WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.740 Well, hello! It's Daria and Ken. I guess I should 00:00:03.740 --> 00:00:07.759 say that we represent quite a few hockey digital 00:00:07.759 --> 00:00:10.679 sources. It's Hockey on the Beach podcast and 00:00:10.679 --> 00:00:14.660 Tampa Bay Sports Journal. We are in the second 00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:18.679 week of the 2026 Milano -Cortina Olympic Games 00:00:18.679 --> 00:00:22.879 and the first one for the hockey players. The 00:00:22.879 --> 00:00:26.960 hockey tournament started February 11th and it's 00:00:26.960 --> 00:00:29.940 something special, I should say. Ken, hello, 00:00:30.140 --> 00:00:34.000 and how do you feel about all of this? I feel 00:00:34.000 --> 00:00:36.460 good. At least I'm able to watch some hockey 00:00:36.460 --> 00:00:38.719 after that five -day break. So I feel good about 00:00:38.719 --> 00:00:42.780 watching the guys skate on the ice. I'm not, 00:00:42.859 --> 00:00:45.479 at this stage of the tournament, not looking 00:00:45.479 --> 00:00:48.539 for a lot of surprises. Everything has been pretty 00:00:48.539 --> 00:00:51.899 much the form, status quo. I mean, the United 00:00:51.899 --> 00:00:55.340 States handled Latvia in their first game and 00:00:55.340 --> 00:01:00.280 Canada. They disposed of their two opponents 00:01:00.280 --> 00:01:07.079 with ease. We probably won't see any real competitive 00:01:07.079 --> 00:01:10.219 hockey like we saw in the Four Nations Cup until 00:01:10.219 --> 00:01:14.099 next week when the relegation round and then 00:01:14.099 --> 00:01:18.000 your semis and things get underway. But it's 00:01:18.000 --> 00:01:21.980 been good so far. Like I said, not as surprises, 00:01:21.980 --> 00:01:26.180 but just good to see the different players. meshing 00:01:26.180 --> 00:01:29.640 with uh you know fellows from their own country 00:01:29.640 --> 00:01:31.799 wearing their own jerseys representing their 00:01:31.799 --> 00:01:34.739 nation it's been pretty pretty cool to see and 00:01:34.739 --> 00:01:38.480 so it's 12 nations just one gold and two of us 00:01:38.480 --> 00:01:43.780 let's be real and brutal yes so let's focus on 00:01:43.780 --> 00:01:47.739 good and bad i think this the surprise i'm surprised 00:01:47.739 --> 00:01:52.000 that jordan bennington is starting for team canada 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:56.459 and he had a really good game His first outing, 00:01:56.459 --> 00:01:59.739 the Canadians, they beat Finland. I think it 00:01:59.739 --> 00:02:03.640 was Finland 5 -0. And after the game, the media 00:02:03.640 --> 00:02:05.540 is asking Cooper, well, are you going to ride 00:02:05.540 --> 00:02:07.900 Bennington the whole way? In a short tournament, 00:02:08.000 --> 00:02:12.460 your goaltender can really factor in to how successful 00:02:12.460 --> 00:02:15.300 you are, how far you go in the tournament. And 00:02:15.300 --> 00:02:18.180 he was really, really coy about that. He wasn't 00:02:18.180 --> 00:02:20.879 going to tip his hand at all. In today's game 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:22.599 against Switzerland, Logan Thompson started. 00:02:23.080 --> 00:02:25.780 And Canada, of course, beat Switzerland 5 -1. 00:02:26.360 --> 00:02:30.020 So Cooper is, you know, he's got two guys I think 00:02:30.020 --> 00:02:32.699 he can really, really count on. It'll be interesting 00:02:32.699 --> 00:02:35.979 to see who he picks as his number one goalie. 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:38.419 as the team advances into the tournament and 00:02:38.419 --> 00:02:40.280 they get into the regulation and the playoff 00:02:40.280 --> 00:02:42.900 rounds even if we go back to the four nations 00:02:42.900 --> 00:02:46.060 tournament he was amazing he made it through 00:02:46.060 --> 00:02:49.460 the final and that's one thing about jordan bennington 00:02:49.460 --> 00:02:54.439 he might not be so stable in the nhl but let's 00:02:54.439 --> 00:02:56.840 remember he has the stanley cup under his belt 00:02:56.840 --> 00:03:00.159 and he was just amazing in the finals of the 00:03:00.159 --> 00:03:02.860 four nations tournament so we know he can show 00:03:02.860 --> 00:03:06.319 up yes and that's all you need You just need 00:03:06.319 --> 00:03:10.620 a guy to play outstanding in goal for four or 00:03:10.620 --> 00:03:12.800 five games. That's it. You're not asking him 00:03:12.800 --> 00:03:15.800 to carry the season to get you from point A to 00:03:15.800 --> 00:03:18.780 point B. Hey, give me your best for five or six 00:03:18.780 --> 00:03:21.479 games, and we'll see what happens. So Canada 00:03:21.479 --> 00:03:24.340 is good, of course. Canada has the best coach 00:03:24.340 --> 00:03:27.680 ever. His name is John Cooper, and he is also 00:03:27.680 --> 00:03:30.819 our coach. By our, I mean Tampa Bay Lightning, 00:03:30.919 --> 00:03:35.430 let's go. By the way. If John Cooper wins the 00:03:35.430 --> 00:03:38.629 Olympic gold medal with Team Canada, he will 00:03:38.629 --> 00:03:42.330 have won a championship at every single level 00:03:42.330 --> 00:03:47.110 of hockey. That's amazing. He got his start way 00:03:47.110 --> 00:03:50.050 low in the minor leagues. I think up in Michigan 00:03:50.050 --> 00:03:53.009 when he was still moonlighting as a lawyer during 00:03:53.009 --> 00:03:55.770 the day and a hockey coach at night. He started 00:03:55.770 --> 00:03:58.969 his coaching career and has progressed through 00:03:58.969 --> 00:04:01.879 the ranks and just done a... a great job every 00:04:01.879 --> 00:04:04.360 everywhere he's been and that's why he'll he'll 00:04:04.360 --> 00:04:06.919 be a hall of fame coach and be in the hall of 00:04:06.919 --> 00:04:09.740 fame someday yeah imagine doing that and people 00:04:09.740 --> 00:04:14.419 still love you yes i know right yeah and it's 00:04:14.419 --> 00:04:17.720 like he just always surprises us because in the 00:04:17.720 --> 00:04:21.079 first game he i know it was probably just like 00:04:21.079 --> 00:04:24.939 for the memories but he let florida panthers 00:04:24.939 --> 00:04:28.399 players play all together for one shift i mean 00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:33.149 that's amazing Well, he has, like