Bruins at the Bottom: Turning the Page on the Season | Ep. 83 - Bruins Tape to Tape

Speaker 1: Can you start a podcast with me?

Speaker 2: Please?

Speaker 3: I need something to do.

Speaker 2: I'll strack sit it out in trouble.

Speaker 1: I canna say this coast watch tonight as here's a chance pops right down the goalie scars. Oh my wan a move by the rookie.

Speaker 2: Two on one Pastor Not movie came with Marsh get into its.

Speaker 1: Coil dances in PODCASTA wait, hold right way, corner, Pastor is there?

Speaker 2: What's that? From most Welcome in Everyone to another episode of Bruins Tape to tape. I will be your host tonight. I am Maria from Watertown. We are recording tonight's episode on Tuesday, April first, which is April Fool's Day, and I will ask my co host Caroline, Hello, welcome in. Have the Bruins taken us all for fools thus far this season?

Speaker 4: I mean, it's been a joke every day since the trade deadline, so I can't tell the difference between today and any other day.

Speaker 3: It is unbelievable.

Speaker 2: We can't that they have, folks, The Boston Bruins have gotten us to a point where we can't even exchange pleasantries because we're so flip and aggravated. And as we speak they are playing the Washington Capitals, who, in case you've all been hiding under a rock, alex Obechkin it it is now four goals away from breaking the great Ones record because he scored a power play goal already against our Boston Bruins and they find themselves down two to nothing already in the first period. Yeah, why change now, right?

Speaker 2: Change now right? With a handful of minutes left in the first period.

Speaker 4: It was I mean, it was a beautiful goal because it was right there. It was the kind of goal that you're thinking, well, if there was actually a defensive structure to this team, wouldn't have happened.

Speaker 3: But not even.

Speaker 2: The Capitals in front of our nett so right there, top, yeah, right there, And to which I say, at this point, you know what, just just let him do it tonight, at this point, just let him get all of his goals tonight, because that would be so fitting and so apropos about how everything has gone so far this season. So we've gone a little off target here.

Speaker 5: Usually we set the table and we have breaking news as we record, as we record, but we've also gotten to the point where it's like I'm struggling to put together our agenda because we are seeming to be talking about the same issues over and over and over again. However, in the interest of keeping our listeners as engaged as we possibly can for the remainder of this season, on the table tonight for discussion is the potential return of Charlie McAvoy. He has been spotted skating.

Speaker 2: With recently a no contact jersey, and we'll talk about our thoughts and opinions on that. Kim Neely is doing a little bit of a media tour in Boston for lack of a better descriptor, and he has spoken to both Kevin Paul DuPont of the Boston Globe and Jim McBride of the Boston Globe. We'll talk about some of the things that mister Neely said and how we feel about some of the things that mister Neely said, and the Bruins had some ho hum roster transactions we can chat chat about briefly. And then just a reminder, folks, we are in NHL Shop affiliate, so there'll always be a link in our show notes and if you feel so inclined to do a little bit of shopping, it does help our podcast out, So we thank you for that consideration in advance.

Speaker 2: But before we get to our Bruins conversation, there is a little bit of news around the league, and we'll start with specifically tonight, where the Bruins are hosting Women in Sports Night tonight.

Speaker 3: Yeah, yep, it's ah.

Speaker 4: I mentioned this in our last snapshot that they were hosting it this evening. They've got some notable women in the Boston area sports. For example, they're going to be giving a hat tip to the women of the Northeastern hockey team for winning the bean Pot this year. But I have to say, Maria, so we just finished women's history months. Why they waited until April first to do this the next month and then also April first to do this?

Speaker 3: Do you think that's a little bit weird. I don't know what to make of it.

Speaker 4: I try not to read into it, but like, really, you couldn't do this at the start of March. Maybe they were waiting for Sophia to come back. Maybe they were waiting for Sophia.

Speaker 3: But everything, you know, what you like, everything else, this sation.

Speaker 2: Like everything else this season, what do you don't It's just it's been a bleep show from that from beginning. To end, so, you know, and maybe a lot of it, you know, in their defense, in the defense of the Boston Bruins, perhaps they were scheduling issues where they would not be able to get all of the women that they wanted to feature as part of tonight's festivities. So I'm you know, I'm going to give them just a little bit, just I'm not.

Speaker 3: I'm done. As we discussed last week, I'm done. I'm over it. I'm over so everything that comes out of that.

