[traffic sounds]
[solemn music playing]
[faint crackling]
[therapist]
See? That's a release of the motor point.
This is nine centimeters deep in there.
Ah!
[therapist] By definition,
athletes are highly neuro-reactive.
That's what it needed.
Okay, buddy.
-Awesome.
-[therapist] See how that feels.
-Thank you.
-That was a work over.
That was good.
[dramatic music playing]
[dramatic music intensifying]
[crowd cheering]
To be a hockey player,
you have to be pretty tough.
[Redmond] They lose their teeth,
they get stitched up.
They're right back out there.
They're warriors.
[player screams]
[Subban] And I can tell you,
pretty much everybody's banged up
throughout the season.
[Bissonnette]
And not only having to play through that,
but also produce.
90% mental, 10% physicality.
What they go through
[player grunting]
it's wild.
When you see your skill players
that a lot of people
don't think are tough
[Bissonnette] Being a superstar
with the weight of the world
on your shoulders
and playing through that type of pain.
[Subban] It's a long road.
You have to get through
that 82-game season
before you even have a chance
to play for the Cup.
[announcer] They're banged up right now
in terms of injuries.
[Subban] That's as tough as it gets.
[Blackburn]
Hockey players are a different breed.
What they put themselves through
physically, mentally,
you kind of ask yourself, why?
Why is it worth it?
[dramatic music playing]
[somber music playing]
[Forsberg] I think Nashville's
probably a pretty good fit.
Are we getting ready?
[Forsberg]
Twelve years ago when I first came here,
I came from one of the most
hockey-crazy towns in Sweden,
where everyone knows everything,
and you go walk around town
and they're super excited.
And then you come here and there's just
so much other things to care about,
whether it's music, or football,
or whatever it is.
All of a sudden we're in the final,
and it's 100,000 people on Broadway,
watch party.
[loud cheering]
Another 20 in the building.
-The city never looked back.
-[announcer] Forsberg shoots.
Scores!
[laughing]
[Bissonnette] He looks like he was born
in Nashville, but he's Swedish.
Married a country music star.
He's just really embraced everything
that Nashville's provided.
[Redmond] Two things come to mind
when you say "Filip Forsberg."
Best mustache in the NHL,
and also one of the more
underappreciated talents
in the National Hockey League.
[crowd cheering]
[Forsberg]
This guy's too short for the front row?
Here we go.
We should take three pics
and crop them together.
[player] Oh yeah.
[man] Great job.
[Forsberg] My dad played
in the second league in Sweden,
and my first dream
once I realized what hockey was,
was to play for the pro team
in my hometown.
I was able to fulfill that dream
when I was 16,
and that's kind of when your name
starts being talked about for the draft.
[reporter] Is this overwhelming at all?
All this attention?
Nah, well, it's It's fun.
It's fun to be here.
And I guess it's a part of the job.
[country music playing]
[Josi]
I remember the day when he came here.
We were like,
"Oh, my God, this guy is so skilled."
We knew what we had in him right away.
[announcer 1] And nice play by Forsberg
to steal the puck away.
[announcer 2]
He goes right over two guys' heads,
then gets it back to himself.
[announcer 1] And Forsberg delivers!
[Bissonnette] When you look at a guy like
Forsberg, he's just a true gamer.
Oh, boy.
Yeah, he's playing through his ankle right
now. That's a tough thing to play through.
[Forsberg] It was just a blocked shot
that ended up like a pressure cut.
[announcer 1]
Oh, it's blocked by Forsberg.
[announcer 2] He doesn't have a play.
He's just trying to chip it past Forsberg.
[Forsberg] Sliced the foot,
and a couple of stitches,
and thought it'd be sore for a handful
of days, and then we can get back to it.
All right, let's go work out.
I've kind of learned how to handle it.
Do a lot of work in the gym,
trying to stay ready
and stay in condition.
It's been a day-to-day type of approach.
Obviously, when it first happened,
I didn't think I was gonna
be talking about it now.
[O'Reilly] I only see
probably half of it at the rink,
of his preparation,
and what he gets into,
and, you know,
how he takes care of himself.
[therapist] All the fluid that gets
Accumulates here during the game.
It's crazy.
[Forsberg] Especially in a long season.
There's gonna be all kinds of toughness.
Not just the physical toughness,
but just having that mental toughness
of knowing that I'm doing this
for my teammates.
The pain is one thing, but just mentally
getting yourself dialed in for games
every time is pretty hard, and
Um, but he's been playing awesome.
I'm gonna do this for you.
We're just using the acupuncture
to stimulate blood flow in this area
and try to drain the excessive swelling.
[Forsberg]
I literally just play. I don't practice.
Games only, which is working.
Missed a lot of practice, and
We keep giving him sh*t for that.
[Prebeg] He's trying to heal it,
but then he's irritating it
every other night playing.
On the treatment, just try to get it back
to good enough to play,
then obviously you do what's necessary,
we sh**t it up before the game.
And as long as I can play
and not make it worse in the long term,
I'm gonna play.
Once you get to where I am now,
almost ten years in this league,
then you realize how fickle time is.
You know, you don't have
a lot of time to win.
