Author Archives: G

About G

A hockey and wrestling uber-geek. Currently living in Guangzhou, China, trying to keep up with my nerdiest endeavors.
Jun 16

WWE Payback: What SHOULD Happen vs. What WILL Happen

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Welcome back to our monthly look at WWE Events. As part of a preview we look at the card and what SHOULD Happen and compare it to what (probably) WILL Happen.

This card feels very much like a placeholder show, but it does have some potential long-term ramifications. The power of The Shield will continue to grow, Daniel Bryan continues to (hopefully) move up the card, and where does CM Punk fit into all of this?

Things feel predictable, Cena’s going to retain, both matches involving The Shield have pretty obvious outcomes, and of course the new guy that they love is going to win the title that they don’t care about! However, the company is known to mess things up every so often just to keep us all guessing.

Will this be one of those times? I guess we’ll have to see…

Sheamus vs. Damien Sandow
You-Tube Pre-Show Match

What SHOULD Happen: …wait are Rhodes Scholars together or split up? It’s so tough to tell these days. I was rather excited for this feud, as it seemed like a great chance to push Sandow, but the news that it was relegated to the pre-show sort of stung. Let’s hope that young Cody makes his appearance felt as we can keep this duo together in some meaningful way. Let’s have Cody interfere and cost Sheamus the match. Sheamus tries to look for a partner to take on his rivals before settling on either a returning Mark Henry or Big Show to create a Main-Event tag team that can help fill the void that the splitting of Team Hell No will create.

What WILL Happen: Sheamus will win cleanly, probably Brogue Kicking Cody Rhodes for good measure.

Match #1
Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio
World Heavyweight Title Match

What SHOULD Happen: It’s kind of strange to have these guys jerk the curtain but it actually makes sense. Cena-Ryback is clearly going last and Jericho-Punk is a very big match in Chicago, so they’ll need to separate this match from the other two Main Events, and they haven’t been shy about using the WHC to jerk the curtain.

There’s no way Ziggler is losing here, he hasn’t made a big time title defense on account of his injury, and it’s nice that the company left the belt on him, when they had every excuse to strip him of the title last month. Ziggler should come out as champion on the account of Langstonterference.

What WILL Happen: Ziggler wins after Langston runs in, Langston and Del Rio resume their best of 367 match series.

Match #2
Wade Barrett vs. The Miz vs. Curtis Axel
Intercontinental Title Match

What SHOULD Happen: It really is too bad that Fandango was injured, as he seemed primed to win the gold here. But alas, the fates intervened and they have the chance to give this title to their other flavour of the month. As much as I love Wade Barrett, he just hasn’t seemed to click since returning from injury in the fall. He feels like he’s sort of…there. He feels like he could benefit from a long-term tag team with a fellow heel, maybe someone from development could be his protegé.

As for the match, it seems like the company should get behind Axel. They have been a little stop-start with him in only 3 short weeks. Have him with the title with a clean pin and have a strong reign which includes a title defense against Triple H at Summerslam.

What WILL Happen: Axel will win after Heyman interferes then Triple H will run in and chase him off, putting a very small amount of attention on the title change.

Match #3
Dean Ambrose vs. Kane
United States Title Match

What SHOULD Happen: These two had a fun match on free tv, and seem to have similar, sadistic, styles. Ambrose most certainly will, and should retain here. Hopefully it’s clean as a whistle over the monster.

After the match, Rollins and Reigns come out to beat-down Kane only for Orton and Bryan to run down for a save.

What WILL Happen: Probably just what was stated above. Ambrose is one of the best pushed men in the company right now and my personal choice to win one of the Money in the Bank matches nest month. He’ll win, it’s just a question of if it’ll be clean or involve some sort of interference. I’ll go with clean.

Match #4
Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins vs. Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton
Tag Team Title Match

What SHOULD Happen: I love it when matches/segments blend together a little bit. It’s just plain fun, and here we have a great chance to do that.

The Shield should retain after some kind of miscommunication and get a pinfall on Orton, which helps settles just who is (and isn’t) the weak link. This can lead to both Orton and Bryan getting shots at Cena next month to further that story line.

What WILL Happen: Please tell me we aren’t getting another whacky-partners-who-hate-each-other. We just had several months of that.

There were rumours of a Daniel Bryan heel turn…God I hope not. He’s been very good as a goofy face and should continue to work as one. But let’s go with that happening…similar to what it says above but with Bryan snapping at Orton in the end.

Match #5
Kaitlyn vs. AJ Lee
Diva’s Title Match

What SHOULD Happen: AJ is the most over woman on the roster not named Vickie. She should get a win here and maybe just maybe get some more attention to the belt.

What WILL Happen: Probably the same, get ready for a lot of matches between these two…

Impromptu Match/Segment #1

What SHOULD Happen: The Usos vs. Tons of Funk vs. Prime Time Players vs. 3MB: Four Way #1 Contenders Match. Apparently the company wants to push the tag team titles a bit more, so why not? They did a similar thing a year ago, and it helped with the slight renaissance we saw for the tag team titles last year. Apparently the plan is to also build up The Usos, so why not give them a win and a shot at the next PPV?

What WILL Happen: John Cena makes fun of Ryback.

Match #6
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho

What SHOULD Happen: Get comfy this is going to take a minute….

There’s no way that Punk is going to get booed in his hometown, so we may as well go with this as a face vs. face match. Give them 15-20 minutes to put on a clinic, much like they did last year. After awhile both men are lying on the mat, when out walks Heyman who distracts the referee and Curtis Axel runs in through the crowd and shockingly hits Punk with his title belt. Jericho recovers and get the pin, unaware of what was going on.

Punk limps out and confronts Heyman who replies “You never should have left me, I didn’t tell you that you could”. Punk brawls with Axel for a bit and dumps him from the ring and gets face to face with Heyman when out runs Brock Lesnar who hits levels Punk with an F-5.

What WILL Happen: Don’t count on the ‘E burning one of Lesnar’s dates on PPV without an announcement, but damn would it ever be amazing. If the above were to happen it probably would just involve Heyman and Axel.

But let’s go with Punk winning after Axel interferes, not really sure what’s going to happen long term with the Heyman family storyline.

Impromptu Match/Segment #2

What SHOULD Happen: The Wyatt family is coming…

What WILL Happen: They’re coming alright…

Match #7
John Cena vs. Ryback
Three Stages of Hell Match for the WWE Championship

What WILL Happen: Ryback pins Cena, clean as a whistle, thus giving him a case against Cena again sometime in the future. Cena flukily puts Ryback through a table, much like Sheamus did to him way back in 2009. Cena pulls out some sort of a death spot on Ryback and rolls him into the ambulance to win. The feud is over and Cena can move on to feud with Orton and Bryan after they both get named top contenders somehow and Ryback can start to feud with some other big name faces before winning one of the big belts sometime in the fall.

What WILL Happen: Actually it seems pretty likely, doesn’t it?

This means that Money in the Bank SHOULD Be

- Cena vs. Orton vs. Bryan
- Ziggler vs. Jericho
- Punk (with Triple H) vs. Axel (with Brock Lesnar)
- Rollins and Reigns vs. The Usos
- Dean Ambrose wins one Money in the Bank Match
- Ryback wins the other
- Other MiTB Participants include: Kane, Sheamus, Damien Sandow, Cody Rhodes, Sin Cara, Antonio Cesaro, Big E. Langston, Mark Henry, Christian, Wade Barrett, The Miz, Alberto Del Rio, and a few more people I haven’t thought of.
- Divas~~!!

Which can get us to a Summerslam that features: Cena vs. Bryan, Triple H vs. Axel (for real this time), Punk vs. Lesnar, and Rollins and Reigns vs. Undertaker and Kane

Jun 12

NHL Playoffs: Stanley Cup Final Predictions That Will No Doubt Be Proven Wrong

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Well now that round was over quickly! After a huge amount of hype for the Conference Finals, they came and went not with a bang but with a wimper. Everyone was expecting classic seven game wars, and what we got were two complete smackdowns, much to the chagrin of most of our panel. Let’s here from our two organic and one metallic prognosticators.

In third place is a man who correctly predicted the Blackhawks victory, which brings his total to nine points is Troy!

Troy Says: So….I guess Iginla chose the wrong team then eh? Ouch…..

Well….there’s really only one appropriate word to describe that third round…FAIL. Unless you’re a Boston or Chicago fan of course. It feels like we should be just settling in to two hard fought series but yet here we are about to start Game 1 of the Final. So what happened? How did we go from four incredibly deep teams down to two so quickly?

Quite frankly….I have no idea. In trying to explain the Chi-LA series we can look back at what I said about Detroit waking up the Blackhawks and realize that maybe I’m a genius. Regardless of whether you think I’m a genius or not (bonus points if you think I am!) the Hawks are rolling now. They are peaking at the right time. And they’re doing all of this without the usual contributions on the scoresheet from their captain.