Speaker 2: Over this season, like it's a struggle to even do our snapshots, right, It's it's just a struggle. And you know, I can only hope that our listeners and supporters don't hear the struggle that that it's been this season.

Speaker 4: Yep.

Speaker 3: Yeah, So at least.

Speaker 4: At this point, we still are feeling obligated to keep folks in the know about anything that is happening. But don't worry, we still have episodes throughout the summer that are going to be far more interesting than us sitting here either after every game or once a week for the regular pod and.

Speaker 6: Saying, well to get when when the Bruins, When the Bruins make all the big splashes and big signings that they're going to make this off seas so that the quote unquote retool that is now a rebuild that they want to do quickly, right right.

Speaker 2: If we believe everything that's coming out of Causeway Street, those two idiots.

Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, well.

Speaker 4: I will say I know this isn't on the agenda, but I want to say it before I forget because as you know, as our regular listeners know, I love to listen to thirty two Thoughts to stay informed about what's happening on the you know, across the league, but also kind of in just a little higher level of NHL management stuff. And there's been some more discussion already about or at least the question of will we see now more offer sheets made in the off season this year after what happened last season between Saint Louis and the Edmonton Oilers, and how well that actually has worked out both for both teams.

Speaker 4: Honestly, I mean, I'm not saying that you know the players' names even right now currently escape me. But I'm not saying that those two players in Edmonton were contributing to any sort of negativity in the locker room. And certainly there was a lot of mix up and shake up just from regular free agency departures and arrivals. But it seems to have worked out fairly well for both sides. So the question was posed, and certainly, you know, thirty two thoughts is a little bit different than your average you know, sports talk radio.

Speaker 4: They're not necessarily going to just say something to either be controversial or to have a thought experiment. A lot of their stuff is informed, pretty well informed, and so the fact that this idea has come up does make me wonder with the potential jump in the cap, which again, like if nothing's official until it's official, right.

Speaker 3: Is that going to be another tool in.

Speaker 4: Cam and Don assuming they're so there, which they probably will be.

Speaker 2: But assuming they're not, they are not going anywhere they are in I know it, and I'm telling you this is what we're seeing is a playbook from the Harry Sinden days now, the difference being. The difference being is they when Harry Sindon was a general manager, there was a clear directive about not spending to the cap. Okay, that's where the difference is. However, the manner in which they conducted their business to me hasn't really changed much. Yeah, still shady as all f Yep.

Speaker 4: The only big the only difference I can really see because I agree with you, because we've seen a lot of the same behaviors, you know, for me over the last twenty five years or so, really starting to pay attention to any of this, and that's multitude of different you know, presidents and different gms, so kind of that approach to business has stayed the same. The only difference is the fact that the Boston Bruins are an extremely, extremely lucrative franchise at this point in a way that you know, they certainly were not thirty years ago, you know, I mean, just the game has changed, and then they being the.

Speaker 3: Franchise that they are, there's a lot of money there.

Speaker 4: So there's more motivation from a financial perspective to do what you can to be legitimately competitive, not because it's the right thing to do by fans because it makes.

Speaker 2: No because ownership finally woke up and realized we can make more money. You can make more money if we put a competitive team on the ice.

Speaker 3: Okay, quote unquote sold out right.

Speaker 2: I am still of the mindset that this ownership group, whoever it is, I know it's the Jacob's children or you know, still still JJ at the top. They are not committed to winning a Stanley Cup, and I just don't believe it.

Speaker 3: I just don't believe it because.

Speaker 2: They get their reward, okay, and they've been getting their reward simply by putting together competitive and good teams. I'm not gonna take out away. It's been a dynamic run. It's not a dynasty, but it's been a dynamic run, and it's been one of the most successful.

Speaker 3: It's been an era for sure.

Speaker 2: For sure.

Speaker 3: Yeah, but you.

Speaker 2: Have fallen short numerous numerous times. Yes, and at some point you have to point your fingers at the people who are making those decisions. Yeah, and who might they be? My friend, who might they be?

Speaker 4: It's our favorites, Don and Cam So anyways, my point being, there might be a third potential way that this team could acquire players if they are trying to build quickly.

Speaker 3: That is another way that prior to last season was.

Speaker 4: It was never against the rules, obviously because Saint Louis did it.

Speaker 2: But it's not a common occurrence. It's one of those gentlemen agreements creations. But it seems like maybe makes it broken for us to cover right and one exactly because I think the drama of it, yes, is very very interesting.

Speaker 3: Yeah, and if opens sometimes it could be.

