Is This Team Even Salvagable?

For the 2026 New York Mets, there had been a decent level of expectations. This team may not have been talented enough to really challenge for a division title in the National League East, but they should have been competitive enough to be in the thick of things as a wild card team at least in the NL. And for a while there, it looked as if the Mets might be able to overcome their early season struggles and right the ship enough to make a game of it in the long run. As of me writing this, I'm not totally sold.

Let's take a step back here for a moment and go back to the beginning of the season shall we. With all the talent that was moved out during the winter, and with what it was replaced by in the locker room, there was a level of concern for the club. Would they have been contenders for the division title with the Phillies and even the Braves with the talent that's been brought on board? Not totally no. I just didn't get the feeling that they'd have enough go of it in the bats to really be able to stay with the likes of Philadelphia or Atlanta at the top of the division. They had enough pieces here to be able to make a showing of it and get in as a wild card, in theory, sure.

But what we thought would happen at the beginning of April, and what we are looking at right now at the start of the last week of May, are two very different things.

To be fair, injuries have taken their toll on this team. Lindor out hurt, Alvarez hurt, Holmes hurt, Polanco hurt. I can keep going. They have had a few guys like AJ Ewing make some noise in the playing time they're getting with guys down, but it's not much. And sadly it's not enough to carry the team while waiting for the big guns to come back and get back on track. Outside of Ewing and Juan Soto, nobody on this team who's seeing the field regularly is hitting above .250. That's disastrous right there.

They're coming off a weekend series in which they not only got swept by the Miami Marlins, who many projected to be a bad team this year anyway, and in said sweep they scored just two runs the entire time. They can't for whatever reason, get the job done right now with getting guys across the plate during prime chances. To call this maddening would be an understatement.

There's no doubt in anybody's mind at this point moves have got to be considered being made, some of which quite frankly should have been done already. There's no way you can take into account predicting injuries, that's not possible. But you had to have known at the start something this year wasn't going to work out right. The manager can only do so much with the tools he's been given and for that, David Sterns deserves to get his walking papers for what he's done to this team. let's be honest here He built this garbage on the field and should get three to five for doing what he did to a team that was three wins away from a world series appearance just two seasons ago. Carlos Mendoza isn't safe either for not being able to change things with the team that he has been given. How its taken this long for moves to be made with the Mets I have no clue, and still nothing has been done to change it at the time of this writing.

That vent being said, is this still salvageable for 2026. As a playoff team, I'm not totally sold on that bill of goods yet. Can they salvage this year to finish at or above .500? That's a more realistic yes. Will they do either thing? I can't say for sure, only time will tell. But what I can say is that, from what we've seen so far, moves have to be made from the bench and front office to try and change things, because what we are looking at right now isn't working. And if we are being totally honest its embarrassing for what amount of money has been spent on payroll for this club to be where they are at the time of this writing.

Stanley Cup Conference Finals Preview

And then there were four. We have hit the conference finals in the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. It's going to be a battle of wills in both conference finals. One team is looking to end the drought of an entire nation. The other three are trying to get back to the top of the mountain themselves. Those three teams have all won at least one title in this century, while the other is seeking its first title since 1993. The top two teams in these series have dominated on their way here, with just one loss between them. One team has gone six games in each series, while the other has gone seven in both series. It's going to be a fun two week stretch to reach the finals. So here's how we see the conference finals going down.

We will start with the Western Conference Finals between the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche. Colorado is 8-1 so far in the playoffs and are looking to become the first Presidents Trophy winner to reach the finals since 2013 (Blackhawks won the cup that year). Meanwhile, the Golden Knights have gone six games in each of the first two rounds.

Vegas has had to do this without the play of their captain Mark Stone, who missed the last three games of the last round due to injury. But the team hasn't seemed like it missed a beat thanks to the play of both Mitch Marner and Jack Eichel in the first two rounds. Marner leads the playoffs in scoring at the time of this writing, and Eicheil is 5th in scoring. IT's not just those two guys carrying the load in Vegas, as you've seen production all playoffs long from guys like Pavel Dorofeyev and Tomas Hertl as well. And in net, Carter Hart has been a big surprise, with a 2.37 goals against and a 917 save percentage in his 12 games.

For as good as Vegas has been, Colorado still appears to have been head and shoulders above everybody else. in these playoffs. Colorado may not have guys in the top ten in scoring in the playoffs, outside of Nathan MacKinnon, but Colorado has the most balanced scoring team in the post season. The only thing that I would even remotely put into question here is the play of Scott Wedgewood. Don't get anything twisted he's been good. His 2.21 goals against and .914 save percentage have been good. But he did look a little rocky in game three against Minnesota. If Colorado really wants to go all the way, he needs to be better than he has been in this post season.

This is going to be the tightest series that the Avs will have played and it's going to be a big test, but at the end of the day, it really comes down to the depth. Colorado has that it seems in spades in this series. Vegas is going to give the Avs a run, there's no doubt about it. At the end of the day, the best team will stand tall at the end.

Pick: Colorado in six!

Now for the Eastern Conference Finals, which will pit the Montreal Canadians taking on the Carolina Hurricanes. Carolina has had plenty of time off, having won both of their first round games in sweeps. The Canes haven't played in twelve days by the time the puck dops in this series. That could be detrimental to the Hurricanes in that its going to get them off to a slow start. Then again, Carolina, much like Colorado, has had balanced scoring all throughout the playoffs. It hasn't been to the same degree of power as the Avs, the Canes have still gotten contributions from almost everybody that's in their lineup. Another big reason for Carolina being where they are has been the play of Frederik Andersen.. A 1.12 goals against and a .950 save percentage are both the best in the playoffs. He hasn't really been tested in the first two series, and even when he has, he's answered the bell.

And while Carolina has been dominating on their run here, Montreal has had a much rockier path, having to go seven games in both series. There are times in the previous two series that Montreal has looked totally overmatched. Yet thanks to the play of guys like Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson here we sit. Montreal has been just as balanced as Carolina has with their scoring. And rookie Jakub Bobes has been playing out of his mind as the playoffs have gone along.

For as much fun as it has become watching Montreal do what they do in this year's playoffs, I think the magic finally runs out here. Carolina's just too good of a defensive team and too balanced for Montreal to overcome.

Pick: Hurricanes in 5

NFL Schedule Released

The time has finally arrived. Let's start marking the calendars right now. The 2026 National Football League schedule has been released! We will have the full scheduled here in a minute for the Jets, Giants and Buccaneers. Before we get into that, let's take a look at some of the notable games on the docket for the rest of the league.

Week 1, Patriots @ Seahawks: Super Bowl Rematch to kick off the regular season

Week 1, Dolphins @ Raiders: Fernando Mendoza NFL Debut 

Week 2, Lions @ Bills: Buffalo opens their new stadium 

Week 12, Thanksgiving Triple Header: Bears @ Lions, Eagles @ Cowboys, Chiefs @ Bills

Week 16, Christmas Triple Header: Packers @ Bears, Bills @ Broncos, Rams @ Seahawks

That's just some of the great action we can expect around the NFL this year. Now let's dive into it. Here's what the teams we cover on the show will be doing this year for games.

