On this episode of Poke the Bear, Conor Ryan and Evan Marinofsky reflect on the Bruins' season amidst a five-game losing streak. Should expectations for this year change? Plus, the Garden voices its displeasure for management. All that, and much more!
Topics:
- Bruins get smoked by Oilers
- Management starting to feel the pressure
- Still no young guys called up
- This Florida trip could be very painful
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Topics:
- Bruins get smoked by Oilers
- Management starting to feel the pressure
- Still no young guys called up
- This Florida trip could be very painful
💰 Prize Picks - https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/CLNS
Download the app today and use Code CLNS when you sign up & Get $50 instantly when you play $5!
🎫 Gametime - https://gametime.co
Take the guesswork out of buying NHL tickets with Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code CLNS for $20 off your first purchase. Download Gametime today. Terms apply. What time is it? Gametime!
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SportsTranscript
00:00PokeTheBear is brought to you by PrizePix and the Game Time app.
00:07And welcome into PokeTheBear episode 293 presented by PrizePix.
00:11Go use that promo code CLNS to get $50 back when you play just $5 and are presented by
00:19Game Time.
00:20Go use that promo code CLNS to get $20 off that first purchase.
00:24Terms apply.
00:25I am Evan Baranofsky.
00:27That is Connor Ryan.
00:28Connor!
00:29What is up?
00:30Evan.
00:31I'm back.
00:32I'm not in California.
00:35As you can tell by my wardrobe, it's pretty fucking cold here.
00:38But I'm doing well.
00:39How are you doing?
00:40Doing great.
00:41Doing great.
00:42You've got to be frigid upon arrival, I can imagine.
00:45Yes.
00:46It is awful outside.
00:47Oh my god, is it bad.
00:49Cold, windy, it could be worse.
00:53But this is pretty bad.
00:55Pretty cold.
00:56I will say though, I mean, hopefully it stays like this so the ponds can freeze.
01:00That wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.
01:02But it is way too cold outside.
01:05But next year, if fans want to get out of the cold, February 1st, 2026, which seems
01:14like eons away, over a year away, Bruins will head down to Tampa to play at Raymond James
01:20Stadium for a stadium series game, which we we talked about the Winter Classic like
01:26a week or two ago.
01:27And we mentioned maybe the Bruins will play the Panthers.
01:30Turns out to play the Lightning a month later.
01:34I like this.
01:35I like this.
01:36Good matchup.
01:37I'm very curious to see what the ice is like and what it's like outdoors down there.
01:42But I'm in.
01:44I like this.
01:45What about you?
01:46Yeah, no, I agree.
01:47I think what we talked about last week, right, was the fatigue of the same old stadiums,
01:52the same teams.
01:53I say that as the Bruins get ready for their sixth outdoor game.
01:56I know that.
01:57But I think in terms of generating interest, whether it's the Bruins in Tampa, who obviously
02:02have a rivalry, Florida, the Florida Panthers obviously get the Winter Classic game against
02:08the Rangers.
02:10It's clear the NHL is trying to switch things up a little bit and make it interesting.
02:13And as much as I think you get the skepticism as to Florida as a hockey market, how the
02:20ice is going to be, what have you, it adds intrigue, right?
02:23Like this game, you know, these games every year should have something unique about them
02:28of like, you know, pushing the boundaries of what the league can do, how to attract
02:31more fans.
02:33As like you said, Evan, with like, they'll never do it again, probably.
02:36But like those outdoor games where they're, you know, there's not like a seating capacity
02:41or anything like that.
02:42Like if we had a game at Lake Louise up in Banff or something like that, how cool it
02:45would be and how much that would generate headlines.
02:47Like having this last one be, you know, New Year's, you know, before New Year's in Chicago
02:55with a really crappy Blackhawks team in the middle of bowl games, like I don't know how
03:00it's going to branch out and make you the NHL, which is already nowhere close to being
03:05the top dog in terms of just the sports zeitgeist, sports discourse.
03:09Like I think going to Florida and changing those things around makes it interesting.
03:14So I'm excited.
03:16I'll be down there, I'm sure, with my little sunscreen, little Hawaiian shirt.
03:21See how cold it actually does get.
03:23Unlike the Panthers, who are at least playing like in an indoor stadium where the Marlins
03:28play.
03:29Curious to see if like all of a sudden we have an unseasonably like 65 degree day in
03:34Tampa in February.
03:35We'll see what happens.
03:37I was going to say, what if it's like slush?
03:39I mean, what if that would have taught out?