I said, we 00:04:33.149 --> 00:04:35.290 talked about earlier on the other podcast. He 00:04:35.290 --> 00:04:38.269 has his pulse on what's going to work in the 00:04:38.269 --> 00:04:40.790 room, who's good at playing together. He's going 00:04:40.790 --> 00:04:43.449 to try different line combinations. And you know 00:04:43.449 --> 00:04:45.829 you're probably going to win the game. Why not? 00:04:46.310 --> 00:04:48.209 Why not have a little fun, throw the boys out 00:04:48.209 --> 00:04:50.829 there, and let them have some fun playing together 00:04:50.829 --> 00:04:54.470 for a few minutes. Nothing wrong with that. That's 00:04:54.470 --> 00:04:56.829 so special. And who knows? And who knows, too. 00:04:57.500 --> 00:04:59.920 You may get deeper into the tournament where 00:04:59.920 --> 00:05:02.740 you'll have to maybe rely on three or four of 00:05:02.740 --> 00:05:04.959 those players playing together, you know, to 00:05:04.959 --> 00:05:07.959 get you a goal in a tough spot or, you know, 00:05:07.959 --> 00:05:11.399 whatever challenges you might be facing on the 00:05:11.399 --> 00:05:14.699 ice. You may need that core group of players 00:05:14.699 --> 00:05:16.959 because they'll play together so often and they're 00:05:16.959 --> 00:05:21.860 familiar with each other's game. So far, yeah, 00:05:21.920 --> 00:05:24.879 so far Canadians don't really have that much 00:05:24.879 --> 00:05:29.110 pressure. I mean, it's Switzerland 5 -2 -1 and 00:05:29.110 --> 00:05:34.629 Czech Republic 5 -2 -0. So we will see. They 00:05:34.629 --> 00:05:36.750 will get there because they probably missed some 00:05:36.750 --> 00:05:40.449 competition too. What about Team USA? Well, they 00:05:40.449 --> 00:05:44.509 only had one game that was against Latvia. They 00:05:44.509 --> 00:05:47.889 won 5 -1 rather handedly. A little slow start. 00:05:48.129 --> 00:05:52.189 It was 1 -1 after one period. And I'm sure everybody's 00:05:52.189 --> 00:05:53.750 scratching their head thinking, oh boy, here 00:05:53.750 --> 00:05:57.149 we go again. Is this U .S. squad just going to 00:05:57.149 --> 00:05:59.449 flame out, or are they going to come back and 00:05:59.449 --> 00:06:01.470 really get after it in the second period? And 00:06:01.470 --> 00:06:04.370 credit to them, they did. And they came away 00:06:04.370 --> 00:06:07.189 with a rather easy 5 -1 win. And they probably 00:06:07.189 --> 00:06:10.209 will not be challenged the rest of the first 00:06:10.209 --> 00:06:11.889 round of the tournament. They've got Denmark 00:06:11.889 --> 00:06:15.129 tomorrow afternoon, and then they play Germany 00:06:15.129 --> 00:06:19.730 on Sunday. And those should be relatively easy 00:06:19.730 --> 00:06:22.810 wins. Germany might be a bit more of a challenge 00:06:22.810 --> 00:06:25.860 than what Denmark will be. But I don't see the 00:06:25.860 --> 00:06:29.279 U .S. losing any of those two games. I expected 00:06:29.279 --> 00:06:33.300 more from Team Latvia. They were okay for the 00:06:33.300 --> 00:06:36.660 first period, but they just fell apart. And it 00:06:36.660 --> 00:06:39.779 still matters who is the coach. I know Will Harris 00:06:39.779 --> 00:06:43.120 -Vitalinch, Team Latvia coach, because he worked 00:06:43.120 --> 00:06:47.160 a lot in the KHL. He's a nice guy. So he might 00:06:47.160 --> 00:06:50.139 be a really good specialist, but he needs someone 00:06:50.139 --> 00:06:54.110 next to him. who is in charge. So he's a great 00:06:54.110 --> 00:06:58.509 assistant coach, but he's probably too soft -spoken 00:06:58.509 --> 00:07:03.529 to be such a harsh leader on the bench. Yeah. 00:07:03.629 --> 00:07:07.649 And, you know, Latvia, they're a squad that really 00:07:07.649 --> 00:07:12.170 hasn't had a lot of Olympic success in hockey. 00:07:12.569 --> 00:07:16.370 So if they can get a win in one of the remaining 00:07:16.370 --> 00:07:19.129 two or three games that they have, or maybe... 00:07:19.339 --> 00:07:21.699 win a couple that would that would be big for 00:07:21.699 --> 00:07:24.939 them well see that's really interesting because 00:07:24.939 --> 00:07:28.439 if we when we talk about italy we really should 00:07:28.439 --> 00:07:32.620 take in consideration finland and italy because 00:07:32.620 --> 00:07:38.360 they lost their amazing award -winning the best 00:07:38.360 --> 00:07:42.529 ever coach yuka yalanin who is now coaching italy 00:07:42.529 --> 00:07:46.470 and we've seen that italy was super fast they 00:07:46.470 --> 00:07:49.129 were pressuring they were for checking it was 00:07:49.129 --> 00:07:53.029 scary to see how swedes were lost i mean they 00:07:53.029 --> 00:07:57.589 have overrated players on their roster who couldn't 00:07:57.589 --> 00:08:00.430 do anything yes it's very nice when you can shoot 00:08:00.430 --> 00:08:03.910 i don't know 100 times a game but if you only 00:08:03.910 --> 00:08:07.189 score five and one of them is an empty net i 00:08:07.189 --> 00:08:10.040 mean you have a problem You know, I don't know 00:08:10.040 --> 00:08:14.040 the coaching dynamics that goes on behind the 00:08:14.040 --> 00:08:16.680 scenes over there in those European countries. 00:08:16.740 --> 00:08:19.319 You're a little more in tune with that than I 00:08:19.319 --> 00:08:21.680 am. But, you know, you're exactly right. Coaching, 00:08:21.860 --> 00:08:25.199 you know, makes a huge difference. And it can 00:08:25.199 --> 00:08:28.000 make a major difference in a big international 00:08:28.000 --> 00:08:31.100 tournament like this when you take somebody that 00:08:31.100 --> 00:08:35.360 maybe has really built that club, had control 00:08:35.360 --> 00:08:37.340 of the locker room, the players respected him, 00:08:37.379 --> 00:08:40.580 and all of a sudden. he's gone, you know, to 00:08:40.580 --> 00:08:44.440 coach somewhere else. That can have a huge effect, 00:08:44.539 --> 00:08:47.480 whether anybody will admit that or not, you know, 00:08:47.500 --> 00:08:51.740 the results are on the ice. Well, the thing is, 00:08:51.779 --> 00:08:54.799 we have at least three teams that have coaching 00:08:54.799 --> 00:08:58.820 issues. And there's also a rumor that one of 00:08:58.820 --> 00:09:01.509 the Florida Panthers players who... who is on 00:09:01.509 --> 00:09:04.990 the Team Finland. He's asking for the head coach 00:09:04.990 --> 00:09:07.690 of Team Finland to be fired and Paul Maurice 00:09:07.690 --> 00:09:16.070 to take his place. I think culture, not the ethnicity 00:09:16.070 --> 00:09:21.110 type of culture, but the culture you bring into 00:09:21.110 --> 00:09:23.490 an organization. Is it a winning culture? Is 00:09:23.490 --> 00:09:25.830 it a losing culture? Are you a player's coach? 