PGA CLAPS BACK AT LIV

By Mark Halpern

  If you have been watching the 19th hole (our Golf podcast of the Network), Ross and I have been discussing the newly formed Saudi league and players that were jumping ship. Brooks Koopeka has been a PGA star over the last few years, but yesterday decided to leave the PGA to play in the newly formed LIV league. There will be more before this week’s PGA tournament begins this Thursday. 

     One of the reasons many players are joining this new venture is for them to get a fresh start and try to cement themselves in the Golf world. The other reason players decided to jump ship is that the PURSE (Money to be won) was to be over 20 million dollars per event. The PGA, at the most, is 17.5 million per event, up from 15 million last year. Someone once said, “Cash is King” (Donald Trump). With average purse winnings possible of 5-10 million more than PGA events, indeed, they will join. 

    The PGA has been taking much flak for forcing players to choose one league. The PGA has rarely come under scrutiny for anything, and what’s happening now is not boding well with fans and Players. So yesterday, the PGA announced that it is adding 8, yes 8, tournaments of 20 million to the schedule. These will be limited field and no cut event (means you keep playing unless you withdraw.) The events will be split between spring/summer and fall and feature the top 50 golfers on the PGA by Fedex points. There will be alternate tournaments for players who are outside of the top 50, so they can earn a better spot next season. Now the PGA is stepping up and trying to keep the focus on them other than the LIV league.

     In a fair and just world, there would be one united league where players worldwide can compete on an even scale. However, we live in a competitive world, and whoever can flash the most significant bill fold wins. In the words of Rodney King, “Can’t we all just get along.”

Matt Fitzpatrick wins the 2022 US Open

By Ross Mazin

Matt Fitzpatrick is your 2022 U.S. Open winner and deserves a big round of applause. Fitzpatrick wasn’t on my or anyone else’s radar going into this year’s U.S Open. This U.S Open was Fitzpatrick’s first significant win in the PGA.  He also won the U.S. Amateur championship. Before this tournament, Fitzpatrick was always on the outside looking in, but now, he will always be on the inside looking out.

     This year’s U.S Open was held at the Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. This is one of the easier courses for the U.S Open in recent years. It does have its challenging holes on this famous golf course such as hole 3 and 7 as they seemed to be the most challenging. The weather always plays a factor in its location, and this past weekend it was windy. The course gave everyone trouble this weekend, as by the end of the second round, most of the notable golfers either missed the cut or withdrew.

   This is the first time the course has hosted the Open since hosting it back in 1913. The last tournament the course hosted, another major PGA event, was the Ryder Cup in 1999. The last U.S. Open held at the Country Club was in 1913. The heavy favorites to win were Harry Vardon and Ted Ray. Vardon won the U.S Open back in 1900. Ray was the reigning British Open champion. What makes this an important note is that an Amateur golfer by the name of Francis Ouimet played a role in the greatest game ever played, and in the end, Ouimet beats the favorites of Vardon and Ray. There is a Disney movie made called The Greatest Game Ever Played, and it stars Shia Labouef as Ouimet. It is a great underdog story and very factual about Ouimet’s life and what he had to accomplish is just short of impossible.

     The next tournament is the Travelers Championship. It will be missing a lot of top golfers as they have been leaving the PGA to play in the LIV. Brooks Koopeka was the latest to jump ship, and I expect a lot more before this week is over. I am picking Scottie Scheffler to be this tournament winner.

This Is Francisco Lindor

By : Mike Rifkin

When the Mets traded for and signed Francisco Lindor to a 10 year 341 million dollar contract Mets fans were excited. In 2021 Lindor struggled mightily. Lindor’s slash line in 2021 was .230/.322/..412 with 20 home runs and 63 RBI. In Sunday’s 6-2 loss to the Marlins, Mets Shortstop Francisco Lindor drove in another run. In the three games against Miami Lindor has driven in seven runs giving him 52 so far for the season which is tied for fourth in MLB. Last season Earlier in the season Lindor tied the Mets club record held by Mike Piazza for recording an RBI in 10 consecutive games. Lindor’s slash line so far this season is .243/.323/.421.

The play of Lindor has been part of the reason the Mets are off to such a good start. Lindor has been hitting third all season putting him behind Brandon Nimmo and Starling Marte both of which have done a great job getting on base and in front of Pete Alonso who is leading MLB with 63 RBI. Another reason for Lindor’s bounce back this season is new manager Buck Showalter. Showalter has been great for the team all season but in spring training Buck and Lindor were always shown chatting. In May when Lindor was struggling “He’s going to be a solid contributor for us all year long,” Showalter said. “He’s playing the heck out of shortstop, great effort. I love the way he brings it every day. He’s a baseball player.” And Lindor has been solid for the Mets on both sides and Buck is a big reason for his turnaround. Another reason for Lindor’s return is the fact that he has now seen the league one time and has adjusted to the league. This is the Francisco Lindor Met fans were expecting last season, but are glad to take it this year. How far can Lindor and the Mets go this season remains to be seen, but expect Lindor to be at the forefront.

