Lukewarm reaction in Boston after a Blockbuster Trade...
And I wonder why... FINALLY they traded away the too laid-back for his own good POISON in the locker-room... and they got a 3 for 1 deal on it too! Teams like Calgary and Anaheim have proven that what it really takes to get to the Finals is GRIT and TEAM EFFORT - not a "huge talent" full of promise... who, in the end, was only full of IT - if you get what I'm screaming...!
Bye Bye Joe - hello Marco! And the best sign of things to come that could have been was when new Boston Bruin forward Marco Sturm scored within two minutes in his very first game with his new team! And that first game was a victory over the BEST TEAM IN THE LEAGUE - Ottawa (that still sounds so wrong) - the first win in a long frustrating stretch for the Bruins who had been losing close games all the time (9 of 10 - each time by a margin of one goal, with but two exceptions that included the damnable "empty-net goal", I am sure... argh!). During that stretch, the "marquee player" that Joe Thornton is supposed to be simply did NOT make the difference... Not as he should have anyway! The last nail in Joe's coffin (NOT a nod to Joe Coffin - of Brazilian fame!) was when he lost a face-off in his zone with about thirty seconds left in a tie game headed for overtime. The Devils got control of the puck deep in the Bruins zone because of that, stormed the net, and the puck got in through a crowd. All Thornton's fault - some captain he was.
Zero presence in the locker-room - zero leadership. Joe was no Cam Neely - heck, he would not even have replaced Craig Janney in Bruins' annals! I pity the bookie who now estimates that the Sharks - Joe's new team - have bettered their slim chances of winning the Cup... and that the Bruins' chances have decreased? No way, Jose (NOT a nod to San Jose!) - as everyone will soon see too! The Sharks now have TWO "all-star" chokers for the price of one (Joe and Marleau - what a line... call it the "sub-zero line" why don't cha already - *lol*). While the Bruins have multiplied their offensive weapons with a myriad of different possible combinations that can surprise unsuspecting opponents on any given night... Murray, Sturm, Bergeron, Primeau, Boyes, Czerkawski, LaCouture, Zhamnov, Blatny, Fitzgerald, Stastny, Reasoner, Axelsson and Green give the Bruins four well-balanced lines - with Eric Nickulas being another insertion into the latter two lines, when needed.
The defense was bolstered with the addition of Brad Stuart and David Tanabe - Brian Leetch and Nick Boynton did need the help. (Ironically enough, one drama never comes alone - defenseman Jonathan Girard abandoned his bid to comeback to the Bruins after a terrible car accident two years ago - even before the Joe trade was announced... Girard had a great career ahead of him - and ruined it all for himself by being behind the wheel when he shouldn't have been two summers ago. He joins a long list of unlucky Bruins defencemen - the Normand Leveillés, Gord Kluzaks and Don Sweeneys who never achieved as much as they should have achieved... Even Bobby Orr got his career cut short... And I remember more: Reed Larson, Michael Thelven, Al Iafrate and Garry Galley... none of them got the Stanley Cup ring that they deserved...)
The team is a true team now though - not the Joe T show. Joe was a schmoe anyway - he was a tiny bit sarcastic about the fact that it might have been because of him that the team was struggling. Fact is... the Bruins had lost all three previous games against the Senators, with him leading the way for Boston. First game WITHOUT Joe - Boston beats Ottawa 3-0! No coincidence... no coincidence at all, Joe...
Expect the Sharks to keep on sinking...
Picture something like the Titanic, the Brittanic and the Olympic - on their big night - when they will REALLY need Joe to step it up a notch... HE SIMPLY WILL NOT!
Bye Bye Joe - hello Marco! And the best sign of things to come that could have been was when new Boston Bruin forward Marco Sturm scored within two minutes in his very first game with his new team! And that first game was a victory over the BEST TEAM IN THE LEAGUE - Ottawa (that still sounds so wrong) - the first win in a long frustrating stretch for the Bruins who had been losing close games all the time (9 of 10 - each time by a margin of one goal, with but two exceptions that included the damnable "empty-net goal", I am sure... argh!). During that stretch, the "marquee player" that Joe Thornton is supposed to be simply did NOT make the difference... Not as he should have anyway! The last nail in Joe's coffin (NOT a nod to Joe Coffin - of Brazilian fame!) was when he lost a face-off in his zone with about thirty seconds left in a tie game headed for overtime. The Devils got control of the puck deep in the Bruins zone because of that, stormed the net, and the puck got in through a crowd. All Thornton's fault - some captain he was.
Zero presence in the locker-room - zero leadership. Joe was no Cam Neely - heck, he would not even have replaced Craig Janney in Bruins' annals! I pity the bookie who now estimates that the Sharks - Joe's new team - have bettered their slim chances of winning the Cup... and that the Bruins' chances have decreased? No way, Jose (NOT a nod to San Jose!) - as everyone will soon see too! The Sharks now have TWO "all-star" chokers for the price of one (Joe and Marleau - what a line... call it the "sub-zero line" why don't cha already - *lol*). While the Bruins have multiplied their offensive weapons with a myriad of different possible combinations that can surprise unsuspecting opponents on any given night... Murray, Sturm, Bergeron, Primeau, Boyes, Czerkawski, LaCouture, Zhamnov, Blatny, Fitzgerald, Stastny, Reasoner, Axelsson and Green give the Bruins four well-balanced lines - with Eric Nickulas being another insertion into the latter two lines, when needed.
The defense was bolstered with the addition of Brad Stuart and David Tanabe - Brian Leetch and Nick Boynton did need the help. (Ironically enough, one drama never comes alone - defenseman Jonathan Girard abandoned his bid to comeback to the Bruins after a terrible car accident two years ago - even before the Joe trade was announced... Girard had a great career ahead of him - and ruined it all for himself by being behind the wheel when he shouldn't have been two summers ago. He joins a long list of unlucky Bruins defencemen - the Normand Leveillés, Gord Kluzaks and Don Sweeneys who never achieved as much as they should have achieved... Even Bobby Orr got his career cut short... And I remember more: Reed Larson, Michael Thelven, Al Iafrate and Garry Galley... none of them got the Stanley Cup ring that they deserved...)
The team is a true team now though - not the Joe T show. Joe was a schmoe anyway - he was a tiny bit sarcastic about the fact that it might have been because of him that the team was struggling. Fact is... the Bruins had lost all three previous games against the Senators, with him leading the way for Boston. First game WITHOUT Joe - Boston beats Ottawa 3-0! No coincidence... no coincidence at all, Joe...
Expect the Sharks to keep on sinking...
Picture something like the Titanic, the Brittanic and the Olympic - on their big night - when they will REALLY need Joe to step it up a notch... HE SIMPLY WILL NOT!
posted by Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™ at
6:05 PM
37 Comments:
Boston Looks at Life Without Joe
Dec 1, 8:57 PM (ET)
By JIMMY GOLEN
BOSTON (AP) - When he awoke on the morning after what might be the biggest trade of his career, even Boston Bruins general manager Mike O'Connell couldn't quite believe it.
"I said to my family, 'Boy, I had the weirdest dream last night: I traded Joe Thornton,"' O'Connell said Thursday during the team's game-day skatearound. "We're trying to right the ship here in Boston. ... I had to do something."
The last-place Bruins traded Thornton to the last-place San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night, getting Marco Sturm, Brad Stuart and Wayne Primeau in return for their 26-year-old captain, the No. 1 overall pick of the 1997 draft. All of the players were with their new teams on Thursday, and Sturm had a goal and an assist in the first 8:47 of Boston's game against the Ottawa Senators.
"We have to become a team in the true sense of the word - quickly," said coach Mike Sullivan, whose team had lost nine of 10 before the deal.
Primeau received polite applause from the mostly empty building when he was introduced before Thursday night's game. But Sturm made the most immediate impact, scoring 77 seconds into his Boston career and then assisting on Patrice Bergeron's goal with 11:13 left in the first period.
"If we win, if we're successful, it's a good trade," O'Connell said before the game. "If we're not, it's not a good trade."
And if they're not better, he acknowledged, it could be his last trade.
O'Connell and Sullivan - the Bruins' fifth head coach in five seasons - have been fighting for their jobs after the team, which boasted of being a Stanley Cup contender before the season, plummeted to the bottom of the Northeast Division standings.
"Obviously (the Bruins) believe in their coach and their general manager, and I'm next in line, so I've got to move on," Thornton said in a conference call. "I came back here to win, and we haven't been winning. Whose fault is that? I'm not sure, but I'm out of here, so it must be mine."
But Thornton's fellow teammates came to his defense.
"I really hope that he's not being a fall guy," goalie Andrew Raycroft said. "For him to be traded, it looks like that, but I don't think anyone thinks that (the losing was Thornton's fault), definitely not anyone in here.
"He was working as hard as anyone else. We were all trying to get out of this thing. We're all frustrated."
O'Connell was the architect of the pre- and post-lockout strategy that was based on a faulty prediction of what the collective bargaining agreement would allow and what the market for free agents would be. The Bruins purged their roster of long-term contracts, then scrambled to fill out their roster.
"Maybe our strategy was flawed," he said. "Not signing players put us in a difficult situation. We had to react pretty quickly to the market."
Asked who bears the responsibility for the plan, O'Connell said, "I bear all responsibility."
Thornton signed a three-year, $20 million contract in August. He was tied for 11th in the NHL in scoring entering Wednesday's games with nine goals and 24 assists.
O'Connell's attempt to cut his losses didn't begin with Thornton, but as he talked to other teams he realized that only Boston's best player would bring the pieces the Bruins needed to turn things around.
"It wasn't like our focus was on trading Joe Thornton. Our focus was to better the hockey club," O'Connell said. "It's hard. You don't just say, 'Let's trade your captain.' But another couple of games go by and the same things happened. I had to pull the trigger."
Bruins players were still stunned when they reported for their gameday skate Thursday morning.
"It was pretty quiet. Not a lot was said, but everyone knew something big had happened," forward Brad Boyes said. "It's going to be a big test for us to see if we can come together after losing our top guy."
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 6:42 PM
Bruins 3, Senators 0
Dec 1, 9:31 PM (ET)
By JIMMY GOLEN
BOSTON (AP) - In the first game since he was acquired in a trade for Joe Thornton, Marco Sturm had a goal and an assist and Hannu Toivonen handed first-place Ottawa its first shutout LOSS of the season on Thursday night as the Boston Bruins beat the Senators 3-0.
Toivonen stopped 26 shots to earn his first career shutout and give Boston just its second victory in 11 games. The slump that forced the desperate team to trade its captain to the San Jose Sharks for Sturm, Wayne Primeau and Brad Stuart.
Primeau received polite applause - the building was mostly empty - when he was introduced before the game. But Sturm made an immediate impact, scoring 77 seconds into his Boston career and then assisting on Patrice Bergeron's goal with 11:13 left in the first period.
The victory took some of the sting out of losing the popular but potential-laden star who had been the No. 1 overall pick in the 1997 draft. And it shocked the Senators, who had won six in a row and hadn't lost to a Northeast Division rival in 12 games this season.
The crowd stood and applauded for the last 90 seconds, turning out a deafening roar when Toivonen preserved the shutout on a shot from point-blank range in the final seconds.
Dominik Hasek made 21 saves for the Senators. Dany Heatley was held without a point for the first time all season.
With their captain gone, the Bruins put an assistant's "A" on Nick Boynton's sweater. General manager Mike O'Connell said the team might go without a captain for the rest of the season.
And for one night at least, it seemed like Thornton won't be missed.
Brad Boyes fed Sturm from the faceoff circle and the new Bruin put it right through Hasek's legs. Seven minutes later, Stuart and Sturm set Bergeron up for a one-timer that made it 2-0.
Dan LaCouture made it 3-0 at the 6:13 mark of the third on a pass from Alexei Zhamnov.
Notes:
Jason Spezza had his seven-game scoring streak snapped. ... Ottawa had been 3-0 against Boston this season. ... The Bruins won for just the third time in 13 games against division foes. ... The Senators had outscored the opposition 28-12 in a six-game winning streak (which ended, as it turns out, with their 4-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens two days ago).
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 6:45 PM
Not for one night only...
Defeating the top team and the top goalie by a score of 3-0 says it all...
The Bruins will not be missing Joe Schmoe Thornton - EVER!
The cancer has been stripped from the lockerroom - this club can finally be a TEAM now.
The biggest trade since Phil Esposito for Jean Ratelle and Brad Park?
No.
This trade will be more like the Barry Pederson for Cam Neely, Glen Wesley and extras trade!
And we all know how good THAT one was... for Boston!
;)
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 6:49 PM
Reaction... from the "other side"...
"We gave away three quality guys for a dominant centerman," said Sharks defenseman Kyle McLaren, a former teammate of Thornton's in Boston. "It's a big move for us. And Joe's the type of player that can help our team right now."
"Dominant" he said...
Expect the alleged "dominance" to be conspicuously absent and NON-EXISTENT at the most crucial time, Kyle...
McLaren and Thornton are much alike...
Both were heralded, at first, as the heir apparents of Neely and Bourque in Boston...
Both disappointed so greatly that they were traded.
Ironic that they were both traded to the same place too - years apart.
Now they can choke together again...
Yay.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 7:12 PM
Sturm & Stuart - I like the good omen there - last time the B's had dual acquisitions of the sort (Janney & Joyce... Heinze & Hynes... Donato & Donatelli) they had good times...
I am simply not sure about Primeau - having him is like having Martin Lapointe again. *lol*
Maybe we can trade Zhamnov and Primeau for some quality offensive-minded second-line or third-line guy...?!? Hmm?
I can dream...
*lol*
When I dream though, I dream of better things than THAT!
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 12:45 AM
"Dominik Hasek made 21 saves for the Senators, who had won six in a row and hadn't lost to a Northeast Division rival in 12 games this season. Dany Heatley was held without a point for the first time all season; acquired from Atlanta before the season, he would have tied Wayne Gretzky's record for the longest point streak with a new team."
The feat that a struggling Boston Bruins team accomplished should NOT be trivialized nor dismissed as "oh, the guys were going on adrenaline" - that is bull...!
The Bruins were at their weakest and shaken from a trade - and the jolt of a determined Marco Sturm who wanted to have a splashy brand-new start was all it took to make the team come together and do the near-impossible... stop Heatley, beat Hasek and defeat a Senators team that had only lost 3 times all year!
To defeat them by shut-out was the exclamation point!
Kudos to coach Mike Sullivan who put Hannu Toivonen in goal - he was less shaken by all that has transpired than Andrew Raycroft is...
Toivonen got his first NHL shutout - while Heatley was denied a history-making moment! Heatley will never forget the car accident that almost ended his career and took the life of a teammate in Atlanta (this was, of course, a different car accident than that of the Bruins defenseman Girard). Heatley will also never forget this game against the Boston Bruins who stopped him, against all odds, from besting a record.
The Bruins defeating the Senators 3-0, at this point, could be the upset of the year! The Sens had won just before that 4-0 over Montreal... and won 5-1 the day after, over Los Angeles, to boost their record to 20-4.
Their 4th loss though - to Boston - will not be forgotten anytime soon!
Not until the Sens choke in the playoffs again it won't! *lol*
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 9:19 AM
Sharks 5, Sabres 0
Dec 3, 12:06 AM (ET)
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Joe Thornton gave the slumping San Jose Sharks just the lift they needed.
Thornton had two assists in his debut with San Jose, setting up Jonathan Cheechoo twice, and the Sharks snapped a 10-game losing streak with a 5-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Friday night.
