The Kevin Karius Show - Mar. 20th, 2026 - Mark Spector

0:00This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever find yourself playing the budgeting game? Shifting a little money here, a little there, and hoping it all works out? Well, with the name your price tool from Progressive, you can be a better budgeter and potentially lower your insurance bill too. You tell Progressive what you want to pay for car insurance, and they'll help you find options within your budget. Try it today at Progressive.com. Progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates. Price and coverage match limited by state law, not available in all states. Hi, this is Pablo Tore from Pablo Tore finds out. And today, I want to talk to you about Boost Mobile. Because we spend a lot of time analyzing inefficiencies in sports, overvalued contracts, money tied up in the wrong places, and so on. But those inefficiencies aren't just on a roster. Sometimes, they're in your own monthly expenses. Boost Mobile says switching to their $25 unlimited forever plan can unlock up to $600 in savings a year. That's $25 a month for unlimited data, talk and text when you bring your own phone. If that money is trapped in a pricey phone bill,

1:01it might be worth a second look. Visit BoostMobile.com to learn more. After 30 gigabytes, customers may experience lower speeds. Customers pay $25 per month as long as they remain active on the Boost Mobile and Limited Plan. Savings claim based on January 20, 206, Boost Mobile Survey of 1,000 Americans with single line on limited plans comparing average annual payments of major carriers to 12 months on the Boost Mobile and Limited Plan. For full offered details, visit BoostMobile.com. As we welcome in, Mark Specter from Roger Sportsnet. Good morning, spec. Good morning. Boys, what's happening out there in Radio Land this morning? How's the old text line? People are happy this morning, Abe. Oh, yeah. And we'll fire it up and do it. Let me say this. I know who's not happy in here. Your pal, Kevin Carious. That's right. Before we get on there, he says. Heck, come on, man. We're walking down the hallway yesterday. And I go, this team ripped the hearts out of this oilor squad. Two Stanley Cup finals in a row. Then I look at the spec article. I need a little credit here.

2:01Come on, man. First line in the article, huh, spec? Now correct me if I'm wrong. But that's called copyright? No, I mean, I might have borrowed a little bit. I would call that research. Yeah, your factual evidence. I think it's not, like, it's pretty well what everyone was thinking last night, exactly what everyone was thinking. You know, there's, there are, like, it's a long season. And there's some games where you just can't find the requisite emotion and the team's flat. We accept that. Every team does it. It happens all through the league. It's not just your team, folks. But then there's opportunities to have games where that shouldn't be a problem, right? Where you play an opponent or in the situation where you say, okay, you know what? We might lose tonight because they're a better team or it doesn't guarantee a win. But one thing that shouldn't be a problem here is emotion. We should be fired up ready to play here.

3:02And for the others to come out, that flat against that team was just disappointing for you, anyone who went there to see a good hockey game from their home side. I mean, the others were no shows. They no showed it against the team. I wrote it last night. They ripped you said it. They ripped their hearts out. They made their captain cry. They took their act to Italy and ripped on Leon dry saddle. Kachook's playing for them. They beat you in two cups. And you come out like you're playing against the Ottawa Senators in a Monday night in the bubble. You're not over here. As awful. Awful, awful, awful. The other thing, the other thing to spec is that like the build up to this, I thought there was, I don't know if there was enough. Maybe it was proportionate. And then the reaction after from the players and coach, it didn't match what everyone's talking about. Doesn't make sense. You know, it was, you know, every once in a while, there's a game that

4:03that looks one way from the press box and the stands and looks another way from the ice. Frankly, I've gone down to a lot of dress groups thinking, here's what I'm going to write. And here's what I thought about the game. And after I talked to some people, I go, oh, well, you know, that wasn't so evident from Ryan, but I get it and it makes you kind of change your tune. And the last night was one of those games. The players were like, oh, wasn't that, you know, we weren't that bad. We were really close. We just couldn't get one over the line. And the coach was like, I thought we played pretty good. And 18,500 people walked out of there going, that orange and blue team sucked. And they barely competed. Like it's the dichotomy between what it looked like from the ice, what it looked like from the seats last night was pretty stark, Kevin. Yeah, the compete level increased like after it was three nothing. I'll give him that. Who cares? Yeah, I'll give him that. But it's way too little. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. When you get into this, they're the only way to compete is to go punch someone in the head. I didn't see that all night. So don't tell me you tried harder when it was three nothing. If you're going to lose, go down swinging.