SPORT CARD PULLS FROM BREAKERS

By Mark Halpern

If you have been tuning in to the podcast, I have mentioned breakers. Many people who collect join breaks by the dozen to get the chance for their favorite team in randoms or a high-value team for low cost via randoms. However, some people only collect a specific team or player and buy into Pick Your Team breaks (PYT), where the cost is much higher, but the reward could be substantial. Over the next few weeks, I will be putting out an article regarding cards Breakers have pulled for me over the last few years.

1) 2018 Luka Doncic Panini Revolution Gem Mint 10 rookie Pulled by Monster Breaks

2) 2019 George W. Bush auto cut Pulled by Top Notch Sports Club 6/8 (we will be doing a whole show on Auto Cuts)

3) 2020 leaf trinity Wander Franco autographed rookie card 8/50

         Pulled by Top Notch Sports Club

4) Holly Holm UFC base card 1/1 (you can see the 1/1 mark on the right side of the card pulled by Top Notch Sports Club.

 Pulled by Top Notch Sports Club.

5) 2018 Donruss Diamond Kings Jackie Robinson patch 3/3

Pulled by Dcsports87

6) 2018 Lamar Jackson Spectra Nike Patch Auto 1/1

Pulled by Dcsports87

7) 2018 Panini Immaculate Aaron Judge Cleat 1/7

Pulled by Monster Breaks.

8) 2017 Patrick Mahomes National Treasure RPA (Rookie Patch Autograph) 47/99

Pulled by Triple J Case Breaks

9) 2019 Pat Tilman Panini Flawless SAPPHIRE (Actual Sapphire in card) 10/10 RIP

Pulled by Dcsports87

10) 2015 David Wright National Treasures Autographed Patch booklet 4/10 pulled by Boogs (Boogs Cards).                        

One of my top five favorite cards to own.

Stanley Cup Finals Preview

By : Mike Rifkin

The only thing between the Tampa Bay Lightning and making history are the Colorado Avalanche. The Lightning are looking to be the first team since the New York Islanders in the 1980s to win three consecutive Stanley Cups, while the Avalanche are looking for their first Stanley Cup since 2001. The Avs defeated the Predators, Blues and Oilers to get to the Cup final. While the Lightning defeated the Maple Leafs, Panthers and Rangers to get here. Both of these teams have major similarities. 

This series will feature a former first overall pick for both teams Nathan Mackinnon (2013) for the Avalanche and Steven Stamkos (2008) for the Lightning. Both teams have former second overall picks Gabriel Landeskog (2011) and Victor Hedman (2009). Other top picks on both rosters include Both teams have also made big additions that have helped their lineups Nazem Kadri, Devon Toews and Darcy Kuemper for the Avs and Ryan Mcdonagh, Nick Paul and Brandon Hagel for the Lightning. 

The Avalanche won both regular season meetings 4-3 in a shootout on October 23rd  and 3-2 on February 10th. Andrei Vasilevskiy was 0-1-1 with a 2.96 GAA and a .919 save percentage vs the Avalanche this season.For his career Vasilevskiy is 1-3-1 with a3.41 GAA and a .877 save percentage vs Colorado. Darcy Kuemper was 2-0-0 vs the Lightning this season with a 2.40 GAA and .929 save percentage. In seven career games vs Tampa Kuemper is 4-2-0 with a 2.33 GAA and .920 save percentage. Gabriel Landeskog had two goals and an assist against the Lightning this season and has seven goals and 18 points in 17 career games vs Tampa. Nathan Mackinnon only played in one of the two regular season matchups and had a goal and two assists. Mackinnon has 10 goals and 23 points in 15 games in his career against the Lightning. Brayden Point had two goals and an assist vs the Avalanche this season. For his career Point has four goals and 8 points vs Colorado. Like Mackinnon Nikita Kucherov only played in one meeting between the two teams and had a goal In his career vs the Avs Kucherov has five goals and 10 points. Tampa’s power play was 0-6 in the two games combined while Colorado was 1-9. 

Nazem Kadri and Andrew Cogliano who both got hurt during the Western Conference Finals could play at some point during this series. Brayden Point who got hurt in game seven of the first round will play at some point, might even be ready for game one. 

