Not Another New England Sports Blog!: Los Angeles Kings

Showing posts with label Los Angeles Kings. Show all posts

Saturday, January 31, 2015

Quickie Super Bowl Weekend Sports Chowdah Update- Seahawks, Patriots set to Square off in Super Bowl; King-Sized- Bruins take on Defending Stanley Cup Champions at the Garden

NFL- Well....at least one of the Championship games was an instant classic.

Surprisingly the NFC title game on the West Coast got underway first, with the Green Bay Packers jumping out to an early 16-0 lead over the Seahawks up in Seattle in the first half thanks to three first half interceptions. However, Seattle's defense stiffened after those turnovers and more than once the Packers had to settle for a FG instead of getting 7 points.

In the seconds half, the Seahawks came roaring back and with just 1:25 to go in regulation they managed to take their first lead of the day on a 24 yard Marshawn Lynch TD run to put Seattle up 22-19 before the Packers managed to tie the contest up with 14 seconds to go on a 48 yard Mason Crosby field goal, forcing overtime.

After winning the coin toss, the Seahawks took the ball and won the game on a 35 yard TD pass from Russell Wilson to Jermaine Kearse, sending the Seahawks to their second consecutive Superbowl.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS- The late game on Championship Sunday wasn't quite as close.

For the first time since 2006 and the first time since Manning departed for Denver, the Patriots and the Colts faced off in the postseason. In what would be the start of a trend, LeGarette Blount put New England on the board early after Josh Cribbs fumbled a punt that was recovered by New England inside the Colts 30 yard line.

The Patriots would get out to a quick 14-0 lead before the Colts got on the board with about five minutes to go in the first half from a short TD run from Zurlon Tipton to make it 14-7. However, the Patriots would add to their lead thanks to a Gostkowski FG with 9 seconds left in the half.

The second half was all New England as they would go on to score 28 unanswered points in the second half, including two more TD runs from Legarette Blount. The Patriots go on to win by a 45-7 final and advance to face the Seahawks in the Superbowl.

However, in the weeks leading up to Superbowl 49, the talk amongst the media has been about how the footballs used in the AFC title game were examined by the NFL and found to be underinflated. This created a unusually protracted media firestorm dubbing the scandal 'deflate-gate'- as though slightly underinflated balls were somehow responsible for the Colts defense collapsing like a house of cards whenever LeGarette Blount was carrying the ball.

Anywhoo, I've pretty much been embargoing the media and their vapid fixation on deflated balls in the runup to Superbowl 49. What I do know is that the big game kicks off Sunday night at 6:30 and will be televised on NBC

NHL- From one defending national champion going up against a New England team to another. After stumbling out of the gate, the Boston Bruins are having a pretty good 2015 so far.

Coming off a 5-2 win on the road against the Islanders on Thursday, Saturday night saw the Bruins hosting the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings. It looked as though the Bruins got on the board early in the closing seconds of the first period, but that goal was waved off when officials determined the clock was at 00:00 before the puck was in the net.

Even with the goal waved off, the Bruins managed to get on the board thanks to a Brad Marchand goal in the closing minutes of the second period to give Boston the 1-0 lead. Seven minutes into the third, Jordan Nolan got Los Angeles on the board and tied the game with a goal. However, 90 seconds later Chris Kelly put the Bruins back on top with a goal to make it 2-1 Boston and as the Kings pulled goalie Jonathan Quick late in the 3rd for an extra attacker, Marchand would get an empty-netter, his second of the night to make it 3-1 in favor of Boston.

The Bruins go on to win by the final of 3-1 with Rask stopping 30 of the 31 shots he faced on Saturday night while Quick ended up turning aside 30 of 32.

Boston will get the next couple of days off, with play resuming on Thursday night when they take on the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Puck drops at 8:00 ET and the game will be televised on NBC Sports Network.

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Rubby Tuesday Sports Chowdah Update- San Diego Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn Passes Away; Rubby Throws a Gem at Fenway; Crown Their Ass! LA Wins Stanley Cup in Game 5; Going, Going, Ghana

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL- Former Padres outfielder Tony Gwynn- arguably the game's best hitter since Ted Williams- passed away on Monday.

Born and raised in Long Beach, CA, Gwynn attended San Diego State where he excelled at both basketball and baseball. In fact, when the San Diego Padres drafted him in 1981, the then San Diego Clippers also drafted Gwynn in the 10th round of the NBA draft on the same day. Fortunately for the Padres, Gwynn quickly chose baseball over basketball.

The unassuming Gwynn made his major league debut in 1982 and was on the Padres roster both times San Diego advanced to the World Series [1984 and 1998, respectively- NANESB!]. Wearing the number 19 throughout his 19 year MLB career, Gwynn was a 15 time all star, won eight batting titles, seven silver sluggers and garnered five gold gloves. Gwynn was also one of the increasingly rare players who spent his entire career with one franchise. When the Padres moved into their new ballpark in Downtown San Diego, Gwynn's number was retired and a statue of 'Mr Padre' was erected in his honor. Gwynn could also be considered one of the few 'homegrown' figures in San Diego sports that spent his career with San Diego.

While not a home run hitter, Gwynn still had a career batting average of .338 and never hit below .308 in a full season. Gwynn did have 135 homers throughout his career along with 1,138 RBI. It was also believed that Gwynn could've been the first major-league hitter to reach the coveted .400 mark since Ted Williams in 1941 were it not for the strike-shortened season of 1994. However, Gwynn won NL batting title with a .368 average the following season.

After retiring in 2001, Gwynn returned to his alma mater to coach the Aztecs baseball team. In 2007 Gwynn was inducted into the baseball hall of fame along with Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. Gwynn is survived by his wife Alisha and two children- current Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Tony Gwynn Jr and R&B singer Anisha Nicole.

Earlier this year, the Padres had lost former manager and longtime broadcaster Jerry Coleman. Throughout Monday, mourners left hats and flowers at the base of his statue in Petco park.

BOSTON RED SOX- After splitting a 4-game weekend series against the Tribe, the Red Sox played host to the Minnesota Twins on Monday- the team who started their notorious 10-game losing streak last month. Rubby De La Rosa would get the start against Minnesota's Kevin Correia and both starters would soon be locked in a scoreless deadlock.

Although the Red Sox would get some baserunners on, Boston didn't break through until the bottom of the 6th inning when Daniel Nava led off the inning with a single. Drew then hit a single to shallow center but got greedy and was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double- although Nava made it to 3rd. AJ Pierzynski then came up and hit a fly ball deep enough to left field to plate Nava to give Boston a 1-0 lead.

Rubby continued with another scoreless inning before Farrell went to the bullpen. Andrew Miller faced one batter, striking out Oswaldo Arcia before Burke Badenhop came into the game. Badenhop immediately gave up a single to Kurt Suzuki before Eduardo Escobar lined out and Sam Fuld doubled. The bases would be loaded after Badenhop hit Danny Santana with a pitch, but the Twins threat was extinguished when Brian Dozier struck out swinging. Although the Red Sox wouldn't get any more runs in the bottom of the 8th, Uehara would have a 1-2-3 ninth inning to seal the win for Boston.

Tuesday night's game will have Phil Hughes [7-2; 3.17 ERA] going up against Jon Lester [7-7; 3.33 ERA]. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 and the game will be televised on NESN

STANLEY CUP FINAL- After the New York Rangers got on the board with a 2-1 win on Wednesday night, the Stanley Cup Finals headed back to LA for a Game 5 at the Staples Center.

Justin Williams got LA on the board in the first six minutes of the game. However, after most of the 2nd period went by without scoring, the Rangers got on the board with a Chris Kreider power play goal and took the lead with a Brian Boyle shorthanded tally to head into the 2nd intermission with a 2-1 lead

However, the Kings were able to tie the contest up in the 3rd thanks to a Marian Gaborik power play goal and force OT- for the 3rd time in the 5-game series. After a scoreless overtime, the game headed to double OT where Alec Martinez beat Henrik Lundqvist to end the game and give the series to Los Angeles.

Kings goalie Jonathan Quick turned aside 28 of 30 shots faced while Lundqvist stopped 48 of 51 shots faced on Game 5 and Kings RW Justin Williamson was awarded the Conn Smythe trophy. The Stanley Cup title is LA's second in two seasons and comes after falling behind 0-3 to the San Jose Sharks earlier in the playoffs.

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Sports Chowdah Update- O No! Sox Come out On Top Thanks To Workman-Like Effort; Kings For More Than A Day, LA Takes Commanding 3-0 Lead in Cup Final; Dulled Chrome, California Chrome Misses Shot at Triple Crown

RED SOX- After a disastrous road trip through the rust belt where they lost five out of six games, the Red Sox were back in the AL East on Monday, facing off against Baltimore at Camden Yards and on the wrong end of a 4-0 shutout.

