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Cnotes 2020/2021 NHL Season Long Trends, News, Notes, Picks !

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  • Monday’s 6-pack
    Active leaders in most sacrifice bunts, career:
    108— Clayton Kershaw
    100— Elvis Andrus
    85— Johnny Cueto
    67— Julio Teheran
    64— Brett Gardner
    60— Adam Wainwright

    Americans who have died from COVID-19: 554,522
    PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.


    Quote of the Day
    “Experience is something you don’t get until just after you needed it.’’
    Steven Wright

    Monday’s quiz
    Who was manager of the Cincinnati Reds, last time they won a playoff game?

    Sunday’s quiz
    2017 was the last time two #1-seeds faced off for the national championship.

    Saturday’s quiz
    Fernando Tatis Sr hit two grand slams in one inning in a major league game in the late 90’s, against the Dodgers. Oddly, he hit both of them off the same pitcher.

    ************************************************** ***

    Monday’s Den: Random thoughts on a spring day…….

    13) First thing today is a survey question; you know how the guy who wins the Masters picks the menu for the champions’ dinner the next year? He can choose anything he likes.

    If you won the Masters, what food would you serve at the champions’ dinner?

    E-mail me at [email protected] or text me, if you know my cell number. We’ll post the results later on.

    12) Tony LaRussa manages the White Sox now; he is 76 years old; there he was Sunday night, barking at 28-year old umpire Edwin Moscoso, who was working the plate. LaRussa probably has lot of clothes that are older than Moscoso.

    Chicago has a 3rd-string catcher/DH Yermin Mercedes, who got hits in his first eight AB’s this season, making him the first player since 1933 to do that. He is apparently a bad defensive catcher, but he can also hit. With Eloy Jimenez hurt, White Sox need another hitter.

    11) White Sox also have OF Billy Hamilton, who runs very fast but can’t hit; the guy has a career on-base %age of .296, a career OPS of .621- this is over nine years.

    Every time I see Hamilton bat, I hear my dad’s voice, what he always said about light hitters who ran very fast: “You can’t steal first base!!!”

    10) My A’s are off to a terrible start; they’re the first team in last 100 years to lose their first four games of the season to the same team, all by 4+ runs. Houston is a good team, but Brantley got hurt and missed Sunday’s game. A’s host the Dodgers next— yikes.

    9) Red Sox got swept at home by Baltimore, first time since 1948 that they lost their first three games of a season that were all at Fenway Park. Orioles led Sunday’s game 10-0 in third inning; the few fans that were there were not happy.

    8) Colorado Rockies have a pitcher named Tyler Kinley who apparently is a descendent of the former President William McKinley.

    On September 6, 1901, President McKinley was assassinated in Buffalo- he died eight days after he was shot. Fearing that anarchists might target the rest of the family, the Secret Service suggested that the family change their name a little, and that’s what happened.

    7) Speaking of pitchers in Colorado, if you’re a high school/college pitcher and the Rockies draft you, you have to get queasy, yes? Who succeeds pitching in such high altitude?

    6) Extra innings in the major leagues start with a runner on second base; there are a couple of baseball guys on TV who advocate intentionally walking the first hitter, saying it is easier to get out of a jam with a force play in effect, instead of just a guy on second.

    Don’t think any big league managers have tried that one yet; it conceivably could happen in the bottom half of the inning, if the score was tied. No one is going to put the winning run on base.

    5) Back to Colorado for a second; Saturday night, a Rockies runner steals second with two out, and a 1-2 count on Corey Seager. Rockies walk Seager intentionally to set up a force and bring Chris Taylor up, facing a righty pitcher. Can’t remember ever seeing an intentional walk when they count was 1-2.

    Taylor crossed up the strategy by banging a double off the leftfield wall.

    4) White Sox pitcher Lucas Giolito was miked in the dugout for a half inning of a game this weekend; he seemed at ease with a mike, which makes sense, since his grandfather was an actor named Warren Frost, who played George Costanza’s father-in-law on Seinfeld.

    Mr Frost had 36 acting credits, ranging from Death Valley Days to Matlock to Seinfeld; in 10-12 days, when Giolito’s playing days are done, he’ll make a good broadcaster.

    3) Maryland Terrapins have already poached transfers from Georgetown/Rhode Island this spring, as the new way to restock rosters isn’t so much recruiting high school kids as it is pillaging players from other schools. Georgetown has lost three starters the last two years.

    2) Last year, Mac MacClung bolted from Georgetown to Texas Tech, to play for coach Chris Beard, a very good coach. Imagine MacClung’s surprise last week when Beard bolted himself, from Lubbock to the Texas Longhorns. Transfer market goes both ways.

    1) QB Chase Daniel recently signed on as a backup with the LA Chargers; the guy is one of my heroes. He’s started five games in 11 years (five games!!!) but he’s banked $37.8M, plus the most popular guy on the team is usually the backup QB.

    261 career passes, $37.1M, plus he’ll be all set for a career as a coach or broadcaster when he retires. Thats a career you can get behind.

    Don’t forget to answer our survey question:

    If you won the Masters, what food would you serve at the champions’ dinner?

