Eastern Conference Final: 3 Boston Bruins VS 5 Tampa Bay Lightning

Game 1: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts. In net: Dwayne Roloson for Tampa Bay and Tim Thomas for Boston. Tampa Bay led off with Sean Bergenheim potting his eighth of the postseason, courtesy of Dominic Moore and Victor Hedman. Nineteen seconds later, the Lightning got another goal, as Brett Clark notched his first of the playoffs, an unassisted goal. Tampa Bay kept going as Teddy Purcell netted his second of the postseason, also requiring no help. Boston got on the board with Tyler Seguin scoring his first of the playoffs, with helpers provided by Michael Ryder and Rich Peverley. After a scoreless second period, the Lightning got back to work with a power play goal by Marc-Andre Bergeron, his second of the postseason powered by Clark and Martin St. Louis. Tampa Bay added an empty netter by Simon Gagne, his third of the playoffs guided in by Teddy Purcell. The Bruins made it 5-2 with Johnny Boychuk registering his third of the postseason, with the lone assist by Seguin. Moore, Clark, and Roloson (31 for 33 saves) were the three stars. Tampa Bay got out to an early 1-0 series lead.

Game 2: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts. In net: Dwayne Roloson for Tampa Bay and Tim Thomas for Boston. Tampa Bay opened the scoring thirteen seconds into the game with Adam Hall netting his first of the postseason, with help from Vincent Lecavalier and Nate Thompson. Nathan Horton tied it for Boston on the power play with his sixth of the playoffs, thanks to Dennis Seidenberg and Tomas Kaberle. The Lightning took the lead back with seven seconds left in the first period as Martin St. Louis notched his seventh of the postseason, helped along by Steven Stamkos and Lecavalier. The Bruins tied it in the second period on Tyler Seguin's second of the playoffs, coming off of Michael Ryder. Boston took the lead with David Krejci potting his sixth of the postseason, courtesy of Seidenberg and Horton. Seguin tallied again later in the period for the Bruins, his third of the playoffs and second of the game guided in by Horton and Adam McQuaid. Tampa Bay got one back as Lecavalier put away his sixth of the postseason on the power play, powered by St. Louis and Stamkos. Ryder answered back with a pair of goals, his third and fourth of the playoffs, the first coming on the power play via Seguin and Kaberle and the latter aided by Chris Kelly and Seguin at even strength. Mike Smith relieved Roloson for the third period. The Lightning got back to work in the third with Stamkos registering his fifth of the postseason, assisted by Victor Hedman and Hall. Tampa Bay made it 6-5 with Dominic Moore sinking his third of the playoffs, made possible by Lecavalier, who completed a sock trick, and Sean Bergenheim. This was the final, with Seguin, Lecavalier, and Ryder taking the three stars. The series heads south tied at 1.

Game 3: St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Bay, Florida. In net: Tim Thomas for Boston and Dwayne Roloson for Tampa Bay. Boston led off with a David Krejci goal, his seventh of the postseason coming via Milan Lucic and Johnny Boychuk. The Bruins made it 2-0 in the third period with Andrew Ference potting his second of the playoffs, assisted by Michael Ryder and Chris Kelly. This was the final, with Thomas (31 save shutout), Krejci, and the returning-from-injury Patrice Bergeron getting the three stars. Boston took a 2-1 series lead.

Game 4: St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Bay, Florida. In net: Tim Thomas for Boston and Dwayne Roloson for Tampa Bay. Boston led off with the third of the postseason by Patrice Bergeron, an unassisted goal. Michael Ryder added on for the Bruins with his fifth of the playoffs, with Chris Kelly and Tomas Kaberle adding on assists. Bergeron soon struck again, his second of the game and fourth of the postseason coming shorthanded with no help. Mike Smith relieved Roloson after this goal. Teddy Purcell got two goals back for Tampa Bay, his third and fourth of the playoffs, with Simon Gagne taking the lone assist on the first, and Mattias Ohlund and Vincent Lecavalier helping out on the second. The Lightning tied it with Sean Bergenheim netting his ninth of the postseason, courtesy of Dominic Moore. Gagne put Tampa Bay in front with his fourth of the playoffs, coming off of Ryan Malone. Martin St. Louis solidified the win at 5-3 with an empty netter, his eighth of the postseason, guided in by Gagne and Victor Hedman. Malone, Purcell, and Smith (21 saves in relief) were the three stars. The series goes back north tied at 2.

Game 5: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts. In net: Mike Smith for Tampa Bay and Tim Thomas for Boston. Tampa Bay led off with a Simon Gagne goal, his fifth of the postseason, assisted by Steven Stamkos. Boston tied it in the second period with a Nathan Horton tally, his seventh of the playoffs coming off of Milan Lucic and David Krejci. The Bruins took the lead on a Brad Marchand marker, his sixth of the postseason, courtesy of Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara. Boston finished it off 3-1 with an empty net goal by Rich Peverley, his second of the playoffs, made possible by Chris Kelly. The three stars were awarded to Thomas (33 for 34 saves), Bergeron, and Dennis Seidenberg. Boston takes a 3-2 series lead with the win.

