A barbed hockey rebuild debate weighs patience, prospects, and the wait for a bolder trade.
Faxes From Uncle Dale frames a hockey rebuild as an argument about patience, prospect development, and the right moment for an aggressive trade.
Chicago sports misery, argued at full speed.
The gist
Faxes From Uncle Dale turns Chicago sports frustration into a fast, argumentative hang. The recurring crew works through Hawks seasons, Olympic hockey, trades, draft logic, and stray wrestling jokes with the patience level of people who have already seen enough.
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About Faxes From Uncle Dale
Faxes From Uncle Dale is a Chicago sports show with the rhythm of a group chat that happened to find microphones. Hawks frustration is the engine. The crew talks through bad losses, late-season drift, rebuild anxiety, draft logic, trade conditions, and the nagging suspicion that patience has been asked to do too much work. It can be very funny. It can also get genuinely exact about why a move, prospect, or front-office posture feels wrong. Recent episodes spend real time on the Hawks season, Seth Jones, Kyle Davidson, Frondell, Nazar, and what an aggressive trade might even look like from this front office. The conversation rarely stays in one lane. Olympic hockey brings out Team USA expectations, Auston Matthews skepticism, McDavid comparisons, Slovakia worries, and the familiar bitterness of watching talented teams play small. There are also side pockets for Illini Corner, Opening Day, TNA, Wrestling Brain’s Twitch orbit, Pitbull jokes, and whatever else has been scribbled onto the yellow pad. The show does not behave like a clean studio panel. It starts fast, backfills later, and trusts the audience to keep up. Sam Fells anchors the proceedings, but the format depends on the recurring four-way friction among Andrew Cieslak, Matt McClure, Fifth Feather, and the wider named crew. The comedy is dry and often deliberately ugly around the edges. The sports memory is the useful part. A throwaway joke can turn into a serious point about roster construction. A complaint about local reporting can become a larger argument about how teams sell patience. A hockey tangent can end with a fairly clear theory of who disappears when games tighten. That looseness is the brand. Faxes From Uncle Dale suits fans who want Chicago sports talk without the studio manners, who can follow NHL shorthand, and who enjoy hearing smart people sound annoyed for defensible reasons. It is not gentle onboarding. It is a cranky, referential, local room where the joke lands best when the sports point underneath it is also right.
Made for: For Chicago sports fans, especially Hawks followers, who already know the names and want sharper frustration than a standard recap. It also fits listeners who enjoy hockey-heavy arguments with wrestling detours and local grudges.
What sets it apart: The show’s strength is the mix of informed roster talk and unstable table chemistry. It treats rebuild minutiae, Olympic hockey, and throwaway jokes as part of the same living conversation.
In their own words
Musings and ramblings from the decaying minds of the authors of Faxes From Uncle Dale.
As heard by us
Based on 5 episodes we listened to · September 2026
A combative Chicago panel connects Blackhawks results to roster strategy, organizational judgment and the uncertain arithmetic of a rebuild.
Faxes From Uncle Dale treats Chicago hockey as an argument that never really adjourns. Sam Fells leads a four-person conversation that moves between the Blackhawks and international play, with the Bears occasionally entering the comparison.
Why you'd press play
Chicago hockey gets the fatal-four-way treatment, and you get every grievance sharpened into a punchline.
Press play if you want
- Chicago hockey analysis that lets you cross-examine the front office's patience
- Olympic and NHL arguments specific enough for you to object before the sentence ends
Chicago Hawks season recapsHawks rebuild frustrationNHL trades and draft picksOlympic hockey and Team USAAuston Matthews pressure momentsIllini CornerOpening Daypro wrestling detours
Talks about
Best episodes of Faxes From Uncle Dale
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A sharp, loose Olympic hockey discussion about the U.S., Slovakia, and Auston Matthews under pressure.
