Two Man Forecheck

Episode 0062PS: The Playoffs Are Here! Listen As We Break Down All First Round Matchups With Surprises and Most Valuables!

The Playoffs are here!! The Two Man Forecheck break down all 8 first round matchups.  Our surprise players and the guys that have to be the most valuable to their respective teams.  Cheer or cringe as we make our predictions for the first-round results.  Discuss among your friends and let us know if we are right, wrong or just clearly off the deep end!  There are some entertaining surprises and shocking picks. Send us your feedback but most of all enjoy the playoffs!

Episode 0062: The Humboldt Broncos, E. Karlsson Moving, Raanta Extended, Vigneault Gone, NCAA Final and the Hobey Baker, Lundqvist Wants to Win, J.T. Miller Opportunities, Ken Holland Extended!

With heavy hearts, the Two Man Forecheck offer condolences, prayers and strength to the families, friends and all that were affected by the accident which took 15 players lives from the Humboldt Broncos on Friday.  There is a GoFundMe page started to collect donations to assist those families affected. Here is the link:

 

https://www.gofundme.com/funds-for-humboldt-broncos

 

We continue the show talking about Erik Karlsson and his last days in Ottawa (possibly).  He will most likely be moving at the draft or the start of free agency, but where will he land?  Are the Islanders good for him and he for them.  Most expect the Rangers to get heavily involved, but is the re-build a good spot for E.K. to continue his career?  Moving out west the Forecheckers discuss the extension of Antti Raanta’s contract…very team friendly in our opinion, and with the numbers he has put up, the team’s fortunes could be on the rise.  Solid now in goal and lots of youth…Chayka may know what he is doing after all.  Alain Vigneault has been behind the bench for half a decade with the Rangers but no more! Will he land on his feet?  Will the Rangers find their new coach quickly or do they already have him?  NCAA Hockey takes center stage as the final is played and the Hobey Baker is handed out. Do goaltenders get the shaft when it comes to this award…we discuss.  Henrik Lundquist says that next year has to be about winning, but has he looked at the roster lately.  We break it down for him.  J.T. Miller was moved off that roster at the deadline to Tampa Bay, but many teams should consider making him an offer.  The Forecheckers point out some of the potential landing spots.  Finally, congrats to Ken Holland on his extension. Is this good news for Jeff Blashill? Should he have been extended?  All this coming at you full speed and we aren’t done.  The Playoff Supplemental show is around the corner on Tuesday and the playoffs will be exciting.  Give us a listen and stick with us as we wax poetic about all things hockey.  Let us know what you think, give us your feedback good or bad!  What should we put on the topic list?  Enjoy the s

Episode 0061: The Playoffs Are Fast Approaching, Colorado, St. Louis, Tuukka Rask, Goalie Controversy in Washington and Future Starters, the Hart Trophy and the Best Expansion Team Ever!

Join us for a fun-filled episode as the Two Man Forecheck cover everything playoffs right from the puck drop.  We start out with playoff possibilities and matchups.  Colorado and St. Louis are fighting for their playoff lives.  Who will win the President’s Trophy?  With 5 teams within 7 points of each other it could come down to the last game of the season.  From the playoffs we delve deep into the goaltender position with a look at Tuukka Rask and his improvement this year having played less games.  Is this the answer to getting the best out of him? There is a brief pause to talk about Zdeno Chara and his new contract…a possible statement to the team that they aren’t ready to move on without him or that they don’t yet have to do so.  Back to goaltenders and the future starters around the league.  Thatcher Demko, former BC goalie got his first start for Vancouver and won.  Other future starters with solid seasons such as Juuse Saros, Malcolm Subban, and Phillip Grubauer are discussed.  This leads to a frank discussion of the goaltending controversy brewing in Washington. Who should be the starter in the playoffs.  The GM meetings gave us some direction regarding the next expansion team and how things will play out, as well as the goaltender interference issue and how it will be handled.  The Hart Trophy is hotly contended this year, and we at the Forecheck have differing opinions on how it should be awarded and who should get it.  Fair to say that we don’t necessarily agree here.  We finish up with a penalty shot with the goalie pulled by talking about the best expansion team ever…the Golden Knights. Plenty of topics to tell us what you think.  Do you agree…disagree?  Let us know and please share it with your friends, but most of all enjoy…The Two Man Forecheck!

