Strap in kids, it's the Winter edition of the Top 10. These are the things that were rattling around in the mind of Justin McIsaac this week....

10. AT THE RISK OF MAKING 7 FAN BASES MAD, HERE ARE MY D4 BOYS FIRST ROUND PICKS

Home teams are in CAPS

DERRYFIELD over Bye – I like the Cougars in this one

PROFILE over Sunapee – literally flipped a coin

WOODSVILLE over Farmington – Much closer than you think though

NEWMARKET over Hinsdale – Mules roll

PITTSFIELD over Wilton – Pittsfield won’t get bitten twice

Epping over MT ROYAL – Blue Devils are the team you didn’t want to face

LITTLETON over Lisbon – Sorry, Sam

Moultonborough over GROVETON – Groveton’s a little beat up

9. CANADA HAD A BAD WEEK

If you’re Canadian, your entire national identity is tied up in 3 things: Hockey, Curling, and Poutine. I don’t think anyone has taken fires, cheese, and gravy away from our friends to the north, but they DID lose the Men’s Curling semi-final to the USA, AND lost the Bronze Medal game to the Swiss (THE SWISS!!!). ALSO they got beat by the USA in the Women’s Hockey gold medal game, AND lost to the Germans in the Men’s Hockey Semi-finals (they managed to get the W in the Bronze Medal game). Probably the worst week for Canadians since Vince McMahon, Shawn Michaels, and Earl Hebner screwed Bret Hart out of the WWF title.

8. THE CONSOLATION GAME OF THE HOCKEY TOURNAMENT I DID THIS WEEKEND WENT DOUBLE OVERTIME – THE CONSOLATION GAME!!

It turned out to be a pretty decent game, as the Franklin Pierce Women, out manned and outgunned, ended up beating Holy Cross, who are moving up to Hockey East next season, BUT STILL. Give me OT forever in the Championship game, but how about 5 minutes and then a shootout in the consolation game? (5 hockey games in 2 days makes McIsaac tired, tired McIsaac gets cranky, cranky McIsaac resorts to ALL CAPS A LOT)

7. AT THE RISK OF MAKING 8 FAN BASES MAD, HERE ARE MY D3 BOYS FIRST ROUND PICKS

Home teams in CAPS

HOPKINTON over Mascoma – I mean it would be fun to see a 16 win but it ain’t gonna happen this time

INTERLAKES over Monadnock – Eli Swanson follows me on twitter and 0 Monadnock kids do

CONANT over White Mountains – Tell me again that you’re not going to be good this year, Sauce

St Thomas over CAMPBELL – Dave took the words out of my mouth Saturday when he called for this upset

SOMERSWORTH over Fall Mt – That’s a long way to drive to see Bryton Early hit a bunch of 3’s

Belmont over MASCENIC – Jim Cilley will cyber bully me if I pick against the Red Raiders

BERLIN over Laconia – Battle of two towns where wrestling fans tried to assault me

GILFORD over Stevens – Socioeconomically my heart is with Stevens, but Dave will fight me if I pick them

 

6. BISHOP GUERTIN PLAYS AT SPAULDING TUESDAY AND I’M PROBABLY GOING TO DO THE GAME FOR MOSN AND IF ENOUGH PEOPLE BRIBE ME, I’LL DO THE WHOLE 2ND QUARTER IN THE MATT REGAN VOICE.

Longest headline ever in the Top 10, and 100% true.

5. SOMEONE NEEDS TO SIGN CHARLES OAKLEY TO A 10 DAY CONTRACT SO HE CAN PUNK OUT ZAZA PACHULIA

Zaza was up to his old crap this weekend, trying to injure Russell Westbrook, after putting out Kawhi Leonard with an injury he still hasn’t come back from. There aren’t any real tough guys left in the NBA, but if Charles Oakley was still in the league, I can pretty much guarantee you Zaza’s crap would come to an abrupt end.

4. X GONNA GIVE IT TO YA

Xavier Bamford, of THE SPAULDING RED RAIDERS, is your 2018  NHIAA Individual Bowling Champion! Xavier set a new record in the qualifying round with a 3 game series of 750, and then won the whole dang thing, a year after losing to his sister Rachel (Rachel is his sister, Union Leader, not Olivia. You’re welcome). Congrats to Xavier!

3. PORTSMOUTH IS YOUR D1 SEED

Portsmouth has lost twice this season, and for any other team that’s like losing 8 games. But before you bury Portsmouth, you better make damn sure they’re dead, and with the Clippers win over Winnacunnet, they have to be considered the favorite in a year where D1 has been impossible to predict.

2. SPEAKING OF D1 THE DECK WILL BE SHUFFLED THIS WEEK                                                                                          

Right now there are 4 teams at 12-4, and another 2 at 11-5. You want to be the 2 seed and have a round-off? Or the 7 and maybe have to host a team like Dover that can score 80 on any given night? Usually, the last week is academic, but this year it’ll be a pretty wild ride.

1. #NEVERAGAIN

I’m not here to start a political discussion on a sports website. If you follow me on Twitter, you know how I feel about things. But we are a HIGH SCHOOL sports website. And what the HIGH SCHOOL kids in Florida are doing after an unspeakable tragedy is amazing and inspiring. We at NHSportspage know that HS kids have very good BS detectors. It’s why kids respect what we have to say, even when we disagree.

And these kids in Florida, and all over the country, are dunking all over phony Senators, and NRA Spokespeople, and Fox News commentators. Because kids are smarter than adults want to give them credit for, and they aren’t here for the BS. Especially when so many of them are dying in schools from something that’s completely preventable, and that just doesn’t happen other places.

Keep fighting, kids. And don’t lose your nose for people with agendas that are full of BS.

ALSO RECEIVING VOTES: Austin Lesperance gets to 1,000, Jayden Torres gets there as well, Ronda Rousey just put HHH through a table as I’m writing this, D4 Girls Final 4 tonight in Plymouth

PROGRAMMING NOTE: Next week the Top 10 will probably be up Monday Afternoon, as I'm calling the NEPSAC Class B, C, and D championship games on NSN Sunday 3/4. Adjust your reading habits accordingly. 

Justin McIsaac is the Founder of MOSN: The McIsaac On Sports Network. He's the radio color commentator for UNH Football. He also does pxp for St Anselm's, UNE, Harvard, and anyone else that will cut him a check. Follow him on twitter: @Justin_McIsaac