Randon: Hey, welcome in fans to another episode of the Two Line Pass Podcast. I'm Randon here with me, Dustin Ryan, and we are mere days away from the start of the Utah Mammoth hockey season. Gentlemen, the preseason's done. Are you ready? How you doing tonight?
Dustin N: Very very good. I'm ready. I w I I've been ready. I'm ready. I'm so ready. I'm ready. Did I say I'm ready?
Randon: Don't sound too excited, Dustin. Don't sound too excited. No. Just just a a little less enthusiasm in your voice. I would appreciate it. Ryan!
Dustin N: I'm trying to hold it back. Contain it. Trying to contain it. Sorry. I'll I'll I'll do better.
Randon: How you doin'?
Ryan: It's fantastic. Happy hockey Eve, everybody. The NHL comes back tomorrow. We don't play tomorrow, but still the NHL is back tomorrow.
Randon: Thursday, October 1st is opening night for your Utah Mammoth. A repeat of openers in the past. The Chicago Blackhawks come to town. We open at the Delta Center. The new Look Delta Center as well. And the big storyline, guys, is the team roster is set and in action. So what we're gonna do, we're gonna put it up. If you, my friends, are watching this on YouTube, you get the you get the goods. But if you're just watching audio only, we'll try to break it down. no big surprises here. the big question I think everyone was wondering, is Daniel Boot going to make the team? As if we forgot that he played almost 30 games with us last season. It's not like he's a true rookie. Dmitry Simishhev, I don't think anybody doubted that he would make it. But those are the two the two big additions. Everybody else returns from last season. Dustin Ryan, any big surprises about the the roster? Anyone you thought would make it? I guess Brandon Tanov? didn't, but is that the only shocker?
Dustin N: I was gonna say Brandon Tanev, I'd I'd probably rather have Tanev instead of O'Brien, but I mean it d does it really matter at this point which one of those two players is sitting up in the b i i in the box and and getting scratched every game, so
Randon: mean preseason goal score leader, Liam O'Brien? Is that who you mean? The going for fifty
Dustin N: Ha ha ha.
Randon: in the regular season, Liam O'Brien? Tuna, two
Dustin N: Yes.
Randon: goals?
Dustin N: The the the puck just finding its way in front of him, in front of an empty net, and he still still barely gets a stick on it and just kinda like S slides it in into net, so yeah.
Ryan: I don't understand what Brandon Tanev did to Andre Tierney, but I don't get why. Like, just trade the guy. If we're not g if he's just going to the AHL, you can't tell me nobody wants him for future considerations. Come on. Like go go send him to Calgary where at least he'll play. Like, I don't know. I like Tanev
Randon: Well nobody
Ryan: more than I like O'Brien, that's for damn sure. But Tanev never really gets a chance. Which is crazy.
Randon: Nobody claimed him on waivers. He was out there. Anybody could have got him for free.
Ryan: Wild.
Randon: And That two point five million against the cap, I think, is is what's keeping him in Utah. I think he's a good player for maybe a million,
Ryan: Not even that much.
Randon: but two point five, which for some teams is might as well be a hundred million. For other teams, like I look at us, you know, last year where we just had more cap space than we knew what to do with, and we can afford to give a guy like Brandon Tannef two point five million. But can a contender who's strapped for cash afford to give Brandon Tanneff two point five million? And does he make a contender better? I don't know. He didn't obviously do enough to make us better, but I did like the energy he brought. I will tell you this though. Let me get your thoughts on this because this is my big question mark. obviously Daniel Boot was most productive when he was up on line one and playing significant power play two minutes. His goal, in fact, came on a deflection on the power play. I don't know if I like Daniel Boot on the fourth line, if that's where he ends up, which was his practice line. Do you guys think that there is any chance that Daniel Boot makes it in the top six to open the season?
Ryan: Yeah, probably. It's it's Utah. Of course there's a chance, yeah.
Dustin N: I I there's a chance, but who are you taking out of the top six in order to make room for Daniel Boot in the top six? Like
Ryan: Barrett Hayden.
Dustin N: Barrett Hayden's not gonna be a top six center. He's he's gonna be a third line center,
Randon: Mm-mm.
Dustin N: I would assume.
Randon: Yeah, not a I I don't think he's Ayton's there, so you gotta do
Ryan: You think they're gonna put you think they're gonna put Trochek over Hayden?
Randon: Yeah, yeah, I think they will. Absolutely.
Dustin N: yeah.
Randon: Yep. So you've got you've got the the practice lines were Keller, Schmaltz, and Trochek on line one, with Trochek playing the wing, and then you had Lee Cooley
Ryan: It's a terrible line one.
Randon: Gunther. That was your top six. I don't see a world unless unless you really do move Trochek down to the third line. But I just don't know that Daniel Boot is a top line forward in the NHL. Dude has thirty games
Ryan: He's not, no. Not yet.
Randon: under his belt.
Ryan: How many goals did he score last year? None? Three? No.
Randon: Three. He had
Dustin N: It's yeah, I was gonna say it was like three, four, five somewhere around there. Yeah.
Randon: seven points, three goals, four assists. Yep. If he played if he played the full eighty two, he would have gotten about eighteen eighteen points if he stayed on the same trajectory. And that was with significant line two minutes. So that's my concern.
Ryan: Yeah, what's he gonna do with with Stenlin and and tuna? Like what is that line supposed to do? Stenlin bootin' tuna?
Randon: Exactly.
Ryan: That's a waste of a line.
Randon: And you could toss in a Yamamoto there, maybe. Maybe you got Yamamoto boots Stenland. And maybe does that make that fourth line better? 'Cause then it's not just a pure
Ryan: No.
Randon: checking line.
Ryan: No, 'cause I don't think Kevin Stenlin can keep up with the two young kids. I'm not saying Boot is very fast, but like I don't know. I don't like Boot as a bottom six, but I don't think he fits our top six either. Cause the third line is set then with Krause, McBain and Hayden.
Randon: Pretty much, yeah.
Dustin N: Yeah, I think I think so, yeah.
Ryan: So he's either gonna be on the second line or the fourth line.
Randon: And I don't think you move Lee down.
Dustin N: Wha what I was gonna say you're not moving Lee down to
Ryan: You can't
Dustin N: f the fourth line.
Ryan: No, he's gotta be there to protect the kids. That's his whole job is to keep up with the kids and keep them safe, and then just cap in all their rebounds.
Randon: And I think this was my concern when we brought in Vinny Trochek. Like, on the surface, it seemed good because it seemed like, okay, he's going to, you know, make it so Nick Schmaltz doesn't need to play center. But I did not like Vinny Trochek as a first line center. I think his first line center days are behind him. That's me looking at it probably a glass half-empty type. outlook, but I don't believe that Trochek is a first line
Dustin N: Not you.
Randon: center. I know. I know. Me be negative? Can you believe that? I I don't think that I I'd like to think that I'm the most positive fan in this whole circle of fandom. I mean I'd never said a single negative thing about anybody in my entire life that's a player that is a player that I like.
Ryan: I can vouch for that. I've I have known Randon
Dustin N: True.
Ryan: my whole life. He has always been a stand-up standout guy and never once been been mean for the sake of being mean.
Randon: Did you guys note too that on this roster list they actually ranked it in order of best player? So of course you've got Nick Schmaltz listed number one because it's in order of of best player. And then when you get to
Dustin N: It's true. Yep.
Randon: the defenseman, it's it's likewise, because you got John Marino up there. And then Sebastian Cosa, obviously we all know he's gonna be the best goalie on the team. So really, really outstanding job by the roster graphic people. not putting it in jersey number order, but putting it in skill order. I I really appreciate them.
Ryan: So so
Dustin N: Yes.
Ryan: back to the back to the lines.
Dustin N: So what you're saying is that Logan Cooley is our worst forward.
Ryan: Statistically speaking, yes, that is what Randon is saying.
Randon: He is the worst he is the worst player on the team named Logan, I'll tell you that much.
Dustin N: that is true.
Randon: Yep. Undeniable fact
Ryan: But
Randon: on that one.
Ryan: so back to the line thing, with Trochek coming in, I like it a lot more if we don't accept the offer sheet New Jersey gave Barrett Hayden. If you let Barrett Hayden go, everything
Dustin N: Yes. Yep.
Randon: Yeah.
Ryan: makes way more sense with Trochek, but keeping Barrett Hayden was like, Okay, why? Why did you do that?
Dustin N: Yeah.
Ryan: You got Trochek, why not let Hayden go? Just i it's gonna hurt, sure, to some, let him go. Like him and Trochek are what essentially the same thing. Just one's a little bit younger and then one's a lot more talented. But they essentially
Randon: Yeah.
Ryan: do the same thing.
Randon: Yeah, except for I I mean actually Barrett Hayton's not bad at the face off circle either. Like that was one of his like saving graces is is he was a little better than everyone.
Ryan: No, and but Trocek is v but he and he's also he's younger than Trochek, but Trochek is a much more talented hockey player in the overall game. Yeah. But
Randon: yes, yes. And Trochex better at face-offs. But I'm saying if you were comparing the two, I think it's not a terrible comparison
Dustin N: right? Like it it fits everything kind of fits nicely into its pile where it goes if we don't match the offer sheet to Barrett Hayden. And everybody, every fan that I I ran into on Twitter said, like, why why would we match that? Like before they did, they said, Alright, sign our Bear Aiden. Good good to know ya. happy trails. we wish you the best in your future endeavors, right? And then they matched the offer sheet and they were like, What are we doing? Why are we doing that? Like we're gonna lose him next year for nothing. We might as well not match it and get a draft pick out of it, right? That was the whole like if if he went Utah got a draft pick back. I believe that was the the the setup. So it's like why why are we matching this? We we don't need Baron Hayden on this team. Like it's just like it it doesn't fit. And now because we did, it's like we're looking at this, like, where do we put Daniel Boot? And I d I w we don't know the answer. We don't know what's going on. Like i i it doesn't it doesn't have a clear like You want him on one of the top two lines 'cause that's where he produces, but you don't want to drop any of the guys out of the top six. Like it just it doesn't fit. And it all goes back to matching that off.
Randon: Yep. I think too is the when you when you look at the maybe the mentality of GM Bill Armstrong, I think maybe even before rookie training camp, he just kind of knew that unless it i they just had outstanding times that T Jagin and Caleb Desnoyers would not be ready this year. Or at the very least would not be starting in the NHL. Regardless of how well they did. And so if you're looking at it from that angle and you're saying, Okay, I already know they're not gonna make the team no matter what happens, do I need Barrett Hayten to then become a stopgap for them? And I bring on Barrett Hayten specifically for this one year to make it so I don't have to rely on a guy like Tiege or Caleb Desnoyers. And that may have played a a factor in it and not wanting to go out and try to get somebody who was maybe potentially worse or had less chemistry with the team. Cause then you're just maybe bringing in a bottom six guy just to fill a roster spot. And with Hayton, you know that there's upside. It's just a matter if it can unlock. And last year it absolutely did not unlock. And I worry that if Barrett Hayton reads any of the media is social media, like he is going to be the scapegoat. one hundred percent this season if he plays any amount in sixty or more games, he's gonna be the scapegoat. It's already been decided. There's no more Jersey, there's no more Ian Cole. Like Barrett Hayton is going to be the scapegoat one way or another. And so I just I I hope that he can shake that monkey off his back. And I think playing third line definitive, you are a third line center or a third line winger. This is your job. Like you're not going to fight for that second line. You're certainly not going to play in the first line. And if he internalizes that and says, okay, I've come to grips with my role in the team, and I'm going to be the best version of that. I think that the Barrett Hayden, McBain, Krause line can be really, really good. Like I think it has all the tools to be a great grinding line that has scoring upside, which is exactly what you want out of that third line. And so maybe that. is exactly what Barrett Hayden means is a definitive you are line three center. That is your role.
