NBA Day 1, NHL Day 2

So for the next month or so this blog will be ALMOST entirely devoted to covering the playoffs in the NHL and the NBA.

If you read the post before this one (and I highly suggest it), then you'd be able to see all of my picks leading to the champions of both leagues. I may be a little biased, as I have the Detroit Red Wings winning in the NHL and the Detroit Pistons winning in the NBA...but then again, the Red Wings have proven they're the best team in the NHL and the same goes for the Pistons.

Anyway...last night, the Red Wings beat the Edmonton Oilers in game 1 of the series. It was a close game, going into double OT. I was at a party, so I really didn't catch much of that game or any game, but I did see the winning goal (despite being slightly intoxicated at the time). The Oilers put on a good show, but the Wings won in the end, so I'm still sticking with my prediction of the Red Wings winning in 6. If anything, the Wings will win in less than that because they actually win more on the road than they do at home. So if they take tomorrow's game too, then I think the Oilers just have no chance whatsoever.

Onto the first day of the NBA playoffs...TODAY. I saw about three and a half games today, wathcing ESPN almost all day. There were four games today:

San Antonio Spurs vs Sacramento Kings
My prediction for the series is that the Spurs will win in 4. I commented that there was nothing the Kings could do to stop them. Ron Artest highly disagreed with me, so much so that he predicted the Kings would win the first game and move on to the second round. Clearly he has no respect for the reigning champions. Only one of us could be correct though, and that person was me. Clearly, I know more about basketball than Ron Artest. Not only did the San Antonio Spurs win, they completely destroyed the Kings. It was embarrasing and slightly boring, which caused me to fall asleep near the end.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS WIN 122-88


Chicago Bulls vs Miami Heat
I woke up in the middle of the battle between these two teams. When I woke up, the Bulls were down by quite a bit, but as I started to watch, the Bulls started to battle back. If they had been playing like that since the beginning of the game I'm sure they would have been winning when I woke up. Shaq and Wade kept them at bay though and despite a great effort from the Bulls, they couldn't turn it into a win in the end. Despite losing, the Bulls showed everyone, me in particular, that they have the skill the wrestle with the Heat. I picked Miami to win in 5, saying the Bulls couldn't pull off this upset. I'm still sticking with my pick of Miami to win the series, but I wouldn't be all that dissapointed to see them lose in the end.
MIAMI HEAT 111-106


LA Clippers vs Denver Nuggets
After the Bulls game was over and Shaq gave his usual senseless, repetitive, drivel comments to the press, ESPN moved on to the Clippers and Nuggets. I picked the Clippers in this series for many reasons. I see a lot of similarities between the Clippers team and the Pistons, but mostly, the Nuggets are just too inconsistent and Carmello can't do everything. It seems I was right. For most of the game it seemed like the Clippers would have no problem. Going into the 4th quarter, however, the Clippers really lost it. Denver went on some amazing runs and LA went through some horrible droughts. The Clippers won in the end, but just barely.
LA CLIPPERS 89-87


Cleveland Cavaliers vs Washington Wizards
This is the one game of the day that I did not get to see. That's too bad too, as it sounds like it was an amazing game. I picked the Cavs in this series because I thought that King James had a lot to prove and had the talent to do it. He didn't let me down either. Not only did LeBron preform at an all-star level, he exploded out of the gate and finished with a triple double. He catapulted the Cavs over the Wizards. I think Washington is going to have a hard time containing him.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS 97-86


So, at the end of the day, all of my picks won, making me look very good. Tomorrow my favorite team, the Detroit Pistons, start things off against the Milwaukee Bucks and The Detroit Red Wings look to take a 2-0 series advantage. I'll try to watch as many games in both leagues as I can, but I'm only one man.

I really enjoyed watcing the Clippers and Nuggets tonight and I look forward to watching the series progress. Close games are always more exciting than blow outs, so I don't think I'll find myself watching too much of the Spurs vs Kings matchup as I think the Spurs will take care of them rather quickly. Despite the fact I'm picking the Heat to win, I hate them, so I won't watch much of that series either. As for the Cavs and Wizards, I'm looking forward to seeing LeBron in action. He's the next Michael Jordan, he even has the number 23 jersey.

As for hockey, it's not going to be shown as much as the NBA playoffs. I won't miss a single Detroit game, but I can't promise I'll catch too many other games. There were some great games today, and some great surprises. In fact, all the respect I gained with my perfect NBA picks, I lost with my so-so NHL picks. Let's see...


Carolina Hurricanes vs Montreal Canadiens
I predicted that Carolina would have no problem whatsoever with this series. In fact, I predicted Carolina in 4 games. Not only did the Canes let me down, they made me look downright stupid. I can understand if they lost in a close game, but to get massacred like they did...well, it isn't good. I'm still predicting the Hurricanes will win, because they're a tough team and they'll come back with a vengance. Clearly they can't win in 4 games anymore, so I'm extending my prediction to 6 games.
MONTREAL CANADIENS 6-1


Colorado Avalance vs Dallas Stars
Again, my pick, the Dallas Stars, did not play up to the preformance that I expected. In fact, I was made to look like an idiot yet again. I know Colorado is a great team, but I KNOW that Dallas is a better team. It was sad to see them make so many mistakes and to see it destroy them in game 1. Well, there's more games to come, and I know they can do better.
COLORADO AVALANCE 5-2


Philadelphia Flyers vs Buffalo Sabres
I picked the Flyers to win this series, which is quite a risky choice, and I knew that going in. Despite their loss today, I still stand by their ability to win this series. It was a tough game that went into double overtime. The Flyers came out the victors in the end, but the Sabres aren't letting them walk away with this.
BUFFALO SABRES 3-2 2OT


New Jersey Devils vs New York Rangers
Here is one game matchup that did play up to my expectations. Not only did New Jersey win, like I knew they could, they destroyed the Rangers. I predicted Devils in 5, but I might change that to Devils in 4 if Jagr is so injured that he's done for the season. Yes, you heard me, the Rangers lost both the game and their best player. Jagr threw out his shoulder making a lunging play. You hate to see anybody get hurt, but it happens. This is horrible news for an already overmatched New York Rangers team.
NEW JERSEY DEVILS 6-1


So on day two of the NHL playoffs, I'm 1 for 3 on my picks. I did much better on day one of the NHL playoffs yesterday when all of my picks won their games. Here's a quick review of yesterday's games: Detroit beat the Oilers 3-2 in double overtime, I picked Detroit to win in 6. Calgary Flames beat the Mighty Ducks 2-1 in overtime, I picked Calgary to win it in 5. Ottawa Senators beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1, I picked Ottawa to win in 5. And finally, Nashville beat the San Jose Sharks 4-3, I picked Nashville to win in 4. I'm highly looking forward to day 3 of the NHL playoffs.

So, overall in the NHL, my picks are looking good, as I've gone 5-3.
I'm looking better in the NBA, as I'm currently going strong at 4-0.

Join me tomorrow night for NHL day 3 recap and NBA day 2. I hope to bring you the good news of a Piston victory.

Stop reading.

- Rian

P.S. Barry Bonds finally has a homerun for the season, he's 6 away from passing Babe Ruth