One guy for Colorado who will not come back is Samuel Girard who broke his sternum in the second round. That has put more pressure on Cale Makar and Devon Toews and they have thrived this playoffs. Makar has five goals and 22 points this playoffs Toews also has put up five goals and 13 points but both were sensational against Connor McDavid and the Oilers in the Conference Finals. It will be interesting to see if Point comes back for Tampa if Jared Bednar matches them up against Point or Kucherov and Stamkos because I would guess Jon Cooper would split those three up. For Tampa the key matchup will be Hedman vs Mackkinon’s line, with home ice Bednar might get away from that but watch for Jon Cooper to matchup Anthony Cirelli vs Mackinnon

Conn Smythe Watch: AVS: Makar or Mackinnon. Tampa: Kucherov, Vasilevskiy, Stamkos.

X Factor Colorado : Andre Burakovsky: One of the few Avs players who has been here before. Burakovsky helped the Washington Capitals win the Cup in 2018. 

Lightning : Ondrej Palat : Two times with under two minutes left to play in the Eastern Conference Finals Ondrej Palat scored the game winning goal. He doesn’t get the recognition as some of the Lightning stars but Palat has been a great playoff performer throughout his career. 

Prediction : Lightning in 6. Vasilevskiy Conn Smythe.

This Week In Wrestling 6/4/2022 – 6/10/22

By Jeff Knapp

WWE has announced that Cody Rhodes will be out 9 months due to his recovery from his pectoral injury and surgery. With the news coming into Hell In A Cell that Cody Rhodes will have surgery for a torn Pectoral muscle after his match with Seth Rollins, it seems like we may not see him again until the Royal Rumble. Some other names that have had the same injury have been out of action for about 5-6 months. With that said, he could stay off until the rumble and be a surprise entrant, or show up a few weeks before and be advertised for ratings as being the 1st entrant in the RR and then going on to win the entire thing.

AEW reveals a new championship, the AEW All Atlantic Championship. There will be a tournament where one wrestler from AEW and one from NJPW will face off to determine the champion at Forbidden Door PPV.

WWE’s Paige announced that July 7th will be her last day under contract to the WWE, and may possibly be back in the ring. Of course she will not be going with the name Paige going forward, but will use her name Saraya.

NXT – IN YOUR HOUSE

After a hard fought 6 man tag, LDF will now have to work for Tony DeAngelo and his crew. 

Toxic Attraction keeps improving as a tag team, and GiGi Dolan is mesmerizing. They fought off a great team of Katana Chance & Kayden Carter. These 2 ladies have amazing chemistry and the sky’s the limits with their athleticism. 

In what could be a NXT match of the candidate, Carmelo Hayes won back the North American Championship from Cameron Grimes with a lot of help from Trick Williams. I’m hoping this rivalry can take us through SummerSlam weekend. The only big issue I had was the fact that the ref caught Trick Williams multiple times interfering in the match and not calling for a DQ or for Williams to be ejected from ringside. Even if Hayes won without Williams, that would make him look stronger. By not taking control of the side action since Williams was caught multiple times, this makes the ref look incompetent. I’d rather have the same exact outcome, but the ref never saw Trick getting involved.

In Mandy’s 5th NXT Women’s title defense, she had her toughest title defense to date when she defeated Wendy Choo clean after tossing her off the top rope and stacking her up for the win. I’m really enjoying Mandy’s time in NXT and will be sad to see her eventually go back to Raw or Smackdown.  Although Roxanne Perez will possibly be the next contender if she can defeat Tiffany Straton on Wednesday, I believe the toughest task for her will be in the form of Nakita Lyons when she returns from injury. 

Breezango 2.0 aka Pretty Deadly the NXT Tag Team champions had a very short title reign by losing the tag titles to the Creed Brothers, who had the match of their lives. By winning they are still part of Diamond Mine. I’ll be honest and say that Pretty Deadly was impressive. I guess if they get rid of the half top shirts and tweak their character presentation, they might be a lot more palatable to the rest of the audience. 

In the main event Bron Breakker  retained his NXT Championship over the resident Jim Jones, Joe Gacy. I actually am entertained by Gacy and for the time being, believe he has a great NXT / WWE career ahead of him. I love how his character has evolved and want to see the product 2, 3 and 4 years from now. 

It was crazy seeing a man of Bron’s size doing a leap over the top like he did, and this kid is the future as long as the WWE universe doesn’t feel like he’s being pushed down their throats, like they felt about Roman Reigns.

Overall this was a really solid NXT ppv.

WWE – Hell In A Cell

Going into this weekend of WWE “Premium Live Events” I didn’t see a lot of promise. I’m not sure if it was the over saturation of those events or the lack of buildup to these events. Possibly both. 

The WWE started the night off with Bianca Belair taking on Asuka and Becky Lynch for the Raw Women’s Championship. One of my biggest gripes with women’s matches in the WWE are the amount of time they are given. This wasn’t rushed and gave the women plenty of time to get the audience invested, so that when Becky was on the verge of pinning Asuka, the crowd went nuts when Bianca tossed Becky out of the ring at the last second to pick up the victory and retain her title. This young lady has all the tools to be a hall of famer when she retires many years down the road.

