John Tavares Long Island Return

Tomorrow night is a night that most Islanders fans have had marked down on the schedule since it was announced over the summer. John Tavares, former Islanders captain, makes his return to Long Island for the first time since bolting for the Toronto Maple Leafs. It's not going to be a pretty homecoming back to Long Island.

Sure he's having a good year in Toronto, with 66 points heading into the contest. The Leafs are also sitting in the 2nd spot in the Atlantic division, trying to catch the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tavares is a big reason for that. When he left Long Island, after nine years of service, more than 600 points and countless memories, he left behind a pretty good legacy. He also left a sour taste in a lot of fans mouths. The fact that Tavares not only left, but the way he left, angered a lot of fans here in New York and who could blame them.

I was unhappy more with the way Tavares left than the fact that he left. I kind of had a feeling he was going to leave because he didn't have the contract signed during the season. My theory always will be that management, at the time, didn't do nearly enough to keep his superstar happy and build a contending team around him. He knew he wasn't going to get a shot at a cup here in New York the way things were being run with the Islanders, so he went to a contender. If he knew he wasn't going to sign then he should have asked to be traded so that way the Isles could have gotten something for him, instead of being left holding the bag. I, myself, have never held any ill will against JT, I do wish him luck in Toronto he's a hell of a hockey player.

OK, sorry for getting off topic a bit, back to the point of this story. When Tavares left, some felt that it would set the Islanders back a few years and were going to have to try and rebuild. It's actually be the opposite effect. The Islanders are sitting tied with the Capitals for the best mark in the Atlantic division. Its been on the strength of the goaltending more than anything, but I'll save that argument for another blog post. The fact that the Isles are sitting where they are, and having done it without Tavares here, says a lot for Islanders management and the current coaching staff.

The big question is: What kind of reception is JT going to get during his return to Nassau Coliseum? Based on some of the videos that have popped up earlier today, its not going to be good. Fans are expected to boo Tavares every time he touches the puck, which isn't going to be a surprise to anybody with any knowledge of the situation. This actually isn't the first meeting between the teams this year. They met in Toronto around Christmas, a game in which the Islanders won 4-0 thanks to a Matt Barzal hat trick. As for Tavares coming back to the Island, the fans are turning on him for leaving, and doing it the way he did. He's going to get booed and he's going to get villified by some of the fan base, which is typical in the sports world. But I think Tavares deserves a little better than that for what he did for this Islanders fra

I get the fact that the fans are unhappy, believe me. But I also think the fact that the Isles are sitting where they are right now has helped ease a lot of the pain of JT departing. Fans will get their yelling at JT out of their systems as the night goes on tomorrow night. The sweetest revenge for the Isles against their former captain will be a big win on home ice and stay on track towards the playoff push.

Winners & Losers NHL Trade Deadline

Ah the trading deadline. When teams get to retool for the playoff push. or, if your out of the playoffs, a chance to stockpile picks in a rebuilding process. This year's deadline had a little something different to it. Seemed as if there was a lot of speculation, not a lot happening, then WHAM, a flurry of action within the last hour leading up to the deadline. And to make things more interesting, the top teams in the West may have gotten better, as if that wasn't a scary enough of a prospect. Some teams did in the East as well, but more of the top West teams took care of business than the East did. With that being said, here's a look at some of the winners and losers from Monday's deadline.

Winner:
Columbus Blue Jackets
There had been rumors flying like crazy that the Jackets could be moving guys at the deadline. This is a team that's sitting third in the Metro division. Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky were reported to possibly be on the move, but they stayed put. Not only did the Jackets keep those two guys, but they added pieces as well. Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel were brought in from Ottawa, while Adam McQuaid came in from Boston, and Keith Kinkaid came aboard from Jersey, both guys acquired for draft picks. They were a fringe team that could have lost pieces. now they reloaded and built up for the stretch run and try to do something they've never done, win a playoff series. Is there hope in Columbus, yes there is. It's just can they capatalize come springtime?

