NBA, Tanner Horelick

Wednesday’s NBA Matchup to Watch

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Houston Rockets vs Sacramento Kings

(11-3)                           (9-5)

Preview: Both of these teams are completely different in their style of play so far this season. For the Kings, they primarily rely on their offense as they score a respectable 103.1 PPG which is good for 9th in the NBA. On the defensive side though, they allow 100 PPG for 17th in the NBA. The Rockets, however, are a heavy defensive team and give up only 91.7 PPG which is 2nd in the league only below the defending champs San Antonio. On the other hand, just like Sacramento, they are weak on the other side of their game and score only 96.7 PPG for 21st in the league. Houston right now is tied for 3rd in the Western Conference and a win right here would put them ahead of the Trailblazers and in good position just 15 games into the season. Sacramento is in 7th place right now and would love to gain some ground as they are still just 3 games out of 1st. This conference right now is very tight and the winner of this matchup could help propel the team to a big win streak as we approach the quarter mark of the season.

Prediction: I think that the Kings will pull out a big win here as they are already on a 3 game win streak and have really looked good on the boards which could help lead them to victory as they grab the 3rd most rebounds per game with 45.8.

Points Per Game Leaders:

SAC – DeMarcus Cousins (23.1 PPG) HOU – James Harden (25.2 PPG)

Rebounds Per Game Leaders:

SAC – DeMarcus Cousins (12.3 RPG) HOU – Dwight Howard (11.3 RPG)

Assists Per Game Leaders:

SAC – Darren Collison (7.0 APG) HOU – James Harden (6.6 APG)

Justin Galus, NHL

Wednesday’s Hockey Matchup to Watch

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Washington Capitals vs. New York Islanders

(9-8-3)                                  (15-6-0)

Preview: This is a divisional game within the Metropolitan division. Right now the Islanders have 30 points, and the Capitals have 21. Tied with the Penguins for first in the division, they have been a definite underdog based off their record last year (34-37-11). The Capitals on the other hand are currently placed fourth in their division. The Rangers are placed third and play tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning, who is having a great season. With the Capitals only being down 1 point behind the Rangers, all Capitals fans (like myself) are hoping for a Ranger loss. You’re not an NHL fan if you don’t know the name Alexander Ovechkin. He has been in this league since 2004 and was drafted by the Capitals with the first overall pick. Tonight’s game will mark his 700th game in the regular season. There is no doubt that he has made a name for himself in this league and will be a key player to watch in the game tonight. For the Islanders, the key player to watch is John Tavares. He was also drafted first overall by the Islanders in 2009. Only being in this league 5 years he has proved himself worthy to be in this league. This is a game you won’t want to miss.

My Prediction: I predict the Washington Capitals because they are more determined and wanna take over 3rd place in the division. I an interview with NHL.com, Alexander Ovechkin said “It’s like a playoff mentality right now for us.”

Point Leaders:

WSH- Nicklas Backstrom (19) NYI- John Tavares (20)

Goal Leaders:

WSH- Alex Ovechkin (9) NYI- Brock Nelson (10)

Plus/Minus Leaders:

WSH- Nate Schmidt (6) NYI- Ryan Strome (9)

Jeffrey Siegler, MLS

MLS PLAYOFF UPDATE

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After an exciting weekend the first leg of of the MLS Playoff semifinals has come to an end. The New England Revolution defeated the New York RedBulls 2-1 and the  LA Galaxy defeated the Seattle Sounders 1-0.

In the Eastern Conference the Revolution were led by goals from the Canadian Teal Bunbury in the 17′ and the game winner by the German Jermaine Jones in the 85′. The lone goal for NY was from the  Englishman Bradley Wright- Phillips in the 27′. Going into the second leg of games it is expected that the RedBulls will try to bounce back from their first loss behind Thierry Henry who has been vital in NY’s success during the regular season. NY will be forced to play without Bradley Wright- Phillips because he collected his second yellow card of the MLS Cup Playoffs. It will be interesting to see if NY can stop the Revs’ Lee Nguyen from setting up his teammates with goal opportunities. This year has been his breakout year with 18 goals. He also was recently asked to play for the US National Team in England this past month after not making an appearance on the squad in 7 years. You can watch the second leg of the semifinal this Saturday at 3pm ET on NBCSN.

