The Skate Pod, Ep. 382: Bruins Complete Comeback Win in Calgary

The Skate Pod, Ep. 382: Bruins Complete Comeback Win in Calgary

welcome into episode 382 of the skate podcast I am Brian D fiz joined by Bridget PR and Scott mcclaflin for the second time this season the Boston Bruins get a 4 to3 overtime win over the Calgary Flames similar Fashions but kind of opposite back on November 7th it was Calgary who came back from being down 3-1 in a third to force overtime the Bruins and Brad Martian got the win there and last night it was the Bruins who came back on the road from down three one and the third but it was them who actually were able to find a way to get the victory on a David Pac overtime goal Bridget and Scott let’s get right into the opening shifts yeah I guess I’ll start because my opening shift has to do with uh the comeback the turnaround in that game and I guess the turnaround of the road trip in general uh first 30 minutes of that game were just a disaster you heard Elias lolm in the first intermission basically say everything we were doing well against Vancouver that helped us win we’re not doing today uh he Bas he called it sloppy like he he was he gave a very candid interview in the first intermission about how how bad they were playing he said it was brutal and he said it can’t get much it can’t get worse than this which he was he was wrong about but I’ll they gave up two goals in the first two minutes of the second period but he said uh we’re lucky it’s still z z uh and I when I looked at the stats they had only spent two minutes and 40 seconds in their offensive zone in the first period like they spent most of the game or most of the first 30 minutes I would say the other end of the ice defending their net uh so they give up the first two early in the second period Then about halfway through the second things started to click uh Scott this connects to your opening shifts we can get into why but they started to look better did have to do with a little no I I was going to go I was going to go a different direction with my opening shift um yeah I think you’re referring to to sacko changing up the Lines Moving Coyle up to to the second line um and dropping brazzo down to a third line with cck and Frederick and yeah that did work I would El say Saku deserves credit for that timeout after the second goal because actually I thought they started to play better even before um like Midway through I thought it kind of started right after that timeout um and then they gave up the goal late in the period and that you know sort of erased some of that but um yeah for my opening shift though I was going to take the Bruin who scored the tying goal in the third and that was Mark mlin uh who now has two goals in his last two games and the reason I wanted to bring him up is because this is going to be an interesting next few days for the Bruins and Mark mlin uh he’s now at eight games played since he was called up so once you get to 10 you require waivers to be sent back down so the Bruins either have to send him down before he plays two more games uh which you know I would say his play hasn’t really warranted that or they’re probably committing to him for a little bit longer of a period of time here to be in Boston if they keep him beyond that because I think the way he’s played uh would certainly at least raise the possibility of another team claiming him if you try to get him through waivers so they’re at 14 forwards right now which is you know the most you see any NHL team carry following the addition of Oliver walstrom Tyler Johnson’s still around even though he’s now been a healthy scratch in I think seven of the last eight games um so you kind of wonder if certainly as it relates to mlin is is something gonna give here um but even as it relates to that group in general um you know it’s it’s hard enough to get 13 forwards playing time uh never mind 14 so I’m I’m interested in what the brunes do in these next few days and and interested in what you guys think they should do which we can get to in a little bit yeah and I’ll just quickly say Mark mclin has six goals in his 22 career NHL games in a you know playing those those games in a fourth line role so it’s we’ve talked about it before he’s a player who he seems to take advantage of limited opportunities he’s got in Boston and uh and yeah we’ll definitely continue to to talk about him um my opening shift is is somebody that you guys mentioned earlier during the first intermission interview which is Elias lolm I thought he was noticeably good last night very very effective um making things happen he he he was dangerous that’s the word I would describe him he looked dangerous last night now in the third period believe he drew the only minor penalty in the game on a play where bit of a Ticky tack call could go either way but I do think that play he could have just released it and he was he could have been more end dangerous than that play is my point but by and large I thought he had a really solid game and you know guys he has four points of his 16 so 25% of his points this year coming against his former teams in Vancouver and Calgary so if if I’m the Bruins I’m clamoring just to have them play those teams all year if they can I don’t know if the CBA would allow that but um they could they could they could try maybe next year if they could make a deal or something yeaha Travel is going to turn into a real pain with that schedule it’s a little bit expensive probably you know you rack up some miles maybe get some rewards points but yeah no that that’d be pretty that that’s far but Brian you’re right like he was noticeably more intense and I had written it I don’t have internet at my house so this is what this these are my notes from yesterday um I’m currently recording for my my brother’s apartment is that is that is that pen and ink is that a you use AA for that yeah there was a feather and um an inkw well and but no so I had R I had wrote down and my just like sitting by candlelight up here all my are all my like key takeaways and I wrote lindol playing with more intensity uh playing with intensity he hasn’t had desperation in the third a few scoring chances like he genuinely looked like he had an extra gear that he hit um which is you’re questioning you know can why hasn’t he hit those in other games and can he kind of take that and do it again because if he