knowing that you could win the Stanley Cup.

I don't think you asked me that four times last year.

Paul Maurice, the head coach of the Florida Panthers, they had a 3-0 lead last year in the Stanley Cup finals against Edmonton,

but needed seven games to win.

He was asked, how does it feel to wake up knowing you can win the cup? Well, you asked me that four times last year.

Well, they asked him it yesterday and they got it done last night in six games, beating Edmonton and Connor McDavid four games to two. Joining me right now to talk some hockey and maybe a little bit more is my guy Chris Russell,

who is on from one to four following this show on the team 980.

Of course, you can follow him on X at Russellmania 621.

So this is your thing. You love this sport. And I am very much sort of on the

periphery and jump in, you know, during the postseason and pay attention to it. For a sport that has

so much randomness to the outcome, man, it is a sport that produces a lot of dynastic runs. Is this

a dynastic run that Florida is in the midst of? Very well could be. I mean, obviously two in a row,

and they made the finals the year before that, right? So, or the final, I should say before that.

What Bill Zito, the general manager and what Paul Maurice and that ownership group have done to turn that situation around,

Kevin, it wasn't too long ago.

It was like 7,000 people in that arena.

I mean, it just wasn't that long ago.

And they have completely, of course, revolutionized that entire franchise, that entire organization,

and now it's been validated. And Paul Maurice was such a perfect fit. You know, they could go on

a longer run. The thing that I would caution, as you point out, right, the penguins, when they were going for three in a row against the Capitals in 2018, one of the reasons why I picked the Capitals in that second round series against the Penguins is too much hockey.

You play too much to get to the Stanley Cup final and to win it or fall short.

And it catches up to you after an 80, what, two-game regular season and three rounds of the playoffs sometimes or even less, and your body just can't handle it along with the attrition of the salary cap.

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