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Toronto Maple Leafs 2026-2027 Season Preview: Down To The Bolts, Chayka Teardown · Jablam Sports Hockey

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: All right, let's open up some dip.
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_01: All right, welcome to Jablam Sports Hockey, your home for everything happening around the NHL.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_01: I'm your host, Peter Rogerno, and every episode we break down the biggest topics all hockey fans are talking about with writers, TV, and radio experts from all 32 teams.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_01: Today we're still doing our 32-episode team previews.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_01: And if you've been following me, you know my childhood team is the Toronto Maple Leafs.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, so we have on the show Jonah Siegel.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to the show, Jonah.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: How are you?
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_01: I'm I'm hanging in.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_01: I started doing this stupid thing, and I'm gonna start doing it where I intro with like a weird thing that I randomly do.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_01: You do cover Toronto and the media and everything like that.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_01: What happened?
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_01: What's happened recently in the media?
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, well, I do know, and I it irks me as a person who can't afford to really spend too much money now.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_01: We're not gonna talk about my health, but now they have they moved prime to Wednesdays, and now well, and most of us do have Amazon Prime, right?
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_01: I I can I I I can feel bad for some of the older, much older people who might not be adapting to all the different apps and everything, and then now uh Rogers has obviously changed Saturday to Saturday night hockey, blah blah blah.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_01: But they have Monday nights now with David Amber and those guys, and it seems is that on like sportsnet plus premium?
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: I think it really depends on what package you have, what you're paying for, as to how what games you get and when.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_00: I believe Monday night requires a premium subscription in addition to uh the basic package, but don't quote me on that.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: Amazon on Wednesday nights obviously requires a Prime account.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I believe I believe there is a way to get the games without paying for Prime specifically.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: If you have cable, I think there's an extra fee you can pay if you don't want to pay Amazon the Prime fee.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: But again, you're kind of catching me uh in the middle of a bunch of things.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: So I there is stuff going on in the industry, so I don't have that in front of me.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_01: No, no, no, that's fine.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and uh we're gonna get to the Maple Leafs, and of course, in trending now, there's some uh go ahead.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: No, no, so so your question is what's happening now?
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, the big the big news of the day is that Rogers has completed its acquisition of the remaining shares of what was Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, all the Toronto teams are now wholly owned by Rogers.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so that is the big news of the day.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_01: Wow, that is pretty pipe bomb ish.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_01: Wow, that's crazy.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_01: Um, well, uh we'll we'll get into some Maple Leafs now.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_01: Uh uh last season, the Leafs finished uh last in the Atlantic.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_01: Uh tough division, but they did finish last after a decade of being in the playoffs, the longest of all the teams in the current tenure until now.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, what if you need to pinpoint like one specific thing that needs to happen to this team this year for them to get back into the playoffs?
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: What would it be?
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Well, so first of all, like as I said to you off earlier, I'm a sports fan, so so I'm just giving you an opinion as a fan.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I'm not any smarter than anybody else.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, to me, I think the it's it's it is a bit of an excuse, but I think the one thing that has to happen is they have to stay healthy.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, they've got some older guys on the roster, they've got, you know, they're they're I think in the in the top quadrant in terms of average age.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, whether it's Bob in net, uh Tanev on the back end, Matthews up front, you know, they they need to stay healthy.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's the number one thing.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I'm with you there.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_01: That that Tanev injury really, I think, really hurt them last year, uh, especially with the way that defense played.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, this summer, of course, huge, massive changes.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_01: Uh after they missed the playoffs, the president CEO of Make Believe Sports and Entertainment, Keith Pelle, restructured like the whole organization, of course, starting with the management.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_01: In the summer, they fired Brad Tree Living and hired, which sent vibes around the NHL as well, in terms of hiring John Chaika, who's had many, you know, people saying he's not a great fit.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_01: And of course, Matt Sandine, ex-captain of the Maple Leafs, to lead the team upstairs.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_01: New general manager John Chaika went to work and tore down the team to bare bones with just pretty much the core remaining.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_01: Looking at just the rate, uh, the roster there, Jonah.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_01: What grade would you give Chika and Sunin so far?