You want to take a picture of his
Do a butt shot?
[laughs]
[cameraman] I thought that's what
we were coming here for.
Sell the game.
Regardless of how much
the game is changing,
you do need to be tough.
When any player pushes through an injury,
that sends a message.
And when it comes from your star player,
it means just that much more.
[dramatic music playing]
[Eichel] Hockey came into my life early.
I was on skates pretty young.
I had worked my whole entire life
to make it to the NHL,
and the first few years in Buffalo,
I was living out a lifelong dream.
[announcer]
The new captain of the Buffalo Sabers,
number nine, Jack Eichel!
You know, went a little downhill
around Covid, after a neck injury.
[broadcaster] Jack Eichel, my friends.
The Sabers just announced
that the captain is out tonight
with an upper body injury.
[Eichel] You see a Yeah, they
You know, a cervical herniation.
And you realize you're
You're in some big trouble.
He seeks out medical advice
from numerous places,
and the Sabers don't support him
having the surgery.
No hockey player has ever gotten
this surgery performed,
but other athletes have.
Sort of like a guinea pig for the NHL,
in some respects, I guess.
It were up to me, this would have
all happened a long time ago.
I wanted to get this surgery done
last spring.
Whoo!
This one's pretty nice
after the sauna, though.
Tell you what, it's pretty refreshing
getting in here.
I think with the disc replacement,
everyone's biggest issue with it
was it hadn't been done
on a hockey player yet.
I don't think medically that
that's a good enough reason
to not let somebody do something.
[Adams] Unfortunately, yesterday,
Jack did not pass his physical.
Um, at this point,
Jack is not willing to move forward
with what our doctors are suggesting
is the fusion surgery.
I spoke to the team yesterday
and addressed this.
Jack Eichel is no longer
the captain of the Buffalo Sabers.
[Eichel] You know, I get stripped of my C.
I'm not traded.
There was a lot of low points for me.
I'm not a coach. I'm just a player.
So our coaches put in systems
for us to follow,
and we didn't do
a good enough job of doing it.
And that's why we didn't win enough games,
and that's why our season ends today.
Mentally, I just wasn't in a good place.
Obviously was away
from the game that I loved.
I was in a tough place physically.
I knew I had an injury and, listen,
I wasn't gonna get cleared
until I did something about it.
You know, fortunately,
Vegas came calling.
The rest is history.
[broadcaster]
Today's headline news:
Jack Eichel is headed to Vegas.
[Redmond]
The one thing we know about Vegas,
they are not going out of their way
to acquire anyone
if they don't really believe
that that person will help them win.
He gets his surgery,
and when he eventually is able
to come back
and join the Golden Knights lineup,
they go and win a Stanley Cup.
[announcer]
Jack Eichel finishes with the most points
of anybody in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
One of the most elite players in the game.
[Bissonnette]
The face of American hockey,
a remarkable player
at both ends of the ice.
[announcer] He scores!
[Blackburn] He's as tough as it gets,
coming back from a nearly
career-ending injury to win a Stanley Cup.
[Redmond]
I wouldn't call it the evil empire,
but they are willing to do
whatever it takes to win
no matter who it pisses off,
or who it hurts.
They do not care.
-[Eichel] Alrighty.
-[man] Alright.
Alrighty. Napkins on, everyone.
-Are you gonna get wine?
-[Eichel] Do bears sh*t in the woods?
-[woman laughs]
-Okay.
-[woman] Guess so.
-[laughs]
Every day, Jack gets home from the rink,
and he's laughing, and this and that.
Cheers, friends.
The days that they have days off,
he still wants to go to the rink.
[laughs]
So, yeah, you can say he's happy.
Is dinner on Amazon or what?
[laughter]
Dinner's on me if you want it.
Jack, you know, as a player,
he kind of has that k*ller instinct.
You know, he's always been like that
since we were young.
[announcer] Here's the centering feed.
Chance in front.
Score! Here's Jack Eichel.
[announcer 2] Welcome to the Eichel show.
[Hanifin] When we were
at the national program,
there was a lot of attention on him.
The media was talking about him
all the time.
And then when he went to BU,
he won the Hobey Baker as a freshman
in a draft year,
which is almost unheard of.
I think that bond we formed
at the national program,
we always stay pretty close after that.
What do you guys want to order?
Honestly, like, I'm good with whatever.
I think we're ready to go,
but we're gonna put some pressure on you.
-All right.
-We'll do the shrimp c*ck.
Definitely do the meatballs, calamari,
the penne vodka, rigatoni Bolognese.
Sliced New York.
Is there a creamed corn I had last time?
-Yup, 100%.
-You guys want chicken parm.
-Yes.
-Chicken parm.
-Oh, yeah.
-And could we get a bottle of Cescaia?
[Hanifin]
That's a professional order.
[Erin]
Noah sounds impressed.
[laughs]
[Eichel]
I have a long relationship with Noah.
-Congrats, brother.
-Thanks.
[Eichel]
So I was super excited to have him here.
[Hanifin] I think it was a day or two
before the deadline.
I got a call from Jack being like,
"Hey, have you heard anything from Vegas?"
An hour later, I was traded here.
So, crazy.
