Past Our Prime

125. Larry Robinson Dominated, Nick Nickson Called It, Hockey Won

Larry Robinson was the cornerstone of the Montreal Canadiens' blue line during one of the greatest dynasties in NHL history, and the 1975–76 season was where he truly announced himself to the hockey world. He had already been part of the 1973 Cup-winning team, but it was the 1976 Stanley Cup Final against the Philadelphia Flyers where Robinson really made his mark. The Flyers were the feared Broad Street Bullies — a team that had built its identity around intimidation and physical play — and Robinson essentially said, not today. He scored a key goal early in the series and was so punishing with his body checking that, as Ken Dryden remembered it, "they had to bring hammers and crowbars to fix the dent in the boards." Scotty Bowman's Canadiens swept Philadelphia in four games, and Robinson's performance was so dominant that he ended up on the cover of Sports Illustrated on May 24, 1976, photographed delivering a check on Flyers forward Mel Bridgman. And that was really just the start of it. Robinson went on to lead Montreal to four Stanley Cups between 1976 and 1979, cementing the Canadiens as the defining team of that era. The season after the Flyers sweep, he put up 19 goals and 66 assists and walked away with the Norris Trophy as the league's best defenseman. He could skate, he could shoot, and he could absolutely flatten you if you got near his crease. For a stretch in the late '70s, there wasn't a more complete defenseman in hockey — and most opponents knew better than to test that. After 17 dominant seasons in Montreal, Robinson finished his playing career with the LA Kings before later returning to the organization as head coach, making him one of the more quietly significant figures in Kings history on both sides of the bench. Nick Nickson spent 44 years as the voice of the LA Kings, becoming as much a part of the franchise as any player who ever laced up at the Forum or Crypto.com Arena. Over that remarkable run he called more than 4,300 professional games and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015, receiving the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award for excellence in broadcasting — putting him in the same company as his longtime Kings broadcast partner Bob Miller. For a generation of Kings fans, Nickson's voice is inseparable from the franchise's biggest moments, including the call of their first-ever Stanley Cup in 2012, when he memorably declared, "The long wait is over! After 45 years, the Kings can wear their crown!" He retired after the 2024–25 season, closing the book on one of the great broadcasting careers in LA sports history — and his appearance on Past Our Prime was a reminder of just how many chapters of hockey history this man lived through firsthand. Nickson comes on POP to talk with Scott, Bill, and Marc to discuss Robinson, the Montreal dynasty, the arrival of Wayne Gretzky in Los Angeles, and what that era meant for hockey on the West Coast as well as the two Cups won by the NHL’s only monarchy— the Kings. Nickson had a front row seat for all of it and now he shares those insights with us as we take our weekly look back at the world of sports through the May 24, 1976 issue of Sports Illustrated. 50 years later, Robinson’s dominance is still front and center and with the help of Nickson, we relive it all on Past Our Prime…  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

124. Michael MacCambridge and the History of SI

The May 17, 1976 issue of Sports Illustrated is the perfect time capsule for Past Our Prime, capturing the sports world exactly 50 years ago through unforgettable stories and personalities. Headlined by Julius Erving on the cover, the issue showcased “Dr. J” at the peak of his ABA brilliance with the New York Nets as the league headed towards extinction and its historic merger with the NBA. But the magazine also stretched far beyond basketball, with features on the Flyers Reggie Leach’s playoff explosion, Björn Borg’s rivalry with Guillermo Vilas, baseball quirks, golf drama, and even Japanese baseball culture. It’s exactly the kind of rich, entertaining snapshot of sports history that we love revisiting each week. On this week’s episode of Past Our Prime, we jumped into that May 17, 1976 issue with author Michael MacCambridge who joined us to discuss his acclaimed book The Franchise: A History of Sports Illustrated Magazine. He took us behind the scenes of how SI rose from near failure in the 1950s to become the gold standard of sports journalism, blending deep reporting, cultural insight, and unforgettable storytelling. MacCambridge explored the magazine’s internal battles, larger-than-life personalities, and its profound influence on how America viewed sports for decades. His book is both a love letter and a clear-eyed history of one of the most important publications of the 20th century. MacCambridge tells us how as a child in 1976, his favorite player was Dr. J. Despite the fact he had never seen him play. Not in person. Not on TV. Only through the beautiful shots and words of SI. MacCambridge recalls how SI was one of the first magazines to implement color phots and how Henry Luce and Andre Andre Laguerre took an idea and turned it into a cultural phenomenon. He tells us how Sports Illustrated lost money its first 10 years in business before they started to turn the corner.  He compares being on the cover of SI to a musician being on the cover of Rolling Stone and he tells us how “a case can be made Julius Erving was the last truly mythic figure in American sports” MacCambridsge is a history professor and his subject is Sports Illustrated and he’s teaching a class this week on Past Our Prime. Get full credit by downloading and listening and reviewing wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

123. 3-time Kentucky Derby Winner Angel Cordero, Jr.

