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Chapter 1: What is discussed at the start of this section?
What a way to start the day. How about Jeffrey Lewis putting that song together? That's a very nice song. Good theme song as we welcome you in. Sports Radio 93.7 The Fan, Bob Pompiani, Austin Bechtel. But where did Joe go? Nobody knows. But his face is here. His face is here. He actually looks healthy in this shot, doesn't he?
Yeah, he's a lot more hair than he does currently at the moment in that cardboard cutout. Our friend Joe.
Have you got an update on his sickness? Is he doing better? I have not. We should check in with him. Have you checked in with him? Just yesterday, but he says he's doing okay, just trying to get through it. Maybe we should. He could still do it. If he's at home, he could come on for a little bit, do you think? Maybe not. Maybe he's just tired.
Chapter 2: What updates are there on Joe's health?
We'll see. Anyway, we're here talking sports with you as we always do from 10 until noon at 412-928-9370. And off the top is presented by J.P. Roofing and Siding. Here's a rundown of what we got on today's show. So for the first couple of hours, it's you and me and phone callers. So 412-928-9370. A lot to get into. It's an exciting time of the year.
We have the Pirates at 3-3 coming home for their home opener, and we have the Penguins who are about to move into the playoffs, it would appear. Coming up at noon, it's Mark Caballi, fresh back. Is he back from Arizona? He is. He will be in studio. He will be in studio today, and then Jeff Hathorne will join us between 1 a.m.
and two and potentially jay caulfield at some point jay at 11 45 he is confirmed 11 45 that's good we have a lot to talk about with jay as the penguins get ready for a big game tonight against tampa bay and that's where we're going to start here today with some good hockey talk concerning the penguins uh
And honestly, if you look at the way things have worked out, you could not have asked for a better night than the Penguins had the other night. All the teams that were chasing them lost, and they knocked one hot on their heels off as well. So Detroit goes down when they were here. Everyone else lost along the way, and thus the Penguins right now, with only seven games left...
Have a three-point lead over the Islanders, a four-point lead over the Blue Jackets. They have a game in hand on the Islanders. So New York right now is reeling. The Flyers are back in this, but their schedule gets tougher.
So I look at tonight against Tampa as a very difficult assignment given that Tampa's in a dogfight for the number one seed in their conference as well as winning the Atlantic Division. So they're two points behind Buffalo right now, and they have thoughts on that. And they also know that they're getting pressure from behind from the Montreal Canadiens and the Boston Bruins.
So I think this is going to be a tough assignment for the Penguins tonight. Coming off two really impressive games, games they had to win and did win. And not only did they win, they won them convincingly. And I think that's what I take away from this, the way it's gone. They're operating with a lot of confidence right now, sitting at 92 points most likely.
They'll open up at home now, it looks like, against one of these teams. And Islanders, Blue Jackets, they're one of those teams. It could be the opposition. It could also be the Flyers. It could be the Washington Capitals. So I don't necessarily think... At this point, we really know what it's going to be other than it's going to be potentially a home.
How important is that to you, Austin, when you look at hockey series? Because typically, if you're a better team, you tend to win these things. It doesn't matter if you're away or home. We've seen a lot of upsets from the 8 and 7 seeds.
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Chapter 3: What are the expectations for the Pittsburgh Pirates this season?
But if you're home in the Penguins in a division matchup against either Columbus, Islanders, or Philly or Washington, how big is that home, do you think?
Well, I would much rather play a potential Game 5 series-changing game at home than a Game 7, of course, at home. Now, we've seen the Penguins go on the road to Washington in years past and be able to win a Game 7 there. We've seen the accolades of them being able to do it in Detroit too. But I feel like this team, not nearly as talented as those teams, would benefit from playing at home.
Now, I think record-wise, Bob, they're a better road team than they are a home team this year, which I found fascinating. They have more wins on the road than they do at home. That's an interesting stat. But the playoffs are a different beast.
It says good things, I think, about the Penguins, that they can go on the road regardless and still do well. And I think going into the playoffs, even if you have home ice, you've got to win some games on the road, and they'll be faced with doing that. But looking forward to seeing playoff hockey for the first time in ā Four years.