can he’ll be much more effective uh he he was driving that line at times and a lot of times not that he’s a passenger earlier in the season when he’s uh when he’s out there but he’s just kind of more of a he’s quiet you know like he’ll facilitate but he he they’re definitely was something else to his game that was really good and maybe that’s also why he gave that interview in the first intermission like he was just being himself he was just going for it and uh I don’t know I enjoyed watching him when he was playing like that well yeah he he does not sugarcoat things and which is refreshing like as someone in the media you like guys who do that and don’t just talk in cliches um what do you mean get right yeah um yeah I mean Bridget he like he even said at one point early in the season and this speaks to both the like the brutal honesty and the um not making enough of an impact he said it felt like he there were times he was just going out there skating up and down the ice and not doing much and like yeah last night definitely not one of those nights uh seven shots on goal for him season High also matched his SE season high from all of last year um so yeah just a much more assertive player and like you know it’s everyone who you know you talk like or you hear people like brick or Bob beerus talk about his his season and they and they they will talk about all the little things that he does um that that stands out to them and I think that we all see as well whether it is ending plays in the defensive Zone being in good support position obviously winning a lot of key faceoffs um by the way brunes were dominant on faceoffs Tuesday night um against against the bad face off team admittedly uh but and it’s like yeah like that’s all great and it that gives him a certain kind of like base level of like okay at least he’s goingon to do that stuff and not hurt you all that much but you still need the offense like he’s here to contribute offensively as well and you you need that like you just can’t have a a top two Center who isn’t involved offensively um so that was it was great to see and uh yeah you know like his goal he almost he almost kind of like whiffed At first um but ends up flipping it past and then I like the assist even more he takes a hit to make a good pass to marand to send him into the Zone um and it ended up with one of my favorite statistical anomalies which is a point on a goal but not a plus because he changed off before the puck went in the net so um wow little you know little interesting tidbit now that would would that also those anomalies also happen on on power plays too right well yeah so yeah I guess it’s like a five on five anom five on five anomal yeah um yeah no Scott that was a great great assist and there was a lot of purpose to that pass a lot of zip to it yeah his goal is a little bit fortuitous on the you know the puck was rolling on edge and it was kind of one of those one of those goofy goals but you know he showed he showed that burst of speed in neutral zone to to to collect that loose Puck he start yeah he blocked cadri shot that bounced it bounced it to marshan then got up ice you know and broke away absolutely and in addition I guess I guess Martian never actually touched that puck because he didn’t get an assist on it it was just lyol on ass I saw that said unassisted but I I mean I’m G to have to go back and watch it like it bounced to Marshon and yeah I think I think he might have like whiffed like it was still a bouncing Puck so maybe he didn’t actually make contact well how did it get to how did it get out there then yeah I think it it did hit the Calgary player so okay okay I see what you’re saying okay um so in addition to doing the little thing Scott that lolm does even if he’s not producing you’re right but one element to his game that he’s historically had that just appeared to be lacking at many times this year was he he’s also a player who plays with a bit of an edge and and isn’t afraid to make enemies out there and I think that when you’re seeing ly Holm playing on his toes and and playing confident and engaged he’s doing all three of those things he’s scoring he’s he’s doing the little things and he’s got a like I said a little bit of an edge to his game and what what do I mean mean by Edge I’m not saying he’s going in there and fighting guys but like you’ll notice him give a guy a little bit of a shoulder on on the back check like just behind the play just little things that just kind of add up that they’re very subtle but um but yeah it’s a sign of a confident player so right now guys he’s at 16 points in in 33 games is it starting to appear now where now that the points are starting to come again I think he’s still on Pace for like low 40s that’s not that’s not not uh nearly what we were hoping but again if some if he’s able to go on like a a point streak here for five or six games and maybe add another five or six points and and that pace can start to to increase so do you think that Bruins fans can start to look at him if he has a big couple of weeks here um with a little bit of less a little bit less uh animosity maybe Building inside of them and maybe he’s looking like a player more like they hoped he could be for which is a probably a you know a fringe one Center but a good two Center production wise yeah I I think if he does start to build like that then absolutely like it was such a slow start that I feel like we’re almost GNA have to ignore not ignore but you know if he finishes well like if he plays well the rest of the way or especially the second half of the Season you know yeah it might end up at 45 points and that looks bad but it’s like at that point though the slow star would be so far behind you you’d be like okay well how did he finish and then if you’re in the playoffs how does he do in the playoffs like there’s still a lot of opportunity for him to you know maybe not like fully swing people to be like wow this is a great contract you know thank God they didn’t give up on him after two months um but at least swing people to be like okay I at least see like the player he should be and I at least see that he’s better than what we saw those first 25 30 Games whatever um but you know it’s got to be more than the one game like we do actually have to see that build happen now because this was still it was his first goal in 12 games and like again he’s just not