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Boomer & Gio

Mark Messier In-Studio

07 Jan 2026

Transcription

Chapter 1: What makes Mark Messier a legendary figure in hockey?

0.031 - 20.596 Boomer Esiason

Always happy to welcome in one of the all-time greats. I feel like we say all the time in this show, he could be the next Mark Messier. We say that about a guy coming in from another organization to help a team win a championship. Maybe he'll be the next Mark Messier. It hasn't happened yet since Mark Messier did it, but he's in studio with us.

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20.656 - 29.447 Boomer Esiason

Of course, Stanley Cup champion, Hall of Famer, one of the greats with his brand, Game 7, which is the first brand partnership the New York Rangers have ever had.

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29.427 - 47.217 Boomer Esiason

on their jersey of course this in the centennial season mark welcome to the show good morning how are you i'm doing great great to be here in studio live with you guys it's been at least a year since uh at least yeah at least a year you know and he's on the other side now he's with us i'm with you guys you know i'll tell you what ben

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47.197 - 49.822 Gio

Working with that PK Subban, man, that's got to be interesting.

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50.303 - 63.568 Mark Messier

Well, PK and I have become great friends. Like any team, it takes a while to get the synergy and the chemistry going. I think we're doing a decent job there now, and we're having fun doing it. And PK is an interesting guy, but I love the guy.

63.548 - 72.741 Gio

You know, I've worked with a lot of flamboyant guys before, guys that are just loud and just dress loud. But they actually do bring the energy every time that camera goes on.

72.841 - 92.948 Mark Messier

He's very good at the job, and he's got an effervescent personality. He brings a lot of energy to the studio. He brings a different element to the studio because of his style. And, you know, he's obviously an ex-player. He knows what he's talking about when he's breaking down film and all that. So I love working with him, and I think the show is good because of him.

92.928 - 102.72 Gio

Yeah, he's not afraid to throw a little criticism out there. You, by the way, are a little bit more careful. I will say that you say what you've got to say, but you're Mark Messier.

103.12 - 122.243 Mark Messier

Boomer, let me tell you, because you're in the business yourself, the biggest fear that I had taking the job was I had to be critical of players. It goes against everything in my instinct to be critical of players because I was always protective of my players. But I realized my new team is the audience, and I've got to be actually...

Chapter 2: How does Mark Messier describe his relationship with PK Subban?

189.208 - 206.236 Gio

And I've told Gio and the crew here, I said, I've never met an 18-year-old. When you're talking to him, he's 18. Yeah. Okay, but he's been through a lot in his life. He lost his mom, lost his billet mom. You would know more about that than I would in terms of how important they are in your life and your growth as a young man.

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206.778 - 211.872 Gio

I still have a hard time believing that he... And he's a young 18 right now. He just turned 18.

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211.972 - 234.58 Mark Messier

Yeah, some... You know, you got to look... you know, into the parenting of a kid that grows up like that, that is that polished, that mature, that well-spoken, that aware of himself coming into the professional league. I mean, that's, in my opinion, that's parenting. And, you know, God rest his mom, but, and, you know, obviously he's given a lot of credit, but what a,

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234.56 - 239.792 Mark Messier

What a selection for the Islanders, and what a player to build the team around.

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239.932 - 248.371 Gio

I know you and Wayne Gretzky, when you were that age, you guys were advanced in your skills, and you guys... I wasn't. Wayne was.

248.411 - 260.037 Mark Messier

Wayne was. I hardly played junior hockey, so I wasn't very... unfinished product by the time I turned pro. So I had to kind of hone my skills at the professional level, which is never easy.

260.417 - 269.578 Gio

It's never easy, but watching this kid, I even asked my son-in-law, I said, like, how did you know? He played 17 games before he was drafted by the Islanders.

269.558 - 286.858 Gio

And there was a little bit of a discussion, should the Islanders take this kid Hagans, who's from Long Island, and a great player in his own right, who's ended up playing at Boston College, or do you take this 17-year-old defenseman that only played 17 games? How can you tell when a guy is that good? That young.

287.359 - 304.729 Mark Messier

You know, my dad used to say he could smell a hockey player the first time he walks into a rink there. Because if you know hockey, certain players just have that it factor. I think they've obviously been tracking Matthew Schaefer since he was probably 14, 15 years old and on everybody's radar.