Dustin N: Yeah. And I I think I it helps Hayden having somebody like Lawson Krauss on the third line with him because like he he showed last year that that guy can score. When he has a when he has a center that can set the plate for him, Lawson Krauss can score. Like we might see third and fourth line scoring on this team, which seemed like it hamstrung the team so badly last year where a bottom six was just kinda Hopefully we we don't get outscored with the bottom six on the ice, right? but having having loss and Krauss on the third line with Hayden might give him the the fi offensive firepower to to be able to make something this season.
Randon: Absolutely. any thoughts on Barrett Hayton and us matching the offer sheet and where you think he he fits is good?
Ryan: I I think I think it was a stupid move to match the offer sheet once you had Trojak. Because we had Trojak before we match the offer sheet, correct? We can believe we already
Randon: I believe so.
Ryan: yeah. If if if that is the true statement, meaning Trojak is everything Barrett Hayden does, but a little bit better. Minus maybe the physicality. He's not gonna check as much as Hayden. He goes to the front of the net equally as much as Hayden does. Like and he's way better defensively. Not that Hayden was bad at defense. Barrett Hayden is a great two-way young forward. But I feel like they do the exact same thing. And you get in Trochek, which you can't he's already on a he's on a way bigger contract, if I'm not mistaken, than Barrett Hayden ever will be.
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Ryan: So he's not going to get bottom six minutes. Hayden, you could put in bottom six, but then you're kind of wasting Barrett Hayden in a bottom six. And with Daniil Boot, you just clog everything up. With Barrett Aiden and Trochek. And I I don't like matching that offer sheet if you have Trochek. Sir, I mean people will argue, it's a good problem to have. No, it's not, man. It's not a good problem to have. We want guys who we want 12 forwards who are gonna play 82 games. I don't want 15 forwards with three of them playing 30. That doesn't help anybody. You know what mean? Like, I don't know. I'm I'm not against Barrett Hayden, but like you were saying, he is gonna be the scapegoat. It's either gonna be him or Clayton Keller, even though the real fans will never turn on Clayton Keller. I'll turn on Clayton Keller. Watch. If he's bad at any way, shape,
Randon: Not
Ryan: or form, I'll turn on him. I don't care if he's the captain. You have to be. Although I do feel like
Randon: We were tough we were tough a little bit on him last season. Like we we I feel like we held him accountable. But
Ryan: did Keller get a gold medal? He was at the Olympics, right? He didn't play, but he got a gold, right? Yeah,
Randon: Yeah, course he won. He's our golden boy.
Ryan: okay. So I feel
Dustin N: Yeah.
Ryan: like he has to pop off. Like, I don't know. I just nothing against Barrett Hayden, but trade him. What I mean, you might as well go get something cool for him. You know what I mean? Shit, throw him throw him in the hellibuck
Randon: Let's see what we can see what we can do.
Ryan: tree. Barrett Hayden, Corell Vamilka, pick a fucking kid in the bottom and a first round draft pick and give us hella buck.
Randon: I'd take it. I'd take it in a heartbeat.
Ryan: Come on, Winnipeg.
Dustin N: I'd take that.
Randon: Here's another question. Big question mark on the on the roster. Kyler Yamamoto, there was questioning about whether he would re-sign, he gets a two-year deal with Utah. And now I worry, like, I guess let me ask you this. Are we okay with Kyler Yamamoto just playing thirty games and being a great player when he comes in and press box guy otherwise?
Ryan: I hate it, but yeah. Like I wish he could play.
Dustin N: I I was just Yeah, I was just about to ask, like o obviously out of the out of the four words that have made the opening night roster, like Liam O'Brien is gonna be a healthy scratch. Who's the other scratch? And if it's not Boot, it's probably Yamamoto, right?
Ryan: Hundred percent.
Randon: Yep. I I think I don't think you I don't think you put Boot on the team to not play. I think
Dustin N: Right.
Randon: I'm hoping he's at least able to be benched and sit in the press box a couple times, but you probably don't want to bench him for more than half the season. Like otherwise you could just send him to the AHL. So I that's yeah, I see O'Brien and Yamamoto as the two most likely guys to maybe play twenty five to thirty thirty games And be the odd man out in this whole sequence of events. Maybe if Barrett Hayden just sucks it up, maybe you can move somebody, but I worry that they're gonna put Daniel Boot over Yamamoto. And other than size, like I think Yamamoto is the much better NHL player right now. But you can't teach size. And Daniel Boot is a much bigger player, even if he doesn't play like it.
Ryan: Yeah, but you can't teach heart. And Yamamoto might have the biggest heart on this goddamn team. Like, there has never been
Dustin N: Yep.
Ryan: a game that Kyle Yamamoto has played where people know, well, he wasn't trying and I he was just being lazy and not doing it. It's like, no, he might not be on the score sheet, but he's in every fucking play, causing turnovers, being an
Dustin N: yeah.
Ryan: absolute little wolverine out there. I like what is I mean, Michael Carconey to me, I feel like him and Yamamoto should be battling for that position. 'Cause like Tuna, I he's got a roll. I hate it, but he's got a roll 'cause he's not good at it. But like we know when tuna's out there what he's doing. Yamamoto and Carconey should be e they're both smaller guys, they're both trying to score goals, and they're both decently good defensively. So I'm not gonna count out kind or Yamamoto and Carconey being the two that are swapped in and out necessarily over O'Brien and him. But I also think I would rather have Carconi and Yamamoto toget not on a line together, but both in the lineup over tuna. Because at least the two of them they're the odds are better between the two of them popping off than tuna having two goals. And I know preseason, but like let's be honest, if tuna gets five goals, I think we might build him a statue. Like But I would rather have Yamaboto
Randon: Yeah, five goals is
Ryan: than pretty much all of the other three guys we're talking about. I threw Michael Carcone in there. I know people aren't gonna like that. I don't care.
Dustin N: I mean I l I love Yam,
Randon: I forget about Carconey.
Dustin N: so I I wouldn't mind seeing Carconey and Liam O'Brien as the scratches and and l and Yamamoto playing.
Ryan: I was gonna say I figured you guys kinda just forgot about Carconey. He kinda just blends in there in between boot and Yamamoto anyways. Like you don't really even see him when you're reading it.
Dustin N: Carconey just feels like like he's just a guy that Bear likes. Right? That like Tyranny
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Dustin N: just likes him. So w when I'm thinking
Ryan: Like Carconi.
Dustin N: about who he's gonna scratch, I don't think that it's gonna be Carconey 'cause I I think he's just one of Tyranny's guys.
Ryan: Which is weird 'cause like if
Randon: Well.
Ryan: that's one of your guys, how is Yamamoto not one of your guys? They're the same fucking thing, but Yamamoto's a little bit younger? Not by much. They're pretty much the same.
Dustin N: Well let's see, Yamamoto Yamamoto is twenty
Randon: I think they're high twenties, low thirties.
Dustin N: seven and Karconi is thirty, so he's three years younger.
Ryan: Yeah, okay. Yeah, they're the same guy. Like if you gave Yamamoto
Dustin N: And and Yamamoto gave you twenty twenty three points in fifty nine games. Carcone gave you thirty one, so eight more g eight more points in twenty more games.
Randon: Yeah, so
Ryan: I feel like if you give Yamamoto those twenty more games, he's gonna get eight points. What do you like? What are we talking about? Like if you just give him Carconi's minutes, Yamamoto's gonna do the same thing. You can't tell me him
Randon: Yamamoto also had
Ryan: what
Randon: he had five playoff points, didn't he? He I don't know if he led the
Ryan: What a ridiculous amount.
Randon: team, but did he lead did he lead the team in playoff points? I I wanna say he did. I was trying to check it,
Dustin N: Yeah, Yamamoto. The we had we we had a bunch of players. We had Mackenzie Wiegar, Dylan Gunther, Lawson Krauss, Kyler Yamamoto, Sergachev and Keller all tied with five points in the playoffs.
Randon: Okay. Okay.
Ryan: That's pretty good for to have them again. But on a side note.
Dustin N: And Carcani Carcone gave you two.
Ryan: But on a side note, you can't tell me that Carconi has such good like chemistry with Krause and McBain when they're all playing together on the third line that he's more important than a Yamamoto could be. Yamamoto does the same shit. Like I say give Yamamoto every minute of Carconi and just trade Carconi. Or you know what I mean, scratch him. Either one. But I personally like Yamamoto. Over all the other Who are potential scratches?
Randon: Yeah. Well that's a big question, is what does Turney do? He's got I mean, options upon options upon options upon options for the lines. Like he he really can put those things in a blender and we are gonna roll out so many.
Dustin N: You say maybe may maybe the idea that he has so many different combinations and different options that that he can use i is a bad thing for tyranny. Because he we we know how much he just loves to to fudge around with the lines like, we're gonna switch this one up, we're gonna switch that one up. Like I it wouldn't surprise me if when the f within the first two weeks of the season, two to three weeks of the season, y y you see like Trochek on three different lines. You it just bounce him all around well, we're gonna start him in the top and then we're gonna start him in the top six and then let's see what he does on line three with these guys and like big bodies, like and just make it our our our g our big bodied enforcer goon line like number three, whatever just like i he's just gonna mess with it all season long and that's just like that's just my warning to anybody listening, like just be ready for him to continue doing that. This these lines are gonna bounce around and around and around and around. It's just it it's just best to prepare yourself for it right now.
Randon: Best thing that could happen to us is we go on a little streak to start the season. And he's just like, he's like, All right, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And that
Dustin N: Yes.
Randon: like there's the consistency there. But if we lose one of three, two of three of the th first three, like, yeah, we may not see the same line game to game for ten games. but for all the questions surrounding the forwards, before we move on to defense though, do you guys have any final thoughts on the forward group?
Ryan: Final thought is if you look at every team that has won the Stanley Cup in the last five years, none of them play musical lines. Just saying. None of them. None of them are mixing and matching. Everybody has a role and everybody knows their line. So maybe look at that.
Randon: You can you can make adjustments you can make adjustments, but you don't need to to put it in a a blender. But
Ryan: You don't flip flop everybody. If you need to adjust one line here and there, make a tweak, do it. You don't fucking mix and match everybody.
Randon: This is very true. Now, for as much question marks as there are about who the forward lines are gonna be, I don't think there's any real question marks about the defensemen. The defensemen are pretty much set at least through five, and then you have two very solid veterans that can back it up as the as the six. Because you're gonna roll out Sergachev and Uyghur as your line one. You're gonna roll out Schmidt and Marino as your second pairing, and then you're gonna play Dmitry Simashev as much as you can, and then you're gonna have Andrew Peak and Nick D. Simone. One of those. And then if you have to bench Simashev, you've got to you've got Peak and D Simone, there was I think online, on Reddit specifically, there was a lot of question marks about the defensemen. I don't have as many question marks about the defensemen. I think our defensemen are just fine. Unless we see Lazychev again, I think we're gonna be just fine. Our defensemen are just fine. I have no problems with them.
Ryan: No, I think we have a very underrated defense core. Just 'cause there's a couple of guys who aren't household names necessarily. But Nick D. Simone, every time he's in the lineup, is literally fine. Zero complaints. Like, sure, it's not doing anything crazy, but that's a good thing. I don't necessarily need my defenseman being Cale McCar. Just stay just block a shot and get the puck out, man. That's all you gotta do.
Dustin N: Yeah.
Ryan: is that it how is what says peak? Peaky? Just peak? I don't know. Just peak?
Randon: Just peek.
Dustin N: Peak, Andrew Peak.
