• The number 8 seed in the NHL playoffs is supposed to be an afterthought, little more than a minor hurdle for the powerhouse teams to eliminate. However, the LA Kings have turned that notion on its head this year. After defeating the #1 seeded Vancouver Canucks, the Kings turned their sights to the #2 seeded St Louis Blues. The Kings swept the Blues winning all four games in their series to become the first 8th ranked team to beat the #1 and #2 seed in NHL history.
• The other series in the west is at its tipping point with the Phoenix Coyotes leading the Nashville Predators 3-1. This leads to a likely Western Conference final of Los Angeles vs Phoenix, as hockey traditionalists roll over in their graves.
• The Eastern conference is loaded with both more traditional hockey teams, and with more competitive series. The New York Rangers and Washington Capitals will play game 5 tonight in a 2-2 series. Last night the New Jersey Devils defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 to take a 3-1 series lead.
Pujols's wait is (finally) over
• Los Angeles Angels 1st baseman Albert Pujols hit his first home run of the season in his 111th at bat of the season. The 110 at bats prior to the home run were the longest homerless start to a season for a player with 400 or more home runs.
• Pujols signed a gargantuan 10-year $240 million contract in the offseason to move from the St Louis Cardinals to the Angels, and was expected to be a big bat in the middle of the Angels lineup. His struggles have been one of the biggest story lines to start the season.
• The Angels had given Pujols the game off on Saturday to try and get him some rest and take his mind off of baseball for a day. He responded quickly to the rest by crushing a 2-2 pitch by Toronto starter Drew Hutchinson into the left field bleachers. Pujols told the media that he felt a big burden off of him and that he is looking forward to helping the Angels without being a distraction.
Knicks win a playoff game
• The New York Knicks defeated the Miami Heat 89-87 on Sunday to stay alive in the playoffs and live to fight another day. Why is that such a big deal? Well, the Knicks had lost their last 13 consecutive playoff games, an all-time NBA record. To put that in perspective, the last time the Knicks won a single playoff game was 4'024 days ago. The 9/11 attacks had not yet occurred. George W. Bush was just beginning his first term as president. Knicks star Jeremy Lin (who has not played in over month because of an injury) was 12 years old and in middle school.
• Carmelo Anthony scored 41 points, Amar'e Stoudemire had 20 and 10 rebounds and the Knicks had to hold their breath has Dwayne Wade, famous for his buzzer beating shots, clanked a potential game winning 3 pointer off the rim as time expired.
• The Knicks now face the unenviable task of going to Miami and needing to win 2 games there, plus another one in New York to win the series. Given the fact that they're playing against two of the games best players in Wade and Lebron James, that seems very unlikely. But no matter what happens for the rest of this series, as least the Knicks got one win, and that's more than they've been able to accomplish for a while.
No comments:
Post a Comment