Friday, October 31, 2008

Game 11 Recap: Bruins 2 Flames 3

Thomas' shutout streak lasted 145:47.
Scott Boras is the devil.
3-2 loss. sucks.

Lucic to Wheeler Goal

The announcer might be able to sound more bored...if he was dead. He was probably high or something. I appreciate Jack SAVE BY THOMAS Edwards so much more. Way to go, TSN.

Bergeron makes Kipper look like a WHL backup.

There would be video here, but NHL.tv doesn't have itself together. Lame. It was a pretty goal. It's also not on youtube. Basically, Patrice stole Mikka's lunch money behind the net and then popped it into the gaping 24 square foot maw left by Kiprusoft.

As predicted, plenty of juicy rebounds. No follow-through.

Happy Halloween!

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Game 11: Bruins @ Calgary


Oct 30, 2008, 9:00 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD)
On the Radio: WBZ 1030
vs. Calgary Flames (5-3-1)
Notes
Other Previews
Stats
Here's the Kipper:
GO BRUINS!

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

L10: A Look Back at the first ten games

In between the recap and the next preview (phew) I wanted to take a look at what people have been doing so far this year before games no longer count into the Last 10 Record and what they are on pace for:



Ok, for laughs the "on pace" is really what they should be doing for a full 82 games based on what they've done so far.  So, Kobasew is on pace for a killer season, assist-wise. Silly Cornelius, stats do not work like that. So what else can we learn from the table?
  • Kessel is like my NHL09 offline be a pro - He gets all his points from goals.
  • Only players that have been in all 10 games have had penalties scored on them.
  • Ference and Ryder have the best +/- right now, Chara is a measly -3.
  • Kessel's 37 shots tie him for 7th in the league and 6 goals tie him at 6th.
  • Savard's 34 shots tie him for 20th and 5 goals tie him for 16th. Savard also has 8 assists, good for a tie for 12th. Together, he is tied for 3rd in scoring with Mikko Koivu and Sidney Crosby with 13. Only Alexander Semin and Evgeni Malkin have scored more.
  • Tim Thomas has tied Martin Brodeur for shutouts on the season, though Brodeur is chasing history and Thomas just wants to keep the puck out of the net. Tim Thomas is also second behind only Ryan Miller with a 1.77 GAA and barely beats out (by .001) Tampa Bay's Mike Smith for highest save percentage with .943
  • Blake Wheeler has the most Games Played of any player debuting this year.
  • I am obsessed.
Notable Events from the last ten games:
  • Lucic puts Van Ryn through the glass:
  • Lucic! Lucic! Lucic!

  • In the immortal words of Jack Edwards, SAVE! AFTER! SAVE! BY! THOMAS!

  • Shootouts are terrifying now. I was honestly more happy that the game ended in an OT win when Wideman scored than anything else.
  • Some other stuff probably happened, check in the archives for what I missed here.
L10: 5-2-3
Overall: 5-2-3
Difference: (Same)
GO BRUINS!

Game 10 Recap: Bruins 1, Canucks 0 SHUTOUT THOMAS

Let's see, 1-0...who scored the goal?

Oh yes, that would be Michael Ryder. 2-5-7 in 10 games puts him on pace for...16-41-57 on the season.

And who is this tossing suckas into the boards like so many pieces of trash?

Right, that Lucic kid. I have a feeling he'll do alright for us. In case you haven't seen the baby picture yet,
Truth be told, I didn't watch this game due to a sudden case of Fallout-3-itis, as predicted. That's why I make the big bucks...

The 800-pound-gorilla question: Does Julien stay with Thomas in Calgary?

Do you pull the pitcher throwing the no-hitter?
That'll be room 412 in the Calgary Marriott, 110 9th Avenue, SE, Calgary, AB T2G 5A6, Canada. What's with these Canadian zip codes?

