Obligatory Hockey Post
Worst. Game Seven. Ever. If Gary Bettman truly wants to make the NHL playoffs more interesting, he should pull a David Stern and rig the outcomes. Or at least so the games are competitive. The stage was set. Sidney Crosby against Alexander Ovechkin. The future of the NHL battling it out for it would seem the first of many times. Then before the second period began, the game was unofficially over. Final score: 6-2. The way the previous six games had played out, this game was supposed to go into 47 overtimes. Crosby and Ovechkin were supposed to have hat tricks. And the nation was supposed to be captivated. Nonetheless, playoff hockey is always a treat and for one fateful series, those two superstars made it relevant again.
Headlines
Celtics wins in OT over Bulls, lead series 3-2
I don't think I can take it anymore. Someone has got to stop the Celtics. The Bulls were up by 6 with 2:00 left in the game and still lost. Then Paul Pierce did what Paul Pierce does and hit every fade away jumper down the stretch. And he took them all from the same spot. John Salmons was wasting his time trying to man Pierce up around the court, he could have just stood on the right foul line extended and waited for Pierce to come to him. But no, Salmons fell for every head fake and juke thinking that Pierce was going to take him off the dribble. Which of course he wouldn't. The game could have been tied if Brad Miller had hit his two free throws with 2 seconds left. But you have to cut him some slack, he nearly got his head cut off by Rajon Rondo while driving down the lane. If there was wasn't so much home-cooking, the referees would have called that a flagrant foul. I have watched that replay 100 times, and I have yet to be convinced that Rondo was going for the ball. He may have had the intention of going for the ball pre-jumping, but once he was in the air and saw that the ball was out of reach, he decided to take a swipe at Miller's face making sure he didn't make the shot. But you can get away with that if you're a Celtic. Remember, it's good for the league. The Greater Good!
Capitals defeat Rangers 2-1 in Game 7, advance
Well it was fun while it lasted. Those seven games satisfied my hockey fix for the year. It really is a shame that the Rangers choked so bad though. Being up three games to one, it seemed they had a date with the Boston Bruins in the second round. Instead, they'll be heading back to Canada or Mother Russia, or wherever it is they go in the offseason. Now that the Rangers have been eliminated, I have to chose another team to root for. And obviously that team will be any team that is playing the Boston Bruins. So "Go Washington!" Boston has had too many championships over the past several years. The Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics, and even Boston University has won major championships recently. A Stanley Cup Finals Championship would just be icing on the cake for them. And I don't think I can take another reason for New England to gloat, they're already smug to begin with. With they're Sam Adams and Quincy Park, it's time for them to be cut down to size. Who's with me?!
New York Jets release Brett Favre
This is a fun story. On Tuesday night, Brett Favre was released from the reserve-retired list of the New York Jets. This being on the heels of New York's draft pick of Mark Sanchez. In a statement Favre said, "Nothing has changed. At this time, I am retired and have no intention of returning to football". Oh he's a clever one, isn't he? "At this time". He knows what he's doing. Leaving the door ajar just a little bit, maybe for a possible 97th comeback. I have no problem with him wanting to play football. What I don't understand is his constant flip-flopping on the subject. If you want to play, say you want to play. He knows if he goes back to Pumpkin Nuts, Mississippi, they'll be no crowds, no gun-slinging, no river-boat gambling, no Madden, no fun. There will just be his John Deere tractor and acres of land for him to fiddle around on. He isn't a talking head. He would be lost on ESPN, on FOX, on CBS, or the NFL Network. He would show up to work in his Wranglers and act like Uncle Rico:
The Melk Man, Henrik Lundqvist, among other things
Rangers defeat Capitals 2-1, lead series 3-1
There's nothing quite like hopping onto a bandwagon. For 82 regular season hockey games, I may have watched 30 seconds of action, and that was by accident. I probably sat on the remote or thought something else was on that channel. But now, with the Rangers only 1 win away from facing the Bruins in the Eastern Conference semifinals, I can't help but watch. Since the playoffs started, I have not missed 1 minute of play. With all the power-plays, icings, cross-checkings, high-stickings, and things of that nature, I am nothing short of enthralled. Those last few minutes of the Rangers game tonight were exhilarating. I was glued to the television and was able to sufficiently ignore any of my work.