"I'm a San Jose Shark," Thornton said. "I felt really comfortable out there, and this feels really good."
Thornton, acquired Wednesday in a four-player, blockbuster deal with the Boston Bruins, made an immediate impact on a team that was looking for a spark. His presence jolted his new club, which hadn't won since beating Anaheim 1-0 in overtime on Nov. 4.
Starting between his cousin Scott and Cheechoo, Thornton rang a shot off the outside edge of the post just nine seconds in.
"It was kind of a knuckleball, but I thought, 'Man, that's a good sign,"' Scott Thornton said.
Joe also was pleased with his quick scoring chance.
"Yeah, that was something," he said. "That's when you think that things are going to be all right."
And that's exactly what it was Friday, as San Jose never looked back after grabbing a 3-0 lead in the first six minutes.
"The first couple of shifts we sustained pressure in their end, and had good control," Cheechoo said. "When you spend that much time in their end, I think everybody gets a little more energized."
Thornton's debut was slightly tainted, though, as goaltender Evgeni Nabokov injured his groin in the second period, and left the game with 11:20 to go after making 20 saves.
Nabokov, who won for the fourth time this season, immediately went to the dressing room and was relieved by Nolan Schaefer.
"It was more of a precautionary thing," said Nabokov, who missed eight games earlier this season with a shoulder injury. "We'll see how it feels (Saturday)."
Grant Stevenson, Milan Michalek, and Nicholas Dimitrakos also scored for the Sharks. But it was Thornton who stole the show.
"I think that first shot that Joe clanked off the pipe might have shaken them up a little bit," San Jose coach Ron Wilson said. "He provided a spark, but for the first time in a while we got a couple of breaks early in the game."
The Sabres had their five-game winning streak snapped, and looked sluggish after beating Montreal in overtime Thursday night. It was also Buffalo's first loss in regulation in 10 games (8-1-1).
"A big trade like that gave them a lot of momentum right off the bat," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. "I thought they were pretty fired up."
San Jose (9-12-4), the last place-team in the Pacific Division, scored four goals in the first 11½ minutes, including three in a 2-minute span to chase goalie Mika Noronen. Noronen made his first start since injuring his groin in a shootout loss to the New York Rangers on Nov. 22, and appeared to be hampered while stopping only seven of 11 shots.
Martin Biron relieved Noronen after Dimitrakos' goal made it 4-0.
The Sharks increased their lead to five just over 2 minutes into the second period on a two-man advantage when Cheechoo scored his second of the game and ninth of the season. Standing to the right of Biron, Cheechoo banged home Thornton's slick cross-ice pass from the bottom of the right circle.
"I don't think Joe even knew who Jonathan Cheechoo was before he came here, in the sense that he scored 28 goals for us two years ago," Wilson said.
San Jose won for the first time in 12 tries in Buffalo, the only NHL city where the Sharks had never registered a point. ^
Notes:
Buffalo RW J.P. Dumont was diagnosed with a sports hernia that will most likely require surgery. He hasn't played since Nov. 17. ... Sabres forward Chris Thorburn made his NHL debut after being called up from Rochester of the AHL earlier in the day. ... Nabokov, who was 0-6-4 since his last win, wasn't sure if he would be able to play in Toronto on Saturday. ... Buffalo's last loss in regulation was a 6-1 defeat in Ottawa on Nov. 12.
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At least it ends on a BOBBY ORR note... a REAL BRUIN... Joe never was that!
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 9:24 AM
Bruins 5, Oilers 4, OT
Dec 4, 1:58 AM (ET)
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) - The Boston Bruins might not be a work in progress after all.
They already seem to be clicking just days after captain Joe Thornton was dealt away.
David Tanabe scored his first goal of the season in overtime, lifting the new-look Bruins to a 5-4 victory Saturday night over the Edmonton Oilers.
Tanabe won it just 30 seconds before the game would've gone to a shootout. Brad Boyes had a career-high two goals as the Bruins won their second straight since sending Thornton to the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday.
"You make a trade to make your team better," Bruins general manager Mike O'Connell said. "We hope this will continue."
After trailing 3-0 early in the second period, the Bruins fought back on a pair from goals from Boyes and one from Sergei Samsonov in a 5-minute span.
"We had a little talk between periods," said Tanabe, a defenseman acquired on Nov. 18 in a trade with Phoenix.
Patrice Bergeron gave Boston a 4-3 lead in the third period, but Fernando Pisani tied it to force overtime.
Pisani scored twice and finished with three points, and Todd Harvey and Ryan Smyth also scored for Edmonton, which had won six of eight games.
The Oilers finished their three-game homestand 1-2 to fall to 6-5-1 at Rexall Place.
"We're back feeling like we got run over by a semi right now," Oilers coach Craig MacTavish said. "We outshot them almost 2-to-1 and we must have outchanced them 3-to-1."
Harvey scored on a wraparound backhand in the Oilers' 16-shot first period, and Smyth followed up just over two minutes later with his team-leading sixth power-play goal. He stripped new Boston defenseman Brad Stuart of the puck behind the Bruins net and swept in a rebound off Pisani's point shot.
Pisani scored a power-play goal of his own to open the second period for a 3-0 Oilers lead. The Edmonton native followed with a goal in the third that required video review.
"There weren't any long faces because we knew we had a lot of time left," Boyes said.
Boston (10-13-5) began a three-game Western road trip with its only meeting against the Oilers this season. It was the Bruins' first visit to Edmonton since the 2002-03 season.
Rookie Hannu Toivonen made 36 saves in his second straight start for the Bruins.
"I had a couple of good stops, but too much bouncing around," said Toivonen, who improved to 6-2-3.
Both teams played outside their own conferences for the first time this season.
"It's easier to open up because we don't see much of the teams in the West and they can't hurt you in the standings," Tanabe said.
The Bruins unloaded captain Thornton in a blockbuster deal with San Jose, getting Stuart, left winger Marco Sturm and center Wayne Primeau in return.
"It was an emotional 24 hours we had after the big trade," Toivonen said. "But you can't worry about it too much." ^
Notes:
The Bruins face Western conference opponents their next six games. ... Referee Kelly Sutherland took a headfirst dive to avoid Bruins defenseman Brian Leetch's slap shot in the second period
Ironically, the Sharks are facing Eastern opponents these days - after Buffalo, it was a stopover in Toronto - whom they upended as well by the very same score - 5-4!
How funny is that...
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 11:45 PM
Bruins 4, Senators 2
Jan 5, 10:51 PM (ET) Email this Story
Box Score | Recap | Game Log
BOSTON (AP) - The Boston Bruins have learned not to worry too much when losing a lead in the third period.
Brad Boyes scored the tiebreaking goal and Bruins beat the short-handed Ottawa Senators for the second time this season, 4-2 Thursday night.
"Earlier in the year, our mind-set when losing a third period lead was to hang our heads," Boyes said. "But now the mind-set is there and it has been for the last month."
Ottawa was playing without injured stars Daniel Alfredsson, Jason Spezza, Martin Havlat and Brian Pothier - who have combined for 132 points this season.
"It was a disappointing loss," Senators goalie Domink Hasek said. "With all of our injuries, we can't give up more than two goals and expect to win."
Boston has alternated wins and losses in its last nine games, and is the Northeast Division foe to beat Ottawa this season. The Bruins also beat the Senators 3-0 at home on Dec. 1.
"We are not a pretty team and to be successful we have to do the little things," Bruins defenseman Hal Gill said. "We need to stack sone wins together because playing .500 won't get it done the rest of the way."
The Senators trailed 2-1 in the third period when Mike Fisher scored a short-handed goal on a breakaway, beating backup goalie Andrew Raycroft.
"A lot of our top players are out right now and we haven't been able to find a way to score," Fisher said.
Boyes responded with the Bruins' second power-play goal of the game, a slap shot that beat Hasek with 6:50 left in the third. The Bruins had been struggling on the power play, going 6-for-69 in the previous 15 games.
Ottawa Senators goalie Dominik Hasek of the Czech Republic, top, raises his glove for a few saves - but he did not raise his glove in victory. Again, he was "solved' and defeated by the Bruins! Boston always had his number - in fact, no one in Beantown knows WHY in blue blazes this Hasek guy is called the "dominator"...!
"The fact that we got that power-play goal right after the one we gave up was big," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said. "We've been preaching to our players not to get discouraged and that was a real turning point."
Starting goalie Hannu Toivonen was replaced by Raycroft after he left the game with an ankle injury at the end of the second period. Toivonen made 22 saves and has allowed two goals in three appearances against Ottawa this season.
The Bruins and Senators combined for three goals in a span of 1:33 in the second.
Chris Neil gave the Senators a 1-0 lead when he scored his career-high 11th goal at the 5:07 mark. Neil redirected Wade Redden's shot past Toivonen.
The Bruins answered with goals by Glen Murray and Brad Stuart to take a 2-1 lead with 13:20 remaining in the second.
Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron went flying after colliding with an Ottawa Senators forward on center ice... Bergeron was trying to look like Bobby Orr... He does, sometimes, on some goal-scoring plays! :)
After Murray knocked in the rebound of a Marco Sturm shot, Stuart followed with a power-play goal when his slap shot from the left faceoff circle beat Hasek.
Stuart has three goals and six assists in 13 games since being acquired in the Joe Thornton trade.
Travis Green added an empty net goal with 11.9 seconds remaining and Patrice Bergeron had two assists for the Bruins. ^
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 2:11 AM
Bruins 6, Lightning 3
Jan 7, 8:38 PM (ET)
Box Score | Recap | Game Log
BOSTON (AP) - Boston defenseman Milan Jurcina could hardly be blamed for being a little greedy.
Jurcina scored the first two goals of his NHL career and Patrice Bergeron had the go-ahead goal to lead the Boston Bruins to a 6-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Lighting on Saturday.
With the Bruins trailing 3-1, Jurcina scored midway through the second period. He tied the game 4:15 later when he beat goalie John Grahame with a slap shot from the right point at 13:33.
"You start thinking on the bench, 'I have to keep scoring. I have more confidence,"' Jurcina said. "I said to the guys, 'One more guys."'
Jurcina was recalled from the Bruins AHL affiliate in Providence for the third time this season on Dec. 2, and was back in action after being scratched the past two games.
"He's getting better right in front of our eyes," Boston coach Mike Sullivan said. "He can really shoot the puck as you saw tonight."
The timely scores by Jurcina overshadowed what might have been a bad night for the Bruins after goalie Andrew Raycroft left the game late in the third period.
"He tweaked his knee a little," Sullivan said. "I don't think it's anything serious."
Raycroft thinks he'll be able to play the Bruins next game Tuesday night, but he'll know more Sunday.
"Hopefully I'll wake up in the morning, there's no swelling, and it fells good," he said. "I definitely don't want to miss anything."
The Bruins are unbeaten in their last 21 home games against the Lightning, going 16-0-5 since a loss on April 9, 1994. Boston is 17-1-6 overall at home against Tampa Bay.
Boston, which overcame a two-goal deficit with three second-period scores, took ad 4-3 on Bergeron's goal. Marco Sturm fired a shot from the left wing and Bergeron came charging in and, while falling to the ice, slipped the rebound by Grahame.
P.J. Axelsson scored on a partial breakaway, making it 5-3 with 11:25 left in the third period. Grahame was pulled after the score, and Patrick Leahy added an empty-net goal with 43 seconds to play.
The Lightning had taken a 3-1 lead on Vincent Lecavalier's 17th goal of the season early in the second period.
"I thought at times we had full control of the game for a lot of the game, and they just couldn't sustain it," Tampa Bay coach John Tortorella said.
Jurcina fired a wrist shot inside the right post for his first NHL goal 9:18 into the period.
"It's a 60-minute game," Lightning left wing Dave Andreychuk said.
Tampa Bay jumped ahead 1-0 on the game's opening shift when Fredrik Modin fired a slap shot inside the right post at 39 seconds.
Evgeny Artyukhin's goal made it 2-0 at 4:26. He finished off a 3-on-2 break just after a power play expired when he slipped a wrist shot between Raycroft's pads. The Bruins sliced the score to 2-1 on Strum's goal at 17:15. ^
Notes:
Boston center Alexei Zhamnov broke his left ankle along the boards in the second period. ... Bruins goalie Hannu Toivonen, who sprained his right ankle during Thursday's 4-2 win over Ottawa, said he had an MRI taken Friday and that there was "no timetable" for his return, but he feels optimistic it'll be quick. Sullivan said after the game that it's more than day-to-day. ... The Bruins recalled Jordan Sigalet from their AHL affiliate in Providence to dress as the backup.
WOW - BACK-TO-BACK VICTORIES over the best team in the league (Ottawa) and the defending Cup champs (Tampa Bay)... AND YET... I AM STILL LUKEWARM ABOUT THIS SEASON... THIS TEAM... EVERYTHING!
Those who know me KNOW that the Bruins team that I wanted to see go all the way had players by the names of NEELY, POULIN, DOURIS, BURRIDGE and DELGUIDICE on its roster...
No Zhamnovs busts!
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 11:43 PM
I am ALSO lukewarm about other sports, mind you... such as...
FOOTBALL
Patriots 28, Jaguars 3
Jan 8, 12:40 AM (ET)
By BARRY WILNER
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) - Here's the chilling truth for the rest of the NFL: The New England Patriots look like champions again.
And they have no fear of hitting the road for the rest of the postseason.
Tom Brady threw three touchdown passes, Willie McGinest broke two records for sacks and the Patriots set an NFL mark with 10 straight postseason victories by beating the Jacksonville Jaguars 28-3 on Saturday night.
"It's a great accomplishment," McGinest said. "We're not downplaying it, but they are not passing out any trophies tonight. We've got a long way to go."
Pursuing an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl title, New England battered the overmatched Jags. Brady, who improved to 10-0 in the postseason, matched his playoff career high for TD passes, and McGinest set NFL postseason records with 4½ sacks and 16 for his career.
Next, the Patriots go to either Denver on Saturday night or Indianapolis the following day, depending on the outcome of Sunday's Pittsburgh-Cincinnati game.
"We're going to keep fighting, I know we will keep fighting," Brady said. "We'll get ready to play the toughest game of the year.
"Now we are even with the best teams in the league, Indy and Denver."
New England's milestone surpassed the nine straight playoff victories by Green Bay in the 1960s. The Patriots (11-6) last lost a playoff game in 1999, to the Jaguars. Since Bill Belichick became coach in 2000, they have won three Super Bowls in four seasons, but never played in the wild-card round until now.
"At this point in time, you win or go home. We're not ready to go home," defensive tackle Richard Seymour said.
McGinest surpassed Bruce Smith's record for postseason sacks, getting 1½ in the waning moments.
"In the company of guys like Bruce Smith and Reggie White, it's definitely a compliment," he said. "I'm just humbled to be in the same category with those guys."
McGinest and the rest of the defense, even without co-Comeback Player of the Year Tedy Bruschi, who was in uniform but didn't play because of a calf injury, kept Jacksonville from mounting much of a challenge. The Jaguars (12-5) looked like a team making its first postseason appearance since 1999, and one that faced an easy schedule in compiling such a strong record.
"You've got to turn your game up more, especially against the defending champs," linebacker Mike Peterson said.
While Brady had touchdown throws of 11 yards to Troy Brown, 3 to David Givens and 63 to Ben Watson - the tight end did all the work on that one - the defense never let Jacksonville's offense breathe. Cornerback Asante Samuel was particularly active with a 73-yard interception return early in the fourth quarter that clinched it, and New England finished with six sacks overall.
Although they sputtered early, the Patriots were plenty sharp in dominating the second half. They haven't lost a playoff game at home since 1978.
