Australian Rules Football
West Coast Eagles vs. Fremantle Dockers — Fox Soccer Plus, 2:30 a.m.

College Baseball
ACC Championship, Greensboro, NC
Georgia Tech vs. Miami — ESPN2, noon

Big East Championship, Clearwater, FL
St. John’s vs. South Florida — ESPNU, noon

Conference USA Championship, Pearl, MI
Memphis vs. UAB — CBS Sports Network, 2 p.m.

SEC Championship, Hoover, AL
Mississippi State vs. Vanderbilt — ESPN2, 3:30 p.m.

College Softball
NCAA Division I Softball Championship
Super Regionals

Knoxville, TN
Game 2: Tennessee vs. Georgia — ESPN, 1 p.m.
Game 3: Georgia vs. Tennessee — ESPN, 3:30 p.m. (if necessary)

Columbia, MO
Game 2: Missouri vs. LSU — ESPNU, 3:30 p.m.
Game 3: LSU vs. Missouri — ESPNU, 6 p.m. (if necessary)

Berkeley, CA
Game 2: Cal vs. Washington — ESPN2, 7 p.m.
Game 3: Washington vs. Cal — ESPN2, 9:30 p.m.

Cycling
Giro d’Italia: Stage 21 — Universal Sports, 9:30 a.m.

Formula 1
Grand Prix of Monaco — Speed, 7:30 a.m.

Golf
Champions Tour: Senior PGA Championship, Final Round — WHDH/WJAR, 3 p.m.
European PGA Tour: PGA Championship, Final Round — Golf Channel, 9 a.m.
PGA Tour: Colonial Invitational, Final Round — WBZ/WPRI, 3 p.m.

Hockey
2012 Memorial Cup, Shawinigan, Quebec
Final
Shawinigan vs. London — NHL Network, 7 p.m.

IndyCar
Indianapolis 500 — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, noon

MLB
American League
Tampa Bay at Red Sox — NESN, 1:30 p.m.

National League
Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh — WGN America, 1:30 p.m.
Washington at Atlanta — ESPN, 8 p.m.

Baseball Tonight — ESPN, 12:30 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 1 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN, 7 p.m.
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, 8 p.m.
Plays of the Week — MLB Network, 9 p.m.
Quick Pitch– MLB Network, 11 p.m.

MLS
Sporting KC vs. San Jose — NBC Sports Network, 4:30 p.m.

NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series: Coca-Cola 600 — WFXT/WNAC, 5:30 p.m.

NBA Playoffs
Western Conference Finals
Game 1: Oklahoma City at San Antonio — TNT, 8:30 p.m.

Inside the NBA — TNT, 11 p.m.

NHL
NHL Tonight: 2012 Stanley Cup Preview — NHL Network, 10 p.m.

Tennis
French Open, Men’s & Women’s First Round — ESPN2, 5 a.m./Tennis Channel, 10 a.m./WHDH/WJAR, noon

French Open Tonight — Tennis Channel, 7 p.m.

U.S. Olympic Trials
Water Polo: USA vs. Hungary — NBC Sports Network, 3 p.m.

Entertainment
CBS News Sunday Morning — WBZ/WPRI, 9 a.m.
I Hate My Kitchen: Wild Side — HGTV, 9:30 a.m.
I Hate My Bath: 90′s Flower Power — HGTV, 10 a.m.
The Best Thing I Ever Made: Garlic Power — Food Network, 11:30 a.m.
60 Minutes — WBZ/WPRI, 7 p.m.
National Memorial Day Concert — WGBH, 8 p.m.
Today’s Special: NY Indian — Cooking Channel, 8 p.m.
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi — Spike, 8 p.m.
The Killing — AMC, 9 p.m.
American Ninja Warrior: Midwest Regional Qualifying Round — G4, 9 p.m.
Game of Thrones — HBO, 9 p.m.
Snapped: Mary Winkler — Oxygen, 9 p.m.
Veep — HBO, 10 p.m.
Mad Men — AMC, 10 p.m.
Unusual Suspects: Bathtub Killer — Investigation Discovery, 10 p.m.
American Ninja Warrior: Midwest Regional Qualifying Round — G4, 10 p.m.
Girls — HBO, 10:30 p.m.
The Pitch — AMC, 11:04 p.m.

Boxing
24/7 Pacquaio./Bradley (series premiere) — HBO, 9:30 p.m.

College Baseball
ACC Tournament, Greensboro, NC
Florida State vs. Virginia — NESN, 3 p.m.
North Carolina vs. North Carolina State — NESN, 7 p.m.

Big Ten Tournament, Columbus, OH
Championship Round
Michigan State vs. Indiana — Big Ten Network, 3:30 p.m.
Purdue vs. Michigan State/Indiana — Big Ten Network, 7 p.m.

College Lacrosse
NCAA Division I Men’s Championship, Foxboro, MA
National Semifinals
Loyola (MD) vs. Notre Dame — ESPN2, 2:30 p.m.
Duke vs. Maryland — ESPN2, 5 p.m.

College Softball
NCAA Division I Tournament
Super Regionals

Norman, OK
Game 2: Arizona vs. Oklahoma — ESPN, noon
Game 3: Oklahoma vs. Arizona — ESPN, 2:30 p.m. (if necessary)

Knoxville, TN
Game 1: Georgia vs. Tennessee — ESPNU, noon

Tampa, FL
Game 2: South Florida vs. Hofstra — ESPNU, 2:30 p.m.
Game 3: Hofstra vs. South Florida — ESPNU, 5 p.m. (if necessary)

Austin, TX
Game 2: Texas vs. Oregon — ESPN, 5 p.m.
Game 3: Oregon vs. Texas — ESPN, 7:30 p.m (if necessary)

Columbia, MO
Game 1: LSU vs. Missouri — ESPNU, 7:30 p.m.

Berkeley, CA
Game 1: Washington vs. Cal — ESPN, 10 p.m.

Cycling
Giro d’Italia: Stage 20 — Universal Sports, 8:30 a.m.

Golf
Champions Tour: Senior PGA Championship, 3rd Round — WHDH/WJAR, 3 p.m.
European Tour: PGA Championship, 3rd Round — Golf Channel, 9 a.m.
PGA Tour: Colonial Invitational, 3rd Round — WBZ/WPRI, 3 p.m.

Gymnastics
U.S. Classic — Universal Sports, 6 p.m.

Mixed Martial Arts
UFC 146: Preliminaries — FX, 8 p.m.
UFC 146: Dos Santos vs. Mir — Pay Per View, 10 p.m.

MLB
American League
Detroit at Minnesota — MLB Network, 2 p.m.
Cleveland at Chicago White Sox — WGN America, 4 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Red Sox — WFXT/WNAC, 7:15 p.m.

National League
Houston at Los Angeles Dodgers — MLB Network, 10 p.m.

MLB Player Poll — WFXT/WNAC, 3 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 5 p.m.
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, 7 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN, 9:30 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, midnight
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, 1 a.m. (Sunday)

MLS
Houston vs. LA Galaxy — NBC Sports Network, 2:30 p.m.
DC United vs. Revolution — Comcast SportsNet, 7:30 p.m.

NASCAR
Nationwide Series: History 300 — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 2:45 p.m.

NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference Semifinals
Game 7: Philadelphia at Celtics — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 8 p.m. (Series tied 3-3)

NHL
NHL Tonight: Conference Final Edition — NHL Network, 7 p.m.

Soccer
International Friendly
Brazil vs. Denmark — Gol TV, 9:30 a.m.
France vs. Mexico — Telemundo, 2 p.m.
US vs. Scotland — NBC Sports Network/Galavision, 8 p.m.

Tennis
ATP Tour: World Team Cup, Finals — Tennis Channel, 11:30 a.m. (same day coverage)
ATP Tour: Open de Nice Côte d’Azur, Final — Tennis Channel, 5:30 p.m. (same day coverage)
WTA Tour: Brussels Open, Final — Tennis Channel, 9:30 a.m.

Entertainment
Mexican Made Easy: Farm Fresh — Food Network, 9 a.m.
How Bruce Lee Changed The World — H2, 11 a.m.
French Food at Home: Stuffed! — Cooking Channel, noon
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back — Spike, 8 p.m.
America’s Book of Secrets: Area 51 — H2, 8 p.m.
Mom Caves: Maui Retreat Master Bedroom — HGTV, 8:30 p.m.
Meg’s Great Rooms — HGTV, 9 p.m.
Billie Jean King on Equal Opportunity — C-SPAN, 9 p.m.
River Monsters Unhooked: Asian Slayer — Animal Planet, 9 p.m.
Bizarre ER: Toasted by a Toaster — Discovery Fit and Health, 10 p.m.
48 Hours Mystery: One of Their Own — WBZ/WPRI, 10 p.m.
Serial Killer Earth: Tornado vs. Airport — H2, 10 p.m.
Scorned: Love Kills: Sub-Prime Murder — Investigation Discovery, 10 p.m.
Undercover Boss Abroad: PoundWorld — TLC, 10 p.m.

Gerry also used his favorite technique of answering people who challenge him by mocking the wording of their questions. As an example, someone called in said that Schilling “doesn’t have a leg to stand on” in his current predicament based on things he’s stated strongly in the past.

Callahan, instead of addressing the point made, slowly repeated doesn’t have a leg to stand on with as much sneer and condescension as he could muster, and never did get around to anything that was actually being said. It’s a favorite Callahan bullying technique when he has no answer – attack the delivery of the question.

Dennis and Callahan did have Kirk Minihane come on, in response to his column posted on WEEI.com this morning. (In the end, Curt Schilling was only about Curt Schilling.)

I took a little heat the other day for saying I liked Minihane, but this is part of the reason – who else in the local media is going to go on Dennis and Callahan and challenge them in this manner? I might believe him to be way off in many of his stances, (The Jack Edwards confrontation being one.) but too often, the Boston sports media operates in lockstep and with clubbish politeness towards each other.

All of this of course, is in response to the news of Company-wide layoffs at 38 Studios.

The Celtics play game seven against the Philadelphia 76ers tomorrow night. I’ll say it now, I don’t have a good feeling about this one. (It feels kind of like this, in fact.)

Of course, I’m not leaping off the Celtics bandwagon, they still have my admiration and respect, and I want more than anything for them to go out on a high note. Gary Washburn believes that there is no reason for the Celtics to be embarrassed about their struggles with the Sixers.

Get all the Celtics coverage at CelticsLinks.com

The Patriots had an OTA workout that was open to the media yesterday, and reporters got the chance to speak with Brandon Lloyd and Joseph Addai, among others.

The most complete and detailed wrapups of the practice session came from Greg A Bedard and Andy Hart.

A couple of media columns to wrap up a Friday:

Michelle Beadle has room to grow at NBC – Chad Finn has the former ESPN personality getting an expanded role with NBC.

Giardi: a Pro in Golf and Life – John Molori has a column on CSNNE anchor and reporter Mike Giardi. Among other things, you’ll learn that his 6-year-old son is named Beckett. John neglected to ask if Mike takes any heat among his media brethren for that one.

Media Roundup: Old Tradition With High Tech Trappings In Indy 500 – My SB Nation Boston media column looks at the new technology ESPN is building into the classic race.

Dennis and Callahan Continue Laughable, Blind Defense of Curt Schilling is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

Arena Football
Jacksonville at Orlando — NFL Network, 8 p.m.

Australian Rules Football
Richmond Tigers vs. Hawthorn Hawks — Fox Soccer Plus, 11:30 p.m.

College Baseball
ACC Tournament, Greenboro, NC
Virginia vs. Georgia Tech — NESN, 11 a.m.

Big Ten Tournament, Columbus, OH
Ohio State vs. Nebraska — Big Ten Network, noon
Michigan State vs. Ohio State or Nebraska — Big Ten Network, 3:30 p.m.
Purdue vs. Indiana — Big Ten Network, 7 p.m.

Mountain West Tournament, Las Vegas, NV
San Diego State vs. UNLV/New Mexico — the mtn., 6 p.m.
TCU vs. UNLV/New Mexico — the mtn., 10 p.m.

SEC Tournament, Hoover, AL
LSU vs. Mississippi State — ESPN3, 4 p.m.
South Carolina vs. Vanderbilt/Florida — ESPN3, 7:30 p.m.

College Softball
NCAA Division I Championship
Super Regionals
Norman, OK
Game 1: Arizona vs. Oklahoma — ESPNU, 2 p.m.

Tuscaloosa, AL
Game 2: Alabama vs. Michigan — ESPNU, 4:30 p.m.
Game 3: Michigan vs. Alabama — ESPN, 7 p.m. (if necessary)

Tampa Bay, FL
Game 1: Hofstra vs. South Florida — ESPNU, 7 p.m.

Austin, TX
Game 1: Oregon vs. Texas — ESPN, 9 p.m.

Tempe, AZ
Game 2: Arizona vs. Louisiana-Lafayette — ESPNU, 9 p.m.
Game 3: Louisiana-Layette vs. Arizona — ESPNU, 11:30 p.m. (if necessary)

Golf
Champions Tour: Senior PGA Championship, 2nd Round — Golf Channel, noon
European PGA Tour: PGA Championship, 2nd Round — Golf Channel, 9 a.m.
PGA Tour: Colonial Invitational, 2nd Round — Golf Channel, 3 p.m.

IndyCar
Indianapolis 500 Carb Day — NBC Sports Network, 11 a.m.
Indy Lights: Freedom 100 — NBC Sports Network, noon
Indianapolis 500 Carb Day– NBC Sports Network, 1 p.m.

Mixed Martial Arts
Bellator Fighting Championships 70 — MTV2, 8 p.m.
The Ultimate Fighter Live: Determination, Discipline, Excellence — FX, 10 p.m.
UFC Primetime — FX, 11 p.m.

MLB
American League
Tampa Bay at Red Sox — NESN, 7 p.m.

National League
Colorado at Cincinnati — MLB Network, 7 p.m.

The Rundown — MLB Network, 3 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 6 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 10 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, midnight

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs
Eastern Conference Final
Game 6: New York Rangers at New Devils — NBC Sports Network, 8 p.m.

NHL Live — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Live — NBC Sports Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Final Pregame — NHL Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Live Postgame — NBC Sports Network, 10:30 p.m.
NHL Toinght: Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Final Postgame — NHL Network, 10:30 p.m.

Sports Talk
The Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Comcast SportsNet, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network (DirecTV)/DanPatrick.com, noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Felger & Mazz — Comcast SportsNet, 2 p.m.
Outside the Lines First Report — ESPN, 3 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 4 p.m.
SportsNation — ESPN2, 5 p.m.
Pardon the Interruption — ESPN, 5:30 p.m.
ROME — CBS Sports Network, 6 p.m.
CNBC Sports Biz: Game On! — NBC Sports Network, 11 p.m.

Tennis
ATP Tour: Open de Nice Côte d’Azur, Semifinals — Tennis Channel, 2 & 4 p.m. (same day coverage)
WTA Tour: Brussels Open, Semifinals — Tennis Channel, 8 a.m. & 10 a.m.

Entertainment
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (20th Anniversary Re-Edit) — Spike, 8 p.m.
Deadliest Catch: Social Reload — Discovery, 8 p.m.
The Ricky Gervais Show: The English — HBO, 9 p.m.
House Hunters Coast to Coast: Southern Style — HGTV, 9 p.m.
America’s Most Wanted — Lifetime (The Network That Hates Men), 9 p.m.
Primetime: What Would You Do? — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 9:01 p.m.
Mystery Diners: Bringing Down the Haus — Food Network, 10 p.m.
20/20 — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 10 p.m.
Dateline NBC — WHDH/WJAR, 10 p.m.
Motives & Murders: Deadly Snow (season finale) — Investigation Discovery, 10 p.m.
The Dead Files: Deadly Attraction — Discovery, 10 p.m.
House Hunters International: San Juan, Puerto Rico — HGTV, 10:30 p.m.
The Who (Live at the Isle of Wight) — VH1 Classic, 10:30 p.m.
Femme Fatales: 16 Minutes of Fame (season premiere) — Cinemax, 11 p.m.
#1 Cheerleader Camp — The Movie Channel, 11 p.m.

Click on image for purchasing options.

Ticketing trends for Celtics/Sixers Game 7 is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

Before the day is through, let’s do some linkage for you.

Steve Berkowitz from USA Today looks at the Pac-12′s TV contract which is the richest in college sports (for now).

Speaking of USA Today, Ed Sherman of The Sherman Report says the newspaper is restructuring its sports department and about a dozen staffers have been laid off. That includes Friend of Fang’s Bites Mike McCarthy and Game On! blogger Tom Weir. Very sad to see this. I met Mike a few years ago when we covered an event at ESPN. Good reporter and writer. I hope to be linking to him again soon.

Ed also writes about ESPN holding onto the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.

ESPN Ombudsman Jason Fry of the Poynter Institute watches ESPN’s interviewing guru critique the questioning style of some of its reporters.

Marisa Guthrie at the Hollywood Reporter looks at NBCUniversal’s plans to offer some 5,500 hours of coverage on the Olympics.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable says Golf Channel will have live coverage of U.S. Open qualifying on June 4.

Tim Baysinger at B&C recaps last night’s Sports Business Journal/Sports Business Daily’s Sports Business Awards.

Rich Thomaselli from Advertising Age says the NHL’s social media and traditional ad campaigns have helped bring casual fans to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

After being disrespected by its own local media last week, the Los Angeles Kings made this infographic giving a brief history on its logo, names of players and number of times the team has been in the postseason. This season, the Kings have stepped its social media campaign and website to provide fans with a very humorous, but also informative experience. Keep it up, Kings. You guys rock!

Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Times, writing in the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, notes the difficultly for women to find a proper role in sports television.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton’s past is preventing collectors from lining up at his doorstep.

Congratulations to Steve Lepore of Puck The Media who has become SB Nation’s NHL Media writer. Steve is a hard worker who has created a very good niche for himself. And his first column for SB Nation is about the ratings for the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Western Conference Final clincher.

Steve also writes about the controversy over NHL on NBC charlatan Pierre McGuire’s withholding of information over an incident between the benches during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final.

Jerry Barmash of Fishbowl NY says MSG Network will air two specials on the upcoming Belmont Stakes in which I’ll Have Another will go for horse racing’s Triple Crown.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette says in addition, MSG Plus will air some horse races this summer.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union writes that ESPN has expanded its 3-D coverage of Wimbledon.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says Al Jazeera will be launching two soccer channels this summer.

Keith Groller at the Allentown (PA) Morning Call looks at ESPN on ABC’s plans for Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says former ESPN’er Dave Feldman is leaving the local market to go home to his native Northern California.

Dan says former DC NFL Team running back and sports radio host John Riggins will be hosting an outdoors show next year.

Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner says a deadline is fast approaching in which the Nationals will find out how much MASN will be paying them for TV rights.

Mark Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times says the Rays are paying tribute to Fox Sports MLB reporter Ken Rosenthal by wearing bow ties.

Tom Jones of the Times says MLB Network analyst Mitch Williams ripped Tropicana Field.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle looks at the proposed uses for the abandoned Astrodome.

John Kiesewetter in the Cincinnati Enquirer says Fox Sports is on the Reds’ bandwagon.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that MLB Walking, Talking Conflict of Interest Bud Selig is holding firm to his retirement date.

Paul M. Banks at Chicago Sports Media Watch says the Big Ten Network has helped to expand the league and in part, raise Northwestern’s profile.

Gordon Monson of the Salt Lake Tribune says even though the Utah Jazz bought the sports radio station where he works, he’ll remain an independent voice.

Chris Jenkins from the San Diego Union-Tribune says Fox Sports San Diego’s Mark Sweeney is a natural fit as Padres analyst.

Tim Sullivan of the Union-Tribune says he enjoys listening to the Padres on the radio.

The Los Angeles Daily News’ Tom Hoffarth can’t believe he’s seeing a farmers dating service ad on NBC Sports Network.

Laura Stone of the Toronto Star writes that a new feature by CBC for the NHL Stanley Cup Final has some hardcore female sports fans hopping mad.

Timothy Burke at Deadspin looks at the Twitter police for college sports programs.

Sports Media Watch notes the increased ratings for the series-clinching game of the NHL Stanley Cup Western Conference Final on NBC Sports Network.

Joe Favorito examines the right way and the wrong way to attract Twitter followers.

Dave Kohl at The Broadcast Booth marvels at the LA media for getting the Kings logo and players wrong during local newscasts.

And I’ll end the linkage there for now. Enjoy the rest of your day.

I can be reactionary at times, but I don’t think I’m doing that when I am concerned, not about the Eastern Conference Finals, but about game seven on Saturday night. The Sixers have played the Celtics very tough at the Garden, even though game five ended in a blowout, the Sixers controlled that game for more than a half. Three of the Celtics top six players are injured, whether Felger believes it or not, and it’s a factor. Could the Sixers come in fired up and overwhelm a weary Celtics team? I think they can.

The news yesterday that Avery Bradley is likely done for the season is probably the back-breaker for this team. (Who would’ve thought that in December?) What’s even more depressing is it could take Bradley an entire year to recover from surgery, meaning next season could be completely wiped out for him as well.

Even if the Celtics win on Saturday night, I don’t think the expectations are that they can beat Miami (or even Indiana) any longer. Without Bradley and his defense and energy (and offense?) the Celtics are in trouble. It feels a lot like 2009 right now.

Depressing, I know. Maybe it helps that just a month ago, I was saying that a strong performance in the second round was a reasonable ceiling for this team. That changed with some bounces their way, but has their luck (and health) run out?

Get all the Celtics coverage today at CelticsLinks.com.

The Red Sox concluded a stretch of 20 games in 20 days with a 6-5 win over the Orioles in Baltimore yesterday afternoon. The Sox are back at .500 for the season, and return home for a series with Tampa starting tomorrow night.

For the Red Sox, 20 lessons learned from 20 games in 20 days – Alex Speier looks at what the Sox have learned about themselves the last three weeks.

Adrian Gonzalez has glove, will travel – Chad Finn is probably the best read when it comes to baseball at Boston.com.

Valentine’s honor roll call – Gordon Edes has Bobby Valentine with some praise for his team.

The Patriots will allow media access to an organized team activity today at Gillette, and Jeff Howe gives you 5 things to watch from the session.

The Patriots agreed to a contract with top pick Chandler Jones yesterday, and Mike Reiss and Mike Rodak are Looking closer at Jones signing.

Celtics Can’t Finish Off Philly, Play Game Seven on Saturday is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

College Baseball
ACC Tournament, Greensboro, NC
Virginia vs. Clemson — NESN, 11 a.m.
North Carolina vs. Miami — NESN, 3 p.m.
NC State vs. Wake Forest — NESN, 7 p.m.

Big Ten Tournament, Columbus, OH
Nebraska vs. Penn State — Big Ten Network, noon
Michigan State vs. Indiana — Big Ten Network, 3:30 p.m.
Ohio State vs. Purdue — Big Ten Network, 7 p.m.

College Softball
NCAA Tournament
Super Regionals
Tuscaloosa, AL
Game 1: Michigan vs. Alabama — ESPN2, 8 p.m.

Tempe, AZ
Game 1: Louisiana-Lafayette vs. Arizona State — ESPN2, 10 p.m.

Cycling
Giro d’Italia: Stage 18 — Universal Sports, 9:30 a.m.

Golf
Champions Tour: Senior PGA Championship, 1st Round — Golf Channel, noon
European PGA Tour: PGA Championship, 1st Round — Golf Channel, 9 a.m.
PGA Tour: Colonial Invitational, 1st Round — Golf Channel, 3 p.m.

Hockey
Memorial Cup
Tiebreaker
Shawinigan vs. Edmonton — NHL Network, 7 p.m.

