Tag: NHL

Boston Bruins Take Games 1 and 2 From The Leaves… “Shit Happens, That’s Hockey”.

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Just an ass kicking through and through.  The Boston Bruins opened up their first round match-up with the Toronto Maple Leaves on Thursday, and they came out with a convincing 5-1 win.  Saturday saw the B’s take the second game of the series 7-3.  They are now up two games to none in this best of 7 playoff series.  A lot has gone down since the Series began, so let’s get after it!

Game 1 saw the Bruins come out and assert themselves into the contest.  The previous 5 games to end the season the team had stalled.  They finally looked tired, and warn out from all the injuries.  They lost the number 1 seed in the Eastern Conference on the final day of the season, by losing to the Florida Panthers on the last day of the season.  Had they won the game, they’d be playing the New Jersey Devils.

Luckily for the Bruins, they finally began to roll out a fully healthy lineup for the first time in well over a month, and it showed.  They were the better team in Period One, they were hounding the offensive zone, and firing everything at Freddy Andersen.   Finally, leading a 3 on 2 attack, Torey Krug fed Brad Marchand behind the Leaves Defense.  Marchand took the feed, and slipped it past Andersen.  1-0 Bruins.

What an absolute beauty of a feed from Torey Krug, who is having a monster campaign.  The Toronto Defense is old and slow.  It really showed on this goal.  Roman Polak and Ron Hainsey were out on the ice together.  It doesn’t get much older and slower than those two.   The game stayed 1-0 for most of the period, but as it went along the Leaves really picked up their game.  Soon they were carrying the play.  Eventually, with just under 5 minutes left in the first, Zach Hyman tied the game at 1 for Toronto.

Bad pinch from Zdeno Chara in the Bruins offensive zone.  This sprung Hyman up the right wing side, and he was able to out-muscle Rask and McAvoy for the game tying goal.  The first period ended at 1-1, and Toronto had all the momentum.

The second period saw the Leaves continue to push the play.  They got the better chances, and forced the Bruins to take stupid penalties.  A couple of beautiful saves by Tuukka Rask, and missed empty netters kept the game at 1-1.  The intensity was raising with each passing second.  This is when Nazem Kadri did exactly what I had expected him to do:

Fucking rat.  Not sure what in the shit Kadri was doing here.  Wingles is on his knees, looking down at the puck, and Kadri takes a fucking run at him. This would give the Bruins a 5 minute Power Play, and eventually the game.  The stupid fuck is a 30 goal scorer, and he pulls a busch league move like this? Moronic. This may be the last memory of this series for Kadri, as the NHL Suspended him 3 games for the hit.

From here on out the Bruins meticulously picked apart the Leaves, and their molasses D -corps.

David Backes proved to be a force in front of Andersen, as he parked his ass out front, and shoveled home a garbage goal to make it 2-1.

David Pastrnak ripped home a high-slot one-timer shortly after to make it 3-1 B’s:

Early in the third, David Pastrnak’s breakaway chance was blocked into the air by Freddy Andersen, and Sean Kuraly followed up the play to bunt the puck into the gaping cage.  4-1 Bruins.   David Krejci would slip a puck off the back of Andersen’s legs later on to make it 5-1, and that’s how game 1 would end.

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Game 2 on Saturday Night saw the Bruins continue to slap around the Maple Leaves.  Game 1 went of the rails for the Maple Leafs towards the end of the second period.  They were able to hem the Bruins in their own zone, and generate quality chances.  Game 2 this was not the case.  The Bruins took it to the Leaves en route to winning 7-3, and taking a 2-0 series lead.  The Maple Leafs were without Center, Nazem Kadri, and will be for an additional 2 games.  Kadri was suspended three games for his blindside hit to Tommy Wingles.

The first period started out a little uneasy for the Bruins.  The Leaves brought an initial surge to start the game, and the boys had to weather it.  Weather it they did, and just five minutes into the game David Pastrnak made it 1-0 Bruins.

Skill level off the fuckin charts here.  Pastrnak would not be done, as we’ll see here later on.  It was the goal the Bruins needed to break the will of the Leaves early on.  You could feel all the momentum tipping to Boston.

A few minutes later Jake DeBrusk notched his first career NHL Playoff goal.  Bit of a lucky bounce off a nice feed from Krug, and it was 2-0 Bruins.

#22 in White, Nikita Zaitsev.  Embarrassing effort my man.  The joke that is the Toronto Maple Leaves Defense corps continues to grow.  If Zaitsev’s nuts had dropped yet, he would not allow DeBrusk free standing room in front of his goalie’s cage.  Pathetic.  Just a few moments later, Kevan Miller decided he wanted to join the party.

Lucky goal to get here.  See kids, flinging the puck to the net is never a bad thing.  Millsy just trying to generate some havoc in front throws the puck there, and it goes in.  Later on a Boston Power Play, Rick Nash added his first of playoffs doing exactly what Rick Nash does.  Parking his ass in front of the net.

Mitch Marner added the Leaves first goal just 1:22 into the second period to make it 4-1, but David Krejci beautifully re-directed a David Pastrnak slap-pass to up the lead to 4 goals once again.

Tyler Bozak made it 4-2 before the end of the second period, but David Pastrnak decided it was time to ice the game.  Pastrnak scored twice in the third period capping off a natural hat-trick.  In between the two third period Pastrnak goals, James Van Riemsdyk added a third goal for the Leaves.  Final score in this one was 7-3 Bruins.

