From the Rink....

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are to me the ultimate professional playoffs for one primary reason.

The fact that the entire post season is competitive and intense from day one until the Cup is raised 2 months later. Both the NFL and NBA "ease" into their playoffs, in that nothing really gets intriguing until the later rounds. Of course you have your exceptions like the Suns/Spurs series, but really the rest of them are really bland. The NFL is slightly different in that, parity makes all the games competitive, but really the games don't get real interesting until the second weekend.

But, with the NHL every game is intense. On top of that, even if a team goes down 3-1 in a series they're not out of it. They can easily win two in a row and force the game 7. In the NBA once you're down 3-1 it's over.

Look at the Wings-Preds series. Detroit wins the first 2 at home has a late lead on the road in game 3 and end up losing after giving up 2 goals in 9 seconds. You could feel the momentum swing and last night they lose again after allowing 2 goals in 32 seconds. Now the series is tied 2-2 heading back to Detroit with the Preds seemingly in control. There is no real way to predict the NHL playoffs.

Other items.....

• As mentioned this morning, the Pens sweep the Sens. I'm not sure if this is an indication of how good the Pens are or if it's an indictment of how bad the Sens are. More than likely it's a little from column A and a little from column B. Either way the Pens will be tough out for either the Flyers or Caps.
• At this point the Caps-Flyers series is the only that seems up in the air. But, the Flyers have won the last two and have one more at home. If they win that one you have to like their chances.
• While the other two series are at 3-1 I'm not going to say both are over. I'm thinking the Devils will take at least one more from the Rangers before ultimately losing the series. The Bruins, in my opinion, are less likely to even win one more, but they have really shown that play with heart.
• As far as the west goes, there is a whole lot more uncertainty. As discussed above the Wings-Preds series is a toss up. While both the Sharks-Flames and Wild-Avs series are both at 2-2. My gut tells me each of these are going to 7 games and I wouldn't be surprised if both underdogs win.
• The only other series is Stars-Ducks and that one is 2-1. Here's another one that could do 7 games to the underdog.
• My mid-first round predictions for next round:

Pens vs. Caps and Rangers vs. Habs in the East.

Wings vs. Stars and Sharks vs. Wild in the West.

Just like my NBA picks, these will undoubtedly be wrong.

From the Hardwood...

The playoff match-ups are finally set. While we've known the majority of the participants for a while now, we now know the match-ups.

We'll handle the Western Conference First:

Lakers (1) vs. Nuggets (8)
When compared to the 1 vs. 8 in the East this one looks like an all time match up. But, in reality this one will be somewhat entertaining to begin with, but eventually will be a yawn fest as Kobe, Pau and the boys take care of AI and DUI er...uh...I mean Carmelo. Speaking of which, what a great time to create a distraction. Yet another reason why this one won't be so competitive.

Lakers in 5

Hornets (2) vs. Mavs (7)
Obviously the headlines going into this one will be about Kidd vs. Paul and how this is the changing of the guard at the Premier PG slot in the Association. I personally think Kidd will keep Paul in check, mostly due to his size. That is not to say Paul won't get his, but this series won't be a Chris Paul show. Now, you throw in Dirk and this could get pretty interesting. As long as West, Peja and Tyson all show up the Hornets should win but I'm not 100% sold. This one could be a very, very entertaining series.

Hornets in 7

Spurs (3) vs. Suns (6)
Probably the best match-up in the first round. This series is the primary reason the Shaq trade was made, so you know Kerr is praying it pays off. Initially it appeared as if that trade was going to be a bust, but they have pulled it together and really are playing well to end the season. For the Spurs it looks like they dominance is starting to wane and this series could be one of the signs of the end. If they lose this series don't be surprised to see some relatively drastic changes made in the off season. The Nash-Parker and O'Neal-Duncan match-ups are enough to make this a must watch.

Suns in 6

Jazz (4) vs. Rockets (5)
Even though the Jazz are the 4-seed they are actually the away team in the series. Gotta love the NBA! This should be a entertaining series as well. Obviously as an Illinois guy I pretty excited to see two of the stars of the '05 Illini team playing head to head in this one. However, one (Deron Williams) is a focus of one team while the other (Luther Head) is a role player. With that being said I think the difference in this one will be the back court play. Up front both teams are similar with the Jazz getting the slight nod with Okur and Boozer. The biggest challenge for Utah is limiting McGrady as they don't really have anyone that matches up. All in all I think the Jazz have too many weapons for the Rockets to stop.

