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Ledge is all yours Carolina

2009-11-09T20:54:07Z

I’m not sure if it’s because all the Carolina fans are jumping off the ledge, and any that haven’t jumped yet are thinking about it now that Cam Ward is hurt, but I see a lot of Bruins fans coming in off the ledge. I wrote earlier in the week about what they need to get done. Saturday night, they did 2 of the three things. Amazing what happens when the Power Play is working, and playing with a truculent attitude eh? Looks like the blue print for success moving forward.

While it wasn’t exactly a knock down, drag em out affair, it was markedly more physical of a game last night. Shawn Thornton had 2 fights, and Mark Stuart had enough of net crashing late in the third. Unfortunately for Jochen Hecht, he was the target of Stuart’s frustration. Stuart has been physical all year, and I love his ability to fight. He is a very tough kid, and the rest of the league should take notice. If you are going to take liberties on the ice, you may have to deal with Mark Stuart.

Stuart’s fight was very one sided, as was the fight Thornton had with former Bruin Steve “Step Brother” Montador. Has anyone ever seen Steve Montador, and Will Ferrell in the same room? Anyway, I did not see what started the Thornton and Paul Gaustad fight, but to say Thornton was heated after the tilt is a gross understatement. He was yelling at him louder and with more animation than the bartender of the Makaha after refusing me service on my 6th Mai Tai and my subsequent refusal to go quietly into the night a couple of years ago. The point being, Boston was not pushed around last night, and when they play that way they are tough to beat.

Another good sign was the two PP goals scored by the Black and Gold. Mark Recchi got the party started in typical Wrecking Ball fashion with a trademark tip in while parked in front of the net goal in the first period. Later, Zdeno Chara got off the snide with a blast from the point that went in off a Buffalo defender. It was kind of a greasy goal, but it’s the kind of goal the Bruins weren’t getting a week ago. The bounces just weren’t going their way, and after last night’s game, it appears their luck may have changed.

I’ll give you the fact Buffalo played a goaltender that was making his NHL debut and was giving up rebounds bigger than he should have been, but it’s the fact Boston was putting themselves in the position to exploit said goaltender, and rebounds. Not two weeks ago, they made Yann Danis look like Terry fucking Sawchuk, and they put 98% of the shots on Carey Price the other night in the stupid CH logo on his butt smoking chest. After not giving up Thursday, and playing the kind of Bruins hockey that has made them successful last night, I am ready to say they may have turned the corner on the season, and are pointed in the right direction. With defending Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh in town Tuesday (riding a 2 game losing streak in which they have given up 10 goals while scoring 2) and playing in Pittsburgh next Saturday, we Bruins fans should get a good reading on where exactly this team stands. In the meantime, Carolina fans, there is plenty of room out on the ledge. I’ll leave the window open.

In off the ledge Please

2009-11-05T00:46:22Z

In off the ledge Bruins fans. In off the ledge. It is way too early to panic. The Bruins will make the playoffs with their current configuration. They play in a fairly week division and can get it done. Look at how they have played over the last three games, and it’s easy to see a club that is working hard, but has a bit of a goal scoring problem. Having said that, here are three things the Bruins need to do to win their division and possible make a run at Lord Stanley.

1. Get an immediate return for Phil Kessel. The Boston Front Office did a very nice job jettisoning a malcontent that wasn’t going to resign in Boston anyway. I am not one to say the issues with Boston are a lack of Kessel’s scoring because he didn’t even play his first game of the season until last night. Having said that, if Boston could swing an in season trade somewhere that could bring some immediate offensive punch I’d be all for it.

2. Fix the Power Play. Like right now. Picture the guy in Slap Shot that comes up to Reg Dunlop in the bar. “You gotta work on the Power Play. Quit losin so much.” Fucking fix it. I was shocked to see they were 28th in the league on the PP as of Sunday. I was half watching the game in Detroit at bowling last night, so I don’t know if it got worse or not. I guess my point is I was shocked it wasn’t 30th. No one seems to want to shoot, that goes for even strength too, and too much standing around makes for a shit tackular power play.

3. Get involved in a knockdown, drag em out game against Montreal tomorrow. This team needs an identity, and a rally cry game. Te Dallas game was the one for last year’s club. I thought Ottawa was going to be this season’s, and to some degree it was, but what they need is an Old Time Hockey glove drop on the opening faceoff, then follow that up with another fight right after. Then another. If I may borrow from Herb Brooks. Again. Again. Again.

So, in off the ledge boys and girls. You’ll know when it’s time to panic, it just isn’t now. Go Bruins.

Matt Carkner has Arrived!