he’s not a player who should have an 11 game go drown at at any point really um he’s he’s too good like his you know throughout his career like he is good at like finding soft spots and getting open and taking a shot when it’s there and he has a pretty good shot so he’s just not a guy who should be going 11 games without a goal and like you see him have a like I said seven shots on goal Tuesday and it’s like he’s not going to do that every night but like there’s no reason he can’t have three or four almost every night yeah and I I mean you remember what my prediction was to start our bold predictions to start the season was like him and Pasto were gonna light the world on fire together and they haven’t done that uh and in fact they’re not on the same line anymore but but it it comes down to the the chemistry like him just still kind of finding his way with his new team I I feel like we haven’t seen him settle in yet for whatever reason completely so uh and and you can probably say that about most guys that are coming to a new team uh but we’re at the point where hopefully this kind of uh game maybe gets him heading in the right direction uh geeky also scored again uh so it’s been it’s been good to see him start to produce uh and you know him being with pasta for whatever reason always tends to work out okay you know like there’s there’s times where they find each other they have some sort of built-in chemistry that since they started playing together um but to go back to mlin guys because he’s the reason why they win this game like this this comeback it there was a lot of times they could have scored the third goal but the guy who does score the game time goal is mlin and without him you know the rest of the good play in the final 30 minutes of the game it goes you know all for nothing because they would have lost uh and they wouldn’t have had a chance to go to overtime so um mlin just plays hard like he just followed up his shot uh and I guess the main thing that we wanted to talk about with him is should he still be with the team and and or though I do think that the answer to should he still be with the team and will he still be with the team are two different answers yeah you know on that goal like Joe sacko said after the game Mark just crashes the net there and stays with it this is a second effort league and it was a good second effort by Mark um and that’s exactly right because like he actually kind of like pretty much whiffs on the first attempt Martian SS them up for you know a one-time in the slot and I I don’t know if there might have been a little interference from a Defender stick or not but um he kind of heals it but then it comes right back to him off rasos Sanderson stick who just couldn’t handle the puck a little bit of hot potato there but you know you create your bounce like the Bruns got a fortunate bounce on the second goal as well lorai breaks a stick on a one-timer but it goes perfectly to Peak pinching down the back door and now you have a scoring chance so you create your luck though by taking control of the game and putting pressure on and being in the offensive zone and being around the net um which they were on both of those goals so yeah as it you know as it relates to mlin like I think the I think the defense had been there I think that fourth L is doing a good job defensively you know he’s not the most physical player in the world but I do think there’s been an uptick in his physical play from other times we’ve seen him in Boston um and now you get the goals which I said before like fourth line has to be able to contribute you know when they get some chances they can’t be zero offensively so now you have him there doing that and like you know I I just think like all things being equal if you’re talking about like which forward should go out of this group it’s like well Mam’s playing and playing effectively and Tyler Johnson the one game he’s played in the last eight was a minus four with an offensive zone penalty and it’s like I don’t know which guy’s helping you win more right now like yeah kind kind of an easy answer yeah I mean I I had mentioned a few weeks ago or when he was first called up M llin I’m talking about that you know skating wise he just seemed to be a little bit behind the play and and and I I I feel like my assessment at the time was was honest and I think it was I’m not saying it was inaccurate at least in my mind at the time but I do think that he does enough little things right um over the course of over the course of play he’s a very smart player and and he does have a incredible work ethic as you saw on that goal I also think that with with with production comes confidence and then there’s a little bit more pep in your step and you start to figure things out I mean I shouldn’t forget the fact that it is a it is a jump to go from the minors to the NHL and maybe there’s just you know some some games it takes to kind of acclimate to that so I I’ve always liked M Laughlin um not simply for the last name um but I just think that he’s somebody whoan who has always um since his since his debut game I think against New Jersey three years ago like he’s just always been somebody who youve wanted to root for and so I agree like even on that fourth line like I think he’s like I would even look at maybe if I had to you know take somebody out of the lineup I mean I know it’s a different position but like I I I feel like M Laughlin’s affecting the game more than Ki at this moment I’m not trying to you know dismiss anything K’s doing but I just don’t think that you take a guy out of the lineup or send him down when he when he’s on certainly on a on a goal on a goal streak um but as far as the Personnel decisions I feel like there’s a bit of a cluster right now in the middle six Personnel wise because currently you do have Tyler Johnson who I think all of us here would be okay with a little bit of a you know a wave if need be um and then you you just brought in Oliver walstrom who is sitting on the ninth floor at the moment and I also want to bring up quickly guys Trent Frederick because there was some chatter about him um over the last couple of days starting with Elliot fredman on on 32 thoughts where he says there are definitely some teams out there that feel the Bruins and Trent Frederick won’t be able to get a deal done uh but I was really warned about saying that and then