WEBVTT - HR 1 - Matt Bartkowski Talking Penguins 0:00:00.350 --> 0:00:03.430 Somebody said to me at the airport when I landed yesterday, boy, 0:00:03.570 --> 0:00:06.930 that song you play at the top of the hour, 0:00:08.800 --> 0:00:12.420 it sure provides you a lot of time when you 0:00:12.440 --> 0:00:15.680 don't talk. And I said, yeah, that's right. Like putty. 0:00:17.600 --> 0:00:23.840 Number to call 833-412-WXDX. Tom and I were talking about 0:00:23.880 --> 0:00:28.670 these new hometown remix jerseys, why they're called hometown remix. 0:00:28.730 --> 0:00:32.800 I do not know. the Penguins are like this funky 0:00:32.870 --> 0:00:36.390 kind of blue, very electric. I like it. I like 0:00:36.409 --> 0:00:40.950 these jerseys. Penguin fans call in now, 833-412-WXDX. What are 0:00:40.970 --> 0:00:44.979 your favorite Penguin jerseys ever? As I've said, um, many 0:00:45.030 --> 0:00:48.700 times in just a bit ago, again, uh, mid seventies, 0:00:48.800 --> 0:00:51.199 dark blue, black and white trim. No question. Should have 0:00:51.220 --> 0:00:56.440 been our colors, uh, forever blue, white, and black. Any 0:00:56.480 --> 0:00:59.590 shade of blue should have been our colors forever. Um, 0:01:00.130 --> 0:01:02.029 The Penguins don't live in Novage. The defense will get 0:01:02.070 --> 0:01:05.510 caught up from Wilks. But he's probably not going to play. Okay, 0:01:05.530 --> 0:01:10.440 so why call him up? Geno is out. Geno's been great. 0:01:10.580 --> 0:01:14.060 Arguably the Penguins' best player so far. But he's going 0:01:14.080 --> 0:01:19.209 to miss games. This will be his second game this year, sidelined, 0:01:19.250 --> 0:01:23.250 out of 15. He missed 26 games last year. And 0:01:23.310 --> 0:01:28.030 I'm not saying Geno is brittle or... you know, jaking 0:01:28.250 --> 0:01:37.179 or anything derogatory, but you can't rely on alt. What 0:01:37.220 --> 0:01:38.980 else do I got? Oh, okay. Got to tell you 0:01:39.000 --> 0:01:43.080 what happened this past trip. Hooray for Hollywood, to be sure. 0:01:44.370 --> 0:01:49.850 I saw two epic shows with Aerosmith. Every act was amazing. 0:01:50.410 --> 0:01:55.470 Doing Aerosmith covers mostly Hearts, Black Crows, Guns N' Roses. 0:01:57.140 --> 0:02:02.100 And the headliners should not quit. If I get a vote, 0:02:02.240 --> 0:02:07.340 Aerosmith should keep freaking going. Tyler's voice is all the 0:02:07.410 --> 0:02:11.090 way back from that bum larynx. And like Tyler said, 0:02:11.830 --> 0:02:14.530 when the world ends, all that's left is going to 0:02:14.550 --> 0:02:19.620 be cockroaches, Aerosmith, and maybe Bill Burr. Bill was the 0:02:19.720 --> 0:02:23.160 emcee for the event. He said before the first night 0:02:23.180 --> 0:02:26.580 it was Aerosmith's last two shows. Maybe now that's not 0:02:26.660 --> 0:02:31.280 the case. They are truly America's greatest rock and roll 0:02:31.300 --> 0:02:35.180 band ever. And I was in the second row Thursday 0:02:35.260 --> 0:02:38.919 in the front row, dead center on Sunday. When they 0:02:38.960 --> 0:02:41.560 did Come Together, the Beatles song, which they covered years ago, 0:02:42.880 --> 0:02:44.780 Tyler did the thing where he sticks the mic out 0:02:45.100 --> 0:02:50.169 over the crowd. Come together. Right now. And then sticks 0:02:50.230 --> 0:02:53.270 the mic out. Well, it literally was, literally was the 0:02:53.310 --> 0:03:05.050 mic over me. It was so much fun. Like I 0:03:05.070 --> 0:03:06.950 was a kid again, even one of the cool kids, 0:03:07.010 --> 0:03:10.060 which is what rock music makes you feel like, even 0:03:10.120 --> 0:03:13.739 if you're not, especially when you're not just shock and awe. 0:03:14.720 --> 0:03:17.240 And stuff like that, that's what's important to me now. 0:03:17.700 --> 0:03:19.600 If Aerosmith play again, I ain't