Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Lot of ground to coverage. Let's get to at Aaron
Portsline from the Athletic on the Legacy Retirement Group dot
com phone line. Aaron, thanks for the time this morning.
I hope you're well, my friend. Let's start with the
Four Nations face off. This has been This has been
just glorious hockey. I am so glad. I mean, I
like the All Star Game, but that has gotten kind
(00:20):
of tricked out and had very little meaning. But this,
this is legit international hockey and it's been a blast.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Yeah. Well, it's interesting, isn't it, Because it feels like
all Star games really in all of the four major
sports probably beyond that have lost a lot of their luster. Yeah.
I mean, you look at the NBA game, players asking
out at the last minute. No NBA guys wanting to
take part in the dunk contest whatever that's become. You're
(00:48):
seeing this across all the sports. The NHL has really
stumbled upon something. Now. What's interesting to me A couple
of points that keep working into my mind. If this
got larger, like normally, Russia would be part of this, right,
that's one of the hockey powers of the world. It'd
be much harder to do this mid season. If you
start at is go to stick teams, that that changes
(01:10):
the look of this. So I'm not sure what the
future is of this four nation's faith off type tournament.
The other thing is I think the Olympics. And I
know this is counter because the International Ice Hockey Federation
is part of the Olympic Games, but they may want
to consider switching to NHL style rules because this level
of hockey best on best played with NHL rules as
(01:33):
opposed to double IHF rules. This does not allow for fighting.
It's just a much better product and I think people
are much much more dialed into it because of that. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:44):
Well, and I think we're going to see didn't they
announce that the World Cup of Hockey is coming back
to So you're going to have international hockey every couple
of years now if they stick with the four nations
type format instead of an all star game, and then
you've got the you've got the Winter Olympics, and then
you've got the World Cup. You would have you would
have you know, Team USA playing every couple of years.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Yeah, right, And and you know what's good timing because
the USA, which is always sort of chase after Canada,
along with the rest of the hockey playing world. By
a lot of people's measures has perhaps caught Canada now
maybe pass them by. Dare I say, if anybody from
Canada is listening, it's just become a really competitive series.
(02:32):
You know, you got the pros playing now well enough
to remember, but when it was limited to the amateur players,
it was still awesome. But this brings it to a
new level. And of course Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Virensky
having as good a tournament as anybody.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Yeah. I think he's got five points and he is
just a blue line stud right now. And he's been
paired up with Boston Bruins Charlie McAvoy, who I think
is hurt. I don't know if he's playing tonight, but
I do believe that both the these guys are tournament wreckers.
They Kuld Chuck brothers just it reminds me of watching
(03:05):
like slapshot of these guys are coming in here, the
Hanson brothers, and they're just ruining there. They ruined Team
Canada the other night.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Yeah, and you know what they come to it naturally
to Keith Kitchuck. Of course, their father was one of
the NHL's pre eminent power forwards of his generation with
dare I say a some would say mean streak. Maybe
dirty streak is taking a little far, but non, he
(03:33):
laid out a couple of blue jackets in his time
and it seems to smile while doing it. Yeah, and
who knows what tonight brings. Does Canada try to get
back on top of things off the opening base off
which has become almost a legendary story in in hockey
now already, the way that that last game started these
(03:54):
two games, what does Canada do, if anything, to get
back on top of that, that sort of edge that
they've always helped.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Yeah, I would be surprised if we saw that right
off the hop again, But yeah, I mean you never know.
And look, the Canadians, on paper, I think are the
better team. They have more individual skill and when you
start talking about Connor McDavid, Nathan McKinnon, Sydney Crosby, Kale mccarr,
I mean, these guys are the best in the world
(04:21):
and they're all on one team together, and you know,
not to take it anyway from Team USA, but Team
USA playing like a team and they played that really
stifling one two two style which is exactly how you play.
You clog the middle. You don't let that speed get
built up by Team Canada, which has plenty of it,
and they they really couldn't get anything going through the middle.
(04:42):
You saw the one goal from McDavid was the one
lapse in d from Team USA, and that was all
they got the other night and USA got to win.
