Batting Champion Suspended

Performance enhancing drugs strikes again in Major League Baseball. The biggest bugaboo in professional sports strikes agian, this time hitting the defending National League batting champion. A year after leading the NL in hitting, going .333 last year with 205 hits and 58 steals, Miami Marlins 2nd baseman Dee Gordon has been suspended for PED use. The suspension will cost Dee Gordon 80 games, will cost him about $1.65 million in salary during the suspension and makes him ineligible for the postseason, should the Marlins make it to the playoffs. He tested positive for exogenous testosterone and clostebol Oh and of an interesting note, this comes as the first season as Barry Bonds as the hitting coach of the Marlins.

The fact that this happens with Bonds as the hitting coach I'm sure has nothing to do at all with this suspensions, but because he's the Marlins hitting coach and a Marlins player gets suspended for PED use, of course people are going to start making the connection. I'm sure Bonds had nothing to do with it, people just like to talk, you know how the sports world reacts to things like this.

Gordon went to he media after the suspension was announced: "Though I did not do so knowingly, I have been informed that test results showed I ingested something that contained prohibited substances. The hardest part about this is feeling that I have let down my teammates, the organization and the fans," Gordon said. "I have been careful to avoid products that could contain something banned by MLB and the 20+ tests that I have taken and passed throughout my career prove this. I made a mistake and I accept the consequences." (ESPN)

I give Gordon full marks for accepting this suspension like a pro. This comes, like I said, the year after Gorodn won the NL batting title. Gordon is playing in the first year of a new five-year, $50 million deal with Miami in January. This does come as a bit of a surprise to find out that Dee Gordon of all people was caught using steroids. Prior to last year, Gordon had hit above .300 only once in his career, that was hitting .304 in his rookie year. Then he has a big year last year. I don't thin steroids had anything to do with it, I just think he was able to fully find his game and be able to hit at the big league level and with regularity.

I will give baseball a little credit here. They have started to really show the rest of the league, and the baseball world for that matter, that its not just the sluggers who are getting nailed for steroids use. It shows that if anybody gets caught using they will be punished. Its telling people that it doesn't matter who you are or how well your playing, if you get caught using steroids, your going to get punished for it. Simple as that. One of the big things for me is how well will Gordon react and be received when he comes back. He's eligable to return to the Miami lineup on July 28, which will be the Marlins' 102nd game of the year. Can he still be productive at the plate and in the field when he comes back? I think he should be OK and he can keep his nose clean and stay of trouble. He'll be just fine.

NHL 2nd Round Preview

First round is in the books in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. We started with sixteen teams, now were down to eight. Every series in the opening round went at least five games. Both the Kings and Blackhawks were bounced in the opening round, meaning we will have a new Stanley Cup Champion in 2016. The Rangers fail to get out of the first round for the first time since 2011, while the Islanders won their first playoff series since 1993 and in as dramatic a fashion as possible. St. Louis finally got over the hump in the first round, getting revenge against the Blackhawks from two years ago. This marks the first series win for the Blues since 2012. But now the 2nd round is set and we are ready to go.

First up is the Atlantic matchup as the wild card New York Islanders head back to Florida to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa Bay is coming of a five game series win in the opening round against the Detroit Red Wings. This marks the 2nd year in a row the Lightning advanced to the second round after beating the Red Wings in the opening round. Tampa Bay is now 10-7 lifetime in playoff series and are looking to get back to the Eastern Conference Finals for the 2nd year in a row. As for the Islanders, this marks the 1st time since 1993 that they have won a playoff series. They defeated the Florida Panthers in six games. The Islanders are looking to get back to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1993 and are now 168-110 lifetime in the playoffs. This is the second playoff meeting for these teams; their only previous series was in the 2004 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, which Tampa Bay won in five games. New York won two of the three games in this year's regular season series.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 27 New York Islanders 7:00 p.m. Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena
April 30 New York Islanders 3:00 p.m. Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena
May 3 Tampa Bay Lightning 7:00 p.m. New York Islanders Barclays Center
May 6 Tampa Bay Lightning 7:00 p.m. New York Islanders Barclays Center
May 8 New York Islanders TBD Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena
May 10 Tampa Bay Lightning TBD New York Islanders Barclays Center
May 12 New York Islanders TBD Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena

One of the big questions you have to ask yourself if your the Islanders is, do you stick with Thomas Greiss or go back to Jaroslav Halak when he comes back? I say stick with Griess in this series until he can't go anymore. But Greiss has played out of his mind this post season, one of the big reasons why the Islanders have finally one a playoff series. He never gave up a bad goal in that Panthers series and had to stand on his head a few times to keep the Islanders around in that series. Another HUGE reason why the Islanders are where they are right now is captain John Tavares, the 2nd leading scorer in the playoffs at this point. Him and linemates Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo had been the best line in that Florida series (hell Tavares is going to be the best offensive player on both teams in this series). But what could hurt the Islanders in this series is lack of scoring depth. Because outside the top line nobody else really produced against the Panthers.

With the Bolts, yes they are going to be without Steven Stamkos and without Anton Stralman, but Tampa has plenty of scoring depth. They have shown that they can play without Steven Stamkos (who by the way will be a free agent at the end of the season). Enter the line of Alex Killorn, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov. They dominated in the first round against the Detroit Red Wings, scoring 10 of Tampa Bay's 12 goals in that series. Yes that line is back to clicking again just like they did last year in the playoffs. Jonathan Drouin and Ondrej Palat on the second line have also provided backup scoring punch for this Lightning team which is going to make them a tough team to beat. Ben Bishop is better than Thomas Greiss (as good has Greiss has been). Sure Tavares has been carrying the Isles, but I'm not sure they have enough depth to be able to hang with a more battle tested and experienced Lightning team.

Pick: Lightning in 7

Next up is the Presidents Trophy Winning Washington Capitals playing the Metro Division rival the Pittsburgh Penguins. Washington comes in after disposing of the Philadelphia Flyers in six games in the opening round, making this the 2nd straight year the Capitals have gotten to the 2nd round. Here is where Washington struggles, as the Capitals haven't gotten past this round since 1998. Washington is now 15-25 lifetime in playoff series. As for Pittsburgh, they come in having disposed of the New York Rangers in five games, making this the 2nd time in three years that the Pens have gotten past round one. Pittsburgh is looking to make it back to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2013. Pittsburgh is now 168-148 lifetime in the playoffs. This is the ninth playoff meeting for these teams, with Pittsburgh having won seven of the eight previous series. Their most recent meeting was in the 2009 Eastern Conference Semifinals, which Pittsburgh won in seven games. Pittsburgh won three of the five games in this year's regular season series.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 28 Pittsburgh Penguins 8:00 p.m. Washington Capitals Verizon Center
April 30 Pittsburgh Penguins 8:00 p.m. Washington Capitals Verizon Center
May 2 Washington Capitals 8:00 p.m. Pittsburgh Penguins Consol Energy Center
May 4 Washington Capitals 8:00 p.m. Pittsburgh Penguins Consol Energy Center
May 7 Pittsburgh Penguins TBD Washington Capitals Verizon Center
May 10 Washington Capitals TBD Pittsburgh Penguins Consol Energy Center
May 12 Pittsburgh Penguins TBD Washington Capitals Verizon Center