Loser:
Ottawa Senators Fans
It really has been rough going for Senators fans over the last few months. Look at who the Sens have lost over the last year and a half. Erik Karlsson, Matt Duchene, Mark Stone, all gone via the trade route.It going to be a lengthy rebuild in the Canadian capital. Ottawa seems to be setting their lineup around Brady Tkachuk, Thomas Chabot and a whole lot of hope. Add in an arena situation that’s in flux and an owner who doesn’t want to spend money, and that’s a recipe for short-term ill will and impatience. They’re far away from their 2017 Eastern Conference Final appearance, and the light of the future seems even further away. A small part of me does feel for the Sens, as a long suffering Islanders fan i know what this is like. Just hang in there Ottawa, you'll ride through the dark days.

Winner:
Vegas Golden Knights
This is a team that's trying to build off the chocking success they had a season ago. They took a step closer to that goal by landing a big prize at the deadline in Mark Stone. Not only did they land him  in a deal, they followed it up by signing him to a long term deal, an eight year extension to be exact. Stone is one of the up and coming players in the league, now your paring him with William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault on the Golden Knights’ first line. That's a huge boost to the Vegas offense and provide a lift to the team’s power play, which is operating a little below par at the moment. Vegas can now say they have a top six that can match any of the other heavy hitters in the West. They came close to winning it all last year and have another shot at it this year with adding a guy like Stone.

Loser:
Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton was a playoff team two years ago. They won a round in the playoffs two years ago. They haven't come close since. They currently sit 26th in the NHL and they stayed put at the deadline. The Oilers failed to move their unrestricted free agents and the Oilers are still saddled with Milan Lucic’s seven-year, $42 million contract, which lets face facts nobody really wants to take on that deal. Oh yeah, the Oilers front office will have only $7.8 million to play with in free agency according to sources this offseason. Maybe there wasn’t a worthwhile move out there. Edmonton is no better off after the deadline hit, which is sad because they looked like they were getting back on the right track and they have the two time defending scoring champion and all world stud Conor McDavid in the lineup and they're wasting his best years.

Winner:
San Jose Sharks
It may have cost them a little bit, giving up two second round pics, but adding Gustav Nyquist was a solid move by the Sharks. He does have 49 points in 63 games, which just so happen to be his most productive offensive numbers since the 2013-14 season. His playoff numbers are a concern, sure, but his acquisition goes a long way to helping San Jose's forward depth. Why? Because it now helps San Jose out in establishing a third scoring option behind the Evander Kane and Joe Pavelski lines. Again with how top heavy the West is right now, this will help keep the Sharks in the race in the conference.

Loser:
Pittsburgh Penguins
The big problem with the Pens is they needed healthy bodies for the blue line. Well they did add a player to that blueline, but it was Erik Gudbranson. When adding a guy like him, the Pens were seeking physicality over effectiveness. But looking at his metrics, Gubranson is one of the worst defenders in the entire league. It's entirely possible that they've managed to downgrade from Jamie Oleksiak, which is saying a lot. And Gudbranson is signed through 2021. Good luck with that Pittsburgh,

Winner:
Teams Staying Put
It might sound weird saying this, but could the smartest move of all be not making one at all? Well, in a couple of cases it might have been. Tampa is the best team in hockey, they don't need to mess with anything they got it figured out. But you look at teams like the Flames, Hurricanes and Islanders, who all decided it was a good idea to stay put with what they have. And why not, all of them have been pretty solid so far. The Isles are on top of the division, as is Calgary. While the Canes are trying to hang on to the final wild card spot in the East. They all have a new coach who instilled a new system and forged chemistry among players. All three teams had been cited as being players in the market (especially for top-six forwards), but each decided not to pay a high price and instead ride it out with its existing group. It is worth noting that every Stanley Cup winner since 2010 has made a move during the week preceding the trade deadline, so we'll see if any of these teams can change that narrative. So lets see if it works

Manny Makes Money

The chips have finally started to fall. The two biggest free agents on the market this offseason were Manny Machado and Bryce Harper. Bryce is still without a contract. Manny, on the other hand, just got paid. And paid big. He reportedly signed a ten year deal worth $300 million on Tuesday with the San Diego Padres. It's a huge deal for a great ball player, but maybe, just maybe, he missed the boat with his signing.