5:04They didn't do that either. So yeah, it's lights out at three nothing, man. I was just wondering because you mentioned the coach's comments. After the game, he seemed to think that they played a pretty good game and that the game maybe was closer than the scoreboard appeared. And I don't know if this might have been the game where it's you know, due in order, but have you ever seen, and there's a time in a place, fellas, but have you ever seen Nob Block just kind of fall on the sword and be like, look, I didn't have the guys ready. This one's on me. Like you see that out of coaches, but I just feel like, I don't know, how could you sit back in the post game and say that this was a tight game when it was a four nothing suffocating game? Would you think of that post game, Kev? Were you there? Yeah, no, I was there. But I watched it. I wasn't there. I watched it. It was sort of like befuddling to me, confusing. I know where Eddie's coming from with a coach doing that.

6:07But again, to me, it's about to start. And this was a bigger, a bigger game in the sense that because of what all the things that we've said already, all the things. And again, you mentioned it in your article. We talked about it last night in the press box. And we're talking about the first 20 minutes. Probably let's talk about the first 30 minutes after the three nothing goal. From that point, from the start of the game to 30 minutes in, that sense of when you are challenged as a person, as a player, as an individual, about how you could be at the very lowest point of your life, which is where the orders were in these last, like I mean, again, you said it's back. The captain is crying uncontrollably. He's inconsolable. Zach Hyman says two years ago, I can only say one thing. I know we're going to get back. I know we're going to get back. And then to see everything that happened here in the last couple of months at the Olympics, to me, that's what I don't understand. What was said after and then what was even said before and going leading up to this game?

7:14Yeah, I don't. I don't like some, I hear you. Eddie sometimes the coach will fall in the sword for his team. I thought last night he lob luck just basically, you know, he protected his team. He wasn't going to say that we were flat. We weren't any good. He kind of blew the whole thing away. Maybe it's the wrong time of year to, to, you know, call out your team or to say, I wish I expected more from my team. Maybe with this few games left, it's not time to add that to the mix. The loss is bad enough. Maybe you go, look, we got a bounce back Saturday. We don't have time to get into all this. All the coach called us, team out stuff. Maybe that's something you don't do in late March. Bigger fish to fry at this point. Maybe, you know, there it is. That's fair. And so respectfully, I said to Eddie, I've said it in a million times this year, they're switch flickers. And that was a prime example last night at the start of the game. The switch was off and it took him too long to flick it on.

8:17Yeah, I, you know, it's funny because to the game before that, we, we spent, you know, 48 hours talking about how awesome it was to see a four-line team. And a team where the, the depth guys got them going. They got big goals for them and, and rev them up. You know, I've, many times we've talked about how the only way this team has to switch momentum is to score a goal. It's a, it's a skill team. They don't have any other ways to turn a game without going out and scoring goals. That's it. And if the goals don't go in, they never turn the game. Yeah. And suddenly they have a fourth line and they have some depth and you think, okay, well, you know, maybe there was time last night for somebody to do something to get some momentum going because the, the skill guys, listen, Florida's, Florida, it's like styles make the fight, Eddie. Florida style beats Edmond to style. Edmond can't beat Florida, it's as things stand. We watched it. There were two, two in the stand a couple last year with a, best of three, two out of three

9:19played at Rogers Place. And the, the score was five, one, five, two in the last two games. Florida turned up their game and Edmond couldn't handle it. They can't beat that game. I get it. And it's fine because Florida's done now. You're not going to see him again. But if you're sitting there last night waiting for Edmond to, you know, to find the first goal like everyone talks about, well, I think we know that maybe there's got to be a fresh way to go with this. Maybe a new route to turning momentum. If does that come with Max Jones drilling somebody? I don't know. We'll never know because, you know, nobody stood up and made anything happen last night. So we'll never know. There's been some big measuring stick moments to see what kind of caliber this team is in the oilers. They beat Colorado recently in a nice game, a real tight game. Dallas crushed them. Florida crushed them. Tampa Bay coming up, which is arguably the class of the league right now, at least of the east. And this will be a measuring stick game. It will be interesting to see if they fall in line with the narrative of being switch flickers.