The first half was marked by tenacious defense on both sides. The Jaguars had four sacks and yielded only 126 yards. New England got two sacks and allowed 115 yards.
Jacksonville didn't get a first down until about 11 minutes remained in the second quarter. Then Eugene Wilson laid a vicious hit on backup running back Alvin Pearman, forcing a fumble. Seymour recovered at the New England 40.
The Patriots did nothing with the takeaway, however, and the Jaguars finally got something going, a 12-play, 56-yard drive to set up Josh Scobee's 36-yard field goal.
New England should have gotten seven more points at the end of the half, but Deion Branch, wide open inside the Jacksonville 10, dropped Brady's long pass.
The Patriots also were forced to use Brown as a defensive back in passing situations, a ploy that worked well last season, but rarely was tried in 2005. Not surprisingly, he performed well in his part-time job.
"You never know what will happen on this team, so you have to be ready," Brown said.
Givens, who was wide open after a superb play fake by Brady, has a TD catch in six straight playoff games, two short of John Stallworth's NFL mark.
Watson broke three tackles after taking a short pass on third-and-13, making it 21-3. Six plays later, Samuel stepped in front of Reggie Williams, stole Byron Leftwich's pass and motored down the left sideline to score.
"That was a great effort by Benjamin to break those tackles," Belichick said, "and make a big play out of what probably should've been a third-down stop."
Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio called it a critical play.
"All of a sudden, instead of us having an opportunity to keep it close, it got blown open right there," Del Rio said.
Leftwich, in his first action since breaking his left ankle on Nov. 27, looked rusty and indecisive. New England's defense had much to do with that, of course, and he left midway through the fourth quarter.
By then, the Patriots had topped Vince Lombardi's Packers and could start thinking about literally hitting the road to the Super Bowl. ^
Notes:
Brady finished 15-of-27 for 201 yards. ... Leftwich was 18-for-31 for 179 yards. ... Belichick is 11-1 in the postseason as a head coach, the best record in NFL history. ... Jacksonville is 0-4 in Foxborough.
So the Pats beat the Jags again...
SO WHAT
It is funny actually, because I always thought Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and J*A*G had a lot in common...
I don't like 'em! *LOL*
The Brady Bunch will win more it appears...
so what?
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 11:51 PM
And I am REALLY lukewarm about, ah...
BASKETBALL!
(I said Basketball - not "Baseketball"... that South Park-bred film simply makes my skin CRAWL; that is worse than feeling lukewarm about it... much worse).
(AP) Washington Wizards Gilbert Arenas (0) drives to the basket against Boston Celtics Kendrick Perkins...
Full Image
Wizards 103, Celtics 102
Jan 7, 11:33 PM (ET)
Box Score | Recap | Game Log
WASHINGTON (AP) - Gilbert Arenas didn't mind that it took an ugly victory to snap the Washington Wizards' four-game losing streak.
"They didn't say all wins in the NBA are pretty," Arenas said after his two free throws with 3.5 seconds remaining secured the Washington Wizards' 103-102 victory over the Boston Celtics on Saturday night.
"I wasn't going to miss those two."
Arenas scored 31 points and Antawn Jamison added 24 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who blew a seven-point lead in the final 29 seconds.
"We will take them however we can get them," said Caron Butler, whose two free throws gave Washington a 101-94 advantage with 29.4 seconds left.
Paul Pierce then made a 3-pointer off an inbounds play and Brian Scalabrine entered the game and promptly hit another 3 from the corner that pulled the Celtics to 101-100 lead with 21 seconds left.
"Before he took that 3, Scalabrine came over and said: 'Get ready, it's coming,"' Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said. "And he made it, too."
After Butler missed two free throws, Delonte West hit a jumper from the top the key that gave the Celtics a 102-101 lead with 9.7 seconds left. West had just missed a shot from virtually the same spot but Ricky Davis tipped the rebound back to him for a second opportunity.
"People were walking with their backs turned, walking out of the gym like the game was over," said West, who nearly gave the Celtics only their fourth road victory of the season. "It always hurts to lose, no matter how it happens. It is even worse when you have made a major comeback."
Arenas made the game-winning free throws after being fouled on a drive to the basket by Pierce.
"I just wanted to go out and get a foul," said Arenas, who appeared to initiate contact on the play. "I am lighter than Paul Pierce."
Celtics coach Doc Rivers didn't like the call.
"I think my view was what everybody else's view was - except for the right guy," Rivers said. "He lost control of the ball. He kind of flung himself into the guy. It was too bad for us because it was a heck of a comeback."
Ricky Davis missed a desperation heave at the buzzer.
"We kind of stole the game and let it slip away," Scalabrine said.
Davis scored 24 points to lead the Celtics, who have lost six of their last eight games.
Pierce, who finished with 23 points, scored 11 in the fourth quarter but missed a 3-pointer and a jumper down the stretch. He also missed two of three free throws with 30 seconds remaining.
"We shouldn't have put ourselves in that situation," he said. "If we would have executed earlier in the game we wouldn't have come to this, but I like how we didn't give in late in the game when people were leaving the stands thinking the game was over."
Butler added 20 points and Brendan Haywood grabbed 12 rebounds for the Wizards.
Following a thunderous baseline dunk by West, Pierce's 3-pointer pulled the Celtics to 90-87 with 5:15 remaining.
Butler's 3-pointer gave the Wizards an 88-80 lead with 8:14 left.
Antonio Daniels and Butler sparked the Wizards' 11-2 run to close the third quarter. Arenas capped the spurt with a three-point play with 1.9 seconds remaining and Washington led 82-76 after three.
Celtics guards Davis and West combined to hit their first nine shots. Davis scored the Celtics' first six points of the second quarter.
Davis made eight of his first nine shots and gave the Celtics a 42-35 lead with a layup late in the second quarter. West's 3-pointer gave Boston its largest lead of the half at 49-41 with 1:45 remaining.
There were four lead changes and seven ties in the first quarter. ^
Notes:
Wizards forward Jared Jeffries missed the game with a left-eye abrasion. ... The Celtics, who lost to Atlanta on Friday night, are 2-6 in the second half of back-to-backs. ... The Wizards had their seventh sellout of the season but many of the 20,173 arrived after the Washington Redskins' NFL wild-card playoff victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 11:55 PM
Perfect example of WHY I am so lukewarm about the Bruins this year and, in fact, these past few years...
Their unexplainable inconsistency and third stanza collapses...!
==============================
Kings 6, Bruins 0
Jan 12, 11:27 PM (ET)
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Box Score | Recap | Game Log
BOSTON (AP) - The Boston Bruins thought they had played as badly as they possible could. They were wrong.
The Bruins have been outscored 12-2 in their past two games by the San Jose Sharks and the Los Angeles Kings.
"We thought the bottom was hit two nights ago and tonight we found a way to go lower," said Boston goalie Andrew Raycroft after a 6-0 loss to the Kings on Thursday night. "We've seen China."
It was the Bruins worst loss since a 6-0 defeat to Toronto no Dec. 4, 2003.
Alexander Frolov scored the second hat trick of his career and Mathieu Garon stopped 30 shots to help the Kings win.
Frolov's goals all came in the third period. The first on a wrist shot 44 seconds into the stanza. The next came on a penalty shot. The third, with 10:55 showing on the clock, came from a shot in the slot.
"I really worked hard the first two periods but I couldn't score. I knew the only way to do that was to keep working and I finally got my chances in the third period," Frolov said.
Garon bounced back from a 6-2 loss to Anaheim on Monday with the sixth shutout of his career and the second this season. He is 20-10-0 this season and 6-2-0 in his last eight starts.
Los Angeles is 2-6-3 in its last 11 visits to Boston. The Kings last win came March 30, 1999 2-1 in overtime.
"We played solid tonight. We knew the Bruins would be aggressive tonight after their game against San Jose but we just kept battling," Kings coach Andy Murray said.
The Kings are 1-2 in their current four game road trip.
Andrew Raycroft took the loss. He was replaced for the second straight game by Tim Thomas in the third period.
"It's difficult for me to understand what has taken place over the last three days," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said. ""Because I felt - and we felt - we had gone a long way in the last three weeks in accomplishing what we felt we needed to accomplish in order to give ourselves a chance to win."
Joe Corvo scored his ninth goal of the season at 18:55 of the first period on a shot from the point to give the Kings a 1-0 lead.
Michael Cammalleri built the Kings lead to 2-0 at 12:02 of the second period on a power play. His 16th goal of the season came on a rebound of his own shot from right of the net. He has scored at least one point in 10 of his last 11 games.
The Kings also got a third period goal from Dustan Brown. It came at 4:42 and was his eight this season. ^
Notes:
Travis Green of the Bruins played in his 900th game in the NHL. ... Ben Walter played in his first NHL game for Boston. ... Kings coach Andy Murray has a record of 2-2-4 all-time against Boston. ... Luc Robitaille has tallied 47 points in 45 appearances against the Bruins.
(Most of them in losing causes - evidently. Robitaille is another Un-Lucky Luc... like me!)
Los Angeles Kings center Michael Cammalleri, left wing Jeff Giuliano, forward Joe Corvo... sheesh... have the Kings turned into THE SOPRANOS?
*LOL*
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 3:28 PM
I GOTTA BE LUKEWARM!!!
Look at what happened with the PATS...
Such a huge build-up...
Such promise...
see for yourself now...
===========================
Patriots-Broncos Preview
Jan 13, 6:33 PM (ET)
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GAME: New England Patriots (11-6) at Denver Broncos (13-3).
TIME: Saturday, 8 p.m. EST.
John Elway retired instead of going for a third straight Super Bowl victory. His former team now can prevent Tom Brady from having a shot at it.
Brady tries to build his legend in the city where Elway became one, looking to lift the New England Patriots one step closer to making NFL history when they visit the Denver Broncos in an AFC divisional playoff game.
New England enters with an NFL-record, 10-game playoff win streak under coach Bill Belichick, including winning three of the last four Super Bowls. Last season, the Patriots became the first back-to-back NFL champions since Elway and the Broncos in 1998.
No team has won three consecutive Super Bowls.
To have a chance at doing it, the Patriots will have to get there without having home-field advantage and may have to win twice on the road. Of their 10 victories during the record streak, only two were away from home - at Pittsburgh in the 2001 and 2004 AFC championship games.
"If we don't play our most consistent brand of football, I don't care whether it is on the road or at home, we are not going to win," Brady said.
New England faces a Broncos team coming off a bye week that is hosting its first playoff game at Invesco Field. Denver hasn't played a home playoff game since Elway led the team to a 23-10 win over the New York Jets in the 1998 AFC championship game at Mile High Stadium. Two weeks later, the Broncos won their second straight Super Bowl with a 31-17 victory over Atlanta.
Denver hasn't won a playoff game since, getting blown out in wild-card games the last two years at Indianapolis and losing in Baltimore in 2000. Those defeats have intensified the pressure on coach Mike Shanahan to prove he can win in the postseason without No. 7 behind center.
"I think there is a sense of urgency in the playoffs," said Shanahan, who is 7-4 in the postseason with the Broncos. "You have to do what you have been doing, and you have to focus the same way and prepare the same way."
Belichick knows the Patriots have to limit mistakes on the road, especially in an environment where the Broncos have won 10 straight regular-season games and are 11-2 in the postseason.
"The Denver Broncos will be our toughest challenge this season," he said. "To have any chance, it will take our best game and certainly a lot better performance than the last time we played them."
That was in Week 6, when the Broncos led by as many as 25 points in a 28-20 win in Denver. The Patriots scored the game's final 17 points and had a chance to tie, but Brady threw three straight incompletions and after a punt, the Denver offense ran the final 3½ minutes off the clock.
Brady, who has 21 successful comebacks from ties or deficits in the fourth quarter and overtime, finished 24-of-46 for 299 yards and one touchdown.
He is 1-3 against the Broncos, throwing for seven touchdowns and five interceptions.
"We don't want to get down 28-3 like we did the last time," Brady said. "You have to go out there and come out firing and try to play your best and keep it close."
Denver will see a different look from the Patriots this time. In Week 6, New England was playing its fourth road game in five weeks and had 18 players on the injured list, including running backs Corey Dillon and Kevin Faulk, wide receiver Troy Brown, linebacker Tedy Bruschi and defensive end Richard Seymour.
As a result, a makeshift Patriots defense allowed 178 rushing yards and gave up three plays of 50 yards or more.
"We are not going to say we were banged up or we didn't have anybody," linebacker Willie McGinest said. "We went out there and we faced them like men. They beat us, but none of that really matters right now."
Since that loss, which dropped the Patriots to 3-3, New England's defense has allowed just four plays of 50 yards or more and given up an average of 83.2 rushing yards in 11 games.
In the Patriots' 28-3 victory over Jacksonville in an AFC wild-card matchup last Saturday, McGinest set NFL postseason records with 4½ sacks in the game and 16 in his playoff career as a defense missing Bruschi allowed 87 yards on the ground. Bruschi sat out with a calf injury but is expected to return this week.
The Broncos would like to get the league's No. 2 rushing offense going at home, where they have outscored opponents by a 2-to-1 margin (262-131) in the last 10 games, rushing for 176.9 yards per game and allowing an average of 72.8.
Denver has rushed for 150 or more yards in eight of those games and boasts a two-back threat in Mike Anderson and Tatum Bell. That duo totaled 171 rushing yards and two touchdowns in Week 6.
"A lot of respect. A lot of respect," Anderson said of the Patriots. "Utmost respect for those guys, because they've done it and they've done it again."
Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer, named to his first Pro Bowl this week, makes the first home playoff start of his nine-year career.
Plummer has retooled his game since coming to Denver in 2003 by limiting his mistakes. He threw just seven interceptions this season for the second time in three years and set a franchise record with 229 straight passes without an interception.
Like Brady, Plummer has 21 come-from-behind victories late in the game.
"You are going to make mistakes and you hope that they are not big ones," Plummer said. "I'm going to come out fighting as I always have."
Denver holds a 24-15 advantage in the all-time series, including a 16-8 home record. The teams have met once in the postseason, when the Broncos won 22-17 in a 1986 divisional matchup.
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Patriots - 1st place, AFC East; beat Jacksonville Jaguars 28-3, wild-card round. Broncos - 1st place, AFC West; first-round bye.
PATRIOTS LEADERS: Offense - Brady, 4,110 passing yards and 26 passing TDs; Dillon, 733 rushing yards and 12 rushing TDs; Deion Branch, 78 receptions, 998 receiving yards and 5 receiving TDs. Defense - Rosevelt Colvin, 7 sacks; Ellis Hobbs and Asante Samuel, 3 INTs.
BRONCOS LEADERS: Offense - Plummer, 3,366 passing yards and 18 passing TDs; Anderson, 1,014 rushing yards and 12 rushing TDs; Rod Smith, 85 receptions, 1,105 receiving yards and 6 receiving TDs. Defense - Ebenezer Ekuban, Trevor Pryce and John Lynch, 4 sacks; Champ Bailey, 8 INTs.
PATRIOTS TEAM RANK: Rushing Offense - 94.5 ypg (24th in NFL); Passing Offense - 257.5 ypg (2nd); Total Offense - 352.0 ypg (7th). Rushing Defense - 98.8 ypg (8th); Passing Defense - 231.4 ypg (31st); Total Defense - 330.2 ypg (26th).
BRONCOS TEAM RANK: Rushing Offense - 158.7 yards per game (2nd); Passing Offense - 201.7 ypg (18th); Total Offense - 360.4 ypg (5th). Rushing Defense - 85.2 ypg (2nd); Passing Defense - 227.7 ypg (29th); Total Defense - 312.9 ypg (15th).