Jazz in 7

Now for the necessary evil....the Eastern Conference:

Celtics (1) vs. Hawks (8)
What's the point?

Celtics in 4

Pistons (2) vs. 76ers (7)
While I applaud the 76ers for making the playoffs, just as I do with the Hawks, again what's the point? Making the playoffs in the Eastern Conference isn't saying much unless you're talking about how bad the Bulls really are. They may take a game, but that's about it.

Pistons in 5

Magic (3) vs. Raptors (6)
Depending on which Magic team shows up this could either be a really competitive series or a snooze fest. If they play hard and up to potential then I think they walk a way with this. But if they get lackadaisical the scrappy Raptors could make some noise. I see this being somewhere in the middle with Howard being the difference.

Magic in 6

Wizards (4) vs. Cavs (5)
Another intriguing match up if only for the individual match up of LeBron and Gilbert. This one could get interesting, but something tells me this is going to turn into a big game of 1 on 1. While I like Arenas, I like LeBron more and that will be the difference.

Cavs in 6

Well, there's the initial predictions. They will most definitely be wrong, but after the first round is over I'll re-visit these picks to see just how much of an idiot I am.

Boylan out...
In a Bulls related note the not so surprising release of Jim Boylan was announced today. Again, everyone saw this coming from a mile away. Let the off season of rebuilding begin for Paxson. His job certainly depends on how this summer goes.

The Starter

I will be hitting each of the major sports leagues in more detail later, but I wanted to give my initial impressions of the top stories first thing......

It's Finally Over...

• As entertaining the NBA season actually has been this year. I am happy the regular season is over. Not only is it the most meaningless regular season out there (when the Spurs as well as other teams can take the first couple months off and still land in the playoffs, the regular season is for the most part meaningless), but the Bulls had the most disastrous season they could imagine. Now we can actually watch real basketball while watching highly paid athletes actually care about playing in the games.
• Other NBA items that are "over" - Isaiah and the Knicks (you know everyone outside of Knicks fans really will miss him - it was just too easy) - Seattle basketball (I think it's nice to see that local government in Washington is now getting "tough", but where was this months ago? That's right-election time is coming!)

The Other Playoffs...

• I know most people aren't watching the NHL playoffs, but if you aren't, you're missing out. While the first round or two of the NBA playoffs tend to be tedious and boring the NHL playoffs are intense from the get-go. Generally it seems that the teams are much closer in ability level which is why you see a lot of lower seeds pushing the top seeds (see DET-NSH series). It happens every year where the top teams are taken out by lower teams. How about that for parity NFL?
• As I say that the Pens sweep the Sens. Could this be the stage that Sid the Kid elevates himself to Legend status? Could be.

365 Day a year League...

• It simply amazes me that the NFL can stay relevant all year round. Between the regular season, playoffs, free agency, combine, draft, OTAs, training camp then back to the regular season they keep you interested. Now they make a production out of releasing the schedule? You know you have a golden goose when you can make a schedule release an event.
• Chad Johnson is an idiot.

Is it June Yet?.....

• I love baseball as much as the next guy, but it seems harder and harder for me to pay much attention to MLB until late May or early June. I'm not sure if it's because of the NBA and NHL playoffs, but it just isn't keeping me interested.
• Yanks and Sox again - I see how this year is going to go between these teams. They're going to go .500 against each other and one of them will miss the playoffs. What wouldn't surprise me is that the AL East gets the wild card but either the Yanks or Sox are sitting at home in October.

Everything Else....

• Kevin Love is going to the NBA - now there's a shocker!
• Memphis pulls another top recruit - now there's a shocker!
• Okie State gets its coach, no it's not Self, but a solid hire none the less. Ford is a great coach and recruiter - look at what he did in the A10. Plus, there will be less pressure and scrutiny then having a guy like Self. Don't be surprised if OK St. is back to one of the powers in the Big 12 within a couple years.
• Didn't watch much of the debate last night, but from I did watch I can this: Why waste everyone's time by asking the same questions about non-issues? Does lying about sniper fire really matter when we are talking about the economy? Does comments made by a pastor really matter when the situation in Iraq needs to be addressed? Welcome to the TMZ nation - where real issues aren't as sexy as the scandalous types. That my friends is depressing. But hey, at least we know that Brittany Spears was in a minor fender bender the other day that will help gas prices I'm sure.

See you later today.....