The Big Show

Latest Episodes:

The Hockey News At The Games: Reacting To Dramatic Olympic Quarterfinals Feb 19, 2026

Show notes

The Hockey News Big Show At The Games is here to cover the men's and women's hockey tournaments during the 2026 Olympics.

Ryan Kennedy (in Milan), Andrew McInnis and Michael Augello went live to recap the men's hockey Olympic quarterfinals.

Here's what they discussed:

1:50: Thoughts on Quinn Hughes' overtime-winner for Team USA?

3:50: What was the USA and Sweden game like in person?

5:10: How have Connor Hellebuyck and Jordan Binnington answered doubters?

9:35: Are you disappointed in Sweden's Olympic performance?

12:50: Any updates after the Canada game regarding Sidney Crosby?

17:50: What is your takeaway from the Canada and Czechia game?

20:30: Are you surprised Sam Bennett wasn't in the lineup?

24:15: How did Canada handle adversity for the first time?

27:15: What has Mitch Marner's overtime-winning goal for Team Canada done for him?

29:00: Thoughts on Nick Suzuki's game?

30:30: How limited was Brad Marchand's usage?

32:40: Which Canadians do you think held down the fort at the end of the game?

34:35: Thoughts on the missed call on the Czechs' third goal?

36:30: Thoughts on Jordan Binnington's performance?i

39:20: Who is happier about their semifinal matchup?

41:25: Who are the X-factors for Canada versus Finland?

44:45: Who are the biggest difference-makers in USA versus Slovakia?

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The Hockey News At The Games: Men's Qualification Playoff Round Results And Reactions Feb 17, 2026

Show notes

The Hockey News Big Show At The Games is here to cover the men's and women's hockey tournaments during the 2026 Olympics.

Michael Traikos (in Milan), Andrew McInnis and Michael Augello went live to recap the men's hockey Olympic qualification playoff round

Here's what they discussed:

1:00: What were your thoughts on the Sweden-Latvia game?

2:00: Has Team Sweden improved since the start of the tournament?

4:20: How much will the back-to-back games affect Sweden on Wednesday?

6:30: How will the U.S. deal with the big jump in competition?

9:00: Why do Sweden have a chance against Team USA?

10:10: Which Swedish line have you liked the most?

11:45: What will the U.S. do to try to slow down the Swedish attack?

16:00: Did the Denmark game snap the U.S. into shape?

21:00: Thoughts on Czechia's game, and what is different than the first matchup?

23:40: What do Czechia need to do to stay in this game?

25:35: How will Team Canada's lineup change going into the elimination games?

27:35: Final thoughts before the Canada and Czechia rematch

29:00: How did Germany look today in their win against France?

30:45: Can Slovakia continue this strong tournament after surprising everyone to win their group?

32:30: Is there a real favorite in the Germany-Slovakia game?

34:20: What makes Team Switzerland dangerous against Finland?

36:45: Key players for Switzerland and Finland

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The Hockey News At The Games: USA, Canada To Meet In Olympic Women's Hockey Final Feb 17, 2026

Show notes

The Hockey News Big Show At The Games is here to cover the men's and women's hockey tournaments during the 2026 Olympics.

Women's hockey writer Chris Sinclair and Ryan Kennedy join Andrew McInnis and Michael Augello to discuss the USA's 5-0 win over Sweden and Canada's 2-1 win over Switzerland before previewing the gold and bronze medal matches.

Here's what they discussed:

1:05: Your overall thoughts on Team Canada's win over Switzerland?

3:35: If Canada were looking to build momentum for the gold medal game, did they fail to do that?

5:12: How did Canada look from a defense and goaltending standpoint?

10:00: Takeaways from Team USA's win over Sweden?

14:41: What have you heard from the USA players themselves?

16:50: Does this American squad have any flaws?

18:00: One player that stood out in this semifinal win?

19:00: Is it safe to say that Team USA is entering the gold medal game as huge favorites?

21:06: What's the tone for Canada and the U.S. heading into the gold medal game?

25:45: What tactically gets changed for Team Canada in the gold medal game?

31:05: How are the Canadians going to approach handling Team USA's Abbey Murphy?

36:55: How will the bronze medal game between Switzerland and Sweden look, and who could make a big difference?

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The Hockey News At The Games: Previewing The Qualifying Round Feb 16, 2026

Show notes

Here's what Michael Traikos, Andrew McInnis and Michael Augello discussed:

1:34: Takeaways from Team Canada's blowout win over France?

4:11: How can Team Canada stay sharp when facing little adversity?

7:12: Is Jordan Binnington your starting goaltender moving forward?

10:12: Do you see many line combination changes for Canada at this point?

