The Bob McCown Podcast

EP 263 - NBA ROUNDTABLE W/ CHUCK SWIRSKY & MATT DEVLIN: Who is the Greatest Raptor of All Time?

The voice's of Raptors past & present, Matt Devlin & Chuck Swirsky, join Bob and John for an impromptu analysis into who they think the greatest Toronto Raptor of all time actually is.

With front row seats to pretty much every game in Raptors history shared between the two of them, Chuck & Matt share their unique perspective with Bob and John and make a case for a few players that could be considered as the "G.R.O.A.T.".

With team success, cultural impact and overall talent level making strong arguments for everyone as the four spend most of the show on the highly discussed subject. At the end of the show we briefly give our first thoughts on the two broadcasters respective NBA teams so far into the season and we give our way too early NBA Champion prediction.

EP 262 - BRIAN BURKE on the Penguins hot start, dealing with COVID-19 & his reaction to Gary Bettman‘s recent press conference.

President of Hockey Operations for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Brian Burke, Joins the podcast to catch up with Bob and John.

The three talk about Pittsburgh hot start to the season and their recent struggles with injury and COVID-19. Brian gives us some insight on Malkin's time table to return. 

After hearing Bob & John's yesterday we have a lengthy discussion on Brian Burke's reaction to Gary Bettman's press conference regarding the report on the Chicago Blackhawks sexual assault investigation.

We debate on what punishments were fair and those that weren't harsh enough and we get Brian's assessment on how well the NHL did in terms of dealing with the issue at hand.

EP 261 - Bob and John‘s reaction to Gary Bettman‘s press conference regarding the Chicago Blackhawks sexual assault investigation.

Just Bob and John today as the two share their reactions to Gary Bettman's press conference about the Chicago Blackhawks investigation held on Monday.

Bob and John discuss the details of Gary Bettman's presser and come to the conclusion - Gary and the NHL have not done enough.

We get into the inconsistent punishment given to members involved - With Joel Quennville and Stan Bowman being forced to retire we question as to why Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff got off scott free and why the Blackhawks - a billion dollar organization - were only fined $2 Million. 

We speculate on whether there will be any further punishments handed down by the league, what else Gary should be doing for Kyle Beac and whether Executive Director of the National Hockey League Players Association, Don Fehr, is complicit in this as well.

EP 260 - JP MOROSI on The World Series, Toronto Blue Jays & The Evolution of Pitching in Baseball.

Friend of the podcast JON PAUL MOROSI from MLB.com joins the show to talk some Baseball with Bob and John.

The three discuss game five of the World Series between the Braves and Astros, compare performances and struggle to predict a winner due to the unpredictability the series has shown so far.

We get some Blue Jays talk in there as Bob wonders what the they should do with Steven Matz and Robbie Ray this offseason. This leads us to one of Bob's favourite baseball topics - Pitching.

Bob, JP and John analyze the "re-engineering" of pitching in baseball as teams try to utilize their pitching more efficiently, begging the question - Has the evolution of pitching had a negative impact on the game?

EP 259 - NHL ROOUND TABLE WITH DARREN MILLARD & JOHN FORSLUND.

Two voices of two of the NHL's newest franchises - DARRREN MILLARD & JOHN FORSLUND stop by to talk about their respective teams.

Before we get into it, the four discuss the results of Gary Bettman's meeting with Florida Panthers coach Joel Quenneville & Winnipeg Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff.

Darren & John share their experiences in a market where they have had to build hockey fans from scratch and the difficulties they face as announcers when it comes to educating new hockey fans. We learn about how important the Golden Knights being the first pro team back in sports was to the growth of the franchise and wonder how Seattle can re create their popularity.

EP 258 - ALLAN WALSH discusses the ramifications of the Chicago Blackhawks sexual abuse investigation.

On todays episode, Bob and John talk to player agent, Allan Walsh, about the independent report on the Chicago Blackhawks sexual assault investigation. 

The three discuss the details found in the report released on Tuesday, and talk about the ramifications this will have on the Chicago Blackhawks organization as well as the National Hockey League. 

Bob, John and Allan also discuss the TSN's interview with Kyle Beach, the player identified as "John Doe" in the investigation, what the next steps for Gary Bettman and the NHL are and how to make sure this never happens again.

EP 257 - DAN SHULMAN on game one of The World Series.

Voice of the Blue Jays and the World Series, DAN SHULMAN, joins the podcast to talk about game one of MLB's World Series between the Houston Astros & the Atlanta Braves.

The three discuss Charlie Morton's leg injury and what that will mean for the Atlanta Braves moving forward. We also discuss the use of relief pitchers and how it changes in the playoffs - Why aren't the starting pitchers playing more?

We also discuss potential lineup changes that Dusty Baker may have to make when the Astro's play in Atlanta as well as what Alex Anthopolis has been able to do to make the Braves one of the best teams in baseball on todays episode as we preview the rest of The World Series.

EP 256 - DOUG SMITH on the Ed Rogers vs. Masai Ujiri saga & The Toronto Raptors.

