Penguins/Oilers – Recap/Reaction

The Edmonton Oilers had a dominant performance against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night. The oilers scored five straight goals, and four came in the second quarter. The oilers didn’t do many good things to create opportunities for themselves to achieve. Oilers defeated the Penguins 6-3. 

Oilers center Leon Draisaitl is the player for the game for the Oilers. He finished with three points (1 goal and two assists). Evander Kane had a good game with two points (1 goal, one assist). Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also had two points (1 goal, one assist). 

The first quarter wasn’t much because the Oilers didn’t play with urgency, but something happened in the second quarter that unlocked their offense, and the Penguins had no answer for them. 

The oilers will head to St Louis to take on the Blues on Wednesday night. 

Jim Nantz to Call His Last Final Four in 2023

Veteran Sports broadcaster Jim Nantz will call his last Final Four in 2023. He’s been part of the Final Four tournament for three decades. Nantz is one of the most versatile sports Broadcasting ever. His over-preparation, emotion, and longevity made him tremendous and reliable over the year. 

What will make the 2023 Final Four so unique is that it will take place in Houston – the same city where he began his sportscasting career. He was an undergrad student at the University of Houston, where he sharpened his skills in his profession. Houston will be his 32nd Final Four and championship game. 

Who will replace Jim Nantz as the lead play-by-play announcer? Not to worry, because he’s also great as a sportscaster. His name is Ian Eagle. Ian engages very well and has a way with words that you can’t teach. It’s either you have it in you or you don’t. Ian Eagle will excel at his job. So CBS made the right move to pick him as Jim Nantz’s successor. 

Jim Nantz will still plan to return to present the trophy presentation to each other. It will not be a situation where he will drive to the sunset. Nantz is 63 years old and a father of three; he will spend more time with his family, but his love for sports won’t fade away. 

Syracuse vs. Clemson – Week 8 Recap/Analysis

Clemson and Syracuse faced off in one of the most exciting matchups of Week 8. The hype lived up to its expectations. Syracuse entered as the ACC’s league’s No. 1 defense. Syracuse had the momentum for 30 minutes of the game. Clemson woke up or took a wake-up pill and went into attack mode. 

Clemson Tigers quarterback DJ Uiagalelei had his worst game of the season with two interceptions and a fumble that Syracuse returned for a 90-yard scoop and score as the Tigers fell behind 21-7. It didn’t end there. Clemson rallied from 14-points down. Clemson held Syracuse to 119 yards with no points in the final two quarters.

Third down conversations and lack of rushing yards were some areas that affected Syracuse’s game.

Safety R.J. Mickens got the interceptions to end the game with 32 seconds. Clemson extends their home winning streak to 38 games. Florida State had a 37-game home winning streak from 1995 through 2001. 

What on earth happened to Syracuse? It was mind blowing to see their confidence waver in the second half. Syracuse completely missed an opportunity to pull an upset on the road. Syracuse returns to the Dome to play Notre Dame on Saturday. It’s not going to be an easy task, but they must treat this game as redemption. 

Saturday Morning Sports with Miguel

Chicago Blackhawks showed no quit against the Detroit Red Wings. They trailed by two goals twice in last night’s game and came back to win the game in overtime, 4-3. Max Domi scored the winning goal for the hawks in an unassisted play. An impressive home opener for the hawks, and this could be the final home opener for Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.

Denver Nuggets picked up their first win of the season against the defending champions Golden State Warriors with a 128-123 victory. Two-time league MVP Nikola Jokic had a triple-double with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and ten assists. The nuggets going on the road to win this game showed me a lot of promise for this team this season. A healthy Nuggets team is a title contender. Nuggets do need to improve in not giving away big leads. Warriors almost stole this game from them. Defense will be crucial for Denver if they want to make teams fear them. 

The almighty Utah Jazz, without Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, are now 2-0 this season. Yes, it’s only two games into the season, but we didn’t expect this solid start from a team that lost two All-Stars. How did they do it? They took on Rudy Gobert and the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night and showed them what they got on the court. Take Jordan Clarkson, for example. Jordan Clarkson scored 29 points on 7-for-12 shooting from 3-point range. Another name that comes to mind is Lauri Markkanen. He finished the game with 24 points and 13 boards. The Jazz defeated the Timberwolves 132-126. 