03:41But I like it.
03:42I like it.
03:43Battle the elements a little bit.
03:44Not typically the elements you face playing hockey in the winter.
03:47But I'm for it.
03:48I'm just disappointed they couldn't play it at Tropicana Field.
03:51That's really.
03:52It's unfortunately now that ballparks in a little bit of rough shape these days.
03:58Yeah.
03:59They should just play it at the field without the roof.
04:01Like just I mean, they don't have a roof, so I know exactly.
04:05It's all the you know, just like a dome without a roof.
04:08So but good, you know, good to see the Bruins in it.
04:11They definitely have not played nearly enough outdoor games.
04:13So no, they finally they finally give one to the to the Bruins.
04:18So hopefully the Bruins are better next year than they are this year.
04:22Oh boy.
04:23Oh boy.
04:24That game against Edmonton on Tuesday night for nothing loss felt a lot worse than a four
04:30nothing game.
04:34My biggest take from this game was it was like watching an A team play like a B team
04:38where it's like clearly the other team is better.
04:40There is such a gap between the two.
04:44What did you take away from it?
04:45Yeah, I mean, just uncompetitive, right?
04:48I think that's probably the best way to put it.
04:52Bruin just looked completely outclassed in that one.
04:54And, you know, they've had these, you know, this stretch where you've lost five straight
04:58six of seven where, you know, they've had games that are frustrating, whether it's,
05:04you know, the Islanders game where they come back losing overtime, the games against the
05:08Capitals and Rangers early on where that lack of scoring, you know, sprouts up and they
05:14can't get that equalizing goal to get back in the game.
05:18You've had games like Toronto where they finally break through.
05:22David Posnack has kind of a takeover game and you feel good about that.
05:26And then the defense implodes.
05:28This one was, you know, I think I mentioned last week, right, that it felt like whack-a-mole
05:31of like one thing can't be, you know, it's not one thing, it's the other.
05:35This game on Tuesday was everything falling apart and it is probably the most stock view
05:42yet of a team that just looks like it's not in the same tier, the same class as teams
05:47like the Oilers, you know, and now you go into this road trip against both the Lightning
05:54and the Panthers where, you know, it's going to be critical for this team in terms of,
05:59you know, trying to right the ship because if the Bruins play like they did on Tuesday,
06:03you know, moving forward, they're going to be in the same boat of just completely uncompetitive
06:07games.
06:08Because I think you can view Tampa as a legit team in terms of just their firepower, their
06:12star power, what they can do out there.
06:14Vasilevsky, I know he's not maybe been prime Vasilevsky the last year or two, but still
06:20is a guy that pretty damn good, got the credentials.
06:23And then we know what Florida has done to this team over the last couple of years.
06:27So if they play like they did on Tuesday, moving forward, they're going to get their
06:30ass kicked and it's going to be critical for this team to see what they can do to try to
06:36get out of this.
06:37But if they continue to play like this, going into these games against Florida, it's probably
06:42all the validation we need, right, Evan, of looking at this team as maybe they are what
06:45they are, which is just a pedestrian team that maybe they sneak into the wildcard, but
06:50maybe they're going to be out of the playoff picture entirely because they've done little
06:54to kind of show that they deserve a spot once the calendar gets into late April.
06:59I just I keep going back to if the rest of the East wasn't bad, wasn't underperforming
07:07as well, I think the Bruins are at most like the second wildcard, maybe out of it.
07:14Like that's my thing.
07:16Like Tampa still has way less games than you.
07:19So at some point they're going to catch up.
07:21So you fall into wildcard teams and you probably stay there because like Columbus is hovering
07:26around there.
07:27Do they stay there?
07:28I don't know.
07:29The Rangers should be near the top of the metro and they're near the bottom of the league.
07:32That's a whole nother story.
07:33Like you have all these teams sort of underperforming Pittsburgh and, you know, the Bruins probably
07:40do sneak into the playoffs at the end of the day.
07:43But I don't know how you can look at the last five games, whole season and think, man,
07:49that's a playoff team.
07:50Like that's a playoff team because they just haven't been at all.
07:54And I think the last five games have really shown it where they've lost one goal games
07:57to non playoff teams, competitive games.
07:59They came back against the Islanders, still lost an OT Rangers, you know, put up a fight
08:04but lost and then he gets smacked around by the caps.
08:07Your defense implodes against the Leafs and everything implodes against Edmonton.
08:11And I think that to me is like the tell that sort of the season in a nutshell where it's
08:15like you are not on the same level as the playoff perennial contenders.