2009-10-22T20:34:02Z

Mighty Matt Carkner was signed to a 2-yr deal by the Ottawa Senators this week, just a few short days after his first-ever NHL goal. He also soundly beat the snot out of Steve Downie on the 15th. To say it’s been an incredible month for the man would be an obvious understatement. I have gotten to know Matt a little - as we’re both residents of Westport, Ontario - and it couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.

The Cove, a classy Westport Hotel has organized the CarkBus for all of us proud residents this evening, and I have to wrap this up if I’m going to make it down there in time for a few Molsons prior to departure. We’re getting into the player’s area after the game and the excitement coursing through my veins is ridiculous.

Obviously I’ll be taking photos and videos to share with you on the blog tomorrow - and you can keep up with us in real-time by following us on the all new Goonblog Twitter account which will be officially announced over the weekend. The Ref is out!

I feel good. I feel great. I feel Wonderful.

2009-10-18T21:00:17Z

So, the beloved Bruins are the feel bad story of the year so far. One minute they look like world beaters, the next they look as if Perkins School for the Blind would give them a run for their money. I think what they need is a real good knockdown, drag em out divisional game to get back on the path to glory. I’m not here to talk feel bad though, let’s talk feel good.

I watched the game Friday with some buddies, and we discussed where Brian McGrattan was. “In Calgary.” I said. Riveting eh? Anyway, Friday night McGrattan recorded a Gordie Howe Hat Trick in just 5:55 of ice time against the Vancouver Canucks. The tilt he has with Darcy Hordichuk is a beauty, with McGrattan scoring a very hard right hand at the end of the fight that knocks Hordichuk to the ice.

McGrattan spent the majority of last season in rehab getting his life straight. Clean and sober now, he’s doing his thing for the Calgary Flames. Calgary is my West Coast team on Center Ice this season so far, as they are a fun bunch to watch. I will be pulling for Brian McGrattan this season, and give him a Goonblog Atta Boy for the Gordie Howe the other night. Keep it up Brian!

I Smoked Pot with Charlie Dickens

2009-10-06T00:07:33Z

If I may borrow a bit of old Charlie Dickens, this weekend was like the beginning of “A tale of Two Cities”, “It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.” I don’t want to get overly dramatic here, but it really was the best and worst of the Boston Bruins on opening weekend. I will start at the worst of times.

On Thursday the Bruins opened against The Washington Capitals. I had friends up from DC for the tilt, and to say they were excited is a gross understatement. You know my Math book? Picture that times ten. So, Ginger, Cindy and I met in Boston around 2 O’clock and went to Porter’s across from the Garden. We had a lot of laughs, and good natured teasing back and forth all day about who was going to win. As other patrons filed in, they joined in, and the fun continued right on into the Garden. Then, after about 10 minutes in, it stopped. At least for me.

The only thing more documented here on Goonblog than my need for a math book when excited, is my ability to always be seated next to, or very near, “That Guy.” It is said, I have even been “That Guy” before, but that is here nor there. Thursday evening was no different as we definitely found “TG” early.

From the second they sat down, I knew we were in trouble. For starters, neither guy could heckle. I pride myself on being able to provide a very well timed (albeit often times inappropriate) heckle, and these guys didn’t have it. They were yelling stupid things at people that weren’t even on the ice for starters, and while they were loud, they were very unfunny. A good heckle needs to give the rest of the people around you a good chuckle I feel, and these guys were making me anything other than chuckley. Furious is more like it. Neither nit wit knew the game either. They spent a good 20 minutes arguing over Blake Wheeler, and if he was a rookie or not. No, no he’s not. Both claimed to play in hockey leagues, which I find slightly more believable than me having to leave MOL because Jenny McCarthy has threatened to kill herself if I didn’t become her man. Anyway, they were awful, and should be ashamed of themselves.

As for the Bruins? Well, they played well for 10 minutes as a group. After that, the only persons that stood out were newcomers Steve Begin (who had better look out for MOL before starting his car. FURIOUS he is wearing 27. She has a thing for Glenn Murray. What can I say?) Derek Morris (whom that guys refused to believe was a New York Ranger) and Patrice Bergeron. Other than that, they played like a group that was not sure about the schedule, and when the regular season actually started. I would like to say as well, the Washington Capitals are no joke. They came out firing on all cylinders. They are dangerous enough when their opponent is playing at their level. When they play a team playing like the Bruins were the other night, you get the 4-1 result. No need to panic Bruins fans.