As for trying to explain the Eastern Conference Final I’m at an even bigger loss in this case. What the hell happened to the Penguins? I don’t know if any team has ever made Crosby and Malkin look that bad. Two goals in 4 games for a team like the Penguins? Incredible. The Bruins definitely gave Iginla a big middle finger and I bet no one in the world was happier with how that series went down than GM Peter Chiarelli!

In second place is the man who went 0-2 in the third round after gloating about going 4-0 in the second round, proving once more that pride cometh before the fall. He is stuck at 12 points, he is the owner of this blog, he is Glen!

Glen Says: …weren’t we just here?

After the most overhyped, and most disappointing Conference Finals in recent memory, we find two of the oldest franchises in the NHL facing off in the Final for oddly the first time in the over 80 year history of these franchises.

The narrative for these series is simple, speed vs. power…wait a minute, didn’t we say that last time? Well it turns out we don’t have a clear decider in terms of these two attributes last round. We had the speedy Hawks beat the rough-and-ready Kings and the powerful Bruins beat the slow but skilled Penguins team that we all pretended was fast in order to fit the narrative.

So I guess that leaves us with the rubber match, the toughest team against the fastest, or at least that’s the easy way to put it. Either way, we have the two clear classes of the playoffs. They both faced adversity from an inferior opponent, they both rolled over better teams, and also won five game series that will be forgotten.

No matter who wins, this should be a phenomenal series, but I guess we said that last time, so what the hell do we know?

…and somehow, someway, the last contestent correctly predicted the Hawks in 5, earning two points and leap frogging Glen for the lead. We have 13 points for a Canadian $2 Coin!

#1 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS vs. #4 BOSTON BRUINS

Glen Says: Anyone want to bet that the Boston Bombings will get more play than the fact that the Bruins owner is the main reason that we lost half the season?

Oh right…we have actual hockey to discuss here!

Both teams have been absolutely amazing this spring. They have fast, punishing, two-way forwards, all-star defensemen, and goalies that have used these playoffs as a coming out party. It’s pretty unreal to think that one bounce against the Leafs or Wings would have cost either of these coaches their job, yet here they are competing for the prize and getting all the love in the world.

The Bruins spent the last four games making Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin look like absolute plugs, while two rounds ago the Red Wings did the same to Toews. It’s easy to think that Bergeron, Chara, Sidenberg, and of course Raask can do the same thing. The Bruins are playing like a team without a weakness, and even their lower tier guys like Torey Krug and not-Jarome-Iginla/Mark Barkowski are playing great and have been for the entire post-season. The big guys on the Blackhawks are having their ups and downs, and Brian Bickell is a John Druce/Fernando Pisani type, he’ll regress soon enough.

What I’m saying here, is I love the Bruins in this one. I know I shat on them a bit at the start of the last round, but I was wrong, a hundred times wrong. These guys embarrassed the class of the Conference if not the entire league last round and will go out and win their second Cup in three years, and proving all the Salary Cap haters wrong.

Bruins in 6

Troy Says: I’m not ashamed to say that I have no idea what to expect here. Before the third round started if you had told me it was going to be Boston vs Chicago in the Final I would have given a large edge to the Hawks. After the way Boston destroyed Pittsburgh though I’m not so sure anymore. As Glen mentions this series is another speed vs size matchup and you just never know what can happen. My gut is telling me Boston but despite my earlier claims of geniusness my gut is often wrong. Add to that the fact that Glen is picking Boston and I’m going to go with…

Blackhawks in 7.

Coin Says: Blackhawks in 5

I don’t know about all of you, but I’d consider putting money in the Hawks about now.

Jun 01

NHL Playoffs: Conference Final Predictions That Will No Doubt Be Proven Wrong

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Well now that round sure was intriguing! The Western Conference proved itself the more interesting half of the league with two tight compelling second round series, and well…thanks for coming out Eastern Conference. Let’s here from our two organic and one metallic prognosticators.

In third place is a man who correctly predicted both the Kings and Blackhawks victory, which brings his total to eight points is Troy!

Troy Says: Watching Pittsburgh obliterate Ottawa was tough but it just goes to show how deep this team really is. I thought Ottawa was going to be a tough and gritty opponent but not so much. Pittsburgh outclassed Ottawa and certainly deserved to win.

The other series in the East was a bit of a let down as well. I thought The Rangers would have put up more of a fight against the Bruins which come to think of it is probably why they’re looking for a coach now!

In the West it was a completely different story. Both series went to the limit and the Red Wings showed us once again that there’s something magical about this team when they get into the playoffs. In the other series the Sharks showed us that they weren’t going to be knocked down so easily. If only game 7 had been in the Shark tank they might have taken it!

Now onto the next round!

The interesting aspect of this year’s third round is that the cream has definitely risen to the top. It would be very easy to argue that the four remaining teams were the four best teams in the regular season which ironically enough is not something that happens very often. Now it gets interesting. We’re really going to get to see what each team is made of. The four remaining teams also happen to be the last four Stanley Cup winners so no one can question the determination and experience of any of the teams.

After jumping out to a commanding lead in the first round, things sputtered for our next player who, like Troy went 2-0 in the West, but 0-2 in the East, bringing his total to 11 is the Canadian $2 Coin!

In first place he went 4-0 last round and even called the Penguins 5 game series win, this edges him into first place with 12 points…it is the proprietor of this blog, Glen!

Glen Says: Well, well, well…looks like I was 4-0 last round! Way back in the first round, which started approximately 37 years ago I said that it would be the Penguins over the winner of the Blues-Kings series. Don’t click back to see who I said would win that Western 4-5 matchup, it’s not worth it. This past round has really strengthened my resolve.

Oh right the games that were actually played…the Eastern Conference was quite the dull mess as The Penguins completely outclassed the Senators and the Bruins won the battle of teams that got lucky first round match-ups by actually not sabotaging their coaches career.

But however they got here, they are here. On paper these two teams are clearly the best teams in the Eastern Conference, which may be like claiming to the soberest mayor in Canada.

The West on the other hand gave us two classic series between two geographic rivals. Sure the better teams won, but both losing teams really have something to hang their hats on. Both teams were seen as past their prime at the start of the season, and both the Sharks and Red Wings proved that they aren’t done quite yet. Remember, last year nobody took the Kings to an elimination game, and the Blackhawks did not lose three games in a row until this series.

The Kings-Hawks series is going to be melt your mind awesome, really that’s all there is to it.

What’s more exciting is that these four elite teams are all going to be in separate divisions next year, and with a new playoff format coming, it wouldn’t be shocking to see either of these matchups in the Conference Finals sometime very soon.

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

#1 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS vs. #5 LOS ANGELES KINGS
THE BESTS IN THE WESTS

Troy Says: After having been down 3-1 in their series against the Wings I think the Blackhawks may have finally woken up. In their first round they made it through simply because….well…simply because they were playing the Wild…but the Hawks were definitely not firing on all cylinders. Not until a determined and stubborn Detroit team woke them up. In the end it still took overtime to get it done but I think Chicago will be able to use that momentum to help them in this series. On the other side of the coin the key for the Kings is obviously Quick. He can turn this series around in a heartbeat and if he steps his game up Chicago is going to find it tough. In the end though I think the Blackhawks come through.

Hawks in 6.

Glen Says: While both teams took similar paths to get here, I can’t help but think that they are heading on different paths. The Hawks needed more than seven games to beat a seven seed while the Kings seem like they are turning into the juggernaut that we saw last year. The key to this series is going to be home ice, heading into this series these teams have a combined 13-1 home record in these playoffs. Sure that may lean things towards Chicago, but if any team can sneak a win out at the Madhouse it’s the Kings who went approximately a billion and one last year on the road in the playoffs. Last round I said LA would beat Chicago in 7, I feel more confident here…

Kings in 6.

Coin Says: Blackhawks in 5

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

#1 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS vs. #4 BOSTON BRUINS
THE BEASTS IN THE EAST

Troy Says: Well the subplots leading into this series are more worthy of a soap opera than a playoff series. The Bruins were scorned by Iginla at the trade deadline and now he gets to play against them for the right to play for the cup. I doubt at this point anyone would be able to question Iggy’s decision but I bet there are still a few fans in Bean Town that may beg to differ! And I’m sure most of them will be in the arena. Shed in a completely different light we have the return of the ageless Jagr who returns to where it all started. Jagr is a completely different player then he was during his Penquins’ heydays. He has morphed himself into the kind of leader that a team like Boston needs. He’s not the scorer he was but he’s been a very valuable addition to this team for sure.

If we look at the two teams I still see Pittsburgh as the deeper group. Their only real weakness was in net but Vokoun was more than adequate against the Senators so I think they may have solved that dilemma. With goaltending no longer a question the Penguins are a monster and I don’t think they’re going to be stopped in this series. They are too deep and too skilled.

Penguins in 6.

Glen Says: This series hasn’t even started and I’m already tired of hearing about Iginla choosing the Pens over Bruins, Jagr playing in Pittsburgh, and the whole Cooke-Savard thing. Sure these are all incredibly compelling sidebars but I just hope they don’t detract from the absolutely unreal hockey we are going to see.

