The Hockey Show - Episode 608

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, takes a break from the shores of Survivor: NHL Playoffs island and dives into an important day. Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day where everyone should be talking, thinking, and learning about digital access and inclusion and people with different disabilities. This show preview, for example, doesn't have an audio tool to allow blind people to read the words on the screen, and it's something I'll be investigating today and moving forward. Because today is GAAD, The Hockey Show also realized we need a little more access and inclusion in hockey, and we're excited to speak to someone who is doing incredible things on that front tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason are excited to speak with the man to the left, Mr. Mark DeMontis, who is one of three finalists for the 2024 Willie O'Ree Award! Mark's name probably isn't a household name, but we intend to make it one as Mark lost his vision at 17, ending his NCAA and his NHL dreams. Mark's determination to make things better after meeting one of his heroes has shown up in spades as he founded a non-profit called Courage Canada which became the Canadian Blind Hockey Association! From there, Mark's life has been a whirlwind of activity in his efforts and advocating for visually-impaired and blind people, and we'll talk to him about how life changed, winning medals, hosting the biggest tournament of its kind, the evolution and growth of the sport of Blind Hockey, and much more! We are excited to speak to Mark on Global Accessibility Awareness Day about all the cool stuff he's doing tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

Before we get to our usual paragraphs of how to listen, you can actually help Mark win Willie O'Ree Award this year! Voting is open until May 19 so you'll have to act fast, but head over to the Willie O'Ree Award page on NHL.com and click the vote button! There's no sign-ups or costs or anything, and you don't have to sign up for the newsletters. Every vote counts, though, so let's help Mark win the award this year because he has done some rather incredible stuff to help blind hockey players get back on the ice!

If you live outside Winnipeg and want to listen, we have options! The new UMFM website's online streaming player works well if you want to listen online. We also recommend Radio Garden if you need an easy-to-use online stream. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store. It's a solid app.

If you have questions, you can email all show queries and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter! I'm here to listen to you, so make your voice heard!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason chat with Mark DeMontis, 2024 Willie O'Ree Award finalist, about life, navigating life without sight, playing hockey, growing the game, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: May 16, 2024: Episode 608

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Cost Of Addiction

I don't think anyone would deny that Valeri Nichushkin was having himself a heckuva postseason. After terrorizing the Jets for five games, it seemed the big Russian winger was set to give his former team, the Dallas Stars, nightmares as well. With Colorado trailing 2-1 in the series, they needed all their best players to step up, but Valeri Nichushkin was, instead, forced to step away by the NHL and NHLPA Player Assistance Program as he entered Stage 3 of the program this morning, starting a six-month suspension without pay. Clearly, he won't be in the lineup tonight for Game Four, but this latest lapse of judgment and intelligence may have just cost him his job with the Avalanche. That's the cost of addiction.

For a guy who signed an eight-year, $49 million deal on July 11, 2022 that would likely guarantee the majority of his career in Colorado, it seemed like he had everything. He was a Stanley Cup champion in 2022. He was playing alongside Nathan MacKinnon on the top line. He had that massive, long-term contract that would see him live comfortably. And with the Avalanche built as they are, it seemed he could add more rings to his jewelry box while being one of the key cogs in Colorado's success.

Today's removal from the team likely calls all of that into question as this is now the second time that Nichushkin was removed from the team during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Last season, he was removed from the team after a strange incident in Seattle during the first round of the 2023 playoffs, allowing Seattle to upset the Avalanche in seven games. It was later revealed that a nearly unconscious, intoxicated woman was found in his hotel room needing medical attention. The young woman repeatedly stated "he's crazy" during the incident without ever identifying who "he" is, and, for the record, Nichushkin was cleared of all wrongdoing after an investigations by both the Seattle Police Department and the NHL.

Midway through this season, Nichushkin voluntarily entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program in January, stating that his goal was to "address my issues and prevent any negative outcomes once and for all". When he returned in March, it seemed that Nichushkin had gotten the help he needed as he seemingly played the game like a changed man. He used his 6'3" frame to cause chaos around the net, and the hands that made him tenth-overall pick in 2013 looked like they had returned as Colorado prepared for the playoffs.

We watched Nichushkin cave the roof in on the Jets as he was everywhere in the offensive zone, and he was a big reason why the Avalanche are playing against Dallas right now. His removal from the team today, though, makes this the third time he's been away from his team at a critical time in their season with no explanation other than he's seeking help. And while I get that his privacy should be protected, one has to wonder how he is continually finding ways to put his attendance on the roster in jeopardy.

"Val is obviously struggling with something," Colorado coach Jared Bednar told reporters after their Monday loss matter-of-factly. Bednar is clearly correct as Nichushkin's reason for his absence would be kept private from even his coach, but you have to think that Bednar might be seething with anger over Nichushkin's selfishness on the inside. His next words to reports, though, seemed to be more reflective than angry.

"I've gotten to know Val as a person and I've gotten to know him as one of our teammates" Bednar continued, "and I want what's best for him. I want him to be happy and I want him to be content in his life, whether that is with our team or not with our team. I want the best for him and his family. I think all of our guys are the same. We hope that he can find some peace and get help. That's the other side of it. Hockey is not life and death, even though we treat it like it is. Val is a big priority, and our team is another one. Now they are separated. They're not together."

Bednar's tone was far better than teammate Jack Johnson's tone when he told Denver Post's Cory Masisak, "He made his decisions. That's all I'm going to say on that. He made his decisions," while Masisak also noted that Nichushkin's nameplate above his usual locker had been removed.