LAST MEETING: Oct. 16; Broncos, 28-20. At Denver, Plummer threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns and Bell rushed for 114 yards on 13 carries in the Broncos' fifth straight win.
STREAKS AND NOTES: Patriots - WR David Givens has a TD catch in six consecutive playoff games, second-best in NFL history to Pittsburgh's John Stallworth, who did it in eight straight. ... Brady has eight TDs and no INTs in his last four playoff games. ... RB Dillon has averaged 120 rushing yards in four career games against Denver, including a then-NFL single-game record 278 yards in 2000. Broncos - Plummer's 134.4 rating against the Patriots in Week 6 was his highest of the season and third-highest of his career. ... WR Smith has recorded at least 100 receiving yards in four of his eight career starts versus the Patriots. ... The Broncos are 8-0 in home postseason games against opponents they faced in the regular season.
ROAD/HOME RECORDS: Patriots - 5-3 on the road; Broncos - 8-0 at home.
INJURIES: Patriots - PROBABLE: QB Brady (right shoulder); LB Matt Chatham (knee); RB Dillon (calf); RB Heath Evans (shoulder); TE Christian Fauria (foot); TE Daniel Graham (shoulder); DE Jarvis Green (shoulder); S Artrell Hawkins (thigh); C Russ Hochstein (ankle); T Nick Kaczur (shoulder); C Gene Mruczkowski (back); RB Patrick Pass (hamstring). Broncos - PROBABLE: TE Stephen Alexander (toe); DE Courtney Brown (knee/shoulder); LB Keith Burns (knee); TE Jeb Putzier (shoulder); CB Darrent Williams (groin); LB Al Wilson (thumb).
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 9:35 PM
And then look at what actually happened...
===========================
Broncos 27, Patriots 13
Jan 15, 12:11 AM (ET)
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By EDDIE PELLS
DENVER (AP) - It took a Champ to knock off the champs, a crazy 100-yard sprint by Denver's star cornerback that helped the Broncos stop their long streak of playoff futility and bring the New England dynasty to an end.
Huffing, puffing, dashing down the sideline, Champ Bailey got caught and knocked down at the 1-yard line Saturday night. But his interception of Tom Brady did the damage, setting up the game-changing touchdown in Denver's 27-13 victory over the defending Super Bowl champions.
"It was a great play by me," Bailey said. "I made the play, but it was something we'd talked about the whole game."
The first playoff game in the history of Invesco Field resulted in Denver's first postseason win since the 1998 Super Bowl, John Elway's last game.
Next week in the AFC championship game, the Broncos will play the winner of Sunday's meeting between Indianapolis and Pittsburgh.
This game also marked the end of the Patriots' shot at history.
Trying to become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls, the Patriots (11-7) simply didn't have enough to overcome Denver's steady play, a few bad breaks or their five turnovers. That was one fewer than they had during their entire, record-setting 10-game playoff winning streak that ended at the hands of the Broncos (14-3).
"Obviously, we're disappointed," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. "We weren't able to make the plays we needed to make to win, that's why we didn't win."
And when it counted the most, the Patriots also couldn't match Bailey.
The Patriots were moving the ball well in the third quarter. They cut a 10-3 deficit to four points on a field goal and had moved easily to the Denver 5 for what could have been the go-ahead score.
But on third down from the 5, Bailey stepped in front of Brady's pass in the end zone for the pick. He sprinted down the sideline and when he felt Kevin Faulk swipe at him helplessly about 70 yards into the trek, he thought he had it cinched.
Champions don't go down easily, though, and tight end Ben Watson wasn't quitting. Watson took an angle, and with Bailey slowing and bringing the ball down to his hip, Watson got there, knocked Bailey down and sent the ball flying out of bounds at the 1.
Or maybe through the end zone.
With Bailey lying on his back, grimacing and gasping for air, Belichick challenged the call, saying the ball flew out of the end zone, which would have given them the ball back on a touchback.
"It definitely went out," Belichick said. "It went out of his hands. They reviewed the play. Go ask them."
It was the kind of call a championship team might have gotten. With no decisive TV angle, though, the Pats didn't and on the next play, Mike Anderson scored his second 1-yard touchdown of the night and gave Denver a 17-6 lead.
"I never saw the guy coming, but I was going as hard as I could," Bailey said of the longest non-scoring interception return in NFL playoff history.
Always reliable Adam Vinatieri, the difference in all three of New England's three-point Super Bowl victories, missed a 42-yard field goal wide right on the next possession. Shortly after, dependable Troy Brown fumbled a punt return to set up Jake Plummer's lone touchdown pass of the night, a 4-yarder to Rod Smith for a 24-6 lead.
Plummer finished 15-for-26 for 197 yards with the touchdown and one interception, a nice play by Asante Samuel that led to New England's first field goal.
And while the Denver quarterback won't be mistaken for Elway, or even Brady - who threw for 341 yards in defeat - that was kind of the point: As has been proven all year, Plummer doesn't have to do it all for the Broncos to win.
There's the running game, held in check for most of this night, but good enough to punch the ball in under duress at the goal line. There's the defense; Al Wilson made no fewer than four big plays in the first half to keep the game scoreless for the first 26 minutes.
Special teams were good, too.
Punter and kickoff specialist Todd Sauerbrun, of all people, got his helmet on the ball on a kickoff return late in the first half to force a turnover and a Denver field goal for a 10-3 lead.
After Bailey's big play, and the non-reversal on Belichick's challenge, the coach stood there in his gray sweatshirt, looking nonplussed, as he's been throughout New England's four seasons of excellence. Behind him, though, the Patriots were coming apart, at least a little.
TV cameras showed Patriots linebacker Willie McGinest shoving Larry Izzo away during an argument, while Mike Vrabel tried to calm McGinest down - hardly the kind of calm and cool they showed as they made their run toward history.
Meanwhile, the Broncos put on the finishing touches and got ready for next week.
Their fans, dressed in orange and loud as they've been in the five-year history of a stadium many thought was too cushy and comfortable for raucousness, chanted, "Let's Go Pittsburgh," hoping a Steelers win Sunday will bring their team back for another game.
If Indy wins, though, the Broncos will return to the site of their playoff demise the last two seasons, by a combined score of 90-34.
After last season's loss, a 49-24 embarrassment, Denver coach Mike Shanahan insisted the Broncos weren't too far away from being Super Bowl contenders. Lots of people snickered. Very few are snickering now, especially not the Patriots.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 9:38 PM
Ahh - as lukewarm as I feel about things, it is always heart-warming to see the little guy come through... especially in Boston!
Tiny Tim Thomas did so - in goal!
(Not to be confused with former Bruin and currently with the Tampa Bay Lightning Tim "Toolman" Taylor... who is 6' 1"... hardly "tiny", is he? *lol*)
The Bruins have an interesting dilemma... last year's rookie of the year, Andrew Raycroft... this year's rookie of the year candidate, Hanny Toivonen... another hot prospect, in Providence but prone to be called up as he recently was - Jordan Sigalet... and Tim Thomas, who is getting the job done! AND ALL FOUR CAN BE THE NUMBER ONE GOALTENDER... either with the Providence Bruins or even with the Boston Bruins!
Interesting dilemma indeed...
==============================
Bruins 4, Mighty Ducks 3, OT
Jan 16, 5:12 PM (ET)
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Box Score | Recap | Game Log
BOSTON (AP) - Marco Sturm and Patrice Bergeron look like they have been playing together for years.
Amazingly, it's only been 19 games.
Bergeron scored the game-winning goal and assisted on Sturm's two goals to lead the Boston Bruins past the Anaheim Mighty Ducks 4-3 in overtime Monday.
Bergeron completed a 2-on-1 by taking a pass from a streaking Marco Sturm and firing a slap shop past Anaheim goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov 1:55 into overtime to give the Bruins their first win in four games. It was Bergeron's 13th goal of the season.
"I think you always have to find a guy on the team who maybe you click with," said Sturm, who was acquired from the San Jose Sharks with Brad Stuart and Wayne Primeau for Joe Thornton on Nov. 30. "Since I've been here, it's working really well. It's always a lot of fun playing with him."
The Bruins, who earned a point in their 2-1 shootout loss to Dallas on Jan. 14, won their first game since Jan. 7 to finish their seven-game home stand 3-3-1.
Thomas, making his second start since getting called up from Providence on Jan. 10, saved 25 shots to record his first NHL win since beating Buffalo 8-5 April 5, 2003. He suffered the loss to Dallas, despite stopping 36 of 38 shots.
"We've got points out of the last two games," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan. "I think (Thomas) has given us the opportunity to do that both games and that's all you can ask out of your goaltender."
The Bruins took a 3-1 lead when Bergeron assisted on Sturm's second goal of the game - 15th of the season - 3:30 into the third period, but the Mighty Ducks scored two goals in less than a minute to tie the game at 3.
"I changed all the lines because we were so flat," Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle said. "We had to find some sort of change."
Chris Kunitz's eighth goal of the season made it 3-2 9:19 into the period.
With Anaheim on a 5-on-3 advantage, Ryan Getzlaf took a pass from Scott Niedermayer and fired a slap shot past Thomas 10:17 into the third period to tie the game. Andy McDonald also assisted on the goal, Getzlaf's sixth of the season.
Boston committed five penalties in the third period and managed only six shots. Anaheim had 5-on-3 advantages in the third period twice and bombarded the Bruins with 11 shots on goal.
The Bruins killed four of five power plays in the third period to force overtime.
But Sturm and Bergeron teamed up for their third goal of the game to send the Mighty Ducks (19-16-9) to their third loss in four games.
"We held on and were able to get that overtime goal," Thomas said. "It should really help us carry over into the next game. At least that's the hope."
After being outscored 14-3 in their previous three games, the Bruins (17-21-7) took an early 2-0 lead by outshooting the Mighty Ducks 12-5 in the first period.
The Bruins went up 1-0 midway through the first period when Sturm completed a two-on-one break by taking a nifty Bergeron pass and firing a wrist shot inside the right post. P.J. Axelsson also assisted on the goal, Sturm's 14th of the season.
Sergie Samsonov's 16th goal of the season gave the Bruins a 2-0 lead five minutes later. Byzgalov made a nice save on a Milan Jurcina slap shot, but Samsonov poked in the rebound past an off-balance Bryzgalov. ^
Notes:
Boston was without defenseman Brian Leetch (injured groin) and RW Glen Murray (bruised foot). ... Hal Gill returned to the Bruins lineup after missing two games with a pinched nerve in his neck. ... It was Anaheim's first game in Boston since defeating the Bruins 4-1 Oct. 31, 2002. ... Mighty Ducks leading scorer Teemu Selanne missed his second consecutive game with a groin strain.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 5:02 PM
Boston lost the most number of one-goal games of all of the northeast clubs - losses in regulation time too, which do not pay any dividends for being so close - not even when the goal that makes the difference is a lucky one with less than 30 seconds to play in the game (as it so happened in what was to be Joe Thornton's last game as a Bruin. He lost the crucial face-off in his own zone with 30 seconds to go - and a tie score. The Devils scored on a lucky bounce then - and time ran out in the game! Some "potential-laden" star Joe is... he has the potential to ruin it all for you, that's what he has!). In all, the Bruins lost half-a-dozen games like that so far - where they could have had at least one point in the standings. They would have 10-15 extra points in the standings by now - instead of last place, they'd easily be in third or second place in their division! And the casual fan would see just how close they really are to all the other clubs in the "ultra-competitive Northeast division" this year... hmm?
The season still has ways to go though...
We will see what three and a half months bring to Bruins country!
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 12:49 PM
Bruins 5, Flyers 2
Jan 19, 10:24 PM (ET)
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By ROB MAADDI
Box Score | Recap | Game Log
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - The Boston Bruins made the most of a few shots.
Travis Green scored twice to lead the Bruins past the Philadelphia Flyers 5-2 on Thursday night.
Patrice Bergeron, Marco Sturm and Wayne Primeau also had goals, and rookie Tim Thomas made 35 saves for Boston, the last-place team in the Northeast Division.
The Bruins scored three goals on just five shots in the second period and needed only 12 shots to get their first four goals. They finished with a season-low 18 shots.
"The shots are an indicator, but they are not a complete indicator of play," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said. "I thought the scoring chances we generated were some high-quality ones and we were able to capitalize on them."
Sami Kapanen and Simon Gagne scored for Atlantic Division-leading Philadelphia. The suddenly struggling Flyers have lost four straight and five of six and trail NHL-leading Carolina by four points. They've lost three in a row at home since returning from an 8-2-1 road trip.
Philadelphia was without leading scorer Peter Forsberg, who has a groin injury. Four other regulars remained out: captain Keith Primeau, defensemen Eric Desjardins and Joni Pitkanen and goaltender Robert Esche.
"We need to get back to what we were doing good," Gagne said. "We need to figure out what we're doing wrong."
Green gave the Bruins an early 1-0 lead. He picked up a loose puck from the boards following an errant pass, skated across the ice and lifted a sharp backhander past goalie Antero Niittymaki.
Bergeron made it 2-0 with a power-play goal just 1:21 into the second period.
Kapanen's goal cut it to 2-1 a few minutes later. Mike Rathje's slap shot from the boards hit Kapanen's stick and slid by Thomas.
But the Bruins regained their two-goal lead when Sturm and Bergeron executed a give-and-go during a 2-on-1 break. Sturm one-timed Bergeron's cross-ice pass past Niittymaki for his 16th goal.
Thomas kept it 3-1 by stoning Jon Sim on a point-blank slap shot, and Green scored again to make it 4-1.
"Keep it simple and try to play it not like it's any old game because let's face it, it's not any old game for me," Thomas said. "It's more important that that."
Gagne's 32nd goal in the third cut it to 4-2. Wayne Primeau scored on a nifty breakaway in which he eluded a defender and one-handed a shot into the net to cap the scoring.
Niittymaki, who made his 17th consecutive start, has struggled lately. The rookie has allowed 19 goals during Philadelphia's losing streak.
"I don't think he's played as well as he has and he'll be the first to admit that," coach Ken Hitchcock said. "It's unfortunate because he carried us when Esche got hurt."
Esche, out since aggravating a groin injury Dec. 15, could return in a backup role Saturday at Pittsburgh. Pitkanen, who had surgery for a sports hernia in December, is expected back against the Penguins. Forsberg is day to day.
^Notes: Chris Therien played in his 747th game with the Flyers, passing Joe Watson for fourth on the team's career list and the most for a defenseman. He trails Bob Clarke (1,144), Bill Barber (903) and Brian Propp (790). ... Boston G Andrew Raycroft was scratched because of a leg injury. He backed up Thomas in the previous two games. ... Bruins LW Sergei Samsonov played in his 500th NHL game. ... Boston is 11-2-2 when Green has a point. ... The Bruins had 19 shots in a 2-1 overtime loss to Phoenix on Dec. 11.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 12:56 PM
Bruins 3, Capitals 2
Jan 23, 10:30 PM (ET)
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WASHINGTON (AP) - Wayne Primeau had his best offensive night for Boston and the Bruins found a way to shut down high-scoring Washington rookie Alexander Ovechkin.
Primeau scored twice and Boston beat Washington 3-2 on Monday night, snapping the Capitals' season-high, four-game winning streak.
"It feels good, but at the same time it feels better to get the win and get the two points," Primeau said. "We need them."
Brad Boyes also scored for Boston, and Brad Isbister and Eric Nickulas each had two assists. The Bruins have won three of four games and earned points in five straight.