10:23Like Kevin says, I'm very curious to see how they show up against Tampa. Because Tampa can bully you too. They have the skill. Kutcher off second in the league and points. But they can bully you physically. Oh, there they're a really good team of well-rounded and they'll play whatever game it takes to win. That's why they've been champions. You know, they have a couple of options. I would say to you or they know when it's time to go from option eight option B. So yeah, you know what? I think that like they had orders have been playing good hockey lately and we've liked their game and they've been collected points and they put themselves in the race again. And that was just a giant egg last night. I think if you come out and play well and you know, now you put the pressure on yourself, playing well against Tampa is not enough. You got to meet Tampa. You know, it's that time of year. You can't go two and one home stand and lose the last two. Yeah. So the pressure's on. Let's see how they show up. Like, you know, let's see if they were really satisfied with last night's game or if they just said that to the media because it gets us off their back.

11:25Maybe that's the case, I don't know. This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever find yourself playing the budgeting game, shifting a little money here, a little there, and hoping it all works out? Well, with the name your price tool from Progressive, you can be a better budgeter and potentially lower your insurance bill too. You tell Progressive what you want to pay for car insurance, and they'll help you find options within your budget. Try it today at Progressive.com. Progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates. Price and coverage match limited by state law, not available in all states. The hustle doesn't have to hurt. If performance pressure is making it hard to breathe, growth therapy helps you navigate stress, set boundaries, and actually feel like yourself again. Whether it's your first time in therapy or your 50th, grow makes it easier to find a therapist who fits you, not the other way around. You can search by what matters, like insurance, specialty, identity, or availability, and get started in as little as two days. There are no subscriptions, no long-term commitments,

12:26you just pay per session. Grow helps you find therapy on your time. Whatever challenges you're facing, grow therapy is here to help. Grow accepts over 100 insurance plans, including Medicaid in some states. Sessions average about $21 with insurance, and some pay as little as $0, depending on their plan. Visit growththerapy.com slash start now to get started. That's growtherapy.com slash start now. Growtherapy.com slash start now. Availability and coverage vary by state and insurance plan. Mark Spector with us on sports 1440. You know, I said this yesterday, when I saw the lines changing, then I saw the very beginning, and because with Kachuk out there, I think noblok wanted put coals, and beside McDavid, just in case Kachuk did something stupid. So I said that, and then, but once the game kind of went away from that, I was saying, like, to me, what's the constant thing that's been for Euler's success here?

13:28It's been Connor and Zach Hyman. And even though Connor and put coals in and Savoy generated the most offense, they didn't score obviously, but the most offense last night, I still felt when it's three-nothing, when they scored the three-nothing goal, you got to go back to Connor and Hyman and Savoy. Go back to the lines that you had on Tuesday against San Jose. Did that end to your mind? Is that fair? I mean, you got to do something. Yeah, I can't look in for it because generally, any coach whose lines aren't working and not scoring, they just mix up the deck, and noblok's not afraid to do that. We all know that. So sure, I mean, that's something you could have done. I don't know. I wasn't that focused on it. I just, I couldn't believe the number of guys just standing around, getting nothing done out there, frankly. The big play in the game that everyone referenced are the sort of the coach reference. Savoy has that chance in front of the net, that's going to go though.

14:30Benning fires it up to Reinhart, you know, the other Reinhart, and he scores the brick way. Yeah, that's quite a nice deal. The real Reinhart. Hey, the guy scored it. Sure is, it's a beautiful goal, you know. Well, I wouldn't say it was beautiful, he ended up in the net. The way he played it, it was like a heavy, that was nice, man. That was nice. That was really nice. That was really nice. That was nice. I know, good for him. I mean, and I'm not, you know, that move beats a goal every time, like we've seen it used. It's a good move, even if you pull yourself out of the net afterwards. But hey, listen, man. I don't know, I don't know if there was a, like, we're not shifting up personnel. If you got a bunch of disinterested, unemotional guys, I don't care who plays with who, Kevin. Give me some guy, you know, find the three guys that give a crap and send them a. So, Spec, what's on deck for the schedule for you here coming up? Well, practice at noon today, you know, it's like,

15:30unfortunately, you know, not unfortunately. I think as a sports writer, already, you got to move on with the team. Like, okay, they played garbage last night, and there was a brutal night, and the whole city was disappointed, and I wrote it, and I haven't written them that hard for a while. Wake up today, it's a new day. Not writing it again, not beating them up again. It's time to move on. You know, that's just the way it is. The Pacific, there was five games, the Pacific last night, and they got one loser point. One loser point. What do you call it? Kevin, you have a name for this division? Pathetic. It's a pathetic division. Yeah, it's a bad division, man. Oh, who? So, listen, finish top three and stay in this division. How about Aiden Hill? Starts the game for Vegas last night, less than three shots on three goals, and put them in a patch. I'm not sure I've seen that one before. Yeah, it's funny. The team that could be, that's going to go into the wild, the wild card team that's going to go into the Pacific division, bracket spec could have more points

