Pierre McGuire previews first round of Stanley Cup Playoffs

April 19, 2024 00:33:02
Pierre McGuire previews first round of Stanley Cup Playoffs
The Parting Schotts Podcast
Pierre McGuire previews first round of Stanley Cup Playoffs

Apr 19 2024 | 00:33:02

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Show Notes

On the latest edition of “The Parting Schotts Podcast,” Daily Gazette of Schenectady (N.Y.) sports editor Ken Schott previews the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with hockey analyst Pierre McGuire. Schott then makes his first-round picks.

“The Parting Schotts Podcast” is available wherever you get your podcasts and at https://www.dailygazette.com/sports/parting_schotts/.

Contact Ken Schott by email at [email protected]. Follow him on X and Threads @slapschotts.

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Episode Transcript

[00:00:03] Speaker A: The following program is brought to you in living color on dailyGazette.com or wherever you get your podcast. The Daily Gazette Company presents the Parting Shots podcast. Now here's your host, Daily Gazette sports editor Ken shot. Thank you, Scott Kesey, and welcome to the Parting Shots podcast, available wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe today. Thanks for joining me from the parting Shots podcast studio in Schenectady, New York. It's the best time of year, and if you're a National Hockey League fan like I am, even though my Phillies had a chance to make the playoffs, didn't do it. And so. But it's a great time to watch the Stanley cup playoffs. A lot of great matchups coming up here in the first round. Everything gets underway on Saturday. The matchups in the first round in the Eastern Conference will be Florida against Tampa Bay, Boston takes on Toronto, the Rangers will face Washington and Carolina takes on the Islanders. In the west, it's Dallas against the state, defending Stanley cup champion Vegas Golden Knights, Winnipeg in Colorado, Vancouver against Nashville and Edmonton against Los Angeles. So a lot of fun series really gets underway Saturday with two games the Islanders take on Carolina. 05:00 that game will be on TBS, true tv and Max. And then that Boston will be facing Toronto. And at 08:00 on Saturday, a game also on TBS, TruTv and Max. So that'll be a lot of fun if you're listening in Canada and it's on CBC and Snortsnet, so and TVAs, so help our canadian friends there as well. So I'm going to break down the matchups in that first round. Pierre McGuire, noted hockey analyst and one of my great friends in hockey, will join me to talk about the matchups. We'll break everything down for you coming up here on the parting shots podcast, meet Andrew Waite. He's a dedicated journalist with a passion for research and a commitment to getting all sides of the story, whether it's. [00:02:09] Speaker B: A local issue or an upstate trend. I do the stories and interviews that shed light on what's important to you. [00:02:16] Speaker A: Stay informed. Read Andrew Waite in the Daily Gazette. [00:02:20] Speaker B: It'S my job to offer commentary about what's happening in our community and what it means to our readers. [00:02:25] Speaker A: The Gazette reporting based on accuracy and integrity. [00:02:28] Speaker B: It's who we are. It's what we do. [00:02:32] Speaker A: Want to get all the latest news from the Daily Gazette on your phone or tablet? We have an app for that. The Daily Gazette app allows you to read all the newspaper stories and columns from our dedicated team of journalists. The app is free you can download the app from the Apple or Google App Stores. [00:02:47] Speaker B: Hi, this is Craig Conroy, Calgary Flames general manager, Clarkson, hockey legend and New York State Hockey hall of Famer. You're listening to the parting shots podcast with Daily Gazette sports editor Ken shot. [00:03:00] Speaker A: Welcome back to the podcast and Pierre McGuire now joins me to talk about the Stanley cup playoffs. The best time of the year. Pierre, even though my flyers aren't in it, I still enjoy this time of year. [00:03:09] Speaker B: They came close though, didn't they? I thought John Tortorella did a magnificent job. Having that team almost getting to the playoffs was phenomenal, especially after they lost Carter Hart. But it is a tremendous time of the year. Obviously, everything gets going on Saturday at 05:00 with the Islanders playing at Carolina and then Toronto at Boston at 08:00 so it's going to be a great first night in the National Hockey League for the players, for sure. [00:03:34] Speaker A: Yeah, I'm reading Stephen Wino's story on