I'll be honest: Nichushkin does need help with whatever addiction or vice he's battling. And Nichushkin also made a selfish decision that may cost his team a chance at a Stanley Cup. The Colorado Avalanche will need to address this once he's reinstated by the NHL, but caring for the person, as Bednar said, is not the same as one man making a decision that sees him abandon 25 other people. I want Nichushkin to overcome his demons, but Jack Johnson's statements are entirely correct: he made his decisions.

I have no idea what the Avalanche will do with Nichushkin, but it seems like there are few people in the locker room who aren't willing to give him a third or fourth chance. I can't blame them because the old "fool me once" adage holds true here. There will be some tough conversations over the next few months in Denver as to what to do with Nichushkin, and I'm not sure there's a right answer when it comes to his future. What seems clear, though, is that everyone would prefer him on the ice rather than being in the Player Assistance Program.

Despite this being Valeri Nichushkin's demons to deal with, it's affecting his teammates, his employment with the team, and potentially his employment elsewhere in the league. I do hope he can finally bury these demons, but losing the support of his teammates, coaches, management, and fans while potentially making himself radioactive to 31 other teams is, unfortunately, the potential cost of his addiction.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Pressed Their Luck

When Ivan Fedotov finally arrived in Philadelphia, the chapter of him playing illegally in Russia due to his contractual status with the Flyers seemed to be over. After all, the Flyers had signed him to a new deal, he seemed like he was going to get his shot with Carter Hart in his own legal hot water, and the Flyers desperately needed reliable goaltending if they were going to make a push for the playoffs. It almost worked, too, as the Flyers missed out on the playoffs in their final game of the season, but things were still churning behind the scenes for Fedotov when it came to how he ignored the IIHF's warnings about playing in the KHL. This weekend, the IIHF played the role of Whammy! on this real-life version of the TV game show Press Your Luck.

As per the IIHF's announcement this weekend, the IIHF came down pretty heavily on all the parties involved in the Fedotov-CSKA case. The only team that seemingly escaped punishment was the Philadelphia Flyers, so I'll credit the IIHF as they followed through with their threats of heavy penalties for the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, CSKA and the KHL, and Ivan Fedotov fairly well.

As a reminder, these penalties are being imposed on the above parties for their involvement in "violating the IIHF International Transfer Regulations (continuing to allow Fedotov to play without an approved international transfer) and, with respect to Fedotov, his continued violation of his NHL Standard Player Contract (SPC) with the Philadelphia Flyers."

The details are that Fedotov signed a deal with CSKA to play in the KHL while being under contract with the Flyers, and the Flyers filed a complaint with the IIHF for them to resolve the issue. These final penalties imposed this weekend should lay this matter to rest after CSKA terminated Fedotov's contract to make him a free agent, allowing him to sign a new deal with the Flyers. Up to speed? Good.

The IIHF ruled on Saturday that CSKA, who violated the transfer rule, would be sanctioned with "a twenty-four-month transfer ban on all international transfers that starts from the day the original one-year transfer ban concludes (August 11, 2024 until August 10, 2026)." In short, CSKA cannot sign international players until August 10, 2026 for failing to follow the rules.

The IIHF also ruled on Saturday that Ivan Fedotov receives a "a six-month suspension from playing at the club level (which shall be served upon his return from the NHL to any club under/within an IIHF Member National Federation jurisdiction)... for his continued violation of his SPC and complete disregard for the IIHF's original four-month suspension." In short, because Fedotov knew he was under contract with the Flyers and refused to comply with the IIHF's original suspension, he will be banned from playing for any international IIHF-affiliated club outside the NHL for six months once his NHL career ends. Under this ruling, it does not prevent Fedotov from being traded or signing as a free agent within the NHL.

The IIHF additionally ruled on Saturday that Ivan Fedotov receives "a three-year suspension... from playing in all IIHF Competitions as defined in Bylaw 1, which will include the Olympic Games." In short, Fedotov's refusal to follow the rules will keep him out of all IIHF-sanctioned international competitions until May 2027. He'll miss the Olympic Games in Italy plus all of the IIHF World Hockey Championships and any of the IIHF-NHL joint competitions such as the World Cup of Hockey.

Finally, the IIHF also ruled that the Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RIHF) would be fined "a 1,000,000 CHF (one million Swiss Francs) fine" for the transfer violations. For those wondering, that's a fine that is just short of $1.11 million USD or, in more appropriate Russian terms, 100,531,700 rubles. This last ruling might sting a little bit.

In response to these new sanctions handed down, no one should be surprised that "[t]he RIHF will challenge the decision in accordance with the established procedure." I'd be shocked if this challenge will do anything to reduce the sanctions, but you can't fault a country ran by a war-mongering dictator for trying, right?

In the past, I've been overly-critical of the IIHF and their Disciplinary Board for being far too lenient towards countries and players who break the rules of the game. With today's rulings that shuld ultimately close the book on Fedotov's transfer violations, they've shown some teeth in punishing both Fedotov and the RIHF harshly while CSKA's ability to attract talent has been seriously hindered. The Russians rolled the dice, though, and believed they could get away with whatever they pleased with little consequence, but they seemed to have pressed their luck a little too far. And like the gentleman on Press Your Luck above, they got "Whammied" hard this weekend by the IIHF.

