"Acting like he was in frontlines of Vietnam" - Dave Portnoy flames Spittin' Chiclets co-founder Rear Admiral over his Stanley Cup reportage

By Evan Bell

Modified Jun 28, 2024 18:54 GMT

After the Florida Panthers won the Stanley Cup, Spittin' Chiclets co-host 'Rear Admiral' Brian McGonagle made his way down to the ice. With a cameraman in tow, RA attempted to interact with various members of the Panthers organization, only to find that he was repeatedly denied interactions by players, staff members, and family members.

At one point, McGonagle can be seen approaching Panthers CRO (Chief Revenue Officer) Shawn Thorton for a handshake. Instead, Thorton gave him a piece of his mind, calling him a bandwagoner for cheering for the Oilers throughout the Stanley Cup Final after the Panthers eliminated RA's Boston Bruins.

In another clip, RA can be seen getting waved off by Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk. The sentiment was shared by Tkachuk's father, Keith Tkachuk, who waved off Rear Admiral with an emphatic "f**k you".

While some cracked jokes regarding the clip, others questioned why he was on the ice at all. In response, McGonagle doubled down, recalling how in 2017 after rooting for the Bruins, he went onto the ice to interview St. Louis Blues players, calling himself a professional.

Those comments didn't sit well with Dave Portnoy, who fired back on Thursday:

"After I saw the Chiclets clip of him, defiantly being like "I did my job. I'm a professional," He's acting like he was in the frontlines of Vietnam, like just out doing his job. I don't even know how Barkov gave him more than a second for an interview?"

Ryan Whitney shares post showing Spittin Chiclets' Rear Admiral getting thrown out of Panthers dressing room during Stanley Cup celebration

While things on the ice didn't go as planned for Spittin' Chiclets co-host Brian McGonagle, he was undeterred as he made his way to the dressing room. There, he was seen on camera approaching a player who appeared to be Matthew Tkachuk.

Despite his attempt at getting locker room content, RA then wound up getting escorted out by security at the request of players. The moment was caught on camera by NHL vet Ryan Whitney, and subsequently shared to social media.

Of course, as Portnoy and Paul Biz Nasty Bissonnette pointed out, McGonagle didn't appear to be fully coherent during the post-game celebrations either. While speaking with Aleksander Barkov, RA appeared to be slurring his words, leaving Portnoy and Bissonnette to wonder how Barkov understood him.

In addition, it was also alleged that RA ate psilocybin mushrooms, which are a hallucinogenic drug, on his way into the game. Whether or not that's true, or an exaggeration, it's clear that many weren't happy with RA's conduct during the Stanley Cup.

By the time the 2025 Stanley Cup Finals roll around, it will be interesting to see how the Spittin' Chiclets group decides to handle his coverage of the series.