#i think this is round 1 game 5 from the playoffs

[starrstruckcanuck]

I was scrolling through Pinterest to get my mind off of the loss and I came across this picture which I've never seen before but...

TEDDY??? 😳

[puckpocketed]

AGAIN (AND AGAIN AND AGAIN) sources & transcript below the cut

Kopitar // women in STEM // forever? // ⧖ - by user @.sidui // wormhole illustration, Klein 1982 // Oilers eliminate Kings in 7 // Oilers eliminate Kings in 5 // Oilers eliminate Kings in 6 // Time After Time - Cyndi Lauper // enemies in every universe // good morning kings // The Guest - Anna Akhmatova, tl. Carl R. Proffer // Kopitar, Draisaitl, McDavid talk // Oilers celebrate behind Danault // Kopitar skates away // this time loop fucking sucks // Another Playoff Clash // ghosts dancing - oliver gilet // Time Warp - Richard O'Brien (The Rocky Horror Picture Show)

Web weave about the Los Angeles Kings and Edmonton Oilers’ repeated meetings in round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs themed around time loops, featuring edited photos and memes. ID’s are in order of appearance.

(1) Single frame of StarPark’s untitled animatic. Black text on white. Text reads: “Do you think we are enemies in every universe?”

(2) Tumblr post screenshot: “I support women in STEM (Scary experiments, Time loops, Existential dilemmas, Madness).”

(3) Closeup photo of Anže Kopitar in profile during a faceoff. His mouth is open, his eyes are wide, water speckles his visor.

(4) Headline that reads: “Are the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings destined to battle forever?”

(5) Fake series of Tumblr posts edited from the originals to look like the LA Kings talking to each other. Each timestamp date coincides roughly with the beginning of playoffs and the times when the Kings were eliminated, ending with a post at the exact time the Kings announced clinching playoffs on their Twitter in 2025. Posts read:

anzekopitar11 (May 2, 2022): good morning kings let’s push this boulder

piplup-danault (May15, 2022): bad news about the boulder everyone

anzekopitar11 (April 17, 2023): Good morning kings let’s push this boulder

fifiala-k (April 30, 2023): bad news about the boulder everyone

anzekopitar11 (April 20, 2024) Good morning kings let’s push this boulder

clarke4norris (May1, 2024) Bad news about the boulder everyone

anzekopitar11 (April 5, 2025 - 10:03 PM 7 hours ago) Good morning kings let’s push this boulder

(6) Photograph of an analogue alarm clock on a grey background. The clock is gold, it sits to the far left of the frame. It is gold, with gold hands and a white face. It is behind cracked, frosted plastic.

(7) Illustrated diagram of a wormhole and the fabric of time. Space is represented by a grid with holes in it, with root-like tunnels that lead down and away from the holes and tangle with each other in a mass of tunnels below. The diagram is labelled “The wormhole connections in the time-space continuum (Drawing from Klein 1982, 12)”

Edited on top are three headlines from when the Kings were eliminated by the Oilers, each with a red line drawn connecting them to the nexus of wormholes. The headlines, from top to bottom, read:

- Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers cap Round 1 comeback, eliminate Los Angeles Kings in Game 7

- Draisaitl, Oilers eliminate Kings with win in Game 5

- Yamamoto scores late in Game 6 to lift Oilers over Kings, into 2nd round

(8) Photo of Oilers teammates Leon Draisaitl (left) and Zach Hyman (right) celebrating. Between them, just behind, is Kings Captain Anže Kopitar with his back to the camera, skating away. Text in the top left reads: “Kill me once, shame on you”

(9) From Time After Time by Cyndi Lauper: “Time after time” repeated 7 times, then, “Time after, Time”

(10) Photo of Oilers teammates Evan Bouchard, Matthias Ekholm, and Connor McDavid celebrating. In the foreground, very blurred out, is LA Kings player Phillip Danault skating off. Text in the middle reads: “kill me twice, how did you do that”

(11) From The Guest by Anna Akhmatova. White text on red. Text reads:

I asked: “What do you want?”

He replied: “To be with you in Hell.”

(12) Photo of Oilers teammates Leon Draisaitl (left) and Connor McDavid (right) facing away from the camera while they chat to Kings Captain Anže Kopitar, who is between them. Draisaitl has a bare hand on Kopitar’s chest as though to push him back. Text in the bottom right reads: “kill me three times, this time loop fucking sucks”

(13) Headline that reads: “Oilers & Kings Appear Destined For Yet Another Playoff Clash” published March 31, 2025 by Brian Swane. Body text reads: “With just over two weeks remaining in the 2024-25 NHL regular season, it’s looking more and more like the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings will be meeting in the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.”

(14) Experimental photograph of white, ghost-like beings dancing in a grey field. They are holding hands and seem to be spinning in a circle, going so fast that there are afterimages.

(15) From Time Warp by Richard O’Brian (The Rocky Horror Picture Show).

Black text on white: [Refrain: All]

Highlighted white text on red:

Let’s do the Time Warp again

Let’s do the Time Warp again

[zegrasdrysdale]

please write some matthew knies smut, there’s not enough of it on this app i swear

like just some good old love making yk after a long game he just comes home and hassss herrrrrrr

[ winner ] m. knies

paring : Matthew Knies x fem!reader

summary : an upset Matthew comes home to his Toronto apartment after a rough game 4 loss versus Boston and his girlfriend helps him feel better, and set him up for a successful game 5 in Boston

warning(s) : smut ! but it’s more like love making, p in v, protected sex, use of pet names during sex

author’s note : clearly i didn’t start writing this until after playoffs started lmaoo (update: leafs are out :(( so sad)

༺═──────────────═༻

She watches the whole thing unfold from their shared apartment. She watches as the Leafs back themselves against a wall and go down 3-1 in the series. It’s not as if they had a bad game, but Boston just had a better game than they did.

Still, it breaks her heart when she watches the clock hit 0:00 and the Leafs leave the ice with their heads down. 23 is briefly shown on screen and she notices how sad Matthew looks.

It isn’t going to be pretty when he comes home from the arena. She isn’t ready to see how sad he really is about going down in the series and now facing elimination.

There’s an hour or so before he comes walking through the door so she has an hour to prepare for sad Matthew.

She grabs some of his favorite snacks and puts them out on the coffee table for when he gets home. She knows he’s a snacker when he has a rough game.

What kind of snack he wants when he gets home is always uncertain though. Sometimes he doesn’t want food.

The door opens about 90 minutes after the game ends. She looks over the back of the couch to watch Matthew walk in. He hangs his jacket up by the door then walks into the living room. He lets out a heavy sigh and she gets up to go greet her boyfriend.

“Hi, handsome,” she says as she quickly walks up to him. She wraps her arms around his torso. “You played great.”

Matthew presses a kiss to the top of her head. “It wasn’t enough tonight,” he mumbles into her hair. “It hasn’t been enough and now we’re facing elimination.”

She frowns and looks up at him. “Teams have come back and won a series after being down three to one,” she tells him. “Florida did it last year. Against Boston. I know you guys can do it too.”

He cups her jaw and brushes his thumbs over her cheekbones. "I love the enthusiasm and optimism, but I think it's going to be another first round exit for us," Matthew replies. "That's fine, as long as we put up a fight next game."

"Matt-"

"It was a long game, baby," he interrupts. "Can we just ignore hockey for a little bit? Please?"

With a nod, she asks, "Do you have any ideas?"

Matthew's tongue darts out to lick his bottom lip. "A few," he says with a smile. "Come here."

She tilts her head up and a six-foot-three Matthew has to lean down to press a soft kiss to her lips. Her fingers curl around his shirt to keep him close. The kiss starts out slow and soft, but quickly turns needy.

His fingers slide from her jaw into her hair. He holds the back of her head as his fingers curl in her locks. She smiles and Matthew can't help but kiss it.

"This is your idea of forgetting about hockey for a bit?" she questions between kisses.

Matthew hums in reply without breaking the kiss. She laughs and rests her hands on his torso. She pushes him gently toward their bedroom. He kicks off his shoes as they stumble their way to the room.

He leans down after a second to pick her up. She squeals and laughs. "Matt!" The kiss breaks and she looks at her boyfriend as she wraps herself around him.