going to be here. 0:03:19.620 --> 0:03:20.919 I'm going to be in the front row no matter 0:03:20.960 --> 0:03:25.859 what it costs. Every cent, absolutely worth it. From here 0:03:25.919 --> 0:03:31.010 on out, it's me, the cockroaches, and Aerosmith. And Bill Burr, 0:03:31.030 --> 0:03:37.110 if he can make it. I love Bill. I went 0:03:37.130 --> 0:03:39.650 to a great restaurant with my friends Matt and Madeline, 0:03:39.710 --> 0:03:43.810 Musso and Frank. This old Hollywood Boulevard Steakhouse restaurant. Saw 0:03:43.830 --> 0:03:49.460 the Scientology Center. Hollywood Boulevard is a trip. Hollywood Boulevard 0:03:49.880 --> 0:03:54.220 on Halloween night is even trippier. And here's something that 0:03:54.240 --> 0:03:57.040 was great. It meant so much to me, almost as 0:03:57.080 --> 0:04:00.460 much as the Aerosmith shows. I paid my first visit 0:04:00.580 --> 0:04:04.520 ever to the Rainbow Bar and Grill on Sunset Boulevard. 0:04:05.100 --> 0:04:07.500 Right down the street from the Whiskey, saw that too. 0:04:08.000 --> 0:04:11.200 The Roxy, saw that too. But I went into the Rainbow. 0:04:11.980 --> 0:04:15.660 Had a bunch of beers. It's an all-time rock hangout. 0:04:15.740 --> 0:04:19.080 I saw the Zeppelin tables. These two half-moon tables where 0:04:19.120 --> 0:04:24.029 Zeppelin always sat. The Hollywood Vampires attic that never really closed. 0:04:24.470 --> 0:04:27.789 The Lemmy statue. And I sat in the Lemmy seat, 0:04:27.850 --> 0:04:30.690 the bar stool, because Lemmy hung out there in the 0:04:30.710 --> 0:04:35.490 later stages of his life from Motorhead. Vegas, then Liverpool, 0:04:36.010 --> 0:04:40.430 and then Aerosmith. Let's do it again. We've got a 0:04:40.450 --> 0:04:41.990 bunch of calls on hold. We'll get to you right 0:04:42.010 --> 0:04:47.170 after the break. 105.12. And now the super genius, Mark Madden. 0:04:47.190 --> 0:04:49.510 Double M, big fan, big fan. Well, no, I just said, 0:04:49.730 --> 0:04:50.950 I don't know what I said. I don't know what 0:04:50.990 --> 0:04:51.930 you said. 0:04:51.970 --> 0:04:54.570 Double M. Yeah? 0:04:54.630 --> 0:04:56.100 DX at 105.9. 0:04:56.100 --> 0:04:59.750 Penguins hosting Vegas tonight at PPG. Joining me now. You 0:04:59.770 --> 0:05:03.430 see him on Sportsnet Pittsburgh. It's former NHL defenseman, Mount 0:05:03.450 --> 0:05:06.210 Lebanon's own Matt Bartkoski. Bart, let's start off with a 0:05:06.250 --> 0:05:10.450 silly question. They got these hometown remix jerseys for all 0:05:10.490 --> 0:05:13.230 the teams. You've seen the Penguins, no doubt. What's the 0:05:13.330 --> 0:05:16.670 favorite jersey that you ever wore in an NHL game? 0:05:16.730 --> 0:05:17.370 Best jersey. 0:05:19.029 --> 0:05:22.570 Best jersey I wore was the one I liked the 0:05:22.630 --> 0:05:25.830 most in Vancouver. We wore the old school, that black, red, 0:05:25.870 --> 0:05:27.849 and they had a name for it in the yellow. 0:05:28.870 --> 0:05:30.720 that retro one that was like from the 90s. 0:05:30.850 --> 0:05:33.110 Oh, like the one that had like the Vs? 0:05:34.029 --> 0:05:36.350 Yeah, the fly. No, it didn't have the Vs. That 0:05:36.410 --> 0:05:38.070 one was older. This one was the one that had 0:05:38.110 --> 0:05:39.080 Vancouver on it. 0:05:39.150 --> 0:05:40.950 And it looked like it was a remake of the 0:05:40.990 --> 0:05:43.150 Flying V, I think the one you're talking about. 0:05:43.779 --> 0:05:45.300 But it was like the black and the red and 0:05:45.320 --> 0:05:46.020 the yellow and everything. 0:05:46.060 --> 0:05:50.000 I thought that one was pretty cool. But yeah, other 0:05:50.020 --> 0:05:53.980 than that, I mean, in general, I'm not the biggest 0:05:54.020 --> 0:05:56.620 fan of all those I mean, I get why they 0:05:56.660 --> 0:05:59.900 do it, but I'm not the biggest fan of all 0:05:59.920 --> 0:06:01.560 those jerseys, to be honest. 