Mixed Martial Arts
MMA Uncensored — Spike, 11 p.m.

MLB
National League
Philadelphia at St. Louis — MLB Network, 8:15 p.m.

The Rundown — MLB Network, 2 p.m. (new time)
MLB Tonight: On Deck-Circle — MLB Network, 6 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 11 p.m.
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, midnight
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, 12:30 a.m.

NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference Semifinals
Game 6: Miami at Indiana — ESPN, 8 p.m. (Miami leads series, 3-2)

NHL
NHL Live — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Conference Final Edition — NHL Network, 10 p.m.

Sports Talk
The Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Comcast SportsNet, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network (DirecTV)/DanPatrick.com, noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Felger & Mazz — Comcast SportsNet, 2 p.m.
Outside the Lines First Report — ESPN, 3 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 4 p.m.
SportsNation — ESPN2, 5 p.m.
Pardon the Interruption — ESPN, 5:30 p.m.
ROME — CBS Sports Network, 6 p.m.

Tennis
WTA Tour: Brussels Open, Quarterfinals — Tennis Channel, 8 a.m., 10 a.m. & noon

Entertainment
Perez Hilton All Access: Lady Gaga — WLVI/WLWC, 8 p.m.
Geo Bee 2012 — National Geographic Channel, 8 p.m.
Undercover Boss Abroad: FedEx Canada — TLC, 8 p.m.
Cold Blood: Dreams That Kill (season finale) — Investigation Discovery, 9 p.m.
World’s Dumbest …: World’s Dumbest Thrillseekers 6 — truTV, 9 p.m.
Men at Work (series premiere) — TBS, 10 p.m.
Rookie Blue (season premiere) — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 10 p.m.
Kathy — Bravo, 10 p.m.
House Hunters International: Battambang, Cambodia — HGTV, 10:30 p.m.
Men at Work — TBS, 10:30 p.m.
Conan — TBS, 11 p.m.
Girls of Sunset Place — Showtime, 11:30 p.m.

The Boston Bruins were named Team of the Year at the 2012 Sports Business Awards being held tonight in New York City. Almost 750 are at the event, which is being held at the Marriott Marquis at Times Square.

Mark Hollis of Michigan State University was named the Athletic Director of the Year.

Here’s a list of the winners who have already been revealed tonight:

– Athletic Director of the Year: Mark Hollis, Michigan State University
– Best in Property Consulting, Sales and Client Services: IMG
– Best in Sports Technology: ESPN’s WatchESPN
– Sports Team of the Year: Boston Bruins
– Best in Digital Sports Media: ESPN Digital Media
– Best in Sports Event and Experiential Marketing: Major League Baseball/Fan Cave
– Best in Talent Representation and Management: Wasserman Media Group

You can follow the results on their Sports Business Awards blog

Boston Bruins Named Team Of The Year By Sports Business Journal is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

A few noteworthy links -

From basketball to brotherhood: Battie always saw it in Pierce – Jessica Camerato talks to Tony Battie, now riding the Sixers bench, about what he saw in Paul Pierce as a rookie in 1999.

Masterful coach at core of Celtics success – Gerry Callahan says that of all the breaks the Celtics have gotten this year, Doc Rivers coming back was the biggest.

KG: “fair-weathered” beats bigoted any day – The Philadelphia Inquirer responds to KG’s postgame comments by playing the “Boston fans are racists” card.

There was outrage on the radio waves yesterday over Kevin Garnett’s “cheap shots” in this series, with Felger and Mazz up in arms over KG tripping Sixers. Hopefully those two clowns saw last night’s Pacers/Heat game for what real cheap shots look like.

The David Ortiz drama continued on, with Mike Felger puffing out his chest and feeling good about getting Ortiz riled up. Nick Cafardo wants to give Ortiz a mulligan for an “out of character” rant.

Ranaudo still playing catch up after spring-training setback – Brian MacPherson has an update on the Sox top pitching prospect, who has had a rough beginning at AA this season.

Eric Kettani pulled strings – Jeff Howe has an interesting story on the former Navy fullback, who has had to to go through an appeal process and prove his legitimacy as an athlete so he can be free to pursue an NFL career with the Patriots. Bill Belichick was among those who called the Navy to vouch for his skills on the field.

Celtics Look to Finish Off Sixers is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

College Baseball
ACC Tournament, Greensboro, NC
NC State vs. Miami — NESN, 3 p.m.

Big Ten Tournament, Columbus, OH
Nebraska vs. Michigan — Big Ten Network, noon
Penn State vs. Ohio State — Big Ten Network, 3;30 p.m.

Cycling
Giro d’Italia: Stage 17 — Universal Sports, 8:30 a.m.

MLB
American League
Red Sox at Baltimore — NESN, 12:30 p.m.

National League
Washington at Philadelphia — ESPN2, 7 p.m.
Chicago Cubs at Houston — WGN America, 8 p.m.

The Rundown — MLB Network, 2:30 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 6 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, 10 p.m.
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, 11 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, 12:30 a.m. (Thursday)

MLS
New York vs. Chivas USA — Univision, 7 p.m.

NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference Semifinals
Game 6: Celtics at Philadelphia — ESPN, 8 p.m. (Celtics leads series, 3-2)

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs
Eastern Conference Final
Game 5: New Jersey at New York Rangers — NBC Sports Network, 8 p.m. (Series tied 2-2)

NHL Live — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Live — NBC Sports Network. 7 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Final Pregame — NHL Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Live Postgame — NBC Sports Network, 10:30 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Final Postgame — NHL Network, 10:30 p.m.

Sports Talk
The Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Comcast SportsNet, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network (DirecTV)/DanPatrick.com, noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Felger & Mazz — Comcast SportsNet, 2 p.m.
Outside the Lines First Report — ESPN, 3 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 4 p.m.
SportsNation — ESPN2, 5 p.m.
Pardon the Interruption — ESPN, 5:30 p.m.
ROME — CBS Sports Network, 6 p.m.
Sportfolio — Bloomberg, 9 p.m.

Entertainment
The Middle (season finale) — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 8 p.m.
Income Property: Diana — HGTV, 8 p.m.
UFO Files: The Day After Roswell — H2, 8 p.m.
I (Almost) Got Away With It: Got to Run to Costa Rica — Investigation Discovery, 9 p.m.
Priest — Starz, 9 p.m.
Men In Black — More Max, 9 p.m.
Don’t Trust the B!$&@ in Apartment 23 (season finale) — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 9:30 p.m.
Restaurant: Impossible: University Grill — Food Network, 10 p.m.
Locked Up Abroad: Black Palace of Horrors — National Geographic Channel, 10 p.m.
Brave New World with Stephen Hawking: Environment — Science, 10 p.m.
House Hunters International: Berlin — HGTV, 10:30 p.m.
Conan — TBS, 11 p.m.
Late Show with David Letterman — WBZ/WPRI, 11:35 p.m.

If you missed it, Gordon Edes (David Ortiz blasts naysayers) had a column running down Ortiz’s comments, where he calls out the media for how he believes they anoint team leaders:

“Well, let me tell you, I was reading an article [that] talked about the leaders people call ‘leaders’ in this town,” he said. “Basically, it seems like no matter what you do, it’s not good enough.

“And you can only call leaders the guys who are out diving for balls on the field or calling pitches behind the plate?”

To an extent, Ortiz has a point. When the subject of Red Sox team leaders comes up – and it has numerous times over the last eight months or so – the names most commonly brought up have been Jason Varitek and Dustin Pedroia. Even over the years, Ortiz has never really been viewed in that role. He’s been assigned the “chemistry guy” role, where everyone loves him, and he serves as a bridge between the latin players and the American players.

Edes cites Mike Aviles as someone who praised Ortiz as a leader, and John Tomase (David Ortiz leads by example) has Daniel Bard also praising Ortiz, saying:

“He’s a leader, whether he likes it or not,” Bard said. “Everyone listens to him and respects him because of what he’s done. . . . Very few guys like to call team meetings, since it’s not a positive thing. It’s not fun to tell your teammates to pick it up, but sometimes it’s needed. What better guy to do it?”

The Tomase column is completely flattering to Ortiz. Then we come to Kirk Minihane. (Delusional David Ortiz strikes again)

I like Kirk. I think he often makes points that need to be made. Unfortunately, I think more often, he takes a controversial stance just for the challenge of it, and to bring attention to himself.

I think he took things a little to far this time. If you read Edes’ column above, Ortiz had a lot more to say than the follow bit, which is what Minihane choose to focus on and target with laser-like intensity:

To Ortiz, there is a lack of respect for what he has tried to do in his decade here.

“I don’t get no respect,” he said. “Not from the media. Not from the front office. What I do is never the right thing. It’s always hiding, for somebody to find out.”

Minihane blasts Ortiz, saying that he has received nothing but positive press during his time in Boston. (In the plus column for Kirk, this means he hasn’t read any Dan Shaughnessy columns since 2003)

He then goes and makes a few veiled allegations about Ortiz and his late-career resurgence.

The media doesn’t respect him? Really? Again, find me all the critical pieces on Ortiz over the years. The media gave him an absolute free pass on the steroid stuff, closed their eyes and collectively walked away from it. And you know why? They like Ortiz – he’s jokes around with them in the locker room and is always accessible. It’s that simple. And now we are reading stories about Ortiz’s remarkable late-career production that never mention his PED history. I mean, if the media truly didn’t respect Ortiz wouldn’t there be a lot more speculation as to how Ortiz has a 1.019 OPS at age 36?

(Oh, forget it. NESN.com has gone Woodward and Bernstein on me, right when I wasn’t looking. Here’s the headline from this morning: “Mike Aviles, David Ortiz Credit Healthy Diets for Continued Success This Season.” Here’s one highlight — “Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz has taken a cue on adhering to a diet as well. In an attempt to reduce his cholesterol –– and avoid taking medicine –– the 36-year-old trimmed roughly 20 pounds by cutting out alcohol and munching on more vegetables.” Sold. Didn’t we used to read this stuff about guys back in 1998 with no irony?)

The whole bit is very Mike Felger-like, which I assume is what Kirk is aiming for. Maybe it’s just me, but I read this almost as threatening. Listen Ortiz, don’t you turn on the media, or we will unleash a maelström of PED allegations on you so fast your head will spin.

Edes had an updated post this afternoon: What Ortiz was talking about last night where he notes that Ortiz was referring to – shockingly – a summary of a Felger and Mazz show that was posted on the 98.5 website. On that show, the duo – in angry voices, no doubt – demanded to know what took so long to call the meeting which is now being credited with helping to turn things around.

It seems that the real part of Ortiz’s comments that should’ve been focused on, was this line – Basically, it seems like no matter what you do, it’s not good enough.

Ortiz has a gripe there. He called the meeting, and what do the Tony Massarotti’s of the world say? How come he didn’t do it sooner?

Some reporters in town do treat Ortiz with kid gloves. The Tomase piece is a great example. Others play it down the middle, as Edes did. Then you have the Minihanes, Felgers and Massarottis of the world, which unfortunately is where the slant of most sports coverage is right now.

Different Approaches on Ortiz is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

Yes you do. It’s overdue. I thought being on unemployment would give me more time for doing the site. Instead, I have less. I don’t know how that’s happened.

Anyway, here are some links for you.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand has soon-to-be NBC’s Michelle Beadle saying even she’s sick of the coverage on where she’s going next.

Michael takes a look at the Weekend TV ratings.

Nicole Auerbach of USA Today says Laurie Fine, wife of ex-Syracuse assistant basketball coach Bernie Fine, has officially filed her libel lawsuit against ESPN.

At Sports Business Journal, John Ourand and Michael Smith report that the Southeastern Conference, in the midst of restructuring its media rights deal with CBS and ESPN, could be resurrecting its plans to start an SEC Channel.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News goes over the “trade” between TBS and MLB Network giving the young network its first postseason action this season.

Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable says ESPN 3D will air the last five days of Wimbledon later this summer.

David Mercer of the Associated Press says citing low ratings, the Big Ten Network will drop academic non-sports programming in order to air higher rated sports.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek talks about GM pulling out of advertising in Super Bowl XLVII.

Brian Clapp at Sports TV Jobs tells aspiring sports TV anchors how to thrive in local markets despite the shrinking amount of time in newscasts.

Dan Fogarty from SportsGrid has video of TNT’s Charles Barkley admitting to America that he waxes his eyebrows.

Eric Goldschein of SportsGrid has this funny video of Saturday Night Live’s Jay Pharoah getting Stephen A. “A is for Acrimonious” Smith down pat.

From the New Haven Register, David Borges talks with long-time Red Sox radio voice and Connecticut native Joe Castiglione about his career and his new book.

Ken Schott at the Schenectady Gazette talks about CBS Sports sublicensing some college basketball games from ESPN.

Pete Dougherty in the Albany Times Union has the French Open TV schedule.

Pete says the overnight ratings for the Preakness Stakes dropped double digits from last year.

Jonathan Tannenwald of Philly.com says NBC Sports Network will tap some familiar names to call MLS action this weekend.

David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun says NBC got the job done in its Preakness Stakes production.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic is on the RGIII train.

The increasingly bitter Thomas Boswell of the WaPo feels MASN should pony up for the Washington Nationals media rights.

Jim Williams at the Washington Examiner writes that outgoing NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora is looking forward to working and writing for CBS.

Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Times says two writers from the newspaper including sports media writer Tom Jones will co-host a new morning show for the local sports radio station. Jones will now stop covering sports radio to avoid a conflict of interest.

Iliana Limón Romero of the Orlando Sentinel says the Big East is hopeful of finding a suitable TV suitor for the league.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle has some sports media observations.

Mel Bracht at The Oklahoman writes that TNT’s Charles Barkley is looking forward to visiting Oklahoma City for the NBA Western Conference Finals.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes that the Reds gave local radio station WLW a big ratings win last month.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel looks at the local weekend ratings.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says a technical glitch forced Cardinals fans to watch Fox Sports San Diego’s feed of last night’s Redbirds-Padres game and listen to Dick Enberg which is not a bad thing at all.

Bryce Miller of the Des Moines Reigster says Iowan and Olympics hurdler Lolo Jones is on a media blitz.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News says the Dodgers will honor long-time Spanish radio voice Jaime Jarrin next month.

Timothy Burke at Deadspin has video of NBC Sports Network’s Doc Emrick ripping diving in soccer.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media says ratings for the NHL Conference Finals on the NBC Sports Group are down.

Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing has some of Pam Ward’s “Greatest” hits over her years calling college football.

That will do it for now.

Cycling
Giro d’Italia: Stage 16 — Universal Sports, 9:30 a.m.

Golf
2002 U.S. Open, Final Round — Golf Channel, 8 p.m.

MLB
American League
Boston at Baltimore — NESN, 7 p.m.
Kansas City at New York Yankees — MLB Network, 7 p.m.

The Rundown — MLB Network, 3 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 6 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN, 10 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 10 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, midnight
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, 1 a.m. (Wednesday)

NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference Semifinals
Game 5: Indiana at Miami — TNT, 8 p.m. (Series tied 2-2)

Inside the NBA — TNT, 10:30 p.m.

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs
Western Conference Final
Game 5: Los Angeles at Phoenix — NBC Sports Network, 9 p.m. (Los Angeles leads series, 3-1)

NHL Live — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Final Pregame — NHL Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Live — NBC Sports Network, 8 p.m.
NHL Live Postgame — NBC Sports Network, 11:30 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Stanley Cup Playoffs Conference Final Postgame — NHL Network, 11:30 p.m.

Sports Talk
The Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Comcast SportsNet, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network (DirecTV)/DanPatrick.com, noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Felger & Mazz — Comcast SportsNet, 2 p.m.
Outside the Lines First Report — ESPN, 3 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 4 p.m.
SportsNation — ESPN2, 5 p.m.
Pardon the Interruption — ESPN, 5:30 p.m.
ROME — CBS Sports Network, 6 p.m.
E:60 — ESPN2, 8 p.m.
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel — HBO, 10 p.m.

Entertainment
Fight Club — IFC, 8 p.m.
Groundhog Day — VH1 Classic, 8 p.m.
Civilization: The West and the Rest with Niall Ferguson — WGBH, 8 p.m.
America’s Got Talent — WHDH/WJAR, 9 p.m.
Deadliest Catch: I Don’t Want to Die — Discovery, 9 p.m.
American Ninja Warrior: Southwest Regional Finals — G4, 9 p.m.
Dateline NBC: 20th Anniversary Special — WHDH/WJAR, 10 p.m.
Frontline: Cell Tower Deaths — WGBH, 10 p.m.
No Kitchen Required: New Mexico — BBC America, 10 p.m.
Amish: Out of Order: Mending Fences — National Geographic Channel, 10 p.m.
House Hunters International: Gold Coast, Australia — HGTV, 10:30 p.m.
Conan — TBS, 11 p.m.
Late Show with David Letterman — WBZ/WPRI, 11:35 p.m.

What has your professional career been like since graduating from UMass in 2006?

My career has been a constant learning experience. I worked at the Boston Metro from 2006-09, and I was also a stringer for the MetroWest Daily News for about six months from 2006-07. One of my favorite jobs ever was covering Hockey East for Inside College Hockey from 2005-10.

Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald

I did a little of everything at the Metro, as former sports editor Chris Price rounded me out with reporting, editing and design work. We launched Metro GameDay in 2007, which was a free publication that was distributed at every Red Sox home game, and I was the editor in charge. GameDay was successful, but Metro stopped publishing it after the World Series parade, so I was assigned to the Celtics beat. I can’t even begin to list all of the things I learned while covering the Celtics from 2007-09, and it was an experience that helped me grow a ton as a writer and reporter.

But I was looking for a fresh start in 2009, and I hooked on with NESN.com as the Patriots beat reporter. I had some limited experience covering the team for the Metro from 2006-08, but the workload really increased in 2009 and every year after that.

What has it been like being on the Patriots beat since 2006?

I’ve only been on the beat since 2009, but I covered about one practice per week from 2006-08. Chris Price showed me the ropes on how to handle myself in a professional environment, and he brought me along at a very appropriate pace, which is important for young reporters. There were also plenty of days when I’d cover practice in the morning and then work the MetroWest desk at night, and I saw Bert Breer routinely working 16-hour days. That work ethic rubbed off on me, and I got a great look at how to conduct business.I could turn this into a yearbook session and thank dozens of people for the ways they’ve helped me develop, but I’ll just say that everyone I’ve worked with — either alongside or in competition — has made me a better person and reporter. I’m always studying the different ways reporters do things, and I try to learn from it all. I officially joined the beat in 2009 with NESN.com. With limited experience at Gillette Stadium, I spent that first season trying to carve my own niche. I’ve always felt it was important to cover the team and the game the way it needs to be covered, and in addition to that, I’ve looked for ways to do it differently. That’s typically been my goal each day of each season.

Looking back, what was your time at NESN.com like?

I’m truly grateful for my time at NESN.com, and I thought we were a perfect match. I joined NESN.com as the site was in a redevelopment stage, so we had time to learn together. Like I said, I was looking for a fresh start, and NESN.com was looking for young writers. They had patience with me as I grew on the beat, but the expectations increased each year, as I was able to do more and NESN.com continued to expand. Really, it was the perfect opportunity for me because we were able to grow together, and that was important.I can’t thank them enough for taking a chance on me, both on NESN.com and NESN Daily. The Daily producers, photographers, production crew and on-air talent invested a lot of time to help me get comfortable on television, and I’ll be forever indebted to them. There’s so much talent with the Daily staff, and they’re great people, too.

What can people expect from your coverage with the Herald?

Expect that I’ll work hard every day to cover the team the way the readers want it to be covered. I put a lot of emphasis on strategy and X’s and O’s, and I also love to tell the players’ personal stories. In addition to that, I’ll always be looking to find new ways to cover the team because it’s important for us to differentiate our coverage. I also have a ton of fun with my job, and I hope that shows in my writing (I’m sure it does on Twitter). I’m really looking forward to starting a new blog with Karen Guregian and the rest of the staff, and you can expect a steady stream of information on a daily basis.

What is the one thing that people who don’t know you already should know?

It’s tough to pick one, so I’ll share a little more of my personal background. I was born and raised in Lowell, Mass., and I graduated from Lowell High, Middlesex Community College and UMass. I originally went to UNH as a business major, but I realized that wasn’t for me, which led to a new start at MCC. You know what’s a great source of motivation? Moving home and attending the community college that you’ve been able to see out of your bedroom window for 18 years. And I wouldn’t trade a single one of those experiences, because that’s how I developed my work ethic, which is important in every walk of life. I’ve also got a great family, and I married my wife in June 2011, so it’s been an awesome year.

Q&A with Jeff Howe, Boston Herald Patriots beat reporter is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

Cycling
Giro d’Italia: Stage 15 — Universal Sports, 11 a.m.

Golf
Big Break Atlantis: Abandon Ship — Golf Channel, 9 p.m.
Feherty: Donald Trump — Golf Channel, 10 p.m.

MLB
American League
Red Sox at Baltimore — NESN, 7 p.m.

National League
Atlanta at Cincinnati — ESPN, 7 p.m.

The Rundown — MLB Network, 3 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 6 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN, 10 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, midnight
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, 1 a.m. (Tuesday)

NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference Semifinals
Game 5: Philadelphia at Celtics — TNT, 7 p.m. (Series tied 2-2)

Western Conference Semifinals
Game 5: Los Angeles Lakers at Oklahoma City — TNT, 9:30 p.m. (Oklahoma City leads series, 3-1)

Inside the NBA — TNT, midnight

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs
Eastern Conference Final
Game 4: New York Rangers at New Jersey — NBC Sports Network, 8 p.m. (Rangers lead 2-1)

NHL Live — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Live — NBC Sports Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Eastern Conference Final Pregame — NHL Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Live Postgame — NBC Sports Network, 10:30 p.m.
NHL Tonight: Eastern Conference Final Postgame — NHL Network, 10:30 p.m.

Sports Talk
The Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Comcast SportsNet, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network (DirecTV)/DanPatrick.com, noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Felger & Mazz — Comcast SportsNet, 2 p.m.
Outside the Lines First Report — ESPN, 3 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 4 p.m.
SportsNation: 44 Jeers of April — ESPN2, 5 p.m.
Pardon the Interruption — ESPN, 5:30 p.m.
ROME — CBS Sports Network, 6 p.m.
SEC Storied: Lolo Jones — ESPNU, 7 p.m.

Tennis
ATP Tour: Internazionali BNL d’Italia, Final-Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal — Tennis Channel, 6 a.m.

Entertainment
America’s Got Talent — WHDH/WJAR, 8 p.m.
House (series finale) — WFXT/WNAC, 8 p.m.
World’s Wildest Police Videos — Spike, 8 p.m.
Undercover Boss Abroad: npower — TLC, 8 p.m.
Top Gear — BBC America, 8:30 p.m.
American Ninja Warrior: Finals Region 1 — WHDH/WJAR, 9 p.m.
Undercover Boss Abroad: Toga Hospitality — TLC, 9 p.m.
Wild Justice: California 911 — National Geographic Channel, 9 p.m.
Clash of the Commercials: USA vs. the World — WBZ/WPRI, 10 p.m.
Richard Hammond’s Crash Course: Salvage Yard — BBC America, 10 p.m.
Fatal Encounters: Fueled by Hate — Investigation Discovery, 10 p.m.
Witness: Joplin Tornado — National Geographic Channel, 10 p.m.
Hotel Impossible: La Jolla Cove Suites, La Jolla, CA — Travel Channel, 10 p.m.
House Hunters International: Gothenburg, Sweden — HGTV, 10:30 p.m.
Late Show with David Letterman — WBZ/WPRI, 11:35 p.m.

