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New York Times
18-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Leafs, Senators, history and pressure: What success means in the Battle of Ontario
The most anticipated matchup in the NHL Eastern Conference playoffs is undoubtedly the Battle of Ontario between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators, as these provincial rivals are set to clash once again after 21 years. Toronto has won all four previous playoff meetings, but Ottawa dominated the regular season series, sweeping the Leafs 3-0. The Senators are making their first postseason appearance since 2017, and while they swept aside the Maple Leafs in the regular season, Toronto enters the series as Atlantic Division champions. Advertisement On the latest episode of The Athletic Hockey Show, Sean McIndoe, Sean Gentille, and Frankie Corrado discussed if Ottawa's season will still be considered a success even if it ends in a first-round exit, and why all the pressure is on Toronto heading into this series. A partial transcript has been edited for clarity and length. The full episode is available on the 'The Athletic Hockey Show' feed on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Sean McIndoe: I don't want to undersell how important this series is in Ottawa. A lot of Senators fans still have the scars of those four playoff losses, and to climb all this way and then lose to the Leafs again would be very painful. But purely from just a hockey point of view, the Senators have already achieved the goal for this year. The Senators are already a success, and pending whatever happens, they don't need to win the series here. The Toronto Maple Leafs have not accomplished anything because there was nothing they could do short of a playoff run. Sean Gentille: What if it's Leafs in five? What if this is a short series? Are we still saying this is a success for the Senators? Sean McIndoe: It'll sting for Ottawa, absolutely. But you will still look at the season as a success, and say, 'Man, I wish we had lost to anybody but the Leafs in the first round.' But as far as the pressure in this series, I don't think there's any question it's on the Leafs, and they will feel that. I'm sure the Senators players will remind them of it at every opportunity. Mentally, this could be a hurdle for the Leafs. If you're the Leafs, you will look back on last year in the playoffs, even though you probably don't want to. But like Frankie said, they just can't score in the playoffs, and this always happens to them. They had one game against the Bruins where they managed three goals in a game, but only one. They were looking at each other, going, 'Hey, who's the goalie in that game?' All right, that was the one game that the Bruins started Linus Ullmark. We couldn't score on Jeremy Swayman, but we did pretty well against Ullmark. So maybe that's where you feel okay … right up until he makes 15 saves in the first period in Game 1 then you're down 1-0 in intermission, and you're looking around going, 'It's all happening again, here we go.' Advertisement Frankie Corrado: There's no doubt that the pressure is all on Toronto. Based on the playoff past, the scar tissue that has followed them, and only having one series win in nine years. Also, Toronto's got fan pressure, or whatever you want to call it. They're playing home games in Toronto, and they have a massive contingent out in Ottawa. So a little bit of that follows them around. I'm not saying that's going to be a deterrent or anything like that. But the pressure will be felt on home ice and on the road somewhat equally. But it does feel a little bit different for Toronto this year, they're operating differently. They've achieved the same result by being a good team and going to the playoffs. They even call it a better result because they've won a division now, and they're operating a little differently in how they do things. But this is when we wanted to see if that's going to work. The Craig Berube evaluation, or whatever you want to call it, starts now for Berube and this team. We knew this was almost a formality that they were going to get to the playoffs. But now, does it look different? And the crazy thing is, it's two weeks. You make this entire evaluation, you play all these games, and you make this evaluation over a quick two-week stretch where things can happen quickly. But that's reality for this group based on what has happened in the past. Sean Gentille: And the first division title in 25 years too … Frankie Corrado: The first one that counts … Sean Gentille: Does that carry any weight? I'm asking you guys specifically because it seems like a complete afterthought. Sean McIndoe: They could have won the Presidents' Trophy, and it would not matter. You can't win a playoff series during the regular season. It's not like, 'Wow, they haven't done enough.' It's that there was nothing they could do. They could go 82-0, we all made that joke heading into the season. The Leafs could go 82-0, but it wouldn't have mattered. They have to do it in the playoffs, and now the playoffs are here. Advertisement To pull it back to the original Battle of Ontario, that was always the thing hanging over the Senators back then. Remember those Senators teams were really good under Jacques Martin, but they just couldn't get over the hump. Back then, the hump wasn't necessarily the first round because they did win a couple of rounds. But they couldn't get past the Leafs. And they ended up making the coaching change, the lockout happened, and they got to a final. But they never got past the finish line. Now it's flipped around, and the pressure is all on one team in a series that's going to have a ton of media coverage, national attention and spotlight. Frankie Corrado: And social media. We never had social media for the original Battles of Ontario in the early 2000s. We had newspapers and what you saw on the broadcast, and during intermissions. So from the fan experience, this is going to be totally different this time around. Sean McIndoe: Everybody just stay frosty is what I'm saying to Leafs and Senators fans. I'm going to say the same thing to you I said to Brady Tkachuk … 10 out of 10, not 15 out of 10. That's all I'm asking. Sean Gentille: Meanwhile, I'm stuck being compelled by this series. I wish I wasn't, but I blame you guys, my profession and various aspects of my personal life for this. I am way too invested in this one. You can listen to full episodes of The Athletic Hockey Show for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. (Top Photo:)
New York Times
26-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Which of the NHL's bottom 10 teams is most likely to win the Stanley Cup in 10 years?
