Cities/Areas With Teams In Both The NBA And NHL Playoffs
One can “stretch it” both in imagination and geography and cite 5 cities/areas, with teams in both the NBA and NHL playoffs in 2019.
Clearly, Boston with the Bruins and Celtics, each having home advantage in their first round series, qualifies.
So does Toronto, whose NBA Raptors have home advantage, while the NHL Maple Leafs, facing the aforementioned Bruins, do not.
Denver,Colorado or Denver/Colorado has the NBA Nuggets with home advantage, being the Western Conference “2′ seed and the Colorado Avalanche in the ‘offs, as the lowest seed from the NHL Western Conference.
The extended metropolitan area of New York is off to a good ‘offs start, with its NHL and NBA representative.
As was the case in 1975, but reversed, there is a (3-0) series involving the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins. Then the Pens led (3-0) only to lose in 7, now the Islanders with series home advantage, are ahead by that 3 games to none margin.
Meanwhile, the Brooklyn Nets walked into Philadelphia and won fairly easily vs the 76ers in game 1. They are still series underdogs, however, nowhere near to the degree they were when the series began.
Finally a “stretch” for the same area, but clearly different cities, as the two time NBA champion Golden State Warriors, playing their final season at Oracle Arena in Oakland and hoping, perhaps against hope, not their final season with potential “double dipper” Durant (Kevin), have home advantage as the NBA West top seed.
The NHL, close by, San Jose Sharks, have now lost home advantage and in fact trail, last year’s first year NHL finalist, Las Vegas (Golden Knights), two games to one.
En route to an eventual final series loss to Washington last season, (Capitals) the amazing first year Golden Knights 6’d the Sharks in the NHL quarterfinal round.
So many memories, including many great ones with Durant for the Warriors at Oracle Arena.