I think that's the great thing
about playing here in Vegas,
our expectation every season
is to win the Stanley Cup.
[man] Acquiring Noah Hanifin
to improve the talent.
This team is willing to do
whatever it takes to win.
They don't care about feelings.
They don't care about guys
being attached to the city.
They're like, "f*ck you."
You know, I was traded here,
so I wasn't here at the beginning.
But there's so many die-hard fans
who are local.
Everyone has a Vegas Golden Knights
license plate.
There's Vegas Golden Knights billboards
everywhere,
I love it here.
You know, Erin,
my girlfriend loves it here.
It is for sure a heck of a hockey town.
It's It's fun.
[Eichel] But there's a lot of pressure
that comes with it,
and when you don't produce good results,
the organization will obviously move on.
And so people are willing to do things
and sacrifice their body
and their well-being
because everything's just
geared around that next game, winning.
[Redmond] They care about one thing.
Winning.
[Eichel]
It's such a competitive environment
that you don't really
have a choice other than to,
you know, work as hard
as you can every day.
Who wants the last shrimp c*ck?
-You do. You gotta clear the sinuses.
-I think you want it.
Yeah, I actually do really want it.
[Forsberg] We play "NHL 24."
I play with my friends from back home.
[Erin] Filip almost told everybody
we were pregnant before he wanted to
because the celebration for his goals
was cradling a baby.
[Forsberg] Goal!
There it is.
[Erin] There's your little baby.
[producer] What was the moment like when
you found out you were gonna be a dad?
I mean, it was awesome, obviously.
It's funny because all the movies,
I feel like it's just
like this grand scene,
you know, of like, "Oh, I'm pregnant."
It's like, "No way.
There's no way I could have known."
But it's pretty obvious
when you're together
every single day.
Yeah, so that was three-nothing
in five minutes?
And we're moving on?
[Erin] And we're moving on.
We were talking last night with playoffs.
Okay, so what if it's like Game 7
of the second round of playoffs
and your water breaks
like halfway through the game?
I think I would err on the side
of not wanting to tell him.
Let's not make this a big frantic,
"Oh, no, he has to leave
the game halfway through."
Okay, but we got some books
from everybody at the shower.
[producer] Let's talk about that game
though. What happened after the shower?
So we all went to the game.
The whole shower basically went
to the game, like our friends in town.
It was like all our friends
came into town for it.
And Filip fought at the game,
which was
I think my first time
seeing you fight in person.
[announcer 1]
Forsberg mixing it up with Seider.
And they're gonna go at it.
[announcer 2]
They've dropped the gloves!
[announcer 1]
Oh, my goodness. Forsberg.
[Erin] I don't adore the fighting.
I don't know how women do it
whose husbands fight more often
because that is actually terrifying,
Especially when you are bringing a baby
into the world.
It is a little bit scarier.
I realized that.
It's kind of less entertaining,
and it's now a little bit more real
that this is a father soon to be.
So no more fights. But yeah.
[birds tweeting]
[Redmond] It's been an interesting season
for the Nashville Predators,
trying to be more than a team
that squeaks into the playoffs.
[Bissonnette]
They really expected to be a top dog.
And that's where expectations were for
this Predators team coming in this year.
[announcer] And Andrew Brunette's
not gonna be happy with that start
for his Preds team.
[Bissonnette]
And it was a rocky start.
And then all of a sudden
they go on an eight-game slide.
[announcer] He said, "We didn't look
like a team that had a desire
to be in the playoffs."
At the end of the day,
you just pray for no injuries.
And that's that's your main focus,
I think, as a wife and as a family member.
And, of course, hope for a win
because the morale in the house
is so much more fun
when you're winning rather than losing.
They were planning on heading
to Vegas early and hitting the Sphere
for a U2 concert
before they played the Golden Knights.
I was really excited about the Sphere.
I've heard great things about it.
And then obviously the Dallas game
happened when we lost 9-2.
[announcer]
Dallas demolishes the Predators 9-2
on the road.
Probably one of the worst games
I've been a part of as a player.
[broadcaster] You could see a very
dejected Preds team getting off the ice.
[Blackburn]
Barry Trotz, the GM, told that team,
"The way that we've been playing
is unacceptable.
I don't give a damn
what tickets you bought,
how many you bought,
and how great of a time
you were planning to have at the Sphere.
You're not going."
Yeah, the management canned the trip.
The canceled field trip
for a group of grown-a*s men
is what catapults them
to go on the run of all runs.
[announcer] Forsberg scores!
[Forsberg] That's it, boys. Great job.
It was obviously
a wake-up call for everyone.
We really banded together and we kind of
found the identity that we needed.
They turned into the best team in hockey
for like a two-month span.
[announcer]
For the empty net. He scores!
[Forsberg] What a play. What a play.
We just got that momentum and kept
winning games, kept winning games.
We haven't lost in regulation since.
[players] Yeah!
Now they label it the "F U2 Tour."
It was fun to watch him, you know,
accomplish personal goals
and watch the team accomplish
big things as well.
[announcer]
The Predators keep moving forward.
Something happened, whether it was
a genius decision by management
or just the players realizing
the seriousness of our situation,
I don't know, but it worked.
