The Montreal Canadiens’ first round win assures an “Original Six” battle in the NHL quarterfinals.
Montreal’s likely opponent will be the top ranked Boston Bruins, who took a commanding three games to one series lead winning in overtime last night at Detroit, vs the Red Wings.
Elsewhere in the NHL East, 4 straight times the team leading (3-1) has lost (4-3) and now the Pittsburgh Penguins/Columbus Blue Jackets series stands at two games apiece.
In the other Eastern Conference series the New York Rangers lead the Philadelphia Flyers two games to one. The Rangers won games one and three.
The Portland Trail Blazers (vs the Houston Rockets) and Washington Wizards (vs the Chicago Bulls) were each nine to five underdogs in their first round series. After two road wins by each team, a very difficult feat, each team is now a prohibitive favorite to win the series.
LaMarcus Aldridge has been brilliant for the Trail Blazers. He followed his 46 point effort in game 1 with 43 points in game two.
The Wizards, with balanced scoring, won each of the first two games in Chicago.
The success of these two teams evokes memories of their past glory and similar history.
The Trail Blazers won their only NBA crown in 1977. The team was even better for most of 1978. However, they failed to repeat as NBA champions largely due to an injury to star player, Bill Walton.
Similarly, the Wizards franchise then known as the Bullets won their only NBA title in 1978. The team had a better record in 1979 but were beaten in the NBA finals by the Seattle Supersonics, the team the Bullets beat in the 1978 finals.
“Pele Why Soccer Matters,” is an interesting book that gives the reader good insight into not only an all time great athlete, but also reveals much about World Cup Soccer history.
Pele, born Edson Arantes do Nascimento and named for Thomas Edison (somehow the “i” was omitted in the spelling) is of the old adage “there is no “I” in team.” Maybe the omitted “I” was destined.
He was the consummate team player: an extraordinary goal scorer, but aided by great peripheral vision, an equally great passer and team player.
Moreover, Pele is and has been beyond charitable, patient, outgoing and a promoter of soccer for over five decades.
I knew about and marveled at the 3 World Cup titles for Brazil with Pele.
He led the incredible increase in soccer participation in the United States, when in 1975 he signed to play for the New York Cosmos of The North American Soccer League. He later helped the team win the league title in 1977.
From the book I gained great insight into Brazil’s history and accounts of World Cups played in 1950, 1966 and 1970 among others.
The book, a quick, easy interesting read added nuggets about Pele’s fame, dealing with it, and above all his love for people, starting with his family. “Pele Why Soccer Matters,” is a very good book about an extraordinary person.
There is one winner and one almost certain winner in the first round of the NHL playoffs as of now.
The Montreal Canadiens won (4-3) in game four at home to sweep the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Canadiens are the only one of the seven NHL teams from Canada to qualify for this year’s playoffs.
Game 4 was a “nail-biter” tied (3-3) in the last minute of regulation time until Max Pacioretty scored to essentially wrap up the series for Montreal. Pacioretty plays for the Canadiens and also was a member of the 2014 United States Olympic hockey team. Quite a story.
Meanwhile the San Jose Sharks also won (4-3) and lead the Los Angeles Kings 3 games to none in their first round series. Last year the Sharks failed to win in all four games at Los Angeles and hence lost in 7 games in their quarterfinal series vs the Kings.
Patrick Marleau was the hero for the Sharks scoring in overtime to win game three. It is the fourth career, playoff overtime goal for Marleau.
The six other NHL series stand at two games to one. In the Eastern Conference, three higher ranked teams the Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers won game three on the road to take the series lead.
Their respective opponents are the Detroit Red Wings, Columbus Blue Jackets and Philadelphia Flyers.
In the Western Conference, despite game three road losses, the Anaheim Ducks, Colorado Avalanche and St. Louis Blues enjoy two games to one series leads.
Their respective opponents are the Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild and defending Stanley Cup champion, Chicago Blackhawks.
Max Pacioretty
It has been a very odd NHL playoff series between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Columbus Blue Jackets to this point.
First off, the Pens lead two games to one without any goals from supposed great, Sidney Crosby.
More interesting, and likely virtually unprecedented, is the fact the winning team in all three games, trailed by a (3-1) score and scored the game’s last 3 goals to win by a (4-3) final.