September 13th @ Cincinnati 1PM FOX
September 20th vs. Cleveland 1PM CBS
September 27th vs. Minnesota 4:05PM CBS
October 4th vs. Green Bay 1PM FOX
October 8th @ Dallas 8:20PM Prime
October 18th vs. Pittsburgh 1PM CBS
October 25th @ Carolina 1PM FOX
November 1st vs. Atlanta 1PM FOX
November 8th @ Chicago 8:20PM NBC
BYE WEEK
November 22nd @ Detroit 1PM CBS
November 30th vs Carolina 8:15PM ESPN
December 6th vs. Los Angeles Chargers 1PM CBS
December 13th @ Baltimore 1PM FOX
December 20th vs New Orleans 1PM FOX
TBD @ Atlanta (Flex Game)
TBD vs Lons Angeles Rams (Flex Game)
TBD @ New Orleans (Flex Game)

September 13th vs Dallas 8:20PM NBC
September 21st @ Los Angeles Rams 8:15PM ESPN
September 217th vs Tennessee 1PM CBS
October 4th vs Arizona 1PM CBS
October 11th @ Washington 1PM FOX
October 18th vs New Orleans 1PM FOX
October 25h @ Houston 1PM FOX
BYE WEEK
November 8th @ Philadelphia 1PM FOX
November 12th vs Washington 8:15PM Prime
November 22nd vs Jacksonville 1PM CBS
November 29th @ Indianapolis 1PM FOX
December 6th vs San Francisco 1PM FOX
December 13th @ Seattle 4:25PM FOX
December 20th vs Cleveland 1PM CBS
December 28th @ Detroit 8:15PM ESPN
January 3rd @ Dallas 1PM FOX
TBD vs Philadelphia (Flex Game)

September 13th @ Tennessee 1PM CBS
September 20th vs Green Bay 1PM FOX
September 27th @ Detroit 1PM FOX
October 4th @ Chicago 1PM FOX
October 11th vs Cleveland 1PM CBS
October 18th @ New England 1PM CBS
October 25th vs Miami 1PM CBS
November 1st vs Las Vegas 1PM FOX
November 8th @ Kansas City 1PM CBS
November 15th vs Buffalo 1PM CBS
November 22nd @ Los Angeles Rams 4:05PM CBS
November 29th @ Miami 1PM CBS
BYE WEEK
December 13th vs Denver 1PM CBS
December 20th @ Arizona 4:05PM FOX
December 27th vs New England 1PM CBS
January 3rd vs Minnesota 1PM CBS
TBD @ Buffalo (Flex Game)

Stanley Cup Second Round Predictions

And then there were eight. We now have eight teams left standing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The second round of the Cup playoffs has finally arrived, and we have quite a few storylines still floating around going into this round.

Can Colorado keep the pace they have all season long? Can Minnesota continue its hot streak after its first round upset? Can Anaheim keep their great play up? Was Philadelphia a first round fluke or are they for real? Can Montreal end the drought for Canada? What about Buffalo? Are they for real? A lot of these questions and more will be answered over the next week and a half or so as the second round gets rolling.

Yes some of the games have already started in round two, but the predictions made here have been made before any of the games actually got underway and have not been changed based on the way opening games have gone.

Buffalo Sabres vs Montreal Canadiens

Buffalo is coming off winning their first playoff series since 2007, taking out the Bruins. Montreal is coming off a bit of an upset beating Tampa and winning a round for the first time since 2021. Buffalo is coming into this a little more rested, having won in six. Montreal is coming off a very physical very tight series against Tampa. This is going to be another tight series and another even series. It’s going to make for must see TV, of the four series we have left. Because of the atmosphere in both buildings and the rivalry between the two franchises. What’s going to swing the series is the play of the big boys. Montreal had its role players pull it out against the Lightning, their big line was held in check. Buffalo’s big guns acted like it against Boston. Don’t get it twisted, Buffalo had their role players have an impact too, bhut the big guys played just as much of a role. That’s going to be the difference in the series.

Pick: Buffalo in 6!

Carolina Hurricanes vs Philadelphia Flyers

Carolina was the best team in the East all year and showed it in a sweep against Ottawa in the first round. Philly came in and beat the Penguins in a bit of a surprise win. A big reason for that was the play of Dan Vladar in the Flyers net, he had two shutouts in the series and allowed more than two goals just twice in the series, both losses. And Philly got pretty balanced production from most of its lineup, there wasn’t one line that really stuck out in that series. Carolina was just as good in their four game sweep of Ottawa. It was the big guns that had an impact too as well as the role guys. Hall, Stankoven and Blake all had big series. And just like Vladar did in that first round for the Flyers, Freddy Andersen was just as good for the Hurricanes. This series won’t be as easy for the Hurricanes as the first round was. The Flyers are going to come out and push hard. At the end of the day, the Hurricanes depth and talent will win out.

Pick: Hurricanes in 6!

Colorado Avalanche vs Minnesota Wild

Colorado proved in the first round why they won the Presidents Trophy, winning in a sweep over the Kings. Minnesota pulled off the big upset in the first round, knocking off the favored Stars in six. This series is going to be a run and gun, high scoring series. Minnesota not only had balanced scoring, but their big guns acted like it against Dallas. They had balance and put a lot of pressure on the Stars and it killed Dallas as the series went along. That’s going to play a factor in the series as they will be able to stay stride for stride with the Avs. At the same time Colorado showed why they were the best team in the league in the first round. It was the same thing in Denver, with balanced scoring and the big guns leading the way as everything went along. Expect a lot of high scoring hockey in this series.

Pick: Colorado in 7!

Vegas Golden Knights vs Anaheim Ducks

Anaheim is coming off an upset win over the Oilers in six in the opening round, while Vegas had to go the same against Utah. This is going to be the other most evenly matched meeting of this entire second round, as both teams have the same skill level and got the same production out of said skill level. Anaheim youth movement proved to be too much for the Oilers in the opening round, where Vegas experience is what won out against Utah. And Vegas had to do it coming back from down two games to one in that series. It going to come down to who’s big guns are going to have more firepower in the series. And the edge, for me at least, goes to Vegas.

Pick: Golden Knights in 6!

Broadcasting Legend Passes

Television and Radio announcers. They make the games come to life. And for 36 years, one man did just that for New York Baseball. Whenever people think of the New York Yankees, naturally the legends of the game always come to mind. Ruth, Gerig, DiMaggio, Jeter ect. There’s one name on that list of legends who never made a play or hit a long ball. But boy did he make those moments come to life. That person was John Sterling, who for 36 years painted the word picture on the radio for one of the greatest franchises in any sport anywhere in the civilized world. Monday morning, it was announced that John had passed away at the age of 87.

The cause of his passing was due to heart failure at a hospital in Englewood New Jersey. This coming a couple of months after suffering a heart attack at the beginning of the year.

John’s career had spanned 5.420 regular season games and another 211 in the playoffs. He started calling games for the Yankees in 1989 and never missed a broadcast, a streak of 5,060 games, until missing one in 2019. He finally retired from the booth just before the start of the 2024 season. During his legendary career, John’s had quite a few different partners in the booth, ranging anywhere from Jay Johnstone (1989–1990), Joe Angel (1991), Michael Kay (1992–2001), Charley Steiner (2002–2004), and Suzyn Waldman (2005–2024). Sterling was on the air for 24 Yankees postseason trips, seven World Series appearances and five World Series titles.

Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win! It is high, it is far, it is gone! Those are the two most famous things that any baseball, or sports fan, associates with John Sterling. He also had a unique way to come up with induvial calls for players when they would go deep, or make a spectacular play, during the course of a season.

Aside from his baseball career he also had stints behind the microphone for the Washington Bullets in the NBA and even called games on the radio for the New York Islanders from 1975-78. John provided so many thrills for so many fans, love him or hate him. He left a legacy that will never be forgotten in the sports world.

John Sterling, gone but not forgotten.

Stanley Cup First Round Predictions

What time is it? IT'S CUP TIME!

The Stanley Cup Playoffs have arrived! We started this journey way back in October with thirty two teams all eyeing the biggest prize in hockey. After an eighty two game regular season, here we sit with sixteen teams left standing. There's a lot of big storylines going into this years playoffs.

Can Colorado build off its Presidents Trophy win? Can Edmonton get back to the finals for the 3rd year in a row? Can Utah have a magic run in only it's second year in existence? Can Tampa keep the Eastern Conference title in the state of Florida? Buffalo ends its long playoff drought, how well can they build off it? Will there be a Canadian team to end the country Cup drought?

We will find out in the coming weeks. Right now its the first round, and here's how we see it going down.

Carolina Hurricanes vs Ottawa Senators

Pick: Hhrricanes in 5!

I'm taking Carolina in five here, but it may end up going deeper than that. Ottawa has been coming into this year's playoffs hot, winning six of their final ten games. And with how well Lnus Ullmark has played, he might be able to steal a couple of games. But, at the same time, the Hurricanes come in as the best team in the East. With all their playoff experience, Carolina should be able to take this series.

Pittsburgh Penguins vs Philadelphia Flyers

Pick: Penguins in 7!

