Tonight's The Night, Bruins-

Last season, the Boston Bruins sparked off one of the finest regular seasons in recent memory with a scrap-filled contest against the Dallas Stars, Steve Ott and Sean Avery.

After that game, the Bruins gelled as a team, went on a winning streak that propelled them to the top of the Eastern Conference, and sent all Bruins fans hopes sky high for this season.  Alas, injuries and a lack of scoring took it's toll, and the Bruins limped into the second half of season after stumbling hard in the month of January, despite a thrilling OT win in the Winter Classic. As of now, the Bruins are playing just about well enough to justify their 8 spot in the standings.

Well, with Matt Cooke and the Pittsburgh Penguins in town, there's an opportunity.

The Boston Globe wrote an actual editorial, urging the Bruins show a little restraint and remember that the win is more important than pounding any individual member of the Penguins, and bringing up the Bertuzzi/Steve Moore incident, as a cautionary tale.

While the Globe is not wrong to bring up Bertuzzi and Moore, and correct that a win is hugely important, a win without fighting will be two points, but not the galvanizing, team building event that this game has the potential to be. If they lose, fights or no fights, that's pretty much the Bruins' season. You can't get kicked around the way the Bruins got kicked around (by both the Penguins and the NHL), and go into the playoffs strong by losing that game. I just don't see it happening.

And if you lose, and beat them up? It's mid-march. You're in the 8 spot. If you're losers, there's no honor in being goons, too.

But if they step it up, and get some physical contributions from players other than Shawn Thornton, (who I think has had a great year of all around checking hockey) they have an opportunity to spark something that just may carry them into the playoffs. The Bruins still have the current Norris trophy winning defenseman, and their BACKUP goaltender won the Vezina. If this team can summon up a little heart, who knows what could happen?

But before I shift all the responsibility for physicality in this game to the Bruins, there's one player on the Penguins that has the power to assume a little responsibility, and show a little leadership by dropping the gloves.

And it's not Matt Cooke.

Matt Cooke needs to go out and get his whuppin' and c'mon- it's a hockey fight- it won't be that bad. But that's sort of understood.

The Penguin who could show some leadership and diffuse this situation by dropping the gloves LIKE A CAPTAIN- is Sidney Crosby. His first fight in the NHL was against the Bruins, against Andrew Ference, who seemed so surprised he was actually fighting the NHL's poster boy, that he got caught a little flat-footed. Well, that won't be happening tomorrow.

Crosby has a bit of a reputation for being a whiner, a diver, and frankly, a ball-puncher. The rest of the hockey world has been wringing it's hands over the hypothetical "what would have happened if Crosby had been hit like Savard was" and worried sick over the possibility that someone on the Bruins might actually do just that to him, hence the Globe editorial.

But no true hockey fan, who respects the athletes that they spend their time and money to watch wants to see a superstar get clocked by a goon. But they'd all like to see that superstar stand up for himself and his team. Sidney Crosby certainly has nothing to prove, and no one in the mainstream hockey media would blame him for letting someone else fight his team's battles. But still, he is the captain.

It makes you think, if Mark Messier were in this situation, what would he do? If Jarome Iginla were in this situation, what would he do? If Bobby Orr or Ray Bourque were in this situation, what would they do? Mario Lemieux, of course, would throw a bunch of cheap shots, refuse to drop the gloves, cry and whine to an official if anybody retaliated, and sit back and let Ulf Samuellson do the dirty work on other team's stars, so who knows, maybe Crosby will go that way too- I guess they respect that approach in Pittsburgh.

But the Penguins just lost a big game last night to the Devils, are slipping in their division, and it's a leadership moment. So, before we put everything on the Bruins here, let's remember who is wearing the "C" in Pittsburgh, and remember how he responds to this.

As for the Bruins, I know exactly how every Bruins fan in the nation wants them to respond, and it dovetails nicely with this brand new video by the Dropkick Murphys:



Now let's go watch some hockey!

Belated Bye Bye, Beloved Boston Bruin Byron Bitz.