This week on 'The Athletic Hockey Show', Max Bultman and Corey Pronman were joined by Scott Wheeler and FloHockey's Chris Peters to discuss which of the bottom 10 teams from last season are most likely to lift a Stanley Cup in the next decade. A partial transcript has been edited for clarity and length. The full episode is available on the 'The Athletic Hockey Show' feed on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Max: I want to start with an exercise Corey suggested about which of the bottom 10 teams from last season are most likely to win a Stanley Cup in the next 10 years. We're going to use last season because those results are final. There are going to be some teams like Detroit, Philadelphia and Buffalo that were not in the bottom 10 last year that maybe belong in the same conversation. If people want to mention those in their answers, I don't have a problem with that. But just to keep some boundary on it, we are going with the bottom 10 from last year. Which, just to refresh everybody's mind, was San Jose, Chicago, Anaheim, Columbus, Montreal, Arizona (now Utah), Ottawa, Calgary, Seattle and New Jersey. From that pool, Scott, give me your number one team to win a Stanley Cup in the next ten years. Advertisement Scott: I'll go with the San Jose Sharks. I've been really excited by what they've done this year, despite how poor they've been in the standings and the goal differential. Macklin Celebrini is a transformational player for them. Will Smith has played at a very high level over the last two or three months and has me excited about his ongoing potential to be an upper-echelon point producer in the NHL. Very different conversations, but kind of the Leon Draisaitl to the Connor McDavid or the Mikko Rantanen to the Nathan MacKinnon kind of thing. I think Will Smith has a chance not to be a Hall of Famer like those guys are going to be, but to be a high-end offensive talent. And I'm excited about what they have coming elsewhere in the organization. Yaroslav Askarov is a stud. Sam Dickinson is a stud. And they're going to add another player of that Sam Dickinson, Will Smith caliber in this year's draft by drafting again in the top five. It's not going to be a Macklin Celebrini addition to that group, but I would fully expect they'll add another high-end piece. If they spend their money well when the time is right — and if they strike in free agency — of the teams that are in a true rebuild and relying on their youth right now like Montreal, Anaheim and Columbus, I think they've got the best chance to strike when the iron is hot in a more advantageous way than those other teams do. Max: Chris, how about you? Chris: I also went with the San Jose Sharks. It's really for one reason and one reason only, that's the centerpiece — Macklin Celebrini. You look at the teams that have won Stanley Cups in recent years, they have that core player. They have that guy who has been part of the organization and has made a difference. You look around the league and see the players that have come in through the draft over the last couple of years, I don't think we've seen a player as complete and as good a building block as Celebrini, notwithstanding guys like Connor McDavid and others. But you see what he is, and you get that feeling that he is what Nathan MacKinnon became for Colorado. Even more so than some of the other guys like Connor Bedard, who we think is going to be a centerpiece for Chicago for a long time to come, and the best is yet to come in his career. But when you have that central figure, and when I think about teams we'll talk about later, like Montreal or Ottawa — although with Ottawa you can argue whether it's Tim Stutzle or Brady Tkachuk — there are teams in the bottom 10 that have that core player, but not a single one of them will match what Macklin Celebrini's ultimate upside is going to be. Then, as Scott mentioned, they have these other pieces. Will Smith can be the Patrick Kane to the Jonathan Toews. That Batman and Robin scenario that eventually flip-flopped over time, even though I don't think that'll necessarily happen between Smith and Celebrini. The fact that they have Yaroslav Askarov as well is interesting to me. As we've seen, teams can win without centerpiece goaltending and elite goalies. It helps when you have it, but it doesn't necessarily preclude you from winning the Stanley Cup because it's much more about building the rest of that team. But with Celebrini at the forefront and this year's draft, they're adding those pieces. There's more work to be done for the Sharks among those other teams. But to me, the cheat code is Celebrini. You can't win hockey games with one player, but you can't start a rebuild without a cornerstone, and they have it. Advertisement Max: I tried to do mine based on replaceable pieces, or pieces that would be impossible to find otherwise, and Celebrini certainly fits that definition. I also love where San Jose is positioned, as Scott alluded to, to get another key piece in this draft. Whether it's Matthew Schaefer, Michael Misa or Porter Martone. They're going to get another premium piece, so I also have them at one. Is it a clean sweep, Corey? Corey: This is the tough thing with these kinds of exercises, because again, I love Macklin Celebrini. He's an elite player and has a good chance to be a top 10, top five player in the league when he really hits. The problem is where they are at this point right now. To get from where San Jose is right now, which is still an exciting young team from a talent perspective, but as an NHL team, they're quite poor. To get from there to win a Stanley Cup is a giant climb. Think about the last 10 or 15 years, how many times we've