Saturday, on the other hand, is what Bruins fans should expect from the Boston Bruins this season. When they play the old Lunch pail AC style, they are arguably the toughest team in the NHL to play against. They got on Cam Ward early and often, and gave Carolina no room all night. I was very surprised it took as long as it did for Carolina to fight back, but after seeing the ill advised fight Jay Harrison had with Milan Lucic, and the beating Andrew Alberts took at the hands of Shawn Thornton, I can see why they were reluctant to get physical with Boston. Kudos to Harrison and Alberts for fighting, especially Harrison. Despite being bloodied by Milan Lucic, he landed a couple of very hard right hands himself. The trouble is punching Lucic in the face is probably similar to punching a block of stone.

Shawn Thornton again had a very impressive tilt against Andrew Alberts. After another very good bout against John Erskine Thursday, he laid a beating on former Bruin Andrew Alberts that Alberts won’t soon forget. Or maybe he will after that many shots to the mind eh? I could tell as soon as 22 stepped on the ice, he had no intention of playing hockey. He made a B-Line for Alberts, and made him answer the bell for roughing up Marc Savard at the end of the second. Alberts obliged, and Thornton used his face as a punching bag. This fight was as one sided as could be, as it appeared Alberts really didn’t want to fight Shawn Thornton. I give him props though as the code dictates he needs to answer for the Savard thrashing. As they were being separated, it looked like Alberts said something to the effect of, “you had to do it” to Thornton. I think this is going to be a career year for Shawn Thornton, and I am excited for this Thursday as his former club is in town.

Saturday was the kind of win that brings a club together. Reader Greg made an excellent point about how Saturday’s game was reminiscent of the Dallas tilt last season. That Dallas tilt brought that club together after they beat the Stars in the alley, and on the score board. I think this Saturday’s game was the same thing. I think the rest of the NHL should be wary of the new Lunch pail AC.

Wake up Fans

2009-10-01T12:04:22Z

In about 11 hours, the hibernation ends. That’s right; the beloved Boston Bruins are skating back onto the ice tonight at 7 PM against the dreaded Washington Capitals. Boston and Washington will both come into tonight’s opener with the weight of huge expectations on their shoulders after both lost out in the second round of the playoffs last season. That is the past; I am in need of the old math book right now, as it’s finally here! Hockey season is FINALLY here!

Tonight should be a dandy. Ginger and Cindy are winging their way in from Washington right now, and I will be meeting them at the Garden at 2ish. MOL will follow at 4ish, then the group will be complete, and the mischief can begin. Two seasons ago, MOL and I visited our Nation’s Capitol and took in a Caps game against Atlanta with Ginger and Cindy. It was a lovely time, except for Ginger spilling a whole giant beer on herself! Tonight will be a night of good natured ribbing, and a great hockey game.

The Capitals have a couple of guys that can go. Gone is Donald Brashear, but Matt Bradley, and John Erskine are still on the roster. Milan Lucic gave Bradley a sound beating two seasons ago right off the opening faceoff as pay back for Washington soundly thrashing the Bruins like 10-1 or something earlier in the week. Lucic has also lost to Erskine, so those two could hook up again. Shawn Thornton has looked more than willing to drop em in the pre season as well, so look for him to get in the mix too. I know I say this a lot, but I am as giddy as a little girl right now! Go Bruins!

I’ve Never Even Been to Reno

2009-09-24T23:24:59Z

The NHL season is coming round the bend like the train Johnny Cash sings about in Folsom Prison Blues. I feel like the summer has been my prison, and I am finally free to watch the greatest game on earth. It’s almost here, and per usual, I am as giddy as a little girl.

One thing that has me especially giddy is the trade involving Phil Kessel. Look, Kessel is a fine player, and I honestly wish him luck, but I think Boston did a nice job getting what they got in return for a disgruntled kid. Boston offered him 4 years at 4 million apiece. Almost the same contract (check that) the exact same contract Pittsburgh offered Jordan Staal, and I’ll take Jordan Staal over Phil Kessel any day of the week. Phil turned it down, and Boston got a first and second rounder this year and a first rounder next year. I would say that will put Boston firmly in the driver’s seat at the trade deadline in March, as well as the draft next year, but we’ll get to that.

Here’s where Kessel helps. Last year Kessel scored 36 goals, and missed a month with mono. The year before, he scored 30 and had cancer. It’s scary to think what the kid can do with a full NHL season to work with. Alas, that won’t happen this year, as he is out until November with a rotator cuff injury. Who hurts rotator cuffs? Pitchers in baseball, not hockey players. I think the boy may be frail.

