The owner of the Capitals, Ted Leonsis, joins G&D to discuss what it's like to have Alex Ovechkin pass Gretzky as the NHL's all-time goal record leader. We also ask him about his interest in the Nationals.
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00:00The Capitals come home on Thursday, should be one heck of a party at Capital One Arena.
00:07Thursday evening, cannot wait to be there, I know tens of thousands of you guys will
00:11be there as well, and in the middle of it at Center Ice will be the owner of the operation
00:16and the CEO of Monumental Sports and Entertainment, Ted Leonsis, who's kind enough to join us
00:20right now on the Rude Guest Hotline on the day after the greatest regular season day
00:25in Caps history.
00:26Ted, it's Grant and Danny, thank you for a few minutes.
00:29What an accomplishment for the organization, for Alex, and for this fan base yesterday.
00:34Thank you, it's very nice of you, and I have to say today everyone is exhausted and earned
00:42a day off and I think Thursday will be a wonderful day just to show gratitude to a historic player
00:51and someone who really loves the fan base and really did it for the fans.
00:56It's really a spectacular time to be a Caps fan and show our gratitude to Alex Ovechkin.
01:04Ted, I think people may underestimate, I'd love for you to go into it, some of the preparations
01:09for this sort of traveling roadshow as he's closing in on this record to kind of make
01:13this seamless, what I thought, just editorial, very classy and excellent kind of celebration
01:19of it when it happened in real time.
01:20What went into all the planning to be ready to go when Ovechkin did his thing?
01:26Well, the league obviously has great respect for Wayne Gretzky and Wayne Gretzky has great
01:32respect for the game and he just made it really easy on us.
01:40He said, when Alex gets the three, four, five goals away, I would like to travel with you
01:46and the team and I just want everyone to realize that this man is most deservative of this
01:56record and Alex made it very efficient for us.
02:00I mean, to score as many goals as he did so quickly.
02:05Wayne came to the game in New York, I mean, in D.C. and then went to the island and that was it.
02:14Right?
02:15Alex got two at home and then one on the road.
02:19Gary and I went to the Carolina game and Alex scored there, scored two in D.C. and then
02:27on the island.
02:29I was able to speak with John Ledecky, used to be one of our owners and is a friend
02:34and is an owner up there and they were unbelievably accommodating.
02:40I apologized and they said, no need to apologize.
02:44They gave us seven minutes.
02:45That's what the league and they wanted and it certainly went longer than seven minutes.
02:52I think it went 22 minutes, but the local fans were excited to be a part of history
02:58and then there were so many Caps fans, so many people wearing red, celebrating.
03:04So it was just a lovely day and it's going to happen once in a lifetime, right?
03:12Alex, I believe, will play next year.
03:15He has five games left this year.
03:17He'll put some space in between 895 and maybe, as Wayne says, it takes longer to catch Alex.
03:30It was 31 years when Wayne broke the record.
03:34Alex certainly will commit to being there if anyone breaks his record and the game is
03:41all about tradition and respect for the game.
03:45Yesterday really was a big pivot going from Wayne to Alex Ovechkin and our fans and all
03:53the fans in the NHL really appreciated it.
03:57Owner Ted Leontis with us on Grant and Danny.
03:59Here on your flagship, Home for the Caps, 106.7 The Fan.
04:02They come home on Thursday evening.
04:04We'll talk about those celebrations in a moment.
04:07Ted, the atmosphere on Friday was unbelievable.
04:10I was in the arena.
04:11It was, frankly, it rivaled anything I remember from the Stanley Cup.
04:14It was just absolutely amazing.
04:16I'm just curious for your thoughts on not only that night, but the way the fan base
04:21showed up on Long Island.
04:22You just referenced a number of Caps fans there.
04:25I mean, they really delivered, I think, down the stretch here almost as much as Ovi.
04:30Maybe not to the same extent as he scored six times in the last five goals, seven in
04:34his last seven, eight in his last nine.
04:36But man, did this fan base rise to the occasion.
04:39Yeah, we travel really well.
04:42And again, it's a testament to what we've built as a franchise.
