GOLDEN POINTS: Boston Bruins vs New York Rangers

Rangers 4 - Bruins 3 SOL

Bruins Goals: Krejci (4), Horton (4), Marchand (7)

Rangers Goals: Hagelin (4), Stepan (2), Stralman (1)

Man, oh man.  For about 90% of this game there wasn't much good to be said, except for the delicious dinner that was prepared for me!  A lot of the B's looked off (see below) and they didn't seem ready to play.  As angry as this game made me, you get the feeling that the Bruins are always in it.  They never give up and you can tell that whenever they get down a goal or two (or three) they still believe they have a chance to win.  While they didn't win, they earned an improbably point out of this one.  I'll take it!!

And my thoughts:

• I thought Chara had a poor game again.  He was making awful decisions.  Someone needs to piss him off.  Hey Marchand, go poke the big guy a little bit.  Get him angry.  When he plays angry he gets back into it.
• Another bit of negative feedback from me is for Peverley.  Definitely his worst game of the year.  Him and Chara must've gone to lunch together and ate some funky clam chowder because their games were just off.
• Last bit of negativo coming from me, Rask.  The second and third goals need to saved.  This is a big game and in big games, we need to see Rask make some big saves...and some easy saves.  It's not going to be perfect, so I'll let Rask have this one.  Let's just hope he can turn it around.
• Alright, some positive stuff.  Despite playing what I thought was a poor game, they still managed 40 shots on Lundqvist and eventually pulled a miracle right out of their asses.  You don't see this very often at all, but they were able to score 2 goals with Rask pulled.  Yes, if there was a camera on me I would've looked like Jack Edwards....and GET OVER IT... I KNOW HE'S A HOMER... you tell 'em Jack.
• I hate/love Nash.  It still boggles my mind Columbus couldn't do anything with him.  It's a shame.  It'll be a shame if NYR can't do anything with him either.  Look at his shootout goal.  Just dumb.

Next Up: Buffalo Sabres

GOLDEN POINTS: Boston Bruins vs Buffalo Sabres

Bruins 3 - Sabres 1

Bruins goals: Marchand (6), Bergeron PPG (2), Lucic ENG (3)

Sabres goal: Ennis (5)

After Snowstorm Nemo found New England and brought upon us snowmagedan we got treated to a divisional matchup with Sabres.  I don't know what it is about them, probably just the fact they have Ryan Miller and Tomas Vanek, but no matter how bad they are it's always a tough game against them.  

The Sabres handed the B's their only regulation loss of the season last time they played (and it was a pretty awful loss), but since the B's are 2-0 allowing only one goal.  Not too shabby!  There was no revenge for Scott beating up Thornton, and I didn't think their should be.  It was a fair fight and Scott just crushed Thornton.  I think the goal should be to keep Scott on the ice as much as possible, dude sucks.

• Ahh, the return of the Gnat.  Usually it takes a game or two to get back up to speed after missing so many games, but Marchand picked up exactly where he left off: scoring goals and pissing people off in the process.  He scored his team leading 6th goal last night and baited Ott into an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.  Booyeah.
• Hamilton finally shows that he's a rookie.  I've been pumping this guys ego thus far, so I feel obligated to also mention when his play is only great not super amazing.  This was the first game that I've watch where I noticed multiple mistakes on Dougie's part (the cross ice pass that got intercepted and a way too eager pinch up the boards that he got burned on).  Luckily, neither led to goals (or I don't think they did).  Kids learning.
• Ryan Miller is a damn stonewall.  He made some incredible saves, especially the one on Horton comes to mind.  He was the only B's killer that showed up last night.  I didn't even notice Vanek out there.  Good job by the B's to contain him.
• Speaking of goalies, need to give some love to Khudobin as well.  He's showing he's ready any time he's called upon.  Only allowing one goal and also making his share of great saves.  I'm really liking this goalie tandem and quite frankly it helps ease the pain for the downward spiral off this Earth that Thomas went through.
• Do I really need to complain about the power play?  And don't point to Bergeron's goal.  Yeah it was nice, but the PP still sucks.  I'm done.