On a rainy Tuesday night, the Sox looked to reverse their fortunes with Brandon Workman on the mound. Heading into a scoreless 3rd inning, Workman got a bit of run support when Mike Napoli hit a 2-out RBI single that plated Brock Holt. Despite a couple of rain delays, Workman was able to maintain his rhythm and fooled most of the Baltimore batters he faced, not allowing a hit until the 6th inning. Miller, Tazawa and Uehara came out of the bullpen to make Napoli's RBI stand up. Workman goes on to pitch 6⅔ innings of 1-hit ball, allowing one walk and striking out four. Boston goes on to win by a 1-0 final and after losing ten straight, winning seven straight and then losing five straight [going back to May 14th- NANESB!] the Red Sox have won two out of their last three games- although the recent streak has put Boston 9 games out of first place, it still isn't bad enough to put them in the AL East cellar. Currently Toronto leads the AL East and both Baltimore and the Yankees are tied for 2nd place at 5 and a half games.

The series will continue Wednesday night with ex-Dodger Rubby De La Rosa [1-1; 2.84 ERA] going up against Baltimore's Wei Yin Chen [6-2; 4.13 ERA]. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 ET and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN.

OTHER RED SOX NEWS- Former Red Sox manager and one of the last remaining Brooklyn Dodgers Don Zimmer has passed away at the age of 83. Zimmer, who survived a near-fatal beaning in the minor-leagues would go on to play 2nd base for the Brooklyn Dodgers for their only World Series title in Ebbets Field.

Zimmer was teammates with Jackie Robinson for a few seasons and remained with the Dodgers for a year after their move to Los Angeles. Between 1960 and 1965, Zimmer bounced around between the Cubs, Mets, Reds and Senators before playing a single season for the Toei Flyers in Japan. As a player, Zimmer had a career .235 batting average and 91 homers along with 352 RBI.

After his playing days, Zimmer found work as a manager- first for the San Diego Padres and Montreal Expos before landing with the Red Sox between 1974 and 1976. After the Red Sox won the AL Pennant in 1975, an infamous 'Zim' moment was during the wild and chaotic Game 6 of the 1975 World Series was when Boston had the bases loaded and nobody out in the bottom of the 9th with 2B Denny Doyle on 3rd. After a fly ball to shallow left, 3rd base coach Zimmer saw Doyle start to break and shouted "No! No!". Doyle apparently thought Zimmer was shouting "Go! Go!" and continued running towards home plate, only to be cut down by the throw from shallow left. Cincinnati was able to get out of the 9th and force extra innings, setting up Carlton Fisk's legendary and photogenic walk-off homer off a Pat Darcy pitch in the 12th inning.

The Red Sox lost the World Series and the following season, manager Darrel Johnston was fired in July and Zim was named interim manager before the position was more permanent. Although Boston finished flat in 1976, the Red Sox would win 90+ games between 1977-1979. However, this would include the infamous 'Boston Massacre' in which the Yankees trailed the Red Sox by as much as 14 games late in the season only to force a 1-game playoff that was decided by a home run from light-hitting Yankees catcher Bucky Dent.

Zim was also known for his acrimonious relationship with lefty pitcher Bill 'Spaceman' Lee during his time in Boston and reportedly avoided starting him during the infamous 1-game playoff against New York in 1978 despite Lee's winning record against the Bronx Bombers.

After being fired from Boston, Zim spent time coaching or managing with the Rangers, Yankees, Rockies, Cubs, Giants and Rays. In 1999, Zimmer filled in for Yankees then-manager Joe Torre while he was recovering from prostate cancer, going 21-15 during that timeframe. In 2003, Zimmer returned to Fenway as bench coach for the Yankees in the 2003 ALCS. During Game 3, the benches cleared after Manny Ramirez charged the mound after a high and inside pitch from Roger Clemens. Zimmer came out of the dugout and charged Pedro Martinez- Martinez responded by throwing Zimmer to the ground [the TV announcers had initially mistaken the 72 year old Zimmer for Yankees starter David Wells- NANESB!].

With Tampa Bay, Zimmer worked as a senior advisor to the Rays and was a regular fixture around the dugout during Spring Training and home games at Tropicana field. Zimmer also had the distinction of being the last Brooklyn Dodger player who was still in the majors- either as a coach or in the front office. While with the Rays, he wore a uniform that changed numbers each year- the numbers represented the years he had spent in baseball, with his most recent number being 66. In an interview, Zimmer said he prided himself on being able to draw a paycheck his entire life from the game he loved.

STANLEY CUP- Wow- looks like I have some catching up to do.

For starters, no Bruins hockey for the better part of a month after they lost in Game 7 of the eastern conference semifinals to the Canadiens. The Canadiens themselves were bested in 6 games against the New York Rangers while the Los Angeles Kings got past the defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks in a roller-coaster 7-game series.

The first two games of the Stanley Cup final got underway at the Staples Center in Los Angeles- in each of those contests, the Kings rallied from behind to tie the game late and force OT with the Kings winning Game 1 by a 3-2 final in OT and Game 2 by a 5-4 final in double OT.

On Monday, the Kings did not need extra-time to take care of the Rangers at Madison Square Garden. With time expiring in the first period, the Kings got on the board with a goal from Jeff Carter to make it 1-0 Los Angeles. This was followed up by goals from Jake Muzzin and Mike Richards in the 2nd to give LA a seemingly insurmountable 3-0 lead while Jonathan Quick turned aside all 32 shots he faced to secure the Kings' 3-0 win.

After being on the wrong end of a 3-0 lead earlier in the playoffs, the Kings now have a commanding 3-0 lead over the Rangers and can secure their second Stanley Cup championship since 2012 with a win at Madison Square garden on Wednesday night. It's do-or-die for New York as Game 4 gets underway from Madison Square Garden tonight at 8:00 ET and will be televised on NBC Sports and the CBC.

HORSE RACING- After winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, there was all kinds of buzz surrounding California Chrome heading into this weekend's Belmont Stakes. California Chrome was poised to be horse racing's first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978.

After stumbling out of the gate, Chrome ended up finishing 4th to Tonalist and finishing in a near dead heat with Wicked Strong. A review of the starting gate showed that one of the horses next to him- Matterhorn- accidentally stepped on California Chrome's heel and had a small chunk taken out of it. The defeat led to an on-air post-race tirade from California Chrome's owner Steve Coburn, who referred to Tonalist's owners as 'cowards' and criticized owners who ran their horses in the Belmont Stakes but not the Preakness or Kentucky Derby.

FIFA WORLD CUP- Just days before the 2014 World Cup is set to get underway in Brazil, soccer's international governing body- FIFA- is under scrutiny for their bidding process in which the Middle Eastern emirate of Qatar named the host country of the 2022 World Cup. Qatar beat out competing bids from Australia, Japan, South Korea and the USA.

Since Qatar was announced, there have been allegations of bid-rigging and bribery on the part of FIFA according to the British Sunday Times. The newspaper claims to have been given e-mail correspondence between FIFA delegates and Qatari officials where a reported £3m in payoffs were given.

Qatari soccer official Mohammed Bin Hammam reportedly gave money and gifts to African members of the FIFA delegation to influence the governing body's votes and paid more than €300,000 to a Tahtian FIFA official who was caught in a Sunday Times sting soliciting money in support for a bid from people posing as American FIFA delegates.

Thursday, January 30, 2014

State of the Sports Chowdah Update- Mile High Clubbed, Broncos Stifle Pats in AFC Title Game; Take it Outside, NHL Kicks Off Stadium Series; Vonn-ed Farewell, Downhill Skiier Lindsey Vonn to Miss Sochi Games

Doug Pensinger- Getty Images

NFL- After trailing 24-0 at the half of their first meeting, trailing by 10 points against Denver at Mile high during halftime if the AFC Championship game might not have seemed so daunting at the half for New England- at least on paper.

However, outside of a 47 yard Gostkowski FG with just under 3 minutes to go in the half the Broncos managed to shut out New England. Even more worrying for the Patriots was the loss of CB Aqib Talib early in the game, which seemed to open up Peyton Manning's air attack even more.

Denver started the scoring late in the first quarter with a 27 yard Prater FG to make it 3-0. The Broncos then capped a 7-minute, 93 yard drive in the 2nd quarter with a rushing TD from TE Jacob Tamme to take a 10-0 lead with just under 8 minutes to go in the 2nd quarter. Inside of the two minute warning, the Patriots defense managed to keep to Broncos out of the end zone, but Denver got another 3 points thanks to a 35 yard Prater FG to make it 13-3 at the half.

After halftime, Denver added to their lead with another time-consuming drive that shaved more than 7 minutes off the clock and took the Broncos 80 yards. The drive was capped with a 3 yard completion from Manning to Demaryius Thomas for another Broncos TD to make it a 20-3 lead.

In fact, New England wouldn't manage to find the end zone until the 4th quarter and only after the Broncos had managed to tack another 3 points on to make it a 23-3 game. With just under 9 and a half minutes to go in regulation, Brady found Julian Edelman for a 7 yard TD reception and make it a 23-10 game.

On their next drive, the Broncos would get as far as the New England 36 and seemingly put the game out of reach thanks to a 54 yard Prater FG, giving Denver a 26-10 lead with 7 minutes to go.

The Patriots would get the ball back on their own 20 and Brady would cap the drive by making a 5 yard TD run himself but the subsequent two point conversion attempt failed, leaving it a 10 point game with just over 3 minutes left. All Denver really needed to do is get a few first downs and run out the clock- and that's exactly what happened as the Patriots burned their remaining timeouts to try and preserve the clock.