the Associated Press and Stephen and I both are graduates of the same high school in suburban Philadelphia. And it seems like it's. There's really no clear cut favorite this year. I mean, past year there seemed to be a clear cut favorite and last year Boston was a clear cut favorite. This year it's anybody's game. [00:03:55] Speaker B: I think there's seven teams that could legitimately win the cup. And I mean that. I think there's seven teams that could legitimately win. I don't think there's more than that, but I think there's seven. I think one of the things that we become really aware of is the importance of goaltending in the playoffs. And I know some teams are of the ideology that you don't need an elite goalie to win. And they use Aiden Hill as an example out in Vegas. But one of the things that really helped Vegas last year, if you think about it, was the depth of their defense. It's one shot now. You don't get second and third chance opportunities. And not every team has the same defense as Vegas had last year. So I just got off the phone with Scotty Bowman. He was on my podcast, which is called the eye test ken, and we were talking about the importance of goaltending at this time of the year. And he couldn't have been more emphatic speaking about goaltending around goaltenders, around the national hockey and how important they are. [00:04:51] Speaker A: Of course, he had a few good goaltenders in his day coaching Montreal and Detroit and Pittsburgh. So unfortunately, I saw one of his canadian teams be my Flyers in 76. But yeah, Scotty still sharp for his age. He still has, has it. [00:05:06] Speaker B: He really does. He's 90 years of age. He came on and he, we cut off after half an hour. He wanted to stay on for a lot longer. He says, I'm not ready to go yet. He's just an amazing man. He's an awesome friend. I think we won two Stanley Cups together. So anytime you win with somebody, I think it just creates more of a solid bond. But what I would say is that you talked about as goaltenders, you think about Dominic Kashki, Chris Osgood, Mike Vernon. In Detroit you had Tommy Barrasso and Kenny Reagan and Frank Pierangelo in Pittsburgh and in Montreal he had Kenny Dryden. And. Kenny Dryden and more Kenny Dryden. You know, so it was amazing. You talk about the depth of goaltendering. Even go back to when he coached St. Louis. You know, at one point he had Glenn hall and jock Plummet. [00:05:53] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:05:54] Speaker B: I mean, so he's, you're right. He's been around a lot of no good goaltenders over the course of his career. [00:05:58] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, let's break down some of these theories. Start in the east. Obviously here in the capital region we have a lot of rangers fans, my owners fans and Bruins fans. Look at that Rangers Washington series. I mean, the Rangers to me, under Peter Laviolette, his first year there, I was kind of surprised. The job they did. They really took control and they battled Carolina throughout in that metro division and ended up being the president's trophy champion is, it means, and we know what, we know what the president trophy champion means and not much in, in the cup plows, but can they overcome that jinx? [00:06:30] Speaker B: I think they can. I don't know if they can win the cup, but I think they can. One of the things they're going to be looking for and they play Washington and obviously Washington's got some big people, including Tom Wilson. I'm looking to see if the Rangers can stay healthy on the back end. Washington is probably going to be a very physical, aggressive four check team early on in the series and if they can stay healthy on the back end. Talking about the Rangers, I think that series is probably more in their control. But if they can't, if it starts to become aware and terror series, then I think it becomes hard for the Rangers to win. [00:07:03] Speaker A: Yeah. Washington, not many people expected to make the playoffs. They did. Alex Ovechkin, I don't think had, even though he had a 30 goal year, really seemed to show his age a little bit. What do you think? [00:07:14] Speaker B: Well, part of the problem, too, is people forget Nicholas Baxter really didn't play this season. And Kucharov or not Kucharov, Kuznetsov, you know, got traded away to Carolina. So he really didn't have a steady stream of the chemistry that he's used to having down the middle between those two players. And I would say McMichael came in and did a real nice job as a center iceman, especially as a young center iceman. But I don't think he can be