said we're excited by the young talent in Buffalo, or excited by the young talent in Columbus? And the real marginal progress those teams took. It can be really tough. So I'm not going to put San Jose at one because I think they have so much room to go to become a playoff team, let alone a contender. A lot is going to need to go right. Yes, we've liked the development of the young kids. But is Will Smith going to become a star? Is William Eklund going to become a star? Will Sam Dickinson become a star? Will Yaroslav Askarov become one? Maybe. But there's so much uncertainty there. It's why the team I have at one is actually one of those organisations I just named, who we said we've always been excited about, and I'm starting to get excited about them again — that's Columbus. Why Columbus? They've fallen off a little bit lately in the standings, because they were in a playoff race, but they're slipping away from the race right now. But I look at this lineup, both the current lineup and where I think this team is going. One, I see the elite pieces. Zach Werenski is in the MVP discussion this year, so they have the elite player. The way he's playing this year, I also think Adam Fantilli is going to get to that elite level. I don't think he's going to get to Macklin Celebrini level, but I don't think he's going to be dramatically off. This guy looks like he's emerging as a star number one centre in this league. He's gotten comfortable one and a half years into his NHL career. You also look at the talent around him. Kirill Marchenko has elevated, Kent Johnson is having a fantastic year, and Denton Mateychuk looked very promising as a rookie pro. The rebuild hasn't gone perfectly, i.e. David Jiricek. But again, not all rebuilds are going to go perfectly, there's going to be misses. But I think they are a lot further along. They are around 12th in the league in goals this year, and yes, they've got to shore up their goals against. But I think there's a lot of promise there. They have the elite pieces, they have the quality of young depth, and I see a path if things continue to go well for them to build an elite team. You can listen to full episodes of The Athletic Hockey Show for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
New York Times
07-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Winnipeg Jets trade deadline primer: Everything you need to know for Friday
Kevin Cheveldayoff has been an aggressive buyer every single time the Winnipeg Jets have had a realistic shot at a deep playoff run. That's not going to change now that Winnipeg has the NHL's best record and over $12 million in cap space to start deadline day. Cheveldayoff and his management team, pro scouts, and staff are gathered at the team hotel in Philadelphia where they will remain until the 3 p.m. Eastern deadline passes. Their 43-16-4 Jets are Stanley Cup contenders but could use help at second line centre and on defence. They've shown interest in centres Brock Nelson and Scott Laughton up front and I suspect they're in on Rasmus Ristolainen and Mario Ferraro to help their blue line. They have already made a minor league trade, acquiring Winnipeg-born goaltender Chris Driedger from Florida for Kaapo Kahkonen. Advertisement It's been a seller's market thus far. Whereas the Jets acquired Sean Monahan for a first-round pick last season, the Islanders got a first-round pick, a conditional third-round pick, and a top prospect in Calum Ritchie for Nelson late Thursday. The Flyers have asked for a first-round pick for Laughton and one imagines they can get at least that much for Ristolainen, too. This makes Winnipeg's task trickier than it's been in other contending years. Cheveldayoff acquired Paul Stastny in 2018, Kevin Hayes and Nathan Beaulieu in 2019, Nino Niederreiter and Vladislav Namestnikov in 2023, and all of Sean Monahan, Tyler Toffoli, and Colin Miller last season. The Jets fell short on Nelson, likely because they couldn't offer a prospect of Ritchie's quality, and may face high prices for lesser players as they're forced to pivot. Will the Jets find a way to acquire one of the other centres on the market? Did their conversations with Lou Lamoriello kickstart other trade opportunities with the Islanders? And how will they shore up their defence corps? Here is all our coverage from the past few weeks and everything you need to know for Winnipeg's trade deadline. • NHL trade deadline: Friday, March 7 at 3 p.m. ET • The Athletic has live coverage of the 2025 NHL trade deadline • Latest trade board from Chris Johnston • Instant analysis of every trade deadline deal • Trade grades from every deal completed on deadline day • 🎧 The Athletic Hockey Show: Who are the top teams to watch on NHL trade deadline day? • Why Kevin Cheveldayoff needs to buy at the deadline • What I'm hearing about the Jets ahead of the trade deadline: Joel Armia and other depth options • Jets trade targets: 6 under-the-radar players they could add at the deadline • Who says no? Jets subscriber trade proposals dissected by NHL sources Advertisement • O'Reilly? Nelson? Or should the Jets go shopping for chemistry at the deadline? • Winnipeg's best case for trading Nikolaj Ehlers — and the best case to keep him • Ranking the Jets' top 10 trade assets: Which ones could be in play? • Jets trade targets: 10 new options emerge as the deadline nears • Jets trade targets: Which defencemen could cement Stanley Cup contender status? • Jets trade targets: Which top forwards would be that elusive perfect fit? • Jets' trade deadline plans, interest in Jonathan Toews: 5 takeaways from GM Kevin Cheveldayoff • Brock Nelson? MacKenzie Weegar? What would a 'perfect' Jets trade deadline look like?