Nobody really expected either of these two teams to make the playoffs this year but here we are. Flyers have a good team, I can't take that away from them. But at the same time they backed in, in a sense. Pittsburgh has been playing good hockey down the stretch. And that playoff experience takes hold in a big way.

Buffalo Sabres vs Boston Bruins

Pick: Sabres in 6!

Boston has been good this year, but lets be realistic here. There's magic in the air in Buffalo. First playoff appearance since 2011, first division title since 2010. It's been a long time coming. And they have been one of the hottest teams the last month or so of the season.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs Montreal Canadiens

Pick: Lightning in 6!

This is going to be a physical series. What going to be the difference in this series is the experience. Montreal has been good but Tampa has been in the playoffs for nine straight years. They know what they doing and they have managed to keep changing out the parts when needed to help keep the train moving along. Montreal has proven this year that they can be a thorn in Tampa's side but Tampa is going to use that as motivation.

Colorado Avalanche vs Los Angeles Kings

Pick: Avalanche in 4!

Look maybe the Kings can surprise somebody. They may be able to steal a game. If everything were to break right. Colorado is the deepest most balanced team in the league and they got better as the year moved along. This should be the easiest series to pick.

Dallas Stars vs Minnesota Wild

Pick: Stars in 7!

This may go six in the short but most likely will go the full distance. Its going to be the most evenly matched series of the entire first round. At the end of the day, the Stars top end talent is deeper and has more variety than what you get in Minnesota. Lets not get it twisted, adding Quin Hughes in the mix by the Olympic break was massive and took the Wild up a notch. But Dallas is just a little bit deeper. And that gives them the edge.

Edmonton Oilers vs Anaheim Ducks

Pick: Oilers in 5!

Maybe giving the Ducks a game in this series is light. Last time the Ducks were in the playoffs was nine years ago and they got swept. The youth movement in Anaheim has arrived and is clicking at full strength. But they are going up against the two time defending Western Conference Champions. Oh and they still have the best player in the world. I'm still a little concerned about their questions between the pipes, but that won't be a factor in the first round.

Vegas Golden Knights vs Utah Mammoth

Pick: Golden Knights in 6!

Utah has to get the credit they deserve. Second year in existence and they already a playoff team. They can steal a couple of games but the Golden Knights experience and talent level will take center stage here

Star Hangs Up Pads

Professional athletes know when its time to call it a career. After playing a sport for a long time, you know when its time to put the gear away and hang the jersey up for the final time. At the age of 40, NHL goalie Jonathan Quick has realized that now is that right time. Quick has called it a career. After 19 years in the National Hockey League, Quick has decided that this was the right time to bring the curtain down on an outstanding career.

Quick was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings with the 72nd overall pick in the 2005 entry draft. The Kings called him up in December of 2007 and he never looked back. He made the jump to the NHL for good during the 2008-09 season. He stayed in Los Angeles until he was traded to Vegas during the 2022-23 season where he finished that year out. He then went on to sign with the New York Rangers and spent the final three years of his career there before hanging the pads up. During that 19 year career, he played 829 games going 410-307-90 with 65 career shutouts, a .910 save percentage and a 2.15 goals against average. He won two Stanley Cups while in Los Angeles and another one while in Vegas, winning a Conn Smythe trophy (playoff MVP) in 2012. He played in three NHL all star games, was named to the NHL Second All Star team in 2012 and twice won the Jennings Trophy (which is awarded to the team with the fewest goals against in the league) in 2014 and 2018.

Quick’s 410 wins and 65 shutouts are the all time record for American born goalies. His 829 games played are the 2nd most by an American, behind John Vanbiesbrouck’s 882. His goals against average is 4th and his save percentage is 10th amongst American goalies.

Quick was and is a great representation for American hockey in the best league in the world. He was one of the most agile goalies in the history of the sport and, for my money, was one of the biggest reasons the Kings had the level of success they did while he was playing out in LA. He wasn’t as flashy, at least not as far as numbers go, as some of the other goalies of his time. Guys like Carey Price, Roberto Luongo, Marc-Andre Fleury may have put up the better numbers. What Quick had in his favor was his consistency. Up until his final year here in New York, He had only had two other seasons in which he finished the year with a losing record.

Now for the big question, are the numbers and everything else good enough to get Quick into the Hockey Hall of Fame. I’d say yes, depending on the year. He had good enough numbers to get him into the Hall, it just depends on who else is on the ballot in the given year. There’s only one goalie right now, maybe two, that deserve to get in ahead of Quick when his time for induction comes around. Still he’s had a good enough career that he deserves enshrinement.

Congratulations on a heck of a career Quick, and enjoy retirement!

Problem In Queens

If you're a fan of the New York Mets, now might be a good time to start showing some level of concern. Following last nights 4-0 shutout loss to the Dodgers in Los Angeles, the Mets have been shut out for the 2nd day in a row and currently sit at a 7-10 record in this early season. But that’s where we are starting to see some signs and reason for showing concern with this ball club.

This Mets team is one of flux and frustration. It was a team last year who had one of the biggest collapse in not only baseball history, but sports history. By late July last year, they were 18 games above .500 and well secure in a playoff spot. By the last weekend in September, they had fallen out of the playoffs, finishing just four games above .500. Reason for the fault and falling from grace a season ago was bad pitching the second half of the year. Due to this, there were a lot of offseason moves that were made to try and improve the pitching staff, and retool the batting order.

Well, at least at the start of the season, the pitching staff has looked decent. Now we aren’t saying that this pitching staff has set the world on fire at the beginning of this season. At the same time, they do look like they have, at least at the time of this writing, that they have settled in and could be a solid staff as the year goes along. Sure, David Peterson is getting lit up in his first four starts, having an ERA at 6.41. Kodai Senga is also struggling to start the year, with an ERA over 7. The other starters, mostly Freddy Peralta and Clay Holmes, have pitched very well. The pitching staff has shown some signs of not doing very well, but for the most part, the staff has been solid. What really worries me is the offense with this team. Through the first 17 games, the team is hitting .230, which is 17th in baseball, they’ve scored 62 runs which is 25th in baseball, and their 13 home runs is tied for 22nd. Of their everyday regulars, not including Juan Soto who’s out hurt as of this writing, two guys are hitting about .275. That being Francisco Alvarez and Luis Robert Jr who are both hitting over .300. Nobody else is hitting above .250, which is getting frustrating.

Yes, we know its still early in the season. We are only three weeks, almost, into the year, so there’s still a lot of baseball left. But there is a problem that’s starting to grow more and more. Currently, they’re riding a six game losing streak, one in which they’ve been outscored 29-9. It’s like they might have left their bats in San Francisco. Nothing seems to be going right. A lot of the issues fall right now on the offense going AWOL. And the team needs to get it figured out quickly. Again, sure there’s still a lot of baseball left to be played. But if the team doesn’t start finding its game and fast, they could bury themselves too deep into a hole to dig out for a playoff run late in the year. No, you can’t clinch a playoff spot in April. At the same time you could also play yourself right out of contention early on as well.

There is still reason to hold out optimism for this baseball team as we near the heart of April. But the way things have gone the last week in New York, things aren’t looking all that good and its starting to cause quite a bit of worry.

Big Changes On Long Island

You know things are getting bad for the New York Islanders when they have to make a change this late in the season. At one point the Islanders were riding high and looked like they’d be sitting comfortably to make the playoffs. Now, they have hit the skids. A four game losing streak and losing seven of the last ten games has caused a major change. Patrick Roy was relieved of his duties as the team head coach, being replaced by longtime NHL coach Peter DeBoer.

There’s a lot to unpack with all of this. This isn’t the first time that a coaching change has been made this late in the season for a team that could be bound for the playoffs. The Vegas Golden Knights already did that this year, replacing Bruce Cassidy with John Tortorella. Vegas is sitting in 3rd in the Pacific Division at the time of the move and this writing. It happened in 2000 with the New Jersey Devils when they fired Robbie Ftorek with nine games remaining, replacing him with Larry Robinson. The Devils went on to win the Cup that year, and that’s a very different situation and team than what both the Islanders and Vegas have right now.

