BLOOMINGBURG, NY – My mind is cluttered and that’s never beneficial if you have to get thoughts out to post something for this website. So it’s a bit after three in the afternoon and I’m watching the late Bob Ross and his narcoleptic voice is making me feel somewhat better. Man, that guy could control a paint brush with simplicity and create some busy landscapes…
New York State COVID numbers are declining compared to the rest of the nation, yet the scheduled Subway Series between the local ball clubs has been shelved due to a few Mets positive cootie tests. Typical Mets crap since something positive is actually negative. It’s a contradiction no matter how one looks at it and leaves me shaking my head at the absurdity of it all.
And is anybody affiliated with MTM paying attention to the NBA other than Buddy Diaz?
NFL Teams are going through “training camp” without scrimmages and preseason games. So what are they actually training for? The first month of the season is set to be sloppy exhibition games that will count in the standings, similar to those strike games in 1987 – this time with first-string names. Players will be dropping like flies once the September opener kicks off. There will be plenty of cramping (menstrual, mental and other variety), hammies and fumbleitis.
The sports landscape has been saved by none other than what frequent opinion-dropper JGClancy and others call a niche sport… HOCKEY! While things have pretty much gone according to Hoyle in these playoffs, the games and series have been entertaining nonetheless. As the final eight teams roll on to the next round I’m offering iron clad predictions for the four remaining series:
Out West it’s unimaginable that any team – including the Las Vegas Golden Knights – want a part of the Vancouver Canucks. They have a good combination of skilled forwards, grit, nastiness and goaltending. The ‘Nucks only semblance of an Achilles heel is their youth and while young teams fared well in the early stages of the puck restart, experience will win out in this series. It’s going six or seven with LV getting tested before their run to the Conference Finals against Colorado… Yes, I tipped my hand here because the speedy Avalanche will make short work of the over-matched Dallas Stars, who simply will not keep pace offensively despite better defense and goaltending.
The East is predictable as well. The Islanders look complete. Barry Trotz is as good as they come behind the bench while his counterpart Alain Vigneault is no slouch but has trouble taking his team to that last victory. Goaltending is almost a wash as well but the Flyers’ Carter Hart showed some warts against a pedestrian yet grinding Montreal offense and the Islanders have highend, top-6 forward talent, along with bottom-6 muckers, combining to make what will be an easy six game series win.
Tampa Bay versus Boston sounds better than it looks. The Lightning added pieces in the offseason and at the deadline that make them more formidable for playoff hockey after their early exit last year. The goaltending is lightyears better, as Jaro Halak was [oddly enough] shitting himself in posting three straight W’s in closing out the Hurricanes. The Bruins had trouble exiting the defensive zone against Carolina and should that continue, you’re looking at a five game TB series win for all you haters.
Leave your two cents below and come back tomorrow for a regular Rembrandt, Short Matt.
Happy painting and god bless, my friends.
