#BostonStrong
December 27, 2015
Healing... for 2016
Boston needs good vibes and a lot of positivism coming into a new year - and going forward. The whole world needs it, in the face of terror threats and all that jazz... May we find the strength and the peace we seek - and realize our goals all the same, in #TitleTown and beyond.
May 15, 2015
Dreaming Of... Death & Justice?
''Punishment must fit the crime...'' - and in this case, it probably does? But one has to remember how many lives were affected by what happened, on that day of April 2013, when the Boston Marathon was interrupted by two misguided radicals. One has to be Boston Strong to see this: one has to look past a boy's seemingly angelic demeanor, on such shots as this, too:
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev justifiably deserves what he has coming his way now - if he did set up those bombs that killed four people and injured a host of others, along with his brother. There will be those who will claim that he has been set up himself (hell, there are even ''Boston Marathon Fakers'' the same way as there have been ''9/11 truthers'' since 2001...!) and there will be those other folks who will hail him as some sort of martyr now, on the international civil liberties scale...
There is no logical reason to believe that there was some hoax here, perpetrated by whom, for what purpose? To kill two brothers? This will not propel the entire nation towards martial law exclusively aimed at muslim citizens now; come on! This is not a Boston Tea Party for racism and social prejudice basing itself upon the fear of terrorism and radicalism: it cannot be. There would have been a full scale round up of the truly dangerous rotten apples in the basket if it was: and it wouldn't have started with two kids, or at the Boston Marathon of all places.
There is no case to make for this kid's defense either: he wanted to avenge what happened to ''his people'' and went about it the wrong way. Why didn't he and his big bro just go abroad try to help out in Chechnya, instead, huh? And by help we mean rebuild, not bring about misguided retaliatory actions that only make things worse: because an eye for an eye brings nothing in the end. Haven't we seen it a million times over in the hockey rink, on the gridiron, on the basketball court or in the baseball field (well, usually the pitcher's mound, really) whenever one team tries to pay back, in kind, the other team for one of their player's injuries...? Nothing is ever accomplished that way. And being American by proxy, to whatever degree, the young Tsar here should have learned from America's allegories for life, which are not just baseball games at three different levels...
Because here was a kid with dreams - just like any other kid growing up in the Boston area. He had, like any one of us, aspirations and, perhaps, delusions - maybe greater delusions of grandeur than the norm, but then again, perhaps not. He and his brother came to the United States to live out their dreams: not to end so ignominously. They certifiably had their very own Bostonian dreams, like all of us Boston fans do; Like all of us, they hid a dark side: most of us keep in check, fight it off, subdue it throughout our lives - because we all strive to do good, be good, be the hero. Nobody wants to do evil outright: many of those who do are like Tsar and his bro here - they think they're doing what's right! Sort of like the Habs when they are stealing victory from greater teams: they firmly believe it is right to do so! Maybe like the NFL cheaters do randomly, too - and in this we include the Patriots, of course! But that's another story - for another blog post!
The point is: these two brothers were not 100% evil: like all of us, they are shades of grey. And there may not quite be fifty shades of it out there: but there are enough to distinguish moderate criminals from upstanding citizens - from those deserving to serve as examples that thou shall not do that. Having said that - Tsar is not the worst there is, out there; there are many more deserving of the lethal injection or electric chair or guillotine... Hell, Tsar looks like Habs goalie Carey Price! Looks may be deceiving and all, but tell me now or forever hold your piece - do we really wanna hang Price? Even when he is so dead WRONG: do we really want to see him hang, high and dry, now do we? I don't think so. I just want to see him as he really is: a sieve, on most nights throughout the rest of his damnable NHL career - or his CH career, tenure or whatchumightcallit at any rate. For 2014-2015 was a fluke - but that is another story, too.
It may never be 100% certifiably sure that it was the two brothers who set off those bombs.
One thing is for sure, however: the younger brother's dreams come to an end now, just as the older brother's did, shortly after the Marathon bombing...
AP File Photo - Boston Herald
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev justifiably deserves what he has coming his way now - if he did set up those bombs that killed four people and injured a host of others, along with his brother. There will be those who will claim that he has been set up himself (hell, there are even ''Boston Marathon Fakers'' the same way as there have been ''9/11 truthers'' since 2001...!) and there will be those other folks who will hail him as some sort of martyr now, on the international civil liberties scale...
There is no logical reason to believe that there was some hoax here, perpetrated by whom, for what purpose? To kill two brothers? This will not propel the entire nation towards martial law exclusively aimed at muslim citizens now; come on! This is not a Boston Tea Party for racism and social prejudice basing itself upon the fear of terrorism and radicalism: it cannot be. There would have been a full scale round up of the truly dangerous rotten apples in the basket if it was: and it wouldn't have started with two kids, or at the Boston Marathon of all places.
There is no case to make for this kid's defense either: he wanted to avenge what happened to ''his people'' and went about it the wrong way. Why didn't he and his big bro just go abroad try to help out in Chechnya, instead, huh? And by help we mean rebuild, not bring about misguided retaliatory actions that only make things worse: because an eye for an eye brings nothing in the end. Haven't we seen it a million times over in the hockey rink, on the gridiron, on the basketball court or in the baseball field (well, usually the pitcher's mound, really) whenever one team tries to pay back, in kind, the other team for one of their player's injuries...? Nothing is ever accomplished that way. And being American by proxy, to whatever degree, the young Tsar here should have learned from America's allegories for life, which are not just baseball games at three different levels...
Because here was a kid with dreams - just like any other kid growing up in the Boston area. He had, like any one of us, aspirations and, perhaps, delusions - maybe greater delusions of grandeur than the norm, but then again, perhaps not. He and his brother came to the United States to live out their dreams: not to end so ignominously. They certifiably had their very own Bostonian dreams, like all of us Boston fans do; Like all of us, they hid a dark side: most of us keep in check, fight it off, subdue it throughout our lives - because we all strive to do good, be good, be the hero. Nobody wants to do evil outright: many of those who do are like Tsar and his bro here - they think they're doing what's right! Sort of like the Habs when they are stealing victory from greater teams: they firmly believe it is right to do so! Maybe like the NFL cheaters do randomly, too - and in this we include the Patriots, of course! But that's another story - for another blog post!
The point is: these two brothers were not 100% evil: like all of us, they are shades of grey. And there may not quite be fifty shades of it out there: but there are enough to distinguish moderate criminals from upstanding citizens - from those deserving to serve as examples that thou shall not do that. Having said that - Tsar is not the worst there is, out there; there are many more deserving of the lethal injection or electric chair or guillotine... Hell, Tsar looks like Habs goalie Carey Price! Looks may be deceiving and all, but tell me now or forever hold your piece - do we really wanna hang Price? Even when he is so dead WRONG: do we really want to see him hang, high and dry, now do we? I don't think so. I just want to see him as he really is: a sieve, on most nights throughout the rest of his damnable NHL career - or his CH career, tenure or whatchumightcallit at any rate. For 2014-2015 was a fluke - but that is another story, too.
It may never be 100% certifiably sure that it was the two brothers who set off those bombs.
One thing is for sure, however: the younger brother's dreams come to an end now, just as the older brother's did, shortly after the Marathon bombing...
May 14, 2015
Dreams Of Returning To Boston...?
''Well, I have my dreams - and they surely have me. I'll be moving on... on... I want them all!''
Paraphrasing here, the lyrics of an old song from parts much akin to L'Ancienne-Lorette rather than any town in the greater Boston area or in Massachusetts, so - suffice it to say, Patrice Bergeron might know what it's all about; he might recognize it. But few other Bruins might have a chance to... at all! It's not all that important right now, though...
Who hasn't dreamt of going back to Beantown? Once you've been there, been born there, lived there a significant part of your life...? I know I want to go back, too! Hence it is not surprising one bit that Jeff Gorton would want back in - into the city, into the fanbase, into the Bruins organization!
Those are rumors though - only rumors! But they make a hell (or a heaven) of a lot of sense!
Gorton basically built that Stanley Cup championship team of 2011, and all within a very short timespan, years prior, when he was acting as the interim G.M. after Mike O'Connell was dismissed and just before Peter Chiarelli was added to the mix with the mission to add the final pieces of that puzzle. And what did Pete add, of note? Mercenary marksman Nathan Horton. That's it. All the other pieces he added (Gregory Campbell, Michael Ryder, Tyler Seguin, Claude Julien himself... Brandon Bochenski?!?) have proven to wear out their welcome a tiny wee bit too fast... And, lately, the additions were all subpar, to say the least: Miroslav Satan?!? Reilly Smith, Matt Fraser, Joe Morrow, Brendan Connolly, Matt Mottau... Brian Rolston?!? Loui Eriksson doesn't count: he's a certifiable veteran! And though one still hopes that Connolly (and, maybe, Smith too) can blossom into lethal top scorers, in time...? That is, most unfortunately, less than certain, at this time!
