While I am very happy that the Padres advanced out of the wild card round of the MLB playoffs, I am also pretty bummed that the Mets also managed to advance. Oh well. I hate New York. What’s a Bostonian to do?
I’m not doing real picks posts for the MLB playoffs, but I am going to write down which team I am rooting for in each series, even though I hate every team that isn’t named the Red Sox. Sucks to be us… again.
Anyway.
Cleveland and Detroit? Ugh. I hate them both. I guess I’ll root for Cleveland. I guess.
Royals and Yankees. Do I even have to state it publicly? I hate the Yankees more than I hate anything in the entire universe, known or unknown. Fucking Yankees.
Mets and Phillies. See above, and the last post from last night. Also, the Phillies was the first youth baseball team I played for, back when I was eight years old and hadn’t learned just how much life can suck for a Boston baseball fan (that was 1979 and the 2004 Red Sox were a long, long way off still). So I am rooting for the Phillies, even though I kinda hate them.
Padres and Dodgers. We all know the Dodgers are going to win, but I am backing the Padres because someday I want to move to San Diego, aka paradise on Earth, and when (not if, when) I do I will be a season ticket holder for the Padres and watch MLB games in a stadium where someone who stands six feet four inches tall can actually fit in the seats, unlike Fenway Park which was designed for people who stand five foot eight inches tall, max.
Really, after all of this, the important thing to note here is that the opening game for the Boston Bruins is next week. October 8th. Of course, Jeremy Swayman will likely still be unsigned and the Bruins will effectively be tanking as a result so it’s going to suck, but at least it’s a Boston team and I can be the homer that I excel at being.
I suppose it’s time for me to acknowledge the fact that the Red Sox season has come to an end. My father and I talked about it in depth before the season started. We both expected them to have another catastrophic last place in the division finish with piles and piles of gruesome losses. We didn’t get that, which was nice. We also didn’t get into the wildcard race, though we were on the bubble for much of the season.
No, they finished at .500 on the nose. 81 wins and 81 losses. Not even remotely good, but a third place finish in the American League East feels pretty fantastic when we expected to be solidly in fifth place when all was said and done. Of course the fucking Yankees finishing in first place took whatever happiness we may have felt at not sucking as bad as expected and flushed it right down the toilet. Fucking Yankees.
On to the playoffs and the best of three wild card round. I am not going to make any predictions. I am more trying to decide which teams to root for now that my Red Sox are out of it. I hate the Astros more than I hate the Tigers, I hate the Orioles more than I hate the Royals. Hell, there once was a time when I considered myself a Royals fan. I don’t really hate the Brewers but I loathe the friggin Mets (great, the Yankees and the Mets both made the post season. Fucking New York). Atlanta and San Diego… I am supposed to like Atlanta because the Braves franchise originated in Boston and therefore Red Sox fans are expected to root for the Braves in the NL. Not me. They’re fine and all, but if there were a National League team that I would want to back it would probably be the San Diego Padres. Why? Because if I had to move to any city in the United States that isn’t Boston, Massachusetts, it would absolutely be San Diego, California and you bet your sweet ass I would get Padres season tickets. Mostly because Red Sox season tickets cost a literal fortune and Padres season tickets do not. Also, I’ve been to their stadium and it was wonderful. Fenway Park is a magical place. Unfortunately it’s also a pit that was designed when the average human being was a ton shorter than I am. I was actually able to sit comfortably on my one visit to Petco Park. As a (former) Fenway regular, that was unbelievably amazing to me.
So I guess in the Wild Card round I am a Padres fan this year. They won the first game of their three game series last night. Game two is tonight at 8:38pm Eastern time. Here’s hoping for a sweep, folks. A Wild Card round win would match the Padres up with the Los Angeles Dodgers who will undoubtably nuke them back to the stone age (baseball-ily speaking) and send them home for the winter. Oh well. If that happens then I guess I will just root for whoever is playing against the Yankees. The fucking Yankees.