08:21You just are not.
08:23And you saw that on Tuesday night.
08:25Oh my God, did you see it?
08:27You saw it.
08:28And I mean, they didn't, they didn't control a second of that game.
08:31The third line was your best line.
08:33You mentioned whack them all.
08:34That was the mold.
08:35Exactly.
08:36Down.
08:37That's the mold that's been up that decided to stay down.
08:39I just, fans are sick of it.
08:43Us as media are sick of it because, you know, not only are they like middle of the pack,
08:49like right around average to below average, they're also boring.
08:54There's nothing really to bite into with this team.
08:57You know, you just have like, they, the young guys aren't up, which we'll get to in a bit.
09:01So there's not that storyline to follow.
09:03And it's a lot of guys just underperforming.
09:05A lot of guys just missing the mark.
09:09And you know, I think that's why you heard fans upset, you know, booing them.
09:15I mean, that power play is awful.
09:17That first unit is atrociously bad.
09:20Worst it's been all year, like unable to enter the zone, consistently giving up chances the
09:25other way.
09:26Second unit's been better.
09:27Like second unit actually had like a little bit of sustained time.
09:31And you hear fans booing, you hear fans chanting fire Sweeney.
09:35I just, I get why people are pissed.
09:38I get it.
09:39Yeah.
09:40And I think it, as you kind of said, it's the, not just the baseline results, right?
09:44Like this team could be playing kind of that boring system that we've mentioned before
09:50of like how the Islanders under trots were and stack up wins.
09:54And I think people would be like, Hey, if you're winning, who gives a shit?
09:57Ask, ask fans in New Jersey if they gave a shit, how they won three cups, right?
10:02Like it doesn't matter if you're winning, don't, you know, look at Islanders fans in
10:0621 where they pushed Tampa to the brink that wasn't the most riveting team, but who gives
10:10a shit if you're playing into a late May, early June?
10:16But yeah, I think it's just the fact that the product is so bland right now.
10:20There's nothing really to get excited about.
10:22I mean, there's also nothing worse than like being completely middle of the pack and middling,
10:27right?
10:28Like maybe, you know, how do you get fans excited when the product itself is not good?
10:31It's not like this is a team that's scoring a bunch of goals, but they're giving up a
10:35whole bunch down the other end of the ice.
10:37It's not a team that, you know, is locking things down in grade a ice recently.
10:41Like you look at these last couple of games against the Oilers and the Islanders in Toronto
10:46haven't done that special teams is bad.
10:48Like there's not like a, uh, it's not like the Bruins, you know, even before Montgomery
10:53got here where they were kind of middle of the pack, if not, you know, 20th at five on
10:58five scoring, but they had a top five power play.
11:00So you could rely on that and get that entertainment.
11:03There's nothing there.
11:04Uh, and you know, we'll talk about the, the young, uh, prospects and the, the lack of
11:09juice there in terms of getting fans excited for just seeing what new blood can, can provide
11:15this team.
11:16Um, you're just kind of stuck in neutral right now.
11:18And it's like, are you expecting them to add to the deadline?
11:22I don't think so.
11:23They shouldn't write like that's the whole thing.
11:25It's like, if this was the last couple of years, you'd be like, all right, they got
11:29to do something in the deadline to add a guy.
11:30But after doing that year after year after year, where you've given up first round picks,
11:35this probably is not the year to do it.
11:37I think we all agree on that.
11:38So fans can't look forward to that.
11:40They can't look forward to, you know, the product on the ice where, um, you're seeing
11:44the same old things, the same old flaws, um, you know, going into Thursday's game.
11:50You know, I think a lot of fans are probably expecting some moves on Wednesday.
11:56Same lines on Wednesday as it was on Tuesday, no call-ups or anything like that.
12:00And it almost feels like you're getting, uh, I think the most dangerous thing with a fan
12:04base, which is apathy or just like, all right, well, I guess this is just what it is.
12:08Like, that's not what you want.
12:10Like you can have pissed off Bruins fans, which is, uh, par for the course Bruins fans
12:16are very passionate.
12:17They get pissed very easily, but when the product is middling like this and doesn't
12:23seem like there's any solution or any urgency to fix things, all right, then why are they,
12:27why should they get invested?
12:29If you're not going to call up the young guys to at least see what you have, why, why are
12:32we watching the same old product when it's the same guys that are dragging their feet
12:36every day?
12:37Like as much as, uh, it's been a frustrating year when the, the urgency and the lack of
12:42vision, the lack of identity isn't there.