Gorton, for his part, built the true core of the contending Bruins: he drafted, recruited or signed all of the following: Brad Marchand, Tuukka Rask, Milan Lucic, Zdeno Chara. Phil Kessel and Marc Savard. (Even though Chiarelli is often credited, totally wrongly, of some of those coups!) He had a hand in extending the contracts of other key figures, such as the goaltender that would change everything,Tim Thomas, and Bergeron himself. That was all back in 2006 - a year of transition, if there ever was one... And it's (almost) all reminded right there, on his short bio on the website of his current employer - the execrable New York Rangers. But let's not go there...!
Can Jeff Gorton accomplish his dream - this wonderful dream of going back?
Most importantly of all, though, should he be allowed to?
The Bruins have a perfectly suitable G.M.-to-be within their ranks already: home-grown talent, groomed within the organization at any rate, Don Sweeney! A teammate of team president Cam Neely back in the days when they should have won, at the very least, one cup (...) Sweeney would probably be as reliable a G.M. (ha, almost typoed that into a GEM here - lol) as O'Connell and, in retrospect, that is quite the compliment indeed. After all, what did good ol' Mike do, above all else? He got rid of that over-hyped, under-achieving perennial choker, Joe Thornton! He shipped him off to San Jose, where he has been choking ever since, allowing the Bruins to turn the page and find themselves a new franchise player: who turned out to be, arguably, Patrice Bergeron. (Though many will be of the opinion that the Bruins do it by committee - and I would agree with that wholeheartedly! Bergeron cannot do much by himself: he needs a Chara, Rask, Krejci, Lucic, Marchand, a hired gun of service too - in order to get it properly done! Franchise committee it is!)
I can see Sweeney being the guy who would pull the trigger on just such a deal, too: shipping off Lucic and, maybe, Marchand too, for some package with which to build from, just like in the much-maligned Thornton deal. And, hopefully, it would turn out much better than the Seguin deal, in the short term, too? Or Sweeney would meet the same fate as O'Connell and Chiarelli did, but that much faster than they did...! My, how cruel this is: here the man hasn't even been hired as the G.M. yet that we're discussing the conditions for his dismissal already! Sorry, Don...! I'm on your side, really: I loved it when you were one of those ''big four'' defensemen, ever reliable, protecting the Bruins' zone: it was you and Garry Galley, Ray Bourque of course and... Al Iafrate? Michael Thelven? Gord Kluzak? Anyway...!
One can understand why Neely would want to have a chance to bring back Gorton instead of giving a chance to his old pal Don -a neophyte, basically- to fill this role. Rumors are Neely is awaiting the Rangers' elimination in order to be able to speak to Gorton, as per NYR head honcho Glen Sather's wishes... That slithering snake-in-the-grass, Sather: he was a viscous scumbag in Edmonton and he is only a bigger one now, in New York! All Bruins fans should hate him with a passion! Who cares that he was a Bruin himself in his formative years, under the tutelage of the one and only Harry Sinden? Sather sucks - period! That he would prevent one of his underlings to achieve his homecoming dreams (that is assuming that there are such dreams in Gorton's head! Sure - there should be!) with the inane excuse that his team ''is still competing'' - what the hell has it got to do with front office personnel defections? The team on the ice would not even know, let alone be affected by it - come on! That is all hogwash and bulls*** coming from a master hogwasher (?) and bulls***ter known as Glen SATHER - that is what it is, I'm telling you, folks!
Neely has had other candidates in mind, sure: but one was scooped up by those pitiful, if hellbent, Devils (and he came from another pit, too - how ironic is that) while the other one is a mystery man who, I personally hope, will turn out to be... Don Cherry!
Alas, like it or not, Cam ''The Man'' Neely has to wait it out before he is granted permission to simply talk to Jeff Gorton about a return to this position he held so very briefly, on an interim basis, back in 2006... And he might have to wait a while longer, to, as those other perennial chokers, known as Washington Capitals, and their own all-star franchise choker, Alexander Ovechkin, appear to be doing it all over again, in their series against the New York Rangers... Ah, those damn Caps: they seem to enjoy playing up to their full potential of mere spoilers whenever they come to face the Boston Bruins; but, then, whenever the stakes are really high, they will always fold and choke on the very spot! Just like Joe Thornton's Sharks. And, this time, it frustrates the Bruins organization and their fanbase on a whole new level: stifling their G.M. hiring process, which grinds down to a halt, unable to move forward because of them - and SATHER! (Yes, folks: feel free to think of Sather and of Satan in the same way, why don't you now...!)
But, one can hope that, maybe, even though the Rangers move on to the next round (and the Canadiens don't - bwah-ha-ha: CH-okers! They wrote the book on choking, actually: and the Price is always WRONG! But that is another story...) and NYC finds itself in the final four on ice (not the ''frozen four'' - that's the other tournament! They got so far only because they didn't face the Bruins! It was the only reason why they reached the Finals last year, too; only to lose so miserably to the Kings!) perhaps Glen ''Satan'' Sather will have a change of attitude, if not of heart...? And maybe, then, he will allow Cam Neely and Jeff Gorton to meet up - and talk business! While his Rangers try and best the Lightning for the honor of losing to the Ducks in the big finale! :-)
Yes - Jeff might yet make it indeed: and prove some old adage wrong in the process (you know which one: the one that has it that you can't go back or something...?)
Then again - I am not holding my breath on that one... not at all!
Paraphrasing here, the lyrics of an old song from parts much akin to L'Ancienne-Lorette rather than any town in the greater Boston area or in Massachusetts, so - suffice it to say, Patrice Bergeron might know what it's all about; he might recognize it. But few other Bruins might have a chance to... at all! It's not all that important right now, though...
Who hasn't dreamt of going back to Beantown? Once you've been there, been born there, lived there a significant part of your life...? I know I want to go back, too! Hence it is not surprising one bit that Jeff Gorton would want back in - into the city, into the fanbase, into the Bruins organization!
Those are rumors though - only rumors! But they make a hell (or a heaven) of a lot of sense!
Gorton basically built that Stanley Cup championship team of 2011, and all within a very short timespan, years prior, when he was acting as the interim G.M. after Mike O'Connell was dismissed and just before Peter Chiarelli was added to the mix with the mission to add the final pieces of that puzzle. And what did Pete add, of note? Mercenary marksman Nathan Horton. That's it. All the other pieces he added (Gregory Campbell, Michael Ryder, Tyler Seguin, Claude Julien himself... Brandon Bochenski?!?) have proven to wear out their welcome a tiny wee bit too fast... And, lately, the additions were all subpar, to say the least: Miroslav Satan?!? Reilly Smith, Matt Fraser, Joe Morrow, Brendan Connolly, Matt Mottau... Brian Rolston?!? Loui Eriksson doesn't count: he's a certifiable veteran! And though one still hopes that Connolly (and, maybe, Smith too) can blossom into lethal top scorers, in time...? That is, most unfortunately, less than certain, at this time!
Gorton, for his part, built the true core of the contending Bruins: he drafted, recruited or signed all of the following: Brad Marchand, Tuukka Rask, Milan Lucic, Zdeno Chara. Phil Kessel and Marc Savard. (Even though Chiarelli is often credited, totally wrongly, of some of those coups!) He had a hand in extending the contracts of other key figures, such as the goaltender that would change everything,Tim Thomas, and Bergeron himself. That was all back in 2006 - a year of transition, if there ever was one... And it's (almost) all reminded right there, on his short bio on the website of his current employer - the execrable New York Rangers. But let's not go there...!
Can Jeff Gorton accomplish his dream - this wonderful dream of going back?
Most importantly of all, though, should he be allowed to?
The Bruins have a perfectly suitable G.M.-to-be within their ranks already: home-grown talent, groomed within the organization at any rate, Don Sweeney! A teammate of team president Cam Neely back in the days when they should have won, at the very least, one cup (...) Sweeney would probably be as reliable a G.M. (ha, almost typoed that into a GEM here - lol) as O'Connell and, in retrospect, that is quite the compliment indeed. After all, what did good ol' Mike do, above all else? He got rid of that over-hyped, under-achieving perennial choker, Joe Thornton! He shipped him off to San Jose, where he has been choking ever since, allowing the Bruins to turn the page and find themselves a new franchise player: who turned out to be, arguably, Patrice Bergeron. (Though many will be of the opinion that the Bruins do it by committee - and I would agree with that wholeheartedly! Bergeron cannot do much by himself: he needs a Chara, Rask, Krejci, Lucic, Marchand, a hired gun of service too - in order to get it properly done! Franchise committee it is!)
