Monday, December 19, 2011

Bruins DOME-inate the Flyers

I wasn't able to watch the entire Flyers game, instead I listened to most of it on the radio and watched the ending.  But without being able to see the game myself I feel a full 8 Golden Points wouldn't be right.  Plus, it's starting to get boring writing about this team... but in a good way.  Pouliout is playing well so I can't trash him.  The Bruins are 18-2-1 in their last 21, they've gone from last place to first place.  The Flyers had sole possession of first place and Boston made them look like an AHL team; completely dominating them 6-0.  Yup, two field goals to a goose egg.  Suck on that Philly.

The captain returned from his leg injury and showed everyone that he's still a beast.  He notched a Gordie Howe hat trick: a goal, an assist, and a fight.  Although the fight wasn't as completely one-sided as Chara fights normally are, he did get some solid punches in there.  It's strange to see Chara fight off of a face off.  He doesn't drop the gloves often (understandably so, he's one of the best defensemen in the league) and when he does it's usually because an opponent did something cheap to him or to a teammate during play.

Timmy T earned his 4th shutout of the year (tied for league leader) and is just straight butter.  I take Timmy for granted.  I rarely get nervous.  It's bad.  Previous seasons I would frequently freak out if a team was on a power play or on the break.  I literally think "Timmy will pull this one out" and he does.  It's insanely unorthodox, but insanely effective.  Even when father time catches up to him, Tuukka has been playing very well too.  Not sure if anyone else in the league has a better goal tending duo. 

Don't look now, but the Bruins are 9th in the league in power play percentage and 3rd in the league in penalty killing.  I'm not as surprised with the penalty kill, but 3rd is still very impressive.  It does help when you have Thomas and Rask on your side.  But the power play to be in the top 10 in the league, I'm thoroughly impressed. 

The one negative from the game this weekend would be Lucic.  I just saw he's getting a one game suspension.  I figured that much.  It looks like he tries to get the side of him, but he clearly hits the numbers.  I just wish the refs let someone on the Flyers try to fight him.  There's really nothing better than Lucic pummelling a Flyer (or Canadien which we are robbed of tonight). 

This run is definitely the best Bruins hockey I have ever witnessed.  I just wish this was happening in April / May.  Let's hope they stay healthy and keep this up.  I just don't see any team beating the B's in a 7 game series. 

Pepe Le Pouliot is playing well... Danny Paille is playing well... Zach Hamill is actually playing ... WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE!?! 

Dome-ination... that's what.

Friday, December 9, 2011

Kaberle Traded to the Dark Side

Everyone rejoice!!  We have yet another reason to boo the crap out of Kaberle!!!  What was the first?  The fact that he absolutely stunk up the joint here last season.  If you know me, you know I was not a huge Kaberle fan...at all.  Like, not even a little bit.

In exchange for Jaroslav Spacek, the Canadiens have acquired enormously overpaid and under performing Tomas Kaberle from Carolina.  If you remember, Kaberle just a few months ago signed a 3 year, $12.75 million contract with the 'Canes.  According to the article I read, the 'Canes had been looking to move him for a month.  So what you're saying, Carolina, is that a month into the first year of his contract, you already regretted that decision?! Interesting...  I wonder why...

After 29 games played, Kaberle's line looks like this: 0 goals, 9 assists, and a -12.  Carolina also has the 4th worst power play in the league.  For someone who is suppose to be an offensive defenseman and a power play savior....Ouch.  Spacek's stat line isn't much better (12 games played: 0 goals, 3 assists, +2), but I still think for Carolina, this is a great move.  They gain a little cap room this year with his contract, but most importantly, he's a free agent at the end of the season.  They don't have to worry about the other 2 awful years left on Kaberle's contract.

As for the Canadiens, they currently have the 3rd worst power play in the league and they can expect to hit rock bottom now.  I'm not quite sure why they made this move.  Maybe their thinking is that Kaberle spent almost his whole career in the Northeast division and a move back to their will get him going.  I don't know.  I think he stinks, so anytime the Canadiens get a stinky player I'm happy with it.  Oh man, I cannot wait to boo him!!

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

New Realignment

After allowing representatives from various teams the opportunity to voice their opinions on which direction the league should go in regarding realignment, the Board of Governors have approved a brand spanking new, four conference alignment.  Here's how it shakes down (the conferences haven't been named yet):

Conference "A": Anaheim, Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Jose, Vancouver

Conference "B": Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Minnesota, Nashville, St. Louis, Winnipeg

Conference "C": Boston, Buffalo, Florida, Montreal, Ottawa, Tampa Bay, Toronto

Conference "D": Carolina, New Jersey, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington

You play everyone in your conference 6 times and everyone else twice (one home game, one away game).  I like the continued importance of "divisional" play.  What I also like is that every single season (until the next realignment) the Wings and Hawks visit the Hub.  It was a near crime that there could be a year not all six of the Original 6 teams would visit the Hub.  Unfortunately we only play Conference C (the other East conference) two times instead of four.  The little rivalries that have developed with NYR, Philly and Pitt will suffer, but I'll live.

The top four teams of each conference make the playoffs, so the same amount as the current format.  The first two rounds are played against your conference foes and I love this.  The B's / Habs rivalry has been so good lately because we've been lucky enough for them to have met in the playoffs.  With the heavy influence and emphasis placed on conference play, old rivalries will continue to flourish and I'm sure we'll see many new ones sprout up.

The first alignment plan was just a one for one swap: Winnipeg for either Detroit or Columbus.  If you think about it, it doesn't solve many of the problems that some teams face.  Mainly travel and the start time of games... plus that would've split up one of the better rivalries in the game.  Conference "A" and Conference "B" are aligned more appropriately with their time zones and should help garner more fans.  Not every fan base is as dedicated as Detroit and Chicago and stays up 'til midnight watching there team.

Overall, I'm a fan.  The great Northeast division remains intact and we welcome the two Florida teams to the fold.  Right now, that makes the conference even better as the Florida Panthers are leading the Southeast division right now and we all know what Tampa Bay brings.  Hell we now have 6 opportunities to get out of frozen New England and watch the B's in Florida in our floaties and our floral pattern swim trunks.  Not too shabby!!

8 Golden Points: Game 25 vs Pittsburgh

Bruins 3 - Penguins 1

8 Golden Points:

1.  Going into this match up the Penguins were the #1 seed in the East, 3 points ahead of the B's, while also having played 3 more games.  I think the B's showed last night that they are the team to beat in the East at the moment.  Still with 3 games in hand, the B's are now 1 point out of the top spot.  The winning continues with this team.  They've won 14 out of 15 games!!!  But even the game they lost, they still got a point out of it.  Mind boggling.  How 'bout you guys save some of this for April??

2.  Tim Thomas.  I can only pump this guys tires so much.  He made 45 saves against one of the premier teams in the league...even without the Movember mask!  He's on a 10 game winning streak.  He's now on pace to break his own record in save percentage.  I think we need to check his birth certificate.  He might have fudged some numbers to make himself appear older than he really is.  Advantage of that?  No idea, but he's got something up his sleeve.

3.  BIG props to the penalty killing unit.  If you told me that the B's would give the Penguins over three minutes total of a two man advantage...especially a FULL 2 minutes...I would've pegged the Pens for 2 goals.  The PK unit came up HUGE and killed off both 5 on 3 situations.  When one of your penalty killers is Tim Thomas, you always have a shot at killing those off.

4.  Gregory Campbell, who is a key member of the penalty kill unit, had himself a good game last night.  Although it wasn't pretty, hustle and hard work always seem to find a way to get rewarded.  But as most of you know, my favorite part of his game last night was letting Vitale know that we are not the Buffalo Sabres.  You do NOT touch the best player on our team (Thomas).  That was one hell of a fight with Campbell connecting with a few early, but give Vitale some credit, he got in a few good shots as well.

5.  I read an article on ESPN that said most people would most like to fight Brad Marchand.  Yes, the Gnat is a pest.  I'd probably hate him if he was on a different team.  You have to give this guy props though.  Unlike Subban, unlike Lapierre, Marchy will actually fight.  Is he a good fighter?  Hell no.  But the guy isn't afraid to drop the mittens.  I doubt he'd actually fight him, but Orpik gave Seguin a little whats good after the whistle and Marchand came right over and gave him a what's up back.  Orpik would tear him apart, but it's nice to see he isn't afraid.

6.  The defense needs to be given some love too here.  To be able to keep the likes of Crosby, Malkin, Staal, Kunitz, and Sullivan off the score sheet is pretty impressive.  The goaltender is a stud, but the defense wasn't giving them too many scoring chances.
7.  Just taking a peak at the stat leaders of the league.  One stat Mr. Julien would be quite happy about would be +/-.  Most people know Seguin is leading the league in that category with a +19, but Zdeno Chara is second with a +18 and Chris "sign me to an extension" Kelly comes in at third with a +17.  Not bad B's...not bad.

8.  Pepe Le Pouliout scored again.  He's been playing better as of late, but he's still in my dog house.  Maybe he's finally found his niche alongside Kelly and Peverley.  Let's see if he can keep this up.  When the B's start losing some games (if they ever do), how will his attitude change?

Next up:  Tonight vs Winnipeg Jets (11-11-4   26pts)

Thursday, December 1, 2011

David Krejci Extended 3 Years

David Krejci, who was to become a restricted free agent at the end of the season, has signed a 3-year contract extension with the B's.  It's reportedly a $15.75m deal, making him the highest paid forward on the team.