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I mean, here's what I fundamentally believe in, and I'm gonna repeat myself again.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_00: I I am not an expert, I'm just an idiot fan like everybody else.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: But a lot of the so-called experts in talking heads, a lot of the commentary was that they their hands were tied, like how much change can you make?
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_00: And to their credit, a whole lot, including up until the day of, I believe, or the day before the season opener, uh, the day before.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, these guys have a plan, uh, they're active.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: When they want to make a change or do something, they do it.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm not here to tell you that every move they made was the best move or a smart move, but I believe that there were character issues in that locker room.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_00: I don't believe that everyone was on the same page.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: I think that started with an indecisive general manager and Brad Tree Living.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: I don't believe he and the rest of the team were were, and I mean management team and coaching staff, Craig Baruby.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: I don't believe any of them were on the same page.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: And I I just I don't understand why, but my understanding is that Brad Tree Living was either unwilling or unable to pull the trigger and make decisions.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: If nothing else, these guys have changed that.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_00: At the same time, they've taken you know a huge chunk of the group and and replaced them.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, they got really lucky in bringing, you know, winning the lottery.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, they got one of the top defensemen signed.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_00: They got uh, you know, an aging but top goalie signed.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, they just made a massive trade the other day for a top a first line right winger.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: You know, for the first time, I'm actually intrigued to watch this team.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and I'll say this at least so far, it's the first time in years that the fan base doesn't hate these guys, and and this roster has been hated for a long time.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know about a long time, but uh it's been at least two years, I would say.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's a long time.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_01: That's a long time, especially in Leafland.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, yeah.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you mentioned all the different things that's happened.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_01: Let's just start behind uh the bench and with these uh things here.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_01: Of course, new coaching staff.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Jim Hiller had a couple of seasons in LA.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_01: They got to the playoffs.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: He's the head coach.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_01: And then enemy number one is associate coach Daniel Alfredson.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, new, like you mentioned, new roster with all new forwards except the core guys, John Tavares, Austin Matthews, William Neilander, and now, of course, Easton Cowan to start the season at least.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but let's get to that big trade you mentioned minutes before the deadline, 5 p.m., the day before the season starts.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: The Leafs completed a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets to get Carill Marchenko, and they also acquired Elvis Merz Leakens and Miles Wood to Toronto for Matthew Nice, who the Leaf fans did love, Steven Lorenz, Emile Andre, who we never really got to see play, and a second round pick.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_01: Then Chaika walked up Marshenko seven years, 12.5 per.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_01: From a Leaf standpoint, how do you like to trade a new contract?
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_01: And let me throw in Matthew Nye scored, I think, at least two goals for the blue jackets in his debut.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_01: Continue.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, look, like uh I can only go based on what I've read, and and I think that first of all, you have to give up to get they clearly got a guy who can play on the first line, uh, who can put the puck in the net and is fast.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: My understanding, based on listening to a lot of interviews and talking to a bunch of people and reading a bunch of things, is that the leaf brass, this one and the last one, were of the mindset that Matthew Nice had peaked, that he had uh in a game of speed and where speed was going to be prioritized, they believed he wasn't gonna get any faster.
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_00: And as good as he was, and as young as he was, what you saw is what you can get.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_00: And the Montreal Canadians put it together a hell of a package to try and get him.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_00: That deal fell apart literally on deadline day.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and and this is a guy that was an ass viewed as an asset by uh Columbus.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, to me, I you know, you asked a bit a little bit about the coaches as well.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_00: Like for me, I I and and I I apply this to the GM, right?
