WhyHockey

The regular season is about a quarter of the way through and the Panthers are not in a playoff position and playing at barely a playoff pace. Should fans be concerned about where they are? Injuries are the only story here, right? On the newest WhyHockey show, we tackle that and more including:

1:30: Do we have podcast “competition” from the Tkachuks new show?

10:20: What’s the level of concern about the Panthers play and playoff chances at about the quarter pole of the season?

38:30: Obligatory Sebrango talk, why it worked and why you shouldn’t be concerned that he was scratched again

59:30: Kruli’s corner on the Flyers

Thanks for reading Whyhockey Periodical! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Remember that the Substack is your new full time home for the podcast, Matt’s written pieces and much more, so be sure to subscribe if you haven’t yet! Enjoy the show and please give it a five star review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Apple Podcasts:

Spotify:

Follow us on social media:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 on Bluesky and Twitter

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey on Twitter

Intro and outro music is “Arcade Montage” by Lee Rosevere from his album “Music for Podcasts 3”, which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

On the newest WhyHockey Podcast, we talk about a natural crossover in hockey analytics and Pokemon with someone who put them together: Louis Boulet of lb-hockey.com. He talks about his site and journey in hockey analytics, the work he does in the traditional analytics space and then the real fun: Puckemon. We go over all of that and more including:

2:30: Who is Louis Boulet?

10:30: A Sens perspective on Donovan Sebrango

15:00: Some other Panthers notes

21:00: Puckemon, how it was created and the process behind making it work

28:20: The best player-Pokemon comparisons

Thanks for reading Whyhockey Periodical! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Remember that the Substack is your new full time home for the podcast, Matt’s written pieces and much more, so be sure to subscribe if you haven’t yet! Enjoy the show and please give it a five star review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Apple Podcasts:

Spotify:

Follow us on social media:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 on Bluesky and Twitter

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey on Twitter

Intro and outro music is “Arcade Montage” by Lee Rosevere from his album “Music for Podcasts 3”, which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

Here is a treat for all of you on Halloween: a brand new WhyHockey show in your feed. There’s plenty to look back on from the first month of the Panthers season, plus a whole lot more including:

0:30: Remembering some guys, old prospect pools edition

8:00: Which current or former NHL head coach would use ChatGPT to help them with tactics?

12:30: Where do the Panthers stand after their first 11 games? What’s missing?

23:00: Are there echoes of the current struggles for the Panthers in their recent past?

29:30: On Mackie Samoskevich

35:00: On Brad Marchand

39:00: Other notes on the forwards

49:00: The Panthers are reportedly in the market for a depth defensemen. What are they looking for?

1:05:00: On Daniil Tarasov

1:09:00: Tommy with an interesting goalie idea!

1:15:30: Kruli’s corner on the Flyers

1:25:15: All these new contracts

Thanks for reading Whyhockey Periodical! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Remember that the Substack is your new full time home for the podcast, Matt’s written pieces and much more, so be sure to subscribe if you haven’t yet! Enjoy the show and please give it a five star review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Apple Podcasts:

Spotify:

Follow us on social media:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 on Bluesky and Twitter

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey on Twitter

Intro and outro music is “Arcade Montage” by Lee Rosevere from his album “Music for Podcasts 3”, which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

Greg Wyshynski of ESPN joins Matt to touch on some season opening topics, including the glut of new contracts (not exactly including Jack Eichel, whose contract dropped as this was being recorded), the Panthers-Lightning preseason games, how the Panthers will fare in the regular season, Wysh’s Trevor Zegras story and much more.

Thanks for reading Whyhockey Periodical! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Remember that the Substack is your new full time home for the podcast, Matt’s written pieces and much more, so be sure to subscribe if you haven’t yet! Enjoy the show and please give it a five star review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Apple Podcasts:

Spotify:

Follow us on social media:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 on Bluesky and Twitter

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey on Twitter

Intro and outro music is “Arcade Montage” by Lee Rosevere from his album “Music for Podcasts 3”, which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

The 2025-26 NHL season is here, and Matt and Tommy have plenty to talk about, especially since there was no official WhyHockey show since April. While we didn’t get to everything we wanted to, we did get to all of what’s below and more, including:

5:00: WhyHockey housekeeping (please subscribe to the Substack!)

9:00: Do the Panthers actually have a chip on their shoulder because of the Barkov and Tkachuk injuries?

19:35: A little primer on the Panthers unique salary cap situation and how it might play out

29:00: With all of this said, how does this all play out for the Panthers on the ice?

35:45: What will the season look like for Anton Lundell and Mackie Samoskevich?

42:00: The Lightning-Panthers preseason farces

1:06:00: The McDavid contract! As Tommy calls it, McDavid’s Crosby moment

1:16:00: Brief Flyers takes!

Thanks for reading Whyhockey Periodical! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

From around 25-35 minutes into the show, you may hear some background noise behind Matt, which is an audio recording and editing snafu that will be fixed for the next show. We’re working out the gremlins getting back into the swing of things.

