Irrational Hatred of Tim Thomas

While I can understand why people don't like Tim Thomas taking a year off, leaving his team hanging, and making himself next to impossible to trade, what confuses and amazes me is how much people have turned on Tim Thomas as a player and a person. There's some serious hatred out there for a guy who won a Conn Smythe and two Vezinas in black and gold.

I don't like what Thomas did. I would have preferred he play for the Bruins. He's also made it more difficult for the Bruins to improve themselves for the 2012-13 season and beyond. But I'm seeing a tremendous amount of rancor and outrage directed squarely at him, not what he did, but at him. These people personally don't like this guy. This rage forgets all the other things he did while playing here. It's childish and sounds like the complaints of spoiled children who didn't get everything they wanted, and are now complaining about somebody else doing what he wants.

These are some of the comments from the Anti-Thomas Brigade that I've found most entertaining and illustrative of the kind of irrationality that is guiding the people who have turned on Tim Thomas. Some are from Thomas' Facebook page, some are from this very levelheaded piece by Obnixious Boston Fan, and others are from a solid column from Kirk Minihane about why the Boston Sports Media dislikes Thomas

Some people seem happy he's gone. Which is weird because they're also angry at him for leaving. The phrase "good riddance" is popular among these folk.

"youre a fuckin loser i hope you never come back"

"Timmy, until this point I have respected you for all you have accomplished and the fact you speak your mind without fear or allowing intimidation... however now you've crossed the line. You shouldn't have signed a 3-year deal if you didn't want to play 3 more years. You are abandoning your commitment to the team and leaving the franchise and your teammates in a really bad place in doing so. Thanks for the cup and good riddance."

"take a year off and never come back, thanks for nothing. He has got a contract right, bruins pay him right? u dont play we dont pay. this needs to be over."

The guy actually said "thanks for nothing" about an athlete that won the Stanley Cup Playoffs MVP.

"See ya Timmy. Don't let the door hit your butt on the way out."

"You are a self centered, worthless, overpaid piece of garbage. Crawl into your little hole and stay there. Bruins will be better without having to deal with the cancer you caused in the locker room this spring."

Apparently Timmy the Tumor only became malignant sometime after June 15, 2011. The new reputation that Thomas has as a selfish player has given his haters something to talk about and criticize him with. I really don't know if Thomas is selfish or not. He certainly goes his own way. Most goalies do. And what if he were selfish in 2011? That was only a year ago. Did his selfishness hurt the team then? What about now? Was his selfishness responsible for the woefully inept Bruins' Power Play unit this past postseason? Did his selfishness turn Braden Holtby into Ken Dryden?

"Tim, you're being a selfish ass and you should do the right thing and retire! The reason why there is a statue of Bobby Orr is because he gave his best and never did anything to hurt the team or the fans! Causing the Bruins to take the cap hit for your salary does both; no doubt about it! You will forever be remembered as that asshole who helped the Bruins win a cup!!! I suspect you are too self-centered to care what the fans think which is a shame!"

"Thanks for hand cuffing the B's you self centered prick"

"again shows that hes all about himself, his ego, and whats best for HIM. not his team, the city or the teammates who have supported him throughout the years, good riddance."

"Is this how you treat your friends (teammates)? You want to stick them with a $5M cap hit? Have you been chewing on lead paint chips, Tim?"

"Good job screwing over the ONE nhl organization who believed in you, gave you a chance, and rewarded you handsomely. Did you repay them? Absolutely you did....but now you are destroying the image that you worked so hard for, because of what...world issues that you cant do shit about. Congrats Tim, you are a dope."

"why didn't you take the season off in 2008 then? You are just a big baby, you HATE the Bruins front office for trying to trade you 2 years ago, and don't want them to decide your destination for the next year. You can spend all the time you want with Family etc. at the end of your contract that you signed. Just another selfish act by the guy that every knows is a selfish player."

"unless you file your retirement papers to get your cap hit off the books, you're a shit teammate and have no loyalty to your organization. if i was a member of the bruins organization (player or not) and you expected to come back the next year as if nothing ever happened, you would be kidding yourself. you've disgraced yourself by potentially handcuffing your "team" just so you can take a year off. it doesn't matter about you winning the conn smythe, vezina or the cup, you've made one of the worlds most team orientated sports all about you, especially during the cup finals. you shouldn't be welcomed back, you shouldn't expect the rest of the money on your deal, and you should submit your retirement papers yesterday. your arrogance, conceitedness and desire to back it all up by bringing your own political views into it shames an organization, the league, and possibly the sport. disgraceful behaviour from a "professional"."

This guy seems to think that if Thomas retired, the Bruins would no longer be responsible for the $5 million cap hit. Which is simply not true. The Bruins are responsible for it, even if Thomas retires.

Of course, this guy isn't alone in holding this incorrect belief. And the Boston Sports Media that begrudge Thomas because he doesn't answer their questions in person and instead uses Facebook to communicate with the public, have been reluctant to fully disclose that even if Thomas retired, the cap hit would still be there.

I had to go through the CBA itself to learn that the Bruins were responsible for the $5M cap hit. It wasn't mentioned at all in stories when this all broke on Sunday. Even now, I've only seen this fact mentioned in three columns/articles about this decision. It's one of the most important yet least discussed facts of this story. I wonder why the Media barely mentions it at all.