0:06:02.900 --> 0:06:05.090 Well, let's talk about the Penguins. Let's hope we can 0:06:05.390 --> 0:06:07.650 find a reason to be bigger fans of them coming up. 0:06:07.710 --> 0:06:11.170 But Sid Carlson played great at Montreal, and the Penguins 0:06:11.190 --> 0:06:14.589 still lost 5-4. Whatever that tells you, Bart, it's not good. 0:06:14.650 --> 0:06:19.500 Is it? No, it's not. Any way you really look 0:06:19.600 --> 0:06:21.080 at it, you're right, though. I mean, Sid. 0:06:21.730 --> 0:06:24.239 call it his breakout game for the year, whatever you 0:06:24.250 --> 0:06:26.560 want to call it. Um, that's about as, that's as 0:06:26.600 --> 0:06:29.700 good as he looked all season for sure. Um, but 0:06:30.320 --> 0:06:33.220 also a little bit, not surprising. It seems like Montreal, 0:06:33.600 --> 0:06:37.120 he plays there, he gets an extra gear. Um, good 0:06:37.160 --> 0:06:42.250 to see him get going. Uh, and then Carl, I mean, yeah, I, 0:06:42.440 --> 0:06:45.530 I expect him to just keep plotting along and be 0:06:45.550 --> 0:06:47.910 at a point of game or maybe a little over 0:06:47.970 --> 0:06:51.589 he's got, He's got more motivation than just winning games 0:06:51.650 --> 0:06:55.630 this year. He's in a contract year. So, you know, 0:06:55.670 --> 0:06:58.450 that's generally, I mean, you look at anybody in the league, 0:06:58.510 --> 0:07:00.150 if they're up for a contract, they're going to have 0:07:00.190 --> 0:07:04.419 a bigger year. So, yeah, the flip side of that, 0:07:04.480 --> 0:07:07.900 like you said, was there wasn't much else going on, 0:07:09.100 --> 0:07:12.340 which is definitely concerning. I mean, we want these young 0:07:12.360 --> 0:07:15.290 guys to start coming along right and start to chip 0:07:15.370 --> 0:07:17.840 in especially in those games where they're you know it 0:07:17.880 --> 0:07:20.100 ended up being a one goal game so you want 0:07:20.140 --> 0:07:23.260 somebody to step up and uh show that they're the 0:07:23.280 --> 0:07:28.120 next wave it's just they've showed it uh just inconsistently. 0:07:27.320 --> 0:07:30.070 This year so it's um you know it's. 0:07:30.550 --> 0:07:32.230 It's starting to get to that point where one of 0:07:32.270 --> 0:07:34.730 these guys kind of gotta kind of gotta get going 0:07:34.770 --> 0:07:38.010 and be more consistent at being big in those bigger 0:07:38.070 --> 0:07:39.350 moments Well. 0:07:39.360 --> 0:07:42.620 What's most wrong with the Penguins defensively, Bart? I think 0:07:42.660 --> 0:07:46.460 that's the primary weakness. Is it personnel, structure, or execution? 0:07:48.460 --> 0:07:49.500 I think it's got to be. 0:07:50.260 --> 0:07:53.020 I mean, we could put personnel and execution into the 0:07:53.080 --> 0:07:55.570 same category, I think. But I think it's got to 0:07:55.610 --> 0:07:59.630 be a little bit of that and just the general structure. 0:07:59.670 --> 0:08:02.950 I mean, I've seen countless times this year where we 0:08:02.990 --> 0:08:07.150 have D getting above the dots and chasing out. to 0:08:07.170 --> 0:08:09.490 the above the top of the circle, which pretty much 0:08:09.550 --> 0:08:11.470 in every system, unless you're man on man as a 0:08:11.510 --> 0:08:14.110 Cardinal sin, like you just, unless you're going to get 0:08:14.130 --> 0:08:16.550 them by the hash mark or the top of the 0:08:16.610 --> 0:08:17.970 circle as a D you. 0:08:17.850 --> 0:08:19.950 Don't, you don't go. If you're going to get them, 0:08:20.010 --> 0:08:20.290 get them. 0:08:20.450 --> 0:08:22.970 If you don't, you retreat back towards the middle, towards 0:08:23.010 --> 0:08:24.790 the net and just pass them off to the winger 0:08:24.810 --> 0:08:25.530 or the center. 