The Monday Morning Goalie

Taking shots …

1 – ALL SQUARE: Rarely do things go as we planned but Round 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs seems to be on schedule. Predictable, even. After the Toronto Maple Leafs won the opening two games against the Florida Panthers in this Eastern Conference Semifinal, Leaf fans and media were unsurprisingly planning the Stanley Cup Parade. But they call them the Comeback Cats for a reason. In two raucous weekend games at Amerant Bank Arena, the defending champs beat the Leafs by 5-4 (OT) and 2-0 scores to tie this thing up at 2-2 going back to Toronto for Wednesday’s Game 5. It was a quiet weekend as far as hearing from Leaf fans goes, which I was fine with. I still think it goes seven games. … Regarding the Max Domi hit on Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov at the buzzer, it’s much ado about nothing. A harmless love tap. 

2 – RANTANEN FOR SMYTHE: I had the Dallas Stars taking out the Winnipeg Jets in Round 2, and they grabbed a 2-1 series lead courtesy of a 5-2 victory on Sunday in Texas. The emerging story of these playoffs is Stars forward Mikko Rantanen – who skated with both Colorado and Carolina as well this season – who has become the first player in NHL history to record five 3-point games in his first 10 playoff matches. Prior to this only four players have achieved this feat in the past 30 years: Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, Evander Kane and Evgeni Malkin. Last week I wrote here that the Avs should’ve paid Rantanen, rather than deal him to Carolina. On Sunday, Flames forward Nazem Kadri Tweeted, “Rule number one: You always keep the dawgs … #96”. It seems to me players should Tweet more! … And this series is a long ways from being over too.

3 – OIL LEAK: Speaking of Draisaitl, the winning goal for Vegas went off the Oiler star’s stick in Saturday night’s 4-3 Golden Knights victory at Edmonton, which cut the Oilers’ lead in that Western Conference semifinal to 2-1. Edmonton netminder Stuart Skinner is getting torched – by his own fans – for not being anywhere near the crease when the puck went in. But if they knew anything, they’d know Skinner played it perfectly; aggressively taking the shooter. There were two Oilers in front of the net, so they played it well too. It was a fluke that the puck went in off Draisaitl’s stick. Shit happens. Lay off Skinner.

4 – THE PEACH CITY: Buckle up for the NHL’s 33rd team being in Atlanta. Commissioner Gary Bettman addressed the media here in Sunrise on Friday and said “I don’t think the prior two visits (Flames & Thrashers) have any bearing on whether or not we would go back — if all the pieces that are referred to were put together.” Gary is referring to the checkmarks the ownership group led by Atlanta automobile magnate Vernon Krause needs to achieve. And he’s hitting them. Atlanta is a very unique city – the Hub of the South – and I’ve become quite taken with it. They’ve got three Tim Hortons!!! When I took my first sip of one at the Tims across the street from the Georgia Tech football stadium last Christmas, I thought to myself “They nailed it”. … For five years the RP Show aired on WQEE 99.1 FM in Atlanta and we had a team-naming contest with the listeners, which proved to be quite fun. I’ll have to dig the list up. The radio station switched formats in 2024.

5 – DUB HUB: Berkly Catton had two goals and an assist, and the visiting Spokane Chiefs scored four times in the first period en route to a 6-2 win over the Medicine Hat Tigers at Co-op Place on Sunday to tie the best-of-seven Western Hockey League championship series at a game apiece. Rasmus Ekstrom, Shea Van Olm, Owen Martin and Mathis Preston also scored for the Chiefs, who lost Friday’s opener 4-1. Gavin McKenna was held pointless for the Tigers, snapping a 54-game point streaked . Game 3 is Tuesday in Spokane, Wash. Games 4 (Wednesday) and 5 (Friday) are also in Spokane, with Games 6 and 7, if necessary, back in Medicine Hat.

6 – CENTENNIAL CUP: On Sunday at the National Junior A Championship in Calgary, the host Canucks were bombed 7-2 by the Rockland Nationals while the Grande Prairie Storm downed the Kam River Walleye 3-1. Rockland leads the standings with seven points, but have played the most games. The SJHL champion Melfort Mustangs are 1-1, and have three points. Still lots of hockey left. Wish we could be there.

7 – RUSH HOUR: The Saskatchewan Rush are back in the NLL championship series! They completed a sweep of the Halifax Thunderbirds on Saturday night and now will try to prevent a three-peat by the Buffalo Bandits. Game 1 is Friday at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, with Game 2 next Sunday, May 18 (George Strait’s birthday) at SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon.

8 – CFL CAMPING: Training camps opened across the CFL on Sunday. While I’m not in the day-to-day trenches of covering the Roughriders camp, according to Scruffy’s Saturday column on this website, I already had a good idea of what the main stories are. The QB battle is always key to watch (Trevor Harris, Jake Maier, Tommy Stevens & Jack Coan), the health of #1 tailback A.J. Ouellette is worth keeping an eye on, and they need a punter after Adam Korsak retired last week. … CFL On TSN analyst Jim Barker tabbed the Riders as the “team to beat” on Friday’s RP Show. That’ll rev ’em up in the Wheat Province. … I gave my thoughts on the Zach Collaros 1-game suspension in the weekend RP Show Newsletter. Sign up for it here.

9 – ANY GIVEN SUNDAY: Add the 1999 football flick by legendary film producer Oliver William Stone as one of those movies that whenever it’s on cable, I watch it. That happened on Saturday afternoon but let me tell you, it’s a lot different watching it at age 52 than at age 25, when it first came out. Did they ever nail it! Like the wife not allowing her QB-husband to retire because it would affect her social status, to the inter-family drama of ownership, to the mind games played on players and staff. No wonder the NFL wouldn’t endorse it. And the cast!: Al Pacino, Anne Margret, James Woods, Jamie Fox, Dennis Quaid, Cameron Diaz, Lauren Holly and more. Watch it again if you get a chance, and realize that’s exactly how pro football is. No need to invent any drama. Real life has enough ..

10 – RANDOMS: It’s hip to be square. … Craig Berube played for the Medicine Hat Tigers. … The Do Not Disturb feature on the iPhone is a Godsend. … I think getting sick is God’s way of telling you to “Slow down”. … Homeless people in Florida are now accepting E-transfers. I shit you not. … Why am I seeing so many ads for companies on my phone offering to lose the beer belly? I don’t drink beer! … The cheapest ticket for the NHL Winter Classic in Miami next New Years between the Panthers & Rangers is $256. … The Calgary Surge ruined the Edmonton Stingers’ home-opener party in the 2025 Canadian Elite Basketball League tip-off game on Sunday, 86-84. The Saskatchewan Rattlers host the Vancouver Bandits Thursday evening while Edmonton is at Winnipeg on Friday.

Y’er welcome,
RP