The win propels the Broncos to their first Super Bowl since the 1998 season (and Peyton Manning's first since 2006). Manning went 32-43 and threw for 400 yards on the day while Brady went 24-38 with 277 yards and one passing and one rushing TD. Although the Pats mostly kept Knowshown Moreno in check, but that made little difference as Manning's air attack seemed to open up even more after Talib's early departure.

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP- The Broncos would have to wait a little while to find out who they'd be playing at the Meadowlands in Super Bowl XLVIII. As it turned out, the NFC title game between Western division rivals Seattle and San Francisco would be much more competitive than the earlier AFC Championship game.

With Seattle taking a 20-17 lead on a TD pass from Russell Wilson to Jermaine Kearse earlt in the 4th, there was still plenty of time for the 49ers to come back- even when the Seahawks added to their lead with a 47 yard FG to make it a 23-17 game with just under four minutes to go.

The game-deciding drive got underway when the 49ers started out from their own 22 with just over 3 and a half minutes remaining. After moving the ball downfield and getting inside the Seattle Red Zone, Seahawks All Pro cornerback Richard Sherman tipped Colin Kaepernick's pass attempt to teammate Malcom Smith to clinch the game with 22 seconds left.

Of course, the actual game seemed to pale in comparison to Sherman's postgame interview with FOX Sports' Erin Andrews where he ripped Michael Crabtree as a 'sorry' receiver [it apparently was one of the few times Kaepernick attempted to throw to a receiver covered by Crabtree that day- NANESB!].

The win sets up a Big Game matchup between teams from two cities that- as others have pointed out- have recently legalized marijuana, lending new significance to the phrase Super Bowl.

Kickoff for Superbowl XLVIII is scheduled for Sunday, Feb 2nd at 6:30 PM ET from the Meadowlands in E. Rutherford, NJ and the game will be televised on FOX.

Elise Amendola

NHL- It's been a busy week for the Boston Bruins- a week in which good things come in sixes, apparently.

Over the weekend, they travelled to Philly where they beat the Flyers by a 6-1 final before heading to Uniondale, NY on Monday night and beat the Islanders by a 6-3 final. Tuesday night marked the Bruins return to the Garden as well as a homecoming of sorts for former Bruin and Catamount and 2011 Vezina and Conn Smythe trophy winner Tim Thomas, who resumed his NHL career earlier this year with the Florida Panthers.

The Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first thanks for goals by Milan Lucic and Zdeno Chara before doubling their lead in the second with another Lucic tally and a power play goal by Reilly Smith to make it 4-0. The Panthers were able to get on the board in the closing seconds of the 2nd period thanks to a Bard Boyes tally. Four minutes into the 3rd period, the Panthers were able to cut the Boston lead in half thanks to a Dmitri Kulikov goal, making it a 4-2 game. However, that would be as close as the Panthers would get as Shawn Thornton and David Krejci would score for Boston to put the B's up 6-2.

Things got kind of testy towards the end of the game when Tim Thomas delivered a stick to defenseman Carl Soderberg's head in the closing seconds of the game. Thomas was given a high-sticking minor with only a few seconds to go when the game was already decided and Boston goes on the cruise to a 6-2 win over Florida.

This sets up an Original 6 matchup for Thursday night with the Bruins hosting the Montreal Canadiens at the Garden. Puck is scheduled to drop at 7:00 PM ET and the game will be televised on NESN and the NHL Network.

ELSEWHERE IN THE NHL- For the 2013-2014 season, the New Year's Day Winter Classic didn't end with the Red Wings vs Maple Leafs game from the Big House in Michigan.

On Saturday night, the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings faced off in Dodgers Stadium for the first-ever warm weather outdoor regular season NHL game. The host LA Kings ultimately fell to their Orange County rivals by a 3-0 final.

But the outdoor games didn't end in the city of Angels. The very next day on the other side of the country, the New York Rangers began what would be the first of two games [interestingly one 'home' and one 'away'- NANESB!] at Yankee stadium. On Sunday afternoon, the Blueshirts were trailing the Devils 3-1 in the first period when they managed to score six unanswered goals on Martin Brodeur. On Wednesday night, the Rangers took on the Islanders as the 'away' team and broke a 1-1 deadlock in the 3rd with a go-ahead goal from Dan Carcillo in the 3rd to help the Rangers win and sweep the series at Yankee stadium.

There remains two more outdoor for the NHL this season- a Feb 1st matchup at Chicago's Soldier Field that pits the defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks against the Pittsburgh Penguins and a March 2nd all-Canada contest between the Vancouver Canucks and Ottawa Senators at the BC Palace Stadium in Vancouver, BC.

SI Photo
WINTER OLYMPICS- Downhill Skier Lindsey Vonn announced that she will not be competing in the upcoming 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, saying that an earlier right knee injury she suffered is taking longer than she anticipated to heal. Instead, the 2010 Gold Medalist will travel to Sochi as a correspondent for NBC and a spokesman said earlier this month that she is expected to undergo surgery.

Vonn took gold Gold in the downhill event at the 2010 Winter games in Vancouver as well as a Bronze in the Super G event. Lindsey also has gold medals in Super G and downhill from the 2009 Alpine World Skiing Championships in Val d'Isère, France.

Monday, June 10, 2013

The Quick and the Dead Sports Chowdah Update- Bruins Halt March of the Penguins With Sweep, Will Face Blackhawks in Stanley Cup Final; We're No Angels- Sox Face Off Against Struggling Halos at Fenway

AP Photo/Elise Amendola

BOSTON BRUINS- For the second time since 2011, the Boston Bruins are headed for the Stanley Cup finals. And like the memorable 2011 campaign, the clinching game was a 1-0 affair.

Much like Wednesday night's 2OT thriller at the Garden, this was more the kind of game I had anticipated from the Pittsburgh Penguins- low scoring and, at times, physical.

After going scoreless through the first two periods, defenseman Adam McQuaid opened (and closed, as it turns out) the scoring five minutes into the 3rd period with this:

Not bad for a guy who was hospitalized at Mass General with Thoracic Outlet Syndrome during the lockout.

There's a school of thought in the NHL that a two goal lead is actually the most difficult to maintain, the rationale being that being up by multiple goals breeds overconfidence and complacency- leading to panic, confusion and demoralization should the game once again be tied.

However, I'm willing to guess that those on the Boston Bruins roster (both this year and in 2011) will tell you that a 1-0 lead with more than 10 minutes to go in the 3rd is the most difficult lead to maintain.

With the clock ticking down, the Penguins mounting a spirited counterattack late and the crowd at the Garden chanting "We want the Cup!", Tukka Rask turned aside every shot he faced on Friday night. Perhaps the most emblematic was when the Penguins pulled Vokoun for the extra attacker late in the 3rd and with the final seconds ticking away, Rask gloved a last second shot from Pens RW Jerome Iginla as time expired. For those of you who remember, Iginla spurned a trade from Calgary to Boston at the last moment and instead opted to join the Pittsburgh Penguins as trade deadline loomed.

Rask turned aside all 22 shots he faced on Firday night while Vokoun stopped all but one of the 21 shots he faced. With no more Greg Campbell for the rest of the season, the Bruins slotted in LW Kaspars Daugavins, who had two shots on goal Friday night.

The 4-game sweep of the Penguins earns the Bruins the Prince of Wales trophy and their second trip to the Stanley Cup finals since 2011....not bad for a season that almost didn't happen!

For its part, the Penguins were 0-15 on the power play throughout the series and outscored by a composite 12-2 through the four games. Some describe Pittsburgh's getting swept from the Eastern Conference finals as a 'collapse' but I think that undersells the Bruins and their accomplishments considerably. They clearly got under the Pens' collective skin in Game 1 and never let up.

Of course, there would be a little bit of a waiting game involved to see who Boston would face in the 2013 Stanley Cup finals, which leads us to..

ELSEWHERE IN THE NHL- The Bruins and Pens weren't the only ones who had some double OT action going on in the Conference finals.

With fifteen seconds to go in the third and the defending Stanley Cup champion LA Kings down by a goal, Los Angeles pulled netminder Quick for an extra attacker. Nine times out of ten, this move NEVER works (even with a full minute remaining on the clock) but nobody bothered telling LA's Anze Kopitar or Mike Richards that.

The (almost literally) last second goal by the Kings tied the contest up at 3-3. Although that appeared to suck the life out of the crowd at Chicago's United Center it would be the Blackhawks who had the last laugh in double OT thanks to Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.

Chicago wins the Western Conference finals in five games and the Bruins had to wait barely 24 hours to find out who they'd face in the Stanley Cup championship. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals is scheduled for Wednesday at 8:00 ET from the United Center and will be broadcast on NBC, the CBC and XM channels 92 and 212. This will be the first time since 1979 that the Stanley Cup finals will feature two Original 6 teams going head-to-head.

