Posts Tagged ‘1st round’

1st round NHL predictions

Posted: April 14, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in hockey, post season, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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On the Wednesday edition of Sports Time Radio, Dan the Man made his predictions for every 1st round NHL playoff series. Too be fair, Dan made his picks before any pucks where dropped in last nights games. Here’s who Dan is going with in the 1st round.

The Detroit Red Wings over the Tampa Bay Lighting. Tampa Bay won Game 1, 1-0

The Pittsburgh Penguins over the New York Rangers. Pittsburgh won Game 1, 5-2.

The Chicago Blackhawks over the St. Louis Blues. St. Louis won Game 1, 1-0.

There are 4 Game 1’s tonight and in those series Dan went with.

The Washington Capitals over the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Florida Panthers over the New York Islanders.

The Dallas Stars over the Minnesota Wild.

The Los Angeles Kings over the San Jose Sharks.

There is also a Game 1 on Friday. For that series Dan has:

The Anaheim Ducks over the Nashville Predators.

Do you agree or disagree with Dan? Feel free to leave your comments here or you can let Dan know on the Sports Time Radio podcast Monday – Friday from 5:00 pm until 6:00 pm central live on BlogTalkRadio.com (646)-478-3753

On Twitter @SportsTimeRadio @DanZeeeMan and @Burketime

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S.T.R. 1st round grades.

Posted: May 1, 2015 by Sports Time Radio in football, sports
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#1 Jameis Winston, Quarterback, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Is Winston a franchise quarterback? and will he be under center for the Buccaneers for the next 10-15 seasons? Off field issues are there as well; a lot of questions with this pick. C-

#2 Marcus Mariota, Quarterback, Tennessee Titans. A bit of a surprise here especially after seeing what they where offered to trade out of this spot. Hasn’t taken a snap from under center in quite a few years. He’ll need some time to adjust to the pro game. C

#3 Dante Fowler Jr. Defensive Line, Jacksonville Jaquars. They needed help rushing the quarterback and Fowler should help in that area. He’s a high motor guy who’ll have to be better against the run at the pro level. B

#4 Amari Cooper, Wide Receiver, Oakland Raiders. Derek Carr needs weapons and Cooper was the best receiver in the draft. He can be the #1 receiver the Raiders don’t currently have on their roster. B+

#5 Brandon Scherff, Offensive Line, Washington Redskins. They needed to protect their quarterback; so they drafted the best offensive lineman. A pick like this might help keep Robert Griffin III healthy and that’s a key for this team. B

#6 Leonard Williams, Defensive Line, New York Jets. I doubt the Jets would’ve believed that the best defensive player would be their for them with this pick. While it wasn’t the biggest need they had’ he was to good to pass up. Maybe they’ll deal one of their veteran defensive lineman. B

#7 Kevin White, Wide Receiver, Chicago Bears. A team with one of the worst defenses in the NFL took a receiver; interesting. White was a big hit at the scouting combine, but that doesn’t always translate to the pro level. D

#8 Vic Beasley, Defensive Line, Atlanta Falcons. Atlanta did just what they needed to do. They looked at their draft board and took the best defensive player they had on it. They’ll have to decide if Beasley will be a linebacker or a pass rush end in the pros. B-

#9 Ereck Flowers, Offensive Line, New York Giants. The Giants have weapons on offense; so it was a good move on their part to try and find a guy to help protect Eli Manning. Some experts had Flowers as the top offensive lineman in this draft. B

#10 Todd Gurley, Running Back, St. Louis Rams. This was the first real surprise for me. I thought Tre Mason had proved himself last season, but the Rams felt different. Gurley was injury prone in college and will have to hope that trend doesn’t follow him into the NFL. C-

#11 Tre Waynes, Defensive Back, Minnesota Vikings. This was the only cornerback compared to Darrelle Revis and Richard Sherman. He was left in man to man situations in college against the other teams best receiver. To good of a player to pass up on here. A

#12 Danny Shelton, Defensive Line, Cleveland Browns. Cleveland hung on to their two 1st round picks and used this one to address their defensive line. Shelton is a big, big man and should fit well as a nose tackle in a 3-4 system. B-

#13 Andrus Peat, Offensive Line. New Orleans Saints. Drew Brees is getting older and it’s never a bad pick to get him more protection. Peat could develop into a left tackle for the Saints for many, many years. B

#14 DeVante Parker, Wide Receiver, Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins have revamped their receiving core this off season and Parker is the next piece to that. Parker did miss some time last season with a knee injury, but was a good choice here for Miami. B