16:31than the Pacific division winner. Yeah, right. I don't think you want to finish first. You've got to face the mighty Utah's. Try to get two or three exactly. Hey, Aiden and gets Utah twice, pretty quick, your place in a row, twice within a short period of time, both in Utah. So, you know, they'll have a good look at them, anyhow, whether Aiden is a first-place team or whatever they're going to be. At least they didn't lose any standing in the playoff race last night. Yeah. The Turtle Derby. Turtle Derby. Anything else you want to add, spec? I mean, Eddie's got all. He's got three pages of notes out here, and he's just looking at them. I mean, he's not really contributing much here. Wow. She's laddy through Duke under the bus, pretty hard, and yet he really rode me for no reason. We had Laddy on earlier spec, and he just, we were just closing up, and you know, it's a little different because he was in check, right? And then all of a sudden, he just starts carving Duke for no reason. It was awesome. That's all right. Give me the reins.

17:31We'll call this, this deal show. This is your program, but I will lead it if you want. Now, step up and take the reins here, KK. Suspect, it's been great having you on, so. Well, you got to say you're going to the cabin. Are you splitting wood? What are you going to do? I already asked him what he was doing. Man, he's grinding today, getting down to the rink. What are you doing? Well, specs down at the rink, you're driving to the rink to play your own hog. No, no, yes. And then I'm going to be, I'm scouting tonight. Oh, he's going to drive. I'm scouting, no, no, I'm scouting game one of the SJL playoffs in North Battleford between the stars and the Melford Mustangs. Wow. So you're driving all the way to Battleford, to watch that game. Yeah, I'll be leaving at about 233. Okay. Now, who are you scouting for? A lot of people. A lot of people. Star Phoenix.

18:32The Melville advance spec. I never told you spec. I had a few bylines in the old Melville advance. Oh, I did, yeah. Yeah, the probably, even before you started, probably 84, 85 somewhere in there. Okay. And what kind of stuff are you writing for him? Was it like people looking for a lost cow? Was it hog reports? Was it somebody was smoking in the barn, started the fire? Cow tipping the whole bit. Don't get the Duke going on cow tipping spec. Duke, did you ever tip a few or what? Oh, here it comes. Oh, so Eddie's getting me going. It is, you cannot do it. You cannot knock over a cow as a single person. It's multiple people like me and Kevin went out there. There's not a few over. There's no chance you can knock over a full grown cow. Kevin, there's center of gravity is essentially in their toes. Like it's impossible.

19:32A full grown cow. If you want to respect. If you do knock it over, what happens is it's stuck on the side? No, they're not, they're not a turtle. Like they're legs bent. That was a spec's question, man. I was just relaying it. Then do they come back at you after? Like your thing went once they get up. So some of the most of the ones that Douglas farms would, you wouldn't even get close to tipping them over. They'd already have you buried into the fence, especially during calving season. What happens if you have an ornary cow out there? Does it just come after you and try and lick you? Or like what? I got this big time to see, you know? You know what? It seems like a good time to end. It seems like a good time to end. Or it seems like a good time to take Eddie and tell him to watch the cowboy way. Oh, boy. No, you better go see that part of the movie as well. The cowboy way. Don't go tip the bull, Eddie. That may not go so well. I won't. Figure out the girl cow and the boy cow before you go on this little exercise here.

20:33Oh, boy. As it off the rails. Hey, spec, super job. Thanks, big fella. We'll see you on Monday, I guess. Hi, boy. Sounds good. Hi, this is Pablo Torre from Pablo Torre. Finds out and today I want to talk to you about boost mobile because we spent a lot of time analyzing inefficiencies in sports, overvalued contracts, money tied up in the wrong places and so on. But those inefficiencies aren't just on a roster. Sometimes they're in your own monthly expenses. Boost mobile says switching to their $25 unlimited forever plan can unlock up to $600 in savings a year. That's $25 a month for unlimited data, talk and text when you bring your own phone. If that money is trapped in a pricey phone bill, it might be worth a second look. Visit boostmobile.com to learn more. After 30 gigabytes, customers may experience slower speeds, customers pay $25 per month as long as they remain active on the boost mobile unlimited plan. Savings claim based on a January 2026 boost mobile survey of a thousand Americans with single line unlimited plans,

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