The Red Sox are also in Philly tonight as they get ready to take on former teammate Jonathan Papelbon for the first time. (NESN, 7:10 p.m.) See all of Friday’s Viewing Picks.

A few of the big stories today:

Wideout says no progress in long-term talks – Karen Guregian had the quotes from Wes Welker yesterday that negotiations with the Patriots are not going well. Mike Reiss attempts to insert some context into the story, and says that Welker’s stance isn’t likely to help him at the negotiating table.

Shame on Curt Schilling – (subscription required) – It’s shocking that Dan Shaughnessy would go after Curt Schilling, I know. One nugget that Shaughnessy drops in this “pieces” column that I hadn’t seen before was that Mike Lombardi’s son Mick, works in the Patriots scouting department.

A Series Matter: Red Sox-Phillies and Ben Franklin – I’m not exactly sure how to describe this piece from Brian MacPherson, other than it has a lot of quote from Ben Franklin.

Kevin Garnett: The unselfish superstar – Paul Flannery says that out of necessity, KG has become unselfishly selfish in this postseason. Jessica Camerato also puts KG’s play in perspective.

Celtics’ local TV team better for viewers – (subscription required) Chad Finn’s media column looks at the dropoff in Celtics broadcasts when Mike and Tommy aren’t calling the games. One tiny item – he gets on Dick Stockton for referring to nine-year veteran Marquis Daniels as a “third year player” – I immediately knew that Stockton meant it was Daniels’ third year with the Celtics, but it was a clumsy reference. Still, as a note at SB Nation, (below) I’d much prefer Dick Stockton than anyone over at ESPN.

Media Roundup: Scal Returns, Mike Felger’s Celtics Bashing And Curt Schilling’s Blunders – My SB Nation Boston media column applauds Brian Scalabrine for calling out Mike Felger, and has me dreading the return of Mike Breen to Celtics games.

Celtics Prep For Game Four In Philly, Sox Also In Philly is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

Arena Football
Orlando Predators at New Orleans VooDoo — NFL Network, 8 p.m.

Australian Rules Football
Hawthorn Hawks vs. Fremantle Dockers — Fox Soccer Plus, midnight

College Baseball
Purdue at Iowa — Big Ten Network, 7:30 p.m.
San Diego State at TCU — the mtn., 7:30 p.m.
Nevada at Hawaii — Fox College Sports Pacific, 12:30 a.m. (Saturday)

College Softball
NCAA Division I Softball  Championship
Louisville Regional
Kentucky vs. Michigan — ESPN2, 4:30 p.m.
Valparaiso vs. Louisville — ESPN2, 7 p.m.

Austin Regional
Northwestern vs. Texas — Longhorn Network, 5 p.m.

Tucson Regional
Hawaii vs. Notre Dame — ESPNU, 5:30 p.m.
North Dakota State vs. Arizona — ESPNU, 8 p.m.

Cycling
Giro d’Italia: Stage 13 — Universal Sports, 9:30 a.m.
Tour of California: Stage 6, Palmdale to Big Bear Lake — NBC Sports Network, 5 p.m.

Golf
European PGA Tour: World Match Play Championship, Day Two — Golf Channel, 8 a.m.
LPGA Tour: Match Play Championship, Day Two — Golf Channel, 6:30 p.m. (same day coverage)
PGA Tour: Byron Nelson Championship, Second Round — Golf Channel, 3 p.m.

Hockey
Memorial Cup
Game 1: Edmonton vs. Shawnigan — NHL Network, 7 p.m.

Horse Racing
Black-Eyed Susan Stakes — NBC Sports Network, 4 p.m.

Mixed Martial Arts
Bellator Fighting Championships 69 — MTV2, 8 p.m.
The Ultimate Fighter Live: Like A Spartan — FX, 10 p.m.

MLB
Interleague
Chicago White Sox at Chicago Cubs — WGN America, 2:20 p.m.
Red Sox at Philadelphia — NESN, 7 p.m.
Cincinnati at New York Yankees — MLB Network, 7 p.m.

The Rundown — MLB Network, 3 p.m.
On-Deck Circle — MLB Network, 6 p.m.
MLB Tonight — MLB Network, 10 p.m.
Baseball Tonight — ESPN2, 1 a.m. (Saturday)
Quick Pitch — MLB Network, 1 a.m. (Saturday)

NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference Semifinals
Game 4: Celtics at Philadelphia — ESPN, 8 p.m. (Celtics leads series, 2-1)

Western Conference Semifinals
Game 3: Oklahoma City at Los Angeles Lakers — ESPN, 10:30 p.m. (Oklahoma City leads series, 2-0)

NHL
NHL Live — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Tonight — NHL Network, 10 p.m.

Sports Talk
The Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Comcast SportsNet, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network (DirecTV)/DanPatrick.com, noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Felger & Mazz — Comcast SportsNet, 2 p.m.
Outside the Lines First Report — ESPN, 3 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 3 p.m.
Pardon the Interruption — ESPN, 5:30 p.m.
ROME — CBS Sports Network, 6 p.m.
NBC SportsTalk — NBC Sports Network, 7 p.m.
CNBC Sports Biz: Game On! — NBC Sports Network, 7:30 p.m.

Tennis
ATP Tour: Internazionali BNL d’Italia, Quarterfinals — Tennis Channel, 6 a.m.
WTA Tour: Internazionali BNL d’Italia, Quarterfinal — Tennis Channel, 1:30 p.m.
ATP Tour: Internazionali BNL d’Italia, Quarterfinals — Tennis Channel, 3 p.m.
WTA Tour: Internazionali BNL d’Italia, Quarterfinal — Tennis Channel, 5:30 p.m.

Entertainment
Shark Tank — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 8 p.m.
Nikita (season finale) — WLI/WLWC, 8 p.m.
Million Dollar Closets — HGTV, 8 p.m.
The Ricky Gervais Show: Karl’s Day — HBO, 9 p.m.
Primetime: What Would You Do? — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 9 p.m.
Turf War: Barrels of Fun vs. Tuscan Shangri-La — DIY Network, 9 p.m.
20/20 — WCVB/WMUR/WLNE, 10 p.m.
Dateline NBC — WHDH/WJAR, 10 p.m.
The Dead Files: Final Curtain Call-Vancouver, WA — Travel Channel, 10 p.m.
Magic City — Starz, 10 p.m.
House Hunters International: Schooled in Manila, the Philippines — HGTV, 10:30 p.m.
The Girl’s Guide to Depravity: The Revenge Rule (season finale) — Cinemax, 11 p.m.
Late Show with David Letterman — WBZ/WPRI, 11:35 p.m.

(Is it really high time? No, not at all. But with all these players in Foxboro, the temptation proved too much.)

OFFENSE

Quarterback: Tom Brady, Brian Hoyer, Ryan Mallett.

Notable Omission: None.

Yes, it takes a pair the size of duffle bags to pencil in Brady as starter, but that’s how BSMW rolls. As for Hoyer and Mallett, aka The Tradebait Tandem, one more year in the system should garner the Patriots some kind of reward. We were surprised by Mike Hartline getting cut because he completed over 66 percent of his passes in 2010 (for 3,178 yards) and would have made a solid practice squad addition.

Running Back: Danny Woodhead, Shane Vereen, Stevan Ridley, Brandon Bolden.

Notable Omission: Joseph Addai.

Addai’s a Colt. To heck with him! No, seriously, even at 29, we’re just not sure how much he can contribute. We put Bolden on there because of his production at Ole Miss, his athleticism, his youth, and his bargain price tag.

Bolden went undrafted largely due to “off-field issues,” but come on: the Patriots drafted cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, who allegedly punched a police officer. I mean, we have to say the word allegedly, but by all reports, the dude took a jab at a man in blue.

Can’t imagine that. The only time I interacted with a cop in college I said, “Yes, sir,” about eight times and almost cried.

Fullback: Spencer Larsen, Eric Kettani.

Notable Omission: Tony Fiammetta.

As much as we like Fiammetta (and this interview shows you why), we’re keeping Larsen and Kettani. Larsen’s familiar with Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels from Denver; plus, he was an All-Pac-10 linebacker at Arizona who knows how to hit people. Kettani’s a Navy guy. Coach Bill Belichick loves those guys.

Tight End: Aaron Hernandez, Rob Gronkowski

Notable Omission: Daniel Fells

This one depends on Gronkowski’s return from ankle surgery, but if the lovable dummy can get back on the practice field, it could put Fells in a tough spot. Couldn’t Larsen take over most of Fells’ duties anyway? Seems like too much crossover in responsibilities between fullback and a smaller tight end like Fells.

Wide Receiver: Wes Welker, Deion Branch, Brandon Lloyd, Jabar Gaffney, Julian Edelman, Matthew Slater. (Receiver, defensive back, whatever: Slater’s on the roster).

Notable Omissions: Jeremy Ebert, Anthony Gonzalez, Chad Ochocinco, Donte Stallworth.

We had a different scenario for Welker than signing his free agent tender. He could have held out for weeks, given himself a rest, given other receivers time to get familiar with the offense, and come back for a late-season resurgence. ‘Twas not to be – and the team gets better with him on it.

As we sit now, see ya, Stallworth (a tough cut); goodbye, Gonzalez (no truth to the rumor that his name is Latin for “Glass bones”); and vaya con Dios, Ochocinco. Some have said that Ochocinco could become productive after a full off-season in Foxboro, but we don’t buy it. You know who didn’t have a full off-season back in 2006? Gaffney.

Some receivers get this offense, some don’t. Keeping Ochocinco on the team reminds me of something my father used to say. “Chris,” he’d tell me, “be a good boy and get your old man a beer.”

Wait, wrong one. What he’d say was, “No one needs to practice misery.” As positive a presence as Ochocinco has been off the field, he has dragged down the offense. Time to move on.

Offensive Line: Dan Koppen, Dan Connolly, Nate Solder, Sebastian Vollmer, Marcus Cannon, Nick McDonald, Matt Kopa, Kyle Hix.

Notable Omissions: Brian Waters (retired, we assume), Logan Mankins (PUP), Markus Zusevics (PUP), Robert Gallery.

We’d love to get the band back together again with Koppen at center. Cannon allows flexibility as he can play both right tackle and guard. McDonald started at center one game last year. He adds interior depth, especially in light of Mankins’ presumed addition to the Player Unable to Perform list.

Gallery provides a nice preseason story as the guy Belichick liked as a draftee out of Iowa, but if Gallery can’t make it in Seattle under his old Raider coach, how is he going to make it here? And seriously, the hair? The tattoos? Wouldn’t he rather become a roadie for Anthrax or something?

Is Anthrax still around? Is it the year 2000 yet? Where are my cassettes? Boy, I feel old.

DEFENSE

Defensive Line: Brandon Deaderick, Vince Wilfork, Kyle Love, Gerard Warren, Jonathan Fanene, Chandler Jones, Myron Pryor, Trevor Scott, Marcus Forston.

Notable Omission: Ron Brace.

So, who mans the right defensive end spot? Not Brace, who gets pushed back more than a dental appointment. The Pats could have Warren and Fanene keep that spot warm until Jones can take over. Pryor returns as an interior pass-rusher (sorely missed last year, along with retired Mike Wright), while undrafted rookie Forston’s huge potential gets him on the roster. If cut, Forston would surely get scooped up before making the practice squad.

Linebacker: Jerod Mayo, Rob Ninkovich, Brandon Spikes, Dane Fletcher, Dont’a Hightower, Jake Bequette, Jeff Tarpinian, Tracy White.

Notable Omissions: Bobby Carpenter, Markell Carter, Jermaine Cunningham.

Not sure why some fans have gotten excited about Carpenter. The 2006 version didn’t pan out – no reason to expect much from 2012. Cunningham made one noteworthy play in his New England career, a kinda-sorta brush of Peyton Manning’s elbow that may or may not have caused an interception vs. the Colts in 2010.

Carter’s a tough cut. According to him (interview here), he’s up to 275 pounds. He also had his sister move in with him because his proximity to Boston gives her access to top medical care as she fights Lupus.

Damnit. Now we feel like jerks. Reminder: Put Carter on the practice squad.

Cornerbacks: Kyle Arrington, Devin McCourty, Ras-I Dowling, Alfonso “Fists of Fury” Dennard.

Notable Omissions: Sterling Moore, Will Allen.

It speaks to the potential improvement of this group when two players who would have started on last year’s squad don’t quite make this year’s. Although we’ll probably wish the Pats had Moore once Dowling gets hurt. (For my next impression – Eeyore!).

A few “ifs” with this crew: if McCourty can start looking more like his 2010 self and less like the kid who succumbs to peer pressure on every after-school special (“What’s going on? What’s happening to me?”); if Ras-I “The I Is For Injured” Dowling can stay healthy; and if Dennard can avoid getting into a fight with a lawman (seriously, 20 paragraphs later, I still can’t believe that), then this looks like a solid group.

Safety: Patrick Chung, Steve Gregory, Josh Barrett, Tavon Wilson.

Notable Omissions: Sergio Brown, Nate Ebner, Malcolm Williams.

Barrett, a regular contributor last season, returns as a special-teamer after the addition of Gregory. As far as Wilson goes, we have no idea if he’ll play well, but we know his second-round status (and the ensuing post-draft media conniption) will keep him on the team for at least one full season.

As much as we love Ebner and Williams (the latter gave an impressive interview in 2011) we’d love them more on the practice squad. If Brown hadn’t committed a horrendous pass interference penalty vs. the Giants last November 6, they would have had a harder time scoring. If New York had lost that game, they would have gone 8-8 and missed the playoffs.

What we’re saying is, Sergio Brown cost New England the Super Bowl. That’s all. No big whoop.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kicker: Stephen Gostkowski.

Notable Omission: Chris Koepplin.

We mention Koepplin for both his UMass background and his career kicking for the former AFL2 Manchester Wolves up in New Hampshire. Seriously, how cool is that?

Punter: Zoltan Mesko.

Yup.

Long Snapper: Danny Aiken.

Sure.

PRACTICE SQUAD

Ebert, WR; Matt Roark, WR/QB (aka Practice Tim Tebow); Justin Francis, OLB; Jeremiah Warren, OL; Ebner, DB; Carter, OLB/DE; Brad Herman, TE.

We’d enjoy watching the further development of Carter, the transition of Ebner from college rugby player to NFL special teamer, and the growth of a big rookie like Warren (6-4, 325).

As we near the end of this column, I’d like to tell you a story about my grandfather. Every Thanksgiving at the end of the meal, he’d call all of us children around the adult table and ask, “Now, who wants strawberry shortcake?” He may as well have set off a box of fireworks in the dining room. After we’d regulated our heartbeats to levels slightly lower than those of stricken ferrets, my grandfather would lean back in his chair and call to my grandmother in the kitchen. “Mary? Do we have any strawberry shortcake?”

You know what? They never did. And he knew they never did.

The lesson is twofold. One, not everyone appreciates irony. Two, when you get too excited about something, you’re bound for disappointment. So let’s all relax, sit back, and enjoy the summer.

Now who wants a Super Bowl win?

Email Chris Warner at chris.warner@patriotsdaily.com

A Far-Too-Early Patriots Roster Preview (Bias Included) is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

Celtics send clear-cut message- Chris Forsberg has Wednesday night’s rout being a statement game for the team.

Angry Celtics send a message- Paul Flannery looks at the Celtics’ dominating performance.

Celtics paint pretty picture- Mark Murphy says the Celtics trusted what has worked for them ever since the All-Star break in Wednesday’s 16-point win.

Unrelenting defense flexed its muscle too- Gary Washburn has the Celtics’ defense being just as dominant as the offense in the win.

Rajon Rondo attacks at will- Dan Duggan looks at the Celtics point guard’s performance.

Celts land on the inside- Steve Bulpett has the Celtics big men getting the job done in the win.

Paul Pierce overcomes injury, 76ers- Ron Borges has Pierce overcoming his injury and coming up big when the team needed him most.

It’s clear what team is better, and they know it- Dan Shaughnessy has after Wednesday night’s game there is no question who the better overall team is.

The Red Sox saw their five-game winning streak come to and end with a 2-1 loss to the Rays Wednesday night at Tropicana Field. The team did get another strong outing from their starting pitcher as Clay Buchholz went five innings, scattering five hits, allowing two earned runs and striking out five. He did balk home the Rays first run in the second inning.

Buchholz has roller coaster evening- Sean McAdam looks at the Red Sox starter’s outing, in which although was shaky at times, was a step in the right direction for the Red Sox righty.

Red Sox pay for a misplay- Scott Lauber looks at the play in which Cody Ross misjudged a fly ball where the Rays scored their second and game-winning run.

Not all the right moves- Nick Cafardo has how balks are becoming an issue for the Red Sox pitching staff.

Difficult math in this division- John Tomase looks at the competitive AL East, in which right now there isn’t much difference from the first place team and the last place team.

Also, a big topic of discussion the past few days has been Curt Schilling’s situation in Rhode Island with his video game venture, 38 Studios. The company missed its loan payment of just over $1.1 million to the state on May 1.

The hypocrisy of Curt Schilling- Kirk Minihane looks at the situation and Schilling’s past.

In case you missed this yesterday, here is Rob Bradford’s piece following his interview with former Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon. There is some pretty interesting stuff in here including Papelbon going by “Cinco Ocho” now, his dislike for the Red Sox medical staff, when he knew he wouldn’t be returning as a member of the Red Sox and looking back, if he thinks he made the right decision leaving Boston. This was a good get by Bradford, getting to Papelbon before the rest of the Boston media descend on Philadelphia this weekend as the Red Sox and Phillies get together for the beginning of interleague play.

Celtics rout 76ers, Red Sox fall to Rays is a post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

Another Super Bowl? The fifth in 11 years? Darkest days Best days of the franchise indeed.

They’re more enjoyable too without a 18-0 record hanging over them.

What to eat?

In the idea of dance with what got you there, we’re turning foods from throughout the season into sliders – perfect party food

We made Pretzels for the Eagles game, and reused the recipe to make pretzel rolls for the Colts game. This time, we’ll make smaller rolls. Same prep and ingredients as seen here.

Divide into 12 equal parts and roll each into a ball. Boil in a baking soda and water solution as laid out in that buffet table, but for a minute per roll instead of 45 seconds.

Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and sprinkle with pretzel salt, or kosher salt if you can’t find pretzel salt.

Bake the pretzel rolls for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove to cooling rack, and once cool keep in a paper bag for the next day.

Double or triple the recipe from the Philly game as necessary.

First topper, Peter’s Crab Hushpuppies

A change from the usual crab cake. I’ve added a bit of frozen corn to the mixture, and even some chopped jalapeno for a kick.

Ingredients – this makes enough for 4 people at least, so if you only have a couple people you can cut this in half

Oil, for frying

1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon minced thyme
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic pepper
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup bacon crumbles
1 pound fresh picked or lump crabmeat

In a Dutch oven or frying-like contraption, heat oil to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, thyme, baking powder, salt, garlic pepper, baking soda and cayenne pepper.

In a small bowl, combine eggs, buttermilk, and sour cream. Add to cornmeal mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Fold in onions, bacon, and crabmeat.

Dip spoon into water and then a spoonful of the hushpuppy mixture. Drop by tablespoonfuls into hot oil, and fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Optional sauce:

This is a good sauce that gives it the Old Bay flavor

1 cup regular or low-fat mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
Freshly squeezed juice from 1/2 lemon (1 tablespoon)

You should be able to fit 2 on each slider bun.

2nd topper, Miz’s Bulgogi

1.5 lbs. thinly sliced ribeye steak purchased from a Korean market. You can slice your own ribeye across the grain in thin slices. Freezing the beef for about an hour helps to cut clean slices.
1/2 cup of soy sauce
3 Tbl white sugar
1 Tbl sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 medium yellow onion sliced
2 green onions including the white parts, finely sliced into small pieces
2 Tbl toasted sesame seeds
1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp grated ginger
black pepper, note no salt because of the soy sauce

Combine all ingredients except beef and onions in a bowl. When the sugar has dissolved, add beef and onion slices and stir to coat. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. As the beef is cut so thinly this does not need multiple hours or overnight to marinade.

Cook directly over high heat, keep an eye on it as it will cook very quickly.

3rd, Bratwurst style burgers from the Colts game

2 eggs, beaten
3 tablespoons beer, see suggestions below
3/4 cup rye bread crumbs
1/2 tsp caraway seeds, ground
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, grated
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 pound ground veal
1 pound ground pork
12 slices rye bread
German style mustard & Sauerkraut to top

Combine egg, beer, bread crumbs, caraway, marjoram, garlic, salt, pepper. Add the veal and pork.

Form into twelve patties. Cook over high heat for 3 minutes, flip, cook an addition 1 minute and check for doneness.

Coat the bun with German mustard, top the burger with sauerkraut, and eat.

Pretzels, Pork, Cow, Crab: All food groups accounted for except one … beer.

What to drink?

We’re going with Spring Seasonals, the only beer season that we haven’t covered before. Spring already? Yes in the beer world, this term is being stretched well into winter. Some of these are called a far more accurate late winter seasonals. Most of these are available now and some will trickle into stores over the next few weeks.

Styles do vary, most of the older ones were sort of lighter versions of a winter beer. The newer ones tend to be more of heavier summer beers. Many are Irish Red ales, as this is the season when Saint Patrick’s day falls.

From New York, the Sixpoint brewery started distributing to New England just a few months ago. Their Spring seasonal is Resin, a Double IPA. 9%+ ABV, 100+ IBUs and good. Unlike their standards and previous 2 seasonals this one is in a 12 ounce can instead of a 16, owing to the ABV. Still in 4 packs for around $10.

Representing Baltimore we turn to an old favorite Heavy Seas, formerly Clipper City. They have a strong seasonal lineup.

In the Pyrate Fleet of 7% and above beers is Black Cannon Black IPA. A darker, 7.25% version of their Loose Cannon IPA.

In their Mutiny Fleet of really big beers is Siren Noire. Holding Fast to the Late Winter instead of Early Spring tradition with this 8% Chocolate Imperial Stout.

Finally in their normal strength series, the Clipper Fleet is Crossbones “Oyster Stout“. Some modern Oyster stouts are brewed with oysters. Crossbones however follows the traditional approach being an Irish style Dry Stout that pairs well
with oysters. Oysters were cheap and often used as a free bar food in the Nineteenth century. 4.7% and actually available for half the year as Clipper City only runs 2 six month long seasonals for the Clipper Fleet line.

Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada and Dogfish Head have all introduced new spring seasonals.

Sam Noble Pils goes to year round status, and in it’s place as a seasonal is Alpine Spring. In the kellerbier style, similar to an unfiltered Pilsner. Very crisp and easy to drink.

Sierra Nevada retires Glissade and replaces it with Ruthless Rye IPA (no info online). Sierra Nevada always makes great hoppy beers and this one doesn’t dissapoint. The only odd thing is they retired the great ESB a couple of years ago
so they could have a non IPA like seasonal to break up the string of IPAs. 6.6% ABV and the aroma smells strongly
of hops only cousin.

This is also the time of year that Sierra Nevada puts out Bigfoot. 9.6% ABV hoppy American style Barleywine.

Dogfish Head goes the gluten free route with Tweason’ale. At 6% ABV and no gluten, these beers tend to be very thin and not beer like but worth it for those with gluten allergies. It is coming out for the first time this “spring”, but they’ll release it every few months after this.

This is also a traditional time for Bock beers, and there are a few available as seasonals.

Representing the Patriots other playoff opponent Denver is Breckenridge with their Pandora’s Bock. This one pushes the line between a Bock and Doppelbock at 7.5% ABV.

Narragansett Bock is a 6.5% ABV beer that falls into the Maibock style. Cheaper than most of the rest and just as good or
better.