Bruins defenseman P.J. Axelsson shadowed Ovechkin, limiting the Capitals' top threat to two third-period shots. Ovechkin entered the game with an eight-game point streak, matching the rookie's season high.
"Ovechkin is such an explosive player. He's got such a quick first step, you've got to give him a little room," Axelsson said. "If you're too tight to him, he's going to outskate you down the ice."
Ovechkin, however, almost saved his best for last. His left-wing snap shot hit the left post with 1:43 left in regulation, but Chris Clark couldn't follow up the rebound for the tying goal.
Otherwise, the Capitals were undone by the same script they used to fashion their winning streak: tight defense, opportunistic offense and a few key saves.
"I don't know if you can expect your team to outwork people every single night," Washington coach Glen Hanlon said. "You can't. It's impossible."
Boston outshot the Capitals 13-4 in the opening period, taking a 1-0 lead on Primeau's goal at 6:00. Primeau scored at the right post on a wraparound, despite being hounded by Washington's Jeff Halpern.
(AP) Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas (30) stops the puck in front of Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin...
Primeau struck again 12:31 into the second period, redirecting a shot past Brent Johnson for his 10th goal, his second two-goal game of the season and first since coming to Boston in a Nov. 30 trade with San Jose.
Nick Boynton set up the goal, pulling in a puck that appeared to have cleared the blue line at center point and sailing a wrist shot on net. The drive struck Primeau in front of the crease and knuckled past Johnson.
About 4 minutes later, Boyes made it 3-0. Boyes outhustled Jeff Friesen into the right corner for a dump-in, grabbed the puck and pushed it past Johnson.
Willsie cut the deficit to two goals with 1:16 remaining in the second, converting Matt Pettinger's left-side pass from the right of the crease.
Laich surprised Tim Thomas with a shot from low in the right circle, making it 3-2 2:51 into the third period.
(AP) Boston Bruins' Brad Boyes scores a goal on Washington Capitals goalie Brent Johnson in the second...
With 4:49 left in the third, Primeau was whistled for a tripping penalty against Clark, giving Washington its fifth power play of the night. Boston's penalty-killers made sure their offensive spark's effort didn't go to waste.
"The coaches have done a great job of researching other teams and finding out what we have to do to either clog up the neutral zone," Primeau said. "We have the guys who are doing it." ^
Notes:
Isbister picked up his 100th career assist on Primeau's first goal. ... Washington played without D Jamie Heward (groin), while Halpern returned after missing seven of nine games because of a groin injury. ... Primeau's other two-goal effort was Oct. 12 against Columbus.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 12:35 AM
WOW - DÉJÀ VU!
Bruins 3, Thrashers 2
Jan 24, 10:42 PM (ET)
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By PAUL NEWBERRY
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ATLANTA (AP) - The Boston Bruins had plenty of chances to score on the power play.
They waited until the Atlanta Thrashers evened things up.
P.J. Axelsson scored with 7:02 remaining and the Bruins edged closer to playoff contention, beating the Thrashers 3-2 Tuesday night.
Boston spent much of the third period with an extra skater - and even a couple of two-man advantages. But the teams were at even strength when Axelsson scored his first game-winning goal of the year.
After the Bruins controlled a faceoff, Brad Isbister played keepaway in the corner, then passed off to Wayne Primeau behind the net. Primeau spotted Axelsson alone in front, and the winger knocked his ninth goal past Thrashers goalie Keri Lehtonen.
"It was a hardworking goal," Axelsson said. "I didn't see any of it. I just shot it. I was too close to the net. There was a lot of luck in it."
Boston is playing its best hockey of the season, winning for the fourth time in six games and losing the other two in shootouts. The Bruins closed to within four points of the Thrashers, who hold down the eighth spot - the final playoff position - in the Eastern Conference.
"We've been playing consistently good for three or four weeks, but not always getting the results," coach Mike Sullivan said. "This group is starting to define itself."
The Thrashers are mired in a three-game losing streak - their worst slump since a five-game skid that ended in early December. Atlanta followed that with a 13-2-3 run, surging into contention for the first playoff berth in franchise history.
Now, they need another turnaround.
(AP) Boston Bruins left wing P.J. Axelsson, center, of Sweden celebrates his go-ahead goal against the...
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"When you look at the standings, it's all jumbled up," Atlanta coach Bob Hartley said. "There's still plenty of games. But you don't want to give up games that could come back to haunt you at the end of the year."
Hartley was very upset with the officials, who called five straight penalties on the home team in the first 10:04 of the third period. The Thrashers spent more than eight minutes killing them off - including two stretches totaling 1:43 in which they were two skaters down.
Afterward, Hartley complained to an NHL supervisor who attended the game.
"I thought I got the answers I wanted, but it doesn't matter," the coach said. "It's still a loss in the standings."
The Thrashers killed off the penalties, but Axelsson scored just over a minute after the last one ended.
(AP) Boston Bruins defenseman Nick Boynton, left, checks Atlanta Thrashers left wing Ilya Kovalchuk,...
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"Obviously, we wanted to score on the power play," he said. "We had a lot of chance to score. We just missed. It was nice to see we didn't slow down."
The Bruins scored a couple of fluky goals off Lehtonen, and the Thrashers picked up one when Boston goalie Tim Thomas knocked the puck into his own net.
With 4½ minutes left in the first period, the puck took an unexpected bounce off the boards behind the net and wound up in front of Lehtonen. Marco Sturm swatted it just inside the post before the goalie could get a stick on it, giving Boston a 1-0 lead.
Brad Stuart tied the game at 2 just past the midway point of the second period. With the Bruins on the power play, Stuart skated in on Lehtonen's left side and fired the puck in front of the net. It might have gone wide, but Atlanta defenseman Niclas Havelid inadvertently deflected it into his own net.
The Thrashers grabbed a 2-1 lead with goals just 1:25 apart late in the first period. Scott Mellanby deflected in a power-play goal from about 20 feet in front of the net off a slapshot by Jaroslav Modry.
(AP) Boston Bruins left wing Sergei Samsonov (14) of Russia, goes to the ice as he vies for the puck...
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Then Marc Savard scored a strange one on a break into the Bruins zone. He skated past the net but wound up with the goal when he attempted to pass in front. Thomas, sprawled in the crease, knocked the puck in himself with a swat of his blocker. ^
Notes:
RW Peter Bondra returned to the Thrashers lineup after missing 22 games with a groin injury. He played about 15 minutes and was held without a shot. ... Atlanta is hopeful that injured C Bobby Holik will be able to resume skating next week. He's out with a broken foot. ... Both goalies got plenty of help from the guys in front of them. Thrashers D Greg de Vries blocked four shots, and RW J.P. Vigier got in front of three. For Boston, D Stuart and RW Tom Fitzgerald each had a pair of blocks.
And, just like that, the Bruins have as many points as the Montreal arch-rivals, in the standings...
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 12:45 AM
And now, as always when things are going well for the Bruins, so-so for the Celtics, and in the Patriots off-season...
some Red Sox news!
Epstein to Return as General Manager
Jan 24, 7:25 PM (ET)
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By JIMMY GOLEN
BOSTON (AP) - Theo Epstein's new job is the same as his old one: general manager of the Boston Red Sox.
The Red Sox announced Tuesday that Epstein would resume his old duties - nothing more and nothing less than when he left on Halloween. "While Theo was contemplating returning to the organization in an advisory role," Red Sox president Larry Lucchino said in a statement, "he and I talked and agreed it was best for the organization if he returned as general manager - a title more appropriate for him because it accurately reflects the role he will play."
"Theo returns as general manager to an organization that is different from the one he left on Oct. 31. The 14-year relationship between Theo and me, and the passage of time over the last three months, have helped to put behind us the friction that developed during last year's negotiations." Once the youngest general manager in baseball history and still the only one to win a World Series in Boston,
Epstein walked away from his dream job on Halloween after a never-explained internal squabble convinced him he could no longer put his whole heart into the job.
But even after leaving - fleeing Fenway in a gorilla suit to avoid the encamped media - Epstein remained in touch with his former colleagues. After a halfhearted search to replace him, the Red Sox announced on Dec. 12 that Jed Hoyer and Ben Cherington, two of Epstein's former lieutenants, would serve as co-GMs.
Last week, the team said Epstein would return to baseball operations full-time, in a capacity to be determined. Epstein's return as GM - his other title is being move up a notch from senior vice president to executive vice president - was first reported by the Boston Herald on its Web site.
Neither last week's statement nor the one released Tuesday specified what led to the friction, though Lucchino alluded to an improved relationship between the business and baseball sides of the organization.
"Walls have crumbled, perceptions of one another have changed, and appreciation of one another has grown," Lucchino said. "As an enhanced sense of 'team' has emerged, we have rediscovered that, whatever our differences may have been, baseball is at the center of our operations and our lives, and working toward the success of the Red Sox is a commitment which all of us share." Epstein said in his statement that there were "fundamental disagreements among members of upper management" about organizational priorities.
"This lack of a shared vision, plus the stress of a far-too-public negotiation, strained some relationships, including mine with Larry Lucchino," he said. "Gradually, with the benefit of time and greater perspective, we tackled not only our personal conflicts but also the differences regarding our thoughts for the organization. We emerged, 10 weeks and many spirited conversations later, with the comfort of a shared vision for the future of the organization."
Hoyer's new job will be assistant general manager, and Cherington was given the title of vice president of player personnel. Bill Lajoie stays on as a special adviser for baseball operations and Craig Shipley was named vice president for international scouting and special assistant to the general manager.
Hoyer and Cherington acknowledged that they knew when they took the GM job that Epstein was expected to return. They were told then what their roles would be, Red Sox owner John Henry said. "So this is hardly a demotion," he said. "It is a fact that Red Sox baseball operations have been and will continue to be a collaborative process that its members enjoy."
Much of the media coverage of Epstein's departure focused on a power struggle between him and Lucchino, his longtime mentor. Henry said those reports were untrue. "It was simply mythology," he said. "I can assure you as we move forward that Larry's role has not changed at all, and no general manager in baseball could ask for more autonomy than Theo has."
Last week's confirmation of Epstein's long-anticipated return was hailed by those who credit him for assembling the team that won it all in 2004, ending Boston's 86-year title drought.
"Theo's back. That's all I care about," pitcher Curt Schilling said Tuesday morning in a radio interview transcribed on www.boston.com. "That's all any of the players care about. I would like to think that he's in more of a situation that he wanted when he left. "The way I look at it is, there were a lot of issues that were unresolved that he felt he wasn't going to compromise some things and be here, and those things changed over the last 10 weeks. And they changed, and he came back."
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 12:51 AM
Back to hockey now...
A preview of the action on Saturday Night (January 28th 2005)
as the Boston Bruins have battled back to a .500 record (21-21-8-4) and 50 points... and are tied with Montreal for last place... one single point back of Toronto and third place!
Alas, Toronto plays Montreal tonight... a Boston win would not allow them to leapfrog past both Montreal and Toronto to take over third spot in the division. Still, a win would put two points ahead of the hated Habs - which is good! :)
That is if the turds in Toronto do their job and defeat the crummy Canadiens, losers of 7 of their last 10...
Meanwhile... THE GAME OF THE NIGHT IS: New York Islanders (21-25-3) at Boston Bruins (21-21-8).
TIME: Saturday, 7 p.m. EST.
The Boston Bruins look to extend their winning streak to a season-high four games, and earn a point for the eighth straight contest when they host the New York Islanders.
The Bruins are 5-0-2 in their last seven games, but have lost both meetings against the Islanders this season - a 4-3 overtime defeat on Nov. 1 and a 5-2 loss on Nov. 12.
Since the latter defeat, which came during a 1-8-1 stretch for Boston, the Bruins have gone 6-3-3 at home and 13-8-3 overall following a major overhaul.
On Nov. 30, captain Joe Thornton was traded to San Jose for Marco Sturm, Wayne Primeau and Brad Stuart. Thornton has flourished for the Sharks with eight goals and 33 points in 23 games, but the trio in Boston has combined for 23 goals and 43 points over that span.
"It takes time for players to become part of the team," Bruins general manager Mike O'Connell said after Boston's 3-2 win over Washington on Thursday. "When you lose your captain and three new players come in, everybody has to redefine their roles."
Sturm continued to produce by scoring the eventual game-winner in the third period against the Capitals, while rookie goaltender Tim Thomas made 32 saves in his seventh straight start. Thomas has allowed three goals or less in each of those outings.
Stuart, who assisted on Brad Boyes' 12th goal of the season in the first period, has enjoyed his time with Boston.
"We didn't have any expectations when we came here and just wanted to adjust to the new surroundings," he said. "But the last couple of weeks, we have settled in on the ice and in the dressing room, and our teammates are finding out what we bring as well."
New York snapped a three-game losing skid with a 4-3 shootout win over Pittsburgh on Thursday. Miroslav Satan scored in regulation and had the only goal in the shootout.
The Islanders led 3-1 entering the third period before Mark Recchi and John LeClair scored to tie it. LeClair knocked the puck out of midair and past backup goalie Wade Dubielewicz with just 27 seconds remaining.
"They got a lucky bounce, and that happens," said Satan, who has three goals and four assists in his last seven games. "We felt like we were supposed to win this game, so when they tied it up, we were able to stay mentally strong."
Satan has 18 goals and 15 assists in 43 games against the Bruins in his career, including three assists in the two previous meetings this season.
STANDINGS: Islanders - 45 points, 4th place, 23 PB, Atlantic Division. Bruins - 50 points, 4th place (tied), 22 PB, Northeast Division.
TEAM LEADERS: Islanders - Satan, 19 goals; Alexei Yashin, 26 assists and 43 points; Arron Asham, 88 PIM. Bruins - Sturm, 19 goals; Patrice Bergeron, 27 assists and 41 points; Hal Gill, 72 PIM.
SPECIAL TEAMS (through Jan. 26): Islanders - Power play: 17.3 percent (50 for 289), 16th in NHL. Penalty killing: 79.6 percent (246 for 309), 27th. Bruins - Power play: 15.6 percent (42 for 270), 24th. Penalty killing: 83.8 percent (258 for 308), 10th.
GOALTENDERS: Islanders - Rick DiPietro (15-15-3, 3.44 GAA); Dubielewicz (2-3-0, 2.90). Bruins - Thomas (5-0-2, 1.94); Andrew Raycroft (7-16-2, 3.68).
SEASON SERIES: Islanders, 2-0.
LAST MEETING: Nov. 12; Islanders, 5-2. At Uniondale, N.Y., Trent Hunter scored the go-ahead goal at 13:45 of the third period, and Asham added an insurance score 1:06 later.
ROAD/HOME RECORDS: Islanders - 10-13-2 on the road; Bruins - 10-9-4 at home.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 6:21 PM
The funny way previews go...
Especially when they are BIASED PREVIEWS!
(No - I am not talking about the preceding one - but really the following one!)
• Bruins-Senators Preview
GAME: Boston Bruins (21-22-8) at Ottawa Senators (34-10-4). TIME: Monday, 7:30 p.m. EST. The Northeast Division-leading Ottawa Senators have been dominant at home this season. Beating teams like the last-place Boston Bruins has certainly helped. Ottawa looks for its third straight home win...
AFTER THE GAME...
Bruins 5, Senators 0
Jan 30, 11:08 PM (ET)
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OTTAWA (AP) - Tim Thomas savored his first NHL shutout all the more after having set it aside as an impossible dream.
Thomas made 44 saves and Brad Boyes had a goal and two assists to lead the Boston Bruins to a 5-0 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Monday night.
