CKSTAM

JJ Adams, Whitecaps FC Reporter for Post Media joined Matt and Blake after the team drew 1-1 at LAFC. Talked about the result. Since they currently sit in a playoff spot, everyone else they are in contention with could lose and they would make it. The last home game they played was vs SJ and they had Jungwirth as their CB. JJ says that the Caps scoring so early could have thrown them off. It was all LAFC after that. Reminded him of the last time they played each other back in August. They wouldn’t have come away with any points in either of the games if it weren’t for Crepeau. Brian White is unreal, says JJ. Talked about how the season turned around so dramatically. You can’t understate the impact of Ryan Gauld. He drives the play in the final third. They had the bones of a good team before him and it’s all coming together. What they’ve done under Vanni is far more entertaining. You can see the identity that they wanted before. They aren’t being hemmed into their own box under siege. They’ve turned the corner and full credit to Vanni and Gauld.  Talked about Seattle. They are very daunting at full strength. It should be a really outstanding game between two teams who have a lot to play for. Talked about the team’s troubles off the pitch. October 19th is the first time Shuster was made aware of the allegations against Busby. Says you would have thought that the team would have made him aware of that. They did not… That would really upset him. **We are coming to a time of reckoning and change.** The league is not too impressed with this team. Talks about the other similar allegations that the club has clearly not learned from. 

Darren Dreger of the Ray and Dregs Podcast joined Matt and Blake and started off by chatting about the Eichel trade speculation. Dregs says to be careful about what you hear. The reaction he has received following up on it isn’t very positive. Sooner than later the Sabres need to find a deal. Talked about outside pressure. Knows that Daly has been actively involved in this but doesn’t think he is applying any pressure. Says that the NHLPA is thinking of filing a grievance. Nobody wants to go down that path. Wonders what the teams involved are thinking while the decision lingers after fair offers have been made. Thinks that it’s a collective pressure to get a deal done. Talked about Kevin Weekes report. Says it’s hard to comment on it. You don’t want to establish that that is the deal. Talked about his thoughts on the Bettman presser. Felt like it was cold. Very legally. You saw two decorated lawyers on full display. Was disappointing to see the way they skirted Westhead. Can appreciate the legal talk but it felt like there was a coldness about that that we didn’t get from WPG brass. Talked about Chipman and his sincerity. Talked about the PIT scandal. Says that this isn’t new for the NHL. Talked about the future of Gary and if he could be out of a job. Believes that he still has the vast majority of support from his owners. There is no question that they have questions about what has been going on. They just want to make sure they can ask the questions they can ask. Doesn’t think he is in a pile of heat here. Ownership sources are asking why the fine for the Blackhawks was so light.

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Katie Strang of the Athletic joined Matt and Blake to talk about the latest in the NHL. After taking some time to dissect the Bettman presser from yesterday, there was a lack of empathy from the Commissioner and the NHL. The most gobsmacking part of the conference was when Westhead asked Gary if they will support the young Michigan player and he couldn’t come up with an answer. She doesn’t even think that he is calculating that ticket holders or sponsors will walk out by the thousands. There is a disconnect in the NHL in how Kyle Beach was let down. Gary is a shrewd legal mind and his first defence is to act like a lawyer. There is a cost of inaction and there is a cost in not acting with human empathy.  This is something that we’ve come to expect from Gary Bettman in his tenure as Commissioner. Talked about Rick Westhead and the role he played in all of this. Says that none of this would have happened without him. This work is very difficult to do and Rick is exceptional at it. There is no conceivable way that he should have been called on so late in the press conference. Thinks that the general hockey community sees value in this type of reporting. It’s encouraging in the term of the work that we do. Talked about the pending lawsuit in PIT. Talked about the future of Gary Bettman. He works at the behest of the owners and unless they feel the bottom line is going to suffer, doesn’t see them making any sort of bold move to replace him with someone else. There has been public outcry but power is very centralized. Thinks that Kyle Beach taking this public will save lives. This alone won’t do it but there will need to be a push within the league. 