Anchor Bock has been a February release, but with so many others moving Spring to January we’ll see how long that lasts. It’s 5.5% and rich, dark color puts it firmly into the Traditional Bock style.

Victory St. Victorious Dopplebock is their late winter seasonal, A 7.6% ABV Doppelbock. In March it is replaced by
St. Boisterous, a 7.3% Helles Bock. Helles Bock being an even lighter version of Mai Bock.

Paper City Goat’s Peak Bock is a 6.4% ABV traditional Bock.

Otter Creek Mud Bock is back after a hiatus. At 5.7% it’s on the low side and amoung the lowest alcohol bocks listed here. It isn’t showing on the website yet, because Otter Creek updates their website very slowly.

On to the other assorted Spring Seasonals

Berkshire Raspberry Barleywine is a 9%ABV strong ale brewed with Raspberries. Not the typical fruit beer.

Harpoon Celtic formerly known as Hibernian is a 5.4% caramelly Irish Red Ale. In the 100 Barrel series is 100 Barrel Black IPA a 7% ABV citrusy and piney IPA.

Magic Hat Spring IPA Demo Black IPA is another Black IPA and their seasonal IPA. +/- or “plus minus” is their other seasonal, a 4.2% Dark Mild.

Founder’s Double Trouble is a big 9.4% 80+ IBU Double IPA. Get it while supplies last.

Wormtown goes the Irish Red route with .. Irish Red. They also just brewed a White IPA after last week’s list of White IPAs was written.

Jack’s Abby Hey Diddle Diddle Double India Amber Lager is their second Double IPL. 8% ABV, over 80 IBUs and amber in color. Framinghammer Baltic Porter will also be released before the 5th. It’s a 10% Baltic Porter, so sip don’t gulp.

Boulevard Chocolate Ale is a dark, 9.1% ABV beer brewed with chocolate.

Wachusett Quinn’s Amber Ale is another Irish Red ale. 4.9% ABV

Longtrail goes with the golden pale ale Pollenator. Only 4.6% ABV so you can drink a bunch of them.

Lagunitas Imperial Red is a big, 7.6% Amber ale in the strong and hoppy west coast style. Not to be confused with the typical gateway amber ale.

It won’t be available until February but probably the best Spring Seasonal is Troeg’s Nugget Nectar. 7.5% and 90+ IBUs of pure deliciousness. It’s their HopBack Amber taken up to 11.

Mayflower Spring Hop in some ways is similar to the previous two, being a hoppier than normal amber ale. Spring Hop however is a more drinkable 5.3% ABV without cutting out any of the hop aroma.

So, it all comes down to this. One game out of hundreds this season to determine who holds aloft the Lombardi Trophy.

Should we have a bigger run-up to this contest? Is the magnitude sufficiently stated, or should we spend another week prepping?

No? Okay, then. Off we go…

Other Than That, How Was 2007? No matter what, at least this can’t become a replay of That Game. In case you missed it, here’s a link to a great piece by Bruce Allen written in February 2008 that summarized what he nailed as The Most Miserable 18-1 Season In History. While the Giants seem obsessed with the similarities to that season (peaking at the right time, for example), the Patriots seem more than happy to move on.

We’ll see which way works better. In any case, much, much different expectations this year.

Indiana And The Temple Of Doom: The Patriots might feel disappointed in having to play in Indianapolis. Not only does it lack the temperate climte of Miami or San Diego, New England hasn’t had a ton of success there over the years.

Well, different opponent, different Manning, different time of season. Who knows?

Speed Of Lightning, Roar Of Thunder: So who’s really the underdog in this thing? (Note: you can link to the theme song from “Underdog” here.) Despite losing the previous tilt this season, New England has been favored from the get-go. Still plenty of “no one believed in us” fodder for both sides, though, as several national media members have picked New York.

You ever get the feeling that no one knows anything? This seems like one of those games.

Moore Or Wes: So, who, if anyone, is going to come out of this thing a hero? Will it be an expected player, like receiver Wes Welker, or a surprise contributor, like rookie defensive back Sterling Moore?

Our thoughts? If the Patriots win, the MVP trophy will prove difficult to award to one person. Everyone from Tom Brady to Vince Wilfork to Zoltan Mesko will have to put in his best effort for New England to come out on top.

Do You Speak Trench? Brady needs time to throw; the Giants will do everything they can to disrupt that. This has been one of Matt Light’s best years at tackle. Word has it that Sebastian Vollmer has finally come back to play. Though the Patriots aren’t focusing on 2007, we’re sure Logan Mankins remembers his un-stellar performance during that game.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball…

What’s Love Got To Do With It? While most eyes will be on Wilfork, New England’s success may hinge more on what battery mates Kyle Love and Brandon Deaderick are able to accomplish vs. New York’s tested front. If the Giants have success running the ball – something they haven’t focused on as much this year as in years past – then the letters XLVI will translate roughly to “Ugh” for Patriots fans.

Riding Coach: Sure, it’s a team game, but in the end, this might come down to a battle between two guys. Coach Bill Belichick has guided a 5-3 team on a 10-game winning streak; Coach Tom Coughlin has endured a 9-7 season (and numerous calls for his head while losing five of six games) to get his team playing their best at the right time.

Who has the best game plan? Who can adapt better during the contest?

There’s a game this weekend. Check it out.

Email Chris Warner for the last time this season at chris.warner@patriotsdaily.com

That’s one way to make it to Indianapolis. Relying on their defense to overcome an uncharacteristic performance from Tom Brady, New England held on for a 23-20 stomach-cramp win.

With two weeks until the big game, this column will be more devoted to the AFC Championship than to Destiny in Indy (which may or may not be the title of an adult film). So put off tolerating highlights of a certain previous Super Bowl and bask in the glory of New England’s fifth AFC win since January 2001.

Billy, Don’t Be A Hero: Despite our rooting interest, we must feel some sympathy for Billy Cundiff, the Ravens kicker who failed at his job at the least opportune time possible. Just a tough way to go. A welcome way for Pats fans, sure, but still tough.

Stagger, Lee: Similar sympathy (and/or ironic thanks) to Lee Evans, who allowed Patriot defensive back Sterling Moore to knock a winning touchdown pass out of his hands.

The lesson? To paraphrase Mike Vrabel when he was asked about catching a touchdown pass vs. Carolina, hold onto that ball like it’s your newborn son.

Hold The Rice: After watching what must have seemed like a continuous loop of Ray Rice running for an 83-yard touchdown back in the 2009 playoffs, New England set out to stop the dynamo and did so, holding him to 67 yards in 21 carries for 3.2 yards per.

For a defense that had some trouble stopping the run in the regular season, the past two playoff games have seen a welcome change.

Kraft Work: Kudos to BenJarvus Green-Ellis, not just for his steady day toting the spheroid (15 for 68 yards, 4.5 per), but for his thoughtful touch to the MHK patch on his uniform. Good to see the team honoring the late Mrs. Myra Kraft this year.

Lest we forget, the 5-3 Patriots headed down to New York (well, New Jersey, but close) to take on the Jets in a fight for first place in the AFC East. They beat the Jets by three TDs and have won every game since. We’ll take it.

Where There’s A Wilfork, There’s A Way: The AFC Championship win came in no small part to the efforts of defensive lineman/bulwark Vince Wilfork, who finished with six tackles and one sack and seemed to make an impact on every other play. A great game for the big fella. He went against solid center Matt Birk, but too often seemed like he was in the back corner of the playground taking Birk’s lunch money.

How’s The Grankle? Tight end/Beanstalk resident Rob Gronkowski had his ankle twisted during a tackle by safety Bernard Pollard, a name so odious to New Englanders he’s approaching Bucky Bleeping Dent territory.

No matter what, Gronk’s playing. Let’s hope he helps the good guys triumph.

Email Chris Warner at chris.warner@patriotsdaily.com

Well, then. Now that almost 48 full hours have passed and all of us have likely caught our breath, we can examine more clearly and coherently then Patriots stirring, improbable, 23-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship. The win, which sends the Pats to their seventh Super Bowl and fifth under the magical tandem of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady (the most of any QB/coach combo of all time), was maddening, scintillating, ugly, glorious and completely perplexing, sometimes all at once. The Pats won with defense and physicality and if you had that one down headed into the game, I’ve got some lottery numbers for you to play (I’ll throw in a healthy commission for your trouble), with Brady playing one of his worst games of the season and the team losing three turnovers but somehow getting away with it. Multiple defensive guys had huge days and when you take that, some strong, powerful running by the Law Firm of BenJarvus Green-Ellis, more of the same mental toughness this team has shown all year and at least a spoonful of luck (fear not, we’ll get to the missed, 32-yard field goal, also known as the biggest gag job I’ve ever seen), it all adds up to a trip to the big game 12 days from now in Indianapolis. So with that, let’s get to this week’s report card, all dressed up and ready for the dance.

OFFENSE: C+
Quarterbacks: C
Before we go any further, let’s get this out of the way: Brady is as tough, if not tougher than any QB in the NFL. On his fourth quarter, one-yard TD plunge, he was upside down in midair when he was blasted in the kidneys and lower back by the helmet and shoulder pads of none other than Ravens all-time linebacker Ray Lewis. And not only did he hold on to the ball, securing the points that would prove to be the difference in the game, he got right up, spiked the ball Gronk-styles and jogged to the sideline. It hurt just watching that play but if Brady was affected, no one either in Gillette Stadium or watching the game on TV knew it. Now, bearing that in mind, Brady pretty much sucked otherwise, just as he said on the podium after the game. He routinely missed open receivers. He was skittish and happy footed at times. He threw two interceptions and had two other ones nullified by penalties. His fourth quarter pick, one play after Brandon Spikes made one of the plays of the game, on which he needlessly forced a bomb into double coverage (intended for Matthew Slater of all people) was something you would never in your wildest dreams imagine seeing him do let alone in the fourth quarter of the AFC Championship with a three-point lead. He finished 22-of-36 for 239 yards (6.6 YPA), zero TDs (the first time that’s happened in the playoffs since the 2002 AFC Championship game in Pittsburgh) and the two picks, all good for a woeful 57.5 passer rating. He was outplayed by Ravens QB Joe Flacco (??!!). But hey, the Pats won and if we know Brady,, who tied Joe Montana for the most post-season wins by a QB of all time, this performance will motivate him to no end come Feb. 5. Let’s chalk this one up to a fluke, an aberration, a one-time thing. There’s still no one Pats fans would rather have.

Running Backs: B
Green-Ellis was a big factor all day despite splitting reps almost completely evenly with Danny Woodhead. It was a vintage, head down, straight ahead running kind of day for the Law Firm, who pounded his way to 68 yards and a TD on 15 carries. On one play, he got his helmet completely twisted around and ripped off, forcing him to go to the ground coconut unprotected, yet another display of the team’s overall toughness Most of the Pats success running the ball came on draws out of the shotgun with the Ravens D spread out and expecting the pass; the more traditional stuff was swallowed up with relative ease. But Benny did his part and then some. Woodhead was quiet save for once nice draw and Aaron Hernandez failed to replicate his monstrous efforts out of the backfield from the Divisional round win over Denver. And our binky Stevan Ridley sat this one out after fumbles in consecutive games, though given the Pats opponent in the Super Bowl, the New York Giants, he will likely be needed. The Giants have a ferocious pass rush and the Pats would be wise to run the ball a healthy amount in order to help neutralize it. On Sunday, Benny looked like he’ll be up to that challenge.

Wide Receivers: B-
This one was mostly the Wes Welker show again, with Deion Branch making two catches for 18 yards and everyone else doing mostly nothing (Julian Edelman caught one pass for eight yards). Welker had a couple of missteps (one drop, one slip, one deflection that turned into a pick that was luckily wiped out by a penalty) but was still his usual, dependable self. He finished with six catches for 53 yards, got the snot beaten out of him once again and naturally, a couple of his grabs resulted in enormously important first downs. At this point, as has been the case for several weeks now, Welker pretty much is the receiving corps. Any time Branch can put up an effort like last week against the Broncos (three catches, 85 yards, that amazing, 61-yard TD), it’s a bonus. This is Welker’s group. Everyone else (except Chad Ochocinco who may as well get cut before the Super Bowl if for no other reason than that he’ll be a distraction on Media Day getting asked over and over again why he is so awful, he doesn’t even dress for the biggest game of the year) is just renting.

Tight Ends: B+
Not quite the usual game-breaking day for A-Herb or Rob Gronkowski but solid nonetheless. Once again, the focal point of the Pats offense, they combined for 12 catches and 153 yards, though neither of them found the end zone. Gronk, who suffered a rough looking ankle injury late in the game but returned after missing just nine snaps, was immense in other areas than just catching the ball as he often is, at one point absolutely destroying Ravens pass rushing demon Terrell Suggs while staying home to block. And his first play back after leaving because of that ankle? He’s throwing a key block on Brady’s TD leap. These two guys are monsters, as we all know. But now that we’ve reached the final game, the biggest game, maybe we should look at them in the bigger picture. The bottom line is, in an amazing, exhilarating season filled with major moments and major performances, Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez have become the most important cogs in the Pats offensive machine whose names are not Tom Brady. And they’re both just in their second year. Unbelievable.

Offensive Line: A
Have to hand it to Matt Light; in what is probably the best season of his career, he just keeps getting better and better. Every week, it seems, there’s some stud, maniac pass rusher on his side and every week, that stud, maniac pass rusher is rendered an afterthought. On Sunday, it was Suggs, who had 14 sacks during the regular season and has garnered some sincere talk about being named Defensive Player of the Year. Against Light, he had two tackles. Period. That’s two. No sacks. Maybe once, he got within a yard and a half of Brady. And that’s it. The O-line is the core of this team and on Sunday, it stepped up and then some. And not just Light, either. Brian Waters, the best free agent signing this team has made in quite some time, was tasked with bottling up Ravens nose man Haloti Ngata and did just that. Logan Mankins once again shook off his late season knee injury to play a complete, spotless game. Nate Solder had the only blemish, getting beaten to the outside and allowing Baltimore’s only sack to someone named Paul Kruger, not exactly one of the Ravens big names on D. It was a fantastic performance and one that will certainly need to be duplicated in the Super Bowl against the Giants pass rush. The O-line’s inability to handle that same front four in Super Bowl XLII was one of the biggest reasons the Pats lost that game. If Sunday against the Ravens similarly fearsome D is any indication, this time around, this group will be ready.

DEFENSE: B+
Defensive Line: A
Anyone out there own a Vince Wilfork jersey? Cause I’ll buy it off you. That’s how valuable that thing has to be after Sunday. Wilfork, one of the best, most important Pats of the past decade, played the game of his life against the Ravens, making plays against the run and the pass, wreaking havoc and at one crucial point late in the fourth quarter, single-handedly taking over. On the Ravens second to last possession of the night, with a third-and-3 from his team’s 30, he blasted through the line to wrap up Baltimore’s star back Ray Rice with one arm, dragging him to the turf with one arm for a three-yard loss (a massive stupid play call by the Ravens by the way, but that’s another conversation). The Ravens then decided to go for it rather than try a 50-yard field goal (a decision that obviously makes a hell of a lot of sense now), so Big Vince simply steamrolled center Matt Birk right into Flacco’s grill, taking the QB to his knees while still carrying the giant O-lineman, forcing Flacco to lob the ball to no one and turn the ball over on downs. It was the most dominant sequence any Pats defensive player has displayed in ages when you factor in the situation and circumstances. And it’s fitting that Wilfork, one of the longest tenured, core members of the organization, was responsible for it. And that’s not even getting into some of the stuff he did earlier in the game, which he ended with the following stat line: six tackles, three for a loss, one sack, and another hit on the QB. And he did it all while missing just three of 73 snaps. Outstanding. Everyone else up front played well too; Mark Anderson got pressure on Flacco a fair amount of times and played the run well. Brandon Deaderick plugged up space and both Gerard Warren and Kyle Love played roles in holding Rice, who came in leading the league in total yards from scrimmage, to just 67 yards on 22 carries and only one catch for 11 yards. When this group plays this well and is able to physically overmatch its opponent, it takes so much pressure off of the secondary and makes life easier for everyone. It’s hard to imagine them doing that any better than they did on Sunday.

Linebackers: B
Good for Brandon Spikes. He’s still working his way back from that knee injury suffered against the Giants the last time they played the Pats, but man are his fresh legs a wonder. He made nine tackles on Sunday, a huge part of the defense slowing down the Rice and the Ravens rushing attack. But his finest moment, as well as what was for about three minutes the play of the game, came on a passing play. Spikes intercepted a fourth quarter Flacco pass by simply staying in his land, trailing the tight end as underneath help for the safety and making an awesomely athletic play, extending one of his big paws just enough to snag the darted throw and reel it in. It was a sensational interception; not only did it come out of almost nowhere and was it such a cool display of athleticism, but the timing was perfect. It’s great to see Spikes make plays like that when he gets to stay on the field in passing situations. He’s getting closer to becoming an all-around backer. If he can stay healthy and out of trouble, watch out. Jerod Mayo was solid, not great and that seems to be his M.O., which is OK. He made a couple of big hits and looked very impactful at times yet was doing the chasing, flailing thing a couple times too. It was a mostly typical day for him. And Rob Ninkovich continued to be the second coming of Mike Vrabel; he got to Flacco once (along with James Ihedigbo) and was great against the run, combining with Anderson to do good work taking away the edges. And Dane Fletcher was active and aggressive in limited time. The Pats defense is healthy and coming together at the most opportune time possible. The linebacking corps is no exception.

Defensive Backs: A-
Go ahead, try to start an argument on this one. If you think that more attention should be paid to Flacco playing one of the best games of his career (22-of-36, 306 yards, two TDs, 95.4 passer rating) and torching the secondary down the stretch than to Sterling Moore’s two season-saving plays, more power to you. Because if Moore hadn’t knocked away a sure TD pass to Lee Evans on Baltimore’s second to last defensive play of the day (a play on which Evans was completely complicit) or broken up what would have been a first down throw to tight end Dennis Pitta on the next play, we wouldn’t be having this little chat. Moore was almost as much a hero on this day as Wilfork and more power to him. He’s yet another one of Belichick’s collection of undrafted, unheralded, never-heard-of DBs who rose above the rest of them to become one of the biggest reasons this team is going to the Super Bowl. Gotta love it. Things were OK elsewhere despite the yardage totals and the Ravens success on third down (nine of their last 14); Patrick Chung wore the goat horns on a 42-yard pass play to Ravens deep threat Torrey Smith. Kyle Arrington missed a chunk of time with an eye injury, but was pretty good. Devin McCourty saw more time at safety and also could share some blame on that throw to Smith (as well as a 29-yard catch and run for a TD also by Smith) but managed to make it through another week without humiliating himself. Ihedigbo had that sack with Ninkovich on a nifty, delayed blitz and added eight tackles including one for a loss. And Edelman got matched up with the Ravens best receiver Anquan Boldin, and was burned more than once but completely lucked out that Baltimore’s offensive coaches were too stupid recognize the matchup until the final five minutes. It’s going to be interesting to see how this group deals with the Giants receivers, two of whom (Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz) are absolute studs (and for the purposes of this discussion, let’s say interesting means terrifying). But we’ll worry about that next week. For now, let’s continue to celebrate Moore. What a couple of huge, huge plays. Hallelujah.

Special Teams: C
Yikes. In what could have been a disaster, Woodhead fumbled a kick return at his own 30 following a long Ravens TD drive that gave them their first lead of the game. Luckily for him, the Pats defense came up with one of its best, stiffest stops of the evening afterward, keeping the Ravens from a first down and forcing them into a field goal that made the game 20-16, setting the stage for the Pats to reclaim the lead on their next possession. There was Woody again on the ensuing kick, running another one back, which was a big surprise, especially seeing as how Ridley had been banished for his fumble-itis and neither of those were half as costly. Anyway, it was a huge bullet dodged. The Pats have been pretty much nowhere in their return game all year but have gotten away with it. You have to wonder if Woody will be back there again next Sunday in Indy. As for the kicking game, Stephen Gostkowski was 3-for-3 on field goals and only had one kickoff returned all day and our man Zoltan blasted two punts for an average of just under 50 yards per. Job well done.

Coaching: B+
Maybe this grade should be a bit lower. Some of the play calling, particularly down the stretch, was questionable and that’s being friendly. The bomb to Slater made little sense at the time, even less so when it was picked off. And when the Pats got the ball back following the Ravens failed, fourth down conversion attempt, they went three-and-out with a chance to salt the game away, with a couple of real head-scratchers (a toss play to Benny on 2nd and 4?) included. But in the end, this grade is a testament to how ready Belichick had this defense ready to play. The Pats were on their heels on defense all year but allowed just 30 points in two playoff games and had guys making plays everywhere both weeks. There may not have been too many name guys out there, especially in the secondary, but they were Belichick’s guys, tough guys, guys who took his coaching and got better every single week. And now, the Pats have won 10 straight games and are going back to the Super Bowl. It’s pretty unreal. We could harp some more on the play-calling. Or we could do a comparison with the coaching on the Ravens sideline (so so poor in the fourth quarter in so many ways that it warrants its own 3,000 word column). But why bother? This season was arguably the best job of Belichick’s career. Let’s just leave it at that.

We had almost forgotten the feeling: a heady mix of excitement and contentment after winning a playoff game can make for a fun week. At least until the Ravens start talking.

As nice as it would be to take some of New England’s points with them from their 45-10 Broncos corral, it’s on to a new (and much different) opponent as Baltimore comes to Foxboro.

It’s A Shame About Rays: Linebacker Ray Lewis has been around so long it seems like he’s 50 years old, but he continues to play like a crazy dude gunning for the guy who threatened his sister. The Patriots’ interior linemen have their work cut out for them with Lewis and defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, who’s so big and aggressive he could rent himself out to lumber companies to clear swaths of trees.

The other Ray, running back Ray Rice, offers an entire playbook’s worth of problems.

The Joy Of Six: When quarterback Tom Brady throws six touchdown passes in one game, you know he’s doing something pretty special. But when those passes come against a spent Denver team, it’s tough to carry that over to next week.

That’s partly because…

A Scary Reed: Old or no, hurt or no, safety Ed Reed puts every offense on notice. He’s a smart, talented player who’s been making big plays forever. Coach Bill Belichick spoke of Reed in such glowing terms, you’d think he wanted to take him out to dinner.

Nothing fancy. Just, you know, a quiet place with good food and engaging conversation.

2012: The End Times… Not sure if the Aztecs foresaw tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez having such a huge impact on the Pats’ offense, but maybe their whole shtick was less about “the world ends” than “the tight ends.”

Get it? Tight ends. Because, you know, they – oh, never mind.

Defense On Gronk Un-Seam-ly: It made no sense to us that Gronkowski got so wide open running along the seam of the Denver defense. The dude’s 6-foot-6, galloping down the middle of the field. How could Denver miss him?

Don’t expect Gronk to go unnoticed and/or uncovered vs. the Ravens.

Running An Aaron: So, running Aaron Hernandez out of the backfield? Why not? He started out with a 43-yard dash and added New England’s final TD of the game, a 17-yard reception that included a nifty maneuver to avoid a defender at the five-yard line.

(One note to Aaron: high-stepping into the end zone might work against the Bills and Broncos, but the Ravens will have something to say about it. And by “say,” I mean “do.” Just be careful.)

All of this tight end production helped out in other areas, like, for instance…

The D On Deion: When Deion Branch broke open along the sideline in one-on-one coverage for a second-quarter, 61-yard TD, it proved that, just when you think that guy’s done, he pulls off a veteran move (like a nice, not-quite-pass-interference nudge along the sideline). Something else for Baltimore to consider next Sunday.