confused with Nick Baksham or I think that's part of why Ovitch can kind of. I wouldn't call it a mediocre year, but not nearly as good years. What we're used to seeing. [00:07:52] Speaker A: Yeah. The Islanders open up their series against Carolina on Saturday. Islanders may obviously made the coaching change midway through the season. Patrick Waugh came in and yeah, it got things going there. I mean, their penalty kill still is one of the worst in the NHL. What's it going to take for the Islanders to pull off an upset against Carolina? [00:08:11] Speaker B: They're going to have to have Varlamov play really well in goal. I think he's kind of beating out Sorokin right now. They're going to have to get steady secondary offense, which, besides Brock Nelson, they haven't really shown that they have. And they're going to have to make sure that they keep Sebastian Ajo and Jake Gensel in check. If they're not able to do that. I think it becomes a very difficult series for the Islanders. [00:08:34] Speaker A: What about the job Rob Brendemore has done at his time in Carolina? I mean, great. Great. Yeah, great player. And obviously in his NHL career, and that's translated into his coaching. [00:08:47] Speaker B: Ken, he's been phenomenal. I mean, he was. I remember doing the zero six Stanley cup final with Doc Emerick and John Davidson. And I'll never forget Carolina winning game seven against Edmonton in Carolina and Rod going up and getting the cup as a captain of the Hurricanes. And, you know, it wasn't long after that he decided to retire and he got into coaching and he was an assistant coach and then eventually made his way into being a head coach. And he's done a magnificent job with the Carolina Hurricanes. Those players get better during the course of the season, which is hard to do in the NHL. Their face off player exemplary. Their special teams are outstanding. And I just can't say enough good things about him. And, and even, you know, you look at his staff, Tim Gleason and Jeff Daniels, those guys have done outstanding work as well. [00:09:32] Speaker A: Yeah. Let's go to the Boston Toronto series. We mentioned at the top of this, the Bruins were the prohibitive favorite last year, and of course they stumbled against Florida. Boston had a good year, ended up winning the division again or finishing second this year, I should say. Is this a redemption tour for the Bruins this year? [00:09:53] Speaker B: Well, they better not lose in the first round this year. If they do, that's going to be a problem for somebody. I think there'll be collateral damage if they lose in the first round this year. The biggest thing, I think, with Boston is they got to have a plan to shut down, you know, obviously Austin Matthews, and if they don't have a plan to shut him down, they're going to have a problem in the series. You know, he's a. He's a stalwart player for them offensively in Toronto. And, you know, without Bergeron and David Kreichie, things change a little bit down the middle for Boston. So it's going to be more than just man to man coverage. It's going to. You're going to have to have a plan, a real 200 foot plan to shut down Austin Matthews. And I don't think Boston can take penalties, so if they decide to make it into more of a street fight kind of a game, they better be careful that they don't take penalties because that Toronto power play could eat you alive. So, like for Boston, it's pretty simple. Have a plan for Austin Matthews. Play with energy, don't take penalties, and capitalize on your opportunities. And I do think Boston wins the goaltending match up there, so they should have some success in this series if they can do those things. If they can't, then it becomes a long series and very difficult for them to win. [00:11:00] Speaker A: Of course, the storyline in this series, once again, the Toronto Maple Leafs haven't won a cup since 1967. That's the pre expansion era. How much pressure is on the Maple Leafs to just win this series and get to a cup cup final? They haven't, obviously haven't been there since 67. [00:11:20] Speaker B: There's a lot of pressure and there should be. It's a hockey mad city. It's an amazing franchise. It's a cash machine for the ownership group. They've had so many hopeful seasons and they haven't obvious able to capitalize on all those hopes. So, yeah, no, there's a lot of pressure to win, for sure. I don't know if they're good enough on defense to win. That's. That's going to be the biggest thing for me, watching them, if they're able to beat Boston, I don't know if they'll be good enough on defense to go deeper than