Happy New Year, Boston!

Let's follow up on that 

(other) World Series title 

with (another) Stanley Cup 

(yet another) Super Bowl victory 

and a first-ever MLS championship 

to go with all that -

now, wouldn't that be nice, 
hmm?!? 

Yup - *B* Strong in 2014! 

As Always, Boston!

Strong and Classy!

2014: The Bruins' Epic 90th Year! 

Epic, no matter what happens! 

Why, you ask?

'Cause...

''Win Or Lose, Bruins Will Bruise!''

That's Why!

Sempre Por O Melhor!

+++

Dreams Of The Future

For Providence Has It...

that it shall be bright!

Or, at the very least, as we used to say, way back then, 

''Win or lose... Bruins Will Bruise!''

Photo Credits: Providence Bruins - AHL

The Dream City Of Champions - once again!

The last time we blogged ever-so dreamily...

the Boston Red Sox were about to take Game 4 

and square up that World series all up at 2 games apiece! 

Next, they took a 3-2 lead in the series 

winning a second one in a row - in St.Louis! 

And then, heading back home 

in the position to finally win another championship 

at the venerable Fenway Park 

-the first one since 1918- 

they did so in brilliant... even luminous fashion

with a roaring 6-1 win in Game 6! 

A third World Series title for the once-cursed team 

with the other two having been sweeps 

(over Colorado in 2007 and St.Louis -again- in 2004) 

and all three with a certain BIG PAPI 

on the team: this year's Series MVP...!

And so here was the scene after all that transpired: 

 It was a mere six months ago. An eternity, or so it seems. 

 Lives were changed forever by a tragedy;  

 another one triggered by some men's folly. 

 The finish line of the Boston Marathon  

 had been turned into a scene of desolation and despair. 

 Where there should have been triumph, 

 there was only death and unnecessary torment. 

 It took this many months, actually, 

 for things to be made right again. 

 But, finally, this Saturday, November 2nd,  

 the tragedy gave way to the triumph 

 that should have permeated those streets back in April.  

 It had to wait until November to finally be restored  

 with this victory parade -that could have been  

 the second this year, had the Bruins won just two more games  

 back in June.... The Bruins' run was uplifting, but incomplete. 

 And THIS is what the city of Boston sorely needed 

 in order to fully heal from its tragic April of 2013...  

 And here they have it, then: in the form of 

 the World Series champions Boston Red Sox!  

 The healing process required crossing the exact same finish line 

 which had been the scene of that atrocity 

 and make it a scene of triumph and joy again 
 for crowds expected to reach one million people  

 as the parade covered the entire celebration route.  

 At the end of all this, at that finish line, a touching gesture 
 designed to assuage every Bostonian's pain  
 over the last six months: 

 Red Sox outfielder Jonny Gomes  

 depositing the World Series trophy on that very spot, 

 The trophy was draped with a team jersey  

 upon which all could read  

 "Boston Strong 617"  

 the very heartfelt slogan conceived in the nick of time 
 in order to help an entire population overcome  

 the horrid feeling in their hearts and souls 
 following the ignoble terror attacks. 

  Click the print screen above for a video  
  and check out more Wochit videos on Yahoo Screen.  

Thank you Jonny! 

That was cool! 

Thank you Big Papi! 

Thank you Boston Red Sox 

and the two Johns;

John Farrell and John Henry

All hail Boston's latest Champions - 

the 2013 Boston Red Sox! 

Congratulations! 

+++

Agony & Ecstasy - Yet Neither Dreamy?

With the glaring exception of GAME ONE of these 2013 ''WORLD SERIES'' (the game that saw Jon Lester get accused of greasing the ball as to alter its velocity significantly enough in order to gain an unfair advantage, as he was dominant on the mound for the Boston Red Sox as they crushed with such ease the St-Louis Cardinals 8 to 1 and left no doubt which one was the superior team, that night...) - said series has been a roller-coaster ride of ho-hum feelings and sensations...

Fans (meaning RED SOX NATION; all other fans of ''America's Pastime'' are obsolete) are compelled to question the questionable (calls such that ''fielder's indifference'' aka OBSTRUCTION call in Game 3 - that made no sense) question the unquestionable (our manager, Farrell, inexplicably keeping handing the ball over to Breslow - who hasn't pitched well since the BIG DANCE began here!  He was effective against Tampa Bay and Detroit though; so maybe he's one of those guys that goes ''strictly the American (League) way'' then?) and dodge all the rest - that is when they're not just feeling queasy, jittery and all-together ooky.

However, the series is so evenly-matched, with both teams having garnered the exact same record this year (97-65) during the regular season (which does include ''intraleague'' play) that it is pointless to get too nervous early on: it is almost assured that this will go down to the last pitch.  Game 7. Ninth inning. Full count. Bases loaded. RED SOX WIN!  (That's my scenario and I'm sticking to it!)

Still, having blogged all this and all that - let's have a closer look at all the infuriating things from the past few innings... shall we?

Didn't have the luxury to be at the *main work station* prior to this hour, so it was prepared through, ah... other means!  Have a look:

Can't believe they'd complain more about the way FOX intersperses 

the game's (often uneventful) innings with interviews, 

and not rage against the refs and their controversial call...?!?

Anyway...

Onwards to GAME FOUR - 

where the Sox used THREE STARTING PITCHERS! 

Buchholz, Doubront and Lackey! 

And, in the end, it was Tazawa and Uehara that got it done! 

Sure, it was a total team effort 

at the most crucial time, 

but, truly, Junichi Tazawa is the main relief pitcher 

and absolute set-up man 

for closer... terminator... 

Koji Uehara! 

The Boston Red Sox 

would be nowhere near the elite team 

that they are, now, without 

these two! 

It was a trying week-end, to say the least: but, now, we've got them crimson birds right where we want them!  No doubt about that!  GO, SOX, GO!  FEAR THE BEARD(S)!!!  