    Comment


    • 39EDMONTON -40 MONTREAL
      MONTREAL is 11-16 ATS (-13.5 Units) against mistake free teams - opponents average <=4 power plays/game in the current season.

      41PHILADELPHIA -42 BOSTON
      BOSTON is 161-140 ATS (-76 Units) in home games against terrible defensive teams - allowing 3+ goals/game since 1996.

      43COLORADO -44 MINNESOTA
      MINNESOTA is 13-2 ATS (10.8 Units) in home games against mistake free teams - opponents average <=4 power plays/game in the current season.

      45VEGAS -46 ST LOUIS
      ST LOUIS are 2-11 ATS (-16.8 Units) in home games against mistake free teams - opponents average <=4 power plays/game in the current season.

      47TORONTO -48 CALGARY
      TORONTO is 9-1 ATS (7.8 Units) in road games against excellent power play teams - scoring on > 19% of their chances in the current season.

      49ARIZONA -50 LOS ANGELES
      LOS ANGELES are 12-4 ATS (7.6 Units) in home games after 2 or more consecutive unders over the last 2 seasons.

      49ARIZONA -50 LOS ANGELES
      TODD MCLELLAN is 12-4 ATS (7.6 Units) in home games after 2 or more consecutive unders (Coach of LOS ANGELES)

      Comment


      • NHL

        Monday, April 5


        ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Trend Report
        ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Edmonton @ Montreal
        Edmonton
        The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Edmonton's last 5 games when playing Montreal
        Edmonton is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Montreal
        Montreal
        The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Montreal's last 5 games when playing Edmonton
        The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Montreal's last 6 games when playing at home against Edmonton

        Philadelphia @ Boston
        Philadelphia
        The total has gone OVER in 9 of Philadelphia's last 10 games on the road
        The total has gone OVER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 5 games when playing Boston
        Boston
        Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Philadelphia
        The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston's last 5 games when playing Philadelphia

        Ottawa @ Winnipeg
        Ottawa
        Ottawa is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games
        The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Ottawa's last 7 games
        Winnipeg
        Winnipeg is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Ottawa
        Winnipeg is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Ottawa

        Colorado @ Minnesota
        Colorado
        Colorado is 12-2 SU in its last 14 games
        The total has gone OVER in 5 of Colorado's last 6 games when playing Minnesota
        Minnesota
        Minnesota is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
        The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota's last 5 games at home

        Vegas @ St. Louis
        Vegas
        The total has gone OVER in 7 of Vegas's last 8 games when playing St. Louis
        Vegas is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing St. Louis
        St. Louis
        The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis's last 5 games
        The total has gone OVER in 7 of St. Louis's last 8 games when playing Vegas

        Toronto @ Calgary
        Toronto
        Toronto is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
        Toronto is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Calgary
        Calgary
        Calgary is 7-2 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Toronto
        The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Calgary's last 15 games when playing Toronto

        Arizona @ Los Angeles
        Arizona
        The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Arizona's last 7 games when playing Los Angeles
        Arizona is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
        Los Angeles
        Los Angeles is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Arizona
        The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Los Angeles's last 7 games when playing Arizona


        ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Comment


        • NHL
          Dunkel

          Monday, April 5


          Comment


          • Tuesday’s 6-pack
            Active leaders in most sacrifice flies, career:
            115— Albert Pujols
            89— Evan Longoria
            86— Miguel Cabrera
            71— Yadier Molina
            67— Ryan Zimmerman
            62— Kurt Suzuki

            Americans who have died from COVID-19: 554,522
            PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.


            Quote of the Day
            “Thankfully, persistence is a great substitute for talent.”
            Steve Martin

            Tuesday’s quiz
            Where did Scott Drew coach, before going to Baylor?

            Monday’s quiz
            Dusty Baker was manager of the Cincinnati Reds, last time they won a playoff game.

            Sunday’s quiz
            2017 was the last time two #1-seeds faced off for the national championship.

            ************************************************

            Tuesday’s Den: Nobody asked me, but……..

            We’re doing a survey this week; you know how the guy who wins the Masters picks the menu for the champions’ dinner the next year? He can choose anything he likes.

            If you won the Masters, what food would you serve at the champions’ dinner?

            E-mail me at [email protected] or text me, if you know my cell number. We’ll post the results later on this week.

            13) Baylor 86, Gonzaga 70:
            — Game was 11-1 early on; Gonzaga never threatened to win.
            — Baylor led its two Final Four games by 25-10 points at halftime.

            — Baylor shot 10-23 on the arc, scored 1.26 ppp.
            — Great season ends for Gonzaga; they lost in finals twice in last four tournaments.

            12) 18 years ago, Scott Drew went to Waco to clean up an unspeakable mess; the previous coach had been fired after a Baylor player murdered another player, and the coach tried to frame the dead player as a drug dealer to cover up NCAA rules violations.

            Not good.

            Drew was advised not to take the Baylor job, that it was too big a mess, but by his fifth year in Waco, Baylor was 21-11, and in the NCAA Tournament. Two years later, he was in the Elite 8. Now he is a national champion.

            One of the great re-building jobs ever, for sure.

            11) Jets traded QB Sam Darnold to Carolina for three draft picks; a 2nd/4th/6th round pick, with two of those picks coming in 2022.