Now then, as for the Islanders with Roy out and DeBoer coming in. Roy came in mid season in 2024, replacing Lane Lambert as the Isles head coach. He lasted on Long Island parts of three seasons. When he took over in 2024 he helped guide the Islanders into the playoffs, where they got bounced by Carolina in the first round. Then last year, in a full season, the Islanders finished at .500, with a 35-35-12 record and missed the playoffs. This year, at the time of his firing, he was 42-31-5 and in 4th in the Metropolitan Division and outside of the playoffs at the time of this writing. He finished his tenure with the Islanders having a record of 97-78-22 in 197 games coached.

Now the big question, why make the move this late? The eye test tells you everything you need to know. Sure, injuries have taken their tole this late in the year. Kyle Palmari and Alex Ramonav being out for most of the year has played a factor. And we can add in some of the questionable moves by new GM Mathieu Darche late in the year as a factor as well. Let’s be realistic Brayden Schenn and Ondrej Palat haven’t really been living up to expectations up from and Carson Soucy hasn’t been as good on the back end, but that’s another argument for another time. The last couple of games, the entire Islanders team has looked lost and played uninspired hockey. They are playing flat, missing assignments in their defensive end and getting no real offensive pressure at the other end of the ice. It’s tough to watch. Now sure, you can’t replace the players, that’s not possible. But Roy seemed to lose the team in that no matter what he did, he wasn’t able to get them motivated to play better and actually show up on the ice.

Maybe management is hoping for something better with Peter DeBoer taking over. This is the 6th coaching job DeBoer has had in the NHL, having coached with the Panthers, Devils, Sharks, Golden Knights and Stars. He’s only missed the playoffs 5 times during his coaching career. But this is coming into a different situation. He’s taking over a team that has four games left, and at time of this writing is sitting a point out of not only the final wild card spot in the East, but 3rd place in the Metropolitan Division. Getting second in the division is a lot harder to be able to catch. But 3rd in the division and the final wild card spot are still a possibility. A lot still has to fall right for the Islanders to even have a chance at playing hockey come playoffs. First things first, they basically have to either win out or get points in every one of their final four games. Last four games are all at home to end the season, hosting Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Carolina. They also need help from the Flyers and even a team they play in the Senators losing down the stretch.

There’s a lot of factors in play as to whether or not the Islanders get in. Maybe this coaching change will help get them over the hump. Or maybe its too little too late.

Youth Movement in San Jose

Scoring one hundred points in a season in the NHL isn’t an easy thing to do. In fact, there are a grand total of 127 different players that have hit that mark in a single season. Collectively, those 127 players have done that 318 times. Six times in league history, players have hit that magic number in their teenage years. The latest member of that list is Macklin Celebrini who passed the mark last night in the Sharks 5-4 win over the Blues.

Celebrini now stands at 101 points (and counting), and he joins some pretty elite company in both league and San Jose Sharks history. He joins Sidney Crosby (2006 and 2007), Wayne Gretzky (1980), Jimmy Carson (1988), Mario Lemieux (1985) and Dale Hawerchuk (1982) as the only teenagers to hit the century mark in a single season. Celebrini also Joins Erik Karlsson (101 points in 2022-23) and Joe Thornton (114 points in 2006-07) as the only players to record 100 or more points in a season as member of the Sharks. The numbers that Celebrini has put up this year are eye popping for a couple reasons. One, he’s still a teenager. As of this writing, Celebrini is 19 years and 219 days old. He’s got a LOT of good years ahead of him to go. He put up solid numbers as an 18 year old, scoring 25 goals and 38 assists for 63 points in 70 games his first year. This year in two more games, he’s got as many assists as he did total points last year. At time of writing, he’s played 72 games, scoring 38 goals and 63 assists for those 101 points.

The kid can pretty much do it all for the Sharks, at least offensively. Great skater, excellent vision and quick hands. He sees the ice so well and can get to the open space better than most. He is quickly becoming the face of the franchise out in San Jose. The Sharks have had some pretty good players wearing their sweaters in team history. Owen Nolan, Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Joe Pavelski all come to mind when people think of Sharks greats. By the time all is said and done with this kids career, Celebrini will not only be up there but he could even pass them.

Now if San Jose can get the right pieces around this kid in the coming years, San Jose could be really, really good

1K For The Great Eight

Over the storied history of the National Hockey League there have been some great goal scorers that have graced its ice. Guys like Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Mike Bossy, Phil Esposito, Brett Hull, Bobby Hull, Maurice Richard, Gordie Howe. The list goes on and on. There will, always and forever, be two names that stand atop the list. Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin. Over the weekend, Ovechkin joined Gretzky as the only two men in the history of the sport to score 1,000 career goals between the regular season and the playoffs.

The record goal for Ovechkin came in typical fashion. It came from his spot late in the 3rd period of a 3-2 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday. It was his 26th goal of the year, his 21st in the NHL. It now, as of this writing, gives him 923 goals in the regular season. Throw in his 77 career playoff goals, and he’s at the magical 1,000 career mark. Wayne Gretzky finished his career with 894 regular season goals, and another 122 in the playoffs, giving him 1,016.

Gretzky’s records and legacy will forever speak for itself. What Ovechkin is doing is at a level all by itself. Gretzky is the greatest playmaker and all around offensive player the game of hockey has ever seen. Ovie is the greatest pure goal scorer ever. That’s not to take away from his playmaking abilities. Ovechkin has 753 assists and 1,676 regular seas points as of this writing. He also has 70 assists and 147 points in 151 career playoff games. So his playmaking ability is there, but its not as pronounced as Gretzky’s. What Ovechkin did was score goals. Wayne did too, and he did it very well in the 80s. But that was at times overshadowed by his assist totals and playmaking skills. Ovechkin just buries the puck. And he got the goal totals, and trophies, to prove it.

Ovechkin has won the Rocket Richard trophy, which is given each year to the league’s leading goal scorer, a record nine times. He’s also been runner up for that trophy one other time in his career. He holds the league record for the most 40 goal seasons with thirteen, and he’s tied with Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky for the most 50 goal seasons with nine. Ovechkin is also the only player in league history to have tallied 200 or more goals in three different decades. He scored 245 goals in the 2000s, 437 in the 2010s and 213 (and counting) in the 2020s. We could keep going on and on with how many goal scoring marks he has, and we probably will when Ovechkin finally hangs up his skates.

There’s no doubt in anybody’s mind that Ovechkin will be a total lock for the Hall of Fame when he’s done and it’s a first ballot election at that. He will also go into the books as the greatest goal scorer that this sport has and will ever see. It’s going to take one hell of a hockey player to come along and come close to doing anything close to what The Great Eight has done. Congratulations Alex on hitting the 1,000 career goal mark!

2026 MLB Season Preview

The time has arrived. Spring training has wrapped up and now the games count for real. Thirty teams. All with the same goal in mind. Winning a World Series come October. There’s quite a few faces that are in new places come this season, which is leading to a lot of shake ups for teams. And quite a few big storylines for this 2026 season.

Aaron Judge looking for 400 Home Runs. Paul Skenes trying to get the Pirates into a playoff spot. Tarik Skubal going for a 3rd straight Cy Young. From a team perspective, can the Dodgers hit the 115 win mark? Did all that re-tooling really help Baltimore? Can the Mets rebound from last years collapse with all the changes made this offseason? All of those questions, and so much more, will be answered over the next five to six months.

So let’s not waste anymore time. Here’s how we see the 2026 Major League Baseball Season taking place.

American League:
AL East:
1. Toronto Blue Jays 88-74*
2. Baltimore Orioles 87-75 (WC)*
3. New York Yankees 87-75 (WC)*
4. Boston Red Sox 84-78
5. Tampa Bay Rays 80-82

Taking away this division is going to be the Blue Jays. This is a team that bounced back from an under .500 season to not only win the division last year but come within one game of winning the series. Toronto took a bit of a hit losing Bo Bichette, but they did upgrade the pitching staff with the additions of Dylan Cease, Cody Ponce and Tyler Rogers. Toronto can push runs across the plate and keep the opposition off the board well enough to come out on top of this division. Right behind them are going to be the Orioles, who get into the playoffs as a wild card team. Baltimore had one hell of a re tooling in the offseason. The biggest one being adding Pete Alonso to the heart of an already solid lineup. Shane Baz was also brought on board to help with a big improvement to an already good pitching staff. There’s enough talent on the field in Baltimore to get them not only back into the playoffs, but back to a winning record again. Now we have another team right in the mix, that being the Yankees. What hurts the chances of the boys from the Bronx is the health of the pitching staff. Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón and Clarke Schmidt are all going to start the year off the field. Had they Yankees had all three healthy from opening day onward, this would be a bit of a different prediction. The offense will be there to put runs on the board. The only thing that could hold them back is that pitching staff.

