A Good Reason to Root for the Florida Panthers Tonight

The Panthers have a chance to eliminate the Devils tonight. And not only would that mean that a team from New Jersey would be knocked out, it would also mean that one of the best goal-callers in the NHL would be happy.

Fenway's 100th Birthday Party

Fenway Park turned 100 on Friday. You might have heard about it. It's crazy to think about a facility being used and abused each year by fans and players, and it's still standing. Fires have burnt down grandstands, floods have seeped in from the marshy Fens, and I once threw up in Section 14.

When Fenway Park opened, World War I was 4 years from starting. There was no TV, no radio broadcast of the game. People got their news from telegraph. The Civil War had only been over for 47 years.

Fenway was 28 years old when the US joined World War II. It was 57 when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. It was 72 when I was born. And it will probably outlive me,

The ceremony on Friday was tasteful, emotional, well planned, and even moving at times. It brought back memories of childhood, and made me remember why I blindly loved Pedro Martinez and Mo Vaughn. It made me remember that the team we have here in Boston is an integral, inseparable part of life in this town. It made me remember how unreasonably sad I was in 2003 and how unreasonably happy I was in 2004.

It was nice. The players came out, from different generations, from different classes of stardom in this town. Some players I'd never heard of. Some players I saw when I was a kid. Some players I've read about. Wilton Veras, Bill Monbouquette, Nomar, Millar, Lowell, Yaz, Doerr, Pesky, Petrocelli, even Jose Canseco. The obscure, the famous, the infamous.

Even the flyover gave me goosebumps. An F-16 flying wing-to-wing with a P-51. That's just cool. Although the P-51 flew in Europe and the Pacific when Fenway was already 30 years old. A formation of planes ranging from a WW I biplane might have been more appropriate. Or maybe a Marine Corps F4U Corsair and an F9F Panther (the planes Ted Williams flew in World War II and Korea, respectively). But only a history nerd like myself would make such specific suggestions.

I felt like a kid as I watched the proceedings. Then I realized that this was precisely how Larry Lucchino and John Henry wanted me to feel. This was how they got Sox fans to shell out hundreds of dollars to watch mediocre players blow 8 run leads and then be happy about it. They make us feel like we're in Disney World, then they pick our pockets. And we smile as they do it.

Lucchino and Henry didn't care about the Sox until they realized it was an asset they could build up, squeeze, then sell. They see Fenway Park as a tourist attraction, not a ballpark. I used to go to games to see the Sox play. People today go just to go, because it's cool. It's the trendiest bar in town with an obscene cover charge, overpriced beer, and lousy entertainment.

So while it was cool to see Pedro, Nomar, Millar, Lowell, Wakefield, and everyone else. Knowing that it was all part of the Lucchino-Henry money making master plan gave me a bad after taste. Fenway's 100th Anniversary wasn't a celebration of Boston, or the Sox, or Fenway. It was a marketing tool. It was exploitation of the team's most valuable resource. It was about image and money, and "growing the brand," as a business person would say.

And I wouldn't care if "growing the brand" included signing a frontline starting pitcher. But it doesn't.

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Day 9*

The Western Conference quarterfinals are complete and the semifinals are set. But the East is still very much up in the air. The 1 and 8 seeds will be going to Game 7. As will the 2 and 7. And maybe even the 3 and 6.

RANGERS 3, SENATORS 2 - (Series tied 3-3)

Daniel Alfredsson returned but the Senators couldn't stop New York's Power Play. The refs called a very soft game, though. Ottawa scored after a weak roughing call. New York scored after a weak goalie interference call. I hate seeing games won and lost on Power Plays. Chris Kreider did score an even strength goal for the Rangers in his 4th game as a pro. He was playing for Boston College in the NCAA Championship just 16 days ago. Now he already has an NHL playoff goal.

Game 7 Thursday night in New York.

COYOTES 4, BLACKHAWKS 0 - (Coyotes win series 4-2)

Chicago started this game on fire, backed by a very vocal home crowd. They ran into a wall, though. And that wall was named Mike Smith. The Phoenix goalie stopped 16 shots in the 1st period, and 39 overall. Eventually, the Coyotes scored some Power Play goals and won their first playoff series since moving to Phoenix.

They'll face Nashville in the semis. And LA will face St. Louis. So that's Mike Smith vs. Pekka Rinne and Jonathan Quick vs. Eliot/Halak. Don't expect many high scoring games in the next round.

Tonight's game:
7:30pm - Panthers @ Devils - NBC Sports - Panthers lead 3-2

Bard Relieves Sox Fans

Daniel Bard wants to be a starter. And I can't blame him. But by doing such a good job as a reliever last night, he might have eliminated himself from the rotation.