Patrick Johnston of Post Media joined the show for his regular Tuesday hit. Started off chatting about Travis Hamonic and how he came to play his first game. Guesses he got his shot, at the end of the day he got vaccinated. Though, they went against their word and the whole team is not 100% vaccinated. He won’t be able to go on the road next week. It is their right to dock him pay. In the end of the day, this is a player they want in the lineup, they paid him as such. Notes that the team didn’t hide him and gave him a chance to tell him his side of the story, or at least part of it. Media can only do their best to fill in the gaps. Fans want to know what the lineup will look like. Thinks that people were respectful of TH situation. The core of the story is the willingness to get vaccinated and that was what was reported. Talked about what he will bring to the lineup. 

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Charean Williams, Football Hall of Fame Writer joined for her weekly appearance. Talked about the Broncos. Says she doesn’t know what they are doing. A really strange couple of weeks and doesn’t know if they are buyers or sellers. Talked about the Von Miller trade. Doesn’t know if it vaults the Rams into favourites. It puts pressure on other teams to go out and make moves. Thinks that the best teams are in the NFC right now. Thinks that there were more teams in on Von Miller. Talked about Mike Holmgren and his hall of fame eligibility. The format changed a couple of years ago when coaches had to compete against players. Talked about the Monday Nighter.

John Shannon, Co-Host of the Bob McCown Podcast joined the guys. Nothing to talk about today, though… started off by talked about where the Canucks fall into league standings. Talked about Travis Hamonic and his status. Someone who watches a game in Detroit without a mask and vaccine. There is a difference between a working environment and an entertainment environment, even though they walk through the same door. Talked about Pettersson and his struggles. Talked about Don Fehr and if he still keeps his job. Thinks he will make it through the day, at the very least. The Players are clear that they want answers and accountability. There is enough responsibility to go around. This just might speed up the inevitable. Didn’t think he’d be around to the summer. Talked bout who might replace Fehr. Gillis is the obvious one and would be a step up. Would not surprise John if Glen Healy was a candidate at some point. Says that he is a smart guy. They need leadership first. If you want a lawyer, you can always hire one. Talked about Gary Bettman. Says he is the ultimate politician. Thinks the fine to the Blackhawks should have been upwards of 10 million dollars. Talks about why draft picks weren’t taken away. Says that Gary don’ts want to punish a new management team, 

The head coach of the Abbotsford Canucks, Trent Cull joined Matt and Blake after a busy weekend for the club. Started off by talking about how Abbotsford has been. Says it has been fantastic with fans right from the anthem to the game. Talked abut Travis Hamonic. Says he is a good person and a great pro. It’s great for the team to be around a guy who has been in the NHL as long as he has. Had him going in all situations. He was a consummate pro in his short time there. Talked about getting Jack Rathbone. Doesn’t have any preconceived notions. You never know about a guy whether he is firing mad coming down. One thing for sure is that they will get him on the ice and working. Talked about the benefits of Abby from a players standpoint. Will be fantastic to get guys in the lineup on the day of transaction. Talked about the weekend. Didn’t like their start first game vs Ontario. Loved the 5 v 5 the second night, was a shame to give up two PP early in the game. Talked about Klimovich. Says it’s great first and foremost to get out of living in a hotel. They’ve worked on his wall-work and has already seen it in the game. Trying to get him up and running as much as they can at the pro-level. Talked about potentially sending him to the press box to take a breath, hit the reset button. That’s something that everyone goes through. They are pretty lean up front so everyone there will get a chance to play.

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Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Canucks defensemen joined Matt and Blake. Started off by chatting about the start to the season. So far it has been alright despite needing to work on a few things. Coming home from the road trip, which was really good, they need to step it up at home. Talked about the loss in Philly. Never easy to be down 2 goals despite tying it up 1-1. They’ve been getting some good looks but it’s a matter of putting the puck in the net. Not concerned about it because they have a lot of guys that can score. Trying to help Quinn out. Talked about practicing with 2 dmen on the PP. Says he hasn’t played that way since he was with Yandle in ARI. Talked about playing EDM on the weekend and how he will have to defend McDavid and Draisaitl. The focus will be on getting the win and getting 2 points. Talked about moving to Vancouver and playing with The Canucks after being so long in ARI. Loves everything in Vancouver despite it raining a little bit more, he is getting used to it, though. Talked about Pettersson and his early season struggles and what the team can do to help him. Says he wants to compete and puts a lot of pride in playing and putting up points. Says he hasn’t thought about the Olympics at all. He wants to play well for the club here and if he does that the Olympics will come. 