Over his first seven years, Manny has put up pretty solid numbers. He finished last year with a .297 average, belted 37 home runs and drove in 107 runs. split between Baltimore and Los Angeles. He's now a .282 lifetime hitter who's driven in over 500 runs to this point in his career. Manny also has a .335 lifetime on base percentage. He signed a huge offer to join a Padres lineup that has Eric Hosmer and Ian Kinsler at the center of it. It's a large contract, so Manny's more than getting paid. He really missed the boat on a chance to win though.

Look at the Padres lineup. If all they have to power it now is Machado, Kinsler and Hosmer, it going to be tough to try and score runs. The other option for Manny was the Chicago White Sox, who have a better chance to win a championship than the Padres do, at least on paper.Chicago has a more balanced lineup than the Padres do and Manny would have been a bigger help in the Windy City than out on the West Coast. He got paid and it doesn't look good for him to make the playoffs.

Now I'm not saying that the Sox would have done better, because they finished last year with a 62-100 record and missed the playoffs for the tenth straight year. According to a report in a recent Yahoo article, Phillies general manager Matt Klentak explained his team's reaction to the Padres' offer to Machado.

"There's a certain value that we believe a player brings and we were willing to be aggressive," Klentak said. "If the reports are true, then this contract will exceed our valuation and sometimes you have to be willing to walk away."

I think that same logic is what's being used in why Bryce still doesn't have a contract. He's a great baseball player, there's no denying that. But the asking price for his services is just way too high. The Phillies are still in play to grab Harper on the market. So as far as Haper goes, only time is going to tell whether or not he gets paid.

One more thing to be said about all of this with Bryce and Manny can't be ignored. The next huge name to hit the market is going to be Mike Trout, considered by many to be the best all around player in all of baseball. Trout isn't due to hit the market until 2021, and by that time who knows how much money he's going to be asking for.

Problems in LaLa Land?

It's no secret that the Los Angeles Lakers are one of the premiere sports franchise out there today. That gets magnified even more when they have the best player in the game, Lebron James, playing in their lineup. With that comes some pretty lofty expectations. But over the past ten days, things haven't been looking too good for the boys out in Hollywood. Some of it started to stem after Tuesday nights loss to the Atlanta  Hawks, but some may have been brewing even before that.

Lets back track a little bit. Lets go back to last Thursday, a thrilling 120-128 win over the Celtics in Boston, a game that at the time, pout LA a game over .500. This was a game after they got blown out by 42 points by the Pacers, the worst loss of LeBron's career. The next two games after the win over Boston were a 23 point loss to the Sixers and a four point loss to the Hawks. There was the highly publicized calling out of players by coach Luke Walton. It happened after a Saturday night loss earlier this month to the Warriors. After the game, several Lakers players and coach Luke Walton reportedly got in a verbal altercation, after Walton criticized their selfish play in the defeat.

At one point during this recent stretch for the Lakers, Lebron was shown sitting apart from his teammates on the bench. The King, at one point, even set off understandably touchy Lakers fans by saying, “There’s nothing I need to get in this league that I don’t already have. Everything else for me is just like icing on the cake.” Talk about taking a pot shot. All this is just the tip of the iceberg for what has been a real struggle for LA. They've now lost four of their last five games and eight of the last eleven.

There's a couple of different angles to look at with this recent struggles.

I'm not saying the Lakers were a dominating threat in the West, at least not with the big contenders like the Warrios, Rockets and even Thunder. They were a team that was projected to at least be a playoff team, maybe middle to lower pack in the top eight in the Western Conference. Now they're a game under .500 and two and a half games out of the final playoff spot in the West as we near the All Star Break. But the fact that there's dissension amongst the Lakers ranks says a lot. The younger players aren't trusting of Luke Walton and what he wants to try running out West. When some of yor younger guys are starting to turn against you, that's a huge problem.

The other thing sticking out like a sore thumb is the whole LeBron storyline. Maybe I'm reading too much into it but the fact that he's standing by himself is slap in the face of the younger guys who really want to win. I get it. LeBron has pretty much done almost all their is to do in the sport. He's dominated the game like few others in basketball history have. But going out there and saying what he said to the press isn't the smartest idea in the world. I get it that this would be icing on the cake to win a title with the Lakers, if you can even do it with how loaded the West is. But maybe saying that isn't the smartest idea in the world.