New York Times
20-02-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Where could the U.S. have the edge over Canada in the 4 Nations final?
The 4 Nations Face-Off championship game is upon us and if last Saturday night's clash between the U.S. and Canada is anything to go by, it shouldn't disappoint. Team USA came out on top at the Bell Centre in Montreal, but whoever is victorious tonight will have all the bragging rights until we hit the ice again in Italy next year. Advertisement On the latest episode of 'The Athletic Hockey Show,' Hailey Salvian, Sean Gentille and former Team USA captain Brian Boyle discussed where the Americans could have the edge. A partial transcript has been edited for clarity and length. The full episode is available on 'The Athletic Hockey Show' feed on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Hailey: Teeing up the final between these two teams, we talked a little bit before you came on Brian about the edge that the U.S. clearly has in net. Connor Hellebuyck is arguably the best goalie in the world right now. It's probably not even an argument — he just is the best. He's likely up against Jordan Binnington. Other than the goaltending, where do you think the U.S. might have the slight or biggest edge over Canada heading into this game? Brian: I would say the Faber-Slavin (Brock Faber and Jaccob Slavin) pair. I don't know if … see, this is where I hate answering these questions. Haley: Maybe it is just goaltending, maybe that's just it? Brian: Obviously I'm American and Canada in hockey is the big brother, they just are. It's hard to beat your big brother (laughs) and the U.S. has been trying … Sean: You've got a lot of those don't you? Brian: I've got a few big brothers myself, yeah (laughs), but I was eventually able to beat them in sports. But the U.S. is trying to change that and grassroots hockey has grown and there are more people here. There are 10 times more people here in the U.S. Hockey is not the most popular thing in the U.S., but to the guys that play, it's the only sport. I enjoy baseball, I played it a lot and I played football and all these things. But when you're a hockey player, you're a hockey player and that's what these U.S. guys want to show. I can't say Drew Doughty is going to go out and not have a great game and not shut somebody down. How do you do that? He's (missed) six games and then he comes in and he's been playing. There are so many good players in Canada, and Canada's top players are Connor McDavid, Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon and Sidney Crosby. Sid's doing it in a different way because it seems like he's not got the full use of his extremities right now, but he's still just making it happen. That's what you're up against. So that Faber-Slavin pair, if they can skate and shut down those aforementioned superstars on Canada, that is the key to the game. Advertisement I think Hellebuyck plays solid. The U.S. probably expects a good game from Binnington. He's a gamer obviously and he's won a couple of big games in this same building. Even though that was a few years back now, you can't ever doubt a champion. You expect them to find something. So where's the edge? I like that the U.S. made some moves where they took part of their top line and part of their 'third line' and mixed it up. I liked their middle six against Finland where they were playing more straight lines. They have enough beef now with their skill. If Brady Tkachuk is 100 percent, I'm a lot happier. I was not happy with how he kind of hid in there. I don't know if it's a hip or ribs, but he might be labored. I'm sure he'll figure out a way to be a beast though, because he's incredible. So that pair, and then the Tkachuk brothers; that is what has put them over the edge. That is what reminds me of 1996 the most when the U.S. won. But I'm nervous. It seems like Canada loses in the round-robin and then when it's time to win, they win. They're all champions for that reason. They're on the team for that reason. They both have a great mix of skill, physicality, passion and leadership. It's hard to predict. I am nervous, but I'm very excited to watch it. You can listen to full episodes of Rates & Barrels for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. (Top photo of Connor Hellebuyck: Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images)