12:45Why should fans buy in?
12:46And I think that is the, kind of the question you have to face right now, if you're the
12:49Bruins.
12:50Cause that inactivity is, is just having you stuck in this, the worst place you could be,
12:54which is just a neutral, boring middling product and it ain't fun.
12:59It isn't.
13:00I mean, I, I, um, I remember early this year, I think I mentioned this on a podcast.
13:04I took my girlfriend to the Bruins and stars back in like October.
13:08And that was like, the stars just dominated for 60 minutes.
13:12It wasn't close.
13:13And it's like, this is not worth money.
13:15Like this, this is awful.
13:16This is unwatchable.
13:17Um, but you want to make the games a little more watchable, Connor got to go to our friends
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14:09This sports season Bruins wise, Posternox been producing.
14:13I'll give you that.
14:16I'm a big one and nothing's changing.
14:18So Charlie McAvoy still getting a ton of time on ice.
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14:41So for the first time all season, there was a fire Sweeney chant at the garden.
14:47Uh, I again, like pretty surprising granted.
14:50I said this to hags poke the bit on poke there on pucks with hags.
14:54I said, uh, it's like Twitter came to life and just, you know, all filters in the building.
14:59Yes.
15:00Like sky net.
15:01Exactly.
15:02Um, I'm not at the point of firing Don Sweeney.
15:05I'm not, not there yet.
15:06I think he's done a fairly good job over the last couple of years.
15:10Um, I think internally it's going to take a lot for them to fire the GM.
15:13I think it gets into, you know, they missed the playoffs once or twice.
15:17Um, they're hamstrung by contracts, which I think could, that is very realistic.
15:21Um, the draft stuff comes back to bite you, but I get why people want change because there's
15:28no change being made on the ice.
15:30As you said, the lines are the same and I'm for keeping lines together.
15:33Um, I'm for giving guys time to have chemistry, but when you've lost five in a row and there
15:40are lines that clearly are not producing or haven't been producing such as that third
15:45line, which Brazil will score every now and again, which is nice, but like Wallstrom hasn't
15:50really given you anything points wise.
15:51Frederick isn't giving you anything points wise.
15:53Um, you know, you're just kind of bringing out the status quo every night.
15:58I get why people are pissed and want change.
16:00Yeah, exactly.
16:02It's kind of what, you know, we just said where the product on the ice is, is that what's
16:07there to be excited about right now?
16:08Like, yes, you have staff players on this team.
16:11How many of them are living up to their billing right now between Pasternak, McAvoy, Swayman,
16:15all these guys not doing that well, you know, and you look at like the lack of, you know,
16:21the identity.
16:22And I think the longterm outlook of this team, it'd be one thing if like this team had played,
16:26you know, had already started, you know, playing Lysel and Merkulov and all these guys and
16:31people were getting a look at them and seeing what they could do.
16:34And they were failing.
16:35Like, let's say, like, you know, there's no guarantee that when they, you hope inevitably
16:39call up Potra and Lysel and Merkulov and I think probably Lysel and Merkulov had more
16:44of the question marks there.
16:45But um, if they're up here for like 10, 15 games and don't show anything, then at least,
16:51you know, but like if Bruins fans who have been watching the same product on the ice,
16:55the same milquetoast, you know, identity, the same guys that are dragging their feet
17:01and aren't producing, of course, they want to see these young guys play.
17:04Like, you know, I think Ty Anderson mentioned before of like, there's been a couple of games
17:08now where the Bruins, again, have been playing uninspired bad hockey to the same, you know,
17:14the same cast of characters.
17:15And on like Twitter, the trending topics are like Lysel and Potra, like Bruins fans aren't
17:19stupid.
17:20Like I think Bruins fans are realistic when stuff doesn't go their way.
17:24Like I've seen quite a lot of people amid the this team sucks this, you know, what the
17:29hell's going on here being like, if this ain't our year, like let's make the most of
17:33it in terms of either trading off pieces and doing kind of what the caps did, which is
17:37retooling on the fly or seeing what the young guys can do.
17:41And I think if you sell that, you know, I remember, was it two years ago where Charlie
17:45Jacobs was like, you can't sell this market on a rebuild.
17:48And again, like there is a fine line, not even a fine line.
17:52There is a difference between a rebuild and a retool.
17:56Foundational pieces can fall, you know, you can fall into the same trap as Red Wings and
18:02those teams don't want that, but you very easily could retool this team, you know, in
18:06a year or two and stay kind of in the mix of kind of what you're doing right now, which
18:12if you, if you told like the Bruins fans, like, Hey, we're going to trade pieces, get,
18:16you know, stockpile draft picks, you know, add to our prospect pipeline.
