Mason’s Mastery Leading Columbus to Playoffs

As the regular season comes to a close there have been a lot of great stories to develop and perhaps more to come as the playoffs approach us. Whether it’s the Bruins’ unexpected rise to prominence, San Jose’s ability to play at a high level from wire-to-wire; or Florida’s fight for a playoff spot and Nashville’s continued push toward the playoffs despite little money and rumors of them leaving Nashville swirling around from time to time. But arguably the best story of the year has been the unbelievable performance of Columbus Blue Jacket netminder Steve Mason who has seemingly come out of nowhere to take the league by storm and has Columbus poised to make their first post-season appearance in the franchise’s brief history. Mason has put up incredible numbers posting a 2.24 GAA, .918 save percentage and a record of 31-18-5. Mason always seems to be solid when he absolutely needs to be and has (get this) TEN shutouts! The next closes to Mason are three goalies tied with seven which is absolutely unreal. If you had asked around in many hockey circles last year and in the early stages of this year many respectable hockey minds couldn’t tell you anything about Steve Mason if they had even heard of him at all. The Blue Jackets’ netminder has been consistent all season and despite all of his success perhaps Mason’s best quality is not his glove, positioning in the net, or any other technical attribute, it is the fact that he is only 20 years old. It is unlikely that Mason will be able to continue this year’s success as the years go by but if there’s one thing we know for sure it’s that he’ll be giving NHL opponents a really hard time for many years to come. With a goalie like Mason and a vast assortment of other young talents assembled in Columbus this is a team that can make noise in the playoffs not only this year but for many years to come… the folks in Columbus have reason to be very excited.

Alex V’s NFL Week 9 Picks

NYJ 4-3 at BUF 5-2

If Brett Favre can cut down on his mistakes for at least one week he can put his team in great position to perhaps win the AFC East. But the Buffalo Bills have shown more consistency and are better all around than the Jets. For this, the Bills should win at home.

DET 0-7 at CHI 4-3

The last time these two teams met was in week five when Kyle Orton torched the Lions for 334 yards and two TDs with no turnovers. Expect to see more of the same. Bears move to 5-3.

JAC 3-4 at CIN 0-8

The Bengals are a team in absolute despair. They may very well be worse than the 0-7 Lions as they are 32^nd in scoring with 13 points per game (while the Lions are 28^th with 16.3 per game). However, Carson Palmer returns and I’m feeling that the inconsistent Jaguars, who have shown over the years a propensity to play down to the level of their opponent, will be the prime candidate for this team to get its first win against. Bengals win.

BAL 4-3 at CLE 3-5

This is a tough one. Joe Flacco is improving and the Baltimore defense is playing as good as ever minus their 31-3 loss to the Colts. Meanwhile, the Browns have picked up their defense and Derek Anderson has been getting closer to what he looked like last year. I will take the Browns at home in a close game.

T.B. 5-3 at K.C. 1-6

Tampa Bay has a great opportunity to get back in the win column versus the lowly Chiefs. As long as Jeff Garcia can protect the ball, the Bucs should win this one. I’ll take Tampa Bay.

HOU 3-4 at MIN 3-4

Even though Minnesota is coming off a bye and playing at home, I am taking the Texans in this matchup. The Vikings can’t keep a streak going, while the Texans seem to be getting things back together as they are the second hottest team after the 7-0 Titans.

ARI 4-3 at STL 2-5

The Cardinals have been unable to solve their road woes where they have only won when they played the lowly 49ers in San Francisco back in week one. However, they weren’t far off last week losing 23-27 and owning the lead for the better part of the game against Carolina. The Rams have been more competitive with Jim Haslett at the helm, but I’m picking the Cards to snag the “W.”

G.B. 4-3 at TEN 7-0

The 31-21 win the Titans earned against Indy last Monday night was huge. They are looking like one of the strongest teams in the league. But Green Bay did a number on the Colts as well in week 7 winning 34-14 and forcing two pics by Manning just like the Titans on Monday. Although the Titans have better defense (1^st in pts per game), the Packers make up for the yardage they give up ranking 16^th in points with sacks and INTs. I’ll take the play of Aaron Rodgers over Kerry Collins to win this game for Green Bay.

