Wow, what a crazy week it’s been! The Stanley Cup Final gets underway, while Wrestlemania XXIX starts to get planned. But you know what there is no plan for? The Phoenix Coyotes!
So much to talk about, only one thing needs to be said…
Hit my banner!
Eighteen Year Monkey Off the Back: Unless you are from Manhattan, how could you not have cheered last Friday?
Despite being more successful in recent history, the Devils have long been in the shadows of the Rangers. This seems to have been made oddly emphatic since the 1994 Conference finals, when the Rangers defeated the Devils.
Even though since that goal Stephan Matteau scored, the Devils have won three Stanley Cups and made one other trek to the finals, they still don’t have the same cache as the Rangers. This seems to be complicated by the fact that the Rangers seem to so frequently get the better of their cross-river rivals in the Spring.
Yet somehow this Friday when Adam Henrique channeled his inner Martin Gelinas, that all changed. David was able to slay goliath, just for one night. How could you not love that?
Plus it stopped us from getting a New York City Stanley Cup and Super Bowl sweep…although technically teams that play in New Jersey can do that this year.
60 Days for Idiocy: Just when you think Randy Orton has grown up, word comes out that he was given his second Wellness Violation, and will be suspended for the next sixty days. His next Wellness Violation will lead to his termination, per company policy. Orton was also suspended for behavioural issues a few years back.
This is clearly disasterous for the company that is already spreading it’s top names too thing. The slack will need to be picked up by the likes of Cena, Punk and Sheamus. While The Miz and Dolph Ziggler had feuds teased with the Viper this past week, and now will need to find a new opponent.
To make things worse, he will miss the 1000th RAW in July, which is slated to be in his hometown of St. Louis.
You stay classy, Mr. Orton.
Goodbye to a Legend: Arguably the greatest defenseman of a generation announced that he will hang up his skates. After 20 season, 4 Stanley Cups, and 7 Norris Trophies, Nicklas Lidstrom is set to retire at the age of 42.
Even if you are one of the many Red Wings haters out there, it’s hard not to have the utmost respect for their captain. He has been an absolute model for class and consistency over the past two decades. One has to wonder exactly how the Red Wings will replace this hugely important member of their blueline, and how much Ryan Sutter will ask to fill those skates.
Ratings Nightmare: This past edition of Monday Night RAW gave the lowest rating of the year, coming in at an abysmal 2.7.
This has reportedly lead to a mass panic backstage at the WWE. Apparently the CM Punk-Daniel Bryan match lost viewers, which could lead to some pretty disastrous consequences for us fans of workrate. Add in the fact that this was the first Monday night to not include John Cena in a very long time, and it’s pretty clear what is going to happen going forward.
While blame will be thrown at the likes of Brodus Clay, Big Show, Daniel Bryan, or Alberto Del Rio, the fact remains that the WWE has done a terrible job building any new stars in a very, very long time. The fact remains that Cena is 35 years old now, and can’t have much more than 2-3 years left of his current work load. Somebody needs to both step up individually and be given the support from the company to do so. Punk was close last year, but the company dropped the ball huge with his return and non-feud with Kevin Nash. Hopefully they can do something to ensure that this doesn’t happen with anyone else.
Lesnar vs. Taker: Apparently the plan in the works is to have Brock Lesnar challenge The Undertaker at Wrestlemania XXIX. This obviously plays off their infamous face-off from a few years ago, and can even go back to Lesnar’s feud with Taker in his first run with the company.
Obviously a match like this will give the company a massive pay day, but more importantly it gives us the chance to have John Cean defeat The Rock in a rematch at the big event, which would most certainly be the other side of this exciting coin.
Ohh and we could get Cena-Taker at Wrestlemania XXX, what’s not to love about that speculation?
No Plan B? In his “State of the NHL” Address before Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, Gary Bettman once again address the Phoenix Coyotes. He stated that the NHL is committed to the Jameson group, but as of right now there is no Plan B. So neither finding another buyer or relocation has been considered.
This is either a straight face lie, or flat out idiocy. There are so many problems with the proposal for Jameson to buy the Coyotes, that certainly a snag will be hit somewhere. Something is going to happen where the NHL will be forced to own the team again, or the team will end up in Quebec, where they should have been years ago.
Prediction for this Week: The Stanley Cup Final is 3-1 for the Kings after four games.