Get Rid of the NHL Season.....and Just Have the Stanley Cup Playoffs!!!

NFL MOCK DRAFT:  I am angry.  I really wanted to do a AOL Mock Draft for the NFL similar to what I did with the NBA.  I even had some names up as people I was gonna go after.  But, with my work schedule and personal commitments [read: sleep], I haven't been on here as much as I want.  Sorry.

GOD I LOVE THE STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS.  I've always said this.  The NHL season is completely boring.  With games that end in shootouts [at least they got rid of the ties] and with the PTS system [not just W-L], the season drags.  But their postseason is awesome.  Always has been.  The games are tighter, and one mistake at any point can just end it.  Imagine the NBA playoffs with a sudden death overtime.  Just imagine that.  Games go 2-3-4-5 or 6 overtimes.  Home ice means nothing.  Hot goaltending means everything.  And there is nothing like the drama of a Game 7.  Again, any deflection, bad pass, missed hit, turned head, slip on the ice or anything can send you home.  Again, I remember the Wings-Blues series about a decade ago when they went to multiple overtimes.....had some of the greatest saves you will see....and it ended with Stevie Y just dumping a slapshot in from the blue line that snuck by CuJo [I believe] to win that series. 

Well, everyone has played two games....and there are only two higher seeded teams with a 2-0 lead [the Sabres and Devils].  Oh, but the Canadiens and Avalanche....both #7 seeds....currently hold 2-0 leads over the Hurricanes and Stars, respectively.  Everything else is tied a 1-1.  Now, we all switch sites and see what happens.  Here's hoping to a buch of Game 7s!

WAIT, HE'S A FORMER PANTHER:  Ricky Manning, Jr.....previously a DB for the Carolina Panthers....was arrested for assault during a fight at a Denny's resteraunt near UCLA's campus.  To make this worse, apparantly it was Manning and somefriends [jocks] picking on a guy who was working on a laptop [nerds].  NERRRRRDS!!!!  To make it really worse, this happened just after signing an offer sheet with the Bears.  And here is Manning's great quote: "I can't let something like this let me have abad start to my football career in Chicago."  Nice. 

REGGIE BUSH COULD LOSE HEISMAN.  And he didn't have to [allegedly] murder anyone to do it.  But at least OJ got some cheese out of the deal.  I seriously doubt anything will come of this....but if it did, it would be quite interesting. 

THE NETS GOTTA WIN.  So far, the New Jersey Nets are the only team that's lost a home game.  So, they gotta win Game 2 over Indiana or face never coming back to the swamplands for another game.  So a pretty big game tonight.....the Heat are up 2-0 and are looking pretty good.  Sure, it's the Bulls they are beating, but these Bulls were white hot heading into the playoffs.  And maybe Shaq does know what he is doing all season long?.....Nice of the Kings Ron Artest to guarantee victory, then get knocked out of the game, then get thrown out for Game 2.   Nice.....In LakerLand, they threw everybody for a loop by trying to get everybody else going but Kobe.  Problem was that when Kobe had to step it up late in the game, it took him a while to get his shot going.  This is the first time Phil Jackson has lost Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs.....Keeping it in LA, the Clippers look like one of the best teams in the NBA.  They are tearing apart the Nuggets and could, feasably, be a contender for the Western Conference Finals.  In the funcky Western playoffs, the Clips are the #6 seed but own the home court over the Nuggets because of a better record.  Then, the funky-ness forces the Mavs and Spurs to face off in the 2nd round., which the Clips would play the Suns-Lakers winner.  That could mean a Clippers-Mavs/Spurs WCF.  Wow.

THE REDS ARE DOING OKAY.  This will most likely be a season where the Reds are still "in the hunt" a bit past the All Star break which means the organization willhave a tough decision to make.  Break some guys off for the future?  Or add some more for a stretch run?  The Reds have scored more than anyone in baseball.....and have more walks too.  The key has been the development of the young hitters.  Guyslike Edwin Encarcion and Brandon Phillips [thanks Cleveland] have picked up the slack during Griffey's downtime....and guys like Austin Kerns and Adam Dunn are doing their thing [they both need to cut down on the K's though].  But what will be the key in them staying here is pitching.  Now, the pitching still hasn't been great....they've done a better job of hanging onto leads [something they couldn't do two weeks ago].  Todd Coffey and David Weathers have formed a nice 8th-9th inning combo that's been able to lock down games.  It is the starters who need to show up a bit better.  Dave Williams [they guy we traded Sean Casey for] has an ERA over 10 right now....[Eric Milton and Brandon Claussen are over 6.50].  Get this shored up, and the Reds could stay in this thing.