I can see Sweeney being the guy who would pull the trigger on just such a deal, too: shipping off Lucic and, maybe, Marchand too, for some package with which to build from, just like in the much-maligned Thornton deal. And, hopefully, it would turn out much better than the Seguin deal, in the short term, too? Or Sweeney would meet the same fate as O'Connell and Chiarelli did, but that much faster than they did...! My, how cruel this is: here the man hasn't even been hired as the G.M. yet that we're discussing the conditions for his dismissal already! Sorry, Don...! I'm on your side, really: I loved it when you were one of those ''big four'' defensemen, ever reliable, protecting the Bruins' zone: it was you and Garry Galley, Ray Bourque of course and... Al Iafrate? Michael Thelven? Gord Kluzak? Anyway...!
One can understand why Neely would want to have a chance to bring back Gorton instead of giving a chance to his old pal Don -a neophyte, basically- to fill this role. Rumors are Neely is awaiting the Rangers' elimination in order to be able to speak to Gorton, as per NYR head honcho Glen Sather's wishes... That slithering snake-in-the-grass, Sather: he was a viscous scumbag in Edmonton and he is only a bigger one now, in New York! All Bruins fans should hate him with a passion! Who cares that he was a Bruin himself in his formative years, under the tutelage of the one and only Harry Sinden? Sather sucks - period! That he would prevent one of his underlings to achieve his homecoming dreams (that is assuming that there are such dreams in Gorton's head! Sure - there should be!) with the inane excuse that his team ''is still competing'' - what the hell has it got to do with front office personnel defections? The team on the ice would not even know, let alone be affected by it - come on! That is all hogwash and bulls*** coming from a master hogwasher (?) and bulls***ter known as Glen SATHER - that is what it is, I'm telling you, folks!
Neely has had other candidates in mind, sure: but one was scooped up by those pitiful, if hellbent, Devils (and he came from another pit, too - how ironic is that) while the other one is a mystery man who, I personally hope, will turn out to be... Don Cherry!
Just Do It - for Blue!
Alas, like it or not, Cam ''The Man'' Neely has to wait it out before he is granted permission to simply talk to Jeff Gorton about a return to this position he held so very briefly, on an interim basis, back in 2006... And he might have to wait a while longer, to, as those other perennial chokers, known as Washington Capitals, and their own all-star franchise choker, Alexander Ovechkin, appear to be doing it all over again, in their series against the New York Rangers... Ah, those damn Caps: they seem to enjoy playing up to their full potential of mere spoilers whenever they come to face the Boston Bruins; but, then, whenever the stakes are really high, they will always fold and choke on the very spot! Just like Joe Thornton's Sharks. And, this time, it frustrates the Bruins organization and their fanbase on a whole new level: stifling their G.M. hiring process, which grinds down to a halt, unable to move forward because of them - and SATHER! (Yes, folks: feel free to think of Sather and of Satan in the same way, why don't you now...!)
But, one can hope that, maybe, even though the Rangers move on to the next round (and the Canadiens don't - bwah-ha-ha: CH-okers! They wrote the book on choking, actually: and the Price is always WRONG! But that is another story...) and NYC finds itself in the final four on ice (not the ''frozen four'' - that's the other tournament! They got so far only because they didn't face the Bruins! It was the only reason why they reached the Finals last year, too; only to lose so miserably to the Kings!) perhaps Glen ''Satan'' Sather will have a change of attitude, if not of heart...? And maybe, then, he will allow Cam Neely and Jeff Gorton to meet up - and talk business! While his Rangers try and best the Lightning for the honor of losing to the Ducks in the big finale! :-)
Yes - Jeff might yet make it indeed: and prove some old adage wrong in the process (you know which one: the one that has it that you can't go back or something...?)
Then again - I am not holding my breath on that one... not at all!
May 10, 2015
Dreaming... Of A Lot Of Scoring!
Isn't it beautiful to behold now: Tyler Seguin, the Rawhide Kid himself, shooting 'em precisely and accurately as his entire team appears to be firing off on all cylinders, winning games handily by such scores as 9-0 and 7-2...
Ah, don't you long for those days when the only lashes seen in these hockey arenas are the long eyelashes of Seguin groupies, trying to lure him to their beds? No tomahawk slashes from mischievous slow players trying to prevent greater talent from doing what they do best: carrying the puck forward and lodging it in the net! Don't you remember all those beautiful goals the Bruins scored on their postseasons of 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and even 2013 and 2014... eh? Seguin was potting quite his fair share of those; when he was on his game, of course. And there it is again: a hat trick for the kid! Way to go... kid!
No, this is not 2012 and defending STANLEY CUP CHAMPION BOSTON BRUINS playing up to their full potential: no, this is actually... Team Canada. 2015.
They beat everybody: USA, Germany, Russia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Belarus, Czech Republic and Slovakia. Tyler Seguin (dare we say ''the once and future Bruin'' now? Hey - you never know!) has not the usual suspects as teammates anymore: those we won a Stanley Cup in his very first try at it. Instead, he is scoring alongside talent such as Sean Couturier, Cody Eakin, Tyler Toffoli, Aaron Ekblad, Jordan Eberle, Nathan (not Horton) McKinnon, Jake Muzzin, Matt Duchesne and even the execrable Claude Giroux. Hmm... Maybe the Boston brass should look into trading for one or two of those guys... eh? Don Cherry would recommend so, I am absolutely sure about it!
Coached to score without regard to balloon up the margin of victory by one Todd McLellan, this collection of supposedly patriotic snipers truly seems destined for gold - unless the referees have something to say about that! Bad refereeing has been the only thing preventing Canada from raking in all the gold medals over the years, or so have alleged many beer-guzzling observers as the odd authentic sportscaster, at times. Regardless of the veracity of those claims, maybe this Toddster is the kind of coach the Boston Bruins should be looking at in order to fully exploit the offensive talents the organization already has on hand - as those they could be acquiring in the coming months, via free agency, trade or draft! Pastrnak, Spooner, Griffith, Khokhlachev, Ferlin, Robins (hey - he's a Bobby!) and Florek are all Bruins of the future who, along with the existing big league finesse players on the roster (need we go through the list again? Sigh! Okay, here we go: Krejci, Bergeron, Eriksson, Marchand, Connolly, Lucic, Smith, Kelly, Talbot and Soderberg (?) - for it is bye bye Paille and Campbell, for sure! And maybe a few more on this roster...) so need a new system that deviates from the old one-goal defensive system Claude Julien seems to love so much; a new system that promptly and properly opens the floodgates for the offensive weapons on this team to score lots and lots more goals!
Like they used to do, somehow, back in the day... And that was not all that long ago, actually...!
McLellan: the Bruin coach to take the team in this bold, new offensive direction it needs to undertake right now! Well, perhaps... And, this time, not only Don Cherry might agree with me, but one Joe Haggerty, too! (I just like the fact the names rhyme, really, that's all: I do not now nor will I ever have the same degree of admiration for Joe as I do for Don - come on!!! After all, they call one guy ''Grapes'' and the other they call ''Hags'' - and that says plenty, if you ask me! But that's another story...)
One sees what the lack of scoring punch (or the lack of willingness to implement a system of play that calls for an offensive mindset rather a defensive one) can do to a team with higher aspirations: the Boston Bruins are certifiable contenders, they entered the disastrous 2014-2015 season as such and had won the President's Trophy the season prior! But they were inconsistent on the score sheet throughout the year - and wound up missing the playoffs entirely because of that! Their detestable arch-rivals up north were getting by through stealing one-goal games with a truly exceptional (as in: it won't happen again) seasonal performance from their goaltender: but their lack of scoring talent caught up with them in no time come playoff time; they barely stole victory from Ottawa before being dumped by a true scoring machine such as Tampa Bay. Boston can compete with those high-octane scoring machines and is the only eastern team that can match the western juggernauts - when they play to their full offensive capabilities, that is!
They need this new direction and they need it NOW!
It is not too late to recoup what this team deserved to reap as long as the talented nucleus remains: they should have won more than one single cup between the years 2009 and 2014. And they can still get at least another one and match the extraordinary (and, yet, still underachieving) Bobby Orr era... which we celebrate the 45th anniversary of right now, hmm?
