The Fives: April 15, 2010

Five observations from Wednesday in sports...

1. One reason I like the NHL playoffs better than the NBA is that there's a greater chance for a team to get really hot and use that momentum in the playoffs.

Last night, the Senators and Flyers used their momentum from the end of the regular season to get road wins in Game One. Now both teams can be nice and loose for Game Two and try to steal another game while the pressure falls directly on the Penguins and Devils.

2. To put into perspective how bad the Astros are, as they have started the season 0-8:  They have scored 14 runs in eight games so far. The Phillies scored 14 runs last night in beating the Nationals. What’s worse is the Padres have already scored 13 runs in an inning this year. Things in Houston are going to be real ugly this season.

3. It looks like Tiger Woods is going to at least play all four majors this year after entering the U.S. Open. I just wonder if he will actually play any other tournaments for a warm-up, or is he going to just try it cold turkey? My guess is a 50-50 shot we see him at a something other than a major.

4. A couple of guys having nice starts to their seasons are Jose Guillen and Jorge Cantu. Guillen hit a home run in his fourth straight game, and Cantu had an RBI in his ninth straight game to start the season, setting an MLB record. Good starts lead to good seasons. We’ll see if that holds true in these two cases.

5. The best thing for Kevin Durant to do for his first playoff appearance is not worry about what anyone is saying before the series and let his stellar play do the talking. Hopefully he’ll recognize Phil Jackson’s gamesmanship and play really well in the series.

Five top performances from Wednesday...

1. Jonathan Sanchez, Giants SP: No runs on three hits with 11 K’s over eight IP in SF’s 6-0 win over PIT

2. Ilya Bryzgalov, Coyotes G: 38 saves on 40 shots in PHO’s Game One 3-2 win over DET

3. Shane Victorino, Phillies CF: 4-for-5 with a triple, home run, and five RBI in PHI’s 14-7 over WAS

4. DeJuan Blair, Spurs PF: 27 pts and 23 reb in SA’s 96-89 loss to DAL

5. Chase Utley, Phillies 2B: 2-for-4 with two HRs and four RBI in PHI’s 14-7 win over WAS

Five events to watch on Thursday...

1. MLB: Red Sox at Twins, 1:00 PM (Tim Wakefield (BOS) vs. Francisco Liriano (MIN))

2. NHL Playoffs: Bruins at Sabres, Game One, 7:00 PM

3. NHL Playoffs: Canadiens at Capitals, Game One, 7:00 PM, Versus

4. MLB: Angels at Yankees, 7:00 PM (Scott Kazmir (LAA) vs. Phil Hughes (NYY))

5. NHL Playoffs: Kings at Canucks, Game One, 10:00 PM

Have a good day.