00:09:25.970 --> 00:09:28.309 Are you not a player's coach? I think all that. 00:09:29.060 --> 00:09:33.080 plays into how the players obviously feel about 00:09:33.080 --> 00:09:36.220 the coach. And the coach is responsible for creating 00:09:36.220 --> 00:09:39.080 that culture and that dynamic that he's going 00:09:39.080 --> 00:09:43.960 to put out on the ice. And if the coach, as John 00:09:43.960 --> 00:09:48.059 Cooper does, does not have his pulse on the team 00:09:48.059 --> 00:09:51.820 and is able to really know at any given moment, 00:09:51.879 --> 00:09:54.450 okay. I could put these five on the ice. They're 00:09:54.450 --> 00:09:56.210 going to play really well together. I can't put 00:09:56.210 --> 00:09:59.169 these two or these three. Then you're not going 00:09:59.169 --> 00:10:01.889 to be successful. You just can't throw people 00:10:01.889 --> 00:10:05.289 out there on the ice in this type of tournament 00:10:05.289 --> 00:10:10.190 and expect to have some success. There is a little 00:10:10.190 --> 00:10:14.250 bit of chemistry that has to factor into it to 00:10:14.250 --> 00:10:17.909 get you over the hump. I have to do game previews 00:10:17.909 --> 00:10:21.950 for almost every game for my job. So it's really 00:10:21.950 --> 00:10:26.289 harsh sometimes because I feel like some of the 00:10:26.289 --> 00:10:29.370 NHL players are still very confused there in 00:10:29.370 --> 00:10:31.870 Italy or maybe they are having too much fun. 00:10:32.029 --> 00:10:35.990 It just looks like Swedes, right? Team Sweden. 00:10:36.389 --> 00:10:40.669 They are just not mentally there because if you 00:10:40.669 --> 00:10:44.759 take Slovakia... The team doesn't have so many 00:10:44.759 --> 00:10:48.559 stars at all. They are amazing. They push hard 00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:53.000 and they win hard. You can't measure heart. Oh, 00:10:53.059 --> 00:10:56.500 I like it. You can't measure heart. No, you really 00:10:56.500 --> 00:10:59.779 can't. That's why a team with less talent is 00:10:59.779 --> 00:11:02.059 able to beat a team that has a lot more talent 00:11:02.059 --> 00:11:05.059 on paper. You know, they have heart, they have 00:11:05.059 --> 00:11:07.240 drive, they have determination. They're going 00:11:07.240 --> 00:11:08.740 to work hard. They're going to do the little 00:11:08.740 --> 00:11:12.159 things that it takes to win. And fortunately, 00:11:12.460 --> 00:11:15.580 some players and some teams just aren't willing 00:11:15.580 --> 00:11:18.679 to do that. So where are you going to put Slovakia 00:11:18.679 --> 00:11:22.220 and Italy? Is it good or bad list? What side? 00:11:22.500 --> 00:11:26.360 Pick the side. I would put Italy on the bad list. 00:11:28.139 --> 00:11:34.059 Slovakia, probably on the good list. But there's 00:11:34.059 --> 00:11:37.159 probably seven or eight teams ahead of Slovakia 00:11:37.159 --> 00:11:40.620 on the good list. Or as far as good teams go. 00:11:41.200 --> 00:11:43.480 Cool. So what about Finland? Because I've been 00:11:43.480 --> 00:11:47.960 talking a lot about Finland. I almost cried when 00:11:47.960 --> 00:11:50.480 I was watching the first game. It was so horrible. 00:11:50.700 --> 00:11:53.480 And I'm like, where are all of those Finnish 00:11:53.480 --> 00:11:59.139 stars? I think it's more of a factor of them 00:11:59.139 --> 00:12:03.799 not playing together. You just can't put, you 00:12:03.799 --> 00:12:08.470 know, Sidney Crosby and Nikita Kucherov. And 00:12:08.470 --> 00:12:11.830 Leon draws side along the line and expect, you 00:12:11.830 --> 00:12:14.309 know, to score six goals a game. That's not how 00:12:14.309 --> 00:12:17.029 it works. They've got to work together. They've 00:12:17.029 --> 00:12:18.769 got to practice together. They've got to play 00:12:18.769 --> 00:12:21.509 together. And they've got to earn that trust. 00:12:22.289 --> 00:12:27.210 Trust is a big issue, especially on these most 00:12:27.210 --> 00:12:29.950 successful lines in the NHL. You know, look at 00:12:29.950 --> 00:12:32.950 Kucherov with the Tampa Bay Lightning. When he 00:12:32.950 --> 00:12:37.879 has the puck, he knows. whoever he's passing 00:12:37.879 --> 00:12:40.340 it to is going to be at this point on the ice 00:12:40.340 --> 00:12:43.259 to take that pass and take a shot. He knows that. 00:12:43.320 --> 00:12:46.559 He trusts the player, trusts that player to be 00:12:46.559 --> 00:12:48.960 there. And I think in these international tournaments 00:12:48.960 --> 00:12:53.200 where you have a lot of these superstars coming 00:12:53.200 --> 00:12:56.240 together, that's not necessarily the case because 00:12:56.240 --> 00:12:59.799 they haven't played together. And a lot of them, 00:12:59.840 --> 00:13:02.740 too, they're not willing to check their egos 00:13:02.740 --> 00:13:05.690 at the door. You've heard that saying, all for 00:13:05.690 --> 00:13:08.809 one and one for all. Well, how many of the players 00:13:08.809 --> 00:13:13.029 actually adhere to that? After you get past the 00:13:13.029 --> 00:13:16.409 top three or four countries in the Olympics that 00:13:16.409 --> 00:13:18.990 are playing successful hockey, how many of those 00:13:18.990 --> 00:13:22.590 other teams are really committed to doing whatever 00:13:22.590 --> 00:13:24.690 it takes to win? They don't care who gets the 00:13:24.690 --> 00:13:27.269 credit. They don't care who scores the winning 00:13:27.269 --> 00:13:29.169 goal. They don't care. They just want to win. 00:13:29.629 --> 00:13:31.929 that's what canada does yeah they don't have 00:13:31.929 --> 00:13:34.409 time you just have to work if you don't have 00:13:34.409 --> 00:13:37.289 connection build it immediately find change do 00:13:37.289 --> 00:13:40.490 something there is no time i just also feel like 00:13:40.490 --> 00:13:45.809 um with teams like sweden and finland they do 00:13:45.809 --> 00:13:49.309 have