Next we have a team that’s going to come up short in the form of the Red Sox. For as banged up as the pitching staff is in New York, the complete opposite is what we’re seeing in Boston. The Red Sox may very well have, on paper, the best pitching staff in the entire league. It’s the offense in Boston that could be very well holding them back this season. You just don’t know what you’re going to get out of guys like Marcelo Mayer, Ceddanne Rafaela, Caleb Durbin and Trevor Story. It leaves quite a few question marks. The same thing can be said for what’s going on with the Rays. Tampa Bay has traded away a lot of big names that give this team it’s identity. If everything falls right this summer back at Tropicana Field, the pitching staff MIGHT be able to keep them floating around the .500 mark. Even with the new ownership in Tampa, there isn’t enough firepower here to keep them in the race for a playoff spot.

AL Central
1. Detroit Tigers 90-72*
2. Kansas City Royals 82-80
3. Cleveland Guardians 81-81
4. Minnesota Twins 75-87
5. Chicago White Sox 65-97 

What’s going to make things great for the Tigers is going to be that pitching staff. Not only do they have Tarik Skubal, they brought in Framber Valdez. You got Verlander, Flaherty and Mize as well to round out that staff. Oh, and Detroit can hit too. Greene and Torkelson can knock in the runs with Meadows and Torres setting the table. Sure, they hit a slide at the end of last season that cost them a division title, but they still managed to make the playoffs. This year, with the arms that were added, Detroit is hoping to make sure that last year doesn’t happen again. Behind them are going to be the Royals, a team that’s going to be hanging around as a team on the verge of contention. There’s no doubt in Kansas City that Bobby Whitt is the face of the franchise. Vinnie Pasquantino has some big upside to him so long as he can stay consistent. Starting pitching leaves a little hanging for the Royals. They have serviceable starters sure. But not well enough to really put the team back into playoff contention just yet. Same argument can be said for the Guardians, even with them winning the division a season ago. Cleveland was under .500 at the end of last August and got hot down the final stretch. It was great that they did what they did to win the division, but the downside is they didn’t do much f anything to really improve this team. It seems, at least on paper, like it’s the exact same club. And with the talent that’s here, its still below the bar set by the two teams that are going to finish ahead of them this year.

Then we have the Twins. There are low expectations going into this season in Minnesota. Sure they have talent in the forms of Josh Bell and Byron Bbuxtoin, but how much more can you really get out of these guys if you going into a full rebuild. Pitching you got something with Joe Ryan, but he doesn’t really have another strong arm to support him. Taj Bradley might be able to but that’s a big ask. Finally, there’s the team that seems like its stuck in a permanent rebuild, that being the White Sox. Chicago has some pluses from this offseason in they shed payroll and signed the likes of Munetaka Murakami and Seranthony Dominguez. They have a little bit of talent that could be really worth building around, and should be a lot of fun to watch this season. But as far as them being a competitive baseball team this year, that’s not really in the cards this season for Chicago.

AL West:
1. Seattle Mariners 88-74*
2. Texas Rangers 85-77 (WC)*
3. Houston Astros 83-79
4. Athletics 74-88
5. Los Angeles Angels 69-93

For the second year in a row, the American League West is going to have to go through the Mariners. Seattle brought back Josh Naylor on a long deal after getting him in the middle of last year, and they brought in utility guy Brendan Donovan via trade. Both of those moves bolster an already good Seattle lineup. With the arms in the Mariners staff, this team very much has the potential to go very deep in the postseason again this year. Now you look at a team like the Rangers, injuries cost them a season ago. They had a great pitching staff in Texas last year, which has come back in full force again this season. Eovaldi and deGrom could both be solid again this season on the hill. What’s going to be a big test is the Rangers bats. Seager and Burger can produce. Its just a question of how well the rest of the guys around them can get on for the heart of their lineup. The only reason I haven’t put the Astros as possibly having a better record is because they aren’t getting any younger. Sure, Houston still has their stars, but Altuve, Walker and Correa don’t have many good years left. You could get some decent run production out of this Houston lineup, but at the same time, one has to wonder if that pitching staff is going to be able to keep up. They have some decent arms, sure, but not like what you looking at in the top tier of the division.

A team that could be on the rise soon would be the Athletics. The A’s have a guy in the heart of the lineup in Nick Kurtz who has all the talent in the world to be a big star and the best player on this team. He’s got solid talent around him in the form of guys like Brent Rooker, Tyler Soderstrom and Shea Langeliers. The A’s shouldn’t have a problem putting runs on the board. What’s going to be an issue is keeping runs off the board. Not from a defensive perspective, but it’s the pitching staff. Outside of Springs and Severino (if that) there’s not much to go off of. Bringing up the rear is going to be the Angels again this season. Mike Trout is on the back side of his career and he doesn’t have much help around him in said lineup. He’s got Soler, Lowe and Adell. But what else really is there for support. Same thing with pitching, there’s not much to go off of yet.

National League:
NL East:
1. Philadelphia Phillies 87-75*
2. New York Mets 86-76 (WC)*
3. Atlanta Braves 86-76 (WC)*
4. Miami Marlins 75-87
5. Washington Nationals 66-96

For the third year in a row the NL East title will go through the Phillies, but it will be close. Philadelphia still has a solid lineup with Harper, Schwarber and Bohm right in the middle of it. It’s running it back with the same crew from last year, and hoping that Adolis Garcia can get some of his mojo back. The team isn’t getting any younger, but they still have enough talent to make it at least one more good run left in them, both at the plate and on the hill. Behind them is a Mets team that’s going to try and get the sour taste out of it’s mouth from a season ago. Alonso, McNeil, Diaz and Nimmo all gone from last year. New York Replaced them with Polanco, Bichette, Robert Jr and Semien. New York is hoping that Soto and Lindor can also keep up their pace as place setters to get the Mets back on the right track. What’s going to be a big help is adding Freddy Peralta to that starting rotation, which if all goes well, could be one of the best staffs in the game. Another team that’s going to make noise again this year is going to be the Braves. Atlanta is going to have a hiccup with Profar being out for the year cause of the suspension and the injury to start the year for Kim. On paper, the rest of the Atlanta lineup can put runs on the board, and they have good pitching with Sale and Streider. But not having Schwellembach at the start of the year is going to hurt them a little.

Now we go down to the lower half of the division with the Marlins. Kyle Stowers show some promise as to being the heart of this Miami club on offense. If the team can get a few more pieces to really be able to build around him they could have something. Behind Sandy Alcantra, the arms in the Miami rotation leave something to be desired. Finally there’s the Nationals, who once again will be at the bottom of the division. C.J Abrams maybe out before the summer is over and Washington is staring at another at least 90 loss season this year. Just looking at what the team has, at least on paper, there’s not much if at all to start getting excited about.

NL Central:
1. Chicago Cubs 88-74*
2. Milwaukee Brewers 84-78 (WC)*
3. Pittsburgh Pirates 81-81
4. Cincinnati Reds 81-81
5. St. Louis Cardinals 74-88

This is the year Cubs rip away the central division title for themselves for the first time since 2020. Chicago got better adding Alex Bregman and Edward Cabrerra in the offseason. Those guys join a lineup that has guys like Crow-Armstrong, Happ and Suzuki among others. Starting pitching seems decent, but at least on paper doesn’t seem like they are going to blow anybody out of the water here. Looking at this Chicago team, they are good enough for a solid playoff run, but it won’t be good enough to go all the way. Right behind them are going to be the Brewers, who’ve won three in a row and four of the last five division titles. Milwaukee took a bit of a hit with Freddy Peralta no longer on that staff. Jacob Misiorowski has potential to take over that void, but there’s no promise of that. Milwaukee still has the bats to be able to push runs across the plate. Yelich, Contrreras and Vaugh are going to power the heart of this lineup. The team is good enough to get back into the playoffs as a wild card team, but it won’t go on that deep a run. A team to watch out for in this division is going to be the Pirates. Pittsburgh has a fantastic star on the hill in the form of Paul Skenes, and a hot prospect in Bubba Chandler. Pitching could be really something to build around for some time in the steel city. And the Pittsburgh offense got a good boost adding guys like O’Hearn, Ozuna and Lowe. Having those guys helping out Bryan Reynolds in the middle of that lineup means that the Pirates could make some noise.

