[MUSIC] Feel the passion. Fan morning shows, 4-7-5-9. Man, Ben and his friend, Gunning. Honor, pride, courage. [LAUGH] Leafs lose 4-1 to the Tampa Bay Lightning by my accounting. The last most influential standings game for the Maple Leafs, not to say the teams that are playing aren't counting on a victory, or are desperate for a victory, I should say. Same for Montreal on Saturday. I mean, it was one of the Leafs, but Penguins on Monday. That's a team that's still alive. You got a couple of Devil's games in there. Mm, talking about the Devil's Rangers game from yesterday, too, at some point today. >> Thank you. >> But yeah, it was pretty good effort, at least through 40 minutes against the Panthers. And a good start for the Leafs, despite being down one-nothing, goaltending, let them down, and ultimately a 4-1 loss at home to the Lightning. Let's talk to Nick Kiprio, so real Kipro and Borne. How's it going, Kipro? >> Good morning, guys. Very well, how are you? >> No, I'm doing all right. So, what do you make of the import of these final regular season games? And they still have another one to come against the Lightning. That's the last game of the season. Second last game of the season is against the Panthers. But that's the Panthers' last game of the season, like, what do you make of like, how important, or how much Sheldon Kipro's prioritizing, picking up the two points in these games? >> Well, listen, it's not a be-all-end-all, the points. For me, it's now the optics of what you see on a consistent basis here, and where you've got to clean up your game. And we know there's a few boxes that they need to check between now and game one. And some are looking better than others. And then, there's a couple of boxes that might be a concern for him, and that's what you need these last half a dozen games to go. Just start cleaning up your game, and you get ready, and you roll the dice. That's what every team does once you've entered the dance. >> Yeah, how much does the schedule kind of help them out in that regard? I mean, we know the two games they have this week, but Ben mentioned it there. The schedule for them coming up, the games don't matter in terms of wins or losses to the Leafs, again, I'm with you. You definitely have some things from a process perspective you want to see, but it's the Penguins on Monday, the Devils, they're scratching for wins. You've got two against them, the Red Wings need their points, and then you've got the back-to-back games in Florida. How much does the schedule, the fact that those teams will be very much playing kind of like for Death Hockey, how much does that help the Leafs in terms of getting themselves in a position or Sheldon Keefe kind of checking those last boxes or answering some questions he maybe still has about his game one lineup? >> Yeah, I like the schedule. I had my article today come out in the Toronto Star and I wrote it might be a bit of a favor for the Leafs to go up against the Florida's and Tampa last night to remind them that these are the emotional teams that sucked the life out of you the last few years. And so there's that element for sure. And I think we got it again last night and for me one of the major boxes that they seem to be checking off is there's a physicality involved in their game now that we necessarily didn't see in the past and at times they were searching for and a term that we've used the last few years for the Leafs is the lack of killer instinct and being able to physically and mentally emotionally stay in check here. And I don't think that's going to be a problem this year. And whether it's Ryan Reeves last night or McCabe or Joel Edmondson when he comes back there just seems to be an element that this team won't get pushed around like it has in the past. And last night wasn't about Tampa Bay pushing them around. A good solid 40 minutes earlier this week wasn't around the Florida Panthers pushing them around. So now you go into the rest of the regular season here and to your point just get ready here. Power play, you're going to get Mitch Marner and all probability on the weekend here that's he's a huge piece here moving forward. So get him back in the equation here and he'll reset a few things. And you just hope by game one April 20th that you're ready to go. Yeah, you mentioned you mentioned the physicality there, Kipper. And obviously Reeves is the first guy everybody's going to think of, especially with him playing the way he's playing right now. But are you surprised how quickly Tra Living has been able to kind of imprint that on this roster? I mean, we all know Kyle Dubas philosophy in terms of building a team. We also saw the kind of changes he made in that towards the tail end going out and getting your O'Reilly's and a charries. But it never felt like that, you know, personality was ever able to totally take hold. Maybe it's the fact that you got two guys that have more import in Domi and Bertuzzi and they've been here all year long that's causing more of that kind of buy in. But I've been surprised at how quickly Tra Living has been able to imprint that part of that part of his team building philosophy on this team. Because Lord knows they've tried in the past to graft a little toughness and fight onto this Leafs group, but it hasn't always taken. Well, last year led by the Ryan O'Reilly trade that's major surgery at the trade deadline. And, you know, for whatever reason, I think lack of assets is the number one. They couldn't do that this year. So you go and you add a little bit, you tweak a little bit here and you rely on the core that you've had all season long. And that