It’s the most wonderful time of the year — and no, I don’t mean Christmas. I’m talking about the Sports Equinox. Much like the astronomical equinox where the sun and celestial equator intersect, four major sports schedules intersect — NHL, NFL, NBA and MLB — meaning sports fans get a day chock-full of sports.
This year, the Sports Equinox occurred on Monday, Oct. 28. Luckily, I didn’t have any sports to cover, so I was able to enjoy the holiday.
I did not have the correct streaming service to watch my favorite NBA team, the Milwaukee Bucks, so that was out of the equation. (Side note: The amount of streaming services necessary to participate in this holiday is insane.) But, I was able to watch the World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees, Monday Night Football between the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers and a regular-season game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Colorado Avalanche on Hulu Live.
Because the Green Bay Packers were not playing, I took little stock in the NFL game. The only thing worth note was that it was a tie game at halftime when the two teams had opposite records (2-5 and 5-2).
I mainly switched between the MLB and NHL games where there was more action.
The Dodgers, namely Freddie Freeman, started the game with a bang in the top of the first. Down in the count 1-2 with one out, Freeman hit a 2-run homerun. At the time, it was his fifth consecutive postseason game with a home run. He hit another in Game 4 to set a new MLB record.
I remember calling my dad and saying, “Maybe they should just intentionally walk Freeman; it would be something different.”
I was lucky enough to flip back to the game in the bottom of the fourth to see the amazing Dodger outfield. Mookie Betts made a diving catch for the second out of the inning. The next batter, Anthony Volpe, lined a single to left fielder Teoscar Hernandez, who threw an absolute dime to home plate, getting Giancarlo Stanton out attempting to score from second.
I’m one of those fans that hardly pays attention to, let alone shares news about, teams other than my own. But the MLB posted a picture of the play at the plate and I couldn’t not share it to my own Facebook. Pure perfection. *Chef’s kiss*
The Blackhawks game also captivated my interest as there were a combined five goals scored on 19 SOG in the first period alone.
It’s tradition in the Dillon household that when Chicago scores, we scream “GOOOOOOOAL” at the top of our lungs, sending the dog and cat into a frenzy. Even though I’ve moved out on my own, I still do this. My downstairs neighbor must have hated me.
Trailing by only one goal late in the third, the Avalanche pulled their goalie to get an extra skater. But Ryan Donato put the game away with two empty-netters. With 58 seconds, he had the puck in the corner, passed to Jason Dickson in the other corner, skated to the face-off circle, got the puck back and scored. Thirty-nine seconds later, Colorado turned the puck over in its offensive zone. Donato got the puck out to Ilya Mikheyev, who beat the defense and took a shot just beyond the blue line for the 5-2 final.
There surely was a lot going on Monday, and without multiple devices going at once, it was hard to feel engaged in each game. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed my night off from covering high school sports by watching professional sports.
The next Sports Equinox is set for Oct. 27, 2025. Plan ahead to enjoy the greatest sports holiday.
— Natalie Dillon is the sports editor of the Monroe Times and can be reached at 608-324-3617 or
ndillon@themonroetimes.com.
