The Ol' Long Island Shake-Up

0:007-0-3 on a Monday. Happy Monday, everybody. Good Tuesday. I went saw a musical act on Saturday night. Mind Enterprises. They do like very specific niche genre of music. It's 80s and 90s Italian, electronic and disco. Mind Enterprises? Go look about. Go look at Mind Enterprises. They've got the Mind Enterprises. Where was it? Fortune Sound Lounge. Oh, Fortune. Yeah. It was a little out of my age range. I was going to say like at least two days. Who is this uncle? Yeah. As the kids say. Thankfully, the entire audience was uncle. So we were okay.

1:03Go look them. Although they have the most hilarious look. They like, they've replicated everything from the 80s. Anyway, that's just something to do on a Monday. If you're bored, you are listening to the Halford and Breath Show on Sportsnet 650. Halford and Breath of the Morning is brought to you by Sands and Associates. Do you have payday loan debt? If you do, Sands and Associates could get your debt by up to 80% with no upfront fees, visit them today at Sands-trusty.com. We are in our two of the program. Arthur Staples going to join us from New York here to talk about the big shakeup with the Islanders yesterday. Our two of this program is brought to you by Jason Homenek at Jason.morgge. If you love giving the banks more of your money, then don't let Jason shop around to find the perfect mortgage for you. Visit them online at Jason.morgge. We're coming to you live from the Kintek studio. Step strong with orthotics and footwear from Kintek. Guess on Sportsnet 650 calling on the Abel auctions hotline. Email sales at able auctions.ca to get your business assets sold and your building cleared. That's how you went, Jason. We're going to go now to that Abel auctions hotline. Our next guest from Daily Face

2:04Off, Hockey Night New York. Arthur Staples joins us now on the Halford and Breath Show on Sportsnet 650. Morning, Arthur. How are you? I'm good, boys. How are we doing? We're well. We were... I'm going to say it caught very much off guard yesterday. Maybe not necessarily the dismissal, because the Vegas Golden Knights did a very similar thing with Bruce Cassidy a week prior, but bringing Peter to Bowie and giving him the long-term contract. How caught off guard were you when this all broke for the Islanders yesterday? Certainly on Easter Sunday, you're not expecting that. That is true. That is true. But this is the way the Hockey World works. It's kind of the blueprint set down by Louis Lammerlo, whatever it was quarter of a century ago when he brought in Larry Rossons and the De... Not coincidence, I guess, that Louis was recently the GM of the Islanders, and he's still a consultant for ownership. I think there's an expectation now because of Louis

3:06Tenier. When he first came in, how aggressive he was in getting Barry Trots, you know, basically he just walked off the parade float with the caps and into the job of the Islanders back then in 2018. I think this Islander's ownership group led by Scott Malkin, very different than past Islander's owners. If they feel like they have a chance to do something, they want to do it. Matthew Darsh, and as first year as GM, I think he understood that Patrick Roth probably wasn't going to be the right guy to coach his team going forward. Why not jump the line and get one of the best, maybe that the best coach available. And the fact that Peter DeBore wanted to come here, knowing maybe he would have had some other options in a week or two, I think speaks highly for the Islanders and what they're about right now. And even if they're not going to make the playoffs, they're not quite the roster that's set to win a Stanley Cup. I think they're showing that they want to be aggressive in changing that outlook and that perception. And this is definitely a good first step. Yeah, Arthur Malkin and I were talking about this earlier in the show.

4:07And we didn't know the answer to this. What were the expectations for the Islanders heading into the season? I mean, most none. Very low. You know, they were moving on from Lou. We hadn't seen Matthew Schaefer play yet. Obviously they had the good fortune of winning a lottery. But it was, you know, it was a roster that was considered to be a scale. I think in a lot of corners, even people like myself who pay very close attention to the team, you know, some of the the near misses of playoffs and failures once they got in, it always seemed to be that they were on the precipice of, you know, ninth or eighth in the conference. That was really kind of their ceiling with this group that had done a lot, you know, in the two pandemic short and seasons, but really hadn't done enough to justify being kept together for so long. So the move was made by ownership away from Lamarillo. Matthew Darsh has brought in first time GM talked about this was really going to be an evaluation period for the coach and for the team. And then I think, you know, Matthew Schaefer

5:10really changed that outlook quite a bit, not just with his play on the ice, but with kind of his youthful energy and kind of sparked up a room and brought a lot of violence to a team that that didn't, you know, was aging out of its viability. I guess you're open putting up Besan the numbers certainly didn't help, but I think those two things masked for a lot of the season, the the problems that they had defensively, especially in their own end. And their offense has been always been a struggle, especially on the power play with the personnel if they have not, not really a lot of star score, you know, goal for focus guys at BoHorba had a great year, but it's tailed off a bit in the last couple of weeks. Matthew Barsal been as usual up and down mostly up, but some down lately self. And it just it all kind of fell apart after the after the Olympic break. I think they're 10 and 10 since the break. And I think the thing that really made the difference for Matthew Darsh and for ownership was patchable. I never really seemed to have a figure out a way to get out of any shuffles and lines. There was never really

