What's the holdup on the Colton Parayko trade? (with Chris Johnston)

Summary

The Athletic Hockey Show: What’s the Holdup on the Colton Parayko Trade? (with Chris Johnston)

Date: March 5, 2026
Hosts: Haley Salvian & Sean Gentille
Guest: Chris Johnston (CJ), NHL Insider

---

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the 2026 NHL trade deadline, with a special focus on the anticipated but delayed Colton Parayko trade from the St. Louis Blues to the Buffalo Sabres. NHL insider Chris Johnston joins to break down what’s holding up that deal, analyze key trades already completed, and preview what’s to come before the Friday deadline. The hosts also discuss moves by the Oilers, Utah Mammoth, Maple Leafs, and the shifting landscapes for teams like Detroit, Buffalo, and Florida.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Major Trade Deadline Moves So Far

(03:58–10:36)

• MacKenzie Weegar to Utah Mammoth

  • Weegar waives NTC for trade from Calgary; Utah receives him (has 4 years left on contract).
  • Calgary gets defenseman Olli Maatta, three 2026 second-round picks, and a prospect.
  • Haley Salvian: "Uyghur is a right shot D. Those don’t come cheap this time of year...I like it for both sides." (06:43)

• Edmonton Oilers Moves

  • Acquire Connor Murphy for a second-rounder from Chicago.
  • Make a complicated deal for Jason Dickinson, costing a first-round pick and Andrew Mangiapane (with retention by Blackhawks).
  • Sean Gentille: "It's brutal asset management by Stan Bowman... The Oilers are a train wreck right now." (08:07)
  • Both hosts agree Oilers’ moves are not transformational; team’s fundamental flaws (defense, goaltending) remain.

---

2. Colton Parayko Trade Saga: What’s the Holdup?

(11:49–17:49, CJ joins at 14:10)

• Status of Parayko-to-Buffalo Deal

  • Trade reported 12 hours prior but not yet finalized.
  • Hold-up is Parayko’s no-trade clause; he’s taking time to decide.
  • Chris Johnston: "The holdup in this case is pretty simple. He's got a no-trade clause... I was told early Thursday to expect that this will go through." (14:58)
  • Indicates paperwork/logistics (Blues were on West Coast) and Parayko’s personal processing are involved.

• On “Leaked” Trade Discussions

  • Occasional premature leaking due to trade deadline time crunch and media competition.
  • Similar recent delays with players like Tyler Myers.

---

3. Blues’ Potential Next Moves & Robert Thomas Watch

(17:49–21:41)

• Robert Thomas Also a Trade Target

  • Sabres were in on him; Utah Mammoth are actively pursuing.
  • Any trade requires Thomas waiving his no-trade clause—decision may also drag out.
  • CJ: "If a Thomas deal is going to happen, you’re looking at probably three significant assets... Utah should be viewed as most likely if something happens." (18:15)

• Blues’ Organizational Direction

  • Front office transition after deadline—Doug Armstrong up to President, Alex Steen to GM.
  • Actively clearing the decks; parallels to Nashville’s pre-GM handover trades.

---

4. Other Trade Deadline Storylines

Utah Mammoth and Buffalo Sabres: Aggressive Buyers

• Utah: Still holds first-rounders and top prospects after Weegar deal—primed for a blockbuster.
• Buffalo: Big “window opening” attitude—want multi-year solutions, not just rentals.
  • CJ: "There’s a bigger picture in Buffalo... hoping this is the opening of a window." (21:41)

Toronto Maple Leafs’ Approach

(23:54–27:16)

• Scratched players (Ekman-Larsson, Lawton, McMahon) were just a precaution; no deals imminent yet.
• CJ: "The Leafs have been on the wrong end of some beatings... What are you trying to accomplish at this deadline? They’re hoping to get future assets." (24:57)
• Few offers coming in; team could move pending UFAs if extensions aren’t signed.

Detroit Red Wings: Quiet, But Poised to Strike

(27:16–29:11)

• Targeting right-side defensemen, in on several centers.
• CJ: "I’d be stunned if [Steve Yzerman] was quiet at this deadline... The Eastern Conference could be wide open." (29:11)

Florida Panthers: Considering Trading Bobrovsky?!

(29:11–32:10)

• Contract extension talks stalled—could move future Hall-of-Famer if the right offer hits.
• CJ: "There’s nothing even close in terms of an extension... Florida is a well-operated team... looking to see if anything makes sense in moving him." (29:29)

Oilers' Last Moves—Is That It?

• Spent a lot of assets and cap space to shore up forward and defense depth.
• Might still try to upgrade forwards but little major left to do.
• CJ: "I think they'll look to make another move to help that forward group if they can—but they’re getting low on cap space and assets." (33:34)

---

5. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Groundhog Day in Edmonton
  Sean: "It's Groundhog Day. You have poor secondary scoring, another bad bottom-six, bad defense... It's the same problems with different faces." (09:44)

• On Utah Mammoth’s Smart Asset Management
  CJ: "They keep their powder dry—they don’t move a first-round pick for Weegar, don’t move any of their top prospects..." (21:09)

• On Leak-First, Approve-Later Deals
  Haley: "Three trades now... where there is a trade to announce but the player hasn't agreed to the trade yet. It’s wild this year." (46:08)

• CJ’s Deadline Big-Board Sleeper
  Simon Nemec (New Jersey), not yet listed; could be a big-name "hockey trade" if the Devils pursue a top forward. (34:56)

---

Important Timestamps

• Trade Deadline Context & Early Moves - 02:18-10:36
• Colton Parayko Trade Discussion/Delay - 11:49-17:49; CJ joins at 14:10
• Robert Thomas Rumors & Overall Blues Situation - 17:49-21:41
• Utah, Buffalo, Toronto, Detroit, Florida, Oilers Rundown - 21:09-34:17
• Trade-Leak Trend & Implications - 46:08-47:51
• CJ’s Surprise Trade Board Pick (Simon Nemec) - 34:56
• Deadline Wrap-up & What to Watch Next - 47:51-end

---

Final Thoughts & What to Watch

• The Colton Parayko-to-Buffalo trade is all down to the player’s decision—should finalize soon unless Parayko chooses to stay.
• Several other big trades, especially involving Robert Thomas and possibly Simon Nemec, could yet shake up the market, but expect "player agreement pending" headlines.
• The Leafs, Oilers, Wings, and Panthers are all wild cards, with fans anxiously awaiting whether their GMs will pull off major moves.
• As CJ and the hosts emphasize, the prevalence of no-trade and no-move clauses is creating new deadline drama for both insiders and front offices: “Players need time to digest...it’s not as simple as just moving the chess pieces.” (48:30)

---

Listener Takeaway

Whether you root for a buying, selling, or standing-pat team, this deadline promises both frustration and fireworks—especially as player consent and last-minute negotiation drama become the new norm. Watch for late-breaking approvals, surprise stars on the move, and teams trying to guarantee their windows don't slam shut.