            Darnold was 13-25 as the Jets’ starting QB, but the franchise has been a mess; plus, he had mononucleosis at the start of last season. He is still only 23 years old, six months younger than Joe Burrow, the QB Panthers’ OC Joe Brady mentored at LSU.

            What do the Panthers do with Teddy Bridgewater? He has $10M of his $17M salary for next season fully guaranteed, which makes it harder to trade him.

            10) North Carolina hired alum/assistant coach Hubert Davis as its new basketball coach. Davis had been a Carolina assistant for nine years; he was working on ESPN before that. He played in the NBA for 12 years, has never been a head coach.

            UNC’s dilemma here here is that they seem to be obsessed with hiring alums to coach their basketball team, but a list of Tar Heel alums who are qualified to be an ACC head coach isn’t real long. Not sure this is an entry level position.

            9) Texas Tech replaced the departed Chris Beard with assistant Mark Adams, a defensive wizard who is a Tech alum (Beard is a Texas alum). We’ll see if Tech remains as active in the transfer portal as they were under Beard.

            8) Central Michigan picked a weird time to fire its coach Keno Davis; when you’ve been at a mid-major for nine years and have never made the NCAA’s, you’re on thin ice, but this seemed late, with recruiting/poaching already underway.

            Chippewas were 23-12 two years ago, but went 10-24 in MAC games the last two years- they haven’t been in the NCAA’s since 2003, when they had future NBA big man Chris Kaman.

            7) Padres’ SS Fernando Tatis Jr subluxated his left shoulder while batting Monday night; they’ll examine him again today, but he appears headed to the IL. Subluxation is a partial dislocation of the shoulder.

            22-year old Tatis signed a 14-year, $340M deal this winter; they need him healthy.

            6) Last year was the first time EVER in the major leagues that #2 hitters in the lineup hit more home runs (332) than #3 hitters in the lineup (289).

            5) Last year was first time ever the Mets led the major leagues in batting average, but they were 13th in runs scored, which obviously is more important.

            4) Major League Baseball is moving this July’s All-Star Game to Denver; should make for quite the Home Run Derby.

            3) Indiana hired alum Dane Fife as an associate coach to new head coach Mike Woodson; Fife spent the last ten years working for Tom Izzo at Michigan State.

            2) Aaron Rodgers is hosting Jeopardy! this week and next; he was a contestant in a celebrity tournament a few years ago, now he is taking a shot at hosting it. How weird would it be if he retired from the NFL to replace Alex Trebek as the show’s next permanent host?

            1) Was talking the other day about guys discussing futures bets on the NFL; the Darnold trade is a good example of how wagering on stuff this long before the season starts has the potential for disaster.

            Jets are almost sure to have a rookie QB starting now; as I type this, the only two QB’s on their depth chart are James Morgan (FIU) and Mike White (Western Kentucky). New coach Robert Saleh comes to the Jets from San Francisco; would they trade for Jimmy Garoppolo?

            Don’t forget to answer our survey question:

            If you won the Masters, what food would you serve at the champions’ dinner?

            Comment


            • 51BUFFALO -52 NEW JERSEY
              NEW JERSEY is 2-14 ATS (-12.4 Units) in home games against poor passing teams - averaging 4 or less assists per game in the current season.

              53PITTSBURGH -54 NY RANGERS
              NY RANGERS are 37-26 ATS (14.5 Units) against poor defensive teams - >=29 shots on goal, convert >=17% pp over the last 2 seasons.

              55TAMPA BAY -56 COLUMBUS
              TAMPA BAY is 15-1 ATS (13.9 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.

              57BOSTON -58 PHILADELPHIA
              PHILADELPHIA is 0-6 ATS (-6.6 Units) in home games vs. winning teams in the current season.

              59WASHINGTON -60 NY ISLANDERS
              NY ISLANDERS are 10-1 ATS (8.9 Units) in home games after playing a home game in the current season.

              61FLORIDA -62 CAROLINA
              JOEL QUENNEVILLE is 15-9 ATS (5.1 Units) in road games against good passing teams - averaging 5 or more assists per game (Coach of FLORIDA)

              61FLORIDA -62 CAROLINA
              FLORIDA is 15-9 ATS (9.4 Units) in road games against good passing teams - averaging 5 or more assists per game over the last 2 seasons.

              63NASHVILLE -64 DETROIT
              NASHVILLE is 16-4 ATS (12.2 Units) vs. losing teams in the current season.

              67DALLAS -68 CHICAGO
              DALLAS are 5-19 ATS (-17.3 Units) against good offensive teams - >=29 shots on goal, convert >=17% pp in the current season.

              69ANAHEIM -70 SAN JOSE
              ANAHEIM is 5-19 ATS (-14.2 Units) against poor defensive teams - opponents average 29.5+ shots on goal in the current season.

