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.
Tomorrow night the NHL first round continues with four series openers. One series opens Friday night. My predictions on those five series follows.
In the Eastern Conference on Thursday, the 11th playoffs series between the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers begins. The Flyers have won six of the ten previous ones. I pick the Rangers to win this one in five games.
Also in the Eastern Conference, beginning Friday, I pick the top ranked Boston Bruins to win in five games vs the Detroit Red Wings. These two “original six” NHL teams are meeting in the playoffs for the first time since 1957.
In the NHL Western Conference, my picks are the St. Louis Blues to win in six games vs the Chicago Blackhawks, the Minnesota Wild to upset the Colorado Avalanche in a tough 7 game series, while my third choice is San Jose (Sharks) to avenge last year’s all home 7 game loss to the L.A. Kings, by winning in six games.
The NHL Stanley Cup playoffs begin tomorrow night with three preliminary series games. Here are my predictions on those series.
The Eastern Conference team with the second most points, the Pittsburgh Penguins, are my choice, but in a tough series (say six games) vs the upstart Columbus Blue Jackets.
The other Eastern Conference series beginning tomorrow night is between the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning. My pick: Montreal, a slight underdog, in six games.
Out in the Western Conference the top points team, the Anaheim Ducks, take on the Dallas Stars. My upset prediction is the Stars to win in seven games.
Although the St. Louis Blues’ six game loss skein that cost them the NHL Central title is one of the great season ending collapses in a long time, the Blues are still a viable Stanley Cup contender. They finished with the third best record in the NHL West.
Before looking forward, let’s recall the Blues had a 7 point lead in the Central Division after their last regular season win vs Buffalo on April 3rd. They proceeded to lose weekend games to Colorado at home and then at Chicago. Next a home loss to Washington, road losses to Minnesota and Dallas and yesterday’s home loss to Detroit. Six games, no points, and instead of a likely one seed in the West and possibly in the league, they are third in the West.
However, the real season–the playoffs–begin on Wednesday (Thursday for Blues/Blackhawks), and I predict the Blues will “right the ship,” and defeat the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks in the first round of the playoffs.