was the game plan, whether it was designed by or not by tree living. That's what's happened. But there was a focus on physicality and bringing in guys like Labooshkin, Edmondson, you know, Conidur is fit right into that bottom six. You know, through penalty killing or a good hard four check with Camp and Reeves now. And they seem to be rather set here moving forward. But, you know, it's really going to come down to your star players. And last night, you know, unfortunately, Braden Point and Kuchrov had the best of Tavares and Willie Neelander and you know, Edmond was real good last night and looked like one of the best defensemen in the world. And Morgan Riley is going to have to come back and bring his game by game one up to the challenge that he had last season where he looked and skated, you know, fabulous. So that's, again, we're down to the half a dozen games where these guys are going to tweak here. But that to me is an easier fix than trying to light a fire under these guys like in previous seasons. So I'm a big fan of what I can see in terms of intensity and emotion and the physicalities moving forward. They look like they can play a seven game series now and if they can't win it, they're going to take some skin off of the other team. They're going to leave them with some bumps and bruises along the way. And you know, that's the way it should be in a Stanley Cup playoff series. Awesome Matthews with goal number 63 yesterday, seven games to go. This was the pregame quote from Sheldon Keefe in regards to awesome Matthews chase of 70. I talked to Austin. That's not the focus for him. He wants to finish the season strong. He wants to be feeling good. He wants to have energy through the last stretch and going into the playoffs. And that's really the goal for our team to have our game in order and to be as healthy and rested as possible as we finished this last push, which I like, yeah, obviously the playoffs are the thing that matters most for both Sheldon Keefe and Austin Matthews and Maple Leafs as a whole. But when you come out and say that it feels like you indicate like if he's at 68 69 goals in game 81 or 82 and the plan previously might have been to rest him, that yeah, you're going to keep resting him even if he's like really like really close right there. How do you imagine that out like is that going to happen? Yes. It should. It should. Stop them. Rest them like. Come on. Like the obsession to for this guy to hit 70 and I get it. It doesn't happen very often. It's a big number. I get all of that. But I also get no Stanley Cup since 1967. What are we doing here? So you know, Sheldon needs to stick to his guns that nobody, nobody wants to see 70 goals and then the Leafs go quietly in the first round. Okay. Can it be both? Of course, it can be both. It's a great point. Yes. Actually, no. You know what, Kipper? I disagree. I've been on this planet not super long, but long enough to know that both of those good things happening to the Toronto Maple Leafs in one year. No chance. So actually, no, it can't be both. Well, then then then pick, then pick one that involves everybody, not one guy. So I'm good with Sheldon's comments. And I just hope he believes that because, again, the focus needs to be checking off a lot of boxes here still to go. And I don't even see one box that checks, get number 34, 70 goals. Now, last night, a great goal, power play. It's a set play. He's got the shot there. Like, if he can put together a string of goals between now and the end of the season, that falls into the realm of the team concept and, you know, it's including everybody. It's not everybody just sitting back and watching Austin go from end to end on his own. If the agenda includes 70 goals with the team playing, you know, a great playoff type of style concept, then go for it. But if it includes you just trying to shoot everything in sight and, you know, get me the puck, get me the puck, it's a disaster for the Leafs to finish the season with. So it is possible, but it's also possible that they, that the 20 guys can be involved in this journey and it's not looking like one guy, you know, making sure it's me first. That's, that's the best way I can describe the last few games here to go. Yeah, it's like, obviously if Sheldon Keefe had his druthers, it's like, yeah, go scored to a night and get this thing home and cleared with where it's not a question for me. The worst case scenario is him sitting on 68 goals with two to play where it is a real question and it's seen as Keefe taking it away from him and man, this team is sat much marner in last games of seasons or second to last game of seasons when he's been right there on the precipice of a hundred points. So they have kind of set the precedent of that as well. I think there's an element to that with marner specifically, what do you expect to see from him? Let's, let's presume he's back on, on Saturday in Montreal. Maybe it goes to Monday against Pittsburgh, but where do you expect to see him? Is it right back alongside Austin Matthews and how much does it help the Leafs that he's kind of a again, not, not to say that the team sleepwalking through this portion of it, but there's an element of kind of biding their time until the playoffs. How big of a shot in the arm will it just be to the team to all of a sudden have 16 in the lineup after missing him for what's it been three, four weeks now? Yeah, I consider him a top 10 player in the world. It's huge and you know, right away, I think he has to go back with with Austin. Now I'd like to see Max stay there with him. I don't know whether or not that's a long term