Weekend Wake Up: Byfuglien Has ‘Hawks on Brink, Heyward Hot, Teen Summits Everest

Byfuglien Beats Snakebit Sharks. Neither Dustin Byfuglien’s name nor his game is aesthetically appealing, but the Chicago Blackhawks certainly don’t care. His one-timer gave the ‘Hawks a 3-2 overtime victory and a 3-0 series lead over the San Jose Sharks. Sharks fans who saw any of Philadelphia’s rise from the dead know that all is not lost quite yet, but watching Evgeni Nabokov react like a beached whale in the clip above is probably enough to send them to despair. It looks like the Sharks will fall short of the Stanley Cup Finals after another playoff collapse, while the Blackhawks are poised to return to hockey’s ultimate series for the first time since 1992.

Hey, He’s Pretty Good. The Atlanta Braves thought Jason Heyward could be an impact rookie. They probably didn’t expect him to be carrying his team. Heyward launched his ninth homer of the season and collected three RBI, giving him 33 on the season, to lead the Braves to a 7-0 victory over the Pirates on Friday. He’s made adjustments from March/April (.240/.360/.520, 34.7% K%) to May (.333/.441/.604, 8.3% K%) that are rather stunning. Oh, and he can’t drink legally until August. Perhaps by then, the Braves, currently riding a four-game winning streak that has vaulted them from last to second in the NL East, will be in a heated divisional race with the Phillies.

Top This. What were you doing when you were 13? It doesn’t matter; whatever it was is less impressive than summiting Mount Everest, becoming the youngest person to do so, like Jordan Romero did. Feel free to try to top that in another lifetime, though.

↵