KarateKen

Several first round matchups have now been decided as there are only two days left in the regular season. The first round in the east will look like this: Flyers vs Penguins, Hurricanes vs Senators, Bruns vs Sabers, and Lightning vs Canadians. In the west only one matchup is set: Wild vs Stars. Many fans, and even some players, are speaking out in anger about the Stars and Wild having to meet in the first round. They are the second and third best record in the conference and are facing each other in the opening round. The team with the second-best record, Dallas, should be facing the team with the seventh best record, not the third, according to critics. I agree. It is a bad format. These two teams are being punished for having a better record. If they were 4th or 5th, they would be facing a weaker team than by being 2nd or 3rd. Worthy of criticism in my opinion. It could make for a very exciting first round matchup, but they should be playing a team like Anaheim or Utah who have fewer points instead of facing each other.

The LA Kings are in the playoffs for the fifth season in a row. The Kings beat the Kraken on Monday and locked up the spot with some help, both the Preds and Jets lost. This means the eight playoff teams in the west are decided. Avs, Stars, Wild, Mammoth, Oilers, Ducks, Knights, and Kings. Seedings are yet to be finalized but the Avs will be #1 and win the Presidents Trophy as they sit at 117 points right now. In the east the Flyers have locked up a playoff spot after an OT win on Monday, making the eight teams in the east the Sabers, Lightning, Canadians, Bruins, Senators, Penguins, Hurricanes, and Flyers. Again, the seeding is undecided, but the Hurricanes will be the one seed, they have 111 points and with only one game left nobody can catch them. Sabers are in a good position for the two seed. We don't know the matchups, but we know the teams. Playoffs start on Saturday.

In the NCAA Championship game Denver defeated Wisconsin 2-1 to win the National Championship game. Congratulations to the Denver Pioneers. It is their 11th National Championship, second in three years, and third in six years. In the NHL the Golden Knights clinched a playoff spot with an OT win against Colorado. The Oilers are also in, so there are two spots left in the West with the Ducks, Kings, and Preds fighting it out. The Jets and Sharks are barely hanging on by a thread, and the Blues and Kraken have been eliminated. In the east the Senators, Canadians, and Bruins are all in. Two spots left in that conference as well between the Flyers, Blue Jackets. Capitals, and Islanders. Red Wings are out.

Vegas took their first loss under Tortz, but it was a SO loss, so they still got standings point. The Utah Mammoth have clinched their first playoff spot in their third season after moving from Arizona.

In the NCAA Frozen Four, Denver defeated the #1 team in the country, Michigan, 4-3 in double overtime. It was a heck of a game! Denver will face Wisconsin, who upset the #2 team in the country, North Dakota, 2-1. The Championship game is on Saturday in Las Vegas, so you have to be there to see it live. Of course you can watch it on TV also. It starts at 5pm on ESPN if you are interested. Denver and Wisconsin, two underdogs playing for the national title.

I thought it was the best one yet. I am going to lobby @Patrickto make it a real feature.

Out of nowhere I am craving a Big Mac and a McFlurry. No idea why....

Well @sensei8 the Knights are 3-0-0 since the coaching change. Do you like Tortorella? The Ducks, Oilers, and Knights now all are at 77 games played and are separated by one point! Ducks and Oilers have 87, Knights 86. That is going down to the wire. My Minnesota Wild are back in the playoffs, getting ready for another first round exit I am guessing. Here are the other teams that have clinched spots since my last post: Buffalo, Tampa Bay, Montreal, and Carolina. The following teams have been eliminated: Blackhawks, Canucks, Panthers, Rangers, and Maple Leafs. The following teams are not in, but are in good position: Penguins, Flyers, Bruins, Islanders, and Senators in the east. In the west, Utah, Nashville, and LA. Teams that are in contention but are on the outside: Red Wings, Blue Jackets, Capitals, Sharks, Jets and Blues. Teams that are not eliminated but won't make it: Devils, Flames, and Kraken. Playoffs start in less than two weeks

It is a quick read. I am not aware of an updated one. I read this book about 15 years ago and decided to again since his passing. Fun fact: The Chuck Norris jokes were started in 2005 by a then high school student on Long Island named Ian Spector. He posted a few online one night before going to bed and woke up the next morning to the jokes having 10,000 views. It immediately took off and Ian wrote a book about the Chuck Norris facts, then Norris himself wrote a book about it. Norris loved the jokes and the memes.

I took it again, this time with a previous school in mind and gave several different answers. Again, it was a McDojo. Has anyone gotten one that wasn't a McDojo?

I am happy to see the outpour of Chuck Norris tribute songs that have shown up on YouTube since his passing. I know they are mostly AI generated but some of them are catchy.

Chuck Norris Facts Book by Chuck Norris

The Winnipeg Jets had a bad start to the season but have been turning things around, and after tonight's win against Chicago they are only one point out of the final playoff spot. The Kraken lost to the Oilers, and Seattle has 75 points, still withing striking distance for the playoffs for sure, but these teams on the outside need all the points they can get. It is not just winning the games; you have to pass other teams that are in front of you and the fewer games that are left the tougher that is to do. The Kraken would have to pass the Sharks, Kings, Jets, and Predators to get into that 8th spot. They have been the beneficiary of a weak Pacific division but have not been able to take advantage thus far. They have nine games left to make a run. The Buffalo Sabers won tonight and have now reached 100 points, tying them for second best in the league with Carolina and Dallas. The Sabers playoff drought of 14 years will end, though they are not officially in the playoffs yet, they will be locking up a spot any day. Big game Wednesday night between the Blues and Kings in Los Angles. Both teams are on the outside looking in right now but could still get into the playoffs. The Kings are in a better position with 76 points; the Blues have 73.

I like it! I took the quiz though and found I might be training at a McDojo. This is going to be a fun feature.

It has been a tough season for the Panthers. Maybe back-to-back titles and three consecutive trips to the Stanely Cup Finals have caught up with them. Panthers have 73 points and are holding the basement in the Atlantic division. They will not make the playoffs and will have to get ready for next season. I have not followed the team much, so I am not sure what the struggle has been. Panthers are not alone in disappointing seasons. The Maple Leafs fired GM Brad Treliving tonight. It's been a long year in Toronto, only a two points ahead of the Panthers in the Atlantic. The Maple Leafs have continued to underachieve and now their top player is out with an ACL tear. In a situation like that you can only hope that Matthews is ready to go at the start of next season. The anger towards Treliving started last summer when he traded Mitch Marner to the Golden Knights, and Ryan Reaves to the Sharks, thinking that Reaves was no longer an NHL caliber player, however Reaves has been playing in the Sharks lineup all season. Maple Leafs might be getting ready to rebuild. In the games tonight the winner were the Penguins, Avalanche, Sharks, Maple Leafs, and Golden Knights. Ducks do get an OT point in their loss to the Leafs.