DEVILS GET A HELL-E OF A DEAL

BY MIKE RIFKIN

One of the biggest questions in hockey has finally been answered. The Winnipeg Jets have traded goaltender Connor Hellebuyck to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for forwards Dawson Mercer, Nick Bjugstad, Alexander Command (12th overall pick in 2026), Goalie Nico Daws, 2027 seventh round pick and a 2029 second round pick. Hellebuyck requested a trade shortly after last season and the Jets decided to suspend him from the team until a deal got done.

Hellebuyck, 33 is signed through 2031 making 8.5 million dollars. Hellebuyck is a three time Vezina Trophy winner (best goalie), last winning the award in  2024-25 where he posted a 47-12-3 record with a 2.00 GAA and a .925 save percentage. Those numbers were so good that Hellebuyck also won the Hart Trophy (MVP). Last season wasn’t Hellebuyck’s best posting a 23-23-11 record with a 2.86 GAA and a .895 save percentage for the Jets. But where Hellebuyck was sensational last year was during Team USA’S run to the Gold Medal. Hellebuyck was 5-0-0 with a 1.18 GAA and .956 save percentage. The issue for Hellebuyck has been the postseason, where he has a 24-34 record with a 2.90 GAA and a .903 save percentage.

For the Jets this deal is about the present and the future. Dawson Mercer, who has four assists so far this season is 24 years old, and does have 103 goals (3 20 goal seasons) and 213 points in 420 games. Nick Bjugstad (currently on IR) is 34, and in his career has 163 goals and 339 points in over 800 games played. Bjugstad could center either your third or fourth line, while helping the Penalty Kill and might get some second unit Power Play time. Command is playing as a 18 year old in the Swedish under 20 league. He was ranked as the Devils third best prospect after being selected 12th overall in June. Daws has played in 59 games and is 26-26-2 with a 2.94 GAA and .897 save percentage.

Getting Hellebuyck is a massive move for new Devils GM Sunny Mehta. But the other thing it provides is a ton of pressure on a very good team. The Devils through 10 games currently sit in the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, but now an offense led by Jack Hughes now has an elite goalie to try to get Jersey over the hump. As for the Jets they did very well in the return for Hellebuyck and now the focus can be on playing hockey in the very competitive Central Division.

GREED

BY MIKE RIFKIN

It’s been announced that starting in 2027 the College Football Playoffs will expand to 24 teams. You cannot sit there and tell college football fans everywhere there’s going to be 24 worthy teams of going to the playoffs. It’s okay though the deal is valued at 300 million dollars. So here’s my question : Why play a season? I mean if you’re just going to put in the “24 best teams”, which I believe is coded for more power four conference teams. The NCAA is turning December and January into a Winter March Madness, before actual March Madness begins.

Take the Ohio State vs Indiana game from Saturday, what a fantastic game by the way. If Ohio State had lost that game that would give them two losses on the season, in a 24 team playoff they’d still be a lock to make it, but in a 12 team playoff things could be a bit more dicey. For the NCAA to say they take the best teams is bogus, they take the teams that can get them the most money.

I get it from the NCAA perspective, they’re in the business of making money. What the problem is here is that in a 24 team playoff some of these Power four schools might schedule an extra game against a cupcake (easy opponent) to help their statistics, and that already was an issue in College Football. I was in favor of the 12 team playoff, if they wanted to go to 16 I can live with it, but 24 is too many. There are already so many bowl games, so they might have to eliminate some of them to allow for this to be more interesting. But the most important part is you cannot deny a team who is worthy of being there. Eventually the NCAA is going to make this into the football version of March Madness and that is not something the sport needs.

WEEK 6

BY SIN BLITZERS

HOU AT JAC (LONDON) : These are two teams off to very different starts to their seasons. The Texans (1-4) are coming off their first win over the Titans and they celebrated by acquiring Marvin Harrison Jr. The Jags on the other hand are 4-1 and are coming off a nice thrilling win over the Eagles. Both CJ Stroud and Trevor Lawrence are playing well. The Texans defense is the key to this game, if they can slow down this Lawrence offense, they have a good chance to win, and get within two games of the Jags with their other meeting being in Houston.

BAL AT CLE : First place is on the line in the AFC North when the Browns and Ravens meet for the first time. Snoop Huntley will start once again in place of Lamar Jackson, who is out with an ankle injury. The Browns are coming off a tough loss to the Jets, and a big reason was their offensive line was putrid, as was the weather. This is also the first game for Browns coach Todd Monken against his former team, where he was the offensive coordinator.

CHI AT ATL : This is one that’ll be hard to figure out, because both teams have been inconsistent. The good news for Bears fans is Caleb Williams returns this week, and after what transpired last week, the Bears need him to be good. As for the Falcons, Michael Penix will play after leaving last week’s game. This has the potential to be a shootout.