Transcript

[A]

Hi, this is Farnoosh Tarabi from so Money with Farnoosh Tarabi and today I want to talk to you about Boost Mobile Quick Money Tip Stop paying a carrier tax if your phone bill feels trapped in a pricey plan, this is your sign to unlock savings. Boost Mobile helps you reset your spending. With the $25 Unlimited Forever plan, you can bring your own phone, pay $25 and get unlimited wireless forever. And that simple switch can unlock up to $600 in savings a year. That's money you could put towards debt investing or something that actually brings you joy. Those savings are based on average annual single line payment of AT&T, Verizon and T Mobile customers, compared to 12 months on the Boost Mobile Unlimited plan as of January 2026. For full offer details, visit boostmobile.com hey, this is Paige from Giggly Squad. We all have way too many subscriptions and bills and no good way to manage or track all of them. But now we have Experian. It's the best place to manage your finances because you can connect all of your accounts in one place, track all your spending, and you can let Experian do the work of finding ways to save you money. January is the perfect time to get your finances in order. It's the perfect New Year resolution. Let your big financial friend Experian do the work for you. So get started today with the Experian app. Now.

[B]

Time is valuable. That's why Lowe's Blueprint takeoffs turn blueprints into quotes faster. Bring us your plans and we'll generate itemized material lists to make quoting easier

[C]

so you can get back to building.

[B]

Plus, at the Lowe's pro desk, you get access to thousands of building materials not sold in store. And when your order is ready, we'll deliver everything to the job site.

[C]

Improving is easy at Lowe's.

[B]

This is the athletic hockey show.

[C]

What's up everyone? It's Haley Salvian and Sean Gentile here with you for another Thursday edition of the Athletic Hockey Show. The trade deadline is just one day away. NHL insider Chris Johnston will join us shortly to discuss what we can expect before the bell rings Friday at 3pm Eastern. First, let's bring in Sean Gentilly. We've already seen a couple moves so far at the deadline. We haven't talked to each other in a while. It's our first pod back since the Milan Olympics. I guess I was on the show while I was in Milan. It's all kind of a blur. I don't remember much about those.

[D]

I was going to say it like.

[C]

And it's not because I was, you know, partying around Italy. I just wasn't sleeping.

[D]

How about you tell me if you were on the show when you were in Milan. Were you? Were you?

[C]

I can't recall. I think maybe twice.

[D]

I think during our last record, you were somewhere in the airspace over. I don't know if you were in Switzerland or where. Like where. Wherever you were. I lost. I lost track of you.

[C]

Oh, no. It was in the arena after the women's gold medal game and I had to have a camera.

[D]

I don't know if you were specifically. Could have been anywhere.

[C]

You know, I was standing in front of like a really generic wall. Um, and Jeff was like, no, you have to have your camera off. I was like, no one's gonna know. This is Santa Julia.

[D]

I think you might have been outside the arena. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Yes.

[C]

I don't remember. It doesn't matter. That's where that took place anyways. So I apologize to everyone. My voice sounds terrible because I'm still in the post. Olympic went to bed at 4am every day. You're working a million hours mode. But it's the trade deadline, so I'm here. It's fine. I can't call in sick today.

[D]

Thanks.

[C]

All the listeners are probably like, oh, I wish you would have. All right. We've already seen a couple of moves so far. We can talk a little bit about these before bringing in CJ as we look ahead to Friday's trade deadline. Mackenzie weaker to Utah with four years left on his deal. That's the big one that stands out to me and we can start there. He agreed to waive his no trade clause for the deal to be completed. Calgary set to receive defenseman oli Mata and three 20, 26 second round picks. These are Utah's. One of them is Utah's own selection. One from the sense, one from the Rangers and also a prospect. Do you have a thought on this deal for MacKenzie Weaker and Utah? I like it for the Mammoth. Get him out of there.

[D]

I think I like it for both sides. Honestly. Weaker Uyghur hasn't been great this year. I. That's. There is like a little bit of an asterisk there. Good as a player as MacKenzie Weaker has been over the last several years, going back certainly to when he was with Florida. There's a lot of miles on his tires and there was some concern. I actually, I talked to some people about that for an off season project where people are like, I don't know is he. And he's only 32 but you know, those are. He's logged some pretty hard miles over the years. So there was concern over the potential that he, that he was going to hit some kind of wall relatively soon in his performance in Calgary. Hasn't, hasn't quite been up to snuff with what we've come to expect from him. Right. So there, so there has been some degree of drop off. I Can you attribute that to just simply playing for the Flames? Like I think that's also very possible. Right. And I think you put him in a different environment on a better team. I, I do like, I like what he can bring to Utah not just this season but for the next little bit. So yeah, I, I do, I do like that trade for the Mammoth. I think that's a win for Craig Conroy too. I like, I like the approach of getting multiple second round picks and having that be the, the basis for that deal. I, I think in some ways I would rather have three second rounders than one potentially late ish first rounder. Like I, I think that's a good win for Craig Conroy. I think it makes sense to generally stockpile picks in the second because we've seen that from teams who've successfully exited rebuilds over the last couple of years, including the Utah Mammoth. Those are, those are good assets to have whether you use them on players, whether you use them like the Pittsburgh Penguins have over the last, over the last year or so. You flip one for Jager Shinikov, which is paying off for Pittsburgh on and on. I think we've seen second round picks, you know, be pretty useful particularly over the last couple years. So I think it was good on, good on the Flames and good on Craig Conroy to add a few of those.

[C]

Yeah, and I think like Uyghur is a right shot D. Those don't come cheap this time of year. He's got what, another four seasons on his contract. He's an upgrade on Olimara. That much is true regardless of age related decline. And they didn't have to give up a top prospect or a first rounder to make this deal happen. And only one of those second rounders was one that they own themselves. So I like it for both sides. I agree with you Sean, and especially we'll hear from CJ later in the show. We know that the free agent market's not great this summer. So if you want to go out and get a right shot D that's got some term. This is your time to do it. And I think the Mammoth got ahead of it. And I think this deal looks even better when we compare it to like we're saying they didn't have to give up first rounder. Sure, it was three seconds, but I'd rather be the Utah Mammoth than the Edmonton Oilers right now.

[D]

Yes.

[C]

And what they've given up in their trade. So they trade for Connor Murphy. That's the first deal that comes through from the Chicago Blackhawks for a second round draft pick. But then there's the Jason Dickinson deal. Sean, you're not a fan of this one. Let me pull up the exact details here, because they're, they're not great. Do you have a thought first, Sean? Well, I'm, I have eight tabs open. It's a trade deadline, folks.