Here's the full highlight selection for you:

Record: 5-2-3
Road Record: 4-1-2 (woo!)
GO BRUINS!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Game 10 Preview: Bruins @ Canucks

Oct 28, 2008, 10:00 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD)
On the Radio: WBZ 1030
vs. Vancouver Canucks (4-4-0)
Notes:
  • Roberto Luongo, the goalie, is the Captain of the Canucks. He can't wear the C on his jersey, though, so it's on his mask.
  • West coast game = late night.
  • I foresee missing a good portion of this game due to Fallout-3-itis. Look for a half-assed recap tomorrow.
  • Luongo hasn't faced the Bruins as a Canuck yet.
  • Milan Lucic is from Vancouver, the Province reminds us.
  • The Canucks are unbeaten at home (in all of 2 games - they're worse off than the Bruins)
  • Happy 25th, Bress, you old coot. (not related, just saying)
  • Vancouver is hosting the next Winter Olympics. Here's Quatchi with your local previews:
Other Previews
Stats

Turn this:
Into this:
BURN IT DOWN!

Record: 4-2-3
Road Record: 3-1-2
GO BRUINS!

Game 9 Recap: Bruins 1, Edmonton 0, SHUTOUT THOMAS


  • I missed most of this game because my roommates wanted to watch a movie, but tuned in for the OT. It was the most worthwhile part of the game. We've got another late game tonight, so I'm going to keep this short.
  • I'm glad that we beat the Oilers on their throwback night, since those throwback jerseys have beat us before. Suckers.
  • Dennis Wideman got his second goal of the season. Matt Hunwick is the only other Bruins D-man that has a goal, but seeing as it's early-esque in the season, I'm fine with that.
  • Thomas's shutout and our win is because of this save:

I was watching a soccer game earlier that night narrated by fans, and at the end they were calling the ref sweaty-faced and fat. Jack Edwards announces like a fan every night, but that's how we like it on NESN.
Record: 4-2-3
Road Record: 3-1-2
GO BRUINS!

Monday, October 27, 2008

Game 9: Bruins @ Edmonton ROAD TRIP


Oct 27, 2008, 9:00 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD)
On the Radio: WBZ 1030
vs. Edmonton Oilers (4-3-0)


Notes
  • This is the first of three road games in Western Canada this week, and the 3rd of our 5-game road trip through the whole Northwest division.
  • I saw the Oilers lose in Minnesota after being up 4 goals last year.
  • The Oilers kicked a guy out of the press box for liveblogging.
  • We're getting closer and closer to the point when the last ten games will be a different record than the total record.
  • As the 29th largest team in the league (only Detroit is lighter), The Bruins are not the Big Bad Bruins anymore, we're going to have to settle for the small bad bruins. We also have the smallest offense at 192.9 avg lbs, and even with Chara's 255 lbs, we've got 16th largest with 208 avg lbs. I always like it when Mirtle does these statistical looks.
  • In that same post, we find that the Oilers have the 2nd largest offense, and 5th youngest.
  • Johnny "Chief" Bucyk won't eat on Bear Force One until after Christmas.
  • The Jumbotron loves the Oiler's Fernando Pisani.
  • Coach thinks the road trip will be a good thing.
  • Here Comes the Bruins! tackles the schedule.
Other Previews
Stats

Record: 3-2-3
Away Record: 2-1-2
GO BRUINS!

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Game 8 Recap: Bruins 5, Thrashers 4 BRUINS WIN

Our first period effort was like watching the last 40 minutes of thursday's game but then Thornton slaps one in from the point. Stephane Yelle and Nokelainen tip it in and get called for too many men...Oh wait, not quite. (too much pensblog? who knows. They're sellouts anyhow.)

The player of the game is Milan Lucic's contact lenses. Ready?
1...

2...

3...

HAT TRICK LUCIC!
First hat trick for the second-year player. Keep those contacts in. HD vs. SD, indeed. I think it's a little early to say he's Espo-esque, but people were saying Neely last year... He's a promising young player, for sure. Other important things from last night's game?
Yelle puts a goal in:

  • Johan Hedberg played good backup goal. He was really good on not letting up the rebounds. Still, it was a 5-4 game.
  • There was the switching-sides thing, TD Banknorth Garden ice crew were too busy making sure that the boards were good to keep the faceoff circles in the right spot, apparently. Lame.
  • No HUGE hits for boston last night, that was taken care of the night before. Lucic went and talked to the kids who got stiches as a result of his mega-hit against Mike Van Ryn, they got some free swag. It was their first game.
  • Lucic's first multi-goal game. Rock.
  • The Bruins' first home win, about time!
Record: 3-2-3
Home record: 1-1-1
GO BRUINS!