              Comment


              • NHL

                Tuesday, April 6


                ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Trend Report
                ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                Florida @ Carolina
                Florida
                Florida is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
                Florida is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
                Carolina
                The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Carolina's last 5 games at home
                Carolina is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games when playing Florida

                Buffalo @ New Jersey
                Buffalo
                The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Buffalo's last 5 games when playing on the road against New Jersey
                Buffalo is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
                New Jersey
                The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New Jersey's last 5 games when playing at home against Buffalo
                New Jersey is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games

                Pittsburgh @ NY Rangers
                Pittsburgh
                Pittsburgh is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
                Pittsburgh is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing NY Rangers
                NY Rangers
                NY Rangers is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home
                NY Rangers is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home

                Washington @ NY Islanders
                Washington
                Washington is 12-3 SU in its last 15 games
                The total has gone OVER in 4 of Washington's last 5 games
                NY Islanders
                NY Islanders is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games at home
                NY Islanders is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games at home

                Boston @ Philadelphia
                Boston
                The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 5 games on the road
                Boston is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Philadelphia
                Philadelphia
                Philadelphia is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Boston
                Philadelphia is 9-3 ATS in its last 12 games when playing Boston

                Tampa Bay @ Columbus
                Tampa Bay
                The total has gone OVER in 7 of Tampa Bay's last 8 games on the road
                Tampa Bay is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Columbus
                Columbus
                Columbus is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay
                Columbus is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Tampa Bay

                Nashville @ Detroit
                Nashville
                Nashville is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games
                Nashville is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
                Detroit
                Detroit is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games at home
                Detroit is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games

                Dallas @ Chicago
                Dallas
                The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Dallas's last 7 games on the road
                Dallas is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
                Chicago
                Chicago is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Dallas
                The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Chicago's last 8 games

                Anaheim @ San Jose
                Anaheim
                Anaheim is 15-2 ATS in its last 17 games on the road
                The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Anaheim's last 5 games on the road
                San Jose
                San Jose is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Anaheim
                San Jose is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Anaheim


                ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                Comment


                • Wednesday’s 6-pack
                  Since 2000, colleges with most defensive backs taken in NFL Draft:
                  32— Ohio State
                  25— Alabama, LSU
                  24— Florida, Miami, Virginia Tech
                  20— Florida State
                  19— Clemson, USC, Notre Dame
                  18— Georgia, Texas

                  Americans who have died from COVID-19: 556,307
                  PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.


                  Quote of the Day
                  “I don’t think I’d need to give up football to do it. They film 46 days a year. I worked 187 this year in Green Bay. That gives me 178 days to do ‘Jeopardy!’ So I feel like I could fit 46 into that 178 and make it work. It would be a dream job for sure, and I’m not shy at all about saying I want the job. That’s how I went into it. I want an opportunity to be in the mix.”
                  Aaron Rodgers, who is looking for a second job

                  Wednesday’s quiz
                  Who was the host of Jeopardy!, before Alex Trebek?

                  Tuesday’s quiz
                  Scott Drew coached Valparaiso for a year, before going to Baylor. He replaced his dad Homer Drew at Valpo and when he left, his dad went back and coached there some more, then was replaced by his other son, Bryce Drew.

                  Monday’s quiz
                  Dusty Baker was manager of the Cincinnati Reds, last time they won a playoff game.

                  **************************************************

                  Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings……..

                  We’re doing a survey this week; you know how the guy who wins the Masters picks the menu for the champions’ dinner the next year? He can choose anything he likes.

                  If you won the Masters, what food would you serve at the champions’ dinner?

                  E-mail me at [email protected] or text me, if you know my cell number. We’ll post the results later on this week.

                  13) Once a week, I order take-out food from an Olive Garden restaurant near my house; I order by phone, pay with a credit card, drive there, text them with what number parking space I’m in, and they bring my food out. It is a tremendous service and not very expensive.

                  So this week it is nice out, so I’m sitting there in my car with the window open, waiting for my food, and this woman in a car two spaces away is on her phone, cursing her kids out. Loudly.

                  “You bleeping kids!!! You better bleeping do what I said, or I’m calling your bleeping father to knock the bleep out of you!!!” She wasn’t happy.

                  I had to put my COVID mask on to hide my laughing. Luckily the guy came out with my food and I was on my way. Hope the kids enjoyed their dinner.

                  12) How would you like to be Deshaun Watson’s agent? Couple of months ago, it probably was a great gig; 25-year old QB, what could go wrong? Lets say he plays 12 more years in the NFL, at $25M a year, which is probably conservative; that’s $300M in salary for the next 12 years.

                  Agent’s take is 3%, so that’s $9M for the agent. For representing one guy; these top agents have dozens of clients, so they’re cleaning up, but if Watson’s career blows up because of his current legal problems, that could be $9M or so down the drain. No bueno.

                  11) Dodgers 5, A’s 1
                  — Oakland is now 0-6, which isn’t good.
                  — All four of their losses were by 4+ runs. A loss is a loss, but still…….
                  — Last time the A’s were 0-6, their sixth loss was against Boston, whose starting pitcher that day was………Babe Ruth.

                  10) The new extra inning format was designed to prevent games from going deep into the night, but Tuesday we had these two scores:
                  — Red Sox 6, Rays 5 (12)
                  — Arizona 10, Colorado 8 (13)

                  Ryan McMahon hit three homers and a double for Colorado, and they still lost.

