The Devils showed some heart early in the Ranger game but could not hold on to a 3rd period lead. The boys talk about the 3 game losing streak when the Devils playoff hopes were still on the line. Sidney Crosby to NJ? What goalie is the best fit for the Devs? Fitz can't miss on the head coaching hire.
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[00:00:00] The Los Angeles Times.
[00:00:02] The Los Angeles Times.
[00:00:13] Hey, everyone!
[00:00:15] Mr. Devil here at Danny Danny Colt.
[00:00:17] Three-time Stanley Cup Champion of the Jersey Devils.
[00:00:20] You're listening to Uncle Puckers NJD Podcast with Chris Dan Bobby and Sony, the Uncle
[00:00:28] Puckers.
[00:00:29] No Devils!
[00:00:30] Backs against the wall, playoff hopes on the line and this team drops three in a row
[00:00:37] and gives up leads in the third period in all three games.
[00:00:43] We just watched the Devils lose to the Rangers which really was looking like something
[00:00:48] really good to take away from this year like at least you know you're going and but no.
[00:00:53] No, what's up Bobby?
[00:00:55] Not much, man.
[00:00:58] I'm super covering slowly.
[00:00:59] I mean, I think that our playoff odds got changed at all by today but just the kind of
[00:01:06] a shock but all like you just said the third period just not being able to hang on.
[00:01:12] Now Rangers sweep the series.
[00:01:14] They actually showed some heart, some grit today for a while.
[00:01:18] You know down four defensemen or two defensemen after playing last night but man it's just
[00:01:24] this was it.
[00:01:27] It was just start to start the game that was so much fun to watch you know.
[00:01:31] Just everyone line fight everybody just dropping the gloves and going at it.
[00:01:35] That was awesome.
[00:01:38] Rempi I think went to Rermick out the best of him, I think he handled himself pretty well
[00:01:43] and look, Rempi's a punk.
[00:01:47] You know he's a goon and he'll be out of league within the next two years like he's a joke.
[00:01:55] How he plays, he just he'll never learn how to actually play hockey the right way.
[00:02:00] I don't believe that but that's regardless.
[00:02:02] The guys played three games against Devils, he played a total of five minutes and he's
[00:02:05] been thrown out of every game.
[00:02:08] He's a piece of garbage but the Devils responded in that first right off the bat two seconds
[00:02:12] in you know come back from two goals down score three in the third in a second they look
[00:02:17] like oh okay you know they're skating they're doing all the right things and they just couldn't
[00:02:23] hold on.
[00:02:24] You know it's been the kind of the story of the last week or two you know they've I thought
[00:02:31] you know the Pittsburgh game which we'll talk about but the first two periods I'm watching
[00:02:35] this game and I'm like I am loving how they are playing right now and then the third
[00:02:39] period a full and total collapse.
[00:02:43] Yeah so I wasn't loving how they're playing so much.
[00:02:48] I liked their opportunism, I thought that their shot of efficiency was very good.
[00:02:53] I was talking about how I loved how they were playing in the Pittsburgh game the first
[00:02:55] two periods.
[00:02:56] Oh gosh that's the game I was talking about good good because this one sure they had
[00:03:00] some positive things going for them but 12 shots two periods and when they did score
[00:03:04] there were again shades of what this team can do.
[00:03:07] I mean Dawson Mercer dropped in the gloves and I was a defense of that if that was
[00:03:14] great the whole team doing that but just the way those goals when the first jacks past
[00:03:20] the pilote was otherworldly coming over line and then they got angles on that one right
[00:03:26] and then that candid pass to Heesher was one of those things I've been saying all year
[00:03:32] like it was with purpose it was like with conviction there was like almost a snarl behind
[00:03:36] this pass you know it was like meant to go in and you're looking at those parts of the
[00:03:41] game saying wow these guys are showing up that this means something to them and I think
[00:03:46] it still did all the way through the third period I think that this team just is not
[00:03:51] capable of holding on to a lead.
[00:03:55] Jack almost tied it up late I mean he went for that you know short side over the shoulder
[00:04:01] on just a certain and he breathed out the helmet yeah hit the back of the net but you
[00:04:06] know that almost tied it up but I a couple things that I kind of liked tonight was
[00:04:12] pilote playing with no sick and Hughes I thought that was a nice line and at least he
[00:04:17] gives Hughes a little bit of that size around him and pilote I mean we haven't seen him
[00:04:22] do what he did tonight with burying that shot much at all this year or since he's been
[00:04:27] a devil so excuse me that was nice to see but it's just you know there you know what
[00:04:32] it is like with me at least personally like every year you have a new team and whether
[00:04:38] it's hockey baseball football whatever you follow right and in each team has an aura about
[00:04:44] them and they're not saying they got to go out and win championships every year but there
[00:04:48] are just things that you really like about certain teams you know there is not much I like
[00:04:54] about this double team now I could juxtapose that with last year which there wasn't much
[00:04:58] that I didn't like about that team but it's not so much the you know we've had a lot
[00:05:04] of personnel especially on the back end turnover but it's just more of they have no heart they
[00:05:11] really don't they they roll over way too much when I heard the post game pressors from some
[00:05:20] of the guys after that penguin game and more than one of those guys used the phrase we played
[00:05:26] scared once Pittsburgh tied tied it up on us we played scared now I don't know about you but if
[00:05:34] my hockey team says that they're playing scared like that's not a term you should ever use in the NHL
[00:05:41] like you know you you still had you know you could still win these games and that's the thing
[00:05:48] like even though they tied it up it's just tied they need one more to win you need one more to
[00:05:54] win grunt get it and they're just not capable of it they're not capable of holding a lead I don't
[00:06:00] know how much of this is the problem with coaching or with the players or with the lack of leadership on
[00:06:05] the bench or in the locker room or how much of it's just between their ears I don't know there's
[00:06:12] there's something about this season that I don't feel that they really did downside no they can
[00:06:17] get out of like this is we've said it before this is one of those hard reset moments like nothing
[00:06:23] is going to change it's like it's like the person who you know cannot physically better themselves
[00:06:28] until the stroke of midnight on New Year's you know what I mean it's just a mental thing there's
[00:06:33] just no getting past where they are and let's face it there's a zero chance now of making the playoffs
[00:06:38] this is oh I don't want to give me a 2% chance I don't I don't want them to make the playoffs like that
[00:06:43] I had them out after the Buffalo loss on Friday night I thought that was it you know if you cannot
[00:06:49] come out and play a hard game and win that Buffalo game instead you go out and you play one of the
[00:06:55] worst games we've seen them play all year then you go to the Pittsburgh game you played great for
[00:07:01] 40 minutes so what they tied it up go get it no you crumbled like blue cheese and that's just it to
[00:07:08] me there's no joy on this team like I feel like there's nobody on this team having any fun
[00:07:14] even when things are going good and I don't and I think they're a tight group I think most of these
[00:07:19] guys are pretty close and I think there is a nice tight core there yes you know I just I
[00:07:25] want to see an overhaul of so much and it needs to start after this season which can in my opinion
[00:07:32] cannot end soon enough I agree I'm just actually with some of our other guys tonight too and I just
[00:07:40] I have quite frankly I need to be over and I've never said that before in all the years when they were
[00:07:44] bad before the recent years where they started to you know we saw the light in the tunnel I
[00:07:49] didn't care I just I just wanted to watch them every game straight to the end this is so infuriating
[00:07:54] and frustrating emotionally draining yeah I really just kind of want to be over the regression has
[00:08:02] just been like phenomenal like I don't think anybody any devil fan any NHL analysts saw what happened
[00:08:12] to this team happening you know and it's just so much blame to go around and I just kind of
[00:08:21] I'm so nervous about this team going forward because I don't know who the real devils are I don't
[00:08:30] know if it was the 112 point team or is it this team that looks like they're legitimately