A team that could take a step back from last year would be the Reds. Sure, Cincinnati went on a surprise run last year, but lightning won’t strike twice this year. Sure they got talent in the lineup to build around with Elly De La Cruz and a returning Eugenio Suarez. But there still seems to be a few gaps in that lineup. Same thing for the Reds pitching staff. Doesn’t leave much to be desired. Bringing up the rear in this division is going to be the Cardinals. St Louis has one of the youngest teams in the game, and with names like JJ Wetherholt, Ivan Herrera, Masyn Winn, and Matthew Liberatore that could be good down the line. It leaves hope for the future in St Louis, but it’s not for a deep run this year.

NL West:
1. Los Angeles Dodgers 100-62*
2. Arizona Diamondbacks 83-79
3. San Diego Padres 82-80
4. San Francisco Giants 81-81
5. Colorado Rockies 60-102

Another year of dominance out of the West for the Dodgers. There’s not much to really dive into details with Los Angeles, because they are the defending world champions and have the most balanced lineup in baseball. When you have the best player in the game in Ohtani there, you going to be tough to beat. Oh yeah, and Ohtani is going to be back on the hill this year after coming off Tommy John. Nobody in the West, or most of baseball for that matter, is really going to be able to touch the Dodgers. The closest team that is going to come into contention in the West would be the Diamondbacks. Injuries to Corbin Burnes and Merrill Kelly are holding Arizona back from really being a threat in the West. The pitching staff and bats are still decent for Arizona. Bringing Arenado into the mix adds some leadership t the lineup that have Marte and Carroll in it means they could make some noise. But given how top heavy this division is, its going to be tough. Then there’s the Padres, who have the potential to finally get a winning record. San Diego is going to be powered by the heart of it’s lineup with Tatis and Machado. They got some solid hitters, for sure. But it’s the pitching that leaves me wondering. Nick Pivetta and Joe Musgrove can give you solid outings, but that’s about it.

Now we got a team that will be lucky to finish around .500 in the form of the Giants. San Francisco has the best overall hitter in the game at the top of their lineup in Luis Arraez. And they have guys who can drive in runs in the form of Adames and Chapman. But there’s still a bit of depth issues for the Giants that could hold them back. The same goes for the pitching staff. Right behind Logan Webb and Robbie Ray, there isn’t much to really go behind in the Giants staff. Finally, we have the worst team in baseball in the Rockies. Outside of Mickey Moniak and Hunter Goodman, there’s no solid hitters in the Colorado lineup. They did nothing really to try and improve itself from a season ago and that was one of the worst in baseball history. Colorado may get a couple more wins this year than last, but its not going to be much. It’s going to be a long summer in the mile high city.

Let The Madness Begin!

It's here, the time is now. March Madness! The NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament has arrived. Thirty-One conferences are represented by sixty-eight schools. All fighting for the right to be called the best team in college basketball for the 2025-26 season. The next three weeks are turning into the craziest three weeks on the sports calendar. It’s time to determine a national champion in college hoops!

There’s a lot to take in for the teams in this year’s tournament. All thirty-one conferences in the NCAA are represented here. Eight of those conferences have more than one school in the dance: MAC (2), Atlantic 10 (2), WCC (3), Big East (3), Big 12 (8), ACC (8), Big Ten (9) and the SEC (10). We have two schools this year that are making their first ever appearance in the tournament, that being California Baptist and Queens. We’ve got Tennessee State (1994), Santa Clara (1996), and Idaho (1990) making their first tournament appearances in this century. And then there’s Hofstra (2001) and Miami of Ohio (2007), the only other schools who haven’t played in the dance in the last 15 years.

The four top seeds in this year’s dance are Duke, Michigan, Florida and Arizona. If history is any indication, there’s a good chance we are going to see at least one of these schools in the final four. There’s only been four instances in the history of the tournament where we’ve had none of the top seeds there: 1980, 2006, 2011 and 2023. And in two instances have all four top seeds reached the final four: 2025 (Auburn, Florida, Duke and Houston) and 2008 (North Carolina, Kansas, Memphis and UCLA).

The big question is who’s going to be the big Cinderella team this year? Keep an eye on a few teams. Like the Miami RedHawks. They sit as an 11 seed in the Midwest and come into the tournament at a 31-1 record on the year. The only team to beat them this year was an upset loss at the start of the MAC tournament to UMASS. They are one of the six schools in the dance that have 30 or more wins on the year, and are the 2nd lowest ranked school in the tournament. Only team ranked lower is High Point at 12 in the West (they went 30-4 on the year).

Another team I’d consider a “Cinderella” team this year would be UCLA. Yes, it may seem a bit odd to have UCLA listed that way, considering that they are a big name basketball school. But as a seven seed this year, they come into the dance at 23-11. They lost to Purdue in the finals of the Big Ten tournament, and they have struggled during the year against ranked opponents as the year went along. I don’t know I just have this feeling that if they can find a groove they are going to be a tough team to play against.

Lets go dancing shall we!

Thank You Mike

In the fifty one year history of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they had quite a few good offensive players. Mike Allstott, Warrick Dunn, James Wilder, Kevin House, Brad Johnson, Tom Brady. We could go on and on. There’s one name, however, that will always and forever be at the top of that offensive player list. Mike Evans. Ever since he was taken with the 7th overall pick in the 2014 draft, Evans has been an impact player on this team. That is sadly no more.

Mike hasn’t retired. He just no longer plays here in Tampa Bay. He hit free agency and signed a deal with the San Francisco 49ers yesterday. The deal is for three years and $60.4 million, $16.3 million of which is guaranteed.

Why Evans decided to leave Tampa is up to interpretation. A small part of me wants to believe he wanted to stay here in Tampa. I don’t think money was an issue. I think the Bucs made him a solid offer that was close to, or grater than, what he ended up signing for with the 49ers. Don’t know exactly what was offered by the Bucs to Mike, so I don’t think it was the money that kept him away. There’s more to it and its been floating around as to why.

Tampa has changed offensive coordinators (again). Josh Gizzard is out and Zac Robinson is in calling the plays. Having changed coordinators that many times the last few years has got to be frustrating. Plus it might not have helped the fact that the team collapsed as badly as it did as last season went along. Mike wanted another shot at a title, and he must have felt that he wasn’t going to get that kind of shot in Tampa this season. San Francisco has gone on good playoff runs in five of the last seven seasons.

No matter what happens the rest of his career, Mike will go down as the best offensive player that has ever worn a Buccaneer uniform. Mike’s name is all over the Bucs offensive record books, including most yards in a season (1,524) touchdowns in a season (14), yards in a career (13,052), touchdowns in a career (108), catches (866). Oh, and Mike is one of just 10 players in league history with at least 13,000 receiving yards and 100 receiving touchdowns, along with Pro Football Hall of Famers Rice, Tim Brown, Cris Carter, Tony Gonzalez, Marvin Harrison Sr., Steve Largent, Randy Moss, Terrell Owens and Larry Fitzgerald. We could keep going.

It is the end of an era in Tampa Bay. Thanks for the memories Mike and good luck in San Francisco!

Winners & Losers Trade Deadline

When the trade deadline comes around, in any sport, it means one of two things. Either you’re trying to get better for your playoff push, or you’re shedding talent in a fire sale. What happened coming out of the NHL trade deadline is no different. There’s teams that came out of the deadline that got better, while there’s other teams look like they are taking steps backwards. Will the deals actually work out? Only time will really be able to tell. But for now, after taking some time to be able to digest some of the moves, here’s some of the biggest winners and losers out of the trade deadline.