Ah, don't you long for those days when the only lashes seen in these hockey arenas are the long eyelashes of Seguin groupies, trying to lure him to their beds? No tomahawk slashes from mischievous slow players trying to prevent greater talent from doing what they do best: carrying the puck forward and lodging it in the net! Don't you remember all those beautiful goals the Bruins scored on their postseasons of 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and even 2013 and 2014... eh? Seguin was potting quite his fair share of those; when he was on his game, of course. And there it is again: a hat trick for the kid! Way to go... kid!
No, this is not 2012 and defending STANLEY CUP CHAMPION BOSTON BRUINS playing up to their full potential: no, this is actually... Team Canada. 2015.
They beat everybody: USA, Germany, Russia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Belarus, Czech Republic and Slovakia. Tyler Seguin (dare we say ''the once and future Bruin'' now? Hey - you never know!) has not the usual suspects as teammates anymore: those we won a Stanley Cup in his very first try at it. Instead, he is scoring alongside talent such as Sean Couturier, Cody Eakin, Tyler Toffoli, Aaron Ekblad, Jordan Eberle, Nathan (not Horton) McKinnon, Jake Muzzin, Matt Duchesne and even the execrable Claude Giroux. Hmm... Maybe the Boston brass should look into trading for one or two of those guys... eh? Don Cherry would recommend so, I am absolutely sure about it!
Coached to score without regard to balloon up the margin of victory by one Todd McLellan, this collection of supposedly patriotic snipers truly seems destined for gold - unless the referees have something to say about that! Bad refereeing has been the only thing preventing Canada from raking in all the gold medals over the years, or so have alleged many beer-guzzling observers as the odd authentic sportscaster, at times. Regardless of the veracity of those claims, maybe this Toddster is the kind of coach the Boston Bruins should be looking at in order to fully exploit the offensive talents the organization already has on hand - as those they could be acquiring in the coming months, via free agency, trade or draft! Pastrnak, Spooner, Griffith, Khokhlachev, Ferlin, Robins (hey - he's a Bobby!) and Florek are all Bruins of the future who, along with the existing big league finesse players on the roster (need we go through the list again? Sigh! Okay, here we go: Krejci, Bergeron, Eriksson, Marchand, Connolly, Lucic, Smith, Kelly, Talbot and Soderberg (?) - for it is bye bye Paille and Campbell, for sure! And maybe a few more on this roster...) so need a new system that deviates from the old one-goal defensive system Claude Julien seems to love so much; a new system that promptly and properly opens the floodgates for the offensive weapons on this team to score lots and lots more goals!
Like they used to do, somehow, back in the day... And that was not all that long ago, actually...!
McLellan: the Bruin coach to take the team in this bold, new offensive direction it needs to undertake right now! Well, perhaps... And, this time, not only Don Cherry might agree with me, but one Joe Haggerty, too! (I just like the fact the names rhyme, really, that's all: I do not now nor will I ever have the same degree of admiration for Joe as I do for Don - come on!!! After all, they call one guy ''Grapes'' and the other they call ''Hags'' - and that says plenty, if you ask me! But that's another story...)
One sees what the lack of scoring punch (or the lack of willingness to implement a system of play that calls for an offensive mindset rather a defensive one) can do to a team with higher aspirations: the Boston Bruins are certifiable contenders, they entered the disastrous 2014-2015 season as such and had won the President's Trophy the season prior! But they were inconsistent on the score sheet throughout the year - and wound up missing the playoffs entirely because of that! Their detestable arch-rivals up north were getting by through stealing one-goal games with a truly exceptional (as in: it won't happen again) seasonal performance from their goaltender: but their lack of scoring talent caught up with them in no time come playoff time; they barely stole victory from Ottawa before being dumped by a true scoring machine such as Tampa Bay. Boston can compete with those high-octane scoring machines and is the only eastern team that can match the western juggernauts - when they play to their full offensive capabilities, that is!
They need this new direction and they need it NOW!
It is not too late to recoup what this team deserved to reap as long as the talented nucleus remains: they should have won more than one single cup between the years 2009 and 2014. And they can still get at least another one and match the extraordinary (and, yet, still underachieving) Bobby Orr era... which we celebrate the 45th anniversary of right now, hmm?
April 24, 2015
Ah, The Way We Were...
The tradition we have got to get back to...
The delightful end of *their* 100th anniversary -
when the Bruins closed the century of CHanadiens!
DIE, CH, DIE: 1909-2009
DIE, CH, DIE: 1909-2009
And ultimately... the Stanley Cup!
April 19, 2015
Dream On... Rusev!
Cena... Cena... CENA!
How dare you, Cena - how dare you???
Okay, first things first: we don't really give a damn about ''anything WWE'' - what they do, what they say, what they imply... It is all hogwash to us! "Kayfabe" - right? Hogwash, in the common man's lingo! Fair enough, purist Ric Flair? Wooooo! Also, it may be good to point out now that we care not much at all about the ''people's favorite way to get drunk'' - in other words, ''ale, beer, lager - it's all the same crap to us too!'' We prefer a good bottle of vinho here, in Luminousland - wine! Da! Hence, we joyously lump them all together: all the rabble, in one heap pile! Isn't it what the one who caters to these masses does in the first place - huh? (Talking about Vinnie Mac now - the vile Vincent Kennedy McMahon! Everybody hates Vincent - he's no Raymond! But that's another story...) And so... To make it short... if you don't like it - bite it? And if that's not the rightest thing to do, either, do not even bother pointing it out - not to us! Do it with someone who gives a damn...! Like The Rock or some jabroni from Tinseltown, land of make-believe... REAL thespians, though; not like all of these more-than-mediocre talents so *desperate* to be recognized as ''artists'' that they joined the Titan Sports Circus in order to get a crack at being on television, maybe making a straight-to-DVD movie or two, perhaps even being somewhat considered to be a part of the entertainment industry... but barely!
Having stated all that, however, we must stress the point here, if it isn't evident yet: we care about what messages are sent the massholes' way! Not the knuckleheads, not the slapnuts - the massholes! Massachusetts-born... a-holes? Yeah - those! Hence, when we see one of their favorite sons, John freakin' Cena, who hails from Boston, MASS alright, saying such atrocities as ''I have been drinking Miller - because it is the champagne of American beers'' - we have to cough, belch and vomit with the utmost disapproval. Especially when he is selling that piss-poor crap to a Bulgarian - someone who hails from my second or third adopted land (I lost track - sue me, willya?)
But we're getting sidetracked here...
Back on track - NOW:
MILLER SUCKS, CENA
AND BUDWEISER TOO!
SAMUEL ADAMS IS THE BEST
THE BEST!!!
REMEMBER THAT, CENA?!?
And it freaking looks like a championship belt,
this Boston Ale label...!!! Wow! Woooo!
We didn't want to believe it,
but the fans were right on this one:
CENA SUCKS!!!
And that is the saddest aspect
of the whole darn thing here...
We might as well stick with Old Man Flair after all...
AND
Reminds us of yet another grappler...
What was her name again... in-ring name, duh...
ah yes - Beth Phoenix! Is that her?
Never Mind!!!
April 13, 2015
Dreamed Up Vs. Dreary Reality
Memories of Seth Griffith's spectacular goal
-as well as David Pastrnak and Ryan Spooner goals-
will carry us through these unsavory Bruinless playoffs now...?
NHL.com's BRACKET CHALLENGE was a painful one to accept -
but, as usual, we didn't back out of the challenge;
we never back out of ANY challenge!
Memories of the many promises of this campaign, early on in training camp as we recalled already here, which had prompted EA Sports, proud makers of the NHL 15 game which sports future Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron on its cover, to declare that the Bruins would be tops in the course of this 2014-15 campaign... Further more, the projection had in fact predicted a Bruins-Kings finals for the Stanley Cup! Both teams, as we know, failed to even qualify for the playoffs this year; both the top seed in the East and defending cup champion OUT OF IT, right off the... stick? The projection had further predicted a total of 103 points for the Bruins, which wasn't far off, to tell the truth. What was far out was to project that those 103 points would be tops among all the Eastern Conference clubs and yield yet another top seed overall in the league! In reality, the Bruins would gather 96 points: and it wasn't good enough to capture a second straight President's Trophy at all, no! They would actually find themselves two points short of a qualification for the post-season with that, as we saw a mere few days ago...! What a nightmare! One that neither EA Sports, nor any one of us here at Bostonian Dreams could have EVER PREDICTED, indeed...
April 12, 2015
Dream Finale...?
It's the final game of the season... April the 11th, 2015...
The captain of the team, Zdeno Chara, is playing on, even though he's hurting all over (...)
The team has under-performed throughout the season, dating back to last year's playoffs even, plagued by all sorts of injuries, too. But they battle on, even as they teeter on the edge of the abyss: and an abysmal non-playoff qualifying year appears to be more than a very plausible end to it all, at this time...
They learn that their rivals for those last two playoff berths are doing well: better than they presently are. And to think that, a mere few days prior, they sat comfortably atop both of them in the standings, having all but clinched that first ''wild card'' spot already...
But that is the thing: it was all but officially clinched. Ottawa made a push, so improbable and so impressive though it was, that they leapt ahead and past the Bruins, and they overtook that spot, relegating our B's to the situation they were in then: to fight until the last puck drop for the very last berth, the second wild card.
The fight was on: and it was with old rivals Pittsburgh Penguins that it would take place. The final game of the season would decide it all: the luck of the draw had the Pens play the lowly Sabres in Buffalo - an easy task if there ever was one.
Meanwhile, the Boston Bruins, the best team in the East just one year prior -the certifiable Beast of the East- had to match up with newly-confirmed juggernaut Tampa Bay. The Bruins had won 2 out of 3 games against the Lightning; however, the Lightning had also been coming on strong towards the end of the season, which was good in and by itself for it was all done in their attempt to disallow the atrocity of seeing the Montreal Canadiens finish atop the division - which is an abomination sans nom right there! The Lightning hates the Canadiens even more than the Bruins do, this season: for the simple reason that the Hateful Habs halted their playoff push so very prematurely last year, too, when the Lightning's top goalie was out with an injury himself... The Habs had swept the Lightning, i fact: ever since, much like the Boston Bruins of 2008-2009, the Lightning was merciless towards the Canadiens, not giving them an inch and having won every single game against them afterwards. That non-meritorious sweep was to be avenged - and it would be, just the Bruins had done to the Canadiens in 2009, the Habs' centennial, sweeping them in four straight in the first round - so the Lightning would do to the Habs in 2015, in the second round.
But back to THAT GAME... Bruins vs Lightning, with the Bostonians' dreams of playing for the cup again on the line...
The Boston Bruins did not hold their fate in their own hands - and they knew it very well. They were dependent upon the Sabres -of all teams- to make it into the playoffs. In order for them to squeeze in, the Buffalo Sabres (a lowly team, bottom-of-the-standings dwellers, comprising several former Habs such as Gionta and Gorges) had to find a way to defeat the Penguins simultaneously while the Bruins did their part by defeating the Lightning. What did the Sabres do? They didn't hold their end of this. They dropped the ball - or the puck, in their own net. They lost to the Pens, who were, themselves, playing for their playoffs lives, let's not forget that!
Learning of this as they still played in Tampa - trailing the Lightning by one goal, on top of that - what did the Boston Bruins do?
They dig deep into their resources and tied the game nonetheless.
The game went into overtime... and then a shootout. They lost the game only then - on one shot, one lucky bounce, during a shootout; as it had happened too many times during the course of this season to forget as it is... Once again, Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, Loui Eriksson, David Krejci (even at 50%...) - they all gave it their all, to the very last...
Even if the season was already over.
Those are the Boston Bruins. Those are the true champions I know and have known since the days of Rick Middleton... Charlie Simmer... Keith Crowder,... Cam Neely... Dave Reid... Randy Burridge... Steve Kasper... Craig Janney... Bob Joyce... Vladimir Ruzicka... Bobby Orr and Ray Bourque, of course!
The dream ended valiantly, this year - as it does every year: win or lose, they fight until the end.
It was just that much obvious in defeat, this time around, than it was, say, in 2011 when the cup was won - at last... Or in 2013, when the cup was stolen from us, by a mini-Chicago blitz in game 6...
Boston will be back.
The Bruins will rise again.
The dream continues...
The captain of the team, Zdeno Chara, is playing on, even though he's hurting all over (...)
The team has under-performed throughout the season, dating back to last year's playoffs even, plagued by all sorts of injuries, too. But they battle on, even as they teeter on the edge of the abyss: and an abysmal non-playoff qualifying year appears to be more than a very plausible end to it all, at this time...
They learn that their rivals for those last two playoff berths are doing well: better than they presently are. And to think that, a mere few days prior, they sat comfortably atop both of them in the standings, having all but clinched that first ''wild card'' spot already...
But that is the thing: it was all but officially clinched. Ottawa made a push, so improbable and so impressive though it was, that they leapt ahead and past the Bruins, and they overtook that spot, relegating our B's to the situation they were in then: to fight until the last puck drop for the very last berth, the second wild card.
The fight was on: and it was with old rivals Pittsburgh Penguins that it would take place. The final game of the season would decide it all: the luck of the draw had the Pens play the lowly Sabres in Buffalo - an easy task if there ever was one.
Meanwhile, the Boston Bruins, the best team in the East just one year prior -the certifiable Beast of the East- had to match up with newly-confirmed juggernaut Tampa Bay. The Bruins had won 2 out of 3 games against the Lightning; however, the Lightning had also been coming on strong towards the end of the season, which was good in and by itself for it was all done in their attempt to disallow the atrocity of seeing the Montreal Canadiens finish atop the division - which is an abomination sans nom right there! The Lightning hates the Canadiens even more than the Bruins do, this season: for the simple reason that the Hateful Habs halted their playoff push so very prematurely last year, too, when the Lightning's top goalie was out with an injury himself... The Habs had swept the Lightning, i fact: ever since, much like the Boston Bruins of 2008-2009, the Lightning was merciless towards the Canadiens, not giving them an inch and having won every single game against them afterwards. That non-meritorious sweep was to be avenged - and it would be, just the Bruins had done to the Canadiens in 2009, the Habs' centennial, sweeping them in four straight in the first round - so the Lightning would do to the Habs in 2015, in the second round.
But back to THAT GAME... Bruins vs Lightning, with the Bostonians' dreams of playing for the cup again on the line...
The Boston Bruins did not hold their fate in their own hands - and they knew it very well. They were dependent upon the Sabres -of all teams- to make it into the playoffs. In order for them to squeeze in, the Buffalo Sabres (a lowly team, bottom-of-the-standings dwellers, comprising several former Habs such as Gionta and Gorges) had to find a way to defeat the Penguins simultaneously while the Bruins did their part by defeating the Lightning. What did the Sabres do? They didn't hold their end of this. They dropped the ball - or the puck, in their own net. They lost to the Pens, who were, themselves, playing for their playoffs lives, let's not forget that!
Learning of this as they still played in Tampa - trailing the Lightning by one goal, on top of that - what did the Boston Bruins do?
They dig deep into their resources and tied the game nonetheless.
The game went into overtime... and then a shootout. They lost the game only then - on one shot, one lucky bounce, during a shootout; as it had happened too many times during the course of this season to forget as it is... Once again, Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, Loui Eriksson, David Krejci (even at 50%...) - they all gave it their all, to the very last...
Even if the season was already over.
Those are the Boston Bruins. Those are the true champions I know and have known since the days of Rick Middleton... Charlie Simmer... Keith Crowder,... Cam Neely... Dave Reid... Randy Burridge... Steve Kasper... Craig Janney... Bob Joyce... Vladimir Ruzicka... Bobby Orr and Ray Bourque, of course!
The dream ended valiantly, this year - as it does every year: win or lose, they fight until the end.
It was just that much obvious in defeat, this time around, than it was, say, in 2011 when the cup was won - at last... Or in 2013, when the cup was stolen from us, by a mini-Chicago blitz in game 6...
Boston will be back.
The Bruins will rise again.
The dream continues...
And that is why, *we* can carry on
dreaming about the CUP...
while others foolishly
carry on dreaming
about frivolities!
But That Is Another Story!
April 10, 2015
Dream Year Turned Nightmare - 35.0, at the very least!
At the beginning of the year, the Boston Bruins still had a top contender. They also still had Johnny Boychuk to solidify their blue-line and power plays! The G.M. had made it clear and a very public conscious effort to ''keep the players that won the cup together'' - however, lots of them were already gone from there: Tyler Seguin, Nathan Horton, Andrew Ference, Shawn Thornton, Michael Ryder... And Boychuk would soon follow, too. Without all of those guys, the Bruins were simply no longer the ''exact same team that won the cup'' - nope.
So it is such a great surprise that they faltered as they did; that they couldn't live up to that reputation of perennial contender? Sure, they still have Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand, Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg - all playing at considerably less than their full potential, alas, with the one notable exception of Bergeron, perhaps. Horton's replacement was Iginla? Gone, too. Seguin's replacement was who - Jordan Caron? Matt Fraser? They're both gone as well! Shawn Thornton may be effectively replaced by Maxim Talbot but, somehow, the old Merlot Line is simply not even close to the shadow of what it once was! It would pick up the offense in those close games when the top three lines were momentarily silenced by intense coverage from the competition; be it Daniel Paille, Gregory Campbell or Thornton himself, big goals would come from these unexpected sources at the most crucial times, especially during the playoffs. It sure didn't happen with any kind of regularity throughout this latest season; and it sure didn't have a chance to happen during the post-season, as the Bruins didn't make it there! :-(
Two points - two measly points short of a participation in the big spring tournament! The Bruins could have shown the Rangers something; even in this state, they could compete! But they were two points short from qualifying. How many points were lost, this past season, that would have been the Bruins' usually, in recent times, without any difficulty whatsoever? Losses in shootouts were numerous: you get one point for those, but it is clearly not enough! Losses to sworn enemies hurt the most, no matter which form they take: and, in recent years, they should have never been that many against the Canadiens... Capitals... Panthers, with whom the Bruins were competing for a playoff spot... Senators, who finally got that spot... Penguins? At least the Bruins beat the Penguins this year! Oh - the Sabres! You know you're not at your best when you drop one or two to Buff-a-loooooow. Those were points in the bank: instant standings boosts that the Bruins failed to collect, quite incomprehensibly indeed. Maybe the Bruins were collectively tired? So were the Kings: the only thing worse than failing to qualify for the Big Dance after being first overall and winning the President's Trophy is to have won the Stanley Cup like the Kings did - and then not qualify for the playoffs the very next year. The Los Angeles Losers... sorry, Kings... were too tired from having been in two finals in three years, winning both times - vanquishing in long, hard-fought battles the tenacious, vicious Blackhawks on their way there... Something the Bruins could not do in their Stanley Cup final in 2013, after winning it in upset fashion against over-rated Vancouver in 2011 and being upset in the first round as the defending champ in 2012, by the unscrupulous Washington Turds... Capitals, Still... The way we were: those were good times, in comparison! I mean. It goes without saying that, for both the Kings and the Bruins, the 2014-2015 season is one to be forgotten!
Small consolation to be had, at least: the Bruins got one the nod from NHL.com itself - one of the top ten goals scored during the 2014-2015 campaign! Too bad it was scored by someone who didn't stay with the big club all year through: Seth Griffith. Maybe, if you<re lucky, you can still see that goal being scored (against hated New Jersey and their Revere of a goalie, former native son then turned Canuck now a Devil, whatsisname... Cory Schneider, is it?) over and over again, as he so deserves it, right here: at the NHL videocenter, nothing less!
Of course, true fans cannot dismiss the season's accomplishments with the back of the hand like that - simply because the team failed to compete for the greatest prize there is to be won there. The heroics of the ever-consistent and perseverent Patrice Bergeron, the often (but not always) clutch play of Brad Marchand as well as the courage of one Zdeno Chara who, though with a broken fibula, played the remaining games of the season still! Wow! The captain of the team showed uncommon bravery and resilience by playing over 24 minutes per game while he basically skated on a broken leg! Bravo Zdeno! Too bad it was all for practically nothing, ultimately... (Well, we collected *one* point, in that last game there: the loss to Tampa Bay, in overtime, in the final game of the season!)
The general manager is to be dismissed, ironically just as he dismissed the remaining members of the fabled ''Merlot Line'' which so often carried the Boston Bruins to success in the post-season in recent campaigns, when the top three lines were, indeed, being momentarily shutdown by the opposition's coverage. Who can possibly make someone like Maxim Talbot start scoring clutch goals though - hmm? A new general manager is to be found now; and his list of tasks is growing by the minute, really... Trade Lucic? Or Marchand? Rethink the team philosophy completely, maybe? Because crushing and banging the other team does not yield results anymore in this league: playing physical is good for the spectacle, at times (as if hockey fans and, more specifically here, Boston's ''gallery gods'' were such bloodthirsty fellows. In fact, they are all such types, across the NHL fanbases: they relish toughness, fights, as if ice hockey were truly the new gladiator games of the modern era! But we are digressing right now...) but playing like that does not net the goals necessary to win the damn contests! Several teams are experiencing this, right now: the Ottawa Senators went on a stunning 23-1-1 (or something like it) run just in order to qualify for the playoffs; had they not done that, the Bruins would have trumped them for that second wildcard and final spot! But they accomplished the feat not solely due to their toughness, no: it was the miracles that their one-hit wonder Hammond the Hamburglar was accomplishing between the pipes that truly did it for them! Once he began slumping, their wins were a hell of a lot more difficult to obtain: and the tough play wasn't cutting it for them either, just as it did not for the Bruins this season. A change in philosophy is imperative for the Bruins - for they have got skill and tons of it still (despite having gotten rid of tons of it throughout the years: Boyes, Kessel, Seguin are but three of them...) And if said change can only be accomplished through a change behind the bench - then so be it! Bye Bye Claude Julien!
All is well up in Providence, meanwhile... It is at least that! The Providence Bruins made it to the playoffs; with the added assistance of Pastrnak, Spooner, Trotman and Griffith, they should do well against any and all opposition. (Watch out, Hartford Wolfpack! Watch out, AHL! For these Bruin kids are the real deal: they will hoist a Stanley Cup one day - soon!)
The Providence Friars won the National Title - over Boston University, on top of that! Aye, destiny is sometimes that cruel to Boston: remember all the times we were on the verge of a championship only to see it snatched from us at that last second? It happened so many times to the Bruins, Red Sox, Revolution; to the Cannons too, I'm sure... The Patriots? Well, there were those two Super Bowls that got away: the one against the Bears of the 80's was normal but the two against the Giants (I always typo them as ''Ginats'' first - maybe I should not correct the typo anymore...) were just too much... But those are other stories!
So it is such a great surprise that they faltered as they did; that they couldn't live up to that reputation of perennial contender? Sure, they still have Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand, Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg - all playing at considerably less than their full potential, alas, with the one notable exception of Bergeron, perhaps. Horton's replacement was Iginla? Gone, too. Seguin's replacement was who - Jordan Caron? Matt Fraser? They're both gone as well! Shawn Thornton may be effectively replaced by Maxim Talbot but, somehow, the old Merlot Line is simply not even close to the shadow of what it once was! It would pick up the offense in those close games when the top three lines were momentarily silenced by intense coverage from the competition; be it Daniel Paille, Gregory Campbell or Thornton himself, big goals would come from these unexpected sources at the most crucial times, especially during the playoffs. It sure didn't happen with any kind of regularity throughout this latest season; and it sure didn't have a chance to happen during the post-season, as the Bruins didn't make it there! :-(
Two points - two measly points short of a participation in the big spring tournament! The Bruins could have shown the Rangers something; even in this state, they could compete! But they were two points short from qualifying. How many points were lost, this past season, that would have been the Bruins' usually, in recent times, without any difficulty whatsoever? Losses in shootouts were numerous: you get one point for those, but it is clearly not enough! Losses to sworn enemies hurt the most, no matter which form they take: and, in recent years, they should have never been that many against the Canadiens... Capitals... Panthers, with whom the Bruins were competing for a playoff spot... Senators, who finally got that spot... Penguins? At least the Bruins beat the Penguins this year! Oh - the Sabres! You know you're not at your best when you drop one or two to Buff-a-loooooow. Those were points in the bank: instant standings boosts that the Bruins failed to collect, quite incomprehensibly indeed. Maybe the Bruins were collectively tired? So were the Kings: the only thing worse than failing to qualify for the Big Dance after being first overall and winning the President's Trophy is to have won the Stanley Cup like the Kings did - and then not qualify for the playoffs the very next year. The Los Angeles Losers... sorry, Kings... were too tired from having been in two finals in three years, winning both times - vanquishing in long, hard-fought battles the tenacious, vicious Blackhawks on their way there... Something the Bruins could not do in their Stanley Cup final in 2013, after winning it in upset fashion against over-rated Vancouver in 2011 and being upset in the first round as the defending champ in 2012, by the unscrupulous Washington Turds... Capitals, Still... The way we were: those were good times, in comparison! I mean. It goes without saying that, for both the Kings and the Bruins, the 2014-2015 season is one to be forgotten!
Small consolation to be had, at least: the Bruins got one the nod from NHL.com itself - one of the top ten goals scored during the 2014-2015 campaign! Too bad it was scored by someone who didn't stay with the big club all year through: Seth Griffith. Maybe, if you<re lucky, you can still see that goal being scored (against hated New Jersey and their Revere of a goalie, former native son then turned Canuck now a Devil, whatsisname... Cory Schneider, is it?) over and over again, as he so deserves it, right here: at the NHL videocenter, nothing less!
