You keep waiting for the Bruins to take a game off, it would be understandable, but they seem to do the opposite as they focus on every opponent and usually hand them a one-sided loss. This afternoon, they were at the Verizon Center in DC and they rolled 4-2 over the Capitals. Boston (51-17-6) took the season series 2-1 with Washington (34-28-12) and in the process, the Black and Gold clinched the Atlantic Division title. Up nine points on Pittsburgh with eight games left, the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference is almost certain at this juncture.
The biggest pleasant surprises for the Bruins this season had their fingerprints all over this victory: Jarome Iginla scored two more goals, Carl Soderberg had three points (1 goal, 2 assists) and Chad Johnson (31 saves) improved to 17-3-1. These teams could meet in the first round of the playoffs for the second time in the last three years so that's why it was important that the Bruins dominated the Capitals on their home ice (in a game that should have meant way more to the hosts).
Iginla opened the scoring at 2:48 in the second period. David Krejci started the play by chipping the puck to Soderberg who flipped it to Iginla for a breakaway. You better believe he knew what to do for his 29th goal of the season. Less than five minutes later, Soderberg doubled Boston's lead with a power play goal. He re-directed Patrice Bergeron's shot. Loui Eriksson had the second assist on Soderberg's 15th goal of the season.
The B's put it away 41 seconds later as Iginla placed a backhander past Braden Holtby. Milan Lucic and Krejci had the assists. You are not coming back versus Boston down two goals and all hope completely goes out the window when they lead by three goals or more.
The Caps showed a little pride as Jason Chimera knocked in a rebound with 10 seconds left in the second period. Unfortunately for them, Bergeron had the next goal. His power play strike at 13:17 of the third period was his 26th of the season. Soderberg and Dougie Hamilton had the assists.
Washington's Evgeny Kuznetsov scored the most garbage of garbage goals, cutting it to 4-2 with 55 seconds left in regulation. Johnson had been caught too far outside the crease but who cares?
This was the start of a four-game road trip for the B's; Boston goes for another matinee win against a Metropolitan Division team tomorrow afternoon (12:30, NBC) as they visit the Flyers (39-27-7). Philadelphia has been playing well lately but they'll have to face a rested Tuukka Rask and a squad that has dominated them in recent years.
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Sunday, March 30, 2014
Friday, March 28, 2014
Are the Bruins the Team to Beat Heading Into the Playoffs?
After watching the Bruins calmly dispatch the Blackhawks 3-0 tonight at TD Garden, my first reaction was "man, that was easy." Chicago (42-17-5) is missing Patrick Kane but on a team that deep and at the start of a road trip, they had no excuse for getting beat so soundly. Boston (50-17-6) has a 14-game point streak (13-0-1) and Tuukka Rask (28 saves) picked up his seventh shutout of the season (NHL best) and 23rd of his career.
Patrice Bergeron has been absolutely on fire lately and he potted two more goals bookmarking this thorough domination. At 11:50 of the first period, he tipped in Matt Bartkowski's shot from the point past Corey Crawford (20 saves). Daniel Paille assisted on Bergeron's 24th goal of the season.
One of the reasons this game seemed to go by so fast, unlike Bruins-Canadiens on Monday, is that there were only three combined penalties. Boston scored twice in the third period to put away two of their most impressive points of the season (also avenging a 3-2 shootout loss in Chicago on January 19 that you might have missed since it was right before Patriots-Broncos).
Carl Soderberg continues to build his campaign for the Seventh Player award, he followed a juicy rebound for his 14th goal of the season at 5:28. Chris Kelly and Johnny Boychuk had the assists. In Game 6 of last season's Stanley Cup Final, Chicago famously scored their last two goals in 17 stunning seconds. The Bruins got them back just a little bit this evening as Bergeron added his second goal 13 seconds after Soderberg. It was pretty hilarious too since Crawford looked like Goldberg from the Mighty Ducks movies as he intentionally pulled the net off its mooring so the puck wouldn't go in. I can't remember ever seeing an NHL goaltender do that. Brad Marchand assisted on that odd goal for Bergy.
I hadn't noticed until tonight that even though Boston has nine games left in the regular season, only two of them (April 5 vs. Flyers and April 12 vs. Sabres) are at the Garden. They are on the road for over a week and for the next four games beginning with a back-to-back this weekend in Washington (34-27-12) on Saturday (12:30, NESN) and Philadelphia (38-27-7) on Sunday (7:30, NBTC).
