* No one would dare admit it, but you have to believe that the NHL was hoping for anyone but Winnipeg to be representing the Western Conference in the Stanley Cup finals. Winnipeg, which lost to Las Vegas in the conference finals, is the smallest market in the entire league. It’s also the frequent target of Canadian humor about its weather and provincialism. Truth be told, the NHL probably hopes for a mega-TV-market matchup of the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers every year.
* We know the Rays have had their share of struggles so far, and it hardly helps that they are in MLB’s toughest (American League East) division with the talent-stocked and exorbitantly-payrolled Yankees and Red Sox. They won’t catch either one. But suppose they were in another division, say, the AL Central? At the beginning of this week, the Rays’ record (22-23) would have put them into a tie for first place with the Cleveland Indians.