A two-time All-American at the University of Vermont who played in Finland last season, Thomas has appeared in 15 NHL games overall, including 11 straight since he was recalled from Providence of the AHL on Jan. 10.
"I'd already put it completely out of my mind," Thomas said. "I'd made peace with the fact that I wasn't going to play in the NHL. I was happy to end out my career in Finland.
"Signing this year - getting sent down wasn't in my plans but getting called back up was like awakening an old dream that you forgot about when you were a kid but you gave up on and now all of a sudden you realize you have a chance for it to still come true. It's actually even better that way, I think."
Thomas made his ninth straight start for Boston, which lost 4-3 to the New York Islanders on Saturday, the only game in which the Bruins failed to register a point over that stretch (6-1-2).
"He's an older guy who's played a lot of hockey in a lot of different leagues and for him to persevere and to be persistent with his career and strive to get to the NHL I think is a compliment to his character," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said. "He's certainly taken advantage of an opportunity and he has been a key ingredient in us having some success in the last few weeks."
Patrice Bergeron, Nick Boynton, Marco Sturm and Sergei Samsonov also scored against rookie Ray Emery, making his first appearance since Jan. 7 when he was pulled 15:33 in after allowing all four goals in a 4-0 loss in Montreal.
Emery, who allowed all the goals in an 8-3 loss in Atlanta on Jan. 2 in his previous start before the Montreal game, was booed when he appeared on the video scoreboard late in the third to make a public service announcement.
"They want to see wins and it was a tough night," Emery said. "It's understood you don't want to get booed but they were cheering when I was winning so that's part of being a fan."
He made 19 saves and is 2-4-1 since setting an NHL record on Nov. 29 when he recorded his first career shutout in a 4-0 win over Montreal to move ahead of Bob Froese with his ninth straight win to begin his career.
"We're trying for him and things didn't go his way," Senators center Bryan Smolinski said. "I know he's a couple of bad starts his last couple of games. He wants to play his best and I think we can see he's in a great frame of mind, it just wasn't his game."
Sturm and Boynton each had two points as Boston shut out Ottawa for the second time in six games this season, evening the season series after losing the first three games against the Northeast Division-leading Senators. Boston has outscored Ottawa 12-2 in the last three meetings.
"They can come at you with a lot of different combinations and key people so fortunately for us we've been getting timely goaltending when we play against them and I think our players are competing," Sullivan said.
The Senators, who fell to 20-5-1 at Scotiabank Place, have been shut out in three of their five home losses in regulation.
Bergeron beat Emery with a one-timer 15:15 in for his 16th goal on a pass from Boyes, who made it 2-0 at 18:08 with his 14th.
Boynton scored a short-handed goal for his fifth 5:21 into the second as he elected to shoot on a 2-on-1 with Travis Green to increase the lead to 3-0.
Boyes held the puck and made a fine pass that left Emery little chance on Sturm's goal at 9:17 which made it 4-0.
Samsonov got his 17th at 13:42, putting a rebound of Brian Leetch's deflected backhand past Emery for Boston's fifth goal. ^
Notes:
Bruins rookie Hannu Toivonen stopped 26 shots in a 3-0 win over the Senators on Dec. 1 for his first career shutout. Toivonen has been sidelined since suffering a sprained ankle Jan. 5 during Boston's 4-2 win over Ottawa. ... Senators G Dominik Hasek, who turned 41 Sunday, had started each of Ottawa's eight previous games (6-1-1). ... The Senators lost 2-0 to Dallas on Dec. 15. They also were shut out by the same score by San Jose on Jan. 12. ... The crowd of 19,551 was Ottawa's 21st sellout in 26 home games.
Wow - 5-0! Over a team that has lost only 10 games all year in regulation time!
Enough to remind me of the good old days of Cam Neely-led Bruins that routinely routed the Sens... by scores of 9-0 actually! ;)
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 8:27 PM
Bruins 3, Canadiens 1
Feb 2, 10:50 PM (ET)
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BOSTON (AP) - The Boston Bruins moved over .500 and ahead of the slumping Canadiens in the standings, all in one night.
Glen Murray and Patrice Bergeron scored power-play goals less than two minutes apart and Boston won again behind new starting goalie Tim Thomas, beating Montreal 3-1 on Thursday night.
"We've preached all along to our players that we are still in the race," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said. "It is a different feeling now and the guys have made a conscious effort to pay attention to the details and it's a credit to the leadership on this team."
The Bruins are 7-1-2 in the last 10 games while the Canadiens have dropped six of eight and are 6-13 overall in their last 19 games.
"We are walking a fine line right now," Canadiens assistant captain Sheldon Souray said. "The penalties are killing us and we need to play more desperate and get more urgency in our game."
Boston moved two points in front of Montreal in the Northeast Division standings with 54. And the Bruins have moved within one point of the idle Toronto Maple Leafs for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
Thomas, who has started the last 10 games, made 16 saves for the Bruins. Boston (23-22-8) is over .500 for the first time since Nov 12.
Murray and Bergeron scored to give the Bruins a 2-1 lead in the second period.
"We all believed in ourselves," Bergeron said. "It was a matter of confidence and that creates a fine line between winning and losing."
With Niklas Sundstrom and Chris Higgins both in the penalty box for tripping, Murray one-timed a pass from Brad Stuart and beat Canadiens goalie Cristobal Huet.
"We need more jump and start believing we can do it," Huet said. "They played a great second period and it was very tiring for us."
Bergeron gave the Bruins the lead when he and Brad Boyes combined on a perfect give-and-go.
"That is one of the best goals I have ever seen him score," Boyes said. "Every game he seems to top himself."
Boyes put the game away with an empty net goal with 38 seconds remaining. He has an eight-game point streak with five goals and eight assists in that span.
Tomas Plekanec gave Montreal a 1-0 lead when he converted a feed from Sheldon Souray and beat Thomas inside the right post at 15:14 of the first period.
Huet was making his third start in the last five games in place of the struggling Jose Theodore. Theodore has only four wins since Dec 13.
Boston's P.J. Axelsson missed a penalty shot with 12:57 remaining in the first period after he was tripped by Francis Bouillon on a breakaway.
Montreal had beaten Boston five straight times going back to the 2003-04 season. The Canadiens overcame a 3-1 deficit in the playoffs and had won the first two matchups this season.
Murray returned to the Bruins lineup after missing 10 games and scored only his third goal since Joe Thornton was traded three months ago. ^
Notes:
Plekanec has three goals and three assists in the last six games. ... Josh Langfeld played his first game for the Bruins after being claimed from San Jose. Langfeld scored his only two goals this season against Boston. ... Brian Leetch missed the game with a groin injury. ... Alex Kovalev has three goals in the last 19 games.
Luminous Notes:
Cristobal Huet is really from FRANCE... I should have known a name like that could simply NOT originate from the ill-developed counties of Chicoutimi or Rimouski or even Trois-Rivières... Ironic that Huet would wind up with the erstwhile Flying Frenchmen... now simply known as the Flunking French-Canadiens That Aren't Even French-Canadian!
Tis simply not true that the Bruins have not defeated the Canadiens since 2004! They beat them IN 2005... but in pre-season games that "don't count"... then why bother with all the other statistics of those games? Goals, assists, saves percentages, goals against averages and penalty minutes?!? Oh well... maybe those don't count too... see if I care...
BRUINS WON!
That's all that counts here!
;)
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 9:04 PM
Meanwhile, Joe Thornton is assisting in the Sharks defeating teams like Phoenix and Anaheim... Teams that still, somehow, manage to stay in front of San Jose in the standings!
Hmm...
They start out as lions (or... sharks really) by defeating Buffalo 5-0 in Joe's first game as a San Jose Shark...
Of course, it needs not be pointed out that beating the Sabres 5-0 is not in the same... league (!) as beating the Senators 3-0!
Thornton's contribution wasn't even needed...
He usually contributes like that - when the team does not really need him to, he pots two...
When his team will desperately need just ONE - he will not net anything!
That's the kind of "potential-laden" so-called "superstar" Joe Thornton is...
The Sharks know not what they've done...
Didn't they have enough of one ultra-talented super-choker in Patrick Marleau...?!?
*lol*
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 9:47 PM
I've seen this film with a sad (not to mention unfair) ending before...
Montreal may no longer have a goaltending controversy after Cristobal Huet stole a win for the Canadiens against Boston on Saturday afternoon.
CBC Sports
In his second consecutive strong performance, Huet made 35 saves as Montreal garnered a 2-0 home win in a crucial game between two clubs battling it out for a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
It was the goaltender's first shutout as a Canadien and fifth of his NHL career.
He was particularly impressive in the first two periods, when the Bruins outshot the Canadiens 27-15 and had six power-play opportunities.
Andrei Markov returned after missing eight games with a shoulder injury to score the winning goal midway through the third period.
Boston had several great chances to tie the game in the final minute before Sheldon Souray sealed the game with an empty-netter.
"We showed a lot of guts and made some desperation plays, we had guys going down to block shots, it was crazy," Huet said of the frantic final minute. "I stopped the puck with my stick, then it almost hit me and went in, but it stayed out. I was a bit lucky too, I have to admit, but I'll take it."
Tim Thomas, the journeyman goaltender who has helped lift the Bruins from also-ran status to playoff contention, was again strong when called upon. Thomas finished with 27 saves.
Thomas is now 7-2-2 in 11 consecutive starts.
With the win, Montreal (24-22-6) moves into a tie with Boston (23-23-8) at 54 points, one behind Toronto for the eighth and final playoff spot. Atlanta is also in the thick of the race at 52 points.
Both the Maple Leafs and Thrashers play on Saturday night.
"I thought we controlled the play for a certain amount of time," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said. "We just weren't able to score any goals."
Huet made 34 saves against Boston in the first half of the home-and-home on Thursday night. But his teammates could muster only 16 shots against Thomas in a 3-1 loss.
He has started the last two games after former Hart and Vezina Trophy winner Jose Theodore was pulled in three of his last four games.
In the matinee battle on Saturday, the Canadiens played with more intensity, and generated several good scoring chances. Though outplayed for large stretches in the first forty minutes, the team dominated the first half of the third period.
The scoring drought finally ended on the power play. After Alex Kovalev blasted a shot off the post, Markov fired a rebound that seemed to deflect off Boston's Patrice Bergeron and past a diving Thomas at 10:38 of the third.
It was Markov's eighth goal of the season.
"He brought another element to our defence with his ability to find the open man," said Canadiens coach Bob Gainey.
Boston pulled Thomas in the final minute while on a power play and generated significant pressure, aided by a broken Canadiens stick.
Moments after Sergei Samsonov was robbed by Huet, Souray gathered the puck and fired a slapshot from near his own goal-line that one-hopped into the net nearly 190 feet down the ice.
"That was a crazy play, (Huet) was unbelievable making some huge saves at the end," said Canadiens defenceman Sheldon Souray, who scored into an empty net moments after the save on Samsonov. "He saved the game for us. He's been really good, but tonight he was unbelievable."
Boston defenceman Brian Leetch missed his second straight game due to a groin injury. Mark Streit, Niklas Sundstrom and Aaron Downey did not dress for Montreal.
Montreal will have a quick turnaround, hosting a Sunday afternoon contest against the struggling Philadelphia Flyers.
"with files from CP Online"
===========================
Souray can't be a good husband to Angelica Bridges, a good father to the progeny she had from him, nor a good hockey player most of the time...
But he sure can score empty net goals that he doesn't deserve to score!
Huet... le maudit Français!
'Nuff said.
Ils les volent toutes, leurs soi-disantes "victoires", ces maudits Français!
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 9:53 PM
Sabres 3, Bruins 2
Mar 7, 10:46 PM (ET)
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - The Buffalo Sabres are making a habit out of beating the Boston Bruins this season - but it hasn't been easy.
Jochen Hecht broke a tie late in the second period, and Daniel Briere had two assists in Buffalo's 3-2 comeback victory over the Bruins on Tuesday night.
The Sabres swept the home-and-home series to improve to 5-0 against Boston this season, with the last four one-goal games.
"They're tight games," said Briere, who has seven points in four games since returning from a sports hernia that sidelined him for 24 games. "I thought tonight we had the better chances."
The win came three days after Buffalo rallied from a 2-0 deficit in Boston for a 3-2 victory.
"Maybe we didn't deserve that win the other night, but we wanted to come back here and show them that we have the better team," Briere said. "We did that tonight."
The line of Briere, Hecht and J.P. Dumont combined for 11 points in the two games.
"We're playing really well together," Hecht said. "We have good chemistry out there and it shows."
Rookies Jason Pominville and Thomas Vanek also scored to help Buffalo win its third straight.
"We wanted to have a better start tonight, and that's something we talked about," Pominville said. "I think we played solid defensively, and that gave us our chances offensively."
Buffalo goalie Ryan Miller made 25 saves for his second straight victory.
Miller helped preserve the win with two stops while the Bruins played with an extra attacker over the final minute.
Buffalo closed within four points of the Northeast Division-leading Ottawa Senators, who were idle.
The 10th-place Bruins failed to gain ground on eighth-place Montreal in the race for the final Eastern Conference playoff slot. The Canadiens remain seven points in front of Boston after losing to Toronto on Tuesday night.
Patrice Bergeron and Milan Jurcina scored for the Bruins. Boston has lost seven its last nine games, including an overtime and shootout loss.
Bergeron gave Boston a 1-0 lead at 8:59 of the first period when Brad Boyes' shot from the left circle went off his skate in front of Miller. It was Bergeron's 20th goal of the season.
The goal stood after a brief replay review.
Pominville tied it 2½ minutes later with his 15th, wristing a shot past Boston goalie Tim Thomas with Buffalo on the power-play.
Jurcina made it 2-1 with a power-play goal early in the second, but the game turned when Boston went without a shot in the final 12½ minutes of the period. During the drought, Buffalo took the lead for the first time by scoring twice.
"We got away from our game plan," Boston coach Mike Sullivan said. "It was a combination of us getting away from it and Buffalo being a good team that will make plays."
With the Sabres enjoying a 4-on-3 advantage, Vanek tied it at 2 with his 20th goal 11:37 into the second. He deflected Ales Kotalik's shot from the point.
Hecht made it 3-2 with his 17th of the season with 3:51 left, banging home a rebound after Thomas stopped Briere's original shot from close in.
Thomas finished with 32 saves in his first start in three games.
Nine of the Bruins' last 10 losses have been by one goal, including six straight.
"Once we have a lead we have to try and keep it," Boston forward Sergei Samsonov said. "It's two frustrating losses." ^
Notes:
The Sabres have won 39 games this season, the most after 60 games in team history. ... The two teams will meet for the third time in nine days on Sunday in Buffalo. ... Boston forward P.J. Axelsson missed his third straight game because of a knee injury sustained March 1 against Carolina. ... Samsonov played despite injuring his knee in practice on Monday after colliding with winger Josh Langfeld. ... Langfeld played in his 100th NHL game. ... Vanek became the 11th Buffalo rookie to score 20 goals in a season. Vanek didn't score his first goal until the 15th game of the season.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 8:13 PM
Sergei Samsonov's comments about the last two frustrating games would be his last... as a Bruin!
Canadiens 3, Bruins 0
Mar 9, 10:41 PM (ET)
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By JIMMY GOLEN
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BOSTON (AP) - The Montreal Canadiens solidified their hold on the Eastern Conference's final playoff spot. The Boston Bruins just kept sliding down the standings.
Cristobal Huet made 28 saves for his second consecutive shutout over Boston and his fourth of the season, beating the undermanned Bruins 3-0 on Thursday night.