                  9) Today is the day Jay Bruce finds out if he is staying in the Bronx this season, or moving on to another big league team. He homered Tuesday, making his case to stay, but when the Rangers traded 2B Roughned Odor to Bronx, it seemed to pave the way for Bruce to leave town— you figure DJ Lemahieu moves to 1B, and Odor plays 2B.

                  If there was a DH in the National League, Bruce wouldn’t have to worry about employment, but not sure how many openings there are right now for guys with his skill set.

                  8) Texas-El Paso basketball coach Rodney Terry quit to be an assistant coach at Texas; he is the second head coach to quit, in order to join Chris Beard’s Longhorn staff. Terry was at UTEP for three years, going 29-27 the last two years, 16-18 in C-USA games- he was head coach at Fresno State for seven years before that.

                  7) Baylor Bears were the first team since UCLA in 1968 (with Lew Alcindor), to win both the national semifinal and final by 15+ points. Very impressive.

                  6) San Jose State hired former Colorado State/Nebraska coach Tim Miles, who has his work cut out with the Spartans, and that’s being kind.

                  My records go back to 1997; San Jose State hasn’t had a winning record in conference play once in that time- they went 17-16 one year, but were 5-11 in the WAC.

                  Coach Miles has a great podcast which will probably get put on hold now; he’s a pleasant guy and we wish him luck. What he needs more than luck are some new recruits.

                  5) Warriors 122, Bucks 121:

                  — Golden State wins for only 2nd time in last nine games.
                  — Bucks played without their star, Giannis Antetokounmpo
                  — Steph Curry scored 41 points; he is great fun to watch.

                  4) Padres’ SS Fernando Tatis has slight tearing in his labrum, but there is no damage to his rotator cuff; the Padres say he doesn’t require surgery. He is on the IL, will be tested in ten days or so; it is his non-throwing shoulder, but he hurt it while batting, so its hard to imagine this injury just goes away without some kind of surgery or extended rest.

                  3) Nationals 6, Braves 5:
                  — Juan Soto walked it off with a 9th inning single.
                  — Max Scherzer gave up homers in 1st, 2nd, 3rd innings, for first time in his 378 career starts.
                  — Braves are already 0-4.
                  — Nationals were playing their opener, after they put ten players on the IL.

                  2) Chicago Bears’ coach Matt Nagy will be calling plays again this fall, which may mean he was given the “make the playoffs or else” ultimatum. If he’s going to get fired, it might as well be his fault. Andy Dalton is Chicago’s new QB, which should be interesting.

                  1) As you probably already know, I’m a big LA Rams fan; had NFL Network on this week and the talking heads on their morning show all agreed that they’d rather have Sam Darnold on their team than Jared Goff. Seriously? Let’s examine the facts.

                  Darnold: three years, 13-25 record. No playoff games. 45 TD’s, 39 INT’s
                  Goff: five years, 42-27 record, 3-3 playoffs. 107 TD, 55 INT’s. Won an NFC title.

                  Goff is in Detroit now, but wake up people, he’s a pretty good QB.
                  — Won a playoff game in Seattle 12 days after his broken thumb was operated on
                  — Won an NFC title game 34-31 in New Orleans
                  — Beat Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes 54-51 in a Monday night game.

                  Yeah, he’s had better coaching than Darnold, and Goff’s contract is a burden on the salary cap, but he’s won big games for the last four years. Its about time people who supposedly know the sport acknowledge that.

                  Comment


                  • 1EDMONTON -2 OTTAWA
                    OTTAWA is 10-2 ATS (7.8 Units) in home games after playing 2 consecutive road games over the last 2 seasons.

                    1EDMONTON -2 OTTAWA
                    DJ Smith is 10-2 ATS (7.8 Units) in home games after playing 2 consecutive road games (Coach of OTTAWA)

                    3MONTREAL -4 TORONTO
                    MONTREAL is 12-16 ATS (-12.5 Units) against mistake free teams - opponents average <=4 power plays/game in the current season.

                    5VEGAS -6 ST LOUIS
                    ST LOUIS are 2-12 ATS (-17.8 Units) in home games against mistake free teams - opponents average <=4 power plays/game in the current season.

                    7COLORADO -8 MINNESOTA
                    MINNESOTA is 7-0 ATS (7 Units) in home games when playing 6 or more games in 10 days in the current season.

                    9ARIZONA -10 LOS ANGELES
                    LOS ANGELES are 13-7 ATS (9.7 Units) in home games against excellent power play teams - scoring on > 19% of their chances over the last 2 seasons.