MLB- After Friday night's contest against the Angels was rained out, the Sox and Halos split a doubleheader at Fenway, setting up a rubber game for Sunday afternoon. Ryan Dempster would be trying to get his second straight win while Angels starter Joe Blanton was looking for his second win of the season.

The Angels drew first blood with two away on the top of the first thanks to a two out Albert Pujols solo homer. In the bottom of the 3rd, Daniel Nava brought Jacoby Ellsbury home on a one out RBI single. Pedroia would follow that up with a single of his own, setting the stage for Big Papi to belt a 3-run homer to give Boston the 4-1 lead.

3B Alberto Callaspo would cut the Boston lead in half by leading off the 4th with a solo homer. In the bottom half of the frame, Mike Carp reached 2nd safely on Callaspo's throwing error and then advance to 3rd on a wild pitch from Blanton. Ellsbury would then bring him home with an RBI triple before the Angels got the 3rd out to make it a 5-2 Boston lead.

In the top of the 5th, Angels outfielder Mike Trout led off the inning with a double and come home on a 2-out Mark Trumbo RBI single to once again bring the Angels within two runs at 5-3. Blanton pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the 5th while Dempster would get the Angels in order to start off the 6th inning.

However, the Red Sox would once again get some insurance when C Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Mike Carp led off the bottom of the 6th with back to back solo homers to make it 7-3.

The Red Sox would break the game wide open in the bottom of the 7th when Saltalmacchia belted a 3 run homer to make it 10-3. Although the Angels would get a few runs back, the Red Sox would cruise from there and go on to win by a final of 10-5.

Saltalamacchia went 2-4 with 2 homers and 4 RBI while Big Papi went 2-4 with 1 HR and 3 RBI. Dempster pitched 6 complete innings allowing six hits, three earned runs and struck out six for his fourth win of the season.

After winning sox of their last eight, the Red Sox will hit the road once again- taking on the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana field on Monday night. John Lackey [3-5; 2.79 ERA] is scheduled to start against Tampa Bay's Alex Cobb [6-2; 2.39 ERA]. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 ET and the game will be televised on ESPN.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Break A Leg Sports Chowdah Update- Campbell Gone, But Bruins Take 3-0 Series Lead in Eastern Conference Finals; Big Papi Makes Rangers Pay

Steve Babineau/Getty Images

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS- To be honest, this was the kind of game I was expecting from Pittsburgh all along.

Although the Bruins got out the early 1-0 lead against Pittsburgh in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals at the Garden on Wednesday night, this would not be a repeat of Monday night's game 2 blowout.

David Krejci put the Bruins on the board with a quick even strength goal- his 9th of the postseason- just 1:42 into the first period, the Bruins first shot of the game as it turned out. After that, getting one past Pittsburgh's Tomas Vokoun was about as easy as getting one past a brick wall.

Not quite nine minutes into the second, Chris Kunitz got the Penguins on the board with an even strength goal. With the game tied at 1-1 and the Penguins on the power play late in the second, Bruins F Greg Campbell slid down to block a Evgeni Malkin shot before getting back up and limping around for another 40 seconds- attempting to block another shot and chipping the puck out during the remainder of his shift. As it turned out, the shot broke Campbell's right leg and the forward will miss the remainder of the season.

With the game deadlocked at 1-1 and both Rask and Vokoun turning aside everything that came their way in the 3rd, the game headed to overtime. Despite a trio of power plays in the first OT, the Bruins still weren't able to get anything by Vokoun and the game remained deadlocked 1-1 heading into the second OT.

With just under five minutes remaining in the second overtime, it almost looked as though we'd be heading for a 3rd OT until this happened.

In the wee hours of Thursday morning, Patrice Bergeron ended Game 3 on a tip in that got past Vokoun to give Boston the 2-1 win and a seemingly commanding 3-0 lead in the series.

Rask turned aside 53 shots throughout the night (29 of those shots coming in the 3rd period or OT) while Vokoun stopped 38. Neither team capitalized on the power play, with the Bruins going 0-5 and the Penguins going 0-6. The Bruins have a chance to sweep the Penguins and punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Final with a Game 4 win on Friday night. Game 4 will get underway Friday night at 8:00 ET from the Garden with the game being televised on the NBC Sports Network and the CBC.

As an aside, let me just pose the question: How big was Wednesday night's win? Think about it- instead of Pittsburgh cutting the series lead in half with no Campbell, the Bruins are now firmly in control of their own destiny and one game away from returning to the Stanley Cup Final.

ELSWHERE IN THE NHL- A go-ahead goal from Chicago's Marian Hossa early in the 3rd period broke a 2-2 deadlock and handed the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings their first home loss of the postseason on Thursday night. Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford turned aside 19 of 21 shots faced and Patrick Kane and Bryan Bickell also scored for the Hawks in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

Like the Bruins, one more win separates the Blackhawks from a return to the Stanley Cup. Should both the Bruins and Blackhawks advance to the Stanley Cup Finals, this will be the first time since the 1979 Stanley Cup Finals that two Original Six teams will be in the Championship game.

Charles Krupa- AP Photo

RED SOX- After exploding for 17 runs on Monday, the Red Sox bats were fairly quiet against Texas starter Alexi Ogando and the Rangers bullpen on Wednesday night. Boston managed only five hits and left 8 runners on base in their 3-2 loss against the Rangers, setting up a rubber game for Thursday night.

Serving as the Rangers DH, Jeff Baker got the Rangers out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the second with a shot off of Jon Lester. In the top of the 3rd inning, former Red Sox 3B Adrian Beltre would add to the Texas lead with a 1-out solo homer [the Red Sox were fortunate it wasn't a 2-run blast as 1B was thrown out attempting to stretch a single into a double to lead off the inning- NANESB!].

The Red Sox finally got on the board and cut into the Texas lead after a 2-out 2-RBI double by Dustin Pedroia off of Rangers starter Derek Holland in the bottom of the 3rd. Things would look promising for the Red Sox in the bottom of the 5th after Ellsbury belted a ground-rule double to start off the bottom half of the frame. Gomes singled to left to bring Ellsbury within 90 feet of home, but was tagged out by Texas catcher AJ Pierzynski at home when he tried scoring on a fielder's choice off the bat of Pedroia. Big Papi then hit into a double play to end the inning and seemingly kill the Red Sox momentum.

In the bottom of the 7th, Ellsbury once again led off the inning with a double off of Texas reliever Robbie Ross. Gomes followed that up with a single, and while Pedroia struck out, Ross walked Ortiz to load the bases. Rangers manager Ron Washington then pulled Ross for former Blue Jay Jayson Frasor, and this time Ellsbury came home to tie the game on a fielder's choice hit by Mike Napoli. Although Daniel Nava would strike out to end the inning, the Red Sox bullpen would pitch two shutout innings against Texas.

Michael Kirkman came in to pitch the bottom of the 9th for the Rangers and immediately gave up a leadoff double to the deepest part of the park to Johnny Gomes. Ron Washington then counter-intuitively had Kirkman walk Pedroia so they could pitch to Big Papi. Big Papi responded by doing this:

Instead of the Rangers running the risk of any hit from Pedroia bringing home Gomes and Texas losing by a 4-3 final, Big Papi blasts the first pitch he sees into the Texas bullpen for the 6-3 win. The Red Sox take two out of three from the AL West leaders, wrapping up the regular season series in dramatic fashion.

Despite leaving 10 runners stranded, the Red Sox had a pretty good night in the batter's box. Both Gomes and Ellsbury went 4-5 on the night and Big Papi's 3-run homer was his first hit of the evening. Neither starter factored into the decision- Andrew Bailey was credited with the win and Kirkman gets the loss.

The Red Sox will next host the Anaheim Angels over the weekend, with Felix Doubront [4-2; 4.88 ERA] will get the start against the Angels' Tommy Hanson [2-2; 4.19 ERA]. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 ET [weather permitting- NANESB!] and the game will be televised on NESN.

NBA FINALS- Despite the advanced age of some of their marquee players and nine days off, the San Antonio Spurs showed no signs of rust in Thursday night's opening game of the 2013 NBA Finals. The last time LeBron James faced the Spurs was the 2007 NBA finals when he was still with Cleveland. Despite professing to be fifty times better, his triple double on Thursday night wasn't enough to get the Eastern Conference champs past the Spurs. San Antonio point guard Tony Parker had 21 points on the night- 10 of them coming in the 4th quarter as the Spurs rallied, but none more important than this one late in the 4th.

Parker quiets the home crowd with a late buzzer-beater to give the Spurs some insurance. San Antonio wins Game 1 of the NBA finals by a final of 92-88.

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Quickie Sports Chowdah Update- Grimm Prognosis for Rangers in Game 1 at Fenway; MLB Expected to Dish Out Suspensions Over "BALCO East" Clinic; Fit For a King- LA Shows Signs of Life in Western Conference Final

AP Photo/Elise Amendola

RED SOX- If Ryan Demptser was worried about getting some run support in pursuit of only his third win of the season, the Red Sox bats put those concerns to rest quickly on Tuesday night's home game against the Rangers.

