Holtby Shines In Game Two

Every once in a while, a player does something that goes beyond description. When it comes to hockey, it could be a goal, a pass, a hit, a block or even a save. In the case of game two of the Stanley Cup Finals, the play was a save and the man was Brayden Holtby.

Washington not only stole the game on the stick of Holtby, but they managed to get this game in the bag without Evgeny Kuznetsov, who's been the teams leading scorer in the post season. So now the question was, who's going to score for Washington? It took a little while, but they got their answer. vegas got the party going on a great pass from Luca Sbisa, who sent in James Neal. Neal had to knock the puck out of the air, got to the circle and roofed a wrist shot over Holtby's shoulder to go up 1-0. Then the Washington offense woke up. Lars Eller got redemption for missing the empty net in game one by tying this game up with about two and a half left in the first. He got a great pass from Michal Kempny and was standing by an open net, which lead to a slam dunk tying goal.

Once the 2nd got started, Washington's offense took control. Ovechkin scored his first goal ever in the finals, and 13th of this year's playoffs, on the man advantage to give the Caps a lead. To add to that lead, Brooks Orpik got in on things, scoring his first of the playoffs, set up by Lars Eller, giving him a hand in every goal in this game for Washington. Play got chippy as the period went along, which lead to TJ Oshie taking a bad cross checking penalty, which bit Washington in the rear end. Vegas got back in the game twenty seconds into the man advantage on Shea Theodore's third of the playoffs.

That was as close as the Golden Knights got. Vegas best chance came with just under two minutes left in regulation, when this happened:


Alex Ovechkin's reaction on the bench told the entire story That save by Holtby will forever rank as one of the greatest saves in an NHL Playoff game. He made 37 stops in the game, lowering his goals against average in the playoffs to 2.19. Aside from the one highlighted, Holtby stood on his head at times in this second game to help pull Washington even.

There was still more to be talked about from this second game in the finals. One of the big things to stand out was the refs. The guys in the strips got trashed by the crowed for bad calls, and the big one that was missed, Reeves cross check on Carlson before he scored his goal. The refs kind of made up for it with the Oshie call. It going to be busy for the guys in stripes when things move back to DC Saturday night for game two.

After everything that went down in game one, the second game had a lot to try and live up to. It did in more ways than one. Brayden Holtby's stop at the end of regulation stood head and shoulders above the rest.

2018 NBA Finals Preview

Here. We. Go. After 82 regular season games and three more rounds of playoff hoops, we are set to go. Seven games, four wins for somebody to lay claim to the Larry O'Brien trophy as the top team in the National Basketball Association. The writing has been on the wall since the beginning of October who was going to be the last two teams standing. Only question was how were they going to get here. Well we got our answer. Enough wasting time. Here's a breakdown of this years NBA Finals.

For the fourth straight year, it's the Western Conference Champion Golden State Warriors taking on the Eastern Conference Champion Golden State Warriors. Cleveland finished the regular season with a 50-32 record, which placed them 4th in the Eastern Conference. Once the playoffs rolled around, Cleveland defeated the Indiana Pacers in seven games in the first round, then swept the Toronto Raptors in the second round and defeated the Boston Celtics in seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals. Cleveland is now 119-97 lifetime in the playoffs. As for Golden State, they are the defending NBA Champions. Golden State finished with a 58-24 record, which was good enough for 2nd place in the West. Once the playoffs rolled around, Golden State beat the San Antonio Spurs in five games in the opening round, a five game series win over the New Orleans Pelicans in the 2nd round and a seven game series win over the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Finals. Golden State is now 114-83 lifetime in the playoffs. This marks the 4th straight meeting in the finals between these two clubs, with the Warriors having won two of the previous three series.

Here's the date and times for every game in this series:
May 31 9:00 pm Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Golden State Warriors Oracle Arena, Oakland, California
June 3 8:00 pm Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Golden State Warriors Oracle Arena, Oakland, California
June 6 9:00 pm Golden State Warriors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
June 8 9:00 pm Golden State Warriors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
June 11 9:00 pm Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Golden State Warriors* Oracle Arena, Oakland, California
June 14 9:00 pm Golden State Warriors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers* Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
June 17 8:00 pm Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Golden State Warriors* Oracle Arena, Oakland, California

