This week on Puck Poolies, with Matt Larkin and Steven Ellis:
It’s episode 49! Keeper League buy lows
– Pickups of the week: Shallow, medium & deep leagues and WTF
– Keeper League Buy Lows: Players to grab on the cheap if you’re a seller team or planning for next year
– Special guest Ken Campbell on Hughes vs. Makar in keeper leagues
– Prospect Report: Zach L’Heureux
– Listener questions, including: More wins ROS: Skinner or Kochetkov?
– Starting Lineup: All-time favorite Blue Jays
and more!
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Matt Larkin’s top 300 rankings: https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/matt-larkins-fantasy-hockey-midseason-top-300-player-rankings
Matt Larkin: https://twitter.com/MLarkinHockey
Steven Ellis: https://twitter.com/SEllisHockey
Puck Poolies: https://twitter.com/PuckPooliesPod
This is the puck py podcast with Matt lurin and Steven Ellis hello everybody Welcome to a new episode of Puck pulley Matt Lin here with Stephen Ellis and we’re getting close to the fantasy playoffs if you’re in a head-to-head format which we are I got a lot going on in my league Stephen but let’s kick it off by an update from
You perfect week yet again uh so that’s I think two in a row where I just kind of dominated day one and uh my very first day of the week I Joel Eric and a get me like 40 points and JT Miller got me 30 points and that basically just won
Me the entire week so I I won on that you know holiday Monday so I can’t complain I’m already off to a really good start this week I’m trying to catch first place so I’m doing well how about you things have gotten really complicated in my league so I’ve I’ve
Talked repeatedly about this four keeper rule you get four Keepers if you miss the playoffs three if you make it two if you make the final and my team is starting to pull a Philadelphia Flyers and get accidentally competitive again uh I faced a really bad team last week
And I beat him 11-1 so that’s in a head-to-head format that’s like 10 games over 500 in a single week it vaulted me back into the race this week I’m against a really bad team again I’m winning 13 nothing and I’m like oh my God I’m going
To make the playoffs this is a disaster so I had to take my fourth best keeper put him on the Block and I said listen I’m willing to trade down get a an inferior fourth keeper plus some pieces because what if I make the playoffs I’m
Going to want to compete plus I don’t want to lose a fourth keeper for nothing so I put mirror heisen in on the Block I immediately got a flood of offers ended up getting Cole Coffield Gabe valard and Jake McCabe for uh miror heisen and so
Now it’s like if I miss the playoffs Cole Coffield still a perfectly solid fourth keeper if I if I make it I’ve got a few more pieces that can help me try and pull an upset so things got weird in my leag uh which is good it’s been
Boring for me lately because I’ve been in tank mode but now I’m kind of Accidentally In The Hunt so we’ll see what happen Stephen okay so let’s get it started with some pickups all right we’ll start here with Alexis lafier for shallow pickup now I know Johnny Lazarus has been all like oh
Yeah I predicted he’s gonna get do so well blah blah blah I I did a first in an article this year just to just to be fully clear there but uh your thoughts here yeah I mean I think I did it first first cuz I think I said in the summer
That his Advanced metrics were suggesting the breakup was coming uh but yes Alexi lafier available in 55% of leagues and now we’re twoth thirds into the season if not three quarters almost three quarters and he’s still entrenched in that top six with the Rangers and it’s nice to see it
Wasn’t just an early Surge and a cool off he’s surging again six goals nine points in his last 11 games uh the hits are down which is too bad because I really liked that he added that to his profile last year but the shots are way
Up so maybe just he’s has the puck more so he’s not dishing out as many hits he’s shooting the puck more which is great and he’s already blown through his career high single season in shots and he still has 20 games to go so that’s pretty impressive it just feels like
He’s here to stay as a viable fantasy contributor I don’t know if he’s ever going to make good on the promise that made him the number one overall pick but I think we’re seeing him sort of inch toward being like a 25g goal 55 Point guy for the foreseeable future so he’s
He’s usable kind of almost like Ryan Ean Hopkins now Hopkins obviously had you know huge season last year it took him a while it didn’t look like a first overall pick but he figured it out that’s right that’s right uh speaking of you know some guy Edmonton ties how
About Jordan EOL as the medium pickup yeah so Jordan Everly is available in 73% of leagues right now and uh we’re recording this podcast on February 27th so we’re 10 days out from the trade deadline we know Jordan Everly he’s a pending UFA with the Seattle Kraken he’s
Been mentioned in a lot of trade rumors so we’re looking at the possibility as my voice just cracked there uh of Everly being traded and getting a plum spot on a contender the Oilers are one team that’s actually been linked to him so imagine Jordan Everly joining the
Oilers playing on the right wing with McDavid you never know it could happen the good news is even if you don’t want to speculate on trade which is sometimes risky to do just with Seattle he’s got nine goals and 16 points in his last 16 games playing on the first line and he’s
Just kind of humming along so just as is he’s someone who should be owned in more leagues okay I like that now this next spot was supposed to be for Anton forsberg and then he played like the worst game of his career uh got pulled worked up really well the uh for me
Because the guy I was playing against picked up forsberg but uh you switched it up to to Logan stankoven who I’m not convinced he’s G to stay up with the team for now but what are your thoughts oh my gosh yeah Anton forsberg was going to be the Deep League pickup because he
He’ come off his injury was 4-0 with a 917 sa percentage and then I texted Stephen last night and I was like oh my God I cursed Anton forsberg he gave up like somehow six goals on one shot like it was it was the worst maybe the worst
Performance of the entire year so I apologize Anton for cursing you Logan stankoven available in 95% of leagues like you said Stephen uh it’s not a guarantee he stays up but that’s why he’s a deep League pickup there’s someone with upside here that you want to speculate on we talked about him last
Week dominating in the AHL on Pace for one of the best seasons ever relative to age in that league and starting on line three with Wyatt Johnson Jamie Ben that’s a really potent unit a second game with the team he had a goal and assist five hits that’s very notable