Mike granelli from spit and chicklets quote tweeted that saying I’ve heard the bees and Frederick aren’t even in the same Stratosphere for a cont contract yet who knows what will happen but sounds like they aren’t close as of now so I bring that up because I I I mentioned online that uh if the Bruins and Frederick are not close on a contract and they’re not going to resign the player playoff bound or not the Bruins should probably try to deal him for for for any return and many people most people uh agreed with that sentiment I did have uh one individual in particular mention well you know you could treat him as a rental and your own rental and then you you’re not losing him for nothing because you in the offseason if you don’t resign him because you would get that cap space um but I mean I just I just think it’s worth bringing up because I I I don’t know if the Bruins even know what they’re doing with the player yet he’s obviously out of uh he’s been struggling this year for the most part so when you have a player that you’re not close when you have a pending UFA who’s struggling you’re not close to contract negotiations and you have a bit of a log gym in the middle in the middle six and this kind of ties into the mlin stuff like should he stay or should he go I just think it’s worth adding that to this conversation and see what you guys think about that those reports out there it’s my no it’s my turn it’s my turn I’ve been sitting here waiting uh so I’ll start with M glofin then go to Frederick but uh for mlin like he 100% % deserves to be on the team right now and you can’t really argue that he isn’t a plus like isn’t helping uh he may have like without him you you may not have uh you know two points yesterday you may not even have one point yesterday and and we’re at the point where uh they need as many points as they can get because they’re they’re right there on the bubble so uh he has helped you win he’s got goals in back toback games he should be on the team but that’s not necessarily how it works with the contract situation because you know if they didn’t bring in walstrom I feel like I would be saying oh yeah he’ll probably stick around but it’s because they have walstrom now and they have Johnson waiting around that I feel like they’re they’re looking to to send them back down before they have to risk the waivers and uh he was a free agent signing wasn’t he out of Boston College the Bruins just he had you know he finished up his career I think he was the captain at the time right and then uh signed with Boston which you know kept him in the area and he’s been a good he was that’s that’s a good point uh because the the NHL hasn’t been sending players to the Olympics and they better keep their word that they’re going to continue to do that but uh but yeah like it if it was based on Merit alone he’d obviously be with the team but because of the situation that they have with the waivers uh and how he’d have to go back through them I feel like he kind of is just gonna fall into like a victim of circumstance uh with that and get sent back down and then you’ll see walstrom jump in the lineup is that what should happen is that what’s best for the team no so yeah I actually like I don’t know if that is I don’t I kind of think that might not happen because to me walstrom and Johnson are more of the duplicates in terms of players like Brian mentioned it’s like those are guys who have to be in the top nine those aren’t fourth liners so you know if you send if you send mlin down then you pretty much have to drop cik back to the fourth line and then one of wallstrom or Johnson plays every night and you hope that they click with you know Frederick brazzo Coyle whoever it is that they’re on a line with so I mean to me I just think that that’s kind of a little bit riskier in a way in that like it it takes away the option of bumping cast like up to the third line which I think has been a good move for sacko to to have in his pocket because Castle here in these last couple weeks has pretty frequently been the spark on that third line yeah and I think that’s valuable enough to you know to not have your hand push or you know force your hand to putting him back with the fourth line when he’s more effective um getting some energy out of Trent Frederick or you know Coy or brezo whoever’s ends up being there but yeah I maybe he will stay um I think they’d be better off with him saying uh for sure so it just becomes a do you do you want him to stay around the holy I mean I don’t think we had it on our radar that Ki was going to be around for as long as he has and I would say that even beacher’s been quiet like I I know he’s centering that line so you’d have to once again you’d have probably have to send cck down to Center that line but yeah like there’s there’s plenty of reasons to keep him and then to go to your your Frederick’s question Brian uh I I it kind of feels like we just especially with Elliot fredman’s reporting Frederick just keeps coming back up uh and you know that means that Sweeney’s probably got his name out there to other teams and having open conversations about whether or not he’ll stay in Boston and and how to get value for him if you can on an expiring contract so um but I don’t see that necessarily affecting the current like roster situation because just because uh there are ways to to solve this issue and I’d be fine if the solution would be to wave Tyler Johnson so yeah on on Frederick I think I think this is a lot more of other teams asking about him and leaking to fredman that like hey I had a phone conversation with Sweeney about about Frederick and it’s like yeah that doesn’t mean Sweeney’s like actively sh in him I I think he’s listening absolutely and I think if he got blown away he he’d pull the trigger on a trade um but you know what to do with Frederick is not a question that the Bruins have to answer right now like the trade deadline is on March 7th there is a lot of time between now and then to just to feel things out like keep playing him see if he gets going see if things change on the contract front and if you’re still if you’re still a part and if you feel like yeah you know what he’s not an absolutely essential part of whatever it is we’re going to do the rest of the season or he can be part of a trade that helps us get an offensive upgrade um you know that there’s a lot of T time to explore