This week on Past Our Prime, the guys crack open the May 10, 1976 issue of Sports Illustrated and bounce all over the sports world of the mid-’70s. We talk about Muhammad Ali looking very un-Ali-like in his sluggish fight with Jimmy Young and how many thought Ali lost this one. We break down the end of Arnold Palmer’s days o the PGA tour when he began to realize his glory days were starting to fade, and we discuss rising stars like ABA star David Thompson and Olympic swimmer John Naber who both were taking over the spotlight. Along the way, there’s plenty of classic POP randomness too — Little League snack shack junk food, terrible 1970s baseball TV coverage led by Warner Wolf, old-school hockey stories and all the weird little moments that made sports back then so much fun. But the biggest story was on the smallest guy… Hall of Fame jockey Angel Cordero Jr. stood just 5’3 and weighed a buck 13… but that didn’t stop him from being one of the giants of the horse racing world. The star jockey is still very active today but we slowed him down long enough to have him tell us about his unforgettable ride in the 1976 Kentucky Derby aboard Bold Forbes. Cordero talks about stealing the race right from the start, holding off heavy favorite Honest Pleasure and pulling off one of the biggest Derby upsets of the decade. The guys also look back at Cordero’s incredible career, which included more than 7,000 wins and three Kentucky Derby victories, including wins with Cannonade and Spend a Buck. And from there, the conversation turns into something even bigger than horse racing. Cordero talks about what it meant to become the first Puerto Rican jockey to win the Kentucky Derby when he got into the winners circle with Colonnade and how that helped open doors for so many riders who came after him. He also shares some great stories about his friendships with baseball legends Roberto Clemente and Orlando Cepeda, especially Cepeda, whom he considered like family. It’s one of those conversations that perfectly fits what Past Our Prime is all about — great sports stories, bigger personalities and a chance to revisit an era that still feels larger than life 50 years later. Join us for another great Past Our Prime show as we cash in a winning ticket once again this week with Hall of Fame jockey, Angel Cordero Jr. Listen, download, review, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Giddyup. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

122. Jamie Moyer on the Phillies GOAT: Mike Schmidt

On the May 3, 1976 cover of Sports Illustrated, Mike Schmidt was exploding onto the national scene as the Phillies’ young power-hitting third baseman. Fresh off tying a major league record with 11 home runs in April — and just weeks after smashing four homers in one game on April 17 — Schmidt was quickly becoming must-watch baseball. In true Past Our Prime fashion, we dove right into that magical spring of ’76 when one of the greatest third basemen ever was just starting to flex. We also broke down the classic “Clouts and Outs” article, which perfectly captured Schmidt and Dave Kingman as the ultimate “power whiffers” — guys who could crush the ball a mile but paid for it with mountains of strikeouts. Schmidt was brutally honest with himself about it, while Kingman basically said, “This is who I am — deal with it.” Classic 1970s baseball drama at its finest. Our special guest, Jamie Moyer, brought the episode to life with great stories about facing Schmidt. The man who won 269 career games and pitched brilliantly at age 45 for the 2008 World Series champion Phillies had nothing but respect for Schmidt’s longevity, work ethic, and professionalism. Hearing Moyer talk about competing against one of the all-time greats was pure Past Our Prime gold as was when he reflected back on when he took a no-hitter into the 9th innings against... his home town Phillies. We also touched on everything else from that issue — the Kentucky Derby trail, wild NHL playoff violence, Olympic hopefuls, beanball wars, and even the rise of Sportianity in sports. Another fun trip back to the spring of 1976 with plenty of laughs, memories, and great conversation. That’s exactly why we do this show! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

121. An Original Aussie: Evonne Goolagong

Evonne Goolagong Cawley was on the cover of the April 26, 1976 issue of Sports Illustrated, a fitting spotlight for one of tennis’s most graceful and naturally gifted champions who was reaching the #1 ranking in the world in late April 50 years ago. Goolagong’s presence on the cover also reflected a much broader impact—not just as a star player, but as a trailblazer for Indigenous Australians in international sport. The winner of 7 Grand Slam singles titles, Evonne also won 6 more in double… and this week on Past Our Prime, we’re honoring Goolagong by playing a little doubles ourselves with not one, but two guests to reflect back on the brilliance of Evonne. Peggy Michel, Goolagong’s frequent doubles partner, was one of the top doubles specialists of her era and won 3 Grand Slam titles with Evonne at the Australian Open and Wimbledon in ’74 and the Aussie Open again in 1975. Goolagong could have teamed up with more well known players on the circuit, but she and Peggy were a formidable duo for many years. Peggy Michel, Goolagong’s frequent doubles partner, was one of the most accomplished doubles specialists of her era. Known for her sharp net play and tactical awareness, Michel complemented Goolagong’s smooth baseline game, helping the pair become a formidable team in major tournaments. Michel’s consistency and experience made her an ideal partner, and together they showcased the chemistry and coordination that define elite doubles tennis. Australian player Pam Whytcross was a respected contemporary of Evonne Goolagong Cawley in the 1970s and helped open up the world of tennis to women across the world when in 1973 at the age of 19, she was part of a meeting led by Billie Jean King that helped lay the groundwork for the formation of the Women's Tennis Association, underscoring her role in a pivotal moment for women’s tennis. Michel and Whytcross give us a keen insight on one of Australia’s greatest athletes , Evonne Goolagong, who was much more than just a tennis star… she was a mother. One of only three women to win a major while also holding done another full-time job… being a mom! Past Our Prime is going down under as we relive one of the best to ever do it—Evonne Goolagong. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]