MIA 3-5 at DEN 4-3

Get ready for the problems in Denver to unfold even further when they blow it against the strong ground game and 100.5 QB rating and 69.3% completion percentage that Chad Pennington is sporting thus far. Dolphins win big in Denver.

DAL 5-3 at NYG 6-1

The moment in the NFC East that we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived. Too bad it won’t truly show who the better team is if Brad Johnson is playing as Tony Romo looks to be a potential game-time decision… but just potentially. What’s worse is that Dallas’ three top corners are out as well, and no name rookie Orlando Scandrick will be called upon to pick up the slack which is great news for Eli Manning. Even if Romo comes in, he’ll still be favoring his right pinkie. Giants win.

ATL 4-3 at OAK 2-5

Atlanta looked sloppy in their loss to the Eagles last week, but they looked “rookie quarterback” sloppy. All Matt Ryan has to do to get his team a win against the sometimes feisty Raiders is keep his mistakes to a minimum. But even that might not be enough as I feel the Raiders will pull it out.

PHI 4-3 at SEA 2-5

Don’t look now, but Seattle with a 2-5 record is second in its division behind 4-3 Arizona. The Eagles have been somewhat inconsistent this season and a win against a young Atlanta team last week cannot really be taken as proof that they have solved their issues. Expect a tough battle out of both teams with the Eagles pulling out a close one.

N.E. 5-2 at IND 3-4

Who would have thought that with Brady gone that the Patriots would have a better record than the Colts this far into the season? Make that a records that is two more wins and two less losses better! This is a tough game to call. Matt Cassel may have led his team to victory last weekend and first place in the AFC East, but he still tossed two pics. But on the other end, the Colts’ offense seems out of sync as Manning tossed two pics as well. Both team’s starting running backs are out, Laurence Maroney for New England, and Joseph Addai for Indy, and both defenses have been questionable. Bottom line, until Cassel shows some more consistency I have to go with Peyton Manning and his team in this one.

PIT 5-2 at WAS 6-2

This is the game where the Redskins get to prove they’re no fluke. They may have beaten Dallas and Philly, but as the season has progressed, those two wins don’t look like such a surprise anymore. The Steelers are reeling after a mistake-filled, give-the-game-away performance to the Giants last weekend. But… I expect the mistakes to mount for the Steelers which derive mainly from an O-line that can’t block and gets called for penalties, while the Redskins will do what they’ve been doing thus far this season… rise to the occasion against another team that is perceived to be a contender.

2008-2009 NBA Regular Season Opening Night

When the NBA opens up their regular season tomorrow, the fans should be treated to a hotly contested battle between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics.

Last season, the two teams went to seven games before Boston finally came out on top. The main stat of the series was the fact that both teams won all of their home games. If the Cleveland Cavaliers are looking to make a statement to open the season, a win in Boston would be a great way to do so.

The second game of the TNT double-header features Greg Oden’s NBA regular season debut when Portland travels to L.A. to face the reigning Western Conference champs.

The Lakers welcome back a promising young star in Andrew Bynum and look to continue their Western Conference dominance from last year when they finished with the best record in the conference. Last season, Portland was off to a surprising early start when they went on a 13 game winning streak at one point, but faded away the remainder of the year. Don’t count out the young and talented Trail Blazers to make things interesting.

The schedulers did a decent job putting some spirited potential on the board for day one of the 2008-2009 NBA regular season. 

Preseason Outlook on NBA’s top Championship Contenders in 2008-2009 Regular Season

You know, basketball is unlike pro football where your schedule can be favorable or brutal depending on whom teams are scheduled to play. But in basketball, you play every team. With that being said, I give you my top contenders for the title this season.

The Celtics have such a swagger. They have stifling interior defense and the stars are all leaders either by example or a mixture of that and charisma. They are a confident bunch from top to bottom.

The New Orleans Hornets are young, quick, defensive, and are lead by the best point guard in the league… Chris Paul. They let it slip against the Spurs, but they are young, and the Spurs are another year older.

The Lakers made it to the Finals, and they cruised in their Western Conference playoff matchups. However, the story was much different in the Finals.

The Lakers seemed to outmatch the Western Conference, but the Celtics won convincingly in the Finals against them so I’d put them ahead of L.A. The Hornets are good, but they are still younger than the Celtics, and ultimately the only have one true superstar against three in Boston.

I’d give the edge to Boston to win it all again.