I like this deal.  Yeah, it's a little higher than I would've liked, but you have to understand where the NHL is heading.  This season the cap went up $4m and we saw teams this offseason giving free agents more money than we have seen the past few seasons.

Yes, Krejci is off to a little bit of a slow start this year.  Maybe he had the contract on his mind, who knows, but he definitely needs to step it up.  Now that he has this done with, let's see if he can perform.  He is unbelievably talented and although I wish he was a bit more consistent, when he raises his game he is one hell of a good player and he seems to raise it at the right time (eg. Olympics two years ago and the playoffs last year).  

If he had gotten to free agency, I'm certain another team would've given him an offer sheet of at least $6m per year.

What I do know is that the front office is doing one hell of a job keeping the core of this team intact while playing the cap game.

November to Remember

Although I have done a poor job documenting the historic run, the Bruins have just finished a near perfect month of hockey.  The only blemish coming in a shootout loss to the Red Wings on Black Friday.  I'll excuse that because they probably got up reallllly early to take advantage of all the super fantastic deals!!

Looking back, it's absolutely amazing that the B's started November with a 3-7 record.  That is just awful especially with basically the same hombres that just won the Cup.  No one predicted the team to turn it around this quickly, but I thought they could fight their way out of the basement and compete for one of the final playoff spots by the end of the year...as in 4 months from now.  This team is just too good, but with the parity in the league now, making up ground is not an easy thing to do.  Hell, I'd say nearly impossible, but what do I know...

...enter November.  Go ahead Bruins, just go and prove me completely wrong.  Rattle off 25 points in 13 games.  Go from last place in the East to within striking distance of the #1 spot (with two games in hand, one win would do it).  And make it look damn easy.  Yeah, it's cool.  Last season if a team went up by 2 goals, we lost.  But screw that, score 57 goals (over 4 per game!) this month.  I don't even get nervous now when we let up a goal or two.  My heart and my liver happily thank you for this confidence...

Not only are they scoring goals, they are still staying true to their defensive scheme (don't worry Claude).  They have a goal differential of +31.  Just a number to you?  The next best team is +18. What?!  That's just dumb.  For a "defense first" team, that's... damnit that's just dumb!

Hey Timmy, you old man, you won the Vezina, Conn Smythe, and Stanley Cup last season, you going to tone it down a bit?  No?  Oh you want to post a 1.93 GAA and .936 save percentage?  Yeah, I guess that's alright.  I mean that save percentage is a little weak.  You did have a record breaking .938 for the season last year.  Just saying... step it up.

But my one burning questions, not "can they keep this up?", but... what is Thomas going to do with his Movember mask?!  Can he really auction it off?  Isn't that against all superstitions known to man?

Anyways... it's time to say buh bye, November.  Who knows if we'll see another one like you again.

And hhheeelllloooo December, how you doin'?

Friday, November 18, 2011

Rask for Nash?!?

With Columbus recently in the Hub, there's been a rumor floating around that the Bruins could potentially trade Tuukka Rask for Rick Nash.  First off, unless the Blue Jackets have the old Boston regime in the front office, I highly doubt they would accept this trade or offer it.  Why?

First and foremost, Nash is your franchise player.  He's the only heart and soul this team has ever known and he's still only 27. Secondly, you were able to convince Carter to stop being a baby and leave Philly because he was going to be playing with one of the elite players in the league.  Trade Nash and Carter checks out.

Yeah, Tuukka is good but the Blue Jackets would be looking for another NHL ready player in return to accompany Rask.  Who are you giving up?  Krejci?  If so, I would want more than Nash in return for that.  So unless you want to turn this into a blockbuster, I just don't see the pieces available to get this done.

Let's say it does happen, who backs up Thomas?  Thomas isn't getting any younger.  I really hope he doesn't get hurt, but injuries happen all the time.  The Sabres are probably going to run him next Wednesday anyways.  Kazakhstan native Anton Khudobin is the goalie down in Providence, but I don't think he's NHL ready yet.  It would be much more beneficial for him to get reps down in Providence then sit on the bench.  They could kick the tires on Marty Turco or make a trade for disgruntled Evgeni Nabokov, but then again if the Blue Jackets are looking for a goalie fix on the cheap, why wouldn't they go for those options first?

Lastly, Chiarelli has said Tuukka is the goalie of the future.  Damn right he should be.  Why would you mess that up?  The Bruins will be solid in net for YEARS to come.  Why throw that away?!  Worst case scenario for Tuukka, he's the backup for two more seasons.  Unless Thomas has found the fountain of youth, I don't see them resigning him at 39, unless he wants to be the back-up and gets paid as a back-up.

Hypothetically speaking if the Blue Jackets did offer Nash for Rask straight up, you go for it and PRAY Thomas stays healthy.  But I just don't see it happening.

8 Golden Points: Game 17 vs Columbus

Bruins 2 - Blue Jackets 1  SO

8 Golden Points:

1.  The win streak keeps rollin' on.  This was hands down the ugliest win of the streak and probably of the season, but I'll take it.  Columbus is sitting in the cellar of the league and could've stole 2 points if it wasn't for the guy I'll talk about in Golden Point numero dose.  I feared the Bruins would have a let down this game and was actually bracing for a loss.  They do a great job of getting mentally amped for games versus some of the top dogs in the league, but just can't seem to get there for the games they should easily win.

2. Once again, Rask got a start... once again, Rask played very well... and once again, the Bruins played poorly in front of him.  Why can't this team play well in front of Rask?!  This was a game the B's could've lost, but the play of Rask kept them in it and ultimately won it for them.  It's a very good sign that Rask is getting a lot of starts early and taking advantage of them.  He's now 3-3 on the year with a 2.32 GAA and .919 SAA. Those numbers don't blow me out of the water, but I'll take it.

3. Ahh you had to know one of the points was going to be about McQuaider this post.  The Dude scored his first of MANY goals of the season.  Okay, he may not get many... ALRIGHT he WON'T get many, but damnit let me dream.  This is one of those goals you love to see.  The defenseman at the point just throws the puck towards the net, hoping to get a tip or a juicy rebound.  This time it paid off for McQuaid as his shot had eyes and decided to go in.  He played a pretty good game defensively too considering he was going against the top line and getting paired with Chara.  His play drew some positive feedback from both the captain and the coach.  Score one for the Dude.

4. No, Seguin did not show up on the score sheet.  No, he didn't score in the shootout (but should've...he deked the shit out of Sanford).  I just can't remember the last time the Bruins had a player like him.  Literally every time Seguin touches the puck you scooch your heiny to the edge of your seat waiting for something awesome to happen.  He plays with so much speed and he's just so damn good.  Just felt like sharing...

5. Shawn Thornton is the man.  Although the fight with Jared Boll was a draw to maybe slight edge Boll, that still doesn't matter.  Thornton...is...the...man.  He was very heated after the bout.  I tried figuring out what he was pissed about.  Some people say it's because Boll went catwoman on his ass and scratched his face, some say Boll went WWF on his ass and went for the illegal eye gauge.  Either way, "The Code" was broken and Thornton was not happy.  I think he needs a hug.

6. I use to hate the shootout because the B's SUCKED at it.  Knock on some friggin' wood, but the B's are undefeated in them so far.  I'd still prefer to see Bergeron on it instead of Peverley, but hey, if it ain't broke don't fix it.  It does help we have some stellar goaltenders too.

7. Pepe Le Pouliot in instead of Caron... poor decision and I'm not even going to elaborate.  If you want a fun drinking game, take a shot every time Pouliot falls on his ass.  You'll soon be falling as much as him.

8. With Ference out for a few games and with Johnny Rocket out with the flu this game, we've gotten a look at Kampfer again for a few games.  I haven't written anything about him, which is both good and bad.  I guess more good.  I guess that means he hasn't made any boneheaded plays.  I'll try to pay a little more attention to him next game to see if I can give you guys a little more color...or as the Canadians say... colour.

Next Up: Saturday night vs. Islanders (5 - 8 - 3  13 pts)

Thursday, November 17, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 16 vs Devils

Bruins 4 - Devils 3

8 Golden Points:

1.  The Bruins winning ways continue as the once 3-7 B's have now won 6 in a row and have improved to 9-7!!  They are still "last" in the division as of this morning, but they have at least 2 games in hand and are only 4 points behind the division leaders (Toronto and Buffalo).

2. Unlike the past 5 games, the Bruins had to win a close and tough one.  This game was very physical from early on with a combined 55 hits.  We saw Chara get flattened, a rare sighting and we also saw Krejci pancake a Devils player... also a rare sighting.  The Devils seemed to have controlled most of the play in the beginning, but Boston seemed to have the best actual scoring opportunities.  Usually a Bruins-Devils game can be relatively boring as both teams play a defensiveminded game, but there were spurts the other night where the play opened up a bit and you had both goalies needing to make some really nice saves.

3. This was a really solid game for the fourth line.  Campbell had one of his best games of the young season, causing the turnover for Kelly's goal and adding his second assist of the night for Thornton's goal.  I was very disappointed in Jack and Brick again.  Caron's touch pass between the legs to set up Thornton's goal was absolutely beautiful and the barely touched on it.  It's nice to see Thornton get rewarded offensively.  He does so much for this team that I think everyone can agree you get a little extra excited when you see Thornton pot one.

4. Pepe Le Pouliot threw a mean change-up at Hedberg and completely fooled him.  As usual I was getting frustrated with how Pouliot was playing.  He seems to spend more time picking himself up off the ice than actually doing something productive.  But I will give credit where credit is due.  He was in the right place and the right time and although I've faced slow pitch softball pitches that have moved faster, he managed to score the game winning goal. 