Looks like old friends meet up again with the title on the line. Cleveland got here, no surprise, on the strength of the greatest player in the world, LeBron James. King James has been playing out of his mind all playoffs long. Kevin Love's been out hurt, so the biggest star that LeBron has been playing alongside is J.R. Smith. Just consider for a moment the level LeBron is playing at to this point in the post season. He is averaging 34 points, 9.2 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game these playoffs, which is eye popping numbers. So who's gonna draw the assignment of trying to cover LeBron in this series? You'd think it would be Andre Iguodala, who'd done it in the past. He's dealing with a bit of an injury right now, so if he can't go, Draymond Green and maybe some David West could get the assignment. If its Iguodala, then it'll make the King work plenty hard at both ends of the floor. If it's not him, then it may make things a little easier, and give LeBron more room to move. It won't be just on LeBron for Cleveland to pull off this series win. Kevin Love, George Hill, Tristan Thompson and Kyle Korver are going to need to really step their game up in this series and if they don't show up, it doesn't matter what James does. It won't be enough.

Golden State looks to be their usual balanced selves heading into this finals showdown. Just like trying to find somebody to cover LeBron, its going to be a tough task to try and cover Kevin Durant. Tristan Thompson or Larry Nance were used well against Boston, but if Cleveland wants to stand a chance, then Jeff Green is going to be their top choice. It's more then just trying to guard Durant, as the Warriors are known for their rotation. If Durant doesn't get you, then Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymon Green can find ways to burn you. That's the beauty of having a team as talented and loaded as the one the Warriors have. Golden State can really get a team spread out when Steph Curry is allowed to do his thing from deep. The Warriors are at their best when Curry is bending a defense to his will and he needs the ball to do that. Give the ball to Curry and let him unleash the Warriors heavy 3-point shooting offense.

Had it been Houston, I would have given the Cavs more of a chance. But, much like last year, the Warriors are too deep and balanced compared to Cleveland. LeBron has managed to pull off some playoff magic tricks in the past. This case, he doesn't have enough in it to try and pull it off this year. Cleveland may get a game at home but it won't be enough. Warriors are just too good a team.

Prediction: Warriors in 5!

Vegas Surge To Game One Win

There had been a lot of interest going into the opening game of the Stanley Cup finals, with two teams facing off who've never been here before. Boy, game one didn't disappoint. It had a little bit of everything: big hits, big goals, great saves and great defensive plays. It was a high flying hockey game right from the get go, with teams trading goals in the opening period.

Both teams scored twice in the opening period. The first goal came from Vegas Golden Knights defenceman Colin Miller whose slap shot went past Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby. Washington struck back later in the period as both Brett Connolly and Nicklas Backstrom scored 42 seconds apart. William Karlsson then snuck the puck in between Holtby and the left post to tie the game.

Early in the second period, a rebound off the glass came to Deryk Engelland who passed to an open Reilly Smith firing one past Holtby. Capitals defenceman John Carlson tied up the score after some nice passing from the defender and T. J. Oshie left himself wide open for the goal. In the third period, Tom Wilson redirected Alexander Ovechkin's shot past Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury to take the lead in the game. However, Vegas responded 1:41 later as Ryan Reaves went top-shelf to tie the game yet again.

Tomas Nosek, a fourth liner for most of the year, did this about half way through the third:

Nosek would score again into an empty net to seal the win in the opener for Vegas.

You could kind of tell that Washington was a little nervous going into this series. Ovechkin even said it that it would take Washington a game to get used to facing an opponent they've only seen twice this year. They haven't played each other since the meeting in DC in February, so it may have thrown Washington off their game just a little. You could see the Caps getting their chances late in the game, nobody had a better one then Lars Eller, who was by himself at the side of the net, but got tied up by a Vegas defender at the last second to prevent him from scoring.

Yes, there was also a case to be made that some officiating was questionable in this game. Four minor penalties were called in this entire game, but the biggest one that WASN'T called came late in the 3rd period. Ryan Reaves got away with an egregious cross-check on Capitals defenseman John Carlson before he scored his third-period goal on the doorstep against Holtby. Honestly, hope that the officiating crew can get it together and not miss calls that bad the rest of the series.

Vegas got a great performance from their bottom six, Washington is going to have to do that if they want to have any chance to get back in this series.

LeBron's Level Of Greatness

It's no secret to anyone who the best player in the basketball world is. The debate will continue to rage on as to who the greatest player in the history of basketball is. Sure, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Bill Russell and Kobe Bryant all come to mind immediately. They've all got multiple titles in multiple trips. LeBron James is often brought into that conversation but isn't put at quite the same level. Now I think the conversation might have to start changing.