He inherited a tough situation: a runner on third with 1 out in a 5-5 game. And he worked out of it. Cody Ross homered in the next half inning, and Bard got the win.

I was a little puzzled with Valentine's decision to take Bard out and put Aceves in to pitch the 9th. I know Aceves is the temporary closer, but Bard only threw 11 pitches in the 8th (4 were part of an intentional walk), and he's clearly the best option to pitch the 9th. Taking Bard out and putting Aceves in was tempting fate.

With the Sox struggling, Cody Ross has been somewhat overlooked. He hit homeruns number 4 and 5 of the year. And knocked in 3 runs, giving him a total of 13 RBI. He leads the Sox in both categories. He's also hitting .283. I don't know if this production will last, but the Sox desperately need it at the moment.

Jon Lester looked off, especially going through the Twins' lineup a second time. He allowed 5 runs in 7 innings. And if not for the 3 double plays the Twins grounded into, things might have gotten really messy. I'm not worried, though. He had bad Aprils in 2009 and 2010. And a bad May last year. Give him a few starts to warm up and he'll revert to his usual self.

The Sox needed the win. But there's still lots to work on. Morales looks awful. Aceves is unnerving. The Sox still make inexcusable little mistakes like screwing up a relay from right-field.

Those problems seem more manageable after a win, though.

Beckett faces Nick Blackburn tonight, who struggled in his first start, did well in his second, but hasn't pitched since the 14th.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo

Byrd Lands in Boston

The Sox made the very minor acquisition of outfielder Marlon Byrd. Byrd has started 2012 in a 3/43 slump. Although he's a career .278 hitter. He hit .276 last year and in 2009 he had 20 homeruns. He was acquired in exchange for Michael Bowden and a player to be named later.

The Sox desperately needed an outfielder. Ellsbury and Crawford are on the DL, and Repko hurt himself on Friday. Byrd is a short-term solution to this significant problem.

And of course the Sox have plenty of other problems to worry about. Maybe Marlon Byrd can pitch.

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Day 12*

Some series came to an end, others were extended. The violence has subsided a bit, so now we can enjoy actual hockey.

PANTHERS 3, DEVILS 0 - (Panthers lead series 3-2)

Jose Theodore is back in net for Florida, and it worked out pretty well for the Panthers. He stopped all 30 shots he faced. The Panthers are on the verge of making everyone who was clamoring for changes in the playoff system look like fools.

Game 6 Tuesday night in Jersey.

SENATORS 2, RANGERS 0 - (Senators lead series 3-2)
Jason Spezza is the latest Senator to pick up the slack left by the absence of Daniel Alfredsson. He scored his first and second goals of the series in this game. Oh, and Craig Anderson stopped 41 shots. The Rangers were a favorite to win The Cup, and now they're facing elimination.

Game 6 tonight in Ottawa.

BLUES 3, SHARKS 1 - (Blues win series 4-1)

The Sharks were a sexy upset pick by the experts. The experts forgot that they have Joe Thornton along with goaltending issues. The Blues scored three goals in the 3rd and fully demonstrated how and why they finished the regular season with 109 points.

BLACKHAWKS 2, COYOTES 1 (OT) - (Coyotes lead series 3-2)

All five games in this series have gone into Overtime. That's ridiculous.

Game 6 tonight in Chicago.

FLYERS 5, PENGUINS 1 - (Flyers win series 4-2)

Thank God Pittsburgh is eliminated. The craniums of the remaining playoff teams are much safer thanks to their elimination. And thank God I can stop rooting for the Flyers. Danny Briere and Claude Giroux ran this series. Briere scored 5 times, Giroux scored 6 times. Sidney "Canada's Golden Boy" Crosby had 8 points in this series. And was -3 in this game. Fuck off, Penguins.

KINGS 2, CANUCKS 1 (OT) - (Kings win series 4-2)

Give Vancouver another excuse to tear apart their own city. The Canucks once again choked in the playoffs. This is a common theme with them. They can't just blame their goalie anymore, as Schneider did pretty well for himself. Maybe having a first line consisting of soft Swedes that fold faster than Ikea furniture is the problem. Maybe having guys like Burrows and Lapierre is the problem. Maybe defensemen should play defense. I don't know. I don't care. Goodbye, Vancouver.

A #8 seed beats a #1 seed in 5 games.

Tonight's games:
7:00pm - Rangers @ Senators - NBC Sports - Senators lead 3-2
9:00pm - Coyotes @ Blackhawks - CNBC - Coyotes lead series 3-2

How Bad Are the Red Sox?