LAC AT KC : The Chargers are winless, but they have won their last two over the Chiefs. That being said, who knows what is going on with LA, meanwhile ho hum the Chiefs are unbeaten and coming off the bye week. If the Chiefs defense pressures Herbert, it might be a long day at Arrowhead.

TIME TO RIGHT THE SHIP

By Mark Halpern

     The Dallas Cowboys were embarrassed last week by the heavily underdog the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It was a hard loss to take when there were no real problems on the Dallas side except for the absence of Joey Porter Jr. due  to a stomach virus. The Cowboys needed to win this game and the Defense let the team down. The offense did what it does, needs two quarters to begin to play and when your down it’s always hard to come back.

     The Defense for the Cowboys has been putrid. Monday morning the Cowboys signed Mike Pettrine (long time defensive coach for a few teams) and moving Parker to the booth. The job in front of him is hard. The Dallas Offense will be fine in this game, what Dallas can ill afford is another shootout. Dallas has announced they’re  benching CB Da’ron Bland, who has struggled, including dropping a massive interception. The Cowboys Defensive line will be a key here as the Packer don’t have a rushing game. Marshawn Lloyd did have two touchdowns but both goal line carries and he finished with less than 35 yards. Because of the lack of a running game, the Packers passing attack has been great. Jordan Love has two good receivers that run good routes and gets open. We have seen this all season. The secondary as really yet to shutdown an offense and this week will be a true test. 

   Look for the Cowboys to blitz more than they do to try and get Love out of the pocket and not just sit there with time to find a receiver. For Dallas it’s the Secondary. Both Golden and Watson had 100 yard days last week and the Secondary will have to stop it. It will be a fun game but in the end due to all GB injuries Dallas should walk out with the win.

EATING THEIR PREY

BY MARK HALPERN

     Yesterday the Detroit Lions destroyed the Arizona Cardinals by a score of 45-10. The Lions have made most of the NFL scratch their heads as their record doesn’t really reflect what this team can do.

      The Lions have had a rough start and going into a tune up game like this (even though the Cardinals have made games interesting) was what the Lions needed. Jared Goff led the charge with going 19/30 for 271yards and 3 TDs. Goff playing at a high level is not a surprise as he has been good for the first 5 games. Goff spread the ball around with Laporta having the most targets at 6 with a touchdown and Jameson Williams added two scores of his own. St. Brown was also in the mix but, was counted on more as a short option for him to do what he does best and create yards after the catch.  The story of todays game was delight for Sport Book players and Fantasy Football members who have him on their roster and that is Jahmyr Gibbs who had 25 carries for 151 yards and 2 Touchdowns. Gibbs a top pick in most fantasy leagues has needed a day like this and fantasy managers around are hoping this got the engine started.

      The NFC North is just getting started and the Minnesota Vikings have started out perfect leading the division at 5-0 while everyone else is at 3-2. We at the Sports Insanity Network predicted this division to be the talk of the NFL and we are in for an exciting run where the NFC North could represent a big percentage of playoff teams just like the AL East did in Baseball this year.

WHY IS THIS GROUP IS ABOVE THE REST.

   BY MARK HALPERN

     Over my time on social media, I have met many friends and made many good business partnerships. When you join a FaceBook group these days you expect the Administrator to be viewing everything and either deleting/or accepting the post. However, in most groups so many spam people join and get in and then flood the group with comments or pictures that do not represent the group in any way shape or form. At the end of 2019 I joined a group called “Amazin Mets Fans” that is run and overseen by Mr. Adam Weinstein. Adam, who already has a very busy life, doesn’t miss a beat in the group. There is no illegal content/unwanted political drama. This group was made to talk about our team The New York Mets however, once the season ends, they jump a little towards other New York teams including the New York Giants. Adam throughout the day, even into the next morning Adam starts some conversations or will jump in on another post to extend that post’s life and make sure it gets seen. This group is one of the friendliest ones I have joined, mainly because of how it is run. There is plenty of back and forth but, doesn’t get violent or threating in any way (if it does it gets shutdown fast.) This group is run like a forum should be. The group itself has 473 members with about 20-25% participation in which each post will either be liked by Adam and if he has the time at the moment will get a comment in to engage the conversation. Don’t get me wrong there are plenty of groups out there in Facebook that are well run and monitored and then there are ones who try and copy what Adam has built and has failed at doing so. 

   When you run a group like he does it’s great to have a background in the sport. Adam growing up in Westfield N.J. spent his time from playing tee-ball to winning a school state title in 1994. Adam was a Pitcher and was also a Center Fielder and when his job took him one way he still has found a way to compete. When not doing research for his real job, Adam has found a love in playing Softball and he admits he believes he has played way more games of Softball than he did Baseball. Adam has an inner engine that drives him to be the success he is. 

