this at some point. So I don't think it'll be some culture shock.

And finally, are you surprised at how well grandma Sean at an advanced age- No. What do you mean? Okay. Not surprised. Has been playing… You're not… Okay. Not surprised. Not surprised. All right. Well, neither am I, but at 38, we were throwing out useless Sydney Crosby stats. But yeah, are you surprised at how well he's playing right now at, again, an advanced K'Nan's age.

No. Dave said it already, pretty much. But also the Panthers needed someone to step up with Barkov and K'Chuk's absence. And I think everyone pointed the finger at Marshan. And Marshan has been a top-line player for the majority of the last 75 % of his career. At the early parts of his career, he was more third-line, bottom-six guy, but helped teams win. And I know last year he was playing third-line. But this is a guy who's been 90 plus, I think, did I think he had a 100-point year. Yeah, he had a 100-point season maybe five or six years ago. So he's been a top guy in multiple stages of his career, and he has shown no signs of slowing down. Obviously, had some surgery prior to last season, and maybe Boston wasn't the best team last year, so the numbers may not have been there. But this is a guy who has been a prolific 20 plus goal scorer, plays power play, does everything, and comes up in big moments, too. So no, I'm not surprised at all. I don't think anyone really is.

All right. It's always great having you on the show, Johnny. One of these days, you have to come down and all of us, full gear, go down to the Baptist Iceplex and just skate around and do nothing.

Say less. Winter Classic. You're going to be down here for it, right?

Yeah, you're going to be down here for Winter Classic? Yeah.

Yeah. And I'll have my skates with me. So maybe I'll throw my stick in and some other gear and we can mess around. I was down there for the Soflo thing this summer. That was great.

All for the three on three?

Three on three, yeah.

Nice.

Yeah, they do a great job. That was a lot of fun. I mean, sharing the ice with Liv Shunab and who else was out there. Obviously, Brandon Duhame is the perfect representative for hockey in Florida. That kid is unbelievable. He seems like a really fun guy. Such a sneaky good personality. But yeah, they do a really good job. Cole, Blashman, and Timmy with that league. So shout out to those guys. It was a lot of fun this summer.

Thank you, man. I mean, excellent. You're going to come down here at the end of December. We're all going to get together. You can watch me fall on my ass. New Year's Eve. New Year's Eve. It's going to be a great... It's going to be a party. Hopefully, I can drink been. All right. Thank you, Johnny, for joining us. This is excellent. Johnny Lassers, everybody.

Thanks, Roy. Thanks, Dave.

How do you, listeners? It's Mike Ryan and Chris Cody. Hey, everyone. Hey, Chris. We love hanging out so much.

You were at my birthday the other day. You're old.

You know what I saw in your hand? What? A can of Miller light. Whether it's a can, whether it's a bottle, a draft pour of Miller light.

The draft pour, you see that beautiful, iconic color right away.

The ice coldness to it.

Yes, Chris.

The ice coldness to it. Whether you're hanging out with me on my birthday because I'm old or you're at a game, you know that Miller light just makes every special time a Miller Time. That's how you make the Special Times by making them Miller Times. Game Day just hits different with Miller Lite in your hand. Hitting different. From jaw-dropping touch downs to fantasy heartbreak, it's a beer that has been there for every moment. Fifty years of great taste, simple ingredients, And that iconic golden color. That coldness, Chris.

That icy coldness.

That icy coldness. The original light beer since 1975 and still hitting different five decades later. Miller Light. Great taste, 96 calories. Go to millerlight. Com/dan to find delivery options near or you can pick up some Miller light pretty much anywhere they sell beer.

It's Miller time.

Celebrate responsibly Miller Brewing Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 96 calories and 3. 2 carbs per 12 ounces. I see coldness. All your favorite NBA players are back. And DraftKings Sportsbook, an official sports bet and partner of the NBA, is the place to bet on NBA stars this season. New customers download the DraftKings Sportsbook app now and use code Dan, that's code D-A-N, to bet five bucks and get three months of NBA League pass, plus get $300 in bonus bets if your bet wins. In partnership with DraftKings, the crown is yours.