Speaker 4: Juicy again, right, I mean, nobody expected it, and it opens up now a fourth venue for acquiring players. Besides, you know, once the Bruins season is over, they are allowed to start trading.

Speaker 3: They probably won't because half.

Speaker 4: The league obviously is ineligible to trade, so they might wait, just like we saw the big Olmark trade happening, you know at the Stanley Cup Final. But there's the trade, uh, there's the free agency signing, there's the this and then and you've got your you know, restrictive free agents, so the qualifying offers as well, so which is not quite the same thing as how you get uh, unrestricted free agents, because the unrestricteds come from the outside. The restricteds are basically who you're going to keep you're going to keep around.

Speaker 4: So some food for thought and something to think about and consider as we move into our post season coverage of maybe who we would be interested in seeing get kind of nabbed by Boston by.

Speaker 2: Boston, you know, and we'll and we'll you know, we'll we'll likely dedicate some episodes to to these very topics of conversation because frankly, folks, you know, after the next couple of weeks, we're not going to be talking about the Bruins playing anymore hockey because you know, they they keep falling further and further behind. It would take, you know, a miracle of epic proportions for them to even claw their way back into any type of potential playoff scenario. And honestly, at this juncture with the roster that we're currently seeing, do we really even want to go there at this point in time.

Speaker 2: So anyways, we'll get to all of that, But back to our NHL news. I wanted to touch on a very classy gesture that Alex Ovechkin made. I think it was in the game last week where the Capitals played the Minnesota Wild.

Speaker 3: Marc Andre Fleury was in net and he was actually I think he backed up.

Speaker 2: Oh okay, regardless, regardless, they've had epic battles in the in the past, have mark Andre's Flurry's tenure as a Pittsburgh Penguin. And when the game ended, as Washington Capitol players were skating off the ice and heading to the locker room, Alex Ovechkin called his teammates all back out on the ice so that they could salute Marc Andre Fleury, which I thought was pretty freaking classy.

Speaker 3: On the absolutely, We've seen a couple of.

Speaker 4: Special tributes to Flower during his kind of farewell tour, but this one I thought was particularly.

Speaker 3: Moving and classy. Like you said, not only.

Speaker 4: Is there a well known rivalry between Flower and Ov from the Flowers days in Pittsburgh, but actually I was also recently reminded that the year that the Capitols won the Stanley Cup, they played against the Vegas Golden Knights, and who was in.

Speaker 3: Net Marc Andre Flurry forgot about. There was a famous moment.

Speaker 4: Before one of the games, and there was warm ups and they kind of were a little bit in each other's faces and not in a playful way, in a pretty genuinely, uh you know, competitive, you know, intimidation tactic way, and so I thought that was pretty fantastic. I think that that's one of the things I love about this game, and I don't think you see in other sports where you can recognize another player even if you think that they are your greatest rival or you know they've always played against your rival and in your rivalry, and you hate him almost every other day of the year.

Speaker 4: But greatness recognizes greatness and I'm actually kind of a little disappointed that we haven't seen more of that for Mark Herey Flurry this year.

Speaker 3: But it's it's.

Speaker 2: I think a bit, you know, to start to start the season right, and if they're doing their you know, second go round with teams, I think in this instance, it you know, might have been not it might have been their their first time, you know. And and maybe Obechkin realizing too, you know, as he's getting closer to.

Speaker 3: It could be his end too. I would on his.

Speaker 2: End too, right, And so he's probably saying to himself, you know what, I'm gonna take the opportunity now, right now to show my respect to this to this guy that I've had epic battles with over over the years. So good good on him, and good on him for you know, taking the opportunity to kind of to to that's a teaching moment as far as I'm concerned for maybe some of the younger guys on that that Capital's team.

Speaker 3: So yes, you good on him.

Speaker 2: That's a good that's a good leader right there. Gee, I wish we had one of those guys. Oh wait, gave him all way, We gave him away, easy come, easy go.

Speaker 3: Well, apparently they're easily replaceable.

Speaker 2: And what Christ we we had a firing.

Speaker 3: We had a firing. We did we did?

Speaker 2: Oh I missed this friend, John Twittorella.

Speaker 3: Oh not on our team.

Speaker 4: No, I thought you were breaking fantastic.

Speaker 2: Christ. No, we had a firing in the least.

Speaker 4: Yeah, So this has been an interesting situation store right where he comes out and basically says, yeah, I'm kind of tied of coaching this team or something to that effect, and.