    Adam’s story of becoming a Mets fan is an interesting one. His Mom and family are very big Boston fans and his dad is a die-hard fan of the Mets but also was a big supporter of the Brooklyn Dodgers. I don’t know what it was like in his house in 1986 but, I am pretty sure that tensions were high and definitely a DEFCON 2 situation during each game. Adam followed his dads passion for the Mets but has rooted for the Sox with his mom and family at times. Makes the statement “can’t we all just get along” go at its boldest meaning.

   If you are a Mets fan and want to join a group that is not loaded with a thousand nonsense posts, ads, gaslighting and other crap then come to “AMAZIN METS FANS” and join the fun and belong to the most active Mets baseball group out there.

PITCHING IDEAS

BY MIKE RIFKIN

The 2026 Mets were a disaster. One of the areas that gave fans optimism was the starting rotation. Nolan McLean, Christian Scott and Zac Thornton are young starters, who give you hope. Sean Manaea had a tale of two halves, but still finished with a ERA of 4.78. Kodai Senga looked better out of the bullpen then he did as a starter. Jonah Tong, who is still young can start next season at AAA. How can the Mets round out the rotation. Tarik Skubal is the top name on the market so let’s put him aside for now what other options are there for the Mets when it comes to pitching.

FREE AGENTS

  1. KEVIN GAUSMAN – There’s a lot of mileage on that right arm, and he’ll be 36 next season, I would pass up on Gausman.
  1. Freddy Peralta – Do you want to try this again? Peralta wasn’t great for the Mets and turned his season around in Tampa. I don’t see this reunion happening.
  1. Sonny Gray – He had a phenomenal season in Boston, and will likely get some CY Young votes. But he’s pitched in New York before and wasn’t a fan of it in the Bronx, would he be interested in Queens? He might be, but I’m not. 
  1. Clay Holmes – The Mets turned Holmes into a Starting Pitcher and it worked until he got hurt. As good as Holmes was he is not the arm the Mets should look at. 

INTRIGUING OPTIONS 

  1. Corbin Burnes/Zac Gallen – Neither guy is coming off the greatest season. In fact Gallen’s last two seasons have not been good, but he is definitely a buy low candidate. Burnes has been injured throughout his time in the Desert, so not sure if he’ll opt out of his deal, if he does he’s very familiar with David Stearns. 
  1. Sandy Alcantara – Another option could be looking at the Mets from their own division. Alcantara is a former CY Young award winner and has fully recovered from Tommy John Surgery, and don’t forget how much Mets players raved about him a few years ago. 
  1. Michael King – King was awesome for the Padres, especially in October. But he’s about to hit the market again, would he consider coming back to New York and pitching in a different borough. 

TRADE OPTIONS – THIS IS THE RABBIT HOLE I’D LOOK AT 

  1. Hunter Greene – Reds : Now I know Greene will miss the 2027 season due to Tommy John, but according to reports the Reds were listening to offers at the trade deadline. Trading for Greene isn’t just for 2027, Greene is signed through 2028 (with a club option) at 27 years old the former first round pick is worth the risk. 
  2. George Kirby/Logan Gilbert – Mariners : If there was a team even more disappointing than the Mets, it was the Mariners, one game away from going to the World Series to being under .500. Kirby is 28 and Gilbert is 29. Gilbert was 12-11 with a 3.73 ERA and had 205 strikeouts in 186 innings in 32 starts. Kirby made 30 starts an was 9-11 with a 4.33 ERA and had 148 strikeouts in 174.2 innings pitched.
  1. Joe Ryan – Twins : Ryan’s name has been out there for a few years now and with the direction of the Twins kinda uncertain I’m going to put him here. Ryan was 7-10 with a 3.79 ERA and had 159 strikeouts in 144.2 innings pitched. 
  1. Tyler Glasnow – Dodgers :  Let me file this under unlikely to happen. Glasnow has one year plus a club option, but if the Dodgers bring back Skubal and Ohtani is pitching again, is there a spot for Glasnow? The Mets could potentially buy low on a great pitcher (with great hair). 
  1. Spencer Strider – Braves : Let me also file this under unlikely to happen, but if the Braves are listening on Strider, Stearns should make the call. Strider’s career has been derailed by injuries and he is someone the fanbase doesn’t like but it’s an interesting option especially if he’s healthy.

Yes, Skubal is the best pitcher on the market and the Mets should attempt to pay him. But there are so many other options for Stearns and company to make this team better.