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: Everybody learns from their mistakes, like nobody's perfect.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_00: We all do dumb things and make mistakes, and and I don't believe in a world of regret, and the only regret I have is when you don't learn from your mistakes.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm gonna hope that you know, this is this is a chance for Daniel Alfredson and and the coach and and the GM and and Matt Sendine and others to really go out there and and have another shot at things.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: So that's what excites me.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_00: That's what I say that you know, you listen to all these people, no nobody is out there telling you what they can expect from all these changes.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_00: One thing that uh I think everyone is united on is that it's gonna be really interesting to watch them.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_01: And they also, and you did mention, uh, pick up a booming slap shot.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_01: Funny enough, I already wrote a couple of my questions in.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_01: I was gonna say this.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, shout out to my buddy Jesse LaFleche.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_01: He's going to the Margaret uh Princess Margaret Hospital road hockey uh celebrity event happening this weekend.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_01: And many obviously ex-hockey players and famous people around are going to be there, including Ally F.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_01: Rady.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_01: And the Leafs haven't had a booming slapshot since possibly Ally Frady, maybe Brian McCabe.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but they went and made the trade, uh, sign a trade deal with Tampa to acquire the third best scoring, goal scoring defenser from last season, Darren Radish, with a contract at 8.5 million for eight years.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_01: What's your take on the deal?
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, to me, the cap is continually going up.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_00: I think they predicted that in two years it's going up to 129 million dollars or something.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_00: So to me, um I think that um you got a GM and Sundine who saw a glaring need.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_00: They wanted a guy, and they signed him like immediately after free agency opened.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: And you know what?
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_00: Like, barring another pandemic that shuts down the league, you know, they're they're worrying about the money later.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: Like they signed him to long term, and yeah, he'll probably be long in the tooth down the road.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: But at that point, all else being equal, I think that we can say that at that point, the the money's not gonna really be all that much if the cap's up to 130 million dollars and more down the road.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_00: So you see a guy, he's talented.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_00: I just hope he has average numbers, he doesn't have to have to hit it out of the park, so to speak, down the road.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_00: If he has average numbers the rest of the way, I think we'll be happy.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_00: But but ultimately, this is a results business.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: They gotta get this team back into the playoffs and pass the first or second round.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: We can do that.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: That's a that's a pretty good progress.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, these guys are getting paid to win, and and nobody's done that here since 1967.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I will say this.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, there's been a couple of things that uh media personalities have said about Jim Heller and stuff, but I'm not liking this uh Morgan Riley and Darren Radish combo right now.
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, how long do you think he sticks with that?
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_01: And what do you think it could be better?
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_00: Well, so I agree with you.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_00: I am not, I was at one point a Morgan Riley fan.
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_00: A friend of mine who's worked in hockey longer than I've been alive always told me that the best managers understand when you have a diminishing return asset and you unload it.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: And I think the Leaf should have done that a long time ago.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_00: One of the awful deals that uh Kyle Dubas did, in my opinion, was signing Riley to that ridiculous deal and giving him a no trade clause.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_00: I think if he didn't have the no trade clause, they would have traded him by now.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: Again, that's just one idiot's opinion.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_00: Having said that, you know what?
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I don't want a coach that puts at the especially like game one and two of the season.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_00: If he wants and they had no real exhibition games, yeah.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_00: If he wants to give guys, especially veteran guys, the benefit of the doubt to learn how to play with each other for a couple of games, let them do that.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'd rather they do that than they're just yanking changes and not letting anybody get set at all.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there's a whole bunch of things that haven't gone right so far, but you know, be patient a little bit and see how things work out.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: If they start settling down, they start learning how to play with each other, great.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_00: And if they don't, you can make a change later.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_00: But I don't love it, but I'm gonna trust the guy who's making the decisions until I don't.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I'm just not a fan of, in my opinion, yeah, I've diminished my view on Riley's play on the ice.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_01: I love the dude.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I do own a Riley jersey.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but he, in my opinion, you I don't know how you stick two offensive-minded defensemen together instead of a defensive defenseman with an offensive defenseman.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_01: That's just my opinion.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, Toronto Netminders obviously have been unreliable to play a regular amount of games as a starting role goalie the past few seasons.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: So Thaiko went out and got two times Stanley Cup winner and Vesno winner, Sergei Babrowski.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_01: 7 million, three-year contract.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_01: What do you think of now the tandem of Sergei Babrowski and Anthony Stolars?