#15 Melvin Gordon, Running Back, San Diego Chargers. San Diego gave up the #17 pick along with the #117th pick (4th round) along with a 2016 5th round pick to move up 2 spots to draft Gordon. With Gurley gone San Diego felt the need to move up and get their guy, but they gave up quite a bit to do that. C

#16 Kevin Johnson, Cornerback, Houston Texans. Johnson is a taller defensive back and that’s a trend NFL teams look for. A solid cover guy with good speed and it fit the Texans need with some rumor that they may be looking to deal one of their veteran defensive backs. C+

#17 Arik Armstead, Defensive Line, San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers moved back two spots and still got the defensive lineman they wanted. It was a good deal for the 49ers and this pick should add to their defense that was weakened by retirements. B+

#18 Marcus Peters, Defensive Back, Kansas City Chiefs. Was this pick some insurance if Eric Berry isn;t ready to go at the start of the season. I think everyone had the Chiefs taking a wide receiver here, but instead the shore up the defensive backfield. C

#19 Cameron Erving, Offensive Line, Cleveland Browns. It was the defensive line help with the first #1 now the Browns add to the offensive line here. Erving is the utility man of offensive lineman as he can play any position along the line. B-

#20 Nelson Agholor, Wide Receiver, Philadelphia Eagles. Since the Eagles couldn’t trade up to get Mariota they selected a replacement for the wide receiver they lost in free agency. They could’ve went defense here, but this pick fits a need for them. C

#21 Cedric Ogbuehi, Offensive Line, Cincinnati Bengals. Another team that was thought to be going wide receiver, but instead decided to help protect their quarterback. Ogbuehi had a knee injury last season and as long as he’s over that he has a chance to be  in the NFL a long time. C+

#22 Bud Dupree, Linebacker, Pittsburgh Steelers. Some experts had Dupree as the best pass rushing linebacker in this draft and I bet the Steelers where thrilled when he was there when their pick came up. They need defensive help and they found it. A

#23 Shane Ray, Linebacker, Denver Broncos. Denver traded the 28th pick, the 143rd pick (5th round) in this draft. A 5th round pick in 2016 and veteran offensive lineman Manny Ramirez to move up 5 spots to draft Ray. I’ve heard Ray being compared to Von Miller, but remember he couldn’t get on the field in college as a junior because of Michael Sam. C

#24 D.J. Humphries, Offensive Line, Arizona Cardinals. Arizona’s downward spiral stared when Carson Palmer got hurt. They added a player to help protect him, but there is some question if they took the best offensive lineman on the board. D+

#25 Shaq Thompson, Linebacker, Carolina Panthers. This may have been the first reach in the 1st round. Thompson has shown to be a great athlete, but could Carolina have gotten him in the 2nd round. He does however fit their defensive system. C-

#26 Breshad Perriman, Wide Receiver, Baltimore Ravens. With Torrey Smith gone in free agency this was the pick a lot of experts expected Baltimore to make. Perriman did have some issues with dropped balls last season, but he’ll get to work with Steve Smith as he develops. C

#27 Byron Jones, Defensive Back, Dallas Cowboys. You have to think the Cowboys were hoping that one of the running backs would fall to this pick, but they did a smart thing and filled a need here. The Cowboys defense was better than expected last season and Jones will have to help them continue that this season. C+

#28 Laken Tomlinson, Offensive Line, Detroit Lions. The Lions may have been another team looking for a running back to fall and it was a bit of a surprise they took a offensive lineman after they got one in the deal to move back to this pick. There was a lot of talk they would take a defensive lineman here, but they didn’t. B

#29 Phillip Dorsett, Wide Receiver, Indianapolis Colts. I’m guessing no one had this pick right. Dorsett will factor into the return game right away and if he struggles as a receiver the Colts can give him time to learn. He is a true speed, stretch the field receiver. C-

#30 Damarious Randall, Defensive Back, Green Bay Packers. You could almost call Randall a cover safety. He was left to play quite a bit of man to man in college and that will be a big plus at the pro level. The Packers lost a lot in the defensive backfield this off season; so this was a logical pick. B

#31 Stephone Anthony, Linebacker, New Orleans Saints. This was the first inside linebacker to come off the board. This was also the Saints second 1st round pick. This is the pick they acquired in the Jimmy Graham trade. Anthony is a faster then most players at his position and should help the Saints defense right out of the gate. B

#32 Malcom Brown, Defensive Line, New England Patriots. I’m always surprised when the Patriots keep a 1st round pick; especially when it’s the last one of the round. They have to find a way to replace Vince Wolfork and Brown has the size New England likes to play that spot. B+

NFL Draft 2010!

