Tag: Stanley Cup finals

The Florida Panthers battled their biggest demons in Game 7 and came out with the Stanley Cup

What an incredible Stanley Cup Final.

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Gooood morning, Winners! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for rocking with us today here at FTW. We appreciate you giving us a bit of your time.

What a Stanley Cup Final, man. I take back everything I said about this series when the Panthers were up 3-0. I called this one of the worst Final I’d ever seen. As it turns out, this one was pretty epic.

RELATED: 14 epic celebration photos from the Panthers’ Stanley Cup win

Game 7 completely lived up to its billing. Last night, we saw two teams scratching and clawing their way to glory on the ice between Edmonton and Florida.

This one was nip and tuck with Florida barely coming out on top 2-1. It didn’t have to be this way.

A miraculous blind save from Dmitry Kulikov kept the Panthers even with the Oilers on the attack. Then, literal seconds later, Sam Reinhart broke the tie with a goal of his own.

That wasn’t all. The Oilers had yet another opportunity to tie the game. Eventual Conn Smythe trophy winner Connor McDavid had the puck on his stick with Sergei Bobrovsky outside of the net in the third period. Yet, thanks to an unbelievable stick check from Gustav Forsling, a goal was saved. McDavid couldn’t knot things up at 2-2.

These two teams fought hard. This game was physical. Every inch on the ice mattered. Ultimately, Florida played the more physical game and wore Edmonton down. But it wasn’t for lack of effort on the Oilers’ part.

It’s no wonder both teams played so hard. Glory was there for the taking as both sides were trying to stave off decades of lowly history.

Edmonton carried the weight of an entire country on its back. Have you heard? Lord Stanley hasn’t touched Canadian soil in 31 years. The Oilers had a chance to change that with a win in Game 7. Connor McDavid is the NHL’s best, but he would’ve cemented himself as an all-timer had the Oilers pulled off the greatest comeback in NHL history.

For the Panthers, it wasn’t a country. It was the franchise’s own shameful history that it had to stare down.

Of course, Florida made the playoffs in each of the last five seasons. But check the previous 25 years — you’ll see the same number of playoff appearances as the last five. There’s only one Stanley Cup Final appearance and that’s from 1996.

Not only was this team not good — it was an embarrassment. People didn’t even come to the games. Season tickets were seven dollars at one point. That’s how bad things were.

And now look. That same franchise that couldn’t put butts in seats is now hoisting the Stanley Cup trophy. It’s incredible how these things go.

Now, the Panthers are champions. They don’t have to worry about that anymore. The stands are filled every night and the ice is covered by plastic rats.

Congrats, Florida. You deserve it.

The cold world of Track and Field

Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

While the Panthers and Oilers were battling it out on the ice, U.S. Track and Field Olympic trials were underway.

One of the stars folks were looking forward to seeing in Paris was Athing Mu, the winner of the 800m in the 2020 Olympic Games. Unfortunately, she won’t be making it to Paris this year to defend her gold medal.

Mu stumbled about 200 meters into the women’s 800m, causing her to fall behind and completely out of the race. Meanwhile, Nia Akins (1:57.36) ran the fastest time of her life to lock in the win and solidify her spot in Paris. 

It’s tough, man. So tough. As Rai Benjamin said, it feels unfair because you know Mu is supposed to be there. She’s the absolute best at this. But the rules don’t change for anyone. Mu messed up. Unfortunately, these are the consequences.

That doesn’t take away the heartbreak, though. This shot of Mu’s devastation as she walks by Akins, Allie Wilson and Juliette Whittaker after they all qualified for Paris is just so painful to watch.

Sports, man. It can be the best. But it can also be the worst in that same moment for someone else. What a tough way to go out.

Speaking of champions…

(Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)

Tennessee won its first national championship in any sport in 15 years last night with the Vols staving off Texas A&M in Game 3 of the College World Series Final.

The Vols took a 6-1 lead early that included this incredible juke from Hunter Ensley. Tennessee needed every single run after a late rally from the Aggies in the 8th and 9th innings.

This is a huge win for Tennessee. Here’s Cory Woodroof with more:

“Per the school, the last time a Vols team won a championship was the women’s indoor track and field team in 2009, with the women’s basketball team winning back-to-back national titles in 2007 and 2008 under legend Pat Summitt.

For comparison, the men’s basketball team has never won a national championship and the football team hasn’t won one since 1998.

This is the Volunteers baseball team’s first-ever national title, making it even sweeter on Rocky Top for the national championship drought to finally end.”

I’m sure the Vols’ football fans hope they can keep the good vibes going.

Quick hits: Poor Corey Perry … An NBA Draft question for every team … and more

— Corey Perry’s awful Stanley Cup Final luck continues. Mary Clarke has more here.