6:14real punishments for players that were inconsistent. And I think you know, he's certainly in 10 straight kind of parking this back a couple of years from Lane Lambert was a coach and they would they would have to ride syrup and into the ground to try to get him just you can get into the playoffs or get close to it. So, you know, I think they wanted to change that that pattern a bit. And this move away from while, you know, like Mike said, maybe not a huge surprise, but who they got, I think is a bit of a surprise because it does declare their intentions to to try to change things around pretty quickly this all season. The defensive play in front of Sorokin. Does that fall on the roster or does it fall on Patrick Wau? I remember when the Isles went from the worst defensive team to the best just by hiring Barry Trots. Yeah, I mean, I mean, I appeared to borrow. I've had a lot of success. He's in he's come in the situations with more, I think, win now ready teams for sure, but I think one thing he does get out of his teams is is better structure and and Patrick Wau came in and and I think he felt

7:16like the the modern NHL, you know, he hadn't come to league in a decade, but he felt like up tempo, playing fast, moving fast, getting out of the zone fast, getting up the ice in in groups of four and five was really the way to succeed. And I think that clash with LuLan Marillo because the roster really didn't didn't scream tempo, you know, Patrick Wau kind of won that battle, I guess you can say this season, at times really able to do that. That's absolutely, but I think they sacrificed too much at the defensive end and never really had a plan or you know, how to fix it, never really change the D zone structure to help them. They've been, you know, when it comes to kind of structured all ends against they've been thought of three or four in the league and expected those all season. They were pretty good against the rush that's fallen apart in the last couple of weeks. So I think just not being able to find solutions and really having it blow up in such spectacular fashion this past week with a horrible loss to Pittsburgh at home. Kind of a late loss in Buffalo

8:16in a tie game they needed points out of and then two real kind of no shows against Philly and Carolina. And obviously letting Philly in the door to get ahead of them with their win yesterday. I think that was kind of the deciding factor for for Matthew Darsh that this team even if they managed to pull together and get into the playoffs needed needed a new direction and needed someone who can kind of coach that structure even if they understand there's an understanding that some of the personnel needs to change as well. Yeah, what what changes could be coming whether the the aisles make the playoffs or not. I know around the trade deadline there are a few rumors and speculation around the conucks and the islanders having some conversations. You know, I heard names like Brock Besser, perhaps going to the aisles with potentially Anthony Duclair coming to Vancouver now. I don't know if Duclair would wave or even it got to that point, but what does this aisles team mean? What changes could you see happening? You know, I think you can say what they need, but I feel like now they've got a coach in there who's who's been coaching continuously for

9:21about 20 years in the NHL. So if you might have a new pressure perspective on what they need and I think the obvious answer is they need a goal score on the wing. They need a guy who can put 250 shots on that who can improve their power play who, you know, plays well enough in five on five, but really it's there to contribute off sensibly and obviously a guy like Brock Besser fits that goal and certainly can revisit that in the summer. But I think we're now we're starting to talk about what can they what can they change off their current roster? I understand, you know, they they had not here. I've had lots of conversations with Doug Armstrong. They ultimately ended up trading for Bradenshen, but there were conversations about Jordan Cairo that may have been a conversation about Robert Thomas. So I think those are, you know, those are guys that you can still talk about this summer. But I think for them, change doesn't mean just adding. I think it means they've got to subtract too. And you know, they brought in Bradenshen who's got term, they re-upchage Eupageo at the deadline. So they're, you know, they've kind of

10:25lost themselves in in a couple of spots. But I think on defense that they had a core three there in Adam Pelic, Ryan Pollock, and Scott Mayfield for a long, long time over a decade. And I would imagine that if they could, because of trade protection, they probably need to get rid of at least two of those guys. And Adam Pelic is probably the guy that's the most attractive to people around the leagues that three years left under six mil per still plays a really sharp defensive game despite the struggles here this season. So I think he's got some appeal. You know, Scott Mayfield could be a buyout candidate, but he's still got four years left on his deal. And I think up front, you know, it's fair to say, you know, if everything is on the table now and they need to change some things, as Matthew Barsall, going to be a guy whose name gets bandied about this summer, whether that is a guy you move to add in more assets, you know, spread some talent around instead of having it focused and just a couple of guys who can break a game open up front. Obviously,