Rookie Texas starter Justin Grimm lasted only 1⅔ innings and surrendered eight earned runs, and the Red Sox were just getting started. Among the second inning highlights was rookie Jackie Bradley Jr hitting his first career homer- a 2-run blast to make it 4-0 at the time. After Grimm gave up a single to Daniel Nava and walked Mike Carp, the Rangers starter got Dustin Pedroia to fly out before Big Papi belted a 2-RBI triple off of him into the triangle at center field. Ortiz hardly had time to catch his breath from ambling around the bases before coming home on a Mike Napoli sac fly. Grimm would then give up a double to Saltalamacchia before getting the hook from manager Ron Washington.

Boston would jump on top by an 8-0 margin in the second inning and never look back from there. After getting swept by the Rangers in Arlington last month, the Red Sox teed off on Grimm and the Texas bullpen, notching 19 hits in their 17-5 win over the Rangers. There were literally too many hits to count, but the highlights included a slumping Stephen Drew going 4-5 with a homer and 2 RBI, Mike Carp going 3-4 with a homer and 3 RBI, Jackie Bradley Jr's going 1-5 and with 3 RBI- including his first career homer- and Big Papi's first triple since 2011. The 17 runs represents a season best from the Red Sox.

Dempster went 7 innings, allowing five hits and three earned runs and striking out six for just his 3rd win of the season and Jason Frasor is the only pitcher out of the Texas bullpen who didn't allow a hit on Tuesday night.

As gratifying as the win was, it still only counts as one game and the two teams will go back at it on Wednesday night. John Lackey [3-5; 2.96 ERA] is scheduled to get the start against Alexi Ogando [4-2; 3.08 ERA]. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 ET and the game will be televised on NESN and ESPN2.

ELSEWHERE IN MLB- The head of a Miami-area clinic accused of supplying performance enhancing drugs to MLB players has agreed to be interviewed by the league, which will likely result in some big-name suspensions according to ESPN.

Tony Bosch, founder of the now-shuttered Biogenesis of America, reached an agreement this week to cooperate with MLB's investigation, two sources told "Outside the Lines," giving MLB the ammunition officials believe they need to suspend the players.

One source familiar with the case said the commissioner's office might seek 100-game suspensions for Rodriguez, Braun and other players, the penalty for a second doping offense. The argument, the source said, is the players' connection to Bosch constitutes one offense, and previous statements to MLB officials denying any such connection or the use of PEDs constitute another.

Sources said Bosch will meet with MLB officials in New York on Friday to begin sharing information and materials. He is expected to meet with lawyers and investigators for several days. The announcement of suspensions could follow within two weeks.

Sources said discussions between Bosch and MLB were delayed while Bosch's lawyers spoke to the U.S. Attorney's office to get a sense of what sort of legal jeopardy Bosch might face. Before he would agree to a deal, sources said, he wanted an assurance that MLB could help mitigate any criminal exposure. MLB officials promised to do what they could, but do not have the power to stop a federal criminal investigation.

Investigators have had records naming about 20 players for more than a month. But without a sworn statement from Bosch that the records are accurate and reflect illicit interactions between the players and the self-described biochemist, the documents are little more than a road map.

Besides Rodriguez and Braun, other players named in the Biogenesis client list include Bartolo Colon, Nelson Cruz, Jhonny Peralta, Nelson Cruz, Francisco Cervelli, Jesus Montero and many others who are identified by codename.

A spokeswoman for Yankees 2B Robinson Cano's foundation also appears on the client list, but according to MLB sources, the New York infielder is in no immediate danger of suspension.

The New York Yankees likely anticipated the news about the Biogenesis client list- at least as far as A-Rod was concerned. Over the weekend, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner made comments expressing his disappointment in the third baseman who signed a new 10-year $275 million contract in 2007. Yankees GM Brian Cashman also stated in an interview that A-Rod clearly hadn't lived up to his massive contract. It's likely these statements were made during the series against the Red Sox over the weekend to preempt any announcement from MLB regarding A-Rod's involvement in the Biogenesis labs scandal.

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS- Although they fell into a quick 0-2 hole in the Western Conference finals, the defending Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings remain undefeated at home in the postseason, and Tuesday night was no different.

Like Game 1 of the western Conference Finals, the Kings got out to an early 1-0 lead. However, unlike Game 1, Los Angeles was able to maintain their lead- although it looked somewhat tenuous in the 3rd period.

Justin Williams put LA on the board just 3:21 into the game and Slava Voynov got what would prove to be the game-winner six and a half minutes into the second period. Midway through the second period, Chicago's Duncan Keith hit Jeff Carter with a high stick. Carter would leave the game and require multiple stitches while the Blackhawks are waiting on word from director of player safety Brendan Shanahan on whether or not Keith will receive a suspension.

Chicago got on the board and cut the lead in half in the closing seconds of the second period on an unassisted goal by Bryan Bickell. Kings netminder Jonathan Quick would be kept busy in the third, but Dwight King would clinch the game late for LA as he tallied an empty-netter to put the Kings on top 3-1.

The series will resume will LA trailing 2 games to 1 on Thursday night. Wednesday night's NHL action will feature the Game 3 of the Eastern conference finals from Boston as the Bruins look to go up 3-0 on the Pittsburgh Penguins.

NBA- After a decisive 7th game against the Indiana Pacers, the Miami Heat are the Eastern Conference champions. The Heat bested the Pacers by a 99-76 final in Game 7 on Monday night. Miami's LeBron James led scoring for the Heat with 32 points, 8 rebounds and four assists on the night.

The Heat will face the San Antonio Spurs, who completed a sweep of the Memphis Grizzlies a week prior to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Game one is set for Thursday night in Miami and will get underway at 9:00 ET. The game will be televised on ABC.

OTHER NBA NEWS- Point guard Jason Kidd has announced his retirement from the NBA this week. Kidd was named co-rookie of the year along with Grant Hill back in 1995 and was an all-star ten times throughout his 19 year career. In addition to leading the NBA in steals in 2002 and assists per game in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2004, Kidd also won a gold medal with the US Men's Olympic basketball team during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

After playing for the Cal Golden Bears, Kidd played for the Mavericks, Suns, Nets and most recently, the New York Knicks.

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Quickie June Boom Sports Chowdah Update- Bruins Steel Eastern Conference Opener From Pittsburgh; Bronx Bombed- Victorino Notches Grand Slam As Bats Come Alive Against Pinstripes

Gene J Puskar- AP

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS- The Eastern Conference Finals got off to a good start for the Bruins on Saturday evening as David Krejci got Boston on the board just over 8 minutes into the first period with an even-strength goal that beat Pens netminder Tomas Vokoun.

While there was no scoring in the second period, the game took a turn for the feisty when Boston archenemy Matt Cooke was given a five minute major and ejected after his hit from behind on Adam McQuaid.

With the Bruins still leading 1-0, period number two closed out with a scrap between Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron. This was in addition to Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby jawing skyward at Boston Captain Zdeno Chara- although, sadly, the altercation didn't become physical.

Four minutes into the third period, the Bruins doubled their lead over the Pens thanks again to David Krejci. Right before the eight minute mark, Nathan Horton decided he wanted to get in on the action and beat Vokoun to make it a 3-0 lead, giving the Bruins even more insurance not even halfway through the 3rd period. However, given Rask's outstanding performance in net Saturday night, Krejci's first goal would be all the Bruins needed. Boston takes Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals from Pittsburgh in the Consol Energy Center by a 3-0 final. Tukka Rask turned aside all 29 shots he faced on Saturday while stopped 27 of 30 shots faced. Both teams went 0-4 on the power play, as well.

Game 2 will get underway on Monday night from Pittsburgh at 8:00 ET and will be televised on NBC Sports or the CBC depending on where you're trying to watch the game from.

ELSEWHERE IN THE STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS- After trailing early to Los Angeles, the Chicago Blackhawks scored two unanswered goals to go on and win by a 2-1 final in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.

Marian Hossa scored late in the second for the game-winning goal and Corey Crawford stopped 21 of 22 shots faced in the Blackhawks Game 1 win on Saturday afternoon. Game 2 will get underway on Sunday at 8:00 ET and the contest will be televised on NBC Sports Network and TSN.

Paul J. Bereswill

RED SOX- One night after CC Sabathia stymied the Red Sox bats, Boston flexed their offensive muscle against starter Phil Hughes and the Yankees bullpen.

Although he came into Saturday night's game with a high ERA, Boston starter Felix Doubront had a winning record and his career ERA against the Yankees (2.78 heading into tonight) than his career ERA of 4.86.

Doubront struggled early, walking three batters and allowing two hits in the first two innings, but the Yankees were unable to capitalize on those opportunities.

It was a different story for the Red Sox though- Jackie Bradley Jr led off the top of the 3rd with a double, followed by a sinfle from Daniel Nava. Mike Carp then got the Red Sox on the board with an RBI double to make it 1-0 Boston. After Hughes struck out Pedroia, the decision was made to intentionally walk David Ortiz. With the bases loaded, the Mike Napoli made the Yankees pay for that by belting a 2-2 Hughes offering into the bullpens in right-center field. The grand slam put Boston up by a score of 5-0.