[00:08:39] after last season you were thinking they're there they can be Stanley Cup contenders moving forward
[00:08:44] for the next five or six years I then you come out and you don't make the playoffs and it's like
[00:08:51] this is unacceptable on so many levels kind of feels like more than us step back doesn't it feels
[00:08:56] like it's kind of a multi-level step back that could cause a lot of problems I mean I think that
[00:09:03] the core is there of course I think it's the construction of this team I've been saying since the
[00:09:09] beginning that there's something wrong with hopefully that could be remedied with the right moves
[00:09:15] full on coaching change you know realistically it's everything we've been saying we need we need
[00:09:21] better help on defense we need more consistent goal telling they got to figure out what Jack
[00:09:24] Hughes' line is going to be because right now it really does look like you could have a Hisha
[00:09:29] Brad Meyer line I mean for years potentially but these things break up awfully quick but
[00:09:36] this Jack Hughes left wing nobody really with him I just don't know what the future is going to be
[00:09:41] I see a lot of changes needed and I think especially when you look at the bottom six I think it's
[00:09:46] a mess not too a man like we've talked about you like you know maybe Tierney's play and I'm kind
[00:09:51] of saying well I'm indifferent to him I haven't really seen much and then maybe your counters well
[00:09:55] that's good he's just doing his job and I get all that the players like that I feel like kind of
[00:10:01] move one in movie other out there's just something not working with this group and I think
[00:10:06] we saw part of it did you see all that going on and this just happens in game not to over over and
[00:10:11] flayed it but with Tim Meyer mouthed off the heat here after last night on the bench no there's a meme
[00:10:18] going around I guess it's actually just the video clip but Meyer is basically yelling at him like
[00:10:24] one player apart saying shoot the fucking puck good I don't know exactly where it was in that
[00:10:29] point of game and I think that's just chose Meyer's character because if you look at what this guy's
[00:10:33] bringing lately literally everything that we had hoped for he really wants to win he does not
[00:10:41] accept this season he was hurt he's everything he should be and I have no problem getting
[00:10:47] vocal I'm sure they talked about it in a locker room and squash right then there but it was
[00:10:51] basically a lot two line minutes that are saying this is your opera you've got to shoot that puck
[00:10:55] like right this is you know so take it for what it is a lot of that with this team you know I mean
[00:11:01] and maybe Jackson consistency this year has to do with the fact that he has kind of been
[00:11:07] this mainstay online too with so many different guys throughout the course of the year like you need
[00:11:13] to figure out what kind of player works best with Jack and then maybe go out and get him if he's
[00:11:17] non-the line up and what you said about tyranny and guys like that in the bottom six again
[00:11:23] their diamond doesn't you know I have no problem with moving on getting somebody you know younger
[00:11:29] even if you have to pay a little bit more like a true you know third you know bottom six guys
[00:11:33] that can chip in and stuff like that you look at a guy like Jimmy Visi who we let walk out the door
[00:11:38] and he's perfect you know that's the kind of guy you want a high energy guy that can chip in with
[00:11:42] timely goals and they go to the dirty spots and they do the hard work our bottom six guys
[00:11:48] aren't that and now our bottom like we had tyranny who we I mean not tyranny uh no sick
[00:11:54] who we went out and got to basically be our you know fourth line guy yeah now he's playing up
[00:12:01] centering Jack uses line on the second line like everybody is positioned wrong
[00:12:07] I you know yes all the things that need to get done my biggest problem is I don't trust
[00:12:13] that Tom Fitzgerald is gonna get it done I mean there were like to let you know in hindsight
[00:12:21] I get it hindsight's 2020 but and we thought okay Luke Hughes was going to be playing every game
[00:12:29] but was it smart we got see see see for some why he's gone I get that he's a big payday but was
[00:12:36] it smart to get rid of Ryan graves um I absolutely adamantly did not want to get rid of Ryan
[00:12:42] graves no you said at the expense of almost anybody else I wanted to keep him on this team
[00:12:47] and in hindsight you were 100% right because we should have kept him uh to have such a young D
[00:12:54] core it's great that you can look at it and say yeah but look how good these guys are going to be
[00:12:59] right now but they should I mean in a couple years but they should not have been doing the things
[00:13:03] that they were doing all year they did they should not have been the main defensive guys they make
[00:13:08] too many mistakes and the other thing this year like there's no and I know you make your own
[00:13:14] puck luck but you make your own good bounces and all but we have had nothing go our way like you
[00:13:19] know just go back to the tie-in goal like Luke hits a slap shot shatters his stick and it's back the
[00:13:24] other way and it goes in the net and it's like this is all the same shit we've been seeing all year
[00:13:31] and I think the most important thing that Tom Fitzgerald's got to get right this off season
[00:13:37] is the head coach and the entire coaching staff because if you believe that the guys that are in
[00:13:44] place to core these guys are have what it takes and you just need to kind of put a few pieces around
[00:13:51] them uh your coaching staff is going to be everything because we bitched about it after the
[00:13:58] New Rough Gap Fire that there was no that this seemed like it was such a reactionary move when
[00:14:03] it shouldn't have been it should have been a move that you had done a month prior or at least
[00:14:08] you should have been on the phone trying to see you know if you can maybe replace them with somebody
[00:14:13] else but no it was like the pressure got too much they went on that road trip out west they
[00:14:18] looked like shit it was just too much you had to let him go uh and then you bring and you just give
[00:14:24] the job to uh Travis Green he's Lindy rough incarnate you know I mean he is exactly that he's doing
[00:14:33] the exact same things I get it he's moving lines around everything but my point is they weren't
[00:14:37] responding to Lindy rough they're not responding to Travis Green you better get a guy in there
[00:14:43] that's not going to take any shit from anybody and you know you want to go on his family cup
[00:14:48] it's about discipline it's about working your ass off for 60 minutes for 82 games it's about
[00:14:54] sacrificing yourself it's about playing for the guy next to you that's what makes a team
[00:15:01] all year we have not been a team and that is a huge problem yeah couldn't agree more again it
[00:15:08] goes to the core construction and the values of this team at first when Green came out you know
[00:15:14] we commanded him for the job he was doing it certainly looked better and it wasn't just
[00:15:18] the coaching change the goal-tending change was right around the same time um but the more it has
[00:15:24] gone on the more like you said it just seems like the same blueprint repeating over and over again
[00:15:31] I just for life of me can't figure out especially the Pittsburgh game maybe more so than this game
[00:15:37] why you can't change the ending of that game you're in total control you need every last point
[00:15:48] there's a different way you can play that game look it up spend on a million times
[00:15:53] um tonight little different with the rainers in town they were pressing was only a one goal lead so
[00:15:59] and you know for what it's worth again in all honesty back to back with major short benches totally
[00:16:06] started the favor of the rangers towards the end of that i mean kaka was all right he should have
[00:16:10] stopped that third goal for sure um maybe not you know the fourth question will um the third for
[00:16:16] short that was the backbreaker but the element that's missing is that uh
[00:16:25] pride heart something like just close them out these weren't games that we didn't belong in
[00:16:31] these were games that we could have strung together six points the whole system is flawed and you
[00:16:37] know it's like i'm done with Jonas Egan Thor i'm sorry i don't want him back next year i don't want
[00:16:44] like we talked about the defensive guys you just you need to get some really go out and get some
[00:16:49] grizzled veterans on the blue line you know i want guys like that's why i was really in favor of
[00:16:54] a guy like christian it like i wanted a big physical stay at home dude that you're gonna think twice
[00:17:00] about when he's on the ice about getting in front of the net and trying to you know uh screen the
[00:17:05] goal is he's he's just a guy that can you know make you pay for those things i did think brennan