Next Up: New York Rangers Part III

Training Camp Begins

Ready?  Set.  GO!

There's no time to get ready this year and definitely no time to get set.  The gun has sounded and every team is a GO.  Well at least that's the approach the Bruins are taking.  With very little turnover from the prior year, I'm hoping this helps the B's more so than other teams.  I don't expect it to be perfect, but familiarity with Claude's system and more importantly fellow linemates should allow the B's to get out of the gates flying.  Before the season starts, we have a very mini training camp.

Only six players from Providence have been asked join the big boys this week.  The most noticable name NOT amongst the six is Jordan Caron.  After Benoit Pouliot (farewell Pepe!) was traded to Tampa Bay this offseason, it was a reasonable assumption that Caron would make the jump to a full time NHLer given his time with the club and flashes of good play when called upon.  During the lockout he played with the Baby B's down in Providence and from what I read, he has not had a good season thus far.  It appears that Ray's son, Chris Bourque, is going to be given the first shot at earning that spot.

With Joe Corvo and Greg Zanon also gone, there's an open spot on D, but we all assume that 19 year old Dougie Hamilton will be taking that spot.  He's already made a good impression on his teammates and captain (ESPN Boston).  I cannot wait to see this guy play.  I'm realistic and I know it will take a 19 year old time to develop, but I'd much rather have a rookie or sophmore back there making mistakes and learning than the likes of a Corvo/Kaberle/Wideman/Zanon/Mottau/#YouGetThePoint  making mistakes and peeing their pants.


Tickets go on sale Wednesday.  I am accepting donations in the form of tickets to any and all games.

HOCKEY IS BACK!!!!

Welcome back, NHL!  You don't know how badly I have missed you.  I tried watching the NBA.  That lasted about one quarter.  It'd be much better if you let KG and Carmelo duke it out on the court...sissies.  I tried watching NCAA basketball.  That's better, but I don't really have a team to cheer for.  I like football a lot and the Pats are luckily fun to watch, but come on...

NOTHING      BEATS    HOCKEY!!

I must admit, I avoided this blog throughout the lockout.  I had a lot to say, but they were not very nice or kind words, especially towards our own owner, Jeremy Jacobs (he's not reading is he? Video).  Anytime the B's were brought up, I'd start chatting it up calm, cool and collected.  Gradually I'd feel my heart start to race and fire flow through my veins, so I'd remove myself from the conversation before a baby got punched.  But that's the past...let's focus on HOCKEY HOCKEY HOCKEY!!!! When I found out they agreed on a CBA I dusted off the Lucic jersey and blasted the Bruins goal song.

What I'm excited for this year:
1. Besides hockey fights, I'm most eager to see where Seguin takes his game this year.  He seems like he's on the verge of becoming a real star.  He played really well in Switzerland, let's hope he can continue his development and take his game to the next level. (Video of Seguin's dominance in Switzerland at Puck Daddy).

2. A close second is Dougie Hamilton.  I cannot wait to see this kid play.  He's been dominating juniors, so I'm eager to see how that translate to the big league.  Put him next to big Z and let's see what we got.

(1a/2a: Funny how my first two points are related to the Kessel trade... thank you, Brian Burke.  Oh, sorry you just lost your job.)

3. Tuukka toga time.  I think Rask is ready to be a number goalie in this league.  With only a one year deal signed, he's playing for a HUGE contract.  I hope he gets it.  The back up goaltender on the other hand is a huge question mark.

I could go on, but those are the three things I'm most interested in.  Oh man, let the countdown begin, and Mr. Jack Edwards start warming up those pipes, it's going to be a fast and furious season.

JANUARY 19th, RANGERS @ BRUINS

P.S: I moved in with my girlfriend this fall.  I told her now she'll understand what it's really like to live with me!!!

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!!