Melky Cabrera homerun lifts Yankees over Athletics in 14 innings
Is this the beginning of the end for Brett Gardner? Clearly it's too early to make that decision. But Melky is making a valiant effort to take back his old job. At the beginning of the season, it seemed as if the difference in Gardner and Cabrera was negligible. Not anymore. Looks like they will be splitting time over the next few weeks. Could get interesting. One thing is certain, Brett Gardner would look out of place in this music video.
Lions are looking to sign Stafford before draft
Makes sense. The Lions NEED a player who has the potential to change the makeup of that franchise, specifically a quarterback. Quick! Name any Detroit Lions quarterback. Couldn't think of one, could you? No, Joey Harrington doesn't count. He may have been under center, but that doesn't make him a quarterback.
Detroit Lions first round draft picks (Last ten years):
1999: Chris Claiborne (USC), Aaron Gibson (Wisconsin)
2000: Stockar McDougle (Oklahoma)
2001: Jeff Backus (Michigan)
2002: Joey Harrington (Oregon)
2003: Charles Rogers (Michigan State)
2004: Roy Williams (Texas), Kevin Jones (Virginia Tech)
2005: Mike Williams (USC)
2006: Ernie Sims (Florida State)
2007: Calvin Johnson (Georgia Tech)
2008: Gosder Cherilus (Boston College)
All together now...who? I mean, there is some talent in there, but no true "franchise" players. The Lions are hoping Matthew Stafford can change a decade of ineptitude. My only concern is that the extent of their draft analysis was based solely around his performance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon:
MLB Attendance Study (Day 3):
New York Mets at St. Louis Cardinals (Busch Stadium)
Attendance: 35,622
Los Angeles Dodgers at Houston Astros (Minute Maid Park)
Attendance: 26,725
Cincinnati Reds at Chicago Cubs (Wrigley Field)
Attendance: 38,738
Minnesota Twins at Boston Red Sox, Game 1 (Fenway Park)
Attendance: 37,494
Minnesota Twins at Boston Red Sox, Game 2 (Fenway Park)
Attendance: 37,290
Texas Rangers at Toronto Blue Jays (Rogers Centre)
Attendance: 13,090
Kansas City Royals at Cleveland Indians (Progressive Field)
Attendance: 13,509
Chicago White Sox at Baltimore Orioles (Oriole Park at Camden Yards)
Attendance: 10,868
Milwaukee Brewers at Philadelphia Phillies (Citizens Bank Park)
Attendance: 32,759
Oakland Athletics at New York Yankees (Yankee Stadium)
Attendance: 43,342
Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals (Nationals Park)
Attendance: 15,567
San Diego Padres at San Francisco Giants (AT&T Park)
Attendance: 26,593
Colorado Rockies at Arizona Diamondbacks (Chase Field)
Attendance: 19,147
Florida Marlins at Pittsburgh Pirates (PNC Park)
Attendance: 10,655
Tampa Bay Rays at Seattle Mariners (Safeco Field)
Attendance: 16,476
Detroit Tigers at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (Angel Stadium)
Attendance: 43,047
Average: 26,307.63
Late Night 90s Song:
If you have any suggestions for songs or basically anything, let me know. The comments are at the bottom right.
Rangers beat Capitals, lead series 1-0
Don't you dare accuse me of being a fair weather fan! I have always supported the Rangers. Just take a look at my posts from the past few months. You will see dozens of posts dedicated solely to the blue shirts...
Actually no, you will not. Look, I kind of enjoy hockey. It's a fun, fast-paced sport with a lot of talented athletes. But for some reason I just do not pay that much attention to it. I know the big name players like Joe Thornton, Alexander Ovechkin, and Sidney Crosby. I also know a fair amount about the Rangers, "my team". But it is not enough to consider myself a fan per se. Hockey just doesn't excite me the way the other major sports do. Editor's note: "Excite" isn't the best word to be used there.
But anyway, it's time for me to get in the good graces of hockey fans. That is why I will be following the 2009 NHL Playoffs. All seven months of it!
- I need to start writing again. I don't know why I stopped. It's tough, fun and therapeutic.
- @michaelianblack Sorry dude, I tried following you for a while. But you're clogging my newsfeed with the unfunny. /unfollows
- @KingJames is so insufferable. His tweets are so self-serving and transparent.
- RT @Buster_ESPN: It looks like Ben Sheets may have torn his flexor tendon.
- My crotch is starting to itch. THAT MUST MEAN "JERSEY SHORE" IS COMING BACK!
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