Boston was without Sergei Samsonov, who was sent to the Edmonton Oilers before the game at the NHL trading deadline for Marty Reasoner, Yan Stastny and a second-round draft pick. That left the Bruins, already looking for offense, without much of an attack against a team they need to pass to reach the playoffs.
"He was a big offensive threat for us, and to lose him when you're having trouble scoring goals, it's going to hurt the team," Bruins forward Glen Murray said. "To top it off, losing to a team that we're chasing, it's not good."
Alex Kovalev and Sheldon Souray scored and Tomas Plekanec added an empty-netter with 25 seconds left for Montreal, which won for the fourth time in six games. The Canadiens have beaten Boston four times in five tries this season, and Kovalev and Souray have combined for 11 points against the Bruins.
Tim Thomas made 38 saves for Boston, which has one win in six games. The Bruins fell nine points behind Montreal, which is in eighth place and in position to grab the final Eastern Conference playoff berth.
"My story for the players has been getting away from eighth and focusing on seventh," Canadiens coach Bob Gainey said. "We are not worried about the Bruins because they have other teams to jump ahead of before they get to us."
Huet's success could make it difficult for former Colorado goalie David Aebischer to walk in and take over the starting job. Aebischer was acquired from the Avalanche on Wednesday for Jose Theodore, a former Hart and Vezina Trophy winner who struggled this year before breaking a bone in his right heel while salting the ice outside his Montreal home during the NHL's Olympic break.
"I have no message to send," Huet said. "It's just important for us to keep moving up in the standings."
Gainey said he thinks the internal competition at goalie will help the team. Both will get playing time, he said.
"However," he added, "it would be difficult to go back to Montreal on Saturday and not start Huet after how he played tonight."
Kovalev scored at 6:48 of the second period to make it 1-0, then Souray made it 2-0 seven seconds after David Tanabe was sent off for holding early in the third. Huet, the league's reigning defensive player of the week, stopped Dan LaCouture on a breakaway with 14 minutes left to protect the lead.
The already short-handed Bruins lost Nick Boynton to a game misconduct during a second-period brawl that totaled 30 penalty minutes. But if Boynton was hoping to give the team a spark, he didn't do any better than general manager Mike O'Connell.
O'Connell claimed Mariusz Czerkawski off waivers from Toronto on Wednesday and got Reasoner on Thursday, but neither was available to help Boston against Montreal. ^
Notes:
Huet also shut Boston out on Feb. 4. (ALSO A LUCKY SHUT-OUT)... Souray's goal was greeted with cheers from a large contingent of fans rooting for the Canadiens. ... Samsonov was the eighth overall pick in the 1997 draft. Boston also got Joe Thornton with the top overall pick that year and traded him away on Nov. 30.
SEE NOW... THESE SHUT-OUTS ARE NOTHING LIKE THE SHUT-OUT WINS THE BRUINS HAVE HAD OVER THE MIGHTY OTTAWA SENATORS!
GAMES IN WHICH THE BRUINS TRULY DOMINATED THEIR OPPONENT... FIVE ON FIVE... SCORED GOALS EARLY AND KEPT THE LEAD THROUGHOUT THE GAME... DOMINATING THE ENTIRE GAME! NOT STEALING ONE WITH TWO POWER PLAY GOALS AND A DAMN EMPTY NET GOAL - AGAIN!!!
ARRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!
Oh well... at least Thornton and Samsonov are gone now... No more choking in Boston! And the execrable Laval-born Theodore is no longer a Canadien either!
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 8:34 PM
Wow... they turn Boston's Samson into two workhorses (Marty Reasoner and Yan Stastny) and rapatriate Mariusz Czerkawski (the same way they brought back Shawn McChearn, early in the year - hopefully Mariusz will not spoil the comeback like Shawn did for himself!)
One diminutive finesse player gone - but a new line for the offense is born!
And what happens?
The Bruins don't appear to be bereft one bit about the loss of Samsonov - they carry on losing games they should win but they also carry on their dominance of superior Senators (Ottawa being on top of the division - the Bruins, alas, in the cellar!)
Read on...
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 2:27 AM
Bruins 3, Senators 2, SO
Mar 16, 11:07 PM (ET)
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BOSTON (AP) - After stopping Jason Spezza in the shootout to secure the Boston Bruins' win, goalie Tim Thomas had two reasons to pump his fist in relief.
Not only did the victory snap Boston's six-game losing streak, but it also gave the Bruins their first win in seven shootouts.
Patrice Bergeron scored the winning goal in the shootout and Thomas stopped three shots to help the Bruins beat the Ottawa Senators 3-2 Thursday night.
"It's been a long time coming," Thomas said. "It's nice to know what the teams that have been beating us in the shootouts feel like."
On Boston's first shot in the shootout, Bergeron glided in the front of the net and snuck the puck past Ottawa goalie Ray Emery. Thomas then stuffed Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley and Spezza for the win.
The Bruins have defeated the Senators four straight times and are the only team in the NHL to beat Ottawa more than twice. Boston won only its second game in March, while Ottawa lost for the first time in three tries and fell to 7-1-1 since the Olympic break.
Thomas saved 31 shots, including 13 in the second period, to win for the first time in eight tries and improve his record to 9-7-5.
"His energy is contagious," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said of Thomas. "Our players feel it, I feel it behind the bench. He's inspiring to everyone."
Ottawa, which entered the game as the NHL's highest-scoring team at 3.97 goals per game, fell to 0-2 against Thomas this year. Thomas saved 44 shots in a 5-0 Boston win on Jan. 30, recording the last shutout against Ottawa.
After being held to just five goals in their last four games, the Bruins took a 1-0 lead 1:29 into the first period when Brad Boyes poked a rebound behind Emery.
Bergeron extended Boston's lead to 2-0 just 1:09 into the third period when his pass from behind the net bounced off Emery's stick and into the net.
After Thomas saved all 22 Ottawa shots through two periods, the Senators scored twice in less than 4 minutes in the third period to climb out of a 2-0 deficit and force overtime.
"When they made it 2-2, I just didn't have the sense that it would totally switch the other way even though they caught up," Thomas said.
A streaking Spezza received a nifty pass from Heatley in front of the Bruins' net and pushed the puck past Thomas to make it 2-1 at 7:24 of the third period.
Antoine Vermette then tied it at 2 at 11:16 on a back-handed shot from the right of the net.
"It's frustrating because we felt like we had the momentum," Vermette said. "But then we took that penalty that was hard for us to take."
The Bruins could have turned the game into a blowout early, but failed to convert on a pair of easy opportunities.
First, Sturm missed a wide-open shot from point-blank range midway through the first period. Wayne Primeau then hit the post on another wide-open attempt, this one from left of the net seven minutes into the second period.
Despite the loss, the Senators were happy to salvage a point despite falling behind by two goals.
"It was good to see us come back and keep playing hard," Vermette said. "In the playoffs, you won't take the lead every time." ^
Notes:
Boyes ranks third in points scored and sixth in goals among NHL rookies. ... Ottawa is 17-5-2 against Northeast Division opponents, but four of their division losses have come to Boston. ... Senators goalie Dominik Hasek, who has missed nine games with a groin injury suffered at the Turin Olympics, traveled with Ottawa to Boston. ... Mark Stuart, playing in his third career game since being recalled from Providence on March 10, assisted on the Bergeron's goal to record the first NHL point of his career. Stuart was Boston's first-round draft pick in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 2:28 AM
Bruins 4, Hurricanes 2
Mar 18, 3:44 PM (ET)
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BOSTON (AP) - Boston Bruins rookie Brad Boyes has had hat tricks before, but nothing quite like this.
Boyes scored three goals for the first time in his short NHL career, leading the Boston Bruins past the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 Saturday for their second consecutive win.
Boyes, who ranks third among rookies in points scored with 54, scored all three of his goals during a decisive 9:20 stretch early in the third period, helping the Bruins avoid a season sweep by Carolina. He has recorded a point in five consecutive games.
"I don't know what it was, maybe the net looked a little bit bigger for me," said Boyes, who had one hat trick with the Bruins' AHL affiliate in Providence, R.I., last year. "For whatever reason, sometimes you get one and you kind of keep rolling. I can't remember anything like this."
Patrice Bergeron added a goal and an assist, Marco Sturm had two assists and Tim Thomas saved 38 shots for Boston. Thomas, who earlier Saturday signed a three-year contract extension with the Bruins, improved to 10-7-5 since being called up from Providence on Jan. 10.
The Bruins, who beat Ottawa 3-2 in a shootout Thursday, remain last in the Northeast Division despite defeating the Eastern Conference's top two teams in the past three days. Carolina entered Saturday with a conference- and NHL-best 96 points, while Ottawa was second in the Eastern Conference with 94 points.
Carolina couldn't convert on a 5-of-3 advantage late in the second period and finished 0-for-9 on the power play. Boston was 2-of-6 on the power play.
"We had probably 25 quality chances to score and only put it in two times," Carolina coach Peter Laviolette said. "That really hasn't been an issue this season, but today it was probably the difference."
After Boston squandered a 2-0 lead by allowing two goals in less than 2 minutes early in the third period, Boyes retrieved a Sturm pass and snuck the puck to the right of Carolina goalie Cam Ward 7:45 into the period to put the Bruins up 3-2.
Boyes then deflected a Brian Leetch shot midway through the third period for his third goal of the game and 21st of the year, making the score 4-2.
"Momentum swings were huge in this game," said Carolina right wing Justin Williams, who had an assist. "Once we tied it 2-2, we were feeling pretty good and started to keep the momentum a little bit. But we just gave up too many chances."
Eric Staal and Rod Brind'Amour scored for Carolina, which fell to 6-3-1 in March.
Bergeron gave the Bruins a 1-0 lead 2:26 into the second period when he poked in a rebound of a Brad Stuart shot. Boyes extended the Bruins' lead to 2-0 1:04 into the third period.
"I was happy for him," Bruins goalie Mike Sullivan said of Boyes. "They were key goals at key times. I think it's just indicative of the type of offensive instincts he has." ^
Notes:
The Bruins are 11-3-2 against Southeast Division opponents. ... Left wing Brad Isbister returned to the Boston lineup after missing 17 games with an ankle injury. ... Staal has earned points in five straight games. ... Carolina fell to 9-3-0 in its last 12 games in Boston. ... Carolina beat Boston 4-3 three times earlier this season. ... Both teams failed to score on a 5-on-3 power play.
=====================
Let me get this straight...
According to Carolina coach Laviolette, his team had 25 "quality chances" to score... his own player though said that the Hurricanes gave up "too many chances to score" (to the Bruins)
So, logically, the Bruins must have had even MORE than 25 "quality chances" to score... eh? They score twice as many!
Sounds like Laviolette still has his feathers ruffled over dropping so many to Boston - after all, the 3 narrowingly acquired wins this year are the only 3 wins the Canes have against the Bruins this year do not make up for years of franchise struggles they've had when facing the Bruins. Laviolette may also be grumpy over not being given the Bruins coaching job when he could have had - it must still be on his mind too for, even though the Canes look hot right now, they've always choked too when it really matters... like a certain Joe does.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 2:38 AM
Oh - and in the last article, the reporter was either tired or intoxicated - "goalie Mike Sullivan" is really Boston Bruins head coach Mike Sullivan... of course!
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 2:40 AM
Bruins Fire General Manager Mike O'Connell
Mar 25, 11:06 PM (ET)
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By JIMMY GOLEN
BOSTON (AP) - The Boston Bruins fired general manager Mike O'Connell on Saturday, telling him he wouldn't be back next season so there was no point in finishing out this one.
Assistant general manager Jeff Gorton will assume the GM's duties for the rest of the season, team president Harry Sinden said before the Bruins' game against the Buffalo Sabres.
"When you think something has to be done ... you have to do it," Sinden said. "It was not proper to let him keep doing what he was doing - signing players, making plans for the future - when we knew that at the end of the year we were going to relieve him of his job."
O'Connell was not surprised by the decision.
"Whenever you don't win in professional sports and you're the general manager of the team, this is to be expected," he said from his home in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.
O'Connell said he hadn't decided whether to get right back into hockey, but said he wanted to get back into shape after letting his conditioning slide in six years on the job. Asked if he would watch the game that night, he said, "I haven't thought about it."
Sinden's hand-picked choice as his successor, O'Connell takes the fall for the Bruins' disastrous decision to purge their roster of long-term contracts heading into the NHL lockout. Instead of the spending spree they thought they were preparing for, the new agreement with the players left Boston with no advantage and O'Connell was forced to scramble to fill out a roster.
Still, O'Connell boldly said that the Bruins could contend for their first Stanley Cup victory since 1972.
"That was the strategy we took and I'll live with it," he said. "That's the way it goes."
But the team started poorly and in November traded Joe Thornton, a former overall No. 1 pick, to the San Jose Sharks. Earlier this month, the Bruins traded the talented but often injured Sergei Samsonov, another former first-round draft pick, to the Edmonton Oilers.
"Management traded away whatever they felt would improve the team," Sinden said, stressing the O'Connell alone should not shoulder the blame for those deals. Making a change in the front office, "was not on our minds at that point."
Boston beat Buffalo 5-4 Saturday to improve to 28-32-12. The Bruins are well out of the postseason picture in 13th place in the Eastern Conference, nine points out of the eighth and final playoff spot.
"We fell out of it pretty substantially," Sinden said.
Sinden said the move does not affect coach Mike Sullivan. "We'll probably address that at some later date," Sinden said.
Gorton is in his 14th season with the Bruins and his sixth as the team's assistant GM. He will be among the candidates for the job when the team hires a less temporary replacement after the season.
"Obviously, it's a difficult day," Gorton said. "I have worked with Mike for a long time. He's a good friend of mine.
"Certainly, this is a job I've always wanted and dreamed of having. But, under the circumstances, it isn't how I'd have drawn it up.
The 50-year-old O'Connell played parts of six seasons in Boston during a 13-year NHL career. He was in his sixth year as GM after six years as Sinden's hand-picked assistant. With O'Connell in charge, the Bruins twice topped 100 points but never made it out of the first round of the playoffs.
"Coming in and getting that bomb dropped on us was heartfelt, of course," said Bruins right wing Tom Fitzgerald, who signed with the Bruins in 2004. "I am so grateful for Mike O'Connell to give me an opportunity to live out a childhood dream - to come to Boston and put on the Bruins sweater. On the flip side, I feel responsible for him losing his job."
In 2003-04, the Bruins went 41-26-15 - the second-best record in the Eastern Conference and won their second Northeast Division title in three years. But the Montreal Canadiens eliminated Boston in the first round of the playoffs in seven games.
==================
Yeah...
Sure...
Thanks for the memories...
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 10:10 AM
Bruins 5, Sabres 4
Mar 25, 11:18 PM (ET)
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BOSTON (AP) - While the Bruins' front office might be ready to give up on this season, Brad Boyes and the rest of his Boston teammates are still holding onto faint playoff hopes.
Marco Sturm scored late in the third period, Boyes had a goal and two assists, and Boston snapped a three-game losing streak by beating the Buffalo Sabres 5-4 Saturday night, just hours after the Bruins fired general manager Mike O'Connell.
O'Connell was dismissed and replaced by assistant GM Jeff Gorton, who will run the club the rest of the season. Boston is 28-32-12 and in 13th place in the Eastern Conference, nine points behind Montreal for the eighth and final playoff spot.
Team president Harry Sinden said he felt the Bruins had little chance of making the playoffs. But with 10 games remaining - including three against Montreal - the Bruins still have a shot.
