Stanley Cup Final Preview (Show 9)

Sean is here to break down the Stanley Cup Final matchup between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Carolina Hurricanes. Both teams are rolling in hot and there are a ton of similarities between them. Where does each team have a slight edge? Sean makes his Final prediction! It's Biscuit Breakdown! Consider yourself served!

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Transcript

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It's time for biscuit breakdown, where hockey is the only thing on the menu. And welcome back to Biscuit Breakdown, whoever you root for, wherever you live, whenever it is, it's hockey time. Thank you for tuning in. I'm your host, Sean. Thank you to everyone that has given a five-star rating and review. We really appreciate it. If you'd like to follow me on Instagram, I am Biscuit Breakdown, Twitter, Biscuit Breakdown without the O. Or you can send me an email, biscuitbreakdownpod at gmail.com. Well, once again, I need to apologize for some bad timing on the latest podcast. I released it as game four was happening of the Vegas Golden Knights versus the Colorado Avalanche, and that turned out to be a sweep, a shocking sweep. No one saw it coming, even the experts, quote unquote, um, even the players, everybody, fans, myself, um, I chose that um Colorado would win in six games. That was far from accurate, obviously. When I did make that prediction, I did not know that Kale McCarr was hurt at all. Um and he ended up missing the first two games of that series, and he was playing compromised in game three and four, you could tell, so that made a huge difference because he is arguably the best defenseman in the world, and without him, the Colorado Avalanche could not do as much offensively, um which proved to be a big problem, obviously, against Vegas. Um people I've heard lately are saying that uh Nathan McKinnon for the Avalanche is too intense, he had bad body language, he was yelling at his teammates on the bench, just being a bit of a hardo, I guess you would say. Um I think his intensity is a good thing, honestly. He he wants to win, he cares about winning, he's elite, he focuses heavily on his training, his nutrition, sleep, um swimming exercises, as we've seen on Twitter. He's snorkeling through those pools, trying to get an edge, trying to give his heart a workout in a non-impact way. Um so I don't really think his intensity is a problem, to be honest. And I think they just ran into a really hot team that's rolling in Vegas, and Vegas, to their credit, shut them down, they played their game, limited the Colorado speed, limited their shots, and Colorado was left a thawed out avalanche, just a rocky cliffside was left over, no snow to be seen. Some people have also argued this week are the Colorado Avalanche done? Is this it for their championship window? No, it is not. And one team being the Vegas Golden Knights, who are somehow always in the championship window despite never having draft picks. They constantly are trading away draft picks, trading away players, acquiring new players, and figuring it all out with the salary cap somehow. And they are at their third Stanley Cup in their first nine years of being a franchise. They lost in 2018 to the Capitals in the Stanal, and they beat the Florida Panthers in the 2023 Stanley Cup final, so we'll see what they can do here this time around against the Carolina Hurricanes. Before we get into too much of the Stanley Cup final breakdown, I just want to say that they really dismantled Colorado, and it's quite surprising, although not surprising at the same time. Um surprising because basically everyone had the avalanche moving on, and not surprising because Vegas has uh right now a better goalie, they have better structure, and they have better defensive play, so when you add all those things up, that goes a long way, especially in the playoffs, and they were able to make mincemeat of the avalanche. They were there like a hot person at a blackjack table, just hitting all the right buttons, hitting on sixteen, and getting the dealer to bust, and they are just making money hand over fist, laughing it up here and there, tipping the waitresses a couple chips, tipping the dealer a couple chips, really just having a grand old time, and everything's working out. We'll see if that momentum can roll into the final series against the Carolina Hurricanes, who are back in the Stanley Cup final for the first time in twenty years. They took down the Montreal Canadiens in game five the other night, and really made it look quite easy. It was pretty obvious that the Canadians ran out of gas, having gone to Game 7 in the first two rounds, and going up against Carolina's intense style of play where they're constantly pressuring you no matter where you are on the ice, never letting you get a shot on goal, and the Canadians were just left basically skating around out there for fun, as if it was a free skate on a Friday night, no sticks in their hand, no way to get a shot on net, just out there skating around, hoping for the best, trying not to fall over. But in all seriousness, in game five the other night, I thought I may have seen the worst call in NHL history. I'm not even kidding. I strongly disagree with the call. Um basically the first goal of the game, Taylor Hall scored on a rebound in front of the net, but it was bullshit because Logan Stankoven clearly slid into the Canadians' goalie, and that made him lose his balance, and then um Taylor Hall was able to hit the rebound home underneath his pad, and I don't know how they review that and called it a