0:08:25.550 --> 0:08:27.990 But I've seen, I mean, we saw it. 0:08:27.950 --> 0:08:32.030 Again in that, in the Canadians game, I believe it 0:08:32.050 --> 0:08:34.250 was Carlisle again, who just went all the way up 0:08:34.290 --> 0:08:36.459 and around and, ended up giving a goal on it. 0:08:36.580 --> 0:08:40.819 So that part of it is, I, I would honestly, 0:08:40.860 --> 0:08:42.700 I bet you that's more execution. 0:08:42.740 --> 0:08:45.790 Cause I doubt that the pens are coaching. 0:08:46.390 --> 0:08:49.550 The coaching staff is coaching them into going up that 0:08:49.590 --> 0:08:52.730 high because it just, it throws the forwards into a blender. 0:08:53.670 --> 0:08:56.660 But at the same time, it's happening enough repeatedly that 0:08:57.160 --> 0:08:59.220 it's like, Hey coaches, we gotta, you know, you need 0:08:59.240 --> 0:09:01.370 to get a handle on this and either, you know, 0:09:01.429 --> 0:09:03.209 sit a guy, get them out, get them out of 0:09:03.230 --> 0:09:05.630 the lineup, let them watch from upstairs and get them 0:09:05.670 --> 0:09:07.470 back in or get a hold on it. Cause I've 0:09:07.510 --> 0:09:11.960 seen multiple of the guys do that specific play this year. Um, 0:09:12.620 --> 0:09:15.360 as far as the other stuff, I, I, I want 0:09:15.500 --> 0:09:16.959 to air more on the. 0:09:16.940 --> 0:09:21.360 Side of execution, I guess. Um, just from what we saw. 0:09:21.220 --> 0:09:25.420 Last year, I thought they were vastly, uh, more responsible, uh, 0:09:25.540 --> 0:09:27.910 as opposed to Sully's and, you know, Sully lost the 0:09:27.970 --> 0:09:31.099 room and, and, uh, you know, his voice wasn't being 0:09:31.140 --> 0:09:33.810 heard anymore. I think Mews and them coming in, Stuthers 0:09:33.870 --> 0:09:36.910 and coming in, I think they did a good job 0:09:36.950 --> 0:09:40.350 of having a basic structure in place where we saw 0:09:40.390 --> 0:09:43.410 them being more responsible and keeping teams to the outside. 0:09:43.450 --> 0:09:47.270 It's just this year I've seen more of just like 0:09:47.309 --> 0:09:51.120 that play I'm talking about or missed assignments off face-offs, 0:09:51.179 --> 0:09:55.560 just like general stuff that is almost hockey 101, that 0:09:55.860 --> 0:09:58.679 it goes more on the side of personnel and execution. 0:09:59.390 --> 0:10:02.439 Now, show us. isn't gold tonight against Vegas, but Morozov 0:10:02.460 --> 0:10:05.820 has been disappointing. I think that's fair to say. What's 0:10:05.860 --> 0:10:08.860 gone bad for him? Because he has not only bad numbers, 0:10:08.880 --> 0:10:10.000 but bad optics too. 0:10:11.400 --> 0:10:13.720 Yeah, bad, bad, bad in both. You're right. 0:10:14.520 --> 0:10:16.900 To start off the season, I mean, those first couple games, 0:10:16.940 --> 0:10:19.320 he looked good. I mean, I know he doesn't really 0:10:19.360 --> 0:10:21.840 have any wins but I don't I'm not that's the 0:10:21.880 --> 0:10:24.850 last of my concerns or worries I could care less 0:10:24.900 --> 0:10:26.510 if he got to win the whole year I'm just 0:10:26.570 --> 0:10:31.370 more looking at save percentage and goals that he's letting 0:10:31.470 --> 0:10:33.790 in like like a week even if he runs a 0:10:33.809 --> 0:10:35.810 9-15 one game if he lets in a weak one 0:10:35.850 --> 0:10:37.730 when is he letting it in how does he rebound 0:10:37.790 --> 0:10:40.410 for it kind of in the uh in that Blackhawks 0:10:40.470 --> 0:10:43.130 game that one goal that he let in from the 0:10:43.290 --> 0:10:46.290 left hash mark and and you know obviously he should 0:10:46.330 --> 0:10:48.770 have saved it but How does he rebound from that? 0:10:48.830 --> 0:10:52.569 That's more of what I'm looking for from him. And 0:10:52.630 --> 0:10:56.710 it's steadily declining. Now, a lot of that might be, 0:10:57.170 --> 0:11:00.610 you know, between the last game he played in the previous, 0:11:00.630 --> 0:11:02.730 I think it was 12 days off in between games. 