NFL Nuggets:

It’s Memorial Day in Canada’s pants today, so it’s a very slow news day. To wit:

• ESPN is guestimating what it would take to make Aaron Rodgers a Bronco.
  • Hint: June 1st, John Elway meddling in things he knows nothing about (i.e. – talent), and a whole bunch of draft picks.

• nfl.com put clips of the Pat Tillman “A Football Life” across its web page.
  • Not the part about how he died, however.

• Peter King gets our hopes up about a potential departure scenario for Roger Goodell.
  • Shockingly, he surmises we will miss him when he’s gone.
    • King thinks Goodell will stick around through the 2024 or 2025 season.
      • And that international expansion of the game will be his legacy.
        • Please ignore all the concussions & CTE deaths, please.
  • Once a chili buddy; always a chili buddy.

Central Division Final: Boston Bruins (2) vs. NY Islanders (4)

Even though this series started on Saturday, given how the Islanders hung around & disposed of the Penguins (sorry WCS) a preview still seems current.

The Bruins have the advantage this year of a Tuukka Rask that wants to be in the playoffs. Last season, Rask got a case of the Dad Panics and essentially bailed during the first round. The Bruins still advanced, but didn’t have the back end to be able to hang around for long. This season, they have a dialed-in Rask, and a defence that isn’t reliant on an old Slovak with declining mobility. Brandon Carlo & Charlie McAvoy anchor a back-6 that has more weapons now that they have more money to spread around without Big-Z. Mike Reilly has been a fantastic addition since being freed from the Senators, and Charlestown local Matt Grzelcyk has been playing an average of 15 valuable minutes per game. Throw in the Perfection Line and another fantastic acquisition in Taylor Hall and you have a pretty unstoppable team.

That’s not to say the Islanders don’t know what it’s like playing the underdog. They treated the Penguins pretty badly (sorry WCS), and were full-measure for their Round One victory. On paper, there’s a lot to like about this team. They have grinders like Casey Cizikas & Cal Clutterbuck and puck hounds like Matthew Barzal & I-can’t-believe-he’s-30-already Jordan Eberle, both groups which combine to produce a Voltron of scoring & checking that keeps them in almost every game, and was what allowed them to keep Pittsburgh close until the inevitable Malkin Meltdown allowed them to beat a better team. That’s what they will be hoping for this series too, as their efforts in Game One appeared to be directed at shutting down the Perfection Line. (It didn’t work, but it looked like a solid strategy.) The defence & net are where they are shining for the second year in a row, as Barry Trotz has sold these guys on a defence-first, counter-punching strategy. Anchored by the 23 minutes/game played by Nick Leddy & Ryan Pulock, the Islanders have put up a formidable wall in front of Ilya Sorokin & Semyon Varlamov. Given that the Islanders (even before Game 1) are letting in one extra goal per game than the Bruins, they will need to solidify their defence against a team that can hit harder than the Penguins could, and did.

It shouldn’t be close, but the Islanders have a nasty habit of sticking around too long to be dismissed.

Prediction: Bruins in five.

Tonight’s sports:

• NHL:
  • Habs at Leafs – 7:00pm | CNBC / CBC / Sportsnet
    • GAME 7, BAY-BAY!
  • Islanders at Bruins – 7:30pm | NBCSN / Sportsnet1
• NBA:
  • 76ers at Wizards – 7:00pm | TNT / TSN3
    • Game 4 – Sixers lead 3-0
  • Jazz at Grizzlies – 9:30pm | TNT / TSN3
    • Game 4 – Jazz lead 2-1
• MLB:
  • Pirates vs. Royals – 7:00pm | ESPN / TNT
• WWE:
  • Monday Night Raw – 8:00pm | USA / Sportsnet360

The media bias up here in favour of the Leafs has been ridiculous. It’s like all the corporate parents in Toronto wrote ad copy for their regional divisions to read during every sports & culture broadcast. Yet they wonder why the rest of the country hates their little burgh.