Merriam-Webster defines the word "team" as: a group of people who compete in a sport, game, etc., against another group; a group of people who work together. Nowhere does this word exemplify the true meaning better than the four major American professional sports.
2014 saw a plethora of teams make their mark. The Kansas City Royals and New York Rangers took us on wild, dramatic rides through the playoffs and to the championship game. The San Antonio Spurs and Seattle Seahawks showed us what domination really is during their crowning games. We even saw the Canadian Olympic Hockey Team showcase its dominance once again.
Vince Lombardi, the owner of seven NFL Championships, once said “winning is not a sometime thing, it is an all the time thing. You don’t do things right once in a while…you do them right all the time," according to VinceLombardi.com.
Nobody since Lombardi has phrased the words so perfectly as it relates to this sentiment, and a few teams in 2014 executed the way Lombardi's Packers did.
TheCelebrityCafe.com presents our Top 10 sports teams of 2014 in the world of the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, College Football, College Basketball and the Olympics.
Image Courtesy of Devan/INFGoff.com
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New York Rangers
In 2014 the Rangers story was well chronicled. Many dubbed them as "The Team of Destiny" once it seemed greater forces were at work. The story of Marty St. Louis and Dominic Moore made them the feel good story of the year, and although they came up short in the Stanley Cup Finals, the season will always be remembered as a smashing success.
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Denver Broncos
Peyton Manning and his Broncos offense shattered records and dominated the AFC. Manning's 55 touchdown passes were the most in NFL history. He also broke the record for single-season passing yards. They rolled in the playoffs, capturing the AFC Championship. This regular season is proving they're no joke as they currently sit with an 11-4 record, waiting for another chance to win the Super Bowl.
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Team Canada, Hockey
The Hockey Olympics are such an important and stellar event now that the NHL shuts down the league for two weeks as it takes place. Players drop the NHL regular season feel and rev up to take on an all out international war at the drop of a hat. Once again, Team Canada showed us why they are the kings of hockey.
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UConn Huskies
Shabazz Napier and UConn shocked the world in March of 2014 by taking a team that almost missed out on the tournament and winning six games en route to the NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship.
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Kansas City Royals
Another feel good story this past year came from Kansas City as the Royals finally gave their fans what they deserved. The Royals had baseball on their knees as they dramatically beat the Athletics in the one-game Wild Card game and won nine straight games to get back to the World Series for the first time since 1985.
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Florida State Seminoles
Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston enjoyed a pretty good year. He won the Heisman Trophy in 2013, but then backed it up by winning the National Championship in 2014. Now, this season, he has his team back into title contention in the first ever College Football playoff.
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San Francisco Giants
For the third time in five years, the Giants captured the World Series. Like the Royals, the Giants were involved in the sudden-death Wild Card game. Behind a coming-out party from stud pitcher Madison Bumgarner, they knocked off the hot Royals in the World Series.
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Los Angeles Kings
Another team to build onto their collection of championships this past year was the Los Angeles Kings. Alec Martinez slammed one home past Henrik Lundqvist in overtime to win the Kings second championship in three years.
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San Antonio Spurs
One of the more dominating championship performances in a long time took place in 2014 as the Spurs dismantled LeBron James and the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. They won their fifth title since 1999 by winning four games in the finals by a total of 70 combined points, the largest in history.
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Seattle Seahawks
Super Bowl XLVIII ended by the score of 43-8. A game which most experts believed would be a nail-biter was quickly realized to be a blowout only a few minutes into the first quarter. The Seahawks defense physically broke the will and spirit of the Broncos.