great individual players right but in the 00:13:49.309 --> 00:13:52.990 nhl you cannot say that there is a superstar 00:13:54.250 --> 00:13:57.169 Finnish superstar or Swedish superstar, they 00:13:57.169 --> 00:14:01.409 work well as a package. So I would say they don't 00:14:01.409 --> 00:14:05.990 really have Cillebrini, Sidney Crosby, Kachok 00:14:05.990 --> 00:14:09.210 caliber. So it's like someone who really has 00:14:09.210 --> 00:14:12.409 a voice, someone who can really show up when 00:14:12.409 --> 00:14:15.350 it's needed. So that's why when they all get 00:14:15.350 --> 00:14:18.470 together, it's like, yeah, we'll write, but there's 00:14:18.470 --> 00:14:22.309 no one great leader. That's a good point. And 00:14:22.309 --> 00:14:26.960 that goes back. Two, to the respect factor. I 00:14:26.960 --> 00:14:31.299 mean, you have a Finnish superstar or, you know, 00:14:31.379 --> 00:14:34.259 Canadian superstar. When the other players walk 00:14:34.259 --> 00:14:38.940 in the room, there's a healthy respect for that. 00:14:39.299 --> 00:14:41.879 You know, Nathan McKinnon, let's take him for 00:14:41.879 --> 00:14:45.159 example. I guarantee you he has a lot of respect 00:14:45.159 --> 00:14:48.019 amongst almost the whole Canadian team because 00:14:48.019 --> 00:14:51.940 he has produced on the ice at a very, very high 00:14:51.940 --> 00:14:56.100 level. for years and years. Not that he's an 00:14:56.100 --> 00:14:58.419 ancient superstar, but, I mean, year after year, 00:14:58.500 --> 00:15:02.799 he's at the top in scoring, in goals, has a number 00:15:02.799 --> 00:15:05.480 of assists. So when he's on your team and he's 00:15:05.480 --> 00:15:07.580 on your line, you just give him that respect 00:15:07.580 --> 00:15:09.860 because you know he's going to show up in a big 00:15:09.860 --> 00:15:12.639 spot. And a lot of the other players for some 00:15:12.639 --> 00:15:14.659 of the other countries, they don't have that 00:15:14.659 --> 00:15:19.279 caliber of player, or if they do, their ego. 00:15:20.279 --> 00:15:23.159 gets in gets in the way and they lose that respect 00:15:23.159 --> 00:15:26.360 and trust factor before they even put one foot 00:15:26.360 --> 00:15:29.360 on the ice you're too nice that's all i can say 00:15:29.360 --> 00:15:31.279 you're too nice because it's like you have to 00:15:31.279 --> 00:15:34.139 work guys you you really wanted to make it to 00:15:34.139 --> 00:15:37.159 the olympics you're in you have to work your 00:15:37.159 --> 00:15:40.600 assets off like no one else like it's the last 00:15:40.600 --> 00:15:45.639 day on earth Do it. No excuses. So no more excuses. 00:15:46.000 --> 00:15:49.700 I really wanted to play this game. Let's build 00:15:49.700 --> 00:15:53.059 Team Russia fantasy team. What's your first line? 00:15:53.299 --> 00:15:55.519 Oh, I don't know about my first line. Let's just 00:15:55.519 --> 00:15:57.799 build one together. I'll throw out a name. You 00:15:57.799 --> 00:16:01.919 throw out a name. Oh, no. I have the whole team. 00:16:02.039 --> 00:16:05.259 Oh, you have the whole team? Yeah. I am well 00:16:05.259 --> 00:16:07.919 prepared. I actually, it's very interesting, 00:16:07.980 --> 00:16:10.399 like, because I had a team, obviously, for four 00:16:10.399 --> 00:16:13.120 nations. But, you know, it's been a year. And 00:16:13.120 --> 00:16:17.840 it's interesting to see how things changed. Some 00:16:17.840 --> 00:16:21.820 guys are out. I will go with Kucherov. Of course. 00:16:21.879 --> 00:16:24.659 He obviously has to be the best offensive player. 00:16:24.759 --> 00:16:26.940 It has to be the, if you're drafting a Russian 00:16:26.940 --> 00:16:29.370 team. has to be the number one player taken. 00:16:31.230 --> 00:16:35.049 Kaprizov from Minnesota, you got to have him 00:16:35.049 --> 00:16:42.049 on that first line. And then, you know, I really 00:16:42.049 --> 00:16:44.789 want to say Ovechkin, but his time has passed. 00:16:45.049 --> 00:16:49.590 He should be on the team, but not in a featured 00:16:49.590 --> 00:16:56.039 role. Coach? Or second line. Coach? Coach? Offensive 00:16:56.039 --> 00:16:58.700 coach. Yeah, and bring in Sergei Gonchar to coach 00:16:58.700 --> 00:17:01.159 defense those two guys played together for a 00:17:01.159 --> 00:17:06.759 long time in Washington, but yeah, I think you 00:17:06.759 --> 00:17:11.220 put Ovechkin on the team and Malkin I think Malkin's 00:17:11.220 --> 00:17:14.039 got more upside than Ovechkin does offensively 00:17:14.039 --> 00:17:17.299 at this stage of his career So that would be 00:17:17.299 --> 00:17:21.410 my my top three Look, we have a line, and it 00:17:21.410 --> 00:17:24.650 almost matches mine. So it's Kucherov, Malkin, 00:17:24.670 --> 00:17:29.269 Kaprizov. Yes. The best. Yes. You cannot beat 00:17:29.269 --> 00:17:32.029 that. Yeah, so it's Kucherov, Malkin, Kaprizov. 00:17:32.069 --> 00:17:34.829 Okay, let's go next. Let's go with that. Let's 00:17:34.829 --> 00:17:38.289 put Ovechkin on the second line. Okay. Can we 00:17:38.289 --> 00:17:44.569 put him on the second line? And, geez, now I'm 00:17:44.569 --> 00:17:47.579 grasping at straws at this point. because it's 00:17:47.579 --> 00:17:51.539 uh russian players how about uh the kid from 00:17:51.539 --> 00:17:56.140 columbus karil marshenko yeah he's not gonna 00:17:56.140 --> 00:18:00.220 make to my list he's not gonna make it no he's 00:18:00.220 --> 00:18:02.859 too raw yeah i mean it's columbus blue jackets 00:18:02.859 --> 00:18:05.839 no one plays there that's why i'm very happy 00:18:05.839 --> 00:18:09.799 that he was able to open up but but not to get 00:18:09.799 --> 00:18:13.420 not to get off subject but the blue jackets are 00:18:13.420 --> 00:18:14.960 going to make the playoffs and they're gonna 00:18:15.579 --> 00:18:18.380 be a thorn in somebody's side they got that new 00:18:18.380 --> 00:18:20.500 coach they haven't lost in six or eight games 00:18:20.500 --> 00:18:25.859 before the break they're coming anyhow okay oh 00:18:25.859 --> 00:18:30.720 hi oh boy oh hi oh boy okay speaking to you okay 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:33.039 that's right little love for the blue jackets 00:18:33.039 --> 00:18:38.799 uh -huh yeah how about um the guy who preferred 00:18:38.799 --> 00:18:45.279 los