Playoffs!
Thanks to this week being a busy work week, what with out annual user conference being in Vegas this week, I wasn’t around to follow the Islanders and/or Jets games last night. I had to wait until I was finally free of social obligations to check the scores and realize that, despite all the expectations of the experts for this team, that the Islanders are a playoff team!
Honestly, I didn’t expect this to happen this season. Coming into the season I thought there were still too many question marks among to young prospects, and was beginning to wonder if a couple of them maybe needed to go. But they have proved their metal in this stretch run and shown me that they are definitely coming of age.
I don’t know what their first taste of playoff hockey will be like, but I’m going to enjoy it knowing that this team is only going to get better from here. Look out NHL, the Isles are back in the playoffs!
This week’s Sports Links (weekly)
This week’s Sports Links (weekly)
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Dodgers Fans At Chase Field Forced To Change Clothes Or Move Seats
For that ticket,price, I should get to wear whatever the heck I want. Lame Diamondbacks, lame.
Zack Greinke broke his collarbone in a sixth-inning brawl Thursday after Carlos Quentin charged the mound.
Mattingly: Quentin should be out as long as Greinke is
Matt Kemp confronted Quentin in the parking lot after the game
How much will the Dodgers miss Greinke?
To stick with the Anchorman theme, wow that escalated fast!
Bummer to see Grienke hurt, both as a Dodgers fan and fantasy baseball owner! Never thought a really bitter rivalry would brew up between these teams but it sure looks like one now.
Great Day at the Ballpark
When I first found out I was going to be traveling to Los Angeles, I thought to myself, wonder if the Dodgers are going to be home? Turns out, I was supposed to arrive in LA on Monday, but the Dodgers would be out of town, but if I picked up the tab to spend an extra day or two in LA, I could catch the game on Sunday afternoon against the Pirates.
Now, I’ve been a Dodger fan since I was a kid growing up in Brooklyn. There was always something about that historic tie to Brooklyn that I found sort of cool, and well the fact that some in my family hated the Dodgers just made it even cooler to root for them.
Anyway you look at it, going to Dodger Stadium, enjoing a beautiful Southern California afternoon, getting to hear Vin Scully welcome us to the game, eating a Dodger dog, and seeing the Dodgers win, made for a pretty fantastic day. Being present for Ryus first major league win, and seeing the Dodger offense put together 6 runs, were just extra bonuses really.
So glad I took the chance to go. Not that I’ve ever really sat down and made one, but this woul certainly be something I consider a bucket list item. I can check it off the list!
This week’s Sports Links (weekly)
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Jim Delany’s Pay for Play Threat May Be Empty, but That Doesn’t Make Him Wrong
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Forget Rutgers Coach Mike Rice: College Sports Abuse Virtually All Students
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Kwame Harris: Being openly gay, in NFL wasn’t ‘compatible’
I’m not gay, and wouldn’t really care if a player was, but I also understand that the NFL, of all places, would not be a good cultural mix. I can’t imagine coming out and having to,deal with that.
Dodgers Early Impressions
On the down side, the way this team is hitting is going to require some great pitching to make the playoffs.
On the other hand, they’re on pace to throw 81 shutouts. So there’s hope. ;-)
While neither of these trends are likely to continue through the whole season, I’m concerned about the lack of hitting, because they didn’t hit especially well last year either. They need Kemp to be Matt Kemp again, and a return of Ramirez wouldn’t hurt either.
Rangers, Blue Jackets Complete Longest Trade Ever
Looking at the larger picture, today’s trade for Marian Gaborik makes perfect sense. Both teams were trying to replace what they lost in this Summer’s Rick Nash deal.
So let’s recap the big picture.
The Rangers acquired:
- Rick Nash
- Derek Brassard
- Derek Dorsett
- John Moore
The Blue Jackets acquired:
- Marian Gaborik
- Artem Anismov
- Brandon Dubinsky
- Tim Erixon
Does that seem rather symmetrical to anyone else? Both teams traded away and received a 30+ goal scorer, a talented, if inconsistent, playmaker, a high energy, physical player, and a decent prospect on defense. That’s a whole lot of running to stand still.
On the other hand, Nash clearly wanted out of Columbus, Gaborik clearly needed to be gone from New York, and some of the Blue Jackets were “Howson guys” who weren’t as highly prized by the new management team, so it makes sense. On paper, it seems like a wash, but we all know the game isn’t played on paper. The Blue Jackets, despite losing Nash, have been much better than anyone thought they would be this year, and the Rangers have been a disappointment. Will this latest trade change the fortunes of both teams, or push them further along their current track? Will Gaborik get injured again and again, will Moore or Erixon turn into the better prospect? Will Brassard suddenly blossom into the player Jackets fans have been waiting for? Time will tell.
Good Night For Isles Young Guys
Both Anders Lee and Ryan Strome scored in their debuts last night, Lee with the Islanders in a big 5-2 victory to help them stay on a roll that has them contending for a playoff spot, and Strome with the Bridgeport Soundtigers.
After watching all those other prospects make their debuts after the lockout, it’s nice to see some of the Isles kids doing the same, and having an immediate impact.