18:20Like if you pitch that for Bruins fans and they're next year, they're still in the mix.
18:26They're a 90 point team.
18:27Maybe they make the playoffs.
18:28Maybe they don't.
18:29But you see the progress.
18:30You see a guy like what Cherno who's had his growing pains, have another good, you know,
18:35have a good year at BC next year, a guy you have in the first round this year, lights
18:39it up in the WHL, what have you?
18:41Like I think you can sell Bruins fans on that if it's a one or two year retool, if it leads
18:46to what the caps are now, where all of a sudden they've got guys that they gave a chance on
18:51producing.
18:52You've got guys that have rebounded and what do you know?
18:55You've got Ryan Leonard coming in, you know, in this spring for the capital scene, which
19:00is horrifying.
19:01Like, and again, it's not to say the Bruins are going to plummet and have a right pick.
19:05That's right.
19:06He's just going to, he's going to be there in the spring.
19:07Yeah.
19:08So, and it's not to say the Bruins are going to plummet like that.
19:09And all of a sudden I forget where Leonard went.
19:12Seventh overall, is that where he was, which is eighth, which is already crazy that he
19:17fell that far, but I don't know the Bruins going to have a top 10 pick, but I think doing
19:22that and you know, if it's a not rebuilding, but retooling on the fly, I think you can
19:27sell Bruins fans on that.
19:30It's all about just committing to it.
19:31If this team just doesn't have what it takes.
19:34And right now, has there been anything that's proven that they have what it takes or they're
19:38due to break out?
19:39I don't think so.
19:40This is why, this is why all year I've, I've said like a retool is what this team needs.
19:46That's what this team needs more than anything.
19:49And you know, you look at the lineup, you look at the roster, you look at who is a UFA
19:54going into next year and you just look at the future of this team.
19:56I mean, we talked about this at the time and I don't begrudge the Bruins for signing him
20:02because he was the best center available, but Elias Lindholm has missed every mark.
20:07I mean completely.
20:09And at age 30, that contract is already looking bad.
20:13We thought, all right, you know, year four, year five, that's when you'll start to see
20:18him regress a little bit, but you will have gotten good play out of him for those first
20:21four years.
20:22And in that time, Letourneau and other prospects can become your real number one centers and
20:26you'll be okay.
20:29He looks like a number three center most nights.
20:31And I think that's a really scary thing.
20:34And that is a no move.
20:35Like he, you can't trade him unless he waves that, like you can't just deal him.
20:41So that's off the table.
20:43Zdorov, another thing like that contract, not saying that's going to hamstring you,
20:47but like that hasn't looked great so far.
20:50He's been on and off as McAvoy's guy, um, on the left side.
20:54And like, I think that's sort of where Sweeney is going to feel the pressure.
20:57Like if, if they are stuck with these, a bunch of guys who have no moves or modified, no
21:03trades and, and they can't get deals done that are going to help them asset wise.
21:08Like that's why people are so big on trade Trent Frederick, because you can deal Frederick
21:12to freaking anywhere because he doesn't have protections.
21:16If you wanted to trade Carlo or coil, even they have protections.
21:20Even they have 10 team, no trade lists.
21:23So like, that's the thing where like, I think, you know, I think Sweeney is safe for now,
21:28but if in a year, you know, if they miss the playoffs this year and then they're really
21:32in no better position next year, there's not a clear vision for the future of, Hey, you
21:36know, we're, we're dealing guys, we're getting picks.
21:39That's when I think he really starts to feel the pressure.
21:41And I know people say, you get them out now, get them out now.
21:44It's not what stable organizations do where you just fire the general manager in January,
21:49like a, and B they've like, it's not his fault that they crapped the bed in the 23 playoffs.
21:59Like it isn't, it isn't, he did, he did everything possible to put that team over the top.
22:03That is the players.
22:05And honestly, some bad coaching decisions that he put them, he put them for in four
22:11tiers over the top in terms of what, how deep that team was.
22:14Yes.
22:15It's not, and that doesn't absolve him from the mistakes this year, the lack of drafting,
22:20all those things.
22:21Like, and it goes back to what we said about just like the dearth of talent on this team
22:25in terms of young talent, like remember how excited Bruins fans were like after two kind
22:30of re you know, tough seasons in 15 and 16 of like that 17, 18 year where you had McAvoy
22:38and DeBrusque and Andrews Bjork, who is viewed as a top prospect, but like there was reasons
22:43to be excited about where that team was at Dan Heinen, who had like almost 50 points
22:47as a rookie.
