A Grip on Sports: Records are meant to be broken, even if they date back to when the century – the last century, actually – was young

A GRIP ON SPORTS • A pretty easy Saturday to summarize, isn’t it? A Stanley Cup Finals for the ages. An aging-out sport missed a golden opportunity. Same with a new-age sport.

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• You know the series between Las Vegas and Carolina is something special when ABC posts an on-screen graphic that mentions the Seattle Metropolitans. And something the team did in 1919. When it won the Cup.

That’s at least two World Wars ago folks.

And as Sean McDonough, who I would pay to walk around and narrate my life for a day, alluded to, the final series seems to be setting some sort of record each game. If not each period.

Yesterday it was a hat trick in the second by Vegas’ Mitch Marner, the fastest finals’ trick ever, erasing Maurice “The Rocket” Richard from that spot. It was part of the Golden Knights’ NASA-like blast off to a 4-0 lead. Then the Knights’ defense blew up like something from Jeff Bezos. Gave up four goals to the Hurricanes in the third – three of them in a record-breaking span of 39 seconds – and forced its fans to sit through an overtime. And part of another.

But Shea Theodore’s whack-it-toward-the-goal shot hit the boards, possibly part of a stick, certainly part of goalie Brandon Bussi’s leg and ended up in the back of the net. The 5-4 win gave Vegas a 2-1 series lead and saved them from, yes, a historic meltdown.

• Golden Tempo won the Kentucky Derby a month ago. Shocked the world with an impressive stretch run.

Then trainer Cherie DeVaux did something less shocking these days. Announced Tempo would skip the Preakness, submarining any chance of a Triple Crown winner this year.

Not that having a Crown contender isn’t important to a sport living on the edge. Just because it attracts the casual fan to the sport for a week or four, that’s no big deal. What makes it so, though, is what happened yesterday in upstate New York. Golden Tempo once again blew everyone’s doors off down the Saratoga stretch and won the Belmont too. Too bad no one saw it. Well, besides those of us who still consider the three races appointment television.

Just think how many more would make the time if Tempo’s stretch run, which overcome favorite Renegade once more, had been for the one thing that seems to catch the public’s imagination.

Nope. DeVaux, who became the first female trainer to win two legs of the Triple Crown, refused to talk about it on Fox after the race, saying the decision was made and that was that. Now it’s up to the three tracks who hold the events to get together and make the decision to lengthen the schedule, to inject more rest. And purse money. To eliminate excuses and the whole “it’s for the horse’s future” argument.

Horse racing needs a Triple Crown winner here and there. There, seemingly, was a chance this year. A chance that slipped away.

• The USMNT will enter the World Cup in a few days carrying the burden of expectations. As does every soccer squad in the world. But, as the main host nation, the U.S., which has never really come close to winning the event, has an extra layer. Or two.

Saturday in Chicago the team had a chance to either tamp down those expectations or ignite them. It did neither in its 2-1 friendly loss to Germany, a country that has four Cup titles in its pocket.

What the U.S. team did, basically, was to cement the notion that has been hanging around the team like a groupie for the past few months. It is good enough to win its group. After that, playing two more matches would be a success. And probably the ceiling.

Nothing that would inject steroids into America’s soccer future. But enough time to keep the general public interested and engaged.

As the team did Saturday, even after giving up a less-than-ideal goal a couple minutes in. In other words, the final tuneup before Friday’s opener against Paraguay didn’t turn into a blowout. There were almost 90 minutes of back-and-forth, with the U.S. team showing it can hold its own with the best, if not find a way to get a win. The best isn’t in its group. Besides Paraguay, Australia and Turkey are on the schedule.

Germany was 10th in the penultimate FIFA rankings before the Cup begins. Paraguay was 40th, Australia 27th and Turkey 22nd. The United States team? It sits at 17th.

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WSU: Around the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, though John Canzano’s column from Saturday isn’t about the conference, we will give him a pass. He writes about Jack Huber, something he does every spring. And about LEGOs. … Ashton Jeanty was back in Boise yesterday. … In baseball news, the Super Regional in Austin, pitting Oregon against Texas, didn’t start out well for the Ducks. They lost 11-3 and must sweep the Longhorns today and tomorrow to earn a trip to Omaha. … UNC bounced back, shut out USC and forced a deciding third game in Chapel Hill today. … In basketball news, Arizona came up short on a transfer it wanted but that’s OK.

EWU: We’ve said this before. We would read a John Blanchette-written story if it were about tacos. Or trucks. Or termites. When he writes about track, a sport he knows as well as anyone, we’re sure to lock in. Today, his story is about Cort Gebbers and his improbable journey from Brewster to Cheney to the NCAA track and field meet in Eugene. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, Cal Poly opened its shining jewel Saturday, the John Madden football center. … Montana football showed it is still recruiting for down the road. … A Northern Arizona basketball transfer ended up at UConn.

Preps: Dave Nichols’ day job, so to speak, is to cover the Spokane high school sports scene. He sits down each June and looks back to the things he saw as most-important to cover in the school year just passed. Even the sad events. 

Indians: Despite a great rehab start by Gabriel Hughes, Spokane fell 4-2 to visiting Hillsboro last night. Dave was at Avista Stadium and has this story.

Velocity: A 2-1 win over AC Boise at ONE Spokane Stadium on Saturday moved Spokane into second place in its USL Cup group standings.

Sounders: There is a king of Seattle soccer. He coaches this team.  

Mariners: The Tigers have hit two key members of the M’s in two games. Saturday, it was Josh Naylor, who thought it was on purpose. Former Astros’ manager A.J. Hinch, who has a track record of doing whatever is needed, rules be damned, to eliminate the competition, is in the Detroit dugout. Coincidence? You decide. … It didn’t work, though, as Naylor helped Seattle and Bryce Miller earn a 4-0 win. … One thing about minor league players. They mature.

Sonics: Are the gates wide open for the franchise’s return? Matt Calkins thinks they might be.

Seahawks: I linked this Times story yesterday. Wrote: “Remember when what is now known as Lumen Field was just an idea in Paul Allen’s head? When he asked for out help in building a new home for the Seahawks? He promised doing so would help the community attract huge events. That promise is coming true this summer.” The story is on the S-R website this morning. … AJ Barner is healthy again. And ready to show just what that means.

Storm: The latest loss included an appearance by some of the team’s younger players.

NBA: Victor Wembanyama is learning some tough lessons during the finals. Learning them fast enough to get the Spurs back in it? Or will the Knicks just roll on to a title? We will see Monday night in New York.

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• I sort of like clichés. Except when visiting Seattle. And it rains off and on for the weekend. The pristine blue skies that show up most of the time in the spring, at least when I’ve visited in the past, were not present this weekend. Luckily, I was in a gym most of my time. Until later …