angeles to any florida team okay He's good 00:18:45.279 --> 00:18:50.180 anchor on the second line Second line would be 00:18:50.180 --> 00:18:59.880 let's put him Maybe Ovechkin and How about the 00:18:59.880 --> 00:19:06.440 the rookie from Vancouver Andre Kuzmenko But 00:19:06.440 --> 00:19:09.700 he's in Los Angeles. He was a rookie in Vancouver, 00:19:09.920 --> 00:19:14.599 but he's in the late hold on hold on let me just 00:19:14.599 --> 00:19:17.099 stop you i understand that you love ovechkin 00:19:17.099 --> 00:19:20.859 i can hear it but yes i do he's gonna slow everyone 00:19:20.859 --> 00:19:25.619 down i don't think he should be anywhere upper 00:19:25.619 --> 00:19:30.339 than the third line okay well that's fine i'm 00:19:30.339 --> 00:19:33.750 okay with that So I would make the second line 00:19:33.750 --> 00:19:39.630 very dynamic and younger. So Panarin, yeah, experience, 00:19:39.869 --> 00:19:46.829 all of that. And Husnodinov and Dmitrov. Okay. 00:19:47.490 --> 00:19:51.130 I mean, Dmitrov, he's probably going to win the 00:19:51.130 --> 00:19:55.490 best rookie of the season anyways. Yes. Okay. 00:19:55.529 --> 00:20:00.599 So on the third one. The guy that you really 00:20:00.599 --> 00:20:04.279 want to be on this team Ovechkin And probably 00:20:04.279 --> 00:20:08.500 not as I don't know Dominating maybe not that 00:20:08.500 --> 00:20:12.019 fancy but you're off. It's his first year in 00:20:12.019 --> 00:20:15.339 the NHL and Dorothy it's just like a working 00:20:15.339 --> 00:20:18.859 line. Well, I'm sorry. There's no such a thing 00:20:18.859 --> 00:20:25.140 as checkers or And it's not about degrading them, 00:20:25.299 --> 00:20:28.319 but someone has to work the third line. And I'm 00:20:28.319 --> 00:20:30.440 sorry, like you said, I don't think Ovechkin 00:20:30.440 --> 00:20:34.240 is already at that point of his career when he 00:20:34.240 --> 00:20:38.960 is able to keep up with Kaprizov. No. Europe 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:41.960 and Dorothea. If it's going to be like more calm, 00:20:42.220 --> 00:20:47.920 stay home, don't move that much line. Yeah. Does 00:20:47.920 --> 00:20:52.259 Nemestnikov make your team? Ex -Tampa Bay Lightning 00:20:52.259 --> 00:20:58.480 player. So, you know, when I was picking my team 00:20:58.480 --> 00:21:01.700 for the Four Nations, yes, he was on that team. 00:21:01.819 --> 00:21:06.579 I would say give him a chance. So we should take 00:21:06.579 --> 00:21:09.200 him, but he's probably going to be in the rotation. 00:21:10.799 --> 00:21:13.640 And then you have the Shuskin from Colorado. 00:21:14.700 --> 00:21:21.609 Yeah, he didn't make it. I can explain why. I 00:21:21.609 --> 00:21:24.210 can explain why. Do you know all of the troubles 00:21:24.210 --> 00:21:27.950 that he had in the past, right? I don't know. 00:21:28.029 --> 00:21:32.569 Okay, all of those police, this and that, time 00:21:32.569 --> 00:21:38.430 off from the team. This is a big event. And he's 00:21:38.430 --> 00:21:40.809 going to be exposed to a lot of things he might 00:21:40.809 --> 00:21:45.509 not be able to handle. So I am not going to have 00:21:45.509 --> 00:21:49.529 a player in my team who... is not able to control 00:21:49.529 --> 00:21:54.109 himself physically and a skill level yes but 00:21:54.109 --> 00:21:57.829 from the mental side absolutely not because yes 00:21:57.829 --> 00:22:02.170 mature enough to handle handle that it's not 00:22:02.170 --> 00:22:04.589 that mature enough i mean it's not even about 00:22:04.589 --> 00:22:07.650 that anymore he's mature enough it's just he 00:22:07.650 --> 00:22:13.940 that's the lifestyle that he prefers Yeah, so 00:22:13.940 --> 00:22:16.140 he's not going to make it to my team to make 00:22:16.140 --> 00:22:19.079 sure that he's not going to do anything naughty. 00:22:20.440 --> 00:22:23.119 And yeah, because I just need people who are 00:22:23.119 --> 00:22:26.519 focused and ready to work, ready to fight. That's 00:22:26.519 --> 00:22:30.359 right. So that's why he might not like it. Andrei 00:22:30.359 --> 00:22:33.740 Svechnikov, you know, Carolina Hurricanes. Yeah, 00:22:33.759 --> 00:22:37.819 he's going to be on my fourth line. Barbershop. 00:22:38.909 --> 00:22:42.089 and Podkolzin. I think Vasily Podkolzin from 00:22:42.089 --> 00:22:44.450 the Edmonton Oilers is one of those guys who 00:22:44.450 --> 00:22:48.349 mandatory have to be on my team. Last year when 00:22:48.349 --> 00:22:52.589 I was building my team Russia for Nations, so 00:22:52.589 --> 00:22:56.029 many people were writing bad comments under my 00:22:56.029 --> 00:23:00.369 articles about what Podkolzin who, but when he 00:23:00.369 --> 00:23:04.480 made it to his second final. Second Stanley Cup 00:23:04.480 --> 00:23:07.319 final, he was one of the best players, the guy 00:23:07.319 --> 00:23:10.039 who can really work. It's not only about scoring. 00:23:10.259 --> 00:23:13.079 He shows up for the team, and he does what he's 00:23:13.079 --> 00:23:16.220 needed, when he's needed, and, yeah, what has 00:23:16.220 --> 00:23:18.940 to be done. And like we talked about with the 00:23:18.940 --> 00:23:21.920 Lightning and their fourth line, the grind line, 00:23:22.019 --> 00:23:24.700 if you want to call it. Yeah, he is an integral 00:23:24.700 --> 00:23:29.980 piece to that Edmonton team on the third or fourth 00:23:29.980 --> 00:23:32.150 line, depending on where they... where they want 00:23:32.150 --> 00:23:34.910 to slot him in but yeah he's out there not to 00:23:34.910 --> 00:23:37.569 score goals but just to do to do some dirty work 00:23:37.569 --> 00:23:40.710 get in the corners get those loose pucks absolutely 00:23:40.710 --> 00:23:43.910 he's a good working dude and he played with dry 00:23:43.910 --> 00:23:46.809 zytal so he knows how to handle pressure when 00:23:46.809 --> 00:23:49.269 you have to cover up for the stars how about 00:23:49.269 --> 00:23:52.289 blue line okay you start i know who you're gonna 00:23:52.289 --> 00:23:55.470 choose i know who am i gonna choose well he used 00:23:55.470 --> 00:24:00.500 to play for the lightning he used to right But 00:24:00.500 --> 00:24:03.359 think about this, though. Think about this. How 00:24:03.359 --> 00:24:06.900 can you pick a Russian Olympic team and not have 00:24:06.900 --> 00:24:11.240 Mr. Sergeyev on your blue line? How can you do 00:24:11.240 --> 00:24:15.500 that? You can't. You can't. There you go. So 00:24:15.500 --> 00:24:21.339 I feel vindicated. Yes. So we take him. Of course, 00:24:21.440 --> 00:24:24.500 he's someone who can score, but he's still a 00:24:24.500 --> 00:24:27.019 defenseman. We need all of his skills. He is 00:24:27.019 --> 00:24:30.930 universal. We love it. and i think he would be 00:24:30.930 --> 00:24:34.569 a good match to dmitry orlov who is in some in 00:24:34.569 --> 00:24:38.250 the san jose sharks right now he's more of a 00:24:38.250 --> 00:24:43.890 stay -at -home guy and he's very tough he's scary 00:24:43.890 --> 00:24:49.250 he's like a russian bear don't have too many 00:24:49.250 --> 00:24:52.700 of those anymore True. Especially on Team Russia. 