Playoff Central

Edition #80

Headlines:

• Soccer:

  • Kylian Mbappé confirms he will leave Paris Saint-Germain, likely headed to Real Madrid.

  • Neymar left off Brazil's Copa America squad due to injury.

• NHL:

  • New York Rangers defeat Carolina Hurricanes in Game 3, Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafrenière lead the comeback.

  • Dallas Stars even the series against Colorado Avalanche with a 5-3 win in Game 2

• Other Sports:

  • IPL 2024: Chennai Super Kings lose but stay in playoff contention, Gujarat Titans climb the standings

  • College Football: EA Sports unveils cover athletes for upcoming "College Football 25" game

  • Track and Field: Neeraj Chopra finishes second in Doha meet but shows strong form.

INTRO:

I just love madness.

March was the month for March Madness, but what about April? May?

You had the 0.01-second win in the Kentucky Derby, Luis Arraez getting traded to the Padres of all teams, and Jamal Murray throwing a heat pack and getting fined $100,000. Oh, and the Sharks won the draft lottery and there’s no doubt who they’re going to pick.

Let’s get you caught up on all the playoff madness in playoff central.

Update on Content:

So, I haven’t been active the last few days due to a problem between the Substack team and me. Basically, many publications got marked as spam (on accident) the other day, and Sports Square was one of them. I got it back. That’s the long story short.

The other thing.

Lately, you’ve probably been seeing a lot of posts just saying Sports Updates or like this one Playoff Central. I want you to know that I’m trying my best to bring content, but this stuff takes me like 3 hours to write, and trying to find that with the amount of time, I have? That’s damn tough. Luckily, in about a month, I’m going to be all done. Olympics are on the way, I’m going to try to bring content every day, and yeah!

Playoff Central

NBA:

The last time I gave you some updates, it was the first round…

It is officially the second round in playoff basketball!

Timberwolves vs Nuggets. Timberwolves lead 2-1.

Anthony Edwards is seriously cooking. KAT too. But, the Timberwolves defense is serious, holding the Nuggets offense in Game 2 to only 80 points! The Wolves won by 26! But that ain’t this stealing the storyline. Jamal Murray tossed a heat pack onto the floor, and he got fined $100,000.

Pacers vs Knicks. Knicks lead 2-1

This series is going to be a close-knit one. Jalen Brunson is setting a historic pace. Plus, Donte DiVincenzo is cooking with the three-point shot. For the Pacers, everyone contributes.

Thunder vs Mavericks. Series tied 1-1

Luka Doncic may not play in Game 3. If this is the case, expect the Thunder to take the win here. Irving may be doing good, but without Doncic, there is no lifeline in this Mavericks team.

Celtics vs Cavaliers. Series ties 1-1

I’m telling you. The Cavaliers surprised everyone, but no one more than themselves. Just Tatum and Brown are not going to win in the playoffs. There is so much skill… That’s why these teams are here. If Kristaps Porzingis does not make it back to playing soon, things could turn bad for the Celtics.

NHL:

Hurricanes vs Rangers. Rangers lead 3-0

New York hockey fans are waiting for a championship to come home.

There is a huge chance that’s happening.

No, these games have not been ultimate blowouts. They’ve been close, but ultimately, coming out with the win is the main thing and that’s what they’re doing.

Bruins vs Panthers. Panthers lead 2-1

After having a record-setting season last year, the Bruins got eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Florida Panthers after leading 3-1. It sucked.

This year, they’re hoping they could create that kind of comeback themselves.

Check out how the Panthers took control of Game 3 of the series, by clicking this link.

Oilers vs Canucks. Canucks lead 1-0. (NOTE: GAME 2 WAS ONGOING WHEN THIS EDITION WAS BEING WRITTEN.)

Remember when we talked about that huge win streak for the Edmonton Oilers? I said that they were going to suck… Well, getting to the second round isn’t easy, but they’ve done it. But now? The Canucks are just putting things through. They came back from a 4-2 Oilers lead in the first game. That’s good. Advice from me. Take the lead and don’t worry about coming back.

Avalanche vs Stars. Series tied 1-1

It seems that whenever the Mavs win, the Stars win. Ima call it Dallas time.

Dallas just continues to work from behind. First, they come back from 2-0 versus the reigning champions to win 4-3. Now? They’re working off of losing the first game. Remember that you have lots of momentum when you win the first game. Has Dallas captured that? That’s the real question.

Conclusion

That’s the end of this one… But, better content is coming on the way. Got a collab piece coming too.

Btw, I may be able to stream an A’s game soon. I know most of you guys don’t care about the A’s, but I’m thinking about commentating the game. Getting a bit of baseball talk. All live.