Here we go again. For the 2nd time in their history Crosby and Ovechkin will battle in the playoffs. What surprised me in the first round was how Washington played over the final three games against the Flyers. They had scored twelve goals over the first three games, but held to just four goals over the final three. They still pulled out the win but it still does leave one to scratch your head just a little bit. Philadelphia wasn't very aggressive in that opening round series, where as the Penguins are going to be. Washington is going to be tested in this series. Brooks Orpik, Matt Niskanen John Carlson, Dmitry Orlov and Nate Schmidt are in for a test in this round dealing with that Penguins attack. Washington does have a high powered attack, but at the same time they were held in check in the final two games of the series, only scoring three goals. They need to get it in gear again if they want to have a chance in the series.

Pittsburgh came through big against the Rangers, getting a balanced attack to complement their big guns in Malkin and Crosby. Kessel had a good series as did young guns like Nick Bonino, Carl Hagelin Matt Cullen, and Bryan Rust all had an impact in the series and all in a good way.Pittsburgh is a very fast team and they're a very deep team which is something that the Capitals may have trouble contending with. Pittsburgh has been outstanding, winning three in a row and 18 of their past 21. But I trust Holtby in net right now more than I do the guys in Pittsburgh, even if it is Marc-Andre Fleury. Pittsburgh has had their moments and are a very hot hockey team, but this is the year that Washington finally finds a way to break through in the 2nd round.

Pick: Capitals in 7

Moving over to the Western Conference we have the Dallas Stars taking on the St. Louis Blues. Dallas got here by knocking off the Minnesota Wild in six games. This marks the first time since 2008 that Dallas has made the 2nd round and also the first time for Dallas trying to get to the conference finals since that same year. Dallas post season record now stands at 80-73. As for the Blues, they got here by knocking off the defending cup champions the Chicago Blackhawks in seven games. This marks the first time since 2012 the Blues are playing in the 2nd round and St. Louis is trying to get to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2001. St Louis is now 184-168 lifetime in the post season. This is the thirteenth playoff meeting for these teams; the two teams have split the twelve previous series. They last met in the 2001 Western Conference Semifinals, which St. Louis won in a four-game sweep. St. Louis won four of the five games in this year's regular season series.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 29 St. Louis Blues 8:00 p.m. Dallas Stars American Airlines Center
May 1 St. Louis Blues 3:00 p.m. Dallas Stars American Airlines Center
May 3 Dallas Stars 8:00 p.m. St. Louis Blues Scottrade Center
May 5 Dallas Stars 8:00 p.m. St. Louis Blues Scottrade Center
May 7 St. Louis Blues TBD Dallas Stars American Airlines Center
May 9 Dallas Stars TBD St. Louis Blues Scottrade Center
May 11 St. Louis Blues TBD Dallas Stars American Airlines Center

This series is going to be fun to watch, St. Louis was on the heels of the Stars most of the year. Dallas was tihe best offense in the league all year, and they kept that going in round one. Yes they scored four or more goals three times in that series with the Wild, oh by the way that was with Tyler Seguin playing only one game in that series due to injury. Still, Dallas showed they can come out flying and hang with the best in the league and dominate. Jamie Benn is the 2nd leading scorer in all of the playoffs, and he's getting help from guys like Cody Eakin, Patrick Sharp, Patrick Sharp and Jason Spezza.

St. Louis does have a lot going for it though. They just got the monkey off their back and beat the defending Stanley Cup Champions in a tough seven game series. I have a lot more confidence in the Blues goaltending then I do Dallas. Brian Elliott and Jake Allen were able to hold down the balanced Hawks attack and come out a winner in their seven game series. Sure Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi looked good in their six game win over Minnesota, but they looked a little shaky at times in games four and five. I trust Elliott and Allen a lot more right now then I do those two guys in Big D. In fact Elliott started every game and posted better numbers then both of the Dallas goalies. I'm calling the upset again here. Yes, St. Louis did finish behind the Stars in the regular season, but Dallas and its goaltending is the biggest flaw in this series. The club is good enough to outscore the defensive problems but not good enough to beat a good Blues team that way.

Pick: Blues in 7

Last but not least we have the San Jose Sharks taking on the Nashville Predators. Nashville is coming off a huge first round upset, beating the Anaheim Ducks in seven games. This marks just the 3rd time in franchise history that the Predators are playing in the 2nd round. They have never made it to the Western Conference Finals in the team's history. Nashville is now 25-36 lifetime in the post season. As for the Sharks, they got here by disposing of the Los Angeles Kings in five games in the Opening Round. This marks the first time since 2012 that San Jose is in the 2nd round, and they haven't made it to the Western Conference Finals since 2011. San Jose is now 87-94 lifetime in the playoffs. This is the third playoff meeting for these teams, with San Jose winning both previous series. They last met in the 2007 Western Conference Quarterfinals, which San Jose won in five games. Nashville won two of the three games in this year's regular season series.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 29 Nashville Predators 10:30 p.m. San Jose Sharks SAP Center
May 1 Nashville Predators 8:00 p.m. San Jose Sharks SAP Center
May 3 San Jose Sharks 9:00 p.m. Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
May 5 San Jose Sharks 9:00 p.m. Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
May 7 Nashville Predators TBD San Jose Sharks SAP Center
May 9 San Jose Sharks TBD Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
May 12 Nashville Predators TBD San Jose Sharks SAP Center

Nashville is coming off a very hard fought series against the Ducks and now have to travel back out to the west coast to face San Jose, which isn't going to be an easy task. Nashville got fantastic goaltending from Pekka Rinne (again) in this series against Anaheim and if Nashville wants to be able to pull it out in this series, he's going to have to outplay Martin Jones. On paper at least that shouldn't be so hard to do. Nahsville has the top pair in Shea Weber and Roman Josi that can shut down the Sharks best line of Joe Thornton, Joe Pavelski and Tomas Hertl.

Rest is going to be a factor in this series. San Jose has had a couple days off since beating the Kings, while Nashville has had about a day to rest and prep after finishing their series with the Ducks. San Jose didn't quite score at will against the Kings, but there were plenty of goals and many great looks available to the Sharks in that series. Also Martin Jones wasn't really that tested by the Kings, because he defense did a great job of collecting the rebounds away from him. Nashville likes to press the attack so San Jose will have to be on their toes in their own end against this Preds offense. Never count out the pesky Preds, who just knocked off the best team in the Pacific Division. But I think going seven against Anaheim and still having to make those long flights back out to California is going to be taking a tole on Nashville. This series is going to go the limit, but I think depth may win out over the goaltending.