Its not hard to see that LA is fading fast out west, and Lebron's answer to the press isn't helping matters much. He's only human and can only do so much. The young guns that the Lakers are trying to grow need to step their game up and give LeBron a little more support so it doesn't come off like he has to try and do everything himself. Hey, maybe LA can turn this thing around after the brak and make noise in the West. Even better, they could make more noise this summer and land Anthony Davis, who has said he wouldn't mind playing with LeBron in LA. Anything's possible.

First things first. If the Lakers want to stand any chance of doing anything. They need to get their minds right and get back on the same page and quickly.

Football Hall Makes Call

Football fans make yearly trips to Canton, Oho, home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Every year, the Hall enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coaches, franchise owners, and front-office personnel, almost all of whom made their primary contributions to the game of Football. This year, nine people will get the ultimate honor of going into the Hall. Tony Gonzalez, Ed Reed, Champ Bailey, Ty Law, Kevin Mawae, Pat Bowlen, Gil Brandt and Johnny Robinson all got the call any football player dreams of.

We'll start with Tony Gonzales, easiest selection of the bunch to get induction. He has gone down in a lot of people's eyes as one of the greatest tight ends to ever play in the NFL He was a first round choice by the Chiefs in 1997, a career that spanned 12 years in Kansas City and another five years in Atlanta. He was a 14 time Pro Bowler, a six time first team all pro and a eight time second team all pro. By the time he hung up his pads, Gonzales had made 1,325 catches, which was good for 15,127 yards and 111 touchdowns. He had a level of athleticism that not a lot of guys that played the position. It really was a joy watching him catch passes from the tight end spot.

The biggest name on the defensive side of things to get in this year was safety Ed Reed. Drafted 23rd overall in 2002, Reed spent his first ten years in the league in Baltimore. Ed followed that up splitting the final year of his career between Houston and New York with the Jets. Reed was known for his playmaking ability on defense, recording 64 interceptions in his career(61 with the Ravens). What's even more awesome to think about is he returned a ridiculous seven of them for touchdowns. Ed led the league in picks three different times and led the league in interception yards twice. He was a five-time All-Pro and a nine-time Pro Bowler who also finished with an absurd nine playoff interceptions in just 15 games. Those are eye popping numbers and make you realize just how insanely good Ed Reed truely was.

Next up is Cornerback Champ Bailey. Drafted 7th overall in 1999, spending the first five years of his career in Washington. He was then dealt in a blockbuster trade to the Broncos for Clinton Portis. From 2004 to 2013 Bailey's career really hit its stride with the Broncos. Champ was a twelve time pro bowler, made the all pro first team three times and the second team twice. His talent rose to another game in Denver, as evidence by the ten picks he had for the Broncos in 2006. When he was on his game, Champ Bailey was considered one of the best, if not the best, corner to ever play the game.

Then we have Linebacker Ty Law. Selected by the Patriots 23rd overall in 1995, Law was a force for that Patriots defense. He played in New England for nine years, then spent two years (in two different stints) with the Jets, two years with the Chiefs, before spending his final year as a player with the Broncos. He started in four AFC Championship Games and had the famous score against the Rams to help kick off the Patriots dynasty during the 2002 Super Bowl. He started for the Patriots in three Super Bowls all told, winning two. Law was a two-time All Pro and made the Pro Bowl five. He was the unquestioned leader on those Patriots defenses, helping firmly establish what we see with the Patriots today.

Kevin Mawae closes out the player category, being drafted 36th overall in 1994. Mawae played for the Seahawks from 1994-1997, but his career took off from 1998-2005 with the Jets. Mawae finished his career from 2006-2009 with the Titans. He was a eight time pro bowler and seven time first team all pro during his eighteen year career in the NFL. He will go down in the books as one of the greatest blockers in NFL history and look no further than his time here in New York. Under Bill Parcells's guidance, Mawae helped to block for an absurd seven 1,000-yard rushers during his eight seasons with New York. It's an insane number to think about when you read it. An even more eye popping number is that Mawae blocked for 13 1,000-yard rushers during his sixteen seasons. Its unreal to think about.