look going into the playoffs and how long they can keep together, but I think Max Domie has earned his position against to play with with Austin and I don't want to necessarily see that duo broken up. What does that mean second moving forward here? I think there's still some challenges for for Sheldon to find the total right mix for John Tavares. I don't know where John is. I haven't liked his game, you know, this week, you know, is it as he locked in with Willy knee lander? Would you kipper? I know you said right away put Mitch back with Austin and nobody sits here saying that's a bad idea, but if you if you are worried about John Tavares and where this game is that generally speaking, putting Mitch Marner next to him has not been a been a bad idea. Would you consider just doing that when Marner returns? Listen, you got you got a lot of games here to kind of mix and match here. Once you get Mitch involved, so, you know, I don't know where John Tavares sits right now on the depth chart when it comes to game one, when his legs are there, when there seems to be some some jump. There's no question that you like him right behind Austin, but it's been hit miss lately with him. So can you experiment moving forward here on a second line and you know, there's some thoughts that maybe with with the likes of McMahon and and Homburg and Robertson now looking a lot stronger, a lot more consistent here. Maybe there's a chance to mix and match here your your your your second and third lines here. This is Sheldon's one of the major boxes that he still needs to check here moving forward is what what things are going to look like behind Austin Matthews line. So two devil's games remaining for the Maple Leafs and those might be actually irrelevant by the time they happen as the devils lose in regulation to the Rangers and our six points back in the capitals for that second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. That was besides the point though, because the line brawl right off the opening draw, which was awesome. I got the cards on the table. I think the three of us probably very much found enjoyment and entertainment value in that. But it's one of those things very divisive or divisive on on Twitter, right? Like and it was one of those rare hockey moments where it does break through to not just hockey circles, but people talking about sports for a living, even people outside of sports are like, wow, that's a thing. Is it good for the sport when when that type of stuff does break through? Like when it's a line brawl and not necessarily Conor McDavid going through five guys. You're asking a 57 year old who's got 1200 career penalty minutes if that's a good thing or not. Well, I'm not sure I'm the right guy to answer that. Well, no, you are. Because the 34 year old was zero career pimps, at least in the NFL or any level that anyone would care about. He agrees with you. So just just say how good it was. I can only tell you that as someone that's kind of lived through something like that, there's there's a lot of different ways that you can bring a team together. But I can't think of a bigger one than than that from the Rangers to the devils to the field that you're sticking together, that you're you're one for all and all for one. That's that's the game of hockey when it matters most is that you look across the room and you trust the guy beside you to watch your back or look after you and it's a fantastic feeling. Now, there are people out there that'll argue there's different ways to get there. Sure, go ahead. But this is my world that that I've lived and you know, apparently it's it's it's it's waned it's they've cleaned up the game so much and that's what again, I don't think people realize is that, you know, in my era, I don't know, five, six, seven games out of 10, there'd be a fight and now we got two or three games out of 10, seven games every week out of 10, no fighting, you know, nothing like this. So it happened. There's a lot of bad blood between these two teams as we know with a couple of heavy weights on it. So I think it was fairly predictable. Something was going to happen. Could we have predicted the line brawl right off the start? No, but there's not too many people that, you know, didn't get a charge out of it one way or the other. So again, for the Rangers who's trying to get ready to win a Stanley Cup, considered now one of the top teams in the league, they still got a lot to prove that they can come together as a team and that's what they wanted to do last night, challenging the devils. And it is what it is. But there's not too many people walking in a New York range of dressing room players or the devil's not feeling good about what they did last night. Yeah, my two favorite parts of it were just the, I mean, the overhead, I don't know if you've managed to see this, but somebody took a video from the press box where you really get you, it's like I'm watching a football game with like the advanced like all 32 film I could see everybody kind of squaring off. And the other part that I thoroughly loved about this was Lavi Alette who answered the challenge put forth by Travis Green of putting all those mutants on the ice, then screaming at Travis Green about Lord knows what I just, when it gets hot, everybody gets involved. And I don't think Lavi Alette had a point he was making. He was just angry. And I kind of love that part of it even, Kipper. Hey, listen, maybe it's running a little bit of a circle here, but, you know, between that last night and Ryan Reeves, like you can't tell me that that emotional element doesn't ring through a building. So, you