22:48Like you felt that optimism, I mean, again, granted you were also elevated by a core that
22:53still had, you know, Bergeron at 32, right?
22:56Cray chief 33, Marshawn, like you still had a really good core chart.
23:00I was there.
23:01Yeah.
23:02But you still that, you know, this is a Bruins team that are Bruins fan base that gets excited
23:08when you have a vision for the future.
23:09Right now.
23:10It's like you're putting all your eggs in the basket of like a guy like the eternal,
23:14which isn't fair for a guy like that, that is a project and is going to be a couple of
23:17years away.
23:18Anyway, I've already seen people like look at his elite prospects, that line and started
23:23shitting on the poor guy when he's already a year ahead of where he should be.
23:26And we knew this was going to happen, but I thought we prayed people well enough.
23:29Yes.
23:30Yeah.
23:31But I'm not saying it's going to be great, by the way, but don't judge him until three
23:34or four, you know, three years at least down the line.
23:38But when you're that barren in terms of the blue chip or intriguing prospects you have,
23:43like it all puts the pressure on one of these, you know, guys.
23:46So I do think this team desperately does need an injection of young talent, whether it's
23:51this year with guys like Lysel, Patra, Markulov, what have you.
23:56And then moving forward.
23:57And I think it comes down to knowing what you have on this team, being realistic about
24:00it.
24:01And then, you know, committing to adding young talent, whether it's trading off pieces, whether
24:06it's keeping your first round pick and doing that, it's the best way to retool on the fly
24:10when you still have, you know, impact players on this roster right now.
24:16That's and that's the thing I think is like, you know, if and they're not going to come
24:20out and say it, but like at this deadline, right?
24:24Like I think people would be fine if they dealt off pieces.
24:28I'm not saying, you know, McAvoy and Pasternak.
24:30I'm saying like Frederick and you know, do you entertain like a coil, which I don't want
24:37to do?
24:38I will get into like leadership things in a bit, but like I think he feels that I think
24:43he's a legitimate leader in that room.
24:45But like a guy like that, you know, do you listen on Brandon Carlo?
24:49Like do you try to recoup picks and make them at this draft at the next draft?
24:54And so the next two or three years you make all your picks.
24:58That's the thing.
25:00I think you're seeing the chickens come home to roost in that the last bunch of drafts,
25:05they've only had four or five picks.
25:07They haven't made a lot of first round picks.
25:09So you're right.
25:10You miss on all this high talent.
25:12You miss on it completely.
25:13And I think they have, they don't have a lot of high end talent in the system.
25:19So this is what you're seeing.
25:22And we talked about, we've talked about this for years when you look at like free agency,
25:26the way you build, the way you supplement your core with Pasternak and McAvoy and Swayman
25:31is not through free agency.
25:33You can get some good, you know, complimentary third or fourth line pieces in free agency
25:38for sure.
25:40But core guys like Elias Lindholm is now part of your core and his numbers are not good.
25:46Nikita Zdorov, you know, has been better since Sacco took over.
25:49But even that is like, what's the, what's the future there?
25:53So I want to continue on this, especially with the young guys stuff.
25:56But first I want to go to the game, want to go to the Bruins, which now might be the time
26:01because tickets are going to get cheaper.
26:03So now might be the time I go visit our friends over at game time.
26:08No better place to make incredible memories with fellow friends, fans, enemies, then game
26:17time, going to a game, taking it in live.
26:19I said this last week.
26:20It's January.
26:21So it's kind of the dog day.
26:22It's not a lot to look forward to.
26:25Games aren't as meaningful, although I mean like this stretch is against good teams, but
26:29being there just hits different.
26:31So go to our friends at game time.
26:32Game time is a new feature called game time picks that makes getting tickets for events
26:35even easier.
26:36It filters out the fluff to show you only incredible deals on great seats so you don't
26:41have to waste time searching through thousands of tickets to find the best value.
26:45They do it for you, which is awesome.
26:48Bruins wise.
26:49Again, I think this is the time.
26:51It's a good time to go.
26:52And again, with the flash deals, you hit on some of those flash deals right before the
26:56game, it's cheaper night, cheaper night, and you have the all in pricing, which is awesome.
27:03So download the game time app, create an account and use code CLNS for $20 off your first purchase.
27:08Terms apply.
27:09Again, create an account and redeem code CLNS for $20 off.