Power play point playing on the second unit playing the point on the second unit so I’m liking what I’m seeing from Logan stankoven just a firecracker of a little guy 5 foot eight compared to a pitbull by Scouts before on a story that we did for daily faceof I’m just a big
Fan and sometimes you just got to bet on Talent especially when it’s the bottom of your roster take a swing maybe you catch lightning in a bottle and you get a Difference Maker in a deep League see usually I’m not one for for calling up a prospect and keeping them up uh when
They have a chance at also chasing a cder cup trophy because you know that Championship experience could mean so much exas stars and Detroit or the Dallas Stars are both pretty good teams in both their leagues so either way I think he’s got he’s got a better shot of
Winning the cup I think in the NHL but uh that’s kind of a a good situation to be in for for sure uh the WTF pickup I’m shocked that Matt zarell is this available but what are your thoughts here yeah he’s available in 22% of leagues and it feels like people are
Asleep at the switch here which is why he’s the perfect WTF pickup he is playing with the hottest player in the NHL at the moment which is K capriso first start of the week he’s the top ranked fantasy player in the last week obviously Minnesota had that 10-goal
Game which buoy did a little bit but guess who benefits every time cap Capri ofes on a heater it’s his buddy zuk Carell who has 20 points in his last 16 games and of those 20 points 13 on the power play he’s Really Cooking so if your league counts Power Play points
That’s an extra little boost to the value of zcell who should be owned in every league right now 100% of leagues should not be available anywhere okay uh so that’s it for the pickups but the tip of the week is to stream hard and play the match up in
Head-to-head yes so uh I find in head-to-head leagues sometimes uh people get too attached to their players especially if they have a good team and you can definitely exploit that sometimes there an advantage to being a middling team because you’re not as attached to every guy on your team and
If you’re in a matchup especially in the playoffs or late in the season a crucial game you can allow yourself to have a revolving door at one or two positions and stream and sort of pay attention to the categories of your matchup the scores and Target them specifically
Whereas the opponent who’s to attached is like oh I know I’m losing blocks but I love I love this defenseman that I have I just I can’t drop this guy he’s too much of a big name right so you can take advantage of that and I find doing
This streaming a couple spots and really paying attention to category ories you can actually control your destiny you can flip categories and you can win matchups you can actually like flip a matchup just with the strategy so it’s a really important way to play especially when you’re in these late season
Matchups and eventually in the playoffs all righty what’s our special segment today okay this is a fun one we’re going to talk keep your league by lows so we’re at the time of year where uh if your trade deadline has not passed and you’re a seller team you’re looking
To speculate yes you’re going to make some big trades on some foundational pieces maybe you’re going to try and make a massive offer for Conor Bard but it’s also a good time to buy low try and get some some other players thrown in that aren’t having the best years that
Could really help you in the future or if your trade deadline is passed you can look for some of these players on your waiver wire in case they were dropped so let’s get to it Stephen all right so let’s start off with a guy that you know
Hasn’t played a whole lot this year and has had some struggles Trevor zis yes Trevor zis obviously everyone knows it’s a Lost season for him just plagued by injuries really bad injury is it I think it’s fractured ankle if I’m remembering correctly the one that’s put him out for
Pretty much the season uh but the thing is with Trevor zis I know he has his haters people don’t like his dazzling style but this is a player who’s 22 years old averages 60 points per 82 games so far in his NHL career and has
Never played on a good team what if some team that actually has some legitimate juice as a contender acquires him in the offseason or just any change of scenery could be interesting for him I just like the idea of him Landing in a new spot getting a fresh start on a team
That actually envisions him as a big part of their future and he’s still talented and still very young so I like that as a byow buncho Canadians fans he’s really good friends with Cole Coffield wink wink uh this next one here UC Soros national predators I guess my one quick
Question for you to add on to this is he’s 28 years old obviously he’s playing he’s this year’s not been so great last year was how how many good years of hockey do you think he has left well for a goalie you could have seven right because goalie when you’re 28 as a
Goalie is like being 24 as a forward right so but the main thing is this is one of the biggest fallacies in keeper leagues and it’s one that I exploit regularly there’s this obsession with oh I’m in a keeper League the best the best keepers are 18 years old they’re 19
Years old not necessarily the best Keepers might be guys in their Prime who are 25 years old like I’m rebuilding I didn’t trade for Adam vantilly I traded for Brady kachuck I traded for Tage Thompson I traded for Co guys who are in their primes now and I think you can
What I do sometimes when I’m a contender like I take the really young guys and say look he’s young he’s young look at him when there’s a better player out there who’s just in their Prime so you have to think of it as things change so quickly in your keeper League you might
Be able to contend next year so that’s why I go to a guy like yuss Saros who you wouldn’t necessarily think of as a keeper because he’s not young but it doesn’t matter he’s someone who could have a big increase in value next season he’s been kind of not himself this year
Streaky season even at his worst though he’s still being at least an average goldendarkness in Nashville no matter how you slice it I think his value is lower than what it actually is right now and I would advise trying to get him before he changes teams once he changes
Teams the value is going to go through the roof so the time to get him is now while he’s still a Nashville Predator okay I like this one Matty bers rookie of the year last year to completely falling off a cliff fantasy wise but that could be a good opportunity to pick
Him up yeah what happened to matd baners called a trophy and it’s funny I thought he was a little overrated going going into this season as someone who’s a bit better in real life than fantasy but it’s gone all the way the other way now