Speaker 2: Yeah, it might have had an issue with a player and who just yeah, I don't get it.

Speaker 3: I don't get it.

Speaker 2: But the writing was on the wall right because Philadelphia was in a bit of a tail spin as as the Bruins have been in.

Speaker 4: Yeah, and I think you know, anybody who's kind of followed Tortorella's career over I think he's been around for twenty five years as well. Actually, I think it was exactly twenty five years ago when he got hired in Tampa. You know, he he has a very specific set of skills. He's kind of like the Liam Neeson of UH coaches.

Speaker 3: He's a very specific set.

Speaker 4: Of skills, and you high him for one of two reasons, right, Primarily, most of the time.

Speaker 3: He's hired because your team is close to taking.

Speaker 4: That next step maybe you know, really making a genuine run for it.

Speaker 3: And he's been very successful in that case.

Speaker 4: Right.

Speaker 3: You think about the.

Speaker 4: First Cup that Tampa Bay won way back in the early two thousands, that was his team, right, he was brought in at that point. Look at Columbus, you know, they made it real close and then it kind of threw wrench and all of that.

Speaker 2: I mean, they just they dumped the Tampa Bay Lightning in four straight. I know it was.

Speaker 3: It was a beautiful thing to watch.

Speaker 4: So you know, he he comes in for that purpose. And he's famously known for.

Speaker 3: Not really being.

Speaker 4: The right coach for super young guys, which makes sense, right, Like these guys. You know, when you're a young player, you think about when you were a young adult, you you still didn't really know how to truly navigate the politics at the workplace, that kind of thing. You tend to be a little bit more sensitive, you take things more personally when you've got all this office and and today's young athlete.

Speaker 2: And it's a very different time, different times. Yeah, not did I with all of it. I don't agree with all of it. I think it's different some degree. You need to have a little bit of a no nonsense, right yeah, coaching style.

Speaker 4: But and so the other reason that he's brought in, and this surprised me that it's actually a little bit less frequently, is he's brought in when the team is a complete hot mess. I don't know, because I don't think I was really paying that close attention to the situation with the Rangers when he was brought in there. I think they thought they were closer than they actually were, and they actually were.

Speaker 3: More of a hot mess.

Speaker 4: So I think that kind of was a situation there. But with Philadelphia, they definitely brought him in because they wanted to kind of really set things straight and really set a tone, and they were moving in that direction. You know. I think he very famously is the type of coach and the type.

Speaker 3: Of person we all know, somebody like this who if.

Speaker 4: You're in, you're in, and he will move mountains for you, he will kill for you, he will do whatever. You know.

Speaker 2: Scious about this one thing that everyone across the league got anyone that has spoken of him or played for him, said he cares about his players.

Speaker 3: Famously deflex from the players those post game they have people get angry at him like that's huge, that's actually really huge.

Speaker 4: But if you're on the outside, your life is going to be help and I get that. I understand that, and that's where probably it was. My assumption is it was a combination of maybe Philadelphia's management wasn't doing enough on their end to bring in more new guys after he kind of weeded out the guys who weren't working super hard, because that's the kind of coach he is.

Speaker 3: He's going to force you to take your game to the next level.

Speaker 4: Of course, everybody's talking about, well, you know, we would love to see Tortorella in Boston, absolutely, you.

Speaker 3: Know, we would love it. We would love it, right, we also.

Speaker 4: Want to see our team get a kick in the pants. I think if you read between the lines, my understanding of kind of what was maybe happening behind closed doors this season, based on some of the things that marshan Heads has said in his pressor's post trade was the question ale full on dedication and commitment to the work, right, wyah, because he is that type of player.

Speaker 3: I think someone like Brad Marsham would thrive under someone like John Tortorella.

Speaker 4: The problem is, once again Cam and Don I think have effectively taken Boston out of the running because they got rid of all.

Speaker 3: Of those veterans.

Speaker 4: Yes, so you are now left unless for some reason they brought in a whole bunch of gotten new guys. But that's not a good idea either, because then you're bringing in Tortorella, who requires a certain type of players. But then you've got all these new players and who knows if they're going to.

Speaker 3: Fit with hint them. So they've effectively.

Speaker 4: Taken Boston out of the running because it's just not going to work. And that is also irritating as a fan because this is something we've wanted to see and now we can't experience it because we don't have the right personnel on the.

Speaker 3: Team to handle him as a coach.

