NCAA Lacrosse Championships. #7. Virginia vs. Maryland

Virginia upset Cornell to get to the final four and then man-handled Denver to get to the title for the first time for their senior class. Maryland upset basically everyone. North Carolina, Syracuse, and Duke to get here and they are ready to pull off another upset. Here are the keys for each team.

Virginia: Get Stanwick and and Chris Bocklet involved.

It's no surprise to anyone these guys have lead the charge for Virginia with Shammel and Rhammel Bratton being out for the tournament after conduct detrimental to the team. If they keep playing the way they have been, Maryland should be out of this game very early.

Maryland: Win it for Ryan

Ryan Young's mother tragically passed away from cancer this season, and since then the Terps have been playing in her honor. Ryan knows there's nothing his mother would like more then for her son to lift up the national championship trophy. And although that's not a replacement for his loss, at least he knows his teammates won it in her honor.

Prediction:

The dream season rages on for the Terps. Maryland wins it 8-7.

ESPN Monday Night Baseball: Philadelphia at St. Louis

Team Records-Philadelphia (25-14, 12-7 away); St. Louis (22-19, 10-9 home)

Projected Pitchers-Philadelphia: Cliff Lee. St. Louis Jake Westbrook

Weather: 45 degrees with a chance of light rain

Storyline

Philadelphia: Last season, Ryan Howard hit .412, 1 home run, 2 doubles, and 2 RBI in 4 games at Busch Stadium. He's back and is expected to make a big outcome for the Phillies

St. Louis: Tony La Russa is expected to come back into the dugout today. He was out for a good bit of time after a battle with shingles. He is still uncertain but his return predicted return date was Monday. The Cardinals could use their skipper in the dugout tonight.

Prediction-Phillies are two hot to handle. Cliff Lee is a monster, and Ryan Howard is a beast at Busch Stadium. Phillies win it 5-1.

Western Conference Finals: #1. Vancouver vs. #2. San Jose

2 teams that have oddly similar postseasons. And by oddly similar I mean their series are the same. First series for Vancouver against Chicago, Vancouver goes up 3-0, blows it, and wins game 7. In San Jose's first series against Los Angeles, San Jose won game 1, lost game 2, won games 3 and 4, lost game 5, and won game 6. For their second series, just switch the games around and the same order in which they were won. Regardless, they are both here now. Here are my 3 keys to the series.


1. Thornton vs. Kesler.

Joe Thornton playing arguably his best playoff hockey right now while Ryan Kesler is arguably playing the best hockey in the entire world right now. But this should be interesting. Kesler is a huge body that lays in hits defensively but also plays fantastic offense netting 5 goals and helping out his team with 10 assists. Joe Thornton has 2 goals and 9 assists, both less then Kesler, but Thornton isn't so far behind Kesler thanks to his stellar play defensively. "Jumbo Joe" has been a monster defensively always intercepting passes, and making good passes to get the puck out of the zone which is good because if you've watched the Sharks this year you know most the goals the Sharks give up are when they can't clear the zone. With Thornton on the ice that doesn't happen. Let's also not forget the face-off power these guys bring. Kesler is 53% while Joe Thornton is 61%.

2. A Year of Anniversaries.

San Jose and Vancouver are both celebrating team anniversaries. Vancouver is in their 40th season and San Jose is in their 20th season. Now both teams have a chance to bring home that Lord Stanely's Cup for their anniversary year. Doesn't it just touch your heart? No, because it's hockey and they still have work to do. It may be their anniversary year and one of them is going to have a chance. But that doesn't mean they win. Be happy about your anniversary year after you win the cup. For now, focus on how you need to get past the team your playing now to even get a chance at it.

3. A Nation United.

The last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup was in 1993. That's 18 years ago. Let's take that into perspective. In 1993, gas was $1.16, the World Trade Centers were bombed for the first time, and the most popular movie was Jurassic Park. Yes, the first one. That was a long time ago. Sure teams have come close with Calgary in 2004, and Edmonton in 2006. But they fell short. Vancouver is the clear cut favorite by many people for the Cup and they have an entire nation backing them up. Talk about a large fanbase.


Players To Watch:

Vancouver: Sedin 1 and Sedin 2.

Talk about duds. The most hyped up players in the regular season enter the postseason and do basically nothing. They are going to need to step up and take charge of this team to send them to the Cup Finals.


San Jose: Patrick Marleau.

2 goals against Los Angeles. 1 POINT alone against Detroit. This guy was the leading scorer in the regular season, just like the Sedin's, and needs to step up. The Sharks will not get far with Marleau struggling.


Prediction: This is the toughest pick all year long so far. Vancouver has outplayed the Sharks in the regular season but that was when the Sedin's were doing well. I don't expect them to do well again in this series. Give me the Sharks in 6 games folks.

Eastern Conference Finals: #3. Boston vs. #5. Tampa Bay

Bruins got revenge last series and did it while dominating the Flyers in 4 while the Lightning also got themselves a sweep except they took out the number 1 seed in the east in Washington. Now these two teams battle off for a place in the Stanley Cup Finals. The last time Tampa Bay wonthe Stanley Cup was in 2004 when they beat the Calgary Flames in 7 games. The last time the Bruins won the Stanley Cup was in 1972. They beat the New York Rangers in 6 games. Here are my 3 keys to the series.

1. Goaltending.

Well well well, looks like we have ourselves a battle. Two veteran goalies finally getting a chance to prove himself and both are putting on a clinic. Tim Thomas is 37 and has an 8-3 record while allowing 23 goals past him. He has the second best save percentage and goals allowed average in the NHL right now. Who has number 1? His counterpart, Dwayne Roloson. The 41 year old wants one more shot before he retires. He was the Edmonton Oilers goalie for the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals but was injured in game 1 against the Carolina Hurricanes. He finally is one step away from another shot. He leads the NHL in save percentage and goals allowed as I mentioned earlier and he played a potent Washington Capitals offense and a injured but still strong Pittsburgh offense. The goaltending in these games will be huge. It will make or break this series.

2. Patrice Bergeron.

Bergeron was injured in the series clinching game 4 against the Philadelphia Flyers getting hit by Claude Giroux. Giroux's helmet hit Bergeron and the Bruins are saying he has a concussion. Not a big concussion, but a concussion regardless. He has been the powerplay monster for the Bruins and without him their struggling powerplay takes an even worse hit. Here's to hoping Bergeron makes a recovery and can return for the series against Tampa Bay.

3. Sean Bergenheim.

This guy has kind of flew into the spotlight. He spent the regular season playing 80 games and netting 14 goals, ranking 174th among active players. But in this postseason he has played 11 games and has 7 goals which leads the league. If he continues to put goals in the net like that (unlikely with a wall like Thomas between the pipes) he is my pick for the Conn Smythe winner.


Players to watch:

I'm not even going to write anything here. Read key 1 to the series and you'll understand who and why.


Prediction: Tampa Bay has been the hottest team this postseason and they have postseason leaders like Vinny Lecavalier and Martin. St. Louis. That's something the Bruins don't have. Give me the Lightning in 6.