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Game 8: Thrashers @ Bruins

Oct 25, 2008, 7:00 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD)
On the Radio: WBZ 1030
vs. Atlanta Thrashers (2-3-2)

Notes
  • Kovalchuk's line has 6 of the Thrashers' 18 goals. Phil Kessel has 6 goals for the Bruins.
  • All 30 teams are playing tonight. Here's your NHL.com scoreboard. The last time this happened, we were coming back from the lockout. They should do this on the first day of the season, and give people the center ice preview on that day.
  • Our record is starting to look eerily similar to perennially not-so-great teams.
  • This is the last home game before next Saturday vs. Dallas.
  • The Bruins still haven't won a game at home. Dammit.
  • The Bruins have been working on fundamentals in practice.
Other Previews
Stats


Yeah, right, Lil' Jon. And the Thrashers classy take on Spygate, of course:

GO BRUINS!

Ben Bishop: NHL Player


So...Sarah Palin dropped the puck again, this time in St. Louis. At the beginning of the game, Legace trips on the rug and lets in 2 in the first, and in comes for his NHL debut...BEN BISHOP!
I watched Ben "Big Ben" Bishop play in a fantastic BU/UMaine overtime game last year, and I remember just being amazed with how big the guy is. He was hunched over and his backside was almost touching the crossbar. UMaine wasn't as good as BU, but Bishop kept them in the game into OT. He couldn't steal the whole game, but he was brilliant. I've liked him ever since, and watched as he got called up to Peoria and then the NHL. After his callup, it was only a matter of time before the 6'7" goalie took his place between the pipes.

I bet he didn't think it would work like this...

Here's his first save:


Yeah, he's not a Bruin. I wish. He's not even on Hockey Reference yet.

More links:

Friday, October 24, 2008

Game 7 Recap: Maple Leafs 4, Bruins 2 REGULATION LOSS


There was no reason to lose that game, except for our usual sit-back-on-our-heels approach. Getting ahead early is only good if you can keep (or extend!) a lead.

Basically, an exciting 20 followed by a bad 20 followed by a bad 20. Just a terribly deflating game. The Bruins didn't show that they could keep up the pressure when necessary.
This is also the first game that they looked bad losing. They've got the same record as the Leafs now.
The Leafs let George Parros get a breakaway goal, for crying in the beer:

Record: 2-2-3
GO BRUINS!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Game 7: Toronto @ Boston: Hockey Fights Cancer Night


Oct 23, 2008, 7:00 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD) 
On the Radio: WBZ 1030
vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (1-2-3)
Notes
  • The Maple Leafs have lost 3 shootouts, including when Coach Ron Wilson put CuJo in net last time after Toskala had played all game long.
  • Toskala gave up that really long goal last year, youtube goodness at the bottom of the post.
  • Mats Sundin is still on vacation, but recently started his own training camp in Toronto.
  • The Leafs are in their 41st rebuilding year.
  • The Bruins were working on play in front of the net recently, probably due to a very small conversion rate on juicy rebounds.
  • Tonight is "Hockey Fights Cancer" night at the Garden. As my friend Greg said, "Go Thornton!"
  • Axelsson is skating this morning. Update: and will play.
  • Chara spent his day "off" shooting a bunch of pucks. Let's hope it pays off (and he doesn't whiff on the shootout like last time)
Other Previews:
Stats:

See you at the game!

GO BRUINS!

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Game 6 Recap: Boston 2, Buffalo 2, SO LOSS

I missed most of the first period because I had to stay late at work, so I didn't see Wideman's goal from the blue line until there was a minute for replays.  Some observations from what I saw:

  • Kessel scores his 6th goal in 6 games AND the only goal that the Sabres have let up on the PK.  Washington got a 7 minute powerplay and got 3 shots/no goals.
  • Crash the net.
  • Mark Stuart didn't play excellently.  He took a bad penalty.  I guess that's why they didn't call him for the player introductions.  (Yes, I DO plan on riding this all season long)
  • Another Shootout, another loss.  Nice tie.  In my mind, the way the shootout is supposed to work is that there's a tie, but one team needs to leave with a "win" so they do the shootout dance.
  • Despite their 2-1-3 record, they're looking really good out there.  We've come away with points in a bunch of games, but we're giving up points to Montreal, Buffalo, etc.
  • Versus is not NESN.  However, during the Red Sox in 2 that I flipped to during commercial breaks, there was at least one time where it flashed "NESN, Home of the Bruins" on the screen.  It made me chuckle.
  • We can't be doing the Win one, lose two dance all season long, even if we are getting one point from 3/4 of our losses.  Points-wise, it's like we've won 3 games and gotten one tie over 6 games.  3-2-1 isn't terrible, but the Bruins are playing well enough right now that they should be getting better results.
  • Ryan Miller stole this game.  THEIF!
Record: 2-1-3
GO BRUINS!

