32 Thoughts: The Podcast

In this edition of 32 Thoughts, Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman begin with Jaromir Jagr's jersey retirement night in Pittsburgh. They cover everything from his speech, warmups, the ceremony, and Jagr’s (still active) illustrious career. Then, the fellas circle back to the NHL's Stadium Series in New Jersey as they highlight a hugely successful weekend for the league and outdoor games in general....

On this episode of 32 Thoughts, Jeff and Elliotte delve into the Columbus Blue Jackets relieving Jarmo Kekäläinen of his duties as General Manager. Elliotte expands on some of the names that are in contention to be considered by John Davidson as the new GM (8:01). Jeff also asks Elliotte about Elvis Merzļikins, who publicly expressed an interest to leave Columbus (11:29). The fellas then turn thei...

Jeff and Elliotte look back at the ending of the Maple Leafs-Senators game on Saturday night that saw Morgan Rielly cross-check Ridly Greig in a fit of rage. They discuss how many games they believe Rielly should be suspended for and the impact it'll have on the Leafs. Plus, the guys get into the reaction from the fans and how this has reignited the Battle of Ontario. Jeff and Elliotte move on to...

In this edition of 32 Thoughts, Jeff and Elliotte kick things off by focusing on the Arizona Coyotes, whose future in the desert hangs by a thread with a looming threat of relocation to Salt Lake City on the horizon. The guys then shift focus to the Toronto Maple Leafs and their impending decision on their 2024 1st round pick. Should they move it before the deadline at the risk of further depletin...

Jeff and Elliotte look back at a successful NHL All-Star Weekend for almost everyone involved. Elliotte outlines how the NHL did the work to make sure the event was a reputational bounce back after studying last year's struggles in Florida (5:13). They get into Nikita Kucherov's controversial performance and how some believe he should lose the Hart over it (16:58) and Elliotte delves into the expo...

Jeff and Elliotte begin with a deep dive on the Elias Lindholm trade between Calgary and Vancouver. Elliotte talks about where Lindholm fits on the Canucks roster (3:04) and what other suitors were involved for his services (6:40). The guys then look back at Andrei Kuzmenko's polarizing tenure with Vancouver and look ahead to his new opportunity with the Calgary Flames (11:32). Jeff and Elliotte a...

Jeff and Elliotte revisit three controversial calls from this week in the NHL. First, Tyler Bertuzzi's no-goal due to goalie-interference from William Nylander (1:45). Should NHL referees release explanation videos for game-changing calls? Jeff and Elliotte get into a heated debate about how slashing penalties are called thanks to the Dylan Samberg and John Tavares incident (9:11) and the fellas t...

Jeff and Elliotte open this edition of the podcast with the latest developments in the 2018 sexual assault investigation in London, Ontario involving Hockey Canada players. They transition into a discussion around Patrick Roy's emotional return to the Bell Centre in Montreal (11:52) and then unpack what has plagued the LA Kings the season, and how this promising roster can turn their season around...

Jeff and Elliotte open the podcast talking about the New York Islanders hiring Patrick Roy as their new head coach and dive into which player this hire helps most within the Islanders roster (13:39). The guys talk about Corey Perry deciding to sign with the Edmonton Oilers (18:17), and the Vancouver Canucks extending President of Hockey Ops Jim Rutherford (22:14). Jeff also asks Elliotte how "all-...

Jeff and Elliotte play to a crowd at Wickett Hall in Victoria, BC ahead of Hockey Day in Canada on Saturday. The guys address whether Jake Guentzel will find his way to the Canucks via trade before early March (5:57) and Jeff runs through a bunch of trade bait, rapid-fire style, with Elliotte (13:37). Elliotte wonders aloud whether the Leafs are taking a bigger picture look past this season (19:14...

Jeff and Elliotte open the podcast by reviewing the Red Wings defeat of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and a discussion around whether the Leafs should really be buyers at the deadline. They get into Jacob Markstrom and his potential trade availability (9:07) and dive into the future of Jake Guentzel and whether the Penguins go into a mini rebuild (16:09). Next, the Ottawa Senators are gauging the trade...

Jeff and Elliotte begin the show with an update on Elvis Merzlikins' status in Columbus. Elliotte also expands on the status of Corey Perry right now and Elliotte's use of the word "eligible" (7:44). The guys dive deep into the Cutter Gauthier trade between the Flyers and Ducks (13:23) and touch on Trevor Zegras's unfortunate ankle injury (26:57). Next, Jeff and Elliotte remark on how attractive a...

Jeff and Elliotte show the American NHL teams some love off the top and start by focusing on Max Pacioretty's return to play with the Washington Capitals and Brandt Clarke's recall by the LA Kings (5:59). They react to the Brendan Smith hit on Connor Bedard (9:26) while Jeff and Elliotte lament the Calgary Flames being wrong side of .500 (17:10). Next, a discussion on some of the most unattainable...