13:50: What did you see from Team USA throughout the group stage?

18:07: How important is it for Team USA players to know their individual roles?

19:45: Which qualifying round game could provide us with an upset?

24:11: Who are some players that have to step up for their team in this next round?

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The Hockey News At The Games: Reacting To Canada And Finland's Friday Wins At Olympics Feb 14, 2026

Show notes

The Hockey News Big Show At The Games is here to cover the men's and women's hockey tournaments during the 2026 Olympics.

Ryan Kennedy joins the show from Milan to discuss Canada's 5-1 win over Switzerland and Finland's 4-1 win against Sweden. And Gary Pearson also hops on for a new edition of the BetMGM Playbook.

Here's what Ryan Kennedy, Andrew McInnis, Michael Augello and Gary Pearson discussed:

0:30: What was the atmosphere like in the arena for the Canada and Switzerland game?

1:25: Were you expecting a more or less challenging game for Canada than yesterday?

4:20: What was the vibe in the building after the Kevin Fiala injury?

7:40: What did you think about the way this game started?

10:45: Thoughts on putting together Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon?

14:40: Who's been the best under-the-radar player for Team Canada?

17:50: Are you worried about a player like Sam Bennett taking a costly penalty?

19:30: Which team is better overall: Sweden or Finland?

22:50: How are the special teams for Finland and Sweden?

26:20: Thoughts on the Olympic officiating so far?

29:30: Could the arguably weaker competition in Team USA's group cost them?

BetMGM Playbook

32:34: Canada have the best odds to win gold in men's hockey, while the U.S. have the best odds to win silver. From what we've seen so far, will it stand?

34:06: Do you have a dark horse pick that could upset either Canada or the USA?

37:30: Any worry that Team USA hasn't been battle-tested in their pool?

38:49: Can anyone upset McDavid's odds to be the leading goal-scorer at the Olympics?

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The Hockey News At The Games: Reacting To Canada Beating Czechia In Men's Olympic Hockey Feb 12, 2026

Show notes

Here's what Michael Traikos, Andrew McInnis and Michael Augello discussed:

00:30: Michael Traikos' thoughts live at the game

01:25: Thoughts on the Canadian line combinations?

03:15: What did you think of Tom Wilson being on the top line?

05:45: Did Jordan Binnington silence the doubters?

08:30: Thoughts on Canada's bottom six forwards?

10:45: Can Canada's faceoff struggles affect them long-term?

14:10: What impact could Josh Morrissey's injury have if he misses time?

17:00: What did you think about Team Czechia's performance?

21:10: How much did Canada's prevention of David Pastrnak's scoring chances affect their dominance?

22:30: Do we see any lineup changes to Team Canada coming?

25:35: What is Czechia's ceiling?

27:20: What do you think Team Sweden's future looks like?

32:00: Who is under more pressure in Finland or Sweden's game on Friday?

34:00: What do you expect in Finland-versus-Sweden?

36:00: What are the expectations if the Canadian women get a rematch against the USA?

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The Hockey News At The Games: Excitement Builds For Team Canada Feb 11, 2026

Show notes

The Hockey News Big Show At The Games is here to cover the men's and women's hockey tournaments during the 2026 Olympics.

Here's what Ryan Kennedy, Michael Traikos, Andrew McInnis and Michael Augello discussed:

2:05: What was it like at Canada's practice on Wednesday?

5:30: Do the players on Team Canada believe in goalie Jordan Binnington?

6:50: Is it fair to say the first goalie they play will be who they want to be their No. 1 goaltender?

8:11: What is the level of excitement coming from the players on Team Canada?

9:50: What line combinations did we see out of practice today?

11:45: Thoughts on Canada's top six forwards?

13:30: What are you seeing about Team Czechia?

17:52: Thoughts on the upcoming first game for the United States

22:40: Thoughts on Finland not being able to convert on their chances in Wednesday's 4-1 loss to Slovakia?

25:59: Did Finland play badly, or did the Slovakia goaltender stand on his head?

28:30: Thoughts and ice time being given more to the bottom two lines for Finland toward the end of the game

31:33: Was it a good move by Slovakia to keep their foot on the gas throughout the whole game?

34:47: How much pressure is Finland under to win their next game now?

37:20: How will Sweden's William Nylander perform at the Olympics?

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The Hockey News At The Games: USA Routs Canada In Women's Olympic Hockey Feb 11, 2026

Show notes

The Hockey News Big Show At The Games is here to cover the men's and women's hockey tournaments during the 2026 Olympics.

Today, we recap the United States' 5-0 preliminary round win over Canada in women's hockey before discussing Team Sweden's wins and some final men's hockey previews.

