For more hot takes like that, watch or listen to Football Weekly wherever you get your podcasts.

Yeah, I agree with that.

No, I really do.

I think you look at Kucherov, what he's able to do to command the play, he's...

You know, I remember thinking back to a quote that, uh, that, that, uh, John Cooper gave me when I asked him about Nikita Kucherov when he passed some milestone last year.

Like, he passed milestones every day, I forget what it was, but it was, it was a big deal.

And, and what John told me at the time was, he said, "This guy is like an artist and he's like a teacher teaching a class during the game." Like, he's under that significant degree of control when he's playing, where it never looks like he's going a mile a minute, right? But, um, he makes the game look so easy, and that's, I think, what's so frustrating, uh, for the average person to watch Nikita Kucherov, because he makes the game look so easy.

[laughs]

What do you make of it?

It's a bit of a roll of the dice, but as you pointed out, this doesn't kick in until next year.

The cap will go up even more until then.

And so it'll turn out to be like a $5 million player, the way we're accustomed to thinking of contracts, four or five years ago.

And for what Fraser Minton is able to bring, I think it's going to be okay.

Like he's never going to be, you know, a 70-point guy, like a 30-goal guy.

But I think, you know, on the top end when it comes to offensive production, he's looking at like 20 goals, 55 points.

Do you think he is? And do you expect him to sign before camp begins? Or does he wait and sign later like Roslevic did right on the, I think Roslevic signed on the first day of the regular season?

Do you think he is? And do you expect him to sign before camp begins? Or does he wait and sign later like Roslevic did right on the, I think Roslevic signed on the first day of the regular season?

Yeah, I think he's going to get an NHL job.

He had, what, 33 points collectively over 74 games between Nashville and Dallas.

I think he's a guy that... you're not bringing him in for offense, but, but he can play up the lineup when need be spent a season on Austin Matthews wing.

And he was very effective in Toronto a few years ago, but he does bring a variety of different elements to the game.

He's kind of, you know, he's not Brad Marchand, but like call him Brad Marchand light, light, right? Like he has a little bit of ability.

He can put it in the net when you put it on his stick and, but he drags you into the fight.

I'm talking like the top guys.

How the hell is next year going to be any different? It's looking like 11 years in a row without the playoffs for the Red Wings.

Yeah, I think the fact that they're taking their time in Detroit is a good thing.

They need to get this hire right.

They haven't really conducted a full-scale search at large yet.

For decades.

So it behooves them, if for no other reason than to talk to multiple people outside the organization and do a little bit of R&D.

You may not hire the guy, but you may hear something that he has to say that you're like, you know what? That makes sense.

Yeah,

How the hell is next year going to be any different? It's looking like 11 years in a row without the playoffs or the Red Wings.

Yeah, I think the fact that they're taking their time in Detroit is a good thing.

They need to get this hire right.

They haven't really conducted a full-scale search at large.

For decades.

So it behooves them, if for no other reason, than to talk to multiple people outside the organization and do a little bit of R&D.

You may not hire the guy, but you may hear something that he has to say that you're like, you know what? That makes sense.

Yeah,

So, uh, one of the questions we have today, Dave, is what do you expect that contract to look like, years and, uh, dollars and cents?

Yeah, I would ...

Uh, this is an interesting one here, right? 'Cause he could go in a variety of different directions.

He could go eight years up until September 15th, and, you know, you wonder, do you wanna get the security? Do you wanna get, uh, the long-term deal locked in so you don't have to think about it in, in four years? You know the number's going to be big, but, um, the salary cap is likely to continue to rise over the next, uh, four to five years.

So if you go eight years, do you leave yourself short? Um, if it's around $20 million even at eight years, how short do you really feel [laughs] if in fact that's what it turns out to be? Do you know what I mean? Yeah, you can always get more, but I think it comes down to what his preference is.

I- I would be surprised if it's eight years, not 'cause I, I see Cale Makar as, as a greedy type.

Um, I just find that shorter-term deals tend to work better for everybody involved.

Do you think that Connor Hellebuyck starts the season in Winnipeg, or is there still a realistic chance of him ending up somewhere else, you think?

So, uh, one of the questions we have today, Dave, is what do you expect that contract to look like, years and, uh, dollars and cents?

Yeah, I would...