After beating the Celtics in the seventh game of the Eastern Conference Finals last night, LeBron will now be appearing in the NBA finals for the 8th straight year. Let that sink in for a moment. Eight. Straight. Years. Not too many people have been able to do that. James is now tied with Frank Ramsey for the 3rd most consecutive finals appearances. LeBron has had to be tough in game sevens. Per ESPN Stats, LeBron has won six straight Game 7s over the past 10 years, two of them on the road. He has won seven of the past eight elimination games he's been in, including three this postseason. And he has now come from 2-0 down to win a series three times in his career. That has happened only 20 times in seven-game series in NBA history.

Yes, LeBron is back in the Finals again. Can he win a fourth ring? We will find out in a few weeks. But that's been the biggest knock on LeBron during his career. Yes, Lebron is 3-5 lifetime in the finals, which again is the only knock against the best player in the game. I think if he has more titles and a better record in the Finals, then people would be putting him past Jordan and Kareem on the all time greatest players list as the true king of the NBA. Sure the rings would be nice, but look at what LeBron has had to do over his career just to get to the finals as often as he has.

Sure he had Kyrie Irving two years ago as the Robin to his Batman. Other then that, LeBron hasn't really had the opportunity to play alongside a superstar near his level. Kevin Love is a good to great player, but he's not at the same kind of superstar level as Irving. Everybody talks about the fact that LeBron doesn't have as many rings as some of the games true greats like Jerry West, Kareem, Jordan or Bill Russell. But lets take the number of titles out of the equation for just a moment.

What LeBron has managed to do has been impressive beyond description. Some will argue those three finals appearances in Miami. He had Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosch helping him out, sure. But the other five appearances were with almost nothing in Cleveland. He takes his game to another level when it matters the most. He's done that in game seven's in his career. Can't seem to really get it done in the finals, that knock sticks with him. Still eight finals appearances in a row now marks for a very impressive career. Some speculate that it was an easy walkthrough  to get to the finals. Not so fast. He was pushed to the limit against Indiana in the opening round. Had an easy sweep of Toronto in round two, which came off as a surprise. Then just went through a very game Celtics team in seven games, a series which saw the home team win every game through the first six, before LeBron and company pulled out the win in game seven.

Should be be able to get his fourth ring this year, then I think he can be moved into the top three or four greatest players in the history of the game. There's no doubt he's a top five player in this league and the history of basketball. The fact that he's now played in eight straight finals is really a testament of just how great a player he is. He's King of the East, there's no doubt about it. He can add to his legacy if he's able to win a title this year. It's a legacy that few players have or will be able to touch in the history of Basketball.

2018 Stanley Cup Finals Preview

The time has arrived. After a playoff tournament that started with sixteen teams, we are now down to the final two. Over the next two weeks, and possibly seven games, we will decide who the best team in the National Hockey League is for the 2017-18 season. History will be made in this year's finals. For the first time since 2007, we've got two teams playing in search of their first ever Stanley Cup Title. One team is in its first year of operation, while the other has been around since 1975 and is making their second ever finals appearance. This has been a fairytail run for both teams. One an expansion franchise that nobody expected to get this far. The other is a team who hasn't been able to get out of its own way and has been snakebitten by not getting out of the second round in recent years. Here we sit, the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals have arrived and here's how we see it going down.

This year's finals pit the Western Conference Champion Vegas Golden Knights taking on the Eastern Conference Champion Washington Capitals. Washington earned 105 points during the regular season, which was good enough to win the Metropolitan Division. In the first round of playoffs, Washington came back from a 2–0 series deficit to win four in a row to beat the Columbus Blue Jackets in six games. They followed that up with a six game series win in the 2nd round against their division rival Pittsburgh Penguins. Washington then defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Finals in seven games, winning game seven on the road for only the second time in franchise history and first since 2012. This is the 2nd ever trip to the finals for the Capitals, who were swept by the Detroit Red Wings in their other finals appearance in 1998.