Speaker 2: So and and you know this it is, it's it's annoying, and it's a bit of a mess. You know, it's not a bit of a mess, it's a freaking mess because again, you know what we're gonna we're going to finish our NHL news around the Ring.

Speaker 3: Don't got nothing else to talk about.

Speaker 2: I know, I know, because we're going to continue this discussion as it relates to you know, cam Neely and some of the things that he said during these speaking to members of the Boston Globe.

Speaker 3: But we do want to show some love to the p w HL.

Speaker 2: This was a request by one of our listeners and we thank you for that request.

Speaker 3: Where we're also going to.

Speaker 2: Incorporate the Boston Fleet and the p w HL in our around the Rink segment where we'll give you a bit of an update on what is happening with the Boston.

Speaker 3: Fleet in the league overall.

Speaker 2: I do know that you mentioned earlier, Caroline that Boston Fleet are in third place.

Speaker 3: Yeah, right now.

Speaker 4: So if you want to see a Boston team play hockey that is not terrible and is actually in playoff contention, they are currently sitting in a in a playoff spot. Granted they've got about a month ago, their season doesn't end until May third, and their playoffs are a lot shorter because there are six teams, but they are expanding, expanding, there's there's talk of that.

Speaker 3: So yeah, we definitely.

Speaker 4: Want to include them because you know, they work hard, and it's getting a lot more interesting the things that are now actually allowed in the p WHL that typically is not allowed in women's high hockey.

Speaker 3: There are hits. We've had our first.

Speaker 4: Fights this past season, and and we a suspension.

Speaker 2: Yeah, a suspension. And I'm excited about suspensions. But I think to me, it's because it's it speaks to you know, there is fiality in in this league, and it's it's it's good hockey, it's good hockey. These these women are very skilled. But one of our own forward, Kelly Babstock, she's been suspended for two games for slew foot. I don't know if she's been hanging around Brad Martin, but exactly.

Speaker 3: Oh my god.

Speaker 7: So it's you know, like you said, it's exciting because it shows the seriousness and the commitment not just of the players, which I mean never doubted, but the league.

Speaker 3: There's a level of there's intensity to it. Yeah.

Speaker 4: So yeah, Well, we'll keep everyone informed as their season progresses and see where they end up.

Speaker 2: Yeah, so likely to be playing longer than the Boston Bruins will be. So yeah, kudos kudos to the Boston Fleet. So we're gonna take our brief at break and then we'll come back to talk about our Boston Bruins.

Speaker 3: Yay yay.

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Speaker 2: Okay, folks, welcome back, Thank you to our sponsors. Okay, So we need to talk about the Boston Bruins as much as we do.

Speaker 3: Yeah, we do, all right, we do.

Speaker 2: So let's start with the ho hum ohm stuff, which is the Bruins made a roster transactions, they placed Patrick Brown and Vanilla Terry on waivers, and no freaking surprise, they cleared what waivers and I believe Literry is in the lineup.

Speaker 3: Yes, he's playing. He and Brown both those were late tonight.

Speaker 4: Those were likely at this point paper transactions and as I mentioned in our last snapshot again, if you don't listen, you should, you should catch those. At this point in the season, even if somebody got claimed, they couldn't then even play for their new team's NHL club because it's post trade deadline.

Speaker 3: So it was either someone was coming.

Speaker 4: Back, which I hadn't heard any changes with Mark Castle, Like, I.

Speaker 2: Don't think he's No, I'm not sure we're going to see him again the rest of it. I don't think so either, because you know, they recalled Jeffrey on an emergency basis, so I'm not sure. And frankly, you know, since the what we presume was a concussion from our castlic, he really hasn't been the same and he's been in and out of the lineup.

Speaker 3: And so best to.

Speaker 2: Shut him down because he's he's a guy that I would consider keeping for his team. He just you know, from from the very start of the season, he was one of the few guys that you saw a consistent, hard working effort from game after game after game.

Speaker 3: So yeah, he was hungry, yeah, yeah, you know, and.

Speaker 2: Maybe he had something to prove to himself, to you know, the team that traded him away, whatever his motivations were. And honestly, truth be told, if he had stayed in the lineup, I would have had a difficult time placing my seventh Player Award vote because he would have been very close to Morgan Geeky. I ended up pasting my vote, yeah for Morgan Geeky, but you know, Castle Lick would have been It would have been a tough, tough vote for me.

Speaker 3: No, Boston has scored.

Speaker 4: I'm not sure who, but anyways, amazing.