[D]

I do. It's. It's brutal asset management by Stan Bowman. I, I think what we see here is he has to send a first round pick back to Chicago basically to cover up for a mistake that he made with the Andrew Mangiapani deal. Like you sign Mangiapani to a contract that was questionable at the time. It's not 2022 anymore, or whenever. Mangiapani was at his best with Calgary, he's pretty far removed from that. I think anybody watched him in Washington last year could, could attest to that. So he signed him to a deal that seemed like it was going to be a problem at a time. At the time, it's a team that doesn't have money to play with. From a cap standpoint. We've seen that, you know, dating back to, you know, the Blues offer sheet saga. Right. Like they don't have, they don't have pennies to pinch here. So, so every dollar counts in the fact that they have to meaningfully improve this team. And the only way to go about getting that done is by, is by attaching a first round pick along with Andrew Mangiapani's contract, along with 50% retained on, you know, from, from the Blackhawks, which also costs Edmonton on the back end to bring back Jason Dickinson is brutal. And I think ultimately you're looking at this. The, the, the Oilers are a train wreck right now, and the big ADs and CJ CJ spoke to this. They shouldn't just automatically assume that Edmonton's done. They do have a little bit of space to play with, but their big odds right now are looking like Connor Murphy and Jason Dickinson to a team that's come up short, I think, in a lot of different ways, particularly Groundhog Day.

[C]

What's that Groundhog Day.

[D]

It's Groundhog Day. You have poor secondary scoring. You have another bad bottom six. It's a bad defensive team. Goaltending is an issue. This is the same, same problems for Edmonton with different faces. And I don't think that anything about these last couple deals, even though Dickinson and Murphy are both youthful, useful in their own way. Yeah, I don't think. I don't think that changes anything here.

[C]

Yeah. So the details was. Sorry, Jason Dickinson and Colton Doc for Mangiapani in a first round pick in 2027. And then there was some salary retention. And Jason Dickinson's been like a good defensive player for the Blackhawks. He could slot in as a great 3C. But like, if I'm an Oilers fan, I don't know why I'm excited about that again, because it's just Groundhog Day. You've got Connor McDavid and Leon Dry sell that you need more saves, you need more secondary scoring. And it's like, how is it 2026 and we're having the same conversation. It's. It's a joke. But let's.

[D]

The, the parallels between Edmonton and the 2010-2014 Penguins are crazy. I. And I, I've saw this, I saw this discussion happening, happening yesterday. You know, it's. It's superstars surrounded by inconsistent goaltending, let's say.

[C]

I think that's kind of goofy because the Penguins had already won a Stanley cup completely. Like, like, I'm sorry, that's not the same.

[D]

Yeah, that's. That's where that's.

[C]

And then they won another two.

[D]

So. And that's, that's where I was going with. Going with it.

[C]

I'm sorry I was like that.

[D]

The difference. The difference. For as brutal as the Pittsburgh Penguins were in the playoffs from 2010 to 2014, and as brutal as that lineup was, where it's AHL defenseman and, you know, replaceable fourth liners surrounding two superstars, the difference was that they already won a cup and that they came out of it in 12 more. So we know that. We know that Edmonton hasn't accomplished what Pittsburgh did on the front end of that. And it's, you know, certainly debatable whether they're going to be able to accomplish it on the back end. So. Yeah, it is. It's just, it's. It's. It's frustrating. It's frustrating for someone who just watches the league and pays attention to things. I can't imagine how frustrating it is for A, Oilers fans And B, Connor McDavid Leon dry seidel. And this is just the latest, the latest bit of proof there.

[C]

Yeah, it's rough. Okay. We've teased that CJ's coming on. We also haven't mentioned the Blues, according to sources to our lovely staff, Jeremy Rutherford, Matthew Fairburn, Chris Johnston, they all worked together on this story yesterday. According to sources, the Blues have agreed to trade defender Colton Pareco to the Sabres pending Pareco's approval. That story came out 12 hours ago Thursday.

[D]

Wednesday afternoon is when it came out.

[C]

What's the hold up here? Is this deal going to materialize? It's a good thing we have Chris Johnson coming on the show to help us understand what's going on here. That's coming up next on the Athletic Hockey Show.

[A]

If you're listening to this, you're ready. Ready to join the industrial intelligence generation. A generation defined not by age, but by a shared mindset to connect teams, accelerate efficiency and drive innovation. Using the power of Aviva software to reshape industries, turning real time insights into real world growth. Discover our [e-mail] join Generation I.

[C]

Home is your favorite place. Spring is when you let it feel a little more transportive.

[A]

Discover vibrant scents inspired by place. Bright citrus, fresh florals, clean air energy designed to refresh your space without adding complexity. Just plug it in, choose your scent and let the season unfold room by room. Explore the new spring collection now [e-mail].

[D]

That new thing? Yeah, we've got it. The Drop by gnc bringing you all the newness that matters. Hand picked by the pros who actually know what's up and what's proven to work. We keep you on top of the trends and dialed into what's next. Whether you're crushing it at the gym, leveling up your game or thriving every day, the Drop by GNC is where the latest solutions in health and wellness land first innovation and fresh finds daily. Explore what's new and what's next on the Drop by gnc.

[B]

All right.

[C]

Joining us now is NHL Insider for the Athletic and tsn. He's going to have a busy day tomorrow. He's also the host of the Chris Johnson Show. It's Chris Johnson. What's up, cj? Thanks for doing this. I know it's going to be a busy couple days for you here.

[B]

Yeah, it's been fun though. I don't know why. Maybe having not as much lead up because we had the Olympics might have kind of compartmentalized this for me. Usually I'm totally burnt out by now, but I'm feeling fresh and ready to go.

[C]

All right, we gotta start here, though. What's the hold up on Colton pareco? As we're recording this right now, we can peel back the curtain a little bit just in case something changes in the next two hours. But we haven't seen a deal materialize yet. What's the hold up? Could this happen in the next couple hours before the bell rings on Friday?

[B]

The holdup in this case is pretty simple. It said he's got a no trade clause and has the ability to stop a trade like this. And I think it's something that he needed time to process and think through, work through with the people he trusts in his life. I was told early Thursday to expect that this will go through. So at this point, I'm operating on the assumption that that's going to happen. The blues played in Seattle on Wednesday, so they're on the west coast. It might take a couple hours depending on what time everyone's getting out of bed and getting that paperwork filed. But I don't think there's any issues when it comes to the exact deal being discussed. Don't have all the pieces of that in place or know exactly what the trade looks like beyond, you know, the reports of it being merca, the defenseman that buffalo drafted in the first round last year, plus a first round pick as part of this package. But, you know, it kind of. It gets messy around trade deadline is the best way I could put it right. I mean, there's. There's obviously a huge push for people like myself to report on these kind of stories. I think sometimes trades are completed in more sloppy of a manner, I'll call it, just because there's a bit of a rush and there's different competing forces around these things. And so obviously this one went public maybe a little sooner before all the the I's and t's had been crossed and dotted. But I do think it's going to come through here on Thursday.