The next match was2 on 1 handicap match between Bobby Lashley and Omos & MVP. MVP’s work previously with Bobby and now with Omos better not go unappreciated among the fans and management. Cedric got involved and helped out Lashley for being disrespected by MVP earlier. He later told Bobby he felt like a misfit toy that nobody wants to play with. If he is ever released, I’m sure there is a home for him at Impact or in ROH. In the end Booby submitted MVP with the Hurt Lock.

The 3rd match was here because Kevin Ownes believes that Ezekiel is actually Elias and is a liar. I’m a huge fan of Owens, but this was not for me. Maybe this will go somewhere, but we’ll see. Owens picks up the victory and still doesn’t get the answer he wants.

We now move on the the 6 person tag of Edge, Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley (Judgement Day) taking on  AJ Styles, Finn Balor & Liv Morgan. When you see Edge and AJ in the match, you know the match is going to be an amazing match and this was no different. 

I know most people wanted AJ, Finn and Liv to win, but I’m fine with them losing, because they are yet to hit their stride and things will be too sweet then. Will there be a 4th member to either of the factions. I’m waiting for the WWE to give AJ’s group a horrible name. With Styles and Finn there should be a nod to the Bullet Club, just not The Club 2.0

In the end, Edge picks up the pinfall for the Judgment Day’s win.

Madcap Moss vs Happy Corbin was next. I didn’t expect much, but with more time and a few tweeks, Moss can be a name guy in the WWE. He’s young, built and fast. I love the aggression of Moss at the end with him getting revenge in his win over Corbin. 

Next is the US Championship match between Theory and Mustafa Ali. Ali has my full backing. He’s great in the ring and as somebody who follows him on social media, he’s a better human being. As far as Theory goes, there is no denying his talent. He doesn’t have Cena’s size, but he’s starting to get that type of push and you know he’s got VKM behind him every step of the way.

In the end, Theory nails a chop block on an already injured knee, followed by A Town Down for the pinfall. 

Now onto the main event, Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins part 3 in Hell in a Cell. Rollins with the Dusty polka dots outfit to get un Cody’s skin. Speaking of Skin, Cody’s full upper right side torso is completely purple from having his peck torn off the bone and still competing. I can’t imagine the level of pain he was in during this match. I just hope that he doesn’t injure himself worse. 

After rewatching the match, I 100% believe Corey Graves made a Fruedian slip and said the name Tony Khan. 

I honestly wanted this match to be stopped because I felt for Cody like I did as was a kid again.

In the end Cody beats all the obstacles, connects with 2 consecutive Crossroads then gets the sledgehammer and nails Rollins with it and gets the 1-2-3. This match alone was worth watching this PPV / Premium Live Event.

WWE – RAW

Raw started off with a match between Dana Brooke and Becky Lynch, but when catering came out to the ring, it turned into a 24/7 match in which Dana won the title back. This led to Becky challenging for the championship in which she lost due to Asuka interfering. The only way to win this title, which is nothing without R-Truth, is to pin your opponent with a roll up from behind. I’ve never seen it change hands any other way. Can they think of another way?

Cody Rhodes comes out and talks about his injury and is interrupted by Seth Rollins who shakes his hand, but as Cody leaves, Rollins attacks him from behind with a sledgehammer to his torn pectoral muscle. Let’s hope Cody will be back by the Royal Rumble.

The Street Profits are now the #1 contenders to the WWE Tag Team Titles, when they beat the Usos via count out. When the titles are on the line, this should actually be a really entertaining match.

Dominik Mysterio lost to Veer Mahaan when Rey interfered. Veer should be part of Max Dupree’s modeling stable. With that being said, I absolutely could care less about Rey or Dominik Mysterio. I’m not talking about what he can or can’t do in the ring, but he’s as entertaining as watching paint dry and grass grow. If he wants to stand on his own, send him to NXT and do something with the younger Uso or some of the younger talent.

Cedric Alexander was squashed within seconds by Omos. On the bright side, his wife announced on Twitter that she was going to rock his world when he got home. This is sad since Cedric is an amazing talent and would benefit from NXT. 

Judgement Day come out and announce they have a new member joining the group. To the surprise of a few, it ends up being Finn Balor. As they talk about dominating and what could hurt them, Finn, Rhea and Damian all shock the entire crowd and even surprise me by turning on Edge. They beat him down, put him through a table and put him in a submission hold until they stand tall above him and leave him for dead. 

I’m now very interested in where this goes? Will Edge align with Styles? If so, will Edge turn on him in a long game plot to take him out once and for all? Will he go his own way and form a new faction to battle Judgment Day? If done correctly, this could be one of the best WWE storylines of 2022.

