Emily Kaplan
Appearances
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
at the time you know i was a print journalist growing up that's all i ever want to do like i want to write and i want to write nuanced stories and tv is something that's new to me and that show gave me the platform to find my voice on tv and tony's so good at just finding what makes us tick and bringing out the best in all of us he's so selfless in that way so it really is a community it really is a family it's heartbreaking when i think about that not existing anymore um because
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
I was given the opportunity to be a part of such a big legacy show. And I'm just so sad that other generations behind me won't get that opportunity, that they won't be able to find their confidence on a show like Around the Horn. And I hope there's other opportunities out there for them. But this was a really, really special one.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Oh. Who wins? Who loses? I'm going to do the loser really quickly. I think it's the Detroit Red Wings because they didn't do anything because that race is so crowded in the East.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And I remember when they got Patrick Kane, Derek Lulone, who was the coach at the time, told me, you understand what that did for the locker room when Patrick Kane had all these options and he chose Detroit and what a boost that was. And it accelerated their season.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And then to get to the trade deadline when you don't have anyone, like, yes, they got Peter Moore out of the field of goaltending help. Like, I just feel like that's just such a bummer for those guys because they fought so hard and built with some adversity. And it's like, OK, but the general manager is basically saying next year. So, you know, we'll see how it all shakes out.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
But that to me is like a team that maybe could have used some kind of boost, an extra defenseman, an extra forward. Winners? Can I pick Florida? Am I being a bias here?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
You know, I just think, firstly, Nico Sturm, I think with this general manager and management staff, and really, when you start to understand the Florida Panthers and why they've become so good, it's because Bill Zito has surrounded himself with so many great hockey minds, and they have really...
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
like passionate debates and it's not all group think but what they've identified is a culture and a fit of player that can fit into that culture so like nico serm is a great example of like you see him in san jose and you're like whatever what is this guy you see him as a florida panther and you're like oh that's exactly what they needed he'll play his you know butt off i could probably say worse things on your show but oh yeah we have
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Yeah, exactly. And he's going to be a great Florida Panther. But really, I'm thinking about Brad Marchand. And the fact that he got traded from Boston is something that I think we're all going to have to wrap our head around. So they don't need to relitigate these contract negotiations. But he's 37 years old. He's a franchise legend. Typically, you hold on to these guys.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And management's like, look, we've got a retool, and we only have so far we could bend. And when they decide to trade him, from my understanding, they had some advanced talks with some teams, specifically in the West. And Brad told them, my heart wouldn't be in it. There's one place I want to go. That one place is Florida. Guys, you've been in this market forever.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
The top players, the captain of an original six teams, this is the only place I want to go.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
That's exactly it. No, because they were embarrassed by them in some playoff runs. And basically what Brad Marchand said is like game recognize game. And like, I hated going against those guys. But if I was going to go to fight with anyone besides the guys in my room right now, those are the guys I want to go to battle with. And I just think that's the coolest thing.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
It's such a good story for hockey. These are the type of trades you see in other sports. And I just cannot wait to see what type of impact he has.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
I think there's two teams that would really scare me if I was the Florida Panthers. One are in Florida, the other F team. I just think that the Tampa Bay Lightning, they've hit their stride. Vassie looks like peak, you know, Vassie. And I love what Julian Griswold does every trade deadline. He's like, I don't care what anyone else thinks the prices are.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Like, these are the guys I need and I'll just pay whatever price it is because they're the guys that are going to get me to where I want to go. And, you know, we're all making a big deal about Yanni Gord because, you know, we know Yanni Gord and, you know, we know what he looked like for their cup runs and how that sick checking line. He's not the same Yanni Gord. Like he's now in his 30s.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
He's coming off a major groin surgery, a sports hernia surgery. But he's still like a fierce sports checker for them. The bigger part of that deal was Oliver Bjorkstrand, who, like Nico Sturm, like just fits what they needed. You know, it may be an unflashy way, but like when you watch them, you're like, oh, I get it. So I think the Florida, the Tampa Bay Lightning would scare me.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And then the Toronto Maple Leafs would scare me. And I just think that, you know, they might have figured it out. I think that their coach, Craig Berube, has made them a much tougher team to play against. I think the commitment for team defense, it's led by Austin Matthews, I think. Yes, his numbers are down offensively, but if you watch him defensively, he's really making an impact there.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And if they get the goaltending, and you guys know him, Anthony Stolarz, you go up in the Florida goaltending factory and he looks pretty good, they could make a run this year.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
It's a weird year for them, man. It's a weird, weird year to the Metro. And I feel for the Carolina Hurricanes because I probably would put them in here. I just think there's just been so much noise. Maybe it's the year that you least expect, but the fact they weren't able to get more roster players than Logan Stankoven for what they, you know, gave up for Mikko Rantanen gives me pause.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Yeah, it's so tough to say. I think the situation with Rantanen, like, look, I think big picture, nobody besides maybe the Dallas Stars and definitely the Dallas Stars are happy with how this all shook out, right? Like, it became so public. It became such a distraction. Nico Rantanen's a guy that's, like, so accommodating to the media.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