know, it's not like people are going to race out to get a Ryan Reeves or a Matt Rempe or a McDermott, like New Jersey, there's just, there's not that many out there. And, you know, I don't think that we're going back to anything, but, you know, that part of the game can exist still in certain ways and certain, you know, elements of an 82 game season. We saw it last night. Might be another few years before we see something like that again. The bottom line is, you know, we're going to see some great hockey coming up in the Stanley Cup playoffs led by Conor McDavid and the Austin Matthews and the Nate McKinnon's and, you know, this will be a nice, hey, remember that game conversation when you're having a beer with your buddies. That's all. Yeah. Right. It's the spice of life. And I like that we can have, can we have all the things? Yeah. We're going to have a game that has a, a pure six brawl and then we can have a nice little silky little place through the neutral zone. Great goals. Just you said that, Kemper, and I'm so excited for it to be warm enough for me to sit on a patio with buddies, having a couple of surveyors talking about that exact moment. So I'm just like, I'm already dying for that to happen now. Yeah. It's coming. It's coming. Next week, maybe, uh, Kipper. Thanks, buddy. Okay. You guys have a great day. You too. Nick Kiprios, real Kipper and born. Yeah. And like it's, it, these conversations are tough because I'm aligned with you and Nick Kiprios in fighting and like I defer obviously to Nick Kiprios and all things fighting in the NHL and understanding the risks that are involved and yada, yada, yada, yada, okay. That's awesome. And it would, it would be less awesome if it happened routinely and regularly. And the idea that, oh, it's such a bad look for hockey wins. Like people open up their Twitter screen and it's, and it's that and that's the only thing they see. Here's the thing. Those people are not tuning into hockey games either way. That's not your target audience. And what I think hockey has made a massive mistake in recent days or not recent days recent years. Was like, did I miss them? No, in recent years is like ignoring the true hockey fans and not even the true hockey fans. Even like the fringe hockey fans. Guess what they're interested in face punching. Also that. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. And despite somebody on a panel test, test getting you enjoying it, we're all allowed to enjoy every minute of that. I think it matters so much that it's happening there as well. It can't be lost on the fact that it's like, and boy, fitting with the guy we just talked to. But the last title team for the Rangers was coach by iron Mike Keenan with Nick Giprios a part of it. That is, you know, I talk a lot about fake hockey markets and real and whatever. That's a real hockey market. And I don't know, if I, I'm just thinking, if I'm spitballing in the NHL, like, if I'm in the head offices of get people going, I don't know. What about a rivalry between two teams in the tri state area with all the eyeballs on them? And one of them is seen as big bullies and the other one is the young upstarts with tons of skill. If only somebody could market such a thing, it could not be set up more perfectly to market it. They're rivals just by geography alone. They actually hate one another. The fact that rent pay somehow has spaced out all his fights perfectly to never totally leave the consciousness, but also never, you know, pardon the pun beating us over the head with his presence in the league. It's all been perfect. So yeah, not everybody has to like it. If you're somebody that that offends your sensibilities, okay, that's fine. That's fine. And maybe like that's enough, it doesn't happen often. Like you can have, if you're not into it, it's really, it's not that big a part of the game. It never happens, which is why we're talking about it. If this was a thing that happened five times a year, we wouldn't be, I'm sure your phone is going through the exact same thing. It just tacks blowing up everywhere. Did you see this? It was, it was almost like the old school like, oh, this guy's scoring 50 in the NBA except people do that every day. Malke, I flinted it last night, so it's no longer even special, but it got people going. It's pretty rare. Well, honestly though, it's pretty rare for, I mean, even McDavid, like McDavid will have two and two seemingly twice a week, and that doesn't break through. Just another thing that happens, that broke through. Here's how I know it's good for the game. The Knicks are battling for their spot outside of the play in tournament. I thought you were talking about the Knicks. The Yankees are off to an incredible start, had an X ratings win yesterday, very exciting. The front page of the New York Post sports section is. I'm guessing the way you're setting this up, I know. Fight night. Rangers make points with their fists and their play in win over rivals. It's the sports newspaper of record, New York City. Just sports though. I don't know if you want to delve into the rest of that newspaper, but I have some thoughts. We'll save that for another time. Yeah, that was the biggest deal in the biggest, not just sports market, I mean, medium market in the world that broke through and sorry, like Adam Fox with like a five goal game isn't necessarily doing that. But yeah, I will actually go as far as to say not doing that. Like Adam Fox could have five goals tomorrow night. I don't even know when the Rangers play next, probably tomorrow or Saturday. It would not break through in the way. You know how I