WWE MONEY IN THE BANK PREDICTIONS

BY SIN’S FACE TURN

ROMAN REIGNS VS LA KNIGHT  WWE UNIVERSAL CHAMPIONSHIP :

 NOAH, LAWRENCE, MIKE : LA KNIGHT

JEFF : ROMAN REIGNS

OBA FEMI VS BRONSON REED : ALL : FEMI

BECKY LYNCH VS LIV MORGAN VS STEPHANIE VAQUER : WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP: NOAH AND LAWRENCE : MORGAN

JEFF : VAQUER

MIKE : LYNCH

WOMEN’S MONEY IN THE BANK : ROXANNE PEREZ VS SOL RUCA VS JACY JANE VS LOLA VICE VS TIFFANY STRATTON VS LASH LEGEND :

 ALL:  PEREZ. ( NOAH AND LAWRENCE PEREZ CASHES IN AFTER TRIPLE THREAT)

MEN’S MONEY IN THE BANK : KEVIN OWENS VS CM PUNK VS JE’VON EVANS VS PENTA VS BRON BREAKKER VS TRICK WILLIAMS

NOAH : PENTA

LAWRENCE : OWENS

JEFF : CM PUNK

MIKE : BREAKKER

DALLAS WINS BUT IT’S THE SAME OLD STORY

BY MARK HALPERN

     The Dallas Cowboys beat the Houston Texans 34-30 in a shootout in Houston. Prescott threw 335 yards and 1 TD to Cee Dee Lamb who came close to beating former Cowboys TE Jason Witten’s record of 18 receptions but finished with 17 receptions for 189 yards and the lone Prescott TD. Javonte Willams had 62 rushing yards and had 2 TDs himself. 

   However, the defense allowed C.J. Stroud to throw for 347 yards and two touchdowns to Nico Collins, who returned after missing the prior two games. This defense was the talk of the offseason, but they haven’t shown anything, despite missing two starting safeties. I said that Dak was going to have a monster game because they were going to have to match Houston drive for drive. The Dallas defense is giving up 239 yards per game through the air and 389.5 yards per game, only the Colts and Lions are worse.

 The next two games will be very crucial for this Dallas defense as both opponents don’t have a solid run game and rely on passing. First on Thursday Oct 8th against the Tampa Bay Bucs and then in Lambeau against the Packers. This win was big and they have an excellent chance in winning on Thursday but, if this secondary doesn’t get it together soon because the NFC East is wide open.

TIMES HAVE CHANGED

BY MIKE RIFKIN

In the late 90s and into the 2000s the Detroit Red Wings were the envy of every fan base, because of how consistent they were. It wasn’t just making the playoffs, it was the fact that every year they were a threat to win the Stanley Cup. The Red Wings made the playoffs for 25 consecutive seasons, that ended in 2016 and now they haven’t made the playoffs in a decade. The Red Wings were a top notch organization and now it’s really bad. 

This past summer was a tough for Red Wing fans, Captain Dylan Larkin requested a trade and 23 year old Simon Edvinsson is still in Sweden unsigned as a restricted free agent. And oh yeah there was a two month waiting period between the Wings demoting GM and former captain Steve Yzerman and replacing him with an interim GM in Shawn Horcoff. 

Larkin, didn’t play in Friday’s season opener due to injury, but when he was introduced the Red Wing fans booed their former captain. Larkin was supposed to be the next big time Red Wing. Being a Michigan native, becoming captain of the team he grew up rooting for must’ve been a cool experience. Larkin requested a trade over the summer, after getting his first real taste of winning, when the Americans took Gold in the Olympics. The problem isn’t the fact that Larkin requested the trade, it’s about the fact he was only willing to go to three teams because of his No trade clause. But I have two issues with this and I believe Red Wing fans might feel the same way. First thing is if he truly wanted to leave, he’d be open to going anywhere, not limiting himself and the other piece is coincides with the first if those other teams don’t have what the Red Wings feel is equal value why would they trade him? 

The Edvinsson situation is more upsetting, here’s a 23 year old very promising young defenseman, and he remains unsigned. Things are so bad he’s working out with a Swedish team instead of being in America, trying to iron out a deal. According to insider Elliotte Friedman, Edvinsson like Larkin prefers a trade out of Detroit. Now I do want to say this is not the fault of Shawn Horcoff, he was put in a impossible situation. The real person at fault is Owner Chris Illitch, who waited two months to hire an interim GM. Red Wing fans are so fed up with Illitch that they had sell the team chants going the other night. Here’s another layer for Horcoff, Alex Debrincat, one of the best goal scorers in the league is an impending Unrestricted free agent, does he want to stay? Or do you have to move him as well?

The Red Wings have been a standard for a long time, now they are a mess of an organization. The amount of players and coaches that have left have turned Hockeytown into a ghost town.