Ryan: Andrew Pete, I thought his preseason games are phenomenal. Take your dudes heads off in both games. We need that. We need a smaller, not necessarily j you know, like a big Sergiochev sized defenseman who's out there just patrolling the blue line as a six man out there. You gotta watch your head when he's out. I like that. And then like Nick's or Schmidt and Merino, we already know that's our that's our T or that's our defensive line for this family or this this podcast. Those are our guys. I love think he can do anything wrong. He's gonna have a bad plus minus, but that's because that's just what happens when you play with Sergachev. You're gonna have a bad plus minus. but Sergachev is really the big question. Like is he gonna be the ten million dollar defenseman we're paying or whatever the fuck his contract is? 'Cause he wasn't last year.
Randon: No, I d I don't I don't know which version of Sergachev we're gonna get. I don't know if we're gonna get inaugural season Sergachev or if we're gonna get season two Sergachev. And I'm hoping that with a consistent I know who my partner is gonna be and it's not going to be a rookie, I think that's going to help Mikhail Sergachev. I think that he's going to play very well on the power play as he does, which I mean, our power play sucks, but I think Mikhail Sergachev will get a fair few points on that power play line. And you've got McKenzie Uyghur, who's perfectly fine playing power play two, and they're gonna be a fine number one pairing. I think they're going to be absolutely fine. Especially if Mikhail Sergachev can play like he should play, and McKenzie Uygh comes back to form. He was great in Calgary, a little less productive than we would have liked when he came to Utah, but I wouldn't say he was bad, and now just having the full season with Utah under Utah system, I think it's gonna do marvels for Mackenzie Weager. So I'm not I'm not too concerned about the defenseman at all. I think I think we're gonna be fine.
Dustin N: Yeah, we we got rid of the one defenseman who constantly just made me pull my hair out. And and like you said, Nick D. Simone N N D Simone is
Ryan: Rest in peace, he and Cole. He's not dead, but he's got
Dustin N: No, my god, I've already for 50.
Randon: Ian Cole.
Dustin N: No
Randon: Sean Dersey.
Ryan: Jersey.
Dustin N: There's he, there we go. I I've already
Randon: Yeah.
Dustin N: moved on. Like his number fifty got taken up by by Daniel Boone. I'm like, I don't even remember his name. I just boop boop he's gone. But but yeah, like you said, Nick Nick Di Simone, I just want to mention him, and you've already talked about it, but he's he's the perfect, like, seventh defenseman. Like if you need him, he's gonna come in and he's just gonna do his job. He knows what he he he knows what's expected of him and he just he plays good, solid hockey and and you know that you have a guy like that that that you can call on as your seventh defenseman.
Randon: Yep. Gonna be great. And in the preseason, Sebastian Cosa, old Sea Bass, played pretty darn well. Few soft goals, but good. I'm feeling good about him as the backup. Corell Vamilka played, got a shutout. Can you believe that? A shutout for old
Dustin N: Mm-hmm.
Randon: Veggie in the preseason against a lackluster, Colorado roster. and then looked shaky at times against LA. But I think what we saw is that Sebastian Kosa is probably going to be better and more trusted than Vitek Banachek was. And so I think you're gonna see a lot less load on Corell Vemelka. You guys feeling good about the goaltending tandem?
Dustin N: The the only thing that scares me about that is that that Seabass I believe he'll look good. So I don't wanna wind up in a situation like we were a couple of seasons ago where it was just like one start for for Familko, one start for Ingram, one start for Familka, one start for Ingram. Where he just where where Bear couldn't settle on a guy. a a little bit sleepy a and and C Bass just plays really, really well. That that Tyranny looks at it as like a one A, one B type thing and doesn't have like a a set four to one through like three to one rotation with
Ryan: I feel like
Randon: It's been so long.
Ryan: I feel like considering V Melka was burnt out by last year, I feel like Kosa is gonna get a fairly good amount of start. Maybe not the fifty fifty split that Ingram and Vamilka had, but he'll get a decent amount of games. Hopefully he can steal the job. You know what I mean? I let's see let's see what you got, kid. Show us be a Brandon Bussey out of nowhere. Be a Dustin Wolf in Chicago or in Calgary. But Pl see, I don't hate Veggie as our starting goalie. Like Veggie's fine. I don't necessarily there's an upgrade to be made, but what can you do?
Randon: Mm-hmm. Until we get old Connor Hallibuck, there's the picture right now. Until we get old Hallibuck in the in the stable. I think I think it the problem is I think goaltending will be the big question mark on the season. The the thing that holds this team back other than consistent lines shifting around, I think it's gonna be goaltending play. And I'm just hoping, like you said, Dustin, I it it almost I forgot about it. We did an entire episode on this in season one about when we thought that Veggie had truly taken the goal away from Connor Ingram. And I had almost forgot about the the flip flopping before Ingram goes on to the player assistance program and kind of and veggie's like, okay, well you're the guy because you have to be the guy now. and so I I worry there is a little bit of that, but I also like there is a world where Sebastian Cosa Takes the starting job. Like I can see a world where that happens. And I don't know if that's necessarily a good thing for the for the team because that means we've we've gone through a bad a bad stretch. Or it could be because Ingram, it wasn't that Ingram played so poorly that Veggie was, you know, but Veggie just played out of his mind and in that first year. And so I'm hoping it's a similar situation where Reggie's not necessarily bad, he's consistent enough to get some wins. But he's never outstanding and that's where Kosa comes in and says, Okay, I am outstanding and really makes a run at it. But we'll see. I think they they both kind of had the same tendency of letting in some soft goals, just in different ways. Veggie finds himself out of position because of his own acrobatics and he's fifteen feet away from the crease. And maybe Kosa's just positionally, you know, has some question marks. He's a great big size, but can leave some gaps in there. And so it'll be interesting to see how that plays out. But I do feel better after watching Kosa in the preseason because I had a lot of questions about him. I was not sold on him. And he still has a lot to prove. He still has a lot to prove, but I It's an upgrade from from V Tech and I loved V Tech. I thought he was great. Didn't get the run support. But if Kosa gets the run support, yeah. Easy easy extra six wins a season having Cosa.
Ryan: Well we're gonna need the extra wins because the bottom like at least San Jose got better, so now they're coming. And Dallas and Minnesota got worse. So we can definitely take their spot. But without goaltending, yeah, we're kinda it'll be interesting to see how this plays out in the first week. Plus at least we get to see Cosa in the first three games. He's at least getting one of the back to backs, right? Like he has to. So we'll see
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Ryan: what happens at least early with him. Hell Manhill pitchers shut out you know, Veggie letting in two or three in the first few games. And then well, bam, fuck it, go with the kid. And s speak with the kid.
Randon: Well, we'll take a look at it's you brought it up that we are on a back to back. Let's take a look at those first three games going into this season. Obviously October first at home against Chicago, a familiar foe for home openers. this one's gonna be on ESPN broadcast nationally, and then they go on the road for a quick early back to back on the road, and not one of those nice, simple, easy, you know, you play New Jersey and one of the New York teams. They go to Columbus and then Gotta go to to New York the day after. So pretty heavy travel day in this weekend I would like to see us take all three. I think two and one is going to be just fine. I think you absolutely have to establish yourself against a Chicago team. Should Columbus is, they just got Matty Nyes from Toronto. They lost Marchenko. so we'll see what their chemistry looks like. And then you've got some new look Rangers going to Madison Square Garden, which Utah has played well in Madison Square Garden, to reunite the team against Sean Dersey. Guys. You thinking two and one, three and What are your predictions on the the first three games?
Ryan: Three and out. What are you talking about? We're playing three teams that are
Dustin N: Should be three and up.
Ryan: not playoff teams who are going three and we should at least go three and
Dustin N: Chicago that it if if I remember right, Chicago last year they they they weren't even close to a playoff team. And I feel like we went one and three against them, somet like they just they just had our number
Ryan: Yeah, we did not play it any good.
Dustin N: for one reason or another. Just you you have to find a way to beat them. We we got better, like obviously they have talent, but you should win those games. And Columbus and New York were I I believe Columbus finished with the same amount of points on the season as us. Columbus just kinda seems like like our immediate twin. but they don't make the playoffs because we we played in a an advantageous conference for that. But you should you we we should start the season three and four and like looking ahead to New Jersey. I know we're gonna be back in the studio before we play that game again, but we should start the season four and before it gets a little bit tougher. But who who who who knows?
Randon: I think last year
Dustin N: I would take I would take two and one of these first three. but I would li I'd r I'd really like to see three no.
Randon: we did struggle historically on back to backs, especially the second game of back to backs. That's my only concern. Is last year we were just not great in back to backs. We were one and one in almost all of our back to backs and most of the losses coming in in that second game. So I am concerned even though the quality of competition might not be the highest, I guess that's what you want, but
Dustin N: Just fact checking ourselves, we did not win a single game against the Blackhawks last year. We w we we lost
Randon: No we did c d wait,
Dustin N: two we got two overtime losses. So we we did wind up getting some points against them, but we lost three to one, four to zero, three to two in overtime, three to two in overtime.
Randon: We played Calgary to open last season. We played Calgary in the home opener. No,
Dustin N: Calgary, we played Colorado to open the season.
Randon: in the home opener is Calgary, wasn't it? I got a f I got yeah, Calgary. Yeah, the home opener. We got Calgary.
Dustin N: the home opener, yes, yes. Sorry. Calgary was the home opener.
Randon: I th I f I was confusing the inaugural season.
Dustin N: We open the season at Colorado.
Randon: I was confusing the inaugural season when we played Chicago in the home opener. So Chicago, I don't think got significantly better in the off season necessarily. I guess significantly better is the question mark. They got better than they were. Did they get better than us? Likely not. I think we had one of the best off-seasons of any team in terms of getting what you need to start competing. So, like we should. We should absolutely beat them. and I like your comparison to us in Columbus, because I think the most passionate I got against a a team in a fan base was a Against Columbus. And I don't know why. It was irrational for me to get upset at Columbus. We're not it's not like it's a rivalry or anything. I just I liked bantering with the Columbus fans online. I liked giving them shit and and it was just it's fun. And then I think we we match up well or have historically matched up well against a Rangers team that is still trying to find an identity. I think the Rangers are still trying to figure out where they go next. And again, I don't know that the New York Rangers got significantly better in This in this offseason. I think they're kind of just hoping that they write the ship and get some stability in that franchise and see what they have and what they need to do. but it it's the three-nos right there for the taking. It's just a matter of are we going to take it? And that back-to-back scares me. It just it does. I hate I hate to say it, but it does. Shall we play some over under
Dustin N: See.
Randon: boys to end the episode?
Ryan: Absolutely.
Dustin N: Okay, let's play.
Randon: I've got a couple of over-unders I've I've been kicking around my my head. Do you guys want me to set a point total or a win total for us?
Dustin N: Point point points. Point points determine everything. Points determine the standings, we go with the points.
Ryan: Either one.
Randon: Okay, point okay, point total. One one one point five over under one one point five on the season.
Ryan: Over because we're gonna need it to
Dustin N: Over.
Ryan: even make the goddamn playoffs.
Dustin N: Over. You you you promised me an extra six wins with Seabass, which is twelve points, which puts us over that versus last year. So
Randon: Puts us at hundred four. I will also take thee over.
Dustin N: 104 plus plus however many the the moves that we made gets us. So I I will take the over. I'd I d one one four to one one five to one ten we should land it.
Randon: That would be so sweet. Man, I d there's a world where we get to one twenty. How crazy. How crazy would that be? It'd be amazing. Fight for that first in the central. Just saying, it could happen. Could happen.