00:24:53.279 --> 00:24:56.680 Defense is not the strongest side of any Russian 00:24:56.680 --> 00:25:01.599 team. They just don't grow defensemen. Maybe 00:25:01.599 --> 00:25:03.220 some of their goalies that they're developing 00:25:03.220 --> 00:25:06.539 need to go to the blue line. Because there's 00:25:06.539 --> 00:25:10.079 a plethora of goaltenders. When you get to the 00:25:10.079 --> 00:25:12.579 goaltenders, somebody good is going to be left 00:25:12.579 --> 00:25:17.000 off the team. No. We're going to choose the best 00:25:17.000 --> 00:25:20.480 ones. And you know who they are. Okay, let's... 00:25:20.480 --> 00:25:24.980 I know who one is, and one guy I would not pick. 00:25:26.079 --> 00:25:30.059 Okay, interesting, interesting. Interesting. 00:25:30.180 --> 00:25:36.900 Okay, so Gavrikov and Provorov. See, that's for 00:25:36.900 --> 00:25:40.599 you. For the Ohio State, let's go. Provorov. 00:25:41.759 --> 00:25:43.839 You're throwing me a bone. I appreciate that. 00:25:43.980 --> 00:25:51.579 Yes. Okay, well, Ian. Zoop, Ottawa Senators, 00:25:51.740 --> 00:25:56.279 and Lubushkin, Dallas Stars. Yeah, those are 00:25:56.279 --> 00:26:00.400 my blue lines. Any of those, yeah. Absolutely. 00:26:02.319 --> 00:26:06.420 I'm all in. Okay. Good. Approved. Approved by 00:26:06.420 --> 00:26:10.740 Ken. Made it. That's right. Okay. And, oh my 00:26:10.740 --> 00:26:15.980 God, it's coming. The goal is, let's go. You're 00:26:15.980 --> 00:26:21.259 the first one. Make it big. The big cat. Of course. 00:26:22.240 --> 00:26:27.859 He's number one. Number one. Okay. And if you 00:26:27.859 --> 00:26:30.119 don't think he's the best goalie in the world, 00:26:30.180 --> 00:26:33.900 and if you don't have him as number one, you 00:26:33.900 --> 00:26:38.039 don't know hockey. Look at the guy's stats. Look 00:26:38.039 --> 00:26:40.279 at where he started. Look how hard he's worked 00:26:40.279 --> 00:26:42.240 this season to get in the position that he's 00:26:42.240 --> 00:26:49.720 in. Now. Here's a guy that has great credentials. 00:26:51.519 --> 00:26:54.720 He has the numbers, but he has been absolutely 00:26:54.720 --> 00:26:59.279 horrid this season. And if we're putting a team 00:26:59.279 --> 00:27:02.880 together, he cannot be on the team. And that's 00:27:02.880 --> 00:27:08.140 Sergei Bobrovsky. That is so mean! No! His goals 00:27:08.140 --> 00:27:13.980 against average is about three and a half. I 00:27:13.980 --> 00:27:15.819 don't know what's happened to him. He lost a 00:27:15.819 --> 00:27:18.259 step for just having one of those seasons, but 00:27:18.259 --> 00:27:21.759 he has been putrid. And that's part of the reason 00:27:21.759 --> 00:27:23.480 the Panthers are eight points out of the last 00:27:23.480 --> 00:27:27.440 playoff spot. Part of the reason. Well, maybe 00:27:27.440 --> 00:27:31.259 he's tired and he also wants his teammates to 00:27:31.259 --> 00:27:34.559 start working. Because if we go back three seasons 00:27:34.559 --> 00:27:37.599 ago, two seasons ago, one season ago, it was 00:27:37.599 --> 00:27:40.720 all about Sergei Poporovsky. And one of the major 00:27:40.720 --> 00:27:43.529 reasons the Panthers actually got... the cup, 00:27:43.690 --> 00:27:46.849 that's Sergey Fyodorov. I mean, not Fyodorov, 00:27:46.869 --> 00:27:49.910 but Bobrovsky. Both great. I agree with you. 00:27:49.990 --> 00:27:52.910 The goaltender in hockey and the quarterback 00:27:52.910 --> 00:27:59.289 in the NFL is kind of, I mean, they're right 00:27:59.289 --> 00:28:00.869 there together with the pressure that they're 00:28:00.869 --> 00:28:04.309 under because you can go from the penthouse to 00:28:04.309 --> 00:28:08.049 the outhouse in one week, literally. I mean, 00:28:08.069 --> 00:28:10.470 you're the hero this week and then the next week. 00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:14.180 Just have a bad game and everybody's down on 00:28:14.180 --> 00:28:17.579 you, you know, and Bob Roski. He's had more than 00:28:17.579 --> 00:28:20.980 a week He's had a couple months of bad play so 00:28:20.980 --> 00:28:24.460 there Regardless of what he has done in the past. 00:28:25.099 --> 00:28:28.039 I don't see how you could put him on the team, 00:28:28.079 --> 00:28:35.740 especially When you have shisterkin Oh He starts 00:28:35.740 --> 00:28:40.839 are great. Yeah, he starts are so great Glasses 00:28:40.839 --> 00:28:48.779 and this is amazing. Oh, yeah What about Ilya 00:28:48.779 --> 00:28:53.079 Sorokin I will choose Ilya Sorokin any day over 00:28:53.079 --> 00:28:59.259 Igor Shostakovich Okay, that's fair I'm not opposed 00:28:59.259 --> 00:29:08.509 to that I'm just trying to change your mind It's 00:29:08.509 --> 00:29:14.109 very hard to change it. And Bobrovsky, if he 00:29:14.109 --> 00:29:16.230 wants to be a goaltending coach on the team, 00:29:16.349 --> 00:29:19.029 fine. We'll bring you along to coach the fellas. 00:29:19.369 --> 00:29:22.029 Well, we have to bring three goalies. So we're 00:29:22.029 --> 00:29:27.950 taking Vasilevsky, Zaroikin, and Bobrovsky. Okay. 00:29:28.809 --> 00:29:31.890 You said he can be a coach. Don't forget, he 00:29:31.890 --> 00:29:35.309 still has all of the experience, just like Binnington. 