To the point where I think he’s going to be underrated and a great by low only 24 points through 52 games and he’s still a firstline player on this team and he’s heating up so going into Monday’s action was which is when I was last checking in
On his numbers he had five points in a five-game stretch so he’s showing signs of Life maybe he finishes the season strong but I just feel like his overall numbers are so weak that he doesn’t really pop and I think he’s going to be some there might be leagues where he’s been dropped
Altogether shallower leagues but either way he’s one of my favorite by Los yeah like arguably last year the he that was a pretty underwhelming uh rookie crop you know there was some obviously a lot of talent there but it was not like bers kind of want it because he was consistent
Throughout the whole year not because he was like the best rookie at all times type thing it wasn’t like Conor Bard and and Brock Faber now are just ahead of the class the whole time like viners was just good enough every single month and that’s kind of
Why he wanted there but um yeah I still think he’s going to be a very good player this one here is very interesting Teo Myer because we talked about him a lot early in the season so uh what are your thoughts here so here’s the thing
About Tuma Meer this year is a disaster and it doesn’t feel like he’s going to come back from it whatever is happening whether it’s an injury he’s hiding or something mental I don’t know what it is but he’s only 27 years old he’s not over the hill it’s not like his game is
Disappearing forever I think we have to assume that the player he’s been for the majority of his career has not completely disappeared I think he’s going to bounce back next season hopefully he’s healthier and just has his head on straight and to me right now anyone who owns team o Meer is
Probably really angry at Teemo Meyer because he’s really let like if you if you went into the season with Meyer he was supposed to be one of your franchise cornerstones on your fantasy team right I would say he was like a top 30 player in Banger formats going into the year so
If you have team you probably hate team o meire right now and that’s why you want to go to that GM and say hey I’ll take team o Meer and they might be far more willing than they’ve ever been to let him go because they’re probably sick
Of him this year so I just think there’s no way he’s not better next year it’s a great time to buy low see I don’t know if for this next player here I don’t know if it’s yet another curse of of yours but Jamie Dale injured right now
We’re just not sure when he’s going to be able to come back or what the full details of them there so uh you know I still agree though he’s one heck of a b especially an Al an injury yes so when I Was preparing this episode I did write
Down Jamie Dale’s name before he got hurt uh but it doesn’t change the recommendation now it’s more of a deep League recommendation than let’s say A medium League recommendation but if you look at the injury before the injury we know the Flyers are they’re trying to groom him to be their power play
Quarterback it hasn’t been a great season for him but he’s still just kind of trying to get in a rhythm because he can’t seem to just be able to play an extended amount of hockey without getting hurt but he’s only 21 years old he’s still younger than a lot of
Prospects who haven’t even broken through to the NHL at his position and to me with that injury now which there are reports that have come out in the last day or two that they’re weak he’s weak to week so it’s not like it’s not going to be the biggest fear was is this
Going to be an injury that carries all the way into next season and he misses more time doesn’t sound like it maybe it’s going to cost him a lot of this season if not the rest of the season but I don’t think it’s going to affect his
Ability to be ready to start next year which is very important and his value is just so low right now that I think he’s almost free I don’t think he’s ever going to have lower fantasy values so it’s not even necessarily about trading for drale it’s probably just picking him up he’s
Probably available in your league and if he isn’t he’s the type of player you could probably get just tossed in as a a last minute topper in a trade So you you’re just never going to chance you’re never going to get a chance to buy him
This low again I don’t think I agree I’m a huge Jimmy Dale fan I think he’s going to have a very strong career if he can stay healthy because he is a good defense when he’s healthy the unfortunate thing is that’s been pretty difficult to come by at this point so uh
Definitely tough to see I know it probably doesn’t make fers fans feel any better especially after trading cutter goce and who might be the best Prospect in the world right now so there’s that but U it is what it is who’s our guest today oh Our Guest is a fun one
Everybody please welcome the return of Ken Campbell okay we are continuing a theme last week we brought back anad Dua by popular demand we’re going to keep the popular demand thing going this week Our Guest again people were clamoring for him to return and it’s Ken Campbell contributing writer hockey news
Legendary hockey writer and our friend Ken Campbell is back Kenny how you doing my friend I’m doing great you had do a Lea last week I I wish I wouldn’t be alive if I did I be de like I’m following dual Lea that’s pretty cool I would literally be dead like I would
Just that would I would have just been okay that’s that’s it I’ve done I’ve lived the life I need to live it’s over I think you’re I think you’re just you mean figuratively when you’re saying literally no no I don’t IIT yeah okay H Kenny’s the glasses are looking
Good by the way I think you look like very sophisticated like you’re about to ENT trap James Bond like you’re not the main villain but you’re like the scientist who has the torture room like good luck getting out of this contraption Mr Bond well I’m I’m trying for the more
Sort of professorial look it’s working for you can and it’s a good transition to the first question we want to ask you today because we want you to be a bit of a a fantasy hockey professor and this week we’re talking about keeper leagues looking ahead to next year possible
Players to buy low so let’s start with the forward position who is someone that you’d be looking to buy low among forwards in keeper leagues okay I’m not sure if this guy qualifies but uh Dimitri verono of the Columbus Blue Jacket this guy I’ve I talked to him I did a piece
On him about two months ago and he’s a monster this guy is a this guy is like Drago you know from The Rock movies like he is I think this guy is going to be the NHL’s prototypical power forward like he’s already got 16 goals this year
