The 2014 National Hockey League Stanley Cup Playoffs: New Alignment Edition

When the National Hockey League (NHL) owners and players approved the plans to realign the Eastern and Western conferences, there were obvious changes. The conferences were reformed into two divisions (down from three). Western teams were moved into the East for more accurate geographical location, i.e. Columbus Blue Jackets moved to the Eastern Conference along with the Detroit Red Wings. The moves created an interesting arrangement as the Atlantic and Metropolitan divisions now had one more team in their set-up than the Central and Pacific segments of the NHL.

The alignment radically affected rivalries and the Stanley Cup Playoff picture. In Round 1, match-ups are now arranged based on this new system: For each conference, there are two confrontations per division as the top three teams are automatically in with the 4^th ranked team as a wild card entrant thrown in to balance the field. This seems pretty simple, but it is not as easy as saying “number 1 in the conference is set to face the 8^th ranked team”.

The Western Conference set-up:

Central Division

#1 – Colorado Avalanche

#4(Wild Card-No Pun Intended)-Minnesota Wild

#2-St. Louis Blues

#3-Chicago Blackhawks

Pacific Division

#1 and Western Conference Champions-Anaheim Ducks

# 4-Dallas Stars

#2-San Jose Sharks

#3-Los Angeles Kings

The Eastern Conference Stanley Cup Round 1 playoff picture:

Atlantic Division

#1, President’s Trophy winner, and Eastern Conference Champions-Boston Bruins

#4-Detroit Red Wings

#2-Tampa Bay Lightning

#3-Montreal Canadiens

Metropolitan Division

#1-Pittsburgh Penguins

#4-Columbus Blue Jackets

#2-New York Rangers

#3-Philadelphia Flyers

Based on these brackets, here are some facts to consider: 1-the three California teams are in the playoffs while the lone Canadian presence in the round is Montreal; 2- Some rivalries remain intact, which makes for the normal passionate drive from players and fans alike (see New York Rangers versus Philadelphia Flyers); 3-Round 1 marks the playoff return of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Round 1 commences Wednesday April 16^th, 2014.

*I want to give credit to NHL.com for the Round 1 bracket information.

21-1 but Always #1: WWE's The Undertaker

Last week at Wrestlemania 30, there was a moment you could hear a pin drop in the Mercedes Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. Time would stand still. Fans would stare blankly at the ring with the sense of collective shock. The time had come for the unthinkable and no one really knew how to react, including the ringside announcers. It was eerie to say the least.

The adversary had not realized what he had just done. There was no bell rung to announce his victory. Timekeeper could not believe his eyes enough to react. On this rare occasion, even Paul Heyman was at a loss for words.

It had finally happened. The Undertaker’s 21-0 streak at Wrestlemania had come to an end. Brock Lesnar, the challenger, had done something Shawn Michaels, Triple H, and countless others have tried to do since Wrestlemania 7. Lesnar had bested the legendary “Phenom” on the WWE’s grandest stage of them all. He was stone-faced in his resolve and had Paul Heyman to help him along the way. Yet, the enormity of the situation did not seem to hit him as it had the crowd.

While Brock and Heyman celebrated, The Undertaker slowly rose from the mat. Standing up, he surveyed the scene around him. Everyone in the arena had gotten up from their chairs to salute him. Chants of “Thank you, Taker” overwhelmed the Mercedes Benz Superdome. If there was any emotion on his face, The Undertaker did not let it show. He could see the “21-1” emblazoned in purple lightning above him and on the screens atop the stage. As he slowly made his way back to the locker room area, he rarely looked back at those who intently watched him walk away.

What’s next for The Undertaker? That is uncertain. All that is known is that one of sports entertainment’s greatest records was broken.  

The Undertaker in the Ring( Photo from Royal Rumble 2008)

Premiere Event: “Captain America” Double Feature

April 3^rd, 2014-New York, NY-The AMC Loews 34^th Street 14 theater was sold out for the "Captain America" Double Feature.  The event would start with a showing of “Captain America: The First Avenger” followed by the premiere of “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”. I was fortunate enough to get tickets to the event.   

This double feature was worth the wait. By 4:00pm, fans were lined up inside the box office lobby waiting to receive a “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” film poster and limited edition lanyard that had the title superhero’s shield on the front and the event information on the back. These were Marvel fans genuinely looking forward to the night, some even coming in costume. I could hear the animated conversations from my spot toward the back of the line, and knew I was just as amped as they were.