04:49You've grown up with Alex Ovechkin.
04:51I remember you as a very, very young man falling in love with the Caps because of Alex.
04:58You know, we've got a generation of fans, and they see themselves in Alex.
05:06So what he's doing this year, he's second in the league in goal score.
05:11He's missed 15 games, right?
05:13I mean, what he's doing is really not normal.
05:17It's not what was expected.
05:21But I have never doubted Alex.
05:26That's why I've said we should never take this player, this man, for granted.
05:33He's just built, and he thinks differently than others.
05:40And he came back.
05:42I remember the beginning of last season, he was struggling.
05:45He had eight goals, and a lot of people doubted him.
05:50And then coming into this year, it was he needs 42 goals.
05:53No one thought that he could get 42 goals this year.
05:57He's still got five games left.
06:02And so he's just one-of-a-kind once in a lifetime.
06:07And what I'm most relieved on is that this is out of the way now.
06:11This was a big, big thing.
06:13The pressure on him and the team was global and intense.
06:21And now we can get back to playing hockey.
06:25And the team clinched a playoff spot early, and all of the focus came on to Alex.
06:33And now we have to get back in the playoff mode.
06:43And Alex asked us to commit to him that we would build.
06:46I think Ted's phone's breaking up.
06:51Let's put him on hold and just make sure that we can get a clean line.
06:55Ted Leontes, the owner of the Capitals, is joining us on Grant and Danny a day after
07:00Alex Ovechkin moved ahead of Wayne Gretzky on the all-time goals list.
07:04Heck of a party last night, by the way.
07:06Some of the videos coming out.
07:07Absolutely.
07:08Nice dinner that they had in D.C.
07:09All of his teammates, past and current, got together for dinner.
07:13And they'll have a much-deserved respite here for a few days before Thursday's game.
07:18So, Ted, as we welcome you back on, you said Ovi had asked for a commitment.
07:23Go into that.
07:23What was the commitment he was looking for?
07:26I'll sign another five-year deal if you promise me that we'll have a very competitive team,
07:35a team, playoff team, a team can win another cup.
07:39And I don't want to be seen in my career as chasing a record.
07:45And I think it will be harder to break a record like this without a great team.
07:53And it'll be more fun.
07:54And he's having a great time.
07:58The team is good.
08:00And we were the first team to clinch the playoff spot this year.
08:04We've been relatively healthy.
08:07And so now all of our focus, because he broke the record efficiently,
08:12can now go back to the team and try to win another cup while he's under contract.
08:17So it's a great thing for him to have done and to do it.
08:25So now all the focus came back to playing hockey in the right way.
08:29Yeah, I remember the five-year deal worth nine and a half per year.
08:33When he signed it, there was thought around the league that it was a risk
08:36because of his age.
08:37And that's comical to think about now.
08:39But even going further back, at a time where it didn't happen,
08:42you guys gave him a record contract of 13 years and $124 million
08:48way, way, way back when at the beginning of this 20-year run here.
08:51What do you remember about that contract coming together with presumably yourself
08:55and Dick Patrick and whoever else was involved?
08:57And 13 years is such a long time.
08:59We see that in baseball with guys like Soto.
09:01But you just don't really see it much in sports
09:05and any kind of nerves you may have had with the physical brand of hockey he played
09:09about that deal.
09:09Because the beauty of this, Ted, is every one of these goals has been scored rock in the red.
09:17Yeah, I think you have to show loyalty both ways.
09:21And because he's once in a lifetime, I mean, these things aren't given away as candy.
09:29But I did fly up and back with Nick Baxter and TJ Oshie.
09:34And I remember at the press conference when we announced the deal, Nick Baxter was with us.
09:39And he said, I want one of those.
09:41And we gave him a 10-year contract.
09:45And those two contracts really have made us a cultural place to play.
09:58We've broken the code on treating our players in the right way.
10:03And players that come from other franchises basically feel we're differentiated.
10:12They have a different kind of experience here.
10:15And it starts from the top down.
10:17It's being passed on.
10:20Best example I can give you is Dubois.
10:24He's played for a couple of organizations.
10:26People thought he underachieved.