Right and last I I know early in the season he had a lot of trouble like adap ing he uh he started the year in the minors he got really homesick in fact he was on the verge of of leaving and then I think you know uh chikov and marchenko
You know he kind of jelled with them he plays with those guys he started to feel at home he started scoring he’s been scoring a lot more lately and I just think this guy is a is a a just a a a a beast in waiting I think he’s going to
Be a a huge power forward if you’re team if you’re I know some uh fantasy leagues count penalty minutes so if you’re like a Tom Wilson type of guy you know that’s like a really valuable guy so I think he’d be really valuable in a league like
That but I I just love this guy see I love that one CU that was a guy that watching him play in the KHL it felt like he was just going to be better when he got to the NHL his style of game just fitted better and and so it’s working
Out really well for the Blue Jackets where consistently all year he’s been one of the better young guys so that’s good to see so uh looking Blue Jackets how has anything been working out for the Blue Jackets this year got nothing has worked for them nothing you know what Ken for the
Record I didn’t want you to come back no I’m kidding uh young defenseman who would you buy low on here uh I’m gonna go off the board a little bit here and I’m gonna say ol zel wagger uh in the American Hockey League I think he’ll be in the
NHL next year um I think he’s I think think the development curve that the ducks have with this guy going with this guy is really good um and I just feel like he’s going to come in and hit the ground running like he’s already played
A little bit in the NHL and I think he’s been really good um so I really I really think that would be a guy that I would you know you could probably really Buy Low on him um and I think he’s gonna I think he’s going to produce a lot of
Points I think he’s going to be really really good they’ve got something going in anah especially on the on the blue line with their young guys um I mean it’s going to be a while but uh that team’s going to be good in a couple of
Years and I think he’s gonna be he’s gonna pile up some points see to add to that because uh I’ve I’ve been a huge Ducks believer for a while and I liked their last wave of young prospects they had when it was you know Max Jones and
Sam steel and Troy Terry and Troy teres look good but the other guys not so much but this group legitimately feels like it’s going to work out like you look at all the good young defenseman they got coming out and then one of them that no one’s talking about at of Switzerland
Playing in the OHL is Robin dionio who had just wrote about um in my Prospect Roundup recently where this guy’s putting up some unbelievable numbers he’s about to go play in the Swiss League or the top league in Switzerland next year uh he’s another good young defenseman like this team just knows how
To draft you gotta get out more Stephen you really gota get out my apology out Barb did you watch world championship this morning like yeah you were watching what was it Hong Kong versus Iran is that the mat Hong Kong won 11 to3 today North Korea is currently winning the division three
Tournament of course of course that’s what you were doing this morning of course Chad doing doesn’t know all right candy for the next one basically we’re going to just ask you to spin a roulette wheel because that’s what goal tending is these days but uh who is who is the young goalie that
You’re eyeing as a keeper League boo um well the guy outside the NHL I think the guy everybody would say would be Eris La askarov um Nashville’s goalie Who’s lighting it up in the American League and you know wins games and then does push-ups with the net or whatever
Whatever bench presses the net and everything so uh him but if I have to pick a guy who’s in the league right now I really like Joel Hofer um St Louis is backup goalie I think it’s only a matter of time before he really gets a chance
Uh either in St Louis or somewhere else probably in St Louis um and uh I just I I followed this guy’s career he was very very good as a junior he was terrific in the American League took Springfield to the um cder Cup Championship a couple of
Years ago uh so I just feel like he’s a guy that’s that’s that’s gonna really make his Mark at some point okay I like that one a lot so yeah last night I was having this really ground break breaking discussion about Quinn Hughes versus kale Mari you know no one’s ever
Compared those two ever before so I guess who would over the next five years who would you prefer in fantasy hockey that’s that that this was the hardest one for me for sure I mean this year Hughes is is putting up more points I I
I think I think the way I would say this is I just have to go with kale marar he’s just too Dynamic he’s just you know I mean look at the you know look look at all the records he’s breaking right now but I will say this I I think I would go
With kale Mar for points but as a better as as an all round defenseman I’m not sure Quinn Hughes isn’t going to be the better allround defenseman like Kel marcar might get the points and Quinn Hughes might win the Norris trophies if that makes sense um but I just feel like guys we
Are just about to enter or maybe we’re in the the embryonic stages of it of a golden era of offensive defenseman like I I just like look at the guys like Noah Dobson you know no Evan Bard last night he was brilliant you know Adam Fox Thomas
Harley um you know Brock Faber I think is gonna be one of those guys um you know I just Jake Sanderson it just feels like it just feels like in a couple of years that there’s going to be some really good debates about the north Trophy and there’s going to be some
Really really productive um young defenseman out there yeah I think you’re right and it’s crazy to think you know Eric Carlson dropping 101 points last year first time in 31 years and it might get that number might get topped one year later because it’s just that’s the era that we’re in right
Now so you’re banging on Kenny um I wanted to get your take on this to me is the hottest debate on hockey Twitter and it’s really annoying as well I just find especially from the Edmonton and Toronto fan bases it’s getting really whiny out there I don’t know I hate this fake
Manufactured rivalry between Conor McDavid and Austin Matthews they’re not Rivals they don’t play in the same division you can be a fan of both markets drives me [ __ ] crazy yeah I just dropped an fbm for the first time in the history of Puck pulley suck on
That everybody the dam face off fom I just had to do it it’s just driving me crazy uh so who is the heart trophy front runner could be Conor McDavid it could be Austin Matthews it could be Nikita COV could be Nathan McKinnon could be Quinn Hughes I’m just curious