"It's just easier if I carry you," he tells her as he enters the dimly lit room. "Want to be inside you already."

She smiles as Matthew moves his hands to the back of her thighs to keep her from sliding down his body. She rids herself of the shirt she stole from his side of the closet. His eyes are on her bare upper body since she decided to be comfortable and not wear a bra under the Leafs t-shirt.

Matthew sucks his bottom lip between his teeth as he takes her in. She smiles and connects their lips again in a heated kiss. Her fingers trace his jaw as he crawls on his knees on the bed. He lays her on her back and hovers over her between her knees. She smiles into the kiss that follows.

Very slowly, she manages to get him out of everything but his boxers. He doesn't want to stop touching her long enough to get naked. She almost literally has to force him to take off his clothes. Especially since she's completely naked underneath him.

As Matthew finally pulls off his boxers, she rolls over and grabs a little foil package from the drawers. Matthew pulls her back and she smiles up at him. "Come on," he whines. "Condom?"

"No mini Knies running around just yet," she laughs. "Hurry up and put it on because I need you, baby."

He smiles and grabs the tiny package out of her hand. She watches as he rips it open with his teeth and slides its contents onto his dick. She stares up at him and notices how much more relaxed he looks. He didn't look this relaxed when he walked in the door a little bit ago.

She thumbs at his swollen lips from the amount of kisses they've shared and stares up at him. When he looks back at her. he raises his eyebrows in confusion. "What?" he asks.

"Nothing," she tells him as she pushes his longer hair out of his face. "I was just admiring you. You look pretty. Relaxed."

Matthew grabs her wrist and presses kisses to the skin. "Well, coming home after a rough loss to my beautiful girlfriend helps me relax," he replies. "Being in bed with said beautiful girlfriend is the best feeling."

"I love you," she reminds him. "In case you needed to hear that."

He leans down and captures her lips in a soft kiss. It's a welcomed change from the heated, needy kisses they've shared over the last few minutes. She lifts her hips and the tip of his cock runs through her soaked folds.

"I love you too," Matthew mumbles against her lips. "So much, pretty girl." She smiles and he dips the tip of his dick into her. She hums in response to his movement.

She wraps her legs around his waist as Matthew slowly buries himself in her. The familiar stretch is welcomed as he bottoms out in her. She hums into the kiss that follows.

When he begins to thrust, the kiss breaks and Matthew rests his forehead on hers. She movements are slow, but he can move deeply inside her because of the angle. She doesn't expect tonight to be any rougher than this because he did just play an intense playoff game a few hours ago.

Their lips barely touch every time he thrusts into her. They share an occasional eskimo kiss every so often. The softness of the touches and how slow his movements are make her smile.

The tip of his dick hits her favorite spot and she gasps. "Matt," she sighs. "Right there. Fuck, baby."

"I have you, pretty girl," he tells her.

He slams into that spot over and over again. Her body arches off the mattress in response. Soft moans pass her lips as Matthew presses a few kisses to her chest and breasts while he moves. He hooks an arm around her waist to hold her up.

Her fingernails dig into the skin on his back. She feels bad knowing that his teammates are going to make fun of the marks if they see them, but tomorrow is a travel day before they play again in Boston so maybe the marks will have faded by the time he has morning skate in a few days.

Matthew's thrusts get sloppy and her legs her shaking. They're both so close to their climaxes.

"Matt," she pants. "Please."

"You don't need my permission to come," he tells her with a smile. He's out of breath as he talks. "I want you to come on my dick, pretty girl."

His words shoot right down to her core. The knot in the bottom of her stomach tightens, and with one more deep thrust, it comes undone.

She cries out his name as she comes on his dick. Her entire body shakes and her vision goes white for a second as she hits her climax.

Matthew doesn't stop though. He fucks her through her orgasm until he reaches his own. As she melts against the mattress, he shoots into the condom. He collapses on top of her and presses lazy kisses to her collarbone. She runs her fingers through his hair.

"You better score in game five and win," she pants. "I just gave you all the good luck in the world."

He laughs and shakes his head as he discards the now used condom. "Anything for you."

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

Overtime in a possible elimination game is the worst. She's wearing all the Leaf gear she can put on her body, including her WAG jacket that was made for her for playoffs. She's on her feet as overtime starts.

She's never been more nervous in her life. A 1-1 game in game five is the worst possible score.

Tavares shoots the puck at Swayman and it rebounds. The puck ends up on Matthew's stick and he puts it in the back of the net.

"There you go, baby!" she shouts as she jumps up and down to celebrate her boyfriend's girl and a Leafs win. "There you go!"

The Leafs celebrate on the ice in Boston. They stave off elimination for tonight. They'll come back to Toronto in a few days to force a game seven.

She sends him a text a few minutes after the game ends.

to knisey ♡ - 10:29 pm knew you could do it. get home asap so we can celebrate

from knisey ♡ - 10:46 pm calling you in a minute because i can not wait

༺═──────────────═༻

MASTERLIST

have a request ? check out the guidelines !

wanna be added to the taglist ? fill out this form !

taglist : @dasiysthings @equallyshaw @dancerbailey3 @love4lando @ivy-34 @rigg647

[imaginespazzi]

HAPPY WNBA OPENING DAY TO EVERYBODY WHO CELEBRATES!

I meant to do this a little earlier but hey, technically this is still the preseason so these are my preseason rankings, based on vibes and maybe that little itty bitty piece of ball knowledge I like to think I have.

Just a note that I did floor based on at least how far they should make it (even if it would technically be disappointing if they didn't get further) and not getting there means something went wrong and ceiling is how far I think they could make it if everything goes right.

Let me know y'alls thoughts and rankings!

1) New York Liberty: this should come as no surprise to anybody, especially considering these are MY rankings but defending champions, bringing their main core back, and then adding Tash and getting Marine back? Yeah, I'm not betting against them. The only worry I have based on preseason games and loss of personnel (i.e Betnijah and Kayla Thornton) is perimeter defense but I think that can definitely be worked on and I think Jaylyn Sherrod is going to get solid minutes to help out with that.

Floor: Semi-finals

Ceiling: Champions

2) Minnesota Lynx: as of right now, Alanna Smith is out for their game tonight and no one is telling me what the hell is up with Kayla McBride so maybe this ranking is a teensy bit fraudulent depending on personnel. But I'm choosing to be optimistic that Smith's injury is nothing and that whatever's going on with KayMac isn't serious. I'm also vaguely worried about Natisha Hiedemen continuing to be their PG but anyways moving on...the Lynx have MVPhee! And for all my very complex feelings about Cheryl Reeves, there is no coach in the W that I trust more.

Floor: Semi-finals

Ceiling: Champions

3) Las Vegas Aces: another year, another season wondering who the fuck can the Aces count on outside of their big 4? Especially in that frontcourt. Kiah is my Husky for life but she's unreliable offensively and counting on Liz Kitley, a rooking coming back from an ACL, especially at the start of the season, just isn't the best recipe for success in my opinion. But having said that, A'ja is A'ja, Chelsea and Jackie are healthy and when Jewell is playing her best game? That's still hell of a core 4 and I think both Tiffany Mitchell and Aaliyah Nye are gonna be really big for them off of the bench.

Floor: Semi-finals

Ceiling: Champions

4) Indiana Fever: the Fever *should* be good after everything they've added to what they already have and. They have that steady young core, the veteran presence and a couple solid players coming off the bench. I also think Stephanie White is a pretty great coach and is going to push them to be a more defensive-minded team this year. I think the main hindrance for them however, is going to be gelling together with so new pieces, a new coach and a philosophy that's different from what each of them have been used to.

Floor: Semi-finals

Ceiling: Finals

5) Seattle Storm: definitely one of the teams I'm really excited to watch this season, mainly cause I wanna see that big as hell rotation with SD (no S), Gabby, Nneka, Dom and Ezi. Nut man oh man do I think playing this whole season with only 10 players, 2 of whom are 34 years old and will be expected -if they're tryna win- to ply around 30 minutes each night, and 3 international players who have been playing pretty much all year round atp, is going to be a real challenge for them. I'm also very worried about their guard depth so really maybe I should have them lower, but like this based on vibes!