Pick: Sharks in 7

John Tavares Makes Statement

Playoff time is the time of year where fans, management and everybody else involved with a pro sports team expects there best players to play that way. During the early part of the regular season, Islanders captain John Tavares looked like he was an average player. Something he is not, as any Islanders fan or observer will tell you. But during the start of the year, he looked average. Now, a day after helping get the Islanders to the 2nd round of the playoffs for the 1st time in twenty three years, he has proven he's anything but average.

When the Islanders started the rebuilding process, it became clear that Tavares was going to be the key guy that this team was going to be built around. Three playoff appearances in the last four years have held make that statement hold up, as Tavares has been the unquestioned leader, and best player on this team, during that stretch of time. Management has now gotten the right pieces, at least for the moment anyway, to build around their star player and they are starting to reap the benifits. Look at last year for an example. Tavares was the 2nd leading scorer in the entire league, behind only Jamie Benn of the Dallas Stars. He finished 3rd in voting for the Hart Trophy as the Most Valuable Player in the NHL, behind only Alex Ovechkin and Carey Price (who won the award last year). The inclination was there that this kid was bound to be a very big star in this league and this game. So your thinking after a year like that and almost getting them past the Capitals in the opening round of last years playoffs, that Tavares was ready to turn the corner and become an elite player in this sport.

Didn't exactly look that way when the year started.

He started off the 2015-16 season looking like an average player, something that nay observer will tell you John Tavares is not. Tavares struggled through a brutal first half of the regular season, notching just 34 points in 44 games. He had no jump to his game when the season started. Then all of a sudden, the light switch was flipped on for the Captain. He was put together with Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo for the stretch run during the regular season, which seemed to really get him going. He ended the year with an eight game point streak, collecting 16 points during those eight games. You started to see JT returning to form. Then the playoffs started and Tavares took off

He finished the series against the Panthers with nine points on five goals and four assists. None bigger than the two goal performance in the Isles 2-1 double overtime win in the series deciding 6th game. Which by the way was the 2nd straight double overtime game the Islanders played, the first time that's ever happened in the teams history. Tavares was all over the place in the series, which shows that he's really started to raise his game to an elite level. Don't believe me? Look at the two goals he scored in game six.

New York showed no life at times during this 6th game. They're down 1-0 with less than a minute left. Puck gets sent towards the net, Roberto Luongo, the Panthers goalie, makes the save but leaves a rebound right next to him. Luongo lost sight of it, but Tavares didn't. He found the puck and whacked it in on the backhand to tie the game at one and force extra hockey. Then in double overtime, Tavares did this:



It sent the Barclays Center into complete pandemonium and the Islanders to the 2nd round for the first time since 93. That goal has vaulted John Tavares into rarefied air. It was his statement saying that yes I'ma  big deal in this league, yes I'm the best player on this Islanders team and yes I have arrived.

JT has now showed the rest of the league what Islanders fans have known for quite a while now. He is one of the premiere players in the game of hockey and will be for a long time to come

Yankees Flat Out Sick Bullpen

Last December, the New York Yankees pulled off one of the biggest trades of the off season. The Yankees sent over to the Reds four minor league players, right-handed pitchers Caleb Cotham and Rookie Davis, and infielders Eric Jagielo and Tony Renda. In return for those four guys, the Bombers got one of the best closers in the game in Aroldis Chapamn. With him coming out of the pen in the Bronxs, along with Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances, they make one of the greatest three headed combinations in history. Only thing is Chapman has to miss the first month of the year to to a suspension for off the field issues. So that brings up questions as to what the Yankees are going to do. And to make matters worse, Andrew Miller had that little injury scare with his wrist at the end of training camp. There had been question marks going into the year.

Well we're ten games into the regular season, and guess what, this bullpen is more than fine. They're flat out scary.

First thought to run through the heads of baseball fans was great Millers hurt and Chapman is out a month, this can't be good. Well they haven't skipped a beat. Just look at the numbers of the four best relievers in the Yankees pen right now. Dellin Betances (5 IP, 12 SO, 0 ER) and Andrew Miller (4 IP, 9 SO, 0 ER), have lead the charge, followed by Johnny Barbato (6 IP, 9 SO, 0 ER) and Chasen Shreve (4.1 IP, 2 SO, 0 ER). When you have four relievers who haven't allowed a run yet in 19.1 innings of combined work, all while striking out 32 opposing hitters. That's scary numbers. Nobody has been getting a hit of these New York Relievers, who have been the best in the pen in all of baseball in the first ten games of the year.

If that's not dominance enough, look at what the back of the pen did Sunday in the 4-3 win at home against Seattle at the Stadium. Betances came in for the 8th inning, faced three batters. Got all three out via the strikeout. Andrew Miller came in for the 9th. Same thing. Three batters, three outs all via the strikeout. That is a level of dominance that so few teams can find on the mound now a days.

I know its ten games into the season, but still its something that is wort noting. Now, think how scary this team is going to be when Aroldis Chapman is eligible to come back into the mix. He's set to possibly return to the Yankees lineup on May 9th, which could really strike fear into the hearts of opposing hitters. Lets not forget that Chapman is known for a four-seam fastball that averages 100.3 mph, and a hard slider that averages 88.5 mph. He throws hard and keeps hitters off balance. The guy, when he's on his game, can flat out dominate like so few who have ever stepped foot on a Major League pitching mound.

There is one thing that crossed my mind over the last 24 hours. What are you going to do with Chapman when he does come back? I know the Yankees really want to get usage out of him, and for good reason. At the same time, don't force trying to push him back into the pen right away. If Betances and Miller are still going good with Aroldis comes back, stick with it as long as you can. Run with it until you can't run with it any longer.

I can tell you this much. When Chapman comes back, and with him Miller and Betances all going and going well, this Yankees team is going to be a very tough team to face. They could be really, really good this year!

NFL Schedules Announced

The countdown is on. Five mere months from now the National Football League will start the 2016 regular season. There's a lot to look forward to this upcoming football season and we're here to help you figure it all out. There will be a total of 256 games played during the regular season, so there's going to be plenty of football to watch come this fall. Listed below are going to be the schedules for the New York Jets, New York Giants and the most intriguing games to watch around the league this year.