that. [00:11:52] Speaker A: And is this a series where the losing team, the coach maybe not have a job after the series? [00:11:57] Speaker B: That's what I was talking about. I hate to speculate on that, but I do think one of the coaching staffs could be in trouble. There could be collateral damage if you're on the losing end of the series. [00:12:07] Speaker A: Yeah. I would feel bad for Jimmy Montgomery. I met, first met Jim when he was assistant coach at RPI under Seth appert. Good guy. And he, I think he, mean, obviously he had some personal issues. He got straightened out and he did a great job last year and just, you know, unfortunately fell short. And it seems like the players do respect him. [00:12:26] Speaker B: I've known Jimmy since he was a player for the Pembroke Lumber Kings in the old Central Hockey League in Ontario. Tried to recruit him to play for us at St. Lawrence when I was working for Joe Marsh. So I've known Jimmy a long time. Yeah, no, he's. He's done a magnificent job as a coach, whether it was at the University of Denver, whether it was as a head coach in Dallas. You talked about the problems. He's faced those down, and I think he's done a fantastic job with his life. And then obviously he goes to St. Louis as an assistant, eventually finds his way as head coach of the Boston Bruins. I think Jimmy's done a tremendous job, but, you know, nothing's fair in the NHL. It's all about winning. If you're not winning, things become nasty in a hurry. [00:13:05] Speaker A: Yeah. And then the other Eastern Conference series, the Battle of Florida, the Panthers taking on the Tampa Bay Lightning. Honestly, Pierre, I thought the Florida Panthers would take a step back this year because they were beat up in that Stanley cup final and they had some key players out and seemed like I thought they would take a while before they got going. And surprise, surprise, you know, Paul Marys got him going early and they battle. Boston ended up winning the Atlantic, and now they get to face their rival in Florida. What about the job Paul Maurice has done down in, in Florida? [00:13:37] Speaker B: Yeah, both he and Billy Zito, the general manager, have done an outstanding job there. I mean, you look at some of the additions. When you bring in a Sammy Reinhardt, when you bring in a Sam Bennett, you know, you look at what they've done on their defense in terms of making it better. Brandon Montour. What's not drafted by the Florida Panthers. He was an acquisition. So you start looking at all the players that Billy Zito and his staff have brought in. It's tremendous. And Paul's taken advantage of really good players. The other thing, too, is Bobrovsky has really, I think, stood the test of time. He. He had a tough start when he was in Florida, but man, o man, has he gotten better in goal for them. They play rugged. They play with four lines. They beat you up on the boards. They create a lot of scrums after whistles that can really wear guys out on the opposition side. I think Florida's tough. Now. Here's my one caveat to anything Florida does. If the Florida Panthers take more than three penalties in any game against Tampa, I think they do not win the series because Tampa's power play is just so darn good. Yeah, they've got to take three or less penalties. If they have three or more penalties, they're going to be in trouble. It's got to be three or less penalties per game. [00:14:47] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, Tampa Bay, to me, I think down the road with how they won their Stanley Cups in a COVID year and a short year and again getting the finals after that, I think down the road they're going to be recognized as one of the great organizations in hockey. And, I mean, they're still, they're still getting the job done. I mean, can they pull off the upset? [00:15:10] Speaker B: They can. Like I said, the biggest thing for Tampa is they've got to take advantage of their power play, which is obviously lethal. They're going to have to stay healthy on defense. They're not nearly as deep as they used to be on defense, and there are a lot of unproven guys in their defense, which will be interesting to see how they hold up under the scrutiny of playoff hockey. But, you know, again, you talk about goaltending being important. Ken Varlamov or, sorry, Vasilevsky. [00:15:38] Speaker A: Excuse me. [00:15:39] Speaker B: Basilevsky is, you know, outstanding, and he's back on his game now. So can they do it? Sure, they could do it. Is it going to be easy? No, it's not going to be easy. [00:15:49] Speaker A: Yeah. Let's look over to the Western Conference, and the Dallas