Speaker 2: Oh no, no, it's gonna be there.

Speaker 4: We got one. There we go, Vinny, there you go, speak of the Devil. Yeah, okay, So.

Speaker 2: Let's get down to a little bit of Bruin's business here. Now, Charlie McAvoy, who has been out of the lineup since the second game of the Four Nations tournament.

Speaker 3: Did he get hurt in that played? He played at least two games, and he got hurt in the second. But this, I don't know.

Speaker 2: It feels like that he did not get injured playing for the Boston Bruins. No, okay, So that's a story and of itself that we're not going to go back and rehash. But he has been practicing, and he apparently has been practicing. Was it today with no contact or yesterday with no contact?

Speaker 3: Jersey yep?

Speaker 2: And I listened to our friends on escape pod yep, who had a very spirited, very spirited debate about McAvoy coming back or shutting him down for the season. Now,

Speaker 2: I have my own thoughts about this, had nothing to do with what I heard at that level of conversation, but I'm of the mindset at this point in time?

Speaker 3: Why bother?

Speaker 4: Right?

Speaker 3: Why bother.

Speaker 2: Bringing him back to play what are likely meaningless ye meaningless hockey games. And you know what, I don't like the use of the word tank in any sports because I find it hard to believe that anyone who has worked so hard on his or her crack that gets to the professional level would ever allow that thought to enter into their head. So this isn't about tanking. This to me is about your season has been a fucking disaster from one We just need to be right. Bringing him back isn't going to change. He's not going to save anything at this point in time.

Speaker 2: And Cam and Don have made such a mess that I think the locker room was not in good standing to begin with.

Speaker 4: It's abysmal now, but get on the brutal now.

Speaker 3: It has to be brutal now.

Speaker 2: And if I'm Charlie McAvoy and I'm David Pasternak, when the season ends, I'm knocking on their doors and I'm saying, what's the plan here? What the ever loving f is the plan moving forward?

Speaker 4: I hope that they because there aren't really any other veterans on this team.

Speaker 3: I hope that they feel empowered.

Speaker 4: To speak their truth and their peace at the annual exit interviews. Right, So if if you aren't aware, basically, when the season ends, it actually ends very very quickly for these teams, whether it's you know, April seventeenth or in June, the players they'll go back, they'll get their stuff and basically like the next day they have their exit interviews with management, which is it's almost like from my understanding, it's a two sided almost like performance evaluation.

Speaker 2: Right, it sounds like it's giving the feedback so correct.

Speaker 3: Well, that's what it should be, and it is, that's my understanding of what it is.

Speaker 4: And I think you know, allegedly this is how they he heard about issues maybe with Bruce Cassidy and blah blah blah, right right, right, hopely they have the opportunity to and feel empowered to say something because somebody has to say something.

Speaker 3: And and I think you're going.

Speaker 4: To get to this point probably next where allegedly uh Cam in particular does hear the fans and and does hear the things.

Speaker 3: That the players are saying and takes it to heart. That takes it to heart.

Speaker 2: Yeah, all right, again, I'm not I'm not going to try to you know, get into his head.

Speaker 3: Okay, I want to believe.

Speaker 2: Well, I'm done. Let's flip tables like you're he's been talking out of both sides of his ass.

Speaker 4: Right, you say one thing, but then you're you're bleeding this team dry.

Speaker 2: So you're talking out of both sides of your ass. You you tell us one minute that you know will likely need to do a retool. Then you viscerates the team. You eviscerate the team. You eviscerate the team. Okay, then you sit down with Kevin Paul DuPont of the Boston Globe.

Speaker 3: Why aren't they playing with any heart and enthusiasm? You just fired all of their friends.

Speaker 2: I mean, they're freaking human. So you took an already ten you know, maybe tenuous situation and you made it freaking worse.

Speaker 4: I can't believe that they're not playing with the heart and soul of the Bruins.

Speaker 3: Like I did in the eighties. Dude, you played with Ray Bork.

Speaker 2: Like listen, he and I know, right he man, I know I'm not going to take this away from him in terms of his his heart, his determination, and his work ethic as a player. Yeah, sure, that's exclusive of you. Know my thoughts of you as a front office person and the fact that you are based. You are talking out of both sides of your ass. Why because you're trying to save face now because you don't want the fan base to turn on you, but him turn on you? Okay, when you when you traded brad marchhand for nothing.

