2026 Stanley Cup Final preview

The 2026 Stanley Cup Finals are here, and it is time for my predictions for them. It's the best trophy in sports, and it's time to award it.

The Carolina Hurricanes, for many years, were always "not good enough." They made the playoffs 7 years in a row, but lost in either the conference finals or conference semifinals in all of them. So you'd understand why people would be a little skeptical despite their fantastic regular season, where they won 53 games and finished on 113 points. Sure, they swept the Senators and Flyers, but neither of those teams were expected to go far, and were just happy to be there. The real test would be against the Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens had 106 points and took out the mighty Lightning and powerhouse Sabres along their run. Would the 'Canes flame out in the conference finals yet again? Nope! They steamrolled the Habs in 5 games to advance to their first Stanley Cup Finals in 20 years. They have a strong attack led by Logan Stankoven, Taylor Hall, Jackson Blake and Sebastian Aho, a strong defense led by K'Andre Miller, Shayne Gostisbehere, and Sean Walker, and in net is the reliable Frederik Andersen. Rod Brind'Amour's gang will have their work cut out for them against the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Knights entered the league in 2017 and have been a pretty hateable team ever since. They made the Finals in their first year, and everyone was loving them, which, of course, made it annoying for a lot of people. They have only missed the playoffs once in their history (in 2022). They won the Pacific Division with only 95 points this year, which says a lot about that division. They beat the Utah Mammoth (in their first year under that moniker) in 6 games in round 1 and the Anaheim Ducks in 6 games in round 2. Then, to the surprise of everyone, they swept the Presidents Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche in the conference finals. Their attack is led by former Maple Leaf Mitch Marner, Jack Eichel, Pavel Dorofeyev, Brett Howden and so much more. Their defense is led by Shea Theodore, Brayden McNabb, Noah Hanifin and so much more. In net is the revived Carter Hart, who made his first appearance in over 2 years this year. He is being coached by his coach in Philadelphia, John Tortorella (ugh). This is an interesting team, but can they finish the job?

Now for my predictions. This could be a take that ages like milk, but I am actually gonna go with the Knights here. They are coming off a sweep of Colorado so I think they are riding a huge high here, and I have faith in them.

That's my prediction for the Stanley Cup Finals. Will it come true? Probably not, but we'll see.

Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner suffer shocking losses at 2026 French Open

 These past two days have been something else in the world of tennis. The 2026 French Open is happening currently, and in the men's bracket, 2 of the top 3 seeds are out, and it's only the 3rd round.

Yesterday, #1 seed and last year's  runner-up Jannik Sinner won his first 2 sets of his 2nd round matchup against Juan Manuel Cerundolo, and was a game away from winning the match in straight sets, but wound up losing the set, and the next 2 sets, losing the match, 6-3,6-2, 5-7, 1-6,1-6, in one of the biggest upsets (and comebacks) in tennis history. Sinner said after the match that he didn't sleep well and he was very dizzy at match point. 

Then, 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic went up against Joao Fonseca, and like Sinner, Djokovic took the first 2 sets of the match. However, he lost the next 3 sets, and the match, 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 5-7 to the Brazilian prodigy. Djokovic said after the match that he'd like to coach Fonseca after he retires.

I am not the biggest tennis fan in the world, but I can understand how big of a shock these are. Djokovic and Sinner are 2 of the best tennis players in the world, and it's a shock that neither of them will even be playing in the round of 16. These are 2 players that were expected to win the tournament, especially after defending champion Carlos Alcaraz was sidelined. But they were knocked out early, and there might be a new champion this year. We'll see.

NASCAR legend Kyle Busch dies at 41

 Kyle Busch, NASCAR legend with the most wins in NASCAR's top 3 divisions, has passed away at the age of 41. Busch was supposed to race in this weekend's Coca-Cola 600, but pulled out due to an undisclosed illness, and passed away a few moments later. As of this article's writing, his cause of death is still unknown.

This is a shock to not just the NASCAR community, but sports in general. Busch was one of the best NASCAR drivers of not just this generation, but possibly all time. And not only that, he was just 41. He had so much more left, and seeing it being taken away is.....heartbreaking doesn't do it justice. I feel horrible for his family, and especially his children, who lost their dad at the ages of 11 and 4. It's soul-crushing. I'm honestly at a loss for words right now, so I'll end it here.

RIP Kyle Busch

1985-2026

Aaron Rai wins PGA Championship

 Aaron Rai from England won the 2026 PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. Rai shot 9 under par for the tournament, and 5 under par on the final day. This is Rai's first major title, and I don't think it will be the last. Rai is the first Brit to win the PGA Championship in over 100 years.

Rai's signature shot was a birdie on hole 17 to all but put the tournament away. He putted it 68 feet, and was cool, calm and collected, even as the crowd around him was screaming their head off.

Speaking of the crowd, they were much different than a stereotypical golf crowd. How do I know this? Because I was there on Sunday. I live about 15 minutes away from Aronimink and so I wanted to check it out, especially since this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I was blown away by the atmosphere, as the fans were polite, but also a little rowdy. The fans chanted "Go Birds" and "E-A-G-L-E-S" when a golfer from the state of Texas was up, alluding to the NFL rivalry between the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. I got up at 6:00 in the morning for this event, and left at 7:00 at night. I was exhausted, but it was worth it.

Will Rai make a legendary career out of this, or is he a one-tournament wonder? We'll see.

76ers fire Daryl Morey

 The Philadelphia 76ers announced they will be moving on from president of basketball operations Daryl Morey. Morey was in his position for 5 years, and while the 76ers made the playoffs 4 times in those 5 years, they only won 4 playoff series, and never advanced past the conference semi-finals. The team announced that while Morey was fired, head coach Nick Nurse would remain in his position.

This move makes sense. The Sixers were always good but not great, and the fans are sick and tired of not making the conference finals. They haven't reached that point since 2001, when franchise great Allen Iverson put the team on his back and took them to the NBA Finals, where they would ultimately lose in 5 games to the mighty Los Angeles Lakers. Morey wasn't the only problem, but he was a big one. The signings he made mostly didn't pan out, and the 2024-25 season was an absolute dumpster fire where everyone was injured and the team won only 24 games. This season was much better, but they were swept by the New York Knicks after being run off the court in the final game. The 76ers aren't bad, but they are frustrating, and have been for years. The team needs to blow up the Process. It hasn't worked. It's not going to work as long as they keep trotting out the same team every single year.

The 76ers will now look to replace Morey. Who will they hire? We'll see.