5. As he has been all year, Bergeron played like a beast.  Unfortunately Marchand didn't score, but Bergie made one of the prettiest passes I've seen.  After gaining the offensive zone, Bergie circled back towards the blue line waiting for others to join the attack.  Along the wall, he did a quick spin move and played a perfect backhand pass to the Gnat.  Unfortunately, Hedberg made a really nice save or that would've been a top play.

6. Brad Marchand took a very stupid roughing penalty in the 2nd penalty that resulted in Julien putting him in a time out.  He was forced to miss his next few shifts while he thought about his actions.  Minus 1.  Right off the opening draw in the 3rd period, the B's executed the same play we saw Lucic make a few games ago: the left wing floats to the outside like they are going to go along the boards, then with a burst of speed cut through the middle inbetween the two defensemen.  This time it was Marchy and he buried his half breakaway, making up for his mistake.  Plus 1.  YEAHH!!

7. It was a bit of a frustrating night for Nathan Horton.  His first couple chances in the slot he took WAAAYY too long to let his shot go.  Later in the game he got ROBBED by Hedberg.  Even though he lifted the puck Hedberg still made a great save.  You'd like to see Horton hit the water bottle on that one.  After not lifting the puck enough, Horton had a great chance to take the lead again shortly after, lifting the puck too high and crushing the cross bar.  Just one of those nights for Horty...

8.  Even though a total of 7 goals were scored this game, I thought both goaltenders made some really nice saves.  Hedberg made 37 overall (Marchand and Horton both getting robbed) and Timmy made 30.  Thomas the Bruins may have caught a break as Kovalchuk did not play in this game.  But the Devils can't complain, we didn't have Paille.  They are practically the same player...

Next up: Tonight vs Columbus Blue Jackets (3-13-1)

Lucic Avoids Suspension

I have delayed putting this post up because head of player safety, Brendan Shanahan, usually puts a video on NHL.com regarding his disciplinary decisions, but for some reason did not create one for the Lucic-Miller incident.  I guess he only does a video if there is a suspension.  For the most part, Shanahan has done a really good job.  He clearly lays out why he made his decision and I find the videos he posts very informative.

Anyways, I am shocked.  As much as my inner Lucic bias is telling me he didn't mean to hit Miller, there's no question he could have avoided the hit.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining he wasn't suspended, the guy has been on fire lately, but I wouldn't have argued if he got one game.  My fear is that the Sabres will take a run at either Rask or Thomas.  If they do, every player on that ice needs to be ready to fight.  This Bruins team will not shy away from an altercation. 

The real crime here is the Sabres response...or lack there of.  Not only did they not do anything right after Miller was hit, they had the rest of the game to let Looch know what he did was wrong.  Even though he hasn't played like it yet this season, Miller is one of the best goalies in the league.  You see your goalie lying there with his mask off, you need to give that perpetrator the business.  Shanahan should've suspended the whole Sabres team for that.

"But Dome, the Bruins failed to respond when Savvy got hit by Cooke."  Yes, I know.  And if I had this blog up and running I would've torn them apart for that embarrassment.  Maybe the lack of response from the Sabres and the hammering they took from the media and fans will wake them up like it did the Bruins.  You can't even sneeze on a Bruins player without everyone there to back him up.

Each season creates new story lines with every team.  Montreal and Philly have a million and make watching those games very enjoyable.  Next Wednesday's game against the Sabres just got much more interesting.  I love seeing a good Lucic fight, so the Sabres better not let me down.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Catch-Up : 8 Golden Points

Although late, I will do 8 Golden Points for the past three games in this post.

Bruins 6 - Islanders 2
Bruins 6 - Oilers 3
Bruins 6 - Sabres 2


8 Golden Points:

1.  No, I am not channelling my inner devil, though you would think hell was freezing over.  The Bruins did indeed score 6 goals in each of the last three games (and an outrageous 30 in the last 5).  Julien is probably pissed.  He finds this type of hockey boring.  1-0 games are his specialty.  Anyways, the often snake biten Bruins have found their scoring touch.  I honestly can't remember the last time the B's offense looked THIS good.  They need to ride this as long as they can.

2.  Seguin... my golly gosh.  I thought he would have a better season this year, but my god. 7 goals in the last 4 games and that total should be 9.  He nearly had another hat trick against the Islanders.  He's had a point in all but three games this season.  He's 5th in the league in points, 3rd in goals, but what get's Julien's juices flowing is he's 1st in the league in plus/minus.  Dynamite in the offensive zone, but playing responsibly in the defensive zone.  Claude looks smarter and smarter every day.

3. Seguin's not the only player on fire right now, but the top line is starting to play like a top line.  Krejci and Horton have begun to find there game and Lucic remains red hot.  This line was 6-7-13 these three games. When your top two lines are rolling like they're rolling right now, it's a lot of fun to watch.

4. The main reason the Bruins have been a good team the past few seasons is not because of their offense.  They've had a sound defensive scheme, but most importantly their goaltending has been a brick wall.  Thomas (2008,2010) and Rask (2009) have held down the fort.  Rask got back to back starts against the Islanders and Oilers and the team FINALLY played well in front of him.  He looked really impressive against the Islanders, as the score was actually close until the third.  He wasn't as impressive against the Oilers, but luckily the rest of the team was.  Timmy was back in net against the Sabres and just like Rask, did not need to stand on his head for a B's victory.  If both Rask and Thomas play up to their abilities and the offense continues at a fraction of the rate it's currently going at, the B's are going to have a good season!

5. I went to my first game of the season last week to see the Oilers play.  People who aren't hockey fans probably wouldn't initially want to go see this team play, but I highly recommend it.  Besides the obvious "Taylor vs Tyler" storyline (which Tyler won by the way), the Oilers also have the number one pick of last years draft, Ryan Nugent Hopkins, and another good young player in Jordan Eberle.  If managed right, this is going to be a very good team for a long time.

6.  Marchand has finally started to find his scoring touch again. Scoring 3 goals and picking up 3 helpers for 6 points these three games.  It helps that he's playing with the best offensive player on the team, Seguin, and the best all around player on the team, Bergie.  He's keeping a diary for ESPN Boston and his latest one is pretty interesting: talking about how refs are giving him a warning before games even begin!  Are you telling me they aren't going to allow him to do this again?

7. We have our first Hamill sighting of the season!  This really screws up my analysis from right before the season.  He was drafted as a center, but apparently has been playing wing this year down in Providence and has been having some success.  Maybe he won't be a complete waste...

8. Pepe Le Pouliot finally got his first goal as a Bruin!!  Too bad Caron did all of the work for him!  I'm still not sold on Pouliot as you all can tell.  It's pretty telling that the "emergency call-up", Zach Hamill, played over Pouliot when Peverley was back in the line-up.  Someone needs to sharpen his skates, I know it's slippery out there but the guy falls down ALL THE TIME. 

Next up: Tuesday vs Devils... a win and we hop them in the standings.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 12 vs Maple Leafs

Bruins 7 - Maple Leafs 0

8 Golden Points:

1. Spell check keeps trying to tell me "Bruins 7" is wrong.  I promise you checker, the Bruins scored 7 goals and in the past two games have scored 12.  What?!  The Bruins absolutely positively dominated this game.  All three zones, every situation, all the battles, everything.  The Maple Leafs literally gave up half way through the 3rd.  I don't know if I've ever seen a team just STOP playing.  It was beautiful.  Let's hope he B's can keep this up.

2. The big story of the night, of course, is Tyler Seguin.  His first career hat trick with three beautiful goals: PP on timer, bats one out of the air, and a nice complete end to end play.  He did this in front of HIS hometown, growing up 40 minutes outside of Toronto, and in front of his country as it's "Hockey Night in Canada" on Saturday nights.

3. On the flipside, the player we'll always be comparing Seguin too, Kessel, had another miserable outing against the Bruins.  The B's have to be in his head.  He's the leading goal scorer in the NHL and he only had 2 shots on net?  He had a golden opportunity to give most of us the bird when he had a break away in the third, but decided to pull his best Peverley impression and completely miss the net.

4. The Bruins only had two power play opportunities this game, but again converted on one of the tries.  Baby steps in the right direction.  And again the stone wall known as the penalty kill unit stepped up to the plate, shutting down the Leafs on all four of their chances.  I was not keeping track but it seemed like the Bruins penalty killing unit actually generated more shots on goal the the Leafs power play unit.  Again...domination.

5. I love saying good things about Lucic.  You lose a lot of credibility when the the player of the jersey you own stinks.  Lucic stunk in the playoffs and smelt like he needed a diaper change earlier in the season, but once we got him a fresh set of pampers he's been lights out.  Not wanting Seguin to get too far ahead of him, he decided to throw two goals in the net himself.  He now has goals in 3 straight games, 5 out of the last 6.  I could really use a Lucic fight soon....  Just saying.

6. Timmy gets his first shutout of the season.  It must be nice to have to carry your team once in awhile.  He didn't have to make any ridiculous saves, didn't really have bail any of his teammates out too badly (Kessel did that himself by missing the net), he just played a solid game.  The Bruins played from puck drop to the end of the game and rewarded Timmy with a shutout.  I'm hoping we see some Rask and hopefully the team continues to play well.

7. I haven't said anything about the defense and you'd think they would have something to do with a shutout right? Agreed.  It's just not as juicy as a Seguin hat trick or putting Kessel down, but the defense the past two games has been Claude-esque.  Meaning I'm not just talking about defensemen, the forwards also played great defense.  The whole "onion" system is working again and if you watch the game you'll hear Jack and Brick constantly talk about layers.  Get by one layer of the defense, your met with another.  It's not flashy, but when it's working right it's fun to watch.