that route so yeah I think a lot of teams are asking about Frederick like clearly there’s there’s been trades made this season I think more I feel like there’s been more early season trades than like any season I can remember recently um so I think GMS are being more proactive when they see a guy who might be available and when you know when Sweeney says after firing Montgomery that basically like trades are going to be next if things don’t turn around yeah obviously like GMS are jumping on the phone being like hey Trent Frederick you know but what’ll it take like because he’s an obvious name that would be available and would be you know part of a potential shakeup um I I just I don’t know if the I don’t like I don’t think Sweeny is itching to to move him because a the team has started to play better and B there’s still going to be an element of selling low on Frederick right now like he’s once again now gone you know since he had that two goal game um well like a week and a half ago he’s now once again gone four games without a point so you know like yes he’s an intriguing player that teams want but you’re also kind of selling low where he’s not playing the way he has the last couple years well you’d be selling low versus getting nothing in return besides cap space I mean so that’s you get to a point where selling low is better than nothing but here’s the thing so my initial my initial sentiment on this and I think part of it is just because I’ve been so disappointed in this play this year he he has not been good this year my my my initial opinion and I’ve since altered it a little bit was if you’re not going to come to a deal and you and you truly are that far away on on on a contract negotiation and I agree Scott it’s not something I have to figure out right now but just because the reports were out there was on my mind um if you’re not close to a deal on a pending UFA and he’s not an essential player in my opinion when he’s playing like this at least to my point was if you trade Frederick because you’re not going to resign him and you get any sort of return back and then you bow out in the first round because you don’t have Trent Frederick well then you weren’t good enough in the first place that was kind of what my mindset was if he’s playing like this which is again it’s I can’t unfortunately I can’t sit here and give him the benefit of the doubt because he hasn’t been a good enough player for long enough of his career where his good stretch is the norm you know understand what I’m saying so I need to see him to get going if he was playing like he was last year so far this year then I would sit here and I would say no he’s going to be an essential middle six guy in the playoffs and he could be but his play hasn’t been um hasn’t been encouraging to say the least however in talking with people um online after after my after my initial uh tweet I have kind of come back a little bit to look at what uh compare the effect of keeping him as a rental versus a potential um you know return you get for him so if if a team is is talking to you around a deadline and and they want to blow you away then yeah I would trade them but if if if the if the offers are underwhelming and that underwhelming offer isn’t better than keeping him as a rental for a playoff run and then getting his cap space in the summertime freed up to do something else you got to wa you got you got to weigh it we just don’t know those those int those uh those details at this moment so it’s definitely premature it just depends on what teams are willing to offer and then comparing that versus is that better or worse than keeping him as a rental and then getting his cap space if if we don’t resign him well and the way I think of Frederick now it’s like like you said like is he worth having him as a rental for your own team like at this point I don’t even really know if the answer is is yes like it’s hard because I feel like you look at celik and cik does everything that you want Trent Frederick to do and like Tren Frederick should just try to be Mark cck at this point because cck is he’s got that grit he seems to know when to when to push buttons when to you know pull back so that he doesn’t get any penalties like he skates the line pretty well he brings intensity energy he can fight like that is who Frederick needs to be more like uh and so Castle right now is doing that doing the role that you kind of think of Frederick uh filling better and I don’t know how much you really lose like you still have that element on your roster if you trade Frederick for something that maybe you need a little bit more yeah well in theory the the difference there should be Frederick is a you know pretty sizeably better off player than cik except he hasn’t been this year because Frederick has 11 points cck has 10 so like he hasn’t even there hasn’t even been separation in that respect which you know again like we’ve seen Trent Frederick score 17 18 goals in in this league and I don’t think Mark click’s ever gonna do that um nor should he really be expected to uh but that is what you expect to Frederick he’s obviously just you know falling way short of that so far this season yeah I think it’s just a wait and see thing again I don’t think we’d be talking about it if if it wasn’t uh you know a report out there I think it was yesterday so it was just worth bringing up and yeah there’s just there seems to be an abundance of middle six personnel and a shortage of of top six which we knew going into the year it’s not really a surprise but you know you bring in wallstrom you did sign Tyler Johnson um you know Mark mclin’s up right now granted in a fourth line role they’re just see seems to be a lot of bodies and and they’re still trying to figure that out I don’t know if you guys have even thought about this so it’s fine if you haven’t but Trent Frederick’s making $2.3 million right now do you guys even have like a number in mind of what you would go to like at at this point for like to off for his NE for his next contract uh goodness I mean if he were to if you were to finish the year strong like I mean I I haven’t put much thought into this but and get back to kind of closer to what he produced at last year or somewhere between last year and the year before which would be what 35 points like I mean like I don’t know uh May three five at most like he’s not a $4 million do player