Episode 62 - Crowning a New Leader With Kings VP/GM Ken Holland

Ken Holland helped build the Edmonton Oilers into a Stanley Cup Finalist. Now he's tasked with leading the L.A. Kings quest in trying to figure out how to take them down next season. The new Kings VP/GM joins Neil and Vic to discuss that plus the conference finals.

"Three Things You Need to Pay Attention To" looks at both the Panthers-Hurricanes and Stars-Oilers series while The Human Side of the Story is a chance encounter a couple of days after one of the most memorable games in Stanley Cup history.

IN THIS EPISODE:

[01:11] - Some good natured banter about spoilers and Wordle.

[03:54] - "Three Things You Need to Pay Attention To" hits on the Carolina Hurricanes avoiding elimination in the East Final, the Florida Panthers seeing their game come down a notch and the baffling offensive outage being experienced by the top eight goal scorers on the Dallas Stars.

[11:54] - Neil welcomes old friend Ken Holland back to the show, this time as VP/GM of the Los Angeles Kings...although not without a little fun to kick off the discussion.

[15:12] - The difference Ken sees between His Oilers team last year and the one looking to return to the Final.

[16:57] - The up and down world of the Oilers goaltending tandem of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard.

[20:14] - The task of building the Kings and being able to overtake and defeat the Oilers in the playoffs.

[22:35] - Has constructing team changed or is it fundamentally the same?

[28:15] - Ken weighs in on goaltender Darcy Kuemper.

[31:03] - What a best-built team looks like for the Kings in 2025-26.

[34:00] - While the NHL is a copy-cat league looking to emulate the latest champion, would the Panthers physical success make skilled free agents less attractive?

[37:32] - Ken gives his thoughts on the conference final series.

[45:01] - Injury news for Game 4 - Edmonton-Dallas and a couple of other items.

[46:45] - In The Human SIde of the Story, Vic recalls an unexpected encounter at a New Jersey restaurant following the epic Rangers-Devils conference final series.

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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