Floor: Playoffs

Ceiling: Semi-Finals

6) Chicago Sky: I'm typing this and thinking that maybe I should have the Sky higher but I just think there's a lot of inconsistent pieces, specifically at the guard spot, with them. I expect both Kamilla and Angel to have really solid pieces and I do think the guards they've brought in, are better than the ones they used to have. And I think Sloot is going to play a really key piece in their season but outside of those three, I don't know to what extent, I trust everybody else to contribute. The caveat to this is, that when all those players do contribute, the Sky have hell of a team. I just don't know how consistent that will be.

Floor: Playoffs

Celing: Semi-finals

7) Phoenix Mercury: the Mercury are the definition of big 3 or bust in the sense that I really don't know who else they can count on their roster. But their big 3? Immaculate players really. You've got 3 very versatile players in AT, Kah and Satour (all possible all-W selections), who can all do a lot of things on the court and that's a great core to have. But like I said, what is everybody else gonna do? I also just don't like their coach like why is girl dad his only skillset? Also why does he hate the midrange?

Floor: Missing the playoffs

Ceiling: Semi-finals

8) Dallas Wings: I think you could genuinely make a case that Dallas has a top 3 backcourt in the league. Their main issue is going to be the frontcourt, even though I will say, I think having MHA and Lyss is better than what they did their first game. It's going to take a while for Dallas with it's basically brand new team to start functioning like a solid team but they have all the pieces to put it together. My biggest worry with them is honestly their coach who I think really wants to run an everybody eats offense -and I think eventually will be able to- but currently everybody on that roster doesn't quite have the ability to do so and I think to succeed, they might need to do some hierarchical separations on who takes what shot.

Floor: Missing the playoffs

Ceiling: Semi-finals

9) Atlanta Dream: I think the Dream has some very solid players between Rhyne, BG, Brionna Jones etc. etc. but the worry I have, is that their new coach wants to play them in a system that, in my opinion, doesn't match any of their skillsets. From what I've heard, his system is very 3-ball oriented and I don't think any of his star players are particular suited for that kind of offense. I am also, once again, worried about guard play.

Floor: Missing the playoffs

Ceiling: Winning a playoff game

10) Los Angeles Sparks: what the fuck is a guard? LA certainly couldn't tell you. They seem to think having KP and KP alone is enough of a backcourt and I'm here to tell you, it won't be. But their frontcourt is undeniably stacked with Dearic, Azurá, Rickea and of course Cam when she comes back. I am also once again, very curious to see how this coaching changes works out for them because Lynn Roberts also runs a super 3-ball oriented system and I mean....how do you do that without other guards? Idk, guess we'll find out!

Floor: Missing the playoffs

Ceiling: Making the playoffs

11) Washington Mystics: I was actually lowkey impressed with the Mystics in the preseason and I think there's gonna be a lot of games, against the upper teams in the league too, that will be really close and maybe even a surprise win here and there. But ultimately this is a very young team and I don't think this is the year they cross the hump. I don't think they're trying to cross it yet. They're in a building mood and I think with Soni, Kiki and Aaliyah (my MIP) as the trio they're building around, they will end up solid eventually.

Floor: Missing the playoffs

Ceiling: Making the play offs

12) Connecticut Sun: Basically everything I just said about the team above them applies here as well. I think we're gonna see flashes of potential out of them throughout the whole season but once again, just not enough to really make a substantial impact. I'm expecting an in-season trade by the Sun for a first round pick next season cause they don't currently have one. But I'm really excited to watch their young core as well and I think both ONO and Jacy Sheldon are primed to take a big leap

Floor: Missing the playoffs

Ceiling: Missing the playoffs

13) Golden State Valkyries: I don't know what happening in the Bay man. Listen I am not impractical, I didn't actually fully believe that KC was going to make this roster. But no Amihere? That one shocked me a lot and I do question that decision because look the preseason isn't everything, but Amihere isn't a rookie and she was coming off of the bench pretty early in the rotation. So I don't get what's happening other than maybe we're just fully committing to the tank which is fine. But I just don't think the Valkyries have the *it factor* if you will, to be particularly good this year, even though they have some solid role players.

Floor: Missing the playoffs

Ceiling: Missing the playoffs

[chickensaladquinn]

Chicken Salad Quinn Pt 11: The Loss

Other Parts: Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 Pt. 4 Pt. 5 Pt. 6 Pt. 7 Pt. 8 Pt. 9 Pt. 10

Quinn slammed the door to his apartment and stomped into the bedroom. Throwing his hockey bag to the floor, he fell face first down onto his bed, feeling the tension deep in his shoulders.

He squeezed his eyes tight, replaying the last minute of the game in his head.

The Canucks had made it to round 3 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. This was game 6/7 and the Canucks were tied with the Kraken 3-3. There was 15 seconds left on the clock and Quinn had a breakaway. He was mere inches from the goal and could see his shot perfectly, but all of a sudden he felt air beneath his skates and his back hit the ice.

The buzzer sounded, indicating that the period was over. They were gonna have to go into overtime.

The Kraken were able to score a point 1 minute into overtime, kicking the Canucks out of playoffs.

Y/N walked in from the bathroom, towel wrapped around her. She started when she saw Quinn on the bed, concern evident in her face.

"Huggy? You ok?" She asked, reaching out to touch his back. Quinn jumped, so lost in his thoughts he hadn't heard her coming out.

"We lost, Y/N. We had the game in the bag, and then everything fell apart in the last few minutes. It's so frustrating."

Y/N reached out and gently placed a hand on Quinn's arm, offering him a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry, Quinn. I know how much you put into every game. But hey, you'll get them next time."

Quinn let out a heavy sigh, feeling the weight of disappointment slowly lifting from his shoulders as Y/N's words sank in. He leaned into her comforting touch, grateful for her unwavering support even in his darkest moments.

"You're right, Y/N," Quinn said, a hint of relief creeping into his voice. "Thanks for being here for me. It means a lot."

Y/N squeezed Quinn's arm affectionately. "Always, Quinn. I'm here for you no matter what."

As they sat together in comfortable silence, Quinn felt a sense of peace wash over him. The anger and frustration from the game began to fade away, replaced by a deep sense of gratitude for the person sitting beside him. With Y/N by his side, he knew he could weather any storm, on or off the ice.

"Now Y/N, I think it's time to get rid of this towel..."

a/n: Wow things are starting to get a bit spicy between Y/N and Quinn! Also screw the Oilers for kicking our Huggy out of the playoffs irl.

[iam93percentstardust]

*insert french laugh* Did someone say to send a prompt? Ahoy! Have no fear for I am here. How about stevetony kiss prompt with the dialogue "i think this is the part where you're supposed to kiss me"? Could Steve be the one to also say it? <3

naferty fren!!! yesss always happy to write steve for you <3

@soliloquent-stark also requested this prompt + "If you win, I'll kiss you" so I rolled y'all into one

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7

~

Steve does follow his physical therapy plan religiously, and sure enough, by the time the next season—his final season, as a senior now—rolls around, he’s declared fit to play. And, fuck, does he play. Determined to prove himself even better after his recovery, to prove that Rollins couldn’t get him down, he leads his team to victory after victory and then to the playoffs and now to the championship.

Tony ducks into the locker room before the game, ignoring the good-natured wolf-whistles and catcalls from Steve’s teammates as he picks his way through the equipment littered across the room. It’s been an open secret for ages that Steve was seeing an omega, and after his injury last season, it became an open secret that Steve was specifically seeing Tony because he kept showing up to fuss over him, but none of them would ever turn him in. They have too much respect for their captain and quarterback, and anyway, most of them think the zero fraternization rules are just as ridiculous as they do.

“Hi, sweetheart,” Steve says, beaming at him. “How was your exam?”

Tony makes a face. He hadn’t flown over with the team yesterday, being required to take an exam for one of his courses—something about mechanics, which Steve had listened to all the ranting about, nodding sympathetically since that was about as much as he understood.

“That bad?” Steve asks.

Tony scowls. “No. It was boring. If you’re gonna make a big deal about this exam being the ‘hardest exam of the entire semester’—” he adopts a suitably dramatic tone for the quote—“then it should at least be difficult, right? I overstudied way too much for that thing. I don’t think it took me more than about ten minutes.”