know that? Because Nathan McKinnon scored four goals this year, and it was like, okay, Nathan McKinnon scored four goals. And I don't know. Maybe we're all maybe we're all colored differently by this because we saw us about this first game. So four goals. What is that even? But I actually don't think it would break through in the same way. You'd have to I genuinely think you would have to see a like sitler night from somebody to have it break. Because what would a what would just the hockey player doing hockey things have to do to break through in that way? Like if the bread man had a if Adam Fox had a five goal game in that game last night against the devil snuffing out their playoff hopes. It's buried behind the Knicks and the Yankees. Yeah. It just is in that that paper. So yeah. Yeah. That's a very good point. I'm sorry. I cut you off. But I did think you meant like the next of the world. Meaning Nick Caprios. The knickerbockers. All right. When we come back speaking of basketball, we will touch on was gone with the Raptors because you you may have missed it. I like I hope for the sake you did. Yeah. I think for the first time this season, I didn't even flip over to the Raptors game for even one second. Mm hmm. They played a guy that was cut from his G League team yesterday. Uh, I'm out. Got Flynn going off also the live boys. Maybe getting antsy. God. That's the worst. Also, Stefan Diggs traded out a Buffalo, um, would try and figure out exactly why he was so discontented in Buffalo. Anyways, that and more next the fan morning show continues bad ass prank gunning sports at five, nine of the fan dive deep into Toronto sports and the NFL, the JD bunk is podcast subscribe and download the show on Apple Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Bad morning show sports at five, nine of the band and it's prank gunning those the inspiring words of one dark or a octavech. He's trying his best. Okay. I don't, I don't know which one he said. I mean, gotta be on the short list of the toughest seasons to start your NBA head coaching career, but also not because there's literally nothing that could possibly be asked of him. Yeah. Like it's not like it's not easy. I'm not saying no. No, no one's faulting him. Is what you mean? It's like your, you are completely like Teflon from criticism rightly so could have lost that game by a hundred points and what was he supposed to do it? Pretty, pretty close. They're trying. They are trying. Right. It's a complete crap. Yeah. I mean, agreed. Good job. He used that more. I didn't know we had that just in the hopper. Like how to play the game. I don't, they don't know how to play games. Not that way. But I mean, no, it's literally like fantasy camp because they got guys that are barely gee league players that are playing in the NBA right now. And they're looking around and just like, whoa, this is what it's like a living our dream. Oh, 48 point loss, by the way, franchise record margin of defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves 15th straight loss. So here's the last of Matthew's goal records. No, it's like every loss is a new franchise record for the most disappointing. Yeah, they've already suffered the biggest home loss like, I think it was like three of the top seven worst losses in franchise history have happened over the last couple of weeks. And again, like, so the Raptors have played 30 different players this season, which is a franchise where most of the NBA, it's one off the all time record in NBA history. You just need one more point. Like if you're going to be bad, you got to do it, you have to like almost, it's incumbent on you to to set a record should be like the like they should set. They should have like an open trial for the Toronto man that gets to be the guy who sets the record. Honestly, yeah, who would who would fault him? Like when we're talking about g league bench players, how far off are we from like, yeah, the guy who had a good college career who just like goes to plays in a run? Well, I know this isn't fair, like, you know, these guys are busy with their own lives and stuff. But like, can we not just get the scrub brothers out here? Like if we're going to do with this, honestly, anyways, they're also loses a 15 consecutive, which is too off the franchise mark of 17 straight. It's the season from hell. I'm a one a game in a month, Ben. Yeah, nothing matters, right? Because the players aren't playing, although manual quickly is back, RJ Barrett was back for a game, although not back yesterday. Grady Dix been playing through all this. I don't know. Is there like some like, no, effective, like him being near this? It's just it's it's such a bizarre scenario. And it's such a bizarre upcoming couple of months for this team to who might or might not control their own first round pick and what you should be rooting for in that regard is is a confusing one too. I just I can't remember a sports season, anything like what we've seen in Toronto. And yeah, a guy that you traded away who I don't think is like now becoming the second coming. He's he's playing. Someone's got a score, I guess, in Detroit for a piston scene that's just as bad. Malekai Flynn, 50 points off the bench for the Pistons. Yes. It's just you got a guy who's away from the team because he's involved in a betting scandal on himself. Like it's just it's insane. It is it's it's a season unlike any I've ever experienced in my near 40 years of watching pro sports. Yeah, I like this tweet as well from last night. The least beat the wolves by three on opening night, 161 days later, the wolves 52 wins, the Raptors 52 losses. That's