I don't usually cheer for the IIHF, but I will today. Let the next country who feels they can do whatever they please with transfer violations take warning: the IIHF isn't playing games.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Direct Line To The NHL

With the second round of the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs coming to an end tonight, the eight teams playing in the Division Finals are set. There are no Canadian teams in this upcoming round after both Calgary and Abbotsford were eliminated, but two former IHL teams will square off as Milwaukee will meet Grand Rapids. That means a former IHL team will be among the final four teams competing for the Clarkson Cup which still blows my mind considering that the AHL was always seen as the better league when the IHL and AHL competed for talent. While this is something I looked at a few years back, there's another trend that seems to be developing based on who won the Calder Cup, and there may be teams who continue the timeline on this trend based on what they do this summer and beyond in their front offices.

Since 2001-02 when the Chicago Wolves won the AHL's Calder Cup over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, eleven of the general managers running the 15 different teams to have won the Calder Cup have been promoted to NHL jobs. Dave Barr, who guided the Houston Aeros to the Calder Cup in 2002-03, and Mike Vellucci, who put the Charlotte Checkers on top in 2018-19, are the only former AHL general managers to have not gone into management at the NHL level, instead becoming assistant coaches. Barr worked for the Avalanche, Wild, Devils, Sabres, and Sharks since winning the Calder Cup while Vellucci joined Mike Sullivan's staff in Pittsburgh after his win.

The other nine men include the likes of Kevin Cheveldayoff, Bob Clarke, Bob Gainey, Tim Murray, Julien BriseBois, Jim Nill, Rob Blake, Bill Zito, and Kyle Dubas, and it seems like there could be another name that could join the list in Hartford's Ryan Walter who is currently the assistant GM with the New York Rangers. While there's no guarantee that an AHL GM will be promoted to run the NHL affiliate, Walter might be a perfect example of team wanting to change directions and needing someone with fresh ideas.

While Bob Clarke and Bob Gainey were running the show at both the AHL and NHL levels, other NHL teams opted to look outside their affiliates for help. As we know, Kevin Cheveldayoff jumped from the Chicago Wolves to the Winnipeg Jets, Tim Murray went from the Binghamton Senators to the Buffalo Sabres, and Jim Nill jumped from Grand Rapids to Dallas. I don't know how many GM vacancies there will be this summer, but whether it's Walter in Hartford, Scott White in Texas, or Stacy Roest in Syracuse, there are very capable candidates should a vacancy develop.

The reason the eleven AHL GMs have gone onto NHL roles is quite simple: they win. The NHL is a definitely a win-now league, so the guys who do win at the AHL level are often seen as having the insights and expertise to build an NHL roster after guiding an AHL team, whose roster is always changing, to the Calder Cup championship. Long-term success only gets one so far, it seems, but winning the Calder Cup seems to be the feather in one's cap to make NHL front offices sit up and take notice. It's hard to understand why that seems to be the case, but winning a championship seems to be the catalyst in getting promoted in the management ranks.

I can't say that there aren't guys who would prefer to stay where they are as Doug Yingst spent a number of years collecting championship rings with the Hershey Bears without ever jumping to the NHL ranks. Phil Wittliff, Joe Baumann, and Godfrey Wood had their coaches ascend higher than they did in the hockey world, so it's not like all successful AHL GMs get to steer the big ship at the NHL level. There are only so many GM positions available, so there may be a little luck involved when it comes to timing as well.

What shouldn't be discounted, though, is that NHL teams will scour the AHL for their next GM just as they've done over the last two decades. As stated above, there are immediate candidates based on the successes of the eight AHL teams still standing and in the past few years, and I have a feeling at least one of those guys will be promoted to an NHL position sooner than later. One of Hershey, Hartford, Cleveland, Syracuse, Milwaukee, Grand Rapids, Coachella Valley, or Ontario will win the Calder Cup this season, and the next great NHL GM could be running that franchise at this very moment.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Back In The Saddle Again

If there is one guarantee in hockey that isn't restricted by country or league, it's that teams who struggle will ultimately look to make changes. The easiest solution in most of these situations is to change the coaching staff because it seems clear that the players either couldn't or wouldn't execute the systems installed by the coach successfully, so the logic would suggest that team needs to find someone who can motivate the players to play new systems successfully. Today, eight teams in western Canada may have let out a sigh of despair because PWHL New York and head coach Howie Draper mutually agreed to part ways with Draper reportedly returning to the University of Alberta to resume his coaching duties with the Pandas.

For anyone suggesting that one cannot go home again, I have no doubt that the Pandas will continue their legacy of winning undr Draper just as they did in his one season of working in New York, and that the Pandas may actually get better next season with Draper behind the bench once again. For the eight teams in Canada West who will try to make Draper's return as unwelcome as they can, having Draper back in the conference should force those eight coaches to raise their games once again.

PWHL New York recorded a 5-12-3-4 (W-L-OTW-OTL) record in their first season, finishing sixth out of six teams in the PWHL while securing the first-overall pick in this summer's draft. Draper preached defensive responsibility and discipline all season, it seemed, yet PWHL New York surrendered a league-high 67 goals in 24 games. Some of that was due to poor defensive zone coverage, but it seemed clear that the players on New York's roster were less inclined to slow the game down as Draper may have wanted.