[D]

Yeah, so that's. That's just the way the cookie crumbled on this one. Like, there's nothing to read into. But on as far as the lag between the reported details and the. In the completion time. Like, it's just sort of the way the. The way the. The way things fell out. Is that. Is that where we're at on it?

[B]

Yeah, that's my impression. You know, I don't think this is a case. It could be interpreted from afar. You. You think maybe a team's exerting pressure on the player. You know, I, I don't read into it that way. I mean my understanding here obviously is that Pareco, you know, wanted some time to think through things. Just jump out of bed and you know, it's pre game nap and you know, sign off on the no, no move clause, no trade clause and you know, allow the trade to go through on Wednesday. But you know, it doesn't, doesn't seem as though there's any ill will. I mean, look, and Colton Pareco has been a St. Louis Blue for a long, long time. You know, I think he and the other veteran players on that team understand where they're at. A number of their names have dotted our trade board for, for months now, frankly. And really if you go back to last season, a lot of Blues, including Pareco were on the trade board then. So you know, this has been a long time coming. And, and you know, I think that ultimately, you know, he's going to get to where he needs to get to, at least based on the information I have to, to sign off on that deal. But a little unusual to have it drag on, I guess, other than the fact we, we saw something not, not the exact, exact same circumstances, but with Tyler Myers it took a few days for his deal ultimately to go through and it ended up being a different trade than the initial one that Canucks brought to him. So a lot of players with no movement, no trade clauses out there and it has an impact on the timing of everything.

[D]

Might as well ask about Robert Thomas now obviously Preco's teammate with the Blues. We'd seen him connected pretty directly to the Sabers on Wednesday is when, that is when that really hit the fan. He got fans in Buffalo chanting Robert Thomas. Where, where do things stand with him? And, and how likely is it that not obviously, not, not necessarily the Sabres, but how likely is it that something gets done with him somewhere before the deadline?

[B]

Well, the Sabres, those reports were true. I mean the Sabres were heavily involved in Robert Thomas while also trying to get a right shot defenseman out of St. Louis. That ultimately led us to the point where they narrowed in on that Pareco package and that deal happened. And I think where things are with Thomas frankly is that it's not dead yet. The Utah Mammoth have been connected to him for a long time now. You know, we saw them make a pretty big trade to get Mackenzie Weger out of Calgary on Wednesday. And even after doing so, you know, I believe the Mammoth are well positioned to still take a run at Thomas. You know, they gave up a lot for Weger. They gave up three second round picks that they had in the 2026 draft, but they didn't touch any of their first rounders. They didn't touch any of their top prospects. And obviously, if a Thomas deal is going to happen, you're looking at probably three, three significant assets at least to get them from St. Louis. I think Utah should be viewed as the most likely team if something happens. And if it's going to happen, I think it has to happen on Thursday. Because much like Colton Pereko, as we've learned here, Robert Thomas has a no trade clause and, you know, it might take him some time to, you know, work through. Does he want to waive it now? You know, the pros and cons of that kind of decision. You know, he's obviously got a number of years left on his deal. So it's not just about, hey, is it a city, I mind spending some time in the team as a chance to win this year. I mean, it's, it's a lifestyle decision beyond just the hockey aspect of it. So, you know, I think basically we're either going to get Thomas news or not on Thursday. If not, you know, this conversation will probably be picked up in the off season. But, you know, the sense I have with the Blues is that they really do want to turn things over. And, you know, moving off a player like Pareco kind of tells us that, you know, he was a key part of their Stanley cup win in 2019. He'd signed a long term extension there. You know, a big part of their culture. You know, Thomas, I know he's younger and people are saying, why do you want to move him? I, I really do believe they're trying to clear the decks. You know, they're going to have a change in the front office with Dar Armstrong after this, this deadline, effectively moving up to the, the President's role exclusively and having Alex Stein become their GM heading into next year. And we sort of saw something similar like this when, when David Poyle was going out in Nashville a couple of years ago. You know, he made some big trades to try to set the table for his successor and Barry Trots. And so, you know, I do think that St. Louis will be a key player yet still before this deadline, even after the Pareco trade goes through, you know, whether or not it's Thomas probably depends on where the offer gets to. I mean, this is just, it's not a player they have to trade ultimately and it's, it's not someone they can afford. Most teams run a league feel they don't have a true first line center beyond the obvious ones, beyond maybe those are the top of the standings. And so to give one up in mid career who signed to a pretty good contract, I think they have to make sure they're getting back the right return. And you know, I still think that there's, there's a deal to be cooked there between the Mammoth and the Blues, but they have to actually get down to business and get it done today.

[D]

Yeah, you mentioned this in relation to the Mammoth. They keep their powder dry, right. They don't move a first round pick for weaker, they don't move any of their top five prospects. They keep the cupboard stocked enough if they want to do something with with Thomas. Now you look at what the Sabers did potentially in the, in the Pareco deal, you could say that they moved in a similar fashion. Right? Like there's. They still have assets. There is. Is it crazy to say that there's still a potential player in, in the Thomas discussions or does it seem like they took themselves out of it with the Pareco deal?

[B]

To be candid, I don't know. You know, I don't know where they stand. I certainly see the Sabres as a team that, that's going to still be aggressive. You know, I think it's clear Yarmo Kekalainen recognizes the moment that, you know, is at hand in Buffalo. You just see the enthusiasm that the fan base has had lit under it. I mean, no, no fans have really taken it worse than they have over 15 years. I mean they've lost basically almost a generation and a half have not seen playoff hockey there. So it's important I think for them to get in and they're in a pretty good spot right now, but also to have a chance to make some noise. And they, and they don't want to be making just short term moves. I mean they're trading for a guy like Pareco. If they're chasing a guy like Thomas or even if they make other moves, I think, you know, they're going to be looking at players with some term on their deals. They want to not just, you know, rent a few players for assets and potentially lose them for nothing this summer. They're looking at a bigger picture in Buffalo because they're hoping this is the opening of a window where they're going to have a number of years in the playoff window. So, you know, I think that wouldn't surprise me if they're back in, but I don't have any information specific to that. You know, it might be tough for them to do just given the fact that, you know, they, they took a run at it and they weren't able to, to hammer something out with St. Louis and then pivoted to, to this deal. You know, it just might be a sign that they're not able to align, I think specifically on future facing pieces, but more, you know, sorry, getting not the future facing pieces but more perhaps the ones that, you know, are playing for the team now is part of what held up my understanding of that, that Thomas deal that the Savers and the Blues were discussing. So, you know, this is kind of how the league's supposed to work. I mean, this is an interesting trade deadline. You have the Buffaloes buying, you have Utah out there, the former Arizona Coyotes. I mean these organizations that have been at the bottom that have stockpiled assets are now on the rings. I'd say look out for the Detroit Red Wings at this deadline. They've been quiet to this point, but they're another team, I think, you know, that could step forward and make some, some interesting trades. And so, you know, it's bad if you're, I guess if your team has been in the playoffs every year and they're not going to make it. But the league's pretty interesting right now in my eyes.