8.  I thought with the game out of reach, there was no way Thornton was going to have to fight anyone.  WRONG...well sort of wrong.  He didn't fight anyone, but he tried to fight Phaneuf after his hit on Kelly.  I'm not sure how Phaneuf didn't get a penalty because it sure looks like he left his feet on this one.  You see who the first person over to greet Phaneuf was...Caron.  What a guy!  Nice things about Caron - 2, Nice things about Pouliot - 0.

Friday, November 4, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 11 vs Senators

Bruins 5 - Senators 3

8 Golden Points:

1.  After the way the Sens scored their first two goals, I was about to go throw up.  Not because I was rockin' head heat to the tune of 103.6 degrees, but because the B's just can't seem to get ANY bounces.  But to my surprise, we finally saw what made this team champs: resilience.  They kept fighting shift after shift.  At some point the luck HAD to turn, and it finally did.  A complete game effort from these boys.  13 different players with points.  Welcome to the 2011-2012 season boys, only took ya 11 games.  Please don't go back to the way you were playing before... pretty please.

2.  I'm a big fan of the way Chara is playing right now.  He has taken his physical game to a higher level.  I loved that hit on Spezza at the blue line and I loved the hit on Karlsson in the corner.  Both those hits sends a message to both teams.  The Senators want nothing to do with Big Z and the rest of the team follow the lead of the their captain.  He even added 2 helpers.  What a good guy.

3.  My boy, Looch.  He started off slow this year... okay very slow... alright INSANELY slow.  But since he's picked up his physical play guess what has happened?  The scoring has come with it!!  He has 4 goals and 3 assists in the last 5 games.  That puts him tied for the team lead in goals and 2nd in points.  Ahh I can wear my jersey without shame again!

4. Shawn Thornton has stones.  Period.  Hopefully the Bruins have turned a corner or he's going to have 75 fighting majors this year.  Every single time the Bruins need a boost, Thornton has to find the other teams tough guy and play rock 'em sock 'em robots.  I don't love my job either, but I wouldn't want to get punched in the head every night.

5.  The B's power play had 7 opportunities to score this game and did... once.  Hopefully if we are seeing a turning point in this team, we see the power play turn it around too (come on, I can hope).  On the flip side, the penalty killing unit shut down the leagues #1 rank power play unit 3 times.  Yes, I agree that stat is a little shocking.  The Senators have the leagues best power play.  It didn't even look that good.  I'll try and catch a the next Sens game on Versus or NHL Network.  See if it's actually that good or just an early season fluke.

6.  I didn't think our good friends Jack and Brick gave Caron enough (actually any) credit for his play.  On two of the goals (Kelly and Boychuk), Caron drove to the net and put a nice screen on the goalie.  One of those goals he actually got the assist.  More points than Pouliot.  Just saying...  Nice things about Caron - 1, Nice things about Pouliot - 0.  May the best man win.

7.  After it looked like Marchand was picking up where he left off last season, he has gone cold...ice cold.  With an assist this game he broke is SIX GAME pointless streak and he hasn't scored a goal since the fourth game.  He DID punch Subban, so that sort of counts as a goal since it's a goal of many Bruins fans to one day punch Subban, so I don't know how we count this one.  You still haven't scored a goal, Marchy, but I'll give you one mean high five if I ever see you in person.

8.  As cold as Marchand has been, his linemate Bergeron has been hot hot hot.  His beautiful goal this game extended his point streak to 5 games.  Though, I don't know if we can really count this as a point streak.  In fact I'm not.  I'm sorry Bergie.  You literally were eating ice when you "scored" a goal against the Habs.  You just so happen to be the person closest to the puck when it went it.  You're playing well, really well, but you do not have a 5 game point streak in my book.  Only 2.  Everyone knows Golden Spokes keeps the official stats.


Next up: Saturday vs Maple Leafs (9-3-1 and 1st place Northeast Division)

Saturday, October 29, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 9 vs Canadiens

Canadiens 2 - Bruins 1

8 Golden Points:

1. This is getting pathetic.  You see the Bruins "scored" one goal in the box score.  That's false.  The Canadiens scored on themselves.  Although I will always take it, you have to realize the Bruins CAN'T FRIGGIN' SCORE.  Story of the franchise for the past few years.  And don't give me this Ryder bullshit.  Ryder sucked and would not be helping this team right now.  We have players who can score.  Get your head out of your tooshies and put the puck in the net!!!

2.  Subban finally dropped the gloves with someone.  Although I was hoping for Horton, I wasn't pissed that it was Marchy.  Took three times before the refs allowed this fight to occur.  Marchy is smaller than Subban and got man handled at one point, but he got in a few shots.  Big props to the Gnat for doing something EVERYONE in Boston wants to do.

3. Thomas again and again makes unbelievable saves.  You would think after a while I'd get use to it.  I haven't yet and I don't think I will.  His break away save on Cammalleri was just beautiful and had me jumping all over the apartment (sorry downstairs neighbor).  The B's were winning 1-0 at that point, making that save even more important.  Now let's try and get the players in front of him playing better.

4. Star Wars Part XIII: The Return of Darth Quaider.  I will kindly disagree with  most people's analysis of McQuaid's game.  I thought on the whole he played well.  He was manning the point really well, getting low shots through the net or just wide of the net.  Yeah, he was a minus 2.  He made one mistake that led to a goal.  But I wouldn't say he struggled.  I'd say the whole team struggled.

5. How many opportunities is Peverley going to miss??  This is his second or third break away this season where I literally had no faith the puck would even come close to going in.  I mean if the Habs decided to pull the goalie, he definitely would've scored, but unfortunately there was a goalie there.

6. We brought Horton in here to score.  He had a GOLDEN opportunity tie the game and whiffed.  Horty, you're a goal scorer last I checked.  If you are wide open 5 feet in front of the net, you're suppose to score.  Just a friendly reminder.

7. Exit Wideman.  Exit Ryder.  Enter Pouliot.  From the beginning he had an uphill battle winning me over.  I know I made it rain gross man turds on him previously, but I would've reversed my tone had he showed me anything.  And I mean anything.  He has done NOTHING.  I would rather Caron in the lineup doing nothing than Pouliot in the lineup doing nothing.  At least Caron is gaining NHL experience.  Pouliot sucks.  Trade him.

8. The defending Stanley Cup champions sit in last place.  That's right, the stinking Jets are ahead of us.  The Islanders are ahead of us.  This team needs to wake up really quick or it's going to be a long season.  All those fans they gained last year will go bye bye.  Not like I'll care about that part.  It'll just be easier for me to get tickets.  This will just be a very negative blog.  Maybe change the name to Copper Spokes... ZING!

Next up:  REMATCH against the Habs.  Montreal's a tough place to play, let's hope they step it up.  They lose tonight, there will be some changes.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

The Evil Empire

Tonight we get our first taste of one of the best rivalries in all of sports.  No, I ain't talking about the Yanks.  I'm talking about the Habs.  B's vs Habs have made the Sox vs Yanks rivalry look like a tickle fight between two school girls the last few years.  Yeah, I hate A-Rod, but even Yankee fans do.  Public enemy number one? PK Subban (when are we going to see a Subban vs Horton fight already!?).  I would LOVE to see Chara throw Gill around like he did when Gill brought shame to the B.  But I think PJ Axelsson could take Gill in a fight.  And what a loser Pouliot... oh wait.  He's on our side now. 

It doesn't get much better than a good hockey rivalry especially with two teams that have as much history together and seem to literally HATE each other.  It probably makes it better because you can actually fight the other team (within the rules...sometimes) in hockey.  And boy do these two teams do a lot of fightin'. 

Not to mention the two teams have been pretty good the past few years.  That's what made this Stanley Cup win even more sweet.  It went through Montreal first.  Yeah, winning it going through Florida then Atlanta would've been nice too.  But we had an epic battle against Montreal then mopped the floor with the Flyers.  The two teams I hate the most!! 

It's not uncommon that I spend a few hours just watching some of the classic Bruins/Habs moments.  If you know me, I tend to find the brawls the most appetizing and there has NOT been a shortage of those the past few years.  I could watch last year's brawl on repeat for days on end.

The Bruins are struggling to play their game consistently on a night in and night out basis.  Last year they thrived off playing emotional and that emotion has been lacking to put it nicely.  Montreal is in a similar situation.  They have stunk up the joint so far, going 2-5-2 to start the season.  They just fired their assistant coach and are looking to get back on track.  They did play Philadelphia last night, so hopefully we can catch them a little flat/tired.  I don't count on that though.  With the way these two teams play, it's going to be just like camping... intense!

With both teams struggling, I predict a very entertaining home at home mini series here.  Both teams need to prove to the league they are better than their records and need to prove to their fans that they are ready to step it up.

Bruins.... Habs...  ROUND 1!! 

Remember to follow GoldenSpokes on twitter during the game.  Expect a lot of Dude comments as the mullet makes its triumphant return tonight.

Friday, October 21, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 7 vs Toronto

Bruins 6 - Maple Leafs 2

8 Golden Points:

1. As we saw in the later part of the 'Canes game (which I'd like to forget about), Julien went with a different combination of lines to start this game and boy does he look like a genius.  This looked like a completely different team out there.  6 goals from 6 different players.  The Maple Leafs came into this game red hot while the B's have been ice cold.  You would not have known that after watching this game.

