Steve Thomson And Eric Nelson

Final hour of the show, we dive into professional and collegiate Minnesota sports New Years resolutions because for the most part, there are a lot of hopeful changes coming in Minnesota sports. Also we try and take the temperature of Vikings fans for the upcoming Sunday Night Football matchup against the Packers. After that, we talked to Arif Hasan, NFL analyst who covers the Minnesota Vikings about the upcoming matchup on Sunday night, what his new year's resolution is for the Vikings and more! Then we wrap with some NBA discussion and load management talk.

Had the chance to talk to Arif Hasan, who covers the Minnesota Vikings and the ‘Wide Left’ newsletter, we asked him what he thinks the Vikings New Year’s resolution should be, also talked quarterbacks as there is a lot of questions unanswered with that between now and Sunday, and even beyond the season - we also preview the New Year’s Eve Sunday Night Football matchup at U.S. Bank Stadium between the Packers and Vikings with Jaren Hall getting the nod at quarterback.

This hour Matthew Coller and Josh Wheeler both weigh in on the pros and cons of 2023 for Minnesota sports as well as if 2024 will be a good year. Also, how does this Kirk Cousins situation play out with the quarterback question in tow.

How are we feeling about the Vikings starting Jaren Hall, come tomorrow night against the Packers? Also we had the chance to talk to Brandon Warne of Locked On Twins about the chances of Joe Mauer being elected into the Hall of Fame, we also compare and contrast the other names on the list and dive into some of the previous snubs of Hall of Fame past. Then we weighed further on the success of the Vikings this season to this point.

With Joe Mauer still on track to be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame, we brought on Brandon Warne, host of the Locked On Twins podcast and get his thoughts on the potential chances of Joe Mauer finishing strong in the Hall of Fame ballot, where he sits among the other names on the list and we also talk some of the Hall of Fame snubs of the past.

Started off the final hour of this Christmas Eve Eve edition of Sports Saturday talking Quick Lane Bowl, Gopher recruiting and Loons with Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press. After that, we broke down the Wolves success as of late and previewed their matchup in Sacramento tonight. Also gave an update on the NFC and AFC playoff picture and previewed Vikings-Lions this weekend. 

Only a few days away from the Gophers appearing in the Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit, MI. Had the chance to ask Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press about that upcoming game, Gophers recruiting updates and also dove into some Loons talk as the future is uncertain there as well.

The temperature is warm so we can still go outdoors with Steve Carney and see how this warm December weather is affecting his ventures this time of year. Also, we talked to Jess Myers of The Rink Live about the outdoor conditions for the upcoming Winter Classic in Seattle and even Hockey Day Minnesota in January up in Warroad. After that, we hit the hot stove of baseball with Phil Miller, covers the Minnesota Twins for the Star Tribune, we asked about the large cash grab the Dodgers have managed to pull off in recent weeks and talked about the television future of Twins baseball next season. 

There are many questions being raised about the future of the Minnesota Twins next season so we asked Phil Miller, of the Star Tribune about that and the recent Dodgers splashes being made in baseball and how that could affect contracts around baseball going forward.

The ice stays cool closer to the border apparently as Hockey Day Minnesota is still in the plans for Warroad despite Minnesota experiencing a lot of warmth lately. We chatted with Jess Myers of The Rink Live about that, the Minnesota Wild, and the Winter Classic being hosted in Seattle. Also dove into girls high school hockey.   

Another hour of sports on a Saturday we take a look at the best and worst ranked bowl games and you'll never guess who landed on the worst one - also we update some scores for the few games going on today! Also we recap the PNC golf tournament so far and whether the pressure is too much for Charlie Woods. Then we talk about spaceflight with Stephen Clark of Ars Technica on SpaceX, Russia and China’s spaceflight plans and more! Then we cap the hour off talking more about Minnesota Wild hockey and update on Jonas Brodin after the Evander Kane incident of last week.   