The Yankees got a run back in the bottom of the 4th on a sac fly, but Boston would blow the game wide open in the top of the 8th with a 3-run Daniel Nava homer. The Red Sox would touch up the Yankees bullpen for three more runs (including a Stephen Drew solo homer) for an 11-1 win. This evens up this weekend's series at 1-1, with the rubber game set for Sunday night with Clay Buchholz [7-0, 1.73 ERA] against Hiroki Kuroda [6-3; 2.39 ERA]. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball with first pitch scheduled for at 8:05 PM ET.

NCAA BASEBALL- After winning their first Big East baseball title in nearly 20 years, the UConn Huskies advanced to the NCAA regionals in Blacksburg, VA. After winning the opening game against host Virginia Tech on Friday by a 5-2 final, the Huskies were downed by the Oklahoma Sooners in 12 innings by a 5-3 final.

The Huskies will face a rematch with Virginia Tech on Sunday in the double elimination tournament- a loss means that a trip to Omaha is out of the question while a win still puts them in the hunt.

UConn is the only Division I New England school to qualify for the NCAA baseball tournament this season.

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Glass Half Phill Sports Chowdah Update- Red Sox Split Interleague Series With Phillies; Stanley Cup Runneth Over- Four Most Recent NHL Champions Advnace to Conference Finals

Matt Slocum/AP

RED SOX- The Red Sox jumped out to an early 4-0 lead over the Phillies on Thursday night thanks to a 2-RBI single from Mike Carp and 2-RBI double from Saltalamacchia.

The Phillies would respond in the bottom of the first by getting two back on a 2-run Delmon Young homer, but after cutting the Boston lead in half, that would be as close as Philadelphia would get. Johnny Gomes would belt a solo homer to make it a 5-2 Boston lead in the top of the 6th and outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury would end up stealing a club record five bases on Thursday night as the Red Sox would continue adding to their lead. This included a Big Papi solo shot in the top of the 7th followed by three more runs in the top of the 9th thanks to an RBI Groundout from Steven Drew and RBI double from Saltalamacchia and Iglesias to make it 9-2 Boston.

Junichi Tazawa and Andrew Bailey would close out the 9-2 win for the Red Sox and Franklin Morales would win his first start of the season for Boston. Saltalamacchia would go 2-5 with 3 RBI and while Gomes and Ortiz both homered for the Red Sox, the real story of the night was Ellsbury who went 3-4 and basically ate Philly catcher Erik Kratz's lunch when he wasn't stealing five bases. Boston splits the series with Philadelphia 2-2 (the series was two games at Fenway and two games in Philadelphia), Boston's first interleague action of the 2013 season.

Since the game took place in a National League park, there was no DH slot- meaning Big Papi started at first base on Thursday night and was lifted late for Jackie Bradley Jr who had a single in his only at-bat. Bradley was called up from Pawtucket on Wednesday and is expected to remain with the team through the series against the Yankees in the Bronx.

Clay Buccholz, who was a late scratch from Monday's opener at Fenway against the Phillies is expected to re-join the team and start against the Yankees on Sunday. Meanwhile, the Yankees were swept by the struggling Mets in the interleague 'Subway Series' which includes two games in the Bronx and two games at Citi Field.

Nam Y Huh

NHL- Unlike the Eastern conference, where the Bruins and Penguins were able to wrap up their respective series in no more than five games, both the defending Stanley Cup Champion LA Kings and the Chicago Blackhawks needed seven games to advance to the Western Conference finals.

It looked touch and go for the Blackhawks on Wednesday, but the United Center erupted with thunderous applause and cheers when the 1-1 deadlock appeared to be broken late after a Niklas Hjalmarsson slapshot found its way to the back of the Detroit net, but the apparent game winning goal was waved off after two offsetting penalties were called by officials.

Instead, the Chicago crowd would have to wait a few more minutes when Brent Seabrook got his first tally of the playoffs, beating Red Wings netminder Jimmy Howard 3:35 into OT and ending Detroit's season. The victory gives Chicago a matchup against the defending Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings, who bested San Jose by a 2-1 final on Tuesday night and won the series against the Sharks 4 games to 3.

Interestingly, the longest any of the four remaining teams has gone without winning a Stanley Cup? Try 2009....that was the year the Pittsburgh Penguins won it all. The Blackhawks won Lord Stanley's cup in 2010, the Boston Bruins won it in 7 games in 2011 and the Kings remain the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Sports Chowdah Update- Quick Work For LA As They Win Stanley Cup; Cain And Able; Marlins Flounder After Late Sox Rally; Thunder Interrupts Heat Wave

Alan Diaz- AP Photo

RED SOX- After being swept by the white-hot Washington Nationals at home over the weekend, the Red Sox hit the road for Miami where their woes looked like they weren't going away anytime soon after Beckett was touched up for 4 runs against his former team in the Marlins 4-1 win on Monday.

The loss was followed up on Tuesday night by a strong outing by Clay Buchholz where he gave up one run and struck out nine in seven innings of work, outduelling Mark Buehrle in a 2-1 Boston win.

Wednesday night's game was the rubber match of the series, with Felix Doubront getting the start against Miami's Ricky Nolasco. The Red Sox got on the board when Mike Aviles grounded out with Scott Podsednik coming home from third in the top of the 3rd inning before Big Papi added to the lead with a 1-out solo homer in the top of the 4th to make it 2-0 Boston. This was followed up by an Adrian Gonzalez RBI single and aBig Papi sac-fly in the top of the 6th to make it 4-0.

Doubront was doing well on the mound for Boston, hurling 5 and ⅔ innings of no-hit baseball before giving up a solo home run to SS Jose Reyes in the bottom of the 6th to give the Marlins their first run of the game.

Miami would then cut the Red Sox lead in half with an RBI groundout from Justin Ruggiano in the bottom of the seventh to make it 4-2. However, that's as close as the Marlins would get. In the top of the 8th, Pedroia, Gonzalez, Ortiz, Saltalamacchia and Punto would each get RBIs- with all but Salty's coming on singles [Salty had a sac-fly while Punto managed to drive in two runs w/his single- NANESB!] to make it a 10-2 ballgame, which would be the final from Miami.

Doubront had his best outing of the season, going 7 innings while allowing two runs on three hits and a walk while striking out 9. Vincente Padilla, Andrew Miller and Matt Albers came on to close things out for Boston once the game was blown wide open in the top of the 8th.

Thursday is a travel day for the Red Sox as they return to the Windy City, this time taking the El all the way up to the Addison stop on the North side where former Red Sox GM and the Chicago Cubs will play host to them at Wrigley Field- the second oldest ballpark in use in the majors. The last time the Red Sox played a regular season game in Wrigley was not that long ago- 2005. Prior to that, the last time the Red Sox played in Wrigley was the 1918 World Series- their only title for 86 years.

While the Red Sox have struggled mightily just to remain right around 500 this season, the Cubs have the worst record in the majors right now at 21-41, more than a dozen games out of first place in the NL Central.

Jeff Samardzija [5-4; 3.96 ERA] is scheduled to get the start for the Cubbies while the Red Sox starter hasn't been announced as of Wednesday night. The game is scheduled to get underway at 2:20 PM ET (1:20 Central) from Wrigley and the game will be televised on NESN and the MLB Network.

OTHER MLB NEWS- Matt Cain pitched the first-ever perfect game in the 122-year history of the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday night. This would be the 22nd perfect game in the history of the big leagues, but already the second of the 2012 season [The ChiSox's Phillip Humber retired all 27 Mariners batters he faced in a road game at SafeCo field in late April- NANESB!].

Cain threw a grand total of 125 pitches on Wednesday night against the visiting Houston Astros- 86 of them for strikes- while San Francisco's batters chased Astros starter J.A. Happ from the mound after he allowed eight runs in three and ⅓ innings. Cain's bid for perfection was preserved thanks in large part to a diving catch by outfielder Gregor Blanco in the top of the 7th, robbing Jordan Schafer of a base hit. The 10-0 win over the Astros was almost an afterthought as Giants 3B Brandon Crawford fielded pinch-hitter Jasn Castro's ground ball and threw to first for the final out.

The last time there was two perfect games in the same season was in 2010 when Oakland's Dallas Braden threw a perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays on Mother's Day and Philly's Roy Halliday retired 27 straight Marlins less than 3 weeks later. A few days after Halliday's perfect game, Detroit's Armando Galaraga was denied perfection against the Cleveland Indians with two away in the bottom of the 9th by a blown call by first base umpire Jim Joyce, who later admitted to blowing the call and apologizing to Galaraga.

This is the first no-hitter for the Giants since July 2009 when Jonathan Sanchez no-hit the San Diego Padres at AT&T Park. Interestingly, this is not the firt time the Astros have been no-hit by the Giants; Juan Marichal no-hit the Astros on June 15, 1963.

Cain's perfect game came after Seattle Mariners starter Kevin Millwood and five relievers combined for a no-hitter against the Los Angeles Dodgers at SafeCo during the series opener. This is the 5th no-hitter of the 2012 season, the first time since 1917 that there have been five or more no-hitters before mid-June.

STANLEY CUP FINALs- After the 8-seeded Los Angeles Kings lost back-to-back games against the New Jersey Devils, the seed of doubt had been planted as to whether or not they could close the deal in the Stanley Cup finals.