10:29He's a great talent.
10:31And he played in Los Angeles.
10:33He's traded here.
10:36Three minutes after it's announced, Alex reaches out to him and says, welcome.
10:42You will love it here.
10:44Can't wait to meet you, play with you, and whatever you need.
10:48Here's my info.
10:50And then Tom Wilson calls him and says, hey, I think we're going to play together.
10:57Give me your flight info.
10:59I'll pick you up at the airport.
11:01And my wife and I will show you and your wife, girlfriend around town.
11:09You know, welcome to the family.
11:11And he's having a great year.
11:14And he just feels that organizationally, we care about each other.
11:22We care about the right things.
11:24And now he goes and tells his players, right?
11:28And his friends.
11:30And so word gets out.
11:32And I talked a lot about being a have versus a have not organization.
11:38And I think, you know, when you have the best goal scorer in history, who we drafted, was
11:46MVP of the league, leading scorer, you know, leading goal scorer, breaks Wayne Gretzky's
11:52record.
11:52And he wants to be here.
11:55And he commits his whole career that other great players want to replicate that.
12:01And so, you know, it's a reason that we have such a strong record.
12:07But we know winning the cup is everything.
12:11And that's what our focus needs to go on.
12:14And, you know, we qualify for the playoffs.
12:16You know, we have one of the best records.
12:18I think we have the second best record in the league, although we haven't played very
12:22well the last half dozen games.
12:25And now our focus can be on collective again, as opposed to a individual.
12:31And that's try to bring another Stanley Cup to the fans of Washington.
12:35Ted, and you mentioned the cup.
12:37I was trying to quantify this with, you know, some friends and family watching this experience.
12:42Ovi chased down this record.
12:43It's different than a team thing where in the playoffs, it's every second you're hyperventilating
12:48your heart's beating out of your chest because one, you know, bad balance or one critical
12:52mistake or anything can sort of change the fortune of a series.
12:55And you're sort of living to die.
12:56And then that sense of relief and euphoria when it happens.
12:59This was a different feeling kind of leading up to it.
13:02How would you quantify it from your seat?
13:04You know, the great view that you had of this entire chase.
13:07It was the happiest locker room I've ever been in after a loss in 25 years.
13:14And now, because we had qualified for the playoffs,
13:21and we built a big cushion, we could feel that way.
13:26But hockey really is it.
13:30Players really respect the winds playing for each other.
13:36And so this was a very, very unique, one of a kind experience.
13:41You know, Alex took photos of him with the puck with every single player.
13:49I've never seen something like that.
13:52Usually don't do that.
13:53Then he took a team photo and then was taking photos with all of the equipment people.
14:00Everyone knew this was a historic thing.
14:05And everyone grew up hearing about, knowing about, seeing the tail end of Gretzky's career.
14:15But because most of our players are in their 20s and early 30s,
14:20and Wayne broke Gordie Howe's record 30 years ago.
14:25It's mythical, right?
14:27And the people who have been around and then listening to Wayne,
14:31who was giving players advice, giving us advice.
14:36What Alex accomplished and the consistency with which he scored the goals were amazing.
14:43You know, Wayne had 90 goal seasons.
14:46I think he had 92 one year.
14:48And his last year, forgive me if I'm wrong on this number, but maybe he had 14 goals.
14:54And Alex has 42 goals now, right?
14:57I mean, he's got the most 40 goal seasons.
15:03And, you know, what he's been able to accomplish with the kind of game that he plays,
15:10his availability to us as a franchise, to his teammates, I think is in excess of 94%.
15:20So, you know, it's just a once in a lifetime experience.
15:24And the fans, the media, the players, players on other teams,
15:30the respect that he's been shown by the other players.
15:34You know, last night, the goalie for the Islanders came into the locker room and gave Alex the stick.
15:45That, you know, that was a very, very nice gesture.
15:48He could have kept the stick.
15:49I'm sure sold it somewhere on, you know, one of the sites.
15:54And, you know, that Alex then signed jerseys to goaltenders.
16:00You know, you were my first, I'm sure he's going to send this goaltender.