Here’s where Kessel hurts. He cannot play defense. He just doesn’t get back well, and if you can’t play defense, you can’t play for Claude Julien. Of the 36 goals Kessel scored last year, how many were “hard” goals? I.e. Kessel crashes the net and pots one? I’d say 0. Maybe 1. He gets rebounds, and puts home passes from Marc Savard. Will Kessel have one of the premiere set up men with him in Toronto like he did in Boston when Saavy was feeding him? Nope. The knock on Kessel has been for years that he doesn’t make anyone on the ice better, and it’s very true. He scores 36 goals a year. Maybe 50 if he can manage a whole NHL season. With a good set up man. That’s it.

I think this is a brilliant move by Boston for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, is, fuck him. He doesn’t want to be here, then go to Toronto. That’s an awesome place for a painfully shy kid that will have great expectations thrust upon him to play. Good luck with the media there Phil. Secondly, by trading him, and not walking away from an offer sheet they get 2 first rounder’s and a second rounder, as opposed to a first, second, and third rounder. How big is that? Think of it this way. Boston now holds in the NHL draft next season 5 of the first 60 picks. They have two first round picks right now (their own, and Toronto’s) so if Toronto sucks like they are predicted, Boston is looking at a potential lottery pick for 2010 with Toronto’s pick, and wherever they finish, they’ll have that pick as well. Another scenario is trade Toronto’s first round pick, which as we went over could be very high, plus their pick in the first round to possibly move up in the draft. They could potentially wind up with the first pick overall in 2010. Again, I am as giddy as a school girl. Another scenario has them trading picks at the deadline for immediate help should the need arise. Boston’s brass handled this perfectly, and I am excited to see it play out. T minus 7 days till puck drops. It’s comin round the bend.

RIP Fred Cusick

2009-09-18T23:11:42Z

Everywhere I turn, there is another story how an inordinate number of celebrities have died in 2009. Some heavy hitters have come down for their last breakfast this year, but no death has saddened me more than the passing of Bruins Broadcasting Legend Fred Cusick.

I remember Fred and Johnny (Pierson) but I grew up with Fred and Derek (Sanderson) as the broadcast team for my beloved Bruins. I can still see the old WSBK-TV opening, with Fred’s voice saying something like “The Bruins are rolling as of late. Winners of their last four games, they have been firing on all cylinders. The Quebec Nordiques have been in a mid winter lull, and will look to snap out of it tonight on home ice as the Bruins come roaring into town. Live from Le Colisee in Quebec, it the Boston Bruins vs. the Quebec Nordiques on WSBK-TV 38!”

Tazzer called me yesterday, and shared his thoughts on the passing of Fred Cusick. I think he hit the nail on the head when saying no one, except for maybe legendary Bruins radio announcer Bob Wilson, could call a fight like Fred. I could not agree more. With his, “Sizing each other up at center ice. And here they go!” call, he painted a vivid picture of the fight. So much so, if you close your eyes, you could see Lyndon Byers, and Clark Gillies duking it out. My favorite part was Fred’s reaction to Derek. A Bruin could literally be lying dead on the ice after a fight, and Derek would have said “Insert Bruin here, really took it to whoever he fought here.” Fred would always reply with, “He certainley gave as good as he got.” Or something like that. That was about as critical as he ever got of the Bruins.

For all the great fight calls, and his signature, “Score!”call, when Fred passed the other day, I thought instantly of my father. It was he that introduced me to games, and when I think back now, I have so many memories of sitting on the couch with my dad watching. When I was younger, he always cracked me up doing his impression of Fred saying, “and the play was ruled…..offsides…..” as I got older and understood the game of hockey more, he’d point out things about the game.

My father was a long time youth hockey coach. He was also the equipment manager for the town’s youth program for a long time, which made street hockey especially kick ass because we got old goalie pads to use. There are a ton of kids that have stories about my dad, and his coaching methods. As young kids he was there to open the door for us, and offer a pat on the back when the shift was over. It was all about having fun for him, and making sure we had fun too. As we got older, he’d offer advice upon our return to the bench, or scold someone for taking a bad penalty (usually me) but he wasn’t the type to lose his mind out on the bench. It was still a way for us to have fun.

Ever the coach, he’d point out things during Bruins games about how defensemen would talk to one another, or how a center would have his head up, and his stick on the ice. It was kind of like having Johnny Pierson as a dad, only no random tele-strator circles, or trips to a furniture convention every year. His favorite player of all time was Rick Middleton, and he’d love to call him “Nifty.” That was his favorite hockey term. When writing his columns for the Concord Journal, dad would say, “Paul Parker made a nifty pass to Derek Swaim for the games third goal against Gardner.” Fred’s terms rubbed off onto my father, and they in turn rubbed off on me.