good goal. You can clearly see Stancoven sliding into him. He moves, his balance shifts, and that causes his pad to come up. I thought it was definitely coming back, and the refs looked at it, they reviewed it, they go to center ice and they say, We still have a good goal, and I was like, What the hell? This is some BS. That was possibly the worst skull in NHL history. Um Carolina then scores shortly after that to make it 2-0 on a nice goal over the goalie's shoulder. Um he was partly screened, so it wasn't exactly his fault. Then, not too soon after, Carolina scores again on a breakaway. It was a weak goal, and you could tell the rookie goalie was just kind of feeling it, and it was kind of like the clock hitting midnight for Cinderella. He turned into a pumpkin or a jack-o' lantern, more like it, with holes in him because there was goals getting through them in between them, five hole like there was on that breakaway. So things just were going from bad to worse, and uh Canadians couldn't do shit about it. They couldn't get shots on net. They went three games in a row in this series with less than 18 shots on net. That had never happened before in the playoffs, so that's a remarkable statistic, and uh credit to the Carolina defense for not letting shots through. And you can't win if you don't get shots on net. It's just that simple. And at one point in game five, in a display of pure disrespect, the Carolina fans start chanting Ole Ole Ole Ole Ole Ole, which is the Canadians fans chant during the games at the Bell Center up in Montreal. So they are just mocking the Canadians, they're beating them, they're adding insult to injury, and I was kind of chuckling at that, but I was thinking to myself, oh, they're gonna give themselves a little bit of bad karma moving into the next series. You know, this could come back to bite them, only time will tell. Alright, before we move into our doggy bag prediction segment for the final, I want to quickly talk about the IIHF World Championship Tournament, which just wrapped up today at time of recording. Um Finland came away with the championship, and it was obviously a little bit surprising because Canada once again was the favorite going into that tournament, with Macklin Celebrini, the 19-year-old Phenom, wearing the Captain C instead of Sidney Crosby. Um so that was surprising, but Crosby was cool about it, and he was um down with you know a changing of the guard as he wore the alternate captain's A on his sweater. He knows that Celebrini is the next one, and he supports him, and I'm sure Sid still had a great uh leadership um qualities in that locker room, but once again, Canada comes up short as they lost today to Norway and they didn't even get the bronze medal. Norway beating them is a major upset. Um so that's kind of funny that Canada is a little bit of a rut here in terms of international play, but knowing them, they're gonna use all of this as fuel for the next year's world championship, and then in 2028, there will be the World Cup of Hockey, and then there'll be the Olympics in 2030. So we got international hockey almost every year, world championships every year. Um, those aren't as popular because they don't get all the biggest superstars in the NHL, but they still have really good teams. So congrats to Team Finland on winning gold. And it's not entirely surprising because Alexander Barkov was back playing for Team Finland after tearing his ACL in Panthers training camp in late September. He missed the entire Panthers season, and they didn't make the playoffs because he is a true number one center. He contributes on face-offs majorly, he scores points, he shuts down other teams' best players, and Finland um they got bronze at the Olympics in February, but uh now that they have Barkov back, they went gold, and obviously he makes a huge difference. Alright, it's time to change it up and move into our doggy bag prediction segment for the Stanley Cup final. Pretty crazy that I'm saying that because it feels like only a few months ago that the season started. I remember back in October with the giddiness of the new season, and all of a sudden here we are, Stanley Cup final. Time flies when you're having fun, I guess. Before I get into my breakdown of the Stanley Cup Final, I want to quickly talk about a drinking game that I came across on Facebook regarding the Stanley Cup Final, because some of it I thought was good, some of it I thought was stupid as hell. Alright, so here we go. It says take a sip every time three finals in nine seasons is mentioned. That's fine. This is one of those games, by the way, that you either take a sip or you chug your beer, or you take a shot or something when things happen in the game. So first one is take a sip when three finals in nine seasons are mentioned. That's fine. Um that's about Vegas. Next one says, take a sip every time Rod Brindamore being a part of almost every Carolina playoff win is mentioned. That's sort of a dumb one. I don't think they're gonna say that much. Um it's a cool stat for Rod Brindemore. He was on the team when they won in 2006 as their captain, and he's been their coach for I think the last eight or nine seasons, maybe even more. Um, and he has had a lot of success with Carolina, but they've never really been able to get over the hump and get back to the promised land of winning the cup. We'll see if they can do that this year. Next one says take a sip every time a Vegas player commits a crime. What the hell are we talking about here? I don't know what that even means. Um that's a waste of a rule. Next one, take a sip every time the ESPN broadcast does something