11:25they've got a young guy in Cal Richie who's he's fit in nicely in the top nine as a rookie. You know, they've got a couple of good playmaking young players joining the organization, Dr. Eklink came over from Sweden and he's got I think six points and five games in the AHLs before he's a guy who can fit her in a spot next year. Cole Iserman has came out of college, been a goal score at that level. Obviously, those are guys that are more future focused, but I think with some with some tweaks, maybe you could see now with the need to be aggressive this summer and remaking the roster. Matthew Barsall got a lot of appeal. I imagine around a league to add to a good team. It's very interesting to see what they decided to take off their roster rather than who the target to add. Mike and I were joking earlier in the show. We don't know if it's been Matthew Barsall or Jordan Cairo who have been in rumors the longest without being traded. Is there a point where I mean, I know it's the NHL and sometimes trades feel impossible,

12:28but is it getting to a point where you got a new GM in there that maybe this could be the off season that Barsall gets moved? Yeah, I mean, I think this was really, you know, if people kind of are down a little bit on Matthew Dars for the trades that he made in season, obviously, you know, I think Andre Palat was not a move that really worked out well. Carson Suci has been up and down, but he's depending, you know, say and Braden Shen, I think he's actually been okay and it has a couple of years left, so he's going to be a part of things going forward in all likelihood. But I think, you know, some of those rumors, whether they were legit or not, you know, Barsall does control some of it with a note with a no trade clause, but I have to imagine that if they miss the playoffs again, you know, they haven't, we'll have not won around since 21. Maybe he's open to changing some things for himself too, so you know, we saw a lot around no moves and no trade clauses at the deadline and what they were, what teams were able to do and not do in some cases. So I wonder if, you know, Matthew Barsall has

13:32been a loyal guy. He's been part of some good teams. He's been part of some bad teams here, and if he's ready to say, yeah, I'm interested in doing something different, then that definitely changes things, but I imagine there's going to be a lot of conversations internally about that in the next few weeks, especially if they miss the playoffs, which it looks like they will, you know, some other teams start losing even more than they have. And I think it's just really about who are the viable guys to trade? You know, you have a lot of guys that are in their 30s who are locked in up front. Barsall is one of those guys who's a little bit younger than that, and obviously, like I said, you know, I don't know that it has to be his hometown team. I'm sure that there's teams, if they can fit them under the cap, you know, wouldn't he love to go play with McLean Celebrini in San Jose? Wouldn't he love to go to Chicago and play with Conor Bidard and Frank Nazar? I think there's some interesting options on the table for him if he wants to be that veteran presence on an up-and-coming team and just change things up a bit.

14:35You know, I have no knowledge of that and who knows he may want to keep it locked down here for the rest of his contract, and that would certainly work the hounders to look elsewhere in terms of heading and subtracting, but yeah, I think this move, Peter DeBort isn't saying yes to a team that's going to be a couple years away from contending. I think he's in a situation where he could choose a spot and wants to win sooner rather than later, and I think the islanders by making this move now kind of jumping the off season line to bring in a new coach or saying we're going to do what it takes to win now as well, and it'll be interesting to see what that entails when they get off season. Four games left for Peter DeBort to try and steer this thing into the playoffs. Arthur, thanks a lot for taking the time to do this today. We appreciate it. If the aisles do get into the playoffs, we'll give you a call for a playoff preview. If not, we'll do an off-season preview. Thanks for doing this, man. You got a place anytime. Yeah, Arthur Staples from Daily Face Off and Hockey Night New York here on the Hellford Embroof Show on Sportsnet 650. Here's a fun one that we can do

15:36together, guys, dogs. Listen up. Can you name all of the coaches that Bo Horvett has had since breaking into the national Hockey League? No. Peter DeBort will be number seven in Bo's career, which is a crazy total to me. But anyway, can you do them in order? I'm just trying to think of the tenucks ones alone. Start with. So Willie. Very good. Very good. Bruce. There you go. Okay. Was he would talk at all? He sure was. Okay. So that's four. We got four of the seven. He'd not hear for torts. No. Willie. Willie was his first. He was host. Willie was his first. Willie was his first. It was a special. It was a special time. Now it gets trickier because you don't remember. You obviously remember the connox coaches in order. He's had three. Peter Bo Horvett's third coach with the Iowa squad. Yeah. Lane Lambert. Lane Lambert. There you go. Yeah. Seven coaches. Lane Lambert kind of looks like a Will Ferrell character. A little bit. Yeah. If Will

16:36Ferrell was a mortician, right? Yeah. Seven coaches for Bo. And he's having a hell of a year. Yeah. Is that a good year? He certainly has. That team is they're not complete. Well, he's not he's not he's not he's not a one C on a Stanley Cup winning team. I mean, it's it's it's it's almost boring. Sometimes when you look at teams and you're like, yeah, they don't have the centers. Yep. And it always comes down to that. It's like it's like in the NFL when you're like, yeah, they don't have a quarterback. So it's not going to happen for them, which is kind of why the Seahawks were so interesting this year and that they won with Sam Darnold, right? And elite quarterback. And there's well, that goes back to the the meme in the NFL. Like is Joe Flacco elite? Yeah. Right. And there was a reason why that came up. It was because people are like, all right, well, you need an elite quarterback to win a Super Bowl. Here's a guy that is good. But is he good enough to win a Super Bowl with and ultimately was because he played out of his