Where you land on this debate this one’s not a fantasy question but I just think it’s a fun topic I I’m landing on T Matthews guys I really am and and it’s not because I live in Toronto it’s not because I go to a lot of maple leaf
Games it’s because Austin Matthews is is one of those guys right now in my opinion that feels that that either way you want to define the award he he’s he’s got it covered right I mean you don’t go on a 70 goal Pace without being one of the best players in the league
I’m sorry and and I am just so sick of hearing how he doesn’t have enough assists well he doesn’t have enough assists because he’s too busy scoring all the goals like I I just I don’t get that like goals are like it’s it’s still last time I checked it’s still about
Putting that little black thing in the back of the net right like it’s still about it’s still about that and to me I I’ve always been a proponent that goals should be valued higher than assists I think goals should be worth two and assist should be worth one sorry to all
The minor hockey folks out there who say that a goal that an assist is just as valuable and important as a goal no it’s not no it’s not goals are where it’s at chicks dig goals fans dig goals everybody digs goals but it’s not just the goals I would argue in fact that
If not for Austin Matthews and his timely scoring for the Toronto Maple leavs this team is life and death to make the playoffs he has I think I keep track of this and it’s either 15 or 16 he either either has 15 or 16 goals this year that
Have brought that have tied the game for the Leafs you know so they’ve been down by a goal and he gets that goal that gets them back tied into game and if it’s at Scotia Bank Arena and mattt arkens there it’s probably late in the game and it means the game’s going to
Overtime he’s also including the shootout winner that he has this year he’s got 16 goals that have put the Leafs ahead in games for good and like I’m not a big game-winning goals guy because I don’t care if a guy scores you know the the sixth goal when they’re
Leading six2 and then the other team comes back and gets three late goals I I’m always the one what’s the what’s the crucial goal what’s the goal that they need right now that puts them ahead in the game game and then they’re on their
Way well he has 16 of those and and I think only Sam Reinhardt has more um so to me and and you know I mean he’s he’s he’s really good defensively he’s he’s great at both ends of the ice um you know he checks all the boxes like I I
Really believe that he could and should be a finalist for the hard he’s going to win the Rocket rard I think I’m pretty sure anyway he’s barring an injury or a complete meltdown he’s going to win the Rocket Rashard he should be a finalist for the Hart he should be a finalist for
The skki and he should be a finalist for the lady b he got like four penalty minutes um I think that Austin Matthews has already become one of the greatest Leafs of all time um I have him number three right now I’ve got Charlie coner first uh Dave Keon’s second and
Matthew’s third and he’s and he’s moving up I think he could use serf Keon um and I just think that when this guy got drafted like everybody was excited and they knew it was going to be great I don’t think anybody had any idea how good this guy
Was GNA be and how impactful he was going to be and I really think that the fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs are are in the midst of watching a special special player uh in the history of their franchise like they’ve never this this franchise has never had a true like
A true Superstar and in this guy I believe they have one okay I like that so last time you were on here you made the bull prediction that Steven stos was going to be traded to the Arizona Coyotes it’s you know locking to change I’m pretty sure since then though we’ve
Seen what two trades total like The trades are just not happening right now it’s been kind of slow but give us your updated pick for a surprise name that will be moved by the trade well we’ve also we’ve also seen the Tampa Bay light they were out of the playoff race and
Arizona was firmly in the playoff race and doing well at the time so that was kind of based on that but now that’s kind of um you know Arizona’s doing very Arizona things and Tampa’s doing very Tampa things so that’s kind of flipped the switch so obviously that one’s not
Going to happen and you know he asked for hot Tak so um wow uh Colton prco um I I just feel like yeah I’m not even really went into this one like I kind of struggled with this but I just feel like everybody’s looking for a big defenseman and somebody’s gonna go yeah
Some some guy some guy in a room in a pre-draft war room is gonna say what about Colton prco and some nerdy guy’s gonna stand up and say hey he’s got six years left at six and a half he’s 30 years old and he’s really not that good
And some GM is going to say I don’t care we want to win this year we’ll buy him out after this whatever we don’t care about after this year we care about this year so we’re gonna we’re gonna we’re gonna trade him for a seventh round pick
And uh and is there even a seventh round anymore yeah that’s the last one we’re gonna trade him for a seventh round pick and St Louis is gonna pick up you know part of the tab and uh it’s not going to go well yeah I I think that’s it’s that’s a
Fair prediction especially look at last year like a year ago Maus eolm was considered a guy in his early 30s who was making 6 million and had four years left and maybe that contract was going to take on water and it maybe was a little bit risky to get
Him and look where he is now with Edmonton so you never know maybe someone could turn pero into another eolm type of redemption story even though eom was better but you know what I’m saying yeah so Kenny back in our hockey news days of course we always did the Rapid Fire game
We did it with you last time we’re going to have to I guess for tri for copyright reasons let’s call it the lightning around but we’re gonna put you in the captain’s chair this time yes you’re the question master I mean look at those glasses of
Course you are uh and we’re going to answer an order of seniority so I’ll go first Stephen and then you’ll go second because you’re still a child and we will begin the game now okay okay first question what would be worse what would be worse to experience getting Dutch ovened by Shaquille
O’Neal or or having to sit for one hour and listen to Ryan Kennedy tell you about how he used to be in a punk band okay I think I’m gonna I’m gonna I’m gonna take the Dutch oven because because Sha’s bed is going to be so big