[00:17:10] smith had a very good game tonight uh he stepped up but i don't want him on this team ever again
[00:17:16] after this season i don't want him to team and you know of course it was smith to take a penalty
[00:17:21] late in the game but really yeah i mean bad call bad break for him i thought there were a couple of
[00:17:27] bad calls in this game um i i don't think mercer should have gotten the instigator like you see
[00:17:32] that a hundred frigging times a week in this league and that guy never rarely ever gets called the
[00:17:39] ends they even said it on the broadcast normally after a penalty hit right they don't give the person
[00:17:45] instigator it's well you so finally the devil's go ahead and stick up for someone like they should
[00:17:50] i'll have him take that penalty every single day but he actually gets penalized for it you know what i mean
[00:17:56] it's it's kind of ridiculous i don't think he cared i think it's still
[00:18:00] resonated with the team unfortunately it means nothing for this year right just and it's not
[00:18:05] gonna calvinize the team now and you know i mean i don't know about you but when Luke shattered his
[00:18:10] stick and it was going the other way i was yelling at the tv take the penalty take the penalty dive
[00:18:15] on the ground trip him do what you have to do and take that penalty and just go and kill it for two
[00:18:20] minutes it's a tie game or maybe that was the third goal uh yeah that was that was the third one
[00:18:24] yeah that was the third goal it was kind of a functional right away and take the penalty and you
[00:18:29] know and i and i maybe you're not thinking that maybe he couldn't do it i get all that but that's
[00:18:33] what i mean i think he was about to stick yeah stick shot he was with that stick he had his stick
[00:18:37] so probably knocked that puck away eventually he was tried for stride with him yeah yeah take
[00:18:42] the penalty there of course because that's one of those situations where you're almost taught
[00:18:45] take the penalty because then you still got a what on average an 80% chance of killing the penalty
[00:18:52] whereas a breakaway completely favors the shooter so it goes from 50-50 to 80-20 right yeah
[00:18:57] hey you know if you could have you try and do that um i just think some of these dudes really need
[00:19:05] this team needs a facelift it really does the core guys are the core guys i thought just for
[00:19:10] Brad played great tonight i thought jack played good tonight i thought team omire played good
[00:19:15] i thought he should played good i thought most of our top six guys played good i thought people
[00:19:19] that were supposed to drive the team did for sure and they played well yes but you know there's
[00:19:25] just no synchronicity at all with this team and and i i'll bring that back to even last season with
[00:19:32] Lindy Ruff and like we bitched so much on this show about the constant boggle of the lines you
[00:19:40] know and it was like danzo old gag was he throws the lines in like you remember the game sorry or boggle
[00:19:46] and he just pops it and then whoever whatever three come out that's who's playing together and
[00:19:52] it's really hard to build consistency to build uh you know just that to be able to gel in that way
[00:19:59] when and this season it's just kind of if everyone else all the injuries everything they were
[00:20:06] never able to overcome any obstacle this year you know and that's an issue last year i feel like
[00:20:12] they were able to and in part of that probably had a lot to do with some more veteran guys on the blue
[00:20:19] line guys like severson and guys like braves and you know hamilton being there that brought that
[00:20:26] kind of bit of stability back there so the guys you know skating can just go and do what they have to
[00:20:32] do and score a bunch of goals and be superstars yeah so other than hamilton in that scenario where
[00:20:37] you notice when he scores because he's there two score yeah the other guys you mentioned again
[00:20:43] the veteran guys will probably go unnoticed a simple play they might be making like oh they
[00:20:48] kept it into blue line and they just threw it up front you know because we came back a lot last
[00:20:53] year scrambles in front of the crease fighting for the pocket wasn't always shooting out from the
[00:20:57] perimeter there were nice hardworking goals and that starts from the defense in getting those pucks
[00:21:02] filtered into the net yeah and the devils have got to become a better forward checking team um
[00:21:08] though the book on them is very simple right you clog up the neutral zone you don't let them get
[00:21:13] their uh break ends you know they will you can't let them get in on a rush and play physical against
[00:21:19] them those are the things that and they're they're one in the same right because if they weren't
[00:21:25] so weak physically then they would have four checks go and they would be able to do the dump and chase
[00:21:31] and still sustain some offense which I thought they did a little bit better tonight but i'm just saying
[00:21:35] the consistency throughout the entire that you want to be a dangerous team you have to be able to
[00:21:40] generate offense on the rush or on the four check you have to be able to do both like carolina does
[00:21:46] you and like you know boston does in tampa bay does however you want to play will play and will
[00:21:52] beat you and the devils are not that you get them off their game they crumble and it's
[00:21:59] it you know and i think a lot of that is going to come down to coaching and i think that you have
[00:22:03] to have a hard ass in here and i think this team if the things are done right i think this team
[00:22:07] could be right back in it next year i don't have a doubt on my mind i 100% believe this team can
[00:22:13] and will be right back in it next year a new voice is going to have a lot to do with that you know
[00:22:18] to your to your last point too about the way to play they did mention on this broadcast that there
[00:22:23] were two teams that were in the top four and both penalty kill and power play and it happened to be
[00:22:29] the rangers and the carolina hurricanes and that speaks to exactly what you're talking about
[00:22:32] with the type of play and be able to play different ways within different games and i think the fact
[00:22:38] that they're both that high on both sides of their specialty teams is just kind of an extension
[00:22:44] of the way they play full on five on five and they're their game philosophy yeah you get to a
[00:22:50] situation like that i mean you're talking two of the top contending teams for the Stanley Cup this
[00:22:54] year they play slightly different right but um like my money would still be on a carolina team i
[00:22:59] just see them like a heavier team like a more of a playoff team but rangers team is what
[00:23:04] leading to the presence trophy so um yeah just because i have good you could play i don't think
[00:23:10] the rangers are going to win the Stanley Cup and i'm not just saying this because this is a double
[00:23:15] podcast and you know that's our team i don't think the rangers are come playoff time i don't know if
[00:23:22] they're going to be able to hang with florida tampebei and carolina and i'll even throw boston in there
[00:23:28] i think that they will probably win their first round against philly or whoever but i think
[00:23:34] philly can give them a fight too um but if they get tampe in the first round i i think the rangers
[00:23:41] will be bounced uh i think tampe i think it's going to be uh in all florida that's just
[00:23:47] pulls through again another year and now you have vasaleski playing like vasaleski i mean he's
[00:23:51] starting to really play fantastic and again it's so much of this team's confidence was eroded
[00:23:59] so early on and they were never able to kind of get it back and that's that's a shame because
[00:24:05] they were they are we thought everybody thought going in this team's built the win but again
[00:24:11] the one giant question mark was always the goal tending could these guys you know could it be
[00:24:16] vanacek and she made going in and it was obvious early on that it couldn't be
[00:24:22] it's amazing how different the season might have been if that were addressed not even early but
[00:24:27] let's say in the offseason yeah because then from game one you're getting better goal tending which
[00:24:35] everybody feels more relaxed about maybe from game one you are scoring easier because of that
[00:24:40] and then you have no idea how that's going to project out over 82 games feeling more comfortable
[00:24:46] your d-know and your goal is back there your forwards knowing your d's back there and everything
[00:24:50] kind of works and it's like it could have been that easy i doubted there are a lot of problems with
[00:24:54] this team like you said and a lot of it is construction i've ringed up a couple times could i
[00:24:58] can't stop thinking about like last year the blessing that we had in a fourth line constructed