in my opinion and that’s even that I didn’t feel uncomfortable saying that but if he if he’s producing at the level he can or or has the last two years maybe he can make the argument for for closer to four but I’m not going I’m not going anywhere near four at this moment that’s probably why they the report is that they’re not in the same what is was it not in the same universe or whatever when it comes toere yeah same Stratosphere yeah for for what he wants or what his agent is you know negotiating for him versus what the Bruins would be willing to pay yeah I think like that that’s exactly kind of where where I am where it’s like if he was doing what he did last year or you know even take obviously ideally taking a Step Beyond that yeah like I I could go to four or a little bit more but right now yeah it’s like I would have a hard time offering more than three a year and it’s like that makes it very easy to understand where this gulf is right because Frederick’s probably starting somewhere above four thinking you know like I deserve like almost to or again before this season like I deserve to like almost double my salary and the Bruins are like wait what are you doing this year to even like warrant much of a raise and it’s like yeah that creates kind of an enormous Gulf and it’s like Frederick hasn’t done anything that would force the Bruins to come up from a low number and if you’re a player you’re not g to be like oh yeah okay I’ve been struggling yeah you know what I’ll knock a million off that like that’s that’s players are always going to believe like I’m right on the verge of of turning it around so like you’re not going to you’re not going to budge when you’re kind of at your low Point yeah I mean if he if he went from 31 points in 2223 to 40 last year and then was on Pace for 40 to 45 this year as a player who can play in your middle six you know is responsible defensively can put up those points can fight when need be like okay yeah then I’ll have a fair conversation about him getting four plus but right now he’s he’s just not he hasn’t earned he hasn’t earned that so quite simply now I will say guys let me ask you this uh would you trade or would the Rangers trade would the Bruins trade Trent Frederick for coo kako straight up and I look I’m not even saying that’s a realistic thing that’s just more of a a fun conversation on on the podcast because I think kako surprisingly in Frederick I think have similar career highs uh in a given season for points or Co might have a slight Edge I have to pull it up um yeah kakos is is 40 and and so is Frederick’s right yeah yeah two years ago Kaku had 22 uh 18 goals 22 assists 40 points so is that I don’t have kak’s uh contract up right now but is that is is that one of those like hockey trades where you know both teams could could see potential uh benefits to it like kako is just stuck in the mud by the way you know he’s been he got healthy scratch in New York if if those don’t know he got healthy scratch for a game in New York the Rangers are just plummeting right now um and it’s an absolute circus and he was very open about you know his displeasure about getting scratched and how you know it’s the younger players even though he’s a six-year veteran the younger players are getting you know singled out more it’s it’s not a good situation it’s a classic like player probably looking for a change of scenery and it’s not so much that Frederick is in Boston but you have a UFA on on on the horizon that isn’t close to a contract maybe the Rangers want a middle six with sandpaper maybe the Bruins want to bring in a you know middle six guy former second overall pick that maybe needs a different you know scenery to to optimize his game yeah it’s it’s not a bad idea and I guess my hesitation here would be how how many players admittedly with some skill for sure can you kind of try to reclaim in in one season and like still expect to do anything at all because like you just brought in walstrom um you know like I worry I worry like you end up now look you could potentially end up with with a third line that has kako and walstrom on it and all of a sudden things click and they’re scoring and you’re like wow the Brun just completely transformed the third line and they’re getting offense from now maybe one of those guys even jumps into the top six and and you look like a genius like that could happen you could also end up with you know a third line where like both of those guys are struggling and you’re like oh crap the Chang of scenery didn’t help them and now not only are we not getting any offense from them but we’re also not getting the Sandpaper grit like defensive play like we’ve kind of lost everything and now we have you know a third line and a middle six with with no identity whatsoever um I I would be a little bit worried about that but um it’s not it’s not a bad idea like kako definitely has some Talent it just hasn’t hasn’t fully taken off it um with the Rangers yet yeah and I’m pretty sure Rangers fans are displeased with him so uh they’re they’re at a I wouldn’t say necessarily like the same situation as with Frederick because I don’t think Bruins fans are like yeah really like who is this get him out of here because Frederick’s bar is different than a second overall pick and uh yeah I mean it’s it’s a good question did you guys look up his contract did anybody look up what how much his money’s basically even K kaka’s 2.4 and he’s a he’s a pending restricted free agent so there is also some team control there one of one of thing guys I want to mention real quick is so Capo kako honestly guys there their career numbers are a lot more similar than one would think I mean they’re both former first round picks um but kako is second overall and people thought Frederick shouldn’t have been probably a first round pick but regardless um so kako has 131 points in 330 games and Frederick has 105 points in 313 games so kako is uh averaging 04 points a game and then Frederick is averaging 34 points per game so the edge goes to kako and it’s you know not razor thin close but close enough where you could see because they’re different styles of players and both would bring like a a change to their each team’s middle six that you know could be used right it it’s I don’t know it’s something it’s something that I’m sure could be being explored at some point I I you know more I think about