Ray Ferraro on the Canucks season, expectations for EP40 & Chytil and more

Ray Ferraro on the Canucks season, expectations for EP40 & Chytil and more

Donnie and Dolly, the team is supported by abblections.ca. Closing your business. We can help. Thursday and all today’s guests including Ray Ferraro standing by. Brought to you by the Vancouver Giants celebrating anniversary 25. The Gman. Two games left on their six-game road trip. Tonight they take on Brandon Ray’s old stomping grounds. And tomorrow they are in Regina to take on the Pats. Next home game Friday, October 17th against Wanachi. Visit vancouver giants.com for ticket info and to check out their theme night schedule for this season. Conucks open up tonight at home against the Calgary Flames. Here to talk about that and all matters National Hockey League from the NHL on ESPN, soon to be officially into the BC Sports Hall of Fame, Ray Ferraro. Thanks for doing this, sir. How are you? I’m good. I hope the Wheat Kings got a new bus from the one that we used to take around. What was what was the problem with the old one school bus? It was old in 1984 and uh I’m telling you this thing was it was a step up from the bus in Slapshot but it was it was not much further than that. Like when we must from there to Calgary it was like freezing and it was like miserable. It was raw. It was terrible. Yeah. Well, things worked things worked out for you. Hey, uh, Ray, with with 18-year-old Braden Coots in mind, how old were you when you broke into the National Hockey League? And what do you remember about your first game back in 84? Uh, yeah, it was December of 84. I was 20. And um I I quite honestly I when I think back to the difference from being 18 years old playing in Portland to uh to 20 when I made my debut, I mean, I was miles. The difference was miles. It wasn’t just the two years. It was like, you know, physical maturity, um, uh, experience. Um, you know, I’d been knocked down and traded and, you know, like I had a little more, um, I don’t know, maybe a little more backbone by the time I was 20. Um, I I I these kids that are, you know, there’s going to be at least four of them that are going to be out of this draft that are going to play. Um, I was in New York the other night and I think it’s uh I was telling Landon and and Cammy actually when I when I finished the game, so Pittsburgh played their uh their their opener in New York and Ben Kindle played and Ben’s a Vancouver kid and I saw his mom and dad on the flight out there. They were so excited, right, to go watch Ben play and he was awesome. Like he he was terrific. And the reason I was telling Landon and Cammy about it is that, you know, Ben, I would say, is similar in stature, maybe even a little smaller than uh than Cougs is. And so the the thing that I noticed was how he got around the ice. like he never put himself in like a position where he was really fighting for position, you know, he was in position so he could only once did he get kind of trapped in his zone. Um the ability these some of these kids have to read the play at 18 and nowhere near what I had like like nowhere near I I what I I was really impressed with Coots in the preseason. uh watching Kindle play, I was like, “Wow, there there is something to this ability these kids have, the IQ some of these kids have. Some of them just aren’t ready to play.” And and they might be terrific players and have long careers, they’re just not ready to play. They just they just can’t do it. Uh, you know, again, I’ll go back to Kindle and they had a 19-year-old defenseman, uh, Harrison Brunick, and you’re like, “Wow, I can see why the Penguins are both surprised that they’re here and excited to see what they can do.” And I I mean, there’s no way the Conucks thought this this could be, right? Like maybe you think in the off like, “Hey, maybe he could be ready. I don’t know.” But you don’t plan for it. You don’t think of it. And then he just like every hurdle he just coos just climbed over the hurdle and was like, “Oh, he’ll take the next challenge on.” And so I’m excited to watch him play tonight. Imagine how good he’d be if he had the experience of driving on that or riding on that Brandon Week. I mean, you know, he’d be more than a step ahead. Yeah. He would have had he would have eaten a lot more McDonald’s and Burger King, which is our meal of choice back then. Pizza. Hey, do you have a read Do you have Do you ever have a read on this connect team under Adam Foot, Ray? Uh, little bit. Um, I I I want to see it because the the preseason of course is is is just so much different um than the than the games will be. The the opposition will be stiffer um you know, everything will be more engaged. It’s like I’ve I’ve often talked about the different stages of the season. There’s the preseason, there’s early