He’s 71 the bed spread is going to be huge you’re going to be like you’re inside a tent I could just crawl down to where his feet are and like it’s probably a separate atmosphere I think I can escape where the smell is so I’m
Going to tough that out and knock and I have to listen to the punk rock stars okay um oh yeah you know what I just realized that’s a crappy question Ste Stephen doesn’t have a sense of smell I also like punk music so it’s like you know the
Answer I still want your answer if you had a sense of smell what would you answer is it that I what I’d rather do or not want to do no what would be worse well rather do too I guess which one would you rather still Dutch oven for
Sure I feel like wow it’s unanimous it’s unanimous we’ve all heard we’ve all heard Ryan’s stories on the road so I think I think we’re good there okay best Coming of Age movie ever best ever H I think the graduate’s always the one that hit for me just just that sort
Of tweener phase when you’re done school and don’t quite know what you’re going to do and but everyone thinks you’re going to know what you’re going to do maybe it’s Plastics maybe it’s not and uh one of the alltime ambiguous endings you could say also Boyhood uh just
Because it was filmed over 12 years it’s hard to get better than that for AG 12 years the same actor right aging filming once a year but graduate graduate’s my answer oh Ste it’s either this is going to sound stupid Pro uh American Pie I just can’t get wrong with the American
Pie movies although American p 2 I think I liked more had great soundtra it’s funny works for me American P one I’ll just do that you’re both wrong it’s Stand By Me So anyway uh goto karaoke song oh man what isn’t my go-to karaoke song there’s a million I think if I
Choose the one I’ve sang the most times it’s probably wanted Dead or Alive by Bon Joy but I’ve got a million of them I sing Queen there’s there’s tons Backstreet Boys I wanted that way if I’m doing something with the Bros but there’s there’s a million so again going
Back to my music Tes uh or taste I like metal so uh there’s a slip knot song called people equal and you know we already had one swear word this one I’m not going to throw in a second one but people equal s and that is uh that’s the
One I’ve actually done twice in karaoke okay so you’re you’re you’re he’s already dropped an NA bomb and you’re worried about saying [ __ ] I could you know you know uh mine is uh mine is Copa Cabana by Barry Manalo oh nice that’s mine for sure um I was gonna ask you know like
Would you rather fight a horse-sized chicken or a chicken sized horse but I feel like that’s an easy one like the chicken like a chicken siiz horse would Peck you to death pretty easily yeah or whack you with its things but a horse like a chicken sized horse you could
Just kick the crap out of it like yeah chicken siiz horse horse siiz chicken yeah you don’t want to fight the horse sized chicken because it can also flap wings at you no way yeah yeah I feel like that’s a no-brainer and the horse’s shape just
Makes it hard for it to just even at any size to just turn around so you can just keep running around in circles I think it’s supposed to be like 10 horse 10 chicken siiz horses or one horse siiz chicken is the is the debate 10 chicken
Siz oh is that what it is yeah otherwise it’s no contest yeah it is yeah okay okay 10 mini horses like running around you or just one like giant yeah all right I’ll take the 10 horses okay uh so I okay so 10 10 i’ I
Think I’d still fight still fight the 10 hor size CH yeah I’m just gonna kick those horses yeah I’m just gonna I’m just gonna like start kicking and just boot them all over the place 12 inches tall would you rather be 12 inches tall or 12 feet tall
12 feet because at least 12 feet like you’re going to be the most famous person in the world you make millions of dollars you’ll be you you can write a book you can just do whatever you want with your life yes you’ll be you’ll be followed everywhere you go but you can
Also make it work for you and just become a an international icon whereas if you’re if you’re 12 inches tall you might just get stepped on one day and it’s over so I’m gonna go 12 feet and yeah I mean and you could afford to retrofit your house right so yeah yeah
Stephen I’d be I’d pick the 12 inches tall because then I could be like Ant-Man and just crawl anywhere I want to be so uh it’s uh sure might get stepped on but I could just go wherever I want no one’s gonna see me right and I
Will say like I do think that my 12 foot self might later in life like right in his autobiography like it might be it might be entitled I wish I was 12 inches tall this was a curse of my life I’ve never had privacy anywhere I’ve gone
Like maybe so maybe I’ll regret my decision it’s it’s entirely possible I feel like the 12 foot guy 12 foot doll guy would die first though 100% yeah no question okay uh I know Steve loves the Vroom vom Stephen loves the Vroom Vroom so what is the best scene from Talladega
Kns oh man okay I I it’s definitely uh it’s it’s the family at the at the breakfast table or dinner table and the little kids are just like [ __ ] on their on their grandpa that one kills me yeah that’s it for me J baby Jesus baby
Baby little six pound baby Jesus I would like we would like to thank you for this Bountiful gift of Doritos G see I got two answers for that one that one’s a great one uh the first one the lame answer is when they when they’re about to actually do the final
Race and they get their car together and it’s a piece of crap because I I’ve seen a lot of race teams that are just like that actively today but the best one is when he flip flips over runs out he’s on thinks he’s on fire um it’s uh it’s
Perfect have you ever have you ever seen uh Days of Thunder yeah yeah it’s like kind of like the more serious version of the same story that’s one of my all-time favorite movies I like that I I also like the see ver in the hospital and he
St stabs himself in the leg Yeah yeah yep yeah that’s a pretty good one too uh last one I guess we got to do a hockey thing right here right now Cup Final uh Dallas Stars versus the Florida Panthers oh okay I I I know somewhere I said my
Preseason pick was Dallas versus New York Rangers I like that one the Neils lung fist bowl is what I’m gonna call it I’m I’m gonna go with Edmonton and Carolina the re a reprisal of the 2006 Stanley Cup Final which was an incredible Stanley Cup Final that was like for entertainment
Value that might have been the best Stanley Cup Final I’ve ever seen my favorite yeah okay well that’s it for rapid fire boy or uh sorry lightning round lightning round there you go there’s the TR that’s it for lightning round yeah there we go awesome stuff Kenny love the
Questions and loved having you back on it’s always a pleasure and I’m sure your fans out there are going to be tickled that you rejoined us all three of them that’s right thanks buddy thanks see you guys well not big surprise there that Ken did not disappoint he always brings the