Posted: April 27, 2015 by Sports Time Radio in football, sports
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The NFL draft is Thursday and we always take a look back 5 years to see who teams selected then. You’ll hear coaches and front office people say it takes 5 years to know if a draft was good; so let’s look and see who’s good and who’s not.

The St. Louis Rams had the 1st pick and they took Sam Bradford, Quarterback, Oklahoma. I think it’s safe to say this pick was a bust for the Rams. In 5 seasons with the Rams Bradford only played in 49 games because of injuries. He went 18-30-1 in those games and the Rams dealt him this off season to the Philadelphia Eagles.

With the 2nd pick the Detroit Lions took Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska. Suh has made 4 Pro Bowls and 3 first team All-Pro selections in his 5 seasons. He has 36 career sacks and 181 tackles. While those aren’t huge numbers remember that he’s a defensive tackle not a push rushing end. Suh is the best defensive tackle in the NFL and the Miami Dolphins pais him like that this off season. Suh signed for 6 years and $114,375,000 million dollars with almost $60 million dollars guaranteed.

At #3 the Tampa bay Buccaneers selected Gerald McCoy, DT, Oklahoma. McCoy has been voted to 3 Pro Bowls and 1 All-Pro team so far. He has missed a few games with injury issues, but still has 27 career sacks and 117 tackles. McCoy has been a good pick for Tampa Bay and he needs to stay healthy for them.

With the 4th pick the Washington Redskins picked Trent Williams, OT, Oklahoma. Williams was the 3rd Oklahoma player taken in the first 4 picks. Williams has been voted to the Pro Bowl the last 3 seasons. Williams has made 70 out of a possible 80 starts since being drafted. Left tackles always go high in drafts and Williams has been solid for Washington.

The Kansas City Chiefs had the 5th pick and took Eric Berry, Safety, Tennessee. Even though Berry has missed quite a bit of time with injuries and last season dealing with Hodgkin lymphoma he has still contributed when he’s on the field. Berry has played in 54 games and is a 3 time Pro Bowler and has made 1 All-Pro team. Berry has 8 career interceptions and has returned 3 for touchdowns. He has 5 1/2 career sacks and 250 tackles.

At #6 the Seattle Seahawks selected Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State. Due to injuries Okung has never played a full season for Seattle. He’s played in and started 59 out of a possible 80 games over 5 seasons. Okung has been voted to 1 Pro Bowl. Another building block left tackle who needs to stay healthy for his team.

With the 7th pick the Cleveland Browns took Joe Haden, Cornerback, Florida. Haden has made back to back Pro Bowl teams in 2013 and 14. He has 16 career interceptions and has returned 1 for a touchdown plus 2 sacks and 244 tackles. Haden has played in 72 career games and has started 63 of them. Haden is considered a shutdown corner for the Browns.

The Oakland Raiders had the 8th pick and selected Rolando McClain, Linebacker, Alabama. This pick didn’t work out for the Raiders and McClain actually missed the entire 2013 season because he was retired. He did return in 2014 with the Dallas Cowboys. McClain has 7 1/2 career sacks and 242 tackles along with 3 career interceptions. McClain was resigned by the Cowboys; so we’ll see how he does in 2015.

At #9 the Buffalo Bills took the first running back by selecting C.J. Spiller from Clemson. Spiller did make a Pro Bowl for the Bills, but never did turn into the elite type of running back Buffalo had hoped for. Spiller played in 70 games, but only started 36 of them. He did average 5.0 yards per carry and caught 204 passes for Buffalo. Spiller has 20 career touchdowns, 12 rushing, 6 receiving and 2 on kickoff returns. Spiller signed with the New Orleans Saints this off season.

With the 10th pick the Jacksonville Jaquars selected Tyson Alualu, DT, California. Since being drafted Alualu has played in all 80 games for Jacksonville and until last season had started everyone. He has 13 career sacks and 131 tackles and has played both defensive end spots and inside at defensive tackle for the Jaquars.

The San Francisco 49ers had the 11th pick and used it to take Anthony Davis, OT, Rutgers. Since being drafted Davis has been San Francisco’s right tackle. Until he was injured last season Davis had started every game since being drafted. Davis missed 9 games last season due to injury, but has started the other 71 games for San Francisco.