Stars will start Monday against the defending Stanley cup champion. Vegas Golden Knight. Vegas. Those. But it's a bit of an off year. I mean, I don't know if, you know, Stanley cup related or just a lot of injuries, but I mean, Vegas scene as the second wild card mean that they're going to have face a tough team in Dallas. [00:16:10] Speaker B: Well, I don't I don't think this is the matchup they wanted, you know, but nothing was easy for them just because they couldn't get any traction in the standings because of injuries in goal, on defense and up front. I mean, they had a boatload of injuries this year. You have to remember though, last year they were able to beat Dallas on their way to win in the Stanley Cup. I think they're probably more comfortable playing Dallas just because the tempo of the game wouldn't be as great as if they played Edmonton in the first round. So we'll see how that plays out long term. What I would say the Vegas defense is obviously huge and the addition of Noah Hannafin doesn't hurt them, it helps them. It'll be like I said, I think it'll be really interesting to see how the pace helps Vegas or hurts them. And if Dallas pushes the pace a little bit more than what they're capable of defending. I'm talking about Vegas now, then I think it becomes a hard series for Vegas to play at. Dallas can up the anti pace wise. [00:17:14] Speaker A: To me, an interesting series is Winnipeg and Colorado, both central division rivals. Winnipeg gets the home ice in this one, looking to try to advance out of this first round and this seems to me could be the toughest matchup, maybe not just only in the west, but overall in that first round. [00:17:32] Speaker B: Yeah, I agree 100%. I couldn't agree more. The biggest thing I think in that series is going to come down to is Connor Hellebuch way better than Gorgia, the goalie in Colorado or just a little bit better? If he's way better, I think Colorado has a tough time in this series. If he's just a little bit better, then I think Colorado's got a fighting chance to win the series. [00:17:56] Speaker A: Of course, Nathan McKinnon doesn't hurt either for Colorado. [00:18:00] Speaker B: No. Well, Nathan's obviously really important. He's had an mvp type season. Will Gabriel Laniscog be back for Colorado? I don't know if that'll happen or not. I know that they try to beef up their lineup by going out at the trade deadline and bringing Yakov Trenin in from Nashville and bringing Brandon Duhem in from Minnesota. So they got bigger guys. They also have Miles Wood there from New Jersey, Ross Colton from Tampa. They brought some bigger guys in that tried to lean on playoff style hockey. But to me, the biggest thing for Colorado is they don't get goaltending. It's going to be, I don't care how much they score, it's going to be really tough for them to win. [00:18:39] Speaker A: Vancouver Canucks won the Pacific division under head coach Rick Talkett. They'll take on national in that first round. I want to talk about the job Rick has done me. I know he's been head coach at several other places, but this seemed to be the right fit for him in Vancouver. [00:18:54] Speaker B: Rick's an outstanding coach. I had the privilege of coaching rec winning a Stanley cup with Rick in Pittsburgh. I can't say enough good things about him. We've been friends for a long time. He's a tremendous hockey coach. His knowledge of the league and tactics, it's phenomenal. He's not afraid to surround himself with high quality coaches. He brings in Adam Foot, who's a great coach. He brings in Sergey Gonchar. He inherited Mike Yeoh and kept Mike Yeoh on. They were familiar with one another from the Pittsburgh days. So, you know, Rick's done a lot of good things there. The biggest thing is he's made his team hard to play against physically, and that doesn't surprise me at all. If you know Rick at all, he's a really tough guy and he he likes tough hockey and he makes his players play that way. [00:19:38] Speaker A: Yeah. Nashville new general manager Barry trots. I mean, what about the job he's done in assembling this team? [00:19:44] Speaker B: Barry's done a fantastic job. He and Andrew Burnett have been really singing from the same songbook and right from the day that Barry hired Andrew to come in and be the head coach, can't say enough good things about the job. Everybody in management's done there. Everybody on the coaching staff has done there. The players have clearly bought in. They've got one line, obviously, with Gustav Nyquist, Ryan O'Reilly and Philip Forsberg. That's critically important for them. If that line's not producing, they