Are you talking about New Zack Hyman?

Yeah. Seven points in seven games?

Yeah. Pontes Humberg has seven points in seven games.

And for God's sake, that's the bar.

Yeah.

Do we think Pontes Humberg is the best left wing the Leifs have? No. I don't know if he's the fifth best left wing the Leifs have. Just work hard out there.

Just go into the corners. Dig the fuck out. That's all you need to do. Do your job.

Just do your job. He's trying to... Tyler Bertuzzi has gone up and down for me this season. He spent a fortune. He spent a fortune.

He swung and missed- You mean in his next contract?

Yeah, he swung and missed on this deal. He only got a one-year 5.5. And the big long term deal that might have been offered to him this summer, where'd it go?

Yeah.

Where'd it go? He's got six goals, man. Six goals in a relatively healthy season. He's spending a fortune. And who's your competition for that top line spot that was his? He started the season with Matthews & Marner. Who's your competition? A rookie who's also in the dog house, by the way. Robertson. And Matthew Nye. Oh, no. Matthew Nye. And then there's Robertson. You ever seen a brick dog house? They put a foundation down on that thing.

He's going to have to dig under.

They got a basement plumbing. It's nice. It's nice in there. I mean, you got a set up for the winter. It's winterize. Yarn Croke is not on the left wing anymore. Domi is not being used on the wing anymore. Bobby McMahon was a call up. Then you have Pontus Holmberg, who they're like, Hey, you shoot left, right? How aren't you on that line? How aren't you with... He played some shifts with Tavares last night. It was a little touch and go. How aren't you this team's top-line left winger? How don't you have 40,000 points playing with those two freaks?

Well, and the way Austin is playing, the way Mitch has picked it up. Mitch had a fucking great game. He had a great game. He had a great game. If you look at his last 10 games, he's been on fire. He's got crazy points.

His counting stats have been very good.

There's been some things. With the Pontes Holberg thing, the way Sheldon Keef is setting up everybody with these lineups isn't how he plays them during the game. Because Pontes Holberg, anytime he's on the ice, he's with Matthews and Marner. But Matthews & Marner are always long shifting. Pontes Holberg last night had 11 minutes of ice time. Tyler Bertuzzi had 17 minutes of ice time. The way Sheldon Keef sets up the lines is, yeah, that's how you'll go out. But once we're doing these changes, Pontes Holberg isn't out there as a first-line winger. He's playing 11 minutes of ice time. Okay.

That's fair. Here's my question.

But he's only playing with Matthews and Marner during those 11 minutes.

Here's my question. Do the players hate that?

Yes, 100%. If you talk to any NHLer, what they like to do is show up to the rink, they don't have to look at the board because they know where they're playing.

Yeah. No wonder you lead the league in Too Many Men on the Ice. It's been a while, which means we're going to get one tomorrow. It's been like five games. Yeah, I know. But no wonder you get so many. It looks like the fucking Zodiac killer. Every time you look at the lines and what they're going to send out, there. I know other teams with elite players have special lines, but the guy regularly playing on your top line five on five played 11 minutes and wasn't benched.

No, that's just how he was deployed.

And late in the game, when they got to shut it down, they're like, Oh, we'll put Gregor with Matthews and Marner. We'll put Yarn Croke. Bless the coaching staff for this Galaxy brain stuff that makes it look like they're working real hard. It would be lovely, and I think, welcome by all involved if they didn't have to do that.

Well, they're obviously going to have to make some changes. I mean, Bertuzzi There's a lot of people that are hard on the guy, and I think rightfully so. But there have been some really great games from this person, and he has been snake-bitten, there's no question. I wonder if some other team at the trade deadline goes, We'll give you value for value.

I really just don't want to go back to Boston.

He's not going to get traded in Boston. At least it won't do that.

Yeah, but maybe it's a flipper. It'd have to be a move where you think you're upgrading your team, right? Yeah. It'd be interesting if there's a player out there for that because it'd be with a contender who you're just swapping issues with, I guess. But just to finish off that Pontes-Holberg point with your very right about, Hey, when the game is on the line, he's not on the ice. During the third period, when they had their one goal lead for the rest of the game, Pontes-Holberg had three shifts. The entire third period. It's just so strange about like, Hey, you're going to organize this, your lines, the day of the game. You're going to say, He's our first-line left winger. But when the game actually matters, he's only going to see the ice three times.

What happened the previous game? They put him out there in the final minutes of the game, blew his assignment, they lost the game.

So maybe that should be a sign that he shouldn't be your first-line left winger.

Yeah, but he's trying to make a point. He's trying to make a point, man. Again, I'll say it every show.

Are there other ways to make points?

This man...

Besides ruining your hockey team?

You know, Jesse, that's a great question.

I would love an answer.

This man, I think, must punch the air every time he's in a room by himself, scream through the windshield, goes to church, and lights a thousand candles. He's fighting for... Sheldon Keef. I know a lot of people don't love the job he's doing. That man is fighting for his freaking life. Every time he steps behind that bench, he might as well go, Brad!

