Sunday Sermons: Bill Guerin, Russo Radio!

Dan is back giving the sermons ahead of Week 15 of the NFL kicking off, he’s joined by Wild GM Bill Guerin and Michael Russo to break down the blockbuster trade the Minnesota Wild made late Friday night.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Our addition today, because your vikings are not in action
until this evening, all of it will of course take
place on the fan, the vikings taking on the Dallas
Cowboys in Dallas, Texas. Burreaw and blakemore with you for
that reason until eleven o'clock. And as it turns out,
it's nice to have the extra time because there's funny
to discuss that broke not long after we wrapped stuff

(00:23):
up on Bumper to bumper on Friday night, your Minnesota
whild make a little bit of news, and the man
who orchestrated pretty much all of it, well, I guess
you had to have a partner. But on this side
of it, it's kind enough to join us off the
top of the program while general manager Bill Garon is
with us now, welcome back to the program. Are you

(00:45):
still on the adrenaline adrenaline rush? Are you past that?
How would you describe the current Billy Garren mood?

Speaker 2 (00:57):
Well, first of all, good morning, thanks for having me on.
I'm excited. I mean, uh, you know, we Chris Callagher
and I flew out and picked Quinn up yesterday and
we got to just chat with him on the plane
for a while and you know, it's kind of hard
to believe that he's actually on our team now still,

(01:17):
but really excited to you know, see him in his
debut and he's really excited to be here. He you know,
he loves hockey, he knows this is a great hockey market,
and excited, you know, to be in Minnesota. So we're
you know, I'm really excited about it.

Speaker 3 (01:37):
All right.

Speaker 1 (01:38):
I guess I should not presume and radio, you're never
supposed to presume that your audience knows everything that we're
talking about. So for the maybe eight or nine people
in the market who don't know, uh, you Ma, you
swung a deal in which you bring I think it's
fair to say a superstar defenseman a Quinn Hughes, you
give up a bunch that includes u zeev Bulliam, rossi

(02:03):
Ogrin and an unprotected first round pick in twenty twenty six.
Does any of that scare you?

Speaker 2 (02:15):
No, not really. I mean, Nick, we got the player
that we wanted to get. And you know what, if
you're going to get a player of this caliber, you
have to you have to pay, you have to give up,
you have to give stuff up. You don't get these
guys for free. So Hey, listen, is it as I said, like,
we we put a lot of time and effort into

(02:38):
those young players, drafting, developing, you know, and you you
you have a relationship with them. It's not the easiest
thing to move on from them. But when you look
at it, you know, look at the player you're getting,
and look at the appetite they they they're they're already
good players. You know, we've that, we got, you know,

(03:02):
a great player right now, just at different stages. So
I mean, look, there's always a bit of of I
guess risk that people can look back and say he
should have done that, he should have done this, or whatever.
But hey, today we have Queen Hughes on our team
and we're better and I'm just really happy about it.

Speaker 1 (03:21):
Let's drill down for the casual hockey fan, because everybody says,
this is this is a this is a great this
is a superstar player in his prime right or maybe
even got more. Uh can get even a little bit
better if that's possible. He's what twenty six years old,
So for the casual hockey fan, drill down a little

(03:42):
deeper on his strengths as a player individually and what
you think he brings and ads collectively that you also needed.

Speaker 2 (03:55):
Well, I mean, honestly, he's he's one of the best
skaters you're ever to see. He can transport the puck.
I mean, his power playwork is elite. Is Yeah, I mean,
he's just it's tough to describe. He just you knowing
he's out there, he controls a play, always has the

(04:19):
puck on his stick, you know, he just yeah, I
don't know, it's tough to describe, but he's just he's
good at so many things. It's tough to really just pinpoint.
But I think his offensive capabilities.

Speaker 3 (04:30):
Or are.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
You know, probably at the worst top three in the
league for yep, you know, defens.

Speaker 1 (04:38):
So let's go back to let's try us to try
to do a little of the history here of how
we got to this place where you had this opportunity,
because because I think what's been written is that this
sort of started with a phone call you got from
your assistant GM. I think you were doing a bunch
of scouting. So is that is that where this the

(05:01):
story kind of begins. Can he kind of go give
a get us through the timeline as to how we
got here?

Speaker 2 (05:07):
Yeah, I was, I was scouting. I was actually going
to ah going to a game, and you know, I
always just check in with with the guys and make
sure everything's going all right. And Matt and I were
having a discussion, and you know, he just said, you
might think I'm kind of crazy, but maybe check in
with Jim. I don't know what's going on with Clinton's Hughes,

(05:29):
but I'm just, you know, just reading some stuff. So
like that, you know what, maybe I'll just call Jim
and see what's going on. And then, uh, you know,
it just went from there. He told me what he
told me what they were looking for, and I said,

(05:49):
I have exactly that, and here you go. And that
was my first offer.

Speaker 3 (05:56):
Well I want to get to that part in a minute.

Speaker 1 (05:57):
So how much time you he lapsed from between between
when you get the phone call from your assistant GM
and then you talked to him and he says, hey, look, Colin,
in the water's warm. You know, there's a lot of
people interested. But if you want to make an offer,
that's fine. Was it almost Did you immediately call him
back or are you still on that same phone call and.

Speaker 3 (06:18):
You already have the idea of who you're going to
be willing to deal.

Speaker 2 (06:21):
Yeah, Well, actually I called Patrick Alvin, he's the GM,
Jim's the president. But so Patrick told me that Jim
was going to be handling this deal. So by the
time I called Jim, you had it together. I knew
what I was gonna I knew what I was going
to offer, and you know, I talked to Jim the
next day. I was flying home, so I was at

(06:44):
LaGuardia Airport in uh in New York, and Jim and
I had a discussion. I said, what are you looking for?
You said this, and I said I can satisfy that,
and here's what I'm offering you, and uh, it just
kind of went from there.

Speaker 1 (06:58):
Give me your thinking on giving them your best offer from.

Speaker 2 (07:04):
The beginning, because with you're not going to fool anybody.
H They're dealing a star player. They're not gonna take
You're not gonna slide one by them. They're smart too.
They have scouts, they have analytics, they have good people,

(07:24):
like you're not gonna be ask your way into getting
Quint Hughes. And to show people that you're serious, you
got to come out of the gate swinging and if
you want them, go get them. You're not You're not
gonna out smart anybody in this like it's just and
that's not that's not what I want to do. I
want to make a fair deal, and you know what,

(07:48):
I'm when it works for both teams, that's when it's
the best and you're not gonna they're just not gonna
bite on on on a happy offer. And that's not
the way I'd like to do business. This is what
I think is fair. It's a lot, but he's he's
a great player, so you're gonna get a lot.

Speaker 1 (08:11):
And what what what day was that that you made
the actual offer?

Speaker 2 (08:17):
You know that was?

Speaker 3 (08:18):
That was Monday? Okay?

Speaker 1 (08:20):
Yeah, so here's the obvious question. I don't think you
get resolution of this thing till Friday. I think because
we were right off the air. So are you talking,
are you guys talking back and forth just to check in?
Are you letting it go? Are you thinking this many
days after we make what we think is a hell
of an offer, they probably don't have a better one.

(08:41):
We have nothing back from them. Are you starting to
think this thing's not going to happen?

Speaker 2 (08:46):
Well? I you know what, Jim, Jim was great to
work with and he you know, he just he just said, hey, look,
there's a lot of teams interested, so we have to
kind of see this thing through. And he's like, you've
made a strong offer and and we'll get back to you.
I checked in with him once and you know, I'm uh,
I wouldn't have to We make the deal Friday Friday. Uh.

(09:08):
Then on Friday he called me back and said, hey, look,
we're we're getting there. Uh, I'll I'll give you a
call back in a few hours. And then he called back,
He's like, yeah, I think we I think we can
get a deal here.

Speaker 3 (09:21):
Is that when you were you had you were working
on the meatballs?

Speaker 2 (09:25):
Yes, I actually am right now too.

Speaker 1 (09:28):
I swear to god, Now did you throw I mean
any the meatballs and exultation against the wall when you
knew that the deal was done? I would have think
whatever damage you do to your palatial estate would have
been worth it to just celebrate that way.

Speaker 2 (09:43):
Yeah, we celebrated a bit that.

Speaker 3 (09:45):
Yeah, I'm sure, I'm sure you did. That's that's for sure.
How hard was it?

Speaker 1 (09:49):
I mean good, you gave up good pieces across the board.
But I know I remember talking to you as recently.

Speaker 3 (09:55):
I think as h.

Speaker 1 (09:56):
Well had we had a boy him at the State Fair.
I how much you regarded him and what you thought
of him. So how hard is it to lose him
in this deal because I think you guys project him
as a guy who can be, in his own right,
a superstar someday.

Speaker 2 (10:14):
Yeah. Absolutely, And it's tough to give up these young
players no matter what. They're such good guys that they're
good kids. They're they you know we we got If
Quinn wasn't available, we'd still have them and we'd be
fine with that. Like it was. It was good. But
you know, this is just part of the business. Uh.

(10:38):
Sometimes it's crappy, and but you know what, we got
such a big player and he's so excited to be
here that you know what. We you know what, sometimes
in life you've got to do stuff that's that's tough,
and you know this business is no different. And but
we're just we're just yeah, you know what. I hope

(10:59):
those guys have great careers and they go on to
help Vancouver turn things around, like I do. I want
the best for them, and you know it's yeah, it's tough.
It's tough, but it's part of it.

Speaker 1 (11:13):
Much of the hockey community that I've heard from since
the story broke Friday, a little bit after we got
off the air on our program has been incredibly positive
and excited and you know, inspired basically across the board.
But you know how it works in this town. Really,

(11:36):
I think any town, they go, well, now, what exactly
is this contract situation? Again, Well, there's no guarantee here.
His agent's making it clear, he's very happy to be here,
but he can't promise anything. So what do you say
to those who have those obvious concerns that that's the

(11:57):
biggest gamble in the part of a that they are
all wanting to celebrate.