Winner: Colorado Avalanche
Seems like the rich get richer in a sense. The best team in the entire league actually managed to get that much better. Colorado brought back Nazem Kadri and added in more depth down the middle with Nicolas Roy coming into the mix. One of the deepest teams in the game just got deeper. Colorado has the best odds for being the team to take it all this year, and what they did at the deadline helped them get that much better.

Winner: Minnesota Wild
Another team trying to make headlines at the deadline and even slightly before it is Minnesota. A lot of that, let’s be real, started in December, when the Wild added Quinn Hughes in a major deal with Vancouver. Then, as we got closer to the deadline, Vinnie Hinostroza got traded away to Florida. That’s OK, Minnesota added Jeff Petry in a deal, then brought in Nick Foligno. With the moves that the Wild have made, they are putting all their chips in for trying to chase down both Colorado and Dallas.

Winner: Anaheim Ducks 
As of this writing, the Ducks are sitting atop the Pacific Division, trying to hold off Vegas and Edmonton. The Ducks have a very good young team, that actually getting better. Sure, they moved Ryan Strome to Calgary for a pick. But the real bigtime move was sending two picks to Washington for John Carlson. That’s a huge move. Why? Because, even though the Ducks sit on top of the division, they have allowed more goals than they’ve scored (again as of this writing). So by bringing in a guy the talent of Carlson, it will in theory settle things down on that end of the ice and allow the young guys they have to fill the other net while keeping pucks out of theirs.

Losers: Toronto Maple Leafs
The team that was supposed to be good has taken steps backwards. Anybody knew it was going to be a step backward when Marner left for Vegas. It’s Toronto there’s always going to be high expectations, even with him leaving in the summer. But the Leafs have had a total fall off this year, falling to second to last place in the division (as of this writing). Because of that, it has lead to Toronto dumping off talent. Roy to Colorado for picks, Bobbly McMann to Seattle for picks, Scott Laughton to LA for a pick. Sure the Leafs are stocking draft capital but it’s really not helping their cause in the here and now.

Losers: Buffalo Sabres
Yes it seems strange putting Buffalo in this position, considering where they are in the standings. At the time of this writing, they are on a six game winning streak and have a chance at ending the long playoff drought. So why are they here? Because the management wasn’t able to do anything to improve the team. It’s not to say that they didn’t try. They looked at Colton Parayko and Luke Scheen, nothing happened out of either one. Buffalo had a real shot at trying to make improvements, but it never came to pass. This could turn out have been a massive missed opportunity.

Losers: Washington Capitals
This is a team that’s knocking on the door of a playoff spot. They sit six points back as of now and looked like they could be making moves. But then they make the deals they made. John Carlson traded to the Ducks, Nic Dowd sent to Vegas. Sure they got draft picks back in return, but if they wanted to have even a remote chance of making it to the post season, that may have gone right out the window. The team isn’t getting any younger and by the looks of it, management maybe closing the window on a title faster than expected.

As Good As Gold

Forty Six years is a long time to wait. The last time that the United States won an Olympic gold was the Miracle On Ice squad in 1980. Since then, there have been a couple of close calls. 2002 in Salt Lake City, 2010 in Vancouver. That’s as close as America has gotten to gold in Men’s hockey. Until now! Thanks to the heroics of Jack Hughes, the US has won its 3rd ever Gold Medal in Men’s Hockey!

There’s a lot to unpack from this game, from both sides. From the American side, there was a lot of emotion pouring out from this one. For one, the US has always been kind of seen as the little brother compared to Canada when it comes to hockey. Always seem like the potential is there, but the results against their neighbors to the north have never panned out. This game just felt different as it wore on. It felt like the US had something else to prove. Sure, there was times during the game where Canada dominated the play. The Americans had the answer, thanks to the brilliant play between the pipes of Conor Hellebuyck. He had to stand on his head multiple times, including a massive save on Conor McDavid, who had a breakaway that was stoned.

Then there’s the hero of the day in Jack Hughes. He took a stick up in the face late in the game, that cost him a couple teeth. Didn’t matter to Jack, who came back and scored the OT winner. All of this went down with two big points of emotion flowing out. First was the date of the game, February 22nd. The reason that date is so important, at least in hockey circles, is that on that date in 1980, the miracle happened. The US knocked off the mighty Soviet Union in the Lake Placid Olympics, which is widely considered one of the biggest upsets in the history of the game of hockey.

The other point of emotion for this contest was that the Americans were playing for Johnny. Johnny Gaudreau was a big star in the NHL, playing for the Calgary Flames and Columbus Blue Jackets. Two years ago, during the prime of his career, he was killed by a drunk driver. Many believed that had he still be alive, he would have been a big star for this Olympic squad. When the game ended, a lot of the US players skated around the rink with Johnny’s jersey, symbolizing that he was there with them. It really was something to tug at the heart strings.

There’s also going to be quite a few questions from the other side of this coin as well. And they are kind of connected to each other. The injury to Sidney Crosby was a factor for Canada. It’s no secret Sid is the best player in the world, although both Conor McDavid and Nathan MacKinninon are catching him quickly for that title. So having that kind of impact player be absent is for sure a factor. And that ties into the other factor, which was line juggling. Coach Jon Cooper was and is known for doing that here in Tampa when the Lightning offense is sputtering. He did that with his Canadian squad, trying to find the right mix to jumpstart his team. Didn’t quite work.

Of course, this begs the question, is this a full blown rivalry? There’s no doubt in anybody’s mind now. With the great battle they had during last years four nations tournament and now this, there’s never a doubt. This was also a way of the US for kind of getting back at Canada. They have met twice before in gold medal games. 2002 in Salt Lake, and 2010 in Vancouver. 2002 was Canada’s year, breaking a fifty year medal drought. 2010 was Canada winning on their home ice in Vancouver. Now it was the US’s chance at redemption, which they got in the most dramatic way possible. There’s always talk about it during the NHL regular season which country puts out the best players. This tournament shows that the balance of power on the international scale is starting to even out.

Between the Men’s and Women’s tournaments at these Olympic Winter Games, we hockey fans have gotten royally spoiled by the high level of play. Both USA vs Canada games with gold on the line, both going to overtime, could not have been scripted any better!

Rivalry Renewed For Gold

Here we go again. Thursday Afternoon, with the biggest prize in international hockey on the line between the two biggest powers in the women's ice hockey game. It's USA and Canada once again for Gold.

It's no surprise that the two biggest power in international hockey are the United State and Canada. They have been the biggest powers in hockey for as long as anybody can remember. It was shown to the whole wide world once women's hockey became an Olympic sport in 1998. And these two nations have won every gold medal at the Olympics since 98. There was one year when it wasn't USA-Canada for gold and that was in 2006, when Sweden upset the US in the semifinals.

This year has a different vibe going into the gold medal game. Canada went 3-0-0-1 in the tournament. The only loss was a 5-0 shutout loss to the Americans in the preliminary round. More on that in a second.  Canada scored 14 goals in the tourney, giving up just 6. It was a 4-0 over Switzerland, a 5-1 win over Czechia, a 5-0 win over Finland and that 5-0 loss to the US. Once the medal round started it was a 5-1 win over Germany and a 2-1 win over Switzerland.

As for the Americans, they rolled through this tournament with a perfect record, going 4-0 and outscoring opponents 20-1. The only goal the US gave up was one late in the 2nd period in their opener against Czechia. They won that game 5-1. America followed it up with a 5-0 win over Finland, another 5-0 win over Switzerland, a 5-0 win over Canada. Then in the medal round it was a 6-0 win over Italy and a 5-0 win over Sweden. 

Now to the game itself. The US has beaten Canada twice for gold, in 1998 and then again in 2018. This game is going to be another tight checking affair. The last three meetings for gold, they have been the same 3-2 score, so expect nothing different here. What might make a big difference in this game is Canada's best player, Marie-Philip Poulin, is back in there. She scored both goals for the Canadians to get them into the gold medal game. On the other side of the ice, Caroline Harvey has been powering the ship for the Americans. USA has a very balanced attack and they been getting scoring from every line in this tournament, which is going to make things a lot tougher for the Canadians to handle.

Whatever the final result turns out to be Thursday afternoon, its going to be one hell of a hockey game.