Abby Roque's 31 PIMs were second-highest in the league this season, and her -15 rating overshadowed her 13 points. The four worst plus/minus ratings in the league were all New York players, and these were bigger names on their roster as Micah Zandee-Hart, Roque, Elizabeth Giguère, and Jaime Bourbonnais were a combined -60. Yes, they played a lot of minutes together for New York so that -60 isn't as bad as it seems, but only Olivia Zafuto and Savannah Norcross were plus players for anyone who skated in more than half the games. That's hard to believe on a Howie Draper team, but that's the reality.

By the time the World Championship break had begun at the start of April, it was apparent that New York was en route to missing the playoffs after being outshot, outscored, and outchanced in virtually every game they played this season. With rumours of players tuning out the head coach and after a visible disagreement between Draper and assistant coach Colton Orr earlier in the season, the writing was on the wall as Draper and the team were clearly on different islands.

This is the point in time where I'll say the quiet part loud: I don't think Howie Draper is suited to be a professional hockey coach. I can feel former players from the University of Alberta calling for my head after saying that, but let me explain why I feel like that.

As we know, Howie Draper is an exceptional leader, an intelligent hockey coach, and a phenomenal identifier of talent. What made Howie Draper great in Alberta was that he could choose players that fit his system as opposed to the professional game where he was required to mold that roster into a team who could play his game. With some of the professional players playing for national teams or having played significantly different roles for their college teams, Howie didn't have the same control in building his roster to fit his systems' needs. As a result, he didn't get full buy-in when it came to preaching defensive responsibility and staying out of the sin bin.

With the Pandas, Draper gets that buy-in from his players because you give the effort he demands at both ends of the ice or you don't play. That option didn't exist in New York, so players who seemingly weren't giving the effort he sought would be stapled to the bench. This led to stars like Roque, Eldridge, and Alex Carpenter logging a ton of ice-time while others didn't, and it became glaringly obvious as the season rolled on that Draper was playing some players far more than others. Those plus/minus numbers above were partly due to how often those stars were on the ice.

Having Draper back at Alberta will allow him to recruit players who fit his systems, who will play how he demands, and who will find success. What happened in New York can be summed up pretty easily: an extremely successful coach who uses proven systems was the wrong fit with the roster assembled. There's blame to be shared for why his coaching style didn't work on all sides, but Draper will find himself back on familiar ground where it did work for so many years, and it likely will start to work once again.

Take a deep breath, Canada West, because Howie Draper's coming home. And maybe all eight teams in Canada West should work a little harder this summer because as successful as the Pandas were without him, Draper might have a little more motivation when it comes to winning Canada West in the 2024-25 season. Don't say you weren't warned - the sheriff is back in the saddle again in Edmonton.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

New Looks For Next Season

If you were unaware that the logo to the left was Bauer's logo, you're in the same boat as me. I had no idea they had changed their logo from the stylized "B" they had used for a while to whatever the design to the left is, but apparently it happened sometime in October 2021. Clearly, I need to pay more attention, but it's not like hockey has had deep ties to Bauer for a while as most jerseys are made by CCM or Adidas while Bauer's market share in the equipment game seems to be evaporating. That may change next season, though, after a major announcement from a league today as the PWHL and Bauer will partner up as Bauer becomes the first Official Jersey Partner of the PWHL beginning in 2024-25 as they build on their commitment to the women's game as an official league partner and equipment supplier.

"This year, the PWHL players and leadership have created a watershed moment that will have lasting and positive effects on girls and women for generations and extending far beyond the game of hockey," Mary-Kay Messier, Bauer Hockey's VP of Global Marketingsaid on Thursday. "We're proud to expand our partnership by leveraging our passionate hockey audience and expertise to further elevate the fan experience, attract new families, and continue supporting the growth of the PWHL."

Self-congratulations aside, the addition of Bauer as the jersey partner doesn't really move the needle in terms of what will be seen on the ice, but there were some tidbits in the announcement that should be examined further.

As per the release, Bauer and the PWHL will release "newly designed jerseys leading into the 2024-25 season" for all six teams, so this feels a little like the PHF where every season saw teams get new jerseys. Frankly, I don't mind the upgrade from what the teams currently have, but this better not be an annual thing. Jerseys are part of each team's brand, and changing them each year removes the chances of those looks being timeless. Let's find a design and stick with it, so here's hoping Bauer's new designs are fantastic.

The second piece that caught my attention was Bauer's commitment to both female hockey and the PWHL as they'll ensure that "[a] portion of replica jersey sales will help to create and support a program designed to introduce more girls to hockey and grow the PWHL fan base". There was no figure on how big that portion of replica jersey sales will be, but here's hoping it's significant with the growth in women's hockey and, in general, women's sports seen in the last five years. Wanna help women's hockey? Buy a jersey!

Obviously, we now wait for these six new designs, but you may want to get a current jersey for historical purposes right now. With four teams battling for the first Walter Cup, support your favorite teams in what they're wearing today before they're gone next season!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 607

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, finishes off Round One of the Survivor: NHL Playoffs contest tonight by sending four more entrants off the island and back to the mainland. Honestly, that was a solid first round of playoff hockey when one looks at the big picture as we got a couple of seven-game series, there were some big scores, and no lead seemingly was safe. Will that continue in the second round? We've already seen a few games that may reinforce the idea that playoff hockey is a different beast compared to regular season hockey. In any case, we have more exits tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason bring back Tanner (Golden Knights), Dave (Maple Leafs), Ethan (Lightning), and Derek (Predators) for their final statements on how their teams let them down in the Survivor: NHL Playoffs contest. We'll hear from those four in the first half-hour of the show as we breakdown where things went wrong for each of those teams before our hosts get into discussions about Gardiner MacDougall's potential new landing spot, the PWHL making changes for next season, Rob Blake's $15 million decision, the NHL Draft Lottery, a coach being dismissed today, and anything else we can squeeze into the hour. The chatter with Survivor entrants should be fun tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

If you live outside Winnipeg and want to listen, we have options! The new UMFM website's online streaming player works well if you want to listen online. We also recommend Radio Garden if you need an easy-to-use online stream. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store. It's a solid app.