First up here's the schedule for the New York Giants:

1. September 11 4:25 p.m. EDT at Dallas Cowboys AT&T Stadium Fox
2. September 18 1:00 p.m. EDT New Orleans Saints MetLife Stadium Fox
3. September 25 1:00 p.m. EDT Washington Redskins MetLife Stadium Fox
4. October 3 8:30 p.m. EDT at Minnesota Vikings U.S. Bank Stadium ESPN
5. October 9 8:30 p.m. EDT at Green Bay Packers Lambeau Field NBC
6. October 16 1:00 p.m. EDT Baltimore Ravens MetLife Stadium CBS
7. October 23 9:30 a.m. EDT at Los Angeles Rams Twickenham Stadium (London, England) NFLN
8. Bye
9. November 6 1:00 p.m. EST Philadelphia Eagles MetLife Stadium Fox
10. November 14 8:30 p.m. EST Cincinnati Bengals MetLife Stadium ESPN
11. November 20 1:00 p.m. EST Chicago Bears MetLife Stadium Fox
12. November 27 1:00 p.m. EST at Cleveland Browns FirstEnergy Stadium Fox
13. December 4 4:25 p.m. EST at Pittsburgh Steelers Heinz Field Fox
14. December 11 8:30 p.m. EST Dallas Cowboys MetLife Stadium NBC
15. December 18 1:00 p.m. EST Detroit Lions MetLife Stadium Fox
16. December 22 8:25 p.m. EST at Philadelphia Eagles Lincoln Financial Field NBC/NFLN/Twitter
17. January 1 1:00 p.m. EST at Washington Redskins FedEx Field Fox

A lot to look forward to if your a Giants fan. They do play the Rams, but don't get to go to LA, instead making the trip to London. As it looks right now, the Giants are going to have a totally re-tooled defense, which  could get even better between now and the start of the year. The two biggest tests early in the year for that D is going to be week two against the Saints and week five against the Packers. To go along with that, there is the intrigue of playing the AFC North, which again is going to be a tough test.. Should be a good year to watch if your a Giants fan. The big question is, can this team get back to, or even pass, the .500 mark this season?

Now here's a look at the schedule for the other tenants at Metlife Stadium, the New York Jets:

1. September 11 1:00 p.m. EDT Cincinnati Bengals MetLife Stadium CBS
2. September 15 8:25 p.m. EDT at Buffalo Bills Ralph Wilson Stadium CBS/NFLN/Twitter
3. September 25 4:25 p.m. EDT at Kansas City Chiefs Arrowhead Stadium CBS
4. October 2 1:00 p.m. EDT Seattle Seahawks MetLife Stadium Fox
5. October 9 1:00 p.m. EDT at Pittsburgh Steelers Heinz Field CBS
6. October 17 8:30 p.m. EDT at Arizona Cardinals University of Phoenix Stadium ESPN
7. October 23 1:00 p.m. EDT Baltimore Ravens MetLife Stadium CBS
8. October 30 1:00 p.m. EDT at Cleveland Browns FirstEnergy Stadium CBS
9. November 6 1:00 p.m. EST at Miami Dolphins New Miami Stadium CBS
10. November 13 1:00 p.m. EST Los Angeles Rams MetLife Stadium Fox
11. Bye
12. November 27 8:30 p.m. EST New England Patriots MetLife Stadium NBC
13. December 5 8:30 p.m. EST Indianapolis Colts MetLife Stadium ESPN
14. December 11 4:05 p.m. EST at San Francisco 49ers Levi's Stadium CBS
15. December 17 8:25 p.m. EST Miami Dolphins MetLife Stadium NFLN
16. December 24 1:00 p.m. EST at New England Patriots Gillette Stadium CBS
17. January 1 1:00 p.m. EST Buffalo Bills MetLife Stadium CBS

Much like the schedule with the Giants, the division games with the Jets are going to be a lot of fun to watch. What's worth noting is that there are a few nire prime time games for the Jets this year. And with good reason, they went 10-6 last year and could be considered to be a contender in the AFC this year. To make this schedule interesting for the Jets are playing both the AFC and NFC Wests this year plus the AFC North. It should be a lot of fun to watch this year.

Intriguing Games:
There's plenty of other entertaining games on the schedule this year aside from the local football teams. First there's the International Series, three of the games will be played in London, England and the fourth will be played in Mexico City, Mexico. The Jacksonville Jaguars will play host to the Indianapolis Colts on October 2 at Wembley Stadium, marking the fourth of at least eight consecutive years in which the Jaguars will host a game in London. On October 23, in the first-ever NFL game at Twickenham Stadium also in London, the Los Angeles Rams will host the New York Giants. The Cincinnati Bengals will host the Washington Redskins on October 30 at Wembley Stadium in London. Finally, on Monday, November 21, the Oakland Raiders will host the Houston Texans at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, in the first-ever Monday night game to be played outside of the United States and the second regular-season contest to be held in Mexico (the first being the 2005 Fútbol Americano contest).

Of Course, there's the Thanksgiving games, which this year will see the Detroit Lions will host the Minnesota Vikings, the Dallas Cowboys will host the Washington Redskins, and the evening game, the Indianapolis Colts will host the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Now for the big matchups. The first game of the year is last year's Super Bowl rematch, Carolina at Denver. The Bengals and Sttlers face off for the first time since the AFC Wild Card game in Pittsburgh Week Two, a lock that no doubt will see the Bengals get booed quite loudly in the building that day.  Week two also sees the return of Pro Football to Los Angeles as the Rams play their home opener against Seattle. Week Four will have the battle of Washington QB's as RGIII leads the Browns into DC to take on Kirk Cousins and the Redskins. There's the rematch of last year's NFC title game in week eight as the Panthers host the Cardinals. We get a Super Bowl 49 rematch in week ten as the Patriots play host to the Seahawks.

So there will be plenty of must watch games in the NFL in 2016!

Stanley Cup Playoffs Opening Round Preview

It's that time of year again. Six long months and 1,230 regular season games around the league, we have reached the chase. The Stanley Cup Playoffs have arrived and there are sixteen teams left standing. All have the same goal in mind. Carrying Lord Stanley's Cup over their heads in two months. The journey to that point starts right now. Eight matchups in the opening round begin Wednesday night. Looking at the field, there were a few surprises that are still standing. The Florida Panthers win the division for just the 2nd time in franchise history, and are making their 5th playoff appearance ever. Washington dominated from start to finish, winning the Presidents Trophy for the 2nd time ever and collected the 2nd most points in a season in franchise history (they won the trophy with 121 points in 2010). Anaheim won the division after starting the season off 1-7-2. Detroit has made the playoffs for the 25th consecutive season. Oh and this marks the first time since the 1969-70 season that there will be no teams from Canada playing in the playoffs. All sixteen teams fighting for the Cup are from the United States.

Enough of the rif raff, lets get down to business. Here's what the opening round looks like for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. We start with the Eastern Conference.