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Game 6: Bruins @ Buffalo

Oct 21, 2008, 7:00 PM ET
On TV: 2/6 on VS (HD) 
On the Radio: WBZ 1030
vs. Buffalo Sabres (4-0-1)

Notes
  • This is a short one because the home opener was last night and I need to fit sleep and work in there somewhere.
  • Buffalo is off to a great start.
  • "Bull" and "Bear" are two words to descibe the stock market.  "Sabre" is not, though there are jobs getting cut as a result of the bear market.
  • Versus has been hyping this matchup for days.
  • Thomas Vanek has 2 short-handed goals already, his first two of his career.
  • Patrick Kaleta (32 PIM), Craig Rivet (29 PIM), and Adam Mair (21 PIM) all have over 20 PIM and together combine for more than the whole Bruins team (68 PIM), and we've even played the Canadiens once already this season.  I like that the Bruins are playing a clean physical game early in the season.
  • I went to a buffalo game here, sat near a pretty nice group of people from Buffalo...and their asshole friend who got them all kicked out.
Other Previews
  • Stanley Cup of Chowder.
  • BruinsBlog has refs, lines are probably the same as last night.  Kobasew and Axelsson are still out.
  • WickedBruinsFan is liveblogging the game.
  • NHL Fanhouse is doing a Live Blog.  I might be on, but I don't yet have watch-tv-and-be-on-internet technology.  This was in the top part before, but now Jaci gets top billing.
  • bruins.nhl.com.
  • boston.com.
  • Others to come I'm sure, check the bar to your left under "Bruins Blogs"
Stats going into tonight's game

Last night was a well-played game with a disappointing ending. Tonight we're on VS against the 4-0-1 Sabres.

GO BRUINS!

Game 5 Recap: Penguins 1, Bruins 1, SO LOSS

(Pictured: Phil Kessel)

Nice tie, guys. Here's the PensBlog take.

Some observations from section 307:
  • I made eye contact with Phil Kessel before the game (for a second, as I was walking buy the player's lot entrance, in his side mirror...yeah, I guess I'm a stalker) and then he scored a goal. Coincidence? You decide.
  • The free t-shirts at the fan fest were actually pretty stylish. Mine is now more so with the Bucyk signature. Sweet.
  • What the heck happened with Crosby and Savard that they got roughing penalties? That was on the opening side of the ice from me. Anyone know what I'm talking about?
  • Thornton/Godard was a boring fight, but the whole garden stood up when they started.
  • "We want it as bad as you" is not a bad team slogan.
  • I like the new signs leading into the west entrance of the garden. Michael Ryder: "I want to know what Boston fans are really like" And we want you to start scoring more goals. You scratch our backs, we'll scratch yours. Capiche?
  • The ice sculpture of Patrice Bergeron at fanfest was fun, as was the painting of an ice rink.
  • The opening stuff was pretty fun, with the smoke and such. Mark Stuart's name never got called....TRADE RUMOR TIME! (nah, kidding)
  • I was able to get an official roster (there was a pile of them by the ketchup, so I don't know if they meant to give them out or what) for free. This was suggested at the Bruins Season Ticket Holder Town Hall meeting, as one person pointed out that they only buy the program for the roster, and that the book is the same every game (or at least for most of them).
  • It was a very physical game overall. Orpik and Lucic got in each other's faces. Does Lucic have some sort of hold on fights from Coach?
  • Another shootout, another shootout loss. 2-1-2. "2-3" in non-crazy-world.
  • The Bruins powerplay was too fancy, and not results-driven enough. If the fancy stuff worked, I wouldn't mind it. But there were at least two nice juicy rebounds and a bruin just a step behind where he needed to be to put it home. We connect on ONE of those, and this recap is a victory parade instead of a therapy session.
  • 3-on-3 is exciting. Losing to Sabourin...not so much.
  • Savard's shot looked half lazy on the recap below. Maybe it's the Penguins announcer.
On a completely unrelated note, why isn't the TD Banknorth Garden in NHL 09? All of the other arenas have the real name around the logo, the Bruins' one is just "Boston Bruins" in some default-looking font. It's annoying.