[C]

Let's get to the Toronto Maple Leafs here too. We can follow up on the Red Wings because that's super interesting. CJ but the Leaf scratch defenseman Oliver Ekman Larson and forward Scott Lawton and Bobby McMahon yesterday night against the New Jersey Devils, like shortly after Craig Berupe said like, nope, nothing going on there. We're not going to be holding anyone out for trade related reasons. And I go back to my days covering Brad Tree Living and the Calgary Flames and he would always say I take my cues at the trade deadline from my team. And we'll probably hear Tree say that tomorrow when you guys interview him on TSN or whenever the athletic people get a clip from from Tree. So what cue are the Leafs giving broad Tree living right now? Like, what does this move scratching these players tell us about what the Leafs could be doing on Friday?

[B]

Well, the Leafs have won two games in regulation out of their last 18. So I think that the queue for about a month now, because that extends way back before the Olympics, has been

[D]

Saturday night against the Sen. Seemed like a pretty, pretty good queue, 22 to 2 shots or whatever it was, was a nice queue.

[B]

Yeah. I mean Even in New Jersey, I think it was 47, 20 something shot. I mean, look, the Leafs have been on the wrong end of some beatings this season and they were meant to be a contender. Like this was not the plan. I think that it's important to revisit that because it's been apparent for some time now that it's not going to go where they want it to go, but it's going even worse than I think anyone could have guessed. And so what are you trying to accomplish at this deadline? The Leafs are hoping to get some future assets, some younger players, some prospects, some, some picks, you know, sell off guys that, that maybe aren't part of the long term future. And, and as of our recording right now, I can tell you they're not getting a ton of offers that, that, you know, it's not to say by any means, it's not predictive because we still have 30 hours, give or take, until the trade deadline for, for things to heat up and maybe the Leafs to be more involved than they are to this stage. But, you know, the scratching of the players in New Jersey was really just a preventative measure. Was, you know, they were getting some calls on those guys and they've had those players on the market for some time now is my understanding, and they just wanted to be careful. I mean, the last thing you want, of course, is to be working an Oliver Ekman Larsson deal and then see him go down with an injury in a game. So, you know, often when players are scratched like that, it's because a deal is imminent. That's not the case here for the Leafs, even as of Thursday morning, I've been told they, they don't really have anything, you know, too hot, at least as they start the day here. So it's, it's, there's a lot of work to be done. You know, I think McMahon and Laughton are the two players of most interest, probably because they're both pending UFAs. The Leafs haven't closed the door on signing McMahon in particular, but you know, I don't think they're going to let either of those players just play it out and walk away as free agents. So either there's a contract extension in place by Friday, three Eastern, or they'll be traded for something. You know, the, the Ekman Larsson deal is a little more nuanced because he's under contract for two more years. He's having a great season. He actually doesn't want to be traded as his partner wife is due to give birth here in the near future. He likes Toronto. You know, he chose to sign there as a free agent, so he'd like to stay. But I think the Leafs see some of the prices for defenseman and so they're gauging the market on him. And so in, you know, as we sit here now, I can't tell you if they're going to trade one player, three players, six players. They have a lot of players available in the market, but they're not getting a lot of bites on the fishing line just yet.

[C]

Okay. I've got to ask about Detroit. What makes them so interesting? C.J.

[B]

they're Buffalo Light. I mean, they haven't suffered quite as long, but it's been a long time since they've been in the playoffs and I think they've performed to a point where the front office feels comfortable that this is the year, I think to push a few more assets in. I mean, you might recall last season, Dylan Larin, you know, voice some displeasure after the deadline that, that they didn't do more to try to augment the team. I, I, I don't think we'll be in that position this, this time around with, with the Red Wings. And you know, we already know that they were the team trying to get Tyler Myers. He ultimately goes to Dallas instead. But, you know, the, the need in their eyes for someone who can play on the right side of their blue line is still there. You know, they've been involved on talks on players like Vincent Trochecks and some of the other centers on the market. I think, you know, even Robert Thomas, they were inquiring. I just don't think they could get to the kind of ask that St. Louis is going to need to make that work. But, you know, I would think when the dust clears on Friday that we'll be talking about them bringing in some help at forward in addition to a defenseman that can play on that right side. And, you know, they have the right number because of where they've drafted of prospects and draft picks. And I just think hunger, it's all aligning for them to, to be aggressive. So, you know, Steve Eisenman is a little bit like Julian Breeze Bois, you know, former protege in Tampa. He likes to operate in, in a little bit of silence. He likes to maybe, you know, the element of surprise, is it in his pocket more than some other GMs, just in terms of, you know, specific info, in terms of, you know, where they're going to go. But, you know, I'd be stunned if he was was quiet at this deadline because the opportunity to make the playoffs is sitting there. And I don't think he can leave any doubt about, you know, giving his team the best chance to get in and make some noise. I mean, Eastern Conference I think could be wide open. You know, beyond Tampa and Carolina, there's not a lot of, you know, heavyweights or teams that have had playoff success in recent years that are going to make it.

[D]

So our, our colleague Pierre Lebrun was all over this yesterday. But why are, why are we talking about Florida trading Sergey Bobrovsky? Is it as simple as him being 37 years old and on an expiring deal and, you know, just the, the particulars of that situation? Because I think that's an interesting wrinkle that's been thrown in over the last 24 or 48 hours.

[B]

Yeah, it add the element of contract discussions between Bobrovski and the Panthers not really going anywhere productive. You know, that the Panthers, all things being equal, would like to keep him. I mean, pretty self evident the goalie that's taken them to three straight cup finals and won them the last two championships. You know, going to, going right from wherever his career ends to the hall of Fame. And I think that the Panthers would like it to be from South Florida to the hall of Fame. But you know, at this stage there's, there's nothing that appears even close in terms of an extension. There's no expectation that's going to change before the deadline. And so, you know, Florida is a well operated team. I think that they're looking to see does anything make sense in terms of moving him since we're not signing him and they've, you know, decided they're a seller at this deadline and they're not going to try to make an unlikely push for the playoffs with injuries they've had and just where they sit in the standings. So, you know, I don't know if anyone steps up and makes that deal. I think it's intriguing for a few teams. You know, I look at a team like Montreal as an example. You know, they've been, you know, I think that they're a little hesitant to bring in a goalie in general just because they feel they have their future in Jacob Fowler and the minors right now. You know, they're not looking necessarily to acquire goaltenders with a lot of term. You know, I don't think they're getting it on Bobrovsky, but they at least have to have the conversation. You know, my sense is they're not going to go down that road. But, you know, it's a different proposition to be renting a goalie. We just, we don't see it too often. Right. Usually the teams that are in the rental market for any player, you know, have the goaltending position, you know, locked down. I can go way, way back. Once upon a time, kids, bring out your history books. The Edmonton Oilers made a deal for Dwayne Rollison at a trade deadline and ultimately went to a Stanley cup final back in 2006. But I mean, I'm bringing up an example from 20 years ago because this is not a common thing that happens. It's not an every year type of thing. So, you know, you look at the struggles in the Vegas crease, I don't know, is there someone else that makes that pitch? At this stage, I don't have any concrete info on a team making a hard push for Borowski, but, you know, it's only really been in the last day or so that he's truly been on the market and we're just sort of seeing how things sort themselves out there.