17:39mind. Do you remember that running? He went on. Flacco. Yeah. He was very good. It was incredible. And I know what retro looking at a retrospectively with the second chapter he's had in his career. And now everyone's like, is he a Hall of Famer? Yeah. He's probably more elite than we thought at the time. But he didn't fit the profile of the elite quarterback. No, he was he was he was a good but not great. Now, like, who did Nick Foles win one? Nick Foles won one. Yeah. Which is crazy. And now Sam Darnold and listen, like, Darnold played well. But I don't think he he was the reason that it was the number one reason why the Seahawks won Super Bowl or anything like that. But I think we still have this conversation with NHL teams. You're like, you're like, okay, yeah, he's good. But is he good enough to be the one C on a Stanley Cup winner? And I would say no about Horvath. I think he's a terrific two C. And he's this type of guy that you can win with. But the bar is high for a one C. If you want to win a Stanley Cup, like you're talking,

18:45it's usually selky guys. And maybe heart trophy guys, you know, you think about barcov or, you know, like who are some of the centers that one that won before? I mean, it's just like really Jack Eichel. Yep. You know, I mean that that got him got him a Stanley Cup and proved that he can do it when he went from Buffalo to Vegas. And it's very, very difficult to find a Stanley Cup winner without honestly, like close to a first ball at Hall of Famer playing down the middle. Yeah. And it's interesting, right? Cause the borers signed on here long-term without the prospect of one in all these other markets where he's had success. He's had one. Right. He's always had depth down the middle. And it's going to be a big change. And now one of the borers for former teams, interestingly enough, also recently underwent a coaching change. And that was the Vegas Golden Knights. And last week at this time, we came in here talking about John Torrella taking over the job in Vegas in his first game, of course, was against the Vancouver Connox. Well, the Connox next opponent on Tuesday night is going to be those same Vegas Golden Knights.

19:48And I don't know if you've been paying attention to this or not, but Vegas Golden Knights are undefeated. Three and oh, under torts. Now I will say this, the first two games of the torts era, they gave him a layup for his first game at the Vancouver Connox. They won that for and they played terribly in the first period, but they took over in the second period because they were playing the Connox. And it was kind of a similar situation in his second game. It's Calgary. They got off to a slow start, but eventually right at the ship in 163. Am I going to lie? That win over the weekend in Edmonton, a five one victory on the road against an Euler's team that I think had won five in a row. Carter Hart gets to start in that plays very well. Now you look at it. Vegas is one three in a row. They've got the Connox again on Tuesday where they're going to be favored. They've got the cracking on Thursday. So that's going to be five potential wins in a road because you see Torch shaking it up on the goal tending front. I wonder if that's why they brought Carter Hart into the mix on the weekend. Yeah, through him right into the fire. Did you see that clip going around social media? I don't know what that was about. Maddie, did you see that?

20:52Of none of the Vegas Golden Knights, given a fist bump to Aiden Hill. Yeah, I was on there. That was really weird. I didn't see his hand. I don't think that I don't think that was that. That was very rotten in the state of Denmark. That was very strange. There was also a moment in the Leafs Kings game where Matthew Knies and Lawton got into it and they were just teammates weeks ago. Right. And they he said something to him and he just snapped. So there's this who snapped Lawton. Lawton taking a penalty actually because there's a dressing room conflicts everywhere. It's not just Vancouver, you guys everywhere. The connects are listened. They're trend centers. Well, no, no, I'm just going to say the connects have six games left all against teams in the Pacific division who are either fighting for a playoff spot or fighting for seeding. Vegas, the Kings, San Jose, Anaheim, the Kings again, and the Edmonton others. The Kings are probably looking at those two games and going, we got to win both of them.

21:54And the last time the connects played the Kings back 10 days ago, the Kings embarrassed them. Like they absolutely dominated the connects. And well, I mean, so there's two real interesting races. Obviously, the one is at the bottom of the wild card, the second final wild card, spot in the West, but the other one is jockeying for position in the Pacific right now because Anaheim is cratering. I mean, at this rate, they're going to go from being in the driver's seat to win the division, to finishing third and not even having home ice in the first round. That's where it's going for them right now. Vegas is trending upward. I don't know if you can really correlate this with Torrella coming in, but I mean, they did win three in a row with them. And they've got, like I said, if I had to predict this right now, they're going to win their first five games under torts. And then they're going to have their final three stink games of the season be in Colorado, then Winnipeg and Seattle. So you could very much say that he's going to win like seven of eight to close out the year. So that's good vibes for them going into the playoffs.