First up is the Presidents Trophy Winning Washington Capitals, taking on the 2nd Wild Card seeded Philadelphia Flyers. The Washington Capitals earned the Presidents' Trophy as the NHL's best regular season team. Washington collected 120 points, the 2nd most ever in franchise history (behind the 2010 Capitals won eanred 121 points and the Presidents Trophy that year as well). This marks the 8th time in the last nine seasons that the Capitals have made the playoffs and the 2nd time in the last four years the Caps have won the division. Washington faces a Philadelphia Flyers team that finished as the second wild-card seed. This marks the 2nd time in the last four seasons that Philadelphia has made the playoffs. Philly is looking for its first win in the opening round since 2012. This is the fifth meeting between these teams in the playoffs. Both teams splitting the four previous series. They last met in the 2008 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal, which Philadelphia won in seven games. These teams split this year's four-game regular season series.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 14 Philadelphia Flyers 7:00 p.m Washington Capitals Verizon Center
April 16 Philadelphia Flyers 7:00 p.m Washington Capitals Verizon Center
April 18 Washington Capitals 7:00 p.m Philadelphia Flyers Wells Fargo Center
April 20 Washington Capitals 7:00 p.m Philadelphia Flyers Wells Fargo Center
April 22 Philadelphia Flyers TBD Washington Capitals Verizon Center
April 24 Washington Capitals TBD Philadelphia Flyers Wells Fargo Center
April 27 Philadelphia Flyers TBD Washington Capitals Verizon Center

This series should be good and their's quite a bit riding on it. For Washington, they have a few hurtles to get over in this years playoffs. As the Presidents Trophy winners, they were the best team in all of hockey, but they haven't gotten out of the 2nd round of the playoffs since 1998. And, the last time they won the Presidents Trophy, they were bounced by the Canadiens in the first round in seven, so they have that stigma hanging over their heads. The Caps have dominated all year, being the 2nd best scoring team in the league (behind only the Dallas Stars) and they have the 3rd best goals against per game during the season. Oh and they had the 4th best Powerplay and Penalty Kill during the year. Yes that is dominance beyond description when you can do that to other teams. you have the only 50 goal man in the league in Alex Ovechkin and when Braden Holtby posts 48 wins this year (tied for most in a single season) it means you have been really really good. And its not just those two guys, the entire team has been contributing from start to finish.

Philly on the other hand has had to claw and fight their way into the playoffs. Wayne Simmonds and Claude Giroux have been powering this offense in the city of brotherly love. Oh and some guy named Shayne Gostisbehere has been playing fantastic hockey since his call up in early November. Goaltending has been good in Philly, as Michal Neuvirth posted better numbers than starter Steve Mason. This team started the year off average at best and have turned it on ever since Gostisbehere has hit the scene. The big question here is can the Flyers keep this series close? If you look at it the Flyers gave up one more goals than they scored, while the Caps scored 57 more goals then they allowed. Washington has a deeper team than that of the Flyers. When you top defensive pair is Shayne Gostisbehere and Radko Gudas, and your going up against the top offensive team in all of the Eastern Conference, it could be a long series for the Flyers.

Pick: Capitals in 5

The other Metropolitan Division Matchup will have the 2nd seed Pittsburgh Penguins taking on the 3rd seed New York Rangers. The Pittsburgh Penguins finished second in the Metropolitan Division, earning 104 points. This marks the 10th year in a row that the Penguins have reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Pittsburgh is looking to get back to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2013. As for the Rangers, they earned 101 points in the regular season to finish third in the Metropolitan. This now marks the 6th year in a row that the Rangers are playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, having reached at least the Eastern Conference Finals the last two years. This marks the 2nd year in a row the Rangers hit the 100 point mark, as they won the Presidents Trophy with 113 last year. Finishing 3rd this year was the lowest finish for the Rangers since 2011. This marks the seventh meeting between these teams, and the third meeting in three consecutive seasons, with Pittsburgh losing the last two but winning four of the six overall. They last met in last year's Eastern Conference First Round, which the Rangers won in five games. Pittsburgh won three of the four games during this year’s regular season series.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 13 New York Rangers 8:00 p.m Pittsburgh Penguins Consol Energy Center
April 16 New York Rangers 3:00 p.m Pittsburgh Penguins Consol Energy Center
April 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 7:00 p.m New York Rangers Madison Square Garden
April 21 Pittsburgh Penguins TBD New York Rangers Madison Square Garden
April 23 New York Rangers TBD Pittsburgh Penguins Consol Energy Center
April 25 Pittsburgh Penguins TBD New York Rangers Madison Square Garden
April 27 New York Rangers TBD Pittsburgh Penguins Consol Energy Center

The Penguins and Rangers usually play pretty spirited hockey each time they hook up. After a slow start, Pittsburgh finally woke up and started to turn around their season. All of this seemed to start when Mike Sullivan replaced Mike Johnston behind the bench in December. Pittsburgh finished out the year as one of the NHL's hottest teams with an 8-2-0 record in its last 10 games, while captain Sidney Crosby climbed to third place in league scoring with 85 points. He was still able to do this without Evgeni Malkin, who is still out with his arm injury. No Marc-Andre Fleury to start the series could make things interesting for the Pens, even though when Fleury was healthy, he hasn't really performed very well in the playoffs the past couple of seasons. Both teams are dealing with injuries going into the series. Malkin, Fleury and goalie Matt Murray are all listed as questionable for this series, while the Rangers will be without their two best defenders in Ryan McDonagh and Dan Garadi.

New York will have a tall task ahead of it trying to cool down a Penguins team that went 19-92 in division this year. The Rangers did win six of their last seven games to close out the regular season. Yes this team has a lot of veteran experience, but outside of Henrik Lundqvist and Keith Yandle, they aren't really playing up to snuff. Rick Nash has been average at best, after coming off a fantastic year last year. Nash hasn't been able to really find a groove come playoff time the past two years (with all the money he got from the Rangers, you would hope he would be able to deliver when it matters most, right?), so they may have to rely on the young kids and the best goalie in the world to carry the load again. With that being said, this could be a short playoff year for the Rangers. They have proven people wrong in playoffs past so anything can happen. Still the Penguins have been red hot, as has the best player in the world, Sidney Crosby. Pittsburgh has a more balanced and deeper attack then the Rangers do at the moment and the Pens best players are really starting to play like it.