Magnificent Seven: What a difference a game makes. Denver ended up with 14 negative plays on the day, thanks in large part to New England’s hustling, penetrating front seven. Brandon Spikes, great to have you back. Vince Wilfork, glad you’re still around. Rob Ninkovich, you looked awesome.

Of course, taking on a run-oriented offense like the Broncos’ and an efficient NFL-caliber offense like the Ravens’ are two different tasks. Interesting to see if the Patriots’ D can stay on top of running back Rice and pressure QB Joe Flacco. After last Saturday, that seems more likely than it did before.

I’m Special, So Special, I’ve Gotta Have Some Of Your Attention: Let’s not forget the special teams success in this one. Denver got very little return yardage despite fielding eight kickoffs. It’s usually a good sign if we’re not discussing special teams this time of year.

Interesting tidbit to take with you this week: This is New England’s sixth AFC Championship game since January 2002. That’s a lot of success in a decade, and it shows you how far this franchise has come.

Here’s hoping it goes a bit farther on Sunday.

Email Chris Warner at chris.warner@patriotsdaily.com to tell him how awesome he is.

OK, class. Let’s see a show of hands. How many of you were at all worried about the Patriots Divisional round playoff matchup with the Denver Broncos on Saturday night? How many of you worried that the legend of Tim Tebow would come down off of the mountain top, part the Gillette Stadium turf and ride on to another biblical victory? Who among you was convinced that the combination of Denver’s college style running game, the Patriots season-long problems on defense and Tebow’s mystical ability to metaphorically turn water to wine would spell another first-round, playoff exit, the Pats third in three years? Were you completely convinced that Tebowmania would trump the Pats superiority in talent, skill and experience in pretty much every level of the game?

If any of you have answered yes to any of these questions then I have a bridge to sell you (or at the very least, some holy water). Because what went down in Foxboro on Saturday was a win so thorough, so complete, so exacting, that it almost belied the 45-10 final score. The Broncos were shellacked, lambasted, whipped and swarmed under by a healthy, rested and probably pissed off Pats squad that had to be loving the fact that hardly anyone in either the local or national media breathed a word about them all week long, likely in fear of being struck down by a bolt of lightning for having the temerity to spend one less minute talking about his excellency, Tim Tebow. Instead, the Pats simply came out and played their best, most complete game of the season, perhaps the best game they’ve played as a team since last season’s 45-3, early December, Monday night massacre. The Pats registered 509 yards of total offense while allowing their guests a measly 252 and forcing them into a whopping 14 negative plays. The offense, specifically Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski, tied or set multiple records while the defense pushed around its overmatched counterparts with authority and severity. It was a borderline perfect game, a fine way to snap a three-game, post-season losing streak while also building up some momentum for Sunday’s AFC Championship game against the Baltimore Ravens. So with that, let’s get to this week’s report card, simple and to the point, just like the Pats blowout win itself.

OFFENSE
Overall Grade: A
It seems like a waste of time or at least nitpicky to break the offense and defense down into position groups regarding this game. Everyone out there deserves a big fat A. Yes, Brady threw a bad, first quarter interception, but it was the only lousy throw he made all night out of 34. Sure, Stevan Ridley had a fumble in the third quarter after which he was banished for the rest of the evening. But the score was 42-7 and anyway, the Pats running game at this point is just a means to set up their passing game so Ridley’s miscue can pretty much be written off (although it bears watching, seeing as how he’s fumbled twice in his last two games, whether he gets much run against the Ravens on Sunday). Everything else concerning the offense was pure bliss, from Brady’s vintage, Hall of Fame-esque performance (26-of-34, 363 yards, a record-tying six TDs, five of which came in the first half, good for another record), to Gronk’s 10-catch, 145-yard, three-TD night (tying another record), to Aaron Hernandez’s 116 total yards, 61 of which came on the ground from the running back position, to Deion Branch’s exquisite, 61-yard TD catch and run on which he ran a sideline streak, got one step on his man and hauled in a perfectly thrown, front shoulder pass from Brady before scampering into the end zone (after which CBS’s Phil Simms said, “This may be the best I’ve ever seen Brady throw the football.”). The offensive line, which lost Logan Mankins in the second quarter (another scenario that will warrant close attention headed into Sunday) was pretty much flawless, keeping Brady completely clean save for two hits, shutting out Broncos pass rushing demons Elvis Dumervil and Von Miller and plowing the way for a five yard average on the ground on 30 rushing attempts. Matt Light and Nate Solder in particular were beyond outstanding, taking Denver’s only real threats on defense, the previously mentioned Miller and Dumervil, and rendering them both almost entirely obsolete. Cyborg Gronk must get even more props than he’s already received not just because of yet another other-worldly stat line (his first TD catch, a diving, juggling masterpiece) but because his ability as a blocker is almost as impressive as his ability as a receiver. And, not that we’re complaining, but how can he possibly continue to be so poorly covered in the red zone? On his third TD, he lined up in the slot, ran the same seam route he’s been running 10 times per game all season and was left alone in a dead spot in the Denver zone. Opposing defenses have no answer for him or for A-Herb (tight end/slot receiver/running back). And when you add Wes Welker, who submitted a typical, solid performance (six catches, 55 yards, one TD), it’s hard to imagine even a defense like Baltimore’s, which is not what it once was, making a dent. Of course, that’s getting a bit ahead of ourselves. But it’s difficult not to surmise such possibilities after an offensive explosion like Saturday’s. Everything was so on point, the Pats even scored in the first quarter on their first possession, the first time that’s happened in their last 12 games. Every week is a different one. But this team, its offense in particular, looks pretty unstoppable right now. Can they keep it going for two more games? We’ll see, but all signs point to that being a great, big yes.

DEFENSE
Overall Grade: A
Yep, you read that right. The defense gets an A, and the old head nearly exploded when typing out that grade. Once again, so we’re clear – 252 yards allowed, 14 negative plays. Other than a few runs by Willis McGahee on which he powered his way to some extra yardage after initial contact, the Denver offense was nowhere. While part of that is because the Broncos aren’t equipped to play from behind or to rely on the pass (situations in which they found themselves all night), take nothing away from the effort put forth by the Pats, who were completely and totally prepared for Denver’s rushing attack and played with an attitude all night. It started up front where Vince Wilfork, Mark Anderson and the rest of the Pats D-line were at least excellent and sometimes completely dominant all night long. They got plenty of push up there from the get-go, which allowed the linebacking corps of Jerod Mayo, Brandon Spikes and Rob Ninkovich to have room to make plays up the middle and to the sidelines. Spikes, in his first full game back since suffering that strained MCL back in early November, was particularly excellent, with six tackles, two for a loss, a sack, a pass breakup, a couple of hits on Tebow and a fumble recovery. More than anything though, Spikes is a tone-setter. He plays with a fire and aggression that seems to filter through himself and onto his teammates. That attitude mentioned earlier came in large part from Spikes and Patrick Chung which makes a lot of sense given how fresh both of them must be after getting a prolonged break due to injuries. Chung had one of the defense’s only boneheaded moments, picking up a late hit penalty in the third quarter for clocking McGahee after he was clearly out of bounds. But his energy was palpable and contributed greatly to setting the tone. Wilfork was the best of the linemen, making life miserable for Tebow with a sack and a half and a couple more hits while looking as active as he has in weeks. And Mark Anderson and Ninkovich both played huge, Anderson because of his play against the run (not even remotely his strong suit) while getting all but one of the defensive reps and Ninkovich for routinely getting pressure on Tebow, rolling up a couple of sacks, forcing a fumble and looking as much like Mike Vrabel as he ever has in doing so. All of this made for a quiet night in the secondary and there’s never anything wrong with that. Even Devin McCourty, who saw time at safety again, needn’t be picked on, not when the opposing QB goes 9-of-26 for 136 yards, posts a 52.7 passer rating and gets sacked five times (one of which even came from Shaun Ellis of all people!). This was the game we’ve been waiting to see if this defense was capable of playing all year. It is. Now, let’s see it repeat its delivery against a team that has a more proficient, professional looking offense. Baltimore QB Joe Flacco is better than Tebow, but he’s not at all great and his receivers good but not stars. The jury is still out. But there has to be so much more confidence engendered from Saturday night’s performance, both on the part of the players and the fans. Suddenly, the idea of this defense needing to play an important role if the Pats are to advance to the Super Bowl is far less daunting.

SPECIAL TEAMS/COACHING/EVERYTHING ELSE
Overall Grade: A
Not much to report by way of special teams other than Brady giving our man Zoltan a run for his money as the punter. And the crowd, which figured to be somewhat subdued given the brutally cold conditions, was in full throat and very impressive. So let’s devote the majority of this section to the coaching, which was a slam dunk. The Patriots had a major problem handling the Broncos rushing attack back in Week 15 so they fixed what ailed them in that regard and held Denver to just 3.6 yards in 40 attempts. New ways were found to make plays on offense as witnessed by Hernandez’s multiple reps coming out of the backfield. And the focus was impeccable right from the start. Bill Belichick, who tied Chuck Noll for fourth place on the all-time post-season wins list with his 16th, dialed up every single right number in this one and also managed to make his counterpart, Denver’s John Fox, look like a fool in the process. Whether it was letting Gronk go either uncovered or one-on-one with a safety who’s half his size in the red zone or kicking a field goal down by five TDs in the third quarter, Fox had no chance. But lots of folks don’t against Belichick, who couldn’t be touched in this one. Maybe it was Josh McDaniels insider knowledge of the inner workings of the Broncos (which, by the way, will likely no longer be allowed by the league starting next year probably at least somewhat due to all the whining and crying coming out of the Denver media last week). Maybe it was Bill O’Brien wanting to go out on top before he begins his attempt to restore the Penn State football program. Or maybe it was the mere fact that Belichick is one of, if not the, best coaches of all time, even now after all the personnel shortcomings and recent playoff failures. It’s hard to imagine any Pats fan preferring anyone else.

A rematch against the Running Tebows. They’re not the team X we’ve been told to worry about, but I guess they’re Team Xtian.

What to Eat?

The good news is the regulations preventing slaughtering horses for human food finally expired. The bad news is no one has taken advantage of this exciting business opportunity yet. Oh well, the Pats play the Broncos and Colts next year, fingers crossed.

One of the signature concessions at Mile High is the Broncos Brat. A 1/3rd pound bratwurst with grilled onions, peppers and sauerkraut.

Denver style Broncos Brats
2 bratwursts per person
2 bottles of beer (see below)
1 large onion, sliced
2 large green peppers, sliced
2 bratwurst buns per person, hotdog rolls are too small, if needed use small sub rolls
sauerkraut
vegetable oil

Slice the onion into 8 wedges, and separate the layers. Slice the peppers into strips. Coat with olive oil, and grill either in a vegetable basket, or on a sheet of aluminum foil.

To a large pot, add the 2 bottles of beer, and the bratwursts.

Move the pot to a section of the grill where you have the heat set to low. Allow it to drop to a simmer.

Once it is simmering, add the brats. Simmer for 20 minutes. Do not boil as they’ll split.

Brats are usually precooked, but even if the ones you have aren’t they will be cooked after this simmering.

Take the brats out of the cooking liquid and roast them over the section of the grill with high heat. Allow them to pick up some color and turn when needed.

Place a brat on each bun, and if desired top with a few of the onion pieces, peppers and sauerkraut.

What to Drink?

We drank some Black IPAs back during the Jets game, and now it’s time for another emerging IPA style. The White IPA. Hey, whatever happened to the Jets? I thought they were team X? I guess they’re just an X-team,

Whereas a Black IPA is an IPA darkened to look and sometimes taste similar to a Porter or Stout. A white IPA is an IPA with some characteristics taken from the Belgian Wit beer. Such as an Allagash White, or one of the toned down widely available versions favored by Pete King.

This means there are wheat and spices used in making the White IPA. In an odd but not sad coincidence the spices in the Belgian Wit were originally used in place of hops. Coriander and citrus peel provided citrusy flavors and aromas that aren’t all that common in European hops, particularly orange, grapefruit and tropical fruit. Therefore, four hundred years ago when the Belgian Wit was first appearing these were new flavors in beer. When the modern American hop growing movement really took off, four hundred years later. Citrus turned out to be one of the signature aromas and flavors of American hops.

In some ways these are also a spin off of all the “Belgian IPAs” that came out a few years ago. Those were the first IPAs made with Belgian yeast. The White IPAs will tend to be lower in alcohol, somewhere in the 5 to 7% ABV range. Along the lines of a normal IPA. Belgian IPAs tend stronger, usually at least 8% ABV in keeping with a Belgian Triple or Double IPA. The Belgian IPAs usually didn’t have added spices, relying on the yeast to provide the spice notes. When they do the variety of spices are different from those in an Wit. White IPAs will contain Belgian Wit ale spices – coriander, various citrus peels, grains of paradise, chamomile. Finally the White IPA should contain Wheat, if it doesn’t it won’t be cloudy. Cloudiness being caused by the higher level of protein contained in wheat when compared to barley.

The tie in to Denver isn’t an obvious one. Until you consider the Belgian White style only took off in this country when Coors started making Blue Moon.

Without that “craft like” beer, then Belgian Whites wouldn’t have become so popular. And it’s unlikely anyone would have thought to combine them with an IPA.

Deschutes and Boulevard produced the first two that I’m aware of. There collaboration being a similar recipe brewed at each facility. Boulevard having more experience with wheat and Belgian beers. And Deschutes being one of the best Pacific Northwest brewers = hops.

Boulevard has arrived in New England just in 2011, they haven’t sent their Collaboration #2 White IPA yet, but that doesn’t mean it won’t arrive at some point. It was meant to be a one time brew, but if the style takes off I’m sure they wouldn’t let one of the original 2 die off. Deschutes, who we sadly can’t get, already came out with a second limited white IPA called Chainbreaker.

Sam Adams just introduced a new beer into it’s 2012 lineup, Whitewater IPA. The release was set to occur with the Spring mixpack, and on the brewer’s calendar that meant about a week after Winter actually started. With orange peel, coriander and apricot. Shades of Dogfish Head Aprihop. The website does say February 2012, but there are already places selling this in the spring mixpack. It may be the 6 packs and draft that will be arriving in February.

Harpoon will be making a White IPA as part of it’s 100 Barrel Series. This one won’t be out until August, however this month the Black IPA 100 Barrel we mentioned would be made is finally coming out.

Saranac White IPA is a winter seasonal, so get it now. 6% ABV, Citra hops go well with the orange peel and coriander. All provide citrus flavors and Citra also brings in some tropical fruit. Pete King will lose it over this beer.

It’s a draft only beer, and you won’t find it on the website but Blue Point on Long Island has made their Blue Point White IPA a few times since the summer.

Normally we’d include many more beers, but there just aren’t any right now. Good news is anyone on the Eastern Seaboard should be able to find Sam, Saranac and eventually Harpoon. And you will be seeing more. Wheat beers and IPAs are two of the top selling styles. Other breweries won’t let the opportunity pass them by. Now when you see more and more of these “White IPA”s appearing you’ll know what to expect.

The Tebow is not a quarterback. The Tebow is a life decision. So what side are you on?

Denver quarterback Tim Tebow runs with authority and passes with mediocrity. He also tends to win big games, none more so than the 29-23 overtime shocker over Pittsburgh. We’ll see if the on-again, off-again trend continues this week in Foxboro.

Tim After Tim: Which one of these guys is going to show up? The one who went 0-3 to wrap up the season, finishing with a miserable 7-3 loss to Kansas City at home and needing the Raiders to turtle and miss the playoffs? Or the one who averaged over 30 yards per pass completion vs. the Steelers?

The way the Broncos win, coupled with Tebow’s outspoken religious beliefs seem aligned so perfectly, so improbably, that even Mitch Albom couldn’t write this book.

Cruel Runnings: Tebow takes over the ground like Cortez took over Mexico – relentlessly and, as he believed, with a higher power in mind. If New England begins the game at Gillette the same way they did at Mile High (giving up 167 yards rushing in the fourth quarter), Sunday churchgoers across the country will end up donning the orange and blue.

The Passed And The Present: Denver fooled Pittsburgh with a lot of play-action passes. The Steelers proved stubborn in leaving safety help downfield, a display of inflexibility that ended up biting them in overtime on the 80-yard TD pass.

Doctor Rosenrosen: Looks like much of this game will come down to what the Patriots’ defense can do, and that will depend on linebackers Dane Fletcher and Brandon Spikes. If Fletcher gets blocked, Spikes can come in for stronger run support, but pass coverage suffers with his lack of speed.

There’s A Tom And A Place: Quarterback Tom Brady had a rough start at Denver but got on track in the second quarter, leading the way for 41 points. Will he get on track at home from the start?

If not during this game, when?

And I Love Her…nandez: The Broncos held Lilliputian receiver Wes Welker and Brobdingnagian tight end Rob Gronkowski to 94 yards combined the last time these two teams met. Hernandez made the difference with nine catches for 129 yards, and could do so again.

If not he, then who?

Branch Out, Or Branch In? Who can play third receiver? Can Deion Branch make a difference? Will it matter? Will Brady keep an eye out for ol’ Chad Eight-Five (English translation)? Will he look Tiquan Underwood’s way once or twice? Exactly how many questions can I ask in this paragraph?

Safety Pinned: Looks like the coaching staff is attempting to relieve hopeless Devin McCourty from his pain at cornerback by switching him to safety. Might work. Can’t be much worse than what he’s done this year. I’ve seen better corners at the Guggenheim Museum.

(Kind of a visual joke there. Just go with it.)

Just Joshing: If former Denver head coach Josh McDaniels can come in as Patriots offensive assistant and make a difference, that would prove a major coup by Coach Bill Belichick. If not? Eh, it was worth a shot.

Another home playoff game this year. Let’s hope for another next week.

Email Chris Warner at chris.warner@patriotsdaily.com

Does anyone remember how Patriots fans were taking a victory lap when they found out that they had to face the Jets in the playoffs last year?

New England was 14-2, clearly the best team in the AFC despite its bad defense, and had recently defeated the Jets by 42 points. The 2010 Patriots resemble this year’s Packers, not just because of their great offense, great record, and inability to stop their opponents, but because their fans have already mentally booked reservations for the Super Bowl. However, would anyone be surprised after the fact that like last year’s Jets, the Giants will come in and upset the Packers with a disruptive defense? The Giants have a history of this, as anyone who remembers the Week 17 barnburner against the undefeated Patriots that the Giants lost, only to get the last laugh a short month later. As a fan who has been burned the last couple of years by high expectations, I have appreciated the nervous tension that this year’s Patriots have provided.

This was the collective mood of Patriots nation for a good part of the season, but unfortunately there has been remarkable mood swing. Last week, everyone was petrified of the playoffs, because the team had a terrible month of December despite winning all of its games. The running joke was that they were the worst best-team ever.

Just looking back at the 5 games in December, the games that were supposed to be cakewalks and not prepare the Patriots for the grueling expedition that is the NFL playoffs, makes one wonder where all the newfound exuberance came from:

• For starters, Patriots miraculously played only 2 teams with a winning record all year: Giants and Steelers and lost both of them. That’s right, just 2 games against teams with an above .500 record! For contrast Baltimore is 6-0 against playoff teams. The Patriots also have a 1-2 record against playoff teams this year, losing to the aforementioned Pittsburg and New York while defeating Denver which was 8-8.
• The Patriots, in a pathetic display of mediocrity almost lost a game to the lowly Colts when they just installed a new starting quarterback, Dan Orlovsky.
• They followed the game up with an embarrassing squeaker against the Redskins in which Rex Grossman looked like an All-Pro and had Washington inside the Patriots 10 with a chance to tie the game with seconds left in the 4th quarter, before he threw an interception to Jerod Mayo.
• The next three games against Denver, Miami and Buffalo, saw New England give up big leads early, and only be saved by their opponent’s turnover riddled implosions.

This anemic performance in the month of December has squared perfectly with the criticism that the team has been unable to shed in the past couple of years. Yes, the team is an offensive juggernaut and when they are on a roll its hard to stop Welker, Gronk, and Hernandez. However, their defense is as porous as the Mexican border. They are 31st in pass defense and their vaunted bend-but-don’t-break defense is ranked 23rd in Red Zone defense, letting teams score touchdowns 55% of the time.

Despite all these issues, the team still won 13 games and finished first, but last week fans were incredibly nervous of New England’s ability to make it far in the playoffs, and that’s a good thing. The Boston area’s sense of sports entitlement is nauseating and actually takes away from the enjoyment one gets from rooting on their team. What’s the point of watching the whole season if all you care about is if they win the Super Bowl or not? There was a sense of uncertainty about whether the Patriots of could make it out of the Divisional round, and that’s great. Sports are supposed to have a high level of unpredictability, otherwise why tune in.

Now that the Tebow train is riding into town, everyone assumes that the Patriots will trounce them. Could this happen? Sure and it would be amazing, but I don’t see the reason for such a mood swing. How quickly people have forgotten the lessons from year’s past or even last month’s. Denver ran all over the Patriots until McGahee got injured. Then they proceeded to turn the ball over three times. Without these favorable proverbial bounces of the ball, the game could have turned out much differently.

So let’s hope for a Patriots trouncing of Denver, but to expect it and not take your devilishly-hot streaking opponent seriously is to fail to learn the lessons of history, and we all know what happens to them….

There are a bunch of NFL owners who are stupid, it’s a wonder they made the billions of dollars required to own a franchise. This week, three of those nincompoops – Philadelphia’s Jeffrey Lurie, San Diego’s Dean Spanos and (for the grand prize) Dallas’s Jerry Jones, were in the news for all the wrong, albeit hilarious, reasons. They’re the gifts that keep on giving.

Let’s start in Philly, where Lurie called a press conference to tell the assembled masses that despite his team missing the playoffs and suffering through one of the more humiliating seasons any team has experienced in recent memory even though it spent wads of cash on seemingly every available high-profile free agent during the off-season, he’d be retaining head coach/GM/best friend Andy Reid for a mind-boggling 14th season. Reid, who has never won a title, only advanced to one Super Bowl and lost five NFC Championship games (three of them at home) as well as countless other big games during his tenure, seems to have enough cache in the Eagles organization to set fire to Lincoln Financial Field and still keep his job and all the personnel power that comes with it. Not only has Reid never won anything, he tried to succeed this year by assembling a fantasy team on the fly while simultaneously making his offensive line coach into his defensive coordinator. The Eagles subsequently lost eight of their first 12 games and looked pathetic in doing so, but hey, they won their last four, so why not keep the guy for yet another year. Reid, who would have been fired by most teams at least five years ago, has to have incriminating photos of Lurie or something. It’s hard to imagine being a fan of this team and being sold the same bill of goods (we’re continually OK with being just good enough to never, ever win) year after year. At this point, seeing Lurie actually hold Reid accountable and fire him would be more of a surprise than ever seeing him actually lead his team somewhere special.

Next, we move on to San Diego, where Spanos didn’t fire head coach Norv Turner or GM A.J. Smith despite two straight non-playoff years, declining ticket sales and a steadily aging, rotting core of players on both sides of the ball. Not only that, he actually said, “Bottom line, I believe these two men give us the best chance to win. A.J. Smith is the best man to improve this roster and Norv Turner is the best man to lead that roster onto the field.” No one must have told Spanos that Turner’s career record is below .500 and has made just four trips to the playoffs in 15 seasons as a head coach in San Diego, Oakland and Washington. Or that Smith has presided over four playoff teams that have won a grand total of two playoff games. Even more inexplicably, Spanos told Pro Football Talk, “I’m sure it will be a challenge,” in regard to selling tickets after defending his decision to keep Turner and Smith. In other words, look for the Chargers to continue to not only be nowhere near winning a championship, but keep drifting further from even having a chance to.