0:11:03.030 --> 0:11:06.690 So that's another thing that I'm kind of scratching my 0:11:06.730 --> 0:11:09.380 head at is why, you know, if this kid's not 0:11:09.429 --> 0:11:12.010 only is he struggling, but we're also letting him sit there. 0:11:12.360 --> 0:11:15.670 So I don't, You know, it's a tricky situation. 0:11:15.730 --> 0:11:18.270 In that vein, Bart, I mean, would he benefit from 0:11:18.330 --> 0:11:21.250 a trip to Wilks? And maybe you bring Blomquist up, 0:11:21.270 --> 0:11:23.180 although he's not played real well in Wilks. 0:11:24.660 --> 0:11:28.580 Yeah, I mean, I think it's better if he's playing. 0:11:28.620 --> 0:11:32.340 I mean, I know he's shown, and even Blomquist, he's 0:11:32.360 --> 0:11:34.280 shown in stretches that he can be good in Wilks. 0:11:34.330 --> 0:11:37.510 But Mershaw has shown, especially last season, that he can 0:11:37.650 --> 0:11:40.670 pretty much dominate that league. So if it is a 0:11:40.750 --> 0:11:43.310 confidence thing at this point, send him down and let 0:11:43.330 --> 0:11:48.340 him get some reps and pitch a shutout or whatever 0:11:48.380 --> 0:11:50.260 you want to do to let them get hit with 0:11:50.300 --> 0:11:51.780 the puck and then bring. 0:11:51.700 --> 0:11:52.280 It back up. 0:11:52.340 --> 0:11:56.480 Now, if there's something else going on, then that's in 0:11:56.500 --> 0:11:59.900 the goalie coach's hands to handle and the coaching staff. 0:11:59.940 --> 0:12:03.450 But honestly, at this point, it looks more like. 0:12:03.330 --> 0:12:04.170 A confidence thing. 0:12:04.210 --> 0:12:08.050 Now, he's not letting in those really bad goals that 0:12:08.090 --> 0:12:10.370 we saw like in the Blackhawks game. It's just he's 0:12:10.429 --> 0:12:13.820 not making– The saves that are in, and you know, 0:12:13.840 --> 0:12:16.700 they have all those above average stats and all that junk, 0:12:16.780 --> 0:12:20.580 but just the eye test, he's not making those saves 0:12:20.620 --> 0:12:23.280 that you would expect the next franchise goalie to make. 0:12:24.220 --> 0:12:27.840 Now, like we said, Sid played good in Montreal, but 0:12:27.940 --> 0:12:32.550 where's he been lacking in general? Because that gets him 0:12:32.690 --> 0:12:34.910 not even close yet to a point per game on 0:12:34.950 --> 0:12:36.690 the year, and that's kind of his benchmark. 0:12:38.490 --> 0:12:41.190 Yeah, I mean, a lot of it's, well, start with 0:12:41.210 --> 0:12:41.970 the power play. 0:12:42.650 --> 0:12:45.319 You know, after the first two games, I think what 0:12:45.380 --> 0:12:48.319 it took six or seven games to get another goal. 0:12:48.440 --> 0:12:52.640 So that not being hot, you're just, you know, the 0:12:52.679 --> 0:12:54.220 high point getters, those guys get. 0:12:54.140 --> 0:12:55.160 Points on the power play. 0:12:56.220 --> 0:12:58.590 And then guys being in and out of the lineup 0:12:58.610 --> 0:13:02.350 getting hurt, them trying to figure out who to play 0:13:02.370 --> 0:13:04.730 with them because, you know, he's going to have input 0:13:04.790 --> 0:13:06.570 on who he wants to play with and they're going 0:13:06.590 --> 0:13:09.339 to have their opinion of who they want him to 0:13:09.380 --> 0:13:12.760 play with based on what they want that night and 0:13:12.820 --> 0:13:15.720 who they want to be the next wave in the organization. 0:13:15.800 --> 0:13:20.100 So I think that stretch there, especially over the Western 0:13:21.100 --> 0:13:24.000 trip with Utah and Vegas and started in Chicago, we 0:13:24.020 --> 0:13:27.540 could see him visibly frustrated. And I know towards the 0:13:27.600 --> 0:13:30.040 end of it, I mean, the lines were getting switched 0:13:30.080 --> 0:13:34.060 around and, you know, I'm not too sure they were taking. 