Space activity in full force not only here in the U.S. but also around the world, Stephen Clark of Ars Technica gives us the scoop of China’s recent space activity. What is next for Russia? NASA also has ambitions for another Moon landing in the future through SpaceX and Elon Musk.  

How has Steve Carney liked this warmer weather? He joins us to talk Outdoors to start off this hour and where he is off to next, also discuss how this has helped the deer population with the lack of snow this winter. Then we recap a heartbreaker in Cincinnati as the Vikings drop a crucial game after leading 17-3 in the 4th quarter - losing 27-24 in overtime. After that we talked to Kevin Lynch of Bally Sports North as we look ahead to the top defense in the NBA in the Wolves hosting arguably the top offense in the NBA in the Pacers at Target Center - we also talked ANT, Mike Conley’s contributions and KAT’s change of pace this season. Also we recap a Minnesota Wild win in a shootout over the Canucks as they continue to find success in the John Hynes era.

There is a huge matchup for the Wolves tonight at the Target Center as the Indiana Pacers look to showcase their offense against a defensive stronghold in the Timberwolves. Kevin Lynch of Bally Sports North joins us to preview that as well as discuss the contributions of Mike Conley and KAT this season and recap ANT’s return as well. 

Another hour of sports talk on a Saturday - starting out with more discussion on some of the powerhouse programs amid the ‘Top 5’ conferences and how the bigger dogs will fare in the years to come, especially in the Big Ten. Then we chatted with Jess Myers of The Rink Live, talked about Gophers men's and women’s hockey and the Brodin-Kane controversy. Then talked to Scott Miller about the gigantic $700 million Dodgers, Ohtani signing and more MLB Hot Stove talk and Winter Meetings. Then we preview Josh Dobbs getting another shot tomorrow in Las Vegas amid the return of Justin Jefferson!

We chatted with Scott Miller, New York Times contributor and MLB radio analyst for Sirius XM. We got his thoughts on Shohei Ohtani signing with the Dodgers for $700 million today and we dove into more MLB hot stove moves this past week and some that may still come and also talked Winter Meetings as well. 

Still some college hockey left before the break so we checked in with Jess Myers of The Rink Live, he was on site at Ridder Arena as the Gophers Women’s Hockey team as they fall to the Badgers splitting the weekend series at 1 a piece, we also talk Gophers men's hockey and we get Jess’s take on the Evander Kane incident last night as well.

Started off a Sports Saturday talking to Steve Carney going outdoors amid some funky weather patterns to see how the fish and hunt is going for him with the ice maintaining its solid state at the moment and where he's off to next with the weather in the 40s still. Then we discussed the hit by Evander Kane on Jonas Brodin last night in Edmonton as we have now learned there will be no punishment for the hit and Steve and Josh weigh in on how something like this needs to be addressed, not ignored. Then Jonathan Lowe joins to talk college football, break down the College Football Playoff and briefly talk NIL and transfer portal.

Started off the final hour of the show with a recap of the Washington-Oregon Pac 12 Championship Game, how we see the remaining three spots shaping out in the College Football Playoff. Then we talked to John Shipley, Minnesota Wild beat writer for the Pioneer Press about the Minnesota Wild winning their first two games under new bench boss John Hynes since Monday’s firing of Dean Evason and previewing the Minnesota Wild hosting Chicago tomorrow. Then we dive quickly into Tiger Woods and the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, further breaking down the Gophers entering into a bowl game and Vikings loss as well. Then Steve has a pressing question about the Dr. Pepper sponsored competition for fans in college football. 

It has been five days since the firing of Dean Evason and the Minnesota Wild have shown a completely newer side to them since the change and the arrival of John Hynes behind the bench. We talked to John Shipley who covers the Minnesota Wild for the Pioneer Press and he recaps the week that has been in Minnesota Wild hockey. We also talk about Kirill Kaprisov’s injury and look ahead to hosting the Blackhawks in a matinee tomorrow.