[00:25:04] of a guy like mclaude bashin and wood was magic for a fourth line that's the type of thing that
[00:25:10] puts you over the top because most teams cannot compete with that we did not recreate that in
[00:25:15] any way we didn't recreate the third line in any way and for most of the year for my money you had
[00:25:21] a lot of players that didn't know their identity on this team case from point timo mara we've been through
[00:25:26] it a million times i agree i agree 100% and that's why this offseason is going to be the most important
[00:25:33] in franchise history and i'm telling you you had a small window after the season ended the cup was
[00:25:39] awarded the vegas you had that window to go get conor holobuck and i think if you would have pulled
[00:25:45] the trigger on that i don't think that i don't think this season i think we're definitely playing
[00:25:50] in the playoffs i have no doubt in my mind because it's not just how bad our goal tending was
[00:25:56] and let's just call a spade a spade it was god awful it was one of the worst goal tending tandams
[00:26:05] ever they were so bad and when you're playing in front of guys that cannot make even go back to
[00:26:14] early in the year just the the simple save right the fucking the one that you know they they're not
[00:26:20] making the saves they should make and they're definitely not making the saves that you know they
[00:26:24] shouldn't make the saves above expected these guys were garbage when you are constantly holding
[00:26:31] your stick tighter and what oh shit they would score first they scored up first on us here we go
[00:26:37] and then you know how early early on this season how many times right they give it up in bunches
[00:26:42] right it's not just one and then two three four and next thing you know you're going in a third
[00:26:46] period down four to one and it was one one five minutes ago and that's the problem with this team
[00:26:52] and the goal tending and i think it just really messed with their psyche a lot and they were never
[00:26:58] able to gain any traction and it was just i mean i think the problems with this team were obvious
[00:27:06] for for everybody i think instead of except for tom Fitzgerald by thanksgiving by thanksgiving
[00:27:13] american thanksgiving we knew full well what this team was and what needed to change
[00:27:19] and nothing changed and when they did make the changes we said it when it happened it's too late
[00:27:25] it's just too late dude you had and then when you had a chance to get marks from
[00:27:29] and you don't do it you know now you're going to go try and get marks from again in the off season
[00:27:34] and you know or go get i don't know all mark i mean it's all mark it looks like Boston's well in the
[00:27:42] trade on who would you rather have yeah i mean retrospect sucks sometimes because if you think about
[00:27:49] what we would have given up for holubuck in terms of the total package you know so that includes
[00:27:58] salary players like whatever and then you look at how we picked to fully which again i love the move
[00:28:04] i'm not gonna and he did everything he was supposed to do when he's here but it kind of threw
[00:28:08] kind of through a rinse in the team a little bit and now the fact that he's gone in a couple
[00:28:12] players you just look back and say all right damn it should have just offered that eight million
[00:28:17] dollar your contract we definitely had the assets to overcome it in some ways i think it almost
[00:28:23] would have been better for us to feed into our system with more of our homegrown players there are
[00:28:30] some guys down there that are still really good that might be a better answer on some of these
[00:28:36] wingspots just because they're gonna come up and play a straight forward north south game and
[00:28:42] i mean i think no one flip brings a little bit of that element and we haven't been able to see him
[00:28:46] all year has not been healthy all year i like what i've seen from tomas no stick in the little bit
[00:28:52] that he's been healthy i don't know if he's signed for longer than a year with us i'm not sure
[00:28:58] but um if he's not that's fine if you want to let him go if he is here for another year i'm okay
[00:29:03] with that too i like him on the pk and i think another year if he stays healthy he'll really start
[00:29:09] to fit in with this team yeah no six of you a okay so he's got a one-way now contract that's
[00:29:15] expiring this year you know maybe maybe they'll bring them back i don't know but you know they will get
[00:29:21] and i don't have anything against a guy like tomas no stick um i'm just saying we don't
[00:29:26] we don't need the mix of all the ones we have right now so if we want to go tomas that's fine
[00:29:31] then we probably don't need tyranny now guy like wasar i say you keep character guy heads tails
[00:29:36] i want him on the team period same with bastion same with bastion yeah it bastion no like we haven't
[00:29:41] really gotten to see him this year no you know but we i feel like we know what bastion is and i think
[00:29:47] when bastion plays within his role his exactly what he should be he's going to be hard on the pukk
[00:29:51] he's going to be hard to play against gonna chip him with a couple odd goals here and there he's
[00:29:55] probably got the potential for honestly ten fifteen you know i don't even know how many got last
[00:30:00] year but just you know it's the shame we didn't get to see him we're gonna have a lot of talk this
[00:30:06] summer about you know what really would have happened had a hamilton not gone down for example
[00:30:13] does that mean we never see nemmick i don't know maybe he'd see him when someone else goes down
[00:30:18] where we don't because if segan thawag was down middle of the year maybe you don't bring up nemmick
[00:30:21] you know maybe you're being out i don't think that you would have seen nemmage that's on one yeah
[00:30:26] i don't know i don't think you would but let me ask you a question and i was thinking about this
[00:30:31] the other night last night watching the penguin game would you trade jess burbrat for sinecrosby
[00:30:45] you know you might only get a year or two on a sinecrosby and then he's not going anywhere i
[00:30:51] understand i'll get spurgh is not going to trade it clearly but they're also probably most likely
[00:30:55] not going to apply us for the second year in a row and there might come a time where sinecrosby
[00:31:01] does sit down with management and say i really want one more crack at the cup and if you can get
[00:31:07] something for me i'm okay to trade me now a valet sinecrosby even in this later
[00:31:14] stages of his career is not going to come cheap this is why i throw this completely reckless
[00:31:21] speculation hypothetical out there i'm not saying this is going to happen i'm not even saying it
[00:31:26] should happen i'm just saying would you if you got a call from uh i don't even remember who the
[00:31:35] GM is over in Pittsburgh uh but if you get a call from him uh dubus right Kyle dubus and he says
[00:31:43] hey tom i really like jess burbrat you're playing the part of tom Fitzgerald
[00:31:51] hey tom you say hey do you have any goalies there you go uh no i don't have goalies but i do have
[00:32:00] prime graves sinecrosby okay and he wants to go to a team and take crack at one more cup
[00:32:08] and it looks like we're gonna have to really knock things down to the studs here in Pittsburgh
[00:32:14] i'd like to start that rebuild with jess burbrat let's say christ christ christmas two years left on
[00:32:21] this contract you're getting them for two but brat is gone for the next seven years but you have
[00:32:27] sinecrosby for two years do you do it in all honesty i don't think i do i i think that that's too
[00:32:38] much term left on a contract for a young guy like brat and in the sports world that really is
[00:32:44] important and it is gonna become a factor for the devils are our time of taking other people's
[00:32:50] money when we can because we got all the young kids it's soon to go away we have a lot of contracts
[00:32:55] we're gonna have to give out so i probably don't do it i also don't know where you slot them
[00:32:59] is he center jack hues i mean what would you yeah that's what you're thinking go yeah he centers
[00:33:03] jack hues and then you get a body of protector a solid 20 gold score on the other side or mercer
[00:33:09] yeah the guy like mercer uh you know crossby is i just
[00:33:16] all right do i do it i don't know if i do it right now but i will say the idea of seeing jack
[00:33:25] hues playing with somebody like sinecrosby is so appealing to me that i could just see
[00:33:33] jack and sinecrosby just having interesting chemistry interesting in that they're both
[00:33:40] as prospects and still in general known more for their playmaking passing ability but yet
[00:33:47] they both crossy especially of course with more history have become damn good gold scores
[00:33:53] in her own right too so it'd be interesting to see how they would play together