Olympic hockey gives the episode its main pressure, with Sam Fells and the panel circling Sweden's tying goal, the U.S. grinding through another tight game, Slovakia's confidence, and Auston Matthews leaving major chances unfinished.
A conditional pick keeps the Seth Jones trade up for debate.
A conditional draft pick gives the crew plenty to chew on during the February hockey doldrums. They revisit the Hawks' Seth Jones trade and wonder why the pick's condition was not clear in the first reports. One speaker finds the protection frustrating.
A loose Chicago sports roundtable where Bears and Blackhawks talk keeps swerving into odd comedy.
Faxes From Uncle Dale brings its fatal-four-way panel back for a relaxed Chicago sports roundtable, moving from the Bears' quarterback situation and Ben Johnson taking the Chicago job into the Blackhawks' coaching problem.
A loose panel turns Hawks coaching anxiety and Connor Bedard frustration into candid, strange sports comedy.
The panel starts loose and sports-minded, then settles into a more pointed Hawks discussion: why Connor Bedard has not made the coaching job feel more attractive.
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The Maroon And White PodGalway GAA, talked through properly.
The Netball ShowNetball voices, match detail, and court-side reflection.
Episodes
- 1
Live From The Five Hole – Hey Jealousy
·1h 12m - 2
Live From The Five Hole – Liberation Frequency
·1h 18m - 3
Live From The Five Hole – Alternative Ulster
·1h 12m - 4
Live From The Five Hole – Pain Is A Must
·1h 12m - 5
Live From The Five Hole – State Of The Union
·1h 8m - 6
Live From The Five Hole – All Over The World
·1h 28m - 7
Live From The Five Hole – Misty Mountain Hop
·1h 17m - 8
Live From The Five Hole – Rose Garden
·1h 19m - 9
Live From The Five Hole – To Shreds, You Say?
·1h 10m - 10
Live From The Five Hole – Executioner’s Tax
·1h 21m - 11
Live From The Five Hole – Dead Saturday
·1h 7m - 12
Live From The Five Hole – O Come, O Come Emmanuel
·1h 11m - 13
Live From The Five Hole – Who Was In My Room Last Night?
·1h 16m - 14
Live From The Five Hole – Light Sleeper
·1h 21m - 15
Live From The Five Hole – Pennsylvania
·1h 21m - 16
Live From The Five Hole – The Fix
·1h 16m - 17
Live From The Five Hole – Menace
·1h 13m - 18
Live From The Five Hole – Don’t Lose Touch
·1h 20m - 19
Live From The Five Hole – Don’t Lose Touch
·1h 20m - 20
Live From The Five Hole – Children In Heat
·1h 22m - 21
Live From The Five Hole – Children In Heat
·1h 22m - 22
Live From The Five Hole – God Owes Me Money
·1h 23m - 23
Live From The Five Hole – God Owes Me Money
·1h 23m - 24
Live From The Five Hole – Ativan Eyes
·1h 17m - 25
Live From The Five Hole – Ativan Eyes
·1h 17m - 26
Live From The Five Hole – Cat Guy
·1h 12m - 27
Live From The Five Hole – Cat Guy
·1h 12m - 28
Live From The Five Hole – Smile Like You Mean It
·1h 31m - 29
Live From The Five Hole – Smile Like You Mean It
·1h 31m - 30
Live From The Five Hole – We’re In This Together
·1h 20m - 31
Live From The Five Hole – We’re In This Together
·1h 20m - 32
Live From The Five Hole – Black Lodge
·1h 4m - 33
Live From The Five Hole – Black Lodge
·1h 4m - 34
Live From The Five Hole – This Could Be Love
·1h 14m - 35
Live From The Five Hole – This Could Be Love
·1h 14m - 36
Live From The Five Hole – Hey Jealousy
·1h 12m - 37
Live From The Five Hole – Dead And Gone
·1h 15m - 38
Live From The Five Hole – Everything
·1h 7m - 39
Live From The Five Hole – Everything
·1h 7m - 40
Live From The Five Hole – Land of Confusion
·1h 5m - 41
Live From The Five Hole – Land of Confusion
·1h 5m - 42
Live From The Five Hole – Sharp Teeth
·54m - 43
Live From The Five Hole – Sharp Teeth
·54m - 44
Live From The Five Hole – I Wanna Be Wrong
