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All About Spittin Chiclets Podcast: The Best Hockey Stories And Moments Shared By NHL Players

Published on October 6, 2022

The Spittin Chiclets podcast focuses primarily on current events and updates from the world of the NHL.

It also touches on pop culture, fun anecdotes, and “everything else under the sun”.

Going live twice a week, Spittin Chiclets is hosted by former NHL players Paul “Biz Nasty” Bissonnette and Ryan Whitney, supported by hockey blogger Brian “Rear Admiral” McGonagle.

After its launch in 2016, the podcast has swiftly grown from strength to strength.

Thousands of listeners tune in weekly across Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and the cast’s host site, barstoolsports.com.

One possible explanation for this rapid growth in popularity is the fact that the hosts aren’t afraid to broadcast their “irreverent opinions to the masses”.

Hearing things ‘as they are’ from people with direct experience with the NHL seems to keep people coming back week after week.

Although it’s primarily targeted toward NHL fans, the show will also prove an excellent listen for anyone with even a passing interest in ice hockey.

The Creators Behind the Podcast

The podcast was launched in 2016 by Barstool Sports by former NHL player Ryan Whitney and Barstool Sports hockey blogger Brian McGonagle.

Both have an in-depth knowledge of hockey and an apparently inextinguishable passion for the sport.

Whitney’s illustrious career in hockey makes him an excellent host for Spittin Chiclets.

With a playing career spanning from 2004 to 2015 and a silver medal for the US at the 2010 Winter Olympics, he brings his extensive knowledge to each and every episode.

Whitney now works as an analyst on the NHL network and co-hosts Spittin Chiclets.

Born and raised in Charlestown, Massachusetts, Brian “Rear Admiral” McGonagle has been a dedicated hockey fan for as long as he can remember.

After working for several years as a blogger for Barstool Sports, he started the Spittin’ Chiclets podcast with Whitney.

McGonagle eventually crossed paths with Whitney when he was covering the Boston Bruins’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup championship.

So, what’s it like running a hugely successful ice hockey podcast? According to McGonagle, it’s not too complicated.

See what he has to say in this interview with the New England Hockey Journal:

“Just starting off the equipment is actually very simple. I mean, it’s just basically a microphone, a camera. I mean, most laptops already have a camera built-in now and just a few extra wires.

And then you’re off and running.

It’s really easy to start. But as for us where we are now, I mean, I’m more because of the bus driver.

I do a lot of the prep, the research. I write out the outline for how the show is going to go. And it’s basically you just get all the stories from the week and you kind of just put the puzzle together. Almost like building a newscast almost or a newspaper (article). What stories are the top ones? Which are the, maybe, fun stories you put down below?

And yeah, we build the outline. I send it out to the guys. We kind of edit it during the week and then we just rock and roll.

Nothing’s pre-scripted. We just roll off the cuff. And yeah, it’s actually pretty simple.”

Themes and Topics Covered

From discussing the nitty gritty of working as a hockey player to interviewing icons from the sport to waxing lyrical about the game at large, the Spittin Chiclets podcast really does have something for everyone.

The combination of anecdotal, casual conversation with more hard-hitting sports journalism helps bring listeners back week after week.

A great example of this careful balance of serious and casual content can be found in episode 432, released on March 14th, 2023.

The podcast begins with the hosts recapping their weekends. This conversational tone is one of the things that fans appear to enjoy a great deal.

This is followed by a rundown of the major news coming out of Philadelphia that week.

And it sets the stage perfectly for their interview with Shjon Podein, a former NHL player who played for 11 seasons with the city’s own Edmonton Oilers.

The interview is where the tone shifts gear somewhat. It covers Podeins illustrious career, including his infamous Stanley Cup story where he “scored a career-high 15 goals and equaled his best points total at 32”.

In “Chiclets Game Notes: Episode 5”, released March 2nd, 2023, the hosts explore some of the more shocking trades occurring within the world of NHL in recent months.

The Quebec Peewee Hockey tournament is also discussed with playful banter throughout.

In episode 425, released January 24th, 2023, former NHL defenseman Zdeno Chara joins the podcast “to discuss growing up in Czechoslovakia and overcoming the odds, playing in Boston, Patrice Bergeron, and tons more.”

The recent drama involving the Vancouver Canucks is also discussed; the gang seeks to answer the question, “are Canucks owners the most hated in all of the sports?”

These three episodes are just a sample of the Spittin’ Chiclets podcast’s content.

The variety of topics, direct interviews with former players, and an approach to the discussion that is unafraid to speak its mind and stay playful are likely the main reasons that fans keep coming to the podcast in droves.

Reach of the Spittin Chiclets Podcast

The Spittin Chiclets podcast has 266K subscribers on YouTube, 1M followers on Instagram, and 376.3K followers on TikTok.

@spittinchiclets
Who are some current players that are worthy of a statue?
♬ original sound – Spittin Chiclets

While listenership stats can be hard to ascertain, the podcast’s YouTube channel has readily available viewership info. On average, the podcast seems to receive between 20,000 and 100,000 views per episode.

As of late March 2023, the Spittin Chiclets podcast was ranked #22 in American sports podcasts on Apple Podcasts.

Based on this analysis, we estimate that the Spittin Chiclets podcast receives between 100,000 and 220,000 listens each time an episode goes out across Apple, Google, Youtube, and Spotify podcast networks.

The Format of the Podcast

The specific content and discussion topics of each episode of the Spittin Chiclets podcast vary considerably.

However, there’s enough familiarity and consistency to maintain a strong and growing listener base.

Most episodes begin with a more general discussion; the hosts might update the listeners on what they’ve been up to over the past few days or bring new info on a discussion that happened towards the end of a previous episode.

At times, a more specific conversation topic might be launched right from the start.

This might include team dramas, news updates about a specific player, or championship movements from the previous week.

The podcast relies heavily on its healthy roster of incoming guests.

These guests are often former NHL players but can also be analysts and ice hockey experts from around the world.

Some notable guests on the podcast include Tage Thompson, Nick Suzuki, Mike Milbury, and Rasmus Dahlin – all legendary former or current hockey players.

Reception and Impact

The Spittin Chiclets podcast has a strong and growing listenership that seems to love what the hosts have to say each week. One reviewer had the following to say:

“The Best for a Reason

Great pod, amazing content, inside scoops and stories, and they bring it weekly. Excellent new show in Game Notes too, and the Sandbaggers are must watch. Thanks for the hard work boys!” (Source)

Another shared the following:

“This was one of my favorite podcasts of all time, it gives so much inside on hockey stats and hockey culture. There are always stories and news to be told and it makes for a very entertaining hour or two.

On long drives, it is more entertaining than listening to music sometimes, especially when you just want to relax and have a good laugh or two.

RA, Whit, and Biz can carry a conversation like no other people they all have the brains, mostly RA, but hockey stories are never short when they talk.

It also makes me reflect on how hockey has changed my life, while they tell stories it takes me back to stories that have happened through my many years of playing.

I will always remember my friends that have become my family and I will always love them no matter what. I think many people will like it for the same reasons as me because many hockey players have similar experiences and relate to other hockey players.” (Source)

Although the online reception of the podcast is generally positive, some listeners complain that the number of ads in recent months has become distracting.

Also, while some listeners love the casual chats between hosts, others enjoy the podcast less when the discussion veers away from its primary focus – the NHL.