If you have questions, you can email all show queries and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter! I'm here to listen to you, so make your voice heard!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason chat with Tanner, Dave, Ethan, and Derek about where their teams came up short on their quest for Stanley Cup glory before diving into new coaches, fired coaches, bad financial decisions, new jerseys, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: May 9, 2024: Episode 607

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Movie Review: Ungentlemanly Warfare

I honestly have little care for war movies as entertainment because it's pretty obvious that real wars, as we're seeing now in the Middle East, are anything but entertaining. There have been some that stand out for the stories told, though, so I can't throw too much sand on pictures like Saving Private Ryan, Platoon, or Full Metal Jacket despite the brutality of the environment shown. Having heard it was based on real people, I wasn't sure if The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare was going to be a brutal look at war or more like Inglorious Basterds, but I gave it a shot on a Wednesday night.

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Guy Ritchie, the Ritchie-directed film was based on the 2014 book Churchill's Secret Warriors: The Explosive True Story of the Special Forces Desperadoes of WWII by Damien Lewis, but the story told by Ritchie and his screenwriters is a largely fictionalized tale of this group of "desperadoes". Clearly, there's a story to be told here, but how far off the source material would Ritchie stray with his story?

Taking place during World War II, the story centers around a group of soliders who engaged in Operation Postmaster, a secret sabotage mission meant to ruin the Nazis' U-boat resupply operation, for the English armed forces. Brigadier Colin Gubbins, played by Cary Elwes, sends SOE agents Marjorie Stewart, played by Eiza González, and Richard Heron, played by Babs Olusanmokun, by train to Fernando Po to begin the operation. However, Gubbins also recruits Gus March-Phillips, played by Henry Cavill, to recruit a team to destroy the Duchessa d'Aosta ship as part of the mission.

If you like Henry Cavill playing a comedic, physical role like he did in Mission Impossible, Cavill's bringing that same energy here. Among his hand-chosen mercenaries, he brings in Danish strongman Anders Lassen, played by Alan Ritchson, whose brother was killed by Nazis; sailor Henry Hayes, played by Hero Fiennes Tiffin, whose brother was also killed by Nazis; career criminal Freddy "The Frog" Alvarez, played by Henry Golding, who loves blowing stuff up; and, eventually, Geoffrey Appleyard, played by Alex Pettyfer, who was involved in multiple operations for the English military. These five men work well together in their interactions, and their side of the story is fun to watch as they try to figure out how five men will take down virtually the entire Nazi navy once they arrive at Fernando Po.

The other half of the story follows Stewart and Heron as they work to send intelligence back to the British government while sabotaging the Nazis' efforts as they make their way to Fernando Po. Again, the chemistry between González and Olusanmokun is good, and their side of the story shows just how effective they can be while spying on the Nazis. In particular, González's work with Til Schweiger as Stewart distracts Schweiger's Nazi villain Heinrich Luhr with her sexual allure is very good, and I'll make it a point to say that Eiza González may have been the best part in the film with her performance.

Being that this is a Guy Ritchie film, the comedic side of the story shines through more often than the war side does, but there are still explosions, fight scenes, and battles that are shown. Im saying that, one of the comedic moments that caught my attention was Heron telling Prince Kambili Kalu, played by Danny Sapani, that Stewart can outshoot any of his men, and Stewart proceeds to demonstrate this ability before a very humorous ending to their sequence. These funny moments make Ungentlemanly Warfare feel more like entertainment than a tale from history, and Ritchie does a good job in balancing these moments while pushing the plot forward.

The five-man crew is where most of the fighting occurs, and Ritchie doesn't pull punches as there are knives, guns, arrows, and bombs all used by March-Phillips' group to accomplish their goals. However, a major twist happens later in the film after having planned out their attack to sink the Duchessa d'Aosta ship when Heron and Stewart discover that the ship cannot be sunk! This forces both units to change plans in an instant as March-Phillips' crew goes off-script while Heron and Stewart do their best to buy the five men time to execute a new plan! Will they stop the Nazis?

Being that this was based on a real set of individuals, I'll encourage everyone not to get up once the action ends so one can find out the fate of these seven characters that were involved in Operation Postmaster. In reality, there were many more people involved, and one of those people was a guy by the name of Ian Fleming. If that name sounds familiar, he's the man responsible for James Bond, and he did cite spies and military personnel like Gus March-Phillips as direct inspirations for James Bond. This was a cool thing to see before the credits rolled, so kudos to Guy Ritchie for paying tribute to these brave individuals.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the film as The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare was more entertainment than a historical retelling of the story. Because of Ritchie taking some creative liberties, the comedy and story were very entertaining without a ton of focus on the history or the strategy used by either side in the war. The movie is R-rated for good reason as the violence in the final scenes alone would qualify it for that rating, but there certainly was some language that was a little salty as well. In short, expect Inglorious Basterds more than Saving Private Ryan if you choose to watch this action-comedy film!