"In league where a stunt like this hand cuffs a team, due to a salary cap. I have no choice as a fan of Boston to infer that Thomas is doing this intentionally. To which I say, enough of the b.s. put that nasty Finnish goalie in the net and let's win the Cup."

"And your not that important either...retire you clown. Tuukka is more of a man."

"well if u really felt that way u wouldnt screw the bruins with that cap hit."

"I don't know how anyone can rationalize this decision (besides the jesus freaks). If you don't want to play hockey then retire, or are you some how entilted to be paid for not working? Some of us actully struggle to make $25,000 a year by working everyday, slap in the face to the 9-5 world."

Many of these anti-Thomas people allude to the White House incident. They point to that as an example of selfish, anti-team behavior. And among these people, a narrative is developing that when the Bruins had their White House visit, Thomas' absence became such a distraction that it undermined the team. After all, the Bruins were 31-13-2 before the incident, 18-16-2 after.

The anti-Thomas people fail to point out that the good pre-White House record was due mostly to a 21-3-1 run in November and December. Even the Power Play was scoring. Leading up to the White House visit, the team had already cooled off. And was in a 5-3-1 stretch of hockey. But for some, Thomas became the scapegoat for their struggles after the visit. Not the inconsistent Bruins' forwards like Krejci, who had 2 goals and 0 assists in February, or Lucic who had 3 goals and 2 assists in February, then 3 goals again in March. It wasn't their fault. Thomas' "controversial" remarks had become a distraction. Or so the Media and the anti-Thomas people are still trying to convince us to believe.

The Media pounced on Thomas' decision to not visit the White House. They started a fire then accused Thomas of being inflammatory. Maybe the smartest thing for Thomas to have done would have been to keep quiet and go to the PR event. But the best argument I can make for him foregoing his convictions is that it would have been the smartest way to avoid irritating a ravenous Media that was hungry for a story.

"Here's the difference between Thomas and a real sports "hero".
Thomas didn't do what he did for the team, he did it for himself, which is a recurring issue for him apparently. He ditched the team when it recieved one of the highest honors because he felt his own political views were too important to waste on something like comraderie and team unity. Thomas is out for himself, he did what he did for himself. His fans are just mindless followers not realizing they're being pulled about the collar by Thomas' massive ego. Sad fools."

"Dosent know how good he has it..respected him once..but after he turned his back on his teamates w Obama visit could care less. Just trying to force a trade...only problem no team wants a 40 yr old has been. THOMAS IS JOKE...he ll be playing in germany 2nd div in a years time...good buy you selfish bum!"

"They went to the White House to accept an honor from an office, not a man. TT is to dumb to realize the president was honoring a team and not him individually. That offense alone was perhaps forgivable given what he accomplished. But to screw over his fans and his teammates is classless. To hide behind the three Fs is cowardly."

"Fans were not outraged Kirk, what planet were you on during that time? Good riddance to him, hope he can keep his mouth shut and opinions to himself where ever he lands."

"Why doesn't he just come out and ask for a trade instead of pulling this garbage? That I could respect more than this nonsense. Sorry the Bruins had the nerve to explore trade options for an aging goalie with a balky hip. Or that they weren't happy that he chose to publicly skip a team event. What a *-bag."

"Tea Partiers are Republicans who think they're some sort of new party. They're all generally nuts. TT didn't get criticism for his "political views", but his revealing that he's sort of nuts. It's like if he said he was skipping the White House ceremony because Obama believes that dinosaurs existed. People wouldn't be upset at his "religious views", they'd be upset by his lack of coherent, rational ones."

Some anti-Thomas people have gone so far as to accuse Thomas of being a racist. To me, this is the ultimate extremism of the irrational hatred that some have for Mr. Thomas.

"Joel Ward wants to be friends on Facebook (Confirm) (Later) Dear Timmie, sorry I scored the goal that sent your crossburning ax into retirement. Please forgive me, and let's be friends. Sincerely, Joel"

"Why did I 'like' Tim's FB page? Because I wanted to see what he was all about after he snubbed the office of the presidency of the United States. I know, Ii know, I'm Canadian so what would I know - enough at least to respect the office even if I disliked the man. Now that I understand the man (Thomas) that is, I can see that the rumours of his KKK sympathies are probably well founded. He hates Obama because he's black and he hates the Jews because they control the money. See ya Timmy, I still say you are a goofball."

This guy is referring to a quote Thomas posted on his Facebook page. The quote was made many years ago by a British banker, who was also Jewish, about the control of the money supply being the true source of power in a country.

"I'm not disputing the quote, everybody knows that he/she who controls the purse strings rules the world. I'm just saying Tim is a racist and his rants would have more credibility if he didn't color it (get it, color it) with his racist remarks. If he hadn't mentionned the 'banking cartlel' I would be fine with it. His statements are always inflammatory."

Thomas says stuff, people get inflamed over it, then they call him "inflammatory." But who is starting the fire? The person speaking his opinion or the person in the crowd getting overly enraged and hearing everything as racist?

Thomas' apparent streak of selfish behavior, inflammatory rhetoric, and being a distraction to teammates has inevitably led to him being compared to other Boston athletes: Curt Schilling, Randy Moss, Manny Ramirez, even some beer swilling Sox pitchers.

