The Columbus Blue Jackets will look to defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins for the first time in seven games Saturday night when Game 2 of their first round playoff series will be contested. The Jackets played a good game Wednesday night outshooting the Pens 34-32 and outhitting them 47-28 while limiting Sidney Crosby to one secondary assist along the way.
The Dallas Stars hope to build on the momentum they garnered in the last half of Game 1 when they visit the Duck Pond again; trying to even the series before it shifts back to Dallas for Game 3.
The Tampa Bay Lightning host the Montreal Canadiens on Friday evening in game two of their opening round series in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Montreal won Game 1 in the series in overtime on Wednesday on a goal by Dale Weise, 5-4.
It may get a little claustrophobic at American Airlines Arena tonight, where the San Antonio Spurs have a golden opportunity to place the Miami Heat in a small box when Game 2 of the NBA Finals tips off.
The Spurs have a 1-0 lead in this Western Conference semifinals series after thrashing the Grizzlies in Game 1. This season Memphis had the best defense in the league in terms of opponents’ points allowed, but in the Game 1 loss they gave up over 100 points and allowed the Spurs to shoot over 52% from the floor.
When teams get this far into the playoffs, talent tends to even out and coaches have to start really earning their money by making adjustments.
The Ottawa Senators know that they will need to be much better in every aspect of the game to defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night. They have to be more disciplined, they have to convert on absolutely every chance they get and most of all they have to return to the defense-first brand of hockey that got them into the playoffs in the first place.
You can survive injuries to key players in the short-term in this man’s NBA, but as the Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics have learned, eventually you have to pay the bill.
The Chicago Blackhawks had a much more difficult time with the Minnesota Wild in Game 1 of their Western Conference quarter final than most thought – but the result was what almost everybody predicted. Minnesota played almost the perfect road game, they held one of the best offenses in the game to one goal during regulation with their backup goalie, they stayed out of the penalty box and they still lost.
The biggest mismatch of the postseason continues Friday night when the New York Islanders attempt to gain a little respectability against the Pittsburgh Penguins – a team that beat them in relatively easy fashion in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarter final. Sound easy?
The Los Angeles Kings find themselves in an unfamiliar position – trailing in a series! That’s right – LA won the Cup last year while going 16-4 and not trailing at any point along the way. But there is a reason that the Blues are up 1-0 – they outhit, outshot and completely outhit the Kings on Tuesday night for their first win versus the Kings in nine games.
Oh, what this series could have been. Just imagine a healthy Kobe Bryant, eyes piercing. A focused Dwight Howard itching to be recognized as the best big man in the league.
Minutes don’t matter a lot in the playoffs. Adrenaline is flowing, the games finally mean something and there is usually ample rest between battles.
Oklahoma City playing at home in the playoffs is about as close to a lock as there is in the NBA.
So much for prevailing thought. The Celtics went into this series feeling that they had a pretty good shot at taking out the No. 2-seed Knicks.
Besides and Act of Congress, an Act of God or the Stanford band marching onto the court whenever the Heat have the ball, what will it take for the Milwaukee Bucks to make this series even remotely competitive?