[C]

I was kind of laughing reading through Pierre's story that came out yesterday. He's like, I know about Bobrovsky's like, I know everyone's going to scream, Oilers, they need more saves still, but can they really swap number one goalies twice in one season? And then he slid in that. Edmonton is probably on Bobrovsky's no list anyways. So just a funny little drop in there from our friend Pierre. Do you think the oilers are done, C.J. like, maybe it's not a goaltending thing, but could the Oilers be doing a little bit more?

[B]

They've preserved a bit of cap space, so, you know, maybe there's another forward they can bring in. I think that they look at their team this year as it was in prior years and look, they've lost some, they've lost some depth in the forward group, right? They moved on from Evander Kane and, you know, Connor Brown and just, just some players that, you know, aren't headline makers at the stages of their careers, but guys who scored some big goals for them and were parts of those runs to the back to back cup finals. So, you know, I think that they will hang around the market to see if anything comes to them, if it's cheap. But you know, that being said, they, they've, they've spent a lot of assets in the last couple days. I mean, they gave up a first round pick in part to get off the, the money of Andre Magipani. In part to get Jason Dickinson in at half retained. But either way, they still traded a first round pick for Jason Dickinson. They made the deal for Connor Murphy. You know, Edmonton is clearly operating and I don't think we can blame them. I mean, this season has not gone how they envisioned. But you still have prime Conor McDavid, you still have Leon Draisaitl putting up five points and five, four wins that are just shootouts. I mean, that which happened earlier this week, you know, you've got these, these world beaters. You're just trying to give them any correct complement of players that can help them try to get over the hump. And you know, when you look at how weak the Pacific Division has been, I mean, it's, it's, it's a tick above the American Hockey League right now, but only barely.

[D]

Just barely.

[B]

You know, there's a path there, though. I mean, the three best teams in the west all play out of the Central and only one of Colorado, Minnesota or Dallas is going to get to the conference final just with the way this playoff format works. And so that tells you one other team below them in the standings is going to get to the conference final and play one of those teams. And you know, Edmonton's vying to be that team. Obviously Utah and Anaheim are dreaming of that too. And you know, maybe LA can get in there. But look at Vegas, you can't discount even though they've had a real tough go of it this season, you know, there's, there's still opportunity there for Edmonton. And so I think they will look to make another move to help that forward group if they can. But they're, they're getting low on cap space and assets, so it's probably not going to be a headline ground.

[D]

If you, if you want a 2029 first round pick, just call Stan. He's probably got one of those 20, 31. Just, just keep kicking the can down the road. It'll be fun.

[B]

Between Edmonton and Minnesota, there's not a lot of draft capital left. Bill Garrett likes to burn through those checks for our buddy Mike Russo.

[C]

All right, we know it's a busy time for you, cj, so one last question for you. We can let you go. Who is like, if we're scrolling through CJ's big board and everyone should check that out, it was updated this morning on Thursday. If there's one player on this big board that we didn't talk about here that you think is very interesting, someone to watch, who would it be?

[B]

Well, I'm gonna go off the big board actually and mention a player who's not yet on. He'll be on the next version of it, but that's Simon Nemech. And you know, New Jersey. New Jersey is kind of an interesting team for me at this deadline for the opposite reasons. Of all the other teams I mentioned, it's been an abject disaster. You know, the way where that group is at, they had high expectations. They're way out of the playoff race. You know, it sounds as though they've made a bunch of their defensemen available. So that's some of the veteran guys, the Dylan and Sealers. But you know, the fact that they're looking at potentially moving on from Simon Neme if he can bring them back, you know, I take an impact forward. You know, it does sound like there's some traction there and there's some interest. So, you know, if we've already seen trades that don't normally happen at the deadline, you know, usually, let's face it, it's old guys on expiring contracts for futures, that's almost what the deadline is. I mean, we've seen Mackenzie Weger with all this, this contract traded already. Right. It's not just the old expiring guys. And so, you know, I think we're, we're moving into an era where more teams have cap space. So you're seeing more hockey type of trades. We'll call them around, around this, this time of year. Also, there's no one available in free agency. I mean, anyone, I'm telling you right now, don't even worry about your July 1st. You can do whatever you want because there's not going to be anything, there's not going to be anything that exciting there. If you're, if you're hoping your team buys players just because there's most of the headline guys are off the market. So I think trades are where we have to look to. And you know, someone like Simon Nemetsch, you know, recent high draft pick, the right shot defenseman, young upside, you know, I could see him move by Friday at 3pm Eastern time. And if that happens, it's going to be a pretty big deal. That, that probably hasn't been discussed too much yet.

[C]

All right, so you're saying Pierre's going to go to his cottage a couple days early this year.

[B]

I mean, let's not kid ourselves. Pierre is at that cottage on June 26 and 28, occasionally drives downtown to do a TV hit, but like he does most of that period from, with a glass of wine from the dock. Anyway, the dock.

[D]

The doc photo is taken. We. We know it's taken days before and only sent out on July 1st. Like, he can't. He can't put this one past us.

[B]

Well, and I'm lucky enough, I. I've been a guest on that dock, literally over 15 years. Good.

[D]

Good for you guys. Yeah, I shouldn't be kicking them too

[B]

hard because I want to. An invite back this summer.

[C]

Yeah, no kidding. This. This was probably it for me. I will say. I. I did a. I put my hat in the ring for the cottage in Milan. We went to, like, this Canada bar for one drink, and Pierre couldn't walk one foot, one step without someone being like, oh, my God, is that Pierre Le Brun? And I just stood in front of him and said, no, it just looks like him. Nope. Just looks like Pierre Le Brun.

[D]

Bodyguard.

[C]

Yeah. And I was like, this isn't Pierre Le Brun. Leave him alone. And he's wearing, like, a TSN jacket. I'm like, no, no, Just to look alike. Leave them alone.

[D]

Put in a bodyguard shift. Maybe you can get a. Get some. Get some dock time. That's the.

[C]

I think I did a good job. Yeah. Yeah.

[D]

Smart.