Ryan: Minnesota and Dallas didn't get better and let's be honest,
Dustin N: I
Ryan: what's his name? Quinn. He's walking at the end of the year or whatever his contract's up.
Randon: Mm-hmm. Colorado didn't get better
Dustin N: Does what
Randon: either.
Dustin N: W 120
Ryan: Nope, just older.
Dustin N: I I was gonna say does that does that that has us in the in the run for for the for the president's trophy? Maybe
Ryan: We don't want the president's trophy, but we do want first in the central. We'll let Edmonton or you know, somebody else take take this.
Randon: one twenty was probably too too high, but I I think our ceiling maybe one ten.
Dustin N: Exactly, Colorado finished last season with one twenty one.
Randon: One twenty one. Maybe one ten is our ceiling. Maybe one ten, which would still put us what, fourth in the division? Third, maybe? Yeah, it would put us over Minnesota. Yeah.
Dustin N: Wa one ten would have been would have been third last year. Two po two points behind Dallas.
Ryan: Man, being part of a good division sucks. This is rough.
Randon: It really does. Cause second sec the second or third seed really feels like a punishment. If you
Ryan: Ta
Randon: get the second or third I wanna do it because I want to like establish the team as a contender, so I wanna get second or third in the in the central. But man it it is much more punishing than getting first in the in the wild card.
Ryan: Yeah, but I was gonna say put us in the Pacific and we're what? Easily the number one team? Easily
Randon: I think so. I think so. With an aging Vegas roster, but we'll see.
Dustin N: In in in the Pacific, one ten would have had us fifteen points clear of Vegas.
Randon: Yeah, so it's gonna be I mean y yeah you know you get that a couple extra games, but we'll see. Alright, all right. So this could be any player, any player on the roster, any player at all, over or under eighty-nine and a half points.
Ryan: Over. Cooley Cooley's gonna pop
Dustin N: Over. Over.
Ryan: off for thirty goals and sixty assists. I don't know why, but Cooley's just gonna have an insane year. I can feel it in my plums.
Randon: Dusta, do you think it's also cooley? Keller.
Dustin N: Kell Keller's Keller's going over. Yeah.
Randon: Keller's going for ninety.
Dustin N: Keller's going for closer to a hundred.
Randon: Okay. I didn't I was thinking about it, but I just don't I don't know if we're gonna I still think we'd spread the wealth out too much to have a hundred a hundred points this season, but
Dustin N: I w I would take the under if it was 100, but but he'll go over 90. He'll land somewhere between
Randon: Okay. So we've got
Dustin N: 90 and 100.
Randon: We've got Cooley and we've got Keller. I'm gonna take the under. I think Keller's gonna finish right around what he was. I think he's gonna have mid eighties in points, and I think he's gonna be the the the points leader. I think Cooley, I would like Cooley to get there, but I still I still don't trust him to stay healthy enough. I think he's gonna finish somewhere in the upper 60s, low 70s, as well as Dylan Gunther right there in the the mid-sixties. I'm I'm really hopeful that Schmaltz continues and gets a sixties or sixties. or more points that would be ideal, but we'll see where where he lands as that first line center. And then it's interesting to see where Trochek and Lee land. If I mean are they I'm I'm hoping Trochek's a 50 point plus guy. I'm hoping that Lee is a 40 plus point guy. But I think maybe that's kind of where we see both of them, depending on what line Trochek plays on, will will modify my projection for him. But I think if we get 50 out of lead, like that's that's pretty fantastic for us. if if he can maintain that that 50 points. And then it's the bottom six, is like I hope we have multiple players over thirty points. I they don't need to be up much over thirty points, but I want multiple guys over thirty points. I don't want these high team numbers, and I don't want Every single person on the team to be between 20 and 35 points because they spread it out too much. Like I want everybody to be over 20 and many, many of the bottom six to be over 30. But that's my projection for that. Carell Vamelka, we know that he's not gonna get as many games, so this is a two-parter. This is a two-parter. Games started. Games started over under 54.5.
Ryan: Hopefully under
Randon: That would put Kosa at almost thirty starts.
Dustin N: O over. Just a touch, but over.
Ryan: I'm good with that. I'm good with a fifty thirty split.
Randon: So Dustin, you're taking the over at over fifty four and a half?
Dustin N: Over fifty four now, just a just a scoche. Just a just a small little bit, but over.
Randon: And Ryan, you're taking the under? Okay.
Ryan: Yep, take me under.
Randon: It was a sneaky line, cause I think he gets exactly 55 starts. I think he gets exactly 55 starts. Which means his win total, he was at 38 wins with 63 starts. So I'm gonna set his win total at 32 and one half point. 32 point five wins for Corelva Melka.
Ryan: Over.
Dustin N: Over.
Randon: I wanna say over but I wanna take the under. I think you get thirty two wins. Thirty two wins in fifty five games is what I'm taking. We've got over, over and an under. Check this out. Over under fighting majors for the entire team. Fighting majors for the entire team. So Jay we had twenty total fights last season. We had nine in the preseason, which is to be expected. So twenty twenty fights last season. So okay. Total fighting majors for the team this year. We had twenty last year. We're gonna set the line at nineteen and a half.
Ryan: Over because Lee is guaranteed to add at least three or four more fights for us this year defending the kids. You know what I mean? Like he he loves being in somebody's kitchen. I hope he fights Brady Kachuk again right off the I hope he goes to tourney and is like when we play Florida, I need you to put me out. I need to beat the shit out of Brady Kachuk for a third time. Like I need this. The
Dustin N: Ha ha ha.
Ryan: fans need this. Like I'm going over. I don't want us to be, you know, Tampa Bay leading the league in fighting majors, but I want us to defend ourselves more. And I refuse. I just somebody sit down, Lawson Krause and Jack McBain and tell them both, Hey, go for fifteen and fifteen goals and assists, but I want at least six fights out of both of you. Just go out. Come on, man. You guys are too big to not just fucking dog walk people.
Randon: Dustin over under taking
Dustin N: Over. Over.
Randon: the over.
Dustin N: I buy Ryan sold me.
Randon: Lee is gonna he is gonna be a fighter. He is gonna be a fighter. I will take the under
Ryan: No he's he's not gonna get like a bunch of fights, but every one of his fights are gonna be worth it. He's gonna be defending a teammate and that's what this team needs sorely.
Randon: I will take the under I will take the under and I will say we get sixteen fighting majors next season. I think may I I think O'Brien's not gonna play enough.
Dustin N: I I have an overunder for the two of you.
Randon: Okay.
Dustin N: Biggest weakness of the team last year, power play percentage over or under twenty three and a half.
Ryan: Thunder. There's
Randon: Under.
Ryan: not a chance we break twenty percent. I don't believe we are even I don't know why.
Dustin N: We were at twenty percent last year.
Ryan: Something tells me it's gonna get worse.
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Ryan: I don't know why, but our power play is Garbaggio. What was it one for nine
Randon: We're gonna be
Ryan: in the preseason?
Randon: Just in that one game. Just in that one game.
Dustin N: Th in that one game we were one for nine.
Ryan: in one game, one one for nine is that's ridiculous. You can't, that is that is sad beyond sad. And stop sp just one of them decide to be the shooter. I don't care which one of them it is, just tell one of them to pick it every time he gets the puck, shoot the fucking thing. Don't pass it ever. Looking at you, Gunther, you probably are the best option.
Dustin N: Yeah, we we need to develop some other play other than trying to get Gunther or that one timer from from the above the dot, like the It's the only thing they like they set up their entire power play just for that,
Ryan: Nothing else works. It's the only thing that it's worked for Ovechkin for twenty years it worked for Ovechkin for twenty years.
Dustin N: over and over and over.
Randon: And it didn't Blaine Forsyth come from Washington's power play where that was pretty much their entire setup, so like it makes it sense why.
Ryan: Yeah. Yeah. Yep. That was the game plan. That was the game plan is how do we get over the fucking party?
Randon: Okay, watch this though, watch this prediction. It just we're gonna record this. I'm it I'm gonna take such a victory lap. Twenty one point seven is the exact power play percentage we are going to finish this season as. Our regular season power play percentage is going to be twenty one point seven. It's gonna be good for the twenty first best power play in the league.
Dustin N: Twenty first.
Ryan: That's such a bad power play. Like
Dustin N: Tw for for for twenty one point seven? Twenty one point
Randon: What would it
Dustin N: seven last year would have been fifteenth in the league.
Randon: Okay, so I'm I'm expecting the whole league to be better.
Dustin N: That's why I took twenty three and a half because that would've put us in the top ten.
Randon: No, twenty one point seven. Even if I'm off on
Dustin N: So you're
Randon: our overall ranking, we are gonna be at exactly twenty one point seven. Mark my words.
Dustin N: Twenty one point seven percent. I'm I'm tweeting this right now. Utah
Randon: Yeah, twenty one point seven percent.
Dustin N: Finish the season with a twenty one point seven percent
Randon: Power play.
Dustin N: Power play.
Randon: I don't know if I'm happy with it. I don't know if I'm happy
Dustin N: This is a
Randon: with it. I would like us to be twenty three percent. But I think twenty one percent twenty one point seven.
Dustin N: Brandon guaranteed.
Randon: Twenty one point seven percent, exactly. that's gonna be such a good victory lap.
Dustin N: Twenty one point seven percent guaranteed. Alright, I put your name to it already.
Randon: Okay, over over under eighty seven and a half penalty kill.
Dustin N: Ooh.
Ryan: Does Trochet kill penalties? I don't remember.
Randon: He does. And he's very good at it.
Ryan: I will go up then. I
Dustin N: Eighty seven.
Ryan: think well I think eighty seven's good. That's a good penalty kill. What did we have last year?
Dustin N: Eight eighty seven would have been number one in the NHL by two and a half percentage points. Call Colorado
Randon: my god. my god.
Dustin N: had the best PK percentage in the league at a at eighty four point six.
Randon: Holy sh wow. I would have expected it to be much higher. Okay,
Dustin N: So I'll take the under if you're setting it at eighty seven, I'll take the under.
Ryan: Yeah. What did we have last year?
Randon: I misspoke. I misspoke. Over under 80
Dustin N: We were at seventy eight point one last year.
Randon: 82 and a half. Eighty two and a half. Over under penalty kill.
Dustin N: I'm still tak I'm still taking the under.
Ryan: I wanna take the over 'cause like that's not a that's not a high bar. Like that shouldn't be a high eighty two percent should not be a high bar as a penalty kill.
Dustin N: That would be top top three in the league last year.
Ryan: Yeah, fuck it. We got it.
Randon: Jeez, that's so wild.
Ryan: I believe in us. Why not?
Dustin N: There there were three
Randon: That is so
Dustin N: teams above eighty two percent. Buffalo was at number four with eighty one point nine.
Randon: I bet I meant net penalty kill by the way, net PK percentage. F of course. Everyone knows that I meant that. I meant net PK percentage. Of course. Of course I meant that. Not who who looks at your baseline PK percentage? no. But that makes my prediction seem much less optimistic if we do net PK percentage. Guys, Dustin, I know you've got to get out on the road. And the Utah Mammoth gotta get into fighting form. The NHL starts at the airing of this episode tonight. The NHL is back. I'm excited to see what the guys bring out. I'm excited to see what the lines are going to be. I'm excited to see what the new guys bring to the table. I'm excited to see our veterans get into their old form. And I'm excited for Cooley and Gunther to really take that next step, transcend into elite players where they will stay comfortably for the next eight to ten years of their career. Guys, any closing thoughts before we get out of here?
Dustin N: Go Mammoth, that's all.
Ryan: Go man if
Randon: Tusk's up, baby. Everyone, get excited. We're right around the corner from hockey. I'm excited. Dust is excited. Ryan's excited. And you should be excited too. Everybody, thanks so much for listening to the Two Line Pass podcast. And everybody, have a great night.
