#33 - "They're Going Home!"

The NHL Draft Lottery happened moments before the boys went to record so you get to see (or hear) the initial reactions to the news. The New York Rangers have the first overall pick and most likely will select Alexis Lafreniere. Man, talk about LETHAL but, has the lottery become a farce? The boys discuss!
The Toronto Maple Leafs played a thrilling Game 5 against the Columbus Blue Jackets only to lose 3-0. What happened? What's the excuse this year? Is John Tortorella a genius or are the Maple Leafs a team that isn't deep enough to make a strong push for the Stanley Cup? What does Kyle Dubas have to do to this team to put them in a better position to succeed? What do we make of the likes of the big four on the Leafs - Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, and John Tavares? A lot of self-reflection needs to happen this off-season for the Leafs but, credit the Blue Jackets, they played a good series.
Other teams that bowed out earlier than expected - the Edmonton Oilers and the Pittsburgh Penguins. What went wrong for those teams and where do they go from here?
With the Qualifiers and Round Robins finally over, now comes the REAL PLAYOFFS!
The boys go through the matchups and give their takes on each series:
- Montreal Canadiens vs. Philadelphia Flyers - can lightning strike twice for the Canadiens? Tell ya one thing - Carey Price will need more help than what he had in the Pittsburgh series.
- Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Tampa Bay Lightning - how spooked are the Lightning since the last time these two faced off a year ago?
- Washington Capitals vs. New York Islanders - Barry Trotz goes against his former club. How do the Islanders shut down a squad that has the talents of Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and John Carlson?
- Boston Bruins vs. Carolina Hurricanes - the Bruins didn't play up to their usual standards in the Round Robin. Do they turn it around against the Hurricanes who swept the Rangers?
- Vegas Golden Knights vs. Chicago Blackhawks - Vegas torched the West in the Round Robin as Chicago was putting the Edmonton Oilers to shame. Who emerges as the victor and how much does goaltending play into this series?
- Colorado Avalanche vs. Arizona Coyotes - Darcy Kuemper had a phenomenal series against the Nashville Predators. Does he have enough to sustain a heavy Colorado Avalanche offense that has Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen?
- Dallas Stars vs. Calgary Flames - Flames played an injured Winnipeg Jets team. They will have to step their game if they want to defeat Tyler Seguin and his band of merry men.
- Vancouver Canucks vs. St. Louis Blues - Just like the Bruins, the Blues didn't play that well in the Round Robin. Does Vancouver have it in them to expose weaknesses in the defending Stanley Cup Champions?
And to cap off a great episode, our very first Listener of the Month joins us - Tomas Rickus! He lends his knowledge on how the Toronto Raptors are the epitome of how a great organization should run and asks the boys why the Maple Leafs struggle? Tomas, not just a basketball fan, gives us his perspective on the Maple Leafs and their continuous downfall.
Follow him on twitter @trickyricky5
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