Compared to their counterparts out West, its seems like both of these teams had a pretty easy ride. Oddly though, I think that the team that beat up on the two lowest seeds in the Conference had a tougher road that the one that had to go through a division rival and the best goalie in the world.

As I said in my preamble/gloat-fest the Bruins are almost here by default. They struggled with a vastly inferior Leafs team then got matched up against a Rangers team that just plain quit. It’s funny to think that if Patrice Bergeron didn’t turn into a beast in Game 7 against the Leafs, that Claude Julien almost certainly would have been fired, but yet here he is only four wins away from playing for the Cup again.

But the Bruins really haven’t played like an elite team, since outside of 10 minutes against Toronto, they really didn’t have to. The Penguins didn’t have to be elite against Ottawa, but they did anyway. The Pens seem to be firing on all cylinders and I think that they have the horses to outlast and outclass the Bruins. I haven’t been all that impressed with the B’s, so let’s go out on a limb here.

Penguins in 5.

Coin Says: Penguins in 5

QUICK HITS

Troy Says:  Penguins over Hawks in 7

Glen Says: Penguins over Kings in 6

Coin Says: Penguins over Hawks in 6

May 19

WWE Extreme Rules: What SHOULD Happen vs. What WILL Happen

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Brought to you by Instagram apparently…

Welcome back to our monthly look at the big WWE Events. This month we get the former Backlash as Extreme Rules rolls around. In the past, this card tended to feature a series of Wrestlemania rematches. This year we get three, although there were only supposed to be two, so we can give them a bit of a pass on that.

This card has been built around the Steel Cage match between Brock Lesnar and Triple H, as well as the WWE Title Match between John Cena and Ryback. If we can think back a scant 8 months ago, Ryback looked like he was all set to be a huge face for the company and they even hot-shotted him into a title match with CM Punk. Yet somehow or another, he has yet to win a PPV Match against any regular WWE talent, even his match against Mark Henry, which seemed like it was custom made for him to win. His heel turn has yet to really and truly take off, so it seems unlikely that they’ll give him the win, but that didn’t stop them from giving the title to JBL almost ten years ago, and that one turned out just fine…

Enough with the preamble, let’s get to it. As always, matches are in the order that they should occur.

YouTube Pre-Show Match
The Miz vs. Cody Rhodes

What SHOUD Happen: This match was clearly just thrown together with little to no reason. Wasn’t The Miz feuding with Wade Barrett? Anyway, there is some potential here, but it is a bit of a stretch to bare with me. The Miz is rolling along just fine ready to win and Damien Sandow runs in to give Cody the win. The Rhodes Scholars continue to torment The Miz in the coming weeks. Miz searches for a partner to take these guys out, trying people like Zack Ryder or Justin Gabriel to no avail. Finally in a month or so, he find the perfect partner to take them on: John Morrison!

What WILL Happen: The Miz returns from an injury that nobody knew he had and Cody seems to be treading water, expect The Miz to win this one.

Match #1
Randy Orton vs. The Big Show
Extreme Rules Match

What SHOULD Happen: Man is Randy Orton ever boring! This feud does nothing to me, but they are both big names and fighting in a match that shares its namesake with the event, so it’s most likely to jerk the curtain here. There have been rumours of an Orton heel turn for months so let’s have that plan start here. Big Show gets extra ruthless and wins after choke-slamming Orton off the stage, or something else equally sadistic. After taking a few weeks off Orton returns with more of a killer instinct and starts to return to his heelish ways before finally snapping on someone, like say Sheamus to kick off a later feud.

What WILL Happen: Randy Orton is the master of filler PPV Matches, just ask Alberto Del Rio. Orton will win this one and fairly cleanly too.

Match #2
Kofi Kingston vs. Dean Ambrose
United States Title Match

What SHOULD Happen: This is one of the most predictable matches on the card. Ambrose wins this one, and hopefully cleanly. After the match, let’s have Reigns and Rollins come out to try and give Kofi a beatdown only for team Hell No to come ut and chase them back through the crowd.

What WILL Happen: Ambrose will probably win after some kind of cheating.

Impromptu Match/Segment #1

What SHOULD Happen: As The Shield celebrate their first title win, Teddy Long comes up to them and says that if Ambrose gets involved in the tag title match alter that he will be stripped of his newly won US Title. The three members of The Shield remain remarkably calm with that…

What WILL Happen: John Cena makes poop jokes about Ryback.

Match #3
Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger
I Quit Match

What SHOULD Happen: Really, is there anything other than an Alberto win that can happen here? Swagger really needs to serve his 30 day suspension, and this is the perfect time to do it. Have him locked in that cross-arm breaker until he quits and his “injured” for a while. Right after Alberto wins, we can even have Ziggler and Langston come and deliver a beatdown to both Alberto and Rodriguez, leaving people to wonder if Ziggler was faking it or not.

What WILL Happen: Del Rio will win, he has to right?

Match #4 
Sheamus vs. Mark Henry
Strap Match

What SHOULD Happen: This match sort of depends on what the long term direction is for both main belts. It looked for a while like we were going to get a Cena-Henry feud, and we still may. However, Sheamus is a logical challenger for Ziggler. However, Ziggler seems to have plans for the immediate future, so let’s go with Henry getting the win to get him into a feud for the WWE Title soon enough.

What WILL Happen: This is similar to Orton-Show, and when in doubt with this company, go for the face or the bigger name. So expect Sheamus to get the W here, especially since Henry stood tall on Monday. Expect Sheamus to reenter the World Heavyweight Title scene soon.

Match #5
Chris Jericho vs. Fandango

What SHOULD Happen: First off, this match should be given a gimmick, but that doesn’t seem to have happened. Fandango should look strong here and get a cleanish win. Hopefully he can recapture some of the excitement that surrounded him only a month ago.

What WILL Happen: Fandango will probably win, but I imagine he will look weak in the process, much like he did at Wrestlemania.

Match #6
Team Hell No vs. Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns
Tornado Tag Team Match for the WWE Tag Team Title

What SHOULD Happen:...and so it ends. Easily the most entertaining tag team title run since Edge & Christian is out of time. The Shield are certainly very worthy to tag the belts here. This match should be fantastic and will be a strong contender for match of the night. Remember a while back I said that Dean Ambrose should be banned from ringside? Well let’s have a run in by a mysterious newcomer to help The Shield win the title. Later it can be revealed to be Connor O’Brian from NXT, who would be a great addition to this stable.

What WILL Happen: The Shield will win and should come out looking very strong. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Kane and Bryan have some miscommunication to lead to their loss here, possibly with some Ambrose interference.

Impromptu Match/Segment #2

 What SHOULD Happen: Antonio Cesaro comes out to complain about not having a match only to get interrupted by Wade Barrett who says that he should complain, since he is Intercontinental Champion after all. The two heels banter for a moment only to be interrupted by a returning Christian! He tells them both to stop boring people and is able to clear the ring. Next month we can have a triple threat match for the IC Title.

What WILL Happen: Surely a Diva’s match of some sort, right?

Match #7
John Cena vs. Ryback
Last Man Standing Match for the WWE Title

What SHOULD Happen: Yet again, the company has booked themselves into a corner here with Ryback. Coming fresh off a hell turn, he really needs a win, but he’s clearly not ready for the WWE Title, especially since Cena just won it. The stipulation gives a perfect out, a double KO. Ryback looks strong, Cena keeps the title, ta-da everyone wins…or at least fails to lose. Next month we can get a four way match with Ryback, Sheamus, and Mark Henry all challenging for the title which could allow Henry and Cena to pair off after.

What WILL Happen: This match is going last for sure and it will end with Cena overcoming his ankle injury and getting the win for sure.

Match #8
Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar
Steel Cage Match

What SHOULD Happen: Here we are, the rematch that nobody asked for…again! The first match at Summerslam was decent, the rematch at Wrestlemania was absolutely boring, so hopefully this one will be somewhere in the middle, at the very least. I don’t understand how Brock Lesnar has been worth it for the company at all, especially since he has gone 1-2 against already established stars. Lesnar needs this win in a bad way, as he clearly can get more mileage than Triple H.

After Lesnar wins he and Heyman should yell out “BEST IN THE WORLD” as the show ends…

What WILL Happen: Lesnar will win on the account of interference, possibly from a returning CM Punk.

 

For those keeping track the card for WWE Payback in Chicago next month SHOULD include:

  • WWE Title Match: Cena vs. Henry vs. Sheamus vs. Ryback
  • World Title Match: Ziggler vs. Del Rio
  • IC Title Match: Barrett vs. Christian vs. Cesaro
  • The Shield (including Connor O’Brian) vs. Kofi Kingston, Team Hell No and Randy Orton
  • Diva’s Title Match: Kaitlyn vs. AJ Lee
  • Jericho vs. Fandango in a gimmick match
  • CM Punk calls out Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar (setting up Lesnar-Punk at Summerslam)

 

May 14

NHL Playoffs: Second Round Predictions That Will No Doubt Be Proven Wrong

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No rest for the wicked, eh? A scant 24 hours after two very intriguing Game 7 implosions, we’re back at it with two first round series starting up tonight! Back to offer their thoughts are Glen, Troy and a Coin who all did surprisingly well last round!

