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A lot happening in the sports world! Nick Fogle came back through to help me preview the Stanley Cup Final! We talk about why it’s important that we’re getting a matchup between two non-traditional hockey market teams, Rod the Bod, and what each team needs to do to win it all!

Once again, there will be some schedule overlap because of all the titles up for grabs, so prepare yourself and enjoy!

Okay, let’s run it back. Game 2 of this Championship Series rematch. That one went to the do-or-die third game, where Texas Tech star NiJaree Canady simply ran out of gas as the Longhorns prevailed to capture the first title in program history. The Red Raiders hit the transfer portal hard to lighten Canady’s load, and those players have played big roles in their run.

We talked about all of the hubbub surrounding Florida transfer Mia Williams last week. She’s shifted attention back onto her play with a big-time homer against UCLA in an elimination game, then a walk-off home run to force an elimination game in the semifinals against Alabama. UCLA transfer Kaitlyn Terry had the go-ahead RBI against her former team in that elimination game, but it’s her pitching that could make the biggest difference for the Red Raiders this season. Canady threw every pitch for Texas Tech in last year’s College World Series before her Game 3 collapse. That won’t be the case this year, as Terry has given the Red Raiders another star on the mound. As great as the Longhorns have been, I don’t think anybody wants to see a fresher NiJaree Canady. Hope there are plenty of ladybugs available!

Check out the preview above for some real insights from someone who has played and coached the sport! Nick pretty much nailed it with his thoughts about the importance of controlling the pace. The Hurricanes’ 27 shots on goal told the story of their Game 1 loss. They were just 9-7 when attempting 27 shots or fewer in the regular season. Where do things pick up for them? 32 SOGs, where they went 39-10. This is as deep as my analysis goes at the moment, but pay attention to how much Carolina is able to fire away.

Game 3, if necessary! And, yes, Texas star Hannah Wells really does eat ladybugs for some reason.

Game 2! Even with all of the injuries for OKC, I still can’t believe that San Antonio went in there and won Game 7. Three key pieces, including Victor Wembanyama, are years away from their primes. Yet, here they are playing for the sport’s ultimate prize. Even crazier, they’re doing it without Gregg Popovich as head coach. Pop had to step down at the beginning of last season after suffering a stroke. He’d been on the sidelines for San Antonio since 1996, winning 5 titles along the way. His very first title came against the New York Knicks. Can current Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson follow in his footsteps?

An absolutely wacky tournament. I had a whole paragraph typed up about Aryna Sabalenka finally having a clear path to add a French Open title to her impressive resume, and she went out and lost. So yeah, this one is up for grabs. No wonder Serena is coming back!

Silly me for thinking the Lynx would miss their perennial MVP candidate! Minnesota currently has the best record in the W as Napheesa Collier recovers from multiple ankle surgeries. No real timeline has been provided for her return, but that’s okay as long as Natasha Howard manages to keep outrunning Father Time. In her 13th season, Howard is putting up 16.6 PPG, 7.7 RPG, and a career-best 3.8 APG. None of this should be super surprising, because head coach Cheryl Reeve just always finds a way. Minnesota has missed the postseason just twice in Reeve’s 16 years as coach. That’s half as many times as they’ve won the WNBA Championship in that same span.

A World Cup tune-up! I’m officially anxious about the USMNT. I’m not a lunatic, so I don’t expect them to win it all, but they’ve been floundering since, well, forever. They finally moved on from manager Gregg Berhalter after a disappointing 2024 Copa America showing, but it still feels like we have more questions than answers in the Mauricio Pochettino era. As we’re less than a week away from co-hosting the sport’s biggest competition for the first time since 1994, that’s probably not ideal. Maybe we’ll get some more answers here!

Fantastic scheduling, honestly. If the USMNT makes you nervous, allow us to remind you that the USWNT is actually really good!

Shout out to ESPN/Disney for getting both the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Finals. The alternating days of championship action make my own personal viewing schedule that much easier.

The men’s draw has equaled the women’s in terms of chaos. Carlos Alcaraz, who has won this tournament the last two years, was forced to miss it entirely due to an injury. That seemed like the perfect opportunity for last year’s runner-up, Jannik Sinner, to complete his Career Grand Slam, but he bowed out in Round 2. America’s highest-ranked player, Ben Shelton, also lost in Round 2, presumably to give himself more time to fellate our current administration. Then, the legendary Novak Djokovic lost in Round 3 after going up 2 sets. It would appear that Alexander Zverev is the favorite, but that hasn’t meant anything up to this point. Tap in to see if the upsets continue!

Game 3, and, more importantly, the first NBA Finals game in Madison Square Garden since June 25th, 1999. They seem to be pretty excited about it, too, because the cheapest ticket I could find was just over $4,000. Be fiscally responsible, and watch it from home.

Angel Reese returns to Chicago! I’m going to try to hold off on evaluating this trade for the Sky until I see who they select with the draft picks they received in return, but how good will those picks be if the Dream keep playing this well? Angel hasn’t quite found her footing yet but is still putting up 13 points, 11 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game for the team with the 2nd-best record in the WNBA. More importantly, she has brought a toughness the Dream were lacking last season. I would imagine this will be a very pro-Angel crowd, because Sky fans haven’t had much to cheer for recently, having lost all 5 games since losing Rickea Jackson for the season with a torn ACL. Sheesh!

Game 4!

Another World Cup tune-up match. Argentina’s quest for a repeat is up in the air due to injury concerns for several key players, including Lionel Messi (hamstring) and Dibu Martínez (finger fracture). You might remember Martínez as the guy who pretended to bang a trophy with a really dumb look on his face last time around. I’m unsure if his injury is related to that. Here’s a Reuters article about just how important soccer is to Argentinians that you should read.

Game 4!

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