·1h - 45
Live From The Five Hole – I Wanna Be Wrong
·1h - 46
Live From the Five Hole – The Choice Is Yours
·56m - 47
Live From the Five Hole – The Choice Is Yours
·56m - 48
Live From The Five Hole – Chemical, Chemical
·59m - 49
Live From The Five Hole – Counting The Days
·47m - 50
Live From The Five Hole – Counting The Days
·47m - 51
Live From The Five Hole – Lovesong
·1h 10m - 52
Live From The Five Hole – Lovesong
·1h 10m - 53
Live From The Five Hole – Freedom Of Choice
·1h 22m - 54
Live From The Five Hole – Freedom Of Choice
·1h 22m - 55
Live From The Five Hole – Better Open The Door
·1h 16m - 56
Live From The Five Hole – Better Open The Door
·1h 16m - 57
Live From The Five Hole – Six Underground
·1h 6m - 58
Live From The Five Hole – Six Underground
·1h 6m - 59
Live From The Five Hole – Story Of The Egg
·1h 15m - 60
Live From The Five Hole – Story Of The Egg
·1h 15m - 61
Live From The Five Hole – Grassroots
·1h 9m - 62
Live From The Five Hole – Grassroots
·1h 9m - 63
Live From The Five Hole – Another Knight
·1h 12m - 64
Live From The Five Hole – Another Knight
·1h 12m - 65
Live From The Five Hole – Pretty Persuasion
·1h 11m - 66
Live From The Five Hole – Pretty Persuasion
·1h 11m - 67
Live From The Five Hole – Ain’t That A Kick In The Head
·1h 13m - 68
Live From The Five Hole – A Certain Shade Of Green
·1h 19m - 69
Live From The Five Hole – Here Comes Your Man
·1h 15m - 70
Live From The Five Hole – California Burritos
·1h 18m - 71
Live From The Five Hole – 25 Or 6 To 4
·1h 16m - 72
Live From The Five Hole – Merry Christmas Again
·1h 24m - 73
Live From The Five Hole – Turnstiles
·1h 14m - 74
Live From The Five Hole – Jaked On Green Beers
·1h 19m - 75
Live From The Five Hole – Squabble Up
·1h 13m - 76
Live From The Five Hole – The Frayed Ends of Sanity
·1h 14m - 77
Live From The Five Hole – Hate It Here
·1h 8m - 78
Live From The Five Hole – Hell Yes
·1h 15m - 79
Live From The Five Hole – Funny Man
·1h 13m - 80
Live From The Five Hole – Demolition Man
·57m - 81
Live From The Five Hole – Sell The House, Sell The Car, Sell The Kids, Find Someone Else
·1h 12m - 82
Live From The Five Hole – Circles
·1h 18m - 83
Live From The Five Hole – The Thing That Should Not Be
·58m - 84
Live From The Five Hole – Every Day Is Exactly The Same
·1h 2m - 85
Live From The Five Hole – Dark Days
·1h 11m - 86
Live From The Five Hole – Somebody Get Me A Doctor
·1h 13m - 87
Live From The Five Hole – Somethin’ Hot
·1h 13m - 88
Live From The Five Hole – Decayin’ With The Boys
·1h 8m - 89
Live From The Five Hole – Eighteen Inches
·58m - 90
Live From The Five Hole – Institutionalized
·1h 6m - 91
Live From The Five Hole – Love Vigilantes
·1h 16m - 92
Live From The Five Hole – Burn Forever
·55m - 93
Live From The Five Hole – TV Party
- 94
Live From The Five Hole – The Hanging Garden
- 95
Live From The Five Hole – What A Fool Believes
·1h 27m - 96
Live From The Five Hole – Presenting: The Dancing Machine (The Robot With The Monkey Head)
Hidden gem["Faxes From Uncle Dale opens with Sam Fels, Andrew Cieslak, Matt McClure, and John joking about a time machine, Van Halen at the Montreal Forum in 1982, and the first Groundlings Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1984.", "The main sports segment focuses on the Chicago Blackhawks hiring Jeff Blasio after David Carl and Mitch Love reportedly said no.", "The panel says the process looked thin once John Buccigross surfaced the hire early, and they argue the roster, Sorenson staffing, and leadership council all point to the same old structure.", "Later, they turn to Connor Bedard trade hypotheticals and the Caleb Williams excerpt circulating in the Wickersham book, using both to debate how Chicago teams handle young stars and public narratives."]
