The North American NHL media tour is here, which means training camp is just around the corner.

In addition to that, we’re now just 29 short days away from Toronto’s season opener against the Montreal Canadiens. To kick things off, we talked about how quickly summer went and our excitement for the upcoming season. In short order, camp will be underway, and we’ll finally get to see some of the new guys in action.

Then, we paid our respects to Ken Dryden. The Montreal Canadiens legend and former Maple Leafs president passed away after a bout with cancer on Thursday. He was 78. In every which way, Dryden was a legend. He was elite on the ice, and incredibly, off of it, too. Our condolences to the Dryden family.

Meantime, if you’re a big Matthew Knies fan (who isn’t!?), this was the mecca of all podcasts. We kicked things off by discussing Knies’ appearance at the annual NHL media tour in Vegas. Fresh off signing the new extension this summer, it was good to see the burgeoning star get some national exposure. After all, in seemingly short order, he’s burst onto the Olympic radar for the United States, too. The sky’s seriously the limit for Knies. We talked about his natural evolution as a player and a leader. As the Leafs attempt to move away from the Core Four era, it was great to see Knies represent the team at a league event. Following his breakout 29 goal, 58-point campaign, we still think there’s another offensive level for him to get to. Additionally, we dissected Knies’ viral quote from an interview with the Athletic’s Josh Kloke were effectively embraced the pressure of playing in Toronto. He said he wants that feeling of playing for the whole city.

Brought to you by Simply Spiked, after that, we played our interview with Knies from late last week. He was a lot of fun. We touched on everything from how his summer went to what he learned from the disappointing Game 7 loss to the rival Florida Panthers. With Marner gone, it feels like a natural transition for Knies to elevate into a bigger leadership role with the team. Seriously. it’s hard to believe that this kid’s still just 22 years old.

Lastly, Craig Berube did a 1-on-1 with the Toronto Star’s Kevin McGran. In detail, he broke down the new players on the roster and voiced how pumped he is to get going and start working. It sounds like Chief’s fully on board with what Brad Treliving did this summer.

We’ll be back with you on Thursday morning at 11 AM ET. We’ll talk latest news and notes, plus Ryan Leslie, Toronto’s new team host, will drop by the show to touch on his new gig.

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