— Here’s Robert Zeglinski with one question for every NBA team out there heading into the NBA Draft.

— Jayson Tatum and Matthew Tkachuk both sealed the deal with championships this season. Prince Grimes has more.

— Connor McDavid didn’t come out to accept the Conn Smythe award. Can’t blame him. Charles Curtis has more.

— JJ Redick says he didn’t talk to LeBron James about the Lakers’ job until he got an offer. Yeah, OK. Cory Woodroof has more.

— Here’s Meghan Hall with her latest WNBA Power Rankings.

That’s a wrap, folks. Thanks so much for rocking with us today. We appreciate you. Have a great day. Peace.

-Sykes ✌️

The Mavericks and Oilers made us put the brooms away, but don’t start talking about comebacks

Don’t get your hopes up too much, Mavs and Oilers fans.

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Good morning, Winners! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for reading the Morning Win today. We appreciate you giving us some of your time.

I’m not the type of person who goes around telling people they should be thanking me for the good things I do for them. That’s buffoonery.

However, I do feel like I may have played a small role in preventing the Mavericks and Oilers from getting swept over the weekend in their respective championship matchups.

Okay, let’s be serious. Friday’s Morning Win had nothing to do with any of the action on the ice or the court. Is it possible that someone on the Mavericks staff showed Luka Doncic our email on Friday to get a little motivation cooking? Maybe! Connor McDavid might be a subscriber, too! That’d be cool.

But, look. Neither team needed to look around the internet for much motivation to show up in their respective Game 4s. It was do or die for the Oilers and Mavs and they both chose not to go out in the worst way possible: By the broom. You’ve got to respect that.

That said, don’t make the mistake of finding hope in either of their blowout Game 4 wins. Both of these series are still likely over.

No team in NBA history has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in a series. Plenty of teams have come close (including last year’s Boston Celtics), but in the end, it always proves to be too much to overcome.

The NHL is a bit different. Four teams have completed 3-0 comebacks in the league’s history, with the last one being the Los Angeles Kings in 2014. The last time it happened in a Stanley Cup Final was back in 1942. Anything is possible, sure. But this is a lot to overcome.

I’m not telling you not to root for the comeback — if that’s the sliver of hope you’re holding onto, don’t let it go! What I’m saying is it probably isn’t going to happen. So maybe keep that hope at just a sliver for now.

RELATED: Prince Grimes has Game 5 odds for the Mavericks for you here

Caitlin Clark doesn’t care about the Angel Reese foul and neither should you

(Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

Ah, yes. The Caitlin Clark discourse has returned for the third week in a row. Huzzah.

A hard foul on Clark from Angel Reese has the internet buzzing about assault on the basketball court again. The reaction so far has been completely ridiculous. You’ve got people who’ve never talked about the WNBA before suddenly chiming in on the situation as if they’re experts.

But here’s the thing: Caitlin Clark doesn’t care about this. So why should we? Here’s Andrew Joseph with more on her reaction:

“But despite the hard foul, Clark had no animosity towards Reese about the contact. She knew it was an attempt on the ball, and that sort of thing happens in basketball.

“It’s just a part of basketball,” Clark said.

When asked about the rivalry between the two players, Clark went on to say that it showcases their passion — something that is great for women’s sports.”

That’s kind of where I feel like we should leave it. Well, let me speak for myself. That’s certainly where I’m leaving it. We are not spending a week discussing the discourse on a flagrant foul on TMW. Not again.

It’s basketball, folks. Let’s leave it at that.

The U.S. Open crown is Bryson’s again

(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

There was a time when I thought Bryson DeChambeau would never be able to play in a major again after he jumped ship for LIV Golf.

Here he is, two years later, under the umbrella of the controversial LIV-PGA fusion, winning one of the most prestigious golf tournaments again.

Time is so weird, isn’t it?

What a win it was. Rory McIlroy looked like he had things in the bag but then totally (and uncharacteristically) collapsed. He had a two-stroke lead on Bryson heading into the 15th hole. He finished with three bogeys through the final four holes, which led to DeChambeau’s win.

RELATED: Eight photos showing how fired up DeChambeau was after his U.S. Open win

I don’t know whether I feel great for Bryson or terrible for Rory. All I know is we got some exciting golf on Sunday. That’s all we were all asking for.

Quick hits: Elly De La Cruz is the best show in baseball … Matt Leinart, please go away … and more

— Elly De La Cruz can only be described as electrifying. Watch him score from second base here. Andrew Joseph has more.

— Here’s Meg Hall on Matt Leinart coming out of nowhere to complain about Caitlin Clark being fouled

— This catch from Hunter Ensley is SO impressive. Here’s Charles Curtis with more.

— Prince Grimes has Aaron Judge at the top of his MLB MVP ladder here.

