Toronto native and former NHL player Nick Kypreos is one of the most entertaining broadcasters in hockey. If there were an heir to the Don Cherry, no-nonsense throne, Kyper would be first in line. We checked in with him for a preview of the coming NHL season.
For Leafs fans, how much is this season going to hurt?
When you’re on the floor, the only way to look is up. Last season, historically, it couldn’t get much worse, and this season can’t get any worse than that, I assure you. I think they’ll be better than people imagine.
Is there hope on the horizon?
The team has drafted some talented people the last few years in [prospects William] Nylander and [Mitch] Marner. That’s the trend and the way things are going. The skill of the league has never been better and these kids have a tremendous amount of it.
Let’s talk about 18-year-old Mitch Marner. What is your impression so far? And could he make the team this year?
The question is whether or not he’s physically ready. When you’re not 6’3’ and 220 pounds and you have lots of skill, the only question is if, physically, he can take the day-to-day pounding you do in the NHL. If they feel like he’s not ready after the next couple weeks of training camp, he should go back to junior hockey. There is no finish line for these kids in the next 12 or 24 months. This is looking big picture, long-term about the development of Mitch Marner as a Leafs player over the next 15 years.
Which prospect for the Leafs do you think will have the greatest impact?
Well, as far as [Kasperi] Kapanen [acquired from Pittsburgh in the Phil Kessel trade] is concerned, I think there is probably a bit more weight on his shoulders [to fill the skates of the team’s former top scorer, Kessel]. In this town, we like to do a lot of that linking, but the hope is that he can come in and be a significant player in a short while. Not a top scorer, but enough to seem like there was value in the Kessel trade.
Dion Phaneuf has obviously not had it easy. What’s job number one for a veteran team captain heading into a season where there is no real expectation for success?
For him, less is more. It seems, in the last few years, there has been so much weight on his shoulders to be everything — captain, star defenceman, quarterback on the power play, 28 minutes a night, and he needs to not put so much pressure on himself. With Mike Babcock, he’s smart enough to take the pressure off and not have everyone believe he has to be an all-star defenceman because he’s not.
Connor McDavid (top draft pick, budding superstar): overhyped or the best thing for hockey since the invention of Cooperalls?
From what I’ve watched there is no overhype. He’s as good as people talk about. He’s dynamic, explosive. You hear talk about the generational players that come along every 10 or 15 years, and it’s a safe bet to say he’s one of those.
Do you think the GTA deserves a second team somewhere?
I would love to see another franchise in southern Ontario. Whether it’s Markham or not, I think for me it would be a pretty safe bet. I played in New York for the Rangers and saw the whole dynamic with the Islanders, Jersey and Rangers, and I certainly feel like we can mirror that type of environment in the GTA.
Where did you start playing hockey in Toronto?
I was seven years old when I started playing for the first time at George Bell Arena.
Do you still get out and play in town?
Yeah, at the North Toronto arena at Yonge and Eglinton. Every once in a while you’ll find me out there with Lindros, Darcy Tucker and Mike Johnson, although I always gotta remind them [to take it easy] we all have to work the next day.