Last night on WWE Smackdown, Logan Paul solidly closed the show. Paul said many things during his promo, but my favorite quote is when he said this: “No one expects me to step in the ring with the GOAT and actually win. But what happens if I do?” The line is well delivered and sounded so great on the mic. Jey Uso ambushed Paul from behind in the ring. Jey Uso is considered the hot head of “The Bloodline” group. Roman Reigns told him that himself during a segment last Friday on Smackdown. As for Logan Paul, he didn’t stay down. He got back up and laid out Jey Uso with one right-handed shot. 

Sports Throwback Thursday: 1998 ALCS Game 4

Today’s Sports Throwback Thursday belongs to Game 4 of the 1998 American League Championship Series between the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians. 

This was the second consecutive year in which the Yankees and Indians met in the postseason. The Indians won the 1997 American League Division Series over the Yankees in five games. Thanks to Sandy Alomar Jr’s home run for shifting the momentum of the series in Game 4. But this time, one year later, Cuban pitcher Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez changed the momentum of the series for the Yankees.

The Yankees were trailing 2-1 in the series against the Indians. Game 4 is a must-win game for the Yankees. The Yankees needed El Duque to have a great outing in his first postseason game. El Duque got into a big problem in the bottom of the first inning. Indians had bases loaded, and Jim Thome was at the plate. Thome got a good swing off Hernandez, but he missed it just a bit to hit a grand slam. Paul O’Neill caught the ball in right field to end the inning. 

After Hernandez got out of a big jam, he could relax and dominate the rest of the game. Hernandez didn’t give up any runs. The Indians only had four hits in this game. Paul O’Neill had two RBIs, including a home run; Tino Martinez and Chili Davis also picked up RBIs. The Yankees won 4-0 to even the series. The Yankees would go on to win the next two games to win the American League pennant. 

Entertainment Wednesday

The members of BTS will be fulfilling their duty and performing mandatory military service in South Korea. The group is unable to perform with all seven members until 2025. These entertainers seem to me genuinely patriotic. Putting everything aside to serve and fulfill their country is something Koreans should be very proud of and respect for making this decision. When they return as a group, they will return with a high level of maturity and growth as humans. 

Actor and rapper Kaalan Walker has been sentenced to 50 years to life in prison for his conviction of raping aspiring models he met online. He was arrested in 2018 and charged with a series of assaults dating back to 2016 involving four women and three teenage girls. Walker, whose rapper is KR, played a gang member in the 2018 remake of the movie Superfly. When we hear news like this one, it makes my head scratch and shakes my head. Knowing what’s good and what’s wrong is very important. Don’t do the crime if you can’t do time. Walker will spend the rest of his life thinking about his terrible decisions and what could’ve been a way better life he could’ve chosen had he done the right thing. We all make mistakes, but some errors are way worse than others, and this one is an evil look on him. 

“East New York” is one of the newest drama series, premiering on Sunday night on CBS. The title is catchy. Also, veteran actor Jimmy Smits is on the show. Therefore, we must take a chance at the front. Smits is no stranger to playing cop roles. He was part of hit series such as NYPD Blue. East New York follows the recently promoted police captain of East New York, Regina Haywood, who leads a diverse group of officers and detectives, some of whom are hesitant to deploy her creative methods. Episode four is set to premiere next Sunday at 9 pm. 

Miami vs. Virginia Tech – Week 7 Reaction

Miami traveled to take on Virginia Tech. They came into this game with a sense of urgency and desperation to get a victory. The Hurricanes certainly did just that, and it was a solid effort. Miami came out victorious 20-14 over Virginia Tech on Saturday.

The hurricanes snapped a three-game losing streak. This is Miami’s first ACC win of the year. It’s a feel-good victory for the Hurricanes. They got the monkey off their back. Some plays could’ve been better executed for the Hurricanes, but the most important thing is that they got the win. It’s been tough on them lately. 

Miami held Virginia Tech to just 257 yards and sacked Wells six times.

Hurricanes quarterback Tyler Van Dyke threw for 351 yards and two touchdowns and completed 29 of 46 passes for the Hurricanes. Wide Receiver Colbie Young had nine catches for 110 yards. He did the most he could in this game. Van Dyke, is coming off a 496-yard performance in Miami’s loss to North Carolina. 