22:55You look at that. And again, I think that it's going to probably come that I think, I don't like to say it, but I think LA is going to get in over the preads between the strength of the schedule down the stretch. The Kings do lose tiebreakers, though, they're going to have I know, but they're also getting real. They're they do a good job of getting loser points and getting games that they get points out almost every game. So I think LA is going to get in. In which case you're looking at, well, you're probably going to get an L.A. Colorado first round. Okay. And then I don't know what's going to happen. The Pacific. If I had to guess right now, I ain't Vegas might win the division. I think it might be Edmonton and Anaheim of the first or which is a bummer because I'd much prefer to see Edmonton and Vegas in the first round. Anaheim get the buy. But I and I will not have Euler's and Kings in the first round. No, thankfully. Thankfully, I think I've seen enough of that for a lifetime. I think that they were ready to break through. You think this was the fourth time was going to be the one. Okay. We're up against it for time. Before we go to break, I need to remind you that this show, this hour, this segment brought to you by the duicado group. Find out why nobody beats a duic dealer. I know what he has

23:57since 1926 visit at duic GM on marine drive, visit them downtown, visit them in Richmond, visit them online at the duicadogroup.com coming up on the other side of the break. We're going to go to Columbus. Talk about a team that has hit the skids in a very bad way. Columbus mired in a losing streak. They had a closed door meeting over the weekend after a loss to Winnipeg has the Rick bonus magic run out was was bones invited to that meeting or was it players only? I got a double check. I'll check it out. We'll ask Aaron and we can ask Aaron and we can also ask Aaron if they're going to miss and if the bones magic is done. That's coming up on the other side. You're listening to the Halford and Brest Show on SportsNet 650. Hey, it's Jamie Dodd and Thomas Strands. Get your daily dose of connox talk with us week days from 12-2 on SportsNet 650 or catch up on demand through your favorite podcast app.

25:037.33 on a Monday. Happy Monday, everybody. Well, weather. How about that weather this weekend, Abide? High pollen count. Some of us live that life. It was 23 in Squamish. I can believe it. A lot of golf for breath this week. No, you have to stay inside due to the aforementioned high pollen count. It's getting a windy today. There's a special weather warning of wind. I love wind. Wind gusts up to 70 kilometers per hour. Just take a dog right away. Yeah, that'd be fun. Do your wind. Do some wind for us. I regret nothing. I miss the wind. Folks, that's not wind. That's Jason Brough doing wind. You know what? I hate to say it, but these mics don't pick it up. They don't pick it up. You guys need to do mics. Don't pick up wind and technology thing.

26:04Which is ironic. You have this the old wind mics. It's ironic because you have a wind sock on there now. Yeah, we do. And it's blocking out the wind. That's the problem. Oh, damn it. This is great radio by the way. You are listening to the Halford and Brough Show on SportsNet 650. Halford and Brough in the morning is brought to you by Sands and Associates. Are you getting collection calls? It's because there's nothing else on Sands and Associates. You can cut your debt by 80% and stop those calls. Visit today at Sands dash trustee dot com hour two. The program midway point of the show Aaron porcelain is going to join us in just a moment here. Our two is brought to Jason hominook at Jason dot mortgage. If you love paying too much for your mortgage, then dola Jason shop around to find the perfect mortgage for you. Visit them online at Jason dot mortgage to the phone lines. We go our next guest blue jacket supporter for the athletic Aaron porcelain at Columbus joins us now on the Halford and Brough Show on SportsNet 650. Good morning Aaron. How are you? Good morning guys. Always going to be with you. What's going on out there? Well, we're just making wind noises here. This is kind of it's been a long connect season Aaron, but we've been interested in the Columbus Blue Jackets because well, they've got Connor Garland

27:07now and they brought in head coach that we know very well in Vancouver. Rick bonus and they were a really good story and now suddenly they're not what's happened to the Blue Jackets? Well, they're still an interesting story, but it's a complete opposite way. They have lost their way, guys. One six and one in their last eight six game losing streak longest losing streak of season. I mean, this is after a 23 and four run to get not just back into it, but up over into a playoff position and it's all falling apart since then. I could go on and on. They're forwards of lost their way forward to two shots on goal count them two shots on goal against Caroline on Thursday NHL record. You don't see that too often in the modern era. They've had 26 shots total as a team. The last two games, including Winnipeg, the loss to Winnipeg Saturday. I see a nervous

28:07team, I see a team of a collection of players that kind of don't want the puck on their stick right down. The moment maybe is getting a little bit too large for them. I don't know how you calm that bound and get them to relax and play. They had a player's only meeting after the game Saturday. They finally have back to back days without a game only the second time since the Olympic breaks. So maybe the breather will help, but they've got five games now to write the ship and figure things out starting Tuesday and Detroit. You mentioned the closed door meeting after the loss to Winnipeg on the weekend. Was Rick bonus a part of that? It was described as players only. Okay. So I would say not. I'm sure he was delighted to see it happen. I think he's done more talking in the last week about those sort of guys get it together. Type stuff that he did in his first two months here, but it was players all night. And if I know even a little bit about this team, I'm guessing it was probably run by where NC Charlie coiled with Branson in the