[announcer]
And the record is still intact.
15-0-2.
I think it's just a testament
to the leaders in that room,
Forsberg being one of them.
[Forsberg]
It's 82 games in the regular season,
and the later in the season,
the more importance the game has.
You obviously need to take the games
very seriously.
Wave after wave after wave, I mean,
it just becomes a relentless pursuit.
You look great.
Are you gonna remember where we are?
[Forsberg]
Yeah. There's a jersey for them to bring.
[Erin]
He played every single game this season,
which was amazing to watch,
even with that ankle.
But, yeah, he just grinded it out.
[Forsberg]
Vegas, they're obviously wild card two,
and we're wild card one,
so we'll know exactly the stakes.
It's a great, great challenge.
Obviously the defending
Stanley Cup champions
who made a lot of moves at the deadline
to trying to go for it again.
So it'd be a really good test for us.
[Eichel] You know, we go on the road
a lot during the year.
I think mid-March we started playing well.
I thought we played pretty good hockey.
We were starting to build our game
heading into the postseason.
[woman] How's the ankle feeling?
It feels good, actually.
It feels probably about as good
as it has now.
Hey, how are you doing?
-Hey, how are you?
-Great.
Obviously at ten games left,
we really need every point we can get.
Every win we can get.
I think all the experiences
you go through,
you know, kind of help mold you
into what you're gonna become.
[suspenseful music playing]
[Josi] Almost every game
is kind of a playoff game for us
because we are still fighting
for a playoff spot.
[Eichel] They had been on a streak
of 17 straight games,
and it feels like anytime we play them,
it's usually a one-goal game.
Together, we thought,
there's no reason
why this group shouldn't do it.
[announcer 1] These two teams occupy
the two wildcard positions right now.
[crowd cheers]
[announcer 2] The last game
the Predators played against Vegas
in Vegas, near the start of the streak
[announcer 1] That was the infamous
U2 trip that was nixed.
Seventeen games without a regulation loss.
So we're gonna try to make it 18.
[announcer 1] Long pass to Eichel.
Here he comes, sends it across.
One-timer, scores.
[player] Hell of a play!
-Come on.
-[announcer 1] Mantha gets it back.
Centers it! They score.
[player]
Let's go, let's take this over here.
Last f*cking half of this period
is all f*cked up.
-Come on.
-[announcer 1] Fed to the slot.
It gets through the first wave.
The shot by Theodore
Upper corner, scores!
[Eichel] Yeah, great job!
[Forsberg] It's one of those periods,
everything just bounced away from us
and right to them.
[Erin] Do you feel his little foot here?
It's weird.
Filip goes, "I only feel one foot."
I was like,
"How do you know what you're feeling?"
He's like, "I feel one foot."
-[exclaiming]
-Yeah, I know. It's like a roll.
We've had a long stretch
where this hasn't happened, okay?
It's just something as simple as
we're just getting out-competed
around our net.
Again, remember, win or lose,
we're still building
to be better every night here, okay?
-So this is a great test.
-[applause]
[announcer 1] Vegas will hope to keep
that clock moving now.
Sit back and look for the counter
Scores!
Yeah! Good stuff!
[announcer 2] This team's not gonna quit,
Willy. We know that.
[Forsberg] That's right.
[announcer 1] In the corner.
Down low and it's loose.
Score! Yes!
-[horn blows]
-Yeah!
[announcer 2] It's a one-goal game!
Hey! You suck!
Hey! You suck!
Yeah, I'm gonna go
to the hustle from here.
You go Okay.
-[applause]
-Keep it going.
[announcer 1] Still pushing back,
crowd starting to get energized here.
Tip by Forsberg.
Rebound in front. He almost scored.
Shoots. He scores!
Yeah!
f*cking right!
[announcer 2] We're tied!
[Forsberg] Yes, all right, all right.
[Eichel] Parity in the NHL allows for any
team to beat any team on any given night,
and it was almost like
our game was sliding a little.
They had a third period comeback.
[announcer 1] What a dramatic comeback.
[announcer 2]
Predators just refuse to go away.
[announcer 1] Here we go.
First possession for the Golden Knights.
Nashville gets possession.
Forsberg stole it away.
Three man weave.
Josi hits the accelerator
He scores!
[crowd cheering]
[Forsberg, laughing] Yeah!
[announcer 1] You'd better believe
this team is for real.
Eighteen straight.
[Forsberg] f*cking nice, boys!
[upbeat pop music playing]
A-one, a-two, a-one, two, three ♪
Get up, get up ♪
Get up and shake your ♪
[Forsberg] Comeback win at home against
the defending Stanley Cup champions
definitely can give us
a massive morale boost
with ten games left to go
to the playoffs.
Everybody now, get up ♪
Get up ♪
[Forsberg] Gotta keep staying on this
ankle, make sure it still stays healthy,
and we can, yeah,
play our best hockey in the playoffs.
Get up, get up ♪
Get up and sing along with me ♪
[excited chatter]
[woman] What can I get started for you
today, Erin?
Two 8 count chicken nuggets,
sriracha, and Chick-fil-A sauce.
And then an Icedream cone, please.
Great. Thank you.