stupid and say ESPN is awful. That's a subjective one, so I don't think that works out well either. What does that mean? Does something stupid? Stupid with the broadcast, a stupid comment. I don't know. Fourth or fifth rule, take a sip every time. Mitch Marner's career with Toronto and playoff history is mentioned. That's a solid rule. That's been one of the storylines of these playoffs. Mitch Marner, he's leading all of playoff players in points, and this is his first year with the Golden Knights after being in Toronto and it not working out. He was a hometown kid. He caught a lot of shit for not playing well in the playoffs with the Maple Leafs all those years. He's like, the hell with this. I'm gonna go to Vegas, I'm gonna sign an eight-year deal, $12 million per year, make some sweet non-tax money, play in a market where there's a lot less pressure, and what do you know, less pressure, better performance, and now he's in the Stanley Cup final. Next rule says, take a sip every time Jacob Slavin or Keandre Miller make an insane defensive play. They are two Carolina defensemen, really good defensemen. Sure, we can keep that rule. Uh this one says take a sip every time Ray Ferraro, who's the color analyst for ESPN, gives a player's entire life story after they score. Something that Ray Ferraro is sort of known for. He gives a lot of detail into the players' backgrounds. I don't mind it. I think it's a pretty cool thing. So I guess we can keep that as a rule. It might be a fun one. This one says, take a sip every time John Tortarella, who's the coach of the Golden Knights, being brought in with only eight games left is mentioned. That's a solid rule. Um crazy move by the Vegas management to fire Bruce Cassidy with only eight games left. They bring in torts, and he uh has taken them to the Stanley Cup final. I think they're 18-4 since bringing him in, so credit to John Tortorella for loosening up that locker room and letting them play at their best. This one says shotgun to drink for a Carolina shutout or drink for 30 seconds for a Vegas shutout. Alright, that could be a good rule. This says take a shot every time Howden or Dora Fayeb score. So that's gonna be a potential problem because they are the two highest goal scorers right now on the Knights. So if you do that, you might be heading to a Vegas hangover style blackout before you know it. This says take a shot every time the Hall Stancoven Blake line scores. That's the second line for the Carolina Hurricanes. They are absolutely buzzing right now. They have goals, they have assists, um, they are gelling at the right time, obviously. So that could be a problem too if you were gonna follow the rules of this game strictly. This says finish a six pack if a team scores four goals. That's a dumb rule. Um I mean, come on here. What are we doing? A six pack. You and then we're gonna work that into the game. I don't like it. This says chug a drink if Aho or Svechnikov finally produce. So they are two players on the Hurricanes. That is a dumb rule because the past two games against the Canadians, they have started producing. They've woken up, they've both scored in those last two games, they've gotten assists, they are starting to find their rhythm again in the playoffs where it is harder to score, where there's less time, there's less space, there's more grit needed, and they are figuring it out. Last two say, throw your drink at the TV if Vegas wins the cup. So clearly this was created by a Carolina fan. Um and if you throw your drink at the TV, you're just a dumbass because one, you're gonna ruin your TV. Two, you now have beer on the wall and floor that you gotta clean up, and uh three, you've wasted a beer. Last one, celebratory 24 pack if the Canes win the cup. Um so obviously you're gonna continue to rage a bit if you are a Carolina fan, and you're gonna celebrate their victory if they're able to hoist the Stanley Cup. So that was a kind of a uh wasted potential on that beer drinking game. Only about half of the rules that they created are solid in my opinion, um, and half are pretty dumb. Two rules that I would add that would come in handy are take a sip of your beer when a player blocks a shot, so other than the goalie, um could be an offensive or defensive player putting their own body in front of a shot and blocking it, you take a sip, or you have to finish your current beer whenever there's a penalty called. That can get a little bit tough. Another one that I just thought of is take three sips every time there is a scrum after the whistle. So we all know in the playoffs there's scrums, things get heated, they're playing for the ultimate prize, this is the championship round, and it's more of a battle of will than skill at this point. Alright, so now it's time for the official breakdown of this series, the last series of the year. Um quick background, they played two games against each other this year, both of them were in October. In mid-October, Vegas won 4-1 in Vegas, and then eight days later, they played again in late October in Carolina, and Vegas won six-three. So considering that those games were so far away from present day, we can't put much stock into those right now. Um we can keep them in the back of our mind, but uh the teams are much different at this point in the year. That was months and months ago, so you can't weigh on that too heavily. Another point, though, that we gotta keep in mind is the road teams in these playoffs are forty and thirty-six, so they've won four more games than the home team, which is pretty crazy considering home arenas are quite wild in the playoffs, and maybe the players