29:09generous probably in that order. Which guys, especially the forwards are feeling the most heat right now. We played some bonus audio from last week after their fifth loss to this six game streak. And he said, we got some guys that are just passengers right now. They're not giving us anything. I mean, that's stat from the Carolina game with the two shots on goal from the forwards, blows my mind that you can even do that in the 60 minute NHL game. So which guys in particular are really feeling right now? Well, I mean, there's so many guys. I'm looking to show I'm on it, meaning you're out early for an optional eight games. No points. Right? I mean, holy smokes. That's the second line center. Marchenko. They're trying to start there. That's their guy with 40 gold potential. 31 gold guy last year. I think less than the temperature has been cranked up on him physically. Ever since they got above that bar, teams are coming after him or him. He is not responded well. He's got one goal in his last 10 games. Again, it goes up and down the lineup

30:10forward wise. You know, they really haven't had a second line all year. They thought when Conor Garland dot here, maybe that would help bring to light a second line with Ken Johnson, Monahean Garland, but no. And I think that line proved to be too late to play late in the regular season. So Mike goodness, what would it look like in the playoffs? The first line, very young center, fansilly 21. He's playing his heart out. But the production has been there, maybe to the extent that he'd like. He's been one of the better guys. It's kind of all up and down the whole group here. They lose Ceevers in on the back end. You see, Werenstein gets much, much less space on the ice that he did earlier in the season. So now they're having trouble getting the fuck out of their zone. It's just sort of up and down the lineup. But I think you have to start with Marchenko and Werenstein. There's a two top offensive players and it's been a struggle. How has Garland been overall? Has he been a good pick up? And I saw there was a couple games where

31:12he had a couple of goals, but much of the other forwards were not much lately. Yeah, he came out of that trade, flying. And to his credit, you didn't get too excited about the goals. They just played just like he was in Vancouver and sometimes they go in, sometimes they don't. But yeah, they're not going in right now. Not really many chances to be honest with you. Again, I think we're going to see a totally different look to this team Tuesday. Especially upfront. There's only so much they can do in the back end, but I think that I'll be interested to see where Garland land in that group on Tuesday in Detroit. I'm on the forward just because I think big changes are coming there. They're trying to get some kind of a new look because it's just stuck right now and nobody seems to know the way out of it. They got some decisions to make this off season, too, because Charlie Coil, Mason Marchman, Boone Jenner, they're all pending UFA's. I know we spoke to you last time about Boone Jenner.

32:16There's still no extension there. Do you think they're just kind of waiting to see how it all pans out and then make their decisions in the off season? For sure now. I mean, at this point, there's no way they're having those conversations now. It gets into the summer now. I think the priority is going to be Charlie Coil. I think Mason Marchman is going to be a player that they want to keep as well. It's only because it's not a direct trade, but his acquisition from Seattle is the reason they could justify then the trade of Uighur Chinacoff to Pittsburgh. And that, by the way, has not looked well on the Blue Jackets. Chinacoff's been out of his mind in Pittsburgh. I think Marchman says, Jenner, I'm not sure about. I think that could be a tricky one. I think they want to keep him. I think he wants to retire a Blue Jacket in a few years, but we'll see here at Good Branson. Also a UFA, and of course, Rick Bonus for UFA.

33:18He's really wants to coach through the end of the season and then revisit that once the off season gets here. So that will be interesting. And there's also some young RFAs that need deals led by Adam Finchilly, who could be looking at a big ticket here. Has Sean Monahan hit the net yet? What's going on behind you there? So we've got, we're rents. He's failing from behind right now. There's another one. That was Monahan here. He goes far down. Eric Good Branson is setting them up as we're in and we have Jared Cole over here filling pucks off the wall form. So it's the all-hand team. Okay. Is there going to be space for Kent Johnson on this team going forward? Hey, who says newspaper guys can't do play by play? That was pretty good. That was really good. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, at Johnson's, and they're just think guys, I feel like they, there's just so much in there, and he started to see it last year really for the whole season.

34:19Such a good player. Such a good player. It just has not found his way. I'm not sure if it's something he did or didn't do in the off season has put him in a spot where he's not been able to play at the level he wants to play this year. They keep trying. They keep setting them out there in different situations. There are moments where he looks pretty darn good. And then it fades away. It's just kind of been a lost season. I get back to what it said earlier. That's Monahan blind. It's been Monahan and Johnson most of the season. And both of those guys, it's really struggled as has his, whoever they put on the other side of them. It's just been a void. Monahan has played well at times. Hard always as far through some injuries. It just hasn't gotten going for any of those guys. Does Kent Johnson get pushed off the puck? Is he too light for, I'm just wondering if he got Garland there. I know Garland plays a very, he doesn't play light. He's a hard worker,