Game 6: St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Bay, Florida. In net: Tim Thomas for Boston and Dwayne Roloson for Tampa Bay. Teddy Purcell led off for Tampa Bay with his fifth of the postseason, coming via Vincent Lecavalier. Boston tied it with a Milan Lucic tally, his third of the playoffs, courtesy of Nathan Horton and Johnny Boychuk. The Bruins took the lead with David Krejci netting his eighth of the postseason, thanks to Daniel Paille. The Lightning retied it in the second period with a power play goal by Martin St. Louis, powered by Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos for his ninth of the playoffs. Tampa Bay took the lead on another power play goal, the sixth of the postseason by Purcell, also his second of the game, made possible by Steve Downie and Brett Clark. Stamkos added on for the Lightning in the third period with his sixth of the playoffs, fueled by Eric Brewer and St. Louis, once again on the power play. Boston answered with a power play goal of their own, the ninth of the postseason by Krejci, also his second of the game, helped in by Horton and Tomas Kaberle. St. Louis replied with his second of the game and tenth of the playoffs, assisted by Downie and Stamkos. Krejci finished his hat trick, making it 5-4 with his tenth of the postseason, with helpers provided by Lucic and Kaberle. The Bruins would fall short though, and they lost by that aforementioned score. St. Louis, Krejci, and Purcell were the three stars. This tied the series at 3, forcing a game 7.

Game 7: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts. In net: Dwayne Roloson for Tampa Bay and Tim Thomas for Boston. The game went scoreless through two periods, until Nathan Horton redirected the puck home, his eighth of the postseason made possible by David Krejci and Andrew Ference. This would be the final score, putting Boston on top 1-0. Horton, Thomas (24 save shutout), and Roloson (37 for 38 saves) were the three stars. With the win, the Bruins take the series 4-3 and will represent the east in the Stanley Cup.

Western Conference Final: 1 Vancouver Canucks VS 2 San Jose Sharks

Game 1: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia. In net: Antti Niemi for San Jose and Roberto Luongo for Vancouver. San Jose led off with Joe Thornton notching his third of the postseason, an unassisted goal. Vancouver tied it with Maxim Lapierre netting his first of the playoffs, thanks to Jannik Hansen and Raffi Torres. The Sharks retook the lead on a power play goal from Patrick Marleau, his fourth of the postseason powered by Dan Boyle and Thornton. The Canucks tied it again in the third period as Kevin Bieksa registered his second of the playoffs, courtesy of Alexandre Burrows and Henrik Sedin. Henrik put Vancouver in the lead 3-2 with his second of the postseason, a power play goal fueled by Christian Ehrhoff and Ryan Kesler. This was the final, with Henrik, Niemi (35 for 38 saves), and Bieksa getting the three stars. Vancouver's win gives them a 1-0 series lead.

Game 2: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia. In net: Antti Niemi for San Jose and Roberto Luongo for Vancouver. Please note that all goals in this game are power play unless explicitly mentioned otherwise. San Jose led off with Logan Couture's seventh of the postseason, courtesy of Dany Heatley and Ian White. Vancouver answered with Daniel Sedin potting his seventh of the playoffs, thanks to Henrik Sedin and Dan Hamhuis. The Canucks took the lead with Raffi Torres netting his second of the postseason, at even strength from Christian Ehrhoff and Jannik Hansen. The Sharks retied it with Patrick Marleau recording his fifth of the playoffs, powered by Joe Thornton and Dan Boyle. Vancouver retook the lead on Kevin Bieksa's third of the postseason, an even strength goal from Chris Higgins and Hamhuis. Bieksa would drop the gloves with Marleau later in the period. Higgins tallied his fourth of the playoffs for the Canucks in the third period, with helpers provided by Mason Raymond and Bieksa, the latter finishing his Gordie Howe hat trick for the game. Daniel notched his second of the game and eighth of the postseason for Vancouver shortly after, with Henrik and Alexander Edler droing the rest of the work. The Canucks added on again with and Aaron Rome goal, the even strength tally being his first of the playoffs, coming via Alexandre Burrows and Henrik Sedin, the latter finishing up a sock trick. Vancouver tacked on another as Raymond sank his second of the postseason, assisted by Higgins and another sock trick earner, Hamhuis at even strength. San Jose cut the damage to 7-3 with Ben Eager registering his first of the playoffs, fueled by Joe Pavelski and Marc-Edouard Vlasic at even strength. Bieksa, Higgins, and Henrik were the three stars. Vancouver lead the series 2-0.