At #12 the San Diego Chargers selected Ryan Matthews, Running Back, Fresno State. Matthews has pretty much been the poster boy for injury prone in his career. Matthews has played in 63 games out of a possible 80 and has started 53 of them. Matthews had two 1000 yards seasons and made 1 Pro Bowl. He has 4061 career rushing yards and 23 touchdowns along with 146 receptions, 1110 yards and 1 touchdown. Matthews signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as a free agent this off season.

With the 13th pick the Philadelphia Eagles took Brandon Graham, DE, Michigan. Graham’s career started off with some injuries, but he has played in every game the last 3 seasons. Graham is considered a pass rush specialist and has 17 career sacks to go along with 99 tackles. As a stand up outside linebacker last season he tied his career high in sacks with 5 1/2.

The Seattle Seahawks had the 14th pick; their 2nd of this round and took Earl Thomas, Safety, Texas. Thomas is a 4 time Pro Bowler and 3 time All-Pro pick so far. He is considered one of the top Safeties in the game. Thomas has played in and started all 80 games since being drafted. Thomas has 16 career interceptions and has returned 1 for a touchdown. Thomas also has 341 career tackles.

At #15 the New York Giants selected Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, South Florida. Pierre-Paul has played in 75 out of a possible 80 games since being drafted and has started 49 games. He has 42 career sacks with a career high of 16 1/2 coming in 2011. Pierre-Paul also has 2 interceptions and they’ve both been returned for touchdowns. He is a 2 time Pro Bowl and has made 1 All-Pro team.

With the 16th pick the Tennessee Titans took Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia Tech. The Titans where hoping for a double digit sack guy when they drafted Morgan and while he’s never had that many sacks in a season he did tie his carrer high last season getting 6 1/2 sacks. He has 23 career sacks and 132 career tackles. Morgan has played in 66 games for Tennessee starting 56 of them.

 The San Francisco 49ers had the 17th pick and selected Mike Iupati, OG, Idaho. This was the 49ers second 1st round pick and also their second offensive lineman drafted. Iupati has been to 3 Pro Bowls and has made 1 All-Pro team. Iupati has played in and started 75 out of a possible 80 games for San Francisco since being drafted. 

At #18 the Pittsburgh Steelers selected Maurkice Pouncey, C, Florida. Pouncey has made 4 Pro Bowls and has been voted to 2 All-Pro teams. His only non Pro Bowl season was 2013 when he only played in 1 game due to injury. Pouncey has played in and started 62 games since being drafted by Pittsburgh.

With the 19th pick the Atlanta falcons picked Sean Weatherspoon, Linebacker, Missouri. Weatherspoon has played in just 47 games since being drafted due to injuries. He did start 41 of those games, but he didn’t play all last season because he was injured. Weatherspoon has 8 career sacks and 216 tackles; he also has 2 career interceptions and returned 1 for a touchdown.

The Houston Texans had the 20th pick and they took Kareem Jackson, Conerback, Alabama. Jackson has played in 74 games for Houston starting 71 of them. He has 10 career interceptions with 1 being returned for a touchdown. Jackson also has 241 career tackles. 

At #21 the Cincinnati Bengals selected Jermaine Gresham, Tight End, Oklahoma. Gresham has made 2 Pro Bowls, but I’m not sure he’s turned into the type of game breaking tight end the Bengals thought he would. Gresham has played in 74 games; starting 67 of them. He has 280 career receptions and has caught 24 touchdown passes. 

With the 22nd pick the Denver Broncos took Demaryius Thomas, Wide Receiver, Georgia Tech. Thomas has made the last 3 Pro Bowls and has turned into one of the top receiving threats in the NFL. He had his first 100 catch season last season grabbing 111 passes. He has also caught double digit touchdown passes the last 3 seasons along with going over 1000 yards receiving. Thomas has 351 career receptions, 5317 career yards and 41 career touchdowns.

The Green Bay Packers had the 23rd pick and they selected  Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa. Bulaga has battled injuries his entire career and hasn’t played a full season since his rookie year. He missed all of the 2013 season due to injury. Bulaga has played in just 52 out of a possible 80 games since being drafted and has started 48 of those games.

At #24 the Dallas Cowboys picked Dez Bryant, Wide Receiver, Oklahoma State. There where some issues with Bryant coming out of college; so he fell in this draft and the Cowboys where the team that benefited from that. Bryant has been a very good pro making the Pro Bowl and last 2 seasons and the All-Pro team last season. Bryant led the NFL in receiving touchdowns last season with 16. Bryant has 381 career receptions, 5424 career yards and 56 career touchdowns. Bryant also returned 2 kickoffs for touchdowns as a rookie.

