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!
If you're not aware of Sunrise on Channel 7, that's ok because it likely means you don't live in Australia. Sunrise on Channel 7 is like most basic morning variety shows where news, weather, and sports have topics of local interest between the news breaks, so it's not like they're doing anything groundbreaking with their morning shows in the Land Down Under. One of things we featured nearly all winter on The Hockey Show was a segment called "The Melbourne Moment" where we gave listeners some sort of funny or goofy news from Australia, and I'm proud to say that HBIC will feature a "Melbourne Moment" today thanks to some questionable puns and a connection to Winnipeg!
Tuesday morning in Australia is actually closer to dinner time in my part of North America, so I wasn't watching this clip from Sunrise on Channel 7, but the morning show sent weather specialist Katie Brown down to the O'Brien Icehouse where she interviewed Melbourne Ice head coach Kerry Goulet after reading the weather where the hockey puns were on full display from the blond meteorologist.
Officially, I wasn't counting, but Katie Brown may have used somewhere between "stop using them" and "enough already" in the number of puns she squeezed into that thirty-second clip alongside Goulet. When the camera flashed back to hosts Natalie Barr and Matt Shirvington eight seconds into the interview, it was pretty clear that they had no clue that Brown was trying to set a Guiness record for puns in an interview. Goulet, to his credit, played along well.
There was a second clip with Goulet, and I have that as well. This one, however, featured Brown in a new role where she continues to toss around hockey puns in between screams of terror.
The fact that Brown watched the 2010 Vancouver Olympic hockey final is pretty impressive, but a couple of those glove saves she made seemed like the shooters were aiming for the trapper. I'll give Brown credit for being a good sport, though, as it does take some courage to jump into the goalie gear and try to stop pucks!
How this comes full circle is that Kerry Goulet is a former player who grew up in Winnipeg and now lives in Toronto. The 65 year-old Goulet actually celebrates his birthday today - happy 65th birthday, Kerry! - but he made his name in hockey playing in Germany where he bounced between teams in the Oberliga, the third-highest division, and the Regionalliga, the fourth-highest division. You might think that's not much of an accomplishment, but we haven't mentioned what he did in those leagues because he dominated to say the least.
Goulet twice broke the 200-point mark as he reached 221 points - 89 goals and 132 assists - in just 43 games in 1992-93 for ETC Timmendorfer Strand in the Oberliga before breaking that mark once more in 1997-98 for EC Timmendorfer Strand when he scored 236 points - 99 goals and 137 assists - in 53 games in the Regionalliga! In ten seasons in the Oberliga, Goulet amassed 1067 points - 386 goals and 681 assists - in just 352 games, and he added 484 points - 199 goals and 285 assists - in 137 games in five seasons in the Regionalliga. #29 now hangs from the rafters for the Timmendorfer Eisbars who retired his jersey after he scored his 2000th point in German hockey at the age of 52!
In a rather cool twist, Goulet played alongside former Manitoba Bisons standout Mark MacKay in Germany who was inducted into the Bisons Hockey Hall of Fame in 2020! I had the honour of emceeing that event, and it was a pretty cool evening in meeting MacKay who was the only man in the room that had scored on Martin Brodeur! In any case, MacKay's jersey was also retired by the Eisbars as two Manitoba kids lit up the German leagues!
Back to Goulet, for a kid who played MJHL hockey in Canada with the Assiniboine Park Monarchs who became the Winnipeg Monarchs before being traded to the St. Boniface Saints, it was hard to imagine that Kerry Goulet would become a scoring sensation in Germany. His last season in the MJHL in 1977-78 saw him score 45 points in 39 games, but it was nothing like what he did when he decided to resume his career in 1988-89 with EC Eschweiler in the Regionalliga. That season saw Goulet score 42 goals and 62 assists in just 20 games!