Pick: Penguins in 7

Next Up in the Atlantic Division its the Division Winning Florida Panthers taking on the Wild Card Winning New York Islanders. Florida Panthers finished first in the Atlantic Division, earning 103 points. It marks the 2nd time ever that the Panthers have won the division, their first division title coming in their last playoff appearance in 2012. In fact, this is just the 5th time that the Panthers have ever made the playoffs, the team only winning two series ever (both coming in their miracle run in 1996). Those 103 points are the most the Panthers have ever collected in a single season. As for the Islanders, they finished as the Eastern Conference's first wild-card, earning 100 points. This is the 2nd straight year the Islanders have earned 100 or more points, the first time they've done that since 1981 and 1982. New York has made the playoffs for the 2nd year in a row, something they haven't done since 2003 and 2004. This is the first meeting between these two teams in the playoffs. Florida won two of the three games during this year’s regular season series. This will be the first time that a Stanley Cup playoff series will be played at the Barclays Center. The series contains the two teams with the longest playoff win drought in the league (the Islanders have not won a series since 1993, and the Panthers since 1996).

Here's the date and times for every game in this series:
April 14 New York Islanders 8:00 p.m Florida Panthers BB&T Center
April 15 New York Islanders 8:00 p.m Florida Panthers BB&T Center
April 17 Florida Panthers 7:30 p.m New York Islanders Barclays Center
April 20 Florida Panthers 8:00 p.m New York Islanders Barclays Center
April 22 New York Islanders TBD Florida Panthers BB&T Center
April 24 Florida Panthers TBD New York Islanders Barclays Center
April 26 New York Islanders TBD Florida Panthers BB&T Center

Its a battle of playoff futility in this series, both teams are trying to get out of playoff slumps. Florida hasn't won a round in the playoffs since their cup run in 1996, while the Islanders haven't won since 1993, so both teams are due for a win. Florida has a bit of cup experience on their roster, being lead by ageless wonder Jaromir Jagr, who at 44, continues to defy the odds and have a good career. He's won two cups and been in the post season many times. So to has goalie Roberto Luongo, who made an appearance in the finals in 2011, while playing with the Canucks. You can also throw in the experience of guys like Shawn Thornton and Jussi Jokinen. Combine that veteran leadership with a tremendous amount of young talent that includes guys like Aleksander Barkov, Aaron Ekblad, Nick Bjugstad, Vincent Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau makes this a tough team to beat. but the big question mark with Florida is that if the older, more veteran players aren't performing, can the young guys step up and handle the pressure of doing something they've never done before, and that's play in the playoffs.

As for the Islanders, they're looking to shake off last years performance in the loss to Washington in the opening round. The team came into the post season limping a little, missing a few of their key players. Travis Hamonic had missed last years series with Washington, but reports are that he'll be back on the blueline in time for game one of the series, which is a huge boost for New York. What helps make the Islanders go are transition and speed. If they can get solid goaltending and translate that into timely offense, there's a possibility they could win this series. But that's a big question mark. The team has been without their star netminder Jaroslav Halak since early March, and they won't get him back from injury until at least the 2nd round, if they make it that far. So a lot of the pressure falls on the shoulders of Thomas Greiss, who has played more games this season than in any other year of his career to this point. He's a little unproven this time of year, which may give Florida a bit of an edge. But all things considered, the Islanders have the more experienced and battle tested team come this time of year and I think that's what's going to push them over the edge.

Pick: Islanders in 6

Finally we have the other Atlantic Division Matchup as the 2nd seed Tampa Bay Lightning taking on the 3rd seed Detroit Red Wings. The Tampa Bay Lightning finished second in the Atlantic Division, earning 97 points. This marks the 3rd year in a row for the Lightning in the playoffs, as they are the defending Eastern Conference Champions. This is the 3rd year in a row the Lightning finished 2nd in their division and won 46 games this year, the same exact number that they did two years ago. The 46 wins is the 4th time ever Tampa has won that many games in a season, and three of the last four have resulted in long playoff runs. As for the Red Wings, they earned 93 points, which was good enough to finish third in the Atlantic. For a record 25th straight year, the Red Wings are playing in the playoffs, having not missed the playoffs since the 1989-90 season. Detroit hasn't faired too well the last six years, having not gotten out of the 2nd round since 2009. This is the second meeting between these teams, with the only other meeting between the teams was in last year's Eastern Conference Quarterfinals which Tampa Bay won in seven games. The teams split their four game regular season series this year.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 13 Detroit Red Wings 7:00 p.m Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena
April 15 Detroit Red Wings 7:00 p.m Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena
April 17 Tampa Bay Lightning 7:00 p.m Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena
April 19 Tampa Bay Lightning 7:00 p.m Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena
April 21 Detroit Red Wings TBD Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena
April 24 Tampa Bay Lightning TBD Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena
April 26 Detroit Red Wings TBD Tampa Bay Lightning Amalie Arena

What has to be a big surprise about this series is how low scoring both of these teams are. If you think about both Tampa and Detroit, you think of high scoring teams. Tampa's offensive numbers have been down this year. Steven Stamkos is going to be out for possibly the rest of the year with a blood clot in his arm. Tampa is really the walking wounded going into this series, as not only is Stamkos out, but Victor Hedman, Ryan Callahan, Nikita Kucherov and Tyler Johnson have all been sidelined with ailments that are being called day-to-day. One of the big things that's going to help Tampa out in this series is their goaltending. Ben Bishop has once again been a big contributor to the Lightning success, as they had the 5th best goals against average during the regular season.

When you think of the Red Wings, two things come to mind. The high powered offense and solid goaltending. Both have been on a bit of a slide this year. Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk lead the wings in points this year, and Rookie Dylan Larkin was the teams leading goal scorer. Point production from all players has been down in the Motor City this year. Where the Red Wings have an advantage in this series is that they are much healthier than the Bolts are. But Detroit has bigger question marks. First has to be in goal. Petr Mrazek and Jimmy Howard have been average more often than not this year, with neither one being able to really lock down the starting job. So it does leave one to wonder how well the Wings are going to hold up. Even though Tampa is more injury riddled, they are still held together enough in net to give you confidence.

Pick: Lightning in 7

Now on to the Western Conference.