[00:33:57] you should it no you should it no you should do you should it there might be that in the
[00:34:00] beginning but i think that they are smart enough hockey players no i know that all they're doing but
[00:34:05] i i i'm just saying like i'm not again do i do i don't know i think that i know i really
[00:34:12] sleep on that one i know where you're getting it i just in my gut i feel that the pieces the main
[00:34:20] pieces on this team are here and they are superstars in their own right and can kind of build their own
[00:34:26] legacy it's the pieces around them that need to change it's and by having those pieces around
[00:34:32] that know a little bit more about kind of hard-nosed playoff style hockey maybe the rest of the
[00:34:37] guys kind of fall in line and follow suit and again we don't want to take the creativity away from
[00:34:41] our offensive guys we just want them to know when you go with that and when you don't and that's
[00:34:47] why you better make sure that the back end is tighter than a frog's ass because you do have
[00:34:53] guys that are gonna take chances and you do have guys that are gonna really push the puck up and
[00:34:58] and you know we meet you're gonna have a guy like Hamilton or Luke or Shimon Nemesh that are always
[00:35:02] going to be trying to jump into plays and stuff and that's why you have to be you know rock solid
[00:35:07] in the back end and we were every anything but that but let me propose one more try and it's also
[00:35:14] for Sydney Crosby but this time but this time it's I got it Dawson Mercer and Alex Holtz for
[00:35:26] Sydney Crosby okay so this is this is a trade that happens this offseason this offseason this
[00:35:33] season this offseason so we got cross for what we think is two more years yeah let's just say two
[00:35:38] we got Mercer who's expiring his type of contract he's a UF and a RFA right after this year okay
[00:35:47] and then Holtz to hell no he probably has to have some term in the summer after something
[00:35:52] and Holtz were looking at Holtz is an RFA 2025 all right so he's controlled easily for another year
[00:36:01] Mercer this year you can potentially get a bridge contract well that is a different story now
[00:36:07] isn't it because now you're not you're giving up controllability for sure in those two players but
[00:36:17] oh my god two years of Sid he replaces one of them instantly as far as a roster spot goes yep
[00:36:24] so then you can argue let's say he's replacing a Dawson Mercer because I think that's probably the
[00:36:31] better yeah hockey player that Dawson yeah oh yeah that would be the guy that I think Pittsburgh
[00:36:38] would really go after so then theoretically you're losing the potential of a Holtz who I'm in
[00:36:44] favor of keeping wipe my ass with a couple years a two years a couple years a Sydney Crosby
[00:36:49] I might make that I might make that because I'm pretty sure that I can
[00:36:54] fill the other void of that from the minor league system or for your agency
[00:37:00] yeah we're free agency right we don't need a whole bunch of seven million dollar players right now
[00:37:06] we need a bunch of two million three million dollar players that just know hockey yeah and I like to
[00:37:12] hockey but if I like to hockey as well I would do that move and get Sydney Crosby in the WWE.
[00:37:19] Yeah yeah I that one I just vibrates a little tough for me he's been playing great
[00:37:24] and I want to see this team whatever I like Jasper Brad and so I want to see whatever this team is
[00:37:32] going to go him to be a part of it and I like Dawson Mercer a lot too Alex Holtz I again I've
[00:37:38] said before that I would really like to see him develop in this team but I feel like he's has you
[00:37:44] know spots again and the majors just might be young in consistency playing well and then regressing
[00:37:50] again and getting benched and all the other stuff that always goes with him like I don't want
[00:37:56] players anymore like I don't I just feel like I don't want to deal with any of the dance coming on
[00:38:05] hey Dan all right so we're going further Dan yes I am going I just proposed a question to Bobby
[00:38:13] and I'm going to propose the same question to you okay all right your Tom Fitzgerald this summer
[00:38:21] and you get a phone call from Kyle Dubas of the Pittsburgh Penguins and he says hey Tom
[00:38:27] things are going kind of bad here I think I'm gonna have to tear things down a bit to the studs
[00:38:33] and I got to move off some guys and Crosby wants one more kick at that can and wow Sydney Crosby
[00:38:42] too New Jersey for Jasper Brad do you make that deal now just let's say you only have Crosby for two
[00:38:48] years right and they have total control for the next eight with Jasper Brad right do you make
[00:38:56] that deal hi boy that's that's tough I mean you don't get better than Crosby in a short term
[00:39:03] maybe it's just what you need for this kind of team you know winner winner's attitude
[00:39:08] you could do so much for this team and Brad so if he he's like you know he's he's been good
[00:39:15] of late and sometimes he just goes away we know that's his MO so but he's got so much upside
[00:39:21] in the future you know that is not an easy call man I feel like I'm be more tempted to do it if
[00:39:29] I had other pieces in place because defensively I don't like what we got going on it's just not
[00:39:35] working out defensively maybe things get better with Hamilton lineup but we were talking about
[00:39:39] the slash show we need more than that oh yeah and so if we're not going to make any other changes
[00:39:45] but those we're gonna make some changes yeah saying that that's a move that right you get the call
[00:39:50] on all right so if Brad I think we've all kind of the three of us are really it's tough to move
[00:39:57] off with Brad even for Crosby so let me ask you this you get the same phone call and it's Kyle
[00:40:04] Dubis again and he says all right you don't want to get rid of Brad give us Holtz and Dawson
[00:40:10] Mercer for Sydney Crosby and maybe you kick something else in a little sweetener guy in the AHL
[00:40:15] something like that do you make that deal now yeah I think that I think that makes it easier to
[00:40:22] make that deal not much I mean there's still giving away huge upsides with guys but um you know
[00:40:30] I think it makes it easier and especially for Fitzgerald right because he already married himself to
[00:40:35] Brad he he put a pretty big contract in front of him so it's got to you know it's got to be
[00:40:41] something that he doesn't want to end up with egg on his face you know people kind of sometimes
[00:40:46] don't want to dig themselves out of a hole they just you know afraid they're gonna dig it deeper
[00:40:50] because they already started in one direction so out of a hole I mean you got them through the other
[00:40:54] side you gotta go to China all the way around yeah exactly yeah I don't know all right so I think
[00:41:00] the three of us are big three maybe is most likely not on Brad for Crosby but I think yeah three
[00:41:06] yeses on the Mercer Holtz for Crosby I think that's easier did did we just trade Sydney Crosby
[00:41:13] to New Jersey Devils I think that's the way to go can he come with Ryan Graves I think you know
[00:41:19] what I would do that then let's kick in Bobby who wouldn't you trade for Ryan Graves right so you
[00:41:25] so we're gonna get rid of Holtz Mercer and Kevin Ball for Ryan Graves and and Sydney Crosby
[00:41:35] okay you want a Samarino back regain probably throw it a few gold tenders too yeah maybe we can do
[00:41:41] that but okay so I like it so Sydney Crosby has a New Jersey devil playing with Jack Hughes that line
[00:41:47] can be awesome I like it let's do that let's do that what you think of the opening melt melee guys
[00:41:54] I didn't get it to hop on with you in time but I was curious I thought it was awesome I mean I
[00:42:00] was kind of like what they needed right yeah and to just come out like that it might not have
[00:42:04] resulted in a win but it was character you heard you heard McDermott's line was starting then I heard
[00:42:09] that Rampie's line was starting so you knew right off the face off it was close to that yeah and yeah
[00:42:14] and the whole camera just it panned in strictly on McDermott and as soon as the fuck gets dropped
[00:42:20] everybody else drops the gloves I just I love that they that was the part I like the best yes
[00:42:25] that it was screaming just to be because I saw other gloves come off and I'm like pull the camera
[00:42:31] yeah I see it all I learned showing any of it but yeah I loved it then I mean now I have a
[00:42:38] question from this team all under themselves pretty good except for Merino who I think
[00:42:42] Andre Miller got the best of but everyone else I thought handled themselves really good right it
[00:42:46] didn't look like that the other three did not look pre-meditated to me at all which just kind
[00:42:51] of goes to my question here a lot of that was really freaking out at green now as far as I know