In the main event, Rhea Ripley pinned Doudrop in a fatal four-way to become the #1 contender to Biance Belair’s Raw’s Women’s championship.

NXT

In what was the best thing going in the WWE universe, NXT has become the complete opposite. There are great people in NXT and I just wish those in charge could pick the 4-6 men and women to build around. 

They keep pushing Van Horrible down our throats and it’s terrible. 

The Nathan Frazer and Santos Escobar match was pretty good until the rest of the D’Angelo family interfered. This whole joining his family idea is terrible and I don’t see where this is going until they finally have a match between Tony and Santos in order for LDF to be free again. 

Congratulations to Roxanne Perez in winning the Inaugural NXT Women’s Breakout Tournament. I assumed they were going with Tiffany Straton just because.

The biggest surprise of the night was the return of Apollo Crews, who came back not only to deal with unfinished business, but he returned without his Nigerian accent. 

He reminded us just how good he is by teaming with Solo Sikoa to face Carmelo Hayes & Grayson Waller.

We found out that next week Joe Gacy’s minions, the Dyad will have their in ring debut. Blade & Enofe’ will challenge the Creed Brothers for the NXT tag team titles and finally Indi Hartwell, Cora Jade & Roxanne Perez will face Toxic Attraction.

AEW – DYNAMITE

I never get tired of saying that AEW started off the show like a ball of fire. Thank goodness I’m not tired of it because once again they did by having a battle royal with the winner set to face Jon Moxley in the Main Event. 

The participants include Darby Allin, Daniel Garcia, Eddie Kingston, Tony Nese, and Lance Archer. Ricky Starks, Rey Fenix, Swerve Strickland, Jake Hager,Keith Lee, John Silver, Konosuke Takeshita, Max Caster, Austin Gunn and Colten Gunn,Powerhouse Hobbs, Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish, Dante Martin, Wheeler Yuta and finally Andrade El Idolo. 

In the end Kyle O’Reilly eliminated Wheeler Yuta to advance to the main event.

AEW will debut a new championship at Forbidden Door called the All Atlantic Championship where one member of AEW and NJPW will face off to become the inaugural champion. 

To start off the tournament, PAC defeated Buddy Matthews in the opening round.

There is an in ring segment between Trent Baretta and FTR. Trent is looking to compete against FTR for the ROH Tag Titles. As they are talking out comes NJPW superstar Will Ospreay. This leads to the rest of the United Empire coming out and taking out Trent and FTR. I’m guessing this will lead to a match at Forbidden Door, but personally, I’d rather see FTR defend their ROH titles against a top NJPW team.

Wardlow makes it known that until CM Punk returns from his injury that he will set his sights on the AEW TNT Championship, currently held by Scorpio Sky. As a fan of Scorpio Sky, there is no way Wardlow isn’t TNT champion before the end of the year.

We also find out that Christian put the current AEW Tag Team champions, The Jurassic Express in a match next week with the titles on the line in a ladder match against the Young Bucks and The Hardys. This will be an amazing match and will either open the show or will be the main event, but I have this odd feeling that there will be some rift between the J.E. and Christian somewhere soon down the road. 

AEW Women’s Champion, Thunder Rosa offers up an open challenge to anyone in the back. The challenge is answered by Marina Shafir, who ended up having a hard hitting but early on awkward match. At the end Thunder Rosa solved “The Problem” only to be attacked from behind until Toni Storm makes the save.

Kris Statlander vs. Red Velvet is announced for AEW Rampage. I’m really hoping to see Kris take this one, but with Jade Cardgill and Kiera Hogan possibly ringside, I’m not sure if this will happen.

In the Main Event Jon Moxley battled Kyle O’Reilly to advance in the AEW Interm World Title tournament. After both going back and forth, Mox finally took out Kyle with a Paradigm Shift.

At Forbidden Door, Moxley will now face the winner of the qualifying match that will happen at NJPW Dominion between Hiroshi Tanahashi and Hirooki Goto.

IMPACT

There are times I can really get on Impact for what they do wrong or what doesn’t make any sense but one thing they do I love is something that AEW does and that’s start each week off with a match. This week was no different as they give us Rosemary vs Tenille Dashwood.

Rosemary picked up the pinfall victory but was attacked from behind from Madison Rayne until Taya Valkyrie.

One thing they did after coming eye to eye was have a stare down, look at the crowd and then back at each other. Just handle your business, don’t ask us what to do in that moment.

The Good Brothers show up in Sandy Fork, Delaware on the Briscoe chicken farm. I was amused with the reference to uncle Allen on a tractor. For those who may not know, they were talking about AJ Styles during their match at Wrestlemania against the Undertaker. 