The Atlantic Division crown is a formality at this point and the President's Trophy is a real possibility since the Bruins are only one point behind the Blues. We'll see how they play it since they are also going to lock up the top seed in the Eastern Conference sooner rather than later (up 9 points on the Penguins).
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Patrice Bergeron has been absolutely on fire lately and he potted two more goals bookmarking this thorough domination. At 11:50 of the first period, he tipped in Matt Bartkowski's shot from the point past Corey Crawford (20 saves). Daniel Paille assisted on Bergeron's 24th goal of the season.
One of the reasons this game seemed to go by so fast, unlike Bruins-Canadiens on Monday, is that there were only three combined penalties. Boston scored twice in the third period to put away two of their most impressive points of the season (also avenging a 3-2 shootout loss in Chicago on January 19 that you might have missed since it was right before Patriots-Broncos).
Carl Soderberg continues to build his campaign for the Seventh Player award, he followed a juicy rebound for his 14th goal of the season at 5:28. Chris Kelly and Johnny Boychuk had the assists. In Game 6 of last season's Stanley Cup Final, Chicago famously scored their last two goals in 17 stunning seconds. The Bruins got them back just a little bit this evening as Bergeron added his second goal 13 seconds after Soderberg. It was pretty hilarious too since Crawford looked like Goldberg from the Mighty Ducks movies as he intentionally pulled the net off its mooring so the puck wouldn't go in. I can't remember ever seeing an NHL goaltender do that. Brad Marchand assisted on that odd goal for Bergy.
I hadn't noticed until tonight that even though Boston has nine games left in the regular season, only two of them (April 5 vs. Flyers and April 12 vs. Sabres) are at the Garden. They are on the road for over a week and for the next four games beginning with a back-to-back this weekend in Washington (34-27-12) on Saturday (12:30, NESN) and Philadelphia (38-27-7) on Sunday (7:30, NBTC).
The Atlantic Division crown is a formality at this point and the President's Trophy is a real possibility since the Bruins are only one point behind the Blues. We'll see how they play it since they are also going to lock up the top seed in the Eastern Conference sooner rather than later (up 9 points on the Penguins).
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Reports of the Patriots' Demise Were Largely Premature
I'm not saying that this guarantees that they'll win that elusive next Super Bowl in the next few seasons but what do all the Patriots haters have to say now? After it looked like the team and Vince Wilfork were going to go their separate ways, they did a complete 180 and agreed to a restructured contract. Wilfork will make $8 million next season with a $3 million guaranteed. It has an option for two more years that could make it $22.5 million in total.
Just like we should have known not to overreact when the Pats didn't do anything on the first or second day of free agency, this is a further lesson in being patient (something which rarely exists in sports or life in 2014). Yes, Wilfork is 32 and coming off the first real major injury (Achilles) of his career but this is a guy that's a leader and great player that wants to be in New England for his entire career. What's not to like about that?
I'm happy to see that both him and the Patriots came to their senses and got this figured out, at a reasonable price no less. He probably realized that his market wasn't too great since his position is rapidly disappearing and he was better served staying in the only place in the NFL that he knows.
This is shaping up to be a real nice offseason for the Pats as they have signed Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner and Brandon Browner, re-signed Julian Edelman and now this. If you love the Pats like I do, you have to be happy that Wilfork is returning. In the end, it all worked out. Haha sorry trolls.
UPDATE 3/29: Today the Patriots re-signed center Ryan Wendell to a two-year contract worth $6.85 million.
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Just like we should have known not to overreact when the Pats didn't do anything on the first or second day of free agency, this is a further lesson in being patient (something which rarely exists in sports or life in 2014). Yes, Wilfork is 32 and coming off the first real major injury (Achilles) of his career but this is a guy that's a leader and great player that wants to be in New England for his entire career. What's not to like about that?
I'm happy to see that both him and the Patriots came to their senses and got this figured out, at a reasonable price no less. He probably realized that his market wasn't too great since his position is rapidly disappearing and he was better served staying in the only place in the NFL that he knows.
This is shaping up to be a real nice offseason for the Pats as they have signed Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner and Brandon Browner, re-signed Julian Edelman and now this. If you love the Pats like I do, you have to be happy that Wilfork is returning. In the end, it all worked out. Haha sorry trolls.
UPDATE 3/29: Today the Patriots re-signed center Ryan Wendell to a two-year contract worth $6.85 million.
