{"podcast":{"title":"NHL Wraparound Podcast","slug":"nhl-wraparound-podcast-6738916","podcast_index_feed_id":6738916,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/nhl-wraparound-podcast/","website_url":"https://nhl-wraparound-podcast.captivate.fm","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/b1f011ee-519a-4697-8650-bceee856df78/EY-HiA10QW6j_adqQ0EhGDtC.png","author":"Neil Smith & Vic Morren","episode_count":500,"summary":"Breadth and depth. Contemporary and historical. Straight-forward and experienced. The NHL Wraparound podcast features Neil Smith, President-General Manager of the 1994 Stanley Cup Champion New York Rangers and longtime ESPN/NHL veteran Vic Morren sharing no-nonsense opinions on news and issues around the National Hockey League. Bringing decades of experience from their respective fields, Smith and Morren create a unique partnership that examines the NHL from multiple perspectives. Additionally, as hockey historians, the pair can delve into any topic in today’s game and enlighten the audience with connections to events from previous years. To truly appreciate where hockey stands today, one needs to understand its past. With 2024 marking the 30th anniversary of the Rangers last championship season, a special five-part series is planned to commemorate that magical run. Expect fascinating behind-the-scenes stories and special guests with particular focus on the GM who pushed all of his chips into the middle of the table amidst the most pressurized environments – and came out on top. Whether you’re new to the game or a seasoned fan, each episode of NHL Wraparound will leave you enterta…","last_synced_at":"2026-10-03T08:23:06.458636+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/nhl-wraparound-podcast-6738916"},"episode":{"title":"Summer Coolers – Montreal Canadiens","slug":"summer-coolers-montreal-canadiens","published_at":"2026-09-13T04:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/nhl-wraparound-podcast-6738916/summer-coolers-montreal-canadiens","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/nhl-wraparound-podcast-6738916","url":"https://nhl-wraparound-podcast.captivate.fm/episode/summer-coolers-montreal-canadiens","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/3a352337-8b1f-4f8f-b37b-dbcee6010e1f.mp3","summary":"Summer Coolers – Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens enter 2026-27 coming off a breakthrough season that took them all the way to the Eastern Conference Final. Montreal finished third in the Atlantic, fourth in the East, and sixth overall before defeating Tampa Bay and Buffalo in dramatic seven-game series and eventually falling to Carolina in five. But instead of making a blockbuster move to accelerate the process, GM Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton are sticking with the youth movement. Neil Smith and Vic Morren examine whether patience is still the right strategy for a Canadiens team that suddenly looks much closer to Stanley Cup contention. IN THIS EPISODE: [00:00:00] Martin St. Louis begins his sixth season behind the Montreal bench after guiding the Canadiens to third in the Atlantic and a trip to the Eastern Conference Final. [00:00:25] Montreal survives Tampa Bay in seven games, including a deciding game where the Canadiens generated remarkably few shots but still found a way to win. [00:00:40] The Canadiens then defeat Buffalo in overtime in Game 7 before losing to eventual champion Carolina in five games after taking the series opener. [00:00:55] Montreal finishes seventh offensively, improves defensively from tied for 22nd to tied for 16th, and owns a top-10 power play. [00:01:00] Despite the playoff success, alarm bells are beginning to sound among those who believe Montreal has been too conservative during the offseason. [00:01:20] The Canadiens’ only trade acquisition is Brett Berard from the Rangers in exchange for defenseman William Trudeau. [00:01:40] Neil believes the lack of major moves is intentional. Hughes and Gorton are committed to allowing their young core to continue developing rather than rushing the rebuild. [00:02:00] Montreal has also ben…","meta_description":"Summer Coolers – Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens enter 2026-27 coming off a breakthrough season that took them all the way to the Eastern Confer…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":332,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/nhl-wraparound-podcast-6738916/episodes/summer-coolers-montreal-canadiens/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/nhl-wraparound-podcast-6738916/summer-coolers-montreal-canadiens.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}