On the West Coast the LA Galaxy were led by a goal from the Brazilian Marcelo Sarvas in the 52′. Both teams have a lot of talent on offense and defense. The Galaxy have USMNT star Landon Donovan and Omar Gonzalez. The Sounders have USMNT captain Clint Dempsey and Deandre Yedlin who is transferring to Sunderland next season.  The winner of this semifinal round will face the winner of the Eastern Conference final. Remember that the team with the most goals in this home and away match up determines  who will go onto the final. You can watch this game at 9:20pm this Sunday on ESPN.

This weekend will be very interesting as there isn’t a very large goal difference in both match ups. This means that if either set of teams goes ahead to score 2 or more goals then they will advance.

NBA, Tanner Horelick

Monday’s NBA Matchup to Watch

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Toronto Raptors vs Phoenix Suns

(11-2)                                (9-5)

Preview: These teams are both coming into this game on a four-game win streak and look to improve that as they face off in Toronto. The Raptors are up 1.5 games in the East for 1st place, ahead of the Wizards, while the Suns are 3 games out of first sitting in 7th place in a tough Western Conference. This is going to be a primarily offensive minded game as the Raptors score the 2nd most points per game and the Suns score the 4th most. DeMar DeRozan has looked really strong this year on the offensive end, 20 PPG, and if he is able to take over this game, it could be over really quick. However, the Phoenix bench has looked very strong and could outlast Toronto as the Suns tend to take Gerald Green and Isaiah Thomas, who combined for 39 points last game, off the bench and use them for their own advantage against the other teams’ reserves.

Prediction: I think that the Raptors will end up winning this game in a very high-scoring one, solely because the Suns allow the 23rd most points per game and their defense will be no match for a very strong Toronto offense.

Points Per Game Leaders:

TOR – DeMar DeRozan (20.0 PPG) PHX – Isaiah Thomas (15.4 PPG)

Rebounds Per Game Leaders:

TOR – Jonas Valanciunas (7.8 RPG) PHX – Miles Plumlee (6.5 RPG)

Assists Per Game Leaders:

TOR – Kyle Lowry (6.0 APG) PHX – Eric Bledsoe (5.5 APG)

Justin Galus, NHL

Monday’s Hockey Matchup to Watch

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Boston Bruins vs. Pittsburgh Penguins

(13-9-0)                                (13-4-2)

Preview: Both of these team are widely known by all NHL fans. In the past 6 years both of these teams have won the Stanley Cup. In 2009, the Penguins beat the Detroit Red Wings under coach Dan Blysma, who was fired this offseason. This was a tight series, having to play all 7 games. The penguins won game 7 with a game winning goal by Maxime Talbot, who currently plays for the Colorado Avalanche. In 2011, the Bruins won their first Stanley Cup against the Vancouver Canucks under coach Claude Julien. This series also went to all seven games, and in game 7 Patrice Bergeron scored the game winner. Bergeron has not left the Bruins since, and continues to perform at a high standard. Bergeron came out of an incredible season. Both of these teams consist of top NHL players and expect to see a high scoring game.

My Prediction: I think that the Bruins will win because they are in more need for a win to continue to try and climb to the top of their division. They currently place 3rd.

Point Leaders:

BOS- Patrice Bergeron (16) PIT- Sidney Crosby (26)

Goal Leaders:

BOS-  Patrice Bergeron (5) PIT- Patric Hornqvist (9)

Plus/Minus Leaders:

BOS-  Brad Marchand (5) PIT- Christian Ehrhoff (13)

MLB, Tyler Englander

From Worst to First, Twice? Not Quite

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It was a good Monday for Red Sox Nation. They signed both Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval today to five year deals, and almost instantly Red Sox fans were boasting about going from first to worst for a second time after doing it in 2012 and 2013. I don’t want to burst anyone’s bubble, but the Red Sox of today are not even close to winning another championship, yet alone even making the playoffs. Don’t get me wrong the Red Sox are much better today than they were when you went to bed last night, however last time I checked pitching is still part of baseball.