2026 NFL Honors

It was one of the biggest nights on the NFL calendar. NFL Honors! Right before the Super Bowl, the NFL honored the best of the best from the 2025 regular season. It was a collection of the best football players in the world and handing out the hardware of the guys who were head a shoulders above the rest during the regular season this year. So with that being said, here’s the full list of who won what at NFL Honors!

Art Rooney Award (outstanding sportsmanship on the playing field): Budda Baker Safety, Arizona Cardinals

Walter Payton Man of the Year: Bobby Wagner, Linebacker Washington Commanders

Jim Brown Award (NFL leading Rusher): James Cook, Buffalo Bills

Decon Jones Award (NFL Sack Leader): Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns

Comeback Player of the Year: Christian McCaffery, Running Back San Francisco 49ers

Coach of the Year: Mike Vrabel, New England Patriots
Nothing against any of the other coaches who were nominated for this award, but lets be realistic here. This was really a one man race as the season went along. What Vrabel was able to do with this Patriots team. He had some level of success in Tennessee, but when he took the job in New England, he had a large task ahead of him. New England was a four win team last season. This year it was a 14-3 record and winning the AFC East. A ten win turnaround and a division title. There’s no way this wasn’t going to go to Vrabel.

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Carson Schwesinger, Linebacker Cleveland Browns
Taking a chance on him in the 2nd round seemed to pay off in a big way for the Browns. When the injury bug started to take hold in Cleveland, Schwesinger stepped in and made an impact right away, almost running away with DROY this year. 2.5 sacks and 141 total tackles in 16 games this season. Eye popping numbers for an impact player in his first year. Offensive Rookie of the Year: Tetaiora McMillian, Wide Receiver Carolina Panthers When Carolina had their resurgence late in the year to make the playoffs, something nobody really expected them to do, this guy was a major reason for it. Finishing the year with 70 catches (7 of which went for touchdowns) and 1,014 receiving yards are good numbers. Really good actually, especially for a rookie. He made an impact right away for a young Carolina team that has something they could really work with in the passing game.

Defensive Player of the Year: Miles Garrett, Defensive End Cleveland Browns
There’s dominating seasons. Then there’s what Miles Garrett did for Cleveland this season. Garrett set the NFL single-season record for sacks with 23 this year. And it wasn’t just that. It was 60 total tackles and being such a threat and dominating force on the Browns line that he was a major disruption point for opposing offenses. Opposing teams could have had a game plan in place, and it all went right out the window when having to deal with Garrett this season. He was that dominating and then some this year.

Offensive Player of the Year: Jaxon Smith-Nijgba, Wide Receiver Seattle Seahawks
For the first time since 2005 (Shaun Alexander), a Seattle player won offensive player of the year. It was a close race between Smith-Nijgba and Christian McCaffery of the 49ers. But finishing the year as the NFL top receiver (1,793 yards on 119 catches) pushed him over the edge to win this award. Catches put him 4th in the league this year, but leading the entire league in receiving yards, and getting it done with Sam Darnold at QB is a major statement. Nothing against Sam Darnold who is a fine QB. But Smith-Nijgba was that dominating a force in the Seattle pass attack. No matter what defense was thrown at him, he was able to gain the yards to help that Seattle offense to keep moving forward and walk away with a 14-3 record and an NFC West title.

MVP: Matthew Stafford, Quarterback Los Angeles Rams
In one of the closest MVP races in recent memory, Stafford just barely beat out Drake Maye of the Patriots for the honors. Not to take away anything Maye did in New England, he had an outstanding year and has nothing to be ashamed of. Stafford had just put up slightly better numbers that lead him to walking away with the award. But if we are being honest here, the award could have gone to either guy and there would have been no complaints from anybody.

So what do you think? Did the right guys walk away with the right awards at NFL Honors?

Title To Seattle

What we saw in Santa Clara yesterday was a big deal. To say that the performance put on by the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX was outstanding would be a major understatement. Moreover, the play of the Seattle defense is what really stands out here. In a battle of 14-3 teams for the greatest prize in all of professional football, it was the Defense, and running game as well, that lead the Seahawks to their second title, a 29-13 win over the New England Patriots to claim the second title in franchise history.

It was a great way for Seattle to cap off the best season in team history. Winning fourteen games during the regular season was the most that Seattle had in their 50-year history. This coming after narrowly missing the playoffs the two seasons prior. This also turned into the deepest playoff run Seattle had since their other title win in 2013.

As for the game itself, let’s be realistic here. There were two major reasons why Seattle was able to walk away with the Lombardi trophy in their hands. One was the outstanding running performance of MVP Kenneth Walker III. The other was that smothering defense. From that side of the football, what Seattle’s Defense did was one of the more dominating performances that has been seen on this stage. They picked off Patriots Quarterback Drake Maye twice, caused him to fumble once and managed to sack him six times. Those six sacks are the 2nd most in a single game, behind seven (which has been done four times).

Drake Maye, for as good a year as he had, had no time whatsoever to try and even remotely make plays. Sure, he threw for 295 yards and two touchdowns. But the six sacks where a killer as were being forced to throw the ball 45 times. The run game was nonexistent on the day, which forced Maye to have to make plays with his arm more than he wanted to or was able to get done effectively.

That ties into the other key for Seattle, the running game. Walker rushed the ball 27 times for 135 yards. Sure he wasn’t able to get into the endzone, which is the only knock that was on him for the day. But because of his outstanding play, he was able to open up a little more of an effective pass game for Sam Darnold. Sure Darnold wasn’t perfect either, but because of the play of Walker, he didn’t have to try and be as on point as Maye did. It was an all around dominating performance.

Congratulations to the Seattle Seahawks on their Super Bowl victory!

Super Bowl LX Preview

The time has finally arrived. Two teams are left standing. One will come away with the Vince Lombardi Trophy as king of the pro football world. Super Bowl 60 is finally here! And its a rematch of Super Bowl 49, as the New England Patriots will take on the Seattle Seahawks,

Seattle is appearing in their 4th Super Bowl. They played in XL (Lost to Steelers), XLVIII (Beat the Broncos), and XLIX (Lost to New England). Seattle finished with a 14-3 record, winning the NFC West. They beat 49ers in the divisional round and then the Rams in the NFC title game.

New England is appearing in their 12th Super Bowl. They played in XX (lost to Bears), XXXI (lost to Packers), XXXVI (beat Rams), XXXVIII (beat Panthers), XXXIX (beat Eagles), XLII (lost to Giants), XLVI (lost to Giants), XLIX (beat Seahawks), LI (beat falcons), LII (lost to Eagles), and LIII (beat Rams). This season, New England went 14-3, which was good enough to win the AFC East. It took them a little longer to get here, beating the Chargers in the wild card round, then the Texans in the divisional round, and finally the Broncos in the AFC title game.

New England has had one of the greatest turn arounds in sports history. A year ago they were 4-13 and one of the worst teams in the NFL. This year, they had a high powered offense and the 2nd best team in the AFC behind only the team they beat in the title game in Denver. A major reason for this turnaround was the outstanding play of quarterback Drake Maye, who played so well during the season he finished second in MVP voting. And it's not just that high powered offense in New England that's been running the show. The defense has been just as equal to the task. They were 8th in yards and 4th in points this season, an impressive turnaround from being 22nd in the league a season ago.

Seattle had come close to making the playoffs in back to back season prior to this year, but were able to make it this year on the strength of a good balance on both sides of the ball. Sam Darnold came in and had another outstanding year, following up on what he did in Minnesota last year. He had good weapons to work with coming in from outcasts from other teams in Lockett, Metcaf and Kupp. The biggest one was Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who was the NFL leading receiver in the league this year. On the other side of the ball, Seattle has the highest scoring defense in the entire league. Seattle hasn't seen this much a dominating a defense since the Legion of Boom.

This is going to be a hard fought battle for the biggest prize in the game. For as good as the New England offense has been, and as well balanced as they are, good defense will always beat good offense. Seattle has a good defense. Oh and Seattle offense is pretty good too. They might be one of the few teams in the sport who could match up with this New England team punch for punch as the game goes along.

Pick: Seattle 30, New England 20