Thunder in a small package little guy but big takes love that about Kenny uh let’s move on now to the best bet of the week Stephen and this is going to annoy some people because I’ve already discussed picking one team from that terrible Western Conference race but
That was then this is now that’s the way you have to approach it so I recommended St Louis Blues I’m changing my recommendation now I’m recommending the Minnesota Wild plus 300 you’re allowed to make more than one bet things can change and the wild plus 300 to make the
Playoffs if you look at that race you know they’re playing with some juice now Capri off as I said on fire right now hottest player in the league they’re 72- one in the past 10 and if you look at all the teams in that group whether it’s
Nashville St Louis Calgary the wild were the only team going into the season that were actually trying to be good and their team is constructed to be competitive now they’re supposed to be pretty good so what we might be seeing is is a positive regression to what they
Were always supposed to be and it helps that they’re getting a nice influx of Youth from Brock Faber who’s been a tremendous rookie defenseman obviously on track to break the record for ice time for rookie defenseman Marco Rossi finally figuring it out as well so we
Knew that was what had to happen for this team the wild they had to have some help from within because of their cap constraints but here’s what really matters to me uh if you look at the Wild’s remaining schedule they have more than half their games against
Non-playoff teams they get to play the Sharks three more times the duck twice and they control their Destiny they have multiple games against St Louis Blues and Nashville Predators so if I map out that battle to me Minnesota is the team best equipped to win the race I know I
Said St Louis a couple weeks ago but things changed now I think it’s going to be Minnesota that’s the better bet and I think I feel quite confident that they’re going to be the team that emerges that’s one that’s been discussed a few times on daily face off live it’s
Like I think everyone could kind of just agree they’re a better team than you know they looked like at the beginning of the Season obviously dealing with some injuries go tending couldn’t save them made a coaching change didn’t really necessarily give the bump right away but they’ve been able to show like
They’re a better team than what was con what was shown at the beginning year like we were talking about them being a playoff team before the season started it didn’t go well at the start they’ve kind of erased that issue so that’s good but uh yeah I uh right now I think
That’s a good pick Al righty so let’s move on now to the prospect report Steve even and uh I just have been waiting to make this joke cuz you’re going to talk about Zachary but I always want to call him hey it’s Zack La happppy if you’re if you know
You’re French out there means happy so tell me about Zack La happy and he is French so uh you know I watched him play a few times in person and every time he has a smile on his face so it does work but that’s usually because he’s getting
Under the skin of somebody and you look at him this year he’s got 121 penalty minutes in 45 games in AHL so you look at that and say okay yep he’s a goon he had I think it was nine suspensions last year in the K J ja like he looks like a
Player at a slap shot when you look at his suspension history and he’s been suspended from the AHL this year but in those 45 games he also has 37 points he’s on Pace for 57 this year if he didn’t get suspended he would probably be closer to 60 at this point this guy
Is one of my favorite prospects in hockey and it’s because he does everything to get under the skin of of your opponent yeah you look at it he’s always been getting a ton of penalty minutes he’s not a huge guy he’s only five foot 11 but he’s like 200 lbs he
Just demolishes guys he’s a human wrecking ball out there he’s so much fun to watch talking to some Nashville fans some Milwaukee fans and people that watch him the Q DHL they they say this like he every night even if he’s not having a good game on a score sheet will
Do something that will get the fans cheering someone like that can bring so much value to a team and uh the fact is he’s 20 years old and he’s on Pace for nearly 0 points in the AHL he’s not doing what Logan Stan coven’s doing has been doing this year of Texas like
On Pace for like something 90ish points but 60 points as a rookie is still incredible for especially for someone who never played a full season in the Kum JL either because of suspensions either because of injury whatnot so this is not a guy that’s been like you know
Playing 60 games a year every year so this year he’s GNA get he’s on Pace for 69 if he plays the rest of the game uh he’s obviously just putting goals in he’s putting up points so he’s perfect for Fantasy he does everything he hits he block shots he scores he will do
Everything if you count penalty minutes he does that too he’s a guy that’s going to excel in the Pro game he’s loving the big crowds or the bigger crowds in the AHL wait till he gets to the NHL Nashville’s got a good fan base they got
A great crowd when he’s throwing a huge hit hyping up everybody it’s GNA be a fun experience so Zachary laroo if you could pick him up uh that is definitely a byow guy because I don’t know if enough people are talking about just how good of a player he is right now okay
That’s good to know yeah especially it’s a someone to pay particular attention to in Banger formats cuz he to me forecast is like a 200 hit type of player who’s going to chip in some offense as well so I really like that recommendation uh what do we have for questions this week
Stephen all right well we’ll start with a A two-parter here for uh Javier Jose uh Skinner or coov most wins yeah the rest of the way so this is a tough question uh P kov has been really good of late how how do you like those apples stevenh but uh he has more
Competition as well because we know Freddy Anderson is on the way back from the blood clot and he’s getting closer to returning as of uh time that we’re recording this Spencer Martin is still getting some minutes the canes are still a team that’s been mentioned as maybe on
The lookout for a goalie as well uh whereas steuart Skinner if we just base because again WIS is a volume stat and Edmonton and Carolina both good teams I know skinder has not been playing well lately but the Oilers have the most game remaining of any team in the NHL so
That’s a great tiebreaker for me you’re just going to get more appearances from Skinner more opportunities to win so I like him for more wins the rest of the way uh and then for points leenan or ter leenan or Johnny G it’s our ter linan the walk he’s playing with McKinnon and
