"The Stack" 5-2-17
LeBron James had 35 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors 116-105.
The Stack is back on this Tuesday and apart from some playoff talk, there really isn’t a whole lot to discuss. We have some stuff to get to though so let’s get right to it and see what’s in “the stack” for today, Tuesday, May 2nd:
Cavs, Rockets race out to 1-0 series leads
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets did not hold back in jumping out to a 1-0 series lead over the Toronto Raptors and San Antonio Spurs respectively. The Cavaliers roared ahead of the Raptors at the end of the second quarter after the Raptors had gotten within five and carried that over to the third quarter. By the time the fourth quarter started, the Cavs were up by 22 and LeBron James had done such a good job that he grabbed a beer and faked like he was going to drink it. James finished with 35 points. The Raptors once again failed on the road in the playoffs in Cleveland. It wasn’t great last year when the two teams met in the eastern conference finals and it appears that Toronto will not put up much resistance playing in Cleveland again this year. Things can change, but at this point, the Cavs look dominant.
The Spurs looked a little shaky in their first round series with the Memphis Grizzlies. No one apart from Kawhi Leonard played well until Tony Parker scored 26 points in game six. Perhaps those who were nervous about the team feel vindicated after the Rockets crushed the Spurs 126-99. They were up by 30 points at the half and canned 22 three point shots for the game. All thirteen players who entered the game scored at least one point. This is not good news for the Spurs. Leonard scored only 21 points and no one else helped pick up the slack. It is only one game, but this Rockets team is loaded with scorers and if the Spurs can’t play better defensively this is going to be a quick series.
Capitals give up lead late, rally to beat Penguins
The Washington Capitals are breathing a sigh of relief today after they gave up a 2-0 lead with two minutes and change to go in game three against the Pittsburgh Penguins only to come back and win in overtime 3-2 on David Shattenkirk’s first goal of the playoffs. The Capitals were up 1-0 in the second period and looked like they had a for sure goal to put them up 2-0 but Marc Andre-Fleury was able to stop it before another Penguins player came in to push it back before it crossed the line. The Capitals thought they had scored for sure. They were feeling better about themselves when they had an odd man break and Evgeny Kuznetsov waited patiently for Andre-Fleury to go low and put it up high to give the Capitals a 2-0 lead. The Penguins pulled their goalie and went to work in the final three minutes. First it was Evgeni Malkin who scored with just under two minutes left and then 48 seconds later Justin Schultz’s shot ricochet off of two Capitals players and past Braden Holtby to tie the game. The fans were going nuts. Here was another Capitals meltdown all over again. And if they had lost this game it would have been even worse knowing they lost without having to go against Sidney Crosby who left the game in the first period after being cross-checked by Matt Niskanen who would receive a five minute major and game misconduct. Crosby’s status is very much up in the air for game four and maybe longer. The Capitals won on Shattenkirk’s power play goal three minutes into overtime and the Capitals escaped 3-2 and now trail in the series 2-1. Guessing there will be some bad blood for the Penguins in game four.
Vikings don’t pick up Teddy Bridgewater’s option
Much has been made in recent days about the Minnesota Vikings not picking up the fifth year option on quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s rookie deal. The Vikings made that move official on Monday. It’s the right decision by the team. They of course will remain optimistic that Bridgewater can come back from his gruesome and horrific injury. But with the timetable very uncertain and his status up in the air for this season why would the Vikings commit eleven million dollars to Bridgewater? They can always negotiate another deal with Bridgewater and sign him. With the amount of faith they have shown with him, they want him on the team, but the money that they would use on Bridgewater’s option can be used to help make the team better. Spend it on the offensive line. Spend it on wide receivers. The Vikings will keep Bridgewater if he healthy. Them not picking an option should not cause an over-reaction.
Misc. headlines
The New York Mets situation with pitcher Noah Syndergaard is interesting. It seems like he will be out until the All-Star game for not getting an MRI done after he was scratched from his Thursday start with arm soreness. The Mets wanted him to get an MRI done, but he declined and now he has a small lat tear and had to leave on Sunday against the Washington Nationals. I get that Syndergaard says he knows his body best, but doesn’t he want a monster contract worth over $200 million? Now his health and his decision making is very much in question. And if you’re the Mets, he’s your ace. Make sure that your guy is healthy. It’s not a good situation overall.
Finally, how cool is that video of the Edmonton Oilers fans singing the American national anthem after the microphone cut out for the singer? Awesome! Oh Canada you have outdone yourselves.
Tuesday’s playoff schedule
NBA
Washington Wizards @ Boston Celtics 8 PM ET TNT (Celtics lead series 1-0)
Utah Jazz @ Golden State Warriors 10:30 PM ET TNT (Game 1)
NHL
Ottawa Senators @ New York Rangers 7 PM ET NBCSN (Senators lead series 2-0)
St. Louis Blues @ Nashville Predators 9:30 PM ET NBCSN (Predators lead series 2-1)
Coming up Wednesday: NBA and NHL Playoff reaction plus other top stories in sports