In third place is a man who correctly predicted the Penguins, Senators, Bruins, Blackhawks, and Kings advancing, and earns an extra point for correctly calling the Hawks winning in 5, for a total of 6 points is Troy!

Troy Says: That first round was crazy! It was heartbreaking to see my Canadiens lose to an incredibly scrappy and determined Ottawa team….especially since their first goal in game 4 was EXTREMELY obviously kicked in and it completely boggles my mind as to how in the world that was actually allowed to count…..but I digress. It was a mix of fun and sad to watch the Canucks implode once again. Watching the magic that follows the Red Wings continues to amaze. They had an incredible stretch just to make the playoffs and then they defeated a loaded Anaheim team.

Back in the East watching Marc-Andre Fleury pretend to play for the Penguins while obviously being paid off by the Islanders was interesting to say the least. If the Islanders had gotten absolutely any goaltending from Nabokov they could easily be in the second round right now.

In the Boston/Toronto series my heart truly breaks for the Leafs. That was an epic and unmatched collapse. It’s all part of the learning process though. Next year will be different for the Leafs. Same with Montreal and the Islanders. They are young teams trying to get their feet wet and as they say you have to learn to lose before you can learn to win.

In second place is a man who perfectly predicted all four series in the East and called both the Blackhawks and Red Wings advancing. In addition he called the Rangers 7 game win, giving him 7 total points is Glen!

Glen Says: What an unbelievable First Round we saw! For the first time in recent memory, the Eastern Conference was more compelling and entertaining than the West.

We had the Penguins look very beatable, only to resolve things with a goalie switch. Then the Senators and Canadiens had an all-out blood war that featured some of the best quotes of the post-season. The Capitals and Leafs both gave their teams reasons to hope only to completely fall apart in different yet spectacular ways in Game 7.

The second round as a whole looks incredibly promising as we get two Original Six showdowns, a geographic battle, and of course Matt Cooke in Ottawa. Even if  most of the series end quickly like they did last year, this still should be a ton of fun.

Last year in the West, everyone was amazed that perennial contenders in Chicago, Detroit, Vancouver, and San Jose all fell in the first round and everyone called it a changing of the guard. Well guess what? A year later and three of those four teams are back in the second round and they are joined by the Stanley Cup Champion  – who coincidentally join the ’08 Red Wings and ’09 Penguins as the only champs since 2002 to win a series the next year – needless to say, what’s old is new again out West, and it’s pretty damn exciting!

And somehow or another the Coin was able to predict the Pens, Sens, Rangers, Bruins, Blackhawks, and Sharks to advance and even more astonishing – it called the Sens and Hawks in 5 and the Rangers in 7. Yeah they coin has 9 total points…kill us all.

WESTERN CONFERENCE
 
#1 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS vs #7 DETROIT RED WINGS

One more time for the last time

Troy: If you aren’t following @Eklund on Twitter…you should be. He made a point about the Red Wings that is absolutely bang on. They are by far the best coached team in the playoffs. Combine that with the fact that Chicago was not on their game in the first round and this could be a very entertaining series. I think the Wings will be a good test for the Blackhawks and I think it will be the push they need to start firing on all cylinders again. The unknown here is Howard. These teams are close enough that Howard could absolutely steal a game or two so Chicago will be able to take absolutely no short cuts. Even though Chicago wasn’t completely in their game in the first round they still took out Minny in 5 games and their captain, Jonathan Toews did not play anywhere near his capabilities. Toews won’t let that happen two series in a row.

Blackhawks in 6

Glen Says: If anyone is going to beat the Hawks this year, it won’t be the Red Wings. The Wings were lucky enough to matchup against the weakest non-Southeast Division leader in recent memory. As Troy said, the Wings are very well coached, but Babcock simply doesn’t have the horses for this race. The Hawks are just too deep and the Red Wings don’t have Lidstrom anymore. There is a reason that Ryan Sutter played a million minutes in the last round, they wanted him out there against both Kane and Toews. The Red Wings just don’t have a minute muncher anymore to do that. Thankfully there is the Original Six Factor here, because this series will be a ugly.

Blackhawks in 5.

Coin Says: Blackhawks in 5

Expect to Hear: ”How do you feel like playing a few more games?” – Ken Holland talking to his cell phone as he makes a mysterious call to Sweden.
#5 LOS ANGELES KINGS vs #6 SAN JOSE SHARKS

Gamers vs. Chokers

Troy Says: This is a series that pits two teams each having won four straight games. The Kings had a very tough start to their series but then rattled off four wins in a row against a damn good St. Louis team. San Jose however swept a disorganized and pitiful Vancouver team that completely lost themselves. That being said I think this is LA’s series to lose.

Kings in 5

Glen Says: I want to like the Sharks, really I do. I started blogging about sport in 2007, and sending e-mails to Troy for many years before that, and I picked Teal and Black to win or at least make the finals nearly every time. However, after too many disappointments, I just can’t do it. Last round I said that the winner of LA-St. Louis would make the finals, so I better stick with it. Logan Couture, Joe Pavelski, and Anti Niemi will do their best to make a series of it, but the Kings have the experience. Oddly, this is the first time the Kings have had home ice in a playoff series since the first round of the 1992 playoffs. They were undefeated at home against the Blues…

Kings in 6

Coin Says: Kings in 6

Expect to Hear: “We’re part of the Battle of California too” – All 12 Ducks Fans

EASTERN CONFERENCE
#1 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS vs. #7 OTTAWA SENATORS

CSI Ottawa: Staring Eugene Caruso 

Troy Says: This is easily the series I am most looking forward to in the second round. I think Ottawa is going to be a really tough opponent for the Pens. Pittsburgh’s goaltending in the first round was horrible. They had to use Vokoun because Fleury couldn’t stop a beach ball. Now look at the other end of the rink and you’ll see Anderson. He played incredibly well against Montreal and was a huge reason why they took out my Habs in 5. Pittsburgh beat the Islanders in 6. But they did it in spite of their goaltending. Ottawa will not be that easy to overcome. Daniel Alfredsson has given his team everything and he’s proven that he still has a lot left in the tank. As Karl Eriksson gets his game back this team is only going to get better. This Ottawa team seems to have a cinderella feel to them and I think the Pens are vulnerable.

 

Senators in 6

 

Glen Says: Let’s see, one team rolled over their opponents in 5 games which included two 6-1 curb-stompings. The other had a goaltending controversy despite winning two shutouts, and survived two other overtime scares to win an incredibly close series in 6 games.

If I wrote that as a “future preview” two weeks ago you’d be expect the first sentence to be about the Pens route and the second one to be about the Sens route. Yet somehow or another, things changed and the Senators come in looking like world beaters and the Penguins come in a little shaky.

Honestly, I think that the Islanders poked the dragon here. The Penguins looked very focused in Games 6 and 7 after being tied 2-2 and going with the goalie switch. Expect Tomas Vokun to start this series but be given a short leash. The team just seems to play better in front of him. Now Evgeni Nabokov was pretty bad in the first round, I mean, not Marc-Andre Fleury bad, but pretty terrible. Expect the Penguins to have a much harder time scoring on Craig Anderson. However, Malkin, Iginla and Crosby are 2,4,5 in playoff scoring and people haven’t noticed them, so expect all three to step it up as things keep going.

This series will be fun and the games should be very close, but the Sens just can’t hang with this team that seems to be starting to click on all cylinders.

Penguins in 5 very close games

Coin Says: Senators in 5

Expect to Hear: ”It wasn’t Matt Cooke! It was Colonel Mustard in the Observatory with the Skate Blade” – Eugen Melnyk after finding the results of his forensic investigation

#4 BOSTON BRUINS vs #6 NEW YORK RANGERS

HRR Bonanza!!

Troy Says: Another Original Six matchup! I love it! This one should be very tight. Callahan has been everything for the Rangers and with Lundqvist between the pipes they are going to be extremely tough. Boston is coming off one of the biggest Game 7 comebacks in playoff history (first team to comeback from 3 goals down in the 3rd period of a game 7) so they are certainly going to be emotionally charged. The Rangers are obviously a much different team than the Leafs and they boast much more playoff experience so they will not be a pushover. i honestly don’t have a feel for which team has the advantage in this series. In a series like this is tends to come down to goaltending and New York has the advantage there.

Rangers in 6.

Glen Says: Which team should be more excited about their Game 7 win?