But, like, I know he didn't want his business all aired out like this. And, like, I think it was just icky and a little bit uncomfortable for everyone. From the Canes' perspective, we can get into this war of words of who knew what and when. Did they know? Did they believe? Who said that he was going to potentially want to sign there?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
But the truth is, they're always going to be an aggressive franchise. They're always going to go for it and make moves that I think the rest of the league might be a little bit more hesitant to make. And sometimes those risks aren't going to work out, but you have to respect them for taking the risks. And I also respect people for cutting their losses, you know, too soon.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And I think, again, the situation might've just gotten too messy where like, yeah, you couldn't hold onto him for the rest of the playoff run, but like, it wasn't really a fit. You knew that there was kind of some noise that he didn't really feel like home in Raleigh or he didn't really like it. Like, do you want to carry onto that?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Or do you want to try to cut your loss early and see what you can recoup? Now, Mikko Rantanen did tell them at least a week before the trade deadline that he wasn't going to sign. So I think that we can have a conversation of like, yes, you have to go field your best offers.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
But the fact that it got down to the absolute wire where you weren't able to flip those firsts, like maybe that's an experience that they can learn from. But big picture, like I think that they can go to sleep at night knowing that they're going to take some risks because they want to win a Stanley Cup. They need a game breaking talent. They got one who was available. Didn't work out.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
They'll try again.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Yeah. I heard the timeline for Dougie Hamilton, like the return is somewhere in the first round, the targeting. So we should see him if they go on a run, but it's challenging, right? Like those are, I mean, Dougie Hamilton and Jack Hughes and Joe is known as the calling. Those are important players that are hard to replace.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
I think the devils had definitely have like a by committee approach right now and I think they can do it. I think that their goaltending has held up enough. I think that this is opportunities for guys. Like I think of Timo Mayer, right? Like when they traded for him, he was like a top power play guy and he can't even get on the first unit when Jack Hughes is around.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
So like now you get an opportunity for Timo Mayer to get there and their power play has held up okay without him. You know, Luke Hughes is taking on a lot more minutes. Simone Nemec, like, His training camp was derailed after, you know, he was hurt in Olympic qualifying. Like, now is an opportunity for him to step up and take that development year.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
So I see them finishing and getting a spot in the playoffs. I think it'll be a battle, whoever they face in the first round. It's looking like Carolina, they have a chance for an upset because I tend to think, like... Once you get to the playoffs, it really can be anyone's game and it's whoever's the most committed. And I really do like Sheldon Keefe as a coach.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And I think he's just so detail oriented that if he gets these guys dialed in, you know, they can almost win in spite of what they're missing or like because of what they're missing and use that as motivation.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
I don't know. There you go. I really don't. There's something all season has just been a mess. Like they just don't feel like the same team that they ended last season on. I think some of their offseason moves just haven't panned out. You know, you can blame goaltending. You can blame a little bit of a leaky defense. Whatever it is, just the juju is a little bit off.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Maybe they're one of those teams, now that they know how hard it is to get to that spot, can just flip the switch when it gets to the playoffs. But it's looking now like they won't even get home ice advantage in the first round, which is pretty shocking when you consider that they've got the two best players in the world.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Yeah. Well, so it feels like Ottawa has taken that first wildcard spot and good on them, right? Like they took the jump out of all those teams that were looking, you know, to take that jump along with Buffalo and Red Wings. I just get the gut that the Rangers aren't done. And I know you guys probably don't want to hear that.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
I hate it, but I'm with you. Yeah, I just, you know, when you've got Igor Sestarkin and you have all of that experience, and I think that JT Miller is dragging a lot of them into this fight, I just have this gut feeling that they're going to squeeze it out, even though I think all of our hearts as hockey fans are pulling for the Columbus Blue Jackets, because what a story that would be. Yeah.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And then in the West, I really like the way Utah is coming on lately. I just think that they're healthy, you know, to be able to celebrate that market and its first year of existence would be really cool. So that's kind of my gut there, even though it really does feel like a toss up between so many of those teams.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Have they had a dream season, Vancouver? Has this entire season been a nightmare?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Yeah, it starts to read American Prince.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Oh, I know. We've got a big game against the Leafs on ESPN sometime in April in Florida, so I'll look out for you guys. And I have a feeling I will be there May, June, lots of time for Lauderdale.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Boy, you say I'm the hardest working. You're the one that actually looked at my stats.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Okay, fair enough.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
Yeah well first like 23 years my first thought is what a run like how many shows get that leeway and I think it's all credit to Tony Reale the host who just makes it home for so many of us the producers behind the scenes like as you guys know they're the fabric that make that thing run and then the panelists but I'll just never forget the first time they called me and asked me if I wanted to be on it Aaron Solomon the executive producer and I was just shook and I was like no I
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
I can't do this. I'm not ready. And I came up with every excuse of why I couldn't do that first show. And I think it was Ramona Shelburne or maybe it was Mina Kimes. Those were the two women that I consulted before I went on. And they were like, look, you can say no once, but if you say no twice, they're not going to call back. Like, you've got to do it.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
The Hockey Show: Brad Marchand is a Florida Panther
And I'm just so grateful for them because...