At 4:45pm, the line began to move as tickets were scanned. The promotional items were handed out and each person was given the 3D glasses required to enjoy the movie experience. The theater was packed as people looked for the best seat. From my seat in the fourth row center, 5:30pm could not come soon enough.

The night started with Captain America trivia with the winner receiving either a shirt or special 3D glasses.  “Captain America: The First Avenger” was shown to the audience, who cheered, laughed and applauded every moment as if this was the film debuting in theaters that night. As an observer, the reactions to the action sequences were fun to listen to. Being a fan of Marvel, I really enjoyed catching up on Captain America’s story as well as the scene at the end of the credits that introduced the initial trailer for the “The Avengers”.   

After a half-hour break between movies, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” premiered at 8:00pm. This film was absolutely amazing and had the attention of those in attendance that night. I could not even begin to describe what made this movie work as well as it did. That being said, I would not wish to spoil it for anyone who plans on seeing it this weekend. All I can really say is just see it because you will be in for an amazing experience.

2014 Oscar Observations

The Academy Awards, or Oscars, are something I look forward to every year. I love movies and enjoy seeing what gets nominated. Here’s what I noticed watching this year’s ceremony.

Wizard of Oz’s 75^th Anniversary Tribute (In High Definition): Judy Garland’s children, including Liza Minnelli, were on hand to honor the 75^th anniversary of the film The Wizard of Oz. Whoopi Goldberg even wore ruby red sequined heels when introducing singer Alecia “Pink” Moore. Pink’s amazing rendition of “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” was a highlight of the evening.

Introducing Idina Menzel?: Idina Menzel’s performance of Best Song winner “Let It Go”(from Frozen) was stunning as was the backdrop of Swarovski crystals that adorned the stage behind her. Her voice made it possible to almost forget John Travolta’s mispronunciation of her name when he called her “Adele Dazeem”.  

Gravity Wins Big: As foretold, Gravity won its fair share of Oscars: Its achievements in sound mixing and sound editing were noticed as were its visual effects… The cinematographers and editing teams received Oscars…Alfonso Cuaron won the Best Director award for his work on the space thriller.

A Night of Predictability: The Oscar prognosticators usually seem to know who will leave with the famed gold statue. This night, the Academy seemed to agree with them:  Cate Blanchett accepted the Best Actress award for her role in Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine…The Supporting Actress award went to 12 Years a Slave’s Lupita Nyong’o.

The Artistic Gatsby: The Great Gatsby was honored for its attention to detail. Catherine Martin received the award for the film’s costume design and accepted a second for being one half of the production design team.   

Oscar Pizza Party: Viewers at home were not the only ones who ordered fast food to celebrate the night. Host Ellen DeGeneres delivered on her promise to order pizza for those in attendance when a deliveryman from a Hollywood pizzeria came on stage with three pies. The pure joy of watching the celebrities indulge was priceless.

Academy, My Dear Watson: Two stars of the BBC series Sherlock were part of 2014’s Oscar nominated films: Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock Holmes) was a presenter as well as a part of the ensemble cast of Best Picture winner 12 Years A Slave… Martin Freedman (Dr. Watson) was in the live action short nominee The Voorman Problem.

That wraps up my summations of the 2014 Oscars. Here’s to another great year at the movie theaters.

Sources: NY Daily News Oscar Ballot in 'Your New York', a section in the Sunday newspaper-March 2^nd, 2014; ABC’s Oscar Telecast-March 2^nd, 2014; and IMDB.com

Throwback Thursday: NHL Olympians

At the Olympics, the world sends its best athletes to compete for national pride. Some of the participants are well known while others are not. For "Throwback Thursday", I want to revisit the National Hockey League participants from past Olympiads:

                                       Ottawa Senators (#39) Dominik Hasek- Team Czech Republic

                                                                                                                                                                       Vancouver Canucks (#37) Jarkko Ruutu (in white jersey )- Team Finland

                                                 New York Rangers (#24) Sandis Ozolinsh- Team Latvia

                                         Washington Capitals (#8) Alexander Ovechkin- Team Russia

                                                Buffalo Sabres (#30) Ryan Miller-Team USA

                                        Boston Bruins (#33) Zdeno Chara (on the left)-Team Slovakia

                                           New Jersey Devils (#30) Martin Brodeur- Team Canada

These photos represented some of the NHL Athletes that made the Olympics an international experience.   To end this blog, I decided to give one hockey player a particular honorable mention for his legacy in both the NHL and the Olympics:

                                        Pittsburgh Penguins (#66) Mario Lemieux -Team Canada