Gregg Bell of the News Tribune in Tacoma joined Sekeres and Price to look ahead to the Hawks matchup vs the Jaguars. Started off by talking about the environment at Climate Pledge Arena. Says they are building something special there. Jags are coming in feeling good right now. Haven’t played since winning. They believe in their coach right now, despite his shortcomings in public. Lawrence is growing into the job and not making mistakes most rookie QB’s makes. Look for them to exploit the outside flanks, as the Hawks were exposed on the Monday nighter. This looked like a gimme a couple weeks ago but there are no gimmes in the NFL when you lose your starting QB. Talked about not resigning KJ Wright. Gregg talked about Chris Carson and if he’ll play again this years. Said that coach says he needs to make a turn and hasn’t shown anything just yet.

Rick Dhaliwal, host of Donnie and Dhali joined the show and started off by complimenting us on our studio! Started off by answering the poll questions. Saying there have been pockets of entertaining play. Surprised that they can’t manufacture anything five on five. Now it’s really dropped off, led by 40. Talked about guys that aren’t producing. Did not expect them to have an identical record as expansion Seattle. Talked about the Kyle Beach story. Has known Kyle since Bantam. Says that hockey needs to get these predators out of the game and stop letting them in. Talked about Hamonic and how long it will take until he is back. Hearing 2 to 3 weeks till he is back.

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The interim-manager for the Vancouver Whitecaps, Vanni Sartini joined Matt and Blake after an emotional night at BC Place after a 2-2 W over MUFC. It was a fantastic 2nd half with a 2nd goal who deserved to win at the end of the match. It was beautiful to celebrate. It is the triumph of the will to win games like this. Talked about Brian White and what has made him so successful. Vanni says that the team will need to win one of the last 2 matches to clinch playoffs. Talked about what he does after the game. It’s a fantastic bit and you will want to hear it. Talked about what he thinks of himself on TV. Says he is clumsy and is lucky that doesn’t fall. 

Jay Janower joined the show from Global BC. Talked about working sports in news TV. They pride themselves in being local, to search out local stories and telling the amateur stories as well. It bugs him that it is a dying breed. Talked about what he makes of The Canucks this year. He is really perplexed because he likes the moves that GMJB has made. This home-stand is massive for the team. He isn’t seeing the same player he saw in the first season for EP40. If he can’t regain his form, the team is in trouble. He was so confident with the puck on his stick and Jay isn’t seeing any of that lately. He used to fight for pucks, not right now. Talked about the lotto line. Thinks it is hurting Petey right now. Talked about the job Tyler Myers is doing, not picking up penalties and staying on his feet. Talked about Demko and when he should be garnering some Vezina chatter. Talked about having fans back in the seats. Finished off by talking about the sense he is getting from the Abbotsford Canucks. 

Karin Larsen of the CBC joined Matt and Blake to talk about the Whitecaps and the recent and past problems with some of their coaching and the sexual assault cases. She talked about why Bob Birarda had his court date, that was supposed to be today, pushed back. It’s been ninth time it has been pushed back. She says that this is a very normal thing to happen as there is a lot going on. Including some of the charges being applied at different times and the various rules at that time. Talked about the new allegations against Hubert Busby Jr. Talked about the Whitecaps and how they deal with these matters. There seems to be a playbook with the club and how do deal with them. Says that what Mallory Enoch is alleging is criminal in nature. Karin talked about the way this should be dealt with. Thinks there needs to be more transparency. Tried to FOI Canada Soccer and it didn’t pull anything in. Knows that there are documents out there that say something. 

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