It has been 17 years and one month since my father died, and there still isn’t a day when I don’t think about him at least once. Fred Cusick’s passing the other day made me think of how lucky I was to have a dad that invested time in his kids, sharing something that he loved with them. I thank my father for passing on a love of hockey that is as strong now as it has ever been, and I thank Fred Cusick for providing the play by play of some of the best memories I have of my entire life. RIP Fred; tell the old man I said Hi.

5 Second Rule

2009-09-07T17:36:52Z

With the opening of NHL training camp less than a week away, I wanted to talk a little bit about fighting and its place in hockey. Below you will find what the NHL deems to be a “good” fight, and a “bad” fight. Meaning, one is spur of the moment, and one is “staged”. I have a problem with the use of the word “staged.” It implies fake to me, and there is nothing fake about fighting in hockey. Moving forward I will use the term “planned.” Anyway, the rational I guess is that a planned fight is a fight for the sake of fighting sake, and a spur of the moment fight, is a fight brought on by emotion, and a reaction to something in the game. It makes no sense to me, as a planned fight is often times a reaction to something in the game, i.e., you’ve just gone down 2-0, and you need something to turn the tide your way. Or, perhaps somebody has taken a liberty with one of your guys, so you send out the tough guys to straighten it out off a draw. Perhaps the two toughest guys on the team find themselves on the ice at the same time during a face off, and want to have a go. The reasons why people fight, and for what cause are endless.

Now, then. The first scrap is between Jared Boll of Columbus, and Marc Stuart of Boston. Stuart took exception to Boll running his defense partner, and takes it upon himself to straighten Jared Boll out. Kudos to Stuart for getting in there against one of the NHL’s up and coming tough guys in Boll.

Fight 2. The planned fight between Milan Lucic and Chris Neil happened two days after the first fight, and is a dandy. Neil was trying to turn the tide his way after his Senators fell behind 2-0 to Boston. It didn’t work, as Boston rolled, but kudos to Neil for trying.

Having watched both fights, what did you notice? Other than the fact that Milan Lucic can take a punch with the best of them? For starters, I noticed in both fights, one of the combatants lost their helmet. I guess in the NHL’s thought process, in a planned fight, the fighters are more apt to lose a helmet either by removing it before they start fighting, or it gets ripped off during the scrap.

The second thing I noticed in both fights, is, THEY ARE FIGHTING! What the hell does it matter if it starts during play, or off a face off? Two people end up hitting each other. It angers me that people controlling the governance of the game may at some point penalize planned fights to the point they are legislated out of the game. If the penalty for fighting after a goal because it’s planned is more severe, would enforcers wait until play has gone on for a second to start fighting as opposed to dropping them as soon as the puck hits the ice? How does that get determined? Is there a 5 second rule? I can see it now 5 Second Rule: Not just for dropped food anymore. Beauty marketing tagline eh?

It’s finally here at any rate. We’ll have a new edition to the Goonblog staff shortly I think you’ll all enjoy, and it’s rumored a Podcast featuring Dave, Hammer, Killer and I will be recorded in December. Stay tuned everyone it’s going to be a great season!

New England Rivalry

2009-08-29T13:29:59Z

I wrote a little while ago how the NHL signing period works. Typically the top flight talent goes, then, people to protect the top flight talent get signed. That’s where we are now, and the Springfield Falcons added a big protector in Kip Brennan yesterday.

Kip was a Lowell Lockmonster back when he still had junior eligibility many moons ago. During his rookie year, he got some advice and returned to the Sudbury Wolves after racking up 117 PIM in 23 contests with Lowell. I was shocked in kind of a lost puppy kind of a way when h returned to Sudbury. Shocked, because I thought he was one of the best up and coming enforcers in the AHL at the time, and sad in a lost puppy kind of a way, because we wouldn’t get to see him anymore. Over the next almost 10 years, we have seen Kip come in the Tsongas with many a different AHL team, and he’s also managed to rack up 222 PIM in 61 NHL contests with a few different clubs along the way.

I always liked Kip Brennan. He’ll give you an honest go, and I’m hoping a little rivalry grows between him and Lowell’s newest tough guy, Louis Robitaille. There are still some big names out there, most curiously, Trevor Gillies. Gillies remains unsigned at the moment which I find surprising. He was the last cut from the Carolina Hurricanes last season, but hasn’t played since December 20th when he sustained a concussion in an altercation with Paul Bissonnette. Perhaps teams are afraid of signing him, only to see him go down again. I had heard Trevor was close to a deal with Portland, which would make a lovely little New England rivalry between Brennan, Robitaille, and Gillies, and perhaps make life worth living for fight fans in the region, but that deal seems stalled. Either way, we are two weeks away from camp, and I need my math book for travel anywhere outside this house. I can almost smell the glove warmer!