“Maybe that’s just because you’re impressive.”

“Or maybe Dr. Kean’s not nearly as scary as she thinks she is.”

Steve hums. He doesn’t completely agree—no one knows how smart Tony is better than he does after years of listening to Tony telling him about his inventions—but he’s not going to argue the point. He wasn’t there; for all he knows, everyone was done with the exam after ten minutes.

“I’m glad to see you here,” he says instead. “I wasn’t sure you’d make it.”

Tony makes a dismissive gesture. “What’s a little light sprinting through the airport to catch the next flight?”

“And the TSA let you?”

“I told ‘em I was going to support my alpha, and they practically made a hole for me themselves. They’re big Steve Rogers’ fans, you know.”

It’s Steve’s turn to make a face. He doesn’t know how he feels about having fans. No, that’s not true. He knows exactly how he feels, and he doesn’t like it.

Tony laughs, “Yeah, exactly.”

Steve hears the coach starting to round people up for the pregame pep talk and says, “You better get out there. Don’t want you to miss the kickoff.”

“Hmm, yeah, probably,” Tony agrees and starts to walk away, grinning when Steve reels him back in. “What?”

“Don’t you think you’re forgetting something?” Steve asks.

“No?”

That innocent look on his face isn’t fooling Steve one bit. He reminds him, “Kiss for luck?”

Tony thinks about it, then gives him a teasing smile. “Hmm, I’m gonna have to go with no.”

Steve blinks at him. “No?”

“Yeah, no. But if you win, I’ll kiss you then.”

He darts away before Steve can catch him to kiss him himself, cackling like mad as he dodges his hand. Steve watches him go and shakes his head fondly. Well, now that Tony’s laid a challenge on him, guess he’ll have to win.

~

Looking back on it, he’ll be able to remember the game in excruciating detail. He’ll be able to sit down with Tony and watch the highlights and comment on what he was thinking at each moment of the game. Today though, it feels like barely a minute has passed before he’s standing in the winners box, looking at Tony beaming from ear to ear while someone asks him how he feels.

“Amazing,” he says honestly. He almost says something about Tony, but stops himself at the last second. That moment feels too private, too them to share on national television.  He gives another couple of soundbites before the mic moves to Peter, who’d made the winning touchdown in the last second, literally.

“I think I just kind of blacked out when I caught that last ball,” Peter says blankly, still clearly in shock. “I just ran for it. I’m lucky I moved at all.”

Everyone chuckles and then they’re finally allowed down off the stage. Steve makes a beeline straight for Tony, vaguely acknowledging the people who try to talk to him. Tony is waiting for him with a softer, more teasing smile.

“Congratulations, quarterback,” Tony says once he reaches him.

“Thanks,” Steve says, grinning at him. “Now, if I remember correctly, I think this is the part where you’re supposed to kiss me.”

“Oh, is that what part this is?” Tony asks, arching his eyebrows.

“Pretty sure. I did win, after all.”

“Well, if you won,” Tony says exaggeratedly, but grabs ahold of Steve’s jersey and yanks him in. He smiles again, bright and warm and so, so proud, and then leans up and kisses him. And it’s a perfect moment, the best way to cap off the best season Steve has ever had. Steve wraps his arms around him, holding him close, and kisses him and kisses him and kisses him.

[jackhues]

Hi, its ADHD girl again. Explain the rules of hockey to me. Please. I watched the game (will forever call them games because I play soccer) and was so confused.

Bonus points if you can connect them to soccer

HELLOOOO- okay so i'm all filled up with food now which means i should be able to get through this! hockey has wayy too many rules (and i know too little about soccer), so as you think of more specific questions, feel free to stop by and i'll clarify some rules for you :3

teams: 6 players per side on the ice. 3 forwards (left wing, right wing, center), 2 defensemen, 1 goalie. (soccer = 11 players (i think?), hockey = condensed, but more chaotic)

periods: 3 periods, 20 minutes each. no halves. no quarters. approximately a 20 minute intermission between each period (it's like 18 minutes, but i just say 20).

the rink: much smaller than a soccer field. it's 61 x 25.9 meters (according to google).

objective: get the puck in the net. simple sure, but not really. because everyone's trying to body check you into a different dimension. (soccer: shoot ball into net) vs (hockey: shoot tiny disc into net with higher stakes... like knives on ice and violence)

now that the very basics are done, let's get a little more technical.

offside: in soccer: a player can’t be past the last defender before the ball (this is what google is telling me, i can't promise if it's true). in hockey: you can’t skate into the offensive zone (the blue line) before the puck does. if you do? WHISTLE. STOP. SHAME.

penalties: players go to the box (like time-out). 2-5 minutes in the box for being spicy (tripping, slashing, high-sticking, etc). there are different types of penalties, like a regular minor (2 minutes), a double minor (4 minutes, served 2 minutes first, then 2 minutes right after), a 5 minute, and 10 minute (which is always a game misconduct - so they get thrown out, like a red card).

if your team is playing with one less person, someone's in the penalty box (they are shorthanded) and = powerplay for the other team. soccer's got red/yellow cards, hockey has the sin bin.

if a team is on the powerplay (they have 5 skaters, the other team has 4 bcz other players are in the box), and the team on the powerplay scores, the player gets to come out of the box and rejoin the team. (powerplays can stack up sometimes too, like 5v3, etc).

icing: (this one confuses me sometimes but oh well). if a player shoots the puck from behind the center line (the middle red one) all the way past the other team’s goal line (the red one at the back) without anyone touching it, it’s icing. exception: if you are playing shorthanded, aka, the other team is on a powerplay.

overtime & shootouts: if it's tied at the end of 3 periods, we head to ot. ot is different in the regular season vs the playoffs. regular season: 3v3, 5 minutes, sudden death. still tied? shootout. 3 rounds, each team takes turns. if still tied, add one round each time until one team wins.

playoff ot? full 5 on 5 periods, with sudden death until someone scores. could end in 20 seconds, could go up to like a fifth ot.

so yeah, those are the main rules and stuff i can think of rn. i'm probably missing a million stuff. as you watch, it'll make more sense. i recommend stalking the leafslb tag during games to help understand stuff, and feel free to drop by my inbox too :) i'm just usually watching playoff games at the tailgate so i probably won't end up responding during games, unless i'm actively lbing.

[puckpocketed]

Thoughts about the Kings v Oilers series so far? Serious or funny is up to you!

HI!!! Thank you for dropping by, just gonna frow everything up under the cut!

Praying very hard for no injuries and a good road trip (split it, come home and win the series?)

Good to see Darcy make a comeback from a less than great game 1, fingers crossed we see 2 Goals Only Darcy through the rest of the series and beyond <33

Reports of the Kings’ bad power play have been greatly exaggerated by out of market press. Really REALLY interested in the way we’ve had Kuzmenko stationed down low, and even behind net at times and cycled the puck through him from there. Power plays are #fake hockey when it’s the other team and #profound when it’s my guys !

Want to see a bit more from Laferriere. He’s been a great facilitator, great at Getting The Puck for his lineys, but I’d like to see him score because I care and support him <33

VERY concerned about the lack of 4th line usage. Reverting to 11/7 is. Idk. I know it works and they’re good at it and the forwards like having more shifts, but I’m feeling v unsure about it all.

Tanner Jeannot might be out all of round 1 and likeeee….. while i really do Not like his habit of toeing the line of Injuring People once every 20 games or so, i fear he is an NHL caliber bottom 6 player and we need him to eat minutes. Not sure what we do without him, but would like to see Sammy Helenius and Jeff Malott and even Alex Turcotte get their feet wet, even if that means we drop a game.

Having up to 3 lines that can feasibly match up with 97/29 is cool and all but if they’re all playing 20 mins a night because Hiller refuses to play our 4th line, I wonder how long we can sustain the defense. You can’t really shut those two down, just hope to break even. We managed this for the most part but that was AT HOME where Hiller could dictate matchups. Not so on the road!