                    NHL

                    Wednesday, April 7


                    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Trend Report
                    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                    Edmonton @ Ottawa
                    Edmonton
                    Edmonton is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Ottawa
                    Edmonton is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
                    Ottawa
                    The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Ottawa's last 5 games at home
                    Ottawa is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games

                    Montreal @ Toronto
                    Montreal
                    Montreal is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
                    Montreal is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Toronto
                    Toronto
                    Toronto is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
                    The total has gone OVER in 5 of Toronto's last 7 games at home

                    Colorado @ Minnesota
                    Colorado
                    Colorado is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
                    The total has gone OVER in 6 of Colorado's last 7 games when playing Minnesota
                    Minnesota
                    Minnesota is 11-1 SU in its last 12 games at home
                    The total has gone OVER in 6 of Minnesota's last 7 games when playing Colorado

                    Vegas @ St. Louis
                    Vegas
                    The total has gone OVER in 8 of Vegas's last 9 games when playing St. Louis
                    Vegas is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing St. Louis
                    St. Louis
                    The total has gone OVER in 8 of St. Louis's last 9 games when playing Vegas
                    The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis's last 6 games

                    Arizona @ Los Angeles
                    Arizona
                    Arizona is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
                    Arizona is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
                    Los Angeles
                    Los Angeles is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Arizona
                    The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Los Angeles's last 5 games when playing at home against Arizona


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                    Comment


                    • NHL
                      Dunkel

                      Wednesday, April 7


                      Comment


                      • Thursday’s 6-pack
                        Odds to win The Masters:

                        19-2— Bryson Dechambeau, Dustin Johnson
                        11-1— Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas
                        12-1— Jon Rahm
                        19-1— Rory McIlroy
                        22-1— Patrick Cantlay
                        25-1— Xander Schauffele

                        Americans who have died from COVID-19: 556,307
                        PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.


                        Quote of the Day
                        “Winning helps, and losing doesn’t.”
                        Bill Parcells

                        Thursday’s quiz
                        What comedian played Lady Gaga’s father in A Star is Born?

                        Wednesday’s quiz
                        Art Fleming was the host of Jeopardy!, before Alex Trebek.

                        Tuesday’s quiz
                        Scott Drew coached Valparaiso for a year, before going to Baylor. He replaced his dad Homer Drew at Valpo and when he left, his dad went back and coached there some more, then was replaced by his other son, Bryce Drew.

                        ************************************************** *********

                        Thursday’s Den: Doing some thinking out loud……..

                        13) Arizona Wildcats finally fired basketball coach Sean Miller, who spent 12 years in Tucson, going 150-68 in Pac-12 games, 13-8 in NCAA tourney games, but 0-3 in Elite 8 games, last of which was in 2015. Things were not headed in an upward direction, though.

                        Miller’s program wound up getting overwhelmed by problems with the NCAA:
                        — Academic fraud.
                        — Impermissible benefits.
                        — Bribery.

                        Not good. Where does Arizona turn from here? There are four candidates who played ball for the Wildcats; one of these guys is likely to get the nod:

                        Luke Walton, Damon Stoudamire, Josh Pastner. Miles Simon

                        12) One of the amusing parts of these job searches is that guys at other schools wind up getting their contracts extended, so they won’t consider bolting town for greener pa$ture$.

                        — Cal-Santa Barbara gave Joe Pasternack a 5-year contract extension.
                        — Maryland’s Mark Turgeon also got a 5-year extension.

                        11) Its hard to win at gambling:
                        — A’s 4, Dodgers 3 (10)— A’s were 0-6, looked terrible, so of course they win the game when Trevor Bauer starts against them. Go figure.
                        — Rangers 2, Blue Jays 1— Kyle Gibson didn’t get out of the first inning in his first start; he blanked Toronto for six innings here, which makes no sense.

                        10) I’m not a big fan of the new extra inning system, where the inning starts with a guy on 2nd base, but seeing how the A’s are 7-0 in extra innings this year and last, maybe I should be.

                        9) Braves were 0-4, then they swept a twinbill in Washington Wednesday; Huascar Ynoa tossed five shutout innings for Atlanta in the nightcap.

                        8) If one of the pitchers on your fantasy team is pitching and you see Jerry Layne is umping the plate, the next couple of hours might be fun. His strike zone is……..wide.

                        7) Cardinals’ pitcher GĂ©nesis Cabrera wears number 92; he is the first major leaguer EVER to wear #92 in a regular season game.

                        6) Mariners 8, White Sox 4— Seattle pitcher Justin Dunn allowed only one hit in 4.2 IP, but he also walked eight guys— he threw 48 strikes, 45 balls, allowed three runs.

                        Here are some of the better survey answers we got on the question:
                        What would you serve if you hosted The Masters champions’ dinner?

                        5) Pete from Rome (NY, not Italy)— Baked lasagna or baked ziti. Messy, but good.

                        4) Mr Dodger has an extensive menu:
                        — Appetizer: Buffalo chicken wings, Waldorf salad.
                        — Entree: New York strip steak
                        — Vegetable: green beans Almondine
                        — Dessert: New York cheesecake
                        — Wines from the Fingerlakes Region, craft beer from the Albany area.

                        3) G-squared— 16-ounce New York strip steak, with baked potatoes. Vegetatians can go back to the fairway and graze. ��

                        2) Billy C— Surf and turf!!!

                        1) Hoosier Mike:
                        — Home Run frozen pizza
                        — Pistachio pudding
                        — Fillet steak
                        — Mashed potatoes
                        — String beans/carrots mixed
                        — Hot bread rolls
                        — Ben and Jerry’s ice cream

                        0) Armadillo:
                        — pasta and meatballs
                        — cheesecake for dessert

                        Comment


                        • 11FLORIDA -12 CAROLINA
                          CAROLINA is 6-0 ATS (6.7 Units) against good possession teams-averaging 3+ more shots on goal than opp in the current season.

