SI:AM | A Stunning NHL Flameout

DAN GARTLAND 

Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I don’t like that the vibes around the U.S. men’s national team already seem off.  

In today’s SI:AM:

⛈️ Thunder one win away

🇺🇸 U.S. World Cup roster revealed

🏀 WNBA power rankings 

Avs sent packing

Zak Krill/Getty Image

The NHL’s best team just crashed out of the playoffs in spectacular fashion. 

The Avalanche, who won the Presidents’ Trophy after posting the best record in franchise history, were swept by the Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final on Tuesday night. 

Vegas struck first in Game 4 with a goal by Mark Stone early in the first period, and Cole Smith added another late in the third. Colorado had a brief glimmer of hope when it scored with the extra attacker on the ice with about two minutes left, but it was too little too late. The Golden Knights hung on for a 2–1 victory to complete the sweep. 

“We ran into a buzz saw in Vegas,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. “I think they deserved the credit. It’s not a knock on how hard they played, but they’re a well-oiled machine right now, peaking at the right time. I look at their series and man-to-man they’re playing at the top of their game. We’ll have to regroup and reassess and reflect on our season and the series and go from there.”

The Avalanche picked a terrible time to play their worst hockey of the season.CONTINUE DAN’S COLUMN ON SI 

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👀 The top five …

… things I saw last night: 

5. Jackson Merrill’s effortless home run robbery. 

4. An even better home run robbery by the Guardians’ Daniel Schneemann. 

3. Victor Wembanyama’s really tough tip-inwhile flying through the air. (Can you believe he only made four field-goal attempts and that was one of them?)

2. Munetaka Murakami’s game-tying home run in the eighth inning. It was his 19th homer of the year, the most of any hitter in the AL. (Kyle Schwarber leads the majors with 21.)

1. Brayden McNabb’s long pass to set up Mark Stone’s opening goal.  

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Published by RJ Hamster

I was born on 6 August 1956 in San Francisco, California to Janet and (the late) Richard Hovis. I grew up in Santa Monica, California where I attended elementary, junior high school, and high school (graduating in 1974), in addition to involvement in sports and recreation (Little League +, the Boy’s Club ++). Further, it was in elementary school – St. Augustine’s By-the -Sea Parish School that I found, and made the choice to truly journey with God. I attended Arizona State University from 1974 to 1977 – seeking to become an architect, however, I was not accepted, and, as such, I graduated with a Liberal Arts degree. Upon graduation from Arizona State University, I attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and studied City and Regional Planning at the Master’s level. I successfully completed one (1) year in a two (2) year program – I did not complete the Master’s degree in City and Regional Planning – due to personal reasons. I returned to Santa Monica where I started (October 1979) my career as graphic designer with Exxon Company, USA. I spent five years with Exxon Company, USA. While working with Exxon Company, USA I was accepted into architectural school – Sci-Arc in Southern California, however, I did not attend preferring to stay with Exxon.. In 1982 I married Laura Flosi and in April 1983 we had our one and only child – Lauren Alain Hovis – a gift from God. We moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 1984 from Los Angeles, where I went to work as a graphic designer with Kitchell CEM (from 1985 -1987). From 1987 – 1995 I was an independent contractor, and a registered representative in mortgage finance, financial management, graphic design, and drafting. Further, I attended the University of Phoenix and successfully obtained a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) in 1982. I was also a member of the Scottsdale Jaycees, where I became very involved in community events and projects. In 1994, I accepted a cartography position with the Defense Mapping Agency in Reston, Virginia. As such, I relocated from Phoenix to Reston. In 1998, I was accepted and worked as a Visual Information Officer with the Central Intelligence Agency. In 2002, I worked as a Support Officer until my retirement (due to a need for shoulder surgery) in September 2018. Away from my Federal Government service, I have been involved in various organizations and activities in Northern Virginia. In November of 2011, I married Rebecca Ouellette in Santa Monica, California. I reside in San Tan Valley, AZ with my two hamster - Jess and Timothy, our fish, our lizard - RJ Lizard., and our cats - Pearl and Grey. As to hobbies, I enjoy playing sports, attending sporting events, mentoring individuals from financial management to hamsters, building models, photography, travel, multimedia design, managing partner for RJ Hamster, and jazz – smooth jazz to a samba or a bossa nova. Love and God Bless, Peter – aka RJ Hamster Jo hi

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