— I know the Oilers are down right now, but Connor McDavid is still that dude. Cory Woodroof has more.

— Poor Rory McIlroy. He’s a meme now. Here’s Andrew again with more.

That’s a wrap, folks! Thanks so much for reading TMW today. We appreciate you. Have a fantastic Monday! Peace.

-Sykes ✌️

The Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Mavericks are giving us two of the worst Finals we’ve ever seen

Unless you’re Celtics and Panthers fans. Then you’re probably loving this!

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.

Good morning, folks! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for rocking with me today. I appreciate you! I hope you’ve had a great week. Happy Friday.

Folks, after the Panthers’ 4-3 Game 3 win over the Oilers on Thursday night, we might be in for a little bit of history. Granted, it’s the wrong type of history you want to see this time of year. But it is a chance for history, nonetheless!

We’re staring down the barrel at two potential sweeps in both the NHL and the NBA.

RELATED: Here’s a recap of Game 3 from USA Today’s Mike Brehm

We’ve got a 3-0 Stanley Cup Finals and a 3-0 NBA Finals that could be settled tonight when the Mavericks see the Celtics on their home floor for Game 4.

This is the worst combination of Finals between these two leagues we’ve had in decades.

The last time there were sweeps in the NBA and NHL was in 1995 when the Devils beat the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Final and the Rockets swept the Magic in the NBA Finals.

That’s how rare this is. Sweeps don’t happen in the Finals. The NHL hasn’t had one since 1998. The NBA’s last sweep was more recent (2018), but there have only been 10 sweeps in the NBA’s long history.

READ MORE: Don’t blame the officials for Luka Doncic’s fouls. Blame Luka.

Neither of these series are over at this point. While a 3-0 comeback has never happened in the NBA’s history, plenty of teams have come close. And 3-0 comebacks have happened a handful of times in the NHL, too, with the last time coming in 2014 with the Los Angeles Kings. It’s not likely it’ll happen here, but it’s not impossible either.

We need a miracle, folks. Maybe the sports gods will look out for us. If not? We’re in for one of the most boring combinations of Finals we’ve ever seen.

Well, unless you’re Celtics and Oilers fans. Then, you’re probably loving this.

What’s up with USWNT?

The US Women’s National Team has always been at the pinnacle of the sport. Since FIFA started ranking women’s soccer teams in 2003, the team had never been ranked lower than No. 2 in the world before 2024.

Today? USWNT ranks 5th in the world — its lowest ranking ever. The team continues its free fall after its disappointing World Cup loss to Sweden in 2023.  Germany moved up a spot to eclipse the U.S. at No. 4. Ahead of it are Spain (No. 1), France (No. 2) and England (No. 3).

The team hasn’t done much losing since its loss to Chile in October at the Pan American games. Since then, USWNT has won the CONCACAF Gold Cup and the SheBelieves Cup under new manager, Emma Hayes. It hasn’t been enough to get back to No. 1 status, but it seems the turnaround is in progress.

USWNT will have another chance to prove itself on the world stage at the Olympics in July. Can’t wait.

Caitlin Clark speaks out

Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

There are plenty of true fans of Caitlin Clark out there, but there are also plenty of people who have been using her name online to fight their problematic crusades all in the name of tearing down women’s sports.

While that’s been happening, Clark has largely remained silent on it — even as it’s impacted some of her peers and led to both online and in-person harassment on some occasions.

Clark was asked about it directly yesterday twice. First, by The Athletic’s Jim Trotter, who asked Clark how she feels about people using her name in their personal “culture wars.” She mostly brushed that question off, emphasizing her focus on basketball.

But then, she was asked again about this by The Athletic’s James Boyd. Except, this time, she was asked specifically about her name being used to push misogynistic and hateful views. Clark had much more to say this time:

“It’s disappointing,” Clark said. “Everybody in our world deserves the same amount of respect. The women in our league deserve the same amount of respect. So, people should not be using my name to push those agendas.”

Our Cory Woodroof shared his thoughts:

“Clark’s words will hopefully ring true throughout the wider discourse and show what side she’s on when her name gets dragged into larger conversations about pertinent issues of race and gender.

As WNBA player-turned-ESPN commentator Chiney Ogwumike mentioned this week, the weaponization of league narratives surrounding Clark and other players is taking away from ‘the beauty of the game,’.” 

Couldn’t agree more. I didn’t expect Clark to speak on any of this, but it’s nice that she did. Hopefully, now that she has, some of the foolishness surrounding her will stop.

Photo Friday: Wemby in the wild

Seeing Victor Wembanyama out in the wild grocery shopping has to be bizarre. I feel like this would only happen in a fever dream.

Shoutout to Wemby, though. You’re a real one for picking up your own groceries. Get somebody to do that for you next time, though.