Speaker 2 (12:04):
Well, then you won't make the deal. Mhm Jesus that
then you're gonna sit there and I don't know, mediocrity
or whatever it is, we'll you'll never make a deal.
So I don't know, but you're going to be afraid
of everything. Then good luck?

Speaker 3 (12:26):
Do you feel? And what is your approach going forward
with that?

Speaker 2 (12:31):
Is it?

Speaker 1 (12:31):
And listening to your comments, it's a sense is look,
we get him here, he was he and his agent
were cooperative. They sort of knew this was coming at
some point. You got everybody had to be in on
this one would assume. And he's not saying no, even
though I know he couldn't technically, But you still want
him to be pleased to be here or willing to

(12:51):
be here.

Speaker 3 (12:52):
And we get him here where we think we're.

Speaker 1 (12:55):
Building something, We get them in the culture, we get
them in with a team that we think is got
a chance to be on the rise, and then in
that sense, we sell them in a way that makes
it impossible for him to want to go anyplace else.

Speaker 3 (13:09):
Is that the strategy.

Speaker 2 (13:12):
Yeah, I mean that's that's that's the idea. You want
all of your players happy. And I think you know,
he's no different. I mean, there are other guys that
you know, have you know, approached free agency and decided
to sign back with us, things like that, and he
couldn't gonna be no different. You know, we're gonna we're

(13:34):
gonna just keep doing the way. We're gonna keep going
the way that we've been going. And we've got a
terrific culture in our locker room. We've got good guys,
we've got a good team, we've got a great market,
we've got great ownership, and it's it's fun to play here.
And I mean that that's that's a good start. So

(13:56):
but you know what, I just honestly like, look, we'll
worry about that down the road. This is you know, yeah,
I don't know. Well, I'm not worried about it right now.

Speaker 3 (14:09):
This falls you know, it's it.

Speaker 1 (14:11):
I'm chuckling inside a little bit because I've been here
before with another general manager in this town, the man
who runs the Minnesota Timberwolves, Tim Conley. And what Conley
has basically said to me is that his philosophy, you know,
he believes in two things. He does believe in organizational stability,

(14:32):
and he also believes in not making panic moves right,
letting things come together. However, he's made clearly what we
in this business call big swings a couple of times,
right first in adding Rudy Gobert and then he traded
away Karl Anthony town is an extremely popular player and

(14:52):
an All Star player, and when I talked to him
about it, he said, yeah, you know, it's sometimes you
just you can't be afraid to make those big moves
on the basis of the possibility that.

Speaker 3 (15:04):
They could blow up in your face.

Speaker 1 (15:05):
And it strikes me that you're kind of I mean,
your personalities are very different. But that in that sense,
you guys share that philosophy.

Speaker 3 (15:12):
Is that fair to.

Speaker 2 (15:12):
Say, Yeah, that's fair to say. I mean, honestly, you
gotta you gotta stick your neck out there. You gotta
you do. You have to take a swing. And like,
if you don't, you're just gonna be, like I said,
you know, I don't know, you're gonna be bunting your
whole life. Yes, you know what I mean. And look

(15:36):
at look at our look at our team now, like
we're we're better, Like we're better because of this guy.
We're giving ourselves a chance like this is you know.
And and if you just sit on your hands and
you build and you build, well, you know what, there
comes a time and I said that this summer, you
know when when you know, everybody said we didn't do anything,

(15:58):
we did nothing. Well, of course we didn't. There was
nothing out there. But we're in the game now. We
are able to get in the game. That's exactly what
I said.

Speaker 3 (16:06):
You've been Oh go ahead, I'm sorry, and and we are.

Speaker 2 (16:10):
And you know what, we were patient and we made
it so we could be involved in moves like this.

Speaker 1 (16:16):
You've been in NHL locker rooms, as you know, as
a player as well, and it would It strikes me that,
you know, it's also the kind of move that has
to be energizing to a locker room or appreciated in
a locker room the same way I think for many
fans and the idea that these are big swings and

(16:39):
there's no guarantee every big swing is going to connect.
But I got to believe, I don't know what sense
you're getting yet. If you've got and you you know,
you've got good connections, obviously you stay in touch with
everybody in terms of what how energizing this is within
the locker room under the classification of his man, they're
serious about this because obviously potentially if you're able to

(17:00):
resign them, they ain't gonna You ain't gonna get that
done for a buck fifty either, So there's commitment there.
I assume this is being received, uh, within the locker
room is a very positive step, even if the players
that have gone away they have relationships with and might miss.

Speaker 2 (17:19):
Yeah, I think the guys are really excited, you know
you yeah, I mean they're they're excited like this is
a this is a big set. Look at they've earned it.
They you know, they've showed that, you know, we can
compete with anybody, and and we can we can beat anybody.

(17:39):
So yeah, I'm I'm all in with this guy with
these guys, and I hope they're excited because I am.
I I believe in them. I think we can. I
think we can make some noise.

Speaker 1 (17:50):
Was this was this you keeping your promise to Caprice off? No,
that's more dramatic if you say yes, that's not the truth.
I mean we all assume that part of it was, Hey,
we're not done. We're gonna keep going. We're gonna keep adding.
Don't you don't have to worry about that. You take
care of us by signing with us, We'll take care

(18:11):
of you by adding another really good piece.

Speaker 2 (18:15):
No, I don't, although, look, all I want to do
is win. Like I don't make promises to players. Oh well,
you know I'm gonna get you this guy or that
guy or this guy. All I can promise you is
that we're trying to win and we'll do what we
have to do.

Speaker 3 (18:32):
A text.

Speaker 1 (18:33):
Let me ask you this question because it's and a
lot of people I think are asking this. By the way, Uh,
your guy Russo Radio is supposed to join us in
the ten o'clock hour, Dan, could you ask Billy about
upgrading our center depth? It was already a big question
for losing Marco. I love this trade, but how can
we compete with first line centers we'll face in the playoffs,
like McKinnon, Michael McDavid, et cetera.

Speaker 2 (18:56):
Well, I mean, take a look at our decoor. I
think it's probably the best in the league. That helps
when you're playing against other top guys. I think the
play of Danilla year off made made it made it
possible to move Rossy. I think we see kind of
uh arise in his game. Yeah, there's no doubt. We'd

(19:20):
still like to add, you know, some center depth, no doubt,
but no, there's there's there's more than one way to
skinny Cat. You know, you just we'll figure it out.

Speaker 1 (19:36):
Did you see the comments from within the hockey community,
from other general managers, other executives, anonymous, I might add,
because that's why it's got to work.

Speaker 3 (19:46):
Have you read a couple of those This is.

Speaker 1 (19:48):
From a This is from the Athletic. This is a
quote from an Eastern Conference executive. Minnesota's back and is
scary with Hughes and favor. Vancouver gets talented young players
that can help for a while.

Speaker 3 (20:06):
Good job.

Speaker 1 (20:07):
That indication seems to be that both sides did extremely well.

Speaker 3 (20:11):
You'll take that, I assume.

Speaker 2 (20:13):
Yep, yeah, yeah, I'll take it.

Speaker 1 (20:16):
A West Western Conference executive, very surprising you. You didn't
hear much about Minnesota even being interested, and I figured
Vancouver would want to send him east, but the Caducks
got a good return.

Speaker 3 (20:28):
I'm a big boyim fan.

Speaker 1 (20:29):
Rossi has already proven to be a twenty five goal
sixty point guy. Trade will really be judging on who
the first round pick turns out to. Being of many
resigns Hughes, but if they just get him for a
year and a half, that is a lot to give up.
They reassigned him there, arguably getting the second best offensive
defenseman in the league. So there seems to be I
guess you could say a great agreement there. What interests

(20:51):
me about that quote, though, is let's go back to
the earlier you're talking about the whole the timeline. So
you mentioned you get the call from one of your
guys to hey, make a phone call here. My assumption
is you're on this the whole time because you covet
this player. Was it you had not done that because
you didn't think he was yet available?

Speaker 3 (21:13):
Or why did you have to get that phone call
to kind of get this whole thing going.

Speaker 2 (21:20):
Well, you know what, honestly, you don't. You don't think
of it everything, even though you're the general manager, you
think of everything. You know, I'm thinking of one thing.
Other guys are thinking of others. And you know that's why.
That's why I have guys like Matt and kill her
and like they they have ideas too. It's not like

(21:41):
I've always said that it's not all me, Like we
we work as a team. And for Matt to you know,
pick up the phone and just say, hey, look, you
know we should we should look into this, or maybe
maybe give him a call just to see where it's at.
Maybe it's nothing, but you know it turned out to
be something.

Speaker 3 (22:01):
Well, if that right to me.

Speaker 2 (22:03):
If you're if you're only willing to do things that
are your idea comes into your head, you're you're you're foolish.
So I'm like, I listen to my guys and if
they have good ideas, like we're gonna, we're gonna, we're
gonna look into.

Speaker 1 (22:17):
That do you believe in collaborations what you're saying, Oh yeah, yeah,
that's that's good to hear.

Speaker 3 (22:25):
Uh, it's it.

Speaker 1 (22:26):
I don't know if this matters to you, but Louis
called me yesterday for two reasons.

Speaker 3 (22:32):
One was to mock me for being here on a
day where I knew.

Speaker 1 (22:38):
He knew by the end of the day it was
gonna be like minus fifteen and a minus win or
wind show minus thirty. And he's, of course in Florida.
The hockey guy, you know, the sue guy is Is
is luxuriating in Florida. And the other reason is he
wanted to talk about this deal. To describe him as
enthusiastic is to vastly understate the state of his hockey being.

Speaker 3 (23:00):
He is thrilled.