season, there’s that midseason right after the all-star break, the stretch run, and then the playoffs. And each one of them elevates themselves through through the course of the season. What I see is a far more aggressive team, a team that looks less stressed in the game that they’re playing. you know, like the puck system was was really demanding and it was really demanding from a offthe- puck defensive perspective. Um, it was really effective and but it it’s kind of like Barry Trotz’s system, you know, you’ve got to be at the you’ve got to be on your marks for that to work. Um, this system is a little more fun to play. It’s a little more free flow. um will it work? We’re gonna find out. But what you’ll find is the players will generally play um without as much thought. And the this is this may be counterintuitive. The less you think, the better the system is. So again, I was in but New York the other night and Mike Sullivan told us before the game his most concerning thing was that it was a completely new Ranger system and he was worried his guys were going to be thinking their way through it. And when you think your way, you become slow and the Rangers looked like they were stuck in the mud. And that’s one game, right? I mean, it’s whatever’s going to happen tonight, there’s going to be this wild reaction. Coots can play, Coots can’t play. The system’s great, the system’s no good. Demco was awesome. Demco sucked. Like whatever it is gonna be, it’s one game, right? Like it’s just it’s just one game. And it gives you a a better picture than preeason, but it’s just a one game picture. And uh I everything I read feels like the vibe around the team is a little more easy. if that not not easy like oh it’s going to be easy but just more relaxed more and and that that certainly can go a long way. Ray, you know all eyes are going to be on Person. Did you see enough from him in the preseason where you you said to yourself, “Hey, you know what? He’s on his way back to being a 80, 90, 100 point guy.” I’ll be shocked if he’s not 80 to 90 points this year. I first of all, I can’t quite explain other than the health part of it what happened to him last year, right? Like that’s just not it wasn’t like a one-year 75 point guy that went to 40 points and you’re like, “Oh yeah, that was his career year and he’ll never get to 70 points again.” Like none of it made sense to me. And what I saw was clearly a quicker, more engaged player. Um, I I thought Person had a really good preseason because like those stages of the season, he’s not hitting the peak of his game. You sure hope he’s not in preeason. I I think he’ll have a very good year. I I really do. I I’d be more surprised if he didn’t, than if he did. Ray, they’re going to have uh maybe six Abbisburg guys. Uh you know, they won the Calder Cup, which was so good. Is there any of the Abbeby guys in your mind uh that could take off? And but the key is not making the NHL is staying in the NHL. Yeah. Which which one of these guys do you say is going to take the role and stay all year? Well, I I would say the defenseman, but it’s pretty clear. Yeah. I But but I think Mancini is a hell of a player. Yeah. I I I really do. I I think this system is built for him. Um, you’ve got this log jam of defenseman and really good prospects that are all kind of mixed together and you you know you’re you’re not just going to blow out a couple of defensemen to get a forward. Yeah. And and then maybe you need those defensemen in the future, right? Because no matter what we talk about or don’t talk about until Quinn’s situation is settled one way or the other, right? you you need all of these players. Yeah. Because you’ve got to figure that out and you can’t figure it out until time allows you to figure it out. So, while most Canuck fans want the answer today, unfortunately, it’s it’s not going to be that way. But I think those two defenseman are legit NHL defenseman. Like, I really do. I think they’re you could plug them in as a third pair today. you’d have some growing pains, but that’s a legit pair, like legit defenseman. Um, up front, I I do think Carlson is going to find his way into a regular spot somewhere. I I like the way he plays. Uh, I think he’s gotten a little quicker. Right now, he’s just on the outside. I know they say they don’t want they don’t necessarily need Baines to score a lot, but in the role he’s in, if he’s going to stay there, he’s got to provide some. But, I think he’s I think he’s a legit player. I think he’s a middle six player that can play. Like I I I I like his smarts to the game. And I also think he’s learned that you can’t compete part of the time, right? You have to compete all of the time. Um a star player, they can compete some of the time during the regular season. A player like Arshet Baines has to compete 