The NHL playoffs are heating up, who do you see winning today’s games?

Thanks to John, Rob & Nolan for joining this week’s Blogger Debate!  Now give your answers…

1. Who are your predictions for the winners of Round 1 of the NHL Playoffs?

JOHN MANUEL:

Rangers over Senators in 6.  NY is just a better team
Capitals over Bruins in 6.
Devils over Panthers in 5. Brodeur carries them to easy series win
Pens over Flyers in 6.  Expect bounce back after Game 1 failure

Canucks over Kings in 7.  Tough series and will be back and forth
Blues over Sharks in 7.  Sharks have been Capitals of the west which doesn’t bode well for my Caps pick
Blackhawks over Coyotes in 6.  Chicago can overcome goalie and injury issues
Red Wings over Predators in 7.  Great series already.  Toughest to call.

ROB YUNICH:

EAST: Rangers in five, Bruins in seven, Devils in six, Penguins in seven

WEST: Canucks in five, Blues in six, Coyotes in seven, Red Wings in seven

You can read more about the playoffs on the Fanspeak NHL Blog.

NOLAN MUCCIARONE:

Rangers, Bruins, Panthers, Penguins, Canucks, Blackhawks, Predators and Blues. Go Blues!

2.  Do you agree with the discipline handed down in the Bobby Petrino and Ozzie Guillen coaching gaffes?

JOHN MANUEL:

Petrino for sure.  He is a mess and deserved to go for what he did.  Falcons fans are the big winners here and obviously his and Jessica Dorrells’ families are the huge losers.  Just like Penn State there will probably be more over time that comes out. As for Ozzie, probably deserved more than 5 games.  Probably 25, maybe 50.  I think its going to tough for him to manage in South Florida now.  He can say it was a language issue gaffe but it has happened so frequently for him.  If they would have just cut ties with I would have be fine with that also.

ROB YUNICH:

Yes… too often the coaches try to become the story or do something so egregious that it warrants a punishment just like any other citizen would get. In Petrino’s case, he lied to his employer, cheated on his wife, and did a bunch of other inappropriate things. How could young men coming to the University of Arkansas view him as a role model and trust him? As for Guillen, this is more of the same. He says something he shouldn’t, usually gets punished for it and then apologizes. And, along the way, he upset a huge fan sector for the Marlins. But he’ll keep winning so he’ll stay a manager. Both men should be out of leadership positions. Petrino was fired this week and Guillen’s time may come soon enough.

NOLAN MUCCIARONE:

They both should have been fired. Why? Because I’ve just never liked them both. Petrino is a loser and Guillen, while funny, is an idiot.

3.  What is a bigger concern for the Saints, the impact of the Bountygate punishments or getting Drew Brees to sign a long-term deal?

JOHN MANUEL:

Bountygate.  Drew Brees will get a long term deal before the season.  They don’t have an Andrew Luck coming to them.  We will have to see player suspensions to really know the full bountygate effects.  Losing Payton for the year isn’t good but they have a pretty intact roster that has been there a few years now.  Will be interesting to see how bad the NFL hits them in the first six weeks of the schedule before Joe Vitt comes back.

ROB YUNICH:

The Saints have gone from the NFL’s darlings when they won Super Bowl XLIV to a team with a whole lot of problems. The biggest impact of the bounty scandal was losing their head coach for a year. Gregg Williams should never be allowed back into the NFL, but he had already become the St. Louis Rams’ problem. That being said, the Saints have a bright long-term future, but this year is going to be bad. If they can’t get Brees to believe that things are going to get better, then they’ll be heading back to being the ‘Aints in the not-too-distant future. My guess is that Brees will stay in New Orleans for one more year and then be the most sought-after free agent next March.

NOLAN MUCCIARONE:

Drew Brees’ contract. It’s never a good thing when your best player is unhappy.

4.  Of the teams that currently have a winning record in the MLB, which team will end up with the worst season record?

JOHN MANUEL:

The Orioles saved themselves last night from this going to 3-3.  Would have to say the Mets.  Although Santana is back and looks strong again, I don’t believe they have enough to get 75+ wins.  The rest of the teams currently with winning records should be contenders throughout the season.

ROB YUNICH:

If I had written this earlier this week, I would have said the Baltimore Orioles. But thanks to a sweep by the New York Yankees and an off-day today, they’re safe with a .500 record. (But they’re still going to be awful.) As for the actual answer, I’d have to say the New York Mets. They weren’t supposed to have a great season and teams have gotten off to fast starts before falling into oblivion. (The O’s won five of their first six games last season, but finished with 90-plus losses. And don’t forget the Pittsburgh Pirates were 54-52 on July 1 and finished 72-90. )

NOLAN MUCCIARONE:

Arizona, NY Mets and Toronto all come to mind first. So out of those three, I’ll take Toronto. Just because of the division they play in.

5.  Team Lamar or Team Cuban?

JOHN MANUEL:

Have to go with Cuban.  His team is the defending champs and Odom couldn’t fit in with them?  I am shocked Odom couldn’t go to Dallas and work well with a veteran team like the Mavericks.  I don’t watch or would ever watch Khloe and Lamar so can’t comment on that crap.  Kris Humphries had to deal with one of the worst people in the world and still is going for 13 and 11 a night with 70% of Lamar’s talent.

ROB YUNICH:

Team Cuban! Always go with management.

NOLAN MUCCIARONE:

Team Cuban. He’s awesome and Lamar is a crybaby. Though a case could be made that Cuban is also a crybaby, he’s just awesome. Plus he’s on the better show. I’ve never even seen Lamar’s show, but Shark Tank is awesome.

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