0:13:35.160 --> 0:13:35.880 his. 0:13:36.179 --> 0:13:38.680 Point of view or his opinion of who he wanted 0:13:38.720 --> 0:13:41.260 to play with. And historically we know he doesn't really 0:13:41.320 --> 0:13:44.920 like that. So some of that might've been it. And 0:13:44.940 --> 0:13:47.530 then the other part is, you know, Hey, he's, he's 0:13:47.530 --> 0:13:50.890 39 now. So he's probably working through a little bit 0:13:50.950 --> 0:13:56.150 of situations. He just doesn't have that extra step or 0:13:56.210 --> 0:13:59.349 have that extra gear. So that can be a hard 0:13:59.410 --> 0:14:02.990 thing to overcome just mentally going through the game. You're, 0:14:03.050 --> 0:14:05.569 you know, you're going for a puck and, Even if 0:14:05.610 --> 0:14:08.050 you get there first, you might not have that extra 0:14:08.090 --> 0:14:10.300 half step to get away in the corner or play 0:14:10.340 --> 0:14:12.679 the way that he's played for the last, you know, 0:14:12.780 --> 0:14:14.179 better part of 21 years. 0:14:14.300 --> 0:14:17.300 So I think it's just a combination of a lot. 0:14:17.340 --> 0:14:18.699 And at the end of the day, you know, he 0:14:18.720 --> 0:14:21.780 still might be the most competitive guy in the league. So. 0:14:22.640 --> 0:14:24.940 I'm sure being on this team right now and just 0:14:25.100 --> 0:14:27.140 with the inconsistencies they have, that's. 0:14:26.960 --> 0:14:28.180 Got to take a toll on them, too. 0:14:28.860 --> 0:14:31.500 We're talking to Matt Bartkowski of Sportsnet Pittsburgh here on 0:14:31.520 --> 0:14:35.370 the home of the Penguins, 105.9 EX. What's your take 0:14:35.450 --> 0:14:38.670 on Koivunen lately? He got that big contract, and I'm 0:14:38.710 --> 0:14:41.530 not sure about his long-term upside. I see him playing 0:14:41.570 --> 0:14:42.310 a bit better, though. 0:14:44.010 --> 0:14:47.510 Yeah, I mean, it's another thing that's inconsistent. 0:14:47.570 --> 0:14:50.650 I mean, that. 0:14:49.290 --> 0:14:51.890 Contract came out of nowhere this summer and kind of, 0:14:52.240 --> 0:14:54.780 blind side of all of us, but he's here now. 0:14:55.920 --> 0:15:00.880 It's a, it's another thing that it's the inconsistencies. That's 0:15:00.920 --> 0:15:02.540 the problem with me. I mean, we see him get 0:15:02.590 --> 0:15:05.690 an overtime goal and then the next game be invisible. 0:15:05.850 --> 0:15:10.270 So it's, it's, he's in that group of guys that 0:15:10.690 --> 0:15:13.690 those younger majority, you know, when Hayes comes, whoever you 0:15:13.730 --> 0:15:16.230 want to put in that group of, Hey, you guys 0:15:16.270 --> 0:15:18.300 got to do this every single night. It's not a 0:15:18.400 --> 0:15:21.160 once in a blue moon type of deal. You know, 0:15:21.180 --> 0:15:25.140 the big knock on Koivun is his skating is not there. 0:15:25.300 --> 0:15:26.810 Visibly, yeah, he looks. 0:15:26.630 --> 0:15:30.650 Stronger than he did last year and handling himself a 0:15:30.670 --> 0:15:34.870 little bit better. But the skating is the real drawback. So, 0:15:36.030 --> 0:15:39.890 you know, in the faster games, he's just a half 0:15:39.930 --> 0:15:40.670 step behind. 0:15:40.690 --> 0:15:41.070 So, yeah. 0:15:41.650 --> 0:15:44.060 He's got to figure out how can I be effective 0:15:44.100 --> 0:15:45.940 and how can I use, you know, he's clearly got 0:15:45.960 --> 0:15:46.980 a good brain for the game. 0:15:47.020 --> 0:15:48.100 He clearly has skill. 