can't score enough to win. But that line has produced a ton, and I think that's a big part of their attack. I also think Roman Yossi is probably the most overlooked star defenseman in the league, and Ryan McDonough has been just such a great, stabilizing player for them on the back end, and he brings Stanley cup winning experience a lot like Ryan O'Reilly. So I think Nashville is going to be a tough out. I don't think they're going to be deep enough to play against Vancouver, though. [00:20:39] Speaker A: Yeah, and then the other series is Edmonton in Los Angeles. Edmonton got off to a slow start at a coaching change there and really then got going. But how much pressure is on the Oilers and Conor McDavid to make a deep run. [00:20:53] Speaker B: A lot of pressure. It's a lot like Toronto in the east. There's a lot of pressure on Edmonton. And Chris Knoblock, the coach you're alluding to, has done a tremendous job. I think one of the reasons why he's thrived so much is because he coached Connor McDavid and Connor Brown with the Erie Otters in the Ontario Hockey League. So there was a sense of familiarity. Another thing that they did is they brought Paul Coffey in to work with their defense. And if you look at it, Paul's really helped all their defensemen, but in particular, Evan Bouchard. Go look at his numbers, Ken. They're unbelievable. And he just started to surge when Paul Coffey took over coaching the defense in Edmonton. So can't say enough about the coaching staff in Edmonton and the job they've done making players better, but there is significant pressure. They should win this series against LA. But if LA gets them in the trolley tracks and beats them up physically because they're a big team, that could be some problems for Edmonton. So Edmonton's got to establish their speed game and their depth game, and LA is going to have to really develop their physical game and their grinding game and their puck management game. So it'll be interesting to see if. Which team can establish, you know, three things first and whoever, whomever does I think wins the series. [00:22:08] Speaker A: Okay, who are your picks in these eight series? [00:22:11] Speaker B: I don't pick, and I'll tell you why. I'm not trying to hide. It's a good story for you, Ken. A few years ago, I picked a team to win and I was working on national tv and the coach of the team I did not pick called me in his office and he said, hey, gotta ask you a question. I thought we were friends. I said, we are friends. What's the deal? He said, you didn't pick my team to win. I don't appreciate that. So I will break down series and I'll tell people, here's the strengths, here's the weaknesses. But I don't pick winners and losers ever since that happened. [00:22:43] Speaker A: Fair enough. Fair enough. Well, one playoff question I do want to ask. From 1990, I think 1940 to about mid two thousands, they had the best playoff format. The top eight teams, they recede after each round. Fans, I don't think they like this format. Is the NHL ever going to change? [00:23:03] Speaker B: I sure hope so. [00:23:05] Speaker A: I mean, there's. [00:23:07] Speaker B: I don't think. I don't think coaches like it. I don't think players like it. I know the fans don't like it, especially if you're in a city that's had an amazing regular season and all of a sudden you got to play. You got to play against, you know, a top team, and you lose. I'd prefer to see one through eight. I'd prefer to see two play seven. I prefer to say three play six and four play five. I think that's the most equitable way to do it. [00:23:33] Speaker A: I mean, the NHL over the year, I go back to my youth when I first followed the Flyers, and, like they have, the first place team played the third place team and the second played the fourth. That. That never made any sense. [00:23:45] Speaker B: Now, I. I think they'll do a long, hard look at the playoff format going forward, but I don't think they'll ever be a playing game as long as commissioner Bettman's in charge. And I don't think you'll see much of a change. But I do think the potential is there for them to do it the way I just described. Described. One would play eight, two would play seven, three would play six, and four would play five. [00:24:09] Speaker A: I like that format. Then receipt after each round. That's the way it should be. The coyotes are no more in Arizona. They're heading to Salt Lake. Your thoughts about that? [00:24:19] Speaker B: I feel, and I apologize for the background noise. I just got to move around here. [00:24:22] Speaker A: It's okay. [00:24:24] Speaker B: You