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Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Bruins Want No Piece of the Weasel Canadiens in the Playoffs
Whenever the Bruins play the Canadiens, it might as well be held under a big top because it is always guaranteed to be a circus. The games are certainly entertaining but damn, Montreal is the only team in the Eastern Conference that is not intimidated by Boston at all. Tonight, the Habs (40-26-7) outlasted the B's (49-17-6) 2-1 in a shootout at TD Garden. With the win, Montreal closed the season series with its biggest rival 3-1. Interesting note: the losing team scored one goal in each matchup.
No matter how many times it happens or what they say, somehow the Canadiens always manage to piss off the Bruins with their usual crap led by that rat P.K. Subban. Boston hoped to put some of this stuff to bed after they rolled 4-1 on March 12 in Montreal but as this game showed, the B's have to hope they avoid the Habs in the postseason. I feel like it's almost a foregone conclusion that they'll meet at some point this spring, if so ugh. You know it'll go six or seven super frustrating games.
Alexei Emelin's power play goal at 6:39 of the first period stood up for almost the entire game. Tuukka Rask (21 saves) had no chance on it since the puck deflected off good old Chris Kelly in front. Montreal's backup goaltender Peter Budaj (28 saves) was having the game of his life when Boston finally cashed in on their sixth power play of the evening. That's one of the most annoying parts of Bruins-Canadiens, it's usually decided by special teams since Montreal flops more than NBA players.
The weird part is that Montreal was still getting those Bell Centre calls at the Garden (six power plays). The only purely enjoyable part of these intense contests is watching a Bruin, in this case Kevan Miller, beat the snot out of a hapless Canadien that didn't really want to fight-Travis Moen who left with a concussion.
The Bruins got on the board at 14:34 of the third period as Patrice Bergeron tipped Dougie Hamilton's shot from the point. Loui Eriksson had the second assist on Bergeron's 23rd goal of the season. It went to overtime but predictably neither team scored. Thank God the stupid shootouts are thrown out in a few weeks for the playoffs. Nothing kills the momentum of a great hockey game more than that cheesy format better suited for little kids.
Boston gets a couple days to stew over this loss which oh by the way snapped their fantasic 12-game winning streak. Thankfully they have three more big games this week and it's not like they go back to playing some shitbags like the Panthers or Sabres. The Blackhawks (41-16-15) come to the Garden on Thursday (7, NESN) then Boston goes to Washington on Saturday and Philadelphia on Sunday. Giddyup, only 10 games left in the regular season.
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No matter how many times it happens or what they say, somehow the Canadiens always manage to piss off the Bruins with their usual crap led by that rat P.K. Subban. Boston hoped to put some of this stuff to bed after they rolled 4-1 on March 12 in Montreal but as this game showed, the B's have to hope they avoid the Habs in the postseason. I feel like it's almost a foregone conclusion that they'll meet at some point this spring, if so ugh. You know it'll go six or seven super frustrating games.
Alexei Emelin's power play goal at 6:39 of the first period stood up for almost the entire game. Tuukka Rask (21 saves) had no chance on it since the puck deflected off good old Chris Kelly in front. Montreal's backup goaltender Peter Budaj (28 saves) was having the game of his life when Boston finally cashed in on their sixth power play of the evening. That's one of the most annoying parts of Bruins-Canadiens, it's usually decided by special teams since Montreal flops more than NBA players.
The weird part is that Montreal was still getting those Bell Centre calls at the Garden (six power plays). The only purely enjoyable part of these intense contests is watching a Bruin, in this case Kevan Miller, beat the snot out of a hapless Canadien that didn't really want to fight-Travis Moen who left with a concussion.
The Bruins got on the board at 14:34 of the third period as Patrice Bergeron tipped Dougie Hamilton's shot from the point. Loui Eriksson had the second assist on Bergeron's 23rd goal of the season. It went to overtime but predictably neither team scored. Thank God the stupid shootouts are thrown out in a few weeks for the playoffs. Nothing kills the momentum of a great hockey game more than that cheesy format better suited for little kids.
Boston gets a couple days to stew over this loss which oh by the way snapped their fantasic 12-game winning streak. Thankfully they have three more big games this week and it's not like they go back to playing some shitbags like the Panthers or Sabres. The Blackhawks (41-16-15) come to the Garden on Thursday (7, NESN) then Boston goes to Washington on Saturday and Philadelphia on Sunday. Giddyup, only 10 games left in the regular season.
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Monday, March 24, 2014
Ortiz Gets His Money, Now It's Time to Play Ball
With snow in the forecast on Tuesday night (don't shoot the messanger!), it's hard to believe but Opening Day 2014 in MLB is only a week away. During their last week in spring training, the Red Sox' main off the field objectives are to sign David Ortiz and Jon Lester to contract extensions. Well mission accomplished on the first front.