Teebz's Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5 stars)

I don't know how rewatchable the movie would be which is why it lost a star in the overall rating, but The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare was notably produced by Black Bear Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films while being released in theatres by Lionsgate and via streaming company Amazon Prime. It spent a week in theatres before moving to the streaming services.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Embrace The Rebuild

The order above is how the lottery balls bounced today in the NHL's Draft Lottery, and it seems that the San Jose Sharks will likely draft Bay Area resident Macklin Celebrini with their first-overall selection. There weren't too many interesting developments in the draft order, I found, but it's kind of cool to know the first player selected by an NHL team based in Utah will come at the sixth pick. For a handful of teams, the rebuild is certainly underway with where they landed in the lottery, and we'll see who goes where on June 28.

I haven't paid enough attention to know who is ranked higher than whom on the scouting lists, and it doesn't really matter when it comes to some of these teams. A few will draft the best player at a specific position where they feel they have a weakness, but the majority of teams will select the best player as per their opinions when their general managers are called to the stage. Whether than helps or harms a team's overall chances of improving will likely be determined years later, but everyone seems to believe that there are game-changing players available for teams to select. There are lots of choices for GMs when it comes to players...

In the meantime, the remaining 16 teams are figuring out who will draft where based on their finishes in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but there are a few teams who will have a quiet night on June 28. Here is the list of teams, written in capital letters, who will miss the stage on the opening night of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft:

• TAMPA BAY traded their pick to Chicago as part of their 2022 deal to acquire Brandon Hagel.
• EDMONTON dealt their pick to Anaheim for Adam Henrique.
• BOSTON traded their 2024 pick to Detroit for Tyler Bertuzzi in 2023 which Detroit flipped to Ottawa for the rights to sign Alex DeBrincat.
• WINNIPEG dealt their pick to Montreal for Sean Monahan.
• VANCOUVER traded their pick to Calgary for Elias Lindholm.
• FLORIDA traded their pick to Philadelphia in the 2022 deal for Claude Giroux.
• PITTSBURGH traded their pick to San Jose for Erik Karlsson.

For these seven teams, they'll need to get creative if they want stand on the stage at the Sphere in Las Vegas on June 28. For 25 teams, they'll take a shot at picking the player who will push them to new heights next season and beyond as they embrace the rebuild or further their plans to dominate the league. No matter what happens, though, sixteen teams now know at what spot they're choosing come June 28 at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft in Las Vegas.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Dubois Conundrum

It's safe to say that Los Angeles Kings general manager Rob Blake wasn't endearing himself to his team's fanbase today after defending the man to the left. Pierre-Luc Dubois, LA's $60-million man, enraged fans and the Kings' coaching staff with his lackadaisical efforts this season which resulted in a 40-point season plus a one-point postseason. The lacklustre season prompted a number of fans to call for a buyout of Dubois' inflated contract, but it seems the Kings are going to forge ahead with Dubois under their watch with the contract they gave him. Hold on for the ride, Kings fans, because this one may get bumpy before it's over in 2031.

The reason the buyout topic came up with Rob Blake addressing the media today is that the Kings could save themselves a pile of money that could be allocated elsewhere if they chose to take that option.

Because Dubois' 26th birthday is on June 24, the Kings could pay one-third of his remaining contract instead of the required two-thirds when the buyout window opens on June 15. Buying Dubois out before he turns 26 would cost the Kings a total of $15.8 million as opposed to a $31.6 million buyout after he turned 26. Clearly, the financials should be considered here, right?

"We need to make him better," Blake told the Los Angeles Times. "He's had a consistent performance over his career and deviated from that this year. So it's up to us as a staff - coaches and management - to help him become more productive to us."

It's hard to imagine any general manager dumping $8.5 million annually on a player who has never hit the 65-point mark in any season as smart spending, but it seems the Kings are going to work through their expensive growing pains as best they can when the buyout to the right would make the most financial sense moving forward. Admitting they made a mistake isn't the end of the world when the likes of Quinton Byfield, Phillip Danault, and Adrian Kempe were far more effective. Dubois' heavy salary with little production over the season and in the playoffs may have made him more of a detriment when it came to the roster's effectiveness rather than being a help. I understand that Blake thinks he may have Kopitar's eventual replacement, but that reality seems a lot farther off based on the results the Kings are getting. That's not good.

As per Hockey Royalty's examination of Blake's conversation with media today,

"Blake mentioned the need for the coaches to better incorporate him into the game. Something that should've been realized or planned before the season, not after."

This is the problem that both the Blue Jackets and Jets found out: there is no game plan for a guy who skates with the intensity like he's filming scenes for Christmas movies at the rink at Rockefeller Center. When Dubois' head isn't in the game, it's entirely noticeable that he doesn't fit into the Kings' systems at both ends of the ice. This problem rests entirely as much on Dubois as it is on the coaching staff on whom Blake pinned this, so one has to wonder if Dubois will find the means to do more in his given role with the Kings.

"If play like I can play, we're not having these questions right now," Dubois told the media today. "I take the blame. I take responsibility. It's on me. I'm committed to having a better season. I'll do anything to be better."

As we know, actions speak louder than words, and it seems that the Kings are going to pin $15 million worth of buyout savings on a promise of "I'll do anything to be better". If there's no improvement from Dubois next season in terms of effort or production, that's a heavy price to pay to watch someone pleasure-skate his way through another 82 games. Does it cost Blake his job if Dubois doesn't improve? The answer isn't easy, but that may be the eventual result.