[00:42:59] they have the last change we put the line up in first for our line so they knew who we're putting out
[00:43:05] there he countered with his line and it looked accusatory like you put your guys out there like
[00:43:10] for all five of them to fight and I just don't feel like from watching Merino and forget who
[00:43:16] else they were just kind of standing around for a second like should we get in a fight now too
[00:43:21] and just kind of skated over towards the other Rangers and then everyone collectively decided
[00:43:26] to drop the gloves so I don't think that was pre-meditated I don't think that the whole line
[00:43:32] fight was pre-meditated I think maybe Lazar knew he was gonna go McDermott definitely knew he
[00:43:38] was gonna go but as far as Lovia let going out and yelling at Travis Green and saying if he was
[00:43:44] saying that and I agree with you I think that's what he was saying you know it's fucking Bush League
[00:43:48] you put your guys out there if I'm Travis Green I smile at him and I go yeah put him out there
[00:43:53] I put him out there to do exactly what they did right now go away go back you see Bush League
[00:43:58] looked the way your guys you know let the roughs escort him out off the ice last game
[00:44:04] three games he played it's an arrow yes sorry guys come on come on he has to finish the game
[00:44:08] against the doubles the guy has not finished the game he's a Bush league nobody yeah by the way I
[00:44:13] took a lot of exception to something Panger said during broadcast oh he was basically saying
[00:44:21] this he seemed to be defending him lot he he's a long-lanky guy growing into his body
[00:44:27] which is kind of his excuse for the elbow it's so bad too like he hasn't seen
[00:44:32] that ball orbs yeah come on yeah this I heard I heard Panger say the same thing and I agree
[00:44:37] with you I got angry it was like no asshole he knew exactly what he was doing this isn't just
[00:44:43] a guy trying to find his way this is a guy who knows the only way I can stay in this league is
[00:44:49] to be a complete total douchebag and that's what he does and he's there's no the problem is
[00:44:56] there's just like if they make it when when they make it to the playoffs Rangers don't be
[00:44:59] shocked and front be it scratched almost every game he's not a guy you're gonna put out there you
[00:45:04] know maybe if you're playing Florida you might get him in just because you want a little bit of
[00:45:08] the tough stuff but if you're playing somebody else most likely he's gonna be and I say this
[00:45:12] guy's out at the NHL in two years could very well be I mean did you see stand yeah go ahead I'm
[00:45:20] sorry no no I was just gonna say did you guys see Stan Fishler at the game no I saw
[00:45:26] the interview they interviewed him Jackie right now he's 92 years old man I saw him earlier this year
[00:45:34] at some kind of segment and I was like shit dude now he looked old when we started watching
[00:45:42] he was an old man then and now he's an old man and he's you know he's just you can barely tell
[00:45:47] the difference which is kind of amazing he's like one of those guys who got old early but still
[00:45:53] he's he's 92 he looks good though he does he does he doesn't look 92 in 62 it didn't look much
[00:46:00] different no I agree I agree that's something yeah and you know he still seems like he's got all
[00:46:06] his marbles which is great yeah he does now then we know that Tom Fitzgerald is gonna go after
[00:46:14] Goli yeah who I'm gonna throw three four names at you okay and tell me who you would rather have
[00:46:22] as our number one big game hunter right okay Jacob Markstrom right Lena Zollmark right you see
[00:46:31] Saro's all three of them you have to make trades for or I'll throw Lorraine Versailles
[00:46:37] um if we take the you know what we're gonna have to give up out of it and just saying you know
[00:46:47] let's okay with the ten-stake argument I might want all Mark you know and that's really close
[00:46:56] between him and Markstrom and I don't think there's a really a bad choice in all and all of what
[00:47:00] you said you know the Praswada has a nice upside in that easy on and you know you can have him
[00:47:08] for a very long time things work out right I'm not sure on the ages on everybody he's the youngest
[00:47:13] by far isn't he like I think Praswada is 28 oh yes that old okay I think he is okay I don't know
[00:47:21] what Lena Zollmark is but you know he has to be close to 30 31 yeah I think maybe a couple of
[00:47:27] years older but I thought there's a bigger gap there I might have been totally wrong on that but yeah
[00:47:33] you know he's 30 oh Mark but if the question you're asking is like you know hey look
[00:47:39] maybe we don't have to give up pieces for Versailles and do you want to go that way
[00:47:46] I mean yeah I mean I honestly feel like we need coaching and defensive personnel as
[00:47:53] Versailles okay I'm not going to be Versailles 31 yeah I'm looking that up right now he's older
[00:47:59] that's all Mark is 30 Markstrom I think we said was what 32 yeah all right so and then you got
[00:48:08] sorrows which has gotta be close I don't know what UC sorrows is let's say UC sorrows is
[00:48:18] okay 40 no 40 40 no it's at 42 I think he's not 42 yeah what the hell man all right I got a
[00:48:33] you born in 95 helped me out with this math here he's almost what's born in 95 so what's that
[00:48:39] I have 29 29 yeah almost 30 almost 30 okay so I don't know guys there's your ages so sorrows is the
[00:48:49] youngest he has to be traded for two yeah and we're not right now we're just we're not considering term
[00:48:57] assets change we're just so for me that it's almost like you're asking me who would I take if
[00:49:04] I needed to win one game because otherwise if I'm planning a team I'm gonna look at this totally
[00:49:08] different and I think I might take all Mark for that yeah so what was lean above
[00:49:13] Versailles what I really like about that is that I just really feel that any average to
[00:49:22] a slightly above average go attending will do us just fine and I would love to hang on to some of
[00:49:27] our assets to use them properly for some really stud players like you said demon somebody who's
[00:49:37] really gonna fit in with our core on the forward line really construct a full team let's go right
[00:49:42] on up to that salary cap using it as wisely as possible for the best players and make it a true
[00:49:49] team you don't need anymore superstars unless we can get like a superstar stay at home defenseman
[00:49:56] don't even know who's available and if there are but if we don't have to trade for a goalie which
[00:50:01] they're gonna rob us blind I mean it's still gonna be fair no GM's gonna get completely fleeced but
[00:50:08] the price went up so if you don't know GM's gonna completely fleeced this guy has made it so known
[00:50:14] that he is going to move heaven and earth to get the goalie of his choice and so if I am Calgary
[00:50:22] I'm looking at this and going I'm gonna take everything from me I just wonder how much that is
[00:50:27] media media father and not like his he's an intelligent man he's the most part he's done a really
[00:50:33] good job I don't see him totally cowering to an offer that doesn't make some sense that's
[00:50:39] what I'm saying so but in light of that if you can get a goalie who is in the realm of those
[00:50:44] other three and to be honest with you I don't even know that much about him so I'm assuming
[00:50:50] first of all I don't I'm assuming you are telling me he's within that realm of four I believe he
[00:50:56] is the weakest of the four but he's still such an upgrade over what we already had and if it's
[00:51:01] just money and I can use the rest of my assets including you know minor league moves to get
[00:51:07] you know the players we need in that's the route I would ultimately go let me ask you though
[00:51:11] since we've made the trade for cockinan and Alan do you think we've received you know close to
[00:51:17] or you know maybe even better than league average goal-tending I believe so and like when you look at
[00:51:24] the win-loss record we know it's not where it should be we know that these problems like
[00:51:29] you know like they're beyond the goal tenders so yeah like you know the question you ask who
[00:51:34] we're going to get this summer is a good one we need to you know think carefully about it's got
[00:51:38] to be the best possible deal we and we need somebody quality we don't want to just let's try
[00:51:43] Schmidt again that we can't do that we know this but I really feel the priority has to be defensive
[00:51:52] defenseman and a coaching staff that's going to employ a team defense you know from the forwards
[00:51:58] in it and the and a work ethic and just no more of those flat periods no more just drop in the ball
[00:52:05] collapsing I mean those are the main problems with the doubles it even though we know that Schmidt
[00:52:11] and vantichek and to some extent does you know did not perform the way they should have this year