Here's what Andrew McInnis, Michael Augello and Chris Sinclair discussed:

01:30: What made the USA so dominant today against Canada?

08:40: How did the USA dominate possession so much?

10:00: How much of a pest was Abbey Murphy to the Canadians?

17:20: What are Canada's chances without Marie-Philip Poulin, who is out day-to-day with an injury?

23:30: What does it mean for Canada's women's team getting shut out for the first time in Olympic history?

27:30: Thoughts on Canada's unsuccessful goalie interference challenge?

30:00: How much of a threat is Sweden in the women's tournament?

34:00: Thoughts ahead of the start of the men's tournament

41:45: Expectations for the Tkachuk brothers ahead of the Olympics

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Men's Olympic Hockey Preview, X-Factors And More Feb 09, 2026

Show notes

Here's what Andrew McInnis, Ryan Kennedy and Michael Traikos discussed:

0:58: Lots of changes to Team Canada roster ahead of its start. How has this team ended up?

3:12: Could the potential of Seth Jarvis going to another Olympics factor into the reason they chose him as a replacement this year?

4:45: Any surprises about Canada's leadership group?

8:25: Thoughts on the first look at some possible line combinations for Team Canada?

12:50: Who is your Game 1 starter for Canada?

15:47: Should Auston Matthews have gotten the captaincy for Team USA?

18:18: Thoughts on the first look at some possible line combinations for Team USA?

21:08: Is Connor Hellebuyck the clear No.1 goaltender for the U.S.?

23:36: Who is Sweden's No.1 goaltender?

24:52: Who is Sweden's true superstar and X-factor?

26:45: Finland are missing their best player in Aleksander Barkov. Will Roope Hintz be able to step up into that position?

28:45: Czechia will be without Pavel Zacha at the Olympics. He is out with an upper-body injury and will be replaced by center Filip Chlapik. How will this affect Team Czechia?

True Hockey Talk

True Hockey's VP of product creation, Scott Van Horne, discusses the skates athletes are wearing at the Olympics.

32:26: Seventy percent of goalies are wearing True skates at the Olympics. Why are so many goalies wearing True skates? What makes them better than the competitors?

34:02: What's it like working with goalies to design a skate?

36:07: Hellebuyck is wearing True skates. Where will we notice some advantages in his skates?

37:12: What separates a goalie skate from a player's skate?

38:37: Are there any cross-design elements between figure skates, speed skates and hockey skates?

42:03: How long does a True Skate last?

Rapid Fire

44:14: Outside of the big three – Nathan Mackinnon, Connor McDavid and Cale Makar – Who are two X-Factors for Team Canada?

45:45: Who will lead the Olympics in scoring?

46:47: What team is your dark horse pick?

48:05: Finally, who will bring home the gold medal?

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Revisiting Some Big NHL Trades: Hughes, Skinner And More Feb 06, 2026

Show notes

Here's what Katie Gaus, Ryan Kennedy and Michael Traikos discussed:

0:00: Let's take a look at some big trades from this past year and evaluate how they look now. Quinn Hughes was traded to the Minnesota Wild. How has this trade panned out?

3:00: Stuart Skinner was sent to Pittsburgh in exchange for Tristan Jarry. How has this trade worked out for both teams?

5:15: Tell us what trade from last year looks the best a year later?

7:10: Which GM has done the best so far this season?

8:50: Which coach has stood out to you, making a big impact this season?

12:55: Which player or team has been either the biggest surprise or disappointment so far?

True Hockey Talk

Mitch Marner, Connor Hellebuyck and Sarah Nurse are a few key athletes wearing True Gear.

16:30: Let's start with Marner. Where do we think he lines up in this stacked forward group for Team Canada?

18:45: If the U.S. is gonna win gold – how much of a factor does Hellebuyck need to be?

21:29: Sarah Nurse is one of the key veteran players for Canada's women's team – could she be an X-factor for Team Canada?

BetMGM Playbook

24:36: Do you think playing in a certain division could give an NHL team an advantage in the playoffs?

27:22: How do we like the first-round playoff format? Should it change so division opponents don't always face each other?

31:19: What division do you think the Stanley Cup winner will come from?

Rapid Fire

33:47: Yay or nay: Seth Jarvis replaces Brayden Point on Team Canada

35:54: What do you expect from Drew Doughty, Erik Karlsson and other players who could be in their final Olympics?

38:26: Will a defenseman lead the Olympics in scoring?

40:30: Where do the Hutson brothers (Lane Hutson, Cole, Quinn and Lars) rank among the hockey families at the pro level right now?

42:42: Artemi Panarin wants No. 72, but L.A. Kings mascot Bailey has it. What should the mascot get to give up the number?

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