For a guy skated as the most expensive fourth-line centerman this season in the NHL, the Los Angeles Kings appear to be sticking with their hopes that Dubois can be a game-changing player like both Columbus and Winnipeg thought he'd be. While the potential may be there, reality suggests otherwise, and I can give you 15 million reasons why the Kings might be better off buying him out than waiting for him to realize that potential.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Begone, Golden Knights

I'm not here to whine about the NHL's rules about salary caps in the playoffs. That's been done to death by hundreds, if not thousands, of people since the practice of using LTIR to gain an edge in the playoffs began. The loophole can't be closed until the new CBA is negotiated, so we can all give the "cheaters" comments a rest because, ultimately, teams will exploit loopholes. What we shouldn't overlook, though, is that the reigning Stanley Cup champions saw their defence of that title come to an end tonight at the hands of the Dallas Stars in Game Seven of their series.

I don't dislike the Golden Knights as much as some may imagine, but I do find their use of LTIR to be a tiny bit ridiculous when it came to Mark Stone's spleen injury this season. Let me say this upfront: the spleen can be easily injured of all the body's internal organs, and it can cause significant problems when it is injured. It hangs out just behind the lower-left section of the rib cage where the chest and abdomen meet. Contact sports such as hockey can cause injury to the spleen, so I'm not saying Stone wasn't injured. For all arguments' sakes, he was and I believe the Golden Knights did right by holding him out of the lineup to receive treatment.

Recovery for spleen injuries take anywhere from three to twelve weeks depending on the severity, so the timeline works out for Stone's recovery as he was diagnosed with the injury on February 20, was cleared to begin skating on April 12, and rejoined the Knights in game-ready form ten days later. Maybe he wasn't 100%, but he did have three goals in the seven games, looked fairly good when it came to his skating and physical play, and seemed to be in good health for the 18:23 of ice-time he was getting per game.

As per the National Library of Medicine,

"Two professional hockey players with grade III spleen injury were managed conservatively with serial CTs until radiographic and clinical findings suggested complete healing. They returned to full-contact hockey within 2 months without any complications."

That would align perfectly with the February-20-to-April-22 two-month period, so perhaps Stone's injury and recovery was fairly standard in allowing his general manager to acquire multiple high-priced players in his absence while returning precisely for the playoffs. For the third year in a row.

In case you've forgotten, Stone was put on LTIR with a back injury on February 9, 2022 before being activated on April 12 that season for the final nine games before the Golden Knights missed the playoffs.

Last season, Stone was injured on January 13 before being moved to LTIR on February 1 with what was described as a back injury, but looked every bit ready to start the playoffs where he helped Vegas win a Stanley Cup with zero flare-ups for that back injury.

And, of course, there was this season's spleen injury, so that's three campaigns in a row where the Golden Knights opened up $9.5 million to work with at the trade deadline. Quite a luxury to have, right?

Again, I can't hate the Golden Knights for playing by the very rules that the NHL wrote, and succeeding at figuring out how to work the loophole well enough so that they can capitalize at the trade deadline each and every year. That's masterful work by GM Kelly McCrimmon when it comes to improving his team, and he deserves praise for turning the tables on the parity that the NHL desperately craves and tries to enforce with the salary cap.

What I don't like, though, is that the NHL couldn't see this coming despite paying lawyers buckets of money to come up with the CBA. Seeing the Stars oust the Golden Knights tonight makes me smile because the one franchise that constantly exploits the rules is now out while the remaining eight teams will look to win the Stanley Cup with teams built within the constraints of the salary cap. This year's winner will have honoured the rule as it was written rather than trying to find a way to beat the system.

In saying that, there will be no repeat this season. Begone, Golden Knights, and we'll wait for the next major star to hit the LTIR list as you rebuild once more next season.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The First Day Of Summer

Officially, summer begins on June 20 this year, but tonight marked the first official day of summer. You know it's summer when the warm weather shows up regularly, rain is the only precipitation in the forecast, and everything starts going green in nature like the image to the left. And while that serene creek will likely be brimming with life soon, the flora in the area have clearly began their lifecycles as seeds and pollen will be produced. The picture also shows that the trees are blooming with life, and that means it's summer in Canada because the Leafs are out.

Clever word play aside, the Toronto Maple Leafs put their fans through the wringer once more this spring as they rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to force Game Seven. They took the lead in Game Seven as William Nylander continues to look more and more like former Leafs legend Mats Sundin before the Bruins erased that lead 1:21 after Nylander's marker. The two teams battled for the remaining 9:38 before the horn went, sending Game Seven to overtime. Collectively, Leafs fans held their breath.

Unfortunately, they could exhale just 1:54 into the extra frame as the release of that air came out as a disappointed sigh following David Pastrnak's overtime goal. Boston has now won four-straight Game Seven victories over Toronto dating back to 2013. The last time Toronto defeated Boston in a playoff series was in 1959, and that time will be extended for at least another season. At the end of the day, Pastrnak caught the Leafs snoozing at the absolute wrong time, and they'll pay for that lack of concentration for at least another calendar year. This one may sting for a while.

It wasn't like the Leafs were outclassed in this series either, so we can stop pointing fingers. Injuries to Auston Matthews, William Nylander, and Joseph Woll played into how players were deployed by the Leafs, but Sergei Samsonov was every bit as good as Jeremy Swayman tonight as he kept Toronto in this game despite a handful of defensive breakdowns while, offensively, players like Tyler Bertuzzi, Max Domi, and Matthew Knies had chances that were denied. Even the big three of Matthews, Mitch Marner, and Nylander had their looks, but the Leafs weren't outplayed in this game. In the end, it was one mistake that cost them the series.