Uh, this is an interesting one here, right? 'Cause he could go in a variety of different directions.

He could go eight years up until September 15th, and, you know, you wonder, do you wanna get the security? Do you wanna get, uh, the long-term deal locked in so you don't have to think about it in, in four years? You know the number's going to be big, but, um, the salary cap is likely to continue to rise over the next, uh, four to five years.

So if you go eight years, do you leave yourself short? Um, if it's around $20 million even at eight years, how short do you really feel [laughs] if in fact that's what it turns out to be? Do you know what I mean? Yeah, you can always get more, but I think it comes down to what his preference is.

I, I would be surprised if it's eight years, not 'cause I, I see Cale Makar as, as a greedy type.

Um, I just find that shorter-term deals tend to work better for everybody involved.

Mm-hmm.

Uh, do you foresee that timeline being this season? Do you think there's any teams that should be making that phone call? How do you think this all plays out? Because, you know, we know the Canucks right now, that, uh, they're right in it when it comes to rebuilding.

Yeah, like I never really understood why Brock Boeser, uh, returned to Vancouver as a free agent.

Like, what a weird, uh, circumstance that was the way that played out, where it looked like they were trying to trade him the deadline prior, um, and then July 1st, uh, you know, not this year, last year, returns to Vancouver.

Didn't make sense.

Um, and so look, he's a guy that has been I guess okay over the last number of years but has not necessarily been, um, the guy that we came to, uh, expect earlier in his career.

Like, I'm just looking up his exact stats last year.

He had 22 goals, 48 points.

So if you were giving him advice for, uh, this upcoming, you know, 11 months, what would the advice be, Dave?

Uh, do you foresee that timeline being this season? Do you think there's any teams that should be making that phone call? How do you think this all plays out? Because, you know, we know the Canucks right now that, uh, they're right in it when it comes to rebuilding.

[inhales deeply] Yeah, like I never really understood why Brock Boeser, uh, returned to Vancouver as a free agent.

Like, what a weird, uh, circumstance that was the way that played out, where it looked like they were trying to trade him the deadline prior, um, and then July 1st, uh, you know, not this year, last year, returns to Vancouver.

It makes sense.

Um, and so, look, he's a guy that has been, I guess, okay over the last number of years but has not necessarily been, um, the guy that we came to, uh, expect earlier in his career.

Like, I'm just looking up his exact stats last year.

He had 22 goals, 48 points.

So if you were giving him advice for, uh, this upcoming, you know, 11 months, what would the advice be, Dave?

[laughs]

... 'cause man, I love them on paper.

Um, but, you know, when you look at the Philadelphia Flyers, I think what happened last year is that, uh, they've got a good collection of young talent, right? But you can only go along so long without actually having it come together and keep believing that you're as good as people tell you you are.

Um, and so when they went on that run, um, as Jamie was telling me, uh, he said, "It felt like everything clicked." And he said, "We understood we needed to get hot, even though we were probably not in the group of teams that anybody gave a chance to get into," including me, and I told him that to his face.

I was shocked.

I was...

Uh, they rolled through Toronto early in March, and I was talking to some colleagues and saying like, "Oh, we'll get you on the brunch in, like, a month and, uh, we'll do the postmortem and see what went wrong." And then they go and make the playoffs.

Acast.com.

[laughs]

Yeah.

Strong, strong guy.

Strong guy.

Um- You know what? And a heart of gold too, when you were talking about his personality, from all that gruff, a heart of gold.

But no question, I, I've never seen... 'Cause I always went with him to some of these events, and to see guys like Roger Clemens, you know, come up, pull my shirt, I'm nobody, and go, "Hey, I gotta- Can I meet him for a minute?" Of course, I'm looking at him like, "You're Roger Clemens.

What, are you kidding me? No problem." Uh, Paul, uh, Molitor, um, and of course Mantle.

What is it like seeing your pal who loved ribbing his friends and fly fishing and baseball almost brought to life again for a fleeting moment nearly twenty-five years after he passed?

It might be best to just put you back in the Ontario League." What do you think?

Yeah.

Look, I'm always of the mind that you can never give an 18-year-old too much time developing, but you certainly can rush him to the NHL.

Now, um, when your dad's the head coach, that makes things even a little bit more interesting, right? I think if that's the case, like, you really need to be ready to roll.