[00:52:19] that I still believe is a secondary problem you know and then we're getting a good goal tends
[00:52:23] a shot arm but it didn't it didn't cure what ails the doubles and in the first 40 minutes that you
[00:52:28] weren't here you hit exactly on well Chris we both kind of resided to it's coaching first yeah
[00:52:33] literally I think it's a whole thing it's re-done yeah but as far as the goal tenders I'll tell you
[00:52:39] why I like Lorraine brislaw the best out of all of them for starters he okay it's 31 so he's a
[00:52:45] little bit up there I mean most goalies aren't really getting in in our prime till 29 30 31 years old
[00:52:51] and really playing their best hockey but he's never been a full-time starter he's always had
[00:52:57] even I believe it was Seattle last year and he got injured uh what was it Vegas I don't remember
[00:53:03] but um you know so he's never really been the guy now you're not selling him hard to me right now
[00:53:09] well let me get injured and he's never been the guy his numbers are fantastic right and every time
[00:53:15] that he has played he has been every time I've seen him he's played very well now if you give a guy
[00:53:21] like that the number one and let's say it was him and Schmidt I wouldn't be comfortable with I am
[00:53:27] comfortable with him and Allen I believe that a guy coming in like brislaw who's gonna take the
[00:53:32] reins and be the number one guy having a guy like Jake Allen that veteran dude that's been there
[00:53:38] done it to kind of show him the ropes and you know I think can really help a guy like brislaw the
[00:53:44] second main reason that I like brislaw is what we said before we don't have to trade anything for him
[00:53:49] if you offer him a deal and he likes it you sign him he only made 1.75 this year you're talking
[00:53:57] about anywhere from 6 to 7 million up to 9 million for the other three guys we were talking about
[00:54:04] now what if you just said to brislaw will give you four years or three years at 3 million
[00:54:11] I mean that's a steel and it almost doubles what he's making now and you have a cheap
[00:54:17] goalie kind of getting into his prime with a veteran solid guy backing him up
[00:54:22] and you still have a lot of trade assets to go fix all your other problems that's why I like brislaw
[00:54:28] I think that makes sense when you look at the global picture of it you know but I also would be
[00:54:34] okay if they made a move for out of the other three if we were going to trade I want I'm with
[00:54:38] your old mark I'd like to close behind the marks from you be okay with marks from two I'd be
[00:54:43] okay with any of them by the way if I had to pick but I also think that that might be the team
[00:54:48] that you're going to pay the most for yeah that's just what fostered so it's like yeah depends
[00:54:52] really what you're oh you are giving up for each team that's very true and you know what they'd
[00:54:58] be less likely to deal with us too because you know right and how anxious are we going to be to
[00:55:04] deal with them right I mean do you want to face Alex Holtz or Dawson Mercer you know three times a
[00:55:09] year rather face him twice well I guess it's really only three times a year so who gives a
[00:55:14] shit unless you hit him in the playoffs yeah yeah well that's the possibility let's see sure
[00:55:21] or short is well let me do this quick little draft king read because I didn't do this yet and
[00:55:26] we're almost an hour in and we know hockey games move fast you know what else moves fast devil leads
[00:55:31] in the third period they go by so fast you don't even know they were there but with drafting sports
[00:55:37] book the official sports running partner at the NHL you can score faster than anything happening
[00:55:41] on the ice and this week new customers came back five bucks and get 200 instantly and bonus
[00:55:46] bets you all know the disclaimers right just you know gamble responsibly void an Ontario hoping why
[00:55:58] the crown is yours that's it we're good very good at the 55 minutes mark so anyway like yeah Dan
[00:56:06] did you get to watch the whole game no I did not I had to do a family thing tonight so I got to
[00:56:12] listen and at times catch you know recaps on the phone of you know periods stuff highlights it was
[00:56:20] the game I regret most missing this year because I really was looking forward to this now you had
[00:56:26] a lot to say after the last Ranger game yeah the way that I was felt apart you wrote you wrote a
[00:56:32] nice article about it do you feel like they responded tonight even though it was an L
[00:56:39] do you feel like they from what I've seen so far yeah I think so just just what for what I've
[00:56:46] seen with the highlights and everything else so far I've got to watch the replay and I didn't see
[00:56:52] how we fell apart in the third very well you know it's no that we did and uh we always do yeah
[00:56:58] exactly I could imagine how it happened I'm pretty sure I'll be right with some couple guesses
[00:57:03] the dark goal is just like just a series of unfortunate events yeah and it's like Jesus Christ this
[00:57:10] is the devil's season in a nutshell right here so yeah it's true I you know it's such a bad thing
[00:57:16] especially if you're gonna speak in like we are semi-im public to to sit there and bimbo and bad luck
[00:57:22] because there's a lot more than bad luck but I swear to God this team when they need a little luck
[00:57:27] they can't get it you know just a little bit of luck to get you through some crappy play once in a
[00:57:31] while what have got a long way here and there throughout the seasons I'm not surprised to hear you say
[00:57:35] that um I do like you know hey look from the opening whistle this is what they needed it's like kind
[00:57:43] of like they heard what the fans were saying you showed no heart that game you should have taken
[00:57:50] that loss personally the way you let yourselves be abused and didn't do much about it last game
[00:57:57] uh so they kind of you know did even the score that way and you know what better than
[00:58:02] McDermott fighting to have the whole line yeah going out and um that's what I wanted right and if
[00:58:09] you remember I think we all kind of agreed it's not about like just the fighting or rempy it's
[00:58:14] it's about you know showing some team cohesiveness you can't do that that much better than that maybe
[00:58:19] if we cleared the benches too that's about yeah they would have been awesome it would have been uh
[00:58:25] you know I wouldn't mind if they got if they went down nasty in the in the third period
[00:58:30] out of winter loose you know like if you ask like what did I really want want from that game
[00:58:37] I wanted a little headhunting too you know I didn't mind as you're going out and I get it and
[00:58:42] maybe it's the higher road to take and that's fine we could all feel oh no we're not going to go
[00:58:46] after Prenare and I'm not saying somebody with an elbow after him I would have been okay with that
[00:58:51] and I would okay with hobbling the Rangers going into the playoffs but um you know it did turn
[00:58:56] out the way they turned you know the corner a little bit and showed some guts right and it did
[00:59:00] turn out to be a fun game I mean it was a good game in the last yeah I mean especially the
[00:59:04] third period was back and forth it didn't go our way but it was great till the end like you said it
[00:59:08] was a spooky play that led to the tying goal with a broken stick and the partial break away there's
[00:59:13] not much you can do about that but Dan did you get a chance to see Dawson Mercer sticking up for a
[00:59:18] teammate so that I missed because um well we I was driving and um but my daughter was looking at it
[00:59:25] in the back seat just watching you know they and she said yeah I'm like wait on the on the opening
[00:59:30] face I'm saying no he had another fight so how'd that go now well Smith got Koolie hit Smith uh
[00:59:36] it was a boarding call should have been a boarding well it wasn't right it was a boarding right so he
[00:59:41] hit him and then it was behind the net Mercer just took exception to it and dropped the gloves and
[00:59:45] started duking it out with uh Wilk Koolie he was like the second man back too he came up he came away
[00:59:51] to get Adam which was a pretty heavy gave up what 30 pounds and three inches to the guy
[00:59:55] held his own there's one where I can't ever see Mercer act like that I'm kind of impressed
[01:00:00] I loved it it was one other time like two years ago he got new his scrap uh
[01:00:05] yeah it's been a while but uh you know that was good to say and I guess like before we wrap it up
[01:00:10] I do want to just ask Dan too like do you have confidence that this team will be back next year
[01:00:23] yes I do I'm confident that the correct moves will be made if the correct moves aren't made
[01:00:30] and we go into the next season with wrong moves made or just not some of the things at least getting
[01:00:36] half of what we're talking about we want this offseason I'm gonna be less confident I'm gonna