You may ask what he did for those ten years in between his ice hockey seasons, and you should know that Goulet didn't put the stick down because he became one of Canada's best ball hockey players! Playing for the Winnipeg Grasshoppers, they represented Manitoba in eight national ball hockey championships, winning the championship in 1985! His work in ball hockey earned him an induction into the Canadian Ball Hockey Association's Hall of Fame in 2006.
Today, Goulet is one of the founders of StopConcussions, along with former Philadelphia Flyers captain Keith Primeau, as well as being co-chairmen of the Shoot For A Cure campaign. His love of hockey never faded, though, and he founded the Australian Ice Hockey Classic that features international teams playing hockey in Australia in support of Stopconcussions and Shoot For a Cure.
With his work in Australia bringing him some notoriety, the Melbourne Ice made the decision to hire Goulet as their head coach in 2023 on a multi-year deal, and that's how Goulet found himself on Sunrise on Channel 7 this morning, being peppered with Katie Brown's hockey puns as he answered questions.
Whatever Goulet is doing this season with the Ice seems to working. They are the only undefeated team in the AIHL right now at 6-0-0, and they've outscored their opponents in those six games by a combined 41-10 score! The Ice visit the 1-6-0 Canberra Brave this weekend for a pair of games, and they could easily be 8-0-0 if they continue to play at the high level they've shown so far. Clearly, Goulet's got his team rolling early in this 2024 AIHL season!
It's pretty cool that a morning show in Australia resulted in an actual "Melbourne Moment" featuring hockey, and the person being interviewed is a Winnipeg-born former hockey player who now coaches in Australia in their highest professional league. You never know where hockey may take you, and Kerry Goulet is a fantastic example of that fact!
I have a lot of respect for Jon Cooper as a coach. He's led his team to a couple of Stanley Cup victories, he's always found a way to keep the Lightning competitive despite losing some key players, and he seems to understand his players in helping them be successful individually. As always, though, teams will go through cycles where they go from contenders to also-rans, and it seems the Lightning are moving into the latter's space after winning in 2020 and 2021. Nevertheless, the Lightning played well enough this season to make some believe they could shake things up in the playoffs, and Jon Cooper was a large reason why they were successful. As stated, I respect Jon Cooper.
Tonight, Cooper had every reason to be frustrated following a 6-1 loss to the Florida Panthers that ended Tampa Bay's playoff run. During the game, the officials disallowed two goals scored by Tampa Bay due to goaltender interference that were, at best, wishy-washy. Yes, there was some contact between players and goalies, but, as you'll hear below, Cooper shares the same belief that I do in that the battles in front of the net will result in some incidental contact.
However, I feel Cooper may have stated something he didn't intend when discussing the calls from the 2:10 to 2:12 mark of the video. I'll explain why below, but the imagery he used about how goalies are seemingly handled with white gloves missed the mark entirely.
I'm not here to let Jon Cooper off the hook for his imagery of goalies in skirts, but he needed to choose his words better there. Tampa Bay has hosted a number of women's hockey events over the last few years, and I'm quite certain that Cooper is aware of that fact. I get that he's speaking out of frustration at the results of the game and those two plays, but immediately going to "skirts" isn't the description that he should be using here in any fashion.
Again, I'm not letting Cooper off the hook for what he said, but I will defend that he likely chose those words poorly in his moment of frustration. Cooper, for those who don't know, has two twin girls, Josie and Julia, who are 16, and he is intensely proud of his daughters as much as he is for his hockey-playing son, 14 year-old Jonny. Julia and Josie were born the day before Jon's St. Louis Gamblers won the 2008 North American Hockey League championship, so the playoffs are always a special time around the Cooper household with birthdays to celebrate.
For a man so deeply dedicated to his family - they had daily calls and he sent them postcards during the pandemic playoff bubble - I don't think he intentionally played the misogyny card during his monologue on goalie interference. Yes, it was a misstep, but this is one where the flaming torches, spears, and pitchforks can probably be left at home by the mob. At no point that I can recall has Jon Cooper ever spoke poorly of women in hockey, and he's been quite supportive of Caley Chelios, the Lightning radio analyst.