103% of the time or else they’re going to get somebody else to do it. Right. The the guy to me that I am was really intrigued with u because he looked a little different as camp went on was Leer Mackey, right? They need goals, right? They need offense. That kid has a special gift when he shoots the puck. The way he stays in the NHL is to stay in a battle, not get blown out of the battle. You don’t have to win everyone. And as a smaller guy, I know that every time I lost one, I’d get up and I’d be like, I know it. I know they’re saying I lost that battle because I’m small. Like I knew it. They when a big guy loses a battle, they just say he lost the battle. When a small guy loses it, they say, “See, he lost the battle because he’s small.” Leer Mackey has to be able to compete on the boards. When the puck comes around the boards or when he’s got a D pinching down and is going to crush him, he’s got to get the puck out. he’s got to retrieve a puck now and then because his skill at the other end is going to open up. Again, I like to watch players around the league and compare people. So, you know, like I’m watching Montreal play last night and I know he’s a different build, but um uh Cole Cfield’s tiny, right? He’s a small guy. There was a play in the first period. I rewound it and I watched it again. It was just a a power play and he’s in there battling for the loose puck right around the front of the net. Like one whack, two whacks, three whacks. Nothing happened. But I’m like, if Leer Mackey can do that, if he can inside like inside himself will himself into that, that kid’s going to play and he’s going to score. So all of them have the chance to stay and to compete for the stay part of the job. But it’s good. the proof is going to come out in the first 10 or 15 games, right? And then we’re gonna say, “Yep, that guy’s ready to do it. That guy can’t do it. That guy won’t do it.” There’s um a coach told us last year, uh one thing that the NHL does, it separates the guys that can and can’t and the guys that will or won’t. Yeah. And those are two different things. Uh Ray, you could argue, a lot of people could argue that the most impressive kanak in the preseason was Philip Heedle. Health permit, health permitting, what do you think he’s capable of? He’s 60 plus points for sure. Um, he, you know, that might not sound like a lot. 60 points is a lot in today’s in today’s world because the guys that score point of game stuff or near point of game stuff, they play on the power play all the time. Heedles is going to be on a second power play group, right? he’s not going to get premier power play minutes and so you might lose 10 or 12 points by doing that. The the way he transports the puck through the ice will open up the ice. The give and go that he seems to be getting better at like you know when to get rid of it as he’s transporting it up the ice so the winger doesn’t lose speed at the other blue line. That stuff seems to be coming a little better for him. the the want to shoot I think is key for him is that you don’t shoot as a last resort with your speed you shoot on the move. I I think he’s going to have a well I I think he’s a really good player. I saw it a couple of years ago in New York. I saw it in the playoffs when he played with Lafrenier and Kako. That line was their best line in the playoffs and then he got hurt a couple of times. And so, as you mentioned, Donnie, like the the health part of the equation is is really the is really the hindrance, it’s not the ability, it’s not the speed, it’s not the size, it’s not the shot. And so, um, you know, people, if you if you follow this team or if you get to know him at all, you’d be hoping that he has a good run of health because he’s a hell of a kid and, uh, he’s a good player. One more, Ray, if you don’t mind. Conor McDavid, we haven’t had you on uh since the contract was signed, but what a stunner that was. Two years, no raise, 12. I I I really never had a feel, Donnie, on any of that process because it felt like to me at any point the deal, the negotiation if you will, was going to be 30 seconds because it’s kind of like Quinn, if he’s going to stay here, he’s going to slide a piece of paper across the table. Y and the management’s going to sign it and send it back. Like that’s that’s really the negotiation. So whatever number Connor was going to put on that piece of paper, what were the Oilers going to do? Not sign it. What he did, there’s a couple of things to this I I’d like to get out if we got the time is like one is that um he gave the Oilers a get out of jail free card for the next couple of years. Yeah. the decision to leave millions of dollars on the table is one that is is a very personal one for him and his wife. Uh there can be never any question anymore about what Conor McDavid’s commitment is to