It's the best time of the year for hockey fans, as the NHL Playoffs have begun. I don't get excited about the NHL Playoffs until Scott Stevens throws out the first body. Keep your head up in the neutral zone, sports fans, here we go.

Familiarity breeds boredom in the first round for Dallas and Edmonton, who have had a standing appointment for the last four years now. The Stars hold the advantage here, but the games are always close. These two teams have played more one-point games than Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee on Scrabble Night.

Meanwhile in Los Angeles, the Kings are in the midst of a losing streak so severe, it makes France look like the 1960's Boston Celtics. The Kings haven't won a playoff game since Wayne Gretzky was with LA, Patrick Roy was with Montreal, and Hootie was with the Blowfish.

This week in Philadelphia, Flyers general manager Bobby Clarke accused Eric Lindros of "quitting" on his team. That's nice, Bob. It's good to see Flyers management still has enough focus to ignore a 2-0 playoff deficit and complain about the real issue, a player who hasn't touched NHL ice in a year who you refused to trade. Hey Bobby, while you're moving the lounge chair over by the rail, you might want to check out that big iceberg you just ran into.

Troy Aikman retired from football a week ago when no team showed interest in him. Since that time he's been courted by the major networks, offered a job in the XFL and approached about running for public office in Oklahoma. Well, Troy wanted interest. It just goes to show you have to be careful what you wish for.

The NBA's Vancouver Grizzlies finished what will probably be their last game north of the border by blowing a nineteen-point second half lead to Houston. Say what you will about the franchise, they certainly tried to make leaving easy on their fans.

Dave Winfield will go into the Hall of Fame as a San Diego Padre, thus proving what I've always said. Real men wear brown and yellow. Take that however you'd like.

The Texas Rangers, with new shortstop and former Mariner Alex Rodriguez, will play their first game in Seattle this week. Just to make sure the crowd is good and angry, a letter has been made public from A-Rod to the Boeing Company, which he invited to move their operations out of Seattle and to Texas. In a delightful bit of celestial irony, it's also "Boeing Employees Credit Union Night" at Safeco Field. Expect A-Rod to get a reception in Seattle much like the one they gave the World Trade Organization a while back.

Labels: NHL, Rangers