0:15:48.180 --> 0:15:52.320 How can I use that to my advantage to still 0:15:52.360 --> 0:15:54.620 make an impact in those games? I mean, tonight's going 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:57.390 to be interesting too, again, to see playing a bigger 0:15:57.430 --> 0:16:02.250 Vegas team. Generally the pens just, you know, they're not 0:16:02.270 --> 0:16:04.390 going to play good against those bigger teams. We saw 0:16:04.410 --> 0:16:07.690 them against Washington earlier in the year, but these bigger 0:16:07.750 --> 0:16:11.350 teams are a problem for them. So, Being a smaller guy, 0:16:11.370 --> 0:16:14.470 he's got to go into this thinking, how can I 0:16:14.530 --> 0:16:17.210 still make an impact, even though I'm not as big 0:16:17.250 --> 0:16:19.570 as them, I'm definitely not as fast as them, but 0:16:19.610 --> 0:16:21.470 I still have my assets. 0:16:21.550 --> 0:16:23.650 It's just something that younger guys have to figure out. 0:16:24.830 --> 0:16:28.810 Bart, when should Dubas start making deals? When do you 0:16:28.850 --> 0:16:31.240 kind of figure, okay, we don't got a playoff berth 0:16:31.270 --> 0:16:33.560 in our sights this year? I know it's just 14 games, 0:16:34.000 --> 0:16:35.840 but I know what I see. I know New Jersey 0:16:35.860 --> 0:16:39.980 got Hellebuck. I know Carolina's uncatchable. It just seems like 0:16:40.160 --> 0:16:43.780 it can get real late, real early for the Penguins. 0:16:45.420 --> 0:16:48.520 Two years ago? Is that too soon? No, no. 0:16:49.080 --> 0:16:51.530 I agree with you totally, but what's done is done. 0:16:52.370 --> 0:16:54.910 Yeah, I know. It's not the way it works. 0:16:54.990 --> 0:16:59.450 But no, I mean, I'm sure he's shopping guys around now. 0:16:59.490 --> 0:17:02.859 And if he's not, he better be. Now, timing of 0:17:02.920 --> 0:17:06.100 it is the other thing. Deer normally in high demand 0:17:06.700 --> 0:17:10.140 at the deadlines. So let's take a Carlson, for example. 0:17:10.770 --> 0:17:12.970 do you want to shop them now? And then at 0:17:12.990 --> 0:17:15.290 the deadline, you see another D go for more than 0:17:15.350 --> 0:17:17.040 Carlson when he was the best option. 0:17:17.060 --> 0:17:18.189 And then you get yelled at. 0:17:18.220 --> 0:17:19.960 It's like Dan, if you do Dan, if you don't, 0:17:20.000 --> 0:17:22.340 you know, it's a, that one's a tricky one, but 0:17:22.740 --> 0:17:25.840 I would definitely start shopping them around now. I mean, there's, 0:17:25.859 --> 0:17:30.680 I mean, this team, if they make playoffs or not, they're, they're, 0:17:30.980 --> 0:17:33.180 they just, they're, they're not going to go very far. 0:17:33.869 --> 0:17:37.030 So I don't know why you wouldn't add more assets to, 0:17:37.580 --> 0:17:39.720 going into that especially because you're not going to sign 0:17:39.760 --> 0:17:43.280 a Carlson Raquel too I mean he's starting to score 0:17:43.300 --> 0:17:45.500 a little bit now uh the beginning of the season 0:17:45.520 --> 0:17:47.740 might have hurt his equity a little bit but I 0:17:47.780 --> 0:17:51.570 would definitely be shopping him um it's just I'm sure 0:17:51.630 --> 0:17:53.850 that side of the the business side of being a 0:17:53.869 --> 0:17:56.730 GM is no fun because it's like when do you 0:17:56.750 --> 0:17:59.090 pick your spot of when to pull the trigger I'm 0:17:59.150 --> 0:18:00.970 sure they're going to get something for those guys it's 0:18:01.010 --> 0:18:02.490 just what are they going to get. 0:18:03.060 --> 0:18:05.439 Well, at what point do they just stick Hayes and 0:18:05.460 --> 0:18:08.680 McGrory in their period? I have my doubts about their 0:18:08.720 --> 0:18:12.630 long-term future, but I have no doubt about Kuzmenko and LaPierre. 0:18:12.650 --> 0:18:15.610 They're empty jerseys. At what point do you switch over 0:18:15.650 --> 0:18:17.590 to younger guys just to find out? 0:18:19.109 --> 0:18:20.909 Yeah, I would do it right now. I mean, I 0:18:20.930 --> 0:18:23.449 almost would have done it at the beginning of the season. 