Speaker 1 (23:02):
And part of it that he and I talked about
was the big swing thing, because he believes in the
big swing. And again, you don't always get it right.
He didn't always get it right, but he believes it.
And he said, the first time you and he talked,
if you took the job, you asked him for what
the best advice was, and that's what he talked about,
was a be the boss, don't be afraid to be

(23:22):
the boss and don't be afraid to take shots, to
take swings.

Speaker 2 (23:26):
Absolutely absolutely, and I agree with him, like it's he's
always given me great advice, Like he's yeah, and like, honestly,
this is this is what we've been waiting for too,
to really get in the game and be, like I said,
be able to do this stuff, and to be able
to to go after players like that. Like we we don't,

(23:48):
like I said, we don't want to just sit there
like this is not you know what I mean. We
we want to win the Saley Cup. And you need
you need great players, and you need a great to
do that. So when the opportunity arises, you got to
take it. Sometimes well you got Sometimes you don't. Sometimes
it might not be the right time.

Speaker 1 (24:10):
We also have to have an owner, I assume, I mean,
the assumption is that you make this deal with a
full intent of re signing him, right, so that ain't
going to be cheap. So I assume that's those discussions
have to take place too, right, It's it's going to
take another Brinks truck to bring him back if he
if he continues to be as good as he is, correct.

Speaker 2 (24:32):
I ask you let me ask you a question. Sure,
do you like when you interview other gms, other people
in like the other sports, do you talk about like
the money like that, like oh yeah, well well let.

Speaker 3 (24:45):
Me give you let me answer. I'll answer it this way.

Speaker 2 (24:47):
I'm curious because like com of the NHL, we're kind
of gone into this new in this new land where
guys are making real big money, and like it always
comes up because you know, we've got the hard cap
and oh man, you're gonna have to spend all this money,
yeah and this and that, and I just didn't I
didn't know like if because like if you look at

(25:09):
like the NBA and MLB and some like they make
way more money.

Speaker 3 (25:14):
Oh yeah, yeah, Well.

Speaker 2 (25:16):
I didn't know if you kind of approach it like that.
But Craig, Craig owns the team. He's doing fine.

Speaker 3 (25:25):
He's in it twin yes, he is.

Speaker 2 (25:27):
Their finances are good, like we're okay if we're not.
If it's not okay, then we wouldn't be in it.
And you know what he wants to win. It's like
you can't. Like it's kind of like the trade. Like
I talked about the trade, you have to pay to
get a player of that caliber. In order to win

(25:50):
the Stanley Cup, you have to pay great players to
be on your team. It doesn't come free. You can't.
You're not. I'm sorry, but you're not gonna be at
the minimum, the floor, the cap and win the Stanley Cup.
You're just not. So if we're if we're in it
and we're going for it, then we're going for it.
We're not. We're not trying to do it. Oh, just

(26:11):
on our terms. If we can only spend this much
and see if we can squeak one out, well you're
in it.

Speaker 1 (26:17):
I am not here to suggest any of this spending
would be reckless at all. It's more, you know, Okay,
let's let's double check, let's be sure. No, Well, here's
I'll give you the exception. Whenever if I ever talk
to anybody from the Twins, and I don't as much
anymore because there's not that much to talk to. We
never talk money, Bill, because that organization doesn't want to

(26:37):
spend any money. And and I know that's not what
you're here to do. It's my job to take shots
at other organizations, but I honestly, this is what I
think appeals to fans about the approach the ambitious nature
of this approach if they or may not work out perfectly,

(26:57):
but it's it's like, wow, that that's an investment, uh,
literally and figuratively. And that's what the Wolves have largely
done and and I think I and that's definitely what
the Vikings have tended to do. Now they have more
money to work with, but it's all relative. It's they
all still have certain thoughts from which they work and
not every you know, maybe even the NHL, there may
be owners of say no, no, no, no, I don't want to,

(27:18):
I don't want to, you know, take that kind of
a kind of a a step genially.

Speaker 2 (27:22):
Where are in every sport?

Speaker 3 (27:24):
Yes, they never win?

Speaker 1 (27:26):
Yeah, that's it, that's it exactly all right. So you're
you're on Meatball patroling. What's the dish you're making now?
Is it a breakfast brunch dish or working at him
for dinner?

Speaker 2 (27:36):
What we we just I was up at like five
this morning, I just constant turning, and because of everything
that happened the other day, I didn't get to complete
the you know, the meatball extrapaganza. But you know, we're
making a bunch for Christmas Eve, Like I'm making them now.

(27:57):
I got the vacuum sealer out. They're going to go
in the freezer. Will pull them out for Christmas Eve.

Speaker 3 (28:03):
It's impressible.

Speaker 2 (28:04):
I think I made I made six pounds already this morning.

Speaker 3 (28:07):
Six pounds. That's a lot of meat.

Speaker 2 (28:09):
Polls. Yeah, we're gonna have like forty something people. Okay,
nobody's going to go hungry.

Speaker 3 (28:14):
It's a good event. Do you find that process relaxing?

Speaker 2 (28:19):
Yeah? I just like cooking in general. General okay, and
it's uh, yeah, it's great. I love it.

Speaker 1 (28:26):
Last question, because we haven't really talked about the team,
and I think we should so leaving aside this move.
Prior to this move, what beyond obviously some really good
goaltending most of the time, what else has changed for you?

Speaker 3 (28:40):
What?

Speaker 1 (28:40):
What do you see that you can can you know,
demonstrably tell us this is why we seem to be
turning some things around.

Speaker 2 (28:49):
I think we've matured a lot, Like I think you
know what the guys are under understanding a little bit
more like how we need to play every night, especially
in the games, Like you know, we've we've beat every
good team this year. You know, now now we have
to back it up, Like you know, we beat a

(29:10):
good team that we lose for a weaker team. Uh,
but we're we're we're at least kind of making a
step in the way we play in these you know,
big regular season games. So I think there's a I
think there's a maturity that's that's going on here with
with our team. And yeah, it's good to see.

Speaker 3 (29:32):
I appreciate the time.

Speaker 1 (29:33):
Congratulations on the meatballs, Congratulations on the deal.

Speaker 3 (29:38):
And I'll and I'll add one other things.

Speaker 1 (29:40):
Some often our interviews are different than they are with
other general managers in large measure because you allow the
jousting more, which I do appreciate, and you can't do
that with everybody. Some people get too uptight. Some people say,
well I'm shutting it down. I'm not doing that. So
if they are, sometimes they feel a little bit different.

Speaker 3 (29:59):
It's because as you allow them to be different, which
as a host I much appreciate.

Speaker 2 (30:03):
Awesome, I love it. No, I always love coming on
with you, and I appreciate the jousting. You always ask
good questions. Thanks matter who writes them.

Speaker 3 (30:11):
For you, well, largely russo obviously, Yeah, I just quote
him and thanks, have a good morning. Thanks, thank you.

Speaker 1 (30:21):
That's Bill Gharren, the Wild general manager, still working on
the meatballs that got interrupted apparently when he got word yeah,
we might have a trade that shows a certain sticktuitiveness,
a certain dedication to the bit from the Wild general manager.

Speaker 3 (30:37):
All right, let's get caught up.

Speaker 1 (30:38):
We will digest what he had to say and get
our own reactions in on a momentous weekend for Brett
Blakemore's favorite hockey team. Don't forget, we do expect some
bonus Russo Radio after he lands. He's headed to another
Canadian city. I don't remember which one he was in Edmonton.
He's landing someplace old with the Calgary I can't remember.
In any case, he'll join us sometime in the and

(31:01):
we eventually will talk a little bit of Vikings Cowboys,
and there may be a brief moment where we are
obligated to spend some time in an a section that
is absolutely filled with tragedy. This is a text from

(31:28):
Jeff out of Richfield. Blake Moore has to be absolutely
jacked about this trade.

Speaker 3 (31:35):
Are you or are you not?

Speaker 1 (31:38):
I didn't know you were on I assume yesterday I was,
And did you and Mikeletty get into an argument about it.

Speaker 3 (31:43):
Because you usually do in the old days.

Speaker 1 (31:45):
It was Falness in Mikeletty that got into verbal spats.
Right now it's you and mcletty or is it all
three of you?

Speaker 4 (31:51):
Well, it's mostly all Usually me and Fallness are still
good though, Okay, but it's at first it was sticker shock.
It was gave up how much? And Zee the guy
that I was looking forward to watch and grow? And
we get attached to these guys so much. Sure, so
once they all loved I mean, they can't. They have
to know they've raved about him too. They thought he

(32:12):
had a chance to be a star. When I first
tweeted up, that was the sticker shock moment. Since then
then you start thinking about, well, what's this power play
going to look like? When he was ooh, he's gonna
play twenty eight minutes a night with probably with brock Favor. Oh,
and then you start thinking about it, and now I'm
full on except I mean a lot of people are
comparing it not to mark your Bingo cards to the

(32:34):
Micah Parsons trade.

Speaker 3 (32:35):
Right, you know you're going for it.

Speaker 4 (32:37):
You give up a lot, but you get one of
the best defenders, you know, second best passer, second best
defenseman in hockey. It's a huge swing, and I like
big swings. Saying we're going fast. I love it.

Speaker 3 (32:49):
I'm all in.

Speaker 1 (32:50):
Anybody who listens this show knows I felt that way
about Conley. I feel the same way here and again,
that doesn't guarantee success.

Speaker 3 (32:58):
On any one of the individual moves.

Speaker 1 (33:00):
But you know, and I've already heard people we've got
so much herschel Walker trade trauma in this town that
that's the name for people who haven't gotten past your
sticker shock period. Even yet they bring up and I'm going, well, whatever,
the risks are different.

Speaker 3 (33:17):
Herschel Walker was close to washed up when the Vikings.

