NBA And NHL Playoffs Into The “Quarters”

Both the Sunday home teams, the NHL Dallas Stars, who had lost the first two games at home vs the defending champion, Las Vegas Golden Knights and Cleveland Cavaliers in an all home series vs the Orlando Magic, advanced to the quarterfinal round, with game 7 wins.

The Stars won a series for just the second time after losing its first two tilts, the previous one in their first NHL series, an NHL “quarter”/expansion Western Division semi-final vs the L.A. Kings in 1968.

Five “quarters” games have been played thus far and the big story is that the Minnesota Timberwolves won both games at defending champion, Denver, the second one last night in a devastating (104-80) rout.

That result, among “else,” means the defending champions lost on 3 straight nights.

The Golden Knights were eliminated in a (2-1) loss and after winning the first two at Dallas, vs the Stars nee Minnesota North Stars. Denver now after losing the first two games at home goes to Minnesota for games 3 and 4 vs the Timberwolves.

Elsewhere, Jalen Brunson joined Mr. Jordan and Bernard King, behind only Jerry West (6) (please Brian Anderson, cite him as Jerry West not as “The logo,”) with a 4th straight 40 or more points playoffs tilt in a (121-117) Knicks “quarters” opening game win vs Indiana (Pacers).

The game 1 winner won all 7 previous Pacers/Knicks series, “Indy” 4 times all in best of 7 series, (once in a “semi” before being 6’d by the first of 5 Kobe Bryant Lakers’ title teams) and the Knicks thrice, twice in semis, before title round losses in ’94 (alas O.J. ran so well in football, “ran” in ’94 with both the Knicks and eventual champion New York Rangers making big ‘offs “runs” and these 30 years later, the Knicks and Rangers are up (1-0) in their “quarters,” already qualifying as an ‘offs “RUN.”

While the aforementioned Rangers scored 4 goals, never trailing and holding off series favorite, but lower seed, Carolina (Hurricanes) in their late Sunday afternoon opener, the Bruins again down (1-0) won (4-1) at Florida vs the Panthers in their quarterfinal series opening game.

In that only other Stars, then the North Stars and Minnesota based, series win after losing the first two games, it was Cesare Maniago, pictured above in goal for the franchise.