35:25but he's still, he's not a big guy. And I'm just wondering, sometimes you see GMs being like, we can't, we can't have two small forwards, especially in our tops. It's her top nine. And I'm just wondering if there might be a decision made there. Yeah, well, that's why that line, especially a curiosity to me, like it looks decent time. I mean, first put it together, but you just, you look at that line and say, what does that kind of look like in the playoffs? Like you're right, Garland does. He is scrappy above his weight, but he is still his weight, you know? And Johnson is much the same. They've tried before to make him a North South guy. He's a U.S. West guy. Yeah, he just is. And, you know, then they've fit around him. I mean, I think he would be a guy you could put with Phantilly and Marchenko if they're going well, because you've got some size there and some drive there, and you need some playmaking, frankly. But to be on a line with I'm on a hint of a large guy, but it's not necessarily a power forward type. That's just

36:29the line. I'm not sure he's going to work for a team that thinks it's going to play in the playoffs. Um, I know everyone's been, you mentioned earlier that the other teams have been keying in on Kuro Marchenko, and it's probably a tough time for him right now. But do you think he's one of the more underrated players in the NHL every time I watch him play? I'm left pretty, pretty impressed with that guy. Yeah, when he is going, it is, uh, and he's really made significant strides here. This is just forward year in Columbus. First couple of years, I wouldn't say he was light on the puck, but he didn't battle. He didn't battle for the puck. Now I think he sees the reward in earning the puck back. Start to talk, guys. Big guy, but not a, not a huge frame guy, not a power forward necessarily, but he does use his body much better now, uh, to compete for puck, for leverage, play and traffic. But again, I think this is really the first lengthy playoff drive or push for

37:33a playoff that they've had here. And it has been an adjustment. He's been slow to make. They have come at him physically. He says it's great with it. He sees it as a sign of respect. But he's having, he's having trouble processing it, not just the physical side of it. I think there's a mental side of it too with him. I mean, you just don't see guys with on wrist shots from the NHL, especially guys that have 40 goals plus potential. And he had a shot from the left circle. The other night shots are a short fire out here. A wrist on a wrist. And we just go, boy, I think these things are not wired properly. If that's happening, the trail marching. We're speaking to Aaron Portsline from the Athletic and Columbus here on the Half an Breath Show on Sportsnet 650. Before we let you go, Aaron, I know they're all big games at this stage of the season, this time of the year, but tomorrow night in Detroit against the Red Wings team that's as equally desperate, clinging to their playoff lives. I mean, I'll just, how big a game is this Columbus Detroit in Detroit on Tuesday?

38:37Yeah, I'm one that resists the urge to say must win because there's really very few of those in any season for any team where we're getting to that spot here with the Blue Tigers. They're now out of the picture. Detroit is as well. I think they would be wise to look at that third place Metro. Yeah. Phillies pass them. The Islanders are above them, but catchables are so silly, of course. And here comes Washington. So it's an enormous game. The two points are huge. They go from there to Buffalo, and then they go from there to Montreal. It doesn't get any easier. They come home to a couple of tough games too, but this road trip, your game road trip is obviously obviously this season. Aaron, this was great, man. Thanks for taking the time to do it. Enjoy the remainder of the regular season. I will do this again, almost regardless. If they make the playoffs, playoff preview, if not, we'll look ahead to what should be an interesting offseason in Columbus. Thanks, man. Yeah, yeah. Look forward to it. Thanks guys. Talk to you should. Thank you. That's Aaron Portsline from the athletic in Columbus live practice here on the Helford

39:41and Brough show on sports. That's 650. Can we need to turn our attention to local? Got to talk about what the white caps did on Saturday night. What a finish that was. So of all the things that were amazing in a three to come from behind victory or their cascading arrivals, the Portland timbers in which the cap scored twice in added time, a penalty by Thomas Muller, and then unbelievable goal from Sebastian Barehalter to win it. That's my guy. That's my guy. I got to mention this stat since taking over as white caps manager, Jesper Sorenson is undefeated in MLS play when the white caps score first. They are 22 wins, no losses and four draws in the 26 games when they've scored first. It is so symbolic of the way that he wants to play and that he wants to be aggressive on the front foot. Yeah, he wants to pressure early and wants to score early. He always wants to put the other team under duress. And that's on the scoreboard as well. He loves having that one goal advantage because you know

40:45he likes when they get up by one goal. Go up another one. And you know what I like when they're by two goals? Go get a third. It's relentless. What about after five goals? And he's like, okay, we can lay off except when they're playing like Philly or Minnesota, then he's like keep going. Now you mentioned Sebastian Barehalter. And I'm going to say this out of the context of soccer, if you're talking about local athletes at the professional level that have turned into something really special since joining Vancouver, right? Or BVC because I would include lines and I'd include what Nathan work has become for the BC Lions. What Sebastian Barehalter has become since joining this team, we should probably pay more attention to it because you don't get career arcs like that very often watch it unfold in front of your face. They bought him for $50,000 in GAM in $49,000 of that was for just his name. Yeah. Do you know what I was like? Yeah. He's a