The Bruins vs Panthers series comes home to Boston for game three tonight. The Bruins took game one down in Florida, then got smoked in game two. The hope is that Pastrnak’s late third period fight in game two might be enough to wake everyone up after the bad game. Maybe that, plus a little home cooking… We need a win tonight, Bruins.
I haven’t been able to actually watch any of these games yet as we no longer have a functioning cable TV account. The games have been on ESPN and I can’t stream that network at the moment. Tonight’s game is supposed to be on Max, but we’ll probably be blacked out. Maybe I can setup a VPN somewhere?
We’re still about four and a half hours away from puck drop, but my nerves are already gearing up. The playoffs stress me out, man. I tells ya.
In other viewing news, the new season of Doctor Who hits Disney+ tonight at 7:00pm Eastern. I believe we’ll get two episodes today. Dark Matter on AppleTV+ has released two episodes and I am hooked. The premise is very similar to the recently released Constellation, except (to this point at least) Dark Matter is about 123612346147134 times better… and I liked Constellation. Here’s hoping it stays good.
Another down side for tonight’s Bruins game (pardon me for steering things back onto the target topic) is that I am totally freakin’ exhausted right now. I don’t know if I am going to be able to stay awake until the end of the game. I got six hours of sleep last night, which is usually enough to get me through the next day, but I feel like I needed 16 hours last night. Whether I am watching the game or just following the play-by-play updates on NHL.com, I will very likely be out like a light before the game ends. 9:00pm bedtimes are common for both middle school kids and middle aged red heads.
Now that’s more like it. I was doing a bunch of errands around the house and caught the Panthers goal. I was feeling that usual lack of confidence I feel whenever something happens against my team. Then I actually looked at the score and the Bruins were up. We’ll that’s okay then!
A 3-1 lead after two periods. 20 minutes to go with what I’ve heard is the scariest lead in hockey. Two goals. It’s true, a two goal lead is somehow the scariest lead. In my season ticket holding days I always some how felt less confident with a two goal lead than a one goal lead. It’s weird but it’s true.
The first round of the 2024 NHL Playoffs wrapped up last night and the second round kicked off last night as well. Worlds colliding, the universe is spinning out of control! I need to write another predictions post!
Let’s review my picks from the first round, including my coin flip picks. The Bruins won so that’s all that matters, but we’ll review anyway.
In the East…
Panthers vs Lightning. I hate them both. I picked Tampa Bay and Florida won. Pricks. I am 0/1. The coin picked Tampa Bay too so we’re both 0/1.
Bruins vs Maple Leafs. Nothing else matters. The Bruins won and all was right with the world, even though it stressed me out like crazy over the last three games. Damn, Bruins. I clearly picked the Bruins so I am 1/2. The coin toss picked the Bruins as well. We’re both 1/2.
The Rangers vs the Capitals. Damn if I don’t hate both of these teams too. The Rangers won easy. I picked the Caps because I suck at this. The coin picked the Caps too because the coin sucks at this too. We’re both 1/3.
Whalers vs Islanders. Again… hate for both teams. I picked the Whale and the coin picked the Islanders. Finally some tension here! Who won? The Whale. I am 2/4 and the coin is 1/4.
On to the West!
Stars vs Golden Knights. This is the series that ended last night with a game seven. I picked Dallas and the coin picked Vegas. Who won game seven? Dallas. I was right, the coin was wrong. I am 3/5 and the coin is 1/5.
Jets vs Avalanche. I didn’t follow a single second of this series. I picked the Jets and the Avs won. The coin picked the Avs. Oh well. I am 3/6 and the coin is 2/6 and catching up to me.
Canucks vs Predators. I went with the underdog and I was wrong wrong wrong. I picked the Preds and the Canucks won. Fortunately for the predictions competition, the coin picked the Predators too. I am 3/7 and the coin is 2/7.
Oilers vs Kings. I like the Kings. I kinda like the Oilers. I picked the Oilers. So did the coin toss. The Oilers won. That brings me up to 4/8 and the coin is 3/8.