"She is as knowledgeable as anyone I talk to in the game," Cooper said to USA Today's Kevin Allen, "and it comes natural to her."
Cooper was also a fan of Anne Schleper joining the Lightning for practice in 2014, stating, "I was really impressed with her. She spoke a lot on the ice. You could really distinguish her voice. She was really active, saying all the right things, calling for the puck. I think she got better as the practice went on" before adding, "For her to come out here and be with our guys, I'm sure, it was fun for our guys and I'm sure it was a ton of fun for her. But if we can build the sport in any way and if that helps ten little girls to play hockey, then it's paid off."
A lot of people will point out that I actually am defending Cooper, but I'll stress that he doesn't get a pass from me for the language he used in a moment of frustration. That will never fly with me for anyone who wants to use a sexist remark, so I still expect that Jon Cooper will apologize for his remarks in the coming days in order to clear this up - sooner would be better.
What I am trying to show, though, is that Cooper's remarks aren't a trend or a pattern of sexism or misogyny in any way, and that he's supported women in hockey when he's been asked while being a family man who cherishes his wife and kids. Did he mess up using the term he did? Absolutely, and I - fan, supporter, and devoted follower of the women's game - would hope he realizes he chose his words poorly tonight. But should one misstep in a moment of frustration be the reason he's facing the social media guillotine today?
Did Jon Cooper screw up? Heck yes. Does he deserve a chance to apologize? I'd also say yes. You're welcome to debate this in the comments below, but I'm sticking with my belief that Jon Cooper is a good coach and a better person despite his misstep tonight during a frustrating ending to his team's season.
If there was one team out of the sixteen that made the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs that seemed to have the most Herculean task of winning a game, the Washington Capitals were likely everyone's pick. Facing the President's Trophy-winning New York Rangers, the Capitals needed all 82 games to secure a playoff spot, and having them win four of seven games against the Blueshirts was going to be nothing short of a monumental upset. The fun part about the playoffs, though, is that anything can happen in these series, so there was certainly a chance that an upset could occur. The reality of this series was that one team simply was overwhelmed by the other, and 2018 Stanley Cup champions are officially the first team to be excused from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
You know things didn't go well for the Capitals when defender Martin Fehervary lead the team in both goals and points, but that's the reality of the 2024 Washington Capitals. Alex Ovechkin failed to record a point in the four games against the Rangers, and TJ Oshie had just one helper. John Carlson had two points, but Max Pacioretty and Sonny Milano combined for the same total as Ovechkin and Oshie. Needless to say, the Capitals didn't get much from their stars.
I'm neither a Capitals nor a Rangers fan by any means, but the Rangers looked like a well-oiled machine against Washington as Mika Zibanejad and Vincent Trochek went bananas with seven and six points, respectively, while have Artemi Panarin and Chris Kreider chip in three points apiece. If you're doing the math, the four Rangers forwards scored 19 points to the four Capitals forwards' two points. The best team in the NHL made a statement in the four games they played, and they'll now have some extra time to rest and prepare as they await the winner of the Carolina-New York Islanders series.
If you're keeping up with the Survivor: NHL Playoffs contest, there have been four challenge prizes that have been won. They include:
First hat trick recorded in the playoffs - won by Jared!
First goalie point recorded in the playoffs - won by Elliot!
First team eliminated from the playoffs - won by Skippy!
First team to score seven goals in one game - won by Barry!
We could have another winner on Tuesday if Colorado can close out their series against Winnipeg as that would be the first upset of the playoffs, but we'll have to see if the Jets can figure out how to dig themselves out after being snowed over by the Avalanche. Strangely, there has yet to be a shutout in these playoffs, so that one's still up for grabs at any time! The only person who can't win that challenge prize as of right now is Skippy, but he will get one for being first out!
It's hard to say if the Capitals will make the playoffs next season based on how they barely made it this year, but the rebuild in DC should begin with Ovechkin's career nearly finished, Carlson's effectiveness beginning to fade, and the teams around them getting younger and better before they are. If tonight was Ovechkin's last playoff game, it certainly didn't end with a bang, but that ending should signal that the Capitals are going to start moving in a new direction this offseason.