And Game 5 is on as we blog...! 

:-! 

Dream Beards

Everything old is new again - and everything that works (or, that is, at least, a time-honored tradition that works to some extent; most of the time) can be transposed onto a new setting, new environment and new sport!  Such is the case of the proverbial playoff beard...!  

What worked for the Boston Bruins (particularly well in 2011) has also been seen, in the past, put to use in the wondrous realm of Major League Baseball, too - but, now, it truly has come full circle whilst becoming the main trait of this decidedly hirsute 2013 edition of the Boston Red Sox!

And may the shavers and Gillettes of this world stay away for another while, too! 

Because this Bostonian Barbarian with Big Bats look works! 

Big Time! 

See the Sox triumph! 

Sport the Sox facial hair style! 

And, if you're an opponent, 

FEAR THE BEARD! 

There can be no doubt that it is working: already, the Boston Beards have triumphed, first of hated rivals from T-Bay (the Rays, they say? They're still the Devil Rays to me! And why not demonize thugs who hang out in Tampa, hmm?) Destroying these self-proclaimed ''new East perennial contenders'' in a short series to start October was just perfect: from the lopsided first win all the way to the last out that clinched a 3-1 series win: truly, 'twas the joy of Sox...!  (Pun intended - we're tipping our hats, here!)

And then the Sox disposed of the dreaded Detroit Tigers who, aside from having the distinction of hailing from a city in ruins, worthy of an apocalyptic Z-movie (not a B-movie, no; that would be too good for the ol' Motor City) in grand style, 4 games to 2 - with big swings from great bats: GRAND SALAMMIES as some have been heard saying (especially during those eight decades that saw other teams, with fanbases considerably less-cultured and far less eloquent, were getting it done; all during the woeful years of ''the Curse''...! But that is another story - and, THANK GOD ALMIGHTY, old history, all in the past now!) 

Fittingly, the Boston Red Sox triumphed in such grand style of the Detroit Tigers just as the Detroit Red Wings have come onto Boston Bruins territory (the new Atlantic Division, duh) and Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons are challenging each other for the bottom of the standings; and best strategic position for the next NBA lottery...! (The New England Patriots and Detroit Lions have no issues with each other: for several years, now, they're at the opposite end of the NFL pecking order! No need to precise which ends those are and for whom they are - EH?)

The Bruins lost a pre-season game to the Wings in embarrassing fashion: but then came back and blanked them the very next time they faced each other in training mode.  They split up a pair of games in the regular season so far and sit atop their division, with the oddest runner-up of all in-between them, Toronto! The old Adams Division/Northeast foes are bottom-dwellers or bound to be: Montreal, Buffalo and... er... where have Hartford and Quebec gone to, again? They've gone south alright! 

Boston's clearly Detroit's superior in hockey, too (in this titanic battle between The Hub Of Hockey and this self-proclaimed Hockeytown - Ha!) as it unquestionably is in baseball, as well.  And it is doubly satisfying to behold, in the latter case, as Boston defeated a team that repeatedly bested the hated New York Yankees in recent years; for, when the Yanks tried again and again to buy another two or three championships, the Evil Empire was thwarted by none other than the Tigers - who then promptly veered back to kitty-cat form once they reached the World Series.  Still...  The Tigers roared all over the hapless Yanks! And, just now, we saw what the Red Sox accomplished once up against those very same Tigers, who boasted such a fine pitching rotation and such an impressive collection of bats, overall... Well, it was the Boston Red Sox' bats (and beards!) that roared the loudest!  And it was over in six games, one-hundred sixty-two outs - and two Grand Slams! 

Now, them St-Louis Cardinals stand in the way: they better whimper and fold as they did in 2004, because once again, as in 2004 AND 2007 too, the team of destiny is clearly the BOSTON RED SOX!

They can get it done in a myriad of ways, too... 

;-) 

T-shirt designs available at 

http://backtobeantown.spreadshirt.com

- just click on them and see the choice! 

Looking Ahead To 2014... (DREAMING!)

What has gotten into NESN to cling on so to former Boston Bruins that are no longer in the fold - EH?

Well, yeah, sure, Andrew Ference has been named the captain of the Edmonton Oilers - largely due to his great work ethic, undeniable leadership (the leading-by-example variety: the best kind) and proven track record, mostly after his recent campaigns spent as a member of the Boston Bruins.
(We have all forgiven him, in both cities, that he played before for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Calgary Flames! Nobody's perfect - right, Andrew?)

Sure, it is somewhat significant (in an amusing way) that he becomes the 14th captain in the history of Edmonton's NHL franchise, and he is, also, entering his 14th season in the NHL - plus, this captaincy is really good for 2014 (the Oilers see their new captain inspire the youthful core of players that they have there all the way onto a playoff berth and several cinderella-team story-like upsets over better, proven teams...  Not gonna happen, but it is nice to dream, eh?)  and so, this triple occurrence of the number 14 is... intriguing, maybe.  But not much more than that!

And sure - as the Associated Press rehashed, Ference is 34 years-old, won the Cup in 2011 with Boston and, now, despite career stats that are somewhat less-than stellar (37 goals, 156 assists and 645 penalty minutes in 760 career games: not quite an all-star performance...) he finally gets treated like a star player indeed, the moment he joins his old hometown team's ranks, thus we can all feel good about this and be happy for him... (All the moreso due to his attachment to Beantown.  For, to be honest, his real hometown remains Boston: he would have stayed put there, if NHL politics had not made it impossible for him to stay, salary caps this, arbitration that...  But the fact remains that he was very well treated in Boston, being awarded a handsome yearly sum for his services as well as having the honor bestowed upon him to serve as an alternate captain for his last two years there: hence, the captaincy in Ed is simply a continuation of this treatment, rather than a promotion... really!)