27:13Download game time today.
27:14Last minute tickets.
27:15Lowest price guaranteed.
27:16Connor, what time is it?
27:19Game time.
27:21It is in fact game time.
27:25Game time, game time, game time.
27:28Young guys, my take coming out of the last five games is that you can absolutely trade
27:34Trent Frederick for assets.
27:36You can trade him for picks and prospects.
27:38It doesn't need to be a player for player swap.
27:40You know why?
27:41Because you can't tell me that a guy like Matt Potra or Georgie Murkuloff can't come
27:45up and do like pretty much the exact same thing production wise.
27:49Like the way that you have it in house.
27:51Yeah, exactly.
27:52The way that Frederick's playing right now.
27:55What do you have to lose?
27:56And it's something that, and I think Ty even mentioned it yesterday during the Oilers game
28:01where like, we know what the Bruins have said in terms of why guys aren't being called up
28:04yet of like, you know, they have to learn to be better with managing the puck.
28:09Have to, you know, do all these little things that NHL is do.
28:13What have we seen from the guys on the NHL roster right now that is any different from
28:16what we've seen?
28:18Like what do you see from the Oilers where, you know, their first goal, it's four Bruins
28:24standing around doing nothing.
28:26You know, if that was Murkuloff or Lysell, they'd be banished to the shadow room.
28:30Like, so what is this team doing right now that is so much, you know, at a higher level
28:35than what we've seen that's keeping guys like Murkuloff and Lysell and Potra away from this
28:42level?
28:43There's nothing.
28:44It's I think when you look at the season, the way things are going, like, what do you
28:49have to lose at this point?
28:50Like, oh man, like Lysell and Murkuloff, like I was not surprised that they didn't make
28:56any drastic moves going into Thursday's game because it's the mom's trip down to Florida.
29:01So I don't know if you're going to be giving guys the boot, but let's say that that wasn't
29:07the case.
29:08Right.
29:09Like, all right.
29:10You don't want Murkuloff and Lysell and Potra out there because you got the Panthers who
29:13are physical and can bury you all across the ice.
29:16You got Tampa.
29:17That is dangerous.
29:18Well, all right.
29:20So would you run the risk of, you know, bringing those guys out and seeing what they can do,
29:24good or bad, and you lose 6-4 or, you know, what happens if you just stay with the status
29:30quo and you lose 4-1 instead?
29:33Like all right.
29:34Like at the end of the day, this team is as flawed as they are.
29:37I want to see what these guys can have.
29:39I'd rather find out going into the offseason, like, all right, we can finally have the whiteboard.
29:45We can finally cross off.
29:47We can take the eraser and take out Lysell and Murkuloff.
29:49They're not up to speed over a 20-game sample size, right?
29:54But if we're just going to keep on going the same short-term solutions, like a guy like
29:58Wallstrom, like, what are we doing if this is the year and this is how it ends, whether
30:02it's missing the playoffs or a first-round five-game exit?
30:06Let's see what these young guys can do.
30:09I'm tired of going through scenarios of what these guys could be when, if there's ever
30:12a time to do it, it's now.
30:14Yeah, I think that's the biggest thing, and like, again, look, I want Wallstrom to work.
30:19I think everybody wants Wallstrom to work.
30:21There's, you know, legit potential there, but there's been no production through, what
30:26is it?
30:27How many games has he been up here now?
30:28Eight, nine.
30:29Eight, nine?
30:30Like, again, I'm not saying that's everything, and he's on the third line, and the third
30:33line hasn't really produced all year, and he's had chances.
30:36He's had legit chances to score, no doubt, but like, you also need to see what you have
30:42in-house.
30:43You got to see it at some point, and I know, like, Wallstrom would be more Lysel, because
30:47you're not putting Merkulov on the wing, and you're ideally not putting Patra on the wing
30:53either.
30:54You're putting Patra down the middle, but like, you've got to see what you have in these
30:58guys at some point, and as you've said, like, if you get nothing out of this, you know,
31:04if they are one and done in the playoffs, and they keep rolling out this lineup, this
31:08season will just be a complete failure, but if you could run this lineup out, finish pretty
31:15much in the exact same area, but see what you have in Lysel and Merkulov, because I
31:21think you know what you have in Patra.
31:22Like, Patra's going to be back up here at some point.
31:25I think a lot of people, myself included, would want to see him up now.
31:28He's been great in Providence.
31:30You need that kind of dosage.
31:31I know you don't want to see him get crushed up here, but he's also getting crushed in
31:34the AHL.