Replay. Feels weird without NESN announcers.

Record: 2-1-2
GO BRUINS!

Monday, October 20, 2008

Game 5: Penguins @ Bruins HOME OPENER

Oct 20, 2008, 7:00 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD)
On the Radio: WBZ 1030 (listen)
vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (3-2-1)
Finally, the last home opener in the league rolls around. See you at the game!

Notes:
  • Pittsburgh lost the Stanley Cup Finals, Marion Hossa, and Ty Conklin to Detroit since we saw them last.
  • Malkin and Crosby were together on the same line last game, they scored a bunch.
  • Fernandez started last, plus it's the home opener, so Thomas is the likely starter
  • There's a Fan Festival outside the garden from 4:30-6:30 before the game. They'll be giving away stuff, and the first 1,000 get some special t-shirt or something.
  • Kobasew is still out, P.J. Axelsson didn't play last game and didn't skate this morning. No other injury news that I've seen.
  • The last time I wore my Chara jersey, it was during the playoffs.  I washed it in the offseason because every season is different (and it needed a wash.)
  • I'll be sitting in section 307 (behind the handicapped).
Other Previews:
Stats going into this game:


No Penguins @ Bruins preview would be complete without Crosby fighting Ference:

And in honor of the PensBlog, our end-of-the-post good-luck charm:
WOOOOOOOOOOOOO
GO BRUINS!

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Game 4 Recap: Bruins and Red Sox 4, Senators and Rays 2

I tried watching the game last night, but everyone else was like "it's the playoffs, man. c'mon" so I didn't. Both teams won, 4-2, so I'm happy with that. So let's go through this game together.

I'll be honest, I was scared of this game because the Sens were ridiculous at converting the power play going into the game. However, it seems like it all worked out.

First Period:

1 minute in, the man I like to call "The German" shows what a well-engineered and efficient deflection can do:


7 minutes later, this Foligno kid comes by and goes high stick side from the top of the circle:


Second Period:

Nearly five minutes in, and Gerber stops Bergeron


Seconds later, Savard shows us why he wakes up in the morning:


Kessel is a beast


Wheeler takes a penalty that leads to an Alfie goal.


Lucic scores a goal on a rebound off a Ryder shot


Looks like lots of ugly goals. Hopefully, they're learning.

And here are all of the videos that the MLB lets me post from their website about the sox/rays game:

Oh right, the MLB isn't yet at that level. But they want me to download Microsoft's Flash knockoff to watch the video on the official site. Thanks but I've got enough crap on my computer already.

Sox play tonight in Game 7 of the ALCS. Hoooo boy.

Record: 2-1-1
GO BRUINS!

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Game 4: Bruins @ Senators

First of all, Vote for the Bruins! Icethetics is having another tournament, but the first link will take you directly to the only poll you need. That said, we've got a GameDay Post/thread to take care of.

Oct 18, 2008, 7:00 PM ET


On TV: NESN (HD)
On the Radio: WBZ 1030 (listen)








@ Ottawa Senators (2-1-1)




The last of four away games that have so far left the Bruins 1-1-1
to start the season.

Notes:
  • Chara used to play for Ottawa. That's where he ragdolled McCabe:
  • Savard has gotten 2 goals each in the last 2 games. Time to step up, other folks.





  • Stephane Yelle has yet to take a shot on goal this season. Hockey Reference doesn't have time on ice, but I remember seeing him out there. I guess as he's getting older, he's taking fewer shots per game. I'm sponsoring that page. Nice.
  • The Bruins are 11-11 in goals through three games, Ottawa is 14-11 through 4.
  • The Bruins and the Senators were the two teams to compete in the first NHL-only Stanley Cup Finals, in 1927.
  • Daniel Alfredsson had arthoscopic surgery on his knee last week, but still played in last night's game.
  • Martin "Darth Goalie" Gerber will be in net tonight. I was (and still am) hoping that we face Auld tonight.
  • Lines: Fernandez in for Boston, Senators keep the same lines as last night. If Fluto didn't do his job, this would be a lot harder.