Alas, Andrew has gone astray, just like Tim Thomas, Tomas Kaberle, Tyler Seguin, Rich Peverley, Nathan Horton and, if one goes further back on the former-B-regrets list, Chuck Kobasew, Vladimir Sobotka, Brandon Bochenski, Petteri Nokelainen, Matt Lashoff, Mark Stuart, Aaron Ward, Cameron Mann, Glen Murray, Ted Donato, Peter Ferraro, Tim Taylor, Dmitri Khristich, Jon Rohloff, Bob Beers, Mariusz Czerkawski, Dave Reid, Steve Leach, Fred Knipscheer, Sandy Moger, Milan Jurcina, Bobby Allen (ok, he was no Orr, but...) Petr Kalus, Brad Boyes - heck, even Colton Orr, dammit!

So, NESN, why not re-adjust your aim here and put the spotlight on who fully deserves it right at this current time - not to, say, repeat the errors of the past, hmm?

Why not focus more on guys such as Reilly Smith and Jordan Caron indeed,  one (the latter) relatively new to the team and the other (the former) freshly-arrived in the line-up this still aborning season - and both newbies are forming, with veteran Chris Kelly, the Bruins' most reliable offensive line so far!

Why not gear that ol' spotlight upon Carl Soderberg, poised and ready as he should be, in the coming months, to take over and pick up where Tyler Seguin (and, before him, Phil Kessel) had left off - when they were productive, that is!

Why not focus upon new B's guns Loui Eriksson and Jarome Iginla now -one of which did come from Alberta, Canada, coincidentally enough- rather than still tearfully look towards a guy who helped, helped a lot, but who, in the end, simply returned back where he came from -Alberta, Canada!- and, truth be told, he was never a game-changer here so how could he be one there, now, either...?  (The Edmonton Oilers average three goals a game - but allow five. LOL)

So, yeah, NESN - Ference did contribute in bringing back the Stanley Cup to the city of Boston and we will always remember the moment when the Bruins visited the Red Sox dugout and Ference handed the Cup to Big Papi... However, now it is time to let go, NESN - the guy is no longer one of ours: he's in league with the enemy! Forget about him already! LET GO! As Andy himself did, when it came time to part with his playoff beard, this past summer... (It's not like he's going to get to grow a new one any time soon, y'know - maybe EVER!  But that's another story... Eh, Andy?)

Say Goodbye, Andy! 

You're not the only one 

who can shave, either -

however, right now, 

NO ONE's shaving in Boston! 

Capisce?!?

Photo: NHL Properties 

+++

UPDATE: now, we look ahead to 2014 as the time when, 

possibly, we see Loui Eriksson BACK 100% 

after the concussion he sustained in a game 

versus the lowly (and lowlife) Buffalooooow Sabres. 

We can be optimists and look to 2014 for the return 

of another concussion victim - Marc Savard.

What a phenomenal powerhouse attack 

the Boston Bruins would have in 2014 

if both of these guys returned 

and the core stays intact as well...! 

Fear The Bear - Fear The Beards - 

there's a concept, here!

In related BEAR growls, 

we can all look forward to 2014 

for either the terminal suspension 

of one John Scott, neanderthal-on-ice; 

or his annihilation, on ice... 

It's one or the other, NHL - 

*you* decide...

...

Dream On - Of Making-Up For A Huge Gaffe...

Glen Wesley is still dreaming he had not missed the golden opportunity to end that first duel, a game that went to sudden death overtime, in the very opening of the Stanley Cup Finals of 1990 against the wretched Edmonton Oilers - for it would have set the tone to that series, likely propel the league-leading Bruins to the championship and sent the right message to the Oilers: that their era was over (and it indeed was soon enough: the moment they made a certain blockbuster trade whose 25th anniversary just rang across NHLdom - but not here: not on BD...)
It would have also revealed to all so-called experts that these Boston Bruins of 1990, who'd finished first overall in the standings and had added veteran stalwarts such as Dave Poulin, Brian Propp and Dave Christian to their potent line-up led by Bourque and Neely, were no longer the upstart Bruins that surprised themselves by reaching the Finals in 1988, when their previous match-up with the ageing Oilers had taken place... They were legitimate contenders that actually peaked in 1993, the year of their worst playoff performance in years, due to terrible, woeful bad luck really: three losses in overtime in four games.  Glen Wesley was a part of that team, too...

Larry Bird is still dreaming of that shot he rushed to take in the final seconds of a crucial game in the NBA Finals against hated rival Lakers - as he thought them to be about to rush him, too.  They weren't - all they wanted was to test out the famous Boston Garden Mystique of those years: the parquet had all the credit as the Boston Celtics found a way to mystify opponent after opponent, most often the Los Angeles Lakers themselves. But this time, the Celtics would not pull off a miracle: he missed the shot and the Celtics lost that game, a precious game on their own parquet. They would lose a series to the Lakers for the first time ever next. Larry Bird was quoted afterwards that they (the Celts) felt that they ''should have won all three games there'' (in those good old days, the series' format was 2 at the top seed's place, 3 at the other city and then, if necessary, and it sure was, the last 2 games of the series at the first place again. With the series being led by the Lakers 3-2 going back to L.A. after that improbable steal in game 5 -after the Celtics winning games 3 and 4 handily, of course- the series seemed to be decided already - and, alas, it was.  Earvin ''so-called Magic'' (Black Magic?) Johnson got his NBA title before he got tested HIV positive and it was *he* who was chosen to pose with Wayne Gretzky on the cover of Sports Illustrated - instead of Larry Bird.