16:03You were, you know, 595.
16:06And there's just a mutual admiration society.
16:11And, you know, it's just great to see.
16:13But it also helps brand, helps create the capitals in Washington DC
16:21is one of the most important franchises in the NHL.
16:25And that's very meaningful to us.
16:26That's very meaningful to our fans because we've all invested a lot of time and energy
16:31and passion and money over the years.
16:33And, you know, we've kind of built this together.
16:35Speaker 1
16:37Ted Liotis on GND, you guys are underway already with the, I think it's $600 million renovations
16:43you're doing over at Capitol and Arena to modify everything.
16:46It's going to look beautiful.
16:47Speaker 2
16:48800 to a billion, but who's counting?
16:50Speaker 1
16:51Okay.
16:51Hey, you should know that number for sure better than I do.
16:55But I bring this up to ask in those plans on that blueprint.
16:58Did you leave room for a statue?
17:00Because I'm thinking, you know, the stick up ready for the slapper.
17:04Danny and I were talking about this.
17:06I don't know what it's like around the streets,
17:08but there's not really anywhere obvious that you could even put it.
17:11Is that something you guys have thought about?
17:12Speaker 2
17:13Yeah, we're going to have a statue garden.
17:17And there'll be our greats are there.
17:19You know, Elena Della Don retired last year, two times last week.
17:24She's a two-time MVP, WNBA, won a championship.
17:27She should have a statue.
17:28She'll have a statue.
17:29So we'll have a statue garden.
17:31But now we're going from 900,000 square feet to 1.6 million square feet.
17:39And we will have a gallery, a museum, a restaurant that's a sports bar,
17:46and have a lot of memorabilia, a lot of important artifacts in our past.
17:54And we've been curating to be able to celebrate,
18:00you know, the great players that have passed through.
18:02But Alex is in a class by himself right now.
18:09You know, when you break an all-time record
18:12in the league, and we've had MVPs pass through here, you know,
18:17Wes Unseld is an all-time great.
18:21But for Alex to do what he's done, I mean, it can be debated.
18:27I'm certainly open for debate, but I have to say,
18:30he's the most important athlete in a professional sport in Washington, DC.
18:36Certainly, when we drafted him 20 years ago,
18:39I don't think that would have come into the conversation.
18:45And so he's earned it.
18:47I mean, his longevity, his body of work, his accomplishments,
18:52and what he's done for the community, and what he's done as a person,
18:56his charitable work, his outgoing personality and nature.
19:03He loves the fans.
19:07He loves the community.
19:09He loves the kids, right?
19:12What he gives back to charity, we're not scripting.
19:16He's doing it because it's organic and authentic to him.
19:21And every accolade, every statue, everything that he gets, he deserves, he's earned.
19:28And, you know, I'm going to be forever grateful to him.
19:31Thursday night, Ted, even though there were a ton of Caps fans up there
19:34in Long Island, this would be the first chance for kind of like DC area folks
19:40to be able to get in there and celebrate.
19:42What do you guys have in store for them?
19:45Well, again, it's a regular season game and, you know, there's television, networks to be
19:52considered.
19:55And one other thing I do want to mention, and I know it's going to sound funny, but
20:00Alex is under contract and there's a collective bargaining agreement.
20:05And one thing that I have always said is I will never, I always want to do the right
20:13things in the right way.
20:15And while he's a player, we can have to do things within the rules.
20:20So there'll be a pregame ceremony and the players will give him some gifts.
20:25We'll give him some gifts, but they, they, I can't give them a Rolls-Royce.
20:30I was going to say no Rolls-Royce yet.
20:32That was my follow-up.
20:33Grant Ski was elbowing you in the ribs pretty good on that.
20:36Now, if you have a Rolls-Royce, Ted.
20:38Right now, after he retires, we can embrace him and do things, but, but Alex, you know,
20:49I want him to be a capital for life and we'll set something up for him where he'll know
20:57that the city and the partners and the owners and everyone appreciates and respects and
21:05loves him.
21:07But right now, you know, Alex was invited on some television shows and the tonight show
21:15in New York, um, uh, built his brand, uh, hype and celebrate.