It seemed understandable- prior to the two losses, the Kings had amassed an impressive 9-game road winning streak in the Stanley Cup playoffs, quickly dispatching the Vancouver Canucks and St Louis Blues- the top two teams in the Western Conference. Although they jumped out to a quick 3-0 series lead over the Devils, New Jersey managed to avoid the sweep. The longer the Devils lingered, the more questions there were about LA's ability to close them out and speculation over the series coming down to a 7th game.

But to get to game 7, the Devils would have to win game 6. Los Angeles decided to banish any talk of the series heading to a game 7 in the first when they got out to a 3-0 lead thanks to power play goals from Dustin Brown, Jeff Carter and Trevor Lewis.

Carter would make it a 4-0 game with an even stregth tally that got past Brodeur early in the second while New Jersey's Adam Henrique got the Devils on the board with a tally late in the period. However, by that point, the Kings already smelled the blood in the water, and just in case the 4-1 lead wasn't enough, teh Kings tallied two empty-net goals in the 3rd from Trevor Lewis and Matt Greene to win by a final of 6-1 and bring the Stanley Cup to Los Angeles.

Although they made an appearence in the 1992-93 Stanley Cup Finals, the Kings would lose to the Montreal Canadiens that year. This is the first Stanley Cup for the LA Kings francise, which joined the NHL the same year as the Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, St Louis Blues and Minnesota North Stars (now the Dallas Stars).

The presentation of Lord Stanley's Cup capped off an impressive 16-4 postseason run for the Kings who had to duke it out with the San Jose Sharks on the final day of the regular season to determine the playoff seeding between the two. The Kings lost in a shootout and fell all the way down to the 8th and final playoff spot in April, earning a first round matchup with the Presidents Cup winning Vancouver Canucks. Far from being a hapless and outclassed #8 seed, the Kings proved to be a buzzsaw that cut through the Western Conference teams facing them, including a clean sweep of the St Louis Blues.

For the second straight season, the goaltender from the winning team was awarded the Conn Smythe trophy. Jonathan Quick seemed like a no-brainer for the NHL's equivalent of the MVP award, garner a .946 save percentage and 1.41 goals against average on top of three shutouts in the playoffs. Quick faced all of 18 shots in Game 6, turning aside 17. Last season, Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas won the Conn Smythe and Vezina trophies as well as the Stanley Cup. This season, Quick is already a finalist in the voting for the Vezina winner and few would be surprised if he landed the hardware with the phenomenal postseason he's had.

A parade and rally sponsored by owner Phil Anschultz's AEG in the Kings honor is scheduled to take place in Downtown LA on Thursday.

NBA- Here's something I never thought I'd be saying back in 2008: "Go Oklahoma City!".

I seemed to have underestimated the disdain in which the Miami Heat is viewed by hoops fans from pretty much everywhere outside of South Beach- although my view of them has admittedly been slanted by having the Celtics lose to them in an arduous 7-game Eastern Conference final.

Perhaps the most surreal thing about this season's NBA finals matchup is that I actually find myself in the same boat as LA Lakers fans. Apparently a number of them are rooting for the Thunder based on a lingering fondness for Derek Fisher while I'm not the least bit interested in seeing Miami win another NBA title.

As far as that goes, things got off swimmingly in Game 1 from Oklahoma City Tuesday night when the Thunder overcame an early defecit to win by a 105-94 final. Kevin Durant led the scoring for Oklahoma City with 36 points to go with 8 rebounds and 4 assists. The Thunder's Russel Westbrook was no slouch, coming up with 27 points and 11 assists and 8 rebounds while LeBron James led in scoring for the Heat with a 30 point night.

Oklahoma City is off to a 1-0 series lead in the NBA finals. Game 2 is set to take place from OKC's Chesapeake Energy Arena at 9:00 ET and will be televised on ABC.

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Sports Chowder Update for June 10- National Catastrophe at Fenway; The Devil Zone, NJ Stays Alive in Cup Final; The Heat is On- Miami Surges Past C's in Game 7

Jim Rogash/Getty Images
RED SOX- Damn those Beltway insiders!

The Boston Red Sox capped a rather forgettable week by getting swept by the first place Washington Nationals over the weekend. On Friday night, Nats phenom Stephen Strasburg struck out 13 batters in six innings of work while 19 year old rookie Bryce Harper went 3 for 5 with a homer and 3 RBI in Boston's 7-4 loss to the Nats.

Saturday saw the return of Daisuke Matsuzaka to the Red Sox lineup after an extensive trip through the Red Sox minor-league system as part of his rehab. Dice-K went 5 innings, allowing four earned runs and five hits and a walk while striking out 8 but was outdueled by Washington's Gio Gonzalez who went 6 and ⅓ innings and allowing two earned runs on three hits (including Saltalamacchia's 2-run homer) in the Nationals' 4-2 win.

Sunday's game saw the Nationals rally from a 2-1 defecit to briefly take a 3-2 lead on a 2-RBI double in the top of the 7th before the game was tied back up at 3-3 thanks to a Scott Podsednik RBI groundout in the bottom of the 7th. However, after Alfredo Aceves walked Bryce Harper in the top of the 9th, Nats outfielder Roger Bernadina belted a 2-out RBI double to give Washington the 4-3 lead, which they held on to after Tyler Clippard managed to get the last 3 outs of the game.

Having been no less than 2 and a half games out of the AL East lead last week, the Red Sox have fallen back to dead last and are now 6 games behind in the AL East standings. Earlier this week, Boston had dropped two out of three games against Baltimore at Fenway. For Monday, the Red Sox will head down to Miami to take on the Marlins. Josh Beckett [4-6; 4.04 ERA] will get the start against his former team while the Marlins send Josh Johnson [3-4; 4.56 ERA] to the mound. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN and gets underway at 7:10 ET.

ELSEWHERE IN MLB- Although they ended up losing the weekend series to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Seattle Mariners managed to no-hit the Dodgers despite going through six pitchers to do so.

Kevin Millwood threw six hitless innings before leaving with a groin injury on Friday night at SafeCo. That brought reliever Charlie Furbush out of the pen for ⅔ of an inning. Stephen Prior, who came on after Furbush and threw all of ⅓ an inning and faced just one batter was credited with the win. Lucas Luetge then came on for ⅔ of an inning. This was followed up by Brandon League and Tom Wilhelmsen, who got all three outs in the bottom of the 9th to preserve the 1-0 win (Seattle's only run came in the bottom of the 7th when Kyle Seagar brought Ichiro Suzuki home with an RBI single.

The combined no-no was the first of its kind this season and fourth no-hitter of the 2012 baseball season and already the second no-hitter this month. On April 21st, the Mariners themselves were on the other end of White Sox starter Philip Humber's perfect game.

Interestingly, this is not the first time six MLB pitchers were credited with a no-hitter. A June 2003 interleague game between the Houston Astros and New York Yankees unfolded in a similar manner when then-Astros starter Roy Oswalt left the game early with Pete Munro, Kirk Sarloos, Brad Lidge, Octavio Dotel and Billy Wagner combining to no-hit the Yankees in the Bronx.

NCAA FOOTBALL- Authorities in Alabama have identifies a suspect in the fatal shooting of three people at a party near the Auburn campus over the weekend. Two of the deceased have been identified as former football players- Edward Christian and Ladarious Phillips- as well as 20 year old Demario Pitts. Three others were wounded by gunfire at the party. Christian had previously quit the team due to a back injury.

Police are looking for 22 year old Desmonte Leonard of Montgomery, AL who is accused of opening fire at the apartment complex to party took place in and starting a fight with partygoers over a woman. Leonard could be facing three counts of capital murder.

Paul Bereswill/Getty Images

STANLEY CUP FINALS- After falling into an 0-3 hole in the Stanley Cup finals, the New Jersey Devils are within a game of tying up the series at 3-3 after their 2-1 win over the LA Kings on Saturday.

The Devils got on the board late in the first with a Zach Parise power play tally [right when the announcer was talking about the King's near-flawless penalty killing in the postseason- isn't it always that way? NANESB!]. It was an uncharecteristically sloppy goal that Kings netminder Jonathan Quick coughed up after attempting to clear the puck, but it put the Devils on the board .

Justin Williams got the Kings on the board and tied things up at 1-1 early in the second, but about five minutes later, the Devils re-took the lead on a tip-in from Bryce Salvador. Despite outshooting the Devils 9-3 in the 3rd period, Broduer turned aside every shot he faced and the Devils hung on to win by a 2-1 final, forcing a Game 6 on Monday night.

So with the Devils a win away from tying the Cup Final and the King a win away from Clinching it, Game 6 will get underway from Staples Center on Monday night at 8:00 ET; 5:00 Pacific time- the game will be televised on NBC and the CBC.

NBA- The Boston Celtics season- and in all likelyhood, the Big 3 era- has come to an end with their Game 7 loss to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals on Saturday night.