Episode 0060: The Playoffs, Blake Wheeler, Staal and the Wild, Twitter Poll, John Tavares, NY Market Without Playoffs, Evander Kane, Brad Marchand, Goal Scoring Is Up and Add One!

Can you smell it?  Can you feel it?  That’s right…The NHL Playoffs are just around the corner!  Here at the Two Man Forecheck we are thinking playoffs all the time.   And we start this week’s show with a brief touch on the very near future tourney.  Transitioning into a recent topic, Blake Wheeler was sent to the dressing room at practice yesterday after an altercation with a teammate.  Is this really an issue?  We talk about the Minnesota Wild and their leading scorer, Eric Staal.  Is he in line for some hardware at the end of the season?  The Forecheck Twitter Poll this week involved the latest Bruin addition, Ryan Donato, and the respondents felt that, by a 55% margin, his addition was brought on by the injuries suffered in Boston.  The Forecheckers discuss John Tavares and various scenarios that could play out before transitioning to the NY market and the possibility of not having any teams in the playoffs.  One of our favorite topics is Evander Kane, and we discuss his resurgence and pure enjoyment of the game now that he is in San Jose.  Is it open season on Brad Marchand?  Pucksage and the Bruins feel that it might be.  Goal scoring is up around the league…why is that?  All this and Add One!  We packed a lot into this show so please give it a listen and let us know how you feel.  Questions, comments and even criticisms are always welcome.

Episode 0059: Hockey East Tournament and Awards, Ovechkin Scores 600, CORSI Is Dead, Backes' Bad Month, the Jets Chances and Western Conf. Dark Horses, eSports Gaming and Ms. Daryl Watts!

Here we are, another week in the books and the playoffs are looming large on the horizon.  The puck drop gives us the announcement of two prospects for the Boston Bruins signing their entry level contracts, both from the University of Wisconsin.  Sticking with the college theme, the Forecheckers talk about the Hockey East tournament and awards given with a touch of underclassmen who have received Rookie awards.  The Two Man Forecheck want to congratulate Alexander Ovechkin on hitting the 600-goal plateau in his career and we discuss just how far can he go.  CORSI is dead, and David Backes has had a rough month.  The Forecheck show has been a fan of the Vegas Knights, and we really like the Predators, but the one team that could vault ahead of them is Winnipeg.  We also talk about dark horse teams L.A. and Anaheim.  We briefly touch on eSports gaming as the NHL has created a tournament and we talk about Ms. Daryl Watts, a freshman at B.C. who has won the NCAA Player of the Year award (Patty Kazmaier) as well as the Cammi Granato award (Hockey East Player of the Year) and Hockey East Rookie of the Year for women’s hockey.  Congrats to Daryl!  Have a listen, please leave us your thoughts and questions, and enjoy!

Episode 0058: Caps One and Done, Coaching Hot Seat, Backes Suspension, The Nash/Spooner Deal...Who is Winning, Jack Edwards Tweeting, Flyers' NHL Awards Chances and Add One!

Here we are in March and one month away from the NHL Playoffs.  The Two Man Forecheck is gearing up…We start this week’s show talking about the Capitals and their playoffs being one and done.  Braden Holtby is not the Vezina candidate he has been in the past but is he the sole reason?  This leads into a discussion about coaches on the hot seat and who could replace them.  David Backes has been suspended for 3 games but has never been punished by the NHL in the past.  Was he deserving?  The Bruins and Rangers made a splash at the trade deadline, but who won the Rick Nash deal?  The Forecheckers believe that Spooner may be the winner.  Jack Edwards, the television voice of the Bruins tweeted about the Brad Marchand hit against Anthony DuClair, picking on NBC Sports in the process.  The Flyers may have multiple players in line for season awards, we discuss two of them.  All this and Add One as well as the NHL telling coaches and players to stop complaining about goaltender interference.  Enjoy the show, drop us a line to query, complain or congratulate our opinions but don’t miss this week’s episode.

Episode 0057: The Boston Bruins 7th Player Award, the New York Rangers, Trade Deadline Winners and Losers, Overpayments and the Ryan McDonagh Deal, The Calgary Flames Stadium Situation and Add One!