I would expect that same style tonight.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
I would think. I think you can also say this
that game, the first game, I think the USA probably
ha had the benefit of feeling like the team that
was had the US against the world sort of momentum.
I think people still see Canada is superpower in hockey,
(05:13):
so they're fighting that. They're also pushing back against the
political air that the game has taken on in recent
weeks and all of that. I think it probably caught
Canada by surprise that they were almost so faeral in
their attitude at the start of that game. I think
(05:34):
that's probably not going to be a benefit now. I
think that that all of that's probably on even footing now,
which just makes tonight's game even more delicious. You're right, though,
what's so interesting about these lineups in these games is
like you want to pick the twelve best players. But
hockey is not best played when you have twelve super
(05:57):
skilled players. You mix some players. I do think the
US maybe has more players with multiple tools in their
games that can play in different ways than the Canadians do.
Taking nothing away from their great players as well, but
I do think the US players have been maybe raised
a more rugged edge to their game. Certainly that could
(06:18):
Chucks would fit that.
Speaker 1 (06:19):
Yeah, and every guy on that team has a role
and they're fulfilling it very well. And the X factor
before we move on is Team OOSA has arguably the
best goaltender on the planet right now, and that's Connor Hellibuck.
So if he has a game, it could be a
tough go for the Canadians. So we're just a couple
of days away of returning hockey back to nationwide arena.
When the Four Nations is over. Jackets get back to
(06:41):
work Saturday night hosting Chicago and they're just a point
right now out of that second wildcard spot, which is
held by Detroit. We'll talk about the stadium series here
in a minute, but where are the Blue Jackets now?
What they've got to do here? As we are in
the home stretch of the season. Still dealing with some
pretty significant injuries, aren't.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
We Yeah, though yes was a good day. They returned
to practice. There were some new faces. Not new faces,
there welcome faces. Boone Jenner back on the ice. That
was not a surprise. Dante Favreau, the defenseman who has
played with Lorensky, back on the ice. That was not
a surprise. If there was a surprise, it would be
(07:18):
in the form of kill Marshchenko, who has a broken jaw.
Those typically take six eight weeks. His did not need
to be wired shut, so there was a hope that
he could be back sooner, and in fact, it looks
like he's going to be. He was practiced fully yesterday
with a face shield on. No one is saying if
any of these three guys are going to be available Saturday,
(07:40):
but it certainly looks that way. And it also looks
as though Don Wodell, the GM of this Blue Jackets team,
has continued to pursue a trade for a forward, and
I think he wants to get that done sooner rather
than later. Before the March seventh. March seven trade deadline
could be a different look to this team, maybe not
(08:02):
just by Saturday. But in the coming days before that
outdoor game March first in Ohio.
Speaker 1 (08:07):
State interesting and that's a good segue, and we'll definitely
keep it in touch with you when it comes to
trade deadline time and get an update if there is
any activity there. But yeah, everyone's we've got the game Saturday,
hosting Chicago, and then it's March first. You've got the
outdoor game at the Horseshoe and it's what one hundred
plus year life at Ohio Stadium. Never has there been
a hockey game, NHL hockey game played there, and that'll
(08:29):
change on Saturday, and it's against Detroit. As I mentioned,
this is going to be a meaningful game. These two
teams are battling for a wild card playoffs spot at
the moment.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Yeah, you mentioned the Blue Jackets one point out of
the playoffs. That is very true. The team that there
at one point behind is the Detroit Red Wings. So
how cool is that that this is not just a
neat setting but a really important game. I remember writing
at the beginning as a season that this season would
be a success. This March first game has meaning to it. Well,
(09:03):
we can say now that it does have meaning to it.
I think the Blue Jackets, by their play, by their
overachievement so far this season has sort of reset the
standard of how this season may be measured. But that's
going to be a great atmosphere. It's going to be
a great game, and I do think the fact that
so much is going to be on the line with
(09:23):
it it could be for a playoff spot, I think
it just drives it even higher. They're expecting mid eighty
thousand people there. There's going to be all kinds of
crazy stuff in and around the game, but the game
itself can carry on its own merits.