Of course, true fans cannot dismiss the season's accomplishments with the back of the hand like that - simply because the team failed to compete for the greatest prize there is to be won there. The heroics of the ever-consistent and perseverent Patrice Bergeron, the often (but not always) clutch play of Brad Marchand as well as the courage of one Zdeno Chara who, though with a broken fibula, played the remaining games of the season still! Wow! The captain of the team showed uncommon bravery and resilience by playing over 24 minutes per game while he basically skated on a broken leg! Bravo Zdeno! Too bad it was all for practically nothing, ultimately... (Well, we collected *one* point, in that last game there: the loss to Tampa Bay, in overtime, in the final game of the season!)
The general manager is to be dismissed, ironically just as he dismissed the remaining members of the fabled ''Merlot Line'' which so often carried the Boston Bruins to success in the post-season in recent campaigns, when the top three lines were, indeed, being momentarily shutdown by the opposition's coverage. Who can possibly make someone like Maxim Talbot start scoring clutch goals though - hmm? A new general manager is to be found now; and his list of tasks is growing by the minute, really... Trade Lucic? Or Marchand? Rethink the team philosophy completely, maybe? Because crushing and banging the other team does not yield results anymore in this league: playing physical is good for the spectacle, at times (as if hockey fans and, more specifically here, Boston's ''gallery gods'' were such bloodthirsty fellows. In fact, they are all such types, across the NHL fanbases: they relish toughness, fights, as if ice hockey were truly the new gladiator games of the modern era! But we are digressing right now...) but playing like that does not net the goals necessary to win the damn contests! Several teams are experiencing this, right now: the Ottawa Senators went on a stunning 23-1-1 (or something like it) run just in order to qualify for the playoffs; had they not done that, the Bruins would have trumped them for that second wildcard and final spot! But they accomplished the feat not solely due to their toughness, no: it was the miracles that their one-hit wonder Hammond the Hamburglar was accomplishing between the pipes that truly did it for them! Once he began slumping, their wins were a hell of a lot more difficult to obtain: and the tough play wasn't cutting it for them either, just as it did not for the Bruins this season. A change in philosophy is imperative for the Bruins - for they have got skill and tons of it still (despite having gotten rid of tons of it throughout the years: Boyes, Kessel, Seguin are but three of them...) And if said change can only be accomplished through a change behind the bench - then so be it! Bye Bye Claude Julien!
All is well up in Providence, meanwhile... It is at least that! The Providence Bruins made it to the playoffs; with the added assistance of Pastrnak, Spooner, Trotman and Griffith, they should do well against any and all opposition. (Watch out, Hartford Wolfpack! Watch out, AHL! For these Bruin kids are the real deal: they will hoist a Stanley Cup one day - soon!)
The Providence Friars won the National Title - over Boston University, on top of that! Aye, destiny is sometimes that cruel to Boston: remember all the times we were on the verge of a championship only to see it snatched from us at that last second? It happened so many times to the Bruins, Red Sox, Revolution; to the Cannons too, I'm sure... The Patriots? Well, there were those two Super Bowls that got away: the one against the Bears of the 80's was normal but the two against the Giants (I always typo them as ''Ginats'' first - maybe I should not correct the typo anymore...) were just too much... But those are other stories!
Let's Hear It For Gray!
This year marks the 225th anniversary of a most impressive feat - whether mercantile in nature or not! (Hey - we all know that what pushed the Portuguese to find the fabled Passage to the Indies was... well... mostly mercantile, commercial and financial reasons! But that's another story...)
Robert Gray - another tangible link between the two proud traditions of navigation and avant-garde feats of all manners and all sorts: Boston and Portugal!
Today in History - April 10th, 2015
1790 - Merchant Robert Gray docked at Boston Harbor, becoming the first American to circumnavigate the globe. He sailed from Boston in September 1787.
1849 - William Hunt of New York patented the first safety pin.
1864 - Austrian Archduke Maximilian became emperor of Mexico.
1919 - Emiliano Zapata, a leader of peasants and indigenous people during the Mexican Revolution, was ambushed and killed in Morelos by government forces.
1942 - Japanese soldiers herded U.S. and Filipino prisoners of war on Bataan in the Philippines and forced them to march to another camp. During the six-day "Death March," more than 5,200 Americans and many more Filipinos died.
bravenet.comRobert Gray - another tangible link between the two proud traditions of navigation and avant-garde feats of all manners and all sorts: Boston and Portugal!
February 14, 2015
Dreaming of Persuading...?
Do it like it's 1899...!
A 2007 film production (for television, truly -
hence the involvement of WGBH Boston - and
its inclusion in this very blog, as well!)
this adaptation of Jane Austen's famed novel
is clearly the best - ever.
A fine, underwhelming cast
delivers with delicate care
all the nuances of the source material;
among them, you'll recognize some familiar faces
atoning for past sins -
such as the former mentor of one ''Buffy''...
And the actress most remember, alas,
for her turn in the most atrocious
Stephen King adaptation of all...
But enough about those!
For this is here
due to
WGBH
Boston
:-)
Persuasion:
Royal Navy captain Wentworth
was haughtily turned down eight
years ago
as suitor of pompous baronet
Sir Walter Elliot's daughter
Anne,
despite true love.
Now he visits their former seaside country
estate,
rented by his brother-in-law, admiral Croft,
so the financially
stressed baronet can afford
a fashionable, cheaper residence in trendy
Bath.
First the former lovers meet again on the estate,
where they feel
vibes again,
but neither dares admit them until it seems too late.
Yet
the truth becomes clear,
both have moved, but meet again in Bath.
Enjoy it while you can...!
+++
February 04, 2015
Dreaming Of A Family Like This? Or A Kiss Is Just A Kiss
Now what possessed Matt Slocum
of Associated Press, to snap this shot:
A celebratory split-second smooch
is being the focus of all of these
haters-that-are-going-to-hate
no matter what.
They hate a winner.
They hate familial love.
They hate something totally innocent
and try to coat it with vice,
smear it, begrime and defile it,
producing vicious slander in the process!
Coach Belichick should sue!
And his daughter, too -
for making her look chubby,
up close like that...!
But this is not the litigious blog now...
The photographer might not have guessed
that something would be made out of the pic
he had just managed to take,
in less than a second's time...
Or he knew full well,
given that coach Belichick is viewed
as such an ''evil man'' by all
the towns whose team
his has vanquished on the gridiron...!
Anyhow - this is all much ado about
NOTHING!
More conventional celebratory pics
need to be the ones we get to remember
SUPER BOWL XLIX by...
Leave it to the memes...
...make that four rings now!
Ric Flair must become a fan, now!
Woooooooo!
And mine necessitates this, at this point:
all pictures belong to their rightful owners -
trademark and copyright NFL 2015
-for the most part!-
:-)
January 25, 2015
Warning: Dreams Can Deflate In The Cold, Too...
The New England Patriots are going through some troubled times; that is, of course, much the understatement. They've clawed their out of a mediocre season, soundly defeating hated opponents all along the way and they've climbed back into elite status while accessing once again the Super Bowl, but some silly bit of a controversy is detracting from all of these accomplishments at this time.
It is sad to behold, really: for here we have, for only the third time in the last fifteen years (and all of those occurrences have been since 2009, too) we see the two-more deserving teams in the Big Game indeed: the AFC's number one versus the NFC's number one. Two teams that can develop quite the rivalry and, allegedly, already have...
Aye, but instead of the usual trash-talking leading up to the big event - we have something else entirely. (And, no; we don't mean the Puppy Bowl here!)
The media -meaning, ESPN- has dubbed it the ''DeflateGate'' in their attempt to deflate these Patriots' who must have appeared, to them, all too pumped up and -perhaps- unbeatable otherwise.
If they cannot lay blame (and pin charges) squarely on coach or quarterback, they'll get somebody from the organization - and it appears to be, at this time, the Ball Boy; a locker room attendant who spent way too much time (all of ninety seconds?) in a bathroom alone with those twelve footballs that were, apparently, deflated for the most part...
Coach Bill Belichick had a perfectly sound, scientific explanation for the deflation of those balls - but it was shot down by Bill Nye The Science Guy, of all people! And ESPN was only too happy to report that, too... How can you move on when even Bill Nye is against you?!?
The media -again; it's really mostly ESPN- is having a field day tying in everything and anything to this infamous ''DeflateGate'' thing: even when it implicates other sports, other varieties of balls, and ''over-inflation'' rather than the opposite...! Rivals are having a field day, too: from the perennial hateful and envious New York Jets (who wouldn't have missed this opportunity for anything) to the former coach now with the Super Bowl defending champion and opponent at XLIX: Pete Carroll who now claims that he was ''set up to fail'' when he coached New England...!