Speaker 1 (33:22):
By the time the Vikings got him, this kid, well
I call him kid.

Speaker 3 (33:26):
He's not a kid, but.

Speaker 1 (33:27):
He's twenty six, right, He's he maybe hasn't even reached
his prime, for God's sake, So it's a bad analogy
to use. The risk in this one is different. There
is the risk that you don't resign them right now.
I read and I want to run this by Russo
one of the analysis one of the analysts, I should say, said, look,

(33:49):
worst case for the wild.

Speaker 2 (33:53):
Is that.

Speaker 1 (33:55):
If they come to the conclusion that they even with
the advantage, the signing trade advantage they have on the
front end in terms of what they can give them,
if that isn't realized, worst case is they turn around
and trade him for their own hall.

Speaker 3 (34:11):
Is that realistic if he's that.

Speaker 1 (34:14):
Much closer to the end of the contract, Because then
you're back to who's going to give you a hall?

Speaker 3 (34:18):
Another hall?

Speaker 1 (34:18):
Unless I guess you're trading him to somebody where the
agent has already said yes, we will, we will sign
long term there. But then that limits the team and
that may even limit how big a haul that you receive.

Speaker 4 (34:30):
I don't think they can get just because of that.
Why would New Jersey, for instance, bend over backwards and
give a giant haul to the Wild when they can
just wait six months and get him for free, you know,
and not have to give up Bay. Right, So the
worst case snarios we get him for one playoff run,
which would be this one, and come trade deadline next year.
He says, right, it's been fun, I'm out of here.

(34:54):
Trade me and know we get something, but not nearly
as good. That's worst case best case, I mean, rue,
So just put an article you talked to them about
it headlined a wow to have no long term guarantees,
but there's some reason to believe yes, So.

Speaker 1 (35:06):
There's encouraging signs early. But again that doesn't mean it's
going to pay off.

Speaker 3 (35:11):
Correct.

Speaker 1 (35:11):
I'll just say again, for me, this goes back to
when I was little Danny Barrero and was a fan,
much more of a fan growing up the Chicago area
to now being in the business. In this business, as
long as I have, I have great respect. Look, you
can't say every big swing, you know, all big swings

(35:31):
are equal, because some of them do come off as
reckless and a little bit too much hubris. But generally speaking,
if leave the position I'm in now just for fans
and the fan I remember I was, you know, when
I was closer to that growing up, I just wanted
my team to just try to be relevant, to try.

Speaker 3 (35:54):
To to take bold risks.

Speaker 1 (35:58):
By more than anything else, what bringing in big time talent,
And again it comes at a big price, that's what
you have to determine, but it is so much more
refreshing and encouraging to continue to invest.

Speaker 3 (36:12):
In a team.

Speaker 1 (36:13):
That's kind of saying what Garan is saying, Well, we
can you could bunt all your life if you want,
but it's every once in a while you have to
be able to come to the willing, be willing to
come to the plate and go for it.

Speaker 3 (36:27):
And to me, that should be music to the ears of.

Speaker 1 (36:30):
Any Minnesota Wild fan, I would argue any Minnesota sports fan,
and I think that's what Conley has done well with
the Wolves. They don't have a title, they may never
get a title, but they're ambitious about what they're trying
to do.

Speaker 3 (36:43):
It's not talking themselves out.

Speaker 1 (36:46):
Of every big move or excusing themselves out of well,
oh that's all that to be hard. Oh that's dangerous.
Oh that's a little that's risky. Well that's expensive. You
want that, We have that and we see where it ends.
So I think it should be an absolute day of celebration,
not just for Minnesota Wild fans, but for Minnesota sports

(37:09):
fans as well. Let's get caught up because we went
along with Bill Garren and his meatballs in the first
segment of the program. We'll come back get to some
other texts, a lot of other ground to cover between
now and eleven o'clock. Of course, the vikings are tonight
right here in the Phantom, assuming pregame will start at
five with the opening faceoff just passed. Everything's going to

(37:29):
be opening face off now. I think for the rest
of the year. It's seven fifteen Sunday Sermons brought to
you by jtr Roofing. I'm wondering how many of you
noticed Julius Randall welcoming Quinn Hughes to the State of Basketball.

Speaker 3 (37:50):
I was impressed.

Speaker 1 (37:51):
Here's the text or the tweet, Quinn Hughes, Welcome to
the city, my man.

Speaker 3 (37:56):
You'll love it here. Can't wait.

Speaker 1 (37:59):
To catch a game. Now, does Julius know the Wild
playing Saint Paul? He said, welcome to the city, my man.
I think that might be.

Speaker 3 (38:08):
Just you know, he's being more generic there.

Speaker 1 (38:10):
But I should have mentioned I intended to mention this
to Bill Garon when he joined us at the start
of the show. They already the Wild should be working
overtime to set up a big Julius Randall invitation now
that he's asked it, bring the whole family to the Wild,
set him up in a luxury suite.

Speaker 3 (38:30):
The whole bit great.

Speaker 1 (38:32):
There's nothing wrong with great partnership, even though they're both
winter sports teams. Right, there's room for both of them,
I think it's fair to say, and they do both
seem to share the willingness to spend some money and
to be ambitious as well. I want to read this
one to you see if this makes sense to you.
This has ed out of Saint Paul Dan. The best

(38:53):
example of a trade and flip is the Hurricanes and
Ranton and the Canes traded for him from the Avalanche
with the hope States sign him. After three weeks, they
realized it wasn't gonna happen, so they flipped them to
Dallas for a young player in two first round picks
Ranton and immediately signed an eight your extension with Stars.
They recognize their mistake in course corrected before he walked
out for free. Hopefully that doesn't mean the Wild will

(39:15):
be trading Huts away in three weeks. I think that'd
be fairly devastating at this point. Yeah, but I get
his larger point that he's trying to make no and it's.

Speaker 4 (39:25):
Certainly possible, and I'm not sure that they're going to
get an equivalent passage, so they can still get something right.

Speaker 1 (39:31):
He's not probably not gonna walk for free free. I
don't think it'd be I don't think it'd be anywhere
near as much. Look at this, This is from Bart
out of Oakdale, way too much hockey talk. Come on, man,
I mean, in all seriousness, even if you're not a
big hockey fan, you gotta understand the timeliness of this situation.

(39:52):
If you can't go wall to wall on hockey on
a day like this or close to it, when can you.
This is arguably as big a trade as a Minnesota
sports team is made in I don't know how long,
in all seriousness, in terms of the talent on paper
in his prime that you're getting back. So no, you

(40:16):
got to understand we're going to follow the story and
we're definitely going to follow the story here as as well.
And by the way, he makes his our new superstar
makes his debut Matt and a Affair today at the
Arena formerly known.

Speaker 3 (40:31):
As the X five o'clock against the Bruins.

Speaker 1 (40:34):
And that game you tell me will be on because
we got Vikings pregame show at five on the fans
so cool, one to eight, all the action.

Speaker 3 (40:46):
I assume they might sell.

Speaker 1 (40:48):
A few extra seats for that for it's a perfect
you know, it's not a late start tonight on a
Sunday on a school night.

Speaker 3 (40:54):
Five o'clock start holiday season. Place should be festive. Now
are you going? Do you have to work here? I
wish I was going.

Speaker 4 (41:02):
You would be going if you weren't working, I would
be trying to weasel my way in.

Speaker 3 (41:07):
Why wouldn't you? Yeah? If not?

Speaker 4 (41:09):
Now when I've gotten several texts saying, hey, can you
can you hook me up? Like I barely hooked myself up.
That's kind of a bit of a problem with the
game like this.

Speaker 1 (41:20):
Jojis Rander could never go to Wild Game Wild Game
because they always play at the same time. That's Dann
Minnesota has a peculiar obsession with this concern.

Speaker 3 (41:29):
I don't. I don't. I'm trying to figure out where
it comes from.

Speaker 1 (41:32):
Like he thinks that teams should make sure in the
same market they don't schedule against one another. There's a
million variables that go into scheduling. This can't be at
the top of the list down In a perfect world,
obviously you wouldn't play at the same time, but it
happens everywhere.

Speaker 3 (41:48):
I don't know. He's he's bothered by it. And again.

Speaker 1 (41:54):
There's remotes, right, can't you flip back and forth pretty easily.
Is it that difficult to do? I didn't think it was,
but apparently in his world it is. Garan always seems
testy when he's on with you. But I'm not a
big hockey guy. On that note, I hope someday soon.

Speaker 3 (42:12):
Hold on, where did it go?

Speaker 1 (42:14):
You can refer to the start of Vikings game, his
first pitch at the people Stadiums at seven twenty. Yeah,
not holding my breath. Why wouldn't either, No, Garan and I.
You have to know garin a little bit. It's Garan's
nature to be somewhat testy, and it's part of what
I like about having him on to be honest with you.
He'll answer anything, he might fire back, that's that's fine.

(42:36):
And his question about the money part of it. The
misread was I wasn't saying we didn't have the money.
I was saying it's a compliment because you can't make
a deal like this without knowing whether the owner has
signed off on what another big contract potentially is going
to represent. Right, you have to go in with some

(42:56):
knowledge of what that's going to be. That's the point.
That's where the money matters, and in this town it
stands out because we do have some teams that at
least one team, I guess it's fair to say that
it's just not all that interested in participating in the
financial activity that is kind of essential if you're going

(43:19):
to give your even just give yourself a chance to
be more successful. Bill Garran has big meatballs after the trade?
Did Bill Garon do the big meatball dance? That's a
Sam Cassell throwback? Very nicely played. I kind of like it.
I might, in fact even steal it. And if you

(43:40):
wondering what we're talking about. Garran had said at the
time Friday he got the call that there was a
good chance the deal was going to get done, that
he was preparing meatballs for a big holiday party. And
what he acknowledged with us this morning when he joined
is he was back working on the meatballs again because

(44:01):
he's got a big holiday party coming, and that's why
there's been so much meatball conversation.