31:35Still professional hockey players, like, he's still going to get rough, you know, sort of
31:39roughhoused, but like, I think if you could finish the year and see what you have in Merkulov
31:44and Lysel, it's like, all right, they got something there, or oh, they don't have anything
31:48there.
31:49Like, I think that's the thing, and it's, Merkulov's offensive ceiling is higher than
31:55most of the roster, right?
31:57So yes, there's some defensive zone issues.
32:00Yes, there's going to be some mistakes, but if you put him with a line that's in the top
32:07nine, let's say, not the fourth line, but first, second, or third, and you give him
32:11a good amount of minutes per game for, let's say, even 10 games in a row, he's going to
32:15produce a little bit, like, most likely more than the guy that was in his spot before,
32:22and I just, I don't understand the rationale there.
32:27I think keeping Frederick in the lineup and not benching him, or healthy scratching him,
32:33to me, is chalked up to, they don't want to lower his trade value.
32:37That's what that comes down to, is, hey, see, he can be a center, look, he's playing center
32:41for us, third line center on the playoff team.
32:43Like, I think that's what that's, what's going into that, and I also think, we're not near
32:48the deadline yet.
32:49I know, like, trade boards are coming out, and this and that, and the rumors are flying,
32:54and they're starting, but, like, once you get to, like, a couple weeks away from the
32:58deadline, that's when prices really start to rise.
33:01My guess is you see him dealt around then.
33:04I don't think it's going to be right now.
33:05I just don't, because I think they want to wait for the price to rise, and if they can
33:11recoup a legit asset with that, you take it.
33:14You absolutely take it, but I think that's why he continues to be in the lineup in a
33:17prominent position.
33:18Yeah, no, I agree.
33:19I just think that, as we mentioned before, but once you have the label of a guy that's
33:25being healthy scratched, other GMs take note of it.
33:28It's like, oh, what's going on there again?
33:30So I wouldn't be surprised if he's in the lineup until there's some sort of resolution
33:35there.
33:36Yeah.
33:37And again, I mean, also, like, you know, GMs can read, I think, uh, lots of stories out
33:41there.
33:42They don't know.
33:43They don't have cap friendly.
33:44They're all just like, what the hell is going?
33:45Yeah.
33:46How do I do this?
33:48Yeah, exactly.
33:50But there are, you know, places writing that he's underperforming.
33:53So I mean, GMs can figure that out for themselves, but I think getting scratched is sort of a
33:56different animal.
33:57I don't know.
33:58They're in a weird spot, and I think, you know, there are people who are overreacting
34:02for sure, who want to, you know, I get the comments like we do all the time of blow the
34:07whole thing up, start over, all that.
34:11You're not there.
34:12It's good.
34:13It took a lot for me to get to that point, but I do think you're in need of a retool.
34:19I do.
34:20And I think, you know, even if they do okay on this Florida trip, which is not easy, and
34:25then they face Ottawa after the fact.
34:29I don't know, man.
34:30I don't know.
34:31I don't know how.
34:32I don't know what, like, you can't, how do you add to this team at the deadline without
34:36giving up a, you know, a first round pick, a future second round pick, like make your
34:42draft picks.
34:44That's the thing.
34:45Like if someone wants to give you a lot for like a murky law for, okay, fine.
34:48Like, sure.
34:49I just don't know who's going to do that.
34:50So yeah, I don't know what you do with the deadline at this point.
34:53Like I don't know.
34:55We'll see.
34:56We'll see.
34:57We will see what happens.
35:00I think we've touched on everything.
35:01I don't think there was anything we like completely missed.
35:04The vibes are bad, Evan.
35:06I would say.
35:07Not good.
35:08Not good vibes.
35:10Not good vibes at all.
35:11I thought there was one other thing that I wanted to mention before we left.
35:14I don't think there is.
35:16And if there is, then we can talk about it next week at another time.
35:20Exactly.
35:21Connor, what can the people look forward to from you over at the globe and boston.com?
35:24Yeah, you can read my stuff over the globe and boston.com will have you covered every
35:28step of the way this brewing season with recaps, features, columns, breakdowns, all that good
35:33stuff.
35:34And if you want to follow me on Twitter X, whatever it's called, you can over at Connor
35:38Ryan at Connor Ryan, I'm just going 93.
35:42Go do all that.
35:43Go do all that.
35:45That's Connor Ryan.
35:46I'm Evan Marinovsky.
35:47You poke the bear listeners.
35:48Have a great rest of your week.