The Miami Heat surged late and pulled away from the Celtics late in the 4th quarter, outscoring the Celtics 28-15 to pull away for good and clinch the Eastern Conference title with the 101-88 win at South Beach. Lebron James led the scoring with 31 points 12 rebounds and two assists. On the Celtics side of the ball, Rajon Rondo led the way with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists.

The win sets up an appointment with the Oklahoma City Thunder who came from behind to best to San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals last week. This would be the second year in a row the Heat have advanced to the NBA Finals- last year they lost to the Dallas Mavericks 4 games to 2.

Game 1 between the Heat and the Thunder is set to take place Tuesday night at 9:00 ET in Oklahoma City and will be televised on ABC.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Sports Chowdah Update- Jersey Chore, Devils Fall Into 0-2 Stanley Cup Hole; Jays-ed & Confused, Toronto Touches Up Bard; Heat Wilt In the Garden

BOSTON CELTICS- After putting the Miami Heat in a big hole early in Game Four on Sunday night, the Celtics managed to squander an 18 point lead against the visiting Miami Heat in the 4th quarter at the Garden.

However, for all the talk of offensive prowess and superstars like LeBron James, the turning point in Sunday night's game [and possibly the series- NANESB!] came courtesey of somebody who had exactly zero points on the night. With the contest tied at 89-89 at the end of the 4th and heading to OT.

Although the Celtics managed to take a 1-point lead, but not before Paul Pierce had fouled out of the game less than a minute into OT. One of the biggest plays in OT for Boston came not from Rondo or Garnett, but Mickael Pietrus who had a grand total of zero points on Sunday night. With less than two minutes to go and the C's desperately clinging to a 92-91 lead, Pietrus came up with two huge offensive rebounds to keep the clock going and retain posession for the C's after two missed shots. Then, with Miami heading back up the court, Pietrus drew the sixth foul of the evening on LeBron James- the first time LeBron fouled out of a game as a member of the Miami Heat.

With less than 25 seconds to go in OT, the C's made it a two point game when Rajon Rondo went 1 for 2 from the free throw line to make it 93-91. On the Heat's next possession, Dwayne Wade let loose from outside the line with a shot that looked like it was going to make it and give Miami the lead as time expired, but it ultimately clanged off the rim.

The Celtics didn't win this one so much as survive it. Paul Pierce had 23 points on the night along with 6 rebounds before lgetting tossed out of the game in OT. Rajon Rondo had 15 points and 15 assists while Mickael Pietrus had the two pivotal offensive rebounds in OT.

The win is Boston's second in a row in the Eastern Conference Finals and sends the series back to South Beach knotted up at 2 games apiece. Although the Heat could do little to stop Rajon Rondo, who had an NBA playoff-best 44 points in Game 2, Miami was ultimately victorious in that contest. So far, each team is undefeated in their home arena in the Eastern Conference finals.

With the series knotted at 2 games each, this basically becomes a best-of-3 series. Game 5 will get underway from South Beach on Tuesday night with a tipoff time of 8:30 ET on ESPN.

The winner of the Miami-Boston series will take on the winner of the San Antonio-Oklahoma City series out west. Like the Eastern Conference, the Western Conference finals are also knotted up at 2-2.

STANLEY CUP FINALS- Two games at Newark's Prudential Center, two overtimes but despite the best efforts of New Jersey's veteran goaltender Martin Brodeur, the Los Angeles Kings are seperated from Lord Stanley's cup by all of two wins.

After an Anze Kopitar tally broke a 1-1 deadlock in OT of Game 1, the Devils found themselves trailing again for most of Game 2 on Saturday night after an unassisted Drew Doughty goal in the first before Ryan Carter knotted the contest up at 1-1 with a goal early in the 3rd. Nothing was resolved in the rest of regulation, so like the series opener Game 2 went to OT. Also like Game 1, the deadlock was broken by the Kings in overtime after Jeff Carter figured out how to get one by Brodeur with 6:18 remaining in OT.

With the Kings two wins away from clinching the Stanley Cup Champioship, the series heads out to the West Coast beginning Monday. The puck drops at 8:00 ET, 5:00 PT at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The game will be televised on NBC Sports Network and the CBC.

BOSTON BRUINS- Goalie Tim Thomas announced that he plans on taking next season off. The late-blooming netminder said in a message on his facebook page "At the age of 38, I believe it is time to put my time and energies into those areas and relationships that I have neglected, That is why at this time I feel the most important thing I can do in my life is to reconnect with the three F's. Friends, Family, and Faith".

Thomas reportedly told Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli that he was considering taking a year off on Friday. However, Thomas left open the possibility of a return to the NHL and expressed an interest in trying out for the US Olympic team in the 2014 Winter games. Had Thomas simply announced that he was retiring, the Bruins would've been responsible for a $5 million annual cap hit. Instead, Thomas is due $3 million for the 2012-2013 season although he had waived his no-trade clause back in 2010.

Although Thomas' plans to miss the 2012-13 season to take a sabbatical come to a surprise as some, the Bruins would still be in pretty good shape as far as goaltending is concerned. The Bruins still have Tukka Rask [although he becomes a restricted free agent in July- NANESB!] as well as Anton Khudobin as their top two goalies.

MLB- For the first time in their 51 year history, the New York Mets have a no-hiter to their name. The Mets milestone was reached on Friday night when starter Johan Santana threw a complete game no hitter against the St Louis Cardinals in their 8-0 shutout of the defending World Series champions. Santana threw a career high 134 pitches in the franchise's first ever no-hitter. Former Met Carlos Beltran, appeared to break up the no-hit bid in the top of the 6th with a liner over 3rd base, but it was immediately ruled foul by the 3rd base umpire- despite the fact that it kicked up some chalk.

Left fielder Mike Baxter preserved Johan's no-no bid at great personal expense, crashing into a wall while successfully chasing down a Yadier Molina fly ball [As of Sunday, Baxter was on the 15 day DL with a displaced right collarbone- NANESB!]. Mets catcher Josh Thole caught a foul tip off the bat of 2011 World Series MVP David Freese on a 3-2 count to complete the game.

With the Mets no-hitter in the books, this leaves the San Diego Padres as the only MLB franchise that doesn't have a no-hitter to their name.

OTHER METS NEWS- Noted misogynist and HBO talk show host Bill Maher announced on Sunday that he recently became a minority shareholder of the team. After being sued by one of the trustees for victims of embezzler Bernie Madoff last year, the Mets ownership decided to raise funds by The Mets management selling an undiclosed number of limited partner shares for $20 million each. Although Maher declined to say how much he paid for his share if the Mets, but the sale reportedly took place around the same time as the limited partner shares were made available.

RED SOX- Although the weekend got off to a promising start for the Red Sox, Sunday ended with a fizzle for the Sox as Daniel Bard got touched up for five runs in 1⅓ innings, including a 3 run homer by Jose Bautista. Boston would go on to win by a final of 5-1, with Boston's only run coming in the top of the 5th thanks to a Kelly Shoppach solo homer. Boston won the first two games of the weekend series thanks to strong outings by Clay Buchholz and Felix Doubront. However, Boston lost Subday afternoon's game by a 5-1 final.

The Sox return to Fenway on Tuesday to take on the Orioles, who were knocked out of first place by Tampa Bay over the weekend [after the weekend, Boston and Toronto are tied for last place in the AL East, although both teams are only 3 games out of 1st place- NANESB]. Jon Lester [3-4; 4.79 ERA] is scheduled to get the start against Baltimore's Jason Hammel [6-2; 3.06 ERA] on Tuesday night at 7:10 PM. The game will be televised on NESN.

OTHER BLUE JAYS NEWS- Blue Jays 3B Brett Lawrie left a food court at a popular Toronto mall seconds before a gunman opened fire on patrons, killing one and wounding several others.

Lawrie was one of the first to break the news on Twitter on Saturday evening. He had gone to the mall with a friend shortly after the Blue Jays lost to the Boston Red Sox in a Saturday afternoon game.

''Pretty sure someone just let off a round bullets in eaton center mall ... Wow just sprinted out of the mall ... through traffic,'' Lawrie tweeted. ''People sprinting up the stairs right from where we just were ... Wow wow wow.''

He later tweeted that he was ''Rattled right now.''

On Sunday, Lawrie said he felt lucky because he left the food court 10 seconds before the shooting.

''It was instant panic,'' Lawrie said before Sunday's game against the Red Sox. ''It was as if you stepped on an ant hill and then everyone just flooded out of the place. ... I just got out of there as fast as possible. I was the first person out of there.''

Lawrie said he wanted to get the news out fast.

''I just thought I'd give it out there just to anybody that could have been in the mall or anybody that needed to get there ASAP, I thought I could give them a good piece of information,'' he said.

Lawrie, a Canadian, said he never thought something like that could happen at the Eaton Centre, a Toronto landmark that is popular with tourists.

Toronto police identified the slain man as Ahmed Hassan and believe the shooting is gang-related. Although shootings have been on the rise in recent years north of the border, they are still relatively rare in Canada and Toronto prides itself on being one of the safest metropolitan areas in North America. Although the gunman wasn't publicly identified, a Toronto police spokesman said that between video survaillence footage, eyewitness accounts and the deceased's gang affiliation, they know the identity of the shooter.