[B]

Love it.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

All right, thanks so much, CJ. The bell rings at 3pm Eastern for the trade deadline on Friday. You can catch CJ on TSN's Trade Center. Should be a good day. Thanks so much for doing this.

[B]

Yeah. And don't miss our opening skit. That's all I can say.

[D]

I'm ready for it.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

My acting duties will be judged in public here pretty soon.

[C]

Great.

[A]

Can't wait.

[C]

Thanks so much, CJ.

[D]

Still listing your home address on business documents. Stable gives you a permanent business address, one you can use for the irs, banks, vendors, you name it. So you can keep things professional and

[B]

keep your personal address private. Stable also digitizes all the mail that

[D]

comes to that address, accessible from our secure online dashboard, which makes it easy

[B]

to manage your mail from wherever you are.

[D]

No P.O.

[B]

boxes, no Ms. Mail.

[D]

Just one less thing to think about as you scale. Sign up for a virtual address [e-mail] pod and get 50% off your first three months of a grow or scale plan. That's usestable.com pod your business moves fast. Your mail should, too.

[A]

Hey, this is Paige from Giggly Squad. We all have way too many subscriptions and bills and no good way to manage or track all of them. But now we have Experian. It's the best place to manage your finances. Because you can connect all of your accounts in one place, track all your spending, and you can let Experian do the work of finding ways to save you money. January is the perfect time to get your finances in order. It's the perfect new year resolution. Let your big financial friend Experian do the work for you. So get started today with the Experian app. Now, when you manage procurement for multiple facilities, every order matters. But when it's for a hospital system, they matter even more. Grainger gets it and knows there's no time for managing multiple suppliers and no room for shipping delays. That's why Grainger offers millions of products in fast, dependable delivery. So you can keep your your facility stocked, safe, and running smoothly. Call 1-800-granger. Click granger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done.

[C]

All right, thank you so much to CJ for doing that. That was so nice to just be like, cj, tell me about this and have him sit and talk about things for five minutes at a time, mute my mic and sit back.

[D]

Can you enlighten me for 25 minutes, please? Thank you. Please don't thank me.

[C]

I do have to say the LeBron bodyguard thing I thought was the funniest thing that happened to me. I didn't have much free time in Italy, but I was like, this was it.

[D]

If that was the most interesting thing to happen to you in four weeks, you were over there. What? Or whatever it was.

[C]

Outside of work, I didn't have much other like, free time. So just telling people to go away. This isn't Pierre LeBrun was Pierre.

[D]

Pierre doing the Queen Elizabeth wave through the streets in Milan at his. At his adoring. At his adoring public. Hello. Hello.

[C]

It was truly crazy. It was wild. I've never seen anything like it. Yeah, and he was so nice. Like, he was like, hey, yeah, hey, how's it going? Nice to meet you. I was like, no, it's not. He just looks like Pierre LeBron passing

[D]

out little pieces of paper with the address at the cottage, which as we've established of course is 1122 Boogie Woogie Avenue, somewhere in Northern Ontario.

[C]

I better get an invite for all of my hard work.

[D]

You're a big shot TV person. That's.

[A]

That's.

[D]

That's. That's who it's. That's who it's reserved for now.

[C]

No, I don't have a full time.

[D]

If you don't. If you don't spend X amount of minutes on Canadian national television Guess what?

[C]

You're not going.

[D]

Ain't going.

[C]

Yeah. Rival networks. It's never going to happen. All right, so this came in while we were talking to cj. This is from Darren Dregers, TSN colleague. The Vegas Golden Knights and Washington Capitals are in ongoing discussions on a deal sending Nick Dowd to Vegas. It's not done yet, but expected to be completed this morning. So we obviously don't know the return. We don't know the details, but anything you like about the idea of that, assuming by the time we hang up this call, it will be official and this will be old news. But, Sean, what do you think about Nick Dowd?

[D]

Yeah, I think Nick Dowd's still a useful player. I think he's still a pretty good defensive bottom sixer, and I think he makes sense for Vegas because he gives them flexibility to move Mitch Marner back to wing if they want. I know he's. Marner's been playing a good bit of center over the last little bit, which is all well and good, but I think if you add Dowd, you can potentially have. You can have Eichel hurdle Dowd and then Colton seasons down the. Down the middle if you want, or, you know, keep. Keep Mitch on the. On the wing and just have Dowd be your fourth line center. I think that's. That. That makes a ton of sense, too. I. And frankly, I think that's the route I would take if I were Vegas at this point, because Marner's made more sense at center, frankly, over the last little bit, than Wing. It seems like he's. He's a little bit more of a fit there. So I do like having, you know, doubt in the mix really, on. On any playoff team because he's a. He's a good defensive fourth liner, and I think he makes a fair amount of sense for Vegas specifically. So, yeah, it's. It's fine. We'll see what the price is. I. I can't imagine as much, but I think he makes them better.

[C]

Were there any big takeaways from that chat with C.J. the segments literally just debriefing everything. C.J. said. The. The one thing that there was a ton there. The Leafs not really getting any calls on the guys that they've decided to put on the block. That was like, oh, that's.

[D]

I mean, who should be like, no one should be surprised by that. This is something that, as a girl

[C]

with anxiety, I was like, oh, I feel sad.

[D]

It's something that happens to bad teams, and it's something that happens to the discourse in the dialogue around bad teams. This is across sports. We're not just talking about the NHL. We're talking about baseball. Whatever. Everybody overvalues their own guys, especially when it comes. Comes time comes time to, you know, move. Move folks out at the deadline. And I think, like, the barometer of who's good and who's not gets wacky when you're talking about. About a team that doesn't have that many good players on it. So, yeah, like, Bobby McMahon is one of the Leafs seven best forwards. That doesn't mean that he's of true value to other contenders like that or to the degree that they think. Right. Like, everyone loves Scott Laughton. He's. He seems like a great dude. His leadership is, you know, the first thing you hear people say about him. And he's been a good player in the past for. Particularly for the Philadelphia Flyers. That doesn't mean that he's. He's the kind of guy that's going to net a meaningful return. So I think there's some degree of, you know, just because Leafs fans and Toronto media is in the thick of it, where you assume that, you know, okay, we're going to be able to trade these guys for something meaning meaningful. That's not necessarily true.

[C]

Yeah.

[D]

You know, you, you, you. You can't trade all the players that put you. That put you in a bad spot, you know, for, for nice returns, because that's just. They have that kind of stink on them and it's. And it's deserved.

[C]

All that said, though, they haven't ruled out signing him to a new contract either, in terms of Bobby McMahon. So I.

[D]

Fine. Yeah, that's, that's fine. Just extend. Extend all the guys that, that put you in. In this spot.

[C]

I mean, it's not Bobby's fault that the Leaf stink, Sean. Like, that's a bit. That's a bit much. It's not Bobby McMahon's fault that they wanted him to be something he's not. I always, that's where I always go.