"TT is pissed, because Bs told him he is NOT in their future plans, due to his political/religious views. Mngmt. does not appreciate rebels. It's all about $$$$, TT give R Moss a call he'll fill you in."

"Tim Thomas = Manny Ramirez."

"And when Manny decided that baseball wasn't that important on any given day, he heard about it. Thomas deserves no different treatment. And please, if this doesn't scream "contact shenanigans!' I don't know what does. If Thomas is such an upstanding and principled man, he'd honor his contract."

"Hey Tim...Jesus didn't violate his Conract with Man now did he? You are the Hockey version of Curt Shilling."

"It's time to trade this selfish bum. It's all about him. He has poisoned the teams chemistry. The Bruins didn't make it past the first round due to his mediocre play and the teams lack of urgency and fire in their bellies. It was not fun to watch. The Bruins paid him well and what does he do?.....goes out and acts like a lone wolf and disrespects management and the team at every turn. No player is above the team. Get his butt out of town now! Another ingrate who forgets who pays him big bucks to play a sport! We see too many of these jerks already in Boston like jerky Beckett, Kessell, Lackey, Mannny!!!"

That last one really covers all the bases for the Anti-Thomas Brigade. It blames him for the team losing this year, calls him selfish, alludes to the White House incident, and compares him to other problematic athletes. And apparently, Thomas disrespected "management and the team at every turn." That was my favorite part of the quote. It makes me imagine Tim Thomas walking by Cam Neely's office every day and flipping him off, not making a new pot of coffee when he's drank the last of the old, leaving 3 drops of milk in the carton instead of getting more.

Tim Thomas was never reported to be chronically late or absent to practice like Moss was. Nor did he take portions of games off as Moss did.

Tim Thomas never slapped a teammate in public, or shoved an elderly team employee, or constantly beg to be traded then recant, or take performance enhancing drugs. He is not Manny Ramirez.

Do I even need to point out how different Kessel and Thomas are?

Thomas did not, as far as we know, drink beers in the room when Rask was in net. He's not Beckett or Lackey. And he's always been in prime physical shape.

Thomas did not call sports radio to declare his political beliefs. He did so on his personal Facebook page, which you can either choose to look at or not. Thomas also never asked a state government for money to fund a video game company.

For me, I'm simply amazed at how some people have turned on Thomas. It started in January, with the White House thing. Which became controversial as the team struggled through February. Thomas was blamed by some. And now people have completely turned against him.

I fully agree with those who don't like Thomas' decision. It hurts the team. But if you're going to judge the man, or the player, then judge them as a whole. Calling him selfish neglects what the team was able to accomplish in 2011, even with an allegedly selfish goalie in net. Comparing him to other troubled athletes doesn't quite work because what he's done is different from what any of them did. And it's irrational to be angry at someone for leaving but also happy that they're gone.

Sports are emotional, and sports fandom is about emotional responses. But that doesn't excuse someone for leaving their reason behind as they form and express opinions. And these people I quoted above are still trying to use reason to rationalize their emotional responses. 'He's selfish,' 'he's a cancer,'

"Hey Tim, seems you've done a great Job pulling the wool over the Eyes of the Peeps that come in here. However, you and I both know that this is about Money...Not God or Country! Cut me a break will ya? You can fool some of the People some of the time, but not all the People all of the Time!"

"I think uve lost ur brain Tim"

"Dude, you had a nice career, just retire and fade away gracefully. Wtf? You must love the attention, what did you expect would happen??"

These people genuinely dislike Tim Thomas the man and Tim Thomas the hockey player. And their justification of it demonstrates how misguided and irrational their opinions are. They portray him as a selfish player who hurt them in 2012, but somehow not in 2011. They are angry at him for not putting the team first, even though the team was apparently trying to trade him.

Tim Thomas doing what he's done the last few days hurt the Bruins and their fans. But overall, the goalie has given more to the Bruins and those same fans than any single player has since 1972. It's okay to be upset with him for this week's actions, but for people to turn their backs completely on what Thomas has meant to this franchise, is moronic.

What Tim Thomas Did to the Bruins

He's won two Vezinas and a Conn Smythe here. And he's the player most responsible for the Bruins' 2011 Stanley Cup Championship. Yet some people in this town accuse him of "putting himself above the team." Why? Because he didn't pose for a picture with Barack Obama and because he wants to spend a year with his family. How horrible and selfish of him.

Tim Thomas is taking a year off from hockey. He announced it yesterday on his Facebook page. He's not retiring. And so the Bruins are still responsible for the $5 million cap hit, even if the team suspends him. Legally, he still owes the Bruins a year of hockey, and they still owe him $3 million of salary (the cap number is the average yearly salary of the entire contract). The Bruins can "toll" Thomas' contract, which would mean taking the cap hit now, then having Thomas play for them in 2013-14 without a cap hit.

In any scenario, the Bruins still have to assume the $5 million cap hit. It's a stupid stipulation of the NHL's overly simplistic salary cap. It's a silly rule made to protect the poorly constructed cap from being taken advantage of. Sort of like duct-tape used to hold together rusty iron girders that support a skyscraper.

Why not just retire now? That's a question that some are asking. And then following up with a "he's putting himself above the team" type of statement.