"We're not going to stop until it's official," Boyes said. "If it is, that's when we stop. But for us, anything can happen. We just have to go in and control what we can."
Glen Murray, Tom Fitzgerald and Patrice Bergeron also scored for Boston, which defeated Buffalo for the first time since March 13, 2004, and improved to 1-6 against the Sabres this season. Buffalo had outscored Boston 23-12 while winning the first six games of the eight-game season series.
"I thought the focus was where it needed to be and that was on the hockey game," Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said. "They responded and played extremely hard. Fortunately for us, we got the result."
Tim Thomas, who O'Connell signed to a three-year contract extension on March 18, made 36 saves - including 15 in the first period to help the Bruins protect a 1-0 lead.
Boston squandered a 4-2 advantage the third period, but Sturm took a pass from Boyes in front and beat Buffalo goalie Ryan Miller to the short side with 4:49 left to help the Bruins win for only the third time in 12 games.
"It shows that we have the capability, and it shows that we have some heart," Thomas said. "I think we just need a little bit more composure in those situations and we'll come out with more wins in close games."
Chris Drury and Brian Campbell each had a goal and an assist for Buffalo, which has lost a season-high five straight. The Sabres, who hadn't lost five in a row since 2003, are fourth in the East with 93 points.
"I think maybe we looked too much for the tie," Buffalo center Daniel Briere said. "But give them credit, they bounced back. From being up two goals, then losing that lead and still finding a way to win."
After Derek Roy tied it at 1 at 6:40 of the second period, the Bruins scored twice in a little more a minute to go up 3-1.
Murray took a cross-ice pass from Brad Isbister and beat Miller to the right at 8:38. Fitzgerald then scored on a feed from Yan Stastny at 9:39.
Drury cut the deficit to 3-2 when he took a pass from Maxim Afinogenov and scored 14:07 into the second.
But Boyes extended the Bruins' lead to 4-2 off an assist from Murray.
The Sabres scored twice early in the third period. They got even at 4 when Henrik Tallinder fired a slap shot from just inside the blue line at 12:52.
Miller made 34 shots, including a stop on Travis Green's penalty shot in the first period. ^
Notes:
Boston and Buffalo have played each other five times in March. The teams will meet once more this month. ... Stastny, acquired by Boston on March 9, recorded his first career NHL point. ... Five of the seven games between the teams have been decided by one goal. ... Boston had two 5-on-3 power plays but failed to score. Buffalo hasn't given up a goal this season with a 5-on-3 disadvantage. ... Boyes ranks third among NHL rookies with 60 points.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 10:11 AM
Bruins O'Connell Knew His Demise Was Coming
Mar 26, 6:35 PM (ET)
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By JIMMY GOLEN
BOSTON (AP) - On the day he was hired as the coach of the Boston Bruins, Robbie Ftorek said he knew that every day brought him one step closer to getting fired.
"He's the guy who's going to get rid of me eventually," Ftorek said, casting a glance over to general manager Mike O'Connell. "You're going to get released. It's part of the job."
Two years later, Ftorek was gone. And O'Connell, who cut Ftorek loose with nine games left in the 2003 regular season, got the same treatment on Saturday when team president Harry Sinden fired him with 11 games remaining, conceding the playoffs are probably out of reach.
"When you think something has to be done, and you believe it has to be done and the consensus is that it has to be done, you have to do it," Sinden said. "And Mike, in some of the things he did when he was here, believed in the same principle."
Under O'Connell, the Bruins went through four coaches in six years; he even took the bench himself after firing Ftorek. This season took on an even more desperate tone as the Bruins traded stars Joe Thornton and Sergei Samsonov in a push for the playoffs.
"It happens in the league," Samsonov said in Vancouver after his Edmonton Oilers beat the Canucks 3-2 on Saturday night. "He made those calls, he was the GM at the time and that's the business we play in. It seems like if you don't perform, trades happen and sometimes it goes even higher."
One of the NHL's Original Six, the Bruins have not won the Stanley Cup since Bobby Orr led the team to titles in 1970 and '72. Boston reached the finals five times since then during a record-setting string of 29 consecutive playoff appearances that ended in 1997.
But the franchise had an equally consistent run of losing its stars, from Orr to Ray Bourque to Thornton, whom O'Connell traded in November as a last-ditch effort to turn around the last-place club. Samsonov was sent to the Oilers this month.
"When a team is struggling, somebody has got to pay and I guess it was his turn," Samsonov said. "The team went through so many changes this year, a lot of things changed, and it seemed like it was almost natural just to go even higher."
Along with Sinden, O'Connell presided over a disastrous strategy heading into the NHL lockout that cost the league the entire 2004-05 season. The Bruins spent years purging their roster of all long-term deals in the hopes that they would be in position for a spending spree when the games resumed.
"This team, the way it's set up with the rule changes, I think that we have to be considered one of the favorites for the Stanley Cup," O'Connell said in August after signing captain Thornton to a three-year contract.
But the new agreement with the players wasn't the one the Bruins expected, and they didn't come away with any advantage. O'Connell scrambled to fill up the roster but was unable to convince big names like Peter Forsberg and Mike Modano to sign up.
"That was the strategy we took and I'll live with it. That's the way it goes," he said from his home in a telephone interview with The Associated Press shortly before the Bruins took the ice against Buffalo on Saturday night. "Whenever you don't win in professional sports and you're the general manager of the team, this is to be expected."
The Bruins were 27-32-12 when O'Connell was fired; they are last in the Northeast Division, 13th in the Eastern Conference and nine points behind Montreal in the playoff race. In all, O'Connell's teams went 207-203-71 and twice topped 100 points but never made it out of the first round of the playoffs.
"He tries to put a team together - and obviously he can't play. So we have to do the job on the ice, and we didn't get it done," forward Glen Murray said after the 5-4 victory over the Sabres.
"This game is all about wins. No matter what you say, it's obviously about getting more wins than losses - a lot more wins than losses - and getting into the playoffs. And obviously we're a long way from that. We shouldn't have been in this situation to begin with."
A defenseman, O'Connell played more than five seasons in the Blackhawks organization before coming to Boston in 1980 in a trade for Al Secord. In six years with the Bruins, O'Connell scored 50 or more points three times and played in the 1984 All-Star game.
He spent two seasons as the head coach of Boston's AHL affiliate in Providence and was named the assistant general manager in Boston in 1994. He became GM in 2000 when Sinden moved upstairs after 28 years in the job.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 7:11 AM
Thrashers 4, Bruins 3
Apr 16, 12:52 AM (ET)
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By PAUL NEWBERRY
Box Score | Recap | Game Log
ATLANTA (AP) - The Atlanta Thrashers keep on winning. Still, they're at the brink of elimination from the NHL playoffs.
Defenseman Andy Sutton scored two goals, including the game winner with 10:51 remaining, to give the Thrashers a 4-3 victory over the Boston Bruins on Saturday.
For a few hours, Atlanta was within one point of Tampa Bay for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. But the Lightning defeated Carolina 3-2 in overtime Saturday night, restoring a three-point margin over the Thrashers.
Atlanta must win its final two games - at Washington on Monday and at Florida the following night - to have any chance of making the playoffs. Even then, either the Lightning or seventh-place Montreal must lose its final regular-season game on Tuesday.
Tampa Bay closes at home against lowly Washington, while the Canadiens host New Jersey in their finale. Montreal is four points ahead of the Thrashers, missing a chance to clinch a playoff berth Saturday with a 4-2 loss to Buffalo.
"No scoreboard watching for me," Thrashers center Bobby Holik said. "I have a job to do and I cannot control what happens."
Sutton's second two-goal game of the season came four days after his first in a crucial 6-2 win over Tampa Bay. The 31-year-old defenseman seems to be on a one-man crusade to get Atlanta to the playoffs for the first time, which isn't all that surprising.
He's never been either.
"I really want to make the playoffs," Sutton said. "This is my eighth year as a pro, and I've yet to play in a playoff game. That eats at me a lot. You never know how many years you have left. I want to make the most out of them."
Boston, out of the playoffs and playing its season finale, jumped ahead 2-0 before the game was 11 minutes old and was up 3-2 heading to the third period. But the Thrashers rallied for their sixth win in the last eight games, keeping the pressure on the Lightning.
(AP) On a night when the mother of a deceased former teammate, LuAnn Snyder, center, presented Atlanta Thrashers defenseman Niclas Havelid (28) the Dan Snyder memorial award, you just HAD TO KNOW that the Boston Bruins had not a chance to win...
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Scott Mellanby, who may retire after the season, scored the tying goal with 14 minutes remaining. The Thrashers broke into the Boston zone with a 2-on-1, Jim Slater deked defenseman Hal Gill to the ice and then threw the puck in front of the net, where it went off Mellanby's left skate as he slid to a stop in front of goalie Tim Thomas.
The officials took a look at the replay but ruled that Mellanby didn't kick it intentionally, letting his 12th goal of the season stand.
"Jimmy held on to the puck for such a long time that I had to stop," Mellanby said. "I knew it was a goal."
Then it was Sutton's turn. He powered into the Boston zone, stopped along the boards, pivoted at the edge of the faceoff circle and beat Thomas with a wicked shot over the glove hand for his second of the game and eighth of the season.
"In the last 30 games or so, I've been trying to get up into the play and help the offense as much as I can," Sutton said. "I want to be a second-wave threat. It's hard for the other team to defend against that."
Mike Dunham, starting his fourth straight in place of injured starter Kari Lehtonen, gave up a couple of shaky goals but made several big stops in the third period.
But it was Sutton who made the best save of all.
In the final minute of the first period, Dunham was hopelessly out of position when Boston's Patrice Bergeron wound up with the puck in front of the net. Sutton dropped to his knees and managed to stop the shot.
"It actually hit me in the butt," Sutton said. "I was trying to cover as much of the net as I could. I've got a pretty big butt. It's hard to miss."
Boston's Mariusz Czerkawski opened the scoring with a shot that slipped through Dunham's legs. The Bruins went up 2-0 when Sutton lost the puck in the corner to Bergeron, who passed in front to Marco Sturm, standing all alone in front to bang in his 29th goal.
But Sutton made up for his mistake by deflecting in a shot from the blue line by Niclas Havelid, cutting Boston's lead in half. Slater tied it up off an assist from Mellanby, beating Thomas through the legs.
Travis Green scored a shorthanded goal for the Bruins in the second period, taking advantage of Dunham's indecision when the puck was dumped into the Atlanta zone. The goalie started to come out to play it, then backed off. Green swooped in on the breakaway and beat Dunham with a backhanded shot.
But Boston couldn't hang on, closing the season with a five-game losing streak - three in overtime, the others on one-goal defeats in regulation. In all, Boston had 32 one-goal losses while missing the playoffs for the first time since 2001.
"This game was a microcosm of our season," Thomas said. "We had a chance to win every game." ^
Notes:
(AP) Atlanta Thrashers right wing Peter Bondra (12) of the Ukraine, vies for the puck against Boston... but fails to do anything with it again.
Havelid was awarded the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy, which goes to Atlanta's unsung hero for the season. Havelid received the award from Snyder's parents during a pregame ceremony. Snyder died before the 2003 season after a car driven by teammate Dany Heatley smashed into a wall in a high-speed crash. ... Sutton also had an assist, tying his career high with three points. ... The Thrashers had their sixth sellout of the season.
The Bruins' season in a game.
My life in a bad day.
(Hopefully not a bad hair day though!)
2006 has sucked in MOMENTOUS PROPORTIONS so far - both for the Bruins and for MOI.
Meanwhile, Joe Thornton is going to make the playoffs, with the Sharks.
THEN and only then will the sea guppies see what their new hero can really... NOT do!
(The ridiculous allegations that Joe "is taking charge" right now are laughable at best. They think it matters that Joe is picking up the bill for lunch for ALL of his new teammates?!? I call that buying respect and buying himself some buddies - which will not help at all when the pressure of carrying a team in the playoffs gets to the laid-back choke artist and once again ends the fairytale atmosphere surrounding his deceiving "savior/prince" allure... But enough about Joe.)
Man... 32 GAMES THAT THE BRUINS COULD HAVE WON... 32!!!
Even if the Bruins had only TIED those games - that would 32 extra points in the standings! (Okay - at least 20 more - maybe 12 of those were those damnable shootout
losses!)
The Bruins win those 32 games (if they had a real leader, which Joe T never was, to lead them to victory and make the difference in a close game...) and they are in FIRST PLACE - NOT LAST!
As Tim "The Tiny Titan" Thomas said... THEY REALLY DID HAVE A CHANCE TO WIN EVERY GAME!
Wait til next year...
Wouldn't it be funny to see the wretched Canadiens miss the playoffs, by losing to the Devils!? HA!
Go Thrashers!
Honor Dan Snyder's memory now - since you had to with the Bruins!
Go Lightning!
Go anyone!
Just not the damn habs!
Anybody but the Habs!
I never liked Habitant soups... or Habitant pickles!
Make mine Kosher!
And I'm not even Jewish!
Ha.
Trying to be funny... but it is sooooo hard to even crack a smile nowadays!
HEY - TIS THE LUKEWARM BLOG AFTER ALL!
But I do have other reasons...
The number 36 is tied into those...
And it is ironic that my last comment here is the 36th overall too.
2006 is a year that will live in infamy.
In my own personal memory - much more so than the Boston Bruins' or their fans' minds.
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 6:01 PM
My blog...
My right to change the rules as I see fit - in time!
Hence, the preceding comment will not be the last one coming from me on this post - this one might be though!
After seeing shades of Thornton teams past go through the same disappointment (Thornton's Bruins teammates looked to him to deliver the COUP DE GRÂCE to Montreal in the playoffs, when the Bruins had the Canadiens teetering on the edge of elimination - and Joe did not do it! He was injured... Now, the Sharks thought that surely he would lead them past Edmonton - they led the Oilers 2-0 in the series!!! And Joe was HEALTHY... but still didn't do squat, much less live up to expectations...)
I posted the following in a sports forum following the latest Joe T choking act/debacle:
I would be remiss if I did not come out here and remind you all that I told you so... but, fact is, I TOLD YOU SO! Joe Thornton is no Joe 90 - he will always be a choker and no team leader, no matter where he goes and who he's paired up with. Looking for a talented guy who can make the difference between winning or losing? It is NOT going to be him! Whether he's feeding a Murray or a Cheechoo, he will suddenly stop producing at the most crucial time and he is NO LEADER IN THE DRESSING ROOM EITHER! It was so laughable to read an article that stated that he was being a leader in San Jose now - simply because he had taken the guys to lunch, on him! Does that win games? NO. Is that what a leader is supposed to do? NOT NECESSARILY... It could be step one, but in and by itself, it means little or nothing! The Sharks LOST and they also LOST that trade with Boston - because if one has to lose, at least let it be without having to overpay a choker who brings nothing when it really matters. The Sharks would have still defeated Nashville had they played them with Sturm, Stuart and Primeau in their line-up instead... Remember that the Bruins, with those three players, dominated the mighty Senators during their regular season meetings... One might argue that Joe Thornton made the Sharks able to reach the post-season... maybe he did. But since he chokes once there, why bother even getting there - hmm?
Ah, yes - it is all for his agent that he does it in the regular season and then shuts down in the playoffs - so that his agent can use the regular season numbers he did put up as contract negociation arguments to justify the overtly exaggerated salary of his client!
Because mere "potential" stopped cutting it a long time ago...
Ahhhhhhh - that felt gooooooooooood!
;)
By
Luminous (\ô/) Luciano™, at 3:55 PM
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