The Butterfield breakdown
Week to week, league to league
Hey all, I’m back yet again with another sports update regarding the happenings of the various major leagues and whatnot. Another week has come and gone with its own set of twists and turns. Major developments are coming out of several areas making for good conversation. Whether it’s about the newly crowned NBA champions, the continuing developing landscape of the NFL, or ongoing MLB playoffs, those interested can find the news just below:
NHL:
With the free agency signings going on in the NHL, there has definitely been some note-worthy moves being made by teams. One of the most surprising moves (to me anyway), is “Big” Joe Thorton going from the San Jose Sharks to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Considering that the 41-year-old Thorton used to be a Boston Bruin, I see this as the ultimate brutal move. I mean, he doesn’t have any control over it, but how could he.
Other signings saw a huge goaltender switch-a-roo as teams were signing the netminders left and right. The Washington Capitals picked up “The King” Henrik Lundqvist, Matt Murray found a spot on the Ottawa Senators roster, the Dallas Stars resigned Anton Khudobin to a three year contract, the Calgary Flames found Jacob Markstrom to put inbetween the posts, Corey Crawford joined the New Jersey Devils squad, The Vancouver Canucks may have lucked out with Braden Holtby, and finally, Regina’s own Devan Dubnyk ended up on the San Jose Sharks.
That wasn’’t the end of it though as other majors signings also occurred, including that of Taylor Hall, who is now a member of the Buffalo Sabres. It’s hard to say if this is an upgrade for Hall, but I suppose we’ll see when the season starts. As well, former Bruin Torey Krug is now a part of the St. Louis Blues, which should provide a boost for the young player as the Blues are recent Cup winners. Veteran Patrick Marleau will be returning to the San Jose Sharks with a one-ear contract. Marleau also has the potential of breaking a Gordie Howe record with this signing. The 41-year-old now has the ability to pass most career regular season games played by simply playing 45 games next season.
NFL:
Week 6 has now rolled around in the National Football League and things couldn’t be more crazy. The Atlanta Falcons and the New York Giants, who were previously without a win, have found victory in Week 6 as they both now move to 1-5. Also, speaking of the New York Giants win, I guess the ‘Battle of the Worst of New York’ is over rather soon as the Jets take the crown at 0-6 with a loss to the Miami Dolphins.
In other news, the Green Bay Packers suffered their first loss against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Cleveland Browns winning wave of momentum came to a stop after a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers (who now move to 5-0), the Tennessee Titans also earned a hard fought 5-0 record after a win against the Houston Texans, and lastly, shockingly, the Denver Broncos managed to get a win against the New England Patriots (who were missing some pretty key players admittedly).
MLB:
It’s playoff time in Major League Baseball and we’re now down to the last two teams in the MLB championship, the Tampa Bay Rays will be taking on the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series in what is a startling case of deja vu with regards to these two cities competing for championships. The Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup, and the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA Championship. I suppose one city will have the honour of being a duel champion. Not a bad 2020 for them, all things considered.
The Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves were the last two teams eliminated from the playoff race, much to the delight of fans with regards to the Houston Astros. Fans of baseball still haven’t forgiven the Astros for their scandal and took to Twitter, using #cheaters to call out the team for their misdeeds and to vocalize their excitement at Astros elimination. #Cheaters was, at the time, trending on the social media site.
NBA:
The NBA season is over with the official champions being the Los Angeles Lakers. Teams will now look to continue developing in the offseason in order to make a run for the title next year (expect for the New York Knicks, never again). This will occur as a result of the free agency and the approaching NBA draft that will take place on November 18, 2020.
Well, I hope you enjoyed this rundown, fingers crossed that there was, once again, enough in it to hold your attention. I do my best to keep the news as relevant or ‘up and coming’ as possible but sometimes there can be things that end up being a bit stale given the timeframe. Regardless, I look forward to continuing to bring you the major news of the major leagues from week to week.
