Four huge sporting events slam packed into one beautiful Saturday. Well, beautiful is all relative. I’m guessing the majority of “Honey-To-Do” lists are going unfulfilled.
All through the day I’m going to be updating this blog. What happens. What I think. What you should think. And maybe how you should bet on for the Derby. I’m just sayin’, “his mother was a mudder.”
Let your voice be heard in the comments section, and enjoy this day. They don’t come around too often…
Pittsburgh @ Washington, NHL Hockey
10:10am
They drop the puck in our Capital, as the Capitals and Penguins face off in Game One of their second round playoff series. Or should I say, Sydney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin face off in Game One. Seriously, this is all the NHL Front Office could ask for. They have a league in need of a jolt, and here are the two biggest young stars going at it…
10:14am
Great pace to start this one, and Crosby makes the first big play. Just four minutes in, Crosby takes a trailing pass between the circles and fires a wrister into the netting past Caps goalie Simeon Varlamov. 1-0 Pens
10:31am
The Caps get the equalizer as Dave Steckel is charging the net at the perfect time, and the puck goes off the post and directly to his tape. 1-1
10:40am
Once the Caps tied it up, the crowd wakes up, and they turned up the heat. After three consecutive penalties on the Pens, Ovechkin takes advantage. A.O. posts up in the right circle, and when Semin fires a shot/pass to him, he one-times it into the side netting. 2-1 Caps Just a side note, I’m spending the day with Big Fidd (my Dad) and some friends. We just got back from the store with mimosas and some eggs we got for 99 cents/a dozen. 99 cents. It just might be our day.
10:45am
What a first period! It’s fast, it’s hard-hitting, and it’s playoff hockey! If I can use a Derby pun, we’ve gotten out of the gate pretty quickly on this sports Saturday…
11:08am
The Caps come out in the 2nd period with their balls on fire… or should I say pucks? They kill a penalty to start it off, and rack up 4 scoring chances to in the first four minutes to the Pens 0.
You know, I don’t really having a rooting interest in this game, or between A.O. and Sid The Kid, but if I had to choose I’d take Ovechkin, even though Crosby leads the head-to-head series almost two-to-one. A.O. is faster and more physical, and I don’t care what any “hockey purist” says, post-goal celebrations are awesome. Especially when you’re stick is too hot to pick up. Still 2-1
11:26am
Another Capital turnover (that’s 20 now), and this time Varlamov makes that rookie mistake he was bound to make. Mark Eaton takes it from Evgeni Malkin at the blue line and puts it low past Varlamov’s glove. 2-2
11:37am
And Varlamov makes up for the mistake with THE SAVE OF THE PLAYOFFS ON CROSBY!!!! I hope you were watching that, because with a wide open net, he reached back and scooped Sid’s shot with the curve of his stick. Unbelievable! 2-2 End 2nd
12:01pm
Momentum is wearing red, and and nice 3-on-2 goes tape-to-tape-to-tape for the go-ahead goal from Tomas Fleischmann on the first shot of the period. I think the Caps fans are chanting “Cros-by, Cros-by” 3-2 Washington
12:28pm
Two minutes left…
12:32pm
And the Caps hold on for the Game One victory, 3-2.
The difference in this one has to be the power play killing unit of the Caps, and the special teams of the Pens. Pittsburgh had three power plays in the final period and only amassed four shots, none of them great scoring chances. It’s on!!!
The 135th Kentucky Derby
2:30pm
We make our way over to Los Alamitos Race Track to place our bets…
– I’ve got Friesan Fire on the mind. With I Want Revenge a morning scratch, Fire is the new favorite. And with the muddy conditions, Fire is only one of three horses in the field to win on a wet track this year.
– The crowd at Los Al is interesting. I’m going to leave it at that.
– We make our way to the betting windows, and I spot a friendly faced blue hair at the end. I tell her I have Fire to WIN, and Fire/General Quarters/Pioneerof the Nile in the TRIFECTA. I like Nile because he’s a West Coast horse, and Bob Baffert is training (always have a big name on your side). And General Quarters is what I like to call the smart bet. Instead of listening to one pundit, I look all over the internet and find the one horse that everyone seems to mention. Quarters is that horse this year.
Hold on, I think Old Kentucky Home is starting…
3:31pm
He who doubts Calvin Borel lost a bet today. It’s another shocking result and Mine That Bird is your Derby winner! Borel lived up to his AKA “Bo-Rail” and stayed on the inside on the final turn to take his second Derby in three years. I had Borel and Street Sense two years ago, and it was deja vu all over again this year as Mine That Bird weaved through traffic for the victory. It hurts to lose my bet this year, but Borel’s excitement and emotion after the race was worth the price of betting. How can you not like Calvin Borel?
Chicago @ Boston, NBA Playoffs Game 7
5:00pm
I hate to say it, but a 15-point Celtics win is not out of the realm of possibility. It’s going to take Paul Pierce or Ray Allen going 2-for-12 for the Bulls to stay close or take a lead.
5:35pm End 1st 27-23 Bulls
Ben Gordon and Derek Rose scored 20 of the first quarter points. This one will be another instant classic is those two continue to pour ’em in.
6:15pm Halftime 52-38 Celtics
The Boston Boys made a hell of a run in the second quarter, and more importantly, held the Bulls to no points in the paint. It was the perfect storm. The Celtics got hot, and the Bulls got cold. Someone like Kirk Hinrich needs to get hot to bring the Bulls back… or Salmons…
7:10pm End 3rd 78-71 Celtics
I’m trying to think of the words, but that was just a strange quarter. One mistake beget another. When one missed, the other missed. The lead levitated at 11, and with about a minute left, a bucket and a three-pointer from Gordon pulled it to within seven with. This is, and has always been, a ball game.
7:20pm 84-77 Celtics
While the boys and I throw verbal darts at Rondo and Boston, Eddie House hits and three and throws a verbal dart of his own at the Chicago bench. He gets a technical foul, and the living room cheers. Seriously (earmuffs) F*** Boston.
8:05pm FINAL 109-99 Boston
The fourth quarter was as strange as the third. Every time the Bulls pulled close, they missed a lay-up. And then Noah would get a foul, and the Bulls would foul at the other end. They got close enough just to make it worse. And what’s with the missed lay-ups?!?! Is the fight on yet?
FIGHT NIGHT: Pacquiao vs. Hatton
8:17pm
They are already chanting, “There’s Only Oneeeee Ricky Hatton, Oneeeee Ricky Hatton. Walking Along, Singing His Song, One Ricky Hatton All The Way.”
8:20pm
Sir Tom Jones sings God Save The Queen. Oh Yea!
8:25pm
Hatton: 12 pounds in 12 hours. What the heck?!?!?!
8:28pm
Hatton had his own song for the walk in. Oh no.
8:30pm
Manny just looks happy to be here. WTF?
8:45pm
I was going to go round-by-round. But now, that seems ridiculous. It was over when PacMan landed five of his first six punches. Then he didn’t miss another one. I hate to say it, by I’m not sure that was worth the Pay-Per-View money. That’s not Manny’s fault, though. Manny landed every punch he threw after getting hit. Then he went to work.
I’ll say it right now: I’ve got money on PacMan against Money May. Call me.