The Rangers looked bad in the first two games of the series but once they got going, they never looked back. Henrik Lundqvist, the best goalie in the world is coming into this series on back-to-back shutouts and they got the win despite Rick Nash and Brad Richards not showing up much on the score sheet. If those two guys can start to play to their level, and if Chris Kreider can recapture some of the playoff magic he had last year, these guys could really make some noise.
The Bruins on the other hand are a curious story. In Games 1,3, and the last few minutes of Game 7 they looked like world beaters, but the rest of the series they looked pretty average. People are, quite rightly, praising the Leafs for hanging with the Bruins, but shouldn’t they also be asking the Bruins why they played down to the Leafs level for so long? How can a team this good be down 4-1 against a team like the Leafs? The Bruins need to figure this out or they will be in trouble. Lucky for them their Marchand-Bergeron-Seguin like finally clicked in the dying minutes of Game 7, hopefully they can keep delivering when their backs aren’t against the wall.
I took the Bruins to make the Conference final at the start of the playoffs, so I better stick with it but I think that this series will be a lot closer than I initially predicted.
Bruins in 7

Coin Says: Rangers in 4

QUICK HITS
Troy Says: 
Blackhawks over Kings in 7
Senators over Rangers in 5

Blackhawks over Senators in 6 (If it goes 7, Anderson gets the Conn Smythe no question)

Glen Says:
Kings over Blackhawks in 7
Penguins over Bruins in 6

Penguins over Kings in 6

 

Coin Says:

Kings over Blackhawks in 5
Rangers over Senators in 7

Rangers over Kings in 5

Judging by the way things went in the first round we better put our money on the Rangers here…

May 01

NHL Playoffs: Eastern Conference First Round Predictions That Will No Doubt Be Proven Wrong

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Welcome back to the second set of first round predictions. Here we will look at the Eastern Conference. Will the Penguins dominate as expected or will the big bad Bruins have something to say about it? Both the Rangers and Capitals have been peaking of late, so one of those hot streaks will come to an end. Let’s not forget that the three Eastern Canadian teams are in the playoffs, and we are getting our first all Canadian series since 2004, so that’s pretty exciting!

#1 PITTSBURGH PENGUINS vs. #8 NEW YORK ISLANDERS

The Sidney Crosby Injury Watch

 

Glen Says: While everyone expects this series to be short, and they are probably right. These games may be closer than some people expect. While the Penguins won the season series 4-1 but three of those wins came in Pittsburgh’s undefeated month of March and they haven’t played since the Islanders really took off in the last month of the season. Expect Tavares to really arrive on the big stage with this series and Evgeni Nabokov to remind people that he was a pretty damn good goalie back in San Jose. Don’t get me wrong, the Isles aren’t taking this to seven or anything, but I expect this to be like the old Dallas-Edmonton series that Dallas would continually win in four or five, but every game would be tight and fun to watch.

 

Penguins in 5

 

Troy Says: Well this is basically the Eastern Conference’s version of CHI-MIN. No question Chicago was the best team in the league in the regular season but Pittsburgh was not far behind. Especially when looking at the second half of the season. Don’t forget that Pittsburgh has been without Crosby and Malkin for a while now but they haven’t skipped a beat. It’s been impressive. This is an incredibly deep team and the Islanders simply can’t match. The weakest link in Pittsburgh may be their goaltending. Fleury can sometimes be an enigma. He has the ability to lead a team to Stanley Cup but he can also stink out the joint. Still though, I’m pretty sure I could play goal for the Pens in this series and still win.

Penguins in 4.
Coin Says:  Penguins in 5

 

Expect to Hear: ”The last time the Islanders won a playoff series was against the Penguins in ’93 when Sidney Crosby was 5, Jonathan Tavares was 2. What a coincidence we were all 20 years younger then!”

#2 MONTREAL CANADIENS vs. #7 OTTAWA SENATORS

The Anti-Rivalry-Rivalry

 

Glen Says: Somehow, someway these two teams have shared a division for over 20 years and have never once played one another in the playoffs. These two teams are the closest geographically of any two Canadian teams yet have absolutely no rivalry to speak. Their fan bases have even bonded over their mutual loathing of the Leafs. Hopefully this series will find a way to kick start a blood feud here. The Sens must be tickled that they not only spoiled a Toronto-Montreal love fest, but they also got their ideal matchup in the first round. The Sens would have been in a lot of trouble against the Bruins or Penguins, but they matchup well against the Habs. Think about it: Subban vs. Karlsson, Anderson vs. Price, The Calder Line vs. Galenchuk and Gallagher, these teams are a lot more even than the standings would indicate. Both teams are even limping their way into the playoffs.

These same Sens took last years Rangers to seven games, and last years Rangers are a much better team than this years Habs.

Senators in 7

Troy Says: This one tears my heart out. The Habs are my favourite team but Ottawa is probably number two. I love seeing an all Canadian series but I hate seeing it in the first round. Seems like such a waste. I’m really looking forward to this series though. It should be incredibly tight. This year I had the chance to go to my very first Habs game and it was against Ottawa (sans Karlsson). Montreal won 4-3 in a shootout and it was a fantastic game. It was probably the most fun I’ve ever had with my pants on. Much like in the West this is a 2 vs 7 series that really doesn’t feel like one. All year long Ottawa’s depth and character has been tested and they’ve come through with flying colours whereas for whatever reason all the success Montreal has had feels odd. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. So far it hasn’t but I can’t shake this feeling that they’re not the team I want them to be. I think Ottawa may expose that.

Ottawa in 6. (Can you believe that??)
Coin Says: Senators in 5

Expect to Hear: ”This is the first playoff meeting of these two teams since 1927. We used to agree that these Senators weren’t the same as the old ones, but since we called that team in Winnipeg the Jets we’re kind of forced to now…”

#3 WASHINGTON CAPITALS vs. #6 NEW YORK RANGERS

Fourth Time in Five Years: Get Ready for Divisional Playoffs Next Year!!!

Glen Says: This series, again? Have two teams met so frequently yet hated one another so little? Last years second round series was the most boring shot-blockingest series I can remember. Thankfully though, Dale Hunter is out and Adam Oates is in, oh and that Russian guy is playing about a thousand times better now than he was a year ago. I think that this will be the closest series taking place and we will see some legitimately amazing games from some truly elite players. The two guys under the most scrutiny will be Rick Nash, to see if he can be on the winning end of a playoff game in his career, and Braden Holtby, to see if he can duplicate his success from last year. I know which of those two I have faith in.

Rangers in 7

Troy Says: The two playoff chockiest teams get to play each other again. This one should be different though. First of all Ovechkin finally got over his love of Ice Dance and decided to start playing hockey again and wow has he been good. I’m not 100% sure on my stats but I think he had 234 goals in the last 15 games of the season. On the other side of the coin New York is an incredibly deep team lead by a Captain who is incredibly tenacious and completely capable of putting this team on his back and willing them to a win. In the last couple seasons Callahan has really begun to impress me. In the end I think Ovechkin is going to drag his team through this round. He’s a sleeping giant who has finally awoken.

Washington in 7
Coin Says: Rangers in 7

Expect to Hear: ”Can you believe that he only scored 6 goals in 7 games? Ovechkin is such a choker. Look at that Brad Richards, he got 4 points in 7 games, he’s so clutch.”

#4 BOSTON BRUINS vs. #5 TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS

Nothing of Interest Here, Nope, Not a Series of Lopsided Trades That Helped Define Both Franchises

Glen Says: This will be an unmitigated slaughter, plain and simple. The Bruins have stumbled a bit to close the season, but let’s not forget: this is essentially the same team that won the Cup two years ago. Sure you can replace Thomas with Raask, Recchi with Jagr, and Kaberle with Redden, but I’ll be damned if those aren’t lateral moves at worst, and more than likely full scale improvements. These guys can and will flip the switch and the Leafs will be in their way.

Even as an abject Leaf hater, it’s hard not to be a little caught up in their stories. Nazem Kadri finally arrives, Reimer plays so well that Luongo is stuck in Vancouver, but this will be a tough one.

Bruins in 4

Troy Says: I would love nothing more than to see Toronto knock off Boston in this series but unfortunately for Leafs fans I just don’t see it happening. Boston is deeper, tougher and bigger. Toronto’s best offensive threat is Kessel and for whatever reason he disappears against his former team. In 22 games against Boston he’s scored 3 goals. None of which were even strength. The plus here for Toronto could be Reimer. He has played very well against Boston of late and if he can outplay Rask he will give his team a chance. In the end I think the Bruins will be too much.