Chapter 3: What challenges does Mark Messier face as a commentator?

423.762 - 440.695 Mark Messier

Um, but they changed the core and that is going to take some time. And then you bring in a new coach with a different philosophy of how to play defensively, offensively. Um, and they're, they're leaning on a lot of younger players now to, you know, play a bigger roles on the team and. It's going to take some time.

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440.735 - 449.758 Mark Messier

So I think, you know, for me personally there, I look at it, there's got to be some patience at the same time. There's not a lot of patience for Ranger fans, so it's a tough situation.

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449.818 - 470.388 Gio

You know, at game seven, I would have won game six of myself because that game six against the Devils still lives in my heart. It's one of the most amazing sporting and games and experiences I have ever seen. And I was there up close and personal, and it was amazing. You know, the thing about the Rangers is the passion of the fan base. And it never wanes. It never wanes.

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470.908 - 486.627 Gio

Like, you know, I think the Jet fan has been hit over the head with the idiot stick. The Met fan has been hit over the head with the idiot stick. You know, even the Giant fan, they're not even showing up to these games anymore. You know, the garden's always full for a Ranger game. There is something about a Ranger fan, and, you know, we're passionate.

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486.647 - 499.182 Gio

Sometimes we get idiotic, too, and we have unrealistic expectations. I think the big miss, if I had to guess over the last four or five years, was the ability that they had to trade for Jake Gensel, and they didn't do it.

499.202 - 515.679 Mark Messier

Yeah, yeah. You know, I think we all hear hearsay of what could have been, should have been, the opportunities, but unless you're really in there and knowing what the actual deal was. Look, I think Jake Gensel is an amazing player. I think he's one of the most underrated players in the league. All he does is score wherever he goes.

516.74 - 525.968 Mark Messier

You know, he played some great players with Sidney Crosby and he's in a good position now in Tampa. But he ends up in the Eastern Conference with these teams and he kills the Rangers.

525.988 - 528.09 Gio

That's all the more reason to get him on your team.

528.591 - 529.692 Mark Messier

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Chapter 4: Who is Matthew Schaefer and why is he gaining attention?

574.833 - 596.38 Mark Messier

I have to put, you know, the time and to try to build the team around me. It's just part of playing in New York. And if that is too much, then so be it. But that's what New York demands. That's what the New York fans demand. And to me, I think it's one of the most important parts of any organization when they go on with Stanley Cup is that that –

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597.575 - 607.825 Mark Messier

That demand, that pressure, that accountability is there for teams and players. And players, if you're not doing it, you're going to hear about it.

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607.845 - 626.063 Boomer Esiason

Now, I hear a lot from former NHL players when they're talking about their best teams. It's not just the chemistry on the ice. It's the chemistry off the ice and the room that works. And there's rooms that work and there's rooms that don't work. Now, Chris Drury looked at this previous team in that room and said it's not working for some reason and did break it up.

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626.043 - 632.49 Boomer Esiason

What do you know about that room that wasn't working for the Rangers and Chris Drury and why he had to do it?

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632.51 - 654.953 Mark Messier

That's a great question, and I don't have that kind of information because unless you're actually in the room and in the organization to understand the nuances of personalities and what's going on, I would only be speculating, so I can't answer that. I don't know if they broke the team up the year before because of that. I think it was when they...

654.933 - 677.708 Mark Messier

decided to move on from some of the players like Kreider and that last year's team broke apart. And for whatever reason, I'm not going to speculate. I think... I don't think they broke the team up. I think they broke the team up because they... probably weren't sure that they could get over the top with the players that they had at the time. And I think that's a different conversation. Sure.

678.088 - 690.492 Mark Messier

And that's a philosophical conversation when you get into, you know, management coaches and the decisions that they have to make in order, because their responsibility is to win. And when they're in that position, they have to make hard decisions. And,

690.472 - 702.596 Mark Messier

And I don't envy them having to make those decisions because sometimes you've got to make moves that are unpopular that you think are the best thing for the organization. And only time will tell what those decisions are.

702.756 - 721.98 Gio

You know, when you have the C on your jersey, that means something in your sport. I mean, that is all about your sport. And it's always a special guy who wears it, much like yourself. Chris Drury wore it when he was here. And he basically, in my eyes, shivved the back of the captain that was here. And that was Jacob Druba. And then it took a while to get out from underneath all of that.

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