21:21You know what he said?
21:23I'm exhausted.
21:25I want to show respect to the coach and my teammates.
21:28I want to rest.
21:30I want to get ready for Thursday's game and the sprint to the playoffs.
21:35I don't want to have to fly back to New York and come back.
21:37Yeah, it might be good for me, but it's time.
21:42And that's what you want from your captain.
21:45And, you know, Alex knows how much we value him and, and, you know, we don't want him
21:53thinking about anything right now, other than I accomplished and broke a record that was
22:00never going to be broken, but that's in the rear view mirror for the time being.
22:05Now it's five games left in the season and then the playoff.
22:09And now the playoffs are, um, you know, last year we didn't have a very good playoff.
22:15We qualified for the playoffs, the last hour, the last moment we could last play of the
22:21season.
22:22And Alex didn't have a great playoffs and the criticism was high.
22:28And so he understands, we all understand that we're in this to win.
22:33We made the playoffs.
22:34That's the first step.
22:36And let's get all of the focus on that.
22:38The fans, though, I'm sure will show their undying appreciation.
22:45And, but, you know, there's next more games this year and hopefully all of next season.
22:51So there'll come a time and we can really show him how much we love him, but it's not
22:57tomorrow.
22:59Well said.
23:00Ted Lyons is very gracious with his time.
23:01We'll let you out on this.
23:03You're remiss if I didn't bring this up.
23:06The news this week that came out was you said that you probably wouldn't buy the TV rights
23:12to the nationals and stream their games unless you own the team, which I got to tell you
23:18shattered my dreams in the short term because I've long wanted a bundle of whiz caps and
23:22that's direct to consumer.
23:24So we'll have to wait on that.
23:25But what they didn't ask you, or at least what wasn't part of that story was whether
23:29or not the ship is sailed or if you're still interested at all in buying the nationals.
23:33So I'm just curious where we're at on that.
23:35Um, yeah, I'm forever interested and, but the season started and that should be a signal
23:45that, you know, when the season starts that the Lerner family is very committed and the
23:51team's really not for sale.
23:53The news on the, the news on the network was a surprise.
23:59The media was reporting, oh, a logical place would be for it to, uh, for the Naps to come
24:06next season onto our network.
24:09But for those of us who are aware of what's going on in the local media space, um, there's
24:15not really an opportunity to pay another team on our network because we're not going
24:24to get additional dollars, at least not next year.
24:29So it was, yeah, this is a Rubik's cube that still needs to be solved.
24:35And I think where the Lerner family is, and we haven't had active conversations is they're
24:41rebuilding the team.
24:42They're excited about the team.
24:44The new season has started.
24:45They don't want any rumors, any hoopla about corporate developments.
24:50They want to focus on the team.
24:52And I totally understand that.
24:53I respect that.
24:54Mark Lerner came to the game when Alex scored two goals, met Wayne Gretzky.
25:00I mean, we're close friends.
25:01I love the family.
25:03Um, I'm going to be here.
25:05We'll keep the lights on, but there's nothing active going on.
25:08And, you know, I'm going to go out and buy season tickets for, um, the nationals.
25:13It's hard to go to games, you know, when caps are still in season, wizards are still in
25:17season, but I look forward to going and checking out the team.
25:20And, you know, I enjoy going to baseball games, so I'm interested, but it doesn't seem right
25:25now that they're that interested.
25:27And I totally understand why.
25:29Ted, thank you for the time.
25:30Congrats on yesterday and this run for you guys, for the, uh, you know, whole organization
25:36and just for the town.
25:37It's been neat.
25:38Great.
25:38Thank you so much.
25:39See you Thursday.
25:40Bye-bye.
25:40You got it.
25:41We'll see you at the arena.
25:41There's Ted Leonsis on Grant and Danny, the owner of the capitals, the wizard CEO of monumental
25:47sports forever interested.
25:49He said about the Washington nationals, but as we know, season's ongoing and the learners
25:54don't seem to be wanting to receive it.
25:55I'd like to buy it.
25:56It's not for sale.
25:57Okay.
25:58See you guys in the box.