Speaker 3 (44:06):
I guess the best way to.

Speaker 1 (44:07):
Put it looks like we've got a text from Russo
has he landed already? He has landed, So we'll decide
during the break if we have Russo on immediately, whether
it's easier for him. If we put him off a
little later in the ten o'clock hour, we'll have that
production meeting off air. But suffice to say, you will
get some bonus Russo Radio in the second hour, and

(44:27):
he can I think, speak directly to the some of
the contract questions or you know, what are the odds
or what's the temperature in that regard, what are the
risks involved in it? And maybe also some of his
views on what exactly specifically I guess is the best
way to put it. Makes this particular player, Well, do

(44:54):
you buy the notion that he's the second best defenseman
in hockey or do you think that's that's too low
for the ranking.

Speaker 4 (45:01):
No, I think he's right there with Cale mccarr. I mean,
mccarr is the elite of the elite, but he's right there.
I mean, Quinn Hughes won the Norris not too long ago,
and that's the best defensemen in the league.

Speaker 1 (45:10):
So all right, we'll get into all that, and we'll
get into some vikings conversation and some real world A
section stuff as well. In our number two stay tuned Minnesota,
Windshill just made that you got most segment on ESPN
must have been was it a halftime performance and it
was a hell of a reception by Windshield guy. I

(45:31):
gotta say it was impressive. That's good exposure for the
formerly world champion wind Shill. I think we didn't defend
our championship. We won it year before last.

Speaker 2 (45:41):
We didn't.

Speaker 1 (45:42):
We didn't get it done this last year. But another
team that's not not afraid to spend the money and
make the big trades. It's unbelievable how that works. Nothing ventured,
As the cliche goes, nothing gained. Our number two of
Sunday sermons, Bureau and Blake Moore with you till eleven
o'clock today. A couple programming reminders. We do expect to

(46:02):
visit from Russo Radio as soon as he gets off
the plane he is on that has just landed. And
in addition, let's remember Wild in action tonight. Right you
said five o'clock start. Quinn Hughes will make his Wild
debut at five this evening against the Boston Bruins.

Speaker 3 (46:26):
And all that action will be on Cool one oh eight.

Speaker 1 (46:31):
Meanwhile, Vikings pregame show will start at five o'clock on
the flagship FM one hundred point three. The fan Bikings Cowboys,
which we will eventually get to as as well, try
to cover a couple of the issues there. Russo Radio
indeed is now kind enough to join us to give
us some bonus time.

Speaker 3 (46:53):
All you do?

Speaker 1 (46:54):
So you you you were in one Canadian city and
now you've landed in another.

Speaker 3 (46:58):
Is that correct?

Speaker 5 (47:00):
Yeah? I got a through Calgary, but I have a
six hour layover here at five hours? What time it is?
So seriously, luckily I have enough enough to do.

Speaker 1 (47:11):
That's okay, So you'll be able to fill the time,
is what you're saying?

Speaker 5 (47:15):
Yeah, nice beautiful airport?

Speaker 3 (47:19):
Is it is it? Can you get your Can you
get your favorite coffee drink?

Speaker 2 (47:23):
Though?

Speaker 3 (47:23):
That's the question.

Speaker 5 (47:26):
I will need one because man, I did not got
any sleep last night. I'm dragging today. But uh, I'll
find a Starbucks for or I'll have to go low
brown and gets important?

Speaker 2 (47:36):
All right?

Speaker 1 (47:36):
We started the show with Billy garn I want to
get into some other aspects of the of the story
with you, including this. I've gotten this from several people.
Are you allowed in the city as this trade gets
put together and consummated? Are we allowed to ask the

(47:57):
agent his agent about a contract before the trade, How
does all that work and how will it now play out?

Speaker 5 (48:06):
Yes, I mean well I did a huge story with
his agent today and everything was on the record, so uh,
you know, the one thing that he did say in
the story, which is making waves up here in Canada
as I'm looking at the TV and see my story
on it is uh, he told me on the record
that three weeks ago the Quinn basically told him now
that's time to trade. So you know that that was

(48:27):
pretty interesting that he was not willing to commit to
sign an extension there. The one thing, you know, one
thing with this agent, Tech Persani is the best Asians
in the NHL, one of the best. He's got a
you know, a billion and a half in contracts in
the league, get one hundred clients, and he has a

(48:49):
history of working with teams to broke the trades. So
it doesn't always look like this, but you know, Jim
Ruthford and Patrick Alvian essentially gave him permission to talk
to teams. So while they were working on and he
was also talking to these teams and able to one
help together pack news that allow these teams to steal questions.
And the one thing that he did tell every one

(49:09):
of these teams honestly, is that we are not able
to promise you that we're going to sign an extension
uh there, and we're not able to talk to you
yet about a contract that we don't know what we're
going to do. So, you know, the one thing Pat
told me yesterday and I have a great relationship with him,
and I trust it, is that that Twin is coming
to Minnesota with an absolutely open mind. He is priority

(49:32):
is winning and going to a great hockey experience. I
think that they feel that Minnesota, you know, is a
great spot for him. He absolutely loves still Garm, he
loves the culture in Minnesota. It's close to his family,
it's closer to his brothers. So I really think the
while will have a really good opportunity to extend them.

(49:52):
But and the other thing is that you know that
they you know, technically had eight months where they could
extend them, but they were seven months, right. But he,
you know, the big thing shoes that technically it could
go into next season if you can't get it done right.
And so it gives him sort of a year and
a half to really sell him on why to stay

(50:12):
in Minnesota. You know, and and early in his career
in Vancouver he played with some really good players when
Kohorvett was there and KT Miller and Elias Peterson were
getting along and playing great, and so he's played with
great players. But I think the hope from Bill Garrins
and obviously Craig Leopold is that once he gets playing

(50:34):
with guys like to preestof on that Boldie, two absolute
studs against the puck in their hands and wins games
and dobbles up points, that he's going to want to
stay here. And so that's their hope, and they're taking
a gamble. But there has absolutely been no assurances made
it one that he will stay here. And so what
type of contract it would it would it would it

(50:55):
would be. In fact, Bill Garran told me which kind
of shocked me, is is that he had not talked
to Craig Leopold about what the next contract could look like.
And you know, I have not talked to Craig Leopold
about this, but if it's an eight year deal, I mean,
the one benefit the Wild had is that they're in
the previous CBA right broke the free stuff where take
its time, and you know he could very well become

(51:18):
him in the car up at the same time, they
could be you know, seventeen million dollars players too, and
and you know, and they could command the same type
of structure with with with a contract where all of
a sudden they just want all signing Moses on July one.
And you know, Creig Leopold, who's already gonna have to
pay sixteen million dollars a year for the next eight

(51:41):
years on July one to broke the three stuff? What
if he has to do that. We're guy like from
Hughes as well, And so it kind of surprised me
that this wasn't discussed before the trade. But I think
that they that Bill Garran just pigiod let's get this
done and then we'll deal with the aftermath afterwards.

Speaker 1 (51:57):
Part of what fascinated me, but in the comers and
I with Garn and the way you guys laid it
out in sort of piecing together the history that led
to this deal, is that in a sense, Garn wasn't
the primary mover at the front end. It's one of
his general assistant general managers who basically opens the door.

(52:20):
Because I said to him, I said, I just assumed
Billy with you you're going to be on you you
love this player, that you'd be all in on this
where you didn't have to be told by anybody else
to make this phone call. But he admitted, he said, well,
you tried to stay on top of everything. But that's
why we got a good staff. And that's sort of
what what got the ball rolling, which is kind of

(52:40):
interesting to me.

Speaker 5 (52:42):
Yeah, and I you know, that's the one thing I
will say about this version of the Minnesota while is
I think everybody thinks that in pro sports that everything
is planned out, you know, yeah, once ahead of time.
And Billy has proven to be a very impulsive person.
I mean, you know, he's woken up on days and
you know, I think I'm gonna make a trade today.
It doesn't, so, you know, and then and then deals

(53:03):
with it after. And so this is one of those
where you know, all of a sudden, obviously that Matt
selves is the one that's being credited with giving him,
you know, the idea.

Speaker 2 (53:13):
You know.

Speaker 5 (53:13):
The funny thing is that that same day I had
actually talked to Bill Garin and you know, we were
talking about Vancouver a little bit because I had started
to hear this is ay that they want to keep
it sure wood, and I got the impression that they
offered Marco sorry leam Ogrin for that, and that they
counted for Marco Rassi. And so even in my head,
all of a sudden, you just wonder if they're suddenly

(53:34):
wanting Marco ROSSI, if the deal could be made, and
so you know it is. It is pretty uh, you
know interesting. I can't tell you though that that uh,
you know, I I know it was really good authority
that that was really excited, uh to becoming a minute.
But you know, obviously we'll get them later today. Hope

(53:54):
I'll make the end of the game. I land uh,
I'll be landing in the middle of the second period.
But you know, I spent the last week basically with
his mom. Coincidentally, I'm doing a big feature on her.
Sat down with her watch the Devil stuff gamy face.
I watched one of her other kids with her on
the day of this trade that happened. I can tell
you that, yeah, I could tell I mean, it just

(54:15):
was a stroke of luck that I just happen to
be working on this uh this week, and so you know,
I can tell you that they're really really excited.

Speaker 1 (54:23):
Well that you know the cliche you make your own
luck Russo, I mean that's the thing. It's I know
it may be lock, but that's because you're you're you're
out there beating the bushes. That's the that's the main thing.