"But Teebz, teams don't win or lose series in one game" is the protest I'll hear, and that's true except for not being able to correct mistakes in Games One through Six, so the Leafs should have learned from those errors. Game Seven is a one-and-done opportunity to clear the slate with a win, and the Leafs blundered at the absolute wrong time. One can say Rielly should have hauled down Pastrnak or dove to knock the puck away, but he didn't. One could say that Marner should have obstructed Pastrnak as he built speed through the neutral zone, but he didn't.

There were five guys on the ice who fell into the 1-3-1, and not one of them picked up on the set play that Lindholm and Pastrnak ran against them. By the time they had realized what the Bruins were doing, the chase was on, and no one caught Pastrnak before he slipped the puck past Samsonov, crushing the collective dreams of "Leafs Nation" once again. One mistake ended the season for the Leafs.

Things don't get easier for the Bruins as they'll venture to Sunrise where the Florida Panthers await. Florida ousted Boston last season before they did the same to Toronto, and the Bruins will need to be better than having the lapses we saw in this series against the Leafs. This piece isn't about that series, though, so it's back to the drawing board with the high-priced foursome and their no-movement clauses that provide very little flexibility for GM Brad Treliving this summer. For all the fixes he made this season, the end result is all too familiar.

It has to be summer tonight because all of the golf courses in and around Toronto are open for play. Tee times are available.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

An Early Night

I went looking for an image of someone who had a cold, and it's pretty incredible how many stock images have someone with a thermometer in their mouths. Growing up, I don't recall ever using a thermometer to determine my body temperature, so I struggle to understand why all the stock photos show someone with that device sticking out of the model's mouth. In any case, I'm not blogging or watching hockey tonight as I seem to have contracted a bit of a head cold as the congestion in the sinuses and headache are sapping me of any and all energy to stay awake. In that vein, I am calling it an evening as staying up to watch the Vancouver-Nashville game moves to "not a priority" since I can catch the highlights tomorrow.

If there's one series for which I need to have my energy back, it's Saturday's Game Seven between Boston and Toronto. As I've explained before, HBIC adheres to a strict ABT policy - "Anybody But Toronto" - due to Canadian sports media spending an obscene amount of time covering the Maple Leafs, so I'll temporarily be a Bruins fan tomorrow. And if things don't go Boston's way, I'll be a Florida Panthers fan in the next round. That's how it goes.

Tonight, though, it's an early bedtime for me as I try to shake this cold before the week starts on Monday. It's another busy week as Round Two starts in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, we're closing out Round One exit interviews on The Hockey Show, and the IIHF World Championship starts in Czechia, so I'm taking the night off to get back to one-hundred percent.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 606

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, returns tonight with the first wave of exit interviews in the Survivor: NHL Playoffs contest as we are set to send five entrants off the island this evening. There's always good discussion about why teams finished their playoff runs earlier than they wanted, so we'll dig into those reasons and chat about a few other things tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

We're bringing back our good friend Jeff Probst to assist with the exit interviews as Teebz and Jason welcome Tom (Kings), Zoee (Islanders), Ethan (Lightning), Skippy (Capitals), and Barry (Jets) to tribal council tonight. As Jeff says in the GIF to the left, there's no need for a vote as we know these five teams are done in the playoffs, so we'll hear from each of the entrants about where their teams went wrong and discuss those points. Depending on time, our hosts will also talk about Jon Cooper's choice of words and owning his mistake, Salt Lake City business owners apparently don't understand economics, and they'll announce the winner of the Pledge-O-Rama bonus draw for a pair of Jets t-shirts! We'll have lots to discuss with Survivor entrants tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

If you live outside Winnipeg and want to listen, we have options! The new UMFM website's online streaming player works well if you want to listen online. We also recommend Radio Garden if you need an easy-to-use online stream. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store. It's a solid app.

If you have questions, you can email all show queries and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter! I'm here to listen to you, so make your voice heard!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason chat with Tom, Zoee, Ethan, Skippy, and Barry about their teams' shortcomings before breaking into some other hockey chatter and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: May 2, 2024: Episode 606

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Back In The Booth

Last summer, I saw an opportunity that I thought would be fun as I applied to be one of the official scorers for the local professional minor-league baseball team. I figured it would be a tough job when it comes to learning all the nuances of the league and scoring software, but it turned out that the software was something with which I was already familiar, so my biggest job was more just scoring the games accurately than trying to figure out how to score games. In saying all that, I had a blast last year, the team asked me to return this year, and I am off to staff orientation night this evening!

The majority of the scoring team is returning, and it will be good to reconnect with a number of my colleagues as we had too much fun in the pressbox last season watching baseball. We do have one new recruit, but I feel this person will be easily incorporated into our group as everyone was there to work hard, have a laugh, and watch some ball while being paid. That's the part that seems so surreal: I'm being paid to watch baseball!

Anyway, the orientation goes tonight for all staff, so I'm off to the ballpark for that event. Enjoy the hockey games as I'll have my mind on baseball for the next few hours, but we'll be back with a fun episode of The Hockey Show tomorrow where the first exit interviews will be heard as we start to clear the beach on Survivor: NHL Playoffs island! As a side note, I'll have all the challenge prizes that have been won either sent out or delivered by Friday, so keep your eyes on your email if you're a winner!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!