With the 25th pick the Denver Broncos selected Tim Tebow, Quarterback, Florida. What can you say about Tebow. He started 16 games in his NFL career; so far. Remember he was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles this off season to a 1 year deal. He threw 17 touchdown passes and 9 interceptions in his career. Tebow did rush for 12 touchdowns during his career and even took the Broncos to the playoffs in 2011.

The Arizona Cardinals used the 26th pick on Dan Williams, DT, Tennessee. Williams didn’t turn into the run stopper the Cardinals had hoped he would, but he does have 113 career tackles and 2 sacks. Williams has missed some time due to injuries as he’s played in 70 of a possible 80 games and has started 40 of those games.

At #27 the New England Patriots selected Devin McCourty, Conerback, Rutgers. McCourty made the Pro Bowl as a rookie and even though he hasn’t been back he’s still a important member of the Super Bowl champions defense. McCourty has played in and started 77 out of 80 games since New England drafted him. He has 17 career interceptions, 303 career tackles and 1 career sack.

With the 28th pick the Miami Dolphins picked  Jared Odrick, DT, Penn State. Odrick has played in 65 games for the Dolphins starting 41 of them. He was their starter for all 16 games last season. He has a career 16 1/2 sacks and 104 tackles and even has 1 interception. Odrick has played 3 different spots for the Dolphins. He’s been inside at Defensive tackle, on the outside as an end and even played some linebacker for Miami.

The New York Jets had the 29th pick and they used it to take Kyle Wilson, Conerback, Boise State. Wilson has played in all 80 games since being drafted, but he’s started just 28 of those games. Wilson has been used mostly in nickel and dime coverage. He has 3 career interceptions to go along with 139 tackles and even recorded his 1st career sack last season.

At #30 the Detroit Lions selected Jahvid Best, Running Back, California. Best only played in 22 games because of concussion issues. He had 945 career rushing yards with 6 touchdowns as well as 85 career receptions for 774 yards and 3 receiving touchdowns. 

With the 31st pick the Indianapolis Colts selected Jerry Hughes, DE, TCU. Hughes spent just 3 seasons with the Colts before moving to the Buffalo Bills. Hughes has had back to back seasons of 10 sacks and has 25 for his career. Sadly for Indianapolis those numbers cane with the Bills. Hughes has played in 72 games; starting 24 of them and again sadly for the Colts 16 of those starts came with Buffalo last season.

The New Orleans Saints had the 32nd and last pick of the 1st round. New Orleans used that pick to take Patrick Robinson, Conerback, Florida State. Robinson has played in 58 of 80 games in his career; starting 33 of those games. He has 9 career interceptions with 1 being returned for a touchdown. Robinson has made 150 career tackles and has 1 sack in his career.

Here are some other names you might know from this draft. In the 6th round with pick #195 the Steelers took Antonio Brown. Also in the 6th round the Carolina Panthers used pick #175 on Greg Hardy. In the 5th round with pick #133 the Seahawks took  Kam Chancellor. Also in the 5th round the Bengals found Geno Atkins with the 120th pick.

How did your team ed up doing in the 2010 draft?

Listen to the Sports Time Radio podcast at http://www.BlogTalkRadio.com and follow me on Twitter @burketime