First up its the West top seed, the Central Division Winning Dallas Stars taking on the 2nd Wild Card Seeded Minnesota Wild. Dallas comes into the playoffs as the top team in the West, picking up 109 points during the regular season. This marks the 2nd time in the last three years that Dallas has made the playoffs, but the Stars haven't won a round in the post season since 2008. The 50 wins they picked up this year are the most they've earned since 2007, and the division title the Stars have was their first since the 2006 season. As for Minnesota, the finished as the Western Conference's second wild-card seed, earning 87 points. This marks the 4th straight year for the Wild in the post season. Minnesota has only made it past the 2nd round once in their history, tat coming back in 2003. This 38 wins was the lowest win total in a full season for the Wild since 2012. This is the first meeting between these two teams. Dallas won four of the five games during this year's regular season series.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 14 Minnesota Wild 9:30 p.m Dallas Stars American Airlines Center
April 16 Minnesota Wild 8:00 p.m Dallas Stars American Airlines Center
April 18 Dallas Stars 8:30 p.m Minnesota Wild Xcel Energy Center
April 20 Dallas Stars 9:30 p.m Minnesota Wild Xcel Energy Center
April 22 Minnesota Wild TBD Dallas Stars American Airlines Center
April 24 Dallas Stars TBD Minnesota Wild Xcel Energy Center
April 26 Minnesota Wild TBD Dallas Stars American Airlines Center

This should be an interesting series. Dallas has been dominating teams in the West this year, as they were the highest scoring team in the entire league this year, scoring 265 goals this year (Washington was 2nd with 248). Yeah the Stars know how to put the puck in the back of the net. When you have Jamie Been, Tyler Seguin (who's dealing with an injury and no timetable on his return just yet), Jason Spezza and John Klingberg, just to name a few, you have yourself a solid hockey team. Benn finished with 41 goals, the first time a Star topped the 40-goal plateau since Hall of Famer Mike Modano scored 50 in 1993-94, which lets you know he was feeling it this year. As long as that offense doesn't dry up, which would mean more pressure has been put on Kari Lehtonen or Antti Niemi in goal, who have been average at best at times this year, the Stars should be able to control this series with its superior offense, special teams and puck possession.

Don't sleep on the Wild, they aren't a pushover. They are a good hockey team, with Mikko Koivu and Zach Parise leading the charge. If Minnesota wants to stand any chance in this series, goalie Devan Dubnyk will have to be out-of-his-mind good to keep this series close. Don't get me wrong, Dubnyk has been good, but there's a difference between last year and this. See last year, Dubnyk played out of his mind during the stretch run for the Wild, carrying them to their 2nd round matchup with the Hawks. This year, it hasn't been the case. Minneosta has been good this year, there's no denying that, but Dallas is just that much better than the Wild.

Pick: Stars in 5

Next in the Central Division matchups is the 2nd seeded St. Louis Blues taking on the 3rd seeded Chicago Blackhawks. St. Louis finished second in the Central Division earning 107 points, the 3rd year in a row the Blues have hit the 100 point mark during the regular season. This marks the 5th straight year the Blues have made the playoffs, but St. Louis hasn't made it out of the 1st round in the last three tries. In fact, the Blues are searching for their first deep playoff run since 2001. Chicago, meanwhile, earned 103 points to finish third in the Central. Chicago is the defending Stanley Cup Champions, having won three cups in the last six years. Chicago has made the playoffs every year since 2008. Chicago hasn't had a one and done playoff run since 2012. This is the twelfth playoff meeting between these two rivals with Chicago winning eight of the eleven previous series. Their most recent meeting was the 2014 Western Conference Quarterfinals, which Chicago won in six games. St. Louis won three of the five games during this year's regular season series.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 13 Chicago Blackhawks 9:30 p.m St. Louis Blues Scottrade Center
April 15 Chicago Blackhawks 8:00 p.m St. Louis Blues Scottrade Center
April 17 St. Louis Blues 3:00 p.m Chicago Blackhawks United Center
April 19 St. Louis Blues 9:30 p.m Chicago Blackhawks United Center
April 21 Chicago Blackhawks TBD St. Louis Blues Scottrade Center
April 23 St. Louis Blues TBD Chicago Blackhawks United Center
April 25 Chicago Blackhawks TBD St. Louis Blues Scottrade Center

St. Louis is going into this series looking for revenge. Chicago bounced the Blues two years ago, this after the Blues went up two games to none in that series. Vladamir Tarasenko has been killing it for the Blues this season, having scored 40 goals for the first time in his career. He is getting support from guys like David Backes, who was the only other Blues forward to score more than 20 goals this year. A big plus for the Blues this year has been the play of goalies Jake Allen, who has had a fantastic season in the nets. He won 26 games and has been coming in hotter than a wildfire going down the stretch.

As hot as a goalie can be, scoring depth should be able to win out and that's what the Hawks have. It also doesn't hurt when you have a potential league MVP in Patrick Kane in your lineup, as well as a strong contender for the Calder Trophy in Artemi Panarin. They have some minor questions in who can come in as the 4th defender to play along with Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Nicklas Hjalmarsson. Corey Crawford too has looked OK this year, but not great. Same thing happened too with Crawford last year in the playoffs, and Scott Darling just stepped in, held the fort down and got the ship righted until Crawford found his game again and became his old self. Tarasenko may be able to match Kane and company eventually, but he is not at that level this year and doesn't have the support from the other Blues. This will be a close series because of Jake Allen, but at the end of the day Chicago still has the deeper, more experienced team and that's going to be the key.

Pick: Blackhawks in 7

Next up is the Pacific Division Winning Anaheim Ducks taking on the Wild Card Winning Nashville Predators. The Anaheim Ducks finished first in the Pacific Division, earning 103 points.This marks the 4th year in a row that the Ducks have come away with the division title. Last season they were the best team in the Western Conference. This will mark the 11th time ever that the Ducks are playing post season hockey. As for Nashville, they finished as the Western Conference's first wild-card, earning 96 points. This marks the 2nd year in a row that the Predators have made the playoffs, after missing the two years prior. Nashville is looking for its first series win in the post season since 2012. This is the second meeting between these teams in the playoffs. Last time these two teams met was the 2011 Western Conference Quarterfinals, which Nashville won in six games. Nashville won two of the three games during this year's regular season series.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
April 15 Nashville Predators 10:30 p.m Anaheim Ducks Honda Center
April 17 Nashville Predators 10:30 p.m Anaheim Ducks Honda Center
April 19 Anaheim Ducks 9:30 p.m Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
April 21 Anaheim Ducks 8:00 p.m Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
April 23 Nashville Predators TBD Anaheim Ducks Honda Center
April 25 Anaheim Ducks TBD Nashville Predators Bridgestone Arena
April 27 Nashville Predators TBD Anaheim Ducks Honda Center

This should be a good series, with most catagories favoring the Ducks. They had the best special teams in the league, the top power play and top penalty kill. Oh yeah, they also had the lowest goals against in the league at 2.32 against per game. The goalie duo of John Gibson and Frederik Andersen deserve a good chunk of the credit. A lot of cdredit does desereve to go to a very good blue-line corps. Anaheim got off to a rough start this year, going 1-9 to begin the year. The fact that they are standing here now, with a division title in their back pocket, is a testament to the coaching of Bruce Boudreau. Midway through a season that was looking lost, Boudreau changed the way his team played and focused on defense-first. Yeah, I think its worked out pretty well. Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf turned their games on as the season went on, which was a big help.

