An advice column for people who live with people who live for sports
What happened on April 15, 2015?
The hockey playoffs start of with a boom: There is nothing more exciting, nerve-wracking, and pulse thumping than watching overtime in a Stanley Cup playoff game. Hockey fans were treated to two overtimes on the first night of the playoffs, both in the game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Nashville Predators. A defenseman, Duncan Keith, finally scored in the second overtime to win the game 4-3 for the Chicago Blackhawks but the story of the night was the ‘hawks backup goalie, Scott Darling, who came into the game in relief after their starter let in three goals, and proceeded to shut the Predators out for the remainder of the game. Line: There’s a reason why overtimes where the first team to score, wins, are called sudden death… it’s because watching them makes you feel like you’re going to have a heart-attack!
Barcelona dazzles: Barcelona has such freakishly talented players that sometimes it seems as if they’re the Harlem Globetrotters and their opponents are the hapless Washington Generals. There were a few moments that felt that way yesterday in Paris during Barcelona’s Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain that ended 3-1. Line: Barcelona can not only beat you, they can make you feel silly for having shown up.
The U.S. Men’s National Team… wins: Okay, so… truth be told, the game between the United States Men’s National Team and Mexico was not nearly as good an exhibition of soccer as the previous game. It was, at times, downright ugly. But, the U.S. did win, so hooray if you’re a fan of the team. The star of the night was Jordan Morris, a college kid getting his first start on the national team. He looked nervous during the anthems before the game, but once play started, he looked right at home. He scored the first goal of the game and of his career after snatching an unlucky bounce off a Mexican defender. Line: A win is a win, no matter how sloppy.
The Pacers (and Thunder) fade to summer vacation: After 81 games, all the Pacers needed to do was win one more and they would have made the NBA playoffs. They couldn’t do it. They lost to Memphis 95-83. Because of that, the Brooklyn Nets get the last playoff spot in the East and the chance to (probably) lose to the first ranked Atlanta Hawks. A similar scenario played out in the West where the New Orleans Pelicans eliminated the Oklahoma City Thunder from playoff contention. Line: Although it hurts now, not making the playoffs this year probably won’t turn out to be so bad for Thunder and Pacers fans. Their teams weren’t likely to win much in the playoffs anyway.
