Generally, Brad Marchand takes the cake in discussions about some of the most polarizing NHL stars. Take his fight with Shayne Gostisbehere in Game 1 against the Hurricanes. His hotheadedness immediately divided the fan base. Yet, things are quite different for NBA icon Charles Barkley, who had nothing but praise for Marchand and nothing but ‘hate’ for Florida Panthers’ Seth Jones.

“I love watching Marchand. He is one of those guys you would love to play with. I have nothing but admiration and respect for him. And let me tell you something. I hate Seth Jones. I really do,” Barkley said during the NHL Altcast. However, why he hated the Cats’ defenseman with so much passion is what truly took fellow hosts Paul Bissonette and Will Arnett off guard.

Now, you must be wondering what the 30-year-old did to displease the former NBA star so much. Well, it turns out the Florida Panthers star is completely innocent. So what gives? Barkley clarified. “His dad. I played in the NBA for all those years. His dad was the only person who kicked my a** all the time to this day,” said the 62-year-old.

While it’s been 28 years since Barkley last played against Ronald Jerome ‘Popeye’ Jones in 1997, the 11x NBA All-Star hasn’t forgotten the old days. While the former Houston Rockets star explained he could hold his own against Hall of Famers like Kevin McHale and Kevin Garnett, facing Popeye Jones was a different story. “I’ve never had any success against Papa Jones, and to this day I have no idea why,” added Barkley.

This may be surprising considering the stats the Hall of Famer garnered while playing against Jones. Statmuse reports the NBA legend averaging 23.1 points, 12.1 rebounds, and 3.9 assists against Popeye Jones, in 10 games. Popeye, on the other hand, averaged just 10.5 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. Even without the numbers, it’s easy to say Barkley was far better than Jones. Yet, whenever Barkley runs into Jones’ father, he makes it a point to tell him that he was the better player. “My guy’s Popeye Jones man, every time I see him I just shake his hand and say, ‘You a better man to me,'” Barkley once said. Unfortunately, the Florida Panthers player has become a casualty of Barkley’s NBA rivalry with his father. Yet, it’s safe to say that the NHL player won’t be losing any sleep over Barkley’s harsh words.

The Florida Panthers wiped the floor with the Hurricanes

If Game 1 wasn’t any indication that the Panthers intended to dominate the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference finals, then Game 2 left no doubt. “We packed for three games,” Matthew Tkachuk said in his cheeky jab at the Canes before beating them 5-2 in Game 1. Meanwhile, Canes’ coach Rod Brind’Amour wanted to express that things would be more evenly matched than people were expecting it to be after Game 1. “You’ve got to give them credit. They get a chance, it’s in the net. I didn’t hate our game tonight. It’s going to be hard, it’s going to go back and forth.”  But looking at Game 2, it doesn’t look like back-and-forth is going to be the case here.

Image via Facebook/Florida PanthersThe Panthers, including Seth Jones, put on a clinic, scoring 3 goals after 5 shots in the first period. Did the Canes try to hit back? Yes! But whenever they did manage to get the puck past the defense, Sergei Bobrovsky stood like a wall. The Panthers’ goalie produced his third shutout of the playoffs (the most by a Panthers goalie in one season), keeping the Hurricanes at bay while the Florida Panthers scored two more to make it 5-0.

“Now the goals aside, just the way we played in the first period was as good as it gets,” said Matthew Tkachuk. The game marked the Panthers’ sixth straight win against the Hurricanes in the Conference Finals. For the Hurricanes, it’s their 14th straight loss in the same round. Needless to say, Brind’Amour has to go back to the drawing board before heading to Florida for Game 3.