Jeff and Elliotte open the podcast by giving Sidney Crosby his flowers for an outstanding effort to beat out an icing call on Thursday night. For another week in a row, some big hits and questionable calls earn the spotlight on the podcast as Jeff and Elliotte try to diagnose what the NHL should do (11:34). They get into the discourse around DJ Smith in Ottawa and Tim Stutzle's comments on his for...

Jeff and Elliotte are in Seattle for the 2024 Winter Classic and for this edition of 32 Thoughts. They dive into the Ottawa Senators announcing Steve Staios' appointment as the GM and President of Hockey Operations, Dave Poulin as the new Senior VP of Hockey Ops, and Ryan Bowness as Associate General Manager (6:21). The guys discuss the latest developments in the NHL goalie market (17:39) and get...

Jeff and Elliotte circle around the NHL to touch on a number of headlines since we last spoke a week ago. They talk about Antti Raanta situation with Carolina (8:46), the Stefan Noesen hit on Juraj Slafkovsky that pulled him out of the game (13:26),  and the continued goalie issues with New Jersey (18:07). Jeff and Elliotte dig into the Matt Murley-Elias Pettersson rumour about how he would want t...

Jeff and Elliotte discuss why, despite the New Jersey Devils' struggles, it wouldn't make sense for them to make a coaching change right now. They dive into a penalty filled affair between Vegas and Tampa on Thursday night and they throw out some of their favourite Hart Trophy candidates (27:25). Elliotte expands on some questions about the future of Frederik Andersen in Carolina (37:55) and also...

Jeff and Elliotte dive into Anti Raanta's demotion to AHL Chicago and which teams might be in line for his services, if any. They also talk about what the Edmonton Oilers are going to do in net as Jack Campbell has been struggling in Bakersfield (12:19). Jeff and Elliotte get into the St. Louis Blues and their new coach bump (19:42). Elliotte outlines the latest details he's been given about an Ol...

Jeff and Elliotte dive into the coaching change in St. Louis that saw Craig Berube lose his job as the head coach of the Blues. They also talk about the comments made afterwards by Jordan Kyrou and the sour reception he received Thursday night from Blues fans. Jeff and Elliotte also talk about Roberto Luongo being inducted into the Canucks' Ring of Honour and the whole night that went with it (17:...

Jeff and Elliotte look back at a particularly violent weekend in the NHL that saw some nasty hits on the likes of Larkin, Zub, Barron, Brodin, and Gudbranson. How will the NHL react and can we expect the league to dial things down in the aftermath of this weekend? They also talk about Ethan Bear's future and how the Washington Capitals have emerged as favourites (21:22). Elliotte also suggests tha...

Jeff and Elliotte dive into Patrick Kane's debut with the Detroit Red Wings which resulted in a 6-5 overtime loss at the hands of the San Jose Sharks. They whip through a few stories from Thursday in the NHL including: the LA Kings continuing to roll, the Canucks breaking the Minnesota Wild's winning streak, and Leafs taking the battle of Ontario 4-3 over the Senators. Jeff and Elliotte dive into...

Jeff and Elliotte talk about what they expect to come out of the NHL Board of Governors meetings in Seattle, Washington. They look back at Elliotte's headlines from Saturday, including the Leafs interest in Nikita Zadorov (6:50), a potential Sean Walker trade (12:31) and a potential Marc-Édouard Vlasic move (22:20). Jeff and Elliotte dive into the Edmonton Oilers commitment to Jack Campbell (26:32...

Jeff and Elliotte react to the statement released by Corey Perry regarding the incident that led to his contract termination by the Chicago Blackhawks. Elliotte dives into the Nikita Zadorov trade to Vancouver and unveils what he believes is next for Calgary (15:36). Jeff and Elliotte then outline the latest details regarding Kane's decision to sign with Detroit and what teams were also in pursuit...

Jeff and Elliotte share the latest developments in Patrick Kane's future as the free agent continues to assess his options while also limiting the amount of information that has leaked out. Are the Detroit Red Wings the new clubhouse leader (1:29)? They dive into what happened between the NHL and Marc-Andre Fleury last week and key in on the NHL's bigger worry behind individual causes (19:03). Jef...

Jeff and Elliotte discuss the Corey Perry situation and then dive into the Edmonton Oilers' continued struggles (3:38). They talk about the Oilers having to manage a narrative that Connor McDavid is flexing his power within the organization (5:52). Elliotte highlights his biggest takeaways from a big Columbus win on Wednesday (23:01) and the guys provide an update on Patrick Kane's future (30:51)....