They went to the wrong damn farm #Demboys

Leading up to Joash Alexander vs Eric Young match at Slammiversary, VBD’s Joe Doring takes on Impact World Champion Josh Alexander. Josh was eventually disqualified when he used VBD’s flag on Doring.

The main event of the evening will see Eddie Edwards, Mike Bennett and Matt Taven vs Frankie Kazarian and the Motor City Machine Guns. 

This was a great match but eventually things broke down and Heath ran down to the ring to get some revenge for the brutal attack on Rhino from HNM. 

HNM eventually got the upper hand and took out Heath’s leg. He has kids and they don’t even care.

I can’t say it’s a better show than what I see on Monday, Wednesday or Fridays, but this might actually put NXT in last place between all 5 shows.

WWE – Smackdown

Taking a cue from Impact and AEW, Smackdown started the show off tonight with the 296th meeting between Drew McIntyre and Sheamus. Just like the others, these 2 men put on a physical and hard hitting match. Now, this was supposed to be a MITB qualifying match, and although Butch got involved and didn’t cause a DQ in favor of Drew somehow, both men got counted out after brawling on the outside. 

What will happen to that spot? Will Adam Pearce do right by Drew or put both men in the match? 

The returning Lacey Evans had her 1st match back in over a year and took out Xia Li with her “Woman’s Right” for the victory and will now be in the Women’s MITB match. I love the change in character and I’m genuinely interested in where her character goes. They have an opportunity with her background to do some great things.

In his 5th televised IC championship match, Ricochet lost his IC Title to Gunther. The champion put up one hell of a fight, but Gunther surprised Ricochet with a shotgun drop kick of his own and then was nailed with a powerbomb for the 1-2-3. Congratulations to Gunther. I’m hoping that Ricochet gets his rematch soon than later, because this match up shouldn’t be a one and done.

In the main event we saw Riddle face Sami Zayn with a lot on the line. If Sami won, then Riddle was barred from Smackdown (and presumably going to Raw) but if Riddle won, then he gets a title shot next week against Roman Reigns on Smackdown.

In a gem of an ending, Riddle was in the corner and as  Sami was charging for a Helluva Kick, Riddle hit Orton’s RKO out of…nowhere and picked up the win and title opportunity against Roman next week. 

AEW – RAMPAGE

This week AEW starts off with a match pinning Jake Hagger vs Eddie Kingston. It’s hard to find many wrestlers in all of wrestling who have the crowd support and love that Eddie Kingston gets. After a long physical match Eddie pick up the pinfall after connecting with 2 spinning back fists.

Jay Lethal and Satnam Singh are in tag action against 2 “enhancement wrestlers” who are no match for the monstrous Satnam Singh. He is more or less AEW’s version of Omos but seems a bit more athletic. The was Singh’s in ring debut and with Lethal by his side, things looked pretty good. This was a great idea to put him with a vet like Lethal, just like when the WWE put Omos with Styles.

After checking in on Hookhausen, wo are treated to a match that I didn’t see much coming out of. We got Kris Statlander vs Red Velvet. I thought that Kris’s power was going to be too much for Red Velvet to overcome and although Velvet eventually lost, she showed the world just how much she has gotten better since her arrival in AEW. She used her speed to overcome some strength differences between her and Kris and nailed a well placed double knee against the ropes that should have ended Kris, but the resilience is strong and Kris finally picked up the win.

The main event had the best tag team in all of wrestling FTR partnered with Trent Baretta to face NJPW’s United Empire which consisted of Will Ospreay, and the tag team of Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis). This was my 1st time seeing Aussie Open wrestle and I was really impressed. Hard hitting and fast were these two, but when you’re in the ring with FTR, you have your work cut out for you. 

In the end with most of everyone outside, Trent connects with his Strong Zero on Kyle Fletcher for the pinfall victory.

Where Do The Oilers Go From Here?

By : Mike Rifkin

The Edmonton Oilers were swept in the Western Conference Finals by the Colorado Avalanche, losing 6-5 in overtime in game four. For the Oilers it was their first Western Conference Finals since 2006, where they defeated the Anaheim Ducks in five games before losing to the Carolina Hurricanes in seven games in the Stanley Cup Finals. 

The Oilers led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl both were in the top five in scoring during the regular season, including McDavid winning his second consecutive Art Ross Trophy and fourth overall. McDavid and Draisaitl combined for 55 points in 32 games played. What makes it even more impressive was Draisaitl was playing with a high ankle sprain according to General Manager Ken Holland, the injury occurred during the first round against the Kings. 