Speaker 2: And again, I'm not going to be a hypocrite. I'm not going to be a hypocrite because I know I said it during one of our podcasts. I would have entertained a legitimate conversation about trading Brad marshand, but that's not what this thing is. On what you were getting in return.

Speaker 3: I don't care. Listen to me.

Speaker 2: I don't give a shit about what people think about him asking for more money, because you know what you gave Jeremy Swayman eight and whatever, eight point twenty five million freaking dollars and he has sucked this season, right, Okay, he has sucked. He had sucked, and he walked around and said, I'm gonna set the tone for my peers. Okay, so what so brad Marsham says, Wait a minute, Wait a minute, I've been doing team friendly deals here, this kid.

Speaker 3: This kid.

Speaker 2: Now, I'm just paraphrasing because maybe I might think like this. Maybe why that's why I'm talking like this. This kid hasn't played a full goddamn season. Yeah, hasn't won anything. Hey, Yeah, he played well in the he was excellent in the playoffs. Small sample size, small sample size. As far as I'm concerned, I have been working my ass off from day one, from day one, okay, contributing.

Speaker 4: Right.

Speaker 2: I've had some injuries. I battled back, I even came back early from a pretty significant injury, and they won't reward me. Go f yourselves, Yeah, go f your selves. Yep, that's how I feel. Yeah, that's how I feel.

Speaker 4: We're on the same page, I think, as most of Bruin's nation currently is. But to your point, you know, I would also like to make note of the fact that we've talked more so about Don because obviously he is a much more public facing figure for Boston, but both he and Cam, unlike a lot of other sorts team gms and presidents like, they don't go willy nilly to the press or to the radio. So the fact that he spoke with two members of the Boston Globe and to hear some of the things that he's said. I think you're one hundred percent right in the fact that this is very likely some sort of pr management preparation for when the axe finally comes down on this team's season.

Speaker 4: I don't know to what paint him in this light of I'm so sad that these guys are just not getting it done. Okay, well, you've just set the house on fire and you gave your firefighters thymbols of.

Speaker 2: Water, and you know what, maybe maybe okay, nobody has sympathy for you, Cam And you know what, are they sending a message to that? Do they do they want to be here? Do these players want I.

Speaker 4: Wouldn't want to be there if the situation is as bad as I interpret simply based on their play and watching the Bruins play compared to teams like Anaheim and San Jose who have arguably objectively sucked all season, but they're having fun, like they like each other. You can tell that what the game that they're playing out there, you are the Boston Bruins. You you are the Boston Bruins. You went to the West Coast.

Speaker 2: And you got Sharks beat you, and the Anaheim Ducks beat you you were on an eight game losing street, and now your president is going to soft landing spots right to what shame you into playing harder? And then you have then you have the balls, yeh to say everything is on the table.

Speaker 4: Wait wait, wait, so are you threatening them or are you trying to motivate them with because you've already you've.

Speaker 2: Already done that once this year. Yeah, duncan my understanding is okay, dun Sweete already went to some of the veterans on the team. Now the veterans that were named all right, were pasta Coyle might have had a conversation nowhere in there that I see Charlie McAvoy's name thrown in about if things don't get better around here, they're going to be some serious changes.

Speaker 4: And that's another thing that I think is really weird, And I don't want to really speak too much on it because obviously it's not based in any fact, and we try really hard to at least.

Speaker 3: Base a lot of our opinions in fact.

Speaker 4: So I'm gonna be I'm gonna keep my mouth shut on it for now, but I'm gonna be paying real close attention this summer to see how all of whatever this situation is, this rebuild, which like, look, if you're bringing in a whole bunch of new guys, like what fifteen new guys on a team of twenty and a new coach, that could actually work out really well, right because everybody's new, they're all gonna bond whatever. That could be fine, But I'm gonna be super curious to see. Okay, so David Pasternak is still the only one playing with a letter.

Speaker 3: I understand that.

Speaker 4: I think there's some sensitivity there, but kind of what happens next, I think things are gonna be really touchy potentially.

Speaker 2: So I don't say much more than that that I want to, you know, no, no.

Speaker 3: No, right it it could be for the better. What I don't like.

Speaker 2: What I don't like is talking out of both sides, out of the mouth. We're like, like, we don't see what's happening that we're gonna buy everything that you're selling right to us right now, right like we didn't pay.

Speaker 4: Attention at the trade deadline and we didn't see what just happened or how you you know, and and it's and it's this is not again the first time that we've seen this kind of behavior from Cam and done right again.

Speaker 3: Listeners.