Building off this for our defenders, I’m also concerned with Spence + Clarke’s minutes being cut back so much (and subsequently everyone else being over-used) I do understand that playoffs aren’t a learning environment but their leashes are so so short rn. I know they’re both capable of elevating their games, we’ve seen it through the regular season, I just want them to have that chance.

Pessimistic outlook is I’m never ever ever counting 97/29 out <3 they may not have the most impressive supporting cast but they can flip a switch and crush you at any moment. Overconfidence here, even 2 games up in the series, would be a killer.

Optimistic take: they did their thing already in game 1 and lost. They did the thing where they decide they’re just Better and score at will and they still lost. Call it dumb luck, call it an unforced error, but they did all that and the Kings still pulled out a win. We could look back on this and that might be the difference between winning or losing the series.

Breaking character but I do not actually expect this to be a cup contending year & I’ll be happy to make it through 1 round.

The Cup is…. a very long shot to me considering how green the Kings actually are. There are 5 players rn who were in the AHL last season or part of this season. We have QB experiencing his first year full time at center. As much as I think everything that could’ve gone right has gone right, I don’t think this roster holds up on a run to the finals. Especially if usage continues like this. We’re deep but not That deep.

HOWEVER. I LOVE HUFFING FUMES !! I WOULD LOVE TO BEAT THE ODDS AND W*N. <3

[imaginespazzi]

YESSSS Nivi let’s talk about the draft!! Just some background on myself: From Denver so I don’t have a W team (yet!!), but I’ve been a Lynx fan first and Liberty fan second. (Thanks Phee and Stewie+Sabrina LOL). I am going to proudly bandwagon the Wings this year bc of Paige ofc (and I say proudly bc I mean it. Like I bought her jersey already and I am not ashamed whatsoever LOL)

Okay so, I will not lie, I am not a ball-knower that much for international players as compared to WCBB players 😞 so one thing that completely caught me off guard were the teams’ confidence and liking to draft international players, especially early on! Like GSV going with Justė Joctyė as their first ever franchise pick?? And then Sky going with Ajsa Sivka at #10?? Anastasiia Kosu at #15?? Did not see those coming one bit. Serena Sundell dropping all the way to the 3rd round SHOCKED me. I liked watching her play at KSU. I think she’s a decent scorer and has good vision, and you can just do the eye test and see that with her assists numbers. I also told my friends that I thought Shyanne Sellers was not a #6 overall pick (when the Mock Drafts were coming out), and I was right about it! I’m not a hater or anything with Sellers, I just didn’t think she was first round caliber, and where she got picked made sense to me.

Georgia Amoore going to the Mystics at #6 made me happy! I wouldn’t say it was a “reach” of a pick, but I did think they were gonna go with Morrow, but now looking at it, Mystics needed another guard. I am also a big HVL fan (love that white girl just like how I love P) and her going to the Sky and reuniting with Angel?? Oh hell fucking yeah! Sky obvs needed a guard as well, so I think that pick will work out well for both sides.

Now for the Wings pick!! Gonna keep it short and simple with Paige. Paige Bueckers is Paige Bueckers. Enough said. I’d just be reiterating what Curt Miller has been saying about Paige all along if I said more 🤣 Aziaha James with the #12 pick surprised me since I thought we were gonna go with a big! I like her offensive abilities, but defensive tho…? Kinda questionable ngl lol. But that moves me into Madison Scott! Took a defensive minded Ole Miss player to cancel out James’ defensive lapses?? 🤣 I’m happy the Wings went with Vonleh in the 3rd round. She was good at Baylor, but even more of a beast when she was at CU. Ig my overall thoughts with the Wings’ picks is they went guard heavy, which I did not think they were gonna do. Looks like the starting lineup of 1. Paige, 2. Arike, 3. DiJonai, 4. NaLyssa, 5. McCowan is going to actually be true. Kindaaaa worried about the spacing there lol but hey Wings aren’t gonna be a high playoff/contender right away!

Obvs gotta give a S/O to Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin! Love that Chen got selected by the GSV, I truly think she can make the roster and that it’ll be a great fit. Aubrey Griffin going to the Lynx is a dream come true 😭😭 can’t ever go wrong selecting a Husky. I thought both were going to be drafted going into the draft, and was happy to see it come to fruition!

Alright, this was long. I wanted to say more but I’ll stop here lol. Please lmk your thoughts on the draft Nivi!! I’m not itching for the WNBA games yet (probably bc of all this Pazzi/Wag era Azzi content we are getting LMAO), but I know it’ll get more and more excited as it gets closer and everything sinks in!

- 🥵🥵

OMG A LIBERTY + LYNX FAN! Me too queen! I lean more towards the Liberty because Breanna Stewart is my queen but since they got theirs last year, this year I'm rooting for Phee and Minny to get theirs. And then I just in general root for Huskies everywhere but will definitely be cheering a little louder for the Wings this season.

I'm also not really that in tune with international players and if you saw mine and Sella's mock draft, we really underrated them because they made up a fair portion of the first round. But international players have real professional experience, so I can see the allure of picking them for sure.

Serena falling so low shocked me but I actually think it eventually works out really well for her because Seattle is a good organization and they need a backup guard which is why I expect her to stick onto the roster.

I was really big on Shyanne but I do see why she went that low and I'm sure everyone's last impression of her being the end couple of seconds of the SC game definitely did not help her stock.

Yeah I was surprised Georgia went so high because of her height but they do need a PG and Georgia is obviously a very good one. And I know she's geeked to be in the Azzi Fudd market tee hee lmao.

I had an HVL to the Sparks agenda (I like the Sarah Ashlee Barker pick for them too tho) but I do think she fits well with Chicago and will make a great trio with Kamilla and Angel!

I think the Wings won the draft honestly. Like you said, Paige is Paige but they got some really good picks, especially because they definitely needed some defensive picks to work with alongside Dijonai and Madison Scott (and JJ Quinnerly if she sticks) are great picks for that.

So happy for my Huskies! I think Aubrey just has a really hard task getting onto the Lynx roster but I kinda hope they do a draft and stash by letting her rehab her still lingering injury and then they can evaluate her properly next year. I actually feel rather confident about KC making the GSV roster because they don't have a PG and KC's ball iq is so good, that she can definitely make it on their roster just for that.

YOU JUST UNLOCKED A CORE MEMORY AS A PREATH STAN! But omg these parallels are never ending I'm obsessed!

[3416]

so what i've learned is that for mitch marner specifically any points earned in a blowout game don't count actually. especially not in a blowout game where he helped swing the momentum. also points super don't count if you got them in games 1-4 of a potential 7 games series because idk reasons. being the first maple leaf with a round 2 gwg in half a million years doesn't count the most obviously because it wasn't a game 5, 6, or 7. it doesn't matter how you got to games 5-7 but if you're not putting up points in that exact stretch of games then well you're just not built for playoff hockey apparently. unless your name isn't mitch marner of course.

REALLLL TO ALL OF THIS.... everything he's done in the playoffs is bad and he's a whiny child apparently for ? existing ? having an occasional bad game when he just came back from an injury known to continuously impact your game while you heal ? we're just gonna look over the fact that he was better in the first game than everyone that contributed in the second bc we didn't win the first, lol. amazes me that no matter how many times i read this shit, i get so worked up every time like. not even from a mitch marner fan perspective sometimes but just from the sheer lack of fucking LOGIC and then seeing hundreds to thousands of people agree? like bro this is really partially the worst fanbase in the league, lol. i am NOT ride or die with all of you stupid fucks, that's for sure.

even yesterday i was just seeing stats about how he and mo were at the top of the list of most pass to shot attempts made in the oz so far in the ENTIRE playoffs and i'm like ????????????? you'd think he was doing NOTHING just bc his linemates can't put it in, lol. i'm so tired of people saying 'the second mitch is on a non-leaf team, he'll win a cup with them' even as defense of mitch from the fanbase bc like. he's not going anywhere?????? he's got a nmc like what are we even hypothetically discussing??????? him for WHICH stud dman on the market??? letting him walk and pissing off your franchise star center while you're at it???? like what. anyway. the extension with a raise is going to hit so hard after all the 'mitch can only stay if he takes a discount' too fhijdsklfejds.