Ken Holland also said on head coach Jay Woodcroft “I think he did a fabulous job, the team responded to him and I told him we would meet early next week and have a discussion. I am interested in bringing him back, I think he did a great job and was a big part of what the team accomplished.” Woodcroft went 26-9-3 after being promoted from Bakersfield after Dave Tippett was fired. I don’t know why Woodcroft wouldn’t want to come back, but if he doesn’t there are a lot of big name coaches the Oilers could look at on the open market. But I would expect Woodcroft back

Another return in question for the Oilers is Evander Kane. Kane who was released by the Sharks, was picked up by the Oilers for one million dollars. Kane once he arrived in Edmonton was a points machine picking up 39 points (22 goals) in 43 games during the regular season and 17 points (13 goals) in 15 playoff games. Kane has always been a goal scorer but his numbers definitely increased by playing with McDavid. Holland said of Kane “I don’t expect him to play on a two million dollar cap hit next season.” Kane plays with an edge and it cost him in the Western Conference Finals. During the first period of game three Kane hit Avalanche Center Nazem Kadri from behind and got a 5 minute major penalty and was then suspended for game four. Something to watch with Kane whether it is the Oilers or another team I would give him a lesser term deal, probably nothing over three years. 

The other position the Oilers NEED to upgrade is their goaltending. They cannot go into another season with Mike Smith and Mikko Koskinen as their goalies. Smith is signed for next year at 2.2 million dollars at 40 years old and Koskinen is a free agent. Smith during the playoffs had a 3.37 Goals Against Average and .913 save percentage. Against Colorado during the Western Conference Finals Smith posted a 5.53 GAA and a .872 save percentage. Whether it’s a trade or free agency the Oilers need to address the goalie position.

MOVE OVER PGA CAUSE LVI MOVING IN

By Mark Halpern

       Over the last six months, we have been hearing about a Saudi-based professional golf tour, which has finally come to fruition. The LVI Golf Tour will get its official TEE OFF in London on June 9th, right before the U.S. Open. The commissioner of the PGA has been very open and critical of a new tour and, after much debate, has said, “If you want to play on that tour, you can not play in the PGA tour.” We can only guess whether this statement will hold for a year from now. When I first heard about another Golf tour being formed, I didn’t have feelings against it or for it, funny enough. When it was announced on ESPN that the LVI tour was going ahead, I thought of a quote from Happy Gilmore “Gold Jacket, Green Jacket, who cares.” We don’t know the color of the Jacket that is like the Masters (It’s Green), but time will tell.

    The league was formed with two tremendous PGA tour players backing it. Greg Norman and Phil Mickelson have been all for another league/tour globally. Mickelson has taken much flack because of his views towards another league and has lost sponsorships. He has been uninvited to play in any PGA courses or tournaments since he has been publicly favored in the other league. Mickelson is one of the greatest golfers ever to play the sport. He has won countless tournaments and has been active in charities and other humanitarian efforts in the golf world and the medical field. Mickelson was not doing any harm by speaking for the idea of another league, but, to some people, actions speak more than words.

   Since the idea of another tour has been tossed around and with players like Norman and Mickelson recruiting, there have been a lot of players wanting to move from PGA to LVI. The list of players is now up to 46, with some substantial noticeable names already committing to leave the PGA tour to Join the LVI tour. I will not name everyone but give you a sample of who has committed to playing in the newly formed LVI tour. The players joining are Dustin Johnson, Chase Kopeka, Kevin Na, Martin Kaymer, Sergio Garcia, Louis Oosthuizen, Andy Ogletree, Phil Mickelson, and Bryson DeChambeau are just some of the notable names. Rory Mcllory has said to be interested but has not committed to moving leagues yet. 

    Each day, we learn about other PGA golfers who are committing to playing on this new tour. Seasoned PGA tour member Tiger Woods has not spoken on the fact if he has been invited and would he even consider leaving. Considering where he ranks in the PGA all-time records, I don’t see him jumping ship. With the first event from LVI to debut today, tee times pairings will be released first in the morning and begin around 10 am. We will all get a first-hand look at what this relativity new Business Venture was to create an opportunity for other players on that side of the world. 

    This creation of a new Tour has a lot of new incomers moving on, but as I always say, a fresh start can get you into the right frame of mind, claim a spot, and get started with a fresh start, and that is how the old man sees it 

Something Bruin In Boston

By : Mike Rifkin

On Monday night the Boston Bruins announced they had fired head coach Bruce Cassidy. Cassidy had a record of 245-108-46 and led the Bruins to the playoffs every year in his six seasons, including going to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2019. This year the Bruins fell to the Carolina Hurricanes in seven game in the first round. The Bruins have made the playoffs every year since 2016

Now there are a lot of interesting candidates out on the market right now. Barry Trotz, Peter Deboer, John Tortorella and Paul Maurice are good coaches but so is Cassidy. Under Cassidy the Bruins averaged 3.14 goals per game and allowed 2.53 goals per game. This season the Bruins averaged 3.09 goals per game and allowed 2.66. Under Cassidy the Bruins power play connected at near 24 percent, this year it was down to 21.2 percent. The Bruins penalty kill was 82.8 percent under Cassidy and 81.3 percent this year.  