the funniest part about this as well as how the season started with a win against the Timberwolves. And you know, I know they weren't at their full. I forget who was missing, but there were guys missing from that game. He was talent. Maybe it's go bare. I don't know. It doesn't really matter. Timber will should have beat him if they were missing everybody. If they were down to their worst date, guys, they probably should still should have beat this Raptors team. You mentioned the Grady Dick. I don't think he is negatively affected by this because he's actually able to play through it. But I'd be lying if I wasn't worried about what this does to Scotty Barnes. I, you know, I know I'd probably have the exact opposite take if he wasn't away from the T or if he wasn't with the team, I go, ah, this is bad. He's not showing buy in, but just him being so comfortable and look, I don't want him sitting there, soaking, punching you, punching stuff, breaking his other hand. I like there's, I don't need performative outrage, but a young player getting so used to this just being the way it goes. It is. I don't know. I don't know. I was getting used to it. He's played in a playoff series. I don't, I don't think that this is some, some moral failing of Scotty Barnes. I just think that what, I mean, that Pistons team that we've referenced is kind of a good example. They got no expectations at all, but they still find a way to scratch and claw and try to have decent habits. And yeah, the guys who were supposed to be bad on the team are actually playing as opposed to hurt like the Raptors have had, but I just be, I am a little concerned about what it does to Scotty Barnes. I don't think this like affects his ceiling as an NBA player, but I do think it can affect the mentality aspect of it. And I think if we have any questions about Barnes, there's some element of that as well. Like he can be a little sleepy throughout games at times. And I just think that this being around this just allows that side of him to kind of grow a little more. I just generally think nothing matters here. Like it's just such a unique circumstance. You are playing absolute. Nobody's. No offense to the, the, the human beings that are occupying those uniforms. That was not NBA players, it's just, it's just a weirdo bizarro season where the Raptors get to skate by criticism. I don't think the front office gets escaped by now. We're not that far removed from 2019 and the championship doesn't paper over everything. But yeah, it's, it's just, it's, yeah, I, again, I can't, I can't think of a, a season like what we've seen. Can I give you one more reason why it's been just a rapture cycle of hell right now and I don't know. People feel differently about this, but because Vince, you know, I always screw this up. It's like he's not technically in the Hall of Fame. He's been like named to it. He will be inducted, whatever it is. We now have to go through the cycle again of, why can't you just forgive and forget? You leave Vince alone. He was young. He didn't know we've just done this a million times and like, I don't need to relitigate or have this conversation again. But I every time Vince Carter's name enters the news, it just leads to a sea of people rising up to tut, tut anyone who dare remember how his tenure ended here and what he did to the franchise in terms of torturing them after he, he left. So I, that's the other part of this just in terms of twisting the knife and things bad and raptors land right now. Can't stand it. Yeah. Yeah. No, it's not going to get better. Unless you think that that's going to be a happy moment for raptors fans, which the other, the other thing on it as well is that, and yeah, there will be people, but all those people are like nine and we're like, I saw highlights and when he dunked over ice, it was great. Right. The, the other thing about this from the, um, from the raptors perspective, as well as just it, there's again, much like with the other teams you talked about, there's just no silver lining. Like there's nothing you can tease or take out of this. It's like even RJ Barrett is at the family tragedy. It has just all been truly atrocious. Yeah. When RJ Barrett's played, he's been really good. Yeah. Quickly. I don't say that. Okay. Yeah. You know, you couldn't hit a three to save his life and yesterday the same deal apparently. I, again, I didn't see one second of this basketball game, but yeah, he's one of six from three. He's been at least a little more capable shooting three, he was six to 17 from the field, which is an ideal minus 37, but yeah, hard to be plus. Let's stop talking about the raptors, shall we? Agreed. Buffalo Bills making a massive move yesterday, trading away their number one ride wide receiver. Stefan Diggs traded to Houston for a 2025 second round pick, which is the Viking second round pick. They also send a 2024 six rounder and a 2025 fifth rounder to Houston along with digs. There's a huge dead cap hit for the Bills this season, but they're off his money for next year. Yep. This is obviously, I mean, you do get a second round pick, so it's not entirely addition by subtraction, but the deal here is essentially addition by subtraction, which is really strange because this is a player. Okay. The performance dropped off and the relationship between he and the quarterback strange at times didn't show up for a mandatory mini camp thing before the season with what we thought was an unexcused absence. And then afterwards it was excused and just like weird tweets like I ultimately, I don't necessarily know what went wrong between the player and the