The problem is, even if Tim Thomas retires, the Bruins are still responsible for $5 million against the cap. At least that's what a clause in the NHL CBA seems to read. It's  a clause for players signed to deals when they're 35 or older:

“All Player Salary and Bonuses earned in a League Year by a Player who is in the second or later year of a multi-year SPC [standard player contract] which was signed when the Player was age 35 or older (as of June 30 prior to the League Year in which the SPC is to be effective), regardless of whether, or where, the Player is playing, except to the extent the Player is playing under his SPC in the minor leagues, in which case only the Player Salary and Bonuses in excess of $100,000 shall count towards the calculation of Actual Club Salary;”

I haven't gone to Law School, but I think what this part of the CBA states is that if a player who is 35+ years old signs a deal, the team's cap number must include his salary for the duration of the contract, even if he's retired (that's the "regardless of whether, or where, the Player is playing..." part).

The point of this rule is to prevent teams from signing close-to-retirement players to big long-term contracts that are frontloaded. You don't want a team signing a 39 year old player to a 20 year, $20 million deal ($1 million cap hit per season), that pays him $9 million each of the first two years, then he retires after getting paid $18 million, but the team only had a $1 million cap hit.

Tim Thomas signed his current contract on April 2, 2009. That's 13 days before he turned 35. But the rule has a stipulation. If the player is 35+ when the terms of the deal take effect (the start of 2009-10 season for Thomas' deal), then the rule is in effect. Thomas was 35 at the start of the 2009-10 season.

So Thomas' $5 million cap hit was going to be in effect even if he retired. It would only not affect the Bruins if he were traded. Of course, his desire to take a year off severely reduces his trade value. I'm sure the Bruins will try to make a deal with other teams, but it's going to be hard to get much value for a 38 year old goalie who will be hanging out in Colorado for a year until he's 39.

So Thomas did put something ahead of the team. He admitted as much in his Facebook announcement. He wants to focus on his family. On his life off the ice. And because of that, the Bruins will struggle more to trade him. To tell the truth, though, his trade value wasn't incredibly high to begin with. He has one year left on his deal, he's 38 years old, he peaked in 2011. Struggling teams would want a more longer-term solution in net, and almost all of the contending teams already have their goalies in place.

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm fine with Thomas putting himself and his family ahead of the Bruins' ability to trade him. And if he doesn't want to play, he doesn't want to play.

What he is taking from the Bruins now is so small and trivial compared to what he gave the Bruins and their fans last spring and summer. Only two Bruins have won the Conn Smythe Trophy. Bobby Orr is one of them. Tim Thomas is the other. I think the balance sheet of what Thomas has given the Bruins and what he's taken away by taking a year off shows that the B's are well in the black.

So good luck, Timmy.

Tim Thomas Practices Free Speech, Gets Attacked For It

Most of the Bruins went to the White House yesterday, to be honored by President Barack Obama for winning the Stanley Cup. And by most, I mean all of them except Tim Thomas. Even Kaberle was there.

Peter Chiarelli says that Thomas informed him he wouldn't attend the event months ago, citing political differences with Obama. Thomas is a conservative, and seems like a Tea Party conservative.

I'm sorry folks, but that's his right to not go. I personally would have gone, even though I'm a conservative too. I don't like Obama, but I don't hate him. And going to the White House and meeting the President would be a cool thing to do.

Then again, if I hated Obama and the Federal government, why would I want to go through the trouble of going through White House security, just to stand behind him as he made a speech and had a photo op? That doesn't sound like a fun afternoon if you really hate the guy.

I'm getting pissed off at people criticizing him over this.

"He put himself above the team."

"He disrespected the office of the Presidency."

I don't think he put himself or his politics above the team. It's not like Thomas refused to play a game because Obama was in attendance. He didn't go to a photo op in the White House. How does that hurt the team? I don't think his teammates are going to be pissed at him. I can't imagine Shawn Thornton staring angrily at him across the locker room, saying "We needed you yesterday, Timmy. Why weren't you there for us?"

Did he disrespect the Presidency? I guess he did. He certainly didn't show an overwhelming respect for the office. Then again, it doesn't seem like he has much love for any Federal office. And can you blame him? Are we happy with our government's performance this past decade?

Here's the statement he made about not attending the event:

"I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People. This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government.

"Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.

"This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT"

You might disagree with his ideological beliefs. You might think that despite his feelings, he should have gone and been in the background of pictures of the President. But to lose respect for him because he exercised his right to free speech? That seems hyper-judgmental, and un-American.

Some people criticize athletes for not expressing their beliefs. Some criticize them for expressing them too much. Tim Tebow, for instance, was praised by millions for vocalizing his faith. He was also criticized by millions for doing so. But ultimately it's his right to say what he wants, how he wants to. It's a fundamentally important part of this country that we're free to express our beliefs.

Of course, that also means that people are free to express their dislike for what Thomas did. And I'm free to call them childish for doing so.

And if this becomes a distraction for the team, then they must not have been very focused to begin with. Knowing this team, they'll probably rally around Thomas and his right to express his political beliefs. The media has already tried turning this into a big deal, and that tends to galvanize teams, uniting them against a common outsider (the media), not dividing them.

I for one did not lose respect for Thomas yesterday. Because I don't care about his political beliefs, or how he expresses them. I don't know Tim Thomas personally, and don't care to. I like him because he's a good goalie. I respect him because as a good goalie. As for his politics, so long as he stops the puck, I don't give a fuck.