Gambling problem? Call 1-800 Gambler. In New York, call 877-8 Hope & Y or text Hope & Y 467-369. In Connecticut help is available for problem gambling. Call 888-789-7777 or visit ccpg. Org. Please play responsibly. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino and Resort in Kansas, pass through a per-wager tax may apply in Illinois. 21 and over. Agent eligibility varies by jurisdiction. In Ontario. Restrictions apply. Bet must win to receive bonus bets which expire in seven days. Minimum odds required. Nba League Pass auto renews until canceled. Additional terms at dkng. Co/audio. Limited time offer.

It's time to head into the Panthers Den, and the Panthers Den is pretty dark right now. It's not been a good time for Florida. Saturday, they lost the Buffalo 3, nothing. Tuesday, they beat the Bruins 4 to 3 in an emotional game We'll get to that in a second. Thursday, last night, lost the Pittsburgh 5 to 3. We'll get to that game a little bit later. And Saturday, they will play the Vegas go to night's at home. All right, so Florida came off... They were still on a disastrous road trip. They have lost four games, all of them in regulation, after starting the season with three straight at home. So we'll go and bypass that and move to the last game of the road trip, which was in Boston. We mentioned Brad Marshawn and his return to Boston, which was crazy emotional. As Danny GQ said, he was a blubbering mess.

Blubbering in Boston. I like it.

Yeah, and it's understandable.

Blubbering Brad in Boston. The alliteration is still growing.

Hey, look at you. You're a writer. All right, so he made his return, and the Panthers went into the third period, leading two to nothing. And that's when things got crazy, especially in the last three minutes of the game. Boston scored too early in the third before Itzu Luce Rinen took the lead back. But Morgan Geeky ended up scoring with a minute and a half left to tie the game again. And then with 26 seconds left, Carter Verhege shot that went off the post, hit the leg of Andrew Peek, and went into the net. The Panthers would hold on the win despite a clock malfunction at the end of the game.

I forgot about that.

That's what happened. They finally broke that losing streak and ended up being four and four at that time with eight points in the standings. Why don't you go over the game? How did that go for you?

It was good to see four to get going on the power play. That was something that they had really been struggling with on the road trip. I think in the Buffalo shutout loss, they had like 15 power play shots, so things were clicking. They just couldn't get the buck in the net, which was really a big story of the entire road trip. Their underlying numbers, the offensive stats, they were there maybe not as strong as we're used to seeing from the Panthers when they're at full strength, but certainly good enough to win in a lot of areas. You could feel that things are going to turn around at some point for the Panthers. Got a little bit of that feeling in the Boston game. The third period was crazy. Blowing a two goal lead, granted on the road, but still a two goal lead in the third period, blowing that, taking another lead, blowing that again. They got lucky with that fluty ass. It reminded me of those. You remember the McDonald's commercials from back in the day with Jordan and Bird? Off the wall, off the backboard, off the rafters, nothing but net.

Shooting from the top of Sears Tower.

Yeah, exactly. That's what that goal felt like. It was just going off everything random.

Yeah. They barely made it out of that one. The Panthers third period That have not been good. That's not been a hallmark of this team for the past couple of years. No. They have gone in and allowed a lot of goals. Now, granted, a good portion of them empty nets, but still, don't put yourself in that situation.

Yes. Their GPS is malfunctioning. They've lost their map to Shutdown City. They have to-Missed an exit. They've got to figure out how to get back on the right track because shutdown City is synonymous with Panthers Hockey. It's a big part of the way they play. It's going to be something that if they're going to continue to succeed, they're going to have to find their way back. So Panthers, Shutdown City, we need to find your way to back to each other.

Panthers finally made it back home. Weary. But against the Penguins, they did not look good at all, especially in their own defensive zone. They tried to put an effort up in the third, but then the penguins ended up responding. Again, Cindy Crosby, and that's the only time I'm going to mention him for the rest of the show. That's it. But if you look at the game, the East-West defense in the defensive zone was not good. They allowed a lot of cross-size passes leading the one-timers. In fact, they had three one-timer goals, two of those based on cross-size passes. One of them, from a given goal. One bad goal by Bob that just creeped right through him. Bob did not face a lot of shots. I think he faced 16?