franchise other than it just seems like this is what's going to happen with him wherever he goes. Yeah, I think there's, I think there's an element that it just never, it never clicked and obviously clicked in terms of on field. They had tremendous chemistry. They had great years together in terms of success, but there was always this, this angst surrounding the player in a part of this is diva wide receiver. Like it's a tradition as old as time, but this always seemed to be a little more than just your kind of typical wide receiver one complaining that he doesn't get the ball enough. The missing workload stuff, that's whatever guys miss workouts all the time in the NFL. I really think that this is the bills understanding that this was the time that, I mean, they had a lot of, you know, we don't need to relitigate at all, but it's like they had a massive sea change on their defense of all the guys that let go there. I think there was some element of, all right, the franchise isn't changing because Josh Allen's here and that's not going to change at all. But if there is going to be a sea change where you're really shaking up the room, digs is not going to be back after next year, you might as well do it at this point in time. And the other thing, and you know, hey, you got to go draft the guy to make this idea come to fruition, but you hear it all the time. And this isn't just a this year's draft thing. This has been the last couple of years, just easier to find receivers. You feel like you can find guys that can, that can not replicate who's to find digs is. That's, you know, special, special animal, but you can get a couple of different guys. You find them late in drafts. I think there's no element of that. But I think it's mostly, you had the sea change on personality on the defense might as well have the clean break with them here. Yeah, it's just really strange. Like led the NFL in receptions and yards receiving his first year with the bills. Like we obviously know the quarterback is good enough. It's not like, yes, he's looking, it's like, Hey, I'm open, get me the ball. Quarterback can throw it 200 yards and the numbers did drop off, but yeah, the relationship stuff. I would love to know. Yeah, I would love to know why exactly that is very strange. Masters week is next week. Sorry. So the live guys will be back on our radar to guys that are, yeah, yeah, the guys that are qualified to play in the masters and for Mackenzie Hughes coming up just shy of qualifying. Tough. Yeah, there'll be plenty of Canadian content. So live boys asking about this proposed agreed upon in principle merger between the PIF and the PGA tour and the deadline that's been extended and the conversations that are still taking place between those two sides. Hey, Phil Mickelson talked about, Hey, we understood the first couple of years of this thing when you try and act change, it's going to be a little messy. Bryson to Shambo more explicitly touched on, I think the overwhelming sentiment throughout the live tour is it needs to happen fast. It's not a two year thing, like it needs to happen quicker rather than later, just for the good of the sport. Too many people are losing interest. Oh, too many people. It sounds to me like one person is losing interest. And that would be Bryson to Shambo who, yeah, he's eating delicious filet mignon on the daily, but yeah, going to Trump Dorale wearing your shorts and nobody caring. What happened there? Like, it probably gets old. Yeah, I think there's an element to that from him and you touched on it. This is a guy who he didn't, he didn't like it when they were yelling Bruxy at him and everybody was getting on his case and, you know, he's bullying him in the PGA tour had to come to his defense, but he certainly liked that better than no one caring at all. This is a guy who loves the spotlight. He needs it. He cut like a five minute video montage of himself, like, you know, cooking eggs and eating bacon and working out and it's just, he needs the attention, he needs the eyeballs on him. I also don't think if you just did a draft of all the live guys that you could have come up with the worst person for this message, maybe, like maybe Phil, cause he seemed as like nakedly greedy, I suppose Patrick Reed, just in terms of, you know, general hatred from the golf community, but there's no worst messenger for this than Bryson. And I just, I know this will shock everyone coming from me. I couldn't have less sympathy for a guy. You took a sledgehammer to the world of golf because you needed your big payday and you need your guaranteed money and okay, like, I'm not going to say I don't begrudge it because boy, do I, I also have no sympathy for you for laying in this bed of your own making and no one else. Yeah. What's he talking about with the like lack of interest in the sport? I mean, is there a number to back that up because no, there's not because golf does amazing TV ratings, but I will, I will say, I do think, and part of this is not just on live. I mean, the reason it happened is because of live, but with the new elevated events, it really does, even for me, like even for a sicko who loves it all. Even for me, it does take away from the weeks that aren't an elevated event. And this, this week coming up always feels like nothing because it's the tune up week for the masters, but I really do think there is some element of that. Hey, the master is going to be next week and a golf feel is good as it's ever felt. Yeah. But two weeks after that, when they're, I don't know, again, I don't know where kind of telling. Yeah. I mean, but here's my thing, though. It's