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I think, you know, first I'm pretty sure that they have a history together, if I'm not mistaken.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, for the Panthers, yes.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_00: So that so that's number one.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_00: They these guys know each other.
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, um the maybe you know, Shaika went out and signed Andy O'Brien, who was Sid Crosby's trainer forever.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the guy apparently knows what he's doing from a uh you know strength conditioning medical um factor.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: And to me, that is important because I would like to think that uh there was dialogue going back and forth before signing Bob.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: And they needed a guy who could help mentor stolers, who could change the mentality of the goaltenders from my standpoint, where we've had guys who just seemingly don't seem all that interested in playing all the time.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, we've we've had several goaltenders over the last, you know, five, six years who have used, as you said, been unreliable.
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_00: And to me, that's a massive problem.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I I I remember back in the day when the Leafs acquired Cujo, they just played like way more confidently and way differently when he was in the net because he they knew he was back there.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_00: They were riskier, they took more chances, they had more confidence in the guy.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_00: So I think having Bob back there for the majority of games, again, assuming he's healthy, will be a massive advantage to the team.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_00: And I also think it helps stolar.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_01: 10 years after Austin Matthews was drafted first overall in Buffalo, as you mentioned, the Leafs win the lottery again.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_01: And 10 years later, almost to the day, first overall being drafted in Buffalo, Justin Bieber announces that they the Maple Leafs draft Gavin McKenna.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_01: What kind of season are you expecting from the first overall pick from Yukon?
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_01: And what are his chances of winning the Calder trophy?
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_00: You know what?
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I'm in the I think I'm in the minority.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_00: Like my expectations are very minimal and low.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_00: He's 18 years old.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_00: He played in the U.S.
• 17:51
  SPEAKER_00: college system.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um, like I'm giving this guy every benefit of the bright of the doubt.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_00: And I really hope the fan base is kind to him because this is not easy.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_00: He he's now a boy playing a man's game.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_00: You look at him, I say this half jokingly, I don't think he's ever picked up a razor to shave his face.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_00: Like he's literally a baby out there.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: I think they say he weighs 165 pounds.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: He's gotta find his way.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm hoping that you know, Tavares and Matthews and others can show him their way.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_00: And I hope the coaching staff shelters him enough so that he can learn the ropes, take his, you know, not everybody's Austin Matthews who who hits the road running as quickly as he did.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: Remember, Matthews is a big guy.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I'm completely drawing a bank.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: The guy in Chicago is having a, you know, Connor Bedard is having a rough time.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_00: Like for every Bedard out there, you know, for every you know, Celebrini out there, there's a Bedard.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_00: Doesn't mean that they're not gonna hit, but everybody matures differently.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_00: My expectations are are relatively low, and maybe I just don't want to set him up to disappoint me, but you know what?
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_00: Like, let's see how he does.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_00: And he hasn't looked out of place, but he certainly hasn't looked overly comfortable either.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_01: We mentioned all the changes to the team, and now let's get to the offensive additions in their depth.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_01: Jack Roslovic, Nick Paul, Colton Sissens, Brandon Duhaim, Teddy Blueger, Zach McEwen.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_01: Do you think this leaf's bottom six has more depth they've possibly had in years?
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_01: And which is your standout favorite for this season?