are feeling too much pressure at home and it doesn't work out. I don't know. Road teams might be able to be playing looser, they know that it's them against the world, and they just pin their ears back and go for it, but forty and thirty six record for the road teams, and in this series, Vegas is the road team. But Carolina is a perfect 6-0 on the road these playoffs. So that is a bit of a wash as well, in my opinion. Some more similarities between these two teams is that both of them are rolling. Obviously, when you get to the Stanley Cup final, both teams are playing well. They're feeling good about their game. They're confident. They're tenacious. They are high flying. So Vegas and Carolina are both excelling at defeating people, basically. It's what it boils down to. Both these teams have swept at least one series. Both of these teams have a red-hot goalie. Both of these teams play a defensive style that doesn't allow the other team to have many shots on net. And another similarity that I thought of is that both of these teams play in front of a crazy home fan base. And before the game, they both have a celebrity or former player crank this siren thing to get the crowd amped up. So there's a lot of similarities heading into this Stanley Cup final. They both have size. Although Vegas has a slight edge there, but their weight and height average is about the same. So there's a lot of similarities between these two teams. Now we'll talk about their differences. Each team has some slight edges over the other. I'm giving the slight edge in offensive depth to the Vegas Golden Knights because they have some more name brand top-of-the-line stars in their first three lines. And their fourth line is big, they're heavy, they're tough, much like Carolinas, to be honest, but overall I think the Vegas Golden Knights have four more skilled offensive lines, which will give them a slight edge in that category. Carolina, however, has better defensive depth, in my opinion. One through six, their back end is big, they're skilled, they're physical, they're um experienced, so I think they have a better um back end, if you will, than Vegas, because Vegas has on their third line pair um Cockland, who is um, you know, somewhat new to the NHL. He's been up and down a lot in the AHL, and I can't think of their sixth defenseman right now, but if I can't, then that's not a good thing for them. So I would give a slight edge in defense of depth to the Hurricanes. Um also in team defense, Carolina's only given up 23 goals in the playoffs so far this year, whereas Vegas has given up 37. Um, Vegas did have to play, I would say, um more highly skilled offensive teams throughout these playoffs. Utah was able to score against them a bit. The Ducks were able to score against them a little bit, and Colorado, not that much. And then on the other side, the Hurricanes, they played the Senators, they couldn't do jack shit. The Flyers, they couldn't really get much offense going. Canadiens had some success against them, scoring 13 goals in the five games, but it obviously was not enough. The goalies are pretty much a wash, though. Both of them are hot, like I said, and both teams are playing really good defensive hockey, controlling the middle of the ice, limiting the shots, and that's a great way to have success. I will give the slight edge in coaching to Vegas because John Tortarella has been coaching for a long time. He coached the Tampa Bay Lightning to the win the Stanley Cup in 2004. Um obviously that was a long time ago, but his teams have had a lot of success, and this year um is no different. I'm going to give the edge, a major edge in nightlife to Vegas, obviously. Um Las Vegas versus Raleigh, North Carolina. I mean, come on, what are we even talking about here? There's so much to see and do in Vegas, and Raleigh, you know, just can't compare. Does it have any real impact on the game? No. But is it fun to talk about? Yes. So, with all that being said, I am going to pick the Vegas Golden Knights to win the Stanley Cup in six games against the Carolina Hurricanes. Now, I've been wrong these playoffs, I've been right these playoffs. Um if you are keeping score at home, I was five and three in the first round of the playoffs, I was one and three in the second round of the playoffs, and I was one and one in the conference final round of the playoffs, so not that great to be honest. You might think I'm an idiot, um, and you might say, oh, if he's picking Vegas, then I guess Carolina's gonna win. Or you're riding with me. Either way, it's gonna be a fun one, and I'm excited to watch this series. It's always exciting to watch the Stanley Cup final no matter who's in it. And based on how well these two teams have been playing, I think we are in for quite a dandy. Um I am recording this podcast episode and releasing it before the start, obviously, of the last series, and I'm about to go on vacation for almost a week, so I am planning to be back with you all I think before game three next Saturday. But if not, definitely before game four on that Tuesday. But until then, I would love to hear from you on Instagram or Twitter. Instagram, I am biscuit breakdown, Twitter, Biscuit Breakdown without the O, or you can send me an email, biscuitbreakdownpod at gmail.com. Feel free to talk anything hockey related or non-hockey related, and I'll be happy to engage with you and add it to the show if it's interesting. Um be sure to follow wherever you get your podcasts, and if you would be so kind as to leave a five star rating and review, I would really appreciate it. This has been Biscuit Breakdown. Consider yourself served.