Columbus won a playoff game for the first time in their history in game 2 at Pittsburgh. Now they will try to win their first home playoff game ever and even the series in game four tomorrow night in Columbus, Ohio.
After the respective Eastern and Western Conference favorites, the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs. won their opening games, the night games produced two fairly big upsets in NBA first round opening games yesterday.
First, the Washington Wizards, nearly five point underdogs, went into Chicago and upset the Bulls in game one.
In the next game, the six point underdog Portland Trail Blazers won by two points in Houston vs the Rockets.
The road team/underdog won 5 of 8 first round opening games. Surely that is a record since this format began in 1984.
Yesterday, three of four road underdogs won NBA first round playoffs series opening games.
The Brooklyn Nets, favorites in the series, but underdogs in game one, won in Toronto vs the Raptors.
Next, give coach Mark Jackson and his Golden State Warriors credit, as they upset the L.A. Clippers in game one of their first round series. The game aired nationally on ABC television.
At night, the Eastern Conference 8th seed, the Atlanta Hawks, won in Indiana vs the top seed Pacers.
The lone home team to win was Oklahoma City (Thunder) as they won fairly easily vs the Memphis Grizzlies.
I predicted series wins for the Thunder and Nets and see no reason to change there.
I still think both the Clippers and Pacers will come back to win their series but now game 2 at home is a near “must win” for both teams.
By the way, neither team (Pacers or Clippers) has ever won an NBA crown. Just once in 2000 when the Pacers lost to the L.A. Lakers did either advance to the NBA finals.
There will be four NBA first round series opening games tomorrow. My predictions on those series follows.
Three of the four NBA Eastern Conference teams playing tomorrow have links to basketball great, Michael Jordan. He played for both the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards and is the majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. The other team, the two time champion Miami Heat, features today’s most famous player, LeBron James.
Miami should have no problem with Charlotte and will win in five. In the other Eastern Conference series starting tomorrow, Jordan’s main team as a player, the Bulls (6 NBA titles, all with Jordan) in six games vs his “bogus return to basketball” team, the Wizards.
In the Western Conference, the top ranked San Antonio Spurs are hoping to win a fifth title, all since 1999, and first since 2007. Their first round opponent, fellow Texas team, the Dallas Mavericks, have won one NBA title, but it is the more recent one, having won it in 2011. The Spurs to win this series in 5 games.
The other series matches the Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers. Slight apologies, but the Rockets make it 8 of 8 favorites that I picked, say in six games.
Four of the eight NBA first round playoff series begin tomorrow. My predictions on the outcome of those series follows.
In the first game the Brooklyn Nets take on the Toronto Raptors. Though the Raptors are the third seed and the Nets the sixth seed, the Nets are almost nine to five series favorites. I will go along with the oddsmakers and pick the Nets to win in six games.
In the two Western Conference playoff series opening tomorrow, I will pick the prohibitive favorites. The Oklahoma City Thunder in five games vs the Memphis Grizzlies and the L.A. Clippers in six games vs the Golden State Warriors.
Mark Jackson is the coach for Golden State. A friend of mine roots for Jackson, hoping he will remain as coach, rather than return to his former job as a Disney NBA commentator–a role he was not good in.
Last, I predict the Eastern Conference top seed, Indiana Pacers to dispatch the Atlanta Hawks in five games. Tomorrow my predictions on the four remaining first round NBA playoff series.
Arizona sports teams, (there is one in each of the four major North American sports leagues) have either just missed the playoffs or started the season in miserable fashion.
The football Cardinals actually had a fine, unexpected season but lost out for the sixth and final playoff spot in the NFC on the season’s final day.
Similar misfortune befell the Arizona winter sports teams the NBA Suns (their (48-34) record was topped by only two teams in the NBA’s Eastern Conference) and the NHL Coyotes.
The Suns finished ninth in the NBA West as did the Coyotes in the NHL Western Conference. The top eight teams qualified for the playoffs.
The worst performance is by the Kirk Gibson managed baseball Diamondbacks, who have started the season (4-14) and were just swept in a three game home series by the (8-7) New York Mets. The D/Backs still have a long season ahead of them but it sure does not look good for them right now.
Andy B Sports 