Dustin N: Very very good. I'm ready. I w I I've been ready. I'm ready. I'm so ready. I'm ready. Did I say I'm ready?
Randon: Don't sound too excited, Dustin. Don't sound too excited. No. Just just a a little less enthusiasm in your voice. I would appreciate it. Ryan!
Dustin N: I'm trying to hold it back. Contain it. Trying to contain it. Sorry. I'll I'll I'll do better.
Randon: How you doin'?
Ryan: It's fantastic. Happy hockey Eve, everybody. The NHL comes back tomorrow. We don't play tomorrow, but still the NHL is back tomorrow.
Randon: Thursday, October 1st is opening night for your Utah Mammoth. A repeat of openers in the past. The Chicago Blackhawks come to town. We open at the Delta Center. The new Look Delta Center as well. And the big storyline, guys, is the team roster is set and in action. So what we're gonna do, we're gonna put it up. If you, my friends, are watching this on YouTube, you get the you get the goods. But if you're just watching audio only, we'll try to break it down. no big surprises here. the big question I think everyone was wondering, is Daniel Boot going to make the team? As if we forgot that he played almost 30 games with us last season. It's not like he's a true rookie. Dmitry Simishhev, I don't think anybody doubted that he would make it. But those are the two the two big additions. Everybody else returns from last season. Dustin Ryan, any big surprises about the the roster? Anyone you thought would make it? I guess Brandon Tanov? didn't, but is that the only shocker?
Dustin N: I was gonna say Brandon Tanev, I'd I'd probably rather have Tanev instead of O'Brien, but I mean it d does it really matter at this point which one of those two players is sitting up in the b i i in the box and and getting scratched every game, so
Randon: mean preseason goal score leader, Liam O'Brien? Is that who you mean? The going for fifty
Dustin N: Ha ha ha.
Randon: in the regular season, Liam O'Brien? Tuna, two
Dustin N: Yes.
Randon: goals?
Dustin N: The the the puck just finding its way in front of him, in front of an empty net, and he still still barely gets a stick on it and just kinda like S slides it in into net, so yeah.
Ryan: I don't understand what Brandon Tanev did to Andre Tierney, but I don't get why. Like, just trade the guy. If we're not g if he's just going to the AHL, you can't tell me nobody wants him for future considerations. Come on. Like go go send him to Calgary where at least he'll play. Like, I don't know. I like Tanev
Randon: Well nobody
Ryan: more than I like O'Brien, that's for damn sure. But Tanev never really gets a chance. Which is crazy.
Randon: Nobody claimed him on waivers. He was out there. Anybody could have got him for free.
Ryan: Wild.
Randon: And That two point five million against the cap, I think, is is what's keeping him in Utah. I think he's a good player for maybe a million,
Ryan: Not even that much.
Randon: but two point five, which for some teams is might as well be a hundred million. For other teams, like I look at us, you know, last year where we just had more cap space than we knew what to do with, and we can afford to give a guy like Brandon Tannef two point five million. But can a contender who's strapped for cash afford to give Brandon Tanneff two point five million? And does he make a contender better? I don't know. He didn't obviously do enough to make us better, but I did like the energy he brought. I will tell you this though. Let me get your thoughts on this because this is my big question mark. obviously Daniel Boot was most productive when he was up on line one and playing significant power play two minutes. His goal, in fact, came on a deflection on the power play. I don't know if I like Daniel Boot on the fourth line, if that's where he ends up, which was his practice line. Do you guys think that there is any chance that Daniel Boot makes it in the top six to open the season?
Ryan: Yeah, probably. It's it's Utah. Of course there's a chance, yeah.
Dustin N: I I there's a chance, but who are you taking out of the top six in order to make room for Daniel Boot in the top six? Like
Ryan: Barrett Hayden.
Dustin N: Barrett Hayden's not gonna be a top six center. He's he's gonna be a third line center,
Randon: Mm-mm.
Dustin N: I would assume.
Randon: Yeah, not a I I don't think he's Ayton's there, so you gotta do
Ryan: You think they're gonna put you think they're gonna put Trochek over Hayden?
Randon: Yeah, yeah, I think they will. Absolutely.
Dustin N: yeah.
Randon: Yep. So you've got you've got the the practice lines were Keller, Schmaltz, and Trochek on line one, with Trochek playing the wing, and then you had Lee Cooley
Ryan: It's a terrible line one.
Randon: Gunther. That was your top six. I don't see a world unless unless you really do move Trochek down to the third line. But I just don't know that Daniel Boot is a top line forward in the NHL. Dude has thirty games
Ryan: He's not, no. Not yet.
Randon: under his belt.
Ryan: How many goals did he score last year? None? Three? No.
Randon: Three. He had
Dustin N: It's yeah, I was gonna say it was like three, four, five somewhere around there. Yeah.
Randon: seven points, three goals, four assists. Yep. If he played if he played the full eighty two, he would have gotten about eighteen eighteen points if he stayed on the same trajectory. And that was with significant line two minutes. So that's my concern.
Ryan: Yeah, what's he gonna do with with Stenlin and and tuna? Like what is that line supposed to do? Stenlin bootin' tuna?
Randon: Exactly.
Ryan: That's a waste of a line.
Randon: And you could toss in a Yamamoto there, maybe. Maybe you got Yamamoto boots Stenland. And maybe does that make that fourth line better? 'Cause then it's not just a pure
Ryan: No.
Randon: checking line.
Ryan: No, 'cause I don't think Kevin Stenlin can keep up with the two young kids. I'm not saying Boot is very fast, but like I don't know. I don't like Boot as a bottom six, but I don't think he fits our top six either. Cause the third line is set then with Krause, McBain and Hayden.
Randon: Pretty much, yeah.
Dustin N: Yeah, I think I think so, yeah.
Ryan: So he's either gonna be on the second line or the fourth line.
Randon: And I don't think you move Lee down.
Dustin N: Wha what I was gonna say you're not moving Lee down to
Ryan: You can't
Dustin N: f the fourth line.
Ryan: No, he's gotta be there to protect the kids. That's his whole job is to keep up with the kids and keep them safe, and then just cap in all their rebounds.
Randon: And I think this was my concern when we brought in Vinny Trochek. Like, on the surface, it seemed good because it seemed like, okay, he's going to, you know, make it so Nick Schmaltz doesn't need to play center. But I did not like Vinny Trochek as a first line center. I think his first line center days are behind him. That's me looking at it probably a glass half-empty type. outlook, but I don't believe that Trochek is a first line
Dustin N: Not you.
Randon: center. I know. I know. Me be negative? Can you believe that? I I don't think that I I'd like to think that I'm the most positive fan in this whole circle of fandom. I mean I'd never said a single negative thing about anybody in my entire life that's a player that is a player that I like.
Ryan: I can vouch for that. I've I have known Randon
Dustin N: True.
Ryan: my whole life. He has always been a stand-up standout guy and never once been been mean for the sake of being mean.
Randon: Did you guys note too that on this roster list they actually ranked it in order of best player? So of course you've got Nick Schmaltz listed number one because it's in order of of best player. And then when you get to
Dustin N: It's true. Yep.
Randon: the defenseman, it's it's likewise, because you got John Marino up there. And then Sebastian Cosa, obviously we all know he's gonna be the best goalie on the team. So really, really outstanding job by the roster graphic people. not putting it in jersey number order, but putting it in skill order. I I really appreciate them.
Ryan: So so
Dustin N: Yes.
Ryan: back to the back to the lines.
Dustin N: So what you're saying is that Logan Cooley is our worst forward.
Ryan: Statistically speaking, yes, that is what Randon is saying.
Randon: He is the worst he is the worst player on the team named Logan, I'll tell you that much.
Dustin N: that is true.
Randon: Yep. Undeniable fact
Ryan: But
Randon: on that one.
Ryan: so back to the line thing, with Trochek coming in, I like it a lot more if we don't accept the offer sheet New Jersey gave Barrett Hayden. If you let Barrett Hayden go, everything
Dustin N: Yes. Yep.
Randon: Yeah.
Ryan: makes way more sense with Trochek, but keeping Barrett Hayden was like, Okay, why? Why did you do that?
Dustin N: Yeah.
Ryan: You got Trochek, why not let Hayden go? Just i it's gonna hurt, sure, to some, let him go. Like him and Trochek are what essentially the same thing. Just one's a little bit younger and then one's a lot more talented. But they essentially
Randon: Yeah.
Ryan: do the same thing.
Randon: Yeah, except for I I mean actually Barrett Hayton's not bad at the face off circle either. Like that was one of his like saving graces is is he was a little better than everyone.
Ryan: No, and but Trocek is v but he and he's also he's younger than Trochek, but Trochek is a much more talented hockey player in the overall game. Yeah. But
Randon: yes, yes. And Trochex better at face-offs. But I'm saying if you were comparing the two, I think it's not a terrible comparison
Dustin N: right? Like it it fits everything kind of fits nicely into its pile where it goes if we don't match the offer sheet to Barrett Hayden. And everybody, every fan that I I ran into on Twitter said, like, why why would we match that? Like before they did, they said, Alright, sign our Bear Aiden. Good good to know ya. happy trails. we wish you the best in your future endeavors, right? And then they matched the offer sheet and they were like, What are we doing? Why are we doing that? Like we're gonna lose him next year for nothing. We might as well not match it and get a draft pick out of it, right? That was the whole like if if he went Utah got a draft pick back. I believe that was the the the setup. So it's like why why are we matching this? We we don't need Baron Hayden on this team. Like it's just like it it doesn't fit. And now because we did, it's like we're looking at this, like, where do we put Daniel Boot? And I d I w we don't know the answer. We don't know what's going on. Like i i it doesn't it doesn't have a clear like You want him on one of the top two lines 'cause that's where he produces, but you don't want to drop any of the guys out of the top six. Like it just it doesn't fit. And it all goes back to matching that off.
Randon: Yep. I think too is the when you when you look at the maybe the mentality of GM Bill Armstrong, I think maybe even before rookie training camp, he just kind of knew that unless it i they just had outstanding times that T Jagin and Caleb Desnoyers would not be ready this year. Or at the very least would not be starting in the NHL. Regardless of how well they did. And so if you're looking at it from that angle and you're saying, Okay, I already know they're not gonna make the team no matter what happens, do I need Barrett Hayten to then become a stopgap for them? And I bring on Barrett Hayten specifically for this one year to make it so I don't have to rely on a guy like Tiege or Caleb Desnoyers. And that may have played a a factor in it and not wanting to go out and try to get somebody who was maybe potentially worse or had less chemistry with the team. Cause then you're just maybe bringing in a bottom six guy just to fill a roster spot. And with Hayton, you know that there's upside. It's just a matter if it can unlock. And last year it absolutely did not unlock. And I worry that if Barrett Hayton reads any of the media is social media, like he is going to be the scapegoat. one hundred percent this season if he plays any amount in sixty or more games, he's gonna be the scapegoat. It's already been decided. There's no more Jersey, there's no more Ian Cole. Like Barrett Hayton is going to be the scapegoat one way or another. And so I just I I hope that he can shake that monkey off his back. And I think playing third line definitive, you are a third line center or a third line winger. This is your job. Like you're not going to fight for that second line. You're certainly not going to play in the first line. And if he internalizes that and says, okay, I've come to grips with my role in the team, and I'm going to be the best version of that. I think that the Barrett Hayden, McBain, Krause line can be really, really good. Like I think it has all the tools to be a great grinding line that has scoring upside, which is exactly what you want out of that third line. And so maybe that. is exactly what Barrett Hayden means is a definitive you are line three center. That is your role.