And then there’s Dallas, where the court jester Jones, after watching his team lose yet another must-win game and miss the playoffs altogether for the third time in four years, said that the thought of removing himself from the position of his team’s GM has never once crossed his mind. Jones, likely the biggest egomaniac in the NFL, basically came out and said that the main focus of any GM is to procure good coaching and good personnel and that the Cowboys have both of those so therefore, why should he even consider giving up the job? Apparently to Jones, winning one playoff game in 17 years is all the evidence he needs that he’s procured good coaching and personnel. Jones, a glorified carnival barker who cares more about stoking his own ego and selling sponsorships for his $1 billion stadium than winning, is a lost cause. The only coach he’s ever employed who had the sack to stand up to him (and won two Super Bowls doing it) was Jimmy Johnson and he quit rather than continue to work for Jones despite all of his success. Cowboys fans must have been thrilled to see Jones respond to his team missing the playoffs again with his news about staying on as GM. Hey, they’re only about 15 years from their next playoff win. Maybe Jones will have figured out by then that his style doesn’t work. Then again, maybe he won’t.

This Week’s Five Best Teams
1. Green Bay: How good is the Packers offense? With QB/MVP shoo-in Aaron Ridgers sitting out a meaningless game, his backup, former seventh-round pick Matt Flynn, only threw for 480 yards and six, count ‘em, six TDs, setting a couple of new franchise records in a 45-41 win over the Lions.

2. New Orleans: The Saints offensive express kept chugging, rolling up 617 more yards and 45 more points and setting a slew of team and league records in the process while stomping on the Panthers, 45-17. New Orleans should have little trouble with Detroit in this weekend’s Wild Card game; its truest test will be the following weekend at San Francisco, outdoors, against a great defense.

3. New England: Another woeful start, another massive comeback, another win for the Pats who beat Buffalo 49-21 for their eighth straight win. It’s probably safe to say that Pats coaches, players and fans alike are all now huge Cincinnati fans, as the Bengals will be the Divisional Round opponent next Saturday night in Foxboro if they beat Houston tomorrow.

4. San Francisco: The Niners lost their edge a bit late in their 34-27 win over St. Louis, allowing the hideous Rams offense to run off 17 fourth quarter points. But in securing a home game and a bye week, along with their ferocious defense and power run game, there aren’t many other teams who look as traditionally title-ready that San Francisco.

5. Baltimore: The Ravens needed to beat a desperate Cincinnati team on the road to secure the AFC North and a No. 2 seed and they did just that, getting another big game out of Ray Rice (24 carries, 191 yards, two TDs) and ensuring that when they inevitably play the Steelers in the playoffs once again, the game will be in Baltimore.

This Week’s Five Worst Teams
1. Tampa Bay: The Bucs, losers of 10 in a row to end the season, quit on their coach, their fans and each other so completely, they trailed the Falcons 42-0 with just under seven minutes to play in the first half on Sunday. Raheem Morris, who was fired the next day (but conceivably could have gotten the gate at halftime of the game against Atlanta) had to have at least partly breathed a sigh of relief to be rid of such a heartless group.

2. Indianapolis: The Colts remembered that winning would cost them the No. 1 overall pick so they packed it in after a two-game win streak and fell to the Jaguars, ensuring themselves the right to draft Stanford QB Andrew Luck in a few months. Then on Monday, owner Jim Irsay fired insufferable GM Bill Polian and his son Chris, making it the first smart move Indy has made all year.

3. St. Louis: Give the Rams some credit for not rolling over on now fired coach Steve Spagnuolo, who’s unemployment as of Monday morning was about the surest thing in the league. But at the end of the day, winning 10 of 48 games in three years with seven of those wins coming in year two, was the death knell for Spags.

4. Minnesota: The Vikings showed some decent resilience down the stretch, especially with Adrian Peterson missing so much time. And Jared Allen, who’s 22 sacks would be a record had BrettFavre not literally laid down for Michael Strahan some years ago, is a superstar. But man, has this team fallen far since nearly going to the Super Bowl just two years ago. There’s a long road ahead for Minnesota.

5. Cleveland: Just realized this past week that head coach Pat Shurmer, in his first year at that job, was also the Browns offensive coordinator. Um, that’s a lot of responsibility for anyone, let alone a coach who’s never, you know, coached before. Maybe that’s why the Browns puked up yet another 4-12 season and continue to be one of the league’s darkest outposts.

What’s Trendy
- The Giants: Sure, it was against the Cowboys, who would have found a way to lose to a college team if the game really meant something. But winning on Sunday night to clinch the NFC East and capping off a three-game win streak to take into the playoffs was a real achievement for the Giants. That defensive line looks as fearsome as it did in (gulp) 2007.

- The Bengals: They may have had just a 1-6 record against winning teams and backed into the playoffs. But the fact remains that Cincinnati completely distanced itself for the last days of the putrid Palmer/Ochocinco/ T.O./Jail Bengals era to become relevant once again with a rookie QB and a completely revamped defense. They may not go anywhere (even if they beat Houston tomorrow, it will be all over next week against the Pats) but who cares? Congrats to them on an amazing turnaround.

- The Cardinals: Did you know that Arizona started the year 1-6 but finished it 8-8, just a game out of the post-season? And that they did it with this John Skelton guy taking most of the snaps at QB? There may be something afoot in the desert. Watch out for this team next season.

What’s Not
- The Broncos: Denver didn’t need to win on Sunday at home against the Chiefs to win the awful AFC West. But even though they made it through the back door, losing that game, at home, by a score of 7-3? Pretty disgusting. Tim Tebow is pretty much over, as evidenced by these last three Broncos losses. Next stop, the off-season and a whole new round of questions about Tebow after the Steelers vaporize him and his teammates on Sunday.

- The Raiders: Oakland needed a win to get in so it promptly went out and gave up 38 points at home in a loss to the going nowhere Chargers, setting a new league record for most penalties in a season in the process. What was even better was the enxt day when coach Hue Jackson (who, remember, traded a first and a second round pick for Carson Palmer), ripped his team after the loss while taking zero responsibility for his own complicity in the Raiders 1-4 finish. Jackson seems to be a bit of a power tripper, which likely won’t serve him too well when the team hires a new general manager to oversee his wacky personnel decisions next year. Yep, same ol’ Raiders. Even when they’re better, they’re still a mess.

- The Bears: A day after finishing the season having lost six of seven and missing the playoffs, Chicago fired its general manager but retained head coach Lovie Smith. Not that Smith deserved the gate, but how in the hell is that supposed to work? Even if the new GM doesn’t fire Smith the minute he gets the job and keeps him on as head coach for say, a year (a la Mike Holmgren and Eric Mangini in Cleveland), how does Smith survive long-term? And how will he get through to his players the same way if they know his fate is at the mercy of the new GM who didn’t hire him? If you’re going to clean house, clean house. Don’t half-ass it like the Bears just did.

And finally…
A fond farewell to out favorite bullies/assholes, the Jets, who saw yet another blustery guarantee by coach Rex Ryan go up in smoke with a 19-17 loss to the Dolphins. It was the third straight loss for the Jets, who will miss the playoffs for the first time under Ryan, meaning that it will be at least a couple of hours before he guarantees they win the Super Bowl next year.

In the end, along with an awful performance by GM Mike Tannenbaum in providing depth for the roster headed into this season, the Jets were undone by the culture fostered by Ryan since his arrival in New York three years ago. Players have always been allowed to run amok in the Jets locker room, spouting off whatever comes to mind, respect for anyone else be damned. Ryan has behaved in much the same way over his tenure, routinely shit talking anyone and everyone without stopping for even a second to think about the consequences of his behavior.

Now, the inmates are running the asylum. “Captain” Santonio Holmes basically quit in the middle of the game against Miami, being screamed at to get off the field in the huddle by some of his teammates, then lambasted in the press afterward for being a total selfish piece of shit all season long. It got so bad that even rookie, seventh-round pick Greg McElroy, a QB out of Alabama who didn’t see the field all year, ripped the team’s culture, declaring a “corrupt mindset” had infested the locker room, and discussing instances of players not caring about wins or losses so long as they got theirs. It didn’t help the Jets that they have a terrible quarterback who is worse now than he was as a rookie, have a mediocre running game and play a defense that can’t generate any pressure on opposing QBs even though drawing that up is supposedly Ryan’s strong suit. But the biggest reason why the Jets failed so spectacularly this season is because of Ryan himself and the attitude he encourages from his players every time he opens his big mouth.

The day after his season ended, Ryan was typically defiant. He said, “I’m always going to chase a Super Bowl. I get criticized for it beyond belief. But if you don’t, you’re probably a loser. I’m not a loser.” Oh but you are, Rex. Because what you don’t get is that you get criticized beyond belief not for chasing a Super Bowl, something every coach and player in the league also does. You get criticized beyond belief because you can’t help yourself from constantly talking about it, something very few of those other players and coaches don’t do. If Ryan ever learns to control himself, behave with even an iota of humility and without so much of the unnecessary bombast, maybe he will lead a team to a title one day. From the sounds of it, this disaster of a season did not teach him that, or anything for that matter. So get ready for that guarantee for next year. It’s coming around the bend.

The Bruins are 10 games into the season – the vast majority played at TD Garden – and have a paltry three wins to show for their efforts. Let’s take a quick look at how the other Cup champions since the lockout have fared 10 games into the following season and their eventual end result.

Carolina:

Won Cup in 2006
Number of wins in first 10 games following season: 4
Did not qualify for playoffs

Anaheim:

Won Cup in 2007
Number of wins in first 10 games following season: 4
Lost in first round of playoffs

Detroit:

Won Cup in 2008
Number of wins in first 10 games following season: 7
Lost in Cup Finals

Pittsburgh:

Won Cup in 2009
Number of wins in first 10 games following season: 9
Lost in second round of playoffs

Chicago:

Won Cup in 2010
Number of wins in first 10 games following season: 5
Lost in first round of playoffs

Bruins management must take note that if teams with elite talent like Detroit and Pittsburgh can’t repeat, the chances of the Bruins doing so are almost nil. In fact, they probably best compare to the ‘06 champs Carlona Hurricanes, who were a Stanley Cup DNQ the following April.

The Bruins power player has been putrid for quite some time and any trade must cure that problem. The team needs a solid finisher, someone that can be automatically marked down for 35 goals before the season begins. Even better is a “hungry” player, one who has never won the Cup or even had a deep playoff run.

Only one team in the NHL at the moment has a record worse than the Bruins, the Columbus Blue Jackets. Columbus has never achieved sustained NHL success and it is time for them – along with the Bruins – to shake things up with a blockbuster trade. In fact, they even look to match up nicely for a real life trade instead of one generally reserved for fantasy hockey leagues.

Rick Nash is the exact player the Bruins need, a stud finisher who would immediately jump-start the Bruins’ slumping offense and ignite their power play. He’s been toiling in a college sports town his entire career and joining an Original Six team would be a shot of adrenaline to his hockey life. He is signed through the end of the 2015 season with annual cap hits from 7 MIL to just under 8 MIL.

Now, the tough part. Knowing full well that you must give to get, the giveback will be painful to the eyes at first. David Krejci and Tuukka Rask (and possibly draft picks if needed) are on the flight bound for Columbus, Ohio.

Yes, Krejci is your first line center at the moment but he’s a RFA at the end of this season and will be looking for a raise from his current cap hit of approximately 4 MIL per season. Tyler Seguin does indeed look like he could be ready in the very near future to assume the duties of a first line center. It’s a leap of faith but one worth taking.

Rask, also a RFA at the end of the season, will be looking for a bump in salary from his current cap hit of 1.5 MIL per season. The bottom line is that Columbus could surely use a goaltender (Mason is not cutting it) and the Bruins can only play one goalie at a time and Tim Thomas looks to be that guy for the next couple of seasons. Not to mention that Rask seems a bit too comfortable sitting at the end of the bench and opening the gate about 55 nights per season.

The Bruins can worry about their goalie of the future when that time comes and – who knows – Anton Khudobin from Providence might even be that guy.

As of today the Bruins are about 3 MIL under the salary cap so the trade is also feasible financially.

So, GM Chiarelli, are you prepared to let the band play on for the defending Cup champions or is it time to officially turn the page on the incredible 2010-11 season? Your call.

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

Vancouver over Chicago in 5.  Simple, teams in the NHL do not repeat these days as Cup champions and the Blackhawks bow out sooner rather than later. 

San Jose over Los Angeles in 5.  Usually the Sharks are bounced in the first round as favorites, but getting the Kospitar-less Kings was the ideal draw.

Detroit over Phoenix in 5.  The Coyotes were able to catch teams off-guard last spring but this year they will be a relatively out for the grizzled Red Wings squad.

Anaheim over Nashville in 7.   Toss-up, but the winner of this series will beat the Canucks in the second round.  The Ducks are a wide bodied team peaking at the right time and should outlast a game Predators squad.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

Washington over New York in 5.  The Rangers goaltending is not enough to counterbalance their lack of offensive firepower, now minus Ryan Callahan courtesy of blocking a Zdeno Chara shot.

Buffalo over Philadelphia in 7.  The Sabres have Ryan Miller.  The Flyers still haven’t replaced Ron Hextall.

Boston over Montreal in 6.  Power (with talent) over speed in the playoffs.  Unless the Habs are somehow up 2-1 going into a frenzied Bell Centre for Game 4, they don’t stand a chance.

Pittsburgh over Tampa Bay in 6.  The smoke signals indicate that Crosby will be suiting up.  He’ll probably have some obvious rust at the beginning of the series but will be hitting his stride come the elimination games.

SECOND ROUND:

Anaheim over Vancouver in 6

San Jose over Detroit in 7

Washington over Buffalo in 6

Boston over Pittsburgh in 6

CONFERENCE FINALS:

San Jose over Anaheim in 6

Boston over Washington in 7

CUP FINALS:

San Jose over Boston in 6

Okay, let’s try to determine which teams will still be skating come mid-April and from there we’ll take a stab at playoff predictions.  Teams are listed in a worst-to-first order for each conference in order finish by points and not factoring in the NHL playoff seeding format.  The italicized teams will not qualify for the playoffs.

WESTERN:

Minnesota (bring back Chris Snow)

Edmonton (two years away)

Calgary (in a steep decline)

Colorado (last year was a fluke)

Columbus (anonymous team in an anonymous pro city)

Anaheim (we reserve the right to change our mind like Pitino)

Dallas  (Jack Campbell, their #1 pick, will eventually be a stud in goal)

Phoenix (this season will not be as magical)

Nashville (quick, name four Predators; yeah, thought so)

St. Louis (the young, recent draft picks start making some noise)

Los Angeles (they should trade one of their two goalies for offense)

Chicago (Stanley Cup victory lap will make for a long season)

Detroit (the veteran team core makes one final push)

Vancouver (like the Houston Texans, the team to watch year after year)

San Jose (Tarzan in regular season and Jane in the playoffs)

EASTERN:

Florida (yes, they once did make the Stanley Cup Finals)

NY Islanders (like Edmonton, still two years away)

Carolina (the Calgary Flames of the conference)

Atlanta (Evander Kane for President)

Toronto (Looks like their #1 pick will be about 10-12 next year)

Ottawa (expect them to be in many high-scoring games– not a good thing)

NY Rangers (Gaborik, their best scorer will get injured)

New Jersey (get physical with them and they’ll cry “uncle”)

Buffalo (Tyler Myers might be the league’s best defenseman in two years)

Montreal (last year’s playoff comet won’t return in 2011)

Tampa Bay (exciting team to watch and back in the playoffs)

Philadelphia (still haven’t adequately replaced Hextall in the net)

Washington (tough division makes points not as easy this season)

Boston (most complete team on Causeway St. in decades)

Pittsburgh (team should be angry and want to make amends for Montreal loss)

PLAYOFFS:

In the Western Conference, throw out Phoenix, Nashville and St. Louis right off the bat.  Chicago will have too much of a Cup hangover to repeat.  That leaves San Jose, Vancouver, Detroit and Los Angeles.  The Sharks are confirmed choke artists so they’re gone.  Roberto Luongo will wilt in a big game (he tried giving Team USA the gold medal) so the Canucks are out.

Conference Final:  Detroit over LA in 7 games

Now, for the Eastern Conference, the home of the local entry.  Tampa Bay, Montreal, New Jersey and Buffalo are the quick outs, leaving the Northeast Corridor teams remaining.  Washington is San Jose East and Philly’s goaltending will bite them in the butt this time around.

Conference Final:  Pittsburgh over Boston in 7 games

Stanley Cup Final:  Pittsburgh over Detroit in 6 games

Enjoy the season!

The buzz around Boston right now is that the Boston Bruins have called a major press conference for Wednesday afternoon and at that time it will be announced that head coach Claude Julien has been relieved of duties or that Cam Neely has been promoted to team President.

Power Play has not yet been able to confirm the true reason for the press conference and both scenarios are speculation.

Julien was named Bruins head coach before the 2007-08 season and the team has compiled a 129-67-32 regular season record under his tutelage.  He also guided the team to first round playoff victories in 2009 and 2010 before ultimately losing the seventh and deciding game in the second round both seasons.

Julien would be the second head coach hired and fired by General Manager Peter Chiarelli since being named GM prior to the 2006 regular season.

The other possibility of the press conference could be the announcement of Cam Neely being promoted within the organization.  Neely is currently listed as Vice President of the team but possibly could be named President, a title once held by the man who acquired him from the Vancouver Canucks in 1986.

Developing……..

Washington (1) vs. Montreal (8) 

Black & Gold:  Halak is hypnotized into thinking he’s Ken Dryden and the undersized Habs win in 7 games. 

Analytical:  The Capitals just have too much firepower.  Caps in 5. 

New Jersey (2) vs. Philadelphia (7) 

Black & Gold:  The disgraceful Flyers goon-up the entire Devils roster and win the series in 7 games. 

Analytical:  The Flyers, with shaky goaltending, are gassed after eking into the playoffs.  Devils in 6. 

Buffalo (3) vs. Boston (6)

 Black & Gold:  The Bruins sweep and Steve Montador gets pummeled by Daniel Paille and Matt Hunwick. 

Analytical:  Goals are at a premium with Miller and Rask.  Long series.  Bruins in 7. 

Pittsburgh (4) vs. Ottawa (5) 

Black & Gold:  Matt Cooke receives Evander Kane-like beatings in each game and the Senators win the series. 

Analytical:  Losing Kovalev took away Ottawa’s already slim chances.  Penguins in 5.

Looking at the Western Conference with the nerd glasses only: 

San Jose (1) vs. Colorado (8) 

The Avs peaked early and Joe Thornton & Co. won’t be exiting early this year.  Sharks in 5. 

Chicago (2) vs. Nashville (7) 

The Predators don’t have the offensive arsenal to stay with Chicago.  Hawks in 5. 

Vancouver (3) vs. LA Kings (6)

 Will be the best series of the entire first round with home ice being the difference in the end.  Canucks in 7.

 Phoenix (4) vs. Detroit (5)

 The defending conference champs turned it up a notch at the end.  Clock strikes midnight in Phoenix.  Red Wings in 6. 

Stanley Cup Finals Prediction: 

Chicago over Washington

The event started in 2008 after three friends and neighbors, Mike O’Brien, Dave Tracey and Marc Sanders, all products of the Bobby Orr mania of the ‘70s, lamented the fact that children these days were rarely seen playing street hockey, a far cry from your average day in 1974 when kids would leave their home at 9:00 AM with their Mylec street hockey stick and orange ball and not return home until dinner at 6:00 PM.  The next day would be the same, nothing but street hockey with your friends, sometimes playing other neighborhoods and the biggest worry usually being a ball falling into a catch basin. 

However, due to a variety of reasons, street hockey seemed to disappear from the streets of Boston over the past couple of decades and the three friends, not wanting their children to miss out on the game of their own youth, decided to take matters into their own hands by creating an annual street hockey tournament for local children, thus the birth of the Shamrock Shootout. 

Straight as an arrow and with nary a slope, Temple St. is the ideal street hockey “rink.”  The first year of the shootout, 2008, had a modest turnout but fun was had by all and doing it again in 2009 was a no-brainer for the friends and the buzz from the inaugural tournament pushed the number of players in ’09 to approximately 200.  Word of this new event spread like wildfire, even generating media coverage, and the three friends knew that the 2010 Shamrock Shootout was going to be the largest to-date but would also produce logistical nightmares in planning.  They figured the only ones capable of creating a four-game schedule for each of the 24 teams, almost all of them playing simultaneously on 11 makeshift rinks, would be their most trusted confidants—their wives.  Oh, not to mention acquiring street closing permits and organizing donations for enough food, drinks and snacks to keep the 1,000 or so grandparents, parents and children in attendance satisfied for the day.  Along with 80 other volunteers and numerous contributors, the three couples put everything together without any hitches and a great time was had by all. 

Hanging high above the day’s festivities was the white # 3 jersey of seriously injured Norwood High School hockey player Matt Brown.  Knowing that the Shamrock Shootout community would not hesitate to reach out to a fallen hockey player less than 10 miles away, co-founder O’Brien’s brother, Richie, suggested that something be done to honor and help Matt Brown with his recovery from his recent injury.  The Norwood High community was appreciative of the gesture and arranged for Matt Brown’s game jersey to get to West Roxbury to “oversee” the event.  Auction items were donated, merchandise sold and donations accepted and as the day drew to a close, co-founder O’Brien felt confident that the total raised for Matt Brown and his recovery would surpass $2,000. 

The Shamrock Shootout asks that all readers of this article take a minute to say a prayer for Matt Brown’s recovery, with the ultimate hope that one day he walks to center ice of the middle rink and drops the ceremonial first “puck” at a future Shamrock Shootout.

As of this morning, the Bruins are tied for 9^th place and first in line for the golf courses come mid-April.  To make matters worse, the Islanders, Panthers, Thrashers and Lightning are directly behind the Bruins and within striking distance.  That’s the bad news.  

As for the positive spin, they’re only one point out of sixth place and six points behind the suspect, at least to these eyes, Senators for fifth place.  Yes, the Bruins have been ravaged by injuries and the team, fans and media have been using the Make it to the Olympics break as some sort of crutch or excuse.  Well, it’s time to put up or shut up with the upcoming whirlwind of 9 games beginning Friday night in Buffalo and concluding February 13 in Florida.  Let’s take a look at the schedule as it does present some challenges. 

1/29 @ Buffalo

1/30 LA Kings

2/2  Washington

2/4  Montreal

2/6  Vancouver

2/7 @ Montreal

2/9 @ Buffalo

2/11 @ Tampa Bay

2/13 @ Florida 

At stake:  a maximum of 18 points in the standings.  Of course they’re not going to run the table, but the team should set a goal of at least acquiring 10 points during this time frame.  Ten points would probably let them keep their spot in the standings and let them return healthy for the final six weeks of the regular season.  Anything greater than 10 points would be gravy. 

When you get right down to it,  it probably doesn’t matter what order you get them, but the Bruins need victories in five of the games.  Logically, winning three out of four at home, splitting the games at Buffalo and winning one of the last two games in Florida would be the most realistic path.  However, the team and fans will take them in any way, shape or form. 

Conversely, securing 8 or 9 points would let them perilously tread water and anything less than 8 points would probably serve as a death sentence on the season and make the front office become sellers, rather than buyers, at the March 3 trading deadline.

Yes, the Bruins, with 51 points, are in fifth place in the East as of this morning and on paper are only four points from being on the outside looking in, but let’s take a look at the big picture. 