-See you tomorrow.
-[woman laughs]
Same time, same place.
Without the cameras.
[woman] Filip's injury last year
at the end of the year, his concussion.
-Gonna make me cry.
-[woman] Oh, okay.
-We don't want to do that.
-No, it's okay.
I was actually at a charity event.
It was here.
And I see every woman in the audience
looking at me
like as if they'd just seen a ghost.
And I was like, why?
Like, what's going on?
And I looked over because they were
playing the game on the screen.
And somebody's laying there,
and it was Filip.
I didn't know
if I needed to go to Philadelphia.
I didn't know, like
You don't really know what's happening.
And Filip can't tell them
what's happening.
Concussions, I would argue,
are the trickiest parts
of this whole industry,
is that you don't
You can't see, like,
when something's healing.
And that's With the head,
you don't really know exactly.
Some days you feel great,
and the next day you don't feel so great.
And I don't think
he's pushing through an injury
because of what happened last year.
I do think that he obviously
does not want to have another injury.
He doesn't want to sit out any games.
But I think last year is just very much
its own nightmare.
Kind of got to just forget it happened
because you can't play
with the fear of a concussion.
I think that's when
you attract another one.
So you just go into every game
as if it's your first.
-[Theodore] What's up, guys?
-[Eichel] Come on in, Shea.
[Adam] Best meal in town.
[producer] What are we making today?
What's on the menu?
Every game we have pretty much
the same things.
Every game day, we gather.
I'm very routine-based.
Welcome back.
[Eichel] Game day, just get up,
have breakfast, go to the rink.
Hi, buddy!
[lips smack]
Just sit down with the guys after.
Pregame skate, relax a little bit,
have a meal.
Hanni.
Oh, what's up, Harold?
[Eichel] Just kind of trying
to do the same routine over and over.
-Thank you.
-[Adam] You're welcome. Enjoy.
I was like, "Jack, I cannot eat
the exact same meal any more."
[laughs]
So now he has a chef that cooks for him
and his teammates.
A little different presentation today,
huh?
-Thank you very much.
-[Eichel] Bringing out the big g*ns.
I've sort of found out
what I think makes me feel the best,
and I just try and do those things
as repetitive as possible.
[producer] It's not always here?
No, it's always here. Yeah.
Well, unless I'm not playing.
But when I was hurt, it wasn't.
[producer] How's your neck now?
[Eichel] My neck's good. Yeah.
[interviewer]
Do you have a scar from that?
Yeah, it's right here.
They got me back doing what I love.
That was the most important thing.
Obviously got my health back.
I think that's even more important
than the hockey aspect of it.
But for us as players,
I think the biggest thing is you're able
to get back out there and compete.
-[Hanifin] Thanks, Jackie boy.
-[Eichel] Anytime. See you guys tonight.
Naptime?
[Eichel] It's naptime, yup.
[broadcaster 1] Nashville fans
will mark the season pre-U2, post-U2.
Hey, guys.
[broadcaster 2]
Predators and Golden Knights
rounding out the Western Conference
wildcard standings.
[broadcaster 3] The Vancouver Canucks
against the Predators.
Dallas and the Vegas Golden Knights.
[broadcaster 4]
All right, boys. Dallas/Vegas.
This is gonna be an unreal series.
Two Cup contenders going at it.
[Bissonnette]
This is gonna be a big-boy hockey series.
It's gonna be a w*r, dude.
[Eichel] Going into the playoffs.
I think it's always tough mentally.
It's just a long, grueling few months,
mentally and emotionally.
It definitely takes a toll on you.
They're a good first period team.
On our toes, ready to go.
Unbelievable is what it is.
Everyone's buying in.
Every battle for a loose puck is intense.
[Eichel] It's just so competitive.
Everyone's more willing to pay the price.
Many people believe the Stanley Cup
is the hardest trophy to win
in professional sports
because you're not coming out of it
in one piece.
[announcer]
Marchessault lunging for it.
Delays to Eichel.
Empty net, and he scores.
[Blackburn]
We see Vegas come out of the gate hot
with two wins to open up the playoffs.
Who would have thought
this is where it all falls apart?
[announcer]
To the outside. He's in, a shot
He scores!
[player] All right, maybe we'll start
playing now, eh?
[Blackburn] They dropped three in a row
to the number one seed, Dallas.
[player]
Jesus, let's f*cking be on our toes!
[Blackburn]
Now their backs are up against the wall.
They need to survive.
[announcer] Hanifin put it in.
And shot! Scores!
[Bissonnette] After that, it looked good.
It looked like all of the new pieces
were gelling
and on their way to have another run.
[Blackburn] Before you know it,
Eichel and the Golden Knights
have themselves in a critical
Game 7 matchup against Dallas.
[Erin] There is like a bit
of a pivot in Filip's mentality right now.
Definitely playoffs in general,
he is like so dialed in,
which as he should be.
And he's that way during season,
but it's a different type of focus
where I feel like
I can talk to him about anything.
But during playoffs,
it's almost like you don't really want to.
You kind of want to just let him
do his thing, and vice versa.
But, yeah, he's pretty dialed in.
[broadcaster 1] The other game tonight:
Nashville/Vancouver.
