10 Awesome Things That Happened This Past Weekend (4/13-4/15)

10. Jacoby Ellsbury Dislocates His Shoulder in Red Sox Home Opener
            When Jacoby Ellsbury last dealt with a significant injury early in the 2010 season, he missed roughly 85% of the games. Red Sox fans should be on edge.

9. Oklahoma City Demolishes Sacramento Kings Friday Evening

            Here’s your “Shameless Plug of the Team That No Credentials Picked in the Sportsbook Survivor Pool”, sponsored by Geico.

8. Lakers Sweep Season Series With Mavericks Without Kobe Bryant

            Much has been made of the late-season surge by the Boston Celtics (and rightfully so. Against all odds Boston is now a legitimate title contender), but what about their long-time west coast rivals? Ramon Sessions has stabilized the backcourt, and the Gasol/Bynum tandem has stepped up while Kobe Bryant deals with a shin injury.

7. Greg Biffle Wins a Snooze-Fest at Texas

            The race ended with 234 consecutive green flag laps, which was an outcome that no one other than Greg Biffle must’ve been thrilled with. 

6. Canucks Bench Roberto Luongo

            Unfortunately for Vancouver, a switch in goalies didn't prevent the number one seed in the west from going down 3-0 against the Kings. 

5. Blackhawks Cap Wild Game 2 Comeback With Overtime Goal

            NASCAR had nearly put me into a coma Saturday night, but thankfully I regained consciousness in time to see the wild ending to the Blackhawks-Coyotes game. Is there anything worse than blowing a one-goal lead with 5 seconds left in regulation and then losing in overtime? 

4. Red Sox Take 3 Out of 4 Over Tampa Bay

            It’s hard to call a series in April vital, but this one was pretty close to that for Boston. They needed to make a statement against one of their two rivals in the AL East. They’ll go for the sweep in the Patriots Day game Monday morning. 

3. Predators Win First Playoff Game at Joe Louis Arena, Lead 2-1 Over Red Wings

            Game 3 was filled with solid defense and stellar goaltending from Nashville’s Pekka Rinne. In other words, it was the exact opposite of the third game of the Penguins-Flyers series.

2. Flyers Drop 16 Goals on Penguins in Two Games, Take 3-0 Series Lead

            Thank God that birth control’s effectiveness isn’t equal to Marc-Andre Fleury’s save percentage in the playoffs so far, otherwise there would be significantly more unplanned pregnancies. The Penguins look like a team that has lost all composure, even resorting to hair pulling at the end of Sunday’s game. 

1. Bruins Regain Home Ice Advantage With Game 3 Win in Washington

            As someone supporting the Bruins, I would’ve appreciated it if they took a break from playing cardiac hockey and won 4-1 Monday evening, but I guess a Chara goal with 2 minutes left to win the game is all right.