  • Bish says Ryder and Savard are a dynamic duo, accounting for half the Bruins points so far. Best quote is from Ryder: "It took a while for me to get used to trying to get open for him, and I wasn't expecting the pass, and all of a sudden he wouldn't look, and I would be there." Like this:



  • Go Red Sox!

  • Ottawa had a super-strong start last year, and then completely fell apart. We beat them to clinch a playoff berth back on April 4th, the 81st game of the year and the last game in Ottawa:

Other Game Previews:
Some Stats, after Ottawa just beat Phoenix 6-3:



Shaq wants it.
GO BRUINS!

Friday, October 17, 2008

Edmonton Oilers: FAIL

As it turns out, the Edmonton Oilers are a bunch of grannies. Except my grandmother DID have a computer. That's just terrible. If I tried live-blogging from home games, I wonder if they would kick me out of my seat?


The Minnesota Star Tribune website had this gem on the sports page this evening:

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Habs Coach on the bounces last night


"There were two or three bad bounces like that," Carbonneau said. "They had the Disney show in here and I guess the boards weren't put back properly. I'll make sure they're right tomorrow."


Learn from their mistakes, TD Banknorth Garden Ice Crew

Game 3 Recap: Bruins @ Montreal: Damn. So close.

Well, despite the Bruins best efforts (after completely falling apart for about 3:19 in the first) and pushing the game to a shootout, the Habs still won. I gotta tell you, I now understand the criticism of the shootout far better than I ever have before. We looked pretty good until there was a bullshit penalty and the Habs scored 3 times very quickly. Once they were up 0-3, we played the last 1:35 in the period and then didn't let up a single goal for the rest of the game. The PK in the beginning of the second was HUGE. We built up the momentum and don't think for a second that everyone at that game wasn't worried (or hopeful) for a while that the Bruins would absolutely take that game.

Bergeron almost got scrappy with Komisarek or Kostopolous or one of those other guys, but Sturm "The German" stepped in and diffused it. Thanks for saving the season, Marco!

Here are some clips from last night's third period:

Savard defines "pretty garbage goal"


Savard defines "lucky bounce"


That's right, 2 goals for Savard, again! Keep it up, Marc. As for other highlights, Georges Laraque fought Shawn Thornton on their first shifts about 2-3 minutes into the game:


Do you think Jack Edwards likes calling fights?

All in all, the Bs played very well, but couldn't complete in the shootout. Next game, let's just get another garbage goal. Lesson for next time: Play all 60 minutes, and play them well.

Record: 1-1-1
Next Game: Saturday, October 18 @ Ottawa Senators
GO BRUINS!

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Game 3: Bruins @ Montreal



Oct 15, 2008, 7:45 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD)
On the Radio: 103.3 WODS-FM

Notes:
  • This is Montreal's home opener for their centennial season. I would like nothing less than to ruin it for them. If you don't want to watch it, the game starts at 7:45.
  • We beat them 8-3 in the preseason, but who cares about the preseason?
  • Andrew Alberts and his $1.25 million contract were traded to Philadelphia. Vladimir Sobotka and Matt Hunwick were called back up from Providence.
  • Other Previews: The Bear Cave, bruins.nhl.com, bruins blog, Aaron Ward, Ghosts of the Garden, Stanley Cup of Chowder, CBC, Game Notes PDF, WickedBruinsFan, Here Come the Bruins, and the Jumbo-tron has a handy quick reference for shit-talking in french.
  • The Bruins have only won against teams that have not won yet, and lost to undefeated teams so far this season. (Colorado is 0-3, Minnesota is 2-0) Don't you just love early-season statistics? Except that the Rangers are 5-0.
  • You remember these guys, right? We played them many times, especially last season, where the Bruins and the Habs faced off a grand total of 15 times between the regular season and playoffs. We went to 7 with them. If you care enough about hockey to be reading this, you already know that it was a fantastic series....for a loss. Here's the opening video for Game 6: (content begins around 00:00:38 or so)
  • In the video above, pretend that Glen Murray, Glen Metropolit, Andrew Alberts aren't in it.
  • The last time the Bruins have won in Montreal during the season was December of 2006.
  • Georges Laraque, of "Hey, wanna go? Ok. Good luck." fame, will be in the lineup tonight for Montreal. He was recovering from injury and hadn't played yet. Bonus: He's replacing Steve Begin. I would much rather face a team with a polite heavyweight than the guy that took Savard out at the end of last season with a dirty cross-check to the back.
  • There is a Presidential debate starting at 9pm, for those that like to watch that kind of thing. Today is the voter registration deadline in Massachusetts.
Remember, respect your enemies:

GO BRUINS!