[broadcaster 2] Barn burner!
[caller] I think that Nashville's
actually gonna win this series.
And Nashville,
sacrificing their body in playoff time,
you've got to do that.
It is literally like living
Groundhog's Day on a game day.
He wakes up at 8:08 in the morning.
He does not wake up on 8:05, 8:10, 8:15.
[Forsberg] For a normal, so to speak,
person, that's probably weird.
But for us it's kind of like
just a routine that you have,
and eat the same thing.
Go to bed at the same time,
leave at the same time.
Like, do the same warm-up.
I put my skates on at 7:07 every game.
I mean, when you're speaking it out loud,
it's pretty silly.
But the mental strength
kind of comes from that routine.
That's very valuable
when it gets to the playoffs.
[Josi] There's a lot on the line.
The first round is extremely hard.
Doesn't matter who you play,
as long as you make the playoffs,
anything's possible.
[O'Reilly] All right, boys, I can
guarantee you, you get my f*cking best.
I expect it from every single
one of you m*therf*ckers.
No matter what happens,
we have each other's backs
and we are f*cking relentless.
Whoo-hoo!
[announcer] It's the Canucks
and the Nashville Predators
in Game 1 of the opening round.
[Blackburn] First two games of the series,
we see the Predators
get a hard-fought split in Vancouver.
[announcer] The Predators fail to clear.
Here's Miller again. Shoots. He scores!
[Blackburn] Game 3,
they drop a really tight one.
And now in Game 4,
they are super desperate.
[announcer]
Lets it go for Garland. Centers.
Lindholm! Scores!
Elias Lindholm.
[player] f*ck!
[Blackburn] They don't want to let
the series slip away,
and this is the game
that they need to seize.
[Forsberg]
Gonna get on the plane tomorrow
and, yeah, regroup
and just try to win one game down there.
[announcer]
Game 5, from Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
Josi in front, puck is loose, underneath
Silovs. He kept it out Now it's in!
Clears it up high. Carrier drives, scores!
[player] Yes! There we go!
What a f*cking win!
Great job, boys! f*cking right!
[Forsberg]
That's how small the margins are.
You get hot at the right time,
you do the right things.
All of sudden, you're looking at success.
Whoo! That's it, fellas.
[Blackburn]
Forsberg and the Predators enter Game 6
facing elimination,
down 3-2 to Vancouver.
-[players] Yeah!
-[applause]
[dramatic music playing]
[Forsberg]
We got a new, uh New laser
-since the last time they were here.
-[therapist] Yeah.
Greatest thing in the world.
[therapist] That's right.
This is gonna bring us the Cup.
How's Erin feeling?
Good.
She's grinding?
She's grinding.
Getting close.
Is she pretty uncomfortable?
Yeah.
Yeah, she's over it?
-She sure is.
-Yeah.
[Erin]
Hockey really is extremely physical,
and I think that the guys
just kind of roll with it.
If he can convince himself
that he's not in pain,
he can convince himself
that his ankle's not throbbing,
I'm sure, for months on end.
And yeah, he's pretty tough.
Nothing really fazes the guy.
[Forsberg] Time is ticking,
and it's not like I got a ton of time.
And the Stanley Cup is the number one.
I mean, that's what you want.
Good night, sir.
Thanks.
It's the hardest trophy in sports to win,
so I think that's, at the end of the day,
that's what everybody does.
Yeah, myself especially.
[dramatic music playing]
We don't have to be anything but us, okay?
We talk about
the best version of ourselves.
And we're gonna fight
for each other here tonight.
We're gonna fight for the togetherness,
and the joy is in the battle
and being together.
Let's be our best
and let's leave all out there.
[applause]
[cheering]
[announcer]
They're on their feet here in Nashville.
They have been waiting to explode tonight,
but nothing so far, not for either side.
The first 40 minutes have come and gone
without a goal.
[player] Alrighty, go right at 'em, boys!
Come on, come on!
If it's clean, I'm coming to you.
Go, go, go!
[player shouting]
Hey!
-[referee] Not tonight. Not right now.
-[Forsberg] Just standing right here.
-I'm not even close to the crease.
-Just don't stand there. Zero-zero game.
Uh, yeah, let me come off the wall.
-[player] Come off the wall?
-[Forsberg] Yeah.
Get in here, get in here.
Over, over, over, over!
[announcer] Under two minutes remaining
in the third period of game number six.
[player shouting]
Hey, hey! Escape, escape.
[announcer] Puck behind the net.
Right in front, and they score!
[player] f*ck me! f*cking kidding me.
[announcer]
The Vancouver Canucks and Arturs Silovs
have shut out Nashville in Game 6.
And they win the series.
One-nothing Canucks,
season over for the Preds.
A week and a half into the playoffs,
and you're going home.
[Erin] The sting of losing early,
you know, not going to the finals,
you never really can get used to it
as a partner.
You watch how it hurts,
as if it's the first time
he's ever gone through it.
It stung. It stung the same as it did
the year prior.
And hopefully one year,
it doesn't have to sting.
[Brunette]
Hockey's cruel sometimes.
It hurts them.
It hurts me because we were close.
Didn't happen.