Dustin N: Yeah. And I I think I it helps Hayden having somebody like Lawson Krauss on the third line with him because like he he showed last year that that guy can score. When he has a when he has a center that can set the plate for him, Lawson Krauss can score. Like we might see third and fourth line scoring on this team, which seemed like it hamstrung the team so badly last year where a bottom six was just kinda Hopefully we we don't get outscored with the bottom six on the ice, right? but having having loss and Krauss on the third line with Hayden might give him the the fi offensive firepower to to be able to make something this season.
Randon: Absolutely. any thoughts on Barrett Hayton and us matching the offer sheet and where you think he he fits is good?
Ryan: I I think I think it was a stupid move to match the offer sheet once you had Trojak. Because we had Trojak before we match the offer sheet, correct? We can believe we already
Randon: I believe so.
Ryan: yeah. If if if that is the true statement, meaning Trojak is everything Barrett Hayden does, but a little bit better. Minus maybe the physicality. He's not gonna check as much as Hayden. He goes to the front of the net equally as much as Hayden does. Like and he's way better defensively. Not that Hayden was bad at defense. Barrett Hayden is a great two-way young forward. But I feel like they do the exact same thing. And you get in Trochek, which you can't he's already on a he's on a way bigger contract, if I'm not mistaken, than Barrett Hayden ever will be.
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Ryan: So he's not going to get bottom six minutes. Hayden, you could put in bottom six, but then you're kind of wasting Barrett Hayden in a bottom six. And with Daniil Boot, you just clog everything up. With Barrett Aiden and Trochek. And I I don't like matching that offer sheet if you have Trochek. Sir, I mean people will argue, it's a good problem to have. No, it's not, man. It's not a good problem to have. We want guys who we want 12 forwards who are gonna play 82 games. I don't want 15 forwards with three of them playing 30. That doesn't help anybody. You know what mean? Like, I don't know. I'm I'm not against Barrett Hayden, but like you were saying, he is gonna be the scapegoat. It's either gonna be him or Clayton Keller, even though the real fans will never turn on Clayton Keller. I'll turn on Clayton Keller. Watch. If he's bad at any way, shape,
Randon: Not
Ryan: or form, I'll turn on him. I don't care if he's the captain. You have to be. Although I do feel like
Randon: We were tough we were tough a little bit on him last season. Like we we I feel like we held him accountable. But
Ryan: did Keller get a gold medal? He was at the Olympics, right? He didn't play, but he got a gold, right? Yeah,
Randon: Yeah, course he won. He's our golden boy.
Ryan: okay. So I feel
Dustin N: Yeah.
Ryan: like he has to pop off. Like, I don't know. I just nothing against Barrett Hayden, but trade him. What I mean, you might as well go get something cool for him. You know what I mean? Shit, throw him throw him in the hellibuck
Randon: Let's see what we can see what we can do.
Ryan: tree. Barrett Hayden, Corell Vamilka, pick a fucking kid in the bottom and a first round draft pick and give us hella buck.
Randon: I'd take it. I'd take it in a heartbeat.
Ryan: Come on, Winnipeg.
Dustin N: I'd take that.
Randon: Here's another question. Big question mark on the on the roster. Kyler Yamamoto, there was questioning about whether he would re-sign, he gets a two-year deal with Utah. And now I worry, like, I guess let me ask you this. Are we okay with Kyler Yamamoto just playing thirty games and being a great player when he comes in and press box guy otherwise?
Ryan: I hate it, but yeah. Like I wish he could play.
Dustin N: I I was just Yeah, I was just about to ask, like o obviously out of the out of the four words that have made the opening night roster, like Liam O'Brien is gonna be a healthy scratch. Who's the other scratch? And if it's not Boot, it's probably Yamamoto, right?
Ryan: Hundred percent.
Randon: Yep. I I think I don't think you I don't think you put Boot on the team to not play. I think
Dustin N: Right.
Randon: I'm hoping he's at least able to be benched and sit in the press box a couple times, but you probably don't want to bench him for more than half the season. Like otherwise you could just send him to the AHL. So I that's yeah, I see O'Brien and Yamamoto as the two most likely guys to maybe play twenty five to thirty thirty games And be the odd man out in this whole sequence of events. Maybe if Barrett Hayden just sucks it up, maybe you can move somebody, but I worry that they're gonna put Daniel Boot over Yamamoto. And other than size, like I think Yamamoto is the much better NHL player right now. But you can't teach size. And Daniel Boot is a much bigger player, even if he doesn't play like it.
Ryan: Yeah, but you can't teach heart. And Yamamoto might have the biggest heart on this goddamn team. Like, there has never been
Dustin N: Yep.
Ryan: a game that Kyle Yamamoto has played where people know, well, he wasn't trying and I he was just being lazy and not doing it. It's like, no, he might not be on the score sheet, but he's in every fucking play, causing turnovers, being an
Dustin N: yeah.
Ryan: absolute little wolverine out there. I like what is I mean, Michael Carconey to me, I feel like him and Yamamoto should be battling for that position. 'Cause like Tuna, I he's got a roll. I hate it, but he's got a roll 'cause he's not good at it. But like we know when tuna's out there what he's doing. Yamamoto and Carconey should be e they're both smaller guys, they're both trying to score goals, and they're both decently good defensively. So I'm not gonna count out kind or Yamamoto and Carconey being the two that are swapped in and out necessarily over O'Brien and him. But I also think I would rather have Carconi and Yamamoto toget not on a line together, but both in the lineup over tuna. Because at least the two of them they're the odds are better between the two of them popping off than tuna having two goals. And I know preseason, but like let's be honest, if tuna gets five goals, I think we might build him a statue. Like But I would rather have Yamaboto
Randon: Yeah, five goals is
Ryan: than pretty much all of the other three guys we're talking about. I threw Michael Carcone in there. I know people aren't gonna like that. I don't care.
Dustin N: I mean I l I love Yam,
Randon: I forget about Carconey.
Dustin N: so I I wouldn't mind seeing Carconey and Liam O'Brien as the scratches and and l and Yamamoto playing.
Ryan: I was gonna say I figured you guys kinda just forgot about Carconey. He kinda just blends in there in between boot and Yamamoto anyways. Like you don't really even see him when you're reading it.
Dustin N: Carconey just feels like like he's just a guy that Bear likes. Right? That like Tyranny
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Dustin N: just likes him. So w when I'm thinking
Ryan: Like Carconi.
Dustin N: about who he's gonna scratch, I don't think that it's gonna be Carconey 'cause I I think he's just one of Tyranny's guys.
Ryan: Which is weird 'cause like if
Randon: Well.
Ryan: that's one of your guys, how is Yamamoto not one of your guys? They're the same fucking thing, but Yamamoto's a little bit younger? Not by much. They're pretty much the same.
Dustin N: Well let's see, Yamamoto Yamamoto is twenty
Randon: I think they're high twenties, low thirties.
Dustin N: seven and Karconi is thirty, so he's three years younger.
Ryan: Yeah, okay. Yeah, they're the same guy. Like if you gave Yamamoto
Dustin N: And and Yamamoto gave you twenty twenty three points in fifty nine games. Carcone gave you thirty one, so eight more g eight more points in twenty more games.
Randon: Yeah, so
Ryan: I feel like if you give Yamamoto those twenty more games, he's gonna get eight points. What do you like? What are we talking about? Like if you just give him Carconi's minutes, Yamamoto's gonna do the same thing. You can't tell me him
Randon: Yamamoto also had
Ryan: what
Randon: he had five playoff points, didn't he? He I don't know if he led the
Ryan: What a ridiculous amount.
Randon: team, but did he lead did he lead the team in playoff points? I I wanna say he did. I was trying to check it,
Dustin N: Yeah, Yamamoto. The we had we we had a bunch of players. We had Mackenzie Wiegar, Dylan Gunther, Lawson Krauss, Kyler Yamamoto, Sergachev and Keller all tied with five points in the playoffs.
Randon: Okay. Okay.
Ryan: That's pretty good for to have them again. But on a side note.
Dustin N: And Carcani Carcone gave you two.
Ryan: But on a side note, you can't tell me that Carconi has such good like chemistry with Krause and McBain when they're all playing together on the third line that he's more important than a Yamamoto could be. Yamamoto does the same shit. Like I say give Yamamoto every minute of Carconi and just trade Carconi. Or you know what I mean, scratch him. Either one. But I personally like Yamamoto. Over all the other Who are potential scratches?
Randon: Yeah. Well that's a big question, is what does Turney do? He's got I mean, options upon options upon options upon options for the lines. Like he he really can put those things in a blender and we are gonna roll out so many.
Dustin N: You say maybe may maybe the idea that he has so many different combinations and different options that that he can use i is a bad thing for tyranny. Because he we we know how much he just loves to to fudge around with the lines like, we're gonna switch this one up, we're gonna switch that one up. Like I it wouldn't surprise me if when the f within the first two weeks of the season, two to three weeks of the season, y y you see like Trochek on three different lines. You it just bounce him all around well, we're gonna start him in the top and then we're gonna start him in the top six and then let's see what he does on line three with these guys and like big bodies, like and just make it our our our g our big bodied enforcer goon line like number three, whatever just like i he's just gonna mess with it all season long and that's just like that's just my warning to anybody listening, like just be ready for him to continue doing that. This these lines are gonna bounce around and around and around and around. It's just it it's just best to prepare yourself for it right now.
Randon: Best thing that could happen to us is we go on a little streak to start the season. And he's just like, he's like, All right, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And that
Dustin N: Yes.
Randon: like there's the consistency there. But if we lose one of three, two of three of the th first three, like, yeah, we may not see the same line game to game for ten games. but for all the questions surrounding the forwards, before we move on to defense though, do you guys have any final thoughts on the forward group?
Ryan: Final thought is if you look at every team that has won the Stanley Cup in the last five years, none of them play musical lines. Just saying. None of them. None of them are mixing and matching. Everybody has a role and everybody knows their line. So maybe look at that.
Randon: You can you can make adjustments you can make adjustments, but you don't need to to put it in a a blender. But
Ryan: You don't flip flop everybody. If you need to adjust one line here and there, make a tweak, do it. You don't fucking mix and match everybody.
Randon: This is very true. Now, for as much question marks as there are about who the forward lines are gonna be, I don't think there's any real question marks about the defensemen. The defensemen are pretty much set at least through five, and then you have two very solid veterans that can back it up as the as the six. Because you're gonna roll out Sergachev and Uyghur as your line one. You're gonna roll out Schmidt and Marino as your second pairing, and then you're gonna play Dmitry Simashev as much as you can, and then you're gonna have Andrew Peak and Nick D. Simone. One of those. And then if you have to bench Simashev, you've got to you've got Peak and D Simone, there was I think online, on Reddit specifically, there was a lot of question marks about the defensemen. I don't have as many question marks about the defensemen. I think our defensemen are just fine. Unless we see Lazychev again, I think we're gonna be just fine. Our defensemen are just fine. I have no problems with them.
Ryan: No, I think we have a very underrated defense core. Just 'cause there's a couple of guys who aren't household names necessarily. But Nick D. Simone, every time he's in the lineup, is literally fine. Zero complaints. Like, sure, it's not doing anything crazy, but that's a good thing. I don't necessarily need my defenseman being Cale McCar. Just stay just block a shot and get the puck out, man. That's all you gotta do.
Dustin N: Yeah.
Ryan: is that it how is what says peak? Peaky? Just peak? I don't know. Just peak?
Randon: Just peek.
Dustin N: Peak, Andrew Peak.