Ranting in right now so that to me answers the question that’s all you need to know yep 100% uh and this last one comes from Davis going back to the coov topic coov or Devon Levi as a keeper who you liking yeah so this is a weird one so I went
Against kov in the last question I’m going to side with him in this question which surprises me given the insane hype around de de Levi going into the season and kovs more of a marginal prospect that kind of worked its way up it was never considered a mega Prospect um but
If your league has contracts that last forever let’s in terms of your ability to keep players maybe you still go Levi because he’s got tremendous long-term upside but Uka lucin’s emergence this year really complicates for Levi that’s one thing to pay attention to because lukanin was a big time Prospect too he’s
Not necessarily going to give that job away now that he’s really solidified it and if you look at kov he’s playing great he’s on an elite defensive team he’s signed through 2026 27 making two million bucks they clearly Envision him as a part of the puzzle long term So
Based on that I like what I’ve seen the tangible results from Keta rather than all the theoretical upside of Levi so I lean toward kov yeah actually I ful agree there I think with Levi you could try and you know there’s a lot of hype on him
Especially in a market like Buffalo that is so passionate you could try to like maximize your value on there and a lot of people might just know him like oh yeah he was that team Canada the world junior goalie like oh that’s cool and oh
I’ve heard his name on TV and might not like follow you know the goalie development timelines and stuff and be like yeah I’ll up bu high on him trade him if you’ve got him that’s what I’d say I I don’t know if you agree on me
There but yeah and I think that’s a good idea because he’s got that that brand name it’s like if imagine if you traded Spencer Knight a couple years ago you’d be in a good spot right so when sometimes when the hype the hype exceeds the actual results so I think you’re
Right for sure all right uh it’s time for starting lineup and in this case the Toronto Blue Jays want to honor you for your Seventh Place position in your fantasy league it’s Matt Lark night they’re giving away bobbleheads of all your fantasy hockey players it’s just
You know I can’t wait for this day on the calendar I’m guessing this will probably be in June or so when the season’s over so I’ll make make sure to be there but you get to also honor for the the wall of honor your six favorite
Blue jays who are you picking it’s funny because bobblehead for me it’s just like a doll of me because I’m already a human bobblehead I have a giant fraking head uh so okay so the rules for picking my six favorite blue jays for one I love George Springer but I don’t think he’s
Been a Jay long enough so I think and he’s more of an astro than a than a a blue jay so I didn’t include George Springer I also tried not to be too biased toward the 92 993 teams I was N9 and 10 years old so those teams are
Right in my wheelhouse but I didn’t want to just give you a list of the 1993 batting order gota gotta be go above wamco here here here’s pictures of them if You’ like to see them yes I have those same posters in my room I can I
Can see even just looking at them now so number six Edwin and and Carion you have the parrot walking the parrot yeah had the cool swagger part of one of my favorite incarnations of the Blue Jays those teams in the are those called the OTS or the teens what do you call those
The 2010s are they the 2010s those are my glory years of watching baseball because I I wasn’t around for those yeah the 2015 and 2016 blue jay teams uh and en kassion was one of the driving engines I feel like he also was the most underrated because you had Jose Batista
And Josh Donaldson guys like that getting a lot of the glory whereas Z caresan was so consistent as a power hitter number five we have Roberto Alamar and again this is based on play not necessarily how good of a person they are Robbie Alamar one of the greatest baseball players of all time
Elite defensively switch hitter could do pretty much everything on a baseball field and was so important to those championship teams number four a guy who he kind of reminds me of Matt sundine he he peaked at the same time in Toronto as someone who was a really good player and
Just never was quite on the team that could get it over the top that’s caros Delgado I think one of the best and most underrated hitters of his generation played through the steroid era but was never someone who was popped for Peds you don’t know whether he was part of it
Or not but I think that uh has sort of pushed down the way he’s valued it’s underrated him but tremendous hitter incredible raw power I was at his first game ever he hit two uh home runs off Windows restaurant in his debut um Jose Batista number three some people love to
Hate him but that’s what makes me love him I just love Swagger I love confidence I I love drama and I just love that Batista would just bring that to every game and obviously the bat flip and some people are traditional and don’t like that to me I go way the other
Way I want I want cocky I want drama so I love Jose Batista for that number two Joe Carter the player that kind of won my heart as a kid of course walk-off Homer 93 just very likable personality last blue jay to touch the ball in both
World Series wins he caught the ball at first base in 92 hit the ball out in 93 and he was just always my guy when I was a kid he sort of was was my my childhood hero number one doc Halliday Roy holiday I think the greatest blue jay of all
Time just a dominant pitcher had that bull Bulldog mentality worked so hard and just I just love being able to go to one of his starts and it was like two hours and 10 minutes because he was so efficient that he just blew through the competition when he was at his Peak so
He’s my number one and those are my six favorite blue jays of all time Stephen I love that in caran I I was at two games of his where he threw his Bat into the crowd so you know you never know what you were going to get when you were at
One of those games but uh that’s that all right well that was a fun and packed episode we are not done next up is episode 50 Stephen and it’s going to be a special one because it’s leading into the real life trade deadline so we need to preview that trade deadline from a
Fantasy perspective which is what we will do in our next episode thanks everybody for listening and watching things that I know that I’ve Done
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Yes, I know – I had some internet issues today. Big storm in the area!
Really need to add timestamps.