Pontus Holberg's on the top line, Brad. He's on the top line, and I'm right to do it.

Brad!

Is Brandon I see you. You're 6'3. I can see you. Oh, my God. Get me someone.

I mean, the real quote was before the game, we're at Game 42, and I still don't know who I can trust. Yes. You might want to wipe your chin, but I want to-No, that's a really...

Adam, what was the quote?

He said, We're at Game 42, and I'm still not sure who I can rely on, I believe it's the quote.

Okay, do you want me to translate that? Please. That's Domi.

Fuck. With that, it reminds me of a team that I love and I favor, the New York Rangers.

Last season, Gerard Galand, there's 82 games in a year. Gerard Galand might have played 400 different line combinations against every game, every single moment. You never knew what line anybody was going to be on. It messed Lafrenier and that whole kids' line, and everybody got sick of it. What's the thing about Gerard Galand? He's two years as a head coach, and then you got to kick him out because everybody gets sick of it. That's one of the things that drives people crazy is how many different line combinations every single game, the lineup is completely different. We're seeing the same thing as Sheldon Keefe. We've seen this before. He loves doing it. He did this last year in January. This is his January thing where he just messes up the lines in every game. It's different. I wonder how long you can just keep doing this every single season. It's been so many years of this.

Well, this goes back to every frigging conversation we have about this team. This is what happens when you pay four guys everything. And then, I mean, maybe Sheldon just rotates a bunch of randoms in there because that's what the rest of the roster is, a bunch of randoms. That's what it is, man. It sucks. Brad. He's screaming it from the rooftop. And to say the new guys, too. If I'm Brad, I'm going, watch your fucking mouth.

Watch your words. Well, I think, what is Brad going to say to that? Like I said last episode, and again, they won last night, what does he have to point to that's a win?

Brad for Living. Timo Benoît. Remember earlier in the season, we were talking about what his best signing was, and we landed on Noah Gregor? Crumple, crumple.

Oh, man, he's been bad. So throw that. Max Domi.

You got an assist from Max.

Listen, I like what Max Domi brings. I know there are rewards to Max's game, but I am all the way on Max Domi. He makes things happen. I'm good with that.

He scores 70 points in this league.

Max Domi had two breakaways last week.

Yeah, no, I like Max. So Max, to me, is the best one. Yes. Simon Benoît is the second best one. But Ryan Reeves, whew.

Oh, you missed a big one. Claimant. You missed a big one. Their season would be cooked without him. Martin Jones.

You know what? That's the number one.

That's I mean, it's got to be. I've loved Benoît, and it's not like I'm saying Domi has been bad. I know Sheldon doesn't trust him in the slightest, but it's not like he's been bad. Their season would be absolutely cooked. They probably wouldn't be in a play-off.

But is it a win to say that Martin Jones saved your season? This is my point, is that even Martin Jones being your best signing is not a good look.

Martin Jones, man.

It's not that he could have accounted for Ilyas Samsonov. It's because no No other player on this roster has performed not just to... Not above expectation. They haven't performed to expectation. No.

No. Like, nothing.

That's where it gets frustrating because last night, First period, sucked. But at the end of the first period, what happens? Noah Gregor, you picked that crumpled piece of paper up, causes a turnover. Well, causes a turnover, Steven.

Yeah, causes two turnovers, one of his own doing. But he got it back. He got it back. Mike Johnson was hilarious breaking that play down because he's like, he might have got benched because he didn't have a good play. And then that happened.

It's not sometimes that we fall. It's how we get up. Damn. Okay? I stole that from the first Batman movie. Damn, that was good. With Christian Bale. That was good. All right? Noah Gregor was like, Wow, thank you, Batman's dad. I'm going to pass it to the real Batman, which is Austin Matthews. Wow. He comes in, he scores. There's five minutes left, and they go in. It's It's not 2-0, it's two to one. That, for whatever reason, is enough. Austin had an unbelievable second period.

He did, and he's getting all the flowers today because of the hat trick. I'm not trying to take those flowers away. Yes, you are. He's the best goal scorer in sports. Well, he's the best goal scorer in hockey, definitely. This sport.

Yeah. Sterling Holland might be the best goal scorer in sports.

No. Austin Matthews is the best soccer player in the world. I It's weird having to justify saying you might be the third best player in the world because that's an insult. He's definitely the best goal scorer in the world. But the guy I want to give some flowers to because we've been giving him hell, and I think he's deserved it. But he hustled his ass off in this game. And on top of the hustle, he made some elite plays, Mitch Marner.

Yeah, he's been great.

He was fucking great. And I don't remember if he was the one who got Matthews the pass for the second, but the give and go with him and Willy.

Crazy. That pass making it through. I don't know how that got it. That was like NHL 15.

Neither of those passes should have gone through. No. The Marner to Willy and Willy to Marner. That was sick. That was frigging sick. And then the fourth goal is Dan Vlida is not very good.