Just a great way to start off the playoffs for the Bruins.  They come out and kick the shit out of a team that I thought would match-up better than it has so far.  Losing Nazem Kadri did not help their chances.  Kadri had 32 goals this year, and much like Brad Marchand, creates energy by being a fucking rat.   Bis loss  in the Leaves lineup.

Toronto’s Holy-Trinity hasn’t shown up AT ALL this series.  Mitch Marner has a goal and one assist, Nylander has none, and Matthews has none.  The best line in hockey (Marchand, Bergeron, Pastrnak) has amassed 20 points in two games by comparison.

WHAT A FUCKING SALLY.  Screw having to work harder, having to come up with a new game plan, or watching more film.  Shit happens, right golden boy?  That is a worrisome take if I am a Leaves fan going into game 3.  Now, he’s only in his second year, but man.  Your getting your ass beat to hell and back, and “shit happens” is your answer?  (I think I now hate Auston Matthews? What a fucking pussy).

Game 3 is tonight from Air Canada Centre in Toronto.  The Bruins look to take a commanding 3-0 series lead.  Riley Nash will be returning to the lineup after missing the last 1-2 weeks with a cut on his ear/concussion like symptoms.   Matt Grzelcyk is doubtful for the Bruins, and Nick Holden will replace him (brace yourselves). Leo Komarov will be out of the Leafs lineup with a lower body injury.

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Lets go Bruins!!

Stanley Cup Playoffs Preview: Bruins vs. Maple Leafs.

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Well folks, the regular season is finally over, and the best tournament in sports commences.  The Stanley Cup playoffs began with a bang last evening with two Western Conference match-ups, and one in the East.  The Flyers got run out of Pittsburgh by Sidney Crosby 7-0.  The Winnipeg Jets won their first ever playoff game (The current version of the Jets) 3-2 over the Minnesota Wild, and Las Vegas squeaked past L.A. 1-0.  Tonight the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs will commence their first round playoff match-up.

Image result for 2018 Toronto Maple Leafs

Image result for 2018 Boston Bruins

The Maple Leafs come into the series having finished third in the Atlantic Division:

atlantic standings

All last season, and current season everyone has been hyping up the Toronto Maple Leafs.  A young, fast, skilled core of forwards is developing in front of everyone’s eyes.  Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander have all been drafted and inserted into the Maple Leaf lineup within the past two seasons.  Auston Matthews being the most important of any of their forwards.  Matthews was drafted 1st overall in the 2016 NHL Draft.  From the very get go, he has been one of the league’s top players.  Not just young players, all players.  Hell, in his first NHL game he scored 4 fucking goals.  That is how good he is.

 

 

 

Mitch Marner was drafted 4th overall in 2015.  Seen as a flashy, undersized forward, there was a lot of speculation as to whether or not he would succeed at the NHL level.  Not only has he succeeded, he’s been a valuable goal scoring winger for Matthews.  In his two seasons, Marner has amassed 61 and 69 points respectively.  He has contributed since day 1, much like Matthews.

 

William Nylander was drafted 8th overall in 2014, and spent the following 2 seasons in the AHL.  He debuted last season with Marner and Matthews posting 61 points, and helping the leafs reach the playoffs for the first time since 2013.   This season saw Nylander pot 61 points again,  and his Leafs are in the Playoffs in back to back seasons for the first time since 2004-05, thus completing the “Holy Trinity” up in Toronto.  The Leafs looked to take a large step forward this year, and these three were able to do so.  Last year they squeaked into the playoffs as the second Wild Card team, and they were 8th and final seed.    This season they were within the 3 automatic playoff seeds for the duration of the campaign.  This means they will be facing the Boston Bruins, who finished 2nd in the Atlantic.  These two have been on a collision course all season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Bruins weren’t playoff favorites coming into the season.  They were inserting youth into the lineup in many places.  It just seemed like it would be a developmental type season.  The Bruins got off to a luke-warm start, as a rash of injuries hit the team.  Under .500 in November, Anton Khudobin saved the season out West.  The Bruins lost the first game in Anaheim on a massive three game California Road Trip.  The Bruins were able to beat both San Jose and L.A. in the following games.  At this point, the season took off.  They kept winning, and winning, and winning some more.  They went on an 18 game point streak that wasn’t snapped until January 30th.  This propelled them above the Leafs in the standings, and gave the 1st place Lightning a run for their money.  In the end, a push for first place was not meant to be.  The Bruins finished 1 point shy of Tampa to secure second place.

A lot has been said about the Leafs young guns, and rightfully so.  That trio lights you up for a lot of goals.  The Bruins have some pretty good youngsters themselves.  They might not be as flashy, but they all contributed to this teams surge up the standings.

Jake DeBrusk has been on the Bruins second line all year long.  It was his first full season in the NHL, after spending all of 2016-2017 in Providence.  That time has really paid off.  While he didn’t score 60 points, he was a solid contributor potting 43 points.  He rode shotgun with David Krejci for most of the year, but Cassidy is not afraid to sit his ass, or play him on a lower line if need be.  A lot to like from this kid, a bit of prime Nate Horton in his game.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Danton Heinen was an early season call-up from Providence when a rash of early season injuries hit the Bruins hard.  Heinen earned a spot on the third line full time shortly after.  Riley Nash, David Backes, and Danton Heinen has been the Bruins second best line when all parts are healthy.   Problem is, there has rarely been a time when all three are healthy.  The time they were, they went on their 18 game point streak.  Heinen was a major contributor offensively, grabbing 47 points in his first full season with Boston.  He’s creative with the puck on his stick, he can dangle, shoot, and pass at a high level.  Better yet, he’s able to play a physical game and win battles in the dirty the areas.  He will be an important piece moving forward for the B’s.  He’s got a lot of Loui Eriksson in his game.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, the big one.  Charlie McAvoy.   The Bruins X factor.  Charlie was drafted in 2016 from Boston University, and made his NHL debut in the 2017 playoffs.  This first full season he continued to develop into a future number 1 Defenseman.  He missed a full month due to a MCL sprain, but still was able to notch 32 points in his Rookie Campaign.  He finished with a +20 +/- rating and averaged well over 20 minutes a night when healthy.  This kid is going to be the number 1 Defenseman here for a long ass time.

 

 

 

 

 

Recent history does not bode well for the Boston Bruins when it comes to beating the Leafs.  They are 1-3 against Toronto this season, and 1-7 going back two seasons.  When it comes to dynamic, game-changing forwards the edge goes to the Leafs.  Along with the three kids they have, James Van Riemsdyk, Patrick Marleau, Zach Hyman,  Nazem Kadri, and Tyler Bozak.  These are all forwards who can score, and bring toughness.  Look for Kadri to turn himself into a villain this series.  Dudes a punk.

After the forwards, the Bruins have the just about edge everywhere else.  The Achilles heel for these Leafs is defense.  They have a top 10 bad D-corps.  Morgan Reilly and Jake Gardiner are there two best Defenseman.  They both can skate, and add offense to their game.  Those two will be eating up a lot of minutes for the Leafs.  After them it falls off.  They have veteran Ron Hainsey who is on his last legs.  He is not very mobile at all, and will mostly be used to block shots and kill penalties.  They have 31 year old Roman Polak, who is in the same mold as Hainsey.  He can’t skate whatsoever, but is gritty enough to block shots and kill penalties.

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The Bruins have the edge here with a solid balance of shutdown D-men, and puck movers.  The first pair features Zdeno Chara and Charlie McAvoy.  Despite being 41 Big Z still has plenty left in the tank, and is as good as ever Defensively.  He doesn’t contribute much offensively anymore, but he may surprise with a few clappers.  The second pairing features Torey Krug and Kevan Miller.  Miller has completely transformed his game in the past 2 seasons.  In 2015-2016 he was the team whipping boy.  He was injured for much of the campaign, and when he was healthy he sucked.  This season he is probably the second most valuable D-man on the team.  He allows Torey Krug the freedom to be more creative offensively.   Torey Krug is coming off his best regular season as Bruin posting 59 points.

As for the Goalies:

Rask stats

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Frederik Andersen will be between the pipes for the Leafs and Tuukka Rask will man the cage for the Bruins.  I wouldn’t say either team has a distinct advantage in Goal, as their stats are almost identical.  Rask has a lower Goals Against Average (2.36), and Andersen has a highers Save Percentage (.918). I’ll give the edge to Rask and the Bruins, largely because Rask has lead the Bruins to the Cup Final in the past.

The Verdict:

This series is going to be as close as it possibly can be.  The Bruins could sweep the Leafs in 4 games and they could lose to the Leafs in 4 games.  I see it going 7, and just based off the heart………………………Bruins in 7.

Fuck the Leafs.  NEVER FORGET:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I look forward to Kayaking through tears in Maple Leaf Square.  Lets go Bruins!!

Sports are the Best.

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Last night something amazing happened in Chicago during the Blackhawks vs. Jets clash.   It was one of those moments that make everyone realize why we love sports, it was just the best.  The Blackhawks are down a bunch of goalies due to injury this season, so they signed 37 year old Scott Foster to be the teams EBUG (Emergency Backup Goalie)

They were down so many goalies, the starter (Collin Delia) was making his own NHL debut.   A little background on Scott, he is an accountant that plays in a Men’s League nightly.  It is not uncommon for a Men’s League Goalie to practice almost daily with an NHL team.  Sometimes, you’re farm team is too far away to call any one up, and an average Joe gets to step in.  Scott has been the teams Emergency Backup before, but watches the games from the Press Box, and leaves right after the game has concluded.  Occasionally they have to suit up, and park their ass on the bench to sit there and be the backup.

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Image result for emergency backup goalie

All these guys look the part, but none of them really get to play.  Once in awhile, you’ll see one get in for the last face-off.  Last night with about 13 minutes left to go in the third period, Delia had to leave the game with cramps.  In Scott Foster, Accountant.  With the Hawks leading 6-2 Foster had to come int the game, and close it down.  Close it down he did.  He stopped all 7 Winnipeg shot attempts keeping the 4 goal Hawk lead in tact.   He will retire with the NHL’s best all-time save percentage of 1000.  The guy will go down as an all time great EBUG.

I mean this is just fucking awesome.  This every single Hockey Goalie’s dream.  Stopping shots from beer leaguers they picture themselves shutting down Sidney Crosby.  Foster was able to live a dream of millions of hockey players out there.  Here’s to average Joe’s out there!  The Blackhawk regulars really seemed like they embraced the moment, and really rallied with their new teammate.  They even gave him “The Belt” a wrestling belt that the players pass around after each win.   In this dark season for Chicago this is a moment I’m sure they will never forget.  Again, this is why I love sports.  Look at his fucking Men’s League teammates watching him play!

“I think I am just hitting my prime” -Beauty.

You Can’t Beat Us!

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Bruins fans were treated to another win over the Big Bad Tampa Bay Lightning Thursday night, at TD Garden.  With the 4-2 victory the Bruins move into first place in the Atlantic Division, and Eastern Conference.  It is the first time since October 18th that a team not named the Tampa Bay Lightning are in first place.  This is the third time the Bruins have beaten the Lightning this season, and they haven’t lost to them since 2016.

Charlie McAvoy and Zdeno Chara were both game time decisions, and Butchy decided to give them both one more day to rest.  Neither suited up for this one, but David Backes returned to the lineup after missing about a week due to a cut on his leg.  Matt Grzelyck surprisingly suited up for this one after taking the brutal hit from Josh Morrisey just two nights prior.

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The first period saw the Bruins come out with major jump in their step.  They were all over Tampa, generating turnovers, and quality scoring chances.  The Bruins out-shot the Lightning 17-6 in the first period.  Finally with less than a minute to go, Tim Schaller buried home a rebound that was sitting behind Andrei Vasilevskiy to make it 1-0 Bruins.

Less than 40 seconds later David Pastrnak added another Power Play goal to make it 2-0 Bruins.  At the end of the period the Bruins scored two back breaking goals.

The two goals lit a fire under Tampa’s ass, as they picked up their skating in the second period, and the game got physical.  Just under 2 minutes into the Second Period J.T. Miller re-directed a gorgeous Nikita Kucherov cross-ice slap pass to make it 2-1.

This is where this one got interesting.  Both teams ramped up the physicality in the second period, and this lead to tempers flaring.  Bruce Cassidy has had a motto throughout the season which is, “No Passengers” .  Everyone must contribute, everyone must be emotionally invested.  Boy, did Tuukka Rask every show that he was emotionally invested into this one:

AHL MVP Cory Conacher overstayed his welcome in Rask’s crease, and well, Rask lost it.  A mini melee ensued, and Vasilevskiy even tried to get down to the Bruins end of the Ice to challenge Rask, but the officials would not let it happen.  There’s an unwritten rule in hockey that when there is a brawl/scrum, there should never be an odd man situation (one guy standing free).  That’s generally when the goalie from the opposing team has to skate down and challenge the other goalie.  We were robbed of a goalie fight here thanks to the fucking stripes.  Although, it is good to see there is a hatred brewing between these two teams.  Hell, David Backes challenged Bolt players on their own fucking bench!

The kicker?  David Pastrnak dropped the mitts with Lightning Defenseman, Dan Girardi.  Girardi leveled Bergeron in the Neutral Zone, and Pasta was willing to go with a much bigger, more experienced fighter in Giradi.  It was Pastrnak’s first career fight, and it would top off his Gordie Howe Hat-trick(goal, assist, and fight in same game). Pastrnak had never fought before, and obviously isn’t expected to be good at it.  Well he isn’t.  It wasn’t much of a fight, but it showed these guys are more than willing to stick up for one another.

With 8 minutes left to play in the third, and the teams playing 4 on 4 hockey, the Bruins completed the sexiest passing play I have seen in my 25 years:

Just a beautiful fucking goal, in which the Bruins toyed with the Big Bad Lightning.  A beautiful triangle passing play ending in a goal to make it 3-1.  First place was within sight late in the third.  The Bolts wouldn’t make it easy, as Victor Hedman squeaked home a wrist shot to make is 3-2.   This coming mere minute after the Bergeron goal.

Brutal fucking goal to give up.  Rask was locked in all game giving up that goal through his armpit is inexcusable.  The B’s would hold on to win 4-2 and take over first place in conference and division.

They may not finish the season in first place as they are only 1 point ahead of the Lightning, but the Bruins showed that they are ready for postseason play, and are in the Bolts heads.  You could see the frustration as the game went along.  The Bruins bullied them, and I cannot wait for the playoffs to start.  Initially I had thought the Lightning were a shoe-in to win the Eastern Conference and Stanley Cup.  Tampa Bay is fucking soft.  The Bruins beat them soundly in each of the three match-ups this season, and haven’t lost since 2016.  For whatever reason, the Bruins have always matched up well with Tampa no matter how good or bad they are.  Tampa looks like a team that is starting to slowly run out of gas.  It will be interesting to see how far they are able to go.  They absolutely 100% have the talent to make it to the Cup finals.  It’s whether or not they have the balls.  The Bruins certainly showed they have the balls to beat you physically and on the scoreboard.

Bruins will take on the Florida Panthers tomorrow at TD Garden.   It looks like Cassidy is going to sit Chara and McAvoy again on Saturday, but they will travel to with the team to Philadelphia on Sunday.  Jake DeBrusk is slated to return per Butchy:

The Panthers are fighting for playoff position, as they come in 6 points out of the final playoff spot.  Should be a good one, let’s go Bruins!

Bruins Re-Sign Captain, Zdeno Chara.

Early Wednesday morning the Boston Bruins announced that team Captain, Zdeno Chara re-signed with the team. The deal is a 1 year $5 million dollar deal with incentives.

This move doesn’t come at much of surprise. Many of the beat writers had been hinting all season that the belief was an extension was imminent. It’s great news for Bruins fans, and Zdeno Chara. The captain has had an enormous (pun kind of intended) impact on the Bruins since arriving in 2006-2007. The man has been team captain since Day fucking one.

For most of his Bruins tenure, Zdeno Chara has been a top 10 defenseman in the NHL. His size helps him be one of the best shutdown Defenders out there, and being one of the biggest dudes out there has helped him offensively:

In his prime, Big Z could launch missile’s topping at 108 mph. Up until a few years ago, Z was a regular 40-50 Point getter. He won the Norris Trophy (NHL’s best Defenseman) one time in 2009, and has of been nominated an additional 5 times. Of course, Z’s best achievement is the award he brought us all in 2011:

Big Z isn’t a top 10 Defenseman in the NHL anymore at his young age of 41, but he’s still in the top 30. He’s not going to get 40-50 points, and he doesn’t fire it 108 MPH any more. That all doesn’t mean Big Z isn’t still a fucking monster. He still shuts guys down, kills penalties, and occasionally chips in with a goal or two. The main thing is he averages 23 minutes TOI this season. That’s insanity! Chara biking to work all these years has really paid off

I am so glad they reached this extension. Hopefully, the team will Queue up a 1 year extension every April, until Z decides to hang em up.

He won’t be in the lineup tonight, as he’s still recovering from an Upper-Body Injury. Tune in to catch the Bruins take on the Lightning tonight from TD Garden. First place on the line.

Let’s go Bruins!

What a Fucking Gong-Show.

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It was a spirited game last night in the Great White North.  The Bruins lost a barn burner 5-4 to the surging Winnipeg Jets in a shootout. A lot happened in this game, most of it wasn’t positive either. The Bruins got torched by the league video review center in Toronto, and lost another key player to injury.

Let’s start it off with the guys in Black and White.  They worked hard to earn the Jets first goal of the game.  Jet fourth liner, Brandon Tanev was banging the puck against Khudobin’s pad on a wrap around attempt.  Dobby held strong and the puck NEVER crossed the goal line completely.  For some unknown reason the Linesman patrolling the Blueline WAY away from the play, decided to call it a goal.  There is 0% chance a linesman standing at the Blueline or even Redline could clearly see if the puck went it.  The referee next to Khudobin called it no goal, but he was over ruled. Technically the original call on the ice was a good goal.

To break it down simply:  1-Tanev was banging the puck on Dobby’s pad, and the ref with the best angle waived “No Goal”. 2-A linesman in no mans land overruled the referee, calling it a goal. 3- The play was reviewed, and the goal stood because there is no conclusive evidence that the puck stayed out. It’s also pretty clear it didn’t go in, as the ENTIRE puck has to cross the line. You must see white between the goal line and puck.

The Bruins managed to keep their cool, and continue to play their game despite piss poor officiating. Later in the first period, the Bruins forechecking/tenacity really paid dividends.

What a great play by all of those involved here.  Savy David Krejci pressured the Jets defender, won the puck inside the attacking blue line, and tapped the puck to a streaking Ryan Donato.  Donato undressed Joe Morrow with a forehand to backhand fake, and fired a backhanded seed top corner.  It was 1-1 in the final minute of the first period.

The second period saw the Jets take a 3-1 lead.  Brandon Tanev added his second of the game and ex-Bruin, Joe Morrow netted his 6th of season.  The story of this period came at the very end of it:

Josh Morrisey slammed Grzelcyk into from behind in a textbook cheap-shot.  Not only did he launch himself into the back of Grzelyck , he turtled like a fucking fairy when Kevan Miller wanted to rip his head off. The NHL is so focused on removing fighting from hockey that players never have to worry about standing up for themselves after taking a cheapshot.  Morrisey should’ve had the piss beaten out of him by multiple Bruins but the stripes got in the way. Morrisey received a 5 minute major penalty and a game misconduct.  This meant the Bruins would start the third period with a 5 minute power play.  Josh Morrisey will not receive any sort of discipline for his hit.  Why? Who the fuck knows.  It was a dirty hit plain and simple.  Matt Grzelyck has been diagnosed with an Upper-Body Injury, and there have not been many updates to that diagnosis.  It’s a shame he got run like that, because Gryz was having a great season, quietly molding himself into a key defender.  He plays power play, penalty kill, and 5 on 5.  The kid can skate, and has incredible passing vision.  He will be missed.

The Bruins managed to score twice on the 5 minute Power Play to start the third period. Danton Heinen and David Pastrnak each scored to tie the game at 3 with a mere 2 minutes gone in the third.

Then, Nick Holden finally decided to show up.  It’s been almost a full month since the trade deadline, and Nick Holden was able to control himself for the most part:

While still on the Power Play from the Morrisey hit, Anton Khudobin was behind his own goal looking to stop a puck that was dumped in behind the net. Dobby fired it around the boards for Nick Holden at the hashmarks, and Nick Holden proceeded to handle the puck like a frag grenade. Winnipeg pounced on the loose puck, and scored short handed. Less than a minute after the tying goal from Pastrnak. The Bruins managed to secure another Power Play with about 13 minutes left to play, when Torey Krug stepped into a howitzer:

The two teams exchanged scoring chances for the remainder of the regulation, and overtime. The game would move on to a shootout.

Mark Schiefele scored on Winnipeg’s second shot attempt, and then Bruins Rookie, Ryan Donato showed he belongs by burying his first NHL shootout attempt:

Finally Patrik Laine ended the game by slipping a backhander through Khudobin’s pads:

Overall the Bruins battled hard against a team that’s just as good if not better. It’s a shame the game turned into a yard sale because of the officials, and someone like Matt Grzelcyk got hurt because of it. The officiating is still no excuse for the short handed goal that was given up in the third, or the other two legitimate goals the Jets scored.

Tune in on Thursday to watch the Bruins take on the Tampa Bay Lighting from TD Garden. Tampa has 106 points, and Boston has 105. Can the Bruins continue to slap around the Bolts? Let’s go Bruins! First place on the line!

Nothing is Coming Easy.

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The Bruins continued to limp around the country during their late season Road-trip, and had a clash with the Dallas Stars on Friday Night.  This reunites us with old Friend, Tyler Seguin (I am not going to go any further into Tyler Seguin).  Anyway,  it was yet another third period comeback for the Black and Gold.  This time they were missing a total of 8 regular skaters for this one, and they still won.   Dallas booked their tee-times for early April, as this loss puts them out of Playoff contention.

Just 2:26 minutes into the game Stars Defenseman Esa Lindell fired home a Snap-Shot through traffic to beat Tuukka Rask.  The Bruins were caught running around in there own end.  The Forwards and Defense all got sucked in below the Face-off dots, and Lindell had all day to fire a shot once the puck was given to him at the Left Point.

Things got much worse for the Bruins in the second period with the Bruins on the Power Play:

Brutal goal for the Bruins to give up with just barely over a minute left in the second period.  Hoping to tie the game up before the start of the third, Grzelyck fell at his own attacking Blueline.  The puck slipped free, and Jamie Benn took it Coast to Coast to make it 2-0 Stars at the end of the 2nd period.  Seemed like this one was over, as a Short Handed goal in the final minute of a period is just back breaking.  Once again the 2018 Boston Bruins slapped us all across the face.

Just barely over 1 minute into the 3rd period the Bruins got on the board thanks to Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak:

Great work by David Pastrnak skating through virtually the entire Stars defense, and Brad Marchand was doing Brad Marchand things.  Going to the net drawing bodies his way.  Initially rules Pastrnak’s goal, it re-directed off Marchand prior to going in.  Early on in the 3rd it was 2-1 Stars.

The Bruins continued to press hard for a tying goal, but Dallas was hanging on by a thread.  Later on in the period Dallas was on a 5-4 Power Play, when Marchand got the puck with a head of steam.  Marchand generated a 2 on 1 with Tim Schaller on his left.  The Stars Defenseman tried their damnedest to get between the puck, and Schaller.  It found Schallers stick, who made a little move to tuck the puck into the net.  Tie game.

Looking like overtime was coming, the Bruins amped up the attacking pressure in the final minute of the third.  Any time a Star’s Defenseman touched the puck behind his goal, they were being hounded.   This would pay off as the Stars began to ware down, and David Pastrnak was wide open in front of goal with the puck on his stick.  Patiently he wrapped the puck around Kari Lehtonen’s leg to win the game with 11 seconds to go.

That should just about do it for the Dallas Stars, who were fighting for their playoff lives.  They sit 5 points out of the last Wild Card spot with 6 games remaining.  They’re going to have to win-out, and get some help from others.  The Bruins would continue their road-trip on Sunday Night in Minnesota.

The Bruins were welcomed with the return of Mr. Perfect Hockey Player-Patrice Bergeron.  Boy did he not miss a beat.  Nearly 20 minutes played, flawless in the dot, and two points to go along with the win.  Just an incredible hockey player.  Sounds like more of the M.A.S.H. will be returning in due time as McAvoy, Chara, Debrusk, and Backes have all resumed skating.

Late Sunday evening the Bruins played an overtime period against the Wild.  Much of this one was a fucking snoozer.  With the game tied at 1 just seconds into overtime Brad Marchand and Tory Krug will do all talking for me:

They keep on winning in ugly fashion and I do not care.  Winning is winning, and this team sits at 104 points.  It is crazy to think the past two-three seasons the Bruins have been like this seasons Dallas Stars.  They were hovering around 80 points with less than 10 to play, and having to win out to get in.  This year being comfortably in has allowed injured guys to take a few days off and get healed.  They may be winning ugly now, but when they finally get healthy……look out.

Go Bruins!

Playoff Bound

Playoffs 2

Last night the Boston Bruins dropped a 2-1 overtime game to the St. Louis Blues, but there is a silver lining.  The 2018 Bruins officially punched their ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  This makes it back-to-back playoff appearances for the Black and Gold.  It comes as a bittersweet consolation prize after the tough loss in overtime.

The Bruins limped into Scottrade Center with two new members added to the M.A.S.H. unit.  Rick Nash and Torey Krug both sat due to Upper Body Injuries.  It looks like those two are day-to-day  for the time being.  Enter two JAGS:  Paul Postma and Jordan Swarz were recalled from Providence to fill in.

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The game itself was was a bit of a bore.  The Bruins lineup is so depleted you’re just sitting there someone doesn’t sneeze, and have to go IR because of it.  Despite all of this, the Bruins struck first:

The Bruins caught one helluva break here.  Normally the stripes are doing their darnedest to fuck the Bruins.  Not this time!  The NHL’s most underrated Defenseman, Alex Pietrangelo attempted to clear the puck out his own zone.  He turned and flung the puck, which hit off the skate of a nearby official.  Bruins rookie Ryan Donato pounced on the rolling puck, and fired it home.  That’s Ryan’s second goal in his short two game career.

The Bruins continued to press for a second goal, but St. Louis picked up their game.  Anton Khudobin did his damnedest to protect the slim 1-0 lead.  He was able to do so until early into the third to period:

Just an insane shot from Schwartz here.  Dobby didn’t have a prayer in stopping it.  The Blues were by far the better team for the third period, and that continued.  Dobby was fantastic in goal stopping 18 of 20 shots, without him this game would not have made it to overtime.

A mere 30 seconds into the overtime, Jaden Schwartz made the Boston Bruins look completely inept.  After winning the opening face-off, Schwartz grabbed the puck, skated around his goal, and proceeded to skate end-to-end with the Bruins D-men allowing him to do so.  Schwartz ripped the puck on goal once he got to the hash marks, and it beat Khudobin low stick side.  Brutal goal to give up, as Matt Grzelcyk simply allowed it to happen.  Grzelcyk has had a fantastic year, but man you gotta contest there.  Youth Hockey 101: Gap control.  Giving forwards too much time and space leads to goals like the one above.

Silver lining: By reaching overtime, the Bruins officially clinched a playoff spot.  The three seasons prior to this were tough for the Bruins and their fans.  They missed the playoffs in 2014-15 on the last day of the season.  They finished with 96 points, but failed to qualify for the postseason.  In 2015-16 the Bruins again missed out on the postseason on the final day of the season, but finished with 93 points this time.  2017 saw them squeak into the postseason on the final week of the season, and they finished with 95 points.  It was brutal each season watching the final 20 games of the year, because each one was a playoff game.   Two of those three years the Bruins controlled their destiny and lost on the final day to miss out.  It was just fucking brutal.   Not this year, and not these Bruins.  They are comfortably locked into playoff position, and all that was needed was 1 point to secure a spot.  They got it done.  With weeks to spare.  So much better than the cheek clenching final months of years past.  I cannot fucking wait for the playoffs.  Lets go Bruins.

Magical.

On Tuesday evening the Boston Bruins traveled down to Raleigh, N.C. to take on the Carolina Hurricanes. What happened was absolutely magical, and this team just has IT.

Generally, I’m not too inclined to watch the Carolina Hurricanes. I got stuck watching this limp dick franchise for four years in College, so enough is enough. Any-who….the Bruins looked brutal for 50 of the 60 minutes played in this one, but managed to steal a 6-4 victory. How’d it all play out?

It was a sloppy sloppy game to start out, but the Bruins managed to score first. Brad Marchand netted his 30th goal of the season. The third season in a row he’s reached this clip. Brad Marchand has turned himself into an elite goal scorer in the NHL simply overnight. Seen as a nice complimentary piece before, he now carries the team on his back.

What an absolute saucy dish from Pastrnak on this opening goal, and just abysmal goaltending from Cam Ward. Gotta hug that post, man. Things would only get worse from the Bruins from this point to about the 10 minute mark of the third period.

Early in the second period, Sebastian Aho ripped a blocker side snap shot over Tuukka Rask to tie the game at 1.

Later, Teuvo Teravainen fired a one timer over the shoulder of Rask to make it 2-1 Hurricanes.  This coming on a 5-3 power play.  Almost unstoppable for Rask.

At the end of the second period Justin Williams made it 3-1 Hurricanes.  To make matters even worse just 51 seconds into the third Brock McGinn made it 4-1 Hurricanes.  Our jolly Beat Writer, Joe Haggerty decided it was time for the Bruins to throw in the towel.

To be fair to Jolly Saint Haggs, it certainly seemed like the game was over.  The team had taken a shit ton of penalties, had coughed the puck up all night, and their number 1 tendy was playing like dog-shit again.

The Bruins were dead men walking.  Some weren’t even walking, as at Jake DeBrusk, Zdeno Chara, and Tory Krug had all left the game at this point.  It does not matter.  Countless times you think the 2017-2018 Boston Bruins are going to fold like Claude Julien’s handkerchief, but Butchy simply does not allow it.  Once the fourth goal went in, the Bruins really pressed the Canes all over the ice.  They were starting to force more turnovers, and create scoring chances when finally at the 10:04 mark of the 3rd period Matt Grzelyck fired home a snapshot passed Cam Ward.  4-2 canes with half of the third period remaining.

Just a minute later, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand completed a beauty of a give-and-go along the right wing hash marks.  Pastrnak ripped a snap-shot over the glove of Cam Ward.  Ward looked like a dingleberry waving his glove at it, he had absolutely no shot.  With close to 8 minutes left, the Bruins cut the lead to 4-3.

With all of the momentum it was only a matter of time before the Bruins tied the game.   The Bruins wasted no time, as just 21 seconds after Pastrnak’s goal, David Krejci slid a cross ice dish for Danton Heinen to re-direct home.  4-4 with 8 minutes to go in the third period.   The Hurricanes have every right to be furious this goal counted.  Back in the Boston Defensive zone David Krejci caught the puck in mid-air, took a stride to avoid contact, and dropped the puck.  This should have been ruled a hand pass, and the play whistled dead.  Instead it was a tie game.

On the powerplay with 3 minutes left to go David Pastrnak added his second goal of the game, and the Bruins finally took the lead.  He would also add an empty netter to ice the win, and hat-trick.

What an absolutely fantastic game.  One of those nights that makes you feel like something special is happening with this team.  They’re not playing with any pressure, even when they were down 3.  Teams that have fun out there generally don’t have to dig as deep as some late in the third period.  Minus three guys the Black and Gold still had better legs in the third.  They were absolutely buzzing.  Lets hope the injuries to Chara, DeBrusk, and Krug are all minor.  Bruce Cassidy confirmed this morning that Krug will be a game-time decision tonight against Florida, but Chara and DeBrusk will be out tonight.

R.I.P. Original Six- New York Rangers

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Another Original Six franchise, another dumpster fire.  The New York Rangers have spent much of the past 15 years as Stanley Cup contenders.  Unlike the Blackhawks, the Rangers were never able to get it done. By that I mean win a cup, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been a damn good team.

Since missing the playoffs on the final day of the 2009 season, the Rangers have been a force within the Metropolitan Division.  Even though they missed the postseason in 2009, the Rags have consistently made the postseason since the 2005 lockout.

In 2013-2014 the Rangers went on their deepest run.  The first round saw them beat their hated rivals, Philadelphia Flyers in 7 games.  The second round brought Sidney Crosby, and the Pittsburgh Penguins.  The Rangers won that series in 7 games as well, this time overcoming a 3-1 series deficit for the first time in team history.

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In the Eastern Conference finals, the Rangers beat up on the hated Montreal Canadiens in 6 games, and the Cup final saw them take on the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings were in their second Cup Final in 3 seasons.

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The Rangers would lose to the Kings in 5 games, with Alec Martinez scoring the winning goal in double OT.  Despite the Blueshirts going down in 5, 3 of 5 games went into overtime, and 4 of 5 were decided by one goal.

A big part of the Cup run was the King himself, Henrik Lundqvist.

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The best Goaltender in the league has been manning the pipes on Madison Avenue since 2005-2006 season.  From the very beginning Hank was one of the best Goalies in the league.

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It’s been nearly 13 full seasons in a Blueshirt for the King, as he approaches the 800 career games milestone.  He has a career 2.36 GAA, and 0.919 save percentage over his career, which is just insane.  Goalie is a position that is rapidly decreasing in value across the league, but Hank is still one of few true superstar Goalies.  Henrik’s play earned himself an 8 year $59.5 million dollar contract extension in 2013-2014.  Up until this season, he was the highest paid Goalie in the league.

It’s great to have a franchise goalie and all, but it has certainly hampered their ability to add to other places on the roster that would’ve had given them the extra piece to beat LA in 2014, or Tampa Bay in 2015, whom they lost to in the Eastern Conference Final.

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Since the back-to-back runs, the Rangers have regressed.  Bad contracts, poor coaching, and the lack of game-breaking offensive talent have all contributed.

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Alain Vignault has been coaching the Blueshirts since 2013, after John Tortorella was fired.  All was fine and dandy with AV until 2015-2016, where the Rangers were knocked out of the playoffs in the first round in 5 games by the Pittsburgh Penguins.  AV’s message was running stale, and he seemed to hamper the teams ability to get over the hump.  He fell in love with fourth line grinders like, Tanner Glass.   Glass is a fourth line fighter with zero hockey ability.  Hell, he’s not even a good fighter.  Yet he dressed in 66 and 57 games in back to back seasons.   Glass playing on the fourth line every night seems harmless, but it takes away ice-time from a guy like Pavel Buchnevich.  Buch is a young skilled forward, who has potential to be a goal scorer on either of your top lines.

Bad contracts and the New York Rangers go hand-in-hand.  Glen Sather and Jeff Gorton spent the better part of 5 seasons “going for it”.  They would spend big on high priced free agents like Brad Richards and Kevin Shattenkirk.  In the 2014 offseason Richards was bought out by the Rangers. This came just three seasons into his 9 year contract.  If they’re not signing guys to big money contracts, they’re trading for big guns.

In the past 7-8 seasons the Rangers have traded for Rick Nash, Keith Yandle, and Martin St. Louis in an attempt to “go for it”.  This all fine and dandy, but left the Rangers with a bare prospect pool, and no draft picks to replenish the pipeline.  They never really have game breaking talent.  They have quality offensive players in Mats Zuccarello, Mika Zibanejad, Vlad Namestnikov, and Ryan Spooner.  But they need a game changer.  A guy like Taylor Hall, Brad Marchand, Patrik Laine, or Austin Matthews.  Most importantly they need centers, which is position that they never truly addressed.  Right now Mika Zibanejad is their number 1 center.  He is probably best suited to play on the Wing, or second line center.  Asking him to be the number 1 is a stretch.

All of these factors lead us to the present.  The Rangers are dead last in the Metropolitan Division.  They are finally selling off expiring contracts, piling up prospects, and stacking up draft picks.  I would say this rebuild is 2 seasons too late, as I thought they should’ve started selling after the loss to Tampa in 2015.  The trades the Rangers have made so far (Rick Nash, Nick Holden, Ryan McDonagh, J.T. Miller) have yielded positive returns.  I am still shocked that they have not attempted to move Henrik Lundqvist.  He wouldn’t yield much in a trade simply because that’s the goalie trade market (maybe a low 1st/2nd round pick) but I would have looked to get him off the books.  The Ryan McDonagh trade yielded a positive return, but I would have looked to have moved Kevin Shattenkirk, whom they should’ve stayed away from in the first place.  McDonagh is a warrior who wore the “C” for many years.   He took a lot of punishment eating large minutes during deep playoff runs, but he is only 28 years old.  He still has plenty to play for.  Number 1 Defenseman is the hardest position to fill on your team.  While they may have gotten assets for him, I still would have looked to trade other pieces, even if it meant a lesser return.

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We’ll see how this season unfolds for the Blueshirts.  They still remain somewhat close to the final Wild-Card spots in the Eastern Conference.  It’d probably behoove them to not even bother pushing to get the 8th seed, but as a fan I’d want my team to try and get into the post season.  I expect that they will address the coaching situation this off-season, and look to use all the picks acquired to bring in a bucket load of young talent.

Hopefully in the near future, the Rangers will be playing games into June.  But until then, Ranger fans can remember the good times here: