The Penguins curse in Raleigh lives on despite a GUTSY effort!

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The curse of Carolina continues despite a great effort by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

They fall six to five in over time.

We're going to recap that game right after this.

Your Lockdown Penguin, your daily podcast on the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team, every day.

Welcome into the Thursday edition of the Lockdown Penguins podcast.

I am one of your hosts, Patrick Damp.

You can follow me across all social media platforms at synonym for wet.

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A lot to talk about on this one.

Obviously, Sydney Crosby's return to the Pittsburgh penguins lineup, a wild game in

Carolina, and I also got an interview with the coach of the team who scored the viral

fake Michigan goal.

But before we get into any of that, six to five in overtime, the penguins lose an

absolutely gutsy effort by the penguins though there is a whole lot to like.

They get a point out of it.

They get a point in a game where they probably didn't play their best for a lot of the game.

Another offers another moment in New Raleigh where they steal a point that they probably

didn't deserve.

But at the end of the day, the curse of Carolina remains in place.

They still have not been able to get a win in Carolina for quite some time.

And Hunter, I don't, I think I know where you want to start with this one.

So I'm just going to let you off the leash.

What do you got going on?

What a hockey game first and foremost.

That's probably in terms of entertainment value, the game of this season from both teams.

It felt like the penguins were potentially going to steal not just one point back, but

two points.

They were really close to winning that game in regulation.

What can you do when the puck bounces like that?

Kyandre Miller, harmless shot towards the goal, look like it bounced a couple of times.

Stuart Skinner is not going to stop at and by the way, man, speaking of Stuart Skinner,

everyone on this team owes him about 30 state dinners tonight.

People are going to look at it, you know, the box scovers and be like, oh, he gave up six

goals.

What are you talking about?

Trust me, people.

Stuart Skinner was awesome in this game.

There's not a single goal that I can really be like, oh, he should have probably had that.

The penguins just weren't playing well defensively in front of him at all.

He had in less than 99 games out of 138 saves from your goal tender is usually enough.

Yes.

100%.

Like that third period was just so chaotic.

I mean, he'd only given up two goals going into that third and then it was just pure

chaos right from the opening puck drop for that final frame.

The power plays, the penguins, God, the way the hurricanes responded and the penguins

responded and the penguins take the lead with less than five minutes to go.

Carolina ties it with less than three minutes to go again, the entertainment value was really

off the charts.

But I still felt like overall effort wise, Pat, I still loved the heart.

I loved the grit.

I love the tenacity.

They got to play better defense in front of a Stuart Skinner.

That was not good enough in this game.

They also weren't handling the puck well at all.

They're like, they were kind of handling like a grenade.

They could not even string together two consecutive passes for a lot of this game.

Carolina was really sitting at the blue line, daring them to forecheck for most of this

game.

And the penguins just really couldn't break through it at all.

They did a couple of times, for example, record recaled the play that he made on Jalen

Chapfield down low, he made Batcross, the goal happened, very, very well done.

But other than that and a couple other instances, there wasn't a lot of plays down low that

is where I'm like, okay, they're getting to their cycle game, they're working it low

to high.

There just was a lot of one in guns in this one, but again, I loved the heart.

I loved the overall effort.

This team has some stones, man.

They really do.

And getting a point out of this game is big.

I'm not going to be super negative on the show.

I don't think you are going to be either.

I don't think a lot of fans should be either.

You got six out of 10 points on this road trip, considering who you were without for a

good chunk of it.

Obviously, the players that came back towards the end of it, going two one and two again

and six out of 10 points.

To me, that is a successful trip as you come home.

Yeah.

You put it in context, six out of 10 on this road trip is nothing to be ashamed of.

There's some points here and there I think that are left on the table, but really at this

point, you're nitpicking if that's what you're going for.

And you hit on the biggest theme.

You can question a lot of things about this Penguins team.

Is the depth for real?

When will the goal tending fall off?

Is the defense actually that good?

Whatever you want to go with, all are fair questions, but the one thing you simply cannot

question about this Penguins team is hard.

This team battles, this team does not quit.

And we're going to get into it in the second segment, some of the officiating, some of

the way the hurricanes play, but even putting all of that to the side, let me just take you

through this.

We go into the third period.

It's two to one Carolina, Eric Carlson ties it at two.

Not long after he ties it, Carolina takes the lead again.

That's three to two, Brian Rust, unbelievable individual effort ties it at three.

Not very long after that, Logan Stankovan makes it four to three Carolina, Eric Carlson

then gives you a four or four tie, Ben Kindle then gives you the lead, and then two minutes

after you get the lead, Fluke bounce from a key Andre Miller shot ties it.

But the penguins in all of those instances, it would have been so easy.

To lay down and give up man, we cannot win in this friggin building.

Every time we come here, we lose, but they kept pulling themselves up.

They kept punching back and they get a point.

And yeah, we're in a time of year where moral victories can buy a cup of coffee and not

much else, but I'll say it again, they keep their heads above water.

They keep playing at this pace.

They're going to make the playoffs, and guess what doesn't happen in the playoffs?

Three on three over time or shootouts.

Yep.

And can I just say Pat, it's Eric Carlson's world right now, and we are just living in it.

His performance tonight, I mean, this is 2017 level Eric Carlson that we are watching

right now.

And for those that remember, he was playing on one leg for the Ottawa Sounders and the

playoffs and was one of the best players in the entire Stanley Cup playoffs that year.

That is the version of Eric Carlson that I feel like we are getting right now.

When he uncorks the puck for that first goal, it is a sight to behold.

The next one, his keep of the blue wine with the skate was insane.

And then he just said, see ya to Sebastian Ajo, want to move and then just rifled it right

past Freddie Anderson.

He is playing at an elite level right now.

And you know, there's a lot of reasons why I want this team to get in.

But one of the top ones is so I can see playoff Eric Carlson again.

It's been a while since he made the playoffs overall on any team.

And he is just on another level.

He was, in my opinion, Pat, the best player on the ice for the penguins tonight outside

of Stuart Skinner who was making insane save after insane save.

Let me throw this out there for you.

This was Eric Carlson's second straight three point game.

And this was his fifth multi point game in his last six.

Eric Carlson is playing an unbelievable brand of hockey.

He is, and I, I hinted at this at an earlier episode this week and now I'm just going

to straight up say it.

He is the penguins MVP this year.

He has been their best player.

This is not particularly close because when Sidney Crosby is on, he's Sidney Crosby.

But as of the last month or so, it is Eric Carlson's team.

He's leading it.

He's leading by example, too, because I'll bring it up again.

It happened against Colorado.

It happened.

And we're recording this on Thursday night or Wednesday night right after the game.

So we're going to say tonight a lot, by the way.

This was the kind of game where once again.

If Eric Carlson got exposed defensively, all of us would have sat here and gone, yeah,

it's Carolina.

That's, that's, it's going to happen to a defenseman like Eric Carlson.

Was he perfect defensively?

No.

The penguins as a whole were not great defensively tonight.

But he had a lot of company and I wouldn't say he was terrible defensively.

No, he wasn't.

I thought he was on his A game, most of the game.

If there is definitely another negative, I wanted to point out outside the five on three

goal bat, the power play was disgustingly bad.

And this one giving up a shorthanded goal, not even 20 seconds into that your first power

play.

Not great, Bob.

And I really don't know what's going on there off the face off.

I saw people trying to really, you know, crushed you know for that one.

I don't really know what you wanted to do there.

He's not going to catch up to Martin Oak there.

I think Carlson was hoping he was going to play it a bit more safe.

But that whole face off was way too chaotic for him.

That was just a, it just looked like a miscommunication between the two of them.

They both went to the wrong spot and it just bit them at the worst time.

So again, the power play was not good tonight, but one thing that was pretty good.

The captain was back in the lineup for the first time in 11 games.

We will talk about Sydney Crosby's return.

And yeah, we're going to have to go a little negative on the Carolina Hurricanes.

We will do that when we come back right after this.

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Back here on the Thursday edition of Locked On Penguins,

I'm Patrick Damp, right alongside Hunter Hodeys and Sydney Crosby.

He is back in the Penguins lineup.

And he made his presence felt pretty much right away,

played a solid game,

got himself on the scoreboard with a goal,

his 28th of the season to tie the game at one piece.

He also assisted on Eric Carlson,

one of Eric Carlson's goals,

and did not look out of place whatsoever.

This looked like ho hum, Sydney Crosby's back.

I will say, even though he did not look totally out of place,

you can tell shaking the rust off ever so slightly

in a way that only happens with Sydney Crosby,

where him shaking the rust off for most players,

pretty good night for Sydney Crosby.

You know that there's a little bit more there

that he's going to get to over the next couple of weeks.

Yeah, I'm not concerned at all anyone who is.

I'm not really sure what you're looking for.

I thought he was really good in this game.

And the goal that he scored, vintage Crosby goal.

I'm going to take him 10 at 10 times

to beat Freddie Anderson in that position.

So I absolutely loved that.

Couple other sequences where he had a couple of good chances,

puck just didn't go in the back to the net.

There was that one later on in the third path.

I hit the post on Freddie Anderson,

was really close to scoring there.

But again, I thought as the game went on,

he got better and better.

He and Sessionekov got into it a little bit.

He saw Sid was laughing at him as Sessionekov

was going to the box because he was assessed

an extra minor penalty.

And all right, Pat, you want it?

Let's let's discuss it.

Listen, this was this was going to be the transition.

He takes a penalty in the third period

for tripping Sebastian Ajo.

Now, here's the thing that got me about that penalty.

Letter of the law.

Yeah, it's a trip.

Hey, Garrett Rank did get the call right,

but I'm going to hand it back to you.

There's two things about that penalty on Sid.

One, Ajo sold that and I'm going to make my daily wrestling

reference.

He sold that trip like the rock selling a stone cold stunner.

He was just, he went flying on it.

And then along with that, the crowd at Lenovo Center

and I'm sure the Carolina bench went nuts

and you could have counted three to four Mississippi's

for rank or whichever the officials it was

to put their arm up.

And it's what I said after the last time

the penguins and hurricanes got together.

I respect the way the hurricanes play the game.

I may not like it.

It may not be my favorite brand of hockey,

but it's disciplined, it's smart,

and it has been effective for quite some time.

The selling of calls, the yelling at officials,

the barking at officials, they don't need to do it.

They're that good of a team.

Their speed, their skill, their tenacity,

that will draw penalties.

It will force teams to take penalties.

It's going to lead to hooks, holds, trips

because you're going to beat guys wide.

You're going to beat guys to the inside

and they're going to have to take penalties.

This team is annoying in the way they play.

They don't need to be annoying

in the way they conduct themselves.

It is funny because this is now the second straight game

that these two teams have played

where Taylor Hall has just been diving for calls.

I haven't seen Taylor Hall die before these last two games.

I feel like this is something that's relatively new.

And I'm not trying to fill my diaper or anything here.

It's just funny how he's just diving like Tim Stutzelow

is out here for the Ottawa Senators.

And credit to him, he's been getting calls when doing it.

But some of the other calls they got were also a bit.

So I will say the penguins did have

a good amount of power plays in this game.

And the one that Sid took, letter of the law,

it is a penalty.

Just call it when it actually happens

and don't wait three to four seconds for it.

There was a couple sequences and overtime pat

that I didn't like where Ajo was holding Malkin's stick.

No call, Kendall gets that many breakaway.

Say by Anderson, Kendall's getting hooked there by the way.

No call there either.

Again, I'm not blaming officiating for the loss.

I'm not, again, I'm not trying to fill my diaper here

or anything like that.

I'm just saying, they're continues to be inconsistency

with the way things are called in these high stakes games.

This is an NHL centric problem.

And it isn't not just a penguins thing.

You could probably go to a lot of the locked on other podcasts

for the other teams.

They'll probably be saying the same thing.

This is an NHL centric problem.

They just don't really care

about how bad the officiating has gotten.

Again, I thought this was a wonderful hockey game

back and forth action.

I don't know how penguins fans are going to do this

in the playoffs if this team gets in just with the way

this went.

But for as bad as they played for a good chunk of this game,

they still were able to get a point

and they were only a few minutes away

from stealing a win that would have been basically

in probable just with the way they were playing.

So again, a lot of guts, a lot of heart,

some really strong performances,

especially from Carlson, Stuart Skinner was once again

really good.

I loved the fourth line as well.

They were generating a lot of chances.

I don't know how Noah Charley didn't score a couple

in this game.

I thought Sodor Blum was also okay.

But again, that's for the negatives.

I don't like the way they defended on a lot of Carolina goals.

They were just missing easy assignments as a whole.

And then I'll put them here too, Pat.

Crystal Tang has got to be better.

He just did not have a good game at overtime.

Tries to go one on three there.

Looses the puck, Carolina takes possession,

all that other stuff ensues.

He just needs to be more consistent over.

I thought he was honestly a bit better against Colorado,

but then you see a performance like this.

And man, it's just tough watching him right now

as someone again who has loved this player

for a very long time.

Yeah, I wasn't going to bring up LaTang

because it's the same critiques we've had for the past.

What more can we say?

I mean, it's not us letting him off the hook.

It's not us ignoring it.

It's not pretending it doesn't exist.

It's just we've had this conversation a bunch now.

And there's just like you said, there's not anything left to say.

I'll add this before we get to what is going to be one

of my favorite parts of today's episode.

I think the script flipped a little bit.

This time around from last week.

I think last week the officiating

put their finger on the scale.

I think that between rod yelling and screaming

and abusing officials and then the way the calls went,

it impacted the game.

This time around, it was pretty inconsistent on both sides

and it didn't really have an impact on the game.

It was just, you're titly you said,

your typical NHL officiating inconsistencies.

It's annoying.

It's a problem that the league needs to figure out.

And hey, guess what?

Here's the good news.

These teams are gonna meet again in just a few days.

Winnipeg on Saturday at PPG Payne Serena

and then Carolina for the final match up of the season

at three o'clock on Sunday at PPG Payne Serena.

And obviously Hunter and I are gonna make sure

you're set for all of that.

But we're not done here today.

Coming up after this break, I interviewed the man

who drew up one of the coolest plays

you are ever gonna see in hockey.

My good friend and head coach of the Penguin Cup champion

Penn Trafford Warriors, Brian Zagorek,

joins me on the show right after this.

So stay tuned for that.

It's one hell of an interview.

You're really gonna enjoy it.

We'll get into that when we come back right after this.

Before that, though, we've got one more sponsor

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Hey everyone, this is Ross Jackson,

one of the hosts of the Lockdown Podcast Network.

If your group chat's been a little quiet lately,

I want to invite you to come and join ours.

If you sign up for the everydayer club,

you get access to the members only group chats

for your favorite teams,

plus national chats for every sport.

Personally, I love watching folks talk a little smack

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You also get an ad free version

of your favorite Lockdown show and a whole lot more.

You can check it out by tapping the everydayer club link

in the show notes.

Joining me on the Lockdown Penguins podcast

is a man you probably have not heard of yet,

but if you haven't, you will very soon,

and full disclosure to our audience.

Coach Brian Zagorak here has been a friend of mine

for more than a decade.

We played hockey together growing up,

but now he is a penguin cup champion,

the head coach of the Penn Trafford Warriors

who just defeated the Hemfield Spartans

in the penguin cup final.

And before I let Brian talk,

if you have not seen this fake Michigan goal

and you are watching us here on YouTube,

make sure you got your phone, your laptop,

whatever right in front of you

because you're about to see it right now.

Take a look at this absolute work of art.

I'm just going to pass it over to you, my good friend,

and because I texted you, Flex, not long after the game,

to be like, wow, calling that play in a final, that's Balsey.

Is that what you're talking about?

Absolutely incredible stuff, BJ.

I'm just going to pass it over to you, my good friend,

and because I texted you, Flex, not long after the game,

to be like, wow, calling that play in a final, that's Balsey.

I'm just going to say, is that exactly what you said?

And now, okay, you hit it, you hit the nail on the head, yeah.

Thanks for having me, man, I really appreciate it.

This is great.

Yeah, that play, I honestly,

I don't think I ever get sick of watching that video

to be honest with you.

And credit to Rachel Thatcher, Rachel Thatcher Media,

she's covered us for the last couple of years

proud Penn Trafford alum.

It was so funny, my wife and I that night,

we were like, man, the video on the broadcast was fine,

but it just doesn't really do it justice.

I just had this light bulb, like text Rachel,

see what Rachel saw, see if she got it, you know?

And then she immediately sent the raw footage,

and it was just like, wow, I'm amazing.

And then you saw this low-blown video,

and it was just amazing.

So, yeah, I mean, the play itself, like,

honestly, it was a product of a couple of things, Pat.

Like, our practices have been very intense

for the past, all of March, basically.

We told ourselves after game 20,

that our practices need to be games, right?

They need to be as intense as possible.

We need to win practice on Thursdays,

win practice on Mondays,

and then win the playoff game, and then keep it going, right?

So, our practice has been very intense,

and we ended pretty much every practice with Power Play.

And that was no different on Sunday afternoon,

we had practice with the Pens Cup.

We had, we were practicing Power Play,

because they tell the kids were just kind of like

zoning out a bit, they were just like,

okay, we're ready, like, let's do this thing.

I just thought, you know, let's practice on one's work

on something that I've been thinking about.

So, why the fig Michigan was because, you know,

kind of the scout, the scouting report on the Gully

was side to side, right?

Like, some Gully's have, you know, five bull,

they struggle with five bull, they struggle with the glove,

whatever, we thought if we could get this Gully,

who's a hell of a goal, it had a hell of a season.

Pretty much a hell of a game, too, to be honest with you.

I thought we could have had a couple more,

but, you know, we thought if we could get him

to commit to one side, right?

Get him to a side, and then stay there.

That was gonna be open up for us, you know,

especially if you got to play down low.

So, we're gonna power play, kids got a little bit stale,

and I'm like, can I call the power play,

you didn't over, I'm like, hey,

we're gonna run this fig Michigan right now.

Brock's gonna go behind in that, Jordan's gonna go

into the slot, Jordan's gonna yell Michigan Michigan,

Brock's gonna start it, Ben's gonna skate right by,

Brock would done me a battle, pick it up and dump it.

And then, when it works on Ty Funk,

who I think is the best school in high school hockey right now,

we honestly all went nuts,

and we're like, it's gonna work on anybody in any game.

So, I just couldn't resist to the play call us Friday,

F for fake Michigan, F for Friday, you know,

with another play.

I guess we still have more games, I shouldn't say anything.

But, I wanna give away those trade secrets.

Yeah, yeah, right.

You guys do have more to go, but,

sure.

I mean, I'll say this, sorry to interrupt you, B.

You're good.

Walking that game on Monday, both goal tenders,

whether it was you guys or him field,

that was, as far as high school hockey goes,

that was a goal tending battle,

because I'm sitting here in this exact room

that I'm sitting in an interview,

and you know, I got the Penguins game on one screen,

I got your guys game on the other,

and I'm just riveted by what you guys are doing.

And, I wanted to ask you about this too,

because, you and I have been friends for a long time.

We have been involved with Pittsburgh hockey

for longer than, I think, either of us can count.

And, this win for you guys

was the first Penguin Cup championship

in Penn Trafford hockey history.

And, again, you and I grew up playing together.

Penn Trafford was always a program people were aware of,

because you guys were always really good.

Me as a Penn Hills kid, I was sitting there like,

Squidward and the meme of Squidward and the window

looking down at SpongeBob and Patrick Fraulking,

because I didn't have a team.

But, I was genuinely shocked to learn

that this was the first championship you guys never won.

What does that mean to you as both the head coach

and an alumni?

Yeah, I mean, it's different, right?

It's not like, you know, being my coach is,

inherited a dynasty, and it was like,

hey, keep this going, right?

We were trying to give them out on top,

we've been close, other teams have been close,

they've had their arrows, right?

But, for whatever reason, it just never came.

So, it just means everything.

It makes it that much more special, you know?

I moved back to Penn Township, which is, you know,

Penn Trafford a couple of years ago,

and they have the two signs outside the high school,

with all the whipy ol' champs on it, you know?

The two different entrances, and I just thought, man,

how great would it be to get hockey on there, right?

That was the summer I started.

I took the head coaching job.

So, that was a gold mine.

I was like, let's get that ice hockey, you know, 2025,

2026, whatever, however long it takes,

let's get it on that board there,

and get a banner in the gym for these kids

for this program.

So, it just means everything to me,

and like you said, as long as I'm not played here,

still with a lot of close friends from Penn Trafford,

and it just seems like we've always been there.

We've always been a healthy program, for sure.

It's everybody involved, but,

for whatever reason we couldn't get it.

So, that honestly was the first thing I thought of

when that buzzer hit was first time ever.

Like, it's done, the curse is broken,

however you want to call it.

Like, we're there.

We made it to the mountain top, so.

Now, this one is going to be a little more for me,

and you, rather than our listeners,

but it'll give everyone kind of an insight

to how tight you and I are.

We grew up together, talk all the time.

You'll see me before my beer league games on Monday

and call me fat and slow,

because it's not entirely incorrect.

But I always remember,

because you and I played together

and won a state championship in travel

with the Allegheny Badgers in 2009.

Do you remember before that state championship game,

what you said to me in the locker room by any chance?

I don't know.

And honestly, it might have been like a Wu-Tang clan.

I was wondering.

I honestly, I can't.

But that was the one time you didn't,

you didn't drop a Wu-Tang reference,

but you looked at me and said,

man, I just want to be three hours from now,

so I know the outcome.

And helping you on the bench,

this season is another one of our teammates

from that team, Nate Simon.

I want to know what that means to you guys together

to win again, but as coaches, rather than players.

It's surreal, man, surreal.

It feels like yesterday when us three were lifting banners

and I had a ton of badgers guys text me afterwards.

Guys, I haven't talked to you in years just to say,

what's up and to congratulate everybody.

So it meant everything, dude.

And that's a feeling that I haven't had since 2009, right?

I haven't obviously haven't looked in a banner since then

and any other capacity.

So it was like a feeling that I missed.

You know what I mean?

And it was like, oh, this is what this feels like again, right?

Like I've been in the Pens Cup as an assistant,

and we lost, and last year as the head coach,

first year as head coach, we lost in semi-finals,

despite having great season.

So you can win as much as you want in the regular season,

but when you win a trophy, when you win a banner,

like there's a feeling that you're like,

oh, this is that familiar feeling.

This is why you do this thing.

So it was amazing to do it with Nate that, you know,

somebody who I played with and, you know,

our names are on Banners of Paul Mer, with Heak With Yours.

Like it made it that much more special, right?

So, and we found ourselves talking all,

it's using phrases that your dad had gave to us along the way.

I mean, it was just like they would come out

and not even realize I was saying it,

and then it's all going to be like, oh, yeah,

you know, that's what Coach Damplow taught us.

So just an amazing full circle journey, for sure.

So I'm not going to make our listeners here on Lockdown

Penguins, take a walk down the glory days with us.

I just had to get that one out.

But you have to buy some beer if you want those stories.

Yeah, yeah, you got to, you got to meet us somewhere.

Grab beer and we'll, we'll bore you with those later.

But this is the Lockdown Penguins podcast.

You are a hockey coach.

We are hockey guys.

So I'll give you the floor here a couple minutes.

Obviously, this is being recorded before the Penguins Hurricanes

game on Wednesday night, Sydney Crosby set to return.

Hunter and I just went over all of that on our Wednesday episode.

But you're somebody who I have all the respect in the world

as a hockey mind for.

So I will say not to pump your tires too much.

Seeing you win a championship as a coach was not a surprise.

It was damn exciting.

And I'm damn proud.

But I was like, yeah, that's the guy who would do it.

But watching the Penguins this year,

we all kind of thought they're gonna suck, maybe not suck,

but they'll be competitive, then they'll sell off

and they'll be looking for Gavin McKenna.

Instead, here we are talking about

if they're gonna make the playoffs or not.

What have you seen from the Penguins this year so far

that is impressing you or what your thoughts are on them?

Yeah, yeah.

I mean, we're a start.

I mean, you start with Dubas and everything.

He's done right.

I mean, Chinatown for a bag of pucks,

Manta for a laundry machine for a washing machine.

Like, you know, the goalie trade,

gang Jeff Skinner and a second-round pick for...

Like it just, you can start there.

You can go to damn use as a coach, right?

We gotta call them out.

Like there's just no doubt that this team seems way more

energized to play games.

They definitely, they led the league

if they couldn't a while for a first-school squad, right?

Like they're coming out, gunning is in the majority of games.

They're playing such a strong defensive structure

during that and opportunities, right?

Whereas in the last couple of years of the great Mike Sullivan

era, unfortunately, you might have saw them be up.

The defenseman be out of position.

Oh, too much.

You're a little undisciplined.

So you can credit the mues.

I mean, and then you watch the game,

the avalanche game, and it looked like 2009 of getting

Malcolm against the Carolina Hurricanes

in the Eastern Conference final, right?

Like that was insane.

So you obviously have to call...

Oh, we haven't even mentioned Cindy Crosby, right?

Like you have to call out those two guys

who obviously are doing their things still, I think.

So it's just a combination.

I honestly, I think that not to be biased here,

I think that mues just brought such a great vibe

to the locker room and such a refreshed atmosphere

and message that the team just stuck to it, right?

They had a bunch of guys kind of like Major League, right?

Where they had a bunch of castes off

and guys were trying to prove it, right?

Nanta, Brazo, Novak, right?

And Ternikov, even though he was a high profile guy,

he still had something to prove

and was in a place that he apparently didn't seem wanted, right?

So you get all these got skin at Jeff Skinner.

I mean, this is the goal they went to the Stanley Cup

two years in a row.

And apparently he was the problem, like he was the cast,

he was the guy who got sent away.

So having this locker room full of guys

who need to prove something,

having a young energetic coach you know

is just grinding and grinding and grinding

and giving his all, trying to set a new tone there, if you will.

I don't know if the culture needs reset or anything like that,

but you know, he's trying to set new standards

or refresh the standards.

And then Dubas who is doing everything he can

to put them to make them competitive now

will also focus on the future.

I just think it's, I just think they've gel,

the synergy has been there between top to bottom.

So I, there can't be one thing.

If it was one thing, you would say,

oh, it's this guy scoring, you know, 110 point pace,

but the team's gonna be below 500, right?

Like the sharks of the Black Hawks have been for the last five years.

But yeah, it's just everybody committed, I think.

And there's just a, you tell me,

I think there's a 2017, 2016, 2009 vibe to him.

Like it's just, you love the root form again.

I don't know if I'd go that far, but I definitely,

not on the ice, but you just feel it, right?

Yeah, the fun is back.

It's fun to watch them again.

It's fun to root for them again.

You're looking forward to watching games.

They're not aggrined.

Like they have been the last couple of years.

And they are vindicating my preseason hot take.

I said that they were gonna be in the race

until like the last month of the season.

And then eventually they would level out.

But who knows, maybe by the end of this one,

they keep themselves in the race for the division.

Obviously, if you're listening to this on Thursday,

you know what happened in Raleigh.

We don't have crystal balls.

We can't see what happens in the future.

But BJ, my man, this, I appreciate you doing this.

You're listening to this on Thursday.

And by the time Thursday and Friday,

in the weekend and everything come,

you're gonna see this guy everywhere.

You're gonna see him on sports at Pittsburgh.

You're gonna see him in the sports net in Canada.

You're probably gonna see him on bar stool.

You'll probably see him on Yo, he's podcast.

But I just want everybody to know, you got him first here

on Locked On Penguins, just in air first.

So keep that in mind when you're listening

to Locked On Penguins.

But again, man, congratulations.

Nobody deserves it more than you do.

You're one of my best friends.

I couldn't be more proud of you.

And it's a moment you and the boys absolutely earned

and deserved, but that is gonna do it

for the Thursday edition of Locked On Penguins.

Hunter and I will be back with a brand new episode

for you on Friday.

We'll get you set for the weekend back to back.

And keep an eye on our social channels.

We are gonna have another edition of Fan Take Friday.

So give us your hot takes, your questions,

whatever other goofy stuff you wanna drop in the comments.

That'll be up on Friday morning.

But for now, for Hunter Hodes, I'm Patrick Damp.

Thanks to BJ Zagorek for joining us.

And we will talk to you on Friday.