Two important statistical notes. First, I am at 50% which is really the best I can ever hope for. More importantly I beat the coin. Oh yeah, that’s what I am talking about. I’m better than blind random luck, babie! Nice!
Now for the second round, starting in the East…
Panthers vs Bruins. I am still so intensely pissed off over the Bruins choking last year and losing to the Panthers that I may never forgive them. A second round win this year will not erase last year’s shame… but it would be a nice start. Clearly I am picking the Bruins even though the Panthers are probably favored. The coin flip is tails. The higher seed is heads and the lower seed is tails, so the coin picks the Bruins as well.
Rangers vs Whalers. This is a little tough here. Game one already happened and the Rangers won. Does that color my choice? Nope. Even though I hate New York sports teams with the fiery passion of a million burning suns, I was going to pick the Rangers all along. Last night’s game doesn’t change anything. The coin flip is tails, so it picks the Whale.
Now we move over to the West…
Stars vs Avalanche. These two have a history, don’t they? Dallas vs Colorado always sees me siding with Colorado. Thanks to Ray Bourque, I think. I am picking the Avs out of loyalty. The coin also picked Colorado. That’s three tails in a row. Only one more to go.
Canucks vs Oilers. No question this time. Oilers all the way. The coin flip is finally not tails. The coin pics Vancouver.
There you have it, the third round will be Boston vs New York which is freakin’ epic in scope. The west will be Colorado vs Edmonton. You heard it here first, hockey fans!
I asked Google Gemini about the Boston/Florida series. Specifically, I asked the following:
Who do you think will win the playoff series between the Boston Bruins and the Florida Panthers
Gemini’s response?
Predicting the winner of the Bruins-Panthers series is tough! Here’s a breakdown to help you form your own opinion:
Regular Season: The Bruins swept the season series 4-0, with two overtime victories.
Recent Form: Boston needed a hard-fought Game 7 overtime win against Toronto, while Florida swept the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games.
Last Year’s Playoffs: The Panthers pulled off a massive upset, winning Game 7 in overtime after Boston led 3-1. This adds a revenge factor for the Bruins.
While the Bruins dominated the regular season matchup, playoff hockey is a different beast. Experts are leaning slightly towards the Panthers, but both teams have strong arguments.
All thanks to the hockey gods! The Bruins didn’t blow it!
They almost did. Toronto took a 1-0 lead halfway through the third period, but Boston scored to tie it almost immediately. The game went to overtime and Pastrnak scored the game winner about two minute in.
Thank you for not blowing another three games to one series lead, thank you for advancing to the second round of the playoffs, and thank you for not making us wait all night for the overtime game winner.
Game six of the first round series between the Boston Bruins and the Toronto Maple Leafs starts in about half an hour.
I am cautiously optimistic that we aren’t on the verge of a revisit of last year’s first round Bruins choke. My team is going to come out on top tonight. We’re one game away from a spot in the second round.
Come on, my Bruins. Put those Leafs away tonight. You can do it. I feel it in my bones.
The Bruins are up 3-0 after two periods in Toronto. I’ve only managed to watch a few minutes of the game, but I saw the first goal.
It’s game four of the first round best of seven series. The Bruins lead the series two games to one. It sure would be nice to hold on to this lead and then wrap up the series at home on Tuesday.
Wait, Tuesday? Yes, there is a second two day break between games. A second consecutive two day break. Ugh.
The Bruins beat the Leafs 4-2 tonight to take a two games to one lead in their best of seven first round series.
And all was right with the world.
I did not see a single second of the game as I was out all night at an after work, work thing. I missed the game and I missed my wife even more. Blah.
I’m in the office again tomorrow. It’s the third day of a three consecutive days in the office deal. Blah.
Game four of the series doesn’t happen until Saturday and that blows. Blah. I’ll have to hope that the Red Sox can tide me over during that extra day off. They beat Cleveland tonight and that is borderline miraculous. Praise be.
Inside the Red Head's Head 