MARLBORO, NY – There are two topics that need to be addressed here at MTM of which I’d like to fit in at the five hundred word threshold. So without further adieu…
The Life of Steven McDonald was celebrated on Friday throughout the city by his police brethren, firefighters and citizens. His story is remarkable, to say the least, and what was equally remarkable was what the New York Rangers did before and during their game against the Toronto Maple Leafs in capping off a busy day for the McDonald family.
Family. It is what the McDonalds mean to the New York Rangers organization. Madison Square Garden is the venue where Steven McDonald and son Conor, now a NYPD Sergeant himself, would bond since his son’s childhood. As a result of the fateful July day in 1986 that left the elder McDonald paralyzed, and his undying resolve in dealing with his situation, the Rangers created an award in McDonald’s honor to the player who goes above and beyond the call of duty as voted on by the Rangers fans.
The Rangers went above and beyond in their honoring of the hero officer. Pre-game warmups saw all Rangers donning jerseys with his shield number 104, Conor and his mom dropped the first puck, a standing ovation in place of a moment of silence resonated within the building, and there was a video tribute encapsulating McDonald’s life. It was a first class production from start to finish and that’s high praise coming from a Boston Bruins fan. And if you need further proof of what the Rangers and the McDonalds mean to each other, watch the first intermission interview between Al Trautwig and Conor McDonald.
https://youtu.be/dm7wI7jndhY
It doesn’t get better than this.
Item two is just that…a steaming pile of #2. The NFL has moved today’s AFC Divisional Round in Kansas City back to an 8:15 start, due to inclement weather citing fan safety in getting to the event. Don’t believe this sh!t for a minute, coming from the league that did everything it could to cover up its liability regarding the concussion controversy among retired players. And now they’re trying to watch out for the fan? Last I checked, driving in the daylight tends to be safer than at night, regardless of adverse weather.
How about it having everything to do with television rating$? Instead of a 1:00 start – a time when people are out doing something with the family or otherwise weekend obligation – now we get a prime time game that the NFL love$. Television ratings usually spike on Sunday nights (see 60 Minutes all these years) and best of all, the NFL gets the Packers-Cowboys game as a lead-in for Pittsburgh-Kansas City. Anybody out there remember a time when fans sat through thunder, lightning, fog, snow, sleet and frigid temperatures while the game played on? So when the NFL says they are putting the best interest of the fans first, don’t be foolish enough to believe them.
Okay… Let’s switch from pontificating to prognosticating.
Cheesy Bruin’s Free NFL PICKS:
Dallas -4 over Green Bay AND Under 52.
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