And so when we look at this team as they get healthier and moving along, and hopefully they'll have Jack St. Ivany back. He's an underrated guy who I really like on their blue line. They need him to get back, and they need Blake Lizotte. No question how important he is for them.
However, some of these moves that Kyle Dubas has made has made it almost like you can wait a little longer when you have guys performing. And certainly a guy like Elmer Soderblom has performed. He's gotten in there. He's made his presence felt. More numbers here than he did in Detroit, even though he played 26 more games with Detroit.
So that had to feel good for him, coming back home the other night, taking on Detroit and beating that team. So they do have an issue here with when you look at power play shorthanded, how it's gone at the end of the year. I think Lazat's absence has affected that. They were one of the best penalty-killing teams in the NHL. Their power play has been one of the best.
I didn't expect it to be sustainable where they were, but it's dropped off a little bit, and they need to get back to doing that. I ask you here at 412-928-9370, who's your MVP of the Pittsburgh Penguins this year? We had this conversation last night. I think it's an interesting one. Normally, when you get a 30-goal score like Anthony Mantha, you would think, okay, he's an MVP candidate.
I think Eric Carlson is the slam dunk MVP winner for this team. But also there are questions about what happens after this year. They have a couple of guys who were big pickups in free agency.
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Chapter 4: How does the team plan to utilize Connor Griffin?
And the problem, or it's a luxury potentially problem here, is that when you have guys like Mantha and Brezzo playing well and you keep them around, there are other guys in their organization who I think are waiting for a chance, a good chance. And I think they have talent, guys like Rutger McGrory. We saw Billy Coivin up here, but he doesn't get a lot of time. Not that he deserved it.
He didn't play all that well, but he's held in pretty high regard. And then you have Horkoff, you have Zahn, and you have number one picks who are going to get more ice time as they go. So you have to be mindful of that, and that is sort of the ā the minefield that Kyle Dubas is going through right now. He wants to win now.
He also needs to load the system up, and I think he's done a pretty good job doing both. So we'll see. Coming up tonight, it's Tampa Bay, Jake Gensel and company. You know, another guy, Austin, who doesn't get enough credit, and even though everybody knows his name, because when we talk about MVPs of the league, his name is out there, but it doesn't really move to the point.
But if you look at the numbers that Nikita Kucherov is ā
Hold on. Bob, we might have some huge news. Huge? Like huge. Now, hold on. Somebody's trying to call in on the hotline here. I got to take this real quick, but I think we have huge news.
All right. Well, I don't know what that could be, but I'm sitting in the passenger seat here. Austin's in the driver's seat. What I was going to say is Nikita Kucherov is a guy who just constantly does his magic. He's unbelievably good. And the Penguins are going to see him along with Jake Henson on the team tonight. That's a team that still has chances of being a Stanley Cup contending team.
And they're very good. They have goaltending. Some of the best goaltending that you're going to find in Vasilevsky. And so those are the teams that if you get into a playoff matchup with, I think you want to stay away from. The Vezina Trophy kind of guys. All right, we have huge news. I don't know what's going on. Lost control. Now you're moving Joe away. What are you doing?
Joe is sick and you just threw him to the wayside here.
Bob, this is such huge news. I had to come in here and be on the video feed for it. The Pirates just put out a tweet. Opening debut with a man that raises his head towards the camera. Conor Griffin is being promoted to the Pirates to make his MLB debut Friday at the Hope Opener. Let's go, Bob!
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Chapter 5: What are the stakes for Tampa Bay in tonight's matchup?
Tonight's matchup, it's Tampa Bay. Tampa Bay has a lot on the line here. They're trying to pursue Buffalo. They also have Montreal hot on their heels. So this is going to be a big test for them. And this is one of the matchups that, while I liked the previous two, I think the Penguins line up well with the teams they just beat, but this is one that's a little bit tricky.
Chapter 6: How does Vasilevsky's presence influence the game?
Yeah, when you have, when you're, first of all, Vasilevsky in that, okay, so number one, you got one of the best guys, best to ever play the game. So you have Vasilevsky there. Their blue line is big. Hedman's out. But Radish is really, we talked about that the other night on the air with Phil Bork and made a great point about Radish being, you know, filling in. Got a big shot from the point.