0:18:23.490 --> 0:18:25.300 I mean, the last time we spoke, I kind of 0:18:25.340 --> 0:18:28.340 got into that. It's difficult to see what the path 0:18:28.420 --> 0:18:30.950 or the vision was of how we're going to construct 0:18:31.130 --> 0:18:31.950 towards the future. 0:18:32.030 --> 0:18:33.800 I wouldn't have went out and got a Cosmanco. 0:18:34.540 --> 0:18:37.300 Maybe a Lapierre because he's younger and just taking a chance, 0:18:37.380 --> 0:18:42.700 but no, I would get these Gordy, I think Lubinovich 0:18:42.720 --> 0:18:44.840 just got called up, you. 0:18:44.780 --> 0:18:46.419 Know, whatever D you want to call it. 0:18:46.440 --> 0:18:48.090 Yeah, but they called him up, but it looks like 0:18:48.140 --> 0:18:52.250 he's not going to play. What sense does that make? 0:18:52.450 --> 0:18:54.030 It doesn't to me. 0:18:55.390 --> 0:18:57.730 I'm sure there's a business aspect of it, like, hey, 0:18:57.750 --> 0:18:59.670 we still got to put fans in the stands, but 0:19:00.290 --> 0:19:01.709 I would be playing these young guys. 0:19:01.730 --> 0:19:05.040 I would be trying to find out at the NHL 0:19:05.080 --> 0:19:05.660 what I have. 0:19:05.700 --> 0:19:09.360 I mean, Brunick, you go to Atlas Pickering, you can 0:19:09.400 --> 0:19:12.820 throw Levinovic in there, whoever you want. Regardless of whether 0:19:12.859 --> 0:19:15.280 or not you play them all at once, I'd be 0:19:15.320 --> 0:19:16.199 calling them up for a. 0:19:16.180 --> 0:19:18.900 Week, playing them, setting them down, and just being like. 0:19:19.820 --> 0:19:22.080 You know, hey, listen, guys, you're going to come up, 0:19:22.090 --> 0:19:24.940 you're going to play. And then here's the date you're 0:19:24.960 --> 0:19:27.000 going down. So then it's not even in the back 0:19:27.040 --> 0:19:28.580 of their head, like, oh, I got to play well 0:19:28.600 --> 0:19:30.419 this first game or I'm not going to play. It's 0:19:30.440 --> 0:19:32.540 just like, hey, we're going to pull you up. You're 0:19:32.560 --> 0:19:33.920 going to play your three games and you're going to 0:19:33.940 --> 0:19:36.530 go back down and just start a rotation. That way 0:19:36.550 --> 0:19:39.010 you can really find out. You won't have guys having nerves, 0:19:39.570 --> 0:19:41.720 anything like that. They know like, hey, I'm coming up, 0:19:41.930 --> 0:19:43.490 going down. If they end up playing well and you 0:19:43.510 --> 0:19:45.709 keep them around, great. If guys get hurt and you 0:19:45.730 --> 0:19:48.050 need to keep them for longer, well, that opens another 0:19:48.090 --> 0:19:50.600 spot for another young guy to come up. But yeah, 0:19:50.680 --> 0:19:54.560 I mean, especially if we look at Kuzmenko. I mean, 0:19:54.859 --> 0:19:59.420 he's clearly a step slow, hasn't really chipped in offensively. Like, 0:20:00.240 --> 0:20:02.320 you know, the first year he had 39 goals. So 0:20:03.020 --> 0:20:06.330 I would start sitting that guy and pulling up those 0:20:06.369 --> 0:20:07.129 guys that you mentioned. 0:20:08.080 --> 0:20:10.830 Bart is always great stuff. Enjoy the game tonight. Hey, 0:20:10.880 --> 0:20:14.109 text me. Get a photo of that Vancouver jersey and 0:20:14.150 --> 0:20:15.850 text me because it's going to drive me crazy, the 0:20:15.890 --> 0:20:19.050 one you're talking about. All right, I will, Mark. That's 0:20:19.109 --> 0:20:23.389 Matt Bartkowski. I'm Mark Madden. We got Pierre Maguire at 0:20:23.450 --> 0:20:27.700 the top of the hour. Up next, got an interesting 0:20:27.760 --> 0:20:31.900 soundbite from Bill Simmons of The Ringer, and he wonders 0:20:31.960 --> 0:20:35.139 aloud if Mike Tomlin has been holding the Steelers back 0:20:35.950 --> 0:20:39.580 up until this year, being replaced by McCarthy. I know 0:20:39.600 --> 0:20:42.050 what I think. Let's hear what Bill Simmons thinks next 0:20:42.130 --> 0:21:15.190 on 105.9. It's Madden on the X. I had a 0:21:15.410 --> 0:21:20.280