After last season second line Center David Krejci left the team to go play in his home country of the Czech Republic. Replacing Krejci was hard because he was so important to the Bruins at even strength, power play and penalty kill. In 962 games for the Bruins Krejci had 730 points. Second line center was a hole in the Bruins lineup the bulk of the season. They needed to spread out their scoring that Cassidy had to break up the “Perfection Line” of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak. Those three guys combined for 97 goals and 222 points. Goalie Tuukka Rask attempted to comeback from hip surgery and appeared in four games before getting injured again and eventually announced his retirement. Rookie Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark who they signed from the Buffalo Sabres both first time starters had a goals against average under 3 and save percentage of .914 and .917 respectively. Swayman went 3-2 with a 2.63 goals against average and .911 save percentage against the Hurricanes. 

Bergeron broke the record by winning his fifth Selke Trophy. At 36 years old Bergeron is an unrestricted free agent has not decided what his future holds. I don’t know if Cassidys firing sways him one way or the other. Marchand is signed through 2025-26 season but will miss the start of next season due to surgery on both hips. Pastrnak has one more year on his contract at 6.6 Million dollars. With Marchand, and defensemen Charlie Mcavoy and Matt Grzelyck who both underwent shoulder surgery missing the start of next season it will be interesting what the Bruins do with Pastrnak.

They have three options when it comes to Pastrnak. Option one is extending one of the premier goal scorers in the NHL. Option two would be explore a trade for him right now and they could get a haul. Option three and is they hold onto him until the trade deadline next year and see where they are before making a determination. If I was Don Sweeny I would extend Pastrnak. But I also wouldn’t have fired Cassidy with what he dealt with injury wise this year. Even if rebuilding you center the rebuild around Pastrnak and Mcavoy. Either way there might be some changes Bruin in Boston.

Split Decision

By : Mike Rifkin

In what was one of the biggest series of the first half of the Major League Baseball season the Mets and Dodgers series lived up to they hype this weekend. The two best teams in the National League split a great four game series in Los Angeles. 

On Thursday Tony Gonsolin threw six shutout innings, lowering his ERA to 1.59 and the Dodgers got RBI base hits from Mookie Betts and Justin Turner in the 2-0 LA win. It was the first time the Mets were shutout this season and offensively they only had three hits. Taijuan Walker suffered his first loss of the season after giving up two runs in 5.2 innings pitched. 

Friday night the Dodgers got two run home runs from Cody Bellinger and Zach McKinstry off of Chris Bassitt in their 6-1 victory. Tyler Anderson threw six shutout innings to improve his record to 7-0. Bassit gave up four runs (three earned) in six innings striking out eight in the loss. 

Saturday the Mets got off to a good start with a Francisco Lindor home run in the first inning. The Dodgers responded with four in the second including three on a Mookie Betts double. But as the Mets have done all year they responded right away Marte and Lindor drove in runs before Pete Alonso hit his first of two home runs in the game. Eduardo Escobar added a home run in the Mets 9-4 win. Dodgers ace Walker Buehler got knocked around for five runs in 2.1 innings pitched. With two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning Mets starter David Peterson was facing Mookie Betts with a runner on second base and two outs, and after a foul ball Mets manager Buck Showalter pulled Peterson in favor of rookie Colin Holderman who wound up striking Betts out and was credited with the win. 

Sunday was another back and forth affair and is one of the best games of the first half of the season. The Dodgers got a Trea Turner two run home run in the first inning for the quick lead. The Mets got three runs in the eight inning to take a 4-2 lead. The Dodgers got a home run from Will Smith and a RBI single form Eddy Alvarez off of Seth Lugo to tie the game at four. In the tenth inning JD Davis hit an RBI Double to give the Mets the lead. In the bottom of the Tenth Adonis Medina a pitcher the Mets acquired from the Pirates in April was given the difficult task of going up against the top of the Dodgers lineup. He got Mookie Betts to fly out, Freddie Freeman to ground out, Trea Turner reached on catcher’s interference and he struck out Will Smith to secure the split. 

The resilience the Mets have shown to start this season cannot be understated. They could have folded after Lugo blew the save in the ninth inning but they just keep grinding and find ways to compete. And they competed with one of the best teams in baseball. 

In the series the Dodgers outscored the Mets 16-15. Pete Alonso hit .278 with three home runs and seven RBI.Mookie Betts hit.278 and drove in four runs for the Dodgers in the series. These two teams will play again at Citi Field August 30th – September 1st.