Yeah, he faced nine shots over the second and third period combined. Four of them went in.

Yeah, not good. Now, the power play last night, the power play in Boston, very, very good.

Yeah, it looks much better.

But the pin one to kill, middle of the pack.

Interesting, though, with Anton Lindell, Macky Sammisiewicz, getting some time in that top power play unit, taking Aaron Ackblad, putting him on the second unit, moving Sam Bennett to that unit. It looks like some of those buttons that Paul Maurice is pushing, pushing the right ones. Yeah.

Brad Marshawn, team leading 10 points, had two goals in that game. And the old man is...

In his last two games for Brad Marshan.

The old man is propelling offense for Florida. At least he's trying. I mean, come on. The Panthers, they're not scoring. It seems like the only person who is scoring is Brad Marshawn and a little bit of Etulus right now.

No, I'm just Looking at their scoring right now. Like, your top four scores are not Sam Reinhardt, Carter Verhege. Your top four scores are Marshawn, Wendell, Macky Samusiewicz, and Seth Jones. Sam Reinhardt only has four points. Carter Verhege has three points. Eckblatt has three points. Sam Bennett has two points. The guys you're expecting to contribute and to mitigate the losses of the Barcobs and the Kachucks, they need to find their footing a little bit more because you can't expect... Granted, we've been waiting for guys like Lindell and Sam Miskevich to take that next step to turn that corner. So maybe they're doing that now. And if all the other guys start to catch up, then everything will start to fall into place for the Panthers. But right now, a little disjointed.

After scoring 11 goals in the first three games of the season, the Panthers went out on the road and scored four in the first four games of that road trip, and then including again, shot out by Buffalo. Just not good. The Panthers have scored seven in the last two games. They are now four, five, and zero, third place in the Atlantic division. Now, saw that Sam Bennett, he actually had more shots on goal last night than really he's had all season.

Now, Bennett, I mean, the first couple of games, I thought he hit his shotovers when we were tracking that for reasons of... Because we like to lose money. But no, that's the thing. That second line. Because wherever Marshan is gone, that has ignited that group. At the beginning of the season, it was Marshan with Bennett and Verhejge. Now it's Marshan back with Lundell and Lou Strinen. But it's that Bennett line. If Marshan's not on it, whether it's Reinhardt there, Verhege, or Rodriguez, whoever they're putting up, Sam Miskevich is getting that time in the top six now. But they need to get that guy going Because as we know, and as we saw in the playoffs, when Sam Bennett is firing on all cylinders, it is really good for the Panthers.

Sam Bennett is tied for worst in the league in plus minus. He is at minus nine.

That's insane.

That's not good. That is not good. But it's only the knife game of the regular season. That's bound to get fixed. So that's the week in the Panthers. It's not been good. They play Vegas tomorrow.

Tough. Vegas has won four in a row, man.

Yeah. So hopefully, the Panthers get back on track.

They've scored 20 goals in those four games.

Great. All right. For Kristen, for Danny GQ, for Gino and Jason, that is David Dworke. My name is Roy Balmy. I'd like to thank Johnny Lazarus for joining us today. This is The Hockey Show. We will see you next week.

Now is a good time to remember where tequila's story truly began.

In 1795, Cuervo invented tequila.

Cuervo. What are you doing here? Cuervo.

Anytime someone says Cuervo, I show up.

Well, I do know that to be true, but even during an ad reads like...

Cuervo.

I think it could lay out, especially for one of our great partners. Sweet, delicious Cuervo. Since then, Cuervo has stayed true to its roots.

The same family, the same land, the same passion.

Cuervo. So enjoy the tequila that started it all.

Cuervo. Cuervo. The tequila that invented tequila.

Proximo. Cuervo. Com. Please drink responsibly. Cuervo.