41:46Barehalter maybe. I've watched his name wasn't Barehalter. Do you think he would have even received this opportunity? That's a great question. I'm not so sure. I know that there was a serious conversation that he had with a couple of advisors when he came to Vancouver about whether or not he was going to make it as a professional. Right. And I think there was a call. I think he's kind of alluded to like the dedication and what it really takes to be a professional. But if you watch him play, it's not just the talent that he has. He really embraces being a white cap. How his career is taken off here. The opportunity they provided him, but he also really appreciates the crowd, the market, the atmosphere. He was unbelievable in that LAFC game. Fantastic. Where he was just pumping up the crowd. And that's that's where I was just like that's my guy. He's committed to the kind of place consistently where it's just effort. Like the chasing down, the tracking back,

42:46the thunderous tackles that match against Portland on the weekend. His goal was preceded by the fact that he did one of those long 50 60 yard sprints back into his defensive third made a tackle. Started things going the other way and scores the goal to put them up three two. So there's a piece out right now on the athletic talking about his role with the US team because he in addition to everything else that he's done. He has now played himself really improbably into a potential gig for the US going into the World Cup. If you had told someone this a year or two ago that of all the players in a very stacked midfield that Sebastian Burholder was going to play his way into the US mix. Everyone said no chance. Did he play in those friendlies? He played in the second one. The the two nothing loss to Portugal. Okay. He did not play in the Belgium. And Belgium loss was a was a blowout. There was and Portugal match was only a significant loss. Yeah. It was score wise scoreboard wise. It wasn't so bad. So honestly, he's one part of the white cap store.

43:51We got to talk about this other part of the white cap story too, which is if you look at the schedule. Yeah. Go better. You better go see him in April because the white caps are going to have a near three month hiatus from BC place. It is one of the most bizarre schedules I've ever seen. Yeah. They play this Saturday. They host New York. And then Friday, April 17th and April 25th against sporting KC in Colorado. Three weekends in a row. Three matches in BC place. So get out and see them now because BC place is going to be turned over to FIFA. The BC lines have to start their season in in Cologne. And I think their first preseason game is over on the island and Langford. So yeah. I mean, they're really they're delivering. Oh, yeah. They're they're entertaining. I guess they had that one hiccup at home against San Jose. Yes. They lost one one. No. But and it's funny that they're like one loss this year is considered like that was a it was a major moment. It was a huge win for San Jose because they went into BC place and got that win. Like to

44:53put it this way, a white caps loss made waves throughout MLS. Right. Which especially at BC place. Yeah. Whereas in previous years, they're like, oh, the white caps lost again. That's part for the course. Isn't it so cruel that we finally have this exciting white caps team with legit not star power superstar power and Thomas Mueller. And they play an exciting brand and they're really good. And we've got this this future hanging over them. This whole year is very like if they could have if you know, let's say they move. Okay. Let's let's say because frankly, it's kind of trending that way. It would be a lot easier to deal with if they just kind of like went out with a whimper. Like the Grizzlies like the Grizzlies, right? Yeah. They were a losing team. They never got good. No one ever got to experience them win. Everyone's got a taste for it. Are they 25,000 people there in the weekend? And for an April match, early season, there's a million other things going on. 25,000 is a good number to get out there. And the crowd was treated to like an all-time finish.

45:54I mean, I mean, I saw the I want to love to have been there, but I saw the video of a bear halter's goal and the crowd went bananas. So that's my smart decision. My pending smart decision is if and when the white caps get this deal done with bear halter because he's in an option here and they've done a good job of signing a lot of these other key integral players. Too long term deals. They did a deal with black men. They did a deal with Kubas. But this is the one that I think I there may be overtures from Europe, but I think that they can get this done and keep him here. That would be a very smart decision by the white caps because he's in the final year of his deal. He just keeps getting better and better and better. That is the smart decision brought to you by Crow. You're trusted accounting and tax advisors for over 55 years. Crow smart decisions. Lasting value. Learn more at chroma chi dots. Yay. Knowing our luck. It would be like a Nordic avs things where the caps will move and literally the season after they move. They went the championship. Totally. Like I can totally see that being a thing. I almost guaranteed it

46:57at this point because it's just like such Vancouver luck. Welcome to Detroit soccer town. All right. James Myrtle is going to join us next. He's got a piece up on the athletic about Mike Gillis and whether or not the Gillis plan into the long plan. It's like one of those too long. Didn't read plans. I think it's long could work for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Before we go to break, I need to remind you about Jan Pro. Cleaner workplaces start with consistent cleaning. Jan Pro helps businesses stay clean day after day. Start clean. Stay clean. Visit them online at Janpro.ca. You're listening to the Halford and Breath Show on SportsNet 650.