Quick hits: The Utah Hockey Club is here … The Chief’s ring ceremony … and more

— Mary Clarke has more on Utah’s new hockey team. Boy, these jerseys are awesome.

— Charles Curtis has 12 stunning photos from the Chiefs’ Super Bowl ring ceremony for you.

— Christian D’Andrea has more on Sean Payton’s impossible task with the Broncos.

— Here’s Mary again on the Twins’ awesome Prince-themed home run celebration.

— Cory ranked the Pixar movies and, wow, this is the content that I didn’t know I wanted to see today.

— Robert Zeglinski has more on Luka Doncic acknowledging the holes in his game after falling down 3-0 in the NBA Finals.

That’s a wrap, folks! Thanks so much for rocking with us this week. We appreciate you. Tap in for more on Monday! Until then. Peace.

-Sykes ✌️

Charles Barkley se burló de Jayson Tatum en la transmisión de la Stanley Cup Final de ESPN

Charkes Barkley estuvo solo unos cuantos minutos en la transmisión de ESPN de la Stanley Cup Final, pero antes de irse, tuvo más que el tiempo suficiente para burlarse de Jayson Tatum. Barkley se unió a ESPN en el medio tiempo para platicar, entre …

Charkes Barkley estuvo solo unos cuantos minutos en la transmisión de ESPN de la Stanley Cup Final, pero antes de irse, tuvo más que el tiempo suficiente para burlarse de Jayson Tatum.

Barkley se unió a ESPN en el medio tiempo para platicar, entre otras cosas, sobre la increíble anotación de Ondrej Palat’s para el Lightning en el primer periodo del Juego 3 del lunes en la noche. Durante su análisis de tan hermosa anotación que le dio al Ligthning su primera ventaja en la serie, Barkley no pudo contenerse y molestó a Tatum, la estrella de los Boston Celtics, poco menos de una semana después de la derrota de su equipo en las NBA Finals.

¿Cómo lo molestó? Barkley comparó el cambio de juego del Avalanche que dio pie a la anotación del Lightning a las jugarretas que hace Tatum con los Celtics.

“Este es un típico cambio de juego del querido Jayson Tatum”, dijo Barkley. “Lo siento, solo estoy bromeando… te quiero, Jayson Tatum. ¡Solo estoy bromeando!”

Traducción: Charles Barkley hace bromas de Jayson Tatum.
Dios, amo a Chuck.

 

¡Auch! Pero tampoco es que fuera mentira, pues Tatum terminó la postemporada con 100 cambios de juego a su nombre.

Durante la transmisión, ¡Barkley también tuvo tiempo para hacer algunas bromas sobre el comisionado Gary Bettman!

Traducción: “Estaba sentado hoy en casa y le llamé al Comisionado”.
Charles Barkley lo buscó para asistir al Juego 3 de la Final de la #StanleyCup

 

Como era de esperarse, los fans del hockey amaron la aparición de Barkley y su broma sobre Tatum.

Traducción: Charles Barkley diciendo de forma casual “entonces le llamé a Gary Bettman y le dije dame dos boletos” como si él estuviera en la venta de boletos.

 

Traducción: Charles Barkley estuvo ABC durante el primer intermedio de la Stanley Cup Finals. Ese hombre es oro molido para la TV.
Describió la anotación de Tampa, llamó al cambio de juego de Colorado como “un cambio al estilo del buen Jayson Tatum”.  

 

Traducción: Más de Charles Barkley en las transmisiones de hockey, por favor.

 

Traducción: Estoy empezando una solicitud para que Shaq y Charles Barkley estén juntos en el panel de las Stanley Cup Finals.

 

Traducción: ¡¡Charles Barkley es el mejor!! “Ese es un cambio de juego al estilo del buen Jayson Tatum”. Más análisis de hockey de Chuck, ¡¡por favor!!

 

Artículo traducido por Ana Lucía Toledo

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Stanley Cup: Lightning’s championship is legit and requires no asterisk

SportsPulse: The Tampa Bay Lightning captured the franchise’s second Stanley Cup and former goalie Kevin Weekes explains why it should by no means come with an asterisk.

SportsPulse: The Tampa Bay Lightning captured the franchise’s second Stanley Cup and former goalie Kevin Weekes explains why it should by no means come with an asterisk.

Should Stanley Cup winner get an asterisk? Former goalie weighs in

SportsPulse: Mackenzie Salmons sits down with former NHL goalie and NHL Network analyst Kevin Weekes to discuss the level of play during the Stanley Cup Finals and whether or not the winner should have an asterisk in the record books.

SportsPulse: Mackenzie Salmons sits down with former NHL goalie and NHL Network analyst Kevin Weekes to discuss the level of play during the Stanley Cup Finals and whether or not the winner should have an asterisk in the record books.