But I think that group
should hold their heads up high.
We would love to play a Game 7.
That is the best thing in hockey to do.
And you dream of it, and it didn't happen.
[Forsberg]
It's just empty. The season's over.
I mean, yesterday, planning,
thinking about the future.
Now you just Everything is over.
It's a It's a hard thing to explain.
That's probably
the best way to explain it.
Just empty.
Everything is out the window.
Whatever you had going on
is now not going on anymore.
It's the hard,
harsh reality of it, I guess.
[broadcaster 1] There's nothing
more beautiful in our culture
than the words "Game 7."
[broadcaster 2]
Where's that pressure on Vegas?
[broadcaster 3]
Well, there's lots of pressure.
And we know this owner. He demands wins.
[Eichel] Having won the Stanley Cup
just makes your desire to win it again
that much more,
knowing what that feeling is like.
You know, and then
as you start getting closer
to the ultimate prize in the playoffs,
you know, you're not sleeping.
You can't get your mind off of it.
It's all you think about every day.
The margin of victory has been so small.
It usually comes down to a play
here or there.
So, uh, I imagine
it'll be the same tonight.
I think toughness
can be shown in a lot of forms,
not only physically, but mentally.
And I think just the bond
between teammates,
you don't want to leave
Leave your guys out there.
Good support, good play on the wall,
good positioning right here.
[Eichel]
So now it's anyone's series, right?
It's Game 7, and there's just so many
emotions that go through your your body.
-[Ward] Let's get it done here tonight.
-[applause]
[Eichel] Every little sacrifice or workout
helped me get to this pinnacle of my sport
that I've always wanted to be at.
And it's the one thing
I've dreamed of doing my entire life.
And now, to be here doing it,
it's about trying to stay
as even keel as possible
and keeping your emotions in check
and trying to do
what makes you successful.
[Cassidy]
Let's not be squeezing the stick.
You get an opportunity to put it in
the net, do it, live with it and move on.
Good line changes,
and go f*cking enjoy it here, all right?
-Let's go in the first period.
-[applause]
f*cking A. What do you say, Steve-o?
Come on, Shifty, Marty.
[announcer]
Nothing in sports can match
the intensity of this.
Game 7.
Puck is dropped, and we are underway.
[player] Here we go.
[man] Come on, Jack!
[announcer]
Eichel with some speed.
Left circle! Blocked out of play.
[Eichel] Hey, we got to be quicker, eh?
Quicker! Quicker.
[announcer] Giveaway, Johnston!
-He scores!
-[crowd cheers]
[horn blows]
Come on, be hard on those, Lo!
Assertive here!
Hey, we're fine.
Hey, one f*cking goal's
not gonna beat us.
[announcer]
Three on three come the Knights.
Amadio in front! Howden scores!
[all cheer]
[player] What a f*cking play! Let's go!
[announcer] And Game 7 is tied at one.
[Cassidy]
Come on, win that puck, Jack.
Angle 'em, Jack.
[announcer]
Jack Eichel delays, backhand.
He missed the net!
Did he f*cking miss?
[announcer] Eichel shanks it
just wide of the net.
[Eichel]
You know, if I had scored that goal,
it would have given our team
some really good momentum
and a really good energy boost.
[announcer 1]
Jack Eichel still cannot believe it.
[announcer 2] His cranium aches right now.
[Eichel] f*ck!
[announcer 1]
And Game 7 is headed to the third
tied up 1 to 1.
[Eichel] f*ck me!
g*dd*mn it.
[breathing heavily]
f*ck!
Jesus Christ.
f*cking empty f*cking net.
[Cassidy] Okay, we finished strong.
Be comfortable in these type
of f*cking games here.
Just relax.
We put ourselves in a great spot here.
You were the better team.
We missed a couple of chances.
We're not gonna miss the f*cking next one.
Let's go to work here. Come on now.
[announcer]
We are underway in the final frame.
Come on, we got to get back
to our game here!
Back to our game!
[announcer]
Leaves it for Smith. Back for Faksa.
It was in his skates. Backhand
He scored!
Opening minute of the third!
The Stars are back in front!
[player] Here we go, guys!
Come on, we're okay!
It's only one goal!
[Eichel]
Come on, let's go net one, hey?
Attack, attack, attack!
One shot. That's all it takes.
[announcer] Stone goes back.
And it's a Stephenson shot!
And it's gloved.
[Cassidy]
Time-out! Time-out! Time-out!
-[referee] You're calling time-out?
-[Cassidy] Time-out, yeah.
Hey, I'd like to see you guys
get on your forehands on the top
because they pressure a lot.
If we win the draw, all right,
we got to get to the net.
We can't f*ck around.
Jack, right into the high slot.
[announcer] 1:50 to go,
and now they can pull him
for the extra attacker.
[Eichel] I'm telling you right now,
if you're wide, if you sh**t at the wall,
they're finding sh*t.
So if you roll out the back, we're there.
[announcer]
We're in the final minute of Game 7.
[referee] Hey! Play over!
Watch your feet.
[announcer] Here you go.
Jamie Benn and Jack Eichel on the draw,
glove side of Jake Oettinger.
Face-off won by Vegas.