The teams trailing the Bruins are the Rangers (50 pts), Senators (48 pts), Canadiens (48 pts), Flyers (47 pts) and Islanders (46 pts).  The only teams that should concern Bruins’ fans are the Rangers and Flyers.  Yes, they possibly could leap-frog the Bruins in the standings, putting the locals in seventh place but the object of the game is to still be playing come mid-April.   Ottawa, Montreal and the NY Islanders are still worse than Boston and will slug it out for the eighth and final playoff spot.  Best of all, this is probably the worst case scenario for Boston.  Let’s take a look at the more probable future for the locals. 

Hockey is a violent game and every team is eventually beset by injuries.  Some years they are minimal while other years they are never-ending and sometimes fatal to a team’s postseason chances.  This season the Hockey Gods have been unkind to the Bruins when it comes to doling out inuries. 

David Krejci came into the year still recovering from surgery and has yet to return to form.  The same holds true for Marco Sturm.  Chances are that both these players eventually return to form before the regular season ends and will be primed for the playoffs. 

Then there has been the relentless spate of in-season injuries.  Their best playmaker, Marc Savard, has been limited to 28 games played and will be out of action, in reality, until after the Winter Olympics.  Patrice Bergeron, their best player all season long, is now on the mend for approximately three more weeks.  Milan Lucic, the heart and soul of the forwards, has been limited to 12 games but is now back in action.  All this, yet the Bruins are still in fifth place in their conference. 

It is imperative that the Bruins just tread water between now and the end of the Vancouver Olympics.  Even if they slide a few points and playoffs spots, that’s fine, as long as their big guns are ready to hit the ice healthy come the beginning of March and begin the team’s final regular season push and having some momentum and confidence for the playoffs.

Savard will be 32 at the start of next season, which means he’s probably at the tail end of his prime.  The Bruins have invested roughly 29 million in him over the next 7 years with a good chunk of the contract front- loaded, a wise move by Chiarelli and an indication that Savard was willing to work with the team for a cap-friendly contract.  Savard, once considered “soft,” has become a dependable two-way player for the Bruins but, bottom line, is that the Bruins are counting for him production, mostly in terms of assists.  Therein lies the dilemma—they’re handsomely paying a premier set-up man without a sniper riding shotgun on either wing.  

Think about it:  Adam Oates had Brett Hull and later Cam Neely; Bryan Trottier had Mike Bossy.  Centers with the skills of Savard need a winger that can bury a one-timer in their sleep and guys like Marco Sturm and Blake wheeler aren’t that guy.  The only player on the Bruins’ roster remotely resembling that player is Michael Ryder and, for some reason, he and Savard just failed to click last season and Julien doesn’t seem to think it will anytime soon. 

It’s up to Chiarelli to find Savard a running mate that will help define Savard’s long-term identity in Boston and hopefully end the team’s Stanley Cup drought.  Ilya Kovalchuk of the Atlanta Thrashers is rumored to be on the trading block, not to mention being an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.  He’s familiar with Savard from years past and would seem to be a perfect fit for the Bruins.  Granted, such an acquisition would require salary cap maneuvering by Chiarelli but that’s why he has a Harvard degree and sits in the GM office. 

Look back to the Islanders from 28 or so years ago.   Clark Gillies did the dirty work and cleared space on the ice.  Bryan Trottier was the marvelous center iceman.  Mike Bossy was lethal when passed the puck.

Lucic, Savard & Kovalchuk have the potential to be a similar trio for the Bruins.

Mr. Chiarelli?

COMCAST SPORTSNET MOVES CELTICS HOME GAME PRE AND POST GAME SHOWS TO NEW ACE TICKET STUDIO ON CAUSEWAY STREET

New Store Front Studio Premieres with Celtics Home Opener on October 28

BURLINGTON, MA – Comcast SportsNet and Ace Ticket announced today that the regional sports network will host its Celtics Pre-Game Live and Celtics Post Game Live studio shows from the Ace Ticket Studio on Causeway Street for every 2009-10 Boston Celtics home game. 

The store front studio, located at 109 Causeway Street, inside the Ace Ticket flagship location and directly across the street from TD Bank Garden will premiere with the home opener on Wednesday, October 28. Before and after every home game, studio host Gary Tanguay and NBA analyst Donny Marshall will analyze the game, welcome special guests to the studio and link up live with its telecast team Mike Gorman, Tommy Heinsohn and Greg Dickerson from inside the TD Garden.

 The studio will feature three high definition cameras that Comcast SportsNet will send back to its Burlington studios. Celtics fans will be able to view the telecast from inside the Ace Ticket location and from the exterior on both Causeway and Friend St as the studio will be lined with glass panels that extend around the 25 foot perimeter. 

“The Ace Ticket Studio represents a first for Comcast SportsNet and it brings our telecast to a new level. Sports is about the experience and giving fans a chance to experience our Celtics telecast is an exciting way to begin this much anticipated season,” said Bill Bridgen, Comcast SportsNet’s executive vice president and general manager. 

“The store front location directly across for the Garden will give our customers and Celtics fans a front row seat as Comcast SportsNet puts on its award winning telecast,” said Ace Ticket Founder and CEO Jim Holzman. “Ace Ticket continues to expand its presence in New England and to work with Comcast SportsNet gives a high profile opportunity to reach our consumers.” 

Comcast SportsNet will use the studio throughout the year and extensively on Celtics home game nights as it will provide an exclusive location to interview Celtics front office officials, visiting team representatives and high profile fans attending the games. 

Comcast SportsNet reaches more than 4 million households in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. Comcast SportsNet’s programming includes the Boston Celtics, Mohegan Sun Sports Tonight, Celtics Now, Sports Sunday, The Baseball Show, New England Tailgate, and Net Impact. Comcast SportsNet’s partnership with the 17-time NBA Champion Boston Celtics is the longest team-regional sports network relationship in New England and the fourth longest in professional sports. Comcast SportsNet New England is owned and managed by Comcast Sports Group. Visit www.comcastsportsnet.com for more information. 

Comcast Sports Group operates 10 sports networks that deliver 2,400 sporting events annually and sports news and analysis to 40 million cable and satellite homes.  Comcast Sports Group’s networks are: Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, Comcast SportsNet California, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, Comcast SportsNet New England, Comcast SportsNet Northwest, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, SNY, The Mtn. – Mountain West Sports Network, and CSS.  Comcast Sports Group also manages New England Cable News (NECN), the nation’s largest regional news network, and The Comcast Network, based in Philadelphia and Washington, which delivers community-oriented programming.  For more information, see ComcastSportsNet.com.

###

The Good

Steve Begin: Nasty, in-your-face player. Appears to be an upgrade over Stehane Yelle on the fourth line and is a +3 on the season. Some teams in the league won’t be thrilled about facing the physical presence of Begin, Thornton & Bitz for 11 or so minutes a night.

Marc Savard: Never any questions as to his offense. His pass to Marco Sturm for a goal on Saturday was the epitome of threading a needle. Dropping the gloves and defending Sturm was even more impressive.

Marco Sturm: Rusty in the opener but was superb against Carolina. His pass to Hunwick for a goal was Savard-esque. Kessel’s goal will be replaced, folks.

The Bad

Mark Recchi: Admittedly, probably nit-picking here but he only has two shots on goal and is -2 on the season.

The Fans: Okay, just the ones booing Aaron Ward on Saturday night. He brought nothing but honor to the Bruins uniform. Sober up, or at least grow up.

The Ugly

Jay Harrison’s Face: “We’ve got a bleeder.”

Head-manning The Week:

The team catches a few days off before meeting up with Anaheim on Thursday night. The Ducks are an extremely physical squad and the Bull Gang better give an extra turn to the nuts, bolts and screw holding the boards together.

Saturday night brings the Islanders and highly touted prospect John Tavares into the Garden. He’s said to be a “can’t miss” player and, based on limited observations here, that would be tough to argue. Then again, the same was said about Bobby Carpenter on the cover of Sports Illustrated in the early 80’s.

The Celtics will begin their quest to bring the NBA championship back to Boston on Tuesday, October 27th in Cleveland against LeBron, Shaq and the Cleveland Cavaliers on TNT. That will be the first of a staggering 32 nationally televised games for the Celtics, nine of which will be on TNT. (Seven Celtics games are on NBA TV, so I’m not sure if those should really count as “Nationally Televised.”) The Celtics home opener is the next night, the 28th against the Charlotte Bobcats. The first rematch with the Chicago Bulls will be that Friday night, in a game that ESPN has picked up, the first of 10 ESPN appearances by the Celtics.

The early part of the schedule features 10 out of the first 16 games at home, but then starting on November 29th, the team hits a stretch of eight games in 16 nights, with seven of those games on the road, including a three game trip through Charlotte, San Antonio and Oklahoma City.

After a Christmas Day playoff rematch in Orlando with the Magic, (2:30pm ABC start time) the Celtics head out on their first West coast trip of the season. The Clippers, Warriors and Suns are on the itinerary for this quick three game set. Kobe Bryant and the world champion Los Angeles Lakers (that stings) make their only appearance at the TD Garden on Sunday, January 31st. This is another ABC game, tipping off at 3:30. With that being the weekend between the AFC and NFC championship games and the Super Bowl, the NBA will have the stage to itself to present that marquee matchup.

Boston sports fans are circling the following Sunday, February 7th on their sports calendar, hoping it turns out to be a Boston doubleheader. The Celtics host the Orlando Magic at 2:30 that afternoon on ABC, and the Super Bowl kicks off a little more than four hours later.

The last game prior to the All Star break for the Celtics is a trip to New Orleans to play the Hornets on February 10th. The 11th to the 15th of that month, the Celtics are off for the break before heading out on their traditional post All Star break West coast road trip starting in Sacramento on February 16th. Then, less than three weeks after their first matchup, the Celtics and Lakers conclude their two game season series on a Thursday night TNT game, which is a curious move on a couple fronts. Why would the NBA place two of their marquee games just a few weeks apart like this? And why have it at 10:30 at night on a weeknight? Why not another Sunday afternoon? Was TNT guaranteed to get one of these games, so it had to be then?

After that four game West coast swing, the Celtics will be home for nine of their next 13 games. The stretch includes a February 25th TNT home game with the Cavs, as well as a Sunday afternoon (3:30pm) ABC game in Cleveland on March 14th. At the end of that week, the Celtics depart on a mini, four night, three game swing through Houston, Dallas and Utah.

The final regular season matchup with LeBron, Shaq and the Cavs is scheduled for April 4th, another ABC game, this time at home at 1:00pm. The regular season concludes on Wednesday night, April 14 with a home game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

So what do you think? 74-8? Sound good? OK, that’s probably a tad optimistic, but this looks to be another fun season following the Celtics. Training camp is a week away. Can’t wait.

Leon Powe was probably my favorite member of the Boston Celtics over the last few years. Quiet, hardworking, willing to do the dirty work under the basket, Powe was perfect in the role the played for the Celtics. The fact that he had overcome so much in his life added to the appeal of Leon Powe as a person.

He grew up in the foster system in the Oakland area, trying the best he could to keep tabs on and take care of his younger siblings, Powe ended up the University of California, where he led the Pac-10 in rebounding at a freshman, and then returned from a devastating knee injury his sophomore year to become only sixth player in history to lead the conference in scoring and rebounding during his junior year, with totals of 20 points per game and 10 rebounds per game. Despite being somewhat undersized as a power forward at 6-8, 240 lbs, Powe was drafted in the second round of the NBA draft by the Nuggets and then traded to the Celtics.

During his three seasons with the Celtics, Powe endeared himself to fans with his tenacious, powerful style of play. It seemed he routinely outmuscled bigger and stronger players under the basket and dunked on them. Off the court, he founded a non-profit organization in the Bay Area to give support and education to children who are enduring a similar upbringing to what Powe himself had. Despite not being a highly paid NBA star, Powe was certainly among the busiest when it came to charity and off the court activities. It seemed this offseason was going to be his chance to finally make some good NBA money, but a torn ACL in the playoffs against Chicago put his entire NBA career in jeopardy.

Comments made by Doc Rivers seemed to indicate that he really hoped to keep Powe around, and bring him back next season. That didn’t happen. The Celtics chose to allow him to become an unrestricted free agent, with the team perfunctorily wishing him well on the way out the door. It sure seemed like good-bye, something I didn’t understand at the time, and still don’t understand. River talked often about the quality of person that Leon Powe is. That you really want more those on your team. Powe was facing another long rehab following his knee surgery, but it seemed that he would be a guy that the Celtics would take care of. Maybe something happened behind the scenes, but I doubt it. This was just a business decision. The Celtics felt they couldn’t afford to tie up a roster spot with a guy who won’t be back until, at the very soonest, the All Star break.

It’s their loss. This week Powe received an two year offer sheet with the Celtics biggest rivals in the Eastern Conference, the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers. Powe agree to the deal, and pending his physical, will make the deal official. This one hurts. It’s not quite Johnny Damon going to the Yankees, because I’ve got absolutely no animosity towards Powe. It’s just going to hurt seeing Powe in that Cavs uniform when he finally makes it back. Given his history, I have absolutely no doubt Leon Powe will make it all the way back. Let’s hope the damage to the Celtics is minimal.

By Jeremy Gottlieb

Well, that was a huge bummer, eh?

Talk about an anti-climax. The last thing I or pretty much anyone to whom I’ve spoken would have predicted for Game 7 at the Garden the other night was that the weary Celts would be blown out of the gym. The Celtics had history, experience, their home crowd and a seemingly mentally weak opponent all working in their favor and they still managed to drop one of the biggeststinkbombs of the season. So I guess that means it’s time to reflect now that enough time has passed that I can clearly wrap my head around it all. But before we go any further, let me put out one, small disclaimer. This will not be another one of those, “If only KevinGarnett had played, then they may have won it,” columns. So many supposedly shrewd, intelligent writers have mailed in that kind of drivel in the last couple of days, it’s made my eyes bleed. Really, guys? You think ifGarnett had played, the Celtics might have beaten the Magic? Wow, thanks for such astute, expert analysis. Now I know exactly why they lost.

No, here at the BSMW Full Court Press, we don’t believe in insulting our readership with such simplified obviousness. Everyone who has ever watched a sporting event knows that if the team thatlost’s best player didn’t play, that’s probably a huge reason why said losing team went down. Apparently, a lot of our local bastions of basketball knowledge forgot this.

Anyway, let’s not waste any more time discussing such nonsense. I’d prefer to examine how the Celtics got as far as they did and why. The series against Orlando didn’t have nearly the drama or suspense or sheer joy of the first-round series with the Bulls. But there were plenty of twists and turns. On one hand, you could argue that the Celts should have lost in five games. Orlando had both Games 4 and 5 wrapped up before going completely mental and spitting the proverbial bit. On the other hand you could argue that the Celtics should have won in six games. When Paul Pierce stepped to the line with 2:03 left in that game, just after the play of BrianScalabrine’s life (his “in your face” stuffing of Rashard Lewis on the low block that couldn’t possibly happen 99 out of 100 times) the Celtics had a chance to jump ahead after having held the Magic to just four points in the previous four minutes. Pierce, who shot 85 percent from the stripe in the series, missed enough big ones both against the Bulls and the Magic that when he clanked up both attempts, it wasn’t really surprising. What was surprising was that Orlando, which had virtually cornered the market on not being able to capitalize on pretty much anything up to that point, saw an opening, somehow flipped a switch on their collective mental toughness meter (which at that point was hovering around zero) and ran off an 11-2 run to escape with an 83-75 win and force another Game 7.

In hindsight, that was pretty much it. Like several Celtics fans I know, I figured the whole Game 7 at home thing would be enough to carry them. I thought it was a fluke that the Magic had kept their composure and managed to take advantage of such a huge chance at the end of Game 6. They had blown their wad in doing that, it seemed, and there was no way such a fragile group could summon the requisite chutzpah to beat a defending champ on the road in a deciding game, even a defending champ as tired and depleted as the Celtics.

Of course, that wasn’t remotely what happened. Instead of yet another Game 7 triumph, the Celtics completely wilted when it mattered most. I won’t waste too much time belaboring this point, but under the circumstances, considering the losses in personnel and the subsequent alternatives, reaching the ultimate game of the conference semifinals was a major accomplishment. It’s a bit astounding that they got as far as they did. That by no means absolves them of their performance on Sunday, but it is worth noting.

It was awful, really. Even though Ray Allen played by far his best game of the series, everyone else was basically out of it. Pierce was doubled anywhere on the floor at which he touched the ball and had no answer for it. Kendrick Perkins had his worst game in weeks, disappearing on offense and even missing three straight layups on a single possession at one point. Rajon Rondo hit a couple of jumpers but lacked the explosiveness he displayed earlier in the playoffs and was mostly ineffective, not to mention the fact that he was schooled by the not-really-that-good Rafer Alston. I would mention the bench, but there isn’t one, although one particular yokel earlier this week was shouting at me about how Doc Rivers should be ashamed of himself for employing an eight-man rotation, even though pretty much every coach since the beginning of time has done the same come playoff time (including Doc Rivers last year), and that Mikki Moore and Tony Allen should have played more in Game 7. Whatever, it was the worst-case scenario and not too many of us saw it coming.

But even though they absolutely stunk on Sunday, it’s hardly the last or most pertinent thing we should remember about this particular Celtics team. Instead, the focus should be on how admirable their overall performance throughout the last few weeks has been. I’m not a huge fan of trafficking in cliches, but this team showed a massive amount of heart, the heart of a champion. They outlasted Chicago and its Energizer Bunny youngsters and they came within one game (or a couple minutes, going back to Game 6) of bouncing an Orlando team with far more talent and athleticism while using Scalabrine as their sixth man/main backup at center and both forward slots. They were so thin that they had to take Big Baby (who is about to get PAID) out after one foul as opposed to two. They were forced to rely on Stephon Marbury at times, and even though he rewarded them for it in Game 5 and was by all accounts a perfect soldier during his time here, he was still too rusty and out of his element to live up to it.

All that, and they still were this close to winning the right to get swept by LeBron and the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals. They were tired and banged up and practically patched together with duct tape, yet they just missed winning two playoff rounds. Not too shabby. Of course, the end was bitter and disappointing. But it was a hell of a ride and for that, this group, the 2008-2009 defending NBA champion Boston Celtics, should be commended.

By Jeremy Gottlieb

I don’t know about you, but I feel like tonight should be Game 8.

It seems really hard to grasp that the Celtics’ first-round series against the Bulls is over. By the time the third overtime of Game 6 rolled around, I figured that the two teams would just keep playing each other forever, or at least until someone keeled over. And now, it’s over. Let the withdrawal symptoms begin.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy the Celtics won. I’m ecstatic about it, actually. The fact that they were able to stay on their feet throughout all seven of those games plus all seven of those overtimes and wind up the ones that didn’t get knocked out wassupremely impressive. Both teams were so totally staggered, so banged up and so running on fumes by the time Saturday night rolled around, being the one who gave out first was nothing over which to sulk. They showed tremendous character and fortitude in outlasting the Bulls and should be not only commended, but remembered for it, no matter what happens next.

Which leads us to that very question: what is going to happen next? We know that the Orlando Magic, their monster of a center and their wildly oversensitive head coach will invade the Garden tonight for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. And that’s about it. Just as the last series proved to be impossible to predict (even in the end, when it seemed the Celtics and Bulls couldn’t play without at least one extra period, they finished Game 7 in regulation with barely a sliver of the suspense found in the previous three games), what the Celtics may do against Orlando is a complete mystery.

There are at least a couple of possibilities. They could be completely spent from the energy, both physical and mental, expended against the Bulls. Paul Pierce and Ray Allen and Doc Rivers can talk all they want about how playing a ton of minutes doesn’t matter because they’re all basketball players and that’s what they do. Tack on the amount of time played by the Celtics’ starting five to the amount they’ve all played over the course of the season, plus all of last season, when they participated in 26 playoff games, and you have a truckload of minutes. Enough minutes that would add at least a little bit of weight to even the most well-conditioned player’s legs. And on top of that, there’s the emotional toll after a series that featured so many highs and lows that even the most stoic, bloodless guys had to have felt them. The Celtics are exhausted and they may be too gassed to stay with the Magic.

Or, they may be recharged and re-energized. There’s no doubt that the Celts are flying after coming out on top against the Bulls. Even for a team that has been to the heights that the Celts have reached, winning such a battle, especially while playing severely undermanned, has to be totally elating. Now, after showing the kind of heart and resolve on display against Chicago, perhaps they see themselves as world beaters and will play as such. Or maybe they’re just so happy to be rid of the Bulls (especially the hideous Brad Miller andJoakim Noah) that just seeing a different uniform on the other side of the floor will carry them. Who knows?

What is clear, or at least clearer, is that the Celts are going to have to deal with a better, more experienced group. As well as the Bulls played all series long, particularly the duo of Ben Gordon and Derrick Rose, they don’t have anyone who even approaches Orlando’s Dwight Howard. Howard, who on any particular night may well grab 25 rebounds and block seven shots, is an absolute beast, a prototypical center for this era of the pro game. As well as his will to rebound and defend at the highest possible level, he is extremely quick and is able to get around pretty much every big man he faces with ease. He has harnessed that quickness and applied it to his offensive repertoire to the tune of 21 points a game. He can post up or face up and be just as dangerous regardless.

If the Celtics want to win, they may just have to live with giving Howard what he wants. As we all know so well, the Celts’ front line is thin. Kendrick Perkins will have the task of checking Howard and he has to stay out of foul trouble, not just so there will be less need forMikki Moore and Brian Scalabrine on the offensive end but on defense as well, where each of them will be eaten alive before fouling out in 10 minutes. Big Baby Davis had one of his better games of the season against Howard and the Magic, outplaying him on both ends, but that was with KevinGarnett backing him up. Big Baby emerged as a true threat against the Bulls and the Celtics will need all they can get from him in this round, so the less time he has to spend grappling with Howard the better. Howard’s going to get his, so the Celts just have to ensure that everyone else in blue doesn’t.

After Howard, the Magic thin out. Hedo Turkoglu is their next best player, and although he has proven to be somewhat of an assassin at big moments both in these playoffs and before, he’s been playing on a bad wheel that may or may not affect him, particularly when it comes to driving to the basket. The point guard isRafer Alston, a journeyman equally capable of throwing out a great game and a stinker. Rashard Lewis, the team’s highest paid player, was quiet in the Magic’s first-round win over Philly and has appeared to be rather passive in big games. Their starting 2-guard a rookie named Courtney Lee who can really shoot, is out with a fractured sinus. No one on their bench is all that scary, unless you count Duke alum/slow, no-position, long range gunner J.J.Redick scary. Second-year big guy Marcin Gortat, did put up 11 points and 15 boards in place of the suspended Howard in the clincher against the Sixers so given the Celts’ depleted frontcourt, they may need to pay him some mind.

The point is that these are the guys the Celts have to make beat them. Despite Howard’s mammoth presence up front, the Magic are a perimeter-oriented outfit. They shoot three after three after three with a lot of screen and roll up top to freeTurkoglu and Lewis for open looks, as well as a fair amount drive and kick stuff too. There won’t be as much ball movement as the Bulls employed and Orlando doesn’t have nearly the team speed that the Bulls had. Although they will get out and run from time to time, these factors play into the Celts’ hands.Rajon Rondo, who must be considered among the league’s elite point guards after his performance against the Bulls, shouldn’t have too tough a time against Alston, and both Pierce and Allen are likely to be able to operate a little bit more freely against the Magic’s D, which won’t be as quick or aggressive as the Bulls’ was. Orlando probably caught on to the fact that Pierce’s worst moments in the last round were when he was trapped or at least doubled at the three-point line so seeing that approach won’t be surprising. And a more consistent effort from the bench, thin as it is and Eddie House’s perfect Game 7 notwithstanding, would be nice, though saying that is like hoping for rain in the midst of a drought.