They're just, they're big and they move the puck. They do a great job, but their forward's up front. from Kucherov, kind of one of the best in the game. And then you've got Point, you've got Gensel. So it is, you're right, this is going to be a real test, but I think the surprising thing is where they're at. I mean, they need a game like this.
They're in danger of falling into the third place in their division, and nobody thought that was even going to happen 30 games ago. And Buffalo on such a great run, and Montreal on a hot streak. It's making them push. So I'd expect that we're going to see the best out of Tampa here tonight.
They're going to get themselves in the right direction, and I think they're hoping to have this game be the one.
Chapter 7: What teams pose the biggest threats in the Eastern Conference?
Yeah, I don't think there's any question about that. When you survey the teams in the Eastern Conference, which teams do you think are the biggest ones to worry about? I mean, the ones who are expected to do well, because Buffalo has just emerged as one of those teams, even though I think their inexperience may hurt them in the longer term. Tampa's been through some things.
Carolina's knocking on the door many years in a row. I think they have the most pressure.
Yeah, they have the most pressure, but they're also the most difficult to play against. But their goaltending, I hate to bust on one part of a team, but their goaltending is suspect. They play such a hard game. They wear themselves down over the whole year too, Bob, right? But they play such a hard game. They're difficult. It's a difficult matchup.
And they've got skill laced throughout the lineup. I think Carolina, Tampa, they're the ones that jump off the map right away. But you get into this. I'll tell you what I first of all feel. It'll be interesting. The Metro Division alone, Bob. Pittsburgh, they're solidifying their position. The Islanders and Columbus are... They're going to battle out, and one of them might not even get in at all.
Chapter 8: How does the playoff pressure affect team performance?
Before, we thought, okay, the wild card. When they stumble like this at this time of the year, it's a problem. So when I look who's ahead, I mean, Buffalo is really good, and I agree. This is going to be a first run for them. What's it going to be like? But Tampa, Carolina, Tampa's goaltending, and then you go to Carolina. The way they play the game, they're a tough matchup.
But that's where I look. And Montreal right now, we haven't seen them in a while. And they're playing great hockey. So I kind of look at it just from that standpoint. Carolina, Tampa, Buffalo, we're not sure what we're going to get in the playoffs. And Montreal, I mean, it's going to be a grind. They're the better teams in the league. And all this opened up, Bob.
When the Rangers stumbled, Toronto stumbled, and Florida with the injuries stumbled as well. Otherwise, I don't know what we'd be looking at in the Eastern Conference because, you know, with those guys bowing out, it opened up the door for three to jump in. But the Pens, Boston, and Buffalo have surprised everybody. Nobody thought those three teams would be in the hunt like they are.
I think that's an excellent point because before this season started, people in New York were looking at Sullivan coming to New York saying, okay, that's been the missing thing here. This team is going to be a playoff team. Toronto, all the pressure, and now they fire their GM. And I think Florida's a natural phenomenon.
When you go that deep, I think three years ago they didn't win, but they went along, and then they went back-to-back. We've seen it here in Pittsburgh. When you do that, eventually you run out of gas. So it has opened up the door for sure.
Yeah, and the teams that just surged were the ones, and Bob, as we were talking about, nobody gave the Pens a chance, nobody gave Boston a chance, and nobody gave Buffalo. And Buffalo turned it around almost the same time the Pens. What they've done is really phenomenal as well. Change your GM, and all of a sudden you're going to roll.
They have a good, skilled team, fast, and they're getting the goaltending. It's going to be kind of wild for me, but they're all ā and Boston. Boston is built tough. they added, you know, and they had that Castellan and they, they give them all bigger, you know, they play a bigger game. But again, what are you going to, what's, what's the real tough matchup.
And I think an early one, you know, be careful what you wish for. I don't want to say who I'd rather see, but I think if you look at Columbus or the Islanders and things like that, I think the Penguins are, they're a better team than any, anybody we're mentioning. I truly think the Pens can be, They can be an elite in the Eastern Conference. It's going to be the luck of the draw, too.
Who do you get? But I like they got to play. I want to see the game tonight just like you do, Bob. It's a measuring stick. I love it. I always think there's measuring stick games. You got to see who you are against the best. And I certainly look at it. I know Mike Sullivan didn't like that term. I never minded that term. You always size yourself up.
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