Bill Buckner - of course - is still dreaming of having caught that ball that went by him in the most awkward of ways - between his legs - during the most crucial game of the 1986 World Series opposing the Boston Red Sox to the New York Mets.  Gary Carter, a Montreal Expos transfuge that somehow realized all of his own dreams in New York (like Babe Ruth did, perhaps - and at a terrible price, too. However, unlike Ruth, Carter's destiny would have likely been the same had he remained in MTL or gone anywhere else for that matter) wrote a book about this ''feat'' - which truly is winning a World Series through sheer luck, basically. The Red Sox had it all under control: they had taken the first two games, Roger Clemens was even available to pitch in a relief role; utility players such as Spike Owen and Mike Greenwell were at their peak; and Wade Boggs was the best hitter in the majors, bar none other - yet he was left a weeping mess in the players' dugout after this botched-up play and subsequent inability on the part of the Sox' managerial braintrust to match simple cowboy histrionics displayed by the Mets' one-hit wonder coach...  And so, Bill was the scapegoat for it all.

As were Glen and Larry in most people's eyes - well, especially Glen...

Now, this oncoming season, two players on the Bruins' roster will have a chance to make up for mistakes - similar and different all at once - and they should have a greater chance than the previous three examples (and countless others) ever got to redeem themselves indeed...

Tuukka Rask proved his status as an elite NHL goaltender throughout the 2012-2013 NHL season and the playoff run that followed - he was every bit as good as Tim Thomas had been when he held the job of number one goalie, both before and during 2011, and just a little unluckier than Tim was for the final two games of the playoff run.  Indeed, if one compares the two playoff runs, that is the only difference - luck in the final stretch.  Thomas could shut-out the Canucks in their own home to win it - Rask was poised to try and do exactly the same but was served two garbage goals instead to turn his victory into bitter defeat.  Comparing that apparent meltdown to an actual meltdown (such as the one lived by rival and first-round opponent Reimer, the Toronto goalie, when he gave up three goals to drop the first-round series he could have stolen, against all odds...) is like comparing apples and oranges: for the quality of the goals is simply not the same at all. Reimer saw quality shots beat him, as Boston courageously fought back to take what was rightfully theirs.  Rask, for his part, saw two second-rate has-beens bang in lucky shots out of the blue to steal what seemed to be in the bank for Boston - instead, it became a Chicago cup-clincher through the backdoor; but so was their first cup in decades, too, back in 2010, so... (Yeah, yeah - that's another story!)

Can Rask come back as strong as ever from this disappointing finish?  Yes, he can!  He already has - mentally. And with strong back-ups (Svedberg, Johnson and that rookie named Subban) coupled with all the improvements to the overall line-up, the Boston Bruins stand to be able to win virtually all of their games in 2013-2014...!  Rask is a confident and competitive goalie by nature and his recent triumphs over Lundqvist and whoever-that-guy-is-between-the-Pitts-pipes (hey - whoever he is, he is a former Stanley Cup champ - right?!?) have made him one more thing too: hungry for more!  Tuukka Rask loves it in Boston and wants to bring it another championship - and what Tuukka wants, Tuukka is capable of taking all by himself; but he's getting some help along the way for that end anyway...

The spotlight will be on Tuukka Rask even moreso than before - as, now, he is not merely the guy who aspired to replace a great goalie on a championship team: he is the new master, true and true!

Most of all though it is one Jarome Iginla who will be focused upon throughout the 2013-2014 season - which may be his last.  Everyone will hope he ends it with a championship alongside heir apparent (and confirmed: the heir has even surpassed the sire already) Milan Lucic, all-around best player in the game Patrice Bergeron, heavily under-rated all-star David Krejci, new gun Loui Eriksson and the rest of the first-rate line-up of Boston Bruins assembled for the exercise.

Iginla made up for his mistake in part already - as he had used his right of refusal to avoid going to Boston via trade before the 2013 playoffs, preferring to join the Pittsburgh Penguins instead.  He only saw the error of his ways when the Boston Bruins decimated, overwhelmed and completely dominated the Penguins in four straight games, nullifying in the process all the vaunted offence that Pittsburgh was supposed to have, especially with the added firepower of hired guns such as Iginla indeed...  After becoming an unrestricted free agent, Jarome Iginla was quick to make up for his blunder of having chosen the losing side in that match-up, quickly accepting G.M. Peter Chiarelli's offer and signing up with the Boston Bruins who were in the midst of tweaking their line-up in what everyone agrees to be but a simple retooling of a true contender, fostered to bear expectations by some of the best minds in all of hockey. This same championship-caliber line-up that came so very close to repeat as champions two years after upsetting the heavily-favoured (but totally undeservingly so) Vancouver Canucks in the 2011 Finals may have lost some components this off-season (namely Ference, Seguin, Horton, Khudobin and Jagr) but they more than aptly replaced them on the roster already.

Can Jarome deliver consistently all throughout the season in Boston - and then contribute in timely fashion during the playoff run for the cup, unlike what happened during his short time in the Pitt?

Can he be, for but one single season, a second coming of Cam Neely?  Can Jarome prove to do better than namesake Jaromir?  Can he be more like a Recchi than a Jagr, basically?
(One thing Jaromir Jagr sure wasn't, was a second Cam Neely - or even Mark Recchi...!)

With support from Bergeron, Krejci, Lucic, Marchand, Kelly, Soderberg, Eriksson and the Merlot line (!) - yes, Iginla sure can deliver all the goods and more!  He stands to gel quick with this team and thrive in coach Claude Julien's system, much moreso than he could in that God-awful Pitt...!

And so Jarome can finally dream of seeing his name engraved upon that cup at long last - it was destiny that it would be with the team that he should have played for all along, all those years wasted up in the tundra of Alberta called Calgary, as they were...!

Jarome is a Bruin and, like so many before him - so many who didn't seem to fit there: Dave Christian, Brian Propp, Dave Poulin, Reed Larson, Al Iafrate, Adam Oates! - he looks better than ever with that Black & Gold of the Boston Bruins upon his shoulders!

A Cup for Boston - courtesy of Rask and Iginla - with a large, large supporting cast, of course!
This is exactly the way the 2014 season should end.

+++

Bad Dreams Must Have An End, Too

Whitey is found guilty - after all those years...

One can imagine what was going through the mind of the former gangster as the verdict was rendered by a jury of his peers (!) the other day?  What could have possibly flashed before his eyes as he must have been reliving all those atrocities committed years ago, a lifetime ago...  A lifetime passed making all the wrong moves he finally stood accused of; followed by years of trying to avoid having to be accountable for any of it. But it all finally caught with Whitey in 2011, when he was apprehended at last...

James ''Whitey'' Bulger 

found guilty of various gangland crimes, 

including 11 slayings...

After many years spent eluding justice (or the reasonable fac-simile of it that our laws can provide) it all finally caught with Whitey as he was ferreted out and captured in Santa Monica, California - a loooong way from his ''Bah-sss-ton'' backyard, but then again not far away enough, now was it?

Originally, our man Whitey (one of the ten most wanted by the FBI - for being such a backstabbing informant, more than anything else, actually) stood accused and charged with 19 counts of murder, narcotics distribution, extortion, and multiple conspiracy counts. Whitey (can't get enough of that name) was so very good at what he did that he managed to moonlight as an FBI informant, too, indeed: his prowess partially inspired the plot of the neo-classic film ''The Departed'' and, more particularly, the character portrayed by Jack Nicholson in said film. In short, Bulger allegedly masterminded a criminal "protection" racket while working as an informant for the FBI, and was able to flee federal charges based on a tip from a bureau insider. (We fear that said insider may get to be played by one Marky Mark W. - as he was (SPOILERS ALERT - SPOILERS ALERT) the lone survivor, pretty much, of the entire cast of ''The aptly-christened Departed'' there; one of Scorcese's finest, I'm telling you...! But that is another story - for another blog in our network!)

For close to forty years afterwards, after serving mostly his own goals but also the FBI's, Whitey took off and was never to be found again - or so he hoped. It was quite the dark spot on an otherwise impeccable record for Boston's Finest overall (well, with the glaring exception of that Strangler guy, of course...) to have had a name on the top ten most wanted by the FBI list for so long and narrow any hope of ever finding him - ever!  But someone ratted on Whitey and gave him away (surely in exchange of a handsome reward - far moreso than he ever was!) and so, finally, in 2011, he was caught, handcuffed, thrown into the judicial system and the rest is history now...

Whitey looks great in orange, we must say...

Credits: BostInno

And now that the BAD DREAM has ended - the recurring nightmare can begin all in earnest, as no less than three movie adaptations of Whitey's life and wayward ways are said to be in the works!  Directors Peter Facinelli, Barry Levinson and... Ben Affleck (of course) have been said to be working on these projects - with the first two basing themselves upon previously well-written and thoroughly-documented books on Whitey's life and times: Edward McKenzie Jr's ''Street Soldier: My Life as an Enforcer for Whitey Bulger and the Boston Irish Mob'' and Dick Lehr and Gerald O'Neal's even more imposing ''Black Mass: The True Story of an Unholy Alliance Between the FBI and the Irish Mob,''

That latter project is rumored to have lured the ever-versatile Johnny Depp himself to take on the lead role of Whitey here - and one can only imagine what Benny-EdwardScissorhands-WillyWonka-Tonto-JackSparrow-EdWood-BarnabasCollinsOfThe21stCentury there will do with this part now...! 

One has to admit that there is a resemblance there...!

Vague - but it is there!

Credits: zap2it

But that whole ''Black Mass'' mess... er... messy thing is for another blog altogether...!

Affleck, a true and true Boston boy as we know, thought he had first crack at this project: he hoped all others would back off, but they simply wouldn't, of course.  As usual, Hollywood has to propose a minimum of two similar projects at any given time - this time, it's even three.  Ben has his buddy and fellow Boston-born thespian Matt Damon tapped to portray our man Whitey here - and one has to admit the resemblance is even greater between those two...!

Affleck cannot play the part himself, that's for damn sure: 

he's Bat-Devil. er, Dare-Man now? 

Blind-As-A-Bat-Daredevil-Man! 

There you go!

The perfect Amalgam! 

But that's another story - again.

Somehow, though, the project is not being all that well-received in Boston - it is, in truth, even worse than hearing that Affleck will be back into super-heroics soon. Reports have this one on Whitey getting mixed reactions in Beantown these days.  And indeed - why wouldn't the TBBs (the Tinseltown Boston Boys) rather make a movie about the exploits of one... Eddie Shore instead?  Or Yaz?  Or Bill Russell? (Okay - neither Ben nor Matt can handle that last one; but either one could, realistically, impersonate Red Auerbach -especially Matt- maybe?)  

But that's another story too - I know!

Let's part with Whitey now, as he heads into solitary (we hope - for his sake; but then again, he is not worthy; he is Whitey!) and review one last time, through a series of old pictures, the evolution (we love the evolution theory - you know it!) of a notorious criminal... from BOSTON! 

(All pictures courtesy of the Associated Press - and a quick Google Images search, too!)

One tough cookie, our Whitey - 

 he was in Alcatraz, see? 

He started on a life of crime very early on, 

Whitey... Proof that, in Boston, 

we have it good as we have it bad;

just like everywhere else!

Whitey's most popular pic: 

he's a regular Clyde Barlow clone here. 

Flash-forward a few years now: 

what ravages a few years 

(some of them spent in jail, sure...)

can do to a guy...!

The FBI really had no clue what Whitey looked like 

after that last serene pose there (in the 70s, 

I dare presume?) 

Eventually, though, someone ratted on this rat 

and Whitey turned up as we know -

looking like a depraved version 

of Santa Claus...

Quite frankly, neither Matt nor Johnny look the part: 

the real Whitey is indeed JACK! 

No doubt! 

But we neither care nor should we bother, really,

as we are most definitely not waiting with baited breath 

for any movie on Whitey's life!  

May he simply not show up in our bad dreams now...

+++ 

Dream Of Caring

Happy 4th Of July - Boston-style!

As shared by the Boston Bruins themselves!

'Nuff Mulling Over Broken Dreams!

Bleacher Reports well, er, reported it for all doubters and detractors to read and see: the worthier athletes on that ice, the Patrice Bergerons and Nathan Hortons, played hurt. They played like the true warriors that they are, battling on against all odds, willing to give it their all so that their team, the best team on the ice (need we emphasize it again?) would not be cheated of their rightful second championship in three years.

And yet, as we all know it, it was to be in vain for the REAL champions were robbed by a pair of flukey goals late in game 6 - earlier in the series, they could have easily won either games 1 or 4 (aye, if you're not getting what we're screaming here, aye: the only game we concede would be game 5, which ended, incredibly enough, by a score of 1 to 3 for the wrong side. That is the ONLY GAME the damnable BLACK HAWKS took, in any way, shape or form: and, actually, in retrospect, I demand a recount as well as a review of all Chi-goals in game 5 - dammit!  All we need to do is overturn biased, not to mention profoundly inept refs' decisions, and wave off all three goals, and the Bruins win 1-0! And let's not solely rely on the wiki for this either, I say, folks...! Yeahhhhh... Or, better still, in the spirit of not mulling over this no more, let's just move on...!

Patrice Bergeron's sacrifice, especially, was nothing other than Heroic with a capital H: he had suffered a broken rib and torn cartilage and muscles in Game 5 and yet he had still suited up for the next game - so was his Will To Win. He then suffered a separated shoulder in Game 6 but stayed in the game. Through all this, Patrice Bergeron had also been found to have a very small puncture in his lung, which might have come about when he got a nerve block, too. They even worried about him having torn his spleen! He was collecting all sorts of painful reminders that this is, indeed, an extremely rude and taxing sport! And yet, he came back for more: he came back to help his team prevail - and they, sure as hell will burn with a cold flame at the End of Time, should have done just that!

Private to all this, most probably, it is no surprise at all that goaltender extraordinaire Tuukka Rask was in total shock at the turn of events this time out: one comment sums it up well, back on that BR site - ''Great playoff run for the Bruins but all I can think about is Rask saying “Oh Jesus” ~ Nik Wallenda'' 

In 2011, Tuukka had seen how resilient and resourceful his teammates truly were. Again, in 2013, he knew NOTHING (nothing short of being deathly ill, anyways) could possibly prevent these Boston Bruins Warriors from lacing them up and coming out with, at the very least, their B-game...!  Tuukka knew, also, that the team had actually vastly improved from their spectacular performance against the highly-overrated Canucks of 2011 - they had ditched a most lamentable liability in Tomas Kaberle, their power play was considerably more of a threat than it had been throughout the 2011 playoffs *and* they replaced inconsistent winger Michael Ryder with either Jaromir Jagr, Carl Soderberg or Kaspars Daugavins - your pick!  In any of these cases, we have got to think it was an improvement - we simply have got to!!! 

In addition to all this, Tuukka knew what it took to win it all: he had witnessed what it took for Tim Thomas to get it done, in 2011 - he was ready and poised to repeat the exact same thing in 2013! (Indeed, it would have taken wins in both games 6 and 7 to hoist the cup again, just like it was required in 2011 - what a remarkable coincidence!  The Boston Bruins organization would probably have distributed less Stanley Cup rings all throughout the organization this time around, though: not 504 of them as they had done two years earlier, which is an NHL record.) 

Tuukka was robbed, ultimately, and he did not deserve this at all: not after passing the test of endurance and avoiding temptation of buckling under pressure in round one versus a surprisingly tenacious (even though inferior) Canadian rival, just like Tim Thomas had done in his own first round against another inferior Canadian rival, in what was the 33rd confrontation between the two teams, back in the first round of those now-fabled 2011 playoffs...  Tuukka had bested the second round opponent with ease, proving to all foolish naysayers his superiority over the rival netminder they dubbed a king when he had never been crowned (whatsisname - ah, yes: Lundqvist!  And Rask was a ''Duke'' at best, eh?  HA!) just as Thomas had done to that execrable lucky bastard from Philly in 2011 (well, he had been lucky in 2010; but not in 2011, he wasn't!  Ha Ha Ha! Now what's HIS name, again, HUH? Well, this time, we won't even BOTHER recalling the bastard's handle! For the Victor is always the one who writes History - and whose name is solely remembered, too! ;)

Finally, Tuukka had even improved on Timmy's performance, in the third round, of course: he completely shut the door on dangerous opponents while Timmy had trouble getting past the Lightning - of all things!  But pass through it he still did, as we all recall with a tear in our eye...! 

There was no indication at all that Tuukka Rask could not will the Boston Bruins to a championship in games 6 and (alas, necessary it was) 7 - just like Tim Thomas had done in 2011.  The mistake everyone made - including Tuukka himself, yes - was to discount the possibility of a couple of garbage goals going in and altering the outcome that IT SHOULD HAVE HAD...

However... 

The Boston Bruins will get through this - as they always do. (Just as I used to sing it, back in the 80s and 90s even, folks: Win or Lose, Bruins Will Bruise! Ok - maybe this song is better to convey the idea...  All right then: try this one.)

They've improved the team some more, if you can believe it: and you better believe it!  Dumping Jagr in favor of their first choice all along, Jarome Iginla... Dumping inconsistent Peverley and immature Seguin for reliable Loui Eriksson and ''moldable'' Reilly Smith...  Finding an even better back-up for Tuukka Rask in one Chad Johnson!  They also dumped Daugavins (you can have him back, Ottawa!) and kept Soderberg - the heir apparent to David Krejci (who, himself, is the proud and fine successor to Craig Janney - or, better yet, Adam Oates, if you have your Bruins lore right!) 