Here we are the week after the trade deadline and the winners/losers are starting to surface.  That being said, we begin this week at the local level, with a discussion of the Boston Bruins 7^th Player Award, given to the player that exceeds expectations voted on by the fans.  Charlie McAvoy is the likely winner, but should he be?  We also talk about the New York Rangers and the moves made at the deadline, which leads us into a frank conversation about the winners and losers.  Tampa Bay would be an obvious choice, but there are other teams to consider such as Columbus and Winnipeg.  The Forecheckers wax poetic about the new love in the NHL, the Golden Knights and their deal for Tatar.  Did they overpay?  Did other teams overpay (as most do at the deadline)?  Mike and I like to surprise you so we do this week by agreeing with Gary Bettman regarding the state of the Calgary Flames.  All this and Add One is back!!  Listen, comment, send your questions and enjoy!

Episode 0056: Breaking Rick Nash News, The Olympics, Marco Sturm, The Trade Deadline and What's Still to Come Around the League

 Hello Everyone and Welcome!  To steal a line from Michael Buffer..."Let's Get Ready to Rumble!!".  The Two Man Forecheck began this week's show with breaking news just before the red record light came on...Rick Nash became a Bruin.  The Forecheckers discuss and commiserate over the acquisition.  How much was paid and overpaid.  Other possibilities rather than Rick Nash.  To bring things to a positive side, we change topics to the Olympics.  How impressive were the women!  Congrats on the gold medal!  We talk about the men and specifically about the possibility of Marco Sturm reappering in the NHL behind some team's bench.  We talk trade deadline and potential landing spots for players the likes of Evander Kane and Erik Karlsson.  So much content that we missed Add One for a second week, but you won't notice either as this show is packed!  Give a listen and let us know how you feel about the new teammates!  Until tomorrow...gonna steal one more line here..."Who has more fun than us?!"  Thanks for listening!

Episode 0055: Boston Bruins, Beanpot Tournament, Kings/Senators Trade, N.Y. Rangers Selloff, E. Kane, Patrice Bergeron, Jaroslav Halak, Eichel and Buffalo, The Office of Player Safety

After a one week absence due to the flu with a stomach bug chaser for The Offwing, the Forecheckers are back with another rivetting episode packed with local team discussions among other topics.  Start with the Boston Bruins and their not so impressive loss at Vancouver.  We knock around ideas as to why this happened and the possibility of this pattern continuing.  We then move on to one of the most underrated tournaments, the Boston Beanpot Tournament.  B.C., B.U., Northeastern and Harvard play for the priviledge of hoisting a small pewter Beanpot the way the NHL teams hoist a slightly larger silver cup.  Some of the most entertaining hockey a fan could ever hope to see.  We discuss the puzzling trade between the L.A. Kings and Ottawa Senators and whether there was actually a winner in this deal.  Spoiler...Mike thinks the Kings won...The forecheckers then move on to the N.Y. Rangers and their impending selloff.  Who should they move?  Is there anyone they should keep?  We talk Evander Kane and potential landing spots, Patrice Bergeron and potential hardware, Jaroslav Halak and his future with the Islanders and Jack Eichel and how his injury affects the Buffalo Sabres.  The show closes with a discussion about the Office of Player Safety (which is or is located directly next to the Office of Accounts Receivable).  Have they lost touch with reality a little?  The number of games given for a suspension appears to be random, and in some cases, too little to fit the crime.  So join us...Add One will return next week.  Leave us some comments, queries and topics you would like to hear on a future podcast.  Enjoy the show!

Episode 0054: John Tavares, Mike Green, Jack Johnson and the Trade Deadline, Tampa Bay and the Deadline, Las Vegas' Trademark, Mike Fisher, Zdeno Chara and Add One!

Episode 54, also known as Year 2 Week 2, sees the Forecheckers venturing into the recent past with an exciting discussion about the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.  Celebrate with us the players that were not only taken in the first round, but the late picks such as Connor Hellebuyck who are now succeeding.  Could this be the best draft since 2003?  Isn’t it fun to hash out.  We also talk trade deadline and how it would affect the decision of one John Tavares to stay with his current club.  How will Jack Johnson and Mike Green celebrate the deadline?  Are they moving on?  Will Tampa pull off some move to acquire Erik Karlsson? 

Shorter topics include the trademark battle continuing between the Golden Knights and the U.S. Army, Mike Fisher’s return to the Nashville Predators and Zdeno Chara hitting another milestone in his career.  1400 games is nothing to balk at.  Could he reach 1000 with the Bruins?

We close the show with another rousing episode of Add One!  Join us for all the mirth and mayhem, or just listen for the enjoyment.  Drop us a line and let us know which draft is your favorite, or any of the other topics we discuss weekly.  Look forward to hearing from all of you…and go Patriots.