Vegas won the Pacific Division with 109 points. Vegas swept the Los Angeles Kings in four games, defeated the San Jose Sharks in six games, and eliminated the Winnipeg Jets in the Western Conference Finals in five games. This is the third straight year that a Western Confernce team is making its first trip to the finals, joining the San Jose Sharks and Nashville Predators. This also marks the 3rd ever appearance for an expansion team in the finals, with the 1918 Toronto Arenas and the 1968 St Louis Blues.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
Game 1: Capitals at Golden Knights on Monday, May 28 (NBC)
Game 2: Capitals at Golden Knights on Wednesday, May 30 (NBCSN)
Game 3: Golden Knights at Capitals on Saturday, June 2 (NBCSN)
Game 4: Golden Knights at Capitals on Monday, June 4 (NBC)
Game 5: Capitals at Golden Knights on Thursday, June 7 (NBC)
Game 6: Golden Knights at Capitals on Sunday, June 10 (NBC)
Game 7: Capitals at Golden Knights on Wednesday, June 13 (NBC)

All games slated to start at 8PM.

Vegas is coming into this final series after having a very strong playoff run in the West, losing only three games en route to the finals. The biggest reason has been the outstanding play of netminder Marc Andre Fleury. In this year's playoffs, Fleury is 12-3, with a 1.68 goals-against average and a .947 save percentage. That save percentage is the highest percentage in post season play since 1982. Fleury's play has kept Vegas in a ton of these playoff games, most nights when it takes the offense a while to get going. Should Vegas win the Cup, there has to be strong consideration for Fleury for winner of the Conn Smyth Trophy as MVP of the playoffs. Fleury's goaltending has allowed the Golden Knights top line of William Karlsson, Jonathan Marchessault and Reilly Smith. That unit has combined for 47 points this postseason, this coming after totaling 213 points as a line during the regular season. Vegas doesn't just rely on that top line, though. They get contribution from all four lines. It may not reflect in the scoresheet, but the rolling of four lines has been tough to handle for opposing teams this year. Vegas has the foot speed that few teams, if any, can match this year. Its been throwing off opponents in the playoffs, which is a major reason why the Golden Knights are in the finals.

They are going up against another team that has been riding a wave of momentum into the finals in the form of the Washington Capitals. Washington had to get through two of the more powerful teams in the game today in both the Penguins and Lightning in order to reach this final round. While Felury has been playing, at an MVP level for Vegas, Alex Ovechkin has been doing that for the Capitals. He's got 22 points in 19 games in this years playoffs, only two points back of his linemate Evgeny Kuznetsov. This is going to be a defining series for Ovie, because the greatest career goal that has avoided him during his 13 year run in the league has been a Cup. He's accomplished every thing there is possible to accomplish in this league, except win the big one. He's got his best chance at it now. And he's got the supporting cast around him that can help make a difference. Nicklas Backstrom, TJ Oshie, Kuznetsov, Tom Wilson, they've got a balanced team. They might not be able to match the speed stride for stride with the Golden Knights, but they will be able to use their physical play to be able to slow the team down.

Its going to be a battle of will in this years finals. It's going to be a lot of fun to watch the finals this year, with two teams that play slightly contrasting styles. At the end of the day it comes down to who has the edge and momentum on their side. In this case its the Capitals. Nothing against what Vegas has done, its been an amazing run and they may still have one more surprise left in them. At this moment, Washington seems to have the edge and all the luck going on their side. Sure, they've had to play four more games the the Golden Knights, which could really play in the favor of Vegas. But it might not be enough for the Golden Knights to beat out a more balanced, veteran and physical team.

Prediction: Capitals in 7!

NFL Gets A Rule Change

For almost two years now, players around the National Football League have been taking a stand. They look to make a statement against something they feel is an injustice in this country. It's been going on for two years now, NFL players taking a knee during the national anthem as a form of protest. Well, now the NFL is fighting back against it.

It was announced yesterday that the NFL owners have unanimously approved a new national anthem policy that requires players to stand if they are on the field during the performance but gives them the option to remain in the locker room if they prefer. The policy subjects teams to a fine if a player or any other team personnel do not show respect for the anthem. That includes any attempt to sit or kneel, as dozens of players have done during the past two seasons to protest racial inequality and police brutality. Those teams also will have the option to fine any team personnel, including players, for the infraction.

A few of the players have spoken up against the decision. Snacks Harrison of the Giants said this in a tweet "It’s crazy to think that they think ratings dropped because of the kneeling. I can promise you it was wayyyy more people ACTUALLY not watching due to the support of the kneeling than the ones who opposed. Most of those TV games were actually terrible."