Bon Voyage Byron Bitz!


Bye Bye Bitzy!

Best wishes to Derek Morris too, who never really won me over, but it's hard to blame him for that. The team isn't winning, he's making 3.3 million dollars, so, you know, that kind of seems like the math. We're sorry it didn't work out, and also a little bummed we couldn't get Wojtek Wolski.


But damn- losing Bitzy?

Bummer.

We loved Bitz on the Bruins from the day he arrived, and loved saying "BITZY!"and "Bitz!" every time he made a strong play along the wall. He earned his spot, played tough hockey, fought Donald Brashear, had his cup of coffee on the top line, and will now and forever be one of those Bruins that moved on, and we can't help but wish the best for. Guys like Hal Gill, Glen Metropolit, Bill Guerin, Dave Andrechuck, Andrew Raycroft, Brad Boyes, and hell- even Bruce Shoebottom. It's a long list, and Bitzy's definitely on it.

I mean, I get it, changes need to be made, but still.

Damnit.

I liked that guy.

OK- Once more, with feeling:

BITZY! BITZ!

Good luck buddy, and until this Dennis Seidenberg character wins me over, in honor of you Bitzy, we will be referring to him here as (Sigh)denberg.

You will be missed.

What did I tell you?

Check out the comments in the last few posts to see some pretty sweet comments from, what I'm guessing, are some Canadian internet trolls who were acting, honestly, like a bunch of dumb Americans.

My guess is somebody linked this site on a message board, and a whole bunch of Canadian idiots stopped by. Either way, one comment I made was that America didn't lose in these Olympics, and to prove it, to check out how Ryan Miller was received when he walked into Sidney Crosby's house for his first NHL appearance in Pittsburgh.

The Penguins fans, (who generally I hate like poison) showed true class, rising as one to thank Miller for his fantastic performance in the games. 
Kudos to the Penguins fans for just plain old doing things right.

So, to those commenters, (not like they are still around:)
Toldja so, you pricks.
Also, your bacon is ham.

And don't get all pissed off if this is your first time here. I've been on the record numerous times both on this blog and on much bigger, better hockey blogs about how much I love Canada, and Canadians. I will say this though- if you leave a hateful comment on a blog, and don't leave a name, you're a spineless turd.

Either way, Miller's reception on enemy ice was just another bit of evidence that this tournament, (particularly the two USA/Canada games) now rank among one of the biggest and most important wins for hockey in the post-lockout era, alongside the establishment of the Winter Classic, the double-hat-trick Ovie vs Sid game in the playoffs and game six of the Bruins-Canadiens in the 2008 playoffs.

Hockey in America is officially back.

Which all things considered, is kind of a moot point, right now.

Tonight's Bruins/Canadiens game was a goddamn bust.

For those who don't think America won this weekend-

-go ahead and check out how Ryan Miller gets received in Pittsburgh tonight.

I'll Say It-

-I don't care who wins tomorrow's gold medal game.

Don't get me wrong- I'm looking forward to it. But it doesn't matter.

I'm sure there are a bunch of Canadians who will get their poutines in a bunch if Canada doesn't get the gold on home soil, but the fact is, after flirting with the disaster that could have been, silver ain't bad. Worst case scenario, they lose to a US team and start a new rivalry, something that international hockey has needed since the end of the cold war. As for the US, they already beat Canada, so if they lose, well- they're batting .500, which in terms of our national passtime is an epic win.

Ultimately, what I don't want for either side is a blowout.

What I really want is a well played game, and I'm really excited about seeing the best hockey players in the world giving it their all.

What I'm excited about seeing, really- is an All Star Game.

An actual All Star Game. Not some bullshit, no-hitting corporate show, but a real game. With awesome fucking hockey players. I've said it before and not really meant it, but now I really mean it:

May the best team win.

Postponed Post

There was more hockey action
here than inside the arena.

There are certain moments throughout history when every American remembers exactly where they were and what they were doing. Neil Armstrong setting foot on the moon, the tragic assassination of John F. Kennedy, the election of our first African American president...