Game 3: HP Pavilion, San Jose, California. In net: Roberto Luongo for Vancouver and Antti Niemi for San Jose. San Jose struck first with a power play goal by Patrick Marleau, his sixth of the postseason powered by Joe Thornton and Devin Setoguchi. The Sharks extended their lead with Ryane Clowe potting his fifth of the playoffs on the power play, courtesy of Dan Boyle and Ian White. San Jose kept rolling with Marleau notching his second of the game and seventh of the postseason, with the lone assist by Thornton. Vancouver got on the board in the third period with Alexandre Burrows netting his fifth of the playoffs, unassisted. The Sharks got the goal back with Boyle's third of the postseason made possible by Marleau and a sock-trick completing assist from Thornton. The Canucks answered with the first of the playoffs by Dan Hamhuis, assisted by Henrik Sedin on the power play. Vancouver pulled within one on another power play goal, registered by Kevin Bieksa as his fourth of the postseason, guided in by Mason Raymond and Jannik Hansen. They would fall 4-3 in the end, with the three stars going to Thornton, Marleau, and Douglas Murray. The Canucks lead has been cut to 2-1.

Game 4: HP Pavilion, San Jose, California. In net: Roberto Luongo for Vancouver and Antti Niemi for San Jose. Vancouver opened the scoring in the second period with a power play goal by Ryan Kesler, his sixth of the postseason, powered by Sami Salo and Henrik Sedin. Salo added on a pair of power play goals for the Canucks, his second and third of the playoffs, with Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin collecting a pair of assists each, Henrik completing a sock trick with his. Vancouver struck again in the third period with the sixth of the postseason by Alexandre Burrows, and Henrik and Daniel again provided assists, with Daniel finishing a sock trick. San Jose got on the board with an Andrew Desjardins goal, his first of the playoffs, assisted by Kent Huskins and Jamie McGinn. Ryane Clowe made it 4-2 with his sixth of the postseason for the Sharks, helped along by Logan Couture and Patrick Marleau. This was the final, with the three stars going to Henrik, Salo, and Daniel. Vancouver now has a 3-1 series lead.

Game 5: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia. In net: Antti Niemi for San Jose and Roberto Luongo for Vancouver. Vancouver opened the scoring with Alexandre Burrows' seventh of the postseason, coming off of Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin. San Jose tied it on the power play with the eighth of the playoffs by Patrick Marleau, powered by Dan Boyle and Joe Pavelski. Devin Setoguchi put the Sharks in front in the third period with his seventh of the postseason, guided in by Pavelski and Kent Huskins. The Canucks retied it with 14 seconds remaining in regulation on a Ryan Kesler goal, his seventh of the playoffs, finding twine thanks to Henrik and Alexander Edler. In the second overtime, Kevin Bieksa gave Vancouver the 3-2 win with his fifth of the postseason, a strange goal from Edler and Burrows. Luongo (54 for 56 saves), Bieksa, and Joe Thornton took the three stars. Vancouver's win gave them a 4-1 series victory and a shot at the Stanley Cup.

Fantasy Baseball All-Stars, Week 7

This week's top players are:

Catcher: Yadier Molina, 3 runs, 13 hits, 0 home runs, 4 RBIs, 0 stolen bases, .565 batting average, .615 on base percentage.
First Base: Jason Giambi, 4 runs, 5 hits, 4 home runs, 8 RBIs, 0 stolen bases, .417 batting average, .417 on base percentage
Second Base: Adam Kennedy, 3 runs, 8 hits, 1 home run, 2 RBIs, 4 stolen bases, .421 batting average, .455 on base percentage
Third Base: Alex Rodriguez, 7 runs, 13 hits, 3 home runs, 4 RBIs, 0 stolen bases, .419 batting average, .438 on base percentage
Shortstop: Asdrubal Cabrera, 9 runs, 11 hits, 3 home runs, 7 RBIs, 3 stolen bases, .379 batting average, .419 on base percentage
Outfield: Jay Bruce, 5 runs, 10 hits, 3 home runs, 4 RBIs, 0 stolen bases, .455 batting average, .500 on base percentage
Starting Pitcher: Michael Pineda, 14 innings pitched, 2 wins, 16 strikeouts, 0.00 earned run average, 0.43 WHIP
Relief Pitcher: Fernando Salas, 5 innings pitched, 1 win, 4 saves, 6 strikeouts, 0 holds, 1.80 earned run average, 0.80 WHIP

Song of the Week XX

In our twentieth edition of Song of the Week, we have a song from the band Aranda. The song is called Punish Me, the lead-off song from their debut album. It establishes a heavy rock presence from the beginning of the album that will last throughout. The song itself is very strong, with a slight sense of paranoia around the fact that the singer believes someone wants to punish him. Other than that, it just comes off as a strong message for the rest of the album to follow.

Sandwich Showdown XIX

This week, we go back to the basics, with a Turkey and Ham on Garlic opposing a Chicken on Herbs and Cheese. Starting with the T&H, which was a very strong sandwich all around. The dual-meat combination came in very strong. The bread quality was also at top-notch, giving a very well-prepared deli taste to the sandwich. On the other hand, the Chicken was absolutely succulent. Paired with bacon, the two meats went head to head with the other two meats. Toasted was the bread, which also matched up nicely. Overall, the Chicken gets just a slight edge, with a very well-fought sandwich battle. We will have another showdown next week.