And to those who are criticizing his credentials as a teammate, all I can say is that videos speak louder than words. Here's him sticking up for Aaron Ward in 2009.



I'm pretty sure Thomas would have stuck up for Ward even if Ward had voted for Obama (of course Ward is Canadian so he probably didn't).

Tim Thomas didn't want to meet the President. Just because Obama is the President doesn't mean that people should accept every invitation he extends. Thomas doesn't like the Federal government in general, so why should he spend a day with the head of the government if he doesn't want to? This has become a much bigger deal than it really is. I think Obama has moved on and has other things to worry about. I think the Bruins are focused on their game in Washington tonight. The only people harping on this are the media looking to rake some muck, and judgmentalists who like saying what other people should and shouldn't do.

Proud to be a Bruins Fan

Even if the Canucks had won Cup last year, I'd much rather be a Bruins fan than a Canucks fan. I feel kind of bad for the fans of Vancouver, having to root for the likes of Roberto Luongo, Maxim Lapierre, Dale Weise, Alex Burrows, et cetera. A goalie who doesn't want to play in goal. A coward. A guy who skates away from a fight. A fiend. It must kind of suck to have to support the likes of these characters.

There were two games on Saturday afternoon. There was the game when Vancouver was on the Power Play, which the Canucks won 4-0. And there was the game when they weren't. Which the Bruins won 3-0. There were 107 penalty minutes issued and 18 Power Plays for both teams. 13:34 of this game was played with the Canucks having at least one man advantage.

To be fair to the refs, this was a hard game to officiate. These teams do not like each other. And the refs called the game tight for both teams. And the refs did a good job not allowing Dale Weise to get away with goading Shawn Thornton into dropping the gloves then not fighting.

Unfortunately, the refs were a bit inconsistent. Some hits and stickwork was called for 2 minutes. Some wasn't. Some calls confused me. Seguin's tripping call, Krejci's goaltender interference, the 3rd period holding penalty on Alexander Edler. And why was it that Alex Burrows waves the blade of his stick at Thornton's eyes, the lines brawl, and somehow the Bruins emerge down 2 men?

The officials' inconsistency favored both teams at timse. And credit must be given to Vancouver for their special teams' play. Their Power Play won them the game. And the Bruins' lack of a Power Play cost the B's the game. The Bruins had 7 chances with a man advantage. And failed each time.

I actually think the PP slowed down the Bruins' momentum at times. They were attacking in the middle of the 2nd, for instance, then drew a penalty, then played a static, undramatic, uninspired two minutes of 5 on 4, then drifted through the rest of the 2nd.

This game was weird. It was emotional. It was rarely 5 on 5. Vancouver won, fair and square. But if this were Game 1 of a 7 game series, I'd like the Bruins chances to win.

There may be future ramifications for the Bruins. The NHL rescinded Lucic's game misconduct, which was a correct call. Lucic didn't climb over the boards, he was still on the ice in the middle of a line change, as were several Canucks.

Marchand has a hearing with the NHL today. And I don't think he'll just be fined. His clipping penalty was a good call. He's claiming that he was trying to protect himself but it didn't seem that way. The hit was dirty. And unnecessary/stupid. The refs had been calling EVERY infraction up to that point so it was stupid for Marchand to risk giving Vancouver another power play.

Marchand has already been fined this year. He was suspended last season. He has a reputation that's growing more and more infamous. I think he should be suspended, and will be. For 2 games, I'd say.

Vancouver won a game. Good for them. And good luck in the playoffs when half the penalties called on Saturday won't be called. And good luck in the playoffs with a star goalie who doesn't demand to play in big games like this one.

The Bruins stand up for their teammates. They have goalies who crave big games. They have fighters, not talkers. They didn't get a win on Saturday, but they can and should be happy that they are much better than the Canucks, and not just at hockey.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo

Why It's Still Easy to Hate the Canucks

There's just nothing to respect about the Vancouver Canucks. The latest news is that their starlet goalie Roberto Luongo will not start in Boston tomorrow. Which is odd because he last played on Wednesday and would apparently have ample rest. Instead, backup goalie and BC alum and Marblehead, MA native Cory Schneider will start. Schneider is 8-5-1 with a very respectable 2.16 GAA.

But shouldn't Luongo want to start? He struggled in the 3 games in Boston during the Stanley Cup Finals, so shouldn't that be his motivation for wanting to play? Nope. He doesn't want a chance to acquire a morsel of peace of mind. He doesn't want a chance to exorcise some demons and, for his own sake, to get past the past.

And that's why he's such a loser. He's always been soft when it matters most. He doesn't do well in challenging situations. He often finds ways to avoid them. He plays the wrong position for that kind of mentality.

Then there's the remarks from Daniel Sedin. When asked about what would happen if Brad Marchand once again used his face as a speedbag, Sedin said:

"I think the referees, I hope, are going to call a penalty and we'll be on the power play,"

Really? That's the best you can do? Hope the refs call a penalty? Not stand up for yourself and try to stop it. Not hope your teammates, your linemates, your own brother doesn't come over and stand up for you?

There's just nothing to respect about the Canucks. There's other teams I hate in the NHL. Montreal, Philly, Pittsburgh, New York. But I have some respect for things they do. Montreal can skate. Pittsburgh's gritty. Et cetera. But the Canucks flop, whine, and turtle.