it I I think I would do it you know like it’s it just seems like a risk wor worth taking for me to to be honest um and even you know even if it doesn’t pan out even if kind of you know what I laid out happens like e even though this team has started to play a little better like I don’t think they’re really a true cup Contender so I don’t know you might as well you know throw a dart and see if you see if you hit on something like that so yeah I I think I would do it I was just looking up their minutes to like their average time on ice over their career has kind of been similar uh yeah they’ve I mean he’s not he’s not really a power play guy so I don’t really think like if you’re looking for for that you might have to go somewhere else but at the same time like Frederick hasn’t really been a power play guy either so uh yeah I I think that there’s a there’s certainly an argument to be made that that could benefit the Bruins but you also have to think of the Rangers side like are they are they ready to do that too are they done with him like are they just looking for for something different at this point um the answer might be yes just based on all of the stuff they’ve done so far and just where they are as an organization right now with trading away their captain and then you know the bad stretch of play that they’ve had and and maybe I definitely think the Rangers are are you know they’re willing I I again like for those that that that that don’t know there’s been a lot of controversy and drama uh coming out of New York with regarding the Rangers the last month and kokako is the most recent story of it I mean he he’s he’s a younger player that uh is unhappy with with with with how he’s being utilized and Bridget your your point about him not being a major power play guy for the Rangers I think that’s you know I wonder how much of that is a player that has the potential to be but is battling confidence and also historically battling for ice time in a high-powered Rangers offense over the like you’ve had ouri panan and Chris krider and mik Saad and uh LEF frenier and just some other players over the years that you’re you’re battling I mean Adam Fox is obviously going to be running the power play so there’s been a lot of um you know high-end talent that Co has had to fight for for that ice time may maybe you come to a different situation in Boston where right now Boston’s kind of they’re they’re they’re in Need for some top six um skill raw and raw talent sometimes it’s all sometimes it’s about fit and opportunity yeah think about the the zaka for Hala trade like those are two guys that needed changes of scenery they both I think both teams were happy with how it worked out I mean the Bruins got zaka who’s a six overall pick and has been a top six forward for them and versatile and has you know he’s been a little bit of a Swiss army knife he plays on the top power play like that trade worked out and that was kind of a one for one like hey this guy for that like this forward for that forward we you know we think zaka can can help us you know it could be something similar though the contracts are a little bit less like zaka I feel like zaka was a bit of a higher-end guy than than kako but uh clearly uh back when he was drafted like he he was expected to have a really high upside and it just hasn’t happened yet is it possible that it does um and then like walstrom too like walstrom is another first round guy uh that he’s interesting I want to see how you know what it looks like when he starts to play because obviously they sacko kept the same lines from Vancouver wanted to give it another run back because they played well but when wallstrom gets in probably next game guys I don’t know but uh just see how he fits where he fits who they take out um yeah yeah I kind of feel like he might roll with the the same lineup again I mean you know why why change the lineup when you’re when you’re winning now he might keep he might keep the lines that he finished with like keep that in-game switch um yeah I was just looking at kago numbers and like they actually used him more on the power play as an 18-year-old rookie than anytime since he had he had 13 Power Play points as a rookie and 11 Power Play points in five years since then so H yeah B basically a non-factor on the power play in recent years okay guys I know we have about five minutes left before we have to go so any final takeway it’s time to argue about Christmas movies oh boy oh boy okay so I’ll let’s maybe te this up or Bridget I Know Rich Keefe had a had a tears list yeah I’ll start I I was the one who started this argument before we started recording because I disagreed with sorry keth like very S I know you’re a big movie guy respect all of your movie critiques uh but why would you have Jim car’s version of The Grinch in the worst tier like because that’s where it should be no Scott no it is absolutely not so he had elf right at the top which is where it should be I love Elf I love wolf farell people have probably heard me say on this podcast multiple times how much I love wolf farell um and then you know there’s some that I agree with but like I can’t get over the Jim Carrey version of The Grinch being that low it is hilarious I laugh every time my phone is full of memes from the Grinch um like I was telling you Brian like the one where he says uh dinner with me I can’t cancel that again there just a bunch of them like uh so Scott you’re wrong sorry Rich I’m disagreeing with you uh Scott’s going to war for you apparently but yeah it’s it’s not a very good movie I I don’t know what the issue is it’s hilarious I don’t know how you can watch that movie see him get in that recliner put his feet up and just start chewing on glass and spit out the like it’s it’s just a funny movie I mean if you want to put it in a second to last I think last is Harsh last is harsh for that yeah but but like you got also the when like you’re doing tears it’s like something’s gon to be down there you know like like you can’t just have like everything kind of in the middle or higher all right if every single holiday season I make sure that I watch Jim carries the Grinch and elf the other stuff I mix in if time allows but those two I always watch I would say the the four absolute musts my Mount Rushmore that I have to rewatch every year is uh Home Alone Christmas Vacation elf and It’s a Wonderful