So that’s what next. I’m not particularly ready to leave the Bulls series behind just yet (and by the way, as great a series as it was, and man was it amazing, it was not one of the best series of all time for the simple fact that it was just the first round – move it up a couple rounds and we’re onto something) but as gratifying and meaningful as it was, it’s now history. It was one step, even if it felt like 20. And now, another task is at hand. It’s a task the Celts will handle – they take the Magic in six.

By Jeremy Gottlieb

Four games down and it feels like 24. One blowout sandwiched among three total nail biters, the most recent of which was an absolute classic. What more can the Celtics and Bulls possibly give us? Yet there are at least two, potentially three more games to play (and believe me, this series is going seven) and if those games follow anything close to the same path the rest of the series has, ESPN Classic may have to rethink its strategy of showing nothing but reruns of the World Series of Poker. The series has had its fair share of intriguing plotlines, from the explosion of Derrick Rose to Rajon Rondo’s taking the next step, to Paul Pierce’s surprising amount of lethargy in three of the four games to the emergence of Joakim Noah as a supervillian (the thought here is that he’s involved in at least one fracas before the series is over). And as entertaining as each of the first three games were in their own ways, none of them combined added up to what we got from Game 4, a relentlessly “can you top this,” type of contest that alternately blissfully and painfully seemed to never end. It was playoff basketball at its finest, one of the best, most competitive games of the year, a true test of wills that ended with the Bulls winning 121-118 in double overtime.

Early on, things were mundane at best. It took Pierce, who was absolutely blistering hot to start Game 3, until almost halfway through the second quarter to score his first points. Kendrick Perkins, who seems to have Noah’s number in the low post, was the Celts’ most reliable option at this point, and he, along with Rondo, carried the load while Pierce was taking his time waking up in time for the noon central time start and Ray Allen got untracked. Meanwhile, as happened so often during the season, the bench turned a slim, first quarter lead into a 16-2 Bulls run practically on cue in the early stages of the second quarter. It was quite dispiriting to see Stephon Marbury and Mikki Moore, after each of their solid performances in Game 3, return to the ranks of the irrelevant at best, hopelessly lost/overmatched at worst.

The Bulls were certainly not the same team that stunk out the gym in Game 3. They were much looser, more focused and calmer. Their energy, which was nonexistent Thursday night, gave the Celts fits, especially on the defensive end, particularly when it came to Pierce. And speaking of energy, the game also marked the official emergence of Tyrus Thomas as a certifiable beast. Thomas was all over the place, adding to his league-leading playoff blocked shot total, in on every rebound, ferocious on defense, particularly down low and pretty much just jumping through the roof. All the talk about Rose and his enormous talent is certainly justified, but if Thomas, who also has hit a few big shots in the series, continues to develop, he will be an all-star several times over.

Pierce and Allen both hit a few shots in the waning stages of the first half but for the Celts, it was all about Rondo. He hit the break with 11 points, six rebounds and six assists, and continued to be the best player on the floor wearing a green uniform. On defense, he was a one man swarm, holding Rose pretty much in check (at least temporarily) while keeping up his furious pace on the glass and doing all of the little things that any team needs to win. On the ABC telecast, both Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy were falling all over themselves praising Rondo for everything short of doing cartwheels, all of it perfectly justified. And even though Pierce made just three of 10 shots and Allen took only four in the half, the Celtics were ahead going into the locker room.

The second half started quite similarly to the first, with the Celts confounding propensity for sluggish starts rearing its head again. They missed nine of their first 10 shots in the third quarter but were bailed out by the Bulls’ youth and inexperience. The hosts couldn’t get out of their own way, committing seven turnovers and sending the Celts to the line 12 times in the quarter. Worse, Rose was playing passive which made up for the facts that Pierce again couldn’t get going and Big Baby, such a crucial offensive weapon for the Celts since his man doubles off him and he’s wide open all the time, was suffering through a horrendous shooting day. It seemed as though the Bulls wouldn’t be able to capitalize on their best chance of the day to send the Celts home and the Celts took advantage when Pierce got hot toward the end of the quarter and they ended the frame on a 12-0 run.

The fourth quarter was when things started to enter a different realm. Big Baby and Bulls’ big man Brad Miller got into a near-scuffle and it ignited Rose. Suddenly, the player who owned Game 1 was back. Rose was trying to take the game over and if it wasn’t for Rondo, who was careening toward another triple-double, he may well have done it. Meanwhile, Perk, who averages 1.5 moving pick fouls per game, committed his second one of the game and fouled out. I love Perk and how he’s developed over the past couple of years, but it would not be asking too much for him to learn how to set a legal screen. Anyway, his expulsion from the proceedings robbed the Celts of their only real shot blocker and their second best rebounder (if anyone wants to argue that Rondo is not their best right now, please feel free to bring it). This lack of a defensive presence in the paint opened things up for Rose even more and he took advantage.

Down the stretch, with Rondo still controlling things and Big Baby’s shooting struggles extending into the post, where he missed three layups between the final quarter and second overtime, Allen started to make his presence felt. He hit a three in the final two minutes so naturally, with the Bulls up three with just under 10 seconds to play, it seemed a foregone conclusion that he’d be getting the ball. What wasn’t so obvious was that the Bulls defense on the play would be so bad. Both Noah and Thomas got caught in a screen set by Big Baby and Allen’s look from the right wing was wide open. He buried the shot and we were on to the first OT.

Soon after extra session No. 1 began, Rondo had the triple-double. He’s now averaging one for the series, only the fourth player to ever do that, and the first Celtic since Larry Bird in 1986 to have two in the same series. Allen drilled a couple more from long range and Rose was beginning to lag. When they went up five with two minutes left, it felt like the Celts would survive. But Ben Gordon, who put on the best Andrew Toney impression in Game 2 since Andrew Toney, had bounced back from a sore hamstring to make a couple of big shots in the overtime, including a swooping runner high off the glass over both Big Baby and Tony Allen that defied logic. Ahead by two, Pierce made a free throw then missed his second one of the series that would have ended the game with nine seconds left. Just as it was a no-brainer for Allen to take the shot at the end of regulation, so too was it that Gordon would get the ball at the end of the overtime. The Bulls called his number, he barely shook free of Pierce, launched an off-balance bomb from the right wing and nailed it. What goes around comes around and we were headed for another extra frame.

There was some suspense in OT, version 2.0, but not as much as there had been. The Celtics were the team that seemed to have had its spirit broken, not the youthful, inexperienced Bulls. John Salmons, who was awful in the first half, made two big shots, scored six of the Bulls 11 points in the frame and rung up two huge defensive plays on Pierce, one a strip while Pierce was driving with the Bulls up two and the second a partial block of Pierce’s last-second three-point heave. Rose and Gordon each had a couple more big moments and even though Pierce made a huge three to cut the Bulls lead to one, making the thought of a third overtime very real with about 15 seconds left, it just wasn’t going to happen, despite the heroics of both Rondo and Allen. Both teams had multiple chances to win and both teams probably should have won before it was all said and done. The Bulls just made one more shot than the Celts did, the way it usually goes down in the best games.

So what do the Celts need to do going forward? They need Pierce to play more like he did in Game 3, for starters. Sure, the Bulls are playing him extremely well, trapping and harassing him when they can and siccing defensive maven Kirk Hinrich on him when they can’t. But his energy and intensity just don’t seem right which is very confusing. He must step up, which we all know he can if he so chooses. They also need to tighten up defensively. They were positively demonic on D in Game 3 and for stretches yesterday. But there were missed assignments and slow rotations at crucial points yesterday as well and that sort of thing needs to be eliminated.

Still, there isn’t that much to complain about. It was a very tough loss and naturally, it’s far better to be coming home up 3-1 than tied 2-2. But it was such a great game, so worthy of all the praise one can dish out, so exhilarating and infuriating and exhausting and magnificent all at once that the final outcome seems less important. It will be pretty hard for any of the remaining games to live up to Game 4. But it can’t hurt to hope.

By Mike Brilliant and Tom Scott

Tom:

Great end to the first half. Good to see the team extend the league with Rondo on the bench. Was the celtics demise greatly exagerated?

Mike:

The Celtics were being counted out by most experts. Going in to tonight’s game, the Bulls were even money to win this series. And what about all that talk of Pierce being too tired, too run down and the victim of over 200 games in the past 20 months?

The key to the first half was Pierce getting off early and the Celtics playing their championship defense. It seemed like Boston was creating turnovers on every other possession, and they got to just about every loose ball.

Rondo turned in another awesome effort and even Marbury created a spark off the bench tonight that we all expected from Day 1.

Tom, what do the Celtics need to do in the second half to continue their success?

Tom:

Defense and ball movement. The first half defense was great. The bulls shot 33% and they were taking at least 15 seconds a possession in order to get a shot off. Keep the defensive intensity and the hustle to loose balls. On offense, it’s the ball movement. They had about a five minute stretch in the first half when it was Paul Pierce isolation offense from 2005. There’s no need to repeat that again.

Give me your two things that make you confident and two things that still concern you going forward?

Mike:

I really like how Rondo is running the team. Right from the get-go, it seemed like Rondo was running after every defensive board. Rose has received all of the publicity this series, but Rondo has clearly outplayed him. He has been the MVP of the series so far.

I also loved the way the Celtics came out and played defense. You expect it from Rondo and Perkins, but even Big Baby was moving his feet and blocking shots. The Bulls had over 20 turnovers. Many of those were self inflicted, but the Celtics force many more with their aggressiveness.

It’s tough to criticize a team that wins on the road by 30, but I’m a bit concerned about their big man situation. As noted before, Mikki Moore is a human foul machine and is really the only reserve big man. I know Scalabrine is back…but he hasn’t played in two months.

Tom Scott:

Big Baby had a great game, he is getting better and better. The man is incredibly light on his feet. He looked good with that finger roll the other day and tonight he had some nifty moves. As an aside, with NFL draft coming up, could big baby have become Antonio Gates? He’s got great feet and is quicker than he looks.
 
The other plus item was clearly the defense. They came out with much better focus on defense.  I think part of it was the “us against the world on the road” metality but the other half was effort.  They shut down the lane, challenged most shots and made the Bulls work hard.
 
On the downside, Pierce and Ray Allen had a combined total of one rebound and zero assists. They did play good D tonight but it would be nice for them to contribute in these other categories.  The Celtics’ best games this year involved these two stuffing the stat sheet
 
Prediction for Game 4?

Mike:

To beat the same team they just blew out on the road will be a tall task for the Celtics. Chicago will have three days to think about how bad they were, which should prove to be the ultimate motivation. Saying that, if the Celtics play stellar defense and the starters stay out of foul trouble, there’s no reason they shouldn’t have a good chance to win.

By Mike Brilliant and Tom Scott

Editor’s Note: With two playoff games in the books, I’ve solicited the contributions of two former writers for the Full Court Press to chip in with playoff coverage. Last season, they gave us their back and forth opinions in a regular column called the “Give and Go”. Thankfully, Mike and Tom “the Chest” Scott are back. As noted in the past, these guys are all about the basketball.

Tom Scott:

With Game 2 over, another thriller, the question is – Are the bulls a good #7 seed or are the Celtics just a bad #2 seed?

Mike:

There have been many first round series that have been much closer than anyone expected. Off the top of my head, I can remember the Celtics being involved in quite a few. There was Cleveland back in the mid-eighties. Indiana in 1991 and 1992.

Having said that, I think the Bulls are comparable with the Hawks and the Heat who are the #4 and #5 seeds respectively. Since the acquisitions of Brad Miller and John Salmons, Da Bulls are playing well over .500 basketball. Chicago could be this year’s Atlanta.

So what is/are the Celtics’ problem(s)?

Tom Scott:

Chicago is even better than that. They might be equal to Orlando. They finished the season 14-7 since March 4th. Orlando was 15-7 and the Celtics were15-6. So clearly they came together after the trade while Rose got used to the league (what rookie wall?). They really remade that team nicely by getting rid of Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden and Nocioni. Brad Miller and John Salmons really round out the team. Salmons is playing good defense on Pierce. They are definitely a team on the rise.

That being said, Boston’s problems really arise from one major issue – Defense. The Bulls are getting transition points all of over the place by out-hustling the Celtics on the break. After the first 8 minutes of Game 2 until the end of the half, the Bulls were pushing when they could. It also helps that they are more athletic than the Celtics.

The help defense is also a problem. Without KG, they are not able to rotate quick enough and to help protect, like when Rose blew by Rondo all throughout Game 1. Then Chicago put up 115 points in Game 2 and they shot 50%. This is way above the average they allowed all season.

I also have to wonder: What happened to the bench?

Mike:

I agree. The Boston defense over the last two games has been their biggest problem. Giving up 115 points per game is not going to win you many playoff games. Also, Ben Gordon was getting far too many open looks. The Celtics didn’t really pay attention to him until it was too late. He was totally “en fuego.”

Regarding the Boston bench, they obviously didn’t do a great job in the first half of Game 2. Once Rondo and Perkins came out of the game, the Celtics blew their double digit lead almost immediately. It seems like the only players I truly trust off the bench are Eddie House and Leon Powe. Um, make that just House as we won’t be seeing Leon on the floor anytime soon after he tore his left ACL.

Rondo and Perkins were superb in the first half. Their replacements, Stephon Marbury and Mikki Moore? Not so much. I’ll start with Moore. You would think that he should be able to match up with Noah (athletic, slim build) and Brad Miller (a jump shooter). But Moore is a human fouling machine that can’t rebound and can’t seem to grasp the Celtics’ defensive concept.

As for Marbury, not only is he tentative going to hoop, but he somehow lost his outside shot. We know he can’t play on the ball defense, so the Celtics appear to be left with Sebastian Telfair all over again.

Doc Rivers didn’t do the starters any favors either. It seemed like House was the only significant bench player who received minutes in the second half. By the end of the game, it seemed like the offense was stagnant probably due mostly to fatigue. Pierce wasn’t going to the hoop at all. Then again, I’m not sure I can attribute that to fatigue or the lack of calls he’s been getting all series from these minor league NBA refs.

All that said, if there was one guy who should have played more, it’s Tony Allen. As hot as Gordon was in the fourth quarter, why wouldn’t you put Allen on him? I asked the same question in Game 1 when Rose went off for 36.

What’s your forecast for Game 3? Will the Celtics’ road woes from last year’s playoffs continue?

Tom Scott:

I agree on TA. I was wondering if he was hurt. He would have been a good matchup for Gordon and would have been useful on Rose on Saturday.

I think they can win one in Chicago but I’m not sure it will be Game 3. The crowd will be crazy and the team will definitely feed off that. I guess the biggest hope is that perhaps the Bulls will read their own clippings and may not have the same focus they had in Boston. Conversely, maybe the Celtics can rally around themselves and try to survive in a hostile environment.

Ultimately, they need the defense to be better and they need the offensive movement they had in Game 2. Ray Allen finally decided to move in the second half and it showed. In Game 1 and in the first half of Game 2, he stood around. He wasn’t doing what made him successful, i.e. coming off picks, moving and finding the soft spots.

What happened to Pierce in Game 2? He looked out of the game.

Mike:

Pierce looked like he was exhausted. How else to explain why he got his jumper blocked by a point guard, Derrick Rose, late in the game? He also was very hesitant to drive to the basket all throughout the game. Then the few times he did, the refs didn’t give him a single call.

Pierce played 43 minutes on Saturday. This is fine, because the game went into overtime, which added 5 minutes to his total. But Doc really put a lot of pressure on the starters Monday with his non-existent substitutions. I remember Doc blew a game by leaving his starters in all second half during Game 2 in 2005 versus Indiana. He’s lucky it didn’t cost him on Monday.

Tom Scott:

Pierce got outhustled on the block and the out of bounds save and looked like he was out of energy. Now with Powe out, using the bench effectively will be important. They need to continue with rotating substitutions rather than bringing on four bench guys at once. They’ll probably use Marbury on Rose but they might be better off letting him take Hinrich to the hoop and abuse him a bit. Generally speaking, Stephon and Eddie House both need to step up big on Thursday.

Coming attractions on FCP: More “Give and Go” with post-game analysis of Game 3

By Kevin Henkin

Although this has nothing to do with the Bulls or even the Celtics, I thought it was worth mentioning nonetheless:

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal had a piece that embarrassingly fawned all over the Los Angeles Lakers and their semi-passionate fan base. My favorite nugget of information gleaned from the article was the fact that, according to one Los Angeles insurance carrier, at least 350 pets in the LA area are named after Kobe Bryant.

Hmm. Actually, I think it makes far more sense for Celtics fans to name their dogs after Kobe because it would provide everyone with a constant source of amusement whenever discipline was required . “Oh no! Kobe Bryant just peed all over the floor! Bad Kobe !” Or “No! No! No! Kobe , how many times have I told you not to eat your own poop!” Or “Fer Crissakes, Kobe Bryant just ran away with my dirty underwear again!” And finally: “Kobe, leave that poor woman’s leg alone! That’s disgusting!”

Moving along, some might call this the blatant recycling of old material. I prefer to view it as a fond reminiscence of those heady days of the title run of last spring. Here are some random Rolling Observations I made during a couple of the playoff games I attended last year. They’re about a few specific players that I happen to find myself missing these days:

Kevin Garnett (from Game 1 of the Cleveland series):

Anderson Varejao draws a hard foul. While at the line, the crowd starts a “Sideshow Bob” chant. It’s funny because it’s true. Sideshow Bob can’t cover Kevin Garnett either.

Leon Powe (from Game 1 of the Atlanta series):

Just when the crowd seems to be getting a little sleepy, Leon Powe wakes them up with an eye-popping jam against double coverage, including Josh Smith. I’m pretty sure Leon Powe could muscle a slam through a truck full of fast drying concrete. This from a guy who couldn’t get on the floor at the beginning of the season. Now he’s clearly an important (if unheralded outside of Boston) part of the rotation.

James Posey (from Game 1 against Atlanta):

After a Joe Johnson three, James Posey responds seconds later with his own three, then grabs the rebound on the next defensive possession. This reminds me of the words of his former coach Pat Riley offered earlier this season in the bowels of this very building. After a drubbing by the Celtics, when asked to reflect on the loss of James Posey (due to salary cap considerations), Riley said, “James Posey is a big shot, big game, big time player.” True, that.

Sam Cassell (from Game 1 against Cleveland):

Sam Cassell knocks down his first jumper after talking some smack to Delonte West. Although I couldn’t catch the full exchange, it was something about West’s mother being overweight and crashing through the wall yelling Kool-Aid.

and:

After a Cleveland miss, Sam Cassell of all people tears away the rebound and is subsequently knocked to the floor by Ilgauskas. The big Lithuanian knees Cassell in the head for good measure, but Cassell knees the Cavs in the groin by knocking down his free throws.

Coming attractions on FCP: The revival of the “Give and Go” by Mike Brilliant and Tom “the Chest” Scott

By Kevin Henkin

The NBA: Where Immense Frustration Happens. Ugh. Where to begin? With some salient facts, I suppose, which are as follows:

The Chicago Bulls defeated the Boston Celtics at home in Game 1 of their first round playoff series, in overtime, by a score of 105-103.

Bulls rookie point guard Derrick Rose submitted a performance for the ages. In 49 minutes of play, he recorded 36 points on 12-19 shooting to go with 11 assists. He also hit all 12 of his free throws.

Rajon Rondo was almost as magnificent with 29 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists.

Ray Allen, meanwhile, was horrid. Yes, he missed the shot on a good look at the end of overtime that would have tied it for Boston but it was his overall line of 4 points on 1-12 shooting (including 0-6 from deep waters) that spoke volumes. With Kevin Garnett out, the Celtics simply cannot afford to have Ray Allen become invisible for another playoff series.

Joakim Noah hauled in 17 rebounds to go with his 11 points and 3 blocks. Noah in particular seemed to swallow up Glen Davis whenever Baby approached anywhere near the basket. Brad Miller grabbed another 12 boards off the bench. For the game, Chicago out-rebounded Boston by a margin of 66-57. The effort by the Bulls on the glass was certainly among the primary deciding factors.

Paul Pierce had a lackluster first half, scoring only 4 points before coming alive in the third quarter and beyond. For the game, he finished with 23 points on 8-21 shooting. What he’ll be remembered for most, however, was missing the second of two free throws with 2 seconds left in regulation. Hitting the shot would have sent the Bulls packing. Instead, the miss left the game tied at 97 all. In the subsequent overtime, Tyrus Thomas seemed to become Ray Allen by connecting on multiple contested outside jumpers whereas Ray Allen seemed to become Tony Allen, suffering form a sustained poor shooting touch as well as a nasty case of butterfingers at the most crucial of times.

Now for some musings beyond the numbers:

I think anyone watching the game had to feel very early on that the Celtics were not submitting a playoff level of intensity. Doc Rivers admitted as much during his in-game comments to ESPN. I remain mystified by this. As a team without its emotional leader and defensive anchor, the Celtics obviously realize that their margin for error, even against a lesser team like the Bulls, has shrunk considerably. Therefore, one would think that no one in a Celtics uniform would ever be seen – on the parquet floor, no less – TAKING PLAYS OFF. And yet that’s exactly what happened on numerous occasions over the course of the game.

Take, for example, the last play of the first half. With time winding down, Ben Gordon launched a three point shot from the top of the key. When the shot left his hands, only Brad Miller moved towards the basket. When the shot bounced wide to the left with one second left, it fell into the hands of the advancing Miller, who laid it in easily just before time expired. Replays showed that no Celtics players were even in the lane when Miller received the ball, with most of them still stuck to the floor exactly where they were when Gordon launched the shot. It was an inexcusable collective lack of effort that ended up costing the Celtics dearly later in the game.

There were other examples, such as a Rajon Rondo drive just inside the three minute mark of the third quarter. On that play, Rondo took a deep rebound and charged full steam up the court against a back-peddling Bulls defense. Again, replays showed that the only other Celtics player even within twenty feet behind him was Ray Allen as the lagging trailer. Meanwhile, the other Boston players – Pierce, Davis and Kendrick Perkins – all jogged up the court behind the play. Left alone, Rondo stubbornly charged hard into the heart of the Chicago defense with the hopes of drawing a foul. He turned the ball over instead.

These are the plays that I cannot erase from my mind, and believe me, there were others worthy of scrutiny. Look, we all know that losing playoff games at home is going to happen. It just shouldn’t ever come down to a lack of proper effort. Yes, it’s true that Derrick Rose played out of his mind. It’s also true that the officials were regrettably a factor. Hell, an entire article could be devoted to exploring their gross incompetence displayed over the course of this game. Leading the charge was Bennett Salvatore, the man you may well remember for calling the ludicrous offensive foul against Paul Pierce in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against Detroit last year.

Regardless, if we’re going to assign blame, accusing fingers should be pointed first and foremost at everyone in a Celtics uniform not named Rajon Rondo. Outside of the young point guard, who nearly dragged his team to victory all by himself, all other Celtics players were guilty of either inexcusably dogging it on occasion or submitting a sub-par overall performance. Ray Allen, as noted above, was beyond ineffective. So too were Eddie House, Glen Davis, Stephon Marbury and – to a lesser degree – Paul Pierce.

In the wake of the news that Garnett was likely a scratch for the playoffs, the Celtics players to a man said all the right things. Don’t count us out. We’re still playing for a title. Sounds great in front of the microphones but now it has to be backed up on the basketball court. That includes the entire forty-eight minutes of the game, by the way. Forget all the doomsday prognostications about Cleveland or even Orlando. Chicago is the team that presently stands in the way of a successful title defense. Get past them and maybe we can resume discussing of likelihood of an upset against the vaunted Cleveland Cavaliers.

To be continued…