[01:00:41] be worried that we're gonna end up on the outside looking in again but I right I think that despite
[01:00:48] you know an uneven year let's call it for Fitzgerald I have confidence that he can write this ship
[01:00:55] I do at this point right now and I'm hoping that um you know this game and the rest of the season
[01:01:04] you know they just kind of really take it to heart the way this was such a missed opportunity
[01:01:09] and the group of guys you know have a bitter pill that they leave with the summer and not just
[01:01:16] giant smiles off to the golf course like you never know it's expected for athletes you know great
[01:01:21] lives uh to go to carry on with on the offseason you really want as a fan is for them to feel hungry
[01:01:28] and and pissed off and ready to come back with you know a real mission next year and that's
[01:01:34] what I meant the person I'll end yeah that's what I meant on the last show when I said I wanted them
[01:01:39] to get yes really close and then you know the joke started which was fine but I really want
[01:01:44] them to realize like if they missed the playoffs by two or three points I want them to be able
[01:01:48] to look back and say we know the teams we should have beat you it's okay to have a bad season sometimes
[01:01:54] and struggle the whole time and still kind of make it in but if they were to literally miss by two or
[01:01:58] three points and to look back and say all those lost San Jose and a Han etc etc that's the less
[01:02:06] that I want the game I ever want my team to lose I told Chris when we started the show like I
[01:02:09] still I just want to watch every game and like pray and and haven't go in but it's not going to
[01:02:14] happen no pops found pops found religion you know so many times you hear people say that for when
[01:02:29] a team overcomes let's say a team you know goes into the playoffs and has a really bad loss or
[01:02:37] you know they should have gone further Tampa Bay getting swept by Columbus and you know even
[01:02:42] I'll say the Rangers last year getting beaten by us yeah that they come back the next year they
[01:02:49] learned from those mistakes and they get further they win a cup could this season act as that for
[01:02:55] the Devils could they come back next year and actually win the cup like Vegas did I mean Vegas had
[01:03:02] been in the playoffs ever since their inception and then the one year they don't make the playoffs
[01:03:09] it kind of mirrors this season for the Devils plagued by injuries were never able to get back on track
[01:03:14] jarara galon couldn't really pull the right strings and he ends up getting fired and they come
[01:03:19] back next year or not a lot I'm sorry whoever it was they fired coaches all the time um uh but anyway
[01:03:26] it comes back next year and wins the cup could that be this team could this be that that horrible
[01:03:34] playoff loss could it be that big lesson just happened to take a full 82 game season to really
[01:03:40] turn it around it totally could you can't say that's a lock I mean you know we'll have plenty of
[01:03:46] time to make predictions that nobody could possibly confidently predict but in general there's
[01:03:52] reason to think that that's very possible you know so yeah I don't doubt it that it's it's possible
[01:03:59] what I mean if you had to handicap that Bob what kind of odds though you think well that would be
[01:04:04] the case that's everything's in the realm of possibility put um one caveat is I would say not as this
[01:04:11] teams currently can structure right um it's not like this entire team can come back and we'll
[01:04:16] be standing up for tenors I will not believe that yeah I mean most three that no changes in personnel
[01:04:22] right what's your level of confidence going to next year I mean there's slightly higher because
[01:04:26] we've got goal tending that we just slightly higher and a couple guys are a couple years older
[01:04:31] sure but you can't do that um but even if again these moves that Fitzgerald makes aren't the flashiest
[01:04:38] a league average goal tender or better a true solid stay home defender or two yeah and a
[01:04:45] couple of guys that can slot in on the forward group with proper roles then I would have all
[01:04:52] the confidence in the world this team has what takes to be that you know Cinderella story next year
[01:04:57] yeah I'm just gonna make them go first sorry about that oh my my daughters in Connecticut so she's
[01:05:04] just telling me yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah heading back to the building now yeah Connecticut it
[01:05:11] was so strange like she's telling me she tried and like yeah I've done that trip lots of times
[01:05:16] lots of time trip was going through Connecticut yeah yeah Rhode Island would have been so much closer
[01:05:21] without that stupid state hop right through New York boom right out great I kind of never like
[01:05:25] Connecticut no since the wayers left what's there to like yeah I know no it's the it's a
[01:05:32] couple good Dave shows there though yeah yeah yeah I've went to Hartford this camping pitch to
[01:05:39] tent the wrong way when we got a rainfall and we woke up under fucking water do you remember that
[01:05:45] we drank a bottle of tequila before that show is that the same show I remember that's the same show
[01:05:51] because we everybody there was a bunch of us right and everybody pitches their tents and me
[01:05:56] knew whoever I think it was you pulled out a bottle of tequila and even had the training wheels with
[01:06:02] it we found a little stump yeah that's right we found some we killed that bottle the fucking whole
[01:06:08] bottle well here's the thing though I didn't have all the training bottles so we improvised I feel like
[01:06:14] in unison we looked at each other just realized we can lick our own hands and get some salt
[01:06:18] because it's not a drink salt okay need a soul yeah that was fun that was fun weekend and then
[01:06:26] if we've got so fucked up we went back to the campsite passed out in the tent woke up under water
[01:06:32] mm-hmm and then spent the next three hours at the fucking campsite laundromat you wake up the next day
[01:06:36] and realize oh you turn the tent yeah we're all about rocket semil night bottle rockets going on
[01:06:41] that was a different camp time that was that was in concert right that was no that was an
[01:06:46] upstate New York that was in turn New York at this snow-rich ski resort and you wouldn't come out of
[01:06:52] your tent and it was the middle so we were walking back to a lot a concert we were walking now we
[01:06:59] we were like the furthest campsite away from the the music grounds and now you're walking in pitch
[01:07:07] this is not the mode down we're talking this is the mode down this is the mode down yeah okay yeah the
[01:07:10] first mode down you don't remember this no I remember this I just thought you guys were talking about
[01:07:14] Dave show right these guys started late in bottle rockets yeah and the art tent was kind of on a
[01:07:19] little flat up the hill and these dudes shut up bottle rocket went on in the neat dance fucking
[01:07:25] and it goes on and it goes on and it's on to where oh what the fuck was
[01:07:31] and we were cracking dude that was such a good weekend I would left turn New York that weekend my
[01:07:39] face remember hearing about a lot of that was so great I also that was also the weekend that
[01:07:44] I was quite inebriated at the bar stage again we're like the third furthest camping and
[01:07:50] and a couple of our friends decided to go beat me to the tent and pick it up and turn it around
[01:07:56] so that I knew where the fucking door was but I just scratched it back in the tent trying to get in
[01:08:03] the door so door they come back after this show I'm just sitting there on the stove like the
[01:08:12] objective it's gone the stuff that's going on the door Scott you could have gotten one of
[01:08:25] the other four tents that was fucking funny you want a great weekend that wasn't the music was
[01:08:31] fantastic dude it was so good primate so less clay pool mo turning to Franco
[01:08:38] mony to Franco was there David Grisman so many great bands that was a lot of fun
[01:08:44] all right well I think we're gonna wrap this one up for the evening and we'll be back on Saturday
[01:08:50] and we also have predictions we got to add on Saturday because one of Tim Wood through predictions
[01:08:56] and so we'll talk about that on Saturday when we do our next predictions and we are gonna
[01:09:01] talk about possibly changing the prediction format for next season dance so maybe we'll bring
[01:09:06] that up again to be better and yeah hopefully hopefully it'll be a little bit better yeah so
[01:09:12] wherever you're checking us out subscription a five star review positive comment helps us out in
[01:09:18] moving this little devil podcast along um for Dan and Bobby I'm Chris we are the Uncle Puckers and
[01:09:25] I'm gonna see you when we see it what does that
[01:09:41] it's over Johnny it's over