Sources:
Vancouver Sun
WEEI 850AM

BBS Award for Team of the Year

There really can't be any doubt as to who will win this Award. It's the team that ended a 39 year drought. It's the team that might be the most likable in town. It's the 2011 Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins.

It might not be a team of superstars. But it is a team of guys who are easy to like. Tim Thomas. Shawn Thornton. Brad Marchand. Milan Lucic. Patrice Bergeron. Tuukka Rask. Zdeno Chara. Adam McQuaid. Dennis Seidenberg. David Krejci. Mark Recchi. Gregory Campbell. Tyler Seguin. Nathan Horton. Andrew Ference. Chris Kelly. Daniel Paille. Johnny Boychuk. Rich Peverley.

This team has character. They fight for each other. They play with effort and determination. They win with effort and determination.

All I need to say about this team is that Bruins fans are in love. They love winning. They love winning the way they've won. If polygamy were legal, B's fans would marry this team.

BBS Award for Athlete of the Year

This might be the most coveted Award an individual athlete can attain. Here are the nominees...

Tom Brady, QB - New England Patriots
Jacoby Ellsbury, CF - Boston Red Sox
Zdeno Chara, D - Boston Bruins
Tim Thomas, G - Boston Bruins
Luke Kuechly, LB - BC Football

The winner is...

Tim Thomas

No disrespect to Tom Brady, but Tim Thomas is the best player at his position in all of sports. I wish the NHL produced a DVD of his 798 saves in the Stanley Cup Playoffs (they could call it "798"). This video will have to suffice:

I love when he took down Burrows. That's another thing about Thomas, he'll stick up for himself and his teammates. He won't shy away from a scrap.

We are privileged to see him play here in Boston.

BBS Lifetime Achievement Award

This goes to someone who has amassed a lifetime of accomplishments. This year I'm giving the Award to someone who is only 46 years old but has already accomplished quite a bit.

Cameron Michael Neely.

Let's talk first about Cam Neely the player. His too short and injury plagued career was brilliant. 395 goals in 726 games. He was a tough, physical forward. Unfortunately for him, he played for a team noted for its careful spending habits (a polite way of saying cheapness). He came close to the Cup a few times, but never won one as a player.

Then he came back to the Bruins as President. It's tough to fully know how much influence he's had on personnel decisions, but it's safe to say that his presence in the front office has influenced the team. The Bruins are tougher than they were before he came. They're more complete and well-rounded. They're a lot more like him.

BBS Award for Game of the Year

This goes to the most exciting, entertaining, important game of the year in the Boston sports world. There were a number of good candidates for this award, thanks mostly to the Bruins' Stanley Cup run. There are three nominees for this Award:

Bruins vs. Canadiens, Game 7, Bruins win 4-3 in OT
Bruins vs. Lightning, Game 7, Bruins win 1-0
Bruins vs. Canucks, Game 7, Bruins win 4-0

And the winner is...

Game 7 against the Canucks

While the games against Montreal and Tampa Bay were more exciting, I decided that the Cup winning game was the best for two reasons. Firstly, the Bruins won the Cup. Secondly, it was a great example of Bruins hockey. The B's ground the game out, they didn't give the Canucks anything, and Tim Thomas was Tim Thomas. Game 7 was the quintessential Boston Bruins game.

Bruins Raise a Banner, Drop a Game

Before discussing the game, I just want to say that the pre-game ceremony was quite cool. Having armed forces, police, and firefighters lining the Cup's path into the building, then the video of all the ups and downs of the playoffs, then unveiling the banner itself, that was pretty neat.

I'm glad the speeches were short and sweat. And it was very classy to have players from the 1972 team, along with Milt Schmidt help carry the banner to its raising point. And the poignant tribute to Mark Recchi was the icing on the cake. Very well done.

The game was not so well done. It was the type of game that one year ago would have sent me into a frenzy. Not making plays out of the zone, allowing easy entry, not dumping and chasing. These were some of the problems the Bruins had last night.

Marchand and Seguin were the only two Bruins who had truly good offensive games. The Bruins had 23 shots on goal in this game, only 6 in both the 1st and 2nd periods. Give credit to Bryzgalov for stopping 22 shots. He was very impressive, and it's safe to say that goaltending is no longer a liability for the Flyers.

The Bruins allowed their first goal thanks to surrendering the blue-line too easily. Four Bruins around one Flyer, and he manages to get through. Then the second goal came after Seidenberg had the puck on his own blue line and just tapped it toward the red line. He didn't carry it, or attempt to pass it to a teammate. He just tapped it forward, Philly recaptured it, and a few seconds later they made it a 2-1 game.

I really wish the announcers had mentioned Jaromir Jagr at least once. I certainly did not get my fill on hearing about how amazing Jaromir Jagr has been for the Flyers.

There are 81 games left and I'm not going to flip out as badly as I did last year after just one frustrating loss. These are fixable problems. And on the bright side, Marchand looks great and Seguin looks good.

Bruins host the Lightning Saturday night.

Photo Credits:
AP Photo

Bruins Season Preview

That seemed like the shortest off-season in history. That's a good thing. The Bruins look to defend the Cup and become the first repeat winners since the Red Wings did it in 1997 and 1998. And they have most of the same pieces in place as they did last year.

Both goalies return, 5 of 6 defensemen are back, and so are 11 of 13 forwards. The Bruins lost Tomas Kaberle, Mark Rechhi, and Michael Ryder. They've brought in veteran defenseman Joe Corvo, and winger Benoit Pouliot.

The loss of Rechhi hurts. The Bergeron-Marchand-Rechhi line carried this team during a tough stretch in the regular season, then scored 22 goals in the postseason. Not only do the Bruins lose Rechhi's production, he made things so easy for Marchand. Peverley could fill-in and is a solid enough player to allow Bergeron and Marchand to make plays. But nobody can truly replace Mark Recchi.

The top line of Krejci-Lucic-Horton should be back to form. This line struggled with consistency, particularly from Horton. But they came through in the playoffs, especially Krejci. I've often criticized Krejci for not being a true #1 center because he's not a scorer. 12 goals in 25 playoff games shut me up.

Tyler Seguin showed sparks last year. Will those sparks ignite into a fire? I think that will take time to happen. He's talented, he's learning how to play defense, and he's learning how NHL players play defense against him. Seguin scored 11 goals last year and it's not out of the question that he score 20+ this year. The question is: which line does he play for? He's not consistent enough to be on the first line, but that's the level of talent he needs to be surrounded by. He's too talented to be on a grinding line. Maybe he could play with Marchand and Bergeron. But he has to earn that spot.

The true strength of this team is its defense and goaltending. And both of those should be as good as they were last year.

I was reading something about the Top 10 Stanley Cup contenders, and the fucking San Jose Sharks were listed as #1. The Bruins were third, behind the Penguins. ESPN.com canvassed their 8 experts and 6 of them picked the Sabres to win the Northeast. 1 picked the Canadiens. 1 picked the Bruins. Thank you, Scott Burnside.

Really? The Sharks? The Sabres? Did people not see what Zdeno Chara, Tim Thomas, and Dennis Seidenberg did to the NHL's best offensive players? Then again, none of those ESPN.com experts picked Thomas to win the Vezina this season, and none of them picked Chara to win the Norris.

18 players on the Stanley Cup Champions have returned, and this team isn't the favorite to win it all?

The Bruins return their best 5 defensemen, got rid of their worst, then added one who can not only score (which Kaberle had never been able to) but can play solid on defense. This is an elite group of blue-liners. And there's depth, too. Bartkowski and Kampfer, who were both solid when called upon last year, are waiting in the wings in case of injury.

Then there's the goalie. Tim Thomas is perhaps the most important player in the League to any team's success. He is 37 years old, but he looked healthier than ever last season. That being said, he played in 57 regular season games, plus 25 postseason games. He played about 4,900 minutes in net. 2,660 shots came his way. He's only had 16 weeks to recover from all this.

So this year, expect Rask to play a bigger part during the regular season. He started 27 games last year, expect just under 40 this year. It's not going to be a 1A/1B situation. Thomas is clearly the best goalie on this team. This will be an effort to keep Thomas fresh and frisky.

Stanley Cups aren't won on paper. This team is almost identical to the team that won it all last year. The Cup is won with execution and effort and that has to come out in the postseason. Regular season results are easy to predict, but the playoffs come down to a few plays here and there.

Buffalo is going to be tougher to beat. They added scorers to an already talented offense. And they have Ryan Miller.

Montreal is pretty much the same team. But remember, they played the Bruins the best in the playoffs.

Ottawa is still rebuilding.

The Leafs might be more respectable, but they're not a threat.

The Flyers dumped their offense and they're going to try to follow a model similar to the Bruins': Defensemen and goaltending. Pronger's great, but Bryzgalov is no Tim Thomas.

The Rangers are finally picking good talent, and they'll be strong. They have a goalie and goal-scorers.

The Lightning still allow too many goals.

The Penguins will always be contenders. And if they get Crosby back, they'll be serious contenders.

If the Capitals get stellar production from Ovechkin once more, their defense might be strong enough for them to do damage in the playoffs.

Out West, Nashville is just a few goal scorers away from being a Stanley Cup contender. Detroit is old but still deep.

San Jose has names. ESPN says they have "all the ingredients," but it takes more than correct ingredients to cook a good meal. And goalie Antti Niemi might have a ring, but he wasn't the big reason Chicago won that title.

And Vancouver... well, we know their weaknesses.

My prediction for the season: Bruins win the Northeast with 110 points, are the #2 seed in the East, and let's be optimistic and say that they win another Cup.

Bruins Get Their Rings

Over 300 diamonds adorn the spectacular rings that were distributed to the Bruins yesterday. But what's most impressive is the intricate detail that went into each ring. On one side is the player's name (the photographed ring belongs to Chara) along with the Bruins' secondary logo. The oppositte side lists the 6 times the Bruins won the Cup (2011, 1972, 1970, 1941, 1939, 1929), along with the Cup itself.

The interior of the ring is also decorated with the motto "Full 60+ to History" engraved on one side, and the logos of the Bruins' vanquished playoff foes (and the scores of those series) on the other side.

Jeremy Jacobs went all out on these rings, and I like the little details. It's not just a ridiculously glitzy piece of bling, the little things make it even cooler. 505 of these will be distributed to players, coaches, and team personnel.

