From Matthew Tkachuk talking about the experience of having a chance to win the Stanley Cup at home, to Connor McDavid discussing, and disagreeing, with the pressure he's under, the new episode of the "NHL @TheRink" podcast covers the full ice in advance of Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida, on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; TNT, truTV, MAX, CBC, SN, TVAS).
Co-hosts Dan Rosen and Shawn P. Roarke open the show talking about how the Panthers put themselves on the verge of winning their second straight Stanley Cup championship. They reflect on Florida's near perfect Game 5 at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Saturday, when it won 5-2 to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-7 series.
That leads the conversation to what's at stake in Game 6, which is where Tkachuk's comments come into play.
The discussion goes to McDavid and if he's under the most pressure right now. Roarke disagrees because he doesn't think McDavid's legacy will be defined by championships. Rosen thinks part of his legacy will be defined by winning the Stanley Cup.
McDavid weighs in on the pressure, too, followed by Tkachuk discussing what it will be like to go up against a desperate McDavid in Game 6.
They also talk about the Oilers' comeback ability, with Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch discussing the team's resiliency, where it has shown up this postseason and why.
Before putting a bow on the Stanley Cup Final talk, Rosen and Roarke talk about Edmonton's goaltending situation, which continues to loom over their camp as Knoblauch hasn't yet announced if the Oilers' starting goalie in Game 6 will be Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard.
The co-hosts agree it's an issue and it could be the Oilers undoing.
Finally, they talk about the Olympic announcements that came out on Monday, with all 12 competing nations in the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 in February announcing the first six players to their rosters.
Neither the United States nor Canada named a goalie. Is that a surprise or was it expected? And which underrated national team should we all be watching come February?
All of that and more on this episode of the "NHL @TheRink" podcast, which is free and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms. It is also available on NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.