The Red Sox grounds' crew didn't even put a tarp down yesterday afternoon. There was a 90% chance of rain, but a 100% chance that the Sox were not going to play on Sunday. And who could blame them.

The 3 inning, 14 run collapse of the bullpen on Saturday was almost humorous. The ways this team finds to lose ballgames seems too surreal to be true. To be up 9-1 in the 7th inning and still lose. How is that possible?

With this team, though, it's expected.

This team finished 3rd place last year, and what did the Front Office do in an effort to improve? Lose a closer, lose a short-stop, fire a manager, lose a GM. Should we be surprised that this team is struggling?

It's not Bobby Valentine's fault. He inherited a circus. And even if you change ring leaders in a circus, clowns are still clowns. But I don't think that Character is the problem with the Sox. At least not the biggest problem.

There simply isn't enough talent. Vicente Padilla was on the scrap heap for a reason. The Red Sox haven't acquired a sought-after reliever since Keith Foulke. They sign a bunch of question marks to fill in their bullpen depth chart and hope one or two work out. Then they move their 2nd best reliever to the rotation.

This team is a mess. On the field, off the field, everywhere. They don't score runs consistently. They've already lost twice when scoring 9+ runs. Their bullpen is horrific. The rotation is still questionable.

This team sucks. Only the Royals have a worse record in the AL.

They're in Minnesota tonight. Bard has been skipped and Lester will be starting. He'll oppose Jason Marquis. I think the Sox are desperate for a win, and putting Lester on the mound gives them a good chance of getting one.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo

Seguin Keeps Bruins In

The Bruins weren't going to win this series unless some of their key forwards woke up and scored. Krejci scored yesterday. Lucic had two assists. And Seguin scored the game-winner.

Seguin was dangerous all game. It was only a matter of time before he scored. He threatened frequently in the 1st, and he helped set-up Peverley's goal in the 3rd. Finally, the opportunity came for him in OT. He was confident, he was patient, he was Tyler Seguin. He waited for Braden Holtby to commit, then he attacked. And as good as the media has made Holtby out to be, Seguin is ridiculously more talented than him. And don't forget that Seguin has to practice against Tim Thomas. That might be part of the reason why he's becoming such a good player.

I thoroughly enjoy Eddie Olczyk's mis-analysis of Tim Thomas during the playoffs. He spouted the same crap last year. The NBC guys frequently critique the two time Vezina winner for his aggressiveness. I think Mr. Olczyk believes that if he laced up his skates today, he'd be able to score on Thomas with ease. But he has just a good of a chance to score on Thomas as he does of pronouncing a player's name correctly.

Thomas was great. Washington's first goal was a deflection off Zanon's leg. Their second goal came when the referees didn't call interference or high-sticking and the Caps had a de facto Power Play. Ironically, after the play Marchand couldn't return to the ice due to the flowing blood from the non-penalty. He got a stick to the face and Washington scored. Then again, the refs were primarily focused on clamping down the toughest, fiercest player in the NHL: Benoit Pouliot.

How much attention are the referees giving Pouliot's play? Pouliot has 6 penalty minutes this series. Ovechkin has 4. Who do you think has played rougher, pushed the rules further?

Speaking of penalties, the Washington fans properly displayed their ignorance when booing the 4 minute high-sticking call on Ovechkin. Stick to face equals a penalty. And blood makes it a 4 minute penalty. There's little grey area. What the hell were the Caps fans booing?

Then again, the lack of penalties on Ovechkin isn't new. He was 21st in the NHL with 215 hits in the regular season. He only received 26 penalty minutes. That's not a typo. He was only penalized 26 minutes. 21st most hits, 393rd most penalty minutes. It's impossible to be involved in so much physical play and not be penalized more. Clearly the refs have a different rule book for him.

The Bruins' Power Play looked much better than it's been in the first 5 games. The B's scored a PP goal in the 1st. And they were much better at entering the zone and maintaining possession. The next step is to move some bodies away from the puck. That makes it harder on the penalty killers. It opens up passing and shooting lanes, creates 2-on-1 situations, and forces the goalie to move around. And we've seen Holtby struggle when he's forced to move from post-to-post.

The Bruins' penalty killing is back to form too.

So we have another Game 7. This is familiar territory for many of the Bruins. If they can continue to grow on the Power Play; if Krejci, Seguin, and Lucic can contribute; and if Benoit Pouliot's rampaging can be harnessed, the Bruins should win.

I can't wait until Wednesday.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo