Bruins Overcome Flames, Flu

The excuses/explanations were pre-loaded for Tuesday night's Bruins game in Calgary. The B's were missing players due to injury and suspension. The flu was making its rounds through the locker room. It would be an emotional return to Calgary for Jarome Iginla. And so on.

After two periods of play it seemed as though those excuses would need to be deployed. The Flames had outshot the Bruins 22-9 and were up 1-0. Tuukka Rask had let in a soft goal. The B's were on track to lose to the second worst team in the West.

Everything flipped in the 3rd. Boston outshot Calgary 15-5. The Bruins capitalized on a delay of game penalty with a power play goal. David Krejci scored it but the goal was shaped by Torey Krug. Krug took advantage of space created when a Flames defenseman broke his stick and Mike Cammalleri surrendered his as a replacement. Krug's slapshot was tipped in by Krejci to tie the game 1-1.

The assist was Krug's 10th power play point of the season (4 goals, 6 assists). That leads the team (Krejci now has 8, Chara had the other assist giving him 7 on the season). Last year Krejci led the Bruins with 7 power play points.

The game-winning goal started in the Bruins' defensive zone as Carl Soderberg won a puck battle along the boards. Ryan Spooner found the puck then found Reilly Smith driving through the neutral zone. A patient and strong finish beat goalie Reto Berra glove side and the Bruins went on to win 2-1.

Give a bench assist to Claude Julien for mixing up the lines for the 3rd period.

Rask redeemed himself in the 3rd with a tough save on a mid-range backhanded shot launched by a spinning Sven Baertschi. The save came only 2 minutes after Smith gave the B's a lead, and with 2:30 left in regulation. That's what people mean when they say "timely saves."

The B's remain in Alberta and play the Edmonton Oilers Thursday night. The Oilers are the only Western Conference team doing worse than the Flames. If you're going to catch the flu, this isn't a bad time in the schedule to get it.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh

Celtics Start Reunion Week with a Loss

Before I talk about this game, I have to unleash a torrent of rage at Brooklyn's Barclays Center. They play way, way, WAY too much arena music. Every possession was either a cut from Jock Jams, or a rap song, or "Everybody clap your hands," or organ music meant to induce cheers and chants. There were maybe half a dozen possessions that you could actually hear the players, the dribbling ball, the squeaking sneakers, and the crowd. You know, basketball sounds. The rest of the game was a relentless cacophony of stadium soundtrack torture.

Before the game the storyline was that these two teams were in reverse positions from what we expected before the season. The star-studded Nets were in turmoil, the hodgepodge Celtics were thriving.

However, at least for one game, the preseason expectations became a reality. The Nets dictated play. The Celtics had extended stretches of poor shooting and mediocre defense. The C's kept themselves close thanks to their 3-point shooting. But they repeatedly allowed the Nets to build leads.

The Nets looked like the team that had everything in order, while the Celtics, at times, looked like a team in disarray. At other times the Celtics looked solid. Apart from a few big runs that the Nets went on (a 16-2 run in the 1st quarter, a 10-0 run in the 3rd after the Celtics tied the game 60-60, then an 11-2 run later in the 3rd), the Celtics held their own. They just didn't have the defensive force to stop Brooklyn on those runs, or the offensive ability to at least keep up with them.

Give the C's credit for keeping themselves in the game without Rajon Rondo. If Rondo plays, maybe things are different. At the same time, a healthy Paul Pierce probably contributes more than 4 points (all from free throws).

All glass-half-full sentiments aside, the Celtics were physically outmatched. The Nets outscored them 48-30 in the paint. Brooklyn also outrebounded the C's, and got to the line more often. That determined the game.

All five Celtics starters scored double digits, only Avery Bradley had more than 20. The Celtics bench only added 12 points (compared to 22 from Brooklyn's). Kevin Garnett scored 11 points and collected 9 rebounds against his former team. Paul Pierce scored 4 points off the bench. Deron Williams and Brook Lopez led the Nets with 25 and 24 points, respectively.

More reunions tonight as Doc Rivers and the LA Clippers come to the Garden.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Kathy Willens

I Don't Mind Seeing Pittsburgh Penguins Players Injured, Maybe it Should Happen More Often

I don’t like what Shawn Thornton did Saturday night. But I don’t mind who he did it to, and what team he did it against.

What Thornton did was inexcusable and indefensible. He should and will get suspended a long time for it. The reason it was inexcusable was because Brooks Orpik was defenseless.

However, hitting defenseless players is a consistent pattern of Pittsburgh Penguins hockey. Great offense, shaky goaltending, dirty hits. That’s the Penguins' way. And that’s why I feel no sympathy when I see a Penguins player lying on the ice. Why should I? That’s the sword they live by, and it should be the sword they (metaphorically) die by.

Maybe if enough Penguins get concussed, they’ll reevaluate how they play the game. Maybe if Sidney Crosby gets laid out the same way Marc Savard was by Matt Cooke, and has his career shortened, then the Penguins might look in the mirror and realize that hockey shouldn’t be played the way they play it.

Thornton’s attack on Orpik came after a double dose of Pittsburgh dirtiness. Sidney Crosby kept the blade of his stick on the ice to ensure he tripped up Brad Marchand. The ref, of course, didn’t call it. No big deal. That is until James Neal saw a prone player. Neal’s eyes must have lit up when he saw an opportunity to hit someone when they couldn’t defend themselves.

You can see Neal change directions toward Marchand, and keep his left knee exactly at the same height as Marchand’s skull.

To paraphrase Chris Rock: I’m not saying Shawn Thornton should have retaliated the way he did. But I understand.

Earlier in the game Orpik leveled Loui Eriksson. I think that hit was relatively clean. If anything, a 2 minute minor for interference as Eriksson didn’t have the puck.

What pisses me off about Orpik and the hit on Eriksson is that Orpik has made a career of dispensing hits like that, and then never EVER standing up for himself and for his actions when someone wants to fight him over it. He doesn’t answer the bell. Just drop the gloves, protect yourself, fall to the ice and wait for the linesmen to break it up. That’s all he has to do. But he doesn't. He hasn't fought in 5 seasons.

Orpik, like most of the Penguins, is only brave when his opponent can’t see him. Or when his opponent is horizontal on the ice, like Marchand. Or when he can use his stick as a weapon.

Chris Kelly is now out 4-6 weeks with a fractured fibula. Pascal Dupuis was not penalized for the blatant and completely unnecessary slash. The League has decided not to discipline Dupuis.

If players felt compelled to answer the bell after hits like Orpik’s hit on Eriksson, perhaps guys hesitant to fight, such as Orpik, wouldn’t be giving out so many concussions with legal seek-and-destroy hits. If Orpik knew he would have to defend himself in a fight later, Loui Erksson might not have gotten a concussion.

By the way, where's the sympathy for Eriksson? Second concussion in five weeks.

The NHL suspended James Neal 5 games for kneeing Marchand in the head. I doubt if that will alter Neal's behavior. He’s been warned, fined, and suspended before. And he still plays the way he plays. And he still fails to express any remorse or regret for it. Just as he failed to show remorse for kneeing Marchand:

"I haven't, like, seen the replay or anything, so I mean I hit him in the head with my leg or my foot or my knee or shin area. I don't know. But I mean, he's already going down, and I guess I need to try to avoid him, but I have to look at it again...

"I mean, what do you want me to say? That I was trying to hit