Let’s call it Wednesday

Posted: April 15, 2015 by Sports Time Radio in basketball, football, hockey, sports
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The NFL draft is just 15 days away. Remember it starts on Thursday now and runs through Sunday. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have the #1 pick and they should take a quarterback. It still appears that they’re leaning towards Jameis Winston the former Florida State quarterback. There has been a couple of reports that Tampa Bay may go with the Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota over Winston, but I think they’ll take Winston #1. While there is no question at all that Tampa Bay is keeping and using there pick the same can’t be said about the #2 pick in the draft. That #2 pick belongs to the Tennessee Titans and the  rumors are beginning to fly on who wants that pick and what they might give up to get it. Let’s just work our way down the draft order and try to cover who might move up to #2. The New York Jets have the #6 pick and I heard a report that the Jets would deal that pick along with a 2nd rounder and a couple of their defensive players to move up to the 2nd pick. The Chicago Bears have the #7 pick and there have been reports that the Bears would trade that pick along with quarterback Jay Cutler and a 3rd round draft pick to move up to the 2nd pick. The St. Louis Rams have been mentioned, but I haven’t seen any reports on what the Rams might have to give up to move up to #2 in the draft. The Rams own the #10 pick in the 1st round, but did acquire Nick Foles from the Philadelphia Eagles this off season; so I don’t know why they’d be interested in moving up to #2. The Cleveland Browns have two 1st round picks; the 12th and the 19th pick. I heard a report that the Browns might be willing to deal those two 1st round picks plus a 2nd round pick in 2016 too move up to #2. The San Diego Chargers have the 17th pick in the 1st round and I heard yesterday that Phillip Rivers may be on the trading block. You’d guess the Chargers would have to send Rivers, the 17th pick and maybe another draft pick to Tennessee if they wanted to move up to #2. Then we get to the Eagles who have the 20th pick in the 1st round, but I heard a report that Chip Kelly may be willing to give up 3 1st round draft picks to move up to #2. That’s quite a few rumors and if Tennessee is interested in trading the #2 pick it doesn’t look like they’ll have any trouble finding a trade partner. I guess the question would then become are Winston or Mariota worth that price tag and would they turn into the franchise quarterback that a team would be moving up to get. There is good reason not to be sold on either of these guys; so I’m not at all sure why a team would give up that abundance of picks to move up to get one of these guys. Instead of dealing away a boat load of draft picks to move up teams might be better off sitting tight and see if a quarterback like Brett Hundley from UCLA, Bryce Petty from Baylor, or Garrett Grayson from Colorado State is your draft board come the 2nd or 3rd round. I’ve even heard some draft experts say that Sean Mannion out of Oregon State may turn into a good pro quarterback and he should be on the most teams draft boards in the 4th or 5th round. I guess if your advanced scouting has Winston and Mariota as franchise type quarterbacks then it would make sense to give up the draft picks you’d have to give up to move up in the draft and get your guy. I actually think the team that doesn’t make that deal might be just as well off drafting a quarterback in one of the later rounds. Whatever happens come April 30th the big winner here is Tennessee.

There are 14 games on the NBA schedule tonight and it’s also the last day of the regular season. Now 14 of the 16 playoff spots are locked up, but there are 4 teams in contention for those last 2 playoff spots. In the Eastern conference the Indiana Pacers are 38-43 and hold a 1 game lead over the Brooklyn Nets who are 37-44. Indiana won 99-95 over the Washington Wizards last night in double overtime and now they have to turn around and play Memphis Grizzlies. The Nets have an earlier game against the Orlando Magic; so the Pacers will know that outcome before they take the court tonight. Of course the team that ends up with the 8th seed draws the Atlanta hawks in the 1st round of the playoffs. Over in the Western conference it’s the New Orleans Pelicans who are holding onto the 8th spot right now. New Orleans and the Oklahoma City Thunder have the same record of 44-37, but New Orleans owns the tiebreaker and would take the 8th seed if both teams end the season with the same record. Oklahoma City is playing the Minnesota Timberwolves tonight. The Timberwolves have the worst record in the NBA at 16-66; so it’s a game Oklahoma City should win. New Orleans on the other hand is matched up against the defending champion San Antonio Spurs tonight. San Antonio is currently in the 3rd spot in the Western conference and you have to wonder if it is important to them to even move up to the 2nd spot. There is a chance that San Antonio will rest it’s starters and just get ready for the playoffs. The Oklahoma City and New Orleans games tip off at the same time; so neither team will know the outcome of the others game until they’re done. Should make for an interesting night of basketball for some NBA teams.

The NHL playoffs get started tonight (Wednesday) with 4 games on the ice. Here’s the match ups for tonight it’s the  Montreal Canadiens vs. the Ottawa Senators. The New York Islanders vs. the Washington Capitals. The Chicago Blackhawks vs. the Nashville Predators and the Calgary Flames vs. the Vancouver Canucks. The rest of the series get started tomorrow (Thursday with the Pittsburgh Penguins vs. the New York Rangers. The Detroit Red Wings vs. the Tampa Bay Lighting. The Winnipeg Jets vs. the Anaheim Ducks and the Minnesota Wild vs. the St. Louis Blues. The NHL always seems to have some upsets in the 1st round; so which top seeds may fall? While my predictions haven’t been all that great as of late I’m going to give it another shot here. I’ll take the Tampa Bay Lighting in the Eastern conference and even though it’s a huge homer pick I’ll take the Chicago Blackhawks out of the Western conference. Who’s going to hoist Lord Stanley’s cup at the end of the playoffs well I have to go with the Blackhawks to bring the cup bacl to Chicago.

I’m the Big Jack and you can follow me on Twitter @burketime

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