Just a day after Toronto Sun writers Doug Smith & Christine Dobby co-wrote an article revealing that Chairman of Rogers Communications - Edward Rogers - did not want to bring Masai Ujiri back to the Toronto Raptors, we bring on Doug Smith to give us a little bit more info on the piece he and Dobby wrote and what it means for not only the Raptors but MLSE in general.

We also spend some time on the Toronto Raptors as we discuss their slow start to the season. We wonder if OG Anunoby is going to cut it as a number one or two option, is Fred Van Vleet really that good and what the lineup is going to look like once Pascal Siakam returns from injury.

EP 255 - NHL ROUNDTABLE W/ MIKE ZEISBERGER & TERRY KOSHAN on The Toronto Maple Leafs.

After a tough 2-3-1 start to the NHL season we bring on Mike Zeisberger from NHL.com & Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun to talk about the struggling Toronto Maple Leafs.

We spend the entire show trying to dissect the unexpected (?) slow start from The Leafs and their star players.

We question whether Mitch Marner looks any better than he did in last years playoffs, the lack of production from their top payed players and wonder if the problems are stemming from the organizations management.

We talk about the structure of the Maple Leafs, whether Kyle Dubas' "vision" will pay off or if it's finally time to scrap it and ask the question - Who will be the first to go if Toronto can't turn things around in the near future?

EP 254 - NHL ROUNDTABLE W/ ERIC DUHATSCHEK & KEVIN DUPONT

The Hockey pucks are back - KEVIN DUPONT from the Boston Globe & ERIC DUHATSCHEK of The Athletic join the podcast to talk hockey.

The four address as many situations in the NHL as possible starting with what teams poor start has surprised them more - The Montreal Canadiens or the Chicago Blackhawks?

We dissect the two teams and try to figure out what is going wrong for them both before we transition on to another surprising team - The Buffalo Sabres.

Is their hot start just a fluke? What's happening with Jack Eichel & how much longer can they last before they start looking like the Sabres we expected to see from the start?

To end the show, we wonder if the Edmonton Oilers are finally the real deal and question whether or not the Colorado Avalanche ever were.

EP 253 - ROD BLACK on his departure from TSN, Stories from his legendary broadcasting career and his future plans.

ROD BLACK - former TSN broadcaster and familiar voice to Canadians everywhere joins the podcast to talk to Bob and John about his exit from the network.

On todays show, Rod remembers his fondest memories from his time working with John at CTV,  how he became close friends with Charles Barkley and many other stories he has collected over the countless years of calling games and events all over the world.

We also learn what sport Rod enjoyed working the most as well as some of the sports Rod wish he had an opportunity to call before it was over.

Ep 252 - PIERRE DORION on signing Brady Tkachuk, The Ottawa Senators & When they‘ll name a captain.

General Manager of the Ottawa Senators, PIERRE DORION, joins the show to check in with Bob and John.

The three discuss the details of the Brady Tkachuk signing, why it took so long and how exactly it happened. With that, we get a deeper look into the nuances of negotiating a contract, who's directly involved in the conversations and what Pierre's relationship is like with his players agents.

We also discuss the importance of consistence leadership within an organization, the future of the Ottawa Senators, their vacant captaincy and why Pierre thinks having a captain on a Canadian NHL team is so important.

EP 251 - BOB RYAN on the NFL, MLB Playoffs & the start of the NBA Season.

As the NBA kicks off their 2021/2022 regular season, who better to preview it with us than BOB RYAN, from the Boston Globe. 

It would be unfair, however, to restrict a man like Mr.Ryan to simply one sport as we dedicate the first half of the show to the red hot Boston Red Sox, Major League Baseball's playoffs and some NFL talk.

We end the show with a lengthy chat on the NBA. We go over who we think some of the title contenders could be or rather - has anything changed from last year?

The three discuss the LA Lakers new team, Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns, the Ben Simmons situation in Philadelphia, Kyrie Irving's impact on the Brooklyn Nets and the intriguing Chicago Bulls & Miami Heat.

EP 250 - TIM LEIWEKE on how he built Climate Pledge Arena, his time at MLSE & his plans for the future.

Former CEO of MLSE and current CEO of the Oak View Group, responsible for the construction of two of the newest arena's in the NHL - TIM LEIWEKE - joins todays podcast to chat with Bob and John.

The three discuss the process of acquiring and building Climate Pledge Arena - home of the Seattle Kraken - as we get an inside look at the logistics of how to build a stadium not only for an NHL team but various other live entertainment opportunities as well.

We get into some of the other plans Tim and OVG have for the future as he is set to begin the redevelopment of FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton and complete the New York Islanders new home, UBS Arena.

To end the show we chat about Tim's time in Toronto and the experience he gained working as the CEO of MLSE and we find out just how ready Seattle is to have an NBA team return to their city.

EP 249 - KEVIN WEEKES on the start of the NHL Season, Goaltending & Diversity in sports.

KEVIN WEEKES, member of TNT's NHL panel and former goaltender stops by for a conversation with his pals Bob and John.

The three discuss the start of the NHL Season as the gents share the first impressions of the games played so far.

Naturally, as we have two former targets with us the conversation steers towards goaltending as Kevin gives us some insight as to what might be going on in the head of an NHL net-minder.

To end the show, we spend some time talking about the importance of diversity in sports and the trend that it is going in.