                          13TAMPA BAY -14 COLUMBUS
                          COLUMBUS are 4-10 ATS (-7 Units) in home games off an home win scoring 4 or more goals in the last 3 seasons.

                          15WINNIPEG -16 MONTREAL
                          MONTREAL is 12-16 ATS (-12.5 Units) against mistake free teams - opponents average <=4 power plays/game in the current season.

                          17PITTSBURGH -18 NY RANGERS
                          PITTSBURGH is 7-0 ATS (7 Units) off 2 consecutive losses against division rivals over the last 2 seasons.

                          19BOSTON -20 WASHINGTON
                          BOSTON is 229-216 ATS (48.3 Units) in road games against good offensive teams - scoring 2.85+ goals/game since 1996.

                          21PHILADELPHIA -22 NY ISLANDERS
                          NY ISLANDERS are 11-1 ATS (9.9 Units) in home games after playing a home game in the current season.

                          23NEW JERSEY -24 BUFFALO
                          NEW JERSEY is 7-1 ATS (5.9 Units) in road games off 2 consecutive losses against division rivals over the last 2 seasons.

                          25NASHVILLE -26 DETROIT
                          NASHVILLE is 11-1 ATS (11 Units) when playing against a bad team (Win Pct. 25% to 40%) in the current season.

                          27DALLAS -28 CHICAGO
                          DALLAS are 5-20 ATS (-18.4 Units) against good offensive teams - >=29 shots on goal, convert >=17% pp in the current season.

                          29NEW JERSEY -30 PITTSBURGH
                          PITTSBURGH is 7-0 ATS (7 Units) in home games revenging a loss versus opponent as a favorite in the current season.

                          Comment


                          • NHL

                            Thursday, April 8


                            ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                            Trend Report
                            ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                            New Jersey @ Buffalo
                            New Jersey
                            The total has gone OVER in 5 of New Jersey's last 5 games when playing on the road against Buffalo
                            New Jersey is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
                            Buffalo
                            Buffalo is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing New Jersey
                            The total has gone OVER in 5 of Buffalo's last 5 games when playing at home against New Jersey

                            Florida @ Carolina
                            Florida
                            Florida is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
                            Florida is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games
                            Carolina
                            Carolina is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games when playing Florida
                            Carolina is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against Florida

                            Philadelphia @ NY Islanders
                            Philadelphia
                            The total has gone OVER in 9 of Philadelphia's last 11 games on the road
                            Philadelphia is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against NY Islanders
                            NY Islanders
                            NY Islanders is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games at home
                            NY Islanders is 15-4 SU in its last 19 games

                            Pittsburgh @ NY Rangers
                            Pittsburgh
                            The total has gone OVER in 6 of Pittsburgh's last 8 games when playing on the road against NY Rangers
                            The total has gone OVER in 16 of Pittsburgh's last 22 games when playing NY Rangers
                            NY Rangers
                            NY Rangers is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games at home
                            The total has gone OVER in 5 of NY Rangers's last 5 games at home

                            Boston @ Washington
                            Boston
                            The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games on the road
                            The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Boston's last 15 games
                            Washington
                            Washington is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games at home
                            Washington is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games when playing at home against Boston

                            Tampa Bay @ Columbus
                            Tampa Bay
                            The total has gone OVER in 8 of Tampa Bay's last 9 games on the road
                            The total has gone UNDER in 16 of Tampa Bay's last 23 games when playing on the road against Columbus
                            Columbus
                            Columbus is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Tampa Bay
                            Columbus is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay

                            Winnipeg @ Montreal
                            Winnipeg
                            Winnipeg is 16-3 ATS in its last 19 games on the road
                            The total has gone OVER in 5 of Winnipeg's last 6 games when playing Montreal
                            Montreal
                            The total has gone OVER in 5 of Montreal's last 6 games when playing Winnipeg
                            The total has gone OVER in 4 of Montreal's last 5 games when playing at home against Winnipeg

                            Edmonton @ Ottawa
                            Edmonton
                            Edmonton is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Ottawa
                            Edmonton is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Ottawa
                            Ottawa
                            The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Ottawa's last 5 games at home
                            Ottawa is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games

                            Nashville @ Detroit
                            Nashville
                            Nashville is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games
                            Nashville is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games on the road
                            Detroit
                            Detroit is 9-1 ATS in its last 10 games at home
                            Detroit is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games

                            Dallas @ Chicago
                            Dallas
                            The total has gone OVER in 20 of Dallas's last 25 games when playing on the road against Chicago
                            The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Dallas's last 13 games on the road
                            Chicago
                            Chicago is 9-1 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Dallas
                            Chicago is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Dallas


                            ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                            Comment


                            • NHL
                              Dunkel

                              Thursday, April 8


                              Comment


                              • Friday’s 6-pack
                                Updated odds to win The Masters:

                                4-1— Justin Rose
                                15-2— Jordan Spieth
                                12-1— Patrick Reed, Jon Rahm
                                14-1— Justin Thomas
                                16-1— Hideki Matsuyama
                                18-1— Webb Simpson

                                Americans who have died from COVID-19: 556,529
                                PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.