2. I think I'm going to change the name of this segment to 7 Golden Points + Seguin.  Last night, instead of playing center on the top line, he slid over and played ring wing along with Kelly and Lucic.  How'd he respond?  A goal and 2 assists.  In 7 games Seguin is 2-6-8 +5.  As a team we've only scored 17 total goals and he's been apart of 8.  One of his best plays came at the end of a shift, he hustle backed on a defense, dove and broke up an odd man rush.  He's doing it all!  And I repeat... "THANK YOU KESSEL!!"

3. In my last 8 Golden Points, I mention Lucic and Horton were just baiting everyone into thinking they sucked and that they were going to start playing well real soon.  Well as always (or on rare occasion...whatever), I was right.  The best game of the year from these two.  When Looch plays that North-South hockey, he's nearly unstoppable.  Not too many players can push him off the puck.  Crunching Phaneuf early in the game was a good indicator of things to come. 

4. We saw the return of David Krejci last night.  It can't be long until he goes back up to the first line.  He is just so good with the puck on his stick.  As Jack would say, he's the master of time and space.  Although he didn't show up on the score sheet, he had a solid game and didn't appear to show any lingering affects from his "core" injury.  He also went 11 for 16 at the face off dot. 

5. The Bruins special teams showed up last night too.  The PK unit has been lights out all year long, shutting down the Leafs on all 4 of their power plays.  On the year the PK unit has killed off 28 of 32 power plays for 10th best in the league.  Not too shabby.  The PP unit also ate their Wheaties this morning, going 2 for 5 on the night.  As Bergeron said after the game, they kept it simple and didn't hesitate.

6. The defense looked very good tonight.  Chara had a monster game (goal and 2 assists), Ference had a monster first period (3 assists) and a monster open ice hit on Grabovski.  During the preseason there was a battle for the 7th defensemen between Bartkowski and Kampfer.  After watching the last two games, it's CLEAR Kampfer is the 7th defensemen.  The only bad was Siedenberg was a minus 1.  EEeek.

7.  For the first time this season, you didn't feel like our goalies had to be unbelievable in order for us to get the win.  Lucky for us, our goaltenders are unbelievable anyways.  It wasn't necessary for Thomas to be stellar tonight, but when he needed to make a save he did.  Stoning Grabovski on the break away and Steckel on the doorstep during the closing seconds of the second were huge, timely saves.  He almost had an assist as he threw one down the ice to Seguin that was called offsides. 

8. Phil Kessel... ahhh the trade that keeps on giving.  As a Bruins fan, you have to get a little giddy when you see him put up 0-0-0 -1 and Seguin puts up 1-2-3 +2.  It's just beautiful.  At the end of the month Golden Spokes will do a "Prospect Preview" and see how the talent pipeline is looking.  If you watched the game last night, you saw stats on how Jared Knight and Dougie Hamilton are tearing it up for their juniors teams in the OHL right now. 

Next up: Saturday vs San Jose Sharks (1-3-0)  Welcome back, Jumbo Joe.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 6 vs Hurricanes

Hurricanes 4 - Bruins 1

8 Golden Points:

1. This game turned real ugly and real embarrassing REAL quick.  Yes, I do believe the officials made some poor calls (Seidenberg's "boarding" and Chara's phantom high stick), but the Bruins need to keep their cool.  You aren't going to win games when you are playing down one man for an extended period of time, let alone 2 men.  It's nice to see Claude show some emotion and get ejected, but this team has to find a way to play some consistent hockey.

2. No matter how frustrating the game, it's embarrassing to see fans throw stuff onto the ice.  There are only 2 times that's acceptable: hat trick (hats/lingerie...winky face) and a big playoff victory (rally towels).  A cup full of your dip spit?!... get the heck out of here.  Any of those people real hockey fans? Boo, curse, punch your friend in the arm, whatever.  Don't throw stuff.  Not cool

3. Although Chara couldn't play for 15 minutes (5 minutes for fighting and a 10 minute misconduct) afterwards, I appreciate what he was trying to do.  For some reason this team can't stay focused for an entire game.  He saw an opportunity to try and provide a spark for his team.  Unfortunately he got slapped with a 10 minute misconduct because the Hurricane's don't know how to fight.  Well I guess I can't blame Harrison, I'd turtle too if I saw Big Z coming my way.

4. While I was thoroughly amused watching Horton toss Gleason around like a rag-doll, it was completely uncalled for.  Gleason's an agitator and could see Horton was about to boil over.  A little cross check from behind and that set Horton off (combined with the fact Gleason wouldn't drop the gloves with Lucic moments before).  At that point in the game the Bruins were starting to get momentum back as they just scored a power play goal (hip-hip-hooray!) and it was only a 2-1 game with plenty of time left.  But that set off a chain of events where we were 1 or 2 men down for the next 7 minutes.  Are you kidding me?! Can't cost your team the game like that.

5. TnR said this morning that Kelly has been getting hammered because he dropped a guy with a sweater over his head.  Watch that fight again.  When the sweater gets pulled over Sutter's head, Kelly stops.  Sutter then continues to throw punches.  What is Kelly suppose to do?!  Exactly what he did.  Get his arm free from his sweater and deliver the knock out punch.  Plus the Hurricane's sweaters are white, he could see through it.  Kelly's not a fighter, so seeing him accept the challenge is always nice to see.

6. Claude gave Bartkowski some shifts early with Ference.  He did not earn much more than that.  He struggled early, looking a bit silly on the first goal and made poor decisions on the back end.  Ference was scrambling early to cover for his weak or off the mark passes.  He's just the band aid until the Dude comes back, but it's clear Bartkowski needs some more time in Providence.

7. I have to give credit where credit's due.  The Bruins gave it to the 'Canes early and Cam Ward put up the stonewall.  They became frustrated with their inability to score and then were goated into taking stupid emotional penalties.  Ward was the best player on the ice last night, though he needs to learn to keep his mouth shut... or not pick a fight with the biggest player in the league.

8. Tuukka Rask.  He wasn't as good as he was against Colorado, but he still played a pretty damn good game.  He kept them in the game until the 'Canes went on what felt like a period long 5v3 advantage.  It's pretty hard to stop that.  Maybe one day the Bruins will show up when he's in net.  We also almost saw our second goalie fight in recent memory!  Instead Ward used his impeccable persuasive skills to convince Rask he was merely discussing politics with the big fella.

Next up: Toronto

Monday, October 17, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 5 vs. Blackhawks

Bruins 3 - Blackhawks 2 SO

8 Golden Points:

1.) Seguin is making a strong case to remain part of the top line even when Krejci returns.  Do I actually think this will happen?  As of right now, no.  But if Krejci returns and that line continues to struggle, Seguin has shown that he's more than capable of being the #1 center.  Another strong game from the young man, assisting on the game tying score and netting the only goal in the shootout.  [Kessel is having a nice start to the year as well]

2.) Timmy friggin' Thomas.  There isn't any Cup hangover with this guy (27 saves).  I think Edwards was trying to get Shane "Sheriff" Hnidy's attention at one point, calling Thomas a "thief" (at least all of Chicago didn't call 911).  Who thinks Thomas should incorporate the Dikembe Mutombo "not in my house" finger gesture in his repertoire?  I also love how after he makes an insane save they go to a close up of his face and he's just got this "yeah...that just happened" smirk on his face. 

3.) As Joe Haggerty tweeted (@HackswithHaggs), Boychuk played like a "boss" the other night (1 A, 6 hits).  That was one of the best games I've seen Boychuk play, if not the best.  He was blocking shots, playing good defense, and did 99% of the work on Horton's goal.  Maybe Boychuk should Occupy Horton's Locker to get that 1% to work harder.

4.) Peverley almost dropped about 8 spokes in my book.  Luckily they won, so only 7.5.  He found himself on a WIDE OPEN break away in OT.  You have been named alternate captain of the defending Stanley Cup champions... in a "very close to a must" win game... OT.... you deked Crawford out of his onesie... and MISSED!!  <insert curse word>

5.) Lucic and Horton, are you guys awake?  I know you scored, Horton, but that is the ONLY time I noticed you.  Plus didn't you read my 3rd point, Boychuk did all the work.  These are two of my favorite players on the team, so it's really upsetting to me that they haven't shown up.  Wait! I know!  They are just lulling everyone into a false sense of security, then when we least expect it, they'll show up and score a double hat trick!!  Brilliant!!

6.) It's a shame the NHL can't come up with a better way to get these two teams to play more.  Original 6 match-up, great fans and these are two of the better teams in the NHL.  Somethings got to be done.  I don't know where I read it, but someone suggested an Original 6 round robin of sorts.  I'd love to see that.  One team gets the Original 6 trophy every 2 years of so.  That was some damn good hockey.

7.) Ding ding ding.  We had our first fight of the season!  It wasn't anything to write home about.  I appreciate Campbell trying to kick some life into the B's as they were zombie-esque in the early going.  I'll really get excited once the Dude drops the mitts.  Any chance he chokeslams someone through the ice?

8.) Power play.  Yes, they have only scored once.  Yes, that was the first power play of the season.  I'm not saying I'm happy with the production, but anyone watching HAS to admit this looks better.  If they keep playing like this on the power play the puck has to start going in.  They are moving the puck a lot faster, they don't have Kaberle, and they aren't standing still.  I guess I'm just a glass half full kind of guy.


Next up:  REMATCH against the Carolina Hurricanes (2-2-1 5pts)

Friday, October 14, 2011

Game 3 and Game 4 Recap

My apologies for the late posts, but a surprise baby (Uncle Dome!!) has halted blogging.

I will not be doing 8 Golden Points for games I do not watch on TV or live.  I feel that repeating someone else's points of the game aren't my points at all.  But I will share my thoughts on what I read...

Avalanche 1 - Bruins 0
This game was played on a Monday afternoon.  Unfortunately, my job doesn't give fake holidays off so I had to sit in my cube and listen to as much as I could on 98.5.  I was able to tune in towards the end of the 1st period and the commentators were not pleased with the B's effort.  They said if it hadn't been for Rask, the game would have been out of hand early.  The remaining periods didn't seem all the much better either.  They had their chances, but just couldn't finish.

Rask is probably thinking "here we go again".  He makes 35 saves, let's in one goal... and loses.  The defending Stanley Cup champions should be able to put in ONE stinking goal against the second to worst team last year.  Pathetic.

After the game, Julien called out the top line.  Good!!  In previous seasons, I don't think he would have done that.  Maybe he understands that this year he needs to have a shorter leash on the players.  Especially in the early going when everyone is gunning for them.

Hurricanes 3 - Bruins 2
I was able to catch about a period of this game.  I thought Thomas made some really nice saves (though that Stewart goal was weak).  More importantly, Seguin was clearly the best player for the Bruins.  With Krejci out with a "core injury", Seguin stepped into the #1 center role nicely.  Even without the goal, I would've said he was the best player out there, but then he roofed a beautiful shot top shelf.  Man, he's going to be good.

I didn't see Marchand's goal, but so far it seems like every time I'm writing a recap for a game it's Marchand - Seguin... Seguin - Marchand.  I'm very pleased that the two players who seemed to be celebrating the most this offseason are the ones that have seemingly put the Cup victory behind them. 

The Bruins don't have the skill to take nights off.  They won it all last year because they worked their tails off and wanted it more than the other team.  They need to step up their game and get over this stupid Stanley Cup hangover.  It's obviously not time to panic, but I'm not happy with what I'm seeing so far

Hopefully the Dude is okay.  The end boards said something mean about his mother and he gave it a solid head butt with the side of his fache.  He's travelling with the team, so we'll see if he plays Saturday night.

Next up: Chicago (2-1-0)

Sunday, October 9, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 2 vs Lightning

Bruins 4 - Lightning 1


8 Golden Points:


1.) There were some whispers that Rask would get the start, but Handsome Ralph (Julien) went right back with Thomas last night.  Lightning fans probably threw up in there mouth a little bit when Thomas pulled out a deja vous moment and robbing Malone with a diving paddle save.  Thomas made 26 saves and the only goal he let up was to fellow Catamount alum St. Louis on a break-away.

2.) In my expert opinion, Marchand has been the best player to start the season.  He collected 2 assists last night and had many opportunities to net a few goals.  The Gnat has not slowed down one bit from last season, through the preseason, and now to start the season.  Along with showing off offensively, he put on a tutorial (take notes Downie) on how to be a agitator. He did a great job all night frustrating the Lightning (St. Louis for one).

3.) Not to be outdone by his fellow youngster, Seguin has been the second best player to start the season.  His confidence is through the roof right now, 3 points in 2 games.  Not only is he showing up on the score sheet, but his overall play and "compete level" has significantly improved from last year.

3.) As I mentioned a month or so ago, Lucic plays with a lot of emotion.  He usually uses it in a positive manner, but we see him once in awhile throw a slash out of frustration.  We saw that last night.  One of the times Hedman did fall down like his name was Suppan, but Looch has to keep his cool.

4.) Downie again shows why I absolutely despise him.  I understand his role, most teams have one of him.  His job is to get under the other team's skin and hopefully goat them into doing something stupid.  The difference is, he's a bitch.  He engages in a little patty-cake with Chara, but then turns to the ref when Chara smacks him in the face.  Marchand's a gnat, but he at least will stand up for himself.

5.) McQuaid made his season debut last night.  Yeah, he gets his own point.  When you rock a mullet and look to rock opponents faces on the reg, you earn ample Golden Spokes press.  I nearly jumped through the roof when I thought McQuaid had scored.  Unfortunately, that thief Paille stole it from him.  Jerk.

6.) I'm not quite sure why the Lightning aren't getting more press.  They have Lecavalier, St Louis and Stamkos: three of the best players in the entire league.  Great win against a championship caliber team.

7.) The power-play didn't cash in, but you cannot deny it looked a hell of a lot better than anything we've seen in a LONG time.  There was a lot of movement, plenty of shots and opportunities, and I wasn't screaming my head off at the TV.  I thought the second unit was particular impressive.  They were flying all over the place.  Now that's what I like to see.  They need to start finishing though.

8.) Return of Jack and Brick!!!  Best way to enjoy a game... actually be there.  Next best way to enjoy the game, NESN with Jack and Brick.  If you disagree you probably would also tell me white mint chocolate chip is better than green.  Preposterous.

Next up: Western Conference foe, Colorado Avalanche (0-1-0).

Friday, October 7, 2011

8 Golden Points: Game 1 vs Flyers

Flyers 2 - Bruins 1


8 Golden Points:

1.)  Holy crap that opening montage was AWESOME.  I was reliving the emotional wreck I was the entire postseason.  The suspense of playoff hockey is second to none. I literally need to remind myself to breathe or I may pass out.  I'm not a huge fan of the talking, I think that makes it drag on a bit (no offense Brick).  Bringing back some of the '72 boys to help raise the banner was a classy move by the organization as well.  Oh man, if you didn't get misty eyed when that banner started flying, you probably just started watching the team on June 15th and wear a pink Seguin jersey.

2.) Sophmore slump?  Puh-leez.  Both Seguin and Marchy might've been the best Bruins on the ice last night.  Seguin's thread-the-needle pass to spring the Gnat for our lone goal was beautiful and Marchand's move on Bryzgalov was pretty nifty.  He had the opportunity for another few goals as well.   Very excited to see what these two will do this season.  Hopefully they don't pull a Lackey and Beckett and drink their fache off.

3.) Power-play was a mixed bag.  And not like a delicious trail mix.  You know, some pretzels/crackers/nuts, but then you strike gold with an M&M!!  Marchand's goal was on our first power play, but the next few opportunities looked eerily similar to last year: a whole lotta watching and standing going on.  The last two power plays in the third looked a heck of a lot better.  Which one are we going to see this season?

4.) Horton, Horty, Hortster.  WIDE OPEN NET.  Just lift the damn thing, I've seen you roof a shot before.  Falling away while shooting at an "open" net.  If he stayed strong on his skates he could have lifted it over Timonen's stick.  But no, I jump off my couch ready to do a little jig of excitement... only to sit back down without getting to do a jig of excitement.  Totally...not...cool.

5.) Like most fans, Adam McQuaid's hair due was at the top of my "to see" list.  I'm happy to report, the mullet lives.  Unfortunately, McQuaid has a virus that only descendants of Hercules get, so he had to sit this one out.  I didn't notice Bartkowski, which I guess is a good thing.  If I had it probably would mean he coughed up the puck or made a stupid pass.  Keep the bench warm, good sir.  The Dude shall return.

6.) I was thoroughly impressed with Grandpa Jagr.  I did not think he was going to look that good coming back to the NHL at this point in his career but he proved me waaaay wrong.  And if you keep reading this blog, you will see that that is REALLY hard to do.  The guy can still play and play really well.  He set up the Flyers first goal with a nice pass and then had a few opportunities himself throughout the game.  Can he keep it up the whole season?  It'll be interesting to see how the Flyers monitor his minutes.

7.) Voracek... Voracek.  Where did I read that name before??  OH YEAH.  He was picked right before Zach Hamill.  And Logan Couture was picked right after.  That's like having the most delicious bread in the world, but you realized the turkey you were throwing in between flat out SUCKS!

8.) After coming out flying, it looked like the Bruins just ran out of gas.  In the back of your mind, you had to expect that.  They come out, warm up, get loose, then sit around for another 30-40 minutes.  Then they are all jacked up off adrenaline, then crash.  I wouldn't trade any of that in for anything, but it'll be nice to have last season behind us.  It's repeat time now.

I guess my well thought out prediction of the team going 82-0 isn't going to happen.
NEW PREDICTION: 81-1!!!

Next up: Eastern Conference Finals rematch against the Lightning.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Twas' The Night Before Hockey


'Twas the night before hockey returned to the city
Showing pictures of the rings that look OH so pretty
They will raise the 6th banner up to new heights
I hope Burrows is watching thinking… this bites

The Cup will be on display for the fans to woo
With all the spelling correct unlike the Gnats tattoo
Good bye Ryder, we won’t miss you at all
Nor will the Cup, for tonight it is safe from an epic fall

The bear has awaken, the Garden crowd will roar
As the dormant puckheads are dormant no more
Recchi will be present, but not on his skates
Replaced by Pouliot, who Edwards clearly hates

The Tank is rested, ready and pumped up his tires
For tomor’ begins another season 'gainst the Flyers
Versus has the game, so even if Timmy steals the show
They will talk about JVR because his d*** they do bl**

A repeat championship would absolutely be great
Even though that hasn’t happened since the Red Wings in '98
Sequels usually stink, except the Mighty Ducks 2
Knuckle pucks, bash brothers, and wu wu wu Kenny wu

I’m starting to doze as the night turns to dawn
One more night, then the Lucic jersey goes on
Good night, sleep tight and rest well please
Remember to keep coming to Golden Spokes, for all your Boston Bruins needs!!

LET’S GO BRUINS!!!

B's Bling

Anyone who has watched, played, followed, or suffered through the 39 year championship drought has been waiting for three things:

1. Seeing The Stanley cup back in the Hub.
2. The chance of a repeat.
3. How blinged out their rings would be.

Well, we've got #1 down, and #2 starts Thursday night at the Garden when the Bruins begin their march toward another cup. On Tuesday, the rings were unveiled for the first time, and boy are they nice.
Thank god that drought is over. These rings, if you have not seen them, are probably worth more than my truck. I guess the Jacobs’ family really cheaped out by only putting 300 diamonds on the ring…..ridiculous. Check out the legend finally getting his ring.

·
(Top) Bruins logo on top of the cup

(Side 1) Players name, number, and 6 diamonds representing the 6 Stanley cups

(Side 2) Stanley cup with the years of each win

(Inside engraving) Series recap from the 2011 playoffs

Best part, they have designed replica rings for fans to buy! It may not be the real thing, but it's as close it's as close as it gets. There's only one word to describe walking around with your own Bruins replica Stanley Cup Champions ring. BOSS.

Roster Breakdown Part 3

As we all expected the last remaining long shots have been sent down to Providence:

F Max Sauve: 2008 2nd Rounder
F Lane MacDermid: 2009 4th Rounder
G Anton Khudobin: 2004 7th Rounder by MIN, acquired in a trade for Jeff Penner and Mikko Lehtonen

With Kampfer injuring his knee in the second to last preseason game, that pretty much ends that battle for the 7th defensemen.  He suffered a sprained MCL and will be out for 2-4 weeks.  This will give Matt Bartkowski some solid practice time with the big guys.  I don't expect to see him in any games too early unless there is an injury.  We all know Claude never ever sits anyone for performance... **cough** WIDEMAN **cough**.  Excuse me, with the fall weather coming I must be coming down with a cold...


According to Boston.com, the Bruins will NOT give Chris Clark a contract.  He was invited to training camp and played the whole preseason without a contract.  That's some good news for Jordan Caron as many thought he was going to be sent down to Providence because he didn't need to clear waivers (me being one of them).  Though I am very happy Caron staying.  I'm just not completely sold on Pouliot.

Clark shouldn't have any trouble finding a home.  From what I read he played well in the preseason and if Caron didn't show up to the table chomping at the bit, he probably would've made the team.

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Zach Hamill: BUST?

I've gotten a few questions from friends about Zach Hamill.  I'm pretty low on him and rather quick to lay on the verbal assault.  Can I really call him a BUST at the age of 23?  Seems a little harsh.  I'm a complete disaster of a bust if you base my career from college to 23.  But luckily I'm not judging myself...

In 2006 we drafted Kessel 5th overall and then we were drafting Hamill 8th overall the following year.  He had over 90 points during the 2006-2007 in juniors, so it seemed like a good pick at the time.  For a team that was struggling to score, I was pretty pumped.  I didn't think Hamill was going to make the club immediately, but had high hopes that a year or so working out and developing in Providence would work wonders.  WRONG!

I looked at all the forwards that were drafted in the 1st round of 2007, paying even closer attention to the ones drafted in the top 10.  Does anyone else see that ugly duckling?! 


Yeah I know hindsight is 20/20 but COME ON MAN!  Don't tell me that there are others in the first round that haven't done anything either. I'd tell you I consider them busts as well.  You need to look at where Hamill was drafted.  Number 8 overall and he's only appeared in 4 games in 4 seasons!!  That's it. 

He's had opportunities too.  Bergeron went down for almost an entire year with a concussion from 2007-2008 and then Savard was out the end of the 2009-2010 season and most of last season.  If the brass felt like Hamill was good enough, they would've slated him in for a few games.

I say he's a bust.  What do you guys think?

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Roster Breakdown 2

Seven more players have been assigned to Providence.  As I mentioned in the update to the first roster breakdown, Zach Hamill needs to clear waivers in order to be assigned to Providence.  Trent Whitfield is also in the same boat.

F Zach Hamill (2007 1st Round Pick, 8th overall)
F Trent Whitfield (1996 4th Round)
F Jamie Arniel (2008 4th Round)

D Colby Cohen (2007 2nd Round by COL - part of Hunwick trade)
D Zach McKelvie (undrafted signed in 2009 but not released from the Army until recently)
D David Warsofsky (2008 4th Round by STL - part of Sobotka trade)

G Michael Hutchinson (2008 3rd Round)


Who's left?  Glad you asked!  We're coming down the home stretch and almost all the spots are already locked up as this team looks very similar to the one that just raised the Cup.  There's still some good competition going on.

Forwards:
LOCKS - Patrice Bergeron, Gregory Campbell, Nathan Horton, Chris Kelly, David Krejci, Milan Lucic, Brad "the Gnat" Marchand, Rich Peverley, Tyler Seguin, Shawn Thornton

FIGHTING - Jordan Caron, Chris Clark, Benoit Pouliot, Lane MacDermid, Daniel Paille, Max Sauve

PREDICTION - Paille and Pouliot with Clark being the healthy scratch to start the season.  I don't like it, but Claude hates change and loves veterans.  Personally I'd like to see Paille/Pouliot the healthy scratches, Clark on the fourth line, and Caron on the third, but I just don't feel thats the way Claude's going to draw it up.

Defensemen:
LOCKS - Johnny Boychuk, Zdeno Chara, Joe Corvo, Andrew Ference, Adam "the Dude" McQuaid, Dennis Seidenberg

FIGHTING - Matt Bartkowski, Steve Kampfer

PREDICTION - I give the edge to Kampfer since he's played with the team before, but basically a coin flip at this point.

Goalies: Anton Khudobin is still in camp and has been playing well.  He only gets any time if an injury occurs to either Thomas or Rask.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Cup Engravings / New Banner

The 2010-2011 Bruins are finally etched in history.  A picture has surfaced as what the engravings on the holy grail look like.  I saw this over at the Days of Y'Orr Bruins Blog. 

I'm happy to see that the league allowed Savvy's name to appear on the cup, classy move.  It's also nice to see Cam Neely's name on the cup.  Even though it wasn't as a player, he obviously played an enormous role in bringing the Cup back to the Hub.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I also meant to post this up awhile ago.  The B's have taken down their old championship banners and replaced them with new ones.  The new ones bear (get it!) the logo that was used at the time of the championship.  Check those out here.  I like 'em.  Can't wait for number 6!!!

Roster Breakdown

UPDATE (3:50pm): Since Zach Hamill has played three full season for the Baby B's, he has to clear waivers to return to Providence.  He has been placed on waivers, so if he's not claimed he'll be added to the list of Providence Bruins.  Is it mean if I hope he's claimed?



With a hair over a week before the banner gets raise, there have already been a series of cuts.  Before the first preseason game against Ottawa, five players were sent to Providence and one back to his juniors team.  After the Islanders game, an addition ten were sent to Providence and four sent back to their juniors team.  As expected, Dougie Hamilton will be returning to his juniors team.  I will be following his season down there throughout the year and do a periodic update on our prospects.

Providence Bruins:
Tyler Randell (2009 6th Round)
Stefan Chaput (2006 5th Round by CAR)
Calle Ridderwall (undrafted - signed in 2011)
Kyle MacKinnon (undrafted - signed in 2011)
Yannick Riendeau (undrafted - signed in 2009)

Craig Cunningham (2010 4th Round)
Ryan Button (2009 3rd Round)
Andrew Bodnarchuk (2006 5th Round)
Josh Hennessy (2003 2nd Round by SJS)
Nathan McIver (2003 8th Round by VAN)
Jamie Tardif (2003 4th Round by CGY)
Marc Cantin (undrafted - signed in 2011)
Carter Camper (undrafted - signed in 2011)
Kirk MacDonald (undrafted - signed 2009)
Kevan Miller (undrafted - signed 2011)


Junior Teams:
Anthony Camara (2011 3rd Round) - Saginaw

Dougie Hamilton (2011 1st Round) - Niagara
Alexander Khokhlachev (2011 2nd Round) - Windsor
Ryan Spooner (2010 2nd Round) - Kingston
Jared Knight (2010 2nd Round) - London

Preseason Sweep

Preseason Game 4: Good Guys 2 - Bad Guys 1 (Bell Centre)
When the Patriots can't beat the Bills and the Red Sox just don't know how to play baseball, I'll take even more enjoyment in a Bruins victory over the Habs.  So what if it's a preseason game, the B's have beaten the Habs on back-to-back nights. 

Tuukka got his second start of the preseason tonight for and didn't disappoint us, collected 31 saves in the victory.  Another positive sign was the power play scored again, this time from Seguin.  Man I want to see him on the first unit pretty damn badly.  When was the last time the power play scored in 3 straight games, 2003!?

We got some serious competition going on between some forwards and dmen.  Both Caron and Clark (1 G) had solid games on the forward front.  My question is why do we assume it has to be one of these two?  If they are playing better than Paille and/or Pouliot, why can't they go?  We'll keep an eye here.

Another one that continues to develop is for the 7th defenseman between Kampfer and Bartkowski.  Both had solid games again last night.  If they both prove they should be in the bigs, do one of them get traded?  Or does one of the big boys (Boychuk) get traded?  The plot thickens...

Monday, September 26, 2011

Preseason Games Part 1

I'll run through the preseason games that happened so far.  Now this all my opinion on what I've read, so an opinion of an opinion.

Preseason Game 1:    Ottawa 2 - Boston 1 (OT)
There isn't much to talk about in this game.  Even though it went to overtime, from what I read the Senators controlled the entire game.  The reason the Bruins were able to keep it close was because Rask played a great game (34 saves).  Lane MacDermid, playing on a line with Chris Kelly and Shawn Thornton, scored the only goal for the Bruins.  As the first preseason game, I'll just be happy Rask played well and we'll move on...


Preseason Game 2:    Boston 6 - Islanders 3 (TD Garden)
Is there some man-crush going on with the Islanders??  Rookie games, this preseason game and another one this weekend.  Sheesh.  Well, this game didn't start out well for the B's, with Thomas letting in 2 of the first 5 shots he faced.  They turned that around as you can see by the final score.  It also looks like my prediction of Jordan Caron stepping into Recchi's spot on the second line is not looking too good.  Not because Caron is playing poorly, but because the line of Marchand (1 G, 1 A, +2), Bergeron (1 G, 2 A, +2), and Peverley (1 G, 2 A, +3) absolutely dominated this game.  It's also good to see Lucic (2 A) and Krejci (1 G) show up on the stat sheet.

Remember that awful power play last year?  Yeah, I don't want to either, but that will definitely be under the microscope all preseason and season until they can prove us they've turned it around.  They took a step in the right direction going 2-5 on the man advantage.


Preseason Game 3:    Boston 7 - Habs 3 (Halifax)
Even in preseason, it's always awesome to beat the Canadiens.  Again the Bruins scored 2 power play goals (Corvo and Marchand) and even 2 shorties (Chara and Paille).  Best part of this game?  Horton playing.  We've seen what concussions have done to Savard and Crosby, so it's nice to see Horton has been able to bounce back like Bergeron.

From what I'm reading, both Matt Bartkowski and Steven Kampfer are having good preseasons.  I'd give the edge to Kampfer since he's had some big league experience already.  Camp invitee Chris Clark (veteran who had his best seasons with the Capitals), is also having a good early preseason.  He could put a wrinkle in Jordan Caron making the team.  Caron doesn't have to clear waivers to be sent down to Providence, but Clark does.  Clark also has that "veteran experience" that Claude drools over.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Goaltenders

Tuukka Rask (11-14-2   GAA: 2.67   SV%: 0.918  $1.25M):  After a coming out party in 2009-2010, Rask was slow out of the gate this past season, not picking up his first win until Nov 18th (his 5th try!).  I didn't think he played as poorly as his win-loss record indicated, but he definitely struggled.  There seemed to be a few bad breaks go against him along with the team not playing as well in front of him. 

There was a stretch in late February to early March where Timmy wasn't playing well. He looked a little slow and flat out tired.  Julien leaned on Tuukka to take a heavier work load for a bit and he responded by playing well during that stretch.  That allowed Timmy to get some rest and finish off the year strong. Although Tuukka would love to the be starter, he began to grasp the backup role.

From what you see on TV after the games, Tuukka seemed to have a great attitude about being the back-up to Thomas.  The two seemed to have a solid relationship and Tuukka was always there to greet him with a smile.  Tuukka is the future goaltender of this team, he just has one of the hottest goaltenders in the league playing in front of him right now.  Give it another year or two and we'll be able to break out our Tuukka Toga's!

We need Tuukka to get off to a better start this year.  Thomas isn't getting any younger and he'll need his rest during the season.  Tuukka needs to be able to step in and provide solid relief in games to show us he's ready to take over.  Look for Chiarelli to lock Tuukka up for a couple more years as he's a restricted free agent after the season.


Tim Thomas (35-11-9   GAA: 2.00   SV%: 0.938  $5.0M):   Thomas had a pretty disappointing season.  It looked like he was going to be the back up after Tuukka took over the starting spot in 2009-2010.  Let's talk straight here, he was an awful back up.  The back up is suppose to periodically spell the starter, not completely take over.  How many back ups in the league break the record for save percentage in a season?  None.  How many back ups win the Vezina Trophy (best goaltender during the regular season) and Conn Smythe (MVP of the playoffs)?  None.

Alright, enough goofing.  At the age of 36 (at the beginning of the year), people thought Thomas was done after the season he had in 2009-2010.  Apparently he just needed a little hip surgery and BOOM, even better than new.  The season he had was downright filthy.  Then when you thought it couldn't get any better, it did.  After the first two playoff games, Thomas was a brick wall.  Without Thomas, the B's probably don't even win the division let alone the Stanley Cup.  Can't you just hear Jack now, "AAAHH SUPERMAN!", every time he made save?!

A lot of people point to the save against the Lightning as the save of the year.  I can be swayed, but I answer your save with another.  While that save was absolutely amazing, and one hell of a Reebok commercial, the save of the year to me literally saved their season.  Game 5 versus the Canadiens in 2OT. No, losing this game doesn't end their season, but Montreal is a very very tough place to play.  If that goes in, the season is likely over and Horton stops smiling...yeah, that's pretty sad.

Now it's nearly impossible for T-squared to have a better season.  He'd have to break his own record, save a baby from a burning building, beat Chara in an thumb war and win all those shiny trophies again.  Although it's possible, I'd say it's highly unlikely.  I mean, Chara's thumbs are HUGE.  Give me 90% of what you did last year and I'll be happy.

Thomas is another guy that won't get complacent just because they won the Cup.  He's always had the "me against the world" mentality and I don't expect anything different.  You just have to wonder when will his age start to catch up to him.  Luckily if it does, we do have one of the best young goalies as a back up.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Top Line

Nathan Horton (26-27-53 +29  $4.0M):  One of the trickle down effects of the Kessel trade was that it allowed us to shop our own first round draft pick in the 2010 draft.  That led to trading that pick (15th overall), my least favorite player (Wideman), and a 3rd round pick for Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell.  Would you do that trade again?  HELL YEAH!  He's like Bergeron, been in the league for 7 years but only 26 years old!!  All together now: "THANK ...YOU ... KESSEL!!"

I don't think Horton has stopped smiling since he put on the black and gold sweater.  It's got to be a good feeling going from an obismal team in the Panthers to one of the most historic franchises in all of sports.  He started the season out strong, scoring 5 goals in the first 6 games.  This looked like it was going to be highway robbery, but in the middle of the season he hit a bit of a drought.  He could go a week or so without showing up on the score sheet.  "Not even a helper, Dome?"  Yeah, not even a helper. 

I can forget all of that because he came on towards the end of the season and had a monster postseason, scoring 8 playoff goals.  Not to mention two of those being Game 7 game winners (Habs in OT and the epic tilt against the Lightning).  It's obvious how well he's liked on this team, as Rome's hit seemed to be the spark and rallying point the Bruins needed to crush those 'Nucks.  What a feeling that has to be to have the greatest player ever, Bobby Orr, waiving your number at the next game! Now that's what's up!

Then Game 7 squirting some Boston Garden water onto the Vancouver ice.  Watching that footage still gets me fired up!  WOOOOO!!!!  Sorry I got a little excited.

With a whole year under his belt, concussion free, and hopefully confidence sky high, I want to see 30+ goals out of him.  We brought him in to score goals and he has one of the craftiest centerman in the league setting him up.  Put the biscuit in the basket, Horton, and you'll hear plenty of WOOOO's!

David Krejci (13-49-62 +23 $3.75M):  Two years ago, Krejci had a coming out party during the Olympics.  Then once Savvy went down with the first concussion, he filled in nicely on the top line.  Not the only reason, but one of the main reasons we couldn't get passed the Flyers that year was because he got hurt (and we end our discussion about that).

This year I had high hopes for him.  It's hard to say that a player that led the team in assists and points during the regular season and then goals and points in the postseason was a disappointment, but I really wanted to see him break 70 points during the season like he did in 2008-2009. 

Like the rest of the team, he stepped up big in the playoffs, scoring almost as many goals in the playoffs as he did the whole season (12-11-23 +8).  It's not a bad thing that he takes his game to a new level come crunch time, but I would like to see him keep that high level of play throughout the regular season as well.

Krejci's play makes it much easier to swallow the loss of Savard.  The top line is still a force to be reckon with and at 25 years old, I don't think we're close to seeing what he can do.  He's a restricted free agent at the end of this season, so I would love to see Mr. Chiarelli approach him early in the season and get a deal done.  I'm confident that will happen, since they didn't spend any money this offseason with an eye to the future.


Milan Lucic (30-32-62 +28 $4.083m):  Mr. Lucic had the best regular season of his career with career highs in goals, assists and points.  When he's on top of his game, he's a lot of fun to watch.  What Bruin's fan doesn't like a mean power forward?  Crushing defensemen, scoring goals, and just pummelling people he doesn't like.

My favorite play of his, besides when he's playing Mr. Potato-head with someones face, is when he A frame's and glides out from behind the net looking for the backdoor cut.  There aren't too many people in the league that can push him off the puck.

Looch is a very emotional player, which most people will take any day.  He just needs to make sure he doesn't do anything too stupid.  We saw a few times this season that he'll just pop a guy in the face because he's angry (not when they're actually squared up to fight).  If he keeps doing that he might find himself getting suspended, so hopefully he can channel his emotion into a positive manner.

It pains me to say that Lucic had an AWFUL playoffs.  Believe me I was doing everything I could.  I wore my Lucic jersey t-shirt under my Lucic 3rd jersey.  I lit candles on my Lucic shrine and when that didn't work I tried incents.  Nothing worked.  Was he injured?  Maybe, but who isn't at that time of year.  I'm just going to chalk it up to a slump and hope it doesn't bleed into this year.


If we keep these guys, we could have a very good top line for a very long time.  Horton is 26, Krejci is 25, and Lucic is 23.  Look for these guys to have another solid year together.