Everybody getting induction to the hall this year is very well deserving. But one name that is still left off the list, which is slightly shocking, is Isaac Bruce. In his sixteen year career, Bruce had 15,280 receiving yards, which is 5th most in league history. Of the other guys in the top five, the only one who isn't in the Hall of Fame is Larry Fitzgerald, and he's still playing with the Cardinals. Bruce not being in the hall is the biggest glaring omission at the moment.

Congratulations to all those getting inducted into Canton on August 4th!

Patriots Dynasty Continues

They just keep right on rolling, don't they. Not too many teams can claim supremacy the way the New England Patriots have over the last 18 years. Three straight big game appearances is impressive enough. Winning two titles in three years is even more impressive. In one of the more boring games in Super Bowl history, New England downed the Los Angeles Rams 13-3. It marks the 6th title in Patriots history and second in three years.

If you wanted to find a high scoring football game, this one wasn't for you. It started off with New England getting picked off on the first drive of the game. Corey Littleton snagged a deflected Brady pass. It might have been an early sign for things to come, but nothing ever materialized from it. Los Angeles wasn't able to do anything with it. New England got the ball back, had a nice drive, only for Stephen Gostkowski to miss from 46 yards out. The next three drives all ended the same way, with teams trading punts. New England finally got on the board early in the second half when Gostkowski hit from 42 yards out. That was all the scoring in the first half. Los Angeles punted four more times in the half, while New England had three punts and a loss of downs.

Los Angeles wouldn't get shut out on the day. Greg Zuerlein put up the only rams points on the day hitting from 53 yards out.New England would close out the scoring with the final ten points on the day. The lone touchdown on the evening came with 7 minutes left in the game. Sony Michel scored from two yards out. Gostkowski put the nail in the coffin, hitting a 41 yard field goal with 1:12 left to seal the game for New England. While the scoring wasn't very high, teams had a few chances and put up some decent numbers.

Tom Brady finished the day going 21 of 35 for 262 yards. The only mistake he made all day was getting picked off by Littelton on the opening drive. Julian Edelman was Brady's top target with 10 receptions for 141 yards. His performance on the day was so good, he walked away with MVP honors. He joins Deion Branch and four time winner Tom Brady as the only Patriots to win MVP. He also became the seventh Wide Receiver to walk away with MVP and the first wide out since Santonio Holmes in 2010 to win the award. Edleman wasn't the only Pat player to have an impact. Rob Gronkowski caught six passes for 87 yards. Sonny Michel was the top rusher of the game with 94 yards and a touchdown.

The Rams weren't quite as good. Jared Goff finished the day 19-for-38 passing, for 229 yards and an interception. Brandin Cooks was his top receiver with eight receptions for 120 yards. Todd Gurley was quiet, with 10 carries for 35 yards, while CJ Anderson had seven carries fro 22 yards. LA was only the second team in Super Bowl history to fail to score a touchdown, the first having been the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI after the 1971 season.

There were a few records that New England set in this game. With the win, Brady now has more victories (regular season and playoffs combined) with 237. He broke a tie with Adam Vinatieri for the wins total. It was also the 6th ring for Brady, most of any player. It was also amazing to read that the only red zone play run the entire day was the Michel touchdown run. A part of me feels bad for the Rams, who tied the 1971 Dolphins for fewest points in a Super Bowl. The three points they scored are also the fewest points scored by the Rams in the 36 games they've played under Sean McVay.

It was a tough game to watch, not just because the Pats won (that's the Jets fan in me talking). It was a game that saw sixteen total points scored and fourteen punts. Sean McVay hadn't done a lot in the challenge department calling plays. He wasn't really taking shots downfield. A lot of this had to do with Todd Gurley not being effective. Gurley had been the bread and butter for the Rams this year, and when he wasn't an effective option, it showed the shortcomings in the Rams offensive game. New England took advantage of it defensively and held them to three points.

New England wasn't perfect, but they did what they had to do in order to get the win. Congratulations to the Patriots on their sixth Super Bowl Title!

Super Bowl 53 Preview

The big day is finally here. After starting this journey with 32 teams back in September, we are down to the final two. Atlanta will be hosting the big game for the 3rd time ever, having previously hosted Super Bowl XXVIII in 1994 and Super Bowl XXXIV in 2000, both at the Georgia Dome. It's a battle of two teams trying to walk away with the biggest prize in all of professional football, the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Lets get into it right now.