Nashville is a better offensive team than in years past but if Anaheim plays up to its No. 1-ranked defensive ways, this is the X factor in the series. Lets not sleep on the Preds here. If Pekka Rinne is on his game, he can match the Anaheim goalie, whoever he turns out to be, save for save. If not, this could be a long series for the Preds. Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, James Neal, and Shea Weber have been carrying the offensive load for the Preds. If they want to have any chance in this series, they need the secondary scoring. Nashville can hang in this series, of this I have no doubt, but Ahaneim has been hotter than a wildfire the 2nd half of the year and are going to be too much for the Preds to handle. Sure the Preds are an underdog and underdogs can do amazing things come post season play, but the Ducks are going to be too good.

Pick: Ducks in 6

The Final Matchup in the Pacific Division is the 2nd seeded Los Angeles Kings taking on the 3rd seeded San Jose Sharks. The Los Angeles Kings finished second in the Pacific Division, earning 102 points. This marks the 6th playoff appearance in the last seven years for Los Angeles, a team that missed the post season a year ago. That was coming after making three straight Western Conference Finals appearances. LA's 102 points are the most they've collected in a season since the 1990-91 season. Meanwhile, San Jose earned 98 points to finish third in the Pacific. Since the lockout year of 2004-05, San Jose has missed the playoffs only once, that being last year. One of the biggest knocks against the Sharks is their inability to make it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, always falling short in the Western Conference Finals. This is the fourth meeting between these two teams, with Los Angeles winning two of the three previous meetings. They last met in the 2014 Western Conference Quarterfinals, which Los Angeles came back from a 3–0 deficit to defeat the Sharks in seven games. San Jose won three of the five games during this year's regular season series.

Here's the date and times of the games in this series:
April 14 San Jose Sharks 10:30 p.m Los Angeles Kings Staples Center
April 16 San Jose Sharks 10:30 p.m Los Angeles Kings Staples Center
April 18 Los Angeles Kings 10:30 p.m San Jose Sharks SAP Center
April 20 Los Angeles Kings 10:30 p.m San Jose Sharks SAP Center
April 22 San Jose Sharks TBD Los Angeles Kings Staples Center
April 24 Los Angeles Kings TBD San Jose Sharks SAP Center
April 26 San Jose Sharks TBD Los Angeles Kings Staples Center

The battle of California should be fun to watch. Jonathan Quick has been playing out of his mind in the 2nd half of the year, putting himself right in the discussion for the Vezna Trophy as the league's top goaltender. they also have some guy named Drew Doughty, who has been playing like the best defender in the leauge. He's going to draw the assignment in this series of going head-to-head with Sharks veteran center Joe Thornton, who had yet another outstanding season. If Doughty wins that matchup, it goes a long way to ensure a Kings win. The Kings also win if Quick gets the better of his pupil Martin Jones in goal. Offensively, the 1-2 punch of Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter down the middle is one heck of a handful for almost anyone, making them so difficult to match up against.

San Jose is no slouch, they do still have Joe Thornton, who granted hasn't played at the level he once did, is still one of the best players in the league. Martin Jones is going to be tested in this series, but he has shown this year he can handle the workload of being a number one goalie. His backup James Reimer has been playing well since coming to San Jose, so there is something in place to support Jones if he faulters at all in this series. On paper, these teams matchup pretty evenly, but the edge is where it matters most, and that's in the goaltending department. Jones is good but Jonathan Quick he isn't

Pick: Kings in 7

So there you have it, the predictions for the opening round of the playoffs!

(Note: All predictions were made BEFORE the start of the playoffs)

Injuries Pile Up In Brooklyn

Its spring time in the NHL. Playoffs start in a week, with almost every playoff spot locked up around the league. One of those playoff teams happens to be the New York Islanders. This marks the first time since the 2002-03 and the 2003-04 seasons that the team has made the playoffs in back to back seasons. When you get down to this time of the year, and you already have the playoff spot locked up, most teams would like to have two things happen, in an ideal setting. One is go into the playoffs hot. The other is go into the playoffs fully healthy. Only one of those things has been happening with the Islanders heading into the final two games of the regular season.

The Islanders have played well the last two weeks,. They just swept the Rangers in the regular season series, with their win last night. That makes it three straight wins and five wins in their last six games. But this little run that the Islanders have been on has come at a price. You can add another name to the long growing list of Islanders players on the injury list. Anders Lee got hit in the leg in the first period of last nights Rangers game. Johnny Boychuck took the shot that hit Lee in the leg. He tried to tough it out and keep playing, he is a hockey player after all. Once the period ended, Lee was in so much pain he didn't come back to finish the game out. After getting his leg checked out it was revealed that it was a broken left fibula, thus ending the young forward's season. Lee had 36 points on 15 goals and 21 assists through 80 games this year. This adds a big blow to the Islanders offense and another name that you can chalk to the injury list.

Lee (leg) joins Matt Martin (Shoulder day to day could be back this weekend), Brian Strait (Upper Body could be back by playoffs), Jean-Francois Berube (Lower Body could be ready by playoffs), Cal Clutterbuck (Lower Body is day to day), Mikhail Grabovski (Concussion, hasn't started skating yet no timetable), Travis Hamonic (Knee may miss the rest of the year again), Jaroslav Halak (Groin, could be back by 2nd round should the Islanders get there). This team looks more like the walking wonder more than anything going into the final two games of the year.

One of things that people sited last year in the playoffs was the injury to Hamonic in the series against Washington. Not having their best defender is one of the reasons people felt they lost that series. Now there's a lot more going on. Halak has been out since the start of March and the Islanders have been holding the fort down with Greiss in net.But I think his inexperience come the start of the playoffs next week is going to end up hurting them. Lets not mix the facts up here, Greiss has played great this year, going 23-11-4 with the 1 shutout on the year. The only thing that has me worried about this situation, at least as far as goalies go, is how well Greiss can play in the playoffs. Because out of him, John Gibson (the 4th stringer) and Berube, who will be back by the playoffs (we hope), Greiss is the Islanders best bet to carry them till Halak gets back.

Without Hamonic, I'm a little worried that the team will see a repeat of last year, which was another quick playoff exit. Some felt the team was pushed around without their best defender, and that might happen again if he isn't healthy. Then there's the banged up forward crop. Martin and Clutterbuck will be back by playoff time, which means that 4th line will be back and causing as much havok as possible. Lee not playing could be a difference, because, despite the fact that he hasn't quite put up the scoring numbers he did last year, he still a physical role. He's a power forward who makes the sight lines tough on goalies. Now its not there.


The Islanders are thin at the forward spot a little heading towards the playoffs, which could be a bad thing depending on who they're playing. If its the Panthers, then I'd give the Islanders more hope. For that to happen the Islanders would have to lose out and the Rangers pass them again in the standings. If things stay the way they are right now, its the Penguins, which would be a rematch of the 2013 playoffs. Either way, the Islanders had better find a way to make this work, otherwise its another quick playoff exit.