know, the biggest thing is that it wasn't working in Arizona dollar wise. It wasn't working attendance wise, and they had to move along. It's not easy. I wish there had been a building in Scottsdale. There isn't a building in Scottsdale. And because of that, the team's got to move to Utah. It's that simple. [00:24:41] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, Pierre, appreciate a few minutes. I know you have a busy schedule here, but I appreciate you squeezing me in, and we'll talk before the second round. [00:24:49] Speaker B: Any time for you, Ken. It's my pleasure. Thank you so much for having me. All your great fans in the capital district area, I really appreciate it. [00:24:55] Speaker A: Thank you. Appreciate it, Pierre. Thanks a lot. [00:24:57] Speaker B: You got my Mac? [00:24:58] Speaker A: All right, that's Pierre McGuire. Be back with. I'll have my picks of the Stanley cup playoffs in just a moment. You're listening to the parting shots podcast. [00:25:24] Speaker C: I've got a math question for you. When you add tolerance, subtract prejudice, and multiply efforts to treat one another with respect, what do you get? Less division and school sports have it down to a science. Looking for an example of what can happen when we realize there's more that unites us than divides us. Look no further than high school sports in New York. [00:25:47] Speaker A: This message presented by the New York State Public High School Athletic association and the New York State Athletic Administrators association. [00:25:54] Speaker B: Hi, this is Colgate men's hockey coach Mike Harder. You're listening to the parting shots podcast with Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Schott. [00:26:03] Speaker A: Pack to wrap up the podcast and offer my picks for the first round of the Stanley cup playoffs. I remember I used to do this on my parting shots blog back in the day. I didn't do the picks last year online, but I figured let's do it on the podcast. We'll have a lot of fun with this, starting with Florida and Tampa Bay. Florida Panthers got to the Stanley cup final last year and there's going to be a battle, Florida against Tampa Bay. I think Florida ends up winning this series in six games. Boston Toronto, I think Boston will win that in six. And we're going to see an explosion and implosion, every kind of explosion, implosion in Toronto. If May, please lose this series. And like I said with Pierre 1967, that's a long, long time. Of course, my flyers 19, 60, 75 is a long time too, but not as long as the May police the Rangers in Washington. I don't see Rangers having too much problem with the Capitals. Rangers win this in five and then Carolina should take care of the owners also in five. Over in the west, I think that Dallas Vegas series is going to be a battle, and I think Dallas ends up winning that in seven. I'm going to pick Colorado. I mean, no, I know Winnipeg has home ice in this matchup against the Avalanche, but I just like Colorado in six. Vancouver should take care of Nashville in five and Edmonton in five over the King. So that are my, those are my picks for the first round of the Stanley cup playoffs. And of course, when the second round comes up, we'll have my picks as well. So I appreciate you listening to the podcast. We'll do another podcast next week. The views expressed in the Parting Shots podcast, or not necessarily those of the Daily Gazette Company. The Parting Shots podcast is a production of the Daily Gazette Company. I'm Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Schott. Thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time. I'd like to thank Pierre Maguire for coming on to the show to talk about the Stanley cup playoffs. From the parting Shots podcast studio in Schenectady, New York, good day. Good hockey. And we remember Dickie Betts, a founding member of the Albin Brothers band who passed away this week at the age of 80. Of course, Dickie's the most famous song with the album brothers is Rambling Man, I can talk, so let's hear that from Dickey Betts and rest in peace. [00:28:08] Speaker D: Dickie Betts thought I was born a rambling man? Trying to make a living and doing the best I can? And when it's time for leaving? I hope you understand that I was born abandoned, man? When I father was a gambler down in Georgia? And he wound up on the wrong end of the? And I was born in the back seat of a rambus? Rolling down Highway 41? Born trying to make a living and doing the best I can? When it's time for leaving? I hope you understand that I was born a rambling man?

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