Ryan: Andrew Pete, I thought his preseason games are phenomenal. Take your dudes heads off in both games. We need that. We need a smaller, not necessarily j you know, like a big Sergiochev sized defenseman who's out there just patrolling the blue line as a six man out there. You gotta watch your head when he's out. I like that. And then like Nick's or Schmidt and Merino, we already know that's our that's our T or that's our defensive line for this family or this this podcast. Those are our guys. I love think he can do anything wrong. He's gonna have a bad plus minus, but that's because that's just what happens when you play with Sergachev. You're gonna have a bad plus minus. but Sergachev is really the big question. Like is he gonna be the ten million dollar defenseman we're paying or whatever the fuck his contract is? 'Cause he wasn't last year.
Randon: No, I d I don't I don't know which version of Sergachev we're gonna get. I don't know if we're gonna get inaugural season Sergachev or if we're gonna get season two Sergachev. And I'm hoping that with a consistent I know who my partner is gonna be and it's not going to be a rookie, I think that's going to help Mikhail Sergachev. I think that he's going to play very well on the power play as he does, which I mean, our power play sucks, but I think Mikhail Sergachev will get a fair few points on that power play line. And you've got McKenzie Uyghur, who's perfectly fine playing power play two, and they're gonna be a fine number one pairing. I think they're going to be absolutely fine. Especially if Mikhail Sergachev can play like he should play, and McKenzie Uygh comes back to form. He was great in Calgary, a little less productive than we would have liked when he came to Utah, but I wouldn't say he was bad, and now just having the full season with Utah under Utah system, I think it's gonna do marvels for Mackenzie Weager. So I'm not I'm not too concerned about the defenseman at all. I think I think we're gonna be fine.
Dustin N: Yeah, we we got rid of the one defenseman who constantly just made me pull my hair out. And and like you said, Nick D. Simone N N D Simone is
Ryan: Rest in peace, he and Cole. He's not dead, but he's got
Dustin N: No, my god, I've already for 50.
Randon: Ian Cole.
Dustin N: No
Randon: Sean Dersey.
Ryan: Jersey.
Dustin N: There's he, there we go. I I've already
Randon: Yeah.
Dustin N: moved on. Like his number fifty got taken up by by Daniel Boone. I'm like, I don't even remember his name. I just boop boop he's gone. But but yeah, like you said, Nick Nick Di Simone, I just want to mention him, and you've already talked about it, but he's he's the perfect, like, seventh defenseman. Like if you need him, he's gonna come in and he's just gonna do his job. He knows what he he he knows what's expected of him and he just he plays good, solid hockey and and you know that you have a guy like that that that you can call on as your seventh defenseman.
Randon: Yep. Gonna be great. And in the preseason, Sebastian Cosa, old Sea Bass, played pretty darn well. Few soft goals, but good. I'm feeling good about him as the backup. Corell Vamilka played, got a shutout. Can you believe that? A shutout for old
Dustin N: Mm-hmm.
Randon: Veggie in the preseason against a lackluster, Colorado roster. and then looked shaky at times against LA. But I think what we saw is that Sebastian Kosa is probably going to be better and more trusted than Vitek Banachek was. And so I think you're gonna see a lot less load on Corell Vemelka. You guys feeling good about the goaltending tandem?
Dustin N: The the only thing that scares me about that is that that Seabass I believe he'll look good. So I don't wanna wind up in a situation like we were a couple of seasons ago where it was just like one start for for Familko, one start for Ingram, one start for Familka, one start for Ingram. Where he just where where Bear couldn't settle on a guy. a a little bit sleepy a and and C Bass just plays really, really well. That that Tyranny looks at it as like a one A, one B type thing and doesn't have like a a set four to one through like three to one rotation with
Ryan: I feel like
Randon: It's been so long.
Ryan: I feel like considering V Melka was burnt out by last year, I feel like Kosa is gonna get a fairly good amount of start. Maybe not the fifty fifty split that Ingram and Vamilka had, but he'll get a decent amount of games. Hopefully he can steal the job. You know what I mean? I let's see let's see what you got, kid. Show us be a Brandon Bussey out of nowhere. Be a Dustin Wolf in Chicago or in Calgary. But Pl see, I don't hate Veggie as our starting goalie. Like Veggie's fine. I don't necessarily there's an upgrade to be made, but what can you do?
Randon: Mm-hmm. Until we get old Connor Hallibuck, there's the picture right now. Until we get old Hallibuck in the in the stable. I think I think it the problem is I think goaltending will be the big question mark on the season. The the thing that holds this team back other than consistent lines shifting around, I think it's gonna be goaltending play. And I'm just hoping, like you said, Dustin, I it it almost I forgot about it. We did an entire episode on this in season one about when we thought that Veggie had truly taken the goal away from Connor Ingram. And I had almost forgot about the the flip flopping before Ingram goes on to the player assistance program and kind of and veggie's like, okay, well you're the guy because you have to be the guy now. and so I I worry there is a little bit of that, but I also like there is a world where Sebastian Cosa Takes the starting job. Like I can see a world where that happens. And I don't know if that's necessarily a good thing for the for the team because that means we've we've gone through a bad a bad stretch. Or it could be because Ingram, it wasn't that Ingram played so poorly that Veggie was, you know, but Veggie just played out of his mind and in that first year. And so I'm hoping it's a similar situation where Reggie's not necessarily bad, he's consistent enough to get some wins. But he's never outstanding and that's where Kosa comes in and says, Okay, I am outstanding and really makes a run at it. But we'll see. I think they they both kind of had the same tendency of letting in some soft goals, just in different ways. Veggie finds himself out of position because of his own acrobatics and he's fifteen feet away from the crease. And maybe Kosa's just positionally, you know, has some question marks. He's a great big size, but can leave some gaps in there. And so it'll be interesting to see how that plays out. But I do feel better after watching Kosa in the preseason because I had a lot of questions about him. I was not sold on him. And he still has a lot to prove. He still has a lot to prove, but I It's an upgrade from from V Tech and I loved V Tech. I thought he was great. Didn't get the run support. But if Kosa gets the run support, yeah. Easy easy extra six wins a season having Cosa.
Ryan: Well we're gonna need the extra wins because the bottom like at least San Jose got better, so now they're coming. And Dallas and Minnesota got worse. So we can definitely take their spot. But without goaltending, yeah, we're kinda it'll be interesting to see how this plays out in the first week. Plus at least we get to see Cosa in the first three games. He's at least getting one of the back to backs, right? Like he has to. So we'll see
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Ryan: what happens at least early with him. Hell Manhill pitchers shut out you know, Veggie letting in two or three in the first few games. And then well, bam, fuck it, go with the kid. And s speak with the kid.
Randon: Well, we'll take a look at it's you brought it up that we are on a back to back. Let's take a look at those first three games going into this season. Obviously October first at home against Chicago, a familiar foe for home openers. this one's gonna be on ESPN broadcast nationally, and then they go on the road for a quick early back to back on the road, and not one of those nice, simple, easy, you know, you play New Jersey and one of the New York teams. They go to Columbus and then Gotta go to to New York the day after. So pretty heavy travel day in this weekend I would like to see us take all three. I think two and one is going to be just fine. I think you absolutely have to establish yourself against a Chicago team. Should Columbus is, they just got Matty Nyes from Toronto. They lost Marchenko. so we'll see what their chemistry looks like. And then you've got some new look Rangers going to Madison Square Garden, which Utah has played well in Madison Square Garden, to reunite the team against Sean Dersey. Guys. You thinking two and one, three and What are your predictions on the the first three games?
Ryan: Three and out. What are you talking about? We're playing three teams that are
Dustin N: Should be three and up.
Ryan: not playoff teams who are going three and we should at least go three and
Dustin N: Chicago that it if if I remember right, Chicago last year they they they weren't even close to a playoff team. And I feel like we went one and three against them, somet like they just they just had our number
Ryan: Yeah, we did not play it any good.
Dustin N: for one reason or another. Just you you have to find a way to beat them. We we got better, like obviously they have talent, but you should win those games. And Columbus and New York were I I believe Columbus finished with the same amount of points on the season as us. Columbus just kinda seems like like our immediate twin. but they don't make the playoffs because we we played in a an advantageous conference for that. But you should you we we should start the season three and four and like looking ahead to New Jersey. I know we're gonna be back in the studio before we play that game again, but we should start the season four and before it gets a little bit tougher. But who who who who knows?
Randon: I think last year
Dustin N: I would take I would take two and one of these first three. but I would li I'd r I'd really like to see three no.
Randon: we did struggle historically on back to backs, especially the second game of back to backs. That's my only concern. Is last year we were just not great in back to backs. We were one and one in almost all of our back to backs and most of the losses coming in in that second game. So I am concerned even though the quality of competition might not be the highest, I guess that's what you want, but
Dustin N: Just fact checking ourselves, we did not win a single game against the Blackhawks last year. We w we we lost
Randon: No we did c d wait,
Dustin N: two we got two overtime losses. So we we did wind up getting some points against them, but we lost three to one, four to zero, three to two in overtime, three to two in overtime.
Randon: We played Calgary to open last season. We played Calgary in the home opener. No,
Dustin N: Calgary, we played Colorado to open the season.
Randon: in the home opener is Calgary, wasn't it? I got a f I got yeah, Calgary. Yeah, the home opener. We got Calgary.
Dustin N: the home opener, yes, yes. Sorry. Calgary was the home opener.
Randon: I th I f I was confusing the inaugural season.
Dustin N: We open the season at Colorado.
Randon: I was confusing the inaugural season when we played Chicago in the home opener. So Chicago, I don't think got significantly better in the off season necessarily. I guess significantly better is the question mark. They got better than they were. Did they get better than us? Likely not. I think we had one of the best off-seasons of any team in terms of getting what you need to start competing. So, like we should. We should absolutely beat them. and I like your comparison to us in Columbus, because I think the most passionate I got against a a team in a fan base was a Against Columbus. And I don't know why. It was irrational for me to get upset at Columbus. We're not it's not like it's a rivalry or anything. I just I liked bantering with the Columbus fans online. I liked giving them shit and and it was just it's fun. And then I think we we match up well or have historically matched up well against a Rangers team that is still trying to find an identity. I think the Rangers are still trying to figure out where they go next. And again, I don't know that the New York Rangers got significantly better in This in this offseason. I think they're kind of just hoping that they write the ship and get some stability in that franchise and see what they have and what they need to do. but it it's the three-nos right there for the taking. It's just a matter of are we going to take it? And that back-to-back scares me. It just it does. I hate I hate to say it, but it does. Shall we play some over under
Dustin N: See.
Randon: boys to end the episode?
Ryan: Absolutely.
Dustin N: Okay, let's play.
Randon: I've got a couple of over-unders I've I've been kicking around my my head. Do you guys want me to set a point total or a win total for us?
Dustin N: Point point points. Point points determine everything. Points determine the standings, we go with the points.
Ryan: Either one.
Randon: Okay, point okay, point total. One one one point five over under one one point five on the season.
Ryan: Over because we're gonna need it to
Dustin N: Over.
Ryan: even make the goddamn playoffs.
Dustin N: Over. You you you promised me an extra six wins with Seabass, which is twelve points, which puts us over that versus last year. So
Randon: Puts us at hundred four. I will also take thee over.
Dustin N: 104 plus plus however many the the moves that we made gets us. So I I will take the over. I'd I d one one four to one one five to one ten we should land it.
Randon: That would be so sweet. Man, I d there's a world where we get to one twenty. How crazy. How crazy would that be? It'd be amazing. Fight for that first in the central. Just saying, it could happen. Could happen.
Ryan: Minnesota and Dallas didn't get better and let's be honest,
Dustin N: I
Ryan: what's his name? Quinn. He's walking at the end of the year or whatever his contract's up.
