Remember last week when I said that the Penguins were not dead yet? They are still not technically deceased, but the ventilator has been re-applied to the team’s playoff hopes. Now, before I dive into that (as well as some Manchester City football), a quick recap of the Pirates’ week. To describe it in one word, I would choose “inconsistent”. A 7-4 win against the Tigers on Monday was followed by a 5-3 loss on Tuesday, on the back of a miserable blown save by two-time all-star closer David Bednar, who gave up four earned runs in one-third of an inning, causing the Buccos’ 3-1 9th-inning lead to evaporate. A day off on Wednesday before a four-game series in Philadelphia was the team’s second day without a game this season. Thursday saw Jared Jones pitch reasonably well (6.1 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 8 K), but the bats were largely silent in a 5-1 loss. Friday saw the Bucs beat the Phils 5-2 behind former Phillie Bailey Falter’s 5 innings of 1-run ball and a Bednar 1-2-3 9th inning for his second save of the season. Saturday, the Pirates entered the bottom of the 7th with a 3-2 lead, but Aroldis Chapman surrendered the tying run before Roansy Contreras let the winning run in, a baserunner he inherited from Jose Hernandez. On Sunday, the Pirates scored nine runs, including five (four of which were earned) off of Phillies’ ace Zack Wheeler. The game saw Jack Suwinski hit a grand slam, Andrew McCutchen finally smack his 300th career dinger, and 7 strong innings from Mitch Keller. While the week was inconsistent (three wins and three losses), there were certainly some bright spots, as a series split on the road against a team that was in the World Series two years ago and one game away last year is reasonably impressive.

With the baseball news out of the way, I would like to discuss two diametrically-opposed situations, scenarios in which two of my favorite teams find themselves embroiled. Literally every relevant result for the Penguins on Saturday went horribly wrong. Not only did they lose to the Boston Bruins in a game where the goaltending was absolutely pathetic, but every team against whom the Pens are competing for a playoff spot won (except for the Islanders, but they got a point in a shoot-out loss to the Rangers, and had the inside track to the third seed in the Metropolitan division coming into the day). The Detroit Red Wings, who came back from a two-goal deficit against the Pens on Thursday to gain a point in what was a 6-5 overtime win for the proverbial “good guys”, fended off a comeback from the Toronto Maple Leafs for a 5-4 overtime win. The Washington Capitals never trailed in a 4-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning, scoring two goals in the third period. The Philadelphia Flyers played to an absolute snoozer of a win against the New Jersey Devils, with a Travis Konecny short-handed goal being the only tally. As it stands, the Islanders have 90 points with two games remaining, essentially locked into a playoff spot. The Capitals and Red Wings both have 87 points with two games left. The Flyers have 87 points as well, but they only have one game left. Then, there are the Penguins, who have 86 points with two games left.

It is still possible for us to make the playoffs, but it is quite unlikely. Detroit’s last two games are both against the Montréal Canadiens, the second-worst team in the Eastern conference. The Habs have no incentive to win either of those games–it would be more beneficial for them to lose those games to secure the highest-possible odds in the NHL draft lottery. The Capitals close out the season at home against a Bruins team with plenty to play for, as a win would see them clinch the division, and then a road game against Philadelphia. The Penguins have a home game against a Nashville Predators team for whom it will be their season finale–they will be playing their starters despite having clinched a playoff spot–before finishing the season in Long Island against the Isles. If the Islanders win tonight against the Devils, that game will have no significance for them. The bottom line is that Saturday could not have gone worse for the Penguins, and now they find themselves needing a world of help from multiple teams with less (or nothing) to play for.

Conversely, the weekend could not have possibly gone better for Manchester City. Entering Saturday, they trailed both Liverpool and Arsenal by one point for the Premier League lead–it would take slip-ups from both the Reds and the Gunners for City to even have a chance to win the league in mid-May. The first step was for City to beat 18th-place Luton Town at home, as their title rivals would both be taking the pitch Sunday. City won 5-1 on the back of Joško Gvardiol and Jérémy Doku both scoring and assisting on a goal each. City were top of the table, if just for a day.

Sunday morning saw Liverpool host 15th-place Crystal Palace. Palace took an early lead with an Eberechi Eze 14th-minute goal. This is not uncommon for Liverpool–they concede first quite frequently, but generally come back without much difficulty. However, Palace fought valiantly, holding Liverpool scoreless…at home…in the Premier League. It was a remarkable effort by a greatly-inferior side.

Arsenal then played host to 4th-place Aston Villa. While Villa have been quite good this season, Arsenal had not even trailed in the Premier League since the turn of the year. In what was a tightly-contested match, there were no goals scored for the first 83 minutes. Villa winger Leon Bailey finally opened the scoring in the 84th minute, and was quickly followed by superstar forward Ollie Watkins’ 87th-minute strike to double their lead. Much like Liverpool, Arsenal were also shut out at home. As it stands, City have a two-point lead over both clubs with six matches remaining. Not only did the blues win, they also got the necessary help from Palace and Villa to propel themselves above their rivals.

These scenarios could not have been any more different. The Penguins lost, and all of their challengers won. Meanwhile, Manchester City won, and their challengers for the title both lost. It was a frenetic 48 hours for my favorite sports teams. Obviously, I would have preferred if at least one game went the Penguins’ way on Saturday (had they won, they would still control their own destiny). However, the football results on Sunday greatly softened the blow.

The Penguins’ season has been a colossal disappointment. Even if they somehow manage to pull a Steelers’ move and sneak into the postseason with help from other teams, it will remain as such. Go Canadiens and go Bruins (blech, I hate saying that).