Speaker 5 (54:34):
You know, what are the chances like this? So she
she's the player development to sultant for for USA Hockey Women.
So she's basically the you know, she's on the ice
every day with the USA Hockey women, right, And so
like the story that I'm basically was working on is
you know this woman that taught you know, that was
the star hockey player herself and taught three yellow you know,

(54:56):
three NFL stars that skag essentially going to have her
the Olympic Games. I know she's canceling interviews with me
for a couple of days up here.

Speaker 2 (55:08):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (55:08):
Interesting, She's like she also is like, what are the
chances that the Wild beat writers here while my son's
about to get traded there?

Speaker 3 (55:16):
What are your uh?

Speaker 1 (55:18):
Millions of athletic analysts who've offered up their views since
the deal was consummated suggested that worst worst case scenario
for the Wild they end up flipping him and that
they then could get their own haul. That's not what
they'd want to do, but that they could do that.

(55:40):
You know, Blake Bore and I were talking about that.
It's hard for me to believe that you could get
the same haul that much closer to the end of
his contract unless you're dealing with the team that is,
you know that he's going to re sign with, and
then you're limiting obviously the options with that team. So
I know that's not what you're envisioning at this point
or any in the organization.

Speaker 3 (56:00):
That's not why you do a deal like this.

Speaker 1 (56:02):
But do you buy that analysis is that you could
again in an emergency situation, you could still get a
hell of a haul Or is that asking too much
a second time around?

Speaker 5 (56:13):
No, I think there's something to it. I don't think
you're getting Morco Rossis he's wam liam Ogrian our first
round pick. Though, to your point, because you know one
he's going to be, you know, closer to the end
of this contract, some of the teams that you could
be talking to could be really truly rental teams. And
then if you're talking to a team that thinks that
they're going to have a great chance of resigning him.

(56:35):
You know, they might not want to give you the
hall because they're just going to know that, you know,
they could just thought him on in July one. Now,
Bill Garret has been in that position before. It's totally
different type of player. But I was always amazed that
he was able to get a second round pick for
Jack mcdae's from the Coyotes when everybody knew that the
guy who was going to sign with the Coyotes a
couple months later, Yet he somehow did it. So not
at all that the same thing, but you know, you

(56:58):
get my drip there is that he he's done that before,
and that is always an option. And as I mentioned,
the one thing with Patrishan is he could help you
do that. A lot of a lot of guys in
the league that have wanted out of teams has worked
with Pat to build the deals and he's really good
with it because he's so respected by all through these
two teams. And you know, the one thing with Quinn

(57:20):
too is you know, and getting to know him and
his family you know, over the last several years, but
especially his mom's leaves. He's comes from this respectful family
and if It's true that he essentially two years before,
you know, he was going to become a free agent,
told the Vancouver Pen up three weeks ago, which is
what Pattisan told me, that he was not going to
resign there. You know, most likely if he comes in

(57:42):
his head that like, look, you know what, I want
to be a free agent, or I want to play
somewhere else, I want to play with my brothers, I
want to play in my hometown of Depote, whatever, and
he's probably going to give Bill Gharan plenty of advance
warning for that to happen. So Bill begin with that
process of trying to find a new home. But right
now in the Wild feel like they've acquired the you know,

(58:03):
one of the best players in the National Hockey League
and their goals to keep them for a long long time.
It's not often you get a guy two years a
group from North Trophy winner ninety two points, he at
twenty six years goals coming to your team. This is
a changing type of player. He defends by having the
puff out of his own own he's pitch. You know,
there's there was a stat the other day and he's

(58:25):
got his puffs on his stick. Double the more per
game anybody in the National Hockey League and maybe even ever.
You know, there's hasn't that that these analytics haven't been
tracked for a long long time, but the puckers just
blew through him. He wants it, and you know, I
think it's really going to help the Wild in many
many ways for a team that like doesn't get a

(58:46):
lot of offense in their back end, and you know
has him in great great on the transition, and and
we know about their their forward scoring depths and now
there's not a lot. But when you add a guy
that's going to get that puck out and and up
the ice, it's going to have help every line when
he's on the life what I assume.

Speaker 1 (59:04):
I don't know if you how much of a chance
you had to talk to players, but you you stay
connected with everybody who has you know, I mentioned with Garan,
I have to believe you know, fans are looking I
think or should be looking more than anything else for
teams that want to be this ambitious. Doesn't always mean
they're going to be right, but it's the old it's

(59:25):
it's the whole big swing approach to going after it,
which obviously Garran believes in Tim Conley believes in and
to me, if you're a fan, that has to be
half the battle. They're they're They're not as as Garan said,
They're not going to try bunting all the time.

Speaker 3 (59:39):
And same within a locker room. I gotta believe.

Speaker 1 (59:43):
I mean they you know, you lost some pieces where
I'm sure these their players are invested with those pieces.
But I got to think it's got to be energizing
there too, that that that that a team is willing
to take this biggest swing in the you know, in
the middle of the season.

Speaker 5 (59:57):
Yeah, I agree with you. I mean I TechEd it
with a couple of players the other day, and you
know they were I mean, you know, when one guy
sent me the you know, the fire emoji. The guy, uh,
you know, couldn't believe it when I told them, because
I textually what happened was I found out about twenty
minutes before I put it on Twitter, and I was
just trying to basically ask everybody that I knew that

(01:00:19):
could maybe have an idea of if this has happened before,
I could you know, I get second sources. And when
I told some of the people, they couldn't believe it.
So they're excited, and I agree with you. I mean,
the one thing is that this has been the same
type of team for for a long long time and
at some point you got to take a swing to
catch up with the Colorado's and Dallas is because that's

(01:00:40):
who you're gonna have to play in the first round
again this year. And it doesn't just doesn't guarantee anything.
We saw Colorado last year and not be able to
get past Dallas. But the one thing that does do
is now give the Wild tech defense and can help
you win a stailing top. I mean, you know you
have Miro, He's gonna I skin on Dallas, Kel mccarr
and Colorado Quinn who's in Minnesota. These three of the

(01:01:03):
best players in the league, let alone defense, and that
are all in the Central Division, and that that's a huge,
huge bonus. But I I the reason why I really
agree with you is that like they're just like, look,
it stinks to see Marco go. It's thinks sees Easo.
I think he is going to be a star in
this league. But he's going to be a star in
this league in three or four or five years. And

(01:01:23):
right now, the Wild after four years of buyout team. Uh,
the patience is up with the sanbase. We're seeing up
the lack of bucks and seas with Billy Garran, who's
had to sit on his hands, you know, for the
last four years, and with who's on two thousand and
eight and has only gotten pas the first round twice.
So they're now trying to you know, they've always been

(01:01:44):
in win now mode, much to the chagrin of some fans,
but now they're if they're in win mal mode where
they're actually going big game hunting. That's pretty exciting, and
I think a lot of us thought that they were
going big game hunting for a forward. The reality is
you can't evance players that are on the market, and
right now there's no star forward that's on the market.
But here's one of the best defensives in the National
Hockey League suddenly available in the wild. Figured out a

(01:02:07):
way to get them over about you know, ten other teams.
That's pretty impressive, by the way.

Speaker 1 (01:02:14):
That was what the question kept getting is is there
another Are there any moves left? Do you have any
you know, pieces to to get any other moves done?
At the center position, for example? What do you say
to that question?

Speaker 5 (01:02:29):
Yeah, I know that's a good point. I mean, obviously,
their cap spaces. You know, we've sort of got to
count dollars. It's really hard to figure out their cap
right now because they got so many two way guys
on the roster that aren't even really part of this team.
I mean, they essentially got half of IUA on the
roster right now because they've just so inundated with injuries.
And then from an asset standpoint, yeah, they're they're starting

(01:02:51):
to get they're starting to thin out. I mean, these
are these were four huge assets that he traded the
other day. Obviously he traded his first last year and
the Rochech deal. So yeah, I mean they have other prospects,
but yet to get a top, top player unless you're
doing in a free agency and we've learned here the
last couple of years. Players do go to free agency,

(01:03:11):
you're gonna probably have to go dig into that that
prospect orient and try to get somebody. But I do
think that is one area that this team continues to
need to get better at. Like right now, I look
at them as being a center away from being a
truth pretender, and can they get that guy? That's the question,
you know, my eyes are on Buffalo and Cage and

(01:03:32):
what happens with him if he ever want out. You know,
it really feels like I'm you know, twenty a couple
of days ago. I mean, you know, it's funny when
things happen and you just start realizing after the fact
what's going on. But I'm really you know, had a
great relationship with Kevin Adams, book with a favorite jam
for a long time. I covered him in Florida's a Player.
I sent hello to him at the game the other

(01:03:54):
day in Edmonton, and he was really unfriendly. And then
two days later our right from the from the Athletic
breaks the story that it looks like he's best to
be fired. So now all of a sudden they hire
Yarmo keep the line and you know, all bets are off.
I mean, he might want to break apart that team,
and maybe Page does get on the market or maybe
Tay like get me out of here. The problem is

(01:04:16):
is that, you know, do the wild now have the
assets to get that done or they trade them away
in this deal. That would be the biggest wild card.

Speaker 2 (01:04:23):
But we'll see.

Speaker 5 (01:04:24):
I mean, they got they do have still really good players.
I mean Adam Benneck looks like he's gonna be a stud.
Charlie Strammele has just gotten better and better and better,
and they got Riley Hyett on her hate. You know
they still have prospects, but certainly they traded uh, probably
their three best ones away the other day. If you're
not including an all of Europe.

Speaker 1 (01:04:42):
Thanks for the bonus time, safe travels getting back here
at least in time to make it at some point
to the matinee affair, and we'll we'll be in touch
during the way. Thanks Russe see Dan Taker appreciate you.
Russell Radio. We apologize for this. This sound was a
little bit distracting. I know he was in a position
where I don't think there's aything elsewhere else you could go.