Randon: Mm-hmm. Colorado didn't get better
Dustin N: Does what
Randon: either.
Dustin N: W 120
Ryan: Nope, just older.
Dustin N: I I was gonna say does that does that that has us in the in the run for for the for the president's trophy? Maybe
Ryan: We don't want the president's trophy, but we do want first in the central. We'll let Edmonton or you know, somebody else take take this.
Randon: one twenty was probably too too high, but I I think our ceiling maybe one ten.
Dustin N: Exactly, Colorado finished last season with one twenty one.
Randon: One twenty one. Maybe one ten is our ceiling. Maybe one ten, which would still put us what, fourth in the division? Third, maybe? Yeah, it would put us over Minnesota. Yeah.
Dustin N: Wa one ten would have been would have been third last year. Two po two points behind Dallas.
Ryan: Man, being part of a good division sucks. This is rough.
Randon: It really does. Cause second sec the second or third seed really feels like a punishment. If you
Ryan: Ta
Randon: get the second or third I wanna do it because I want to like establish the team as a contender, so I wanna get second or third in the in the central. But man it it is much more punishing than getting first in the in the wild card.
Ryan: Yeah, but I was gonna say put us in the Pacific and we're what? Easily the number one team? Easily
Randon: I think so. I think so. With an aging Vegas roster, but we'll see.
Dustin N: In in in the Pacific, one ten would have had us fifteen points clear of Vegas.
Randon: Yeah, so it's gonna be I mean y yeah you know you get that a couple extra games, but we'll see. Alright, all right. So this could be any player, any player on the roster, any player at all, over or under eighty-nine and a half points.
Ryan: Over. Cooley Cooley's gonna pop
Dustin N: Over. Over.
Ryan: off for thirty goals and sixty assists. I don't know why, but Cooley's just gonna have an insane year. I can feel it in my plums.
Randon: Dusta, do you think it's also cooley? Keller.
Dustin N: Kell Keller's Keller's going over. Yeah.
Randon: Keller's going for ninety.
Dustin N: Keller's going for closer to a hundred.
Randon: Okay. I didn't I was thinking about it, but I just don't I don't know if we're gonna I still think we'd spread the wealth out too much to have a hundred a hundred points this season, but
Dustin N: I w I would take the under if it was 100, but but he'll go over 90. He'll land somewhere between
Randon: Okay. So we've got
Dustin N: 90 and 100.
Randon: We've got Cooley and we've got Keller. I'm gonna take the under. I think Keller's gonna finish right around what he was. I think he's gonna have mid eighties in points, and I think he's gonna be the the the points leader. I think Cooley, I would like Cooley to get there, but I still I still don't trust him to stay healthy enough. I think he's gonna finish somewhere in the upper 60s, low 70s, as well as Dylan Gunther right there in the the mid-sixties. I'm I'm really hopeful that Schmaltz continues and gets a sixties or sixties. or more points that would be ideal, but we'll see where where he lands as that first line center. And then it's interesting to see where Trochek and Lee land. If I mean are they I'm I'm hoping Trochek's a 50 point plus guy. I'm hoping that Lee is a 40 plus point guy. But I think maybe that's kind of where we see both of them, depending on what line Trochek plays on, will will modify my projection for him. But I think if we get 50 out of lead, like that's that's pretty fantastic for us. if if he can maintain that that 50 points. And then it's the bottom six, is like I hope we have multiple players over thirty points. I they don't need to be up much over thirty points, but I want multiple guys over thirty points. I don't want these high team numbers, and I don't want Every single person on the team to be between 20 and 35 points because they spread it out too much. Like I want everybody to be over 20 and many, many of the bottom six to be over 30. But that's my projection for that. Carell Vamelka, we know that he's not gonna get as many games, so this is a two-parter. This is a two-parter. Games started. Games started over under 54.5.
Ryan: Hopefully under
Randon: That would put Kosa at almost thirty starts.
Dustin N: O over. Just a touch, but over.
Ryan: I'm good with that. I'm good with a fifty thirty split.
Randon: So Dustin, you're taking the over at over fifty four and a half?
Dustin N: Over fifty four now, just a just a scoche. Just a just a small little bit, but over.
Randon: And Ryan, you're taking the under? Okay.
Ryan: Yep, take me under.
Randon: It was a sneaky line, cause I think he gets exactly 55 starts. I think he gets exactly 55 starts. Which means his win total, he was at 38 wins with 63 starts. So I'm gonna set his win total at 32 and one half point. 32 point five wins for Corelva Melka.
Ryan: Over.
Dustin N: Over.
Randon: I wanna say over but I wanna take the under. I think you get thirty two wins. Thirty two wins in fifty five games is what I'm taking. We've got over, over and an under. Check this out. Over under fighting majors for the entire team. Fighting majors for the entire team. So Jay we had twenty total fights last season. We had nine in the preseason, which is to be expected. So twenty twenty fights last season. So okay. Total fighting majors for the team this year. We had twenty last year. We're gonna set the line at nineteen and a half.
Ryan: Over because Lee is guaranteed to add at least three or four more fights for us this year defending the kids. You know what I mean? Like he he loves being in somebody's kitchen. I hope he fights Brady Kachuk again right off the I hope he goes to tourney and is like when we play Florida, I need you to put me out. I need to beat the shit out of Brady Kachuk for a third time. Like I need this. The
Dustin N: Ha ha ha.
Ryan: fans need this. Like I'm going over. I don't want us to be, you know, Tampa Bay leading the league in fighting majors, but I want us to defend ourselves more. And I refuse. I just somebody sit down, Lawson Krause and Jack McBain and tell them both, Hey, go for fifteen and fifteen goals and assists, but I want at least six fights out of both of you. Just go out. Come on, man. You guys are too big to not just fucking dog walk people.
Randon: Dustin over under taking
Dustin N: Over. Over.
Randon: the over.
Dustin N: I buy Ryan sold me.
Randon: Lee is gonna he is gonna be a fighter. He is gonna be a fighter. I will take the under
Ryan: No he's he's not gonna get like a bunch of fights, but every one of his fights are gonna be worth it. He's gonna be defending a teammate and that's what this team needs sorely.
Randon: I will take the under I will take the under and I will say we get sixteen fighting majors next season. I think may I I think O'Brien's not gonna play enough.
Dustin N: I I have an overunder for the two of you.
Randon: Okay.
Dustin N: Biggest weakness of the team last year, power play percentage over or under twenty three and a half.
Ryan: Thunder. There's
Randon: Under.
Ryan: not a chance we break twenty percent. I don't believe we are even I don't know why.
Dustin N: We were at twenty percent last year.
Ryan: Something tells me it's gonna get worse.
Randon: Mm-hmm.
Ryan: I don't know why, but our power play is Garbaggio. What was it one for nine
Randon: We're gonna be
Ryan: in the preseason?
Randon: Just in that one game. Just in that one game.
Dustin N: Th in that one game we were one for nine.
Ryan: in one game, one one for nine is that's ridiculous. You can't, that is that is sad beyond sad. And stop sp just one of them decide to be the shooter. I don't care which one of them it is, just tell one of them to pick it every time he gets the puck, shoot the fucking thing. Don't pass it ever. Looking at you, Gunther, you probably are the best option.
Dustin N: Yeah, we we need to develop some other play other than trying to get Gunther or that one timer from from the above the dot, like the It's the only thing they like they set up their entire power play just for that,
Ryan: Nothing else works. It's the only thing that it's worked for Ovechkin for twenty years it worked for Ovechkin for twenty years.
Dustin N: over and over and over.
Randon: And it didn't Blaine Forsyth come from Washington's power play where that was pretty much their entire setup, so like it makes it sense why.
Ryan: Yeah. Yeah. Yep. That was the game plan. That was the game plan is how do we get over the fucking party?
Randon: Okay, watch this though, watch this prediction. It just we're gonna record this. I'm it I'm gonna take such a victory lap. Twenty one point seven is the exact power play percentage we are going to finish this season as. Our regular season power play percentage is going to be twenty one point seven. It's gonna be good for the twenty first best power play in the league.
Dustin N: Twenty first.
Ryan: That's such a bad power play. Like
Dustin N: Tw for for for twenty one point seven? Twenty one point
Randon: What would it
Dustin N: seven last year would have been fifteenth in the league.
Randon: Okay, so I'm I'm expecting the whole league to be better.
Dustin N: That's why I took twenty three and a half because that would've put us in the top ten.
Randon: No, twenty one point seven. Even if I'm off on
Dustin N: So you're
Randon: our overall ranking, we are gonna be at exactly twenty one point seven. Mark my words.
Dustin N: Twenty one point seven percent. I'm I'm tweeting this right now. Utah
Randon: Yeah, twenty one point seven percent.
Dustin N: Finish the season with a twenty one point seven percent
Randon: Power play.
Dustin N: Power play.
Randon: I don't know if I'm happy with it. I don't know if I'm happy
Dustin N: This is a
Randon: with it. I would like us to be twenty three percent. But I think twenty one percent twenty one point seven.
Dustin N: Brandon guaranteed.
Randon: Twenty one point seven percent, exactly. that's gonna be such a good victory lap.
Dustin N: Twenty one point seven percent guaranteed. Alright, I put your name to it already.
Randon: Okay, over over under eighty seven and a half penalty kill.
Dustin N: Ooh.
Ryan: Does Trochet kill penalties? I don't remember.
Randon: He does. And he's very good at it.
Ryan: I will go up then. I
Dustin N: Eighty seven.
Ryan: think well I think eighty seven's good. That's a good penalty kill. What did we have last year?
Dustin N: Eight eighty seven would have been number one in the NHL by two and a half percentage points. Call Colorado
Randon: my god. my god.
Dustin N: had the best PK percentage in the league at a at eighty four point six.
Randon: Holy sh wow. I would have expected it to be much higher. Okay,
Dustin N: So I'll take the under if you're setting it at eighty seven, I'll take the under.
Ryan: Yeah. What did we have last year?
Randon: I misspoke. I misspoke. Over under 80
Dustin N: We were at seventy eight point one last year.
Randon: 82 and a half. Eighty two and a half. Over under penalty kill.
Dustin N: I'm still tak I'm still taking the under.
Ryan: I wanna take the over 'cause like that's not a that's not a high bar. Like that shouldn't be a high eighty two percent should not be a high bar as a penalty kill.
Dustin N: That would be top top three in the league last year.
Ryan: Yeah, fuck it. We got it.
Randon: Jeez, that's so wild.
Ryan: I believe in us. Why not?
Dustin N: There there were three
Randon: That is so
Dustin N: teams above eighty two percent. Buffalo was at number four with eighty one point nine.
Randon: I bet I meant net penalty kill by the way, net PK percentage. F of course. Everyone knows that I meant that. I meant net PK percentage. Of course. Of course I meant that. Not who who looks at your baseline PK percentage? no. But that makes my prediction seem much less optimistic if we do net PK percentage. Guys, Dustin, I know you've got to get out on the road. And the Utah Mammoth gotta get into fighting form. The NHL starts at the airing of this episode tonight. The NHL is back. I'm excited to see what the guys bring out. I'm excited to see what the lines are going to be. I'm excited to see what the new guys bring to the table. I'm excited to see our veterans get into their old form. And I'm excited for Cooley and Gunther to really take that next step, transcend into elite players where they will stay comfortably for the next eight to ten years of their career. Guys, any closing thoughts before we get out of here?
Dustin N: Go Mammoth, that's all.
Ryan: Go man if
Randon: Tusk's up, baby. Everyone, get excited. We're right around the corner from hockey. I'm excited. Dust is excited. Ryan's excited. And you should be excited too. Everybody, thanks so much for listening to the Two Line Pass podcast. And everybody, have a great night.