First, lets take a look at what these recent signings bring to the Red Sox. I think that the signing of Pablo Sandoval is a steal for the Red Sox. Last year in a very spacious AT&T Park, Sandoval hit 16 homers, in a hitter friendly Fenway Park he will be able to use the Green Monster and the short wall in right to add possibly 10 homers to that total; which is a major upgrade from Will Middlebrooks. Forget the numbers, Pablo Sandoval will be a major fan favorite among Red Sox fans and should contribute to a positive clubhouse attitude. The more interesting signing to me is Hanley Ramirez. The reason this signing doesn’t make sense to me is the Red Sox pride themselves on team chemistry and Hanley is the exact opposite. Ramirez has always had an attitude problem and I’m not sure that he will fit in with the core group of guys that the Red Sox have. Also it’s important to recognize that Hanley Ramirez is an injury prone player. Ramirez who has played an average of 107 games a season over the past two years is entering his age 31 season and will need to play more than 107 games for his five year deal to become worthwhile for the Red Sox.

The biggest reason why as of now I don’t see the Red Sox as a playoff team is they have nobody to pitch, we saw it last year when the Yankees signed Brian McCann, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Carlos Beltran, but they had nobody to pitch and they ultimately didn’t make the playoffs. Right now the Red Sox pitching staff is led by Joe Kelly and Clay Buchholz, while Joe Kelly is a decent pitcher, he is a number three starter at best and if Buchholz pitches like he did last season he should be a good number two starter on the PAWTUCKET Red Sox. All of these signings are good and great, but they are essentially worthless if they don’t get a number one starter and another better than average pitcher. The option that makes the most sense it to bring back Boston hero Jon Lester, but the question is can they outbid former friend Theo Epstein for the lefty’s talents. Whether or not they get Lester, the Red Sox have a plethora of outfielders as well as prospects, most noticeably Yoenis Cespedes to trade. There is no place for Cespedes to fit in any more now that Hanley Ramirez will be in left field for the foreseeable future and he should bring in a good return in the trade market. I spoke to a source from Philadelphia who said “it’s always a possibility,” concerning Cole Hamels as a potential fit in Boston. You would also have to think that the Red Sox will speak to the Nationals about Jordan Zimmermann and the Reds about their arms that include Johnny Cueto and Mat Latos.

Justin Galus, NHL

Sunday’s Hockey Matchup to Watch

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Sunday 11-23-14

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Vancouver Canucks

Preview: 2 years ago the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup, and since have not declined. Currently they place 3rd in the Central Division. Although you might think that this will be an easy win, that is not the case. The Canucks consist of many top players such as the Sedin twins and Ryan Miller.  The Sedin twins consist of Daniel and Henrik Sedin. They were both drafted by Vancouver and were the first and second overall picks in the 1999 NHL draft. They both have been in the league for so long that Daniel Sedin will hit his 1000th game in his career tonight. The top players on the Blackhawks are Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Corey Crawford.  These players create such a well built team that is hard to stop.

My Prediction: I think that the Blackhawks will win because they have more players that are more consistent and talented. These players will produce more points and eventually win this game.

Point Leaders:

CHI- Jonathan Toews (18) VAN- Henrik Sedin (20)

Goal Leaders:

CHI- Jonathan Toews (9) VAN- Radim Vrbata (9)

Plus/Minus Leaders:

CHI- Kris Versteeg (7) VAN- Nick Bonino (7)

NFL, Zachary D.