00:29:35.789 --> 00:29:38.970 he can show up when he's needed and he also has 00:29:38.970 --> 00:29:42.730 all the experience in the olympics hello so cheat 00:29:42.730 --> 00:29:48.009 yeah let's go back but if you uh speaking of 00:29:48.009 --> 00:29:52.170 that bennington versus bobrovsky if you had to 00:29:52.170 --> 00:29:56.009 win a game you have one game one shot to win 00:29:56.009 --> 00:29:59.190 a championship and your goaltenders are bennington 00:29:59.190 --> 00:30:02.690 or bobrovsky who you take it's obvious i will 00:30:02.690 --> 00:30:05.869 choose bredor oh we have a team look at that 00:30:05.869 --> 00:30:08.950 most of the guys that we just discussed and you 00:30:08.950 --> 00:30:12.589 know have on our team russia they not even gonna 00:30:12.589 --> 00:30:16.869 be active players in four years that is so sad 00:30:16.869 --> 00:30:19.690 well the way things are going it'll be 20 years 00:30:19.690 --> 00:30:21.589 before they ever allow russia to play in the 00:30:21.589 --> 00:30:24.569 olympics again so most of those guys will be 00:30:25.049 --> 00:30:27.230 Sitting on the couch, smoking cigars, watching 00:30:27.230 --> 00:30:29.890 their kids and grandkids play. Do you want to 00:30:29.890 --> 00:30:33.589 add anything spicy before I go play hockey? I 00:30:33.589 --> 00:30:37.309 want to give a shout out to the U .S. women's 00:30:37.309 --> 00:30:40.390 hockey team. They've allowed one goal. I think 00:30:40.390 --> 00:30:44.910 they've outscored the opponent 26 to 1 or something 00:30:44.910 --> 00:30:47.690 like that. They shut out Canada the other night, 00:30:47.809 --> 00:30:53.089 5 -0. And I think you never want to say that 00:30:53.089 --> 00:30:55.910 it's going to be a cakewalk. But I can't see 00:30:55.910 --> 00:31:00.509 anyone putting a challenge up to the women's 00:31:00.509 --> 00:31:07.269 Olympic team. They're just too talented. Nobody 00:31:07.269 --> 00:31:13.549 can even roll one or two competitive lines out 00:31:13.549 --> 00:31:15.950 against them. I mean, the third line is better 00:31:15.950 --> 00:31:21.789 than a lot of teams' first line. Really. So I 00:31:21.789 --> 00:31:25.589 like the U .S. in a cakewalk. Win the gold medal 00:31:25.589 --> 00:31:28.329 and they'll probably play Canada again and they'll 00:31:28.329 --> 00:31:35.890 probably They should I think it's too early to 00:31:35.890 --> 00:31:38.950 say exactly Who's gonna be there for the man? 00:31:39.089 --> 00:31:41.130 I mean we can we can predict it and talk about 00:31:41.130 --> 00:31:43.690 it, but the relegation in the playoff round I 00:31:43.690 --> 00:31:46.130 don't think starts till Tuesday or Wednesday 00:31:46.130 --> 00:31:51.089 Next week, so I mean a lot can happen each team 00:31:51.089 --> 00:31:54.420 probably has another two preliminary games left 00:31:54.420 --> 00:31:57.319 you know you could have some injuries or some 00:31:57.319 --> 00:32:01.220 strange things happen that could affect that 00:32:01.220 --> 00:32:06.240 competition but right now i would say it'll be 00:32:06.240 --> 00:32:09.980 us canada men playing for the uh for the gold 00:32:09.980 --> 00:32:13.640 medal well so far it doesn't look good for any 00:32:13.640 --> 00:32:17.259 other teams like sweden finland i expected more 00:32:17.259 --> 00:32:21.640 from them yeah And I saw Victor Hedman got a 00:32:21.640 --> 00:32:23.660 goal the other night. Did you see that? An empty 00:32:23.660 --> 00:32:25.960 netter with like two minutes to play or something 00:32:25.960 --> 00:32:29.759 like that. Yes, I've seen the goal, thank God. 00:32:29.839 --> 00:32:33.559 But I also watched the game very closely. And 00:32:33.559 --> 00:32:37.619 it was scary at times because I would never imagine 00:32:37.619 --> 00:32:42.059 that Italians would be so fast that Victor Hedman, 00:32:42.220 --> 00:32:45.740 the future Hall of Famer, will not be able to 00:32:45.740 --> 00:32:50.829 chase them. We saw that in the Boston game. We 00:32:50.829 --> 00:32:53.910 talked about that. I remembered. Yeah, I remembered. 00:32:54.309 --> 00:32:59.369 Yeah, he's unfortunately he's lost a step. There's 00:32:59.369 --> 00:33:02.430 no shame in that. It happens to everybody. It's 00:33:02.430 --> 00:33:06.190 part of the aging process. We all go through 00:33:06.190 --> 00:33:10.069 it. It doesn't tarnish anything that he has done 00:33:10.069 --> 00:33:14.190 in his career up to this point. The only thing 00:33:14.190 --> 00:33:18.109 that would tarnish it if in five years he still 00:33:18.759 --> 00:33:21.279 out there trying to play at the level that he 00:33:21.279 --> 00:33:27.319 played at at 25, 28 years old, which a lot of 00:33:27.319 --> 00:33:31.519 athletes have that issue. They just can't let 00:33:31.519 --> 00:33:38.240 go. Perfect example, Michael Jordan. He retired 00:33:38.240 --> 00:33:42.019 early, played baseball, came back, had a couple 00:33:42.019 --> 00:33:46.279 of good years in Chicago, and then was late. 00:33:46.980 --> 00:33:49.680 30s, maybe 40, when he went to play for the Washington 00:33:49.680 --> 00:33:52.279 Wizards. And that last year in Washington, he 00:33:52.279 --> 00:33:56.660 was absolutely awful. I mean, he was terrible. 00:33:57.019 --> 00:33:59.900 But he's Michael Jordan. So people were giving 00:33:59.900 --> 00:34:03.079 him the benefit of the doubt. But he was not 00:34:03.079 --> 00:34:05.940 good. He should not have played that last season. 00:34:06.119 --> 00:34:09.860 Athletes, some of them don't know when to say, 00:34:10.000 --> 00:34:13.260 hey, I'm done. I can't play at that level anymore. 00:34:14.139 --> 00:34:17.949 So I'm out. And it's sad because as for Team 00:34:17.949 --> 00:34:21.349 Sweden, it only shows that Victor Hedman, he 00:34:21.349 --> 00:34:24.090 is not in a position where he has to chase Italians. 00:34:24.389 --> 00:34:27.849 That you should grow more younger defensemen 00:34:27.849 --> 00:34:30.889 who are still okay with their health. They should 00:34:30.889 --> 00:34:34.349 take that part of the job, the dirty job. Victor 00:34:34.349 --> 00:34:38.010 already did his job. Yeah, Hedman should be on 00:34:38.010 --> 00:34:42.750 that team as a... a mentor another eyes and ears 00:34:42.750 --> 00:34:46.190 in the dressing room and on the ice coach he 00:34:46.190 --> 00:34:49.750 has a very valuable role if if he serves that 00:34:49.750 --> 00:34:53.230 way but as far as him playing a lot of high minutes 00:34:53.230 --> 00:34:58.309 and being counted on to you know match up with 00:34:58.309 --> 00:35:01.730 the other teams you know top line and take their 00:35:01.730 --> 00:35:05.130 offensive guns out of the game that's not going 00:35:05.130 --> 00:35:07.369 to happen right now for victor headman at this 00:35:07.369 --> 00:35:11.150 stage of his career so but You should guess we 00:35:11.150 --> 00:35:13.769 all wish him the best because we love Victor. 