And now to that august list, we add the night the lights went out in Newark.

When Ritch texted me and asked for a man-on-the-scene report from the power failure that brought play to a halt halfway through the second period of tonight's Devils/Lightning game, there was only one thing to say:

"Hey dipshit...nothing's happening."

Seriously, where's Jeremy Roenick when you need him?



Or maybe I'm wrong. Is anyone interested in a blow-by-blow recap of every piece of interstitial video the Devils have ever produced? Here's mascot NJ Devil inserted into a clip from Animal House...here he is inserted into a clip from Pee Wee's Big Adventure...here he is going for his yearly colonoscopy.

They even made the questionable decision to run the famous Patrick Swayze/Chris Farley Chippendale's sketch from Saturday Night Live, despite the fact that both men are now dead. I guess they're waiting until Kevin Nealon kicks the bucket to finally pull that one from the rotation.

I did manage to do a little investigative reporting while we waited for the game to go on or not. One Devils representative, speaking on condition of anonymity, told me that he personally witnessed Lou Lamoriello kicking the plug out shortly after the Devils gave up their third goal on seven shots.

It wasn't all bad news, though...the assembled media must have been psyched to get lobbed such a softball for tomorrow's headlines. Just decide whether to go with some variation of "Lightning Strikes" or the "Power Outage" of the Devils failing to convert on the man advantage and call it a night.

Anyway, after about an hour and a half, things finally got moving, and I managed to capture that action on video as well:



You're welcome.

Ben's at the Rock

Yeah, there isn't a lot going on.

I for one, am loving watching all these anchors fill time. If this keeps up, Stan Fischler is going to be interviewing a drunken Chris Terreri sometime around midnight.

Here's Ben, taped at the Rock moments ago:



Seriously, didn't Gary Bettman have no problem cancelling a bunch of hockey games sometime around 2004-2005?

UPDATE: 10:00 PM broadcasters announce game is cancelled- Mike D'Antoni must be thrilled!

UPDATE #2: Official language is game is "suspended." We dodged a bullet- apparently, the next thing scheduled was Ken Danekyo asking viewers for help with his KenKen puzzle.

UPDATE# 3: New official language is "postponed." They refer us to Newjerseydevils.com. According to Doc Emeric, fans are littering the ice with some stuff.  As a Bruins fan, I'm kind of pissed we didn't get to see tape of the '88 Bruins/Oilers Cup Final blackout game. It was the best game the B's played that entire series.

Best Shot of the Night

Last Monday, I had the particular misfortune of attending the Bruins/Rangers game at the Garden, a 3-2 snoozefest of a win by the Blueshirts after both teams spent two periods aggressively playing like they really wouldn't mind losing this one.  There was a flash of excitement in the last five minutes of the third when the B's rallied back from 2 goals down to tie it, but that was snuffed out by a Christopher Higgins goal with a minute and change left that looked more like women's billiards than ice hockey. I'm sure the Ranger fans were happy to see it, but it's not like they put an exclamation point on the night by ringing up another of of these beauties:


It was a crap goal and a crap game, and to make a long story short, the Ranger fans left feeling relieved instead of ecstatic, and Bruins fans saw their team try to win without a 60 minute effort again, and instead got just what they deserved, which was a regulation loss. Of course, if they were just gonna blow the game, they could have done us the favor of not blue-balling us at the end there.

Either way, the better bad team won, and no one headed home happy, except maybe Christopher Higgins, and fuck that guy.

So we filed out, and unlike a lot of buildings in the NHL, when you leave Madison Square Garden after a hockey game, the dispersal of fans is gradual and a little off-putting. There are so many other random people just walking around the city that after about a hundred yards, you're still in the middle of a crowd, but with each step, that crowd is made up of fewer and fewer hockey fans. One by one, the people who just shared an experience with you are replaced with those who didn't, until before you realize it, you're right back to feeling like the only hockey fan in America.

It's discouraging, especially after a crap game.