Miami led 20-0, and the game ended with Virginia Tech scoring 14 unanswered points. If there had been another quarter, Miami probably would’ve lost this game. Miami survived this game, and they still need to improve offensively and defensively. Also, they need to clean up the penalties —The hurricanes had 17 penalties against Virginia Tech. I was not too fond of that, and I hope Mario addresses this with his team. The Hurricanes need to win next week against Duke. 

November is going to be a crucial month for Miami, but I’m hoping they strongly finish October. 

Saturday Morning Sports with Miguel

Bray Wyatt made his return to Smackdown on Friday night. The crowd was electric. They missed him, and it got Bray emotional during his segment on the ring. You can see all of the cell phone lights on in the arena. It must’ve been something special to witness in person. Bray said that he lost his career, lost his self-confidence, and he lost two people that he was close with. It’s nice to see him show his vulnerable side, and it’s great to have him back in the ring.

Phillies smacked the Braves in the mouth in Game 3. Aaron Nola once again had a great postseason outing. Rhys Hoskins needed to get going on this series and did just that. Hoskins hit a 3-run home run in the 3rd inning. Phillies scored six runs in the 3rd inning, and that turned out to be enough. Phillies won 9-1. They have a chance to close out the Braves tonight and book their first NLCS trip since 2010. 

San Diego Padres hosted their first home postseason game since 2006. I was a freshman in high school during that period. The padres lost to the Cardinals in the NLDS that year. Blake Snell was sensational last night. Dodgers had no answer for him. His performance reminds me of when he was with the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 6 of the 2020 World Series. The padres took Game 3 with a 2-1 victory. The padres have a chance to reach the NLCS for the first time since 1998. 

Miguel’s Friday Thoughts

Former NBA player Ben Gordon was busted this week at La Guardia Airport for hitting his 10-year-old son. The 39-year-old played for the Chicago Bulls and spent most of his career there. He was also an NCAA champion with the University of Connecticut. It’s tough to hear this because Gordon was an excellent two-guard in the 2000s. I liked the underrated Big Three that he was part of with Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng. It’s the second time he’s gotten busted in New York in the same year. 

Actors Michelle Yeoh and Pete Davidson join the cast in the next Transformers movie, “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.” When I first heard about the news, the way it was reported, it looked like they were starting to date or something, haha. It would’ve been a weird mismatched. But thankfully, that’s not the case. It will be interesting to see Michelle Yeoh being part of this project. I’m not crazy about Transformers anymore, but congrats to both for being cast in the new movie. 

Comedian and ‘Saturday Night Live alum Rob Schneider says host Bill Murray ‘ hated’ the cast — especially Chris Farley. This news came off guard because I hadn’t heard from Rob in a long time. Rob is part of the group called “Bad Boys of SNL,” which includes him, Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Chris Farley, and David Spade. That’s when SNL was SNL. It’s way different than the shit show we are seeing today from SNL. We miss these kinds of comedians on sketch shows. Schneider said Murray was friendly to the fans but utterly different from the guys. I wonder what triggered him to say all of this finally, but once a thing is for sure, we will not expect Rob to work with Bill Murray ever. 

Netflix is currently trending with its latest news. Netflix will introduce a lower-priced plan with ads starting in November at $6.99 per month, which will include 15-to-30-seconds. Great job, Netflix! Just great! I don’t like ads because it gets in the way of when I’m trying to watch a movie or show, especially when a good scene or the climax of the scene will about to happen. Netflix is one of the few platforms that avoid interruptions. It doesn’t sound like a clever idea to me but let’s see. It is what it is. 

Raiders/Chiefs – Week 5 Recap/Reaction

The Las Vegas Raiders took on the Kansas Coty Chiefs. The Raiders have been having a disappointing start to their season, while the Chiefs continue to do what they do best – winning and dominating on offense. 

In the first half, the Raiders were more aggressive and set the tone. Raiders led the first half 20-10, although, towards the end of the second quarter, you can feel the momentum shift towards the Kansas City Chiefs. In the second half, the Chiefs managed to get back in the back, but the Raiders had an answer for them as well. It was a close game to the end, but Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce helped the Chiefs get past the Raiders, 30-29. 

Patrick Mahomes completed 29 of his 43 passes and threw for 292 yards with four touchdowns. Kelce caught all four touchdowns. 

Raiders wide receiver DeVante Adams had two touchdowns with 124 yards. Adams was distraught at the end of the game and shoved down the boom operator guy who was in his way. Adams got caught on camera, and the league office will discipline him.