00:35:13.929 --> 00:35:19.269 Yeah, he's the rock star his Banner will uniform 00:35:19.269 --> 00:35:21.869 will hang in the rafters at the arena with his 00:35:21.869 --> 00:35:24.789 number on there'll be a first ballot hockey Hall 00:35:24.789 --> 00:35:28.329 of Famer All that that doesn't doesn't change 00:35:28.329 --> 00:35:31.289 anything. He's just I mean he's been playing 00:35:31.289 --> 00:35:38.829 What 16 years 17 years? Something like that. 00:35:39.349 --> 00:35:43.110 He's played a lot of hockey, played a lot of 00:35:43.110 --> 00:35:47.570 minutes, a lot of games, and now he's just on 00:35:47.570 --> 00:35:51.130 the back nine of his career. I think there's 00:35:51.130 --> 00:35:55.630 still a role for him on the Lightning team, but 00:35:55.630 --> 00:36:00.250 it's going to be at a reduced role on the ice 00:36:00.250 --> 00:36:07.440 and more of a mentor and coaching. Player development. 00:36:08.440 --> 00:36:11.900 What's that? Player development. Player development. 00:36:12.760 --> 00:36:16.039 Yes. Because, I mean, a guy like that that's 00:36:16.039 --> 00:36:18.679 played as long as he has and played at the high 00:36:18.679 --> 00:36:21.840 level that he has for so many years has a lot 00:36:21.840 --> 00:36:24.780 to offer. You just can't, you know, kick him 00:36:24.780 --> 00:36:27.940 to the curb. He's got a wealth of knowledge, 00:36:28.000 --> 00:36:32.820 and it's up to the Lightning or whoever he goes 00:36:32.820 --> 00:36:36.059 with after his time at the playing day. tap tap 00:36:36.059 --> 00:36:46.199 into that that sounds good yeah why not oh and 00:36:46.199 --> 00:36:48.860 we have to go to bed to get our beauty sleep 00:36:48.860 --> 00:36:51.340 because i think the next game is at 6 00 a .m 00:36:51.340 --> 00:36:55.139 be ready 6 a .m you know what really irritates 00:36:55.139 --> 00:37:03.530 me time difference no you can't do nothing NBC, 00:37:03.909 --> 00:37:07.590 which is the network of the Olympics. Yeah, exclusive 00:37:07.590 --> 00:37:13.230 rights. No pictures, no videos. They put, and 00:37:13.230 --> 00:37:17.090 I'm sorry, I'm sounding like the old get -off 00:37:17.090 --> 00:37:20.809 -my -lawn guy, but they put all these crap Winter 00:37:20.809 --> 00:37:24.090 Olympic sports on. I want to watch hockey. You 00:37:24.090 --> 00:37:25.769 know, I couldn't even watch the hockey game this 00:37:25.769 --> 00:37:29.750 afternoon. They had the women's on against Italy, 00:37:29.909 --> 00:37:33.469 and that's fine. i wanted to see canada play 00:37:33.469 --> 00:37:36.989 i wanted to see you know what cooper's doing 00:37:36.989 --> 00:37:40.090 what the lightning player is doing nope you got 00:37:40.090 --> 00:37:45.809 to pay the few bucks for uh special app to get 00:37:45.809 --> 00:37:48.769 that game i have that i pay i have to pay to 00:37:48.769 --> 00:37:51.369 yeah to make sure that i'm able to follow it 00:37:51.369 --> 00:37:54.289 for my job i have to pay yeah my point is you're 00:37:54.289 --> 00:37:58.739 talking about growing growing the game of hockey, 00:37:58.780 --> 00:38:01.440 exposing it to more people, and then you won't 00:38:01.440 --> 00:38:06.519 even televise a game where there's a lot of interest 00:38:06.519 --> 00:38:08.539 from folks around the country. They want to see 00:38:08.539 --> 00:38:11.940 that. They don't want to pay for another service. 00:38:12.500 --> 00:38:15.199 You know, put the men's downhill luge on there. 00:38:15.320 --> 00:38:17.659 Put the shalom skiing or whatever they call it. 00:38:17.800 --> 00:38:20.059 I don't know. I'm not a big -wintered Olympian 00:38:20.059 --> 00:38:23.119 guy except for hockey. But, you know, put those 00:38:23.119 --> 00:38:27.599 sports on there. You know, Gary Bettman, shuts 00:38:27.599 --> 00:38:31.559 down the NHL for two and a half weeks, send the 00:38:31.559 --> 00:38:35.440 players over to play for their teams. What does 00:38:35.440 --> 00:38:41.420 the NHL and Gary Bettman get in return for shutting 00:38:41.420 --> 00:38:45.119 down the league for two and a half weeks? What's 00:38:45.119 --> 00:38:50.980 the payoff? Vacation? When we're talking about 00:38:50.980 --> 00:38:54.980 growing the sport and putting it in front of 00:38:54.980 --> 00:38:58.989 more eyeballs, what? what's nothing well we've 00:38:58.989 --> 00:39:02.489 discussed that before it's so very limited in 00:39:02.489 --> 00:39:06.449 canada yes it's so much smaller but they do know 00:39:06.449 --> 00:39:10.110 how to cover hockey yes here in the u .s unfortunately 00:39:10.110 --> 00:39:13.829 hockey is not number one and even if it's number 00:39:13.829 --> 00:39:16.809 four or five we still want to see it it's the 00:39:16.809 --> 00:39:20.289 olympics if i'm ready to wake up at 6 a .m to 00:39:20.289 --> 00:39:23.769 watch the game i want to see it and how many 00:39:23.769 --> 00:39:26.380 eyeballs do you think you're going to be on the 00:39:26.380 --> 00:39:29.880 gold medal game at 8 a .m in the morning next 00:39:29.880 --> 00:39:34.320 sunday it's next sunday what next sunday not 00:39:34.320 --> 00:39:37.139 not two days from now but i mean it's still crazy 00:39:37.139 --> 00:39:40.139 next sunday it's gonna be all over i think it's 00:39:40.139 --> 00:39:43.980 a gold medal game no so fast i'll watch it but 00:39:43.980 --> 00:39:50.739 why i mean you have different events that you 00:39:50.739 --> 00:39:53.929 can put on in different time slots I don't want 00:39:53.929 --> 00:39:57.690 to see the closing Olympic ceremony. I couldn't 00:39:57.690 --> 00:40:00.070 give a rat's patootie about the closing ceremony. 00:40:00.389 --> 00:40:03.969 I want to see the hockey game. So put the hockey 00:40:03.969 --> 00:40:07.469 game on at even 2 in the afternoon, which would 00:40:07.469 --> 00:40:11.309 be 8, 9 o 'clock. You know, local time over there. 00:40:11.469 --> 00:40:15.349 What do I know? We want hockey. We want hockey.