Life my my like so my biggest disagreement with Keefe’s tiers and you you can find these at Keef 21 if if people want to cross reference he has It’s a Wonderful Life in the second tier which is just insane like not only is it one of the best Christmas movies it’s it’s one of the best movies ever made period like it’s it’s probably one of my 20 favorite movies ever of any kind um an alltime classic for a reason yeah we should we should have called Kei for this we should have got him on here I mean Miracle on 34th Street isn’t that a classic too and he has that in his last tier yeah but not as much of a classic as It’s a Wonderful Life I I probably would have had that like a tier or two higher the the original one um but like I I’m okay with that being B I think my problem looking at his tears is that there’s about probably at least five movies I just haven’t seen so it’s tough to like really comment on those um but I mean like jingle all the way is uh with like that’s I maybe that’s like a me being uh like a 90s kid but I feel like that’s kind of like a a cheeky funny movie like I yeah it’s bad but I I don’t think I would put it in the last tier because i’ I’ve always enjoyed it it’s kind of funny um um Christmas Story being in the second tier h i get people I think people get sick of that because it’s been on a marathon for last 20 years on two channels but back in the day before it was Overexposed it’s a I think that should be tier one um I I think I’m okay with that in tier two um I mean bad Santa in tier two that’s a bit that’s that’s a little I mean I I don’t know what do I know what do I know the the one one that I think you overlooked that for me would at least be in the second tier so he included like the old uh like Rank and base cartoons you know the 30 to 45 minutes whatever like Rudolph and the original How the Grinch Stole Christmas Frosty the the one that’s missing to me is uh Santa Claus is coming to town which that would be very high for me another movie that isn’t even listed and you know it’s kind of a sad movie but it’s also funny um but I think it’s a good movie is um the Family Stone I don’t know if you guys have seen that before um I actually have not seen that I that’s that’s that’s a it’s a good movie it’s um it’s uh what’s her name d is it Diane Diane Keaton Diane Keaton um and then what’s the the Wilson brother not Owen Ben wil Ben Wilson Luke Luke Luke Wilson no not not the blonde one what’s his brother’s name like the brunette not the guy from weding Crash is his brother he’s in like old school and stuff yeah Luke oh is that is this Him Luke okay yeah Luke him and then uh Sarah Jessica Parker and um um Rachel McAdams it’s it’s a it’s it’s a good movie um he has Krampus on here I’ve never watched Krampus Krampus is creepy as hell yeah Krampus like could have been at at or near the bottom for me um I don’t like I don’t like horror movies I don’t like creepy stuff I like funny stuff so like all my all of my top tier stuff would would be some sort of Comedy another one that I think someone called in and mentioned this on the show after they did this uh and Keith said he hadn’t seen it but I would add as a modern classic that more people should see is klouse on Netflix KL a us uh it that movie is great and like I I don’t know why it didn’t never really took off or didn’t become more popular um but it’s it’s another animated one the animation is great um great story i’ highly recommend that one my uh my biggest my biggest sin and I’ll probably get killed for this if not by the listeners by you guys I’ve actually never seen die hard and all I hear about die all I hear about Die Hard is how it’s there’s a huge debate about is it a Christmas movie or is it not so that’s all I know about it so okay with that said seeing it in the first tier kind of confuses me because if half people don’t think it’s a Christmas movie how is it in the top tier but I guess I’d actually see it yeah well so Die Hard is one of my favorite action movies ever uh I don’t really consider it a Christmas movie so like it wouldn’t even be in here at all for me but if you’re going to include it and you’re going to make it eligible then it has to be top to you how so how is it so debatable it’s either it’s why is it so debatable between if it’s a Christmas or not so it takes place at Christmas and the entire thing is centered around an office Christmas party oh but Christmas like but other than that like Christmas is not really Central to the to the theme like it it could have been like any other gathering at the tower that that prompts this uh terrorist attack oh okay okay all right well that’s probably wraps up uh no pun intended but that wraps up our Christmas uh segment and I think that probably will do it so the Bruins are playing the Oilers on Thursday night so that’s another late one big one last one for the while until the Carol the California trip chance chance to yeah chance to decide you know chance to make this a winning road trip which listen if you the way that this trip started in Winnipeg and Seattle if you can finish it with three straight wins and and end with a win over the Oilers who have won eight of their last 10 like yeah I think I think you can kind of forget about Winnipeg and Seattle that would be an impressive turnaround all right well they’re going to be challenged on Thursday we’ll see if they’re up for the task thank you all very much for listening we’ll talk to you on Friday hey guys thanks for watching the gate podcast if you want to see more of our videos visit our playlist not in front of a screen you can listen to us on Spotify Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcast don’t forget to follow us on social media and if you enjoyed this video please don’t forget to give us a thumbs up subscribe to our Channel and leave a comment

Discussing Elias Lindholm’s great performance against his former team, The Bruins come-from-behind win in overtime and how they can salvage their western road trip. Should Marc McLaughlin remain with Boston? Would the Bruins trade Trent Frederic for Kaapo Kakko?

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Jump to:

00:00 – Bruins beat Calgary in overtime

06:00 – Elias Lindholm played great against his old team

38:00 – Would Bruins trade Frederic for Kakko?

45:00 – Our favorite Christmas movies

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