After endless complaining, the Red Sox finally signed Ortiz to a $16 million extension through 2015 with a vesting option for 2016 (that kicks in if he makes a certain amount of plate appearances) and a club option in 2017 (when he'll be 42!). Big Papi doesn't need an introduction to anybody around here or explanation as to why he deserved this but we've happy that it's all over since how many times can you listen to him cry about the same stuff? It became a joke since he brought it up constantly and complained about their lack of respect blah, blah.
Red Sox ownership said that this basically ensures that Ortiz will be on Boston for the rest of his career which is a great perk to one of the only guys that I can ever remember who truly earned that lofty distinction. Who knows if Boston will get something done with Lester in time or if they'll have to wait until after the season ends (since I think he said he didn't want to talk about it during the season).
Regardless, if you are the last person in New England that doesn't own an Ortiz shirt/jersey well then you're in luck. It looks like a safe bet that he'll be here for a couple more years to close out one of the best Red Sox careers in team history.
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After endless complaining, the Red Sox finally signed Ortiz to a $16 million extension through 2015 with a vesting option for 2016 (that kicks in if he makes a certain amount of plate appearances) and a club option in 2017 (when he'll be 42!). Big Papi doesn't need an introduction to anybody around here or explanation as to why he deserved this but we've happy that it's all over since how many times can you listen to him cry about the same stuff? It became a joke since he brought it up constantly and complained about their lack of respect blah, blah.
Red Sox ownership said that this basically ensures that Ortiz will be on Boston for the rest of his career which is a great perk to one of the only guys that I can ever remember who truly earned that lofty distinction. Who knows if Boston will get something done with Lester in time or if they'll have to wait until after the season ends (since I think he said he didn't want to talk about it during the season).
Regardless, if you are the last person in New England that doesn't own an Ortiz shirt/jersey well then you're in luck. It looks like a safe bet that he'll be here for a couple more years to close out one of the best Red Sox careers in team history.
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Sunday, March 23, 2014
Bruins Rally For Their 12th Straight Win, 4-2 vs. Coyotes
At some point in the near future-as soon as Monday at TD Garden vs. Montreal, Boston's current unbelievable win streak is going to come to an end. Until then, we must savor this slice of history that grows bigger and more unbelievable by the day. Tonight, the Bruins (49-17-5) were pushed to the limit by the Coyotes (34-26-11) but still managed to take their punch and come back for a 4-2 victory. Boston has won its last 12 games, their most since 1971 and third best club mark in history. They also have the most points (103) in the NHL, two ahead of St. Louis who has played one less game.
Phoenix was in a charitable mood as they basically handed the B's a 1-0 lead just 3:25 into the first period. Mike Smith's (24 saves) pass was easily picked off by Andrej Meszaros who gave it up to Patrice Bergeron. He followed his own rebound for the 22nd goal of the season (his 6th career 50-point season).
Shane Doan tied it 8:20 after that, also potting a goal after his initial shot was stopped by Tuukka Rask (30 saves). Boston actually trailed for over 20 minutes in game time which hadn't happened to them in weeks. Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson made it 2-1 in favor of his team with a beautiful move then you guessed it, juicy rebound.
No problem, in the second night of a back-to-back and the finale of a three-game road trip, the B's dug extra deep and outscored Phoenix 3-0 in the third period. Jarome Iginla tied it at 3:48 when he stood in front of Smith and Zdeno Chara's missile deflected off him in the net. Dougie Hamilton had the other assist on Iginla's team-best 27th goal.
It felt right that Shawn Thornton ended up scoring the game-winner. It was a very fourth line goal as he battled in front and tipped Daniel Paille's sharp pass. Gregory Campbell had the second assist on Thornton's goal. Iginla added an empty-netter for the final margin. Milan Lucic had the lone assist on Iginla's second goal of the night.
This is the start of a big week for the Bruins as they host the Canadiens (39-26-7) on Monday (7:30, NBCSN) at the Garden and the Blackhawks (41-15-15) on Thursday (7, NESN). Oh and they go to Washington on Saturday and Philadelphia on Sunday for another back-to-back in March. Bet they can't wait to get to April, mostly because that means the playoffs will finally be upon us.
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Phoenix was in a charitable mood as they basically handed the B's a 1-0 lead just 3:25 into the first period. Mike Smith's (24 saves) pass was easily picked off by Andrej Meszaros who gave it up to Patrice Bergeron. He followed his own rebound for the 22nd goal of the season (his 6th career 50-point season).