[D]

You can go get.

[C]

Bobby McMahon didn't put the Leafs 21st in the NHL standings.

[D]

You got to go get. You got to go get two more Bobby McMahons at Bobby McMahon's previous salary. When you're talking about whatever. Whatever deal he would net, you know, in, in free agency, and then that just screws with your cap more potentially. Like, he's a useful play, he's a useful player. But, like, yeah, part of the reason Bobby McMahon is good and part of the reason Bobby McMahon is worth having on a half decent team is because he's cheap and he's about to not be cheap. So. And there are no other Bobby McMahon's coming through the system for them.

[C]

Not Bobby McMahon's fault. I saw this tweet from our pal Greg Wishinski and I know we chatted a bit about this. We didn't go there with, he's, I wouldn't call him a friend, colleague. We talked about this before recording. We didn't go there with cj but like CJ did kind of mention it like the pressure that is on insiders this time of year. So this was Greg Sweet. I can't recall the last time we had three trade deadline trades Leak, Myers, Preco and Weaker without any of the main players having agreed to waive their trade protection. Like there's been three trades now that they're like, there is a trade to announce but also we don't have the details and also the player hasn't agreed to the trade yet. So stay tuned. It's, it's getting, it's wild this year and we're probably going to see that again today with Robert Thomas.

[D]

I know by the time this publishes we're going to have Colton Pareco like, like he'll, he'll accept it. That's because that's just our luck. I hope he doesn't, I hope he says like, you know what? No, I, I, like I said on it, I like St. Louis, my family likes St. Louis. Like, try again. I, I hope it, I hope it happens because it'll be, it'll be deserved.

[C]

Do we think it's GMs leaking early to put pressure on the player? Like players gonna look like an ass if they don't say yes. Even though that's why trade protection exists. Like it's just a loophole to be like, oh well, blues fans are gonna hate you now because they heard that we could have gotten a first round pick and a great prospect if you would have decided to leave. And since you didn't, now Colton Perico, we hate your guts so you better accept the deal because now you're going to be public enemy number one.

[D]

If I had a guess, I would say in some cases it's a leverage play and then in some cases it's just learned behavior because we always see NHL players waive these clauses, you know, like, yeah, how often does it happen? It's like rare is the case when a player wields it in a way that stops a GM from doing what they want. To do. Yeah, we kind of smile with, we saw with Marner, I guess to some degree we saw with Panarin. But, but those, those guys are still the exception to the rule. Like typically when guys have no moves or, or no trades, you know that doesn't stop something from getting done. And I hope it happens in this case. Like I hope Colin Perico's playing for the blues on, on, on Tuesday or whatever. I, I think, I think it'll be

[C]

completely deserved would be funny. All right. As we wrap up here, I feel like I was just rambling for eight minutes just to make sure nothing else came in under the wire. But we gotta, we gotta get this CJ stuff out to the people. We'll just say Pierre LeBrun, our friend and colleague who we love. He has a beautiful cottage. He's such a great guy. He did kind of reiterate CJ's point on Robert Thomas. So just something to keep an eye on as Thursday continues. Trade deadline is not until tomorrow but today feels mighty important on the Robert Thomas trade Watch. This is from Pierre. As a reminder, as per his full no trade clause, any deal needs to, needs his blessing. As we've seen with other players with those clauses this week, a player needs time to digest the decision at hand. It's not to say it couldn't go tomorrow but I would imagine leaving some wiggle room time wise for that decision would be part of things here. So expect a. Robert Thomas has been traded to TK team here but he hasn't approved it yet. Let's wait and see. So just that's, that's what we can keep an eye out on this Thursday.

[D]

That's Pierre being a pro. He took, he took my point. That was, that was the way, that was the way I was. I was going to come out here because guess who has a no trade clause. Robert Thomas. So, so, so we get to go through all this again. It's, it's, it's fun.

[C]

Yeah.

[D]

An under discussed part of of Robert Thomas Wednesday is was. It was his no trade class. That's what we're watching.

[C]

Yeah. Will he be on the move? Will he wave? We'll find out on Friday by 3pm thanks everyone for listening to this episode. Thank you Sean and to Chris Johnston for doing this. I realized like after the fact that he was recording on his cell phone so we couldn't even see text coming through. So I actually felt very bad once he pulled his phone off the thing. I was like cj, don't you have a laptop?

[D]

No he's just.

[C]

He's disgusting me.

[D]

True, true, true. Insider. He's just got four separate phones.

[C]

We're the reason CJ didn't break the Nick Dowd trade. It's fine. Dragger's his teammate, but oh my God, I feel. I felt kind of bad. The Athletic Hockey show is going all out for the trade deadline. Look for breaking news, live pods on Friday throughout the day and a Trade Deadline rap Show at 4 o' clock Eastern hosted by me and a cast of athletic people who we aren't aware of yet, but they'll all be great. Eight games in the NHL Thursday night. We'll see if anyone gets pulled off the ice. Enjoy the games. Enjoy Robert Thomas Watch. We'll be back tomorrow.

[A]

Hi, this is Farnoosh Tarabi from Sew Money with Farnoosh Tarabi and today I want to talk to you about Boost Mobile Quick Money Tip Stop paying a carrier Tax if your phone bill feels trapped in a pricey plan, this is your sign to unlock savings. Boost Mobile helps you reset your spending. With the $25 Unlimited Forever plan, you can bring your own phone, pay $25 and get unlimited wireless forever. And that simple switch can unlock up to $600 in savings a year. That's money you could put towards paying down debt, investing or something that actually brings you joy. Those savings are based on average annual single line payment of AT&T, Verizon and T Mobile customers can compared to 12 months on the Boost Mobile Unlimited plan as of January 2026. For full offer details, visit boostmobile.com Security and compliance done wrong is a giant headache. Security and Compliance done right? That's Vanta. Vanta helps you earn trust and speed up growth. No spreadsheets required. For startups low on time and resources, Vanta becomes your first security hire, using AI and automation to get you compliant fast and unblock big deals for enterprises. Vanta is your AI powered hub for compliance and risk, bringing together data from across your businesses and automating workflows so you can prove trust at any moment. Vanta scales with you at every stage. That's why top companies from startups like Cursor to enterprises like Snowflake choose Vanta. Do security and compliance right. Get started [e-mail] tedaudio my dad taught me a lot, including how easy it

[C]

is to forget to cancel things.

[A]

So I downloaded Experian, my bff Big Financial Financial Friend. Experian could help me cancel my unused subscriptions and lower my bills, saving me hundreds a year. Get started with the Experian app today. Your big financial friends here to help you save smarter. Results will vary. Not all bills or subscriptions Eligible Savings

[C]

not guaranteed $631 a year average savings

[A]

with one plus negotiations and OnePlus cancellations paid membership with connected payment account required. See experian.com for details. Experian.