And so what I'd say with Vancouver is they're looking for youth.

Um, they're looking for guys to come in and represent the next wave.

Now, this is not gonna be a year in Vancouver where they are looking to contend for anything.

Yeah.

What do you think?

Yeah, look, I'm always of the mind that you can never give an 18-year-old too much time developing, but you certainly can rush him to the NHL.

Now, um, when your dad's the head coach, that makes things even a little bit more interesting, right? I think if that's the case, like, you really need to be ready to roll.

And so what I'd say with Vancouver is they're looking for youth.

Um, they're looking for guys to come in and represent the next wave.

Now, this is not gonna be a year in Vancouver where they are looking to contend for anything.

So it's not like, um, you're... you can look at that two ways.

Yeah.

But if you had to pick right now in the Pacific division, one through three, how do you think it's gonna look? Or go three through one if you wanna be more dramatic.

Yeah.

I, look, I think Edmonton's gonna have a good year.

I really do.

I have been around the Oilers a little bit this, this summer, McDavid, Draisaitl, Zach Hyman.

Um, I sense a real appetite with those guys to really heed the message that Mike Babcock is going to deliver.

'Cause I do think they recognize the fact that they're coming to the point where it's either get it done or this, this, this, this group of the Oilers as we've come to, um, think of them, will, will dissolve to an extent.

[laughs]

But if you had to pick right now in the Pacific Division one through three, how do you think it's gonna look? Or go three through one if you wanna be more dramatic.

Yeah.

I...

Look, I think Edmonton's gonna have a good year.

I really do.

I have been around the Oilers a little bit this, this summer, McDavid, Draisaitl, Zach Hyman.

Um, I sense a real appetite with those guys to really heed the message that Mike Babcock is going to deliver.

[laughs]

What the hell's going on?

Yeah.

Look, I, uh, I'm not surprised 'cause, like, I think we talked about a couple of weeks ago, I, I do wanna see them talk to a number of candidates.

And I think where they're at right now in, in Detroit is they have to be careful with the type of people that they bring on, and I think that's coming from ownership.

Largely because if you bring on a name brand guy, um, that would command, you know, four or five million bucks as a president, you bring on a GM.

Um, and with where the cap is going in terms of, uh, i- in terms of player salaries, we have to keep in mind there, there's gonna be some teams that are just not going to be willing to spend to the cap the way we've been, uh, we've become accustomed to teams spending to the cap when the cap's been, like, 82, 86, $87 million.

Um, if the cap's, you know, 115, 120, uh, what I'm hearing is that there's a lot of owners that are thinking, "Okay, well, if that's gonna be the case and we're not gonna win, and you, you wanna bring on a president for five million? No, we can lose for far less than that." And so, um, I think what they're looking for in Detroit right now is somebody with some degree of credibility.

Do you think it lasts?

What the hell's going on?

Yeah.

Look, I, uh, I'm not surprised, 'cause like I think we talked about a couple of weeks ago, I, I do wanna see them talk to a number of candidates, and I think where they're at right now in, in Detroit is they have to be careful with the type of people that they bring on.

And I think that's coming from ownership, largely because if you bring on a name brand guy, um, that would command, you know, four or five million bucks as a president, you bring on a GM.

Um, and with where the cap is going in terms of, uh, in terms of player salaries, we have to keep in mind there, there's gonna be some teams that are just not going to be willing to spend to the cap the way we've been, uh, we've become accustomed to teams spending to the cap when the cap's been, like, 82, 86, $87 million.

Um, if the cap's, you know, 115, 120, uh, what I'm hearing is that there's a lot of owners that are thinking, "Okay, well, if that's gonna be the case and we're not gonna win, and you, you wanna bring on a president for five million? No, we can lose for far less than that." And so, um, I think what they're looking for in Detroit right now is somebody with some degree of credibility.

But Detroit is not a major market team.

Do you think it lasts?

I'd love to know the explanation as to why they waited until July 15th to make that decision with Steve Yzerman 'cause it just doesn't make sense to me.

No, it doesn't, um, at all.

Um, look, I, I think in terms of a timeline, you're right.

They, they gotta get something in place relatively quickly, but they also can't make a poor decision here and knee-jerk hire.