Both the media and the NFL fanbase at large seem to treat the Patriots as ''tainted champions'' now; chumps whose victories are all in question due to a mere technicality that partially affected only half the game against the Indianapolis Colts - a team that the Patriots dominate every time they play them. (Sorry, Ric Flair! We know the Colts -or the Broncos- are your team(s) - 'cause you're a Horseman! Alas, just like the Horsemen did when they were faced with better teams such as the Super Powers, Road Warriors or nWo factions of this sorry world, both of them folded quick when they met a superior team indeed!) Now, the winning team's cornerback here, Brandon Browner's incensed tweet response full of, ah, Patriotic fervor seemed to only add fuel to the fire rather than douse the flames of controversy with reason - and simple, pure logic.
A freaking PETITION has been put up online in order to gather up as many signatures as possible in order to remove the New England Patriots from the Super Bowl XLIX game - and play another AFC championship game instead, between the two losers that the Pats devastated, those being the Colts and the Ravens. The petition's origin? A Baltimore resident.
The NFL seems to be listening to the rabble and the mob here: so much so that it is doubtful now that team owner Robert Kraft will get that apology issued - like, ever.
Never mind the feats of the Gronk (and his spikes) or the Fork (Vince Wilfork, really, he who found time to rescue a woman from a turned-over vehicle on the road after helping the team win their crucial playoff game a mere hour or so earlier...! He wins football games and saves people - all in the same day! He's a super-hero! What's more, he's a Patriotic Super-Hero! But we're digressing right now...) - those eleven balls that lacked air are the talk of the sports world!
Patriots' other breakout star Julian Edelman chose this time to release a video bashing himself - but also provind his detractors wrong. A self-sacrificial act if there ever was one, perhaps ordered by coach Belichick, in order to try and defuse some of that bad attention the entire club is having now, as it prepares for the biggest game of the year? Then again, there is that t-shirt... And his smoothies.
Both the coach as the true star of the team, however -and that is quarterback Tom Bunchen... (er, sorry, Tom Brady, husband to Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen in his private life! Otherwise renowned for being a top tier QB.)- are equally hassled with questions during meetings with the press; understandably so as a deflated football would have helped him immensely stage a comeback against the Colts in the AFC championship game - both of them are, on top of that, being analyzed and scrutinized after each and every statement they make. It is going so far as having body language analysis done, to try and see if they're lying...! It is no wonder whatsoever that Tom's feelings are so hurt - but he's moving on... even though some question his legacy now - the jerks! Never mind the fact that other QBs have been proven cheaters: that is Tom's way, dammit! Still, the doubt persists...
Even Brady's dad (aw, the father of the Brady Brood... er, Bunch... letting us down, too) is being quoted as doubting not his son (no, whoo-oh there, not his son! But the team...) yet not being sure at all that the relationship between his son and the Patriots organization can end in any other way than very badly... For a variety of reasons, actually!
All this must be creeping into the Patriots' craniums, methinks: how to prepare for an opponent, like the Pats usually do, how to prepare for a war when there is this constant huge distraction there?
As if the odd-makers weren't enough already...
Thank The Lord, the Pats still have their most faithful (!) fan down in Florida -the one who will never doubt them, never think they cheat; no way- in order to keep them upbeat and looking forward to defeating the sad-eyed Seahawks (but often with obscene twinkles in those sad eyes, though) on this coming Sunday, the first of February: Ashley Lands.
It is sad to behold, really: for here we have, for only the third time in the last fifteen years (and all of those occurrences have been since 2009, too) we see the two-more deserving teams in the Big Game indeed: the AFC's number one versus the NFC's number one. Two teams that can develop quite the rivalry and, allegedly, already have...
Aye, but instead of the usual trash-talking leading up to the big event - we have something else entirely. (And, no; we don't mean the Puppy Bowl here!)
The media -meaning, ESPN- has dubbed it the ''DeflateGate'' in their attempt to deflate these Patriots' who must have appeared, to them, all too pumped up and -perhaps- unbeatable otherwise.
If they cannot lay blame (and pin charges) squarely on coach or quarterback, they'll get somebody from the organization - and it appears to be, at this time, the Ball Boy; a locker room attendant who spent way too much time (all of ninety seconds?) in a bathroom alone with those twelve footballs that were, apparently, deflated for the most part...
Coach Bill Belichick had a perfectly sound, scientific explanation for the deflation of those balls - but it was shot down by Bill Nye The Science Guy, of all people! And ESPN was only too happy to report that, too... How can you move on when even Bill Nye is against you?!?
The media -again; it's really mostly ESPN- is having a field day tying in everything and anything to this infamous ''DeflateGate'' thing: even when it implicates other sports, other varieties of balls, and ''over-inflation'' rather than the opposite...! Rivals are having a field day, too: from the perennial hateful and envious New York Jets (who wouldn't have missed this opportunity for anything) to the former coach now with the Super Bowl defending champion and opponent at XLIX: Pete Carroll who now claims that he was ''set up to fail'' when he coached New England...!
Both the media and the NFL fanbase at large seem to treat the Patriots as ''tainted champions'' now; chumps whose victories are all in question due to a mere technicality that partially affected only half the game against the Indianapolis Colts - a team that the Patriots dominate every time they play them. (Sorry, Ric Flair! We know the Colts -or the Broncos- are your team(s) - 'cause you're a Horseman! Alas, just like the Horsemen did when they were faced with better teams such as the Super Powers, Road Warriors or nWo factions of this sorry world, both of them folded quick when they met a superior team indeed!) Now, the winning team's cornerback here, Brandon Browner's incensed tweet response full of, ah, Patriotic fervor seemed to only add fuel to the fire rather than douse the flames of controversy with reason - and simple, pure logic.
It doesn't matter what the fans - or the Flairs - think:
step forward and look at it
because this is the best riding quarterback today!
Wooooooooooo!
A freaking PETITION has been put up online in order to gather up as many signatures as possible in order to remove the New England Patriots from the Super Bowl XLIX game - and play another AFC championship game instead, between the two losers that the Pats devastated, those being the Colts and the Ravens. The petition's origin? A Baltimore resident.
The NFL seems to be listening to the rabble and the mob here: so much so that it is doubtful now that team owner Robert Kraft will get that apology issued - like, ever.
Never mind the feats of the Gronk (and his spikes) or the Fork (Vince Wilfork, really, he who found time to rescue a woman from a turned-over vehicle on the road after helping the team win their crucial playoff game a mere hour or so earlier...! He wins football games and saves people - all in the same day! He's a super-hero! What's more, he's a Patriotic Super-Hero! But we're digressing right now...) - those eleven balls that lacked air are the talk of the sports world!
Patriots' other breakout star Julian Edelman chose this time to release a video bashing himself - but also provind his detractors wrong. A self-sacrificial act if there ever was one, perhaps ordered by coach Belichick, in order to try and defuse some of that bad attention the entire club is having now, as it prepares for the biggest game of the year? Then again, there is that t-shirt... And his smoothies.
Both the coach as the true star of the team, however -and that is quarterback Tom Bunchen... (er, sorry, Tom Brady, husband to Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen in his private life! Otherwise renowned for being a top tier QB.)- are equally hassled with questions during meetings with the press; understandably so as a deflated football would have helped him immensely stage a comeback against the Colts in the AFC championship game - both of them are, on top of that, being analyzed and scrutinized after each and every statement they make. It is going so far as having body language analysis done, to try and see if they're lying...! It is no wonder whatsoever that Tom's feelings are so hurt - but he's moving on... even though some question his legacy now - the jerks! Never mind the fact that other QBs have been proven cheaters: that is Tom's way, dammit! Still, the doubt persists...
Even Brady's dad (aw, the father of the Brady Brood... er, Bunch... letting us down, too) is being quoted as doubting not his son (no, whoo-oh there, not his son! But the team...) yet not being sure at all that the relationship between his son and the Patriots organization can end in any other way than very badly... For a variety of reasons, actually!
All this must be creeping into the Patriots' craniums, methinks: how to prepare for an opponent, like the Pats usually do, how to prepare for a war when there is this constant huge distraction there?
As if the odd-makers weren't enough already...
Thank The Lord, the Pats still have their most faithful (!) fan down in Florida -the one who will never doubt them, never think they cheat; no way- in order to keep them upbeat and looking forward to defeating the sad-eyed Seahawks (but often with obscene twinkles in those sad eyes, though) on this coming Sunday, the first of February: Ashley Lands.
GO
GO!
Hmm...
What are the Pats' own
Cheerleader Squad for,
anyways?
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