Boston in 6
Coin Says: Boston in 5

Expect to Hear: ”Kessel for Seguin and Hamilton isn’t the only time the Leafs made a bad trade with the Bruins. On November 9, 1954 the Leafs acquired Joe Klukay for Leo Bovin and well we all know how that worked out…”

Quick Hits:

Glen Says:

#1 Pittsburgh Penguins over #7 Ottawa Senators in 6

#4 Boston Bruins over #6 New York Rangers in 6

 

#1 Pittsburgh Penguins over #4 Boston Bruins in 5

 

Troy Says: 

#1 Pittsburgh Penguins over #7 Ottawa Senators in 5

#4 Boston Bruins over #3 Washington Capitals in 7

 

#1 Pittsburgh Penguins over #4 Boston Bruins in 7

 

Coin Says:

#7 Ottawa Senators over #1 Pittsburgh Penguins in 5

#6 New York Rangers over #5 Boston Bruins in 6

 

#6 New York Rangers over #7 Ottawa Senators in 4

So that means that the Stanley Cup Final will be…

Glen Says: Pittsburgh Penguins over St. Louis Blues in 5

Troy Says: Pittsburgh Penguins over Chicago Blackhawks in 7

Coin Says: New York Rangers over Chicago Blackhawks in 7

…go home coin, you’re drunk!!!
Apr 30

NHL Playoffs: Western Conference First Round Predictions That Will No Doubt Be Proven Wrong

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Well it’s the most wonderful time of the year once more!!! That’s right the NHL playoffs are starting up once more! It’s hard not to get in the spirit of excitement  especially after thinking that we may not see playoff hockey until 2014. So of course it means one things: baseless predictions! Myself, my hetero-life-mate Troy, and a 2002 Two Dollar Canadian coin I found in a pile will be making predictions for the playoffs. In addition to providing fool-proof (and most certainly wrong) predictions for each series we’ll also provide a simple tag-line to help you remember this series among all the others and a primer for the refrain that you’ll be hearing about this series going forward.

In this post we’re going to look at the left half of the continent as we preview the Western Conference. This year everyone seems to be counting on the Chicago Blackhawks who dominated the regular season, but there are still last years surprise champion Kings waiting in the wings, and let’s not forget rising teams in the Ducks, Wild, and Blues. Of course the Sharks, Cancuks, and Red Wings aren’t dead yet, and could still put up a hell of a fight. The Western Conference has traditionally been very unpredictable, so expect the unexpected…which I guess means that the expected will be unexpected, which you should have been expecting all along!

…alright I gave myself a headache there, let’s get to it.

 

#1 CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS vs. #8 MINNESOTA WILD

The Midwest Massacre

 

Glen Says: This will be an absolute curb-stomping. The Blackhawks have been the best team in the league from the opening puck drop. They went half the season without losing in regulation and have been in control of the President’s Trophy since then. The Wild struggled a bit at the start of the season, peaked in the middle, then struggled to close down the stretch, which made them finish in the dreaded 8th seed. Even if the top talent on the Wild play to their potential, they just can’t match the depth of the Hawks. This series should be quick and painful for the state of Minnesota. However, once the Wild’s young talent like Brodin and Granlund actualize in the next few years this could be one of the league’s next great rivalries. But next doesn’t mean today.

Blackhawks in 4

Troy Says: Let’s see….a team that went a billion games in a row without losing a game in regulation versus a team that barely beat the crappiest team in the league on the last day of the season to barely sneak into the playoffs. I don’t think there’s much to talk about with this one folks. This series should basically just be a warm up for the Hawks. Serves Minny right too because they eliminated Columbus who has a goalie with easily the coolest last name ever….Bobrovsky.

For poops and giggles I’ll say the Wild win one game.

Hawks in 5.

Coin Says: Hawks in 5

Expect to Hear: ”Just a reminder, despite not playing in several weeks the Blackhawks are still in the playoffs…”

#2 ANAHEIM DUCKS vs. #7 DETROIT RED WINGS

The Reason for Realignment

Glen Says: The Red Wings must be so thrilled that they not only avoided Chicago in the first round, but also avoided Vancouver, LA, and really any other elite team in the West. The Ducks had a very good regular season but are clearly punching above their weight class with the second seed. Even though they clearly miss the greatest defenseman of the generation they still have some weapons to through out. Expect to see Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry wearing red sweaters that vaguely resemble Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg. This will be the Wings last playoff run in the Western Conference and I don’t expect it to end all that quickly. Plus we really need one more Detroit-Chicago series for old times sake

Red Wings in 6

Troy Says: How weird was it coming down the stretch and actually thinking that there was a chance Detroit might not make the playoffs? It’s just a given that they’ll be in. In the end it took a gritty effort from the Wings to pull it together and even still it was Zetterberg who put this team in his back and got the job done. There is no shortage of pure talent on this team but the same can be said of Anaheim. Perry, Getzlaf, Ryan. These guys are good. I’m really not sure which way to go with this series. Even though it’s a 2 vs 7 series it really doesn’t feel like it. Especially after Detroit picked up their socks at the end of the season and really started to play well. My gut though is telling me Anaheim is coming out of this series.

Ducks in 7.
Coin Says: Ducks in 7

Expect to Hear: “Ten years ago the 7th seed Ducks swept the 2nd seed Red Wings and somehow that’s still relevant”

#3 VANCOUVER CANUCKS vs. #6 SAN JOSE SHARKS

Slackers of the World Unite!

 

Glen Says: This series has all kinds of intrigue as we see the two teams that have been unfairly cast as underachievers for the better part of the past decade. Of course back-to-back Conference final appearances by the Leafs in the 90s was considered a dynasty and fifteen playoff wins for the Oilers and Flames was considered spectacular, but I digress. These two teams both have the world to prove and both coaches are most certainly playing for their jobs here. As with all things Canucks, goaltending is the most interesting facet and should be fascinating to watch playout in this series. Of course Schneider is hurt and Luongo was hung out to dry in the last game of the season. Expect it to be a massive distraction, still though the Canucks have really found their game of late and appear to be healthy and rolling and should win a very close series.

Canucks in 7

Troy Says: This is another tough series to call. Vancouver is not the same team that made it to the cup final in 2012 but San Jose traded two of their toughest players this year at the deadline in Clowe and Murray. They’re going to miss those guys when the puck drops in the playoffs. Although a lot is still expected of the Canucks the expectations are nowhere near as high as in the years leading up to their run in 2011 and I actually think that could benefit them here. It may allow them to play more of their game. If they get the kind of goaltending they need from either Schneider or Luongo then they’ll be a serious threat.

Canucks in 6.
Coin Says: Sharks in 5

Expect to Hear: ”We lost 2-1, it’s clearly Luongo’s fault!”

#4 ST. LOUIS BLUES vs. #5 LOS ANGELES KINGS

Seriously, They Played Last Year…We Promise

 

Glen Says: I put this as one of the five most intriguing potential series the other day and I stand by it. These teams match up very well against one another. They both have incredible defensemen, a lot of depth up front, options in net, and great coaches that love a defense-first game. In short, these two teams are both made for the playoffs. In my opinion the winner of this will make it out of the Western Conference much to the shock of the Chicago Blackhawks. Since 2003, the Stanley Cup Champions have had a series record of 4-7 with three of those series wins coming from the 2009 Detroit Red Wings, so let’s go with that easy narrative here.

Blues in 7

Troy Says: Hard to count out the defending champs. They’ve already proven they can handle the pressure and that they have what it takes. St. Louis is a team that has been on the rise for a number of years and they’re finally starting to see the fruits of their labour in a strong way. Add into the mix the skills of Jay Bouwmeester who will finally never have to answer questions about never having been in the playoffs and the Blues are a team on the verge of making some noise. As much of a cliché as it is, this series is probably going to come down to goaltending. Last year the Kings shelled Elliot in their series against the Blues but on the other hand there has been a significant drop off in Jonathan Quick’s play as compared to last year so it’s a tough call.  Interesting to note that these teams have met three times in the playoffs and each time it’s been a sweep. I’m going to go with my gut again and take LA.

Kings in 7

Coin Says: Blues in 4

Expect to Hear: ”Who will be the this years version of last years Kings? This years Blues or this years Kings?”

QUICK HITS

As a bonus for fun, we’ll try and suss out the next few rounds, mostly so people can say how wrong we were…
Just a reminder that in the NHL second round teams are reseeded, the highest remaining team plays the lowest remaining team.
Glen Says:

#1 Chicago Blackhawks over Detroit Red Wings in 5

#4 St. Louis Blues over #3 Vancouver Canucks in 6

#4 St. Louis Blues over #1 Chicago Blackhawks in 6

 

Troy Says:

#1 Chicago Blackhawks over #5 Los Angeles Kings in 6

#2 Anaheim Ducks  over #3 Vancouver Canucks in 7

 

#1 Chicago Blackhawks over #2 Anaheim Ducks in 5

 

Coin Says:

#1 Chicago Blackhawks over #6 San Jose Sharks in 6

#4 St. Louis Blues over #2 Anaheim Ducks in 6

 

#1 Chicago Blackhawks over #4 St. Louis Blues in 7 (with a 3-0 comeback no less!)

 

…Troy clearly copied the coin on this one!

Come back tomorrow to see the East. Will anyone stop the Penguins? Are the Capitals finally clicking? What about the All-Canadian matchup that no one asked for. Come back to find out!
Apr 22

NHL Outdoor Games: 7 More Things to Look Forward to Even After The Shark Jumps

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Last week news leaked out the NHL is going to expand their outdoor games from the usual 1-2 a year to approximately 9000 for the year 2013-14. For the record, 6 and 9000 are approximately equal according to the people opposed to this plan.