·1h 7m·4 clips - 97
Live From The Five Hole – Sick Of Myself
·1h 8m - 98
Live From The Five Hole – What We’ve Learned
The hosts of 'Live From The Five Hole' return to discuss a Chicago Bears win and introduce their co-hosts with humorous banter.
·1h 16m - 99
Live From The Five Hole – What We’ve Learned
The hosts of Live From The Five Hole return to discuss a Chicago Bears win and introduce their co-hosts.
·1h 16m - 100
Live From The Five Hole – Presenting: The Dancing Machine (The Robot With The Monkey Head)
Sam Fels offers to build a time machine so a co-host can see the first Pee-wee's Playhouse with Phil Hartman and Elvira.
·1h 7m·5 clips - 101
Live From The Five Hole – Right Where It Belongs
Sam Fells and his co-hosts wrap up the hockey season early and discuss various topics in a casual, humorous roundtable format.
Apr 15, 2026·1h 21m - 102
Live From The Five Hole – Dead And Gone
Sam Fels, Andrew Cieslak, Matt McClure, and Fifth Feather John evaluate the Chicago Blackhawks with four NHL games remaining and compare their projected 78-point season with last year's total.
Apr 8, 2026·1h 15m·5 clips - 103
Live From The Five Hole – Liberation Frequency
A hockey podcast crew discusses recent events, including a player's name and upcoming segments, with banter and introductions.
Mar 26, 2026·1h 18m - 104
Live From The Five Hole – Alternative Ulster
Sam Fels and his co-hosts discuss the Chicago Blackhawks' 18th straight loss and other random topics in a comedic hockey podcast.
Mar 18, 2026·1h 12m - 105
Live From The Five Hole – Pain Is A Must
The host and crew return from a hiatus to discuss hockey and wrestling in a lively roundtable format.
Mar 11, 2026·1h 12m - 106
Live From The Five Hole – State Of The Union
Hidden gemSam Fells, John, Andrew Cieslak, and Matt McClure compare the recent Canada-U.S.
Feb 25, 2026·1h 8m·2 clips - 107
Live From The Five Hole – All Over The World
Hidden gemSam Fells, Andrew Cieslak, and the regular crew break down the Olympic quarterfinals for Canada, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Czechia, Slovakia, Germany, and the U.S.
Feb 19, 2026·1h 28m·2 clips - 108
Live From The Five Hole – Misty Mountain Hop
Faxes From Uncle Dale returns with Sam Fells, Andrew Cieslak, Matt McClure, and Fifth Feather discussing the Super Bowl, Olympic hockey, and Chicago sports during the February doldrums.
Feb 11, 2026·1h 17m·5 clips - 109
Live From The Five Hole – Rose Garden
Jan 29, 2026·1h 19m - 110
Live From The Five Hole – To Shreds, You Say?
Jan 21, 2026·1h 10m - 111
Live From The Five Hole – Executioner’s Tax
Jan 15, 2026·1h 21m - 112
Live From The Five Hole – Dead Saturday
The hosts return from a hiatus to discuss a playoff preview for their wrestling podcast.
