In 2008, New Yorkers experienced a wide range of momentous sports events, from a winning Super Bowl catch to the closing of the city's two iconic baseball stadiums. NY1’s Kevin Garrity filed the following report.

In the beginning of 2008 was a catch that will go down as one of the greatest in football history, which helped the New York Giants claim their third Super Bowl in franchise history. With that memorable play, Eli Manning finally emerged from his brother's shadow and became the toast of the town, taking MVP honors.

The New York Rangers also saw the post-season for the third straight year and Henrik Lundqvist established himself as one of the premiere goaltenders in the National Hockey League. In October, the Rangers came out blazing and won 10 of their first 13 and look poised to make a deeper playoff run in 2009.

As for the New York Knicks, they failed to make the playoffs for the fourth straight season and the Isiah Thomas era came to a merciful end. Donnie Walsh replaced Isiah and hired Mike D'Antoni, whose high octane offense brought excitement back to Madison Square Garden. However, that could not hide the fact that Stephon Marbury and his $20 million salary were sent home and key players were being traded away in hopes of signing LeBron James in 2010, even though he may never get to free agency.

The Yankees’ new skipper, Joe Girardi, did something that never happened in the 12 years Joe Torre managed the club - miss the playoffs. It certainly was not how many envisioned the closing of Yankee Stadium.

After a spectacular mid-summer classic in July, which included a rare and emotional appearance by George Steinbrenner, Yankee Stadium quietly closed its doors on a Sunday night in September after a win over the Orioles.

The Mets tried to put 2007’s collapse behind then with new ace Johan Santana leading the way, but a slow start led to manager Willie Randolph being fired one night as he was 3,000 miles away from home. New manager Jerry Manuel did get the club to turn things around, but he could not overcome a bullpen that would blow leads game after game.

The Amazins did have a chance to play in October, but for the second year in a row, they lost on the final day of the season and missed the playoffs. It was not the best way for Shea Stadium to close its doors, leaving fans with only memories of heroes past.

The Yankees and Mets did act quickly in the off-season to correct their problems. The Bronx Bombers spent over $400 million on C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett to anchor their starting rotation and Mark Teixeria to play first base, while the Mets did a bullpen makeover, signing Francisco “K-Rod” Rodriguez and trading for J.J. Putz.

But the biggest acquisition of the year was made by the New York Jets when they signed Brett Favre during training camp. Having won only four games the year before, Gang Green’s defeating then-unbeaten Tennessee. Then, the Jets played horribly down the stretch, losing four of the last five games and costing head coach Eric Mangini his job.

Meanwhile, the Giants picked up right where they left off, winning 11 of their first 12 games. Although Plaxico Burress accidentally shot himself and was suspended by the team in December, Big Blue has home field advantage throughout the playoffs, with a chance to begin 2009 with the same way they started 2008.