(01:05:03):
We couldn't use our usual setup, could not use our
usual setup, but it was too important today to not
have them on. So I hope that folks are able to,
shall we say, understand real world limitations. I know we're
living a technological world where we only are we believe

(01:05:23):
all sound it must be pristine, and every picture bucks
being four K? But do we really are we really
that spolt? Do we really if we show a little
tenacity and focus. Can't we get past that just a
little bit?

Speaker 3 (01:05:43):
I don't know.

Speaker 1 (01:05:44):
By the way, we have a thing called the Missos
Sports Calendar of Calamity. There's the opposite of calamity. There
is celebration. And on this day forty five years ago.
So some of you were not even born, but some
of you were, and some of you, even if you
weren't born then might have heard about it forty five

(01:06:06):
years ago. Today the miracle at the met and I
want to set it up a little bit before we
get some sound from the network feed on that game.

Speaker 3 (01:06:17):
Vikings down.

Speaker 1 (01:06:20):
Well, the larger miracle was the Vikings scored three fourth
quarter touchdowns to come from behind from a fourteen point deficit.
They ultimately beat the Cleveland Browns twenty eight to twenty three.
They're down by one point though, with fourteen seconds remaining,
and they have the ball at their own twenty yard line,

(01:06:42):
and then these two improbable plays took place.

Speaker 6 (01:06:48):
Freeking on the side.

Speaker 3 (01:06:49):
That's what they're going to do, well, gaivership to.

Speaker 5 (01:06:52):
The far.

Speaker 6 (01:07:00):
Five second six and out of bounds. They are at
the forty six yard line of cleevelook. They have five
seconds and what about that from Bud Brant. The Collins
Mount rushbore thirty nine yards.

Speaker 5 (01:07:15):
The old sleep Wicker passed all it was throwing it
and latter lay back.

Speaker 2 (01:07:20):
To the trailing back and it worked that time.

Speaker 3 (01:07:22):
Ten rounds number twenty three.

Speaker 4 (01:07:24):
Taking it down.

Speaker 3 (01:07:25):
They've got another shot, Charlie. How we're gonna.

Speaker 6 (01:07:28):
Throw that ball up in the air and hope for
America will either a catch or a defensive penalty.

Speaker 3 (01:07:35):
R Modell's worried.

Speaker 6 (01:07:36):
And you can see what five seconds to go a
footy yards mass sideline fix two yard mass tops o'clock
with one second to.

Speaker 3 (01:07:44):
Go, So you'll go and win it up in the air.

Speaker 2 (01:07:47):
Holy see, you're.

Speaker 6 (01:07:48):
Hoping tap buck take up here today.

Speaker 2 (01:07:54):
The fighting they win at.

Speaker 6 (01:07:56):
Time is run out a store. The champion had rashaw
everybody that good is tay thing with the title. I've
already told Jo they with the title with the eleventh time,

(01:08:18):
but crap, Whenstrovisia.

Speaker 2 (01:08:22):
I said a miracle.

Speaker 1 (01:08:23):
And after they got that time, three receivers on the
same side.

Speaker 3 (01:08:27):
Cramer just threw that ball as long but as far
as high as he possibly could. There you have it.

Speaker 1 (01:08:34):
Charlie Jones, by the way, was the main announcer, I
think that's it. That was a an NBC game actually,
and the the the touchdown play, the miracle was Ahmad
Rashad making kind of almost going backwards near the end zone.
The ball gets tipped in front of him near the

(01:08:54):
goal line. He very nonchalantly grabs it with one hand
and it completes a forty six yard Yes, hail Mary.
But the play that set it up probably doesn't get
enough attention. And that's what you heard first from the
twenty yard line. They don't run a flea flicker. It's
it's the hook and ladder play. Kramer throws to Joe Sensor.

(01:09:20):
Censor then laterals to a sprinting Ted Brown who then
goes left, ends up getting out of bounds in the
you know, but obviously giving the vikings then for a
chance for the hail Mary play. That was a thirty
four yard completion. That's as good a dramatic comeback and

(01:09:41):
finish as you're going to get. It took place forty
five years ago today at Metropolitan Stadium, coming back from
a fourteen point deficit to beat the Browns twenty to
twenty three and to win what was then called the
Central Division let's get caught up.

Speaker 3 (01:09:58):
We'll get a pause in.

Speaker 1 (01:09:59):
We got some vikings to get to and we have
some A section stuff to cover as well.

Speaker 3 (01:10:03):
Don't go.

Speaker 1 (01:10:24):
Two A section stories broke this weekend. I don't want
to rank them. The level of horror and devastation involving
both of them is incalculable. I'll mention that the first
that came to my attention involved a shooting at Brown University,

(01:10:50):
and as I understand it now, a person of the
they're describing this as a person of interest is in
custody in connection with the shooting. I think there's good
reason to believe that events that person will be the suspect,
if that has not already been established, because authorities have
also said that there was no longer a need to
continue the shelter in place edict that was in place

(01:11:14):
for much of last night. I believe this individual was
taken into custody at an area hotel as well in
Providence or near Providence. Authorities believe the person detained Sunday
morning is in their thirties, but declined to release further details.
The shooting resulted in the death of the murders of

(01:11:38):
two students, was a Saturday afternoon in a busy academic building.
Students barricaded themselves in dorm rooms and classrooms after the
shooter fled, the mayor saying of the nine injured victims,
seven were in stable condition, one critical but stable, and

(01:11:59):
one had been discharged. And there's still I think a
lot yet to be known in that case about motive, etc.
There doesn't seem to be any remaining question about motive.
In the case of Sydney, Australia. The last number I
have is eleven killed. That number I'm assuming could change.

(01:12:23):
During a Honkah event Sunday on Sydney, Australia's Bondai Beach
in what officials called a terrorist attack on Australia's Jewish community.
One suspect also killed, the other is in critical condition.
More than two dozen people take it to hospitals in

(01:12:46):
a range of conditions. This is according to officials quoting
being quoted in the Wall Street Journal. This attack was
designed to target Sydney's Jewish community on the first day
of Hanukkah, said Chris Min's premiere of New South Wales State,
which includes Sydney. What should have been a night of
peace and joy celebrated in that community with families and

(01:13:09):
supporters has been shattered. Police said they located a vehicle
near the attack site that authorities believe held several improvised
explosive devices. A bomb disposal unit still unseen as of
Sunday night. We've generally tried to adhere to an edict
on Sunday sermons that we have a strong separation of
church and state as between the Toy Department and the

(01:13:31):
A Section, because we do cover the A Section pretty regularly,
as some of you know, during the week.

Speaker 3 (01:13:37):
But every once in a.

Speaker 1 (01:13:38):
While, it's not the first time a story or stories
come along that I think make it.

Speaker 3 (01:13:43):
I don't even think.

Speaker 1 (01:13:44):
I don't feel like I'm doing my job if we
at least don't acknowledge these stories and.

Speaker 3 (01:13:50):
Discuss them.

Speaker 1 (01:13:51):
And I'm loath to tell anybody listening to watch videos
of a slaughter like what took place in the beach
in Sydney, because it's too disturbing for a lot of people,
and I respect that, and I actually don't always look
at them, but I ended up watching one because of

(01:14:12):
how long it ensued. It was about it was between
ten and eleven minutes of video of somebody capturing two
of these terrorists doing target practice and just indiscriminately Well,

(01:14:34):
maybe that's not the right term for it.

Speaker 3 (01:14:36):
Maybe it was.

Speaker 1 (01:14:37):
It was obviously very targeted, just trying to take people out.
And the assumption is at some point in the video
there were authorities who might have been firing back, because
a couple times they're kind of up on a pedestrian
bridge and they are occasionally getting down lower so presumably
at some point they're being shot at as well. But

(01:14:58):
the length of time is what struck me that they
were able to continue to do their damage. And there's
another video in which one of these individuals, obviously because
as of now we believe there were two shooters. I
think that's what authorities are saying, and this is a
video that is getting more attention, and I guess I

(01:15:19):
would be more willing to recommend there's video of a bystander,
a good Samaritan who has he approaches one of the shooters.
This is when they're not on the bridge. This is
when one of them is down on lower land near
a tree, as I recall it, and his back is

(01:15:43):
turned to the from the direction that this bystander is
coming bystander rushes him, blindside, rushes him as he's taking
shots at people, gets him to the ground, takes his
gun away from him, and then.

Speaker 3 (01:16:01):
Starts pointing the gun.

Speaker 1 (01:16:02):
Then clearly he doesn't retaliate by killing him.

Speaker 3 (01:16:07):
He's trying to be as humane as he can be.

Speaker 1 (01:16:10):
He's pointing the gun at the perpetrator, and then eventually
he's signaling because you can tell he's not comfortably even
having the gun in his hands, and potentially he ends
up sort of leaning the gun against the tree as
he's trying I'm presuming to get people in authority law
enforcement to get there. And I guess we'll never know

(01:16:31):
if he's how many lives he saved, But I just
I think, like most people, I just marveled at the
willingness to put yourself in harm's way at that level.
It's remarkable to me, and I think now we're in

(01:16:54):
the process of maybe learning a little bit more about
that individual. And what's interesting is after he has taken
the gun away, you see two or three other people
come behind him, but they didn't do what he did.
And I'm not ripping them for not because who amongst
us has that in us to basically blindside somebody with

(01:17:14):
a gun and by the way, not knowing he may
have other firearms in his back pocket.

Speaker 3 (01:17:20):
That's the other thing.

Speaker 1 (01:17:21):
The risks are enormous, but something human in that guy
resonated and as horrific as this story is, I hope
this becomes part of the story. It's the one shred
of hope in an absolutely disgusting, gross scene, because there
are other videos that I've seen since in which you

(01:17:42):
literally see dozens and dozens of worshipers who's apparent crime
is they practice the Jewish faith.

Speaker 3 (01:17:54):
On the ground, trying to make.

