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HomeSportsHart AttackHartley Miller’s Hart Attack – June 19, 2015 Edition 528

Hartley Miller’s Hart Attack – June 19, 2015 Edition 528

Which championship series was more compelling, the NHL or NBA?

There were similarities. The Blackhawks and Warriors both won in six games after trailing 2-1.

(Oddly enough in the NBA playoffs, the losing team in game three of a 1-1 series went 6-0)

Home ice and home court were not a factor as visitors went 3-3 in both Final Series.

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The best team from the best Conference won. The Western Conference is stronger than the East in both leagues, particularly the NBA.

The differences, however, in the two series were widespread.

The Lightning lost as a team without one player rising to the top. The Cavaliers lost with one superstar (Lebron James) carrying a bunch of rag-tag players that were trying to ride his coat-tails.

The Lightning and Blackhawks were tied or separated by one goal for the first five games and more than two periods of game six. Despite no overtimes, each game had suspense that came down to wire.

The Warriors coasted to victories in each of the last three games with little drama at the end of games four, five and six.

The Blackhawks were a bit better than the Lightning but their rosters were comparable. The Warriors were considerably more skilled and much deeper than the Cavaliers.

Granted, the NBA may have had a better storyline with Lebron, minus two superstar teammates, attempting to bring Cleveland’s first pro sports championship in 51 years, but the entertainment value and competitiveness were far greater in the Stanley Cup Final.

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It was a slam dunk that Duncan Keith would be named MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He was an obvious choice with a near heroic performance in terms of minutes played.

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Keith, who already has Hall of Fame credentials, excelled at both ends of the ice to become the 9th defenceman to capture the Conn Smythe Trophy.

The MVP discussion though in the NBA Finals was not nearly as clear cut. There were three worthy candidates: Andre Iguodala and Stephen Curry of the Warriors, both of whom hooped 25 points in the 105-97 clincher, and Lebron James.

Iguodala captured seven of the 11 votes to become the first to take the award without starting a single game in the regular season. Despite his awful free throw shooting, Iguodala was offensively effective, including key threes. He did a superb job defending James and also changed the complexion of the series when he took over as a starter in game four.

But what about Lebron who garnered the other four votes? He was unquestionably the best player with the best stats but the majority of the voters made it clear they were only willing to give the award to someone from the winning team.

Consider this: Lebron is the first player in NBA Finals history to lead both teams in points, assists and rebounds for the entire series.

Moreover, he averaged 36.6 PPG, 12.4 RPG, and 8.8 APG against the Warriors.

To put that in perspective, Lebron averaged two less points, nine more rebounds and one more assist per game than Jerry West of the LA Lakers when West won Finals MVP on a losing team in 1969.

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In Gary Bettman’s mind, the Chicago Blackhawks are a dynasty. The Blackhawks are a great team, an outstanding organization and have three Cups in the last six seasons to prove it. They deserve the accolades but they are “NOT” a dynasty. The LA Kings have as many Cups (2) as the Blackhawks in the last four seasons.

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Referring to Chicago as a dynasty is unjust to excellent championship teams of the past.

The Montreal Canadiens (five straight Cups—56, 57, 58, 59 and 60), the Habs (four straight Cups 76, 77, 78, 79), the New York Islanders (four consecutive Cups 90, 81, 82 and 83) and the Edmonton Oilers (four Cups in five seasons and five in seven 84, 85, 87, 88 and 90) are examples of a true “dynasty.”

Sure it is difficult to compare decades and generations, but the Blackhawks need another Cup or two in the Toews-Kane-Keith era to be considered in the elite class with the best of the best.

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By the numbers:

–3 of 6 games in the Cup Final featured come from behind wins (32 of 89 playoff games overall).

–Home teams were 3-3 in the Cup Final (51-38 overall).

–5 of 6 games in the Cup Final were decided by one goal (48 of 89 overall).

–55 of 89 Stanley Cup playoff games were tied or a one goal difference entering the final five minutes of the third period.

–0 of 6 games were decided in OT in the Cup Final (19 of 89 overall)

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From the Quote Rack:

The Korea Times anoints the Chicago Bears as Stanley Cup Champions. Can’t wait to see The Stanley Cup Shuffle.

A skunk’s nest was found in the Cardinals dugout at Dodger Stadium. Did (Cards manager) Mike Matheny say that he needed a spray hitter?

Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, California

Really bad timing for the St. Louis Cardinals to get caught hacking into a computer database of the Houston Astros. This year investigators will believe the Astros actually had information worth stealing.

Got to give Lebron James credit for playing with basically a six man bench. Even Snow White had seven dwarves.

Contributor Janice Hough of Palo Alto, California www.leftcoastsportsbabe.com

The Cubs beat the Indians 17-0 on Wednesday. Didn’t LeBron receive the call for help?

Somebody hired a plane that sported a banner “CHEATER” to follow Tiger Woods at the U.S. Open. A fan thought he saw two blond women flying the aircraft.

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Comedy writer TC Chong of Vancouver (http://alwaysfunny.com/)

Last week an 80-foot-wide sinkhole opened up at a Missouri golf course. This week Tiger Woods three-putted it.

A man dressed as a broccoli proposed to his girlfriend immediately after winning a veggie race at a Reading Phillies game. Word is he once asked her to sneak off and get married, but she said, “Sorry, I cantaloupe.”

Comedy writer RJ Currie www.Sportsdeke.com

And in case you missed it:

A swanky Mexican resort opened an underwater bar: In related news, John Daly is taking scuba lessons.

Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel

Hartley Miller is the sports director and morning news anchor for 94.3 the Goat. His column appears Fridays on myprincegeorgenow.com. Send along a quote, note, or anecdote to [email protected]
Follow him on twitter: @Hartley_Miller

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