Its the NFC Champion Los Angeles Rams taking on the AFC Champion New England Patriots. Los Angeles finished the regular season with a 13-3 record, good enough for the second seed in the NFC. Once the playoffs got going, Los Angeles knocked off the Dallas Cowboys in the Divisional Round and then the top seeded New Orleans Saints in the Conference Championship game. This will mark the fourth Super Bowl in franchise history for the Rams, going 1-2 in their previous three trips. Its the first Super Bowl appearance for the Rams since 2001.

As for the Patriots, they finished the year with an 11-5 record, good enough for the second seed in the AFC and making it their 17th season with double digit wins in their 19 years under head coach Bill Belichick. Once the playoffs got rolling, they knocked off the Los Angeles Chargers in the Divisional Round, and then took out the Kansas City Chiefs in the Conference Championship game, to reach the Super Bowl. They went on to join the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills as the only teams in NFL history to ever reach three consecutive Super Bowls.

New England has seen this act before. Its the ninth time with Brady at QB and the 3rd year in a row they are playing in the big game. Should the Patriots come up short, Brady would tie Jim Kelly for the most losses by a QB in Super Bowl History. He's too good a talent to let that happen without a fight. He's got weapons all over the place with which to work with. Sony Michel has been outstanding out of the backfield for the Pats this season, even more so in the playoffs. Its not just Michel either. You're also getting contributions from James White catching the ball and Rex Burkhead doing both. the pass attack ain't so bad in New England either. Julian Edelman always finds a way to make a big play over the middle when it's needed the most. Him and Rob Gronkowski, who isn't quite the same as he once was, are still real threats to try and defend against. With those two guys as weapons, it opens things up more for the rest of the players to step their game up.

One big slight you could make on the Patriots is how they handle pressure from the inside. If Brady gets rushed off the edge, the team can handle it, but inside pressure hasn't been very kind to the Patriots, who have struggled with it. New Englad knows how to adjust on the fly and should be able to handle anything thrown their way by the Rams. Besides putting points up on the board, New England is pretty good at shutting down the opposition. Trey Flowers and Kyle Van Noy know how to put pressure on the opposition and force them into making mistakes. If you look at the secondary, Stephen Gilmore and Patrick Chung are going to make it tough for opposing receivers to get open and make plays.

Making plays is something this Rams offense is no stranger to. They finished second in the NFL during the regular season, scoring 528 points and also finished second in yards with 6,738. That shouldn't be a problem. When you have Brandin Cooks and Robert Woods as your go to targets in the pass game, it really helps open things up in the middle of the field for your underneath targets. If you think that's impressive, you should see the running game in LA. CJ Anderson and Todd Gurley make a pretty impressive one two punch running the ball. Even though it looks like Gurley been having an off time in the playoffs. He looked OK in the Divisional round against Dallas, but something seemed off in the Championship game against the Saints. The only question mark you could throw out there for the Rams is, can Jared Goff hold onto the football. he's fumbled the ball twelve times this season, most for any quarterback in the league. The Rams offense can't be giving New England too many chances in good field position, otherwise it will cost them.

Much like the Patriots, Los Angeles has a solid defense in its own right. The best defensive player in the league, Aaron Donald, anchors that defensive line. Along with Ndamukong Suh, Los Angeles has a pretty solid one two punch on the line, creating havoc for opposing offenses to try and plan against. Cory Littelton has also had a big impact for the Rams, leading the team with 125 tackles. Throw in a secondary that has John Johnson, Marcus Peters and Lamarcus Joyner, its going to possibly cause matchup problems for the Patriots. New England will try and find ways to throw new looks at teams, but head coach Sean McVay has no trouble with getting around such things and making adjustments.

This one was a tough one to predict going in. Both teams are so good. It going to come down to turnovers and who can make the most of it. New England isn't immune to it but the Rams are slightly worse at hanging onto the ball then the Patriots are. As much as it pains me to say this, well the Jets fan in me anyway, New England is just too good of a team. yes they had five losses on the year but they found their groove at the right time of the year. New England is going to take advantage of one small mistake made by the Rams.

Prediction: Patriots 37, Rams 34