A pair of outstanding guests highlight Episode 54. First, Hall of Fame Journalist Al Morganti joins the show to talk about the past, present and future of the Flyers. Then former coach and NHL Network analyst Bruce Boudreau speaks about Alex Ovechkin's final push for the all-time scoring mark and where he's come from as a young player.

Neil and Vic update all of the key races, some on-ice happenings and player notes and wrap up the show with instances foes join forces for a chance to win a Stanley Cup.

IN THIS EPISODE:

[03:18] - In "Three Things You Need to Pay Attention To," the Oilers Leon Draisaitl hits 50 goals for the first time, the Blues winning streak hits nine and, do the Leafs want to win the Atlantic Division after all?

[14:49] - Al Morganti joins Neil and Vic with the initial topic being when it went off the rails during the John Tortorella era.

[19:29] - Was Torts fighting an uphill battle from the day he took the job in Philadelphia?

[23:19] - Discussion about how the Flyers evolved for two seasons but, with the parting of NHL assets in addition to their head coach, are they back to square one?

[26:40] - What ownership and the front office need to do to bring the Flyers back to respectability?

[34:17] - The immediate future for the Flyers and does the increased salary cap do anything in the short term?

[36:57] - Does Brad Shaw have the interim tag removed or is a different name next behind the Flyers bench.

[46:38] - Former coach of Alex Ovechkin, Bruce Boudreau, joins the show and start off with memories they share from their days growing up playing hockey in Toronto.

[51:00] - Bruce shares he saw greatness from early on with Ovechkin but not to the extent of breaking the goal-scoring mark.

[53:10] - The strategy of coaching Ovechkin early in his career and his evolvement as a player.

[57:26] - The Space OV has created for himself now based on his physical play early in his career.

[1:00:43] - Will the chase for the record affect the more important goals for the Caps come playoff time?

[1:07:55] - How did the Caps go from barely getting into the playoffs in 2024 to one of the NHL's elite?

[1:11:50] - Looking ahead to when the record may fall.

[1:14:28] - The maturation of Ovechkin and acknowledging Marc-Andre Fleury after their likely final meeting.

[1:20:01] - Quick check in on the bubble teams in the East - and it's not very flattering.

[1:21:46] - The West Wild Card, the race for first in the Central and the reality of the Kings finally getting home ice advantage against the Oilers in the opening round.

[1:27:00] - One of these days, the Sabres just might not occupy the cellar of the Eastern Conference.

[1:28:54] - Another example of being unselfish had potentially disastrous results.

[1:31:06] - The not-so-nice this past weekend.

[1:33:26] - Player Notes

[1:35:36] - "The Human Side of the Story" looks at former adversaries Brad Marchand and Sam Bennett now being teammates and other instances of former foes joining forces.

X: https://twitter.com/NHLWraparound

Neil Smith: https://twitter.com/NYCNeil

Vic Morren: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vic-morren-7038737/

NHL Wraparound Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/nhlwraparound/

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