                                Quote of the Day
                                “There’s more talent around the league than there’s ever been. From a talent standpoint, the league is in a good space. But as pure basketball lovers — who love competition at the highest level — I think they gotta catch up in that department………They soft as hell……”
                                Draymond Green

                                Friday’s quiz
                                NBA’s Rockets were an expansion team in 1967; where did they play their first four seasons, before moving to Houston?

                                Thursday’s quiz
                                Andrew Dice Clay played Lady Gaga’s father in A Star is Born.

                                Wednesday’s quiz
                                Art Fleming was the host of Jeopardy!, before Alex Trebek.

                                ************************************************** ****

                                Friday’s Den: Random stuff with weekend here……..

                                13a) Least shocking story of the month: After two seasons with Oklahoma State, assistant coach Cannen Cunningham and the program have mutually agreed to part ways.

                                Cannen Cunningham is Cade Cunningham’s brother; hiring Cannen and paying him a quarter million bucks is how Oklahoma State landed the best recruit in the country (Cade) last year. Now he is going to go help manage his younger brother’s career in the NBA. Go figure.

                                Where does the NCAA draw the line on stuff like this: can a recruit’s mother be hired as a secretary and be paid a six-figure salary? Could a sibling be hired as a personal trainer, at $125K a year? What is legal and what isn’t? Inquiring minds would like to know.

                                13) Early Thursday morning I’m sound asleep when I hear these very loud noises just outside my bedroom window. Some kind of machinery, lot of people talking. Awesome.

                                Turns out the nice lady across the street was getting her driveway resurfaced. At 8:06am.

                                Three trucks, some kind of a steamroller, and 4-5 guys chopping away at the old driveway, before the new surface could get put down. Lot of loud noises, not a lot of sleep.

                                They finished around 3:00 in the afternoon. Driveway looks nice; just wish they had done it later in the day.

                                12) Wednesday, Washington Nationals intentionally walked Freddie Freeman in both the first and second inning of their 7-6 loss to the Braves. I wondered how often that happens.

                                So I asked the great researcher Doug Kern on Twitter; turns out the last time that happened was in 2009, when Detroit walked Albert Pujols intentionally in both the 1st/2nd innings.

                                11) Hello friends, must be quite a week for Jim Nantz; college basketball national title game on Monday night, then off to Augusta for The Masters all weekend. Pretty good week.

                                I am told his backyard has a par-3 hole in it, but when is the guy ever home? He does NFL in the fall, golf in spring/summer, college basketball all winter. Its good to be him.

                                10) Mets 3, Marlins 2— Mets had bases loaded, two outs in 2-2 game, bottom of 9th, Miami pitcher throws a strike, Michael Conforto sticks his elbow out, lets the ball hit it and the Mets walk off with a controversial win.

                                None of the umpires had the onions to say Conforto let the ball hit him; Mets’ TV guys Keith Hernandez/Ron Darling even said he did. Play isn’t reviewable, which is embarrassing. Rule needs to be changed.

                                9) White Sox 6, Royals 0— Complete game for Lance Lynn, on 111 pitches. First CG of the young season; Chicago’s bullpen has been dismal so far- Tony LaRussa had to be glad to see this.

                                8) Shohei Ohtani won’t make his next start Sunday against Toronto; he has a blister on his pitching hand. Ohtani went 1-5 as the Angels’ DH Thursday night; he is hitting .280.

                                7) In 1969, when MLB first went to divisional play, they also added four expansion teams that year- Padres, Royals, Expos, Seattle Pilots. All four expansion teams won their first game that season. Expos are the Washington Nationals now; Pilots are the Milwaukee Brewers.

                                6) Rory Mcilroy shot +4 (76) in the first round of The Masters Thursday; not only that, on the 7th hole, he hit a shot that struck his dad on the leg. Not good.

                                5) Read Thursday that actor Don Johnson is re-booting his old TV show Nash Bridges for a run on USA Network, not sure if it is one movie or if it’ll be a series again. Nash Bridges ran on CBS from 1996-2001; Johnson played a San Francisco cop whose partner was played by Cheech Marin, who is also returning for the re-boot.

                                4) G-League’s Erie BayHawks are moving to Birmingham, AL next season.

                                3) Arizona State has already poached transfers this spring from Toledo, Boston College, Robert Morris; the kid from Toledo is Marreon Jackson- he scored 18.1 ppg, grabbed 6.1 rpg and dished out 5.9 assists/game. He is expected to be a big help for the Sun Devils, who had four players transfer out of Tempe after the season.

                                2) UCLA basketball coach Mick Cronin parlayed his Bruins’ run to the Final Four into a two-year contract extension.

                                1) Thursday would’ve been Catfish Hunter’s 75th birthday; he passed away in 1999, at age 53.

                                James Augustus Hunter was my boyhood hero; on his rookie baseball card, in 1965, they spelled his name wrong on the back (Tim, not Jim) and when 5-year old me saw that, I adopted him as my favorite player, prompting strange looks from my dad. In 1965, not many kids in upstate New York rooted for the Kansas City A’s.

                                Catfish Hunter won 233 career games, nine of them in the postseason; he threw a perfect game in 1968, and knocked in three of the four runs the A’s scored that game. He won five World Series rings and won inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987.

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