So I kind of, um, am on the side of take your time, interview a lot of candidates, and make sure you arrive at somebody that, uh, you think is the best choice, not just the, the sexiest name or whatever it might be.

Um, because they gotta get this right, and quite honestly, Jason, like, I think this season is already down the tube.

Like, I just don't see anything good happening.

Yeah

Do you think that Jason Robertson is a little bit of a trickle-down effect to other moves starting once that deal is, is done either way?

Yeah, I do.

I, I do.

Um, y- you have a guy of, of that ability, and he did deliver this year.

There's no denying that.

His numbers, uh, you couldn't have asked for a better season th- than Jason Robertson put forward.

And so he wants to get paid, uh, that's understandable.

Yeah

And going back to ownership, how ownership must feel that the day they move out of Joe Louis Arena into a beautiful new arena, they don't have a single postseason game in that new arena, Little Caesars.

Well, I mean, they're kind of pulling the Buffalo Sabres routine right now where...

Not quite the same thing in moving into a different building, but the moment that new ownership took over in Buffalo in 2011, they never saw the playoffs until this year.

And it took them a very, very long time to get back to any semblance of credibility.

And that's absolutely where the Red Wings are at right now.

As you said, the day they moved into a new building... their franchise is plummeting off a cliff and shows no signs of getting closer to contention.

So, yeah, I'd be pretty forlorn if I was the Illich family, but I think, you know, at that point, this is why you get to a point where you realize, like, we need to make a change here.

I think this is a very good get for the New Jersey Devils, but let me know what you think, but also, why did it take this long to get to this deal for a guy who scored 30 last year?

Yeah.

He's played the entirety of his career and they've never made the playoffs.

He made it in his first year, but he was, he was a grasshopper.

They didn't know what the hell was going on.

That doesn't count.

Um, they, they haven't made the playoffs since, and that was with the old guard in, in whatever it was, 2015-16.

Um, Detroit isn't...

Yeah.

Yeah.

He's played the entirety of his career and they've never made the playoffs.

He made it in his first year, but he was, he was a grasshopper.

They didn't know what the hell was going on.

That doesn't count.

Um, they, they haven't made the playoffs since, and that was with the old guard in, in whatever it was, 2015, '16.

Um, Detroit isn't...

Yeah.

And again, yes, I never thought about it, but all the major – now, is it because they have the best military? they can they have the better radar than everywhere else i don't know i doubt that but you're right most of these claims come from the us of a

well look i think you're right we are so early when it comes to our technological advancements right and i think we're at a stage now where you know i think i think we're going to start to see things you know moving a hockey stick type formation right where for a long time i'm trying to make sure i'm going the right way here you know we've we've come along you know, kind of slowly.

But once you reach critical mass here with the advancements that we've had, then I think you can really start to go up a lot quicker in a much shorter period of time in terms of what you're capable of doing.

So we are really, I think, just scratching the surface.

Man, are we getting deep here, but I love this.

But I think when it comes to why if they are in fact here, that they have sent real aliens.

I think it's along the same lines as why we are trying to put people back on the moon.

What are you doing?

Are they matching?

I'm not convinced they will.

Now, I'm not gonna say that I have any insight on this.

I haven't talked to anybody within the Ducks, but I'm not convinced that they will.

This-- You never want to lose control of your organization by means of, of a competitor doing it to you the way the Philadelphia Flyers have.

And I think if you're the Ducks, the way things are going right now, you can get creative with those four first-round picks, where it may not be complete doom and gloom if you lose a Leo Carlsson, who I think is a, a very good player, a very good player, but I'm not sure will ever live up to the $18 million a year over the duration of those five years.

Maybe not till the end of that contract.

Yeah.

But if there's another team you think that perhaps has done really well the last 72 hours, who you got?

Well, I agree with Mitchie there.

I really love what Washington did, to be honest with you.

And I think we're getting confused into thinking, is all this work because Ovechkin is not coming back? Or is it all because they want to entice him to come back? I think you can answer and say both.

Ovechkin, if he comes back, is not coming back for a long time.

It's probably one more year.

And Chris Patrick said he was vitally interested to see what the team did in the offseason.

If Pat Verbeek doesn't like your style or doesn't see you as a fit, he's going to cut you loose sooner rather than later.