Speaker 1 (01:17:56):
Themselves as small as possible, just hoping and praying that
these two terrorists are not going to take them out.
You don't recover from that, and there's no talking around it,

(01:18:18):
and I hope there's a willingness to follow the story
regarding the perpetrators.

Speaker 3 (01:18:24):
There's a lot of discussion.

Speaker 1 (01:18:25):
That Australia has been in a bad cycle that almost predicted,
if not this, something similar regarding anti Semitic attacks not
taken seriously enough or not called out to the degree
that they should be, and that's what we're left with.

(01:18:48):
We're left with a story of individuals participating in something
that's I guess been a part of tradition there for
a long time. And by the way, I was reminded
by a couple of Jewish leaders that Australia for some
who survived the Holocaust, their decision was to get literally

(01:19:10):
or geographically maybe as far away as they could from that,
and they picked Australia, and they thrived, married, had families,
their families, had families, the whole bit.

Speaker 3 (01:19:30):
And now.

Speaker 1 (01:19:32):
Because of their faith, because I'm sure we'll find out
there's some sort of statement that's supposed to be made
by this that these individuals in Australia are somehow responsible
for they're dead. That includes one rabbi. It included at
least one young girl, I believe age twelve. A number

(01:19:56):
of the others have yet to be identified. Horrific scene.
But if I recommend any video, it's the man who
I hope we learn more about who I'm sure My
guess is it does probably don't even want the publicity,
might not want it. Who did something that I'm not
even sure there are words for how heroic that is.
And it's not the first time we've seen that happen.

(01:20:17):
Some people have that in them. They don't care what
the odds are, they don't care what the logic of
it is. Maybe they're angry, maybe they're frustrated. Maybe this
is the way they deal with their own emotion. I
don't know. But to have the wherewithal to blindside an
individual and then, as I said, is mercy the right word? Now,

(01:20:40):
maybe that person didn't know how to handle a gun
to then just shoot that perpetrator dead, to try to
rise above that and just point the gun at him, like,
don't that's it?

Speaker 3 (01:20:51):
Just stop.

Speaker 1 (01:20:52):
Remarkable, absolutely remarkable. Let's get a break in. We'll return
to the toy department. I'm sure we'll cover these on
a little more depth during the week as well. Final
segment of today's editions of Sermons.

Speaker 3 (01:21:04):
That's neck. I got us up to minus three. I
don't know what the official reading you have from the
National Weather Service is.

Speaker 1 (01:21:18):
I've got five five above five under five under, okay,
so still pretty damn cold. We're supposed to get above
zero later in the day, though, are we not heavily?

Speaker 2 (01:21:28):
Oh?

Speaker 3 (01:21:28):
What's the difference. What's the difference at this point? That's
for sure.

Speaker 1 (01:21:31):
Once you get passed like fifteen, it's just cold. You're right,
A miracle at the met forty five years ago. Today
we played some sound from that remarkable comfort Mine victory
and Vikings history at Metropolitan Stadium. Down by a point
fourteen seconds remaining, they go eighty yards in two plays.
The game winner a forty six yard hail Mary pass

(01:21:53):
from Tommy Kramer to a mad Rashad.

Speaker 3 (01:21:56):
A lot of techts.

Speaker 1 (01:21:58):
Coming in, including this one.

Speaker 2 (01:22:01):
Dan.

Speaker 3 (01:22:01):
My dad's a Browns fan.

Speaker 1 (01:22:03):
He my uncle, my mom's brother, and two of their
other friends had left the game early. They heard the
call on the radio and my dad ejected the three
Vikings fans from his car in anger, before cooling off
and coming back to pick them up fifteen minutes later.

Speaker 3 (01:22:20):
That seems a bit overwrought, but I was Dan.

Speaker 1 (01:22:26):
I was bused to be at the game as guest
of Eddie Payton. That was a great game, six point
two guy, I remember that game went. I went rabbit
score hunting with my dad. I was nine years old.
Just got into the car to go home and heard
the final play on the radio on WCCO. Charlie, I
should say, Tony and Saint Michael. The Miracle of the
met was the first football game I remember I was

(01:22:47):
watching with my dad.

Speaker 3 (01:22:48):
He was flabberg acid. I will never forget it.

Speaker 1 (01:22:51):
Indeed, it was Charlie Jones, the big, big time announcer
for NBC, was on the call.

Speaker 3 (01:22:59):
Was that the same game? Somebody asks his balloon boy?

Speaker 2 (01:23:02):
I don't.

Speaker 3 (01:23:02):
It's a great question a.

Speaker 1 (01:23:04):
Balloon boy was Was it a halftime event or a
pregame where they had a hot air balloon deal where
it got away with a little kid in it and
had to then he had to be rescued. In fact,
we had that little kid on the show several years
ago on the anniversary. I don't think that was the
balloon boy game.

Speaker 3 (01:23:24):
Was it? I think it was a different game.

Speaker 4 (01:23:25):
I don't think so often A quick search now at
that time show December fourteenth against the forty nine ers.

Speaker 3 (01:23:31):
Oh okay, so it was different.

Speaker 1 (01:23:33):
Pat from Lakeland, I was at the Miracle at the
met as a nine year old Vikings fan. My dad
decided we should leave early, and the miracle happened when
we were When we were in the parking lot, I
had to ask him, does that mean we screwed up?

Speaker 5 (01:23:47):
Wow?

Speaker 3 (01:23:49):
Yeah, Well that's that's the that's always the risk, because
I mean nine times out of ten, you're not going
to get burned, right, maybe ninety nine times out of
one hundred you're not going to get burned.

Speaker 1 (01:23:59):
But there's always that one thing, and it's haunted him
for the rest of his life. Think about it.

Speaker 4 (01:24:05):
So, you see, is the moral of the story. Don't
ever leave early. I mean, I can recall going to
a Wild home opener. They're playing the Jets. Empty net,
goal goes in. Everyone starts going to the rafters. Yeah,
hold on, goal called back, it's off side, Wild comeback.

Speaker 3 (01:24:19):
Win the game over there, you go. See, you got
to stay, you do? You really should?

Speaker 1 (01:24:28):
Tom from Columbia Heights, Dan, everything's good, russo sound. Find
anyone who's saying anything saying something else has never listened
to Am eleven thirty or Lavelle in his car. That's
a very very good point. You know, I had intended
to talk a little bit of Vikings Cowboys, but if
I'm honest, I don't really have that much left to say,

(01:24:49):
do I I mean?

Speaker 3 (01:24:49):
Or do we I mean?

Speaker 1 (01:24:51):
At this point we previewed it a lot Friday. The
team is in the position they're in, right, which is
ain't that much at stake less than a one percent chance.
If you believe the analytics of making the postseason, does
that mean you have a ghost of a chance.

Speaker 3 (01:25:07):
Yeah, I guess you do. For a miracle. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:25:11):
Once again, the story tonight is going to largely focus
on the QB. Right, it's all about seeing progress in
the starting quarterback for your Minnesota Vikings, and I think
again for the second street week, they're playing a crappy defense.
The difference might be the Cowboys do have some strength
along the defensive line that I'm not sure the Commanders

(01:25:34):
had because of performance and injury, and that might make
it a little bit more challenging for JJ and I
have a hard even though our defense, the Vikings defense
is played better, have a hard time believing that Dallas
is not gonna be able to move the ball. Dallas
has so much more to play for. Clearly they now
feel like they have a shot to steal the division

(01:25:55):
from the Eagles. It sounded preposterous not that many weeks ago,
so I think, well, I'll watch. It's a really good
in a sense double header tonight, right, because you've got
Minnesota Wild at five, there's enough distance where you can
get most what's the average hockey game go two and
a half something like that. Yeah, So basically the football
game won't start till seven to twenty. So if you've

(01:26:17):
got wild at five, you're gonna get to see most
of either the first or second best defenseman in hockey
make his debut at the arena formerly known as the
X and then you can flip over to see what
JJ McCarthy is is up to. Right, that's not a
bad for the average sports roube. That really isn't a

(01:26:39):
bad back to back sort of sports thing, is it,
do you think?

Speaker 2 (01:26:44):
No?

Speaker 3 (01:26:44):
No, I think there's gonna be enough time I'm getting screwed. Yeah, yeah,
that's true.

Speaker 1 (01:26:49):
But nobody cares about you, correct, any more than they
care about me.

Speaker 3 (01:26:52):
Quinn Hughes.

Speaker 1 (01:26:56):
You know again, I didn't get into the whole box
office thing with so, but I think he thinks that
I do too, that whether it was showing up heavily
at the box office or not, there's gonna be more
and more sort of pushback, like Okay, come on, some's
got to kick in here pretty soon. And one would
assume he represents the kind of move, especially if it

(01:27:18):
pays off in the ice we're supposed to of placating
those individuals and maybe even bringing them back if they
do happen to have one foot out the door, even
with the success, the recent recovery success after the bad
start of the season. Correct, Yeah, so what way have
coming up next?

Speaker 4 (01:27:34):
Do we have a little Westwood one NFL insider, We'll
get us.

Speaker 1 (01:27:37):
We have the Bears, Oh Gophers played it for action,
Bear Weather in Chicago. I'm going to watch a little
of that at noon, just because I think it's supposed
to be close to zero there at Soldier Field.

Speaker 3 (01:27:48):
You so rarely see that. Can't close this on.

Speaker 4 (01:27:51):
Your club is in Denver, they are it's only sixty.
There is that true zero. Denver's weird.

Speaker 2 (01:27:56):
Man.

Speaker 1 (01:27:56):
It could be sixty one day and then a clipper
comes to and I got twenty five in This is
to snow the next stip.

Speaker 3 (01:28:01):
Thanks for watching, Thank you for listening.

Speaker 1 (01:28:03):
Billy Garren joined us early podcast you can get it
a second time around, and bonus Russo Radio as well.
We will talk to you tomorrow beginning at three