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: Well, and one, I mean, I'm not proficient enough to tell you which of those bottom six guys is is gonna be the best acquisition.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_00: I I I I know this, they were not hard to play against last year.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sure there was some combination of coaching and talent, and they completely changed that that group.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's a good thing.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't know whether it was a mismatch between the general manager, Brad Tree Leaving, and the coach Craig Baruby.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_00: I heard Craig Baruby on the radio the other day said, you know, he believes you play the game 200 feet, you dump the puck in.
• 20:13
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not saying he's wrong.
• 20:14
  SPEAKER_00: I just think you have to adapt your style to the players you have, not vice versa.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_00: And if the coach and the GM aren't on the same page and the GM's not getting players that the coach wants to coach that style, or vice versa, you have a problem.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: And I think we saw that.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah, they got lucky, you know, not didn't get lucky they had success one of Baruby's years.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: They certainly didn't have it last year.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_00: And when Mitch Marner was gone, there was a gaping hole that didn't get replaced.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_01: Let's go.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_01: Time for some trending now.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_01: The Vegas Golden Knights extended forward William Carlson, two-year contract at 6.7 million, the team announced Wednesday.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_01: With Vegas locking up their veterans, Rasmus Anderson in the summer, Mark Stone, and now Carlson.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_01: Do you think Vegas is in for a retool or a rebuild in three, four years?
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_01: Or do you think they're just going to continue to cycle out their prospects and go for those big name targets?
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I think that uh a couple of things.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: One, you said it was a two-year deal.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_00: Two years is not exactly a long time.
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_00: I I think the bigger point on Vegas is their management team is ruthless.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_00: So people might be signed longer term, and they may even give some of those guys no trade or no movement clauses.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_00: It is abundantly clear that if they want someone gone, irrespective of their status, that player is gone.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_00: Like when they went to the Stanley Cup, like 15 minutes later, they were trading and cutting and releasing guys.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_00: They are absolutely ruthless.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't think this is a sign of anything other than them taking care of business for right now.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_00: And if they need to pivot tomorrow, they'll pivot.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_00: They do that better and more commonly than any other team that I've seen in the NHL.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, they are very different than the old school team hockey-friendly uh management.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the Anaheim Ducks signed defenseman Tristan Luneau, who uh to a six-year uh extension team announced Thursday.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, the contract carries an annual average of 7.2 million, as reported by SportsHence Elliott Friedman.
• 22:30
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, he's only appeared in 14 career NHL games, and as Friedman mentioned, this is the largest contract in NHL history for a player of his experience.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_01: And the 22-year-old has what roughly two goals and two assists in his career, drafted 53rd overall in 2022.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: What does this do with Pat Verbeek, the GM of the ducks, uh, salary structure with him obviously having to match the offer for Leo Carlson, giving uh Cutter Goche that contract, and then next summer they're gonna have to try to extend young uh Bennett Seneca.
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I don't follow the ducks all that much.
• 23:20
  SPEAKER_00: I'll tell you that obviously everybody knows what happened over the summer and how you know they should have signed the guy Carlson earlier, they didn't, you know, he signs an offer sheet, literally took them to the cleaners salary-wise.
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_00: This seems like a complete reaction to that.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_00: We're not gonna get burned down the road.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_00: We've young assets, we're gonna tie them up.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so that doesn't happen.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, we'll see what that does to them.
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, if this guy pans out, I think what what I mean, what is he's played, like seven games or something?
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_00: 147 goals.
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_00: 14 games.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_00: Like if he pans out, great.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, again, the cap is gonna go up, but if he's just average, that's a lot of money to spend on average.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_00: But you know what?
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not in that seat, and we never know what pressure an owner puts on a GM.
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_00: The owner could be ticked, he could have said, Look, you put us in a real bind here.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_00: You need to get us out of it, and you need to make sure that we we tie up young players moving forward, and that's what they did.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks for joining me, Jonah.
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_00: Pleasure.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_01: Fans, remember to subscribe to the show in your listening app.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_01: And if you have any questions, follow us on X at Jablam Sports.
• 24:33
  SPEAKER_01: See you next time.