I Touched the Stanley Cup Yesterday

The Bruins have been holding photo taking sessions with the Stanley Cup for season ticket holders. And yesterday, my friend's uncle's girlfriend had two extra tickets for this experience. And I was lucky enough to receive one of them.

We could touch the Cup. We could hug it. Some even kissed it. The only thing not permitted was lifting it off its table. They're probably paranoid about that ever since Michael Ryder dropped it.

It was surreal. I've never touched a Championship trophy before, and none of the other trophies have the same allure of the Cup. There's a new Lombardi Trophy every year. But there's only one Cup.

Touching it was a bit surprising. I thought it would feel colder, like metal usually does. But it felt warm and familiar. That's because it's not just silver, it's nickel. And we handle nickel every day in nickels and quarters.

The texture isn't as smooth as you'd think either. Just pick up a quarter and rub it. That's how the surface of the Cup feels. It's not rough, nor is it slick. Now granted, when I touched it, it was covered in finger prints from everyone else who'd taken a picture with it. So maybe when it's all polished up, it feels smoother.

I didn't pick it up, but I did hug it. And it's not as heavy as you'd think. It's not a giant chunk of metal. It's metal wrapped around a hollow core. When you see something that big, that glisteningly metallic, and it's a bit surprising that it doesn't weigh half a ton.

As a sports fan, it was a pretty cool experience.

Savard to Get Name on Cup

There hasn't been much good news for Marc Savard, but at least his place on the Stanley Cup Champions will be recognized on the most hallowed trophy in sports. He didn't play the minimum number of games, but they'll make an exception for him when engraving the Cup.

His career is likely over, but this isn't a bad way to end it.

TIM THOMAS' TROPHY CASE

Two nights ago, Tim Thomas added two impressive pieces of hardware to an already diverse collection of trophies and awards. And while the Conn Smythe, the Stanley Cup, and his inevitable second Vezina are the feature pieces of his trophy case, the rest of what's in there tells the story of his career.

He's got some college hockey honors. He was two time All-ECAC and two time All NCAA East All-American. He also has some less traditional, and more difficult to spell awards under his belt.

In 1998, he won the Urpo Ylönen trophy, given to the best goalie in Finland's SM-liiga. He's the only American who has one of those bad boys. His team also won the very large Kanada-malja ("Canada Cup"), Finland's championship trophy.

In 2005 he won the Kultainen kypärä ("Golden Helmet") in Finland, awarded to the best player as voted by his fellow players. He won another 'best player' award that year: the Lasse Oksanen trophy.

The variety of awards he has in that trophy case don't just testify to his quality as a player. They're not just achievements. They're milestones on a career that took one of the most unique paths from obscurity to greatness. Nobody in the world has an Urpo Ylönen, a Vezina, and a Conn Smythe.

CITY OF CHAMPIONS

It didn't truly feel real until I saw Tim Thomas holding the Conn Smythe trophy. I've seen Thomas before, many times. I've seen the Conn Smythe as well. But when I saw that man and that thing together in the same frame, that's when it fully hit me what had happened.

The Bruins are Champions. Not Adams Division Champs, not Conference Champs. They didn't win the Presiden't Trophy, they won the Stanley fucking Cup. For the first time since 1972. For only their 6th time in history (remember, for a few decades there were only 6 teams in the League). The redheaded stepchildren of Boston sports are now the center of the Hub.

It started and ended with Thomas. His Finals numbers were unreal. A 1.15 GAA, and a .967 SV%, with two shutouts. All this against the best offense in the NHL. Thomas' season will go down as one of the best in the history of his position. The kid from Michigan whose career bounced around from Vermont to Houston to Finland to Hamilton to Sweden to Detroit to Providence and finally to Boston. What a great story, what a great player.

Then the defense. How monstrous were Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg in the postseason? Chara was a +16 in the playoffs and a +5 in this series. That's against the best players in the League. Against the Sedins, against Stamkos and St. Louis. He was +16!

Every forward contributed at some point. Horton's big game-winners. Ryder had a few huge games. Seguin's breakaways. Marchand's introduction to the NHL as a grinder and a scorer. Bergeron, Recchi, everyone had at least one big, vital performance in one game. And guys like Marchand and Peverley seemed to repeatedly come through in the clutch. 11 playoff goals for Marchand.

The same goes for defensemen like Boychuk, Ference, and McQuaid. Kaberle's biggest contribution was probably holding the Cup while his teammates drank from it. But who cares?

This is just a surreal feeling. This wasn't supposed to happen, right? Even when every other team in Boston was winning, the B's were lousy. They were the butts of jokes. They were the ones who couldn't get it done. And now they're part of the club, part of the best decade for any city in the history of sports.

On June 16, 2001, the Red Sox were on their way to another 2nd place season behind the Yankees. The Patriots had just used the 6th overall pick to draft Richard Seymour, and were hoping to recover from a 5-11 season under 2nd year head coach Bill Belichick. The Celtics were reeling from a 36-46 season that saw the departure of Rick Pitino. Boston sports were in a dark period.

Now look at where we are on June 16, 2011. We're preparing for another parade. Our Police Department has more experience in controlling Championship rioting than any other in the country. The longest active title drought belongs to the Patriots, who haven't won since all the way back in 2004. What a time to be from Boston.

Thank you, Bruins.

Photo Credits:
AP Photo