NFL Week 12

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This Sunday in the NFL there are a lot of good match-ups. Starting with the Lions (7-3) vs. Patriots (8-2). Both teams are in first place in their divisions and a win on Sunday will be important to sustain that position. Detroit has Green Bay closing in with a relaxed Packers team and for the Patriots they have a bigger cushion in the division, but it is very possible for Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins to jump close to the number 1 spot before the season ends. With one of the best defenses in the league, the Lions need to stop Gronk and the explosive Pats offense. As for the Pats defense, they have one mega problem in stopping Megatron. But they do have to be careful as Golden Tate can do a good amount of damage in the Lions offensive scheme. Next up Arizona (9-1) is facing off against Seattle (6-4). Division game. If the Seahawks can grab a W, then they can gain some ground on Bruce Arians’ red hot Cards. At 9-1 they are off to their best start in franchise history. The Cardinals have a very good defense and a good offense too. Even though Drew Stanton is new to the offense, he can still provide the team with a win as he has shown in the past. The Seahawks defense is going to have to make stops in order for them to win the game. And then they have to make it happen on the flip side. If Russell Wilson can hit targets and beast mode can do his thing, then the Seahawks are in business. For the last big matchup of the day we have is the Dolphins (6-4) vs. the Broncos (7-3). Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins are in good shape right now. In second place behind the Pats they have a shot. Ryan needs to throw for good yards and Lamar Miller needs to do some work on the ground, but it is very possible. With their top 5 defense, they stand a real chance against a banged up Broncos offense. With Emmanuel Sanders (concussion) and Julius Thomas (ankle) both probable, Peyton will have to utilize Jacob Tamme and Wes Welker. Demaryius is always a threat and Anderson is a threat in the backfield, so Brent Grimes and the Dolphins D will have to contain Peyton if they want to gain ground on the 8-2 Patriots. Honorable mention- Packers (7-3) going head-to-head with the Vikings (4-6). Division game for these teams. Aaron Rodgers and the Packers could easily get a win if their offense keeps putting up 50 points, but let’s be real, against a weak Vikings offense and defense, they’ll only need to put up maybe 28. But if the Vikings defense can step up and make Rodgers score more and force turnovers on D, then the Vikings could pull off the win.
Justin Galus, NHL

Saturday’s Hockey Matchup to Watch

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Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Islanders

(13-3-2)                                  (13-6-0)

Preview: Penguins currently lead the Metropolitan Division and the Islanders are in second. Only 2 points behind, the Islanders have a chance to take the lead in the Division. By having a tie in the points column, it goes to the next category, Head to Head record. This category currently is 1-0, Islanders advantage after last night’s 5-4 shootout win. In the first round of the shootout Evgeni Malkin missed and John Tavares shot was saved. In the second round Sidney Crosby and Frans Nielsen both scored. In the third and final round, Brandon Sutter’s(Penguins) shot was saved and Kyle Okposo (Islanders) scored ending the shootout. Both teams will start their backup goalies to give their starters a break. Thomas Greiss will start for the Penguins and Jaroslav Halak will start for the Islanders. Halak was acquired from the Washington Capitals this offseason and has won his past five starts. According to an interview with Jack Capuano, Islanders Head Coach, conducted by NHL.com, Capuano said, “We want to play a little bit more ‘in your face.’ ”  In another interview with defensemen, Nick Leddy for the Islanders, conducted by NHL.com, he stated “We had the lead and gave that up”. Based on these two quotes, expect to see a hard fought physical game by the Islanders who want to close the game out and not let the Penguins have a chance to catch up. However, the Penguins are a well built team consisting of great players who will definitely give the Islanders a run for their money. This game will be a very exciting one to watch.

My Prediction: I predict that the Islanders will win because I feel they have more motivation and are more determined to take the lead in the Division from the long-lasting leaders of the Metropolitan, the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Point Leaders:

PIT- Sidney Crosby (26) NYI- Brock Nelson (18)

Goal Leaders:

PIT- Patric Hornqvist (10) NYI- Brock Nelson (9)

Plus/Minus Leaders:

PIT- Christian Erhoff (12) NYI- Ryan Strome (8)

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