One of the funniest things I ever heard on live radio. And I was fortunate enough to be tuned in for the redux.
2010-11 season. The Maple Leafs were in the midst of a lengthy stretch of being bad (as in not good). Nazem Kadri was brought up from the AHL -- Toronto Marlies -- at some point midway through the season. (In actuality, he split three seasons between the NHL and the AHL before finally sticking with the Maple Leafs in 2013-14.)
I was able to listen on car radio to Maple Leafs' games on CHML, 900-AM, Hamilton, Ontario. Enjoyed the announcers -- Joe Bowen or Dennis Beyak (now doing Winnipeg Jets' games) on play-by-play and color commentary from Jim Ralph, who was both very knowledgeable and very funny.
The post-game show, called "Leafs Talk," was hosted by Andy Frost, who also was the PA announcer at the Air Canada Centre.
The format was caller-driven. No guests. The show would go for 60-90 minutes usually. A break for post-game comments from then Maple Leafs' head coach Ron Wilson, which usually were not positive. Wilson frequently would get upset with reporters. You could hear it in his voice.
Frost very knowledgeable. A photo is below.
As we know, people in Canada take ice hockey very seriously. Fans of the Maple Leafs -- those in "Leafs Nation" -- are no exception. And night in and night out, they would call in after the game to vent to Frost their FRUSTRATION with what was occurring on the ice as well as the HIGH TICKET PRICES.
The fans were very knowledgeable as well. They would remember players acquired or dispatched in bad trades. They would remember players who are thriving in the NHL who were passed over by Toronto in the entry draft.
They would bring up every night on "Leafs Talk" the sad litany of bad personnel decisions that contributed to the Maple Leafs being a recurrent non-playoff team with no hope of winning a Stanley Cup for the first time since 1967. (Just goes to show what a GREAT judge of talent Lou Lamoriello is.)
There was one exception. I forget the guy's name. But let's just for the sake of this post call him Pete from Pickering, a suburb of Toronto.
Frost was dumbfounded as he introduced Pete, saying that he wanted to talk about Nigel Cadbury being called up from the Marlies.
Pete came on and raved for maybe 60-90 seconds about the fact that Cadbury hadn't done much since being called up. Pete suggested Cadbury was not worth the draft choice and that he should be sent back to the Marlies and rot there.
As the rant went on, it became clear that Pete was slurring words and that something was amiss at his end.
Frost always very patient. He does a great job allowing callers to talk and then discussed the topic with the caller.
But in this case, Frost said that he was going to disconnect Pete and reply solo.
It was after he disconnected Pete that Frost said he wasn't sure who Pete was raving about since there was no Nigel Cadbury on the Maple Leafs.
Who Pete was talking about then became a topic of discussion for callers during the rest of that edition of "Leafs Talk." The consensus was reached that Pete may have been talking about Nazem Kadri since he was the only player on the Maple Leafs with a first name beginning with N. And C and K do sound alike.
We fast-forward to "Leafs Talk" after the next game, another painful loss for Toronto. I happen to be tuned in.
And instead of opening as he does periodically with a regular, very knowledgeable caller, "Mike from Buffalo," Frost said that a decision was made to place a certain caller at the head of the queue. It was the return of Pete from Pickering.
Pete first apologized, saying that he had been really drunk when he called in after the prior game. He said he like many others in "Leafs Nation" are long-suffering fans who bleed blue and are really upset about the state of the franchise.
I thought this was a class move by Pete. (Hey, we've all been there. I guess Pete had too much Labatt Blue.) He and Frost joked about Nigel Cadbury/Nazem Kadri.
So there you have it.
Kadri has matured into an above-average NHL player. He gets around 50 points a season. Solid two-way player who usually is a +. A bit of a pest, but not at the level of Dustin Brown and Radko Gudas. He is nice to have in fantasy leagues with many categories since he does win face-offs and get PIM.
But last night, Nigel Cadbury/Nazem Kadri was in the spotlight in the FHL.
(A subsequent look on the Internet revealed that Frost is still a radio personality in Toronto. He is no longer the PA announcer at Air Canada Centre after serving in that role from 1999-2016. And his "Leafs Talk" post-game show ended an 18-season run at the end of 2013-2014.
Also, Bowen now does play-by-play for all Maple Leafs' games on television and radio. Ralph continues to do color commentary on games broadcast on radio as well as games broadcast on television by CBC or TSN, but not on games broadcast on television by Leafs TV or Rogers SportsNet.)
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