Shane Doan tied it 8:20 after that, also potting a goal after his initial shot was stopped by Tuukka Rask (30 saves). Boston actually trailed for over 20 minutes in game time which hadn't happened to them in weeks. Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson made it 2-1 in favor of his team with a beautiful move then you guessed it, juicy rebound.
No problem, in the second night of a back-to-back and the finale of a three-game road trip, the B's dug extra deep and outscored Phoenix 3-0 in the third period. Jarome Iginla tied it at 3:48 when he stood in front of Smith and Zdeno Chara's missile deflected off him in the net. Dougie Hamilton had the other assist on Iginla's team-best 27th goal.
It felt right that Shawn Thornton ended up scoring the game-winner. It was a very fourth line goal as he battled in front and tipped Daniel Paille's sharp pass. Gregory Campbell had the second assist on Thornton's goal. Iginla added an empty-netter for the final margin. Milan Lucic had the lone assist on Iginla's second goal of the night.
This is the start of a big week for the Bruins as they host the Canadiens (39-26-7) on Monday (7:30, NBCSN) at the Garden and the Blackhawks (41-15-15) on Thursday (7, NESN). Oh and they go to Washington on Saturday and Philadelphia on Sunday for another back-to-back in March. Bet they can't wait to get to April, mostly because that means the playoffs will finally be upon us.
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Saturday, March 22, 2014
For the Seventh Straight Year, the Bruins are Going to the Playoffs
The Everything is Awesome crew that works out of TD Garden took their show on the road as the Bruins won 2-0 tonight vs. Avalanche at Pepsi Center. Boston (48-17-5) has now won its last 11 games, the longest streak in the NHL this season and longest in franchise history since 1971.
Chad Johnson (31 saves) picked up the third shutout of his career and second this season. In the past six games, Boston has never trailed as Patrice Bergeron made it 1-0 5:12 into this much anticipated contest that could be a Stanley Cup Final preview (you never know). Hamilton found him with a good pass and he followed up Semyon Varlamov's (26 saves) rebound for his 21st goal of the season. Hamilton and Zdeno Chara were credited with the assists.
Gregory Campbell and Cody McLeod dropped the gloves a few moments after Bergeron's goal. The B's carried the momentum into the second period and took advantage of a rare power play to grab a commanding 2-0 lead. Carl Soderberg scored his 13th goal of the season, a laser that went top shelf over Varlomov's shoulder. Loui Eriksson and Hamilton both assisted on it.
Gabriel Landeskog hit the post earlier in the game and Johnson was called on to make some quality saves. The Bruins are back at it tomorrow night in Phoenix (9, NESN) at Jobing.Com Arena. It's hard to believe that the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference used to seem like a pipe dream since Boston currently leads Pittsburgh by five points for first place in the Eastern Conference, granted that the Penguins have one game in hand.
Boston has become the team to beat in the East and they are also tied with St. Louis for the most points in the NHL (the Blues also have a game in hand). It is their fourth time with 100+ points under head coach Claude Julien and 20th all-time in franchise history.
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Chad Johnson (31 saves) picked up the third shutout of his career and second this season. In the past six games, Boston has never trailed as Patrice Bergeron made it 1-0 5:12 into this much anticipated contest that could be a Stanley Cup Final preview (you never know). Hamilton found him with a good pass and he followed up Semyon Varlamov's (26 saves) rebound for his 21st goal of the season. Hamilton and Zdeno Chara were credited with the assists.
Gregory Campbell and Cody McLeod dropped the gloves a few moments after Bergeron's goal. The B's carried the momentum into the second period and took advantage of a rare power play to grab a commanding 2-0 lead. Carl Soderberg scored his 13th goal of the season, a laser that went top shelf over Varlomov's shoulder. Loui Eriksson and Hamilton both assisted on it.
Gabriel Landeskog hit the post earlier in the game and Johnson was called on to make some quality saves. The Bruins are back at it tomorrow night in Phoenix (9, NESN) at Jobing.Com Arena. It's hard to believe that the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference used to seem like a pipe dream since Boston currently leads Pittsburgh by five points for first place in the Eastern Conference, granted that the Penguins have one game in hand.
Boston has become the team to beat in the East and they are also tied with St. Louis for the most points in the NHL (the Blues also have a game in hand). It is their fourth time with 100+ points under head coach Claude Julien and 20th all-time in franchise history.
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