Remember that the Substack is your new full time home for the podcast, Matt’s written pieces and much more, so be sure to subscribe if you haven’t yet! Enjoy the show and please give it a five star review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Apple Podcasts:

Spotify:

Follow us on social media:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 on Bluesky and Twitter

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey on Twitter

Intro and outro music is “Arcade Montage” by Lee Rosevere from his album “Music for Podcasts 3”, which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

Tommy and Matt have plenty to say about the latest Panthers-Lightning playoff encounter, and they have thoughts about the rest of the playoffs and the Flyers too. All that and more are in this show, including:

6:30: Is this the most even of the four FLA/TB series?
9:00: Are the Panthers "tired"? Does it even matter in this series?
21:30: Breaking down some of the specific matchups in this series, forwards, defense, who to exploit, etc.
53:45: Other playoff topics
1:04:30: Tommy's Flyers takes

Enjoy the show! Please listen to the Pucks and Palms Podcast as well, and give both shows five star reviews on Apple and Spotify!

Check out the WhyHockey substack:

https://whyhockey.substack.com/

Follow us on Twitter:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 and on Bluesky

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey

Intro and outro music is "Arcade Montage" by Lee Rosevere from his album "Music for Podcasts 3", which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

The annual WhyHockey trade deadline recap is here and boy oh boy was this one a complete whopper. Tommy and Matt have an incredible amount of stuff to talk about, including:

4:45: Seth Jones is still a Panther. How has he looked in his first couple of games and how does that fit project to the playoffs?
16:00: Projecting the future beyond this postseason after the Jones addition, including Knight and Ekblad/Bennett contract situations
27:15: Vanacek and Kahkonen
35:45: Nico Sturm
40:00: OK, now we'll talk about Marchand 
53:00: Winning the Atlantic division is strongly advised!
1:08:15: Mikko Rantanen to Dallas is nuts 
1:13:00: An interesting question about the Hurricanes

1:20:30: All those Avs moves 
1:26:15: The teams that admitted the ruth
1:31:45: The Flyers moves

Enjoy the show! Please listen to the Pucks and Palms Podcast as well, and give both shows five star reviews on Apple and Spotify!

Check out the WhyHockey substack:

https://whyhockey.substack.com/

Follow us on Twitter:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 and on Bluesky

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey

Intro and outro music is "Arcade Montage" by Lee Rosevere from his album "Music for Podcasts 3", which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

Matt and Tommy are back in the saddle after a few months away, and there's a lot for them to sink their teeth into, including:

3:45: We're still not particularly concerned about the Panthers 
8:45: They still need another right shot defenseman though 
25:00: Identifying possible trade targets to fit this need
35:30: Why does this Panthers team specifically need a right shot D to achieve their goals?
54:00: A tactical note to keep an eye on
56:45: Taylor Hall interest?
1:02:00: Tommy's views on all the trades
1:21:45: Salary cap increases and what it all means 

Enjoy the show! Please listen to the Pucks and Palms Podcast as well, and give both shows five star reviews on Apple and Spotify!

Check out the WhyHockey substack:

https://whyhockey.substack.com/

Follow us on Twitter:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 and on Bluesky

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey

Intro and outro music is "Arcade Montage" by Lee Rosevere from his album "Music for Podcasts 3", which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

Matt and Tommy get back together for another WhyHockey show to look at the first quarter of the Panthers season, and explore why something feels different for these Panthers compared to previous teams, including:

2:00: Why does Matt feel a disconnect with the Panthers right now? What about this start to the season feels off for some reason?
11:30: What is Paul Maurice talking about when he speaks about this team not having something it cannot get back?
15:00: A traditional in-depth WhyHockey discussion about the Panthers blue line
20:00: How can the Panthers go after their biggest trade deadline need with limited assets?
40:00: Forward discussion, including Samoskevich, Reinhart, etc..
59:00: Goalies, specifically Spencer Knight finding his feet 
1:08:30: Tommy's thoughts on the Jiricek trade
1:22:00: Have the Flyers turned a corner?
1:27:45: Tommy might not be the biggest fan of the Four Nations tournament

Enjoy the show! Please listen to the Pucks and Palms Podcast as well, and give both shows five star reviews on Apple and Spotify!

Check out the WhyHockey substack:

https://whyhockey.substack.com/

Follow us on Twitter:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1 and on Bluesky

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey

Intro and outro music is "Arcade Montage" by Lee Rosevere from his album "Music for Podcasts 3", which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com

Tommy and Matt reconvene for a first 10 game checkup on the Panthers, and they like what they see. They go over these topics and more:

7:00: Are the Panthers the best team in the East?
20:00: How has the new look blue line held up?
31:15: On Mackie Samoskevich
46:15: Potential contracts for Sam Bennett and Aaron Ekblad, and the confirmed one for Paul Maurice
1:00:00: Goaltending
1:10:00: Tommy has thoughts on the Flyers
1:28:10: Dealer's Choice around the league

Enjoy the show! Please listen to the Pucks and Palms Podcast as well, and give both shows five star reviews on Apple and Spotify!

Check out the WhyHockey substack:

https://whyhockey.substack.com/

Follow us on Twitter:

Matt L is @MattsMusings1

WhyHockey is @WhyHockey

Intro and outro music is "Arcade Montage" by Lee Rosevere from his album "Music for Podcasts 3", which you can find here: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lee-rosevere/music-for-podcasts-beats/arcade-montage/

 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whyhockey.substack.com