Speaker 4: Regular listeners of the pod have heard me say for years now, I don't I don't care for Cam Neely. I think he's a snake because we have seen him do stuff like this time and time again, and it took me a little.

Speaker 2: While to come around to your line of thinking. Right, you were absolutely one hundred percent.

Speaker 3: Correct, yep.

Speaker 4: I mean Jeremy sway is the first is the most recent concrete example of that kind of behavior where he has the audacity, not Jerry Swiman, but cam Ealy has the audacity in regards to Jeremy's contract to sit there and say, well, he's got sixty four million reasons to to.

Speaker 3: You know, blah blah blah.

Speaker 4: But then it turns out that that was, once again not an actual conversation that has been had.

Speaker 3: So like, what are you doing? Yeah, it's what are you doing?

Speaker 2: Stop? You're making things worse And I'm not sure and I know things won't change. I know things won't change because they are all in lockstep with these other they are all you know. They they both received endorsements from Charlie Jacobs. Unless people stop showing up in that building next season, then maybe it will affect some change in the upper level organizationally.

Speaker 3: Of the Bruins.

Speaker 2: But I believe that we are going to go into this rebuild, retool, whatever the hell he's gonna call it tomorrow or the next.

Speaker 3: Day with Don Sweeney and Cam Neely. Yep.

Speaker 2: And if I'm on the outside looking in and I see what is transpiring here and I am a potential candidate for a coach or I'm approached, my first question to them would be, Okay, if I'm going to even consider this job, I want guarantees from the two of you, and I want it written.

Speaker 3: I pick my own coaching staff.

Speaker 2: I who stays, and I decide who goes, or it's a deal breaker.

Speaker 4: It'll be really interesting to see what direction they end up going in. If they opt for a veteran coach, because that's, let's be honest, like, that's the type of person who would who would have the guts to say something like that, someone who's been around, or if they opt to go with someone who is a little greener, a little bit newer. Hard to say, right, because Jim Montgomery was on the newer side.

Speaker 2: They've tried it both ways and they ended up. I mean, they've had the veteran coach coaches and they end up firing them. Then they bring in the players coach, right, and they fire him. Right, he has the Saint Louis Blues on an eight or nine game winning streak.

Speaker 4: His name was being thrown around for Jack Adams. Okay, I'll have you know.

Speaker 2: Your team is on any case tired in November. I know, I just can't make out this season. You just can't make this ship up this season. And in all seriousness and all seriousness, right, if if you're David Pasternach, Okay, you're still young, right, you're still young. You know the goal of any of these guys, are majority of them, is to get their knee on the Stanley Cup and to be on a team where they have the potential to do so.

Speaker 3: Yep.

Speaker 2: Now, if I'm David Pasternach and this season ends the way that it's likely going to end, right, Yeah, And I know you've made your commitment, God bless you. You're saying all the right things, and you're trying to be a leader, and you're still out there playing hard even though you can see the frustration build it. How long before you go home? Some night and say to your family is say to your wife, Mersey, to yourself, I want to go someplace wall I know I can win. Yeah, yeah, Well how long might that take?

Speaker 2: Yeah it took Rayborg twenty two years.

Speaker 3: I know, I know. Oh. Look, and now our favorite.

Speaker 4: Dollar store brand version of Mark Castlick is having a fight, probably for no good reason.

Speaker 3: I can hear it in the background. I don't even want to look.

Speaker 2: I trust we should.

Speaker 3: We should just call it a night.

Speaker 2: I just like I want to apologize to our listeners because we're a bit all over the place tonight. We're at case. You can't tell.

Speaker 5: We are royally frustrat we are royally pissed off.

Speaker 2: This is not what we expected when we saw the roster at the beginning of this season.

Speaker 3: And I don't even know what direction.

Speaker 2: I think that's what bothers me the most, is not knowing what direction this organization is going to take.

Speaker 4: Mm hmm yep, nope, I agree.

Speaker 2: So with that being said, thank you for listening, Thank you for subscribing. Please do subscribe if you haven't done so. You can find us on YouTube, Apple, Spotify, any social media platforms that you pull your podcasts from.

Speaker 3: MM hmmm. And to end, do you want to say it?

Speaker 2: Really mean it? Do you really mean it?

Speaker 4: Though?

Speaker 3: Always Mariam, I'm here.

Speaker 4: It's not for management, it is. It is for the for the players. As always, go bes gobs.

Speaker 3: There's such assholes.

Liner notes