Of course, I was headed for the subway, so that feeling was diluted a little, seeing as I was waiting on the platform for the uptown C train, and could still see quite a few folks in hockey jerseys waiting not only on my side, but also on the express and downtown local platforms across the two sets of train tracks across the way.

I was walking north along the platform to kill a little time, and as I strolled past a trash can in the corner next to an empty bench, I just kind of sensed a disturbance in the force.  People were gathered around, looking at something, I couldn't tell what, but there was a palpable excitement in the air, bordering on fear.

I swiveled my head around and saw it. There was a fat, nasty rat crouching behind the trash can, up on the platform, WITH US, knawing on something. People were maintaining a safe distance of about 20 yards or so, and kind of slowly rotating around the trash can so they could keep an eye on the rat.


Of course, rats in the subway are no big deal, provided they stay down on the tracks where they belong. But when one gets up on the platform, on the same level as you, that's an altogether different experience. I've seen it happen a number of times and it's always dramatic as hell when they run. People run, jump, scream, freak out, you name it. It's exciting, and that rat was cornered and definately going to run.

I joined the circle of onlookers, eyeing the nasty fucker and getting ready to jump if he headed my way. It felt like a game of Russian Roulette, the standoff at the end of the Good, The Bad and the Ugly, or basically, the way you're supposed to feel during the last five minutes of a hockey game that doesn't suck.

"That's poison he's eating now!" announced an authoritative voice. It came from an African American subway custodian who looked to be in his late 40's.  He slowly approached the circle of onlookers, wearing a reflective vest over his blue MTA uniform. He was carrying a large, heavy shovel, painted yellow, and his eyes were fixed on his target. This wasn't his first rat. Not by a long shot.

This was turning into the best show in town.

The crowd, many of them still wearing hockey jerseys, gathered slightly closer, but not so close as to crowd the rat out from behind the can. Fans from across the platform craned their necks and angled for a good view from their limited sightlines.

Slowly but surely, the custodian edged up to the trash can, and with a quick lateral move, turned the corner of the bench, and simulataneously smashed down the heavy blade of the shovel. He narrowly missed the rat, who was off like a shot, southbound along the platform. And that's when the screams started. 

As the mayhem increased, and people began jumping out of the way of the fleeing rodent, the custodian lowered his shoulders and broke into a sprint, the blade of his shovel knee-high like a hockey stick. He caught up to the rat after about 30 yards, and without breaking stride, took a high, hard slapshot with the shovel that sent it flying onto the tracks, where it landed hard, righted itself and scurried away.

As one, the crowd went wild.

Hands down, it was the best shot of the night. 
 

How Bout Those Kids!

Big ups to the American squad at the World Junior Classic!

I might not have given a crap if not for Aedan Helmer, reporter for the Ottawa Sun, who dropped me the following line:

Ritch,
I'm looking for some opinions on tomorrow's Canada-US showdown at the World
Junior tourney.
Are American hockey fans following the tournament?


I wrote him back with the following:

Hey Aedan-

What the hell is the World Junior tourney?

kidding.

Sort of.

I can't speak for all American hockey fans, but I'd tend to doubt there is much interest, as the tourney isn't marketed at all down here. Basically, if the game was starting, and a buddy called me up and said "Hey- US -Canada is on" I'd thank him, and watch it, at least until Canada went up by seven.

There definitely is interest but the only place to watch or get news about it is on the NHL Network, which doesn't have a show devoted to it. We get some coverage from On The Fly, but not enough to really follow the tournament. The only games I have caught this year have been because I was flipping through and saw they were on, not because I was aware in advance. Also, you're never sure if you're watching a game live, and it hasn't helped that the few games I have clicked on have been big time blowouts.

That said, US/Canada is always worth tuning in for.

When's it on?

All the best,

Ritch

He ended up using a great deal of what I wrote- here's the story. 

I just watched them end it in OT, and good for them!

USA!
USA!
USA!

Wait- Did Keith Ballard kill another goalie?

 From the Yahoo! recap of tonight's Florida/Colorado game:

Scott Clemmensen, starting in place of injured Panthers goalie Tomas Vokoun(notes), made 29 saves. Vokoun is recovering after he was hit in the head by Florida defenseman Keith Ballard’s(notes) stick during a bizarre on-ice accident Monday night. Vokoun received stitches on his ear but had no other medical problems... Ballard was involved in another scary incident on Wednesday. Charging toward the net with less than a minute left in overtime, Ballard slid toward the net and appeared to collide with Anderson, whose head hit the goal post...Ballard wasn’t available to speak with reporters after Wednesday’s game.

I'll say it: Keith Ballard is the Tommy Jarvis of the NHL.

Watch your ass, Varlamov, you're next. 

Stunning New Angle On Keith Ballard-Vokoun Hit

Maybe it's the 3D, but this new look at the vicious shot to the mask dished out on Tomas Vokoun by his own defenseman last night makes Ballard look, oh I don't know, a little more feminine, maybe?



What do you think?

(H/T Dumb As A Blog)

I've only seen one Bruins game this year-

-but I'll tell ya, I'm a little worried about the penalty kill.

Missing both PJ Axellsson and Stephane Yelle hurts.

Whew!

Man, that was some solid-ass hockey analysis, especially after a four month layoff.

I'm tired.

Dang.

I've been on a book tour,  gone to a bunch of weddings, have another wedding to go to this weekend, and that means I'm gonna miss the B's/Islanders game.

And that's a bummer, because I like these new look Islanders. Win or lose, if you're an Islander fan, I think checking in on dudes like Streit, Okposo, Tavares, and whoever their next general manager current backup goaltender is, is gonna be fun to watch.

Great Season, Everybody

Let's do it again in October!

Sidney Crosby is the youngest captain ever-

-to win the Stanley Cup while not playing the third period.

It kind of reminds me of the time Willis Reed limped back into Madison Square Garden, and made the heroic decision to stay on the bench so he wouldn't hurt his team, or Keri Strug.... oh screw it.

Really?

Mario?

With the Cup on the ice?

Fuck me.

I hate that guy.

That was awesome how one asshole who didn't play in the third period passed it to another asshole who didn't play the third period.

Yay, Marketing!

In case any of you Penguins fans are interested in rewatching game seven...

...there will be an IMAX version of the game being shown Monday evening at the Moon Township drive-in movie theater, projected onto Marc Andres Fleury's massive teeth.

Fans should bring wine, cheese, blankets, and several yards of thick rope, should the Stanley Cup winner need to at any point, floss.

I gotta tell you-

I got a little choked up seeing Hal Gill raise the Stanley Cup.

That's a native of Concord, Massachusetts right there, and he played hard for the Bruins.

It was nice to see Guerin lift it too, but he'd done it before.

And, you know- both of those guys managed to suck it up and play the third period.

Please, Gary. For the Love of the Game. Don't.

I said it last year, and I'll say it again.

Gary Bettman has no business on the ice at the end of the year, handing out the Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy.

Justified or not, the fans hate Gary Bettman, and not only does it bum out us hardcore fans, the inevitable booing takes casual fans out of this wonderful moment of celebrating hockey.

Seriously.

Gary.

Stop it.

Please.

One man, and one man alone should have been handing out the Stanley Cup that night, and his name was Mario Lemieux. If the Wings had won, it should have been Steve Yzerman. Or Gordie Howe.

I've put out my theory on this.

It is do-able.

Can we PLEASE make it happen?

Please?

Even though I knew the outcome and the final score...

... while I was watching the Stanley Cup Final on DVR, when Nic Kronwall hit the crossbar with 2:10 remaining in the third period, I screamed.

Goddamnit- I love this game.

Congrats to the Pittsburgh Penguins and their fans on an incredible playoff and final.

The Best Possible Reason To Miss Game Seven Of The Stanley Cup Finals

Annabelle Ellen Duncan.
Born June 12, 2009.
11:42 PM
6 lbs, 13 oz.





So.

Who won the game?