5 TEAMS THAT WOULD N’ T BE QUITE AS CRESTFALLEN:

1 HOUSTON ASTROS

Had COVID-19 never happened, the 2020 Astros season would have been pretty crappy for the players. They would have been booed at every stop as a result of the cheating scandal that was one of the biggest things in the sporting realm before all of this unfolded.

2 BOSTON RED SOX

They gave away Mookie Betts, enraging their massive fanbase, but if the season doesn’t happen and Betts becomes a free agent without ever having played for another team, will Sox supporters still be up in arms? Eight AL teams have higher World Series odds than Boston’s. You don’t see that often.

3 TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS

Flashy and potent, sure, but also defensively porous, inconsistent in goal and lacking in physicality, the Leafs were shaping up for another disappointing playoff round. They were finally going to avoid the Bruins in the first round, but had the fewest points of the East’s playoff teams, gave up fewer goals than all but four other teams and were slated to match up with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa had a “down” year after posting the fourthmost points in a season ever last season, but was still tied for third overall in the NHL, and tops in goal scoring. Not exactly an easy assignment.

4 DETROIT RED WINGS

The off- season can’t come soon enough for the Wings, the NHL’S worst team by a wide margin. Second- last Ottawa had 23 more points than Detroit’s astoundingly low 39 and the Wings had a -122 goal differential, compared to - 52 for Ottawa. Just bring on the lottery already.

5 GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

The NBA’S most recent dynastic franchise has treated 2019- 20 as a Mulligan pretty much since Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson got injured in the NBA Finals last June. They rested Stephen Curry longer than they would have otherwise when he, too, got hurt early this season and had the NBA’S worst record when the hiatus began. They traded for Andrew Wiggins and might have liked seeing him play a few games alongside Curry, but the focus is on returning healthy in 2020- 21, possibly with the No. 1 pick of the draft.