The initial reaction seems to be against this plan, with most people concerned about diluting the gimmick too much. People seem to forget that this gimmick is already pretty watered down, and quite literally if anyone remembers the 2011 game in Pittsburgh.

Other than the watered down argument this idea has few flaws in it. The other five outdoor games are distanced quite a bit from the New Year’s Day Winter Classic, so the big game will remain unaffected. If anything, fans from around the NHL should be happy with this. The Winter Classic is destined to remain a match between two big name teams so expect a lot of showdowns between the Rangers, Flyers, Penguins, Bruins, Red Wings, and Blackhawks. These teams move the dial and are guaranteed to not only get a big TV rating but have huge attendance and merchandise sales across the continent. It’s the same reason that the Dallas Cowboys always play on Thanksgiving, people all over the country watch them, it’s that simple.

So fans in Minnesota, Colorado, and St. Louis should be jumping for joy. They’ll get their chance to see an outdoor NHL game, and probably pretty soon since you would expect teams to get to host one of these every four years or so.

But this post isn’t just about the love for this idea, it’s about the possibilities that lie ahead. This gimmick still has a long way to burn out, and really they’ve only scratched the surface. Here are a small sampling of possible ways the NHL can really spice things up going forward.

Stanley Cup Finals Rematch: Clearly this is what the NHL is hoping for with the Pittsburgh-Chicago outdoor game. Here we have two teams that are not particularly close geographically, have never played in the same Conference, and met in the finals way back in 1991, hardly the ingredients of the other outdoor games. If the NHL gets a chance to market this game as a Finals Rematch the game will have an actual reason for existing.

But why stop at just hoping for this to be the case and instead making it the case? That’s right, make one of the six outdoor games a set rematch between the Cup Finalists. With every team going to every other teams building in the new schedule, it’s most certainly doable. If the champion has already been scheduled to host an outdoor game, then who cares, then they get two. If the other teams have a problem with that there’s one solution: win. This gives a nice little extra incentive to ownership to spend money on a championship since it will line the owners pockets even more.

Sure the logistics of exactly when would be difficult, since you wouldn’t know until June of when exactly the stadium could be booked, but if they can put a game in LA in January, then they could put a game in Boston in March if they needed to.

Outdoor Game Home-and-Home: The Rangers hosting two games in the same week is pretty fun, but you know what would be even more fun? The Rangers hosting the Islanders in Yankee Stadium, followed by the Islanders hosting the Rangers in Citi Field. Back-to-back outdoor games between the same teams in different cities. There’s something kind of fun and intoxicating about that.

The imagination runs wild a little bit. Imagine the Bruins hosting the Habs at Fenway followed by the Habs hosting the Bruins at the Olympic Stadium? Have the Blackhawks and Red Wings getting their two games against each other both outdoors in the span of a week? The intensity of the games and the bragging rights would certainly turn up a bit.

Teams That Truly Hate Each Other: The closest we had to this was Penguins-Capitals, and that game was terrible. The Rangers-Flyers hatred felt completely forced and the Blackhawks were only starting to get good when they face the Red Wings.

Wouldn’t it be great to see Vancouver-Chicago or Pittsburgh-Philly? Two teams that legit want to destroy one another in a huge setting? Sure if the ice wasn’t ideal it would most certainly increase the likelihood of injuries, but admit it, the bloodthirsty part of you wants to see it.

A Neutral Site Game: There are a lot of great stadiums in North America, and not all of them are in the same city as an NHL team.

The recipe would be very simple, find a stadium that works and choose the two closest NHL teams and hope that their fans make the trip. The city would be guaranteed to make a ton of money from hotels and restaurants if nothing else.

Imagine the Blackhawks and Wild playing in Lambeau, the Flyers and Capitals playing in Camden Yards, the Sharks and Kings playing in the Rose Bowl, the Blackhawks and Blue Jackets at Lucas Oil Stadium, the Jets and Oilers playing in Mosaic Stadium (that’s where the Saskatchewan Roughriders play for anyone who ignores the CFL) or even the Stars and Predators at the Super Dome. The optics would be pretty cool if they went European Football and have different sections for different fan bases.

Hey speaking of Europe…

Put an Outdoor Game in Europe: Sooner or later the NHL is going to go back to playing regular season games in Europe. In fact, it’s a little surprising that they aren’t going to put a bunch over there right before the Winter Olympics next year.

But once they do, why not put an outdoor game in one of the big soccer stadiums like Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow. They could even make a little series of it, send four teams over there, have them play once each against one another and watch the money grow.

All-Star Outdoor Game: This seems to be discussed every so often, and really, why not make it happen? The All-Star game has two teams not put 100% effort and same with the outdoor games, so why not get them both out of the way at once?

Plus we know Columbus is owed an All-Star game, and what better way to give their fans an outdoor game then this? After all the Blue Jackets aren’t going to be a ratings draw, even against the Penguins or Red Wings, especially since they certainly aren’t going to have Seth Jones now.


Ignore the Stadium Altogether: This is the least likely, option. Make the outdoor game truly outdoor.

It’s less likely because there would be extra costs in setting the bleachers, food stalls, and merchandise areas. But it would be absolutely made for TV.

Think about a gaming be played in Central Park, The National Mall, Venice Beach, Stanley Park, or The Rideau Canal. These major landmarks are associated with their cities and the arial shot of a hockey game going on on this huge stage would be nothing short of spectacular. It would be a truly amazing experience for the fans and players, but probably not one for the owners, which means it’s probably not going to happen.

 

So until we see a double header featuring an All-Star Game and Stanley Cup Finals rematch taking place in Jacksonville, Florida, then this gimmick has some legs. No need to have Fonzie turn on his motorcycle just yet.

Apr 20

NHL Playoff Matchups: 5 Most and Least Interesting Possibilities

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The NHL season is quickly winding down as teams finish out there final four or five games. The playoff picture seems to be coming clear. With it, it’s hard not to get excited for some of the possibilites. Sure we won’t get a Flyers-Penguins matchup again, but there are still some interesting possibilites.

In this post we’ve gone through the different possibilities and are only going to be looking at the ones that have a higher than 20% chance according to Sports Club Stats and are calculated before Saturday’s games.. When considering “interesting” we have a few criteria here namely historical rivalry, even match-up, and intriguing storyline.

The Least Interest Match-ups: With all due respect to these teams and athletes, these five matchups would probably be at the bottom of the priority list.

Honourable Mention:

Boston Bruins vs. New York Islanders – Can a series end in three?

Washington Capitals vs. Ottawa Senators – Capital series…I guess

Vancouver Canucks vs. St. Louis – Would the underdogs be the favourites?

#5. Los Angeles Kings vs San Jose Sharks

Probability of Occurring: 22.2%

Sure these two have the very manufactured “Battle of California” thing going on, and sure they had a fun series a few years back but things are very different. Since then the Sharks have declined and the Kings have improved leaps and bounds. Even though this series would be a 4-5 matchup, it would be a clear curb-stomping. The Kings outmatch the Sharks in virtually every category, especially grit and clutch, which are the two most important things in the playoffs.

#4. Washington Capitals vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

Get ready for a lot of this at both ends of the ice

Probability of Occurring: 23.1%

If the Leafs continue their little slide and the Caps keep their charge, this series could be quite likely as the 3-6 matchup in the East. Oddly these two teams have never met in the playoffs, which is a little strange considering how long they have both been around for. These two squads both have goaltenders who are young and looking to prove that they are for real. Of course that could be an interesting storyline, but a series victory for either Holtby or Reimer wouldn’t go too far towards proving anything, just that they were less terrible than the other one. Although it would be kind of fun to watch the winner of this series get eaten alive by either Boston or Pittsburgh in the second round.

#3. Chicago Blackhawks vs. Dallas Stars

Probability of Occurring: 23%

These two teams had some interesting series back when one team had the word “North” in their name but those days are long gone. Not only have they never met in the playoffs since the team arrive in Texas, but they haven’t even made the playoffs in the same year since 1997 when both teams lost in the first round. But more importantly, the Stars would be total killjoys for the Hawks more interesting possible opponents (see below).

#2. Anaheim Ducks vs. Minnesota Wild

Probability of Occurring: 54.2%

If you forgot that this series occurred in 2007 then congratulations, you may be a member of the Anaheim Ducks or Minnesota Wild. Of course their 2003 Battle of Cinderella Western Conference final is slightly more memorable, but is still the least discussed series from the (then Mighty) Ducks miracle run that year. These two teams have some good high end talent and there’s probably an Olympic preview to be discussed as Parise and Sutter take on Getzlaf and Perry, but to imagine a team in Southern California playing for Canadian pride sounds just plain wrong. By my math this is the most likely scenario to occur, and both teams seem to be limping into the playoffs, so expect one of these teams to limp a little longer and give one of the real-deals in the West a bit of a break in the next round.

#1. Montreal Canadiens vs. Ottawa Senators

Probability of Occurring: 20.4%

He totally deserved that for costing us a Leafs-Habs series

Please Ottawa, don’t screw this up. You know what we all want, take a dive if you have to, playing the Capitals won’t be so bad. Full disclosure time, the main reason I don’t want this is because I’m a Sens fan. Most of Canada forgets that we’re even an actual hockey team, I don’t want them to start hating us for denying them the dream series.

Of course this means that it’s totally going to happen now…

The Most Interest Match-ups: If these ones happen get ready to call in sick.

Honourable Mention:

Vancouver Canucks vs. San Jose Sharks - Battle of Underachievers totally writes itself

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Rangers - Henrik Lundqvist could sure make this one interesting

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Islanders - Remember all of those fights from a few years back? They sure don’t!

#5. Chicago Blackhawks vs. Columbus Blue Jackets

Probability of Occurring: 23%

Sure it would be a slaughter, sure it’s unlikely, but hot-damn it’s hard not to get excited about #Lumbus right now and for all intents and purposes, this is their only real possible opponent. Although it may be a little sad to realize that in life David doesn’t beat Goliath.

#4. Los Angeles Kings vs. St. Louis Blues

Probability of Occurring: 23.8%

Please sir may I have some more…

Their second round meeting last year seems like an eternity ago, doesn’t it? The Blues were a team that came out of nowhere to finish second in the conference while the Kings, considered early season contenders, fell off most people’s radars and got hot at the right time, much to the Blues chagrin. If there is any team that has a chance to be a surprise-but-not-really in the West it’s the Blues. They were considered strong contenders to do some damage out West before the season started but some early struggles have them in the middle of the pack instead of the top, where they perhaps belong. If they get going, watch out. If there’s one team that they would love to get going against, it’s the guys that beat them last year and hoisted the silver. Sure the hockey could be boring, but the story-lines would be fun to watch.

#3. Boston Bruins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

Probability of Occurring: 27.2%

“THANK YOU KESSEL!” *clap clap clap clap clap*

Sure it would be a slaughter, but damn would it be fun to watch the Toronto media find someone to blame for all those games that Seguin, Hamilton, and Raask steal. Expect the lines in the papers to change from “Haven’t made the playoffs since 2004″ to “Haven’t won a playoff game since 2004″.

#2. Chicago Blackhawks vs. Detroit Red Wings

Probability of Occurring: 39%

Sorry Columbus, but this is a more interesting matchup. With the Red Wings moving eastward, this could be the last time that we see this series for a very, very, long time. These two have the fourth most frequent showdown of any playoff pairings in the NHL history and it would be a nice thing for the fanbases to get a bit of closure before they’re ripped apart from one another. Oh and NBC would love it too…

#1. Montreal Canadiens vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

This rivalry runs deep…

Probability of Occurring: 32%

If Canada is looking to quash it’s reputation for being docile, this is the best way to do it. A playoff matcup between these two venerable franchises that have deep cultural and historic ties in the country in the Twitter Age will see nothing but hatred and venom get thrown around. We may see a Canadian civil war start over this.

Please, please, please, this needs to happen, it’s hard not to get excited over the essays that this series will start, the Sharks-Jets like turf war that’ll brew all across the country, and the downright dirty plays that we’ll see on the ice.

Of course, if anyone can screw it up it’ll be the Leafs. Lord knows they don’t even give their own fan base what they want, why would they care about the rest of us?

Apr 15

Wrestlemania XXX: Imagining What the Card Will Look Like

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“We support your local sports team” say the WWE – Photo from Wikimedia

With a very disappointing Wrestlemania XXIX in the books it’s time to look forward to what the big event will look like next year. For the past six years the company has been like Star Trek movies, brilliant showings for the even numbers, and dullsville for the odd ones. Hopefully next year things will continue, as the company is sure to go all out for the event next year in New Orleans.

There have already been rumours of a Brock-Rock showdown and every year there is some talk of Cena-Taker taking place, where would this leave the likes of CM Punk, Triple H, Daniel Bryan, or the star that seems to have been born in Fandango.

So with a little bit of speculation we get the following matches…

Tons of Funk, R-Truth, Santino Marella and Zack Ryder vs. Prime Time Players and 3MB
YouTube Pre-Show Match

This is sort of a thrown together 10 man tag to get people who would pop the crowd on the card. They could all dance around, hit their spots and move on.

Lights, fireworks, GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!!

Chris Jericho and Christian vs. Rhodes Scholars
WWE Tag Team Title Match

Of course this is dependent on Jericho returning, but a reunion run with Christian could be exciting. They could have a nice little run with the tag team titles and have a showdown with two of the best smarmy heels in the business. Hopefully a chance to open the big event is a big apology to the Rhodes Scholars for leaving them off the card like they did. It could be extra fun to get Edge in the corner of the blond Canadians as a nice little nod to the past.

Sheamus vs. The Miz

This match fits the “no idea what to do with these two guys on the card spot”. It’s safe to say that The Miz won’t be a face this time next year, since he’s been pretty flat in this role. He can go on and on about being undefeated at Wrestlemania and drop this match cleanly, possibly foreshadowing another first time loss at this big event…

Antonio Cesaro  vs. Wade Barrett vs. Fandango vs. Kofi Kingston 
 vs. Mark Henry vs. Kane vs. Big E. Langston vs. Justin Gabriel
Money in the Bank Match

The card this year really could have benefitted from bringing Money in the Bank back. It would be a fun match early in the card and it could get some big exposure for the mid-card names like Kingston and Cesaro. Besides the gimmick gets overdone with two a year. They could easily have a different event in July. This match could be hurt by big guys, but it could be fun to see them throw the little guys around. If Gabriel is not over enough they could replace him with a host of other talent, preferably on the face side of things.

Alberto Del Rio vs. Rey Mysterio

Every year there is talk of a Cara-Mysterio match, but every year it doesn’t seem to work. Sin Cara does not seem to be working out in the WWE so the company strapped the rocket to Alberto in order to make a new Latin star. With Rey’s body breaking down, this could be a perfect chance to end his career on a high note in a great place. Plus they can finally do the mask record that they want, and have them all be for Rey as a sort of tribute.

Natalya vs. Charlotte
Diva’s Title Match

Charlotte is one of the bright spots in the NXT Divas Division and just so happens to be Ric Flair’s daughter. Natalya is the most talented, yet underutilized member of the Divas on the roster, and she just so happens to be a relative of Bret Hart. Wrestlemania X and XX had certain bursts of nostalgia so it seems reasonable that this could be an easy chance to have something similar happen here. If they had their Hall of Fame family members in their corners it could be pretty epic and actually make the ladies a draw at the big event.

CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Dolph Ziggler
World Title Match

Wrestlemania XX featured quite possibly the best triple threat match ever for the Big Gold belt contested between three of the top workers of the era. What better way to draw back to that then have three of the top wrestlers compete for the same belt? It doesn’t much matter who is the champ going in but Punk is the most established so we may as well have him as champ going in. We would all be able to sit back and enjoy the show.

Ryback vs. Big Show

The match that was long rumoured to happen at this years event. This match should be a quick squash to put over Ryback as a legit giant. It could be a nice quick cool down after the classic that we would see right before.

The Shield vs. Evolution

Yet another call back to Wrestlemania XX when the young upstarts took on some of the hugest names in the business. Now here is a chance for those former upstarts to be the big names and put over The Shield in a huge way. There have been rumours of a Batista return and this would be a great way to use him and Triple H, plus we could get an interesting dynamic with a potentially heelish Orton. Sure it’s not that different than the six man tag from this year, but it could still be a ton of fun.

The Rock vs. Brock Lesnar

This match has been rumoured for a while now and it would be a huge celebrity match with the obvious twist that both celebrities are former WWE Champions. These two had an amazing match and feud in 2002, so they could easily draw on this as being “11 Years in the Making”. Of course The Rock was injured facing Cena, so he may be decapitated wrestling someone as stiff as Lesnar, but that’s a chance I sure am willing to take!

Hall of Fame ceremony featuring Macho Man Randy Savage and Owen Hart!

John Cena vs. The Undertaker
WWE Title vs. Streak

This is the last true dream match featuring WWE superstars, so you know it has to happen at Wrestlemania, somehow, someway. This could be an absolute gold mine for the company if they do it right. The most obvious question would be just how they would handle Taker. Could this be his last match? Would they let him retire as champion? Or could they have him win only for the Money in the Bank winner to cash in the next night or something of that sort. Or  heaven forbid they pull the trigger and end The Streak, giving that honour to Cena.

 

Sure 10 matches was too much this year as they whittled things down to 8 with one week to go. However, if they cancelled the Diddy Concert, took away one of Brock Lesnar’s 700 spine busters to Triple H, and canceled one of the videos hyping the show we were already watching they easily could have fit two more matches in with little problems. They had 10 matches at Wrestlemania XXVI and 11 at XXII, and both of those were fun shows.

Any ideas? Changes?