Hence, the team is, overall, better than ever - and their purpose includes, now, VINDICATION!  For they are, without a shadow of a doubt, THE REAL NHL CHAMPIONS!  Chicago just stole it from them...

The Boston Bruins will get through this - and be back more dangerous than ever, in 2014!!! 

Mark my words!

Luminous Luciano Has Spoken! 

Sempre Por O Melhor!

+++

No White Hawks Dream Come True - Ever!

It wasn't the Boston Bruins that missed a golden opportunity in this year's Stanley Cup Finals, folks. No, not at all; it was, in fact, the Chicago franchise that totally blew their chance to redeem the entire ChiTown -notoriously renowned as it is for being infested with liars, cheaters and slimebuckets of all shapes, sizes and ages- by becoming the complete antithesis to what their counterparts who played baseball back in 1919 were - and will be forevermore, in the minds of so many...

They were the Chicago White Sox of their day - and they became the Black Sox.
In 2013, the Chicago Black Hawks could have become... the White Hawks.

As the Black Sox turned ''black'' by throwing the World Series, for money, the Black Hawks would have turned ''white'' (or, dare I say ''incandescent''... or ''radiant''... or even ''luminous''!?) by ''fixing'' the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals the right way: for the joy of the Boston Marathon Bombing victims. By allowing the Bruins to win, as they should have, by not scoring garbage goals in excessive numbers (two in the last minute of a game come to mind here) and by not stealing victory when it was clearly not merited, the Chicago Black Hawks would have erased that stigma that has been branding all things Chicagoan ever since the days of Giovanni ''Johnny'' Torrio, the inept mayor Wentworth, Al Capone & Murray Humphreys! The Black Hawks could have and should have bowed out of the 2013 Finals and handed over that ''cup'' to the better city, which so recently suffered unjust and outright savage senseless attacks that cost innocents dearly.  What better way to pay homage to ''Boston Strong''...? And, in doing so, the Black Hawks would have, verily, become winged angels of sorts: ''White Hawks'' by any other name...

But they didn't - now, did they?

Once they got to the Big Dance once again, they could do only one thing: think of themselves and rob their nobler opponent of the victory by any means necessary. Garbage goals that could have easily not even counted were the deciding factors: it was, perhaps, acceptable back in 2010 against Philadelphia, the city of false brotherly love (and other fallacies) - perhaps.

However, this year, stealing victory from a cleaner city is simply not right, Chicago.  Boston's fine population was literally torn into by those blasts back in April - they deserved this championship as rightful compensation!  You are ready to dive in boxing rings, Chicagoans; you dive all the time in the ice rink, too, in order to prevent superior shots from penetrating into your net...  You had to take a dive in games 6 and 7 (or, truly, games 5 and 6) and allow Boston to raise another title over their weary shoulders, a mere two months after the tragedy and terror (as the Boston Globe phrased it) lived through on the 15th of April of this year. Tragedy and terror that has left its mark forevermore indeed: some men and women, in the prime of their lives, having lost either an arm or a leg...  Their brief moment of joy, when they could forget this sad new reality that is theirs for the rest of their lives, was when they were watching their team rise to the fore, raising hope in their heart of a better tomorrow, if only for game time or so...  The Bruins (and all other Boston teams) needed to provide this all-important diversion for these unnecessary victims at that crucial team - and they came through brilliantly; prevailing against all odds in their first series, as they had dug themselves into quite the corner there... Outplaying rivals from the most evil town, bar none: New York (even Chicago doesn't come close; ChiTown's number 2 in this case - a shitty position to be in, usually, but, hey, for one thing, in this case, it makes sense. And secondly: it is where they deserve to be!) before sweeping over-rated foes that were both familiar and infuriating with their sheer arrogance: the Pitt. The Boston team came through it all with inspiring flamboyance - exactly what the population needed after the terrible events that had darkened the atmosphere all across Massachusetts.  From April all the way to late June, the Bruins -and their fans- were, through it all, exemplary (and the fact that the Hawks acknowledged that by taking out a page in the media after their theft had been officialized -a mere ''thank you letter'' riddled with mistakes, if one believes the transcript of it published by usatoday, that is- does not mean a thing, really! All it made me think of was the time the Chicago Daily Tribune went to print with ''Dewey defeats Truman'' in 1948...!  Another famous Chi-not-so-shy-Town BLUNDER - that's all it is!  Ah, Sweet Home Chicago... not! Still, I'll take this rare opportunity to send off my regards to friendly fellow alliterative astute Candid Candace, despite all that...!)

Truly, the only thing that could have assuaged the open wounds that those Bruins fans who lost either an arm or a leg have got festering on their minds right now, was VICTORY.
No matter how fleeting a feeling it is...

But no - you had to be selfish, Black Hawks, you had to take it for yourselves, by all wretched-dirty tricks-and-means there could be...

And, in so doing, you, the 2013 Black Hawks are even worse than the 1919 Black Sox ever were.

Luminous Luciano Has Spoken... er, blogged!

+++ 

Sempre Por O Melhor

Dream Spoiled

Incredible - the Boston Bruins used to rough up the Chicago Blackschmucks by scores of 8 to 2 when Cam Neely and Steve Larmer led those respective teams throughout 84-game schedules...

And now that they finally meet in the Big Finale - this is how it ends?!? 

Did you even see what kind of a garbage-rebound-goal it was that that Bolland guy tucked in past Tuukka in order to steal victory here...?  I don't know what was more embarrassing about it, really: the jumping Blackschmucks afterwards or the little Chicagoan Grrl who couldn't stop shrieking for a while and had to be bear-hugged by one of them typical Chicago beer-guzzlers in attendance, somehow...
(And, NO; we don't mean Jim Belushi!)

This might be even more revolting than last year's grand larceny on ice, when the crummy Capitals stole victory from the then-defending champions Bruins.

It is all about perceptions, one has to guess: one could focus here that the team was only two more wins away from winning it all again - and that those last two games could have easily been it.