the Edmonton Oilers and whether he wants to win. There can be no question, no doubt anymore. He gave them the opportunity to go out and sign Jake Walman. Walman. Um, uh, Ekholm. Yeah. Um, and they signed, you know, Rosik’s, you know, that’s an easy one, but they, you know, they get him done last night. He gave them millions of dollars of room to go and create a better team. I mean, hell, they’ve been in the finals the last two years. It’s not like they’re they’re trying to go and like I read some of these things, they’re like, “Oh, the pressure is on management now.” Well, of course it is. They got to the finals. like if they get knocked out in the first round, well then that that’s a lousy year for them. They’re not trying to make the playoffs. So that that’s the first thing. The second part is already saw it um in Montreal. Uh Kent Hughes had a press conference and he said, you know, the you know, McDavid leaving the the money on the table. That’s what star players have to do if they want their teams to win. Like this is exactly what the hard cap does. He was he’s putting pressure on Lane Hudson to take a team friendly deal. So all the time it’s team friendly, team friendly, team friendly. This is what the salary cap pressures players into doing. Why should Wayne Hudson have to do Kent Hughes’s job? Right? So why would the players have to do the manager’s job? Like Stan Bowman’s not helping Conor McDavid score, right? He’s wearing a suit up in the press box. So the the cap puts undue pressure on the players to make it fit. And now so what happens if you’re um so you’re not you’re not a Conor McDavid. You’re not a you know a one of those high-end guys like Eel took Eel took 13 million $13.5 million last last night in Vegas. They have no tax. So that’s a you know it’s a it’s a Capri off style deal. Like should Capri off have taken less money? No chance. No chance. Who’s to say the manager is not going to go sign a lousy winger or terrible D with the money, right? You don’t have any impact on that. You’re not the general manager. Sydney Crosby the other night, who’s taken team friendly deals forever, lined up with um Billy Koven on his wing. Do you think he signed up for that? Sid is I think he is the greatest generational teammate and player that we’ve seen in the last 20 years, bar none. I think he is an amazing player and an amazing person to do what he’s done for the Penguins. But he gave them cap room after cap room after cap room. They haven’t won a playoff series since 2018. It’s no guarantee is my point. and the pressure sits with the player, not with the management. When someone like McDavid takes a deal like this, I I think Connor’s awesome. He’s the greatest player in the history of the game. Um I I think his work ethic and commitment is unquestioned. Um he clearly is committed to that group of players and to the place he plays and for that he should be commended. But there’s lots of pressure that’s going to fall on other players because of the deal that he took. When you were on that bus uh from Brandon to Calgary, and this was the case when I covered the Red Deer Rustlers back in the day, did you stop at Peter’s Drive-In in Calgary for their burgers? It’s famous. I think we did. Everybody. Okay. So, let me tell you about this trip, though. Bus played in Brandon. And the only reason I know this is because of you’ll hear this. I got seven goals against Prince Albert. We bus right after the game to Calgary. I think it was like 14 hours. We play that night after the first period. We’re losing 4 nothing. And our coach is giving us crap about we, you know, we got to start skating. Oh yeah, we got to start skating, do we? We just bust 14 hours, right? There’s no sleeper beds there. We played the game. We lost. stayed overnight and the next day drove to Portland on this. So, whatever we ate, by the time we got off the bus, you had 22 teenagers with a bunch of zits all over their face because it was a grease pile on that bus. That’s Donnie what we ate. Yeah. Hey, I loved how you slipped in that sevengoal game with that story. Very good. Very good. That’s why I can remember it. Otherwise, I can’t remember last Tuesday. So, you know, that’s that’s just the way that goes. Yeah. Impressive. Hey, Ray, thanks for this and congrats on the BC Sports Hall of Fame again. Thank you. We’re going to get that done next week, unfortunately, as I knew it was going to happen. Uh I’m not going to be able to be there. We’re going to I’ve got something uh taped and ready to go, but I’m really proud and really honored uh to be able to go in. Thanks for this, Ray. Appreciate it. Take care, guys. You be well. If he’s

ESPN NHL & Canucks Analyst Ray Ferraro joined the guys and shared his expectations for the Canucks this season and possible point totals for EP40 and Filip Chytil.