Knights control. Setup is six on five.
Fifteen seconds to play.
Hertl to Hanifin, across. Eichel shoots
And he kept it out!
Aw f*ck, we need that at the net.
[announcer] Seven seconds left.
Hanifin, Eichel. Saved by Oettinger!
It's over!
-[cheering]
-[horn blows]
The Stars have dethroned the Knights
in seven!
And they're moving on!
[crowd cheering]
[dramatic music playing]
[Eichel]
It was such a tight series.
And, you know,
I give Dallas a ton of credit.
You know, going in that series, I think
everyone in the locker room would agree
we thought we were gonna beat Dallas
and, you know, just
go on the same run.
I love you, buddy.
That's a good series, buddy.
-Good job, man.
-You too.
[Eichel] There's so many things
that go into the process of winning.
It's tough because I feel like
if I had scored that goal,
maybe it was a different story
for our team.
[Erin] He takes losses hard.
Part of him always thought
you were gonna be a team
that was gonna make it the whole way,
so I know it was hard for him.
[Eichel] You know, you just
You gotta
You gotta realize it's
You know, it's a game of inches.
And, unfortunately,
I didn't finish that play.
And, you know, that was the difference.
But that's the, uh
You know, that's the game.
We were just getting going.
Like, if we had just gotten through them,
man
[somber music playing]
-[seagulls squawking]
-[waves lapping]
[Eichel]
We're at my summer beach house.
It's kind of my getaway in the offseason.
It's a place I came as a kid growing up,
and I had the opportunity
to, uh, build a house here.
I enjoy spending my summer here.
I think every player
goes through ups and downs
over the course of a season and a career.
You know, your confidence wavers a bit.
[broadcaster 1]
Vegas made way too many mistakes.
[broadcaster 2] He absolutely should have
put it in when he's got an open net.
[broadcaster 3]
That's hockey karma that you can't deny.
[Eichel] The empty feeling, you just
I didn't know what to think, right?
You're just sitting here like, "Oh wow,
we're no longer the Stanley Cup champs."
Someone else is gonna win this year.
And I think it's always tough mentally,
But just like anything,
you get back to work and pushing forward.
As I get older, I feel so fortunate
to be able to do this
and turn a passion into,
you know, your career.
But understanding it is a job
and it is your, you know, livelihood.
Listen, I think everyone has to sacrifice
things for what they want in life,
and I definitely sacrificed
different things throughout my life.
But I love it in Vegas.
You know, I'd love to continue
to be a part of this.
When you win a Stanley Cup,
it's such a difficult thing to do.
You just wonder if you'll ever
have the opportunity to do it again.
[gentle acoustic music playing]
[Forsberg] Yeah, we added a player.
[Erin] Our little Mother's Day gift.
[Forsberg]
Sunday came around 25 minutes in
-[Erin] Yup.
-[Forsberg] and it was time to go.
We were laughing
because we waited to push
until after Filip finishes breakfast.
And my brother said,
"Damn it, even the miracle of life
has to work around Filip's schedule."
[laughing] They just find it so funny
how regimented our life is.
I guess that's the only silver lining
of losing in the playoffs,
is that six, seven days later, Felix came.
And I've been home every single day of it.
We'd love to have more in the future
when the time is right,
but you can't take that
for granted either, so
Now, looking back, I don't know what
I would have done if he weren't here.
This would have been hard for you.
-Yeah.
-Harder. It was already hard.
But I didn't do much, but I did my
-[Erin] You did so much.
-did my part.
[Erin]
You keep saying that. That's not true.
[producer] How's the ankle?
[Forsberg] Oh, the ankle is still
It's almost worse.
Like, the body just shuts down.
Like, it's fighting for you for so long,
but then once it's over
Yeah, like the mental part of the game.
Like you wake up the next morning
when we lost,
and I was I couldn't move.
Yeah, no, it played out
the way it was supposed to.
[Erin] Three best friends that
anyone could have.
Dang right.
He smiled at that, I think.
It's hard to tell.
-[Erin] It's gas.
-Could be.
-[laughs]
-[Forsberg] Very likely.
[Erin] It will be nice to have Filip
around in the summer, and
I think just the three of us
figuring it out.
Be a family
before the season starts again,
and we get a little bit of a shadow
of Filip for a little bit.
Baby ♪
Remember on the bus
And my hand was on your knee? ♪
When you love somebody ♪
It's hard to think about anything
But to breathe ♪
[Erin] Having Filip in the home with me
after has been huge.
I didn't take that for granted whatsoever.
I think all toughness stems from mentally,
and he's very much a mental guy.
I think all guys like that
are essentially like that in hockey.
You have to be, I imagine,
to play that sport.
Baby ♪
I am the cub who was washed out
In the flood ♪
When you love somebody ♪
And bite your tongue
All you get is a mouthful of blood ♪
[intense music playing]
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01x02 - As Tough As It Gets
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Unprecedented, unfiltered look into the lives of the greatest hockey players in the NHL chasing the hardest trophy to win in sports: the Stanley Cup.
Unprecedented, unfiltered look into the lives of the greatest hockey players in the NHL chasing the hardest trophy to win in sports: the Stanley Cup.