VOTE!

VOTE AGAINST THE CANADIENS. Vote early, vote often. Yes, I know it's for the red wings, but they do have a better logo, and after all that what the contest is all about.

DO IT!

Sunday, October 12, 2008

BETTER NEWS!

Looks like Randy Jones will be out 3-4 months now, rather than the previously mentioned "up to two."

Oh, and the Wild continued their dominance of the Bruins last night. Also, the Sox lost because we ran out of pitchers. I fell asleep through most of both.

I'm really happy that Savard started scoring goals, though. Here's a recap, if like me you fell asleep during the game:

Bergeron scored, too, but it was the wrong one.

Oh, and nhl.com has a nice little piece about the Bruins.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Game 2: Bruins @ Wild


Game 2: Bruins @ Wild
Oct 11, 2008, 8:30 PM ET
On TV: NESN (HD), FSN-N (HD)
On the Radio: WBZ 1030

Notes:

  • My two favorite teams face off for the first of two (!) times this season.
  • Manny Fernandez is in goal tonight, used to play for the Wild, and is the nephew of the Minnesota Wild coach, Jacques Lemaire. We sent Petr Kalus to them in exchange, but he remains on the Houston Aeros, the Wild's minor-league affiliate.
  • Brian Rolston used to play for both teams. (We got him in exchange for Bourque from Colorado, then he signed with the Wild as a free agent.)
  • Chuck Kobasew is out tonight with an injured ankle. Owen Nolan is still on loan from the morgue.
  • Other Previews: bruins.nhl.com, Russo's Rants, an alzheimer's survivor, Bruins Nation, WickedBruinsFan,
  • Aaron Ward talks about "Chasing the Pats."
  • Fluto has the lines: Bruins | Wild ....though "lines" in Minnesota are sort of a long-running joke with Lemaire coaching. He changes lines more than Vegas.
  • The Bruins are 1-5 all-time against the Wild, thanks to the old schedules at hockeynut.com. While looking into analyzing those games, I found that CNNSI.com has box scores all the way back to October 1st, 1997. They just never deleted them off the server. Edit the URL to go to a day....sort of. Links below will show the way:
The 6 Games between Minnesota and Boston:
  1. Saturday, Nov. 18, 2000 Minnesota - Boston 6-1 Box Score
  2. Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2001 Boston - Minnesota 1-2 Box Score
  3. Friday, October 11, 2002 Boston - Minnesota 1-5 Box Score
  4. Thursday, March 18, 2004 Minnesota - Boston 2-0 Box Score
  5. Thursday, Dec. 15, 2005 Boston - Minnesota 3-2 Box Score
  6. Thursday, Mar 8, 2007 Minnesota - Boston 2-1 Box Score
And as for analysis, the most effective player against the big, bad Bruins turns out to be a little guy on the Wild, Pierre-Marc Bouchard. Here he is, getting absolutely robbed by Thomas in a March 2007 game:

Here's the list of other players that have scored against the Bruins while on the Wild. Note, if they had zero points, they are not listed:

And from melt your face off, comes The Boogaard Waltz:

And just to be fair with the video-embedding, here's Darcy Tucker getting levelled by Shawn Thornton:

Praise be to the new nhl.com. It's video-embed goodness is making the internet fun again.

GO BRUINS!

Friday, October 10, 2008

Martin Brodeur's New Web Site

Hi there! Welcome to my web site. For years, many of you have been following my career. I've had many happy moments playing the game and I want to share them with you through this site. I hope you will enjoy your visit. As for me, I'm returning to the ice … I still need a few more wins!

So begins Martin Brodeur's new web site, martinbrodeur30.com. He's likely going to be breaking some records this season, so why not start pimping himself out? Maybe he learned it from Avery...

MartinBrodeur30.com, your source for pink "Stop-the-puck" wallpapers.

I don't have time to do a full post on this.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

GREAT NEWS!

Looks like Randy Jones (D-PHI) is out for up to 2 months!  You're next, Bernard Pollard.