If the bitchy Lady Luck had played the puck for our side, that is!

Speaking of perceptions (no - I don't even wanna know what's the Days of Y'Orr take on this sordid turn of events - and I don't want Bobby Orr's take on it either!) - what about those inane posters on the wretched NHL.com comments section right after their so-called ''reports/articles/call'em-what-you-will'' thingies that they whip up after each and every game...

One moron simply commented: ''now you know how Toronto felt'' and spiced that up with some heartfelt hatred towards the real champions - the Boston Bruins!

Ha!  Hardly - moron! This is nothing like what the Boston Bruins did to the lowly Maple Leafs n the first round!  And not just because it was between the two top teams in the NHL, at the top of their game and in the Grand Finale of the all, either!  You see, Boston did not capitalize on all of their chances to score in Game 6 against Chicago - otherwise the score could have been Boston 5, Chicago 1 in the last minute of play and that would have been it for the game: see you in Game 7!  In the Game 7 of that first round series, the most absurd thing had occurred: not only did it oppose an inferior team to a vastly superior one, but the inferior one had been able to capitalize on each and every one of its chances to score, making it Toronto 4, Boston 1 in the third period.   What the Bruins did was far more impressive than what the wretched Blackhawks could do here: scoring two lucky goals late to steal the game, giving the Bruins no time at all to retaliate.  Previously, the Bruins had not been as fortunate as Toronto had been in that game 7 either: they had had several golden opportunities to put the game away and put it totally out of reach of the Blackschmucks; it really could have been Boston 5, Chicago 1 - and, it it had been, you can bet your sorry a$$ that nothing even close to what happened when it was Toronto 4, Boston 1 would have ever ever occurred there...!  Boston scoring three unanswered goals to tie it late in the game and scoring the winner early in overtime against a team such as Toronto is normal; Chicago scoring only one to tie it (much less two to steal it) late in the game against a team such as Boston is totally abnormal.  Was that finally made clear to you, MORON out there, wherever you are? I hope you are among those who discover this blog by sheer... manipulated happenstance!
;-)

Another moron perceived the boos coming from the Boston faithful as being aimed at Chicago's Shaw, when he got hit by a puck in the face and was bleeding profusely on the ice, prompting the referee to blow his damnable whistle and call the play dead just when Boston's Thornton (there is no longer a need to add ''Shawn, not that poor pathetic Joe The Shark Schmoe'' - is there!) inherited the puck and most probably had a play with the rest of the Merlot line 2.0 there...

Speaking of which, what the Bruins sorely missed in the Finals was having a gritty warrior the likes of Gregory Campbell indeed...  But that is sour grapes now - right, Grapes?

Back to the BOOS AFFAIR: that moron went as far as commenting about this and adding ''stay classy, Boston'' - which could have been, if the commenter had any brain cells worth calling them that, ''stay smart, Beantowners without-much-of-a-clue - duh!'' for the only way anyone is going to boo a guy who is down and bleeding on the ice is if you are a clueless, witless, useless invertebrate that doesn't know jack squat about anything!  How could that moron even be let on the NHL.com forums in order to spread such drivel - and how is he allowed to comment on those boards, via Facebook, no less!  It boggles the mind: the NHL and FB, both, must be hiring vegetative webmasters and the most obtuse message board moderators that okay the most idiotic comments to pass through and stay online too while they dutifully erase and deny access to anyone whose way with words greatly surpasses theirs and goes waaaaaaaay over their tiny petty little pinheads!   It is either that or they deny you based upon your witty e-mail addy or username - but I'd say it is that!   

What happened then, you wonder?  Two or three Boston fans bothered to correct the moron and let him know that the Boston fans inside the TD Garden were indeed booing the ref for whistling the play to stop when Boston could have scored - which would not have been the first time that they'd allow a goal to go in despite someone being down, y'know!  They just could not do it for Boston  I suppose...

What's that - you doubt the Bruins could have scored on that play?
You silly fools!
You really think that Crawford is that good?  Crawford is no better than Reimer, Lundqvist and Vokoun who all went down before Boston! He could have and should have been decimated in the first period alone - the Bruins so dominated that period that, with any help at all from that bitch (Lady Luck, again) they could have come out of it with a three or five-goal lead instead of just one score!

Corey Crawford was cleanly and clearly beaten on two David Krejci plays that would normally have resulted in goals for the star forward in this crucial game 6.

It is oh-so-very uncharacteristic of Krejci to miss such golden opportunities for easy goals: one hit the crossbar and skipped ahead of the net but it is the second one that is the most disappointing one of all.  Brad Marchand fed him a perfect pass and David Krejci was behind both the lone defenseman there and Crawford too: meaning that Krejci had a wide open net into which he normally redirects the puck and makes it 2-0 for Boston. Somehow, though, it didn't go in, this time.  Rather, the puck went vertical, way over the net and into the stands even.  The Ghost of Glen Wesley was in the house...

Despite the astonishing and undeserved loss, the Boston Bruins laid claim to two out of three stars when the game was all done - and they had been officially robbed of victory on that night.  Truly small consolation indeed - but it is at least that and it is an undeniable bit of evidence that they should have won that game and forced a seventh and decisive Game 7 just like they did in 2011...

And with such evenly-matched teams playing with the same exact desire for victory, anything could have happened in Game 7 - and Boston could have done it again...

They'll do it again - in 2014.  :-)

The THREE STARS OF THE GAME for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals were...

1. Milan LUCIC  ( 1 goal, 2 shots, 1 hit, -1, Time On Ice: 19:20)

2. Duncan KEITH       (0 goals, 1 assist, 2 shots, 1 hit, -1, Time On Ice: 28:51)

3. Tyler SEGUIN  (0 goals, 1 assist, 1 shot, 1 hit, +1, 2 P.I.M. and Time On Ice: 17:55)       All photos trademark and copyright of the NHL