Jan 8, 2026·1h 7m - 113
Live From The Five Hole – O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Dec 24, 2025·1h 11m - 114
Live From The Five Hole – Who Was In My Room Last Night?
Dec 17, 2025·1h 16m - 115
Live From The Five Hole – Light Sleeper
Dec 11, 2025·1h 21m - 116
Live From The Five Hole – Pennsylvania
Dec 4, 2025·1h 21m - 117
Live From The Five Hole – The Fix
Nov 20, 2025·1h 16m - 118
Live From The Five Hole – Menace
Nov 12, 2025·1h 13m - 119
Live From The Five Hole – Don’t Lose Touch
Nov 5, 2025·1h 20m - 120
Live From The Five Hole – Don’t Lose Touch
Nov 5, 2025·1h 20m - 121
Live From The Five Hole – Children In Heat
Oct 30, 2025·1h 22m - 122
Live From The Five Hole – Children In Heat
Oct 30, 2025·1h 22m - 123
Live From The Five Hole – God Owes Me Money
A sports podcast crew discusses recent Chicago Bears and Blackhawks wins in a lively, irreverent roundtable format.
Oct 23, 2025·1h 23m - 124
Live From The Five Hole – God Owes Me Money
A sports podcast episode discussing recent wins by the Chicago Bears and Blackhawks, featuring a roundtable of hosts with banter and introductions.
Oct 23, 2025·1h 23m - 125
Live From The Five Hole – Ativan Eyes
Oct 15, 2025·1h 17m - 126
Live From The Five Hole – Ativan Eyes
Oct 15, 2025·1h 17m - 127
Live From The Five Hole – Cat Guy
Oct 8, 2025·1h 12m - 128
Live From The Five Hole – Cat Guy
Oct 8, 2025·1h 12m - 129
Live From The Five Hole – Smile Like You Mean It
Oct 2, 2025·1h 31m - 130
Live From The Five Hole – Smile Like You Mean It
Oct 2, 2025·1h 31m - 131
Live From The Five Hole – What We’ve Learned
Sep 25, 2025·1h 16m - 132
Live From The Five Hole – What We’ve Learned
Sep 25, 2025·1h 16m - 133
Live From The Five Hole – We’re In This Together
Sep 17, 2025·1h 20m - 134
Live From The Five Hole – We’re In This Together
Sep 17, 2025·1h 20m - 135
Live From The Five Hole – Black Lodge
Sep 10, 2025·1h 4m - 136
Live From The Five Hole – Black Lodge
Sep 10, 2025·1h 4m - 137
Live From The Five Hole – This Could Be Love
Sep 3, 2025·1h 14m - 138
Live From The Five Hole – This Could Be Love
Sep 3, 2025·1h 14m - 139
Live From The Five Hole – Hey Jealousy
Aug 27, 2025·1h 12m - 140
Live From The Five Hole – Hey Jealousy
Aug 27, 2025·1h 12m - 141
Live From The Five Hole – Everything
Aug 20, 2025·1h 7m - 142
Live From The Five Hole – Everything
Aug 20, 2025·1h 7m - 143
Live From The Five Hole – Land of Confusion
Aug 14, 2025·1h 5m - 144
Live From The Five Hole – Land of Confusion
Aug 14, 2025·1h 5m - 145
Live From The Five Hole – Sharp Teeth
Aug 8, 2025·54m - 146
Live From The Five Hole – Sharp Teeth
Aug 8, 2025·54m - 147
Live From The Five Hole – I Wanna Be Wrong
Jul 2, 2025·1h - 148
Live From The Five Hole – I Wanna Be Wrong
Jul 2, 2025·1h - 149
Live From the Five Hole – The Choice Is Yours
Jun 25, 2025·56m - 150
Live From the Five Hole – The Choice Is Yours
Jun 25, 2025·56m