"To make a decision that strong, you would hope that the players have input on it," Cleveland Browns quarterback Tyrod Taylor said. "But obviously not. So we have to deal with it as players, for good or a bad thing."

The NFL is making this decision more with their wallets then with their heads. Owners had a chance to really take a stand and really make some noise and they failed to do so. What the owners are more worried about is the bottom line and being able to make money for themselves and use the players to do so. Now granted, it is a two way street. Players need the owners to earn a paycheck playing a game we played as kids. Owners need the players in order to make money. See owners use public money to be able to build these parks and they take that money and try to put the best product on the field for their fan bases. So far, with this ruling, they are telling their fan base that we care more about money then public opinion.

Owners are worried that they are going to lose sponsorship money because the players are taking a stand for something that they believe in. I could be reading this all wrong but that the vibe I'm getting by this ruling. Still don't get why everybody is freaking out of players trying to make a stand. That's the beautiful thing about living in America, the fact that if you feel something isn't right or just then you do something about it. Players went out and made a stand for something they believed in and they did it in a peaceful manner. They weren't hurting anybody. It started to fade, before outsiders started mouthing off about the issue, so it picked up steam again. Now when it looks like it was starting to die down, this ruling comes down. Its a dumb idea that might blow up in the owners faces.

Welcome To New York Lou

It has been a long time since the New York Islanders have really had a man in charge of this calibre. New York just brought in somebody with a pedigree of winning. They've got their man now, somebody who is expected to help point this team in the right direction and get the Islanders back on track to try and win a Stanley Cup. The man chosen to lead them back to the promise land from the front office is Lou Lamoriello. Lou has been hired as President of Hockey Operations, giving him full authority over all hockey matters with the organization.

Lou brings to the organization a very impressive resume from the world of hockey. He joined the NHL in 1987, becoming President and General Manager of the New Jersey Devils, a position which he held until 2015, which was the 3rd longest tenured run as a General Manager in NHL history. After leaving New Jersey, Lou moved on to Toronto to become the General Manager of the Maple Leafs, a position he held until last week. Now he comes aboard as President for the Islanders. During Lou's tenure running the Devils, New Jersey went to the Stanley Cup Playoffs 21 times. During that time, Jersey posted thirteen 100-point seasons, winning nine division titles, appeared in the Stanley Cup Final five times and won three championships (1995, 2000 and 2003). Jersey also had a stretch of thirteen consecutive post-season berths from 1997 to 2010.

After turning the Devils into one of the most successful franchises in the NHL, Lamoriello decided it was time to step down and take on another tasks, running the Toronto Maple Leafs. Under his guidance, Toronto had turned from a 29 win team in his first year, to winning 40 and 49 games the last two seasons, reaching the playoffs both times. Which shows just how well of a job Lamoriello can do running a franchise. When he was informed by Leafs management and Brendan Shanahan that he wouldn't be staying on as GM, Lou decided to move on, and here we are with him as the Islanders President of Hockey Operations.

Lamoriello is well known in NHL circles for his hard-nosed approach to contract negotiations, and also being known for showing consistent shrewdness in identifying and signing top talent that other teams were passing over. Two of his biggest prized draft picks, Martin Broduer (20th overall) and Patrik Elias (51st overall) went on to have pretty good careers with the Devils. There's hope that he can bring some of that quality drafting to the Islanders starting this year.

What does this mean for the future of the Islanderrs?

Could mean that Garth Snow's job could be on the line. Snow's track record, at least in my eyes, hasn't been that great as of late. The fact that John Tavares hasn't signed a new contract yet is quite shocking for a guy who's the face of the franchise. Maybe by bringing in a guy of Lamoriello's talent to run this team could convince Tavares to want to come back and take a shot at winning a Cup with the franchise that drafted him. The team has some good young talent. Tavares will hopefully stick around, they've got a great young stud in Matthew Barzal, Josh Bailey had a really coming out party the last two seasons. There's something to really work with on the blue line as well with guys like Scott Mayfield and Calvin De Haan. Having that good young mix together could be something that Lou could work with in running this team.

What will the future hold for the Islanders franchise? Who knows. But steps have been taken in the right direction over the last few months. Got a brand new home to play in over in Belmont, they will be playing games at Nassau Coliseum during the season until Belmont is ready. Now there's this. Things could be looking up for the Islanders.