It was another capital "L" for the Capitals tonight just as it was in previous three games they played, and the New York Rangers swept Washington into their summer plans.
There is no doubt that the three men to the left have been blessed with an incredible wealth of hockey talent. That talent has seen all three men rewarded handsomely for their regular season successes, but they have yet to find any team success in the playoffs as members of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The annual disappointment that Leafs fans feel likely requires something to change, but the Leafs have put all their eggs in a handful of baskets - three of those being the baskets belonging to these men. Tonight, though, the frustration from the Leafs' highest-paid players bubbled over on the bench, and it may force the Leafs to make changes in the offseason to find postseason success.
Trailing 2-1 in the series, the Leafs needed a win to turn the series into a best-of-three, but a loss would put them on the brink of elimination. Clearly, they needed a big effort, but the Bruins jumped out to a 3-0 lead before the Leafs found twine at 5:43 of the third period when Mitch Marner finally scored. Earlier in the game, however, emotions seemed to boil over for the Leafs' superstars.
Some on social media think that Nylander was chirping Marner, but it seems pretty clear that Marner is bewildered by whatever Matthews said based on his reaction, and it appears that Nylander is looking past Marner when he responds with his comments. Neither were speaking to Tyler Bertuzzi who was leaning back between Matthews and Marner, so this appears to be a Matthews and Nylander squabble based on eye position and reactions from those on the bench.
Whatever the case may be, it seems that the 3-1 loss tonight to Boston to put Toronto in a 3-1 hole in the series has everyone a little frustrated with each other. That tends to happen when teams can't find answers to their offesnive woes, and there's no denying the Leafs are in the thick of this goal-scoring anemia. Something has to change if the Leafs are going to extend the series, let alone winning it.
Let's go to head coach Sheldon Keefe's thoughts on the exchange in the video above between his superstar players. Is he concerned?
Hold the phone - he "didn't sense any frustration"? William Nylander channeled his inner Phil Kessel in responding to your wunderkind goal-scorer, and Keefe didn't sense frustration? I'm not sure if he's simply not paying attention or no longer cares, but how does that exchange between his two stars not show frustration?
Look, I respect the fact that defended his team's effort in this game, but that's doing nothing to help them score goals on the ice. This comes to down to the coaching staff spending a lot of time watching video and looking for ways to breakdown the Bruins' defensive structure, but I'm not sure they have that much time with Game Five set for Tuesday in Boston. There might be a more simple answer, but the way the Leafs have been stymied by the Bruins indicates to me that this is a bigger than swapping a few players around in the lineup.
A lot of people have speculated that Sheldon Keefe will be fired if the Leafs lose this series, and I completely understand why that may happen. Frankly, I don't think Keefe's systems were built for playoff success because of how the game changes in the postseason, but I'm not here for the whiteboard chatter. What seems clear is that the coaching staff for the Leafs doesn't seem to have a Plan-B for the Leafs when their normal systems fail. That should have everyone in the front office concerned.
It has been said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting to see different results. It's becoming very clear that the Leafs are testing that theory with their repeated early exits in the playoffs while maintaining the same core group of players. While no one is suggesting a complete tear-down and rebuild, the Leafs may be forced to part with pieces who seemed like good long-term investments in this offseason if they want their fortunes to change.
Brad Treliving went through a handful of rough offseasons with the Calgary Flames before arriving in Toronto, and it seems he'll have a pile of work to do this summer if the Leafs are going to give their fans a reason to believe they can win a Stanley Cup. Or he could do nothing and continue to tinker with the bottom-six players who bust their humps, but are hardly the reason why the Leafs are in the situation they find themselves tonight. Whatever he decides to do, it's clear something has to change in The Big Smoke.
If the Leafs lose on Tuesday, be prepared for months of analysis, discussion, and predictions from pundits on how to fix the Leafs.
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