[yaoistri]

tagged to do this by @kimissteeringwheel !!

pairing/ship list!

here’s the rules:

1. list your top 7 ships

2. put them in order of your love for them; 7 to 1, 1 being your favourite

3. name their fandom

4. supply photos for said people

7. tyson jost & jt compher, hockey rpf

sadly there is very minimal interaction between these two anymore, but they came into the NHL as rookies in 2017 and immediately became BEST friends playing together on the worst team in the league. they lived together and did everything together until tyson was traded away from colorado in 2022. jt has also now been traded away just recently.

6. erik johnson and gabe landeskog, hockey rpf

it’s 2011 and the youngest captain in nhl history gets drafted onto a team with a former number 1 prospect who has just been traded away from his initial team after injuring himself badly, and the two become tight instantly. LOTS of twitter banter occurs, and they play together for 11 years before winning a cup together! sadly, gabe has been out for a year after badly injuring himself during the 2022 playoffs, and ej just got traded away to buffalo, MEANING that the last game they ever played together was the game they won the cup….. sooo damn tragic and poetic

5. darius garland and donovan mitchell (spidaland), basketball rpf

they’ve only had one season together on the cavs, and sadly fell short in the playoffs, but they’re one of the best guard pairings in the nba for a reason, because they literally have soooooo much chemistry. also they’re ALWAYS touching each other????? like my camera roll is so full of pictures of them hugging

4. sebastian vettel and kimi räikkönen (simi), f1 rpf

they invented grumpy/sunshine. you can’t drive for ferrari and not get shipped with ur teammate i’m sorry it’s the rules! especially when you have a reputation for being as cold as ice but whenever you’re around him you start smiling… kimi ur not slick!

3. alain prost and ayrton senna (prosenna), f1 rpf

these two were INSANE. i’m a sucker for a tragic rivalry and they are nothing if not that. the chemistry, the tension, the way alain still talks about ayrton to this day, it all kills me. there’s so much about them we will never know and it drives me up the wall

2. nikola jokic and jamal murray, basketball rpf

these two oh my goddddd. might mansplain a bit here bc this is not a popular pairing at all — they were drafted to the denver nuggets in 2014 and 2016 respectively, nikola being a nobody from serbia who didn’t get picked until the second round, and jamal being a top 10 pick with all eyes on him. these two built this team on their backs, going from one of the worst teams in the league to finally winning the championship together in 2023 after facing a major setback when jamal tore his acl in 2021. the way they have so much trust in each other and have built a chemistry that has made them the best duo in the league is so dear to me :’) the dynamic is also spectacular - massive cynical european of little words and friendly but bratty short canadian who loves to have a laugh. i think the fact that i got to watch them grow together and that there’s like 5 other people in the world that ship them just make them sooo dear to me

1. lewis hamilton and nico rosberg (brocedes), f1 rpf

i literally have no words for these two 😭 i feel like i don’t need to explain that much either, because their story is so tragic and so out of a book that everyone already knows it. the intricacies of the way they destroyed each other will haunt me forever.

ok, passing the trend on! tagging @queergrittys @unsolvedjarin @jrueships if any of u are interested :)

[stereax]

Send me a potential AU: In 2015 Connor McDavid is drafted by the Leafs

Okay so this is from a Very Old ask game where it's "give me an AU, I give you five things about it". I forgot to do this, predictably. So! Let's do it now.

Toronto must win the Draft Lottery here. This means the draft order is Toronto, Buffalo, Arizona, Edmonton for the first four. Toronto drafts McDavid, Buffalo drafts Eichel. These are easy picks. Arizona, obviously, still picks Strome. Now, I don't know if Edmonton picks Marner and preserves the draft. My hunch is they don't, and go for Noah Hanifin instead. This means Carolina... fuck I do NOT want them getting Marner... aha! Sources from the time say they were highly interested in Hanifin, Marner, and Lawson Crouse at 5. Crouse was also better ranked in the pre-draft rankings, and is notably larger than Marner, and we know how NHL GMs are about size. Let's give them Crouse. And New Jersey can have Marner at 6. Zacha drops to 11 and is taken by the Panthers. The rest of the draft can stay as it actually happened.

While I froth at the mouth imagining Marner on the Devils, let's focus on Edmonton and Toronto. Now, I'm not going to butterfly effect my way through nine seasons of NHL hockey and drafts, so let's say everything else stays constant enough. This means your Core Four are now McDavid, Matthews, Nylander, and Tavares. Draisaitl is your full time #1 center in Edmonton, and I suspect with Hanifin they don't go after Nurse.

That being said, Toronto is still cursed. McDavid centering Matthews is fucking electric. But that team still can't win a playoff round, no matter what they do. Edmonton, too, struggles a lot more - Nugent-Hopkins is a fine 2C, but definitely not the McDavid to Draisaitl. With Hanifin, the Larsson trade might not happen, and Hall could stay in Edmonton longer-term as well. Butterfly effect, though. (Hyman, of course, is unaffected and enjoys scoring goals in the blue paint as always.)

The media is fucking crazy in Toronto. It takes a special kind of person to live up to that. Nothing McDavid will do is ever good enough. Especially because he's seen as The Next One. If you thought the media around Matthews, Nylander, Marner is rough, put the spotlight on McDavid and crank it up to 12. Poor Davo.

But I think despite that, Willy Styles and AMatts would be good for Davo. Teach him to have a little fun. Get him out of his head and remind him there's more out there than just hockey. McDavid is characterized as a "hockey robot", and to some level, he doesn't seem to conceptualize there being more to life than a game he is simply very good at but perhaps doesn't enjoy as much as you'd expect. Willy and Auston would fix that, I think, and develop a personality in poor Davo. Plus, he might be better dressed, too. Anyways, Winger Auston Matthews being psychosexually obsessed with his ubertalented center Connie McDavid when?

That's all for this one, the worms are braining here! Hope this is what you wanted, anon!

[news4usonline]

Timberwolves finish off the Lakers 

Los Angeles, CA (News4usOnline) - Luka and LeBron could not save the Lakers. The Minnesota Timberwolves proved themselves to be a better team in their first-round NBA playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Timberwolves pushed Luka Doncic and LeBron James and the rest of the Lakers out of the postseason in five games.  “We executed great in the fourth quarter. Missed shots at the rim, missed a bunch of threes, shot 12-for-52 for the series in the fourth quarter from three,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick said after the game.  “On top of that, you lose two games in Minnesota – minus 12 on scoring opportunities and minus 13, and then you lose by 20 tonight. Just too many turnovers, too many offensive rebounds, and then you know. I think given the struggles scoring the ball, particularly early in the series, there is a tradeoff. There is always a tradeoff,” he added. 

Los Angeles, CA - Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James is greeted by his teammates during pregame introductions before Game 1 of a Western Conference playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Photo credit: Mark Hammond/News4usOnline The final insult for the Lakers was a 103-96 defeat to the Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena. Mineesota beat the Lakers in three straight games to claim the series and the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, a crushing and humbling exit from the playoffs.  “I think there’s always a mix of disappointment and gratitude, but certainly disappointed and not something that I’ve ever envisioned with this team,” Redick said. “I mean, to go in and talk to them after losing the first round. But give Minnesota a lot of credit, they’re a really good basketball team. I think our guys played hard enough and did all the right things. We tried to make it work with what we had and came up a little short.”  The Lakers fell far short of the goal they had set out to achieve when they went out and hired Redick to become the head coach. In his rookie season, Redick was able to guide the Lakers through the minefield that is called the Western Conference and had his team at the No. 3 spot once the regular season had concluded.  The postseason is all about matchups. And one of the worst teams the Lakers could have matched up with were the Timberwolves, a younger, much deeper and more physical squad. And it showed throughout the series as the Timberwolves sort of bullied the Lakers out of their customary mojo.  Game 5 was a perfect example of this. Minnesota made just 7 of 47 3-pointers and still won the ballgame. That’s 14 percent. On almost every other night, those kinds of numbers would result in a loss. Well, the Timberwolves managed to offset their porous shooting percentage from three-point range by outrebounding the Lakers, 54-37.  When it came to points in the paint, Minnesota was a lot more effective in that area than Los Angeles, finishing the night with a 56-40 advantage. The Timberwolves, influenced greatly by the sensational performance by center Rudy Gobert, were dominant on the boards.  The Lakers had no answer for Gobert in Game 5. In Game 4, Anthony Edwards was the showman for the Timberwolves with 43 points. Well, Edwards was bottled up for most of the night, converting just 5 of 19 shots from the field for 15 points. So, someone had to take up the slack.