like golf isn't going to go away. It's not like, oh man, it's on life support. It's not like the National Lacrosse League, which had like a moment and it's like, good we shut down because of a labor situation and it never quite got like, NLL was on NBC for a hot second, right? It's not like that. It's not like, oh, hey man, we don't get our stuff together. We're gone forever. Like carton Indy car, right? Yeah. Like that used to be a lot more elevated before they separated sponsored by players. And then eventually came back. It's golf. Like, like we're still going to have events like the players and those will still exist. And again, this feels like a guy who's like, I'm disappearing from public consciousness. Nobody knows who I am anymore. And to me, if I'm the PGA tour and I start hearing more and more conversations like that, and now that I have the like pillow of the $3 billion that all the richest sports owners in the world have funneled towards my tour, I'm in the driver's seat when it comes to this negotiation. And I'm surprised to me that this is taking as long as it's taken. So the PGA doesn't like they, I guess would like those guys back, but they're not in a position where they're desperate to make this work, especially when you start, like this is the path has to be telling these guys to shut up. Yeah. How many, how many of those guys does a PGA tour want? I mean, they take them all back, but they want five of those guys back. Like they want Kepka, they want Ron, they want Bryson, like he's still a draw in, in that regard. I just, I, again, I go back to it. I have no sympathy for anyone in this. I think that, but I do think there's just an element where he's not right. But I do think there is a waning interest hockey. I'm not going to pretend I was there for it, but I guarantee you it wasn't in a better place when the WHL and then WHA and NHL were rival leagues. Because guess what? There was less talent at the bottom end of those leagues because they should have been just one. And that's not to say I have a problem when I see just to pick a random golfer, Eric Cole win a golf tournament. I don't get bothered by that. It's golf. That would have happened if you had a full field event with all the best guys. But I can't sit here and say golf's in a better place. And lastly on this, it's why they should have. And by they, this isn't the PG tour, this is really two bodies. It's the RNA who do the open championship and the master's committee. They had a chance to snuff live out by right away saying you take that money, you're never playing in this tournament again. They could have done it. They would have snuffed it out instantly, but they didn't want to take that stance. And now they have to be held accountable partially for where we're out with the game of golf as well. I can't wait to watch the master. Oh my God. Oh, by the way, just a golf show preview pod will be taping it next Monday. Nice. All right. Time now for the wake and write presented by sports interaction, your homegrown sports book, 19 plus bet responsibly. Gotta be a first time for this particular wager. Will the Toronto Blue Jays be no hit in another game in the 2024 regular season paying a minus money rent minus 110 if you think the J's in the remaining 155 games have one more no hitter in them now through seven games. They've been no hit. They've also been one hit. They are also dead last and major league baseball in batting average guys at the top of the lineup like going to hit better guys at the bottom lineup. Your guess is good as mine. It's hard to, you know, give up some juice on the bat like this, but yeah, it does kind of feel right. There's certainly some value there. I will just say either side of it. That's the least fun bet of all time to be involved in. I just have to be. You think you're rooting for a no hitter for your team. If you're taking it and if not, I guess I suppose if you take the other side of it, you just get to celebrate like you won the World Series every time they get a knock. Not every hit. Just a first knock because really what's it matter what's the second one. That is interesting. I would go. Yeah, I'd say they're not going to be no hit again is where I lean on that. Yeah, I think they get no hit. All right. On sports net tonight, huge matchup in the Metro penguins trying to keep rolling in Washington to play the capitals at seven o'clock on sports net. The penguins are, you know what? This is a coin flip. All teams minus one ten on the money line. The total is six, Brent, I'm going to go penguins on the money line caps, fighting it right now. They're in a dog fight for this playoff spot penguins on life support. I also don't hate the Crosby and Russ each to score penguins to win. You get that a plus seven, 10. Yeah. If you like the call the caps parlay paying plus 680, Ovechkin to score plus the capital to score over four and a half goals and a capital's win. Although I don't like that. I do. I think the penguins have that magic. I think I think the penguins might actually make it. Oh, let it happen. All right. That was the waken rake presented by sports interaction, your homegrown sports book 19 plus bet responsibly. When we come back, I'm going to yell at Ben Nicholson Smith and he's not going to deserve it. But I mean, he's just he's going to have to lie. I've been eating it for two hours. So I'm happy somebody else has finally showed up. So you didn't dare yellow kipper. Yeah. Hopefully he's not listening and doesn't know I'm about to yell at him. But yeah, that's coming up next fan morning show continues Ben and his friend gunning sports
