New Year's in Buffalo, talk about a party.

Weird stuff happens on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day so it goes without saying that's multiplied when a miserable place like Buffalo, NY is involved.

The Boston Bruins scored four goals in the first period last night at the HSBC Arena but somehow ended up losing 7-6 in a shootout to the Buffalo Sabres.

Four different Bs (20-11-6) defensemen scored goals while Tyler Seguin had a goal and an assist. Brad Marchand also added a goal.

For Buffalo (16-18-4), Drew Stafford once again did his best Mario Lemieux impression that he only pulls out when he plays the Bruins. He had another hat trick against Boston (his second this season) while Jason Pominville had two goals and two assists.

2011 began like 2010 ended for Bs goaltender Tuukka Rask: terribly. He started last night but he didn't make it to the second period as Bruins head coach Claude Julien made the curious decision to yank him after the first period even though Boston led 4-3.

Andrew Ference gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead 1:29 into the game, from Adam McQuaid and Marc Savard. 37 seconds later, Pominville tied it up from Thomas Vanek and Mike Weber.

Dennis Seidenberg made it 2-1 with an unassisted goal, then Brad Marchand tipped home a shot by Johnny Boychuk who received a pass from Mark Recchi.

Thomas Vanek got Buffalo back into it with a goal from Tim Connolly and Pominville.

The first period closed with Zdeno Chara (from Patrice Bergeron and Recchi) scoring a short-handed goal but Stafford cut it to 4-3 with an unassisted goal.

With Rask (13 saves) out, Tim Thomas (16 saves) entered in the second period but he wasn't much better. Captain America, Ryan Miller (34 saves) didn't exactly have a Hall of Fame performance either but he was able to ride it out.

Stafford tied it up with the second period from Paul Gausted. A power-play goal by Pominville gave Buffalo a 5-4 lead from Andrej Sekera and Jochen Hecht.

Seguin took over in the third period with a goal (from Daniel Paille) and he found Steve Kampfer for the go-ahead tally at 6-5. Chara also assisted on Kampfer's 2nd career NHL goal.

It looked like the Bruins would get the two points but Stafford tied it up with his third goal with 28 seconds left in regulation.

After a scoreless overtime, the Sabres went 3 for 3 in the shootout (Stafford, Vanek and Tyler Ennis) while Michael Ryder and Seguin scored but the third shooter, Zdeno Chara, shot wide and it was over. I have no idea why Julien tabbed Chara to shoot since he doesn't have a move, he normally just skates down and takes a slap shot from a few feet away but whatever.

The Bs got one point but they totally choked, giving up two-goal leads twice (3-1, 4-2). Boston goes to Toronto tomorrow night to visit Phil Kessel and the Maple Leafs, who they completely own.

Celts ring in New Year's Eve with a no-show matinee at the Garden

I don't work in Las Vegas at a sportsbook but there's a few certain telltale signs for NBA games that almost always come true: teams struggle in back to backs and also after losing their stars to injuries.

With the New Orleans Hornets in Boston yesterday afternoon, the Boston Celtics had to take time away from planning their New Year's Eve appearances and parties to play a game without either Rajon Rondo or Kevin Garnett.

Things went predictably poor for the home team in their first game since KG went down with his latest mysterious calf injury.

The Hornets (19-14) held on for a 83-81 win that was bizarre since the Celtics (24-7) went for the winning 3-pointer by Ray Allen (18 points) and then when he missed it, they didn't foul and let the last few seconds tick off. Uh ok, guess Doc didn't want them going to overtime.

New Orleans didn't play particularly well either but Chris Paul was his usual versatile self: 20 points, 11 assists, six steals, five rebounds and he got some help in the form of David West (19 points) and Emeka Okafor (18 points, 13 rebounds, 3 blocks).

Marco Belinelli added 10 points for the Hornets.

With Nate Robinson (11 points, 6 rebounds) starting for Rondo, Glen Davis took KG's spot and he was awful. He had only eight points on 4 of 14 shooting and he looked like a player that excels coming off the bench but isn't built to be a starter. The world needs ditch diggers, right?

Paul Pierce had 12 points for Boston, Shaquille O'Neal and Marquis Daniels added 10 points in a forgettable game that will hopefully be swept under all your Happy New Year merchandise and related crap.

New Orleans was up 23-19 after one quarter but Boston led by a hoop at halftime: 39-37. A big third quarter by the Hornets (29-18) and the Cs got back in it with a 15-0 run in the fourth quarter (24-17).

The Celts will try to readjust to life without Rondo (for not much longer) and KG (for two weeks - wink) as they travel North of the border to take on the Toronto Raptors tomorrow night.

Oh God no!

If you want to blame Kevin Garnett's injury on me, I'll accept it.

It has not been a banner week for myself since my cable went out on Tuesday night which means no DVR and it won't be fixed until Friday. FML! I knew the karma from that was bad since I had seen almost every Celtics and Bruins game this season up until the other night.

So obviously I was covering a high school basketball last night when I scanned Twitter for a few minutes and noticed it was blowing up. What was the cause? Oh just another possible serious injury to KG. No matter where I was when I found that out, I wouldn't have been happy but sitting in a rotten mood at a boring high school game was about the most helpless feeling I can remember in a while.

Watching the endless replays when I got back to the office, it happened in the first quarter when he went up for a dunk. He wasn't touched by anyone but as he elevated, something clearly got tweaked in his right leg. It was eerily similar to the injury in Utah two seasons ago that ended that campaign. He was also kicked in the leg by Monte Ellis last season which made him miss some time.

More than anything, I feel bad for KG since he's worked so diligently to return to form at a time when most had all but written him off. The Boston Globe's Gary Washburn wrote a column today about how Jermaine O'Neal and Shaq have to take control inside now with KG out. What planet am I on? That was one of the dumbest things I've ever read, doesn't Washburn watch this team every night? This isn't 2001, no matter how much time Garnett misses, his production falls to Glen Davis, not the two fossils we have at center.

After the game last night, Celtics head coach Doc Rivers and the journalists that cover the team tried to calm everyone's fears by saying it was a calf injury, not a knee injury. Garnett is scheduled to have an MRI today, fingers crossed.

There was a game last night in the Palace of Auburn Hills and the Detroit Pistons beat the Boston Celtics 104-92.

The Pistons (11-21) received a team-high 21 points and eight assists from Tracy McGrady (I can hardly believe it), Tayshaun Prince had 18 points, Charlie Villanueva scored 14 points while Ben Gordon (12 points), Austin Daye (12 points) and Chris Wilcox (10 points) all reached double figures.

The Celts (24-6) were led by Paul Pierce (33 points, 8 assists, 4 steals) but Ray Allen (12 points, 7 rebounds) and Glen Davis (12 points) seemed to be the only Cs to do anything outside of the Truth.

I don't feel the need to rehash this forgettable game and poor performance.

Boston comes home to host the New Orleans Hornets tomorrow afternoon in a New Year's Eve special start time (3 p.m.). Rumors are swirling that Rajon Rondo - who's been out six straight games - might return to take on Chris Paul but we shall see.

My apologies Claude, apparently the Boston Bruins still listen to you

I can't put a finger on it as to the exact reason why (which doesn't matter) but the Boston Bruins are back to playing good hockey.

They won their third straight game, 4-3 last night over the Tampa Bay Lightning at the St. Pete Times Forum, in what will definitely go down as one of their most start-to-finish exciting contests of 2010-2011.

Three times the Bruins (20-11-4) went ahead by a goal, only to have the Lightning (21-11-5) respond each time by tying it up.

However, Mark Recchi wouldn't let Boston go to overtime for the second consecutive night as he scored a clutchtastic goal on a snap shot with 20 seconds left in regulation.

None of that would have been possible without more top-notch goaltending by Tim Thomas (31 saves). Conversely, Tampa Bay goaltender Dan Ellis (25 saves) is the weak link that will hold back one of the NHL's most dynamic, explosive teams from reaching their full potential (sound familiar Washington Capitals?).

Michael Ryder got the party started early for the Bs he notched a power-play goal 28 seconds into the game, from Recchi and Dennis Seidenberg.

Steven Stamkos, the savior of my terrible fantasy hockey team, answered with a power-play strike of his own less than seven minutes later from Brett Clark and Ryan Malone.

A nice moment occurred in the second period as Bruins rookie defenseman Steve Kampfer scored his first NHL goal, from Marc Savard and Nathan Horton.

Back from a broken hand, Vincent Lecavalier tied it at 2 at 14:02 in the second period from Sean Bergenheim and Pavel Kubina.

That set the stage for a thrilling third period as Brad Marchand (returning after missing 3 games) scored from Shawn Thornton and Gregory Campbell. Yes, it is annoying how much Julien chooses to play the fourth line at times but you have to admit that they've been great so far this season.

Thomas' old UVM teammate Martin St. Louis tied it one last time at 3 with help from Stamkos and Kubina.

Recchi's game-winner was assisted by Patrice Bergeron and Seidenberg.

Tomorrow night is the middle game of the Bruins' five-game road trip and it could be a messy one: vs. the Atlanta Thrashers, who had a wannabe MMA battle in Boston last Thursday night.

No doubt Milan Lucic will be at the center of it all after he was targeted last week and later fined for a punch on Freddy Meyer while he was held by the referees.

Don't forget to tell all your friends in Atlanta that love hockey, oh nevermind.

This is why I was excited when the Boston Celtics signed Marquis Daniels in 2009

Marquis Daniels got off to a good start last season (his first with the Boston Celtics) but then injuries and inconsistent minutes led to him being buried on the bench by the end of the season and especially in the playoffs.

Fast forward to this season and outside of Glen Davis (the de facto center with Shaq/the Ghost of Jermaine O'Neal out constantly), I'd say that Daniels has become the Celtics' most important reserve. He's quiet but he lets his countless tattoos and solid, versatile all-around game speak for themselves.

With Rajon Rondo out for the fifth straight game and my Twitter buddy Nate Robinson playing terribly, it was up to Daniels last night to take over and change the complexion of the game as the Celts (24-5) won 95-83 over the Indiana Pacers (13-16) at Conseco Fieldhouse (isn't it precious that the lemmings of Indiana call their NBA building a Fieldhouse?).

In 31 minutes, Daniels had 12 points, five rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal as he took advantage of the six inches he had over Pacers point guard T.J. Ford.

Indiana was ahead by small margins for most of the game but since they're not very good, you had a funny feeling that the Celts would turn it on at some point, particularly coming off their bad performance on Christmas vs. the Magic.

Paul Pierce had a game-high 21 points, seven assists and five rebounds. Ray Allen scored 17 and Kevin Garnett added 11 points, 13 rebounds and three assists. Davis posted 14 points off the bench, Shaq had nine points before fouling out for the second straight game and Robinson had eight points despite receiving six stitches above his eye after butting heads with Mike Dunleavy (9 points).

Brandon Rush led Indiana with 17 points and seven rebounds. Star Danny Granger was held to 15 points on 5 of 21 shooting. Darren Collison (10 points) was the only other Pacer to score in double figures.

The Pacers jumped out to a 26-19 lead after one quarter and were up 47-45 at halftime. Boston cut it to one point after three quarters (67-66) before doing work in the fourth quarter (29-16).

For the game, Boston shot 50.7% to Indiana's 37.2%. Neither team made many 3-pointers (6-5 Boston), the Pacers hit five more free throws (20-15) and grabbed two more rebounds (41-39). Three more assists (18-15) and four more blocks (5-1) were enough for the Celtics to walk away with the win, likely the start of another win streak.

Tonight the Cs are in Detroit to take on the hapless Pistons. Boston pounded them early in the season (Nov. 2) and even though this is a back to back (ie. meaning any wacky shit can happen in the NBA), I expect more of the same.

In the land of blue hairs, Bs come away with their 1st shootout win of the season

The Florida Panthers are one of those special franchises in pro sports that is too easy to make fun of. Between their location, non-existent fan base and pathetic jerseys, you almost feel bad for them.

Despite a slow start to their five-game road trip, the Boston Bruins (19-11-4) did just enough to come away with a 3-2 shootout win over the Panthers (16-17-1) last night at the BankAtlantic Center, for their first shootout victory of the season.

As always this season, this win started and ended with Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas (32 saves). He not only leads the NHL in goals against but also save percentage which I believe pushes him to the front of the line in terms of most valuable player in the league at the moment (sorry Sidney Crosby).

The two points simultaneously vaulted Boston into a first-place tie with Montreal in the Northeast Division while also carrying over their fine play from last Thursday against the Thrashers.

Other than Thomas, the stars for the Bruins were David Krejci (2 goals), Michael Ryder (2 assists) and Blake Wheeler (1 assist, only shootout goal). Yes, I just wrote that sentence. Perhaps Boston's most frustrating trio have been reunited on a line (they were great together in 2008) and so far, the returns are very positive.

After a scoreless first period, Panthers forward David Booth scored at 1:02 of the second period thanks to a misplayed pass from Bs defenseman Steven Kampfer. Michael Frolik assisted on Booth's shot which was a snipe from close range that Thomas didn't have much time to react to.

Krejci responded with the tying goal at 9:05 in the second. After fine work and shots from Zdeno Chara and Ryder, Krejci was able to get his backhander past Florida goaltender Scott Clemmensen (40 saves).

Panthers forward Mike Santorelli scored a controversial goal later in the second period when he seemed to tip Frolik's shot from the point with an obvious high stick. Surprisingly, the goal stood with Bryan Allen picking up the other assist.

It looked like a classic Bruins road no-show as more than half of the third period had gone by and Florida still led 2-1. However, Krejci stepped up (for one of the only times so far this season) and scored a pretty backhander off an equally gorgeous feed from Wheeler and Ryder at 10:35.

Boston carried play in overtime but couldn't pot the winner. Thomas stopped all three Panthers shooters he faced in the shootout (of course) and Wheeler scored after Tyler Seguin was stuffed.

The Bruins will need to play much better tonight as they travel to Tampa Bay to face the high-scoring Lightning, co-leaders of the Southeast Division with the Washington Capitals.

Patriots clinch AFC East title & home field throughout the 2011 playoffs

The New England Patriots just made things much easier for themselves moving forward by absolutely humiliating the hapless Buffalo Bills in front of their sad-sack fans at Ralph Wilson Stadium yesterday in Buffalo.

The 34-3 beating thrown by the Pats (13-2) to the Bills (4-11), their seventh straight victory, clinched another AFC East title for them. More importantly, it ensured they would have home field throughout the AFC playoffs and the No. 1 seed.

So all the Patriots have to do is win two home playoff games and then they'll be in the Super Bowl, February 6 in Dallas. Let's not get too ahead of ourselves though, they've still got plenty of work to do before we're talking Duck Boats and rolling rallies. However, they've done everything they possibly could do in the regular season.

Buffalo had actually come into yesterday winners of four out of their last six but as usual for the last couple years, they gave the Patriots one tough game (38-30 on Sept. 26) at Gillette then laid down at home late in the season.

Tom Brady (15 of 27, 143 yards, 3 touchdowns) set the NFL record for consecutive pass attempts without an interception. Bernie Kosar had the old mark (308) but Brady is already well ahead of it (319). He hasn't thrown an interception since his two vs. Baltimore (Oct. 17) which is insane.

Equally impossible to wrap your mind around is the fact that it's been nine games since New England has had a turnover. They only have nine total this season; the NFL record for fewest in a season is 13.

The Bills lost yesterday because they had seven turnovers (4 fumbles, 3 interceptions). Buffalo quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (18 of 37, 251 yards, 3 interceptions) has had a nice season but you wouldn't know it from yesterday's debacle. He looked like he was back at Harvard if the Ivy Leaguers had traveled to face an SEC school, just completely overmatched.

Buffalo received the opening kickoff and marched down the field, mostly behind Fred Jackson (13 carries, 81 yards), but they had to settle for a 26-yard field goal by Rian Lindell. Ironically, that would turn out to be the only points for the Bills.

Danny Woodhead (93 yards rushing, 32 yards receiving) answered with a 29-yard rushing touchdown later in the first quarter.

New England sewed up the game and the AFC East with 17 straight points in the second quarter. Buffalo native Rob Gronkowski hauled in his first of two touchdown catches (8 yards), Shayne Graham kicked a 34-yard field goal and veteran Alge Crumpler added a 4-yard touchdown catch (his first of the season). It was nice to see the former All-Pro, who is primarily a blocking machine for the Patriots, get rewarded with a goal-line look.

Gronkowski's second 8-yard touchdown grab, in the third quarter, tied him with Ben Coates for the Patriots' rookie tight end touchdown record (9). With Aaron Hernandez sitting out yesterday with a hip injury, Gronk took advantage and helped boost his candidacy for NFL offensive rookie of the year.

Graham's 26-yard kick in the fourth quarter was the game's final points.

BenJarvus Green-Ellis had 104 yards rushing on 19 carries. Patrick Chung, Dane Fletcher and Jarrad Page registered interceptions while Jerod Mayo, Sergio Brown, Eric Moore and Fletcher recovered fumbles.

The Pats host the Dolphins on Sunday in the regular season finale. The game means nothing at all to either team so it'll be interesting to see how much New England's stars (Brady, Branch, Welker, Wilfork, McCourty, Mayo, etc.) play. As you'll remember, Bill Belichick hates to sit anybody that is healthy and with a bye week in the playoffs, expect everyone to play a decent amount.