Los Angeles, CA - Though he had a quiet Game 5 with just 15 points after only making just 5 of 19 shots from the field, Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves was the one factor the Los Angeles Lakers did not have an answer for in their first-round NBA playoff series for. Photo credit: Mark Hammond/News4usOnline That someone was Gobert. Gobert posted 27 points and 24 rebounds in 38 minutes of work, and literally took the breath away from the Lakers.  “Rudy's a winner at the highest level. He drives winning,” Minnesota head coach Chris Finch said. “You can not like who he is, how he does it, what he looks like, et cetera, but when you have this guy on your team, you understand what a professional and a winner is. He's just such a competitor as well. He doesn't listen to the outside noise. We don't listen to the outside noise. No one's happier for Rudy than his teammates right now, particularly Anthony .” The combination of the super duo of Doncic and James was not enough to move the past the first round. And now with James edging ever so close to retirement, the Lakers are looking at some hard realities. LA has a lot to ponder about this offseason.  One of them being that the Western Conference is stacked with young teams positioning themselves to knock the Lakers around. The Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, SacramentoKings, and the Timberwolves are looking like the future, while the Lakers remain stuck in past glory.  Getting Doncic in a trade was a great acquisition to build around.With Redick being a first-year coach, there need for improvement don’t just land at the players’ doorsteps. Redick said he can get better as well.    “I’ll use my own thoughts to evaluate myself, and I’ll use what my players say and my coaching staff say to evaluate,” said Redick. “I know I can be better, and I know I will get better. I don’t necessarily take any satisfaction from how the year went. That’s not to say I’m not proud of what the group was able to do and how we were able to figure things out on the fly and put ourselves in a position to have home court the first round. There’s always ways to get better and I can get a lot better.” Read the full article

[youcancallmeaphrodite]

NHL: Why you should watch

One of the problems I often find myself faced with is deciding which of the five 7pm et games to put on. I hate jumping between streams and trying to get a multiviewer set up and the only way I stay invested is by watching one game at a time. So, this is my project for myself to figure out which games to watch based on importance, interest, and vibes.

Monday, April 7th 2025

Tampa Bay @ New York (7pm) - Rangers are still nipping at the Canadien’s heels. They’re six points back with one game in hand and arguably have a tougher group of opponents for their remaining games. Sans a disaster in Montreal, I think the Canadiens will take the spot this year meaning that the Rangers would miss out but have come a long way from the travesty that they were three-four months ago. Their team was experiencing some serious turmoil off ice and their on-ice performance was showing it. They’ve battled back and become a playoff contender despite that. Tampa is four points back of the Maple Leafs for first place in the Atlantic and have lost their last two games. They’ve already clinched and likely will have a battle of Florida for their first round again this year. What I’m watching here is Nikita Kucherov just three points back of Nathan MacKinnon for leading point scorer this season.

St. Louis @ Winnipeg (7:30pm) - Who isn’t scared of playing the Blues right now? They’ve won twelve in a row but we all need to be honest here, both the Avs and Pens came close to breaking that win streak. St. Louis won obviously but both of those games could have gone either way and coming up against Winnipeg who have been one of the strongest teams this season, let’s see. Winnipeg lost their last game against Utah and are 6-4 in their last ten. Obviously not as good as Mr. Perfect 10-0 in St. Louis but Winnipeg are looking to stay in form in this last stretch before the post season. We all have our doubts about them even if they’ve be playing the injury ridden Minnesota Wild with the current standings.

Edmonton @ Anaheim (10:30pm) - Edmonton who do not expect any boost from their injury list for this game play another one without integral pieces Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. They haven't actually clinched their playoff berth yet (shock to me) and are 6-3-1 in their last ten. The injuries have led to some understandable inconsistencies, and they’ve fallen back from the Kings for second place in the division. In all likelihood, this just means the Kings get home ice advantage but when Connor McDavid is on, how much does that really help you? Anaheim, who have already been eliminated, are 4-5-1 in their last ten during which they’ve only beaten fellow eliminated teams in San Jose, the Rangers, Boston, and Nashville. They haven’t been shut out recently though and Edmonton’s shakey defense could give them an opportunity to add some more points to their haul this season.

Seattle @ Los Angeles (10:30pm) - This game has zero playoff implications since the Kings have already clinched and pulled out a lead over Edmonton in the standings and Seattle’s been eliminated. Seattle comes into this one with a 4-4-2 record in their last ten compared to the King’s 8-2 record. The Kings are among a crowd of strong teams in the West that has three teams above 100 points. It’s insane that they are having such a good season and have been the silent killers all season long yet I don’t think anyone would bet on them getting even to the second round. Amongst a group of giants, they still have a good chance though.

Calgary @ San Jose (10:30pm) - At current standings, Calgary have two games in hand over the Wild and are six points back. Even if they win both games they have in hand, they’d sit two points back. The good news could be that Calgary play San Jose twice as well as Anaheim in their remaining games. They do also play Vegas and the Kings though. The Wild only have four games left against San Jose (which they should win), Calgary (who they have lost both games against this season), Vancouver (split decision here), and Anaheim (they should win here too). This really could come down to the game on Friday where Calgary take on the Wild and that would be kind of awesome as someone who doesn’t care. I obviously enjoy Macklin Celebrini but I’ve said all I have about the milk and cookies crew. They’re doing great things vibes wise but have lost five in a row and are 3-6-1 in their last ten.

Decision – Unfortunately the only game that has real playoff contentions (as far as I feel) is Calgary San Jose. I’m not staying up for that though so. Best game hockey and intrigue wise is probably St. Louis Winnipeg. If you want to see the Edmonton team sans their stats trying to prove us all wrong, that could be a fun watch. So, I’ll be watching Tampa Bay New York and then likely going to bed early. Not that there aren’t options, I just don’t care enough.

[historixally-accurate]

yoey! hope school starting is going well for y'all! but school is the origin of The Horrors so let's not think about it anymore...

instead, have you been watching ranked playoffs s6? i just watched the full round 2 vods, it's so cool to see how micro differences between all the runners can cost them the whole match :0

also tbh i've only been loosely following mcsr because exams (The Horrors...) in late 2024, so i'm both pleasantly surprised and confused seeing the new meta of using super wide / narrow screens while scanning + zero cycling becoming the new normal. (old person voice) back in my day, zero cycling was the stuff of legends.

not gonna say much about the dream and tommy controversy because it sucks the soul out of my body and sends it through a blast furnace. but a funny side effect of said controversy is that it's woken up my old mcyt fans whatsapp groupchat from dormancy, just so everyone can collectively shit on dream ome

historix, your pipeline to mcsr is so insane. reading dolorem before knowing anyone it's based on is straight batshit LOL. on a scale of 1 to 10, how was your reading experience? would you recommend?

also how in the world did you make the jump from dolorem to HOUSE OF NIGHTMARES CLIPS 😭 that's a four block jump if i've ever seen one fr.

watching your talkingmime obsession from afar is also really funny to me. but honestly the way he mother henned the other five hbg guys all the way through house of nightmares is so iconic. i get you man. like, what possessed this freak to make his online image a talking mime??? he has a job and went to college, but he spends his weekends torturing himself and his friends in a video game???

last but not least: i have a suggestion. thoughts on changing your tag to "sg shenonniegans"?

hope your day's going good! all the best :3

- sg nonnie^2 🌷

NONNIE^2.. HELLO!! school is horrendous. I'm dying. I'm procrastinating studying for my math exam tomorrow because I'm genuinely EXHAUSTED :') anyway let's get this ball rolling :3

okay. I know this was sent during playoffs, and I. I missed most of it, but I DID WATCH THE MONGEY MATCH ON FULHAMS STREAN. IT WAS BEAUTIFUL. I was rooting for mongey the entire way and cursing fein and his bloodline (JOEK. JOKE JOKE JOKE PLEASE DONT KILL ME) anyway. lowkey doog hax podium was aweosme. bigbigmongey in 4th, it's a beautiful life :)

as someone who's been here for not too long, the narrow screen tech is weird (I play on a crappy 5 year old asus laptop), and zero cycling IS SO SCARYYYY.... I see why speedrunners are so respected now :') it's incredible

the Horrors of the dr*m and tommy drama lowkey got me sitting down in front of my computer and watching tubbo absolutely decimate all his arguments (which made me laugh so hard like. you go dude) it's incredible... singaporean mcyt fans are so rare and hard to come by... you're so lucky dude my goodness

SCALE OF 1 TO 10. 1 BEING "no pain all fluff I'm enjoying my life" AND 10 BEING "OHHH MY BONES FUCK IT HRUTSSS IT UUURRTTS OUUUCHHH" I give it an 11. it is so good. work of art. Read it. but pls at your own risk. it is painful.

OK TO BE SO HONEST. my pipeline was dolorem > couriway (house of nightmares) > talkingmimefunny > talkingmime > hbg > ranked . it's a beautiful pipeline. I swear. it links up so well. OK. I'm not insane. I'm not going mongey mode.

all I can say is that mime is built like a single mother with 5 adopted children juggling an average 9-5 while still being able to have a productive hobby. and that is all I will say about mime my tumblr posts have more character than this :)

good idea I am copping it rn.

hope you too are having a good day! the state of singapores weather is so so so so unpredictable, I may crumple over and die like a used piece of tissue. have a good one nonnie^2 :)

here's the obligatory nonnie ask art 💚

[defensefilms]

NFL WildCard Weekend 2025 Preview

I'm going to open this year's round of playoff previews the same way I do every year, and that's by applauding the NFL on creating the most addictive sports television product on earth.

I don't love the fact that Americans voted for Trump over Harris. I don't love some of the staunch capitalist ideals espoused by some Americans, but I don't blame Americans for being addicted to the National Football League, because this s##t is CRACK.

Now let's do it.

Los Angeles Chargers vs Houston Texans

I like CJ Stroud, but if ever there were a time to pick the road underdog, this was it.

The Texans literally only made the playoffs because they are in the awful AFC South, meanwhile the Chargers fought through the most competitive AFC West in years.

The Texans have had blowout losses to both the Vikings and the Ravens, managing to score just 2 points against the Ravens.

The Chargers have been dependable this season, Justing Herbert is 9th in yards per game, the team is tied for 3rd place in turnover differential, but they average just 110 rushing yards per game on the ground, so that's something to worry about.

While I like the Chargers as an underdog, please understand, this pick turns to trash if the Texans score 24 or more points, because the Chargers have averaged a paltry 23 points per game as a team, more than doable when you got a QB like CJ Stroud.

Prediction: Los Angeles Chargers Win 24-17

2. Pittsburgh Steelers vs Baltimore Ravens

I want to open this game preview by proclaiming that Lamar Jackson is the GOAT, whether the Ravens win or lose this game is immaterial and so is whether he wins MVP or not. This Ravens team comes and goes with Lamar, and Lamar is legendary.

The Steelers on the other hand, are limping in to this post season after starting the season 10-3 and then losing 4 in a row.

This Steelers team has no juice on offense. They did the right thing when they started Russel Wilson over Justin Fields, but they cannot move the chains, and George Pickens looks like crashing out in an interview, then proceeded to drop 6 passes against the Bengals in week 18.

At the start of the season the belief was that the Steelers owned Lamar and the Ravens, a belief that seemed to be validated by the Steelers 18-16 win in week 11.

Since then, the Steelers are 2-5, and among those losses, a 34-17 blowout to the Ravens in week 16.

The Ravens have led the league in yards per game on offense all season. Far and away the best offense in the NFL this year and built on the foundation of the number 1 run game in the NFL.

The Raven defense was shaky at the start of the season, but since then they have been more than respectable, and the key to this is how good they've gotten at stopping the run, and they're allowing just 80 rushing yards per game.

Prediction: Baltimore Ravens Win 27-17

3. Denver Broncos vs Buffalo Bills

I expect the Bills to comfortably advance to the next round, but what I want this to be statement game from Josh Allen.

All year people have insinuated that he should be league MVP over Lamar and Saquon, and I want Josh Allen to show out and have a career game to really prove it.

Just as well because as much as the Bills will be favored, the Broncos have more total sacks than any team in the league and are 7th best defense in total yards per game, but the pass defense has not been on the level of their 3rd best in the league run defense, and that's why Josh Allen and his receivers need to have a big game.

As good as that may be, the Bills defense leads the league in takeaways this year, and that's enough to make me think the Bills will win out against a young QB in Bo Nix who is somewhat prone to turnovers, with 12 in the regular season.

The Broncos are also the 4th best team in punt returns and a big special teams play will go a long way in helping them out, but the needs to be the Josh Allen party, he's the guy with a point to prove.

Prediction: Buffalo Bills Win 34-20

4. Green Bay Packers vs Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles are kind of unlucky here to finish with 13 wins in the regular season, and then still have to open the post season against a very competitive, 11-6 Green Bay Packer team, albeit at home.

No matter though, this Eagles team may be the most complete Eagles team in years.

The Eagles defense has been incredible all year, holding teams to around 17 points per game, they rank top 8 in run defense and number 1 in pass defense.

What makes this game so tricky, is that you have two teams that have been really good running the football this year. Green Bay rank number 5 in rushing yards per game, bettered slightly by the Eagles who are number 2 in rushing league-wide.

Amother thing for Philly to worry about is QB Jalen Hurts and the head injury that saw him leave the game against the Commanders in week 16. I do expect that he'll play.

At some point, if Green Bay are going to win, it's going to come down to Jordan Love making big throws. His longest pass this season is a 75 yarder but more importantly, his 61% completion percentage, while being 19th in total pass attempts, indicates that Love needs to step up big to pull off the upset.

Further complicating matter for the Eagles, is that the Packers are top 5 in total defense and they're allowing less than 100 rushing yards per game on defense. Thier pass defense though is a little more leaky, where they allow 215 yards per game through the air.

Small foot note, the Packers average the least punt return yards of any team in the league, so there's that.

Prediction: Philadelphia Eagles win 26-21

5. Washington Commanders vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tampa Bay are 3rd in total yards this season.

I don't quite know how to feel about that other than that they may be the most dangerous team in one of the worst divisions in the league.

I fully expect this one to be a shootout, with both teams putting up a minimum of 28 points/4 td's each.

You know I love my black quarterbacks, so I'm obviously picking Jayden Daniels' team to go to the next round but Baker Mayfield will be feeling "dangerous" and rightly so because Tampa's offense has been their catalyst this season

While Tampa are elite at stopping the run, they are not so great at stopping the pass , and that might mean a big day for Jayden Daniels and he has the 7th highest completion percentage in the regular season, with Baker slightly better with 71% in 3rd place.

Should be a good one with lots of fireworks.

Prediction: Washington Commanders win 36-33

6. Minnesota Viking vs Los Angeles Rams

Very similar to the Eagles in how the Vikings have to play a very dangerous Rams team after the finishing the season with 14 wins.

There's a lot I don't love about the LA Rams in 2024/25.

Kyren Williams has almost 1,300 rushing yards, and Puka Nucua is close to 1000 receiving yards, but Mathew Stafford's 8 interceptions to 20 touchdown ratio is cause for concern, and the fact that they average 21.6 points per game this season, indicates an offense that is less potent than what the Rams have been in the past.

Minnesota on the other hand, started the season being touted among the top defenses in the league, and while they're still elite at stopping the run, their pass defense is among the worst in the league, giving up 242 yards per game through the air.

That lends itself to making this a shootout, given Rams are only slightly better in this regard, giving up 223 yards per game through the air.

Another stat that I think matter is Sam Darnold has been sacked 48 times this season, and in comparison, Matt Stafford has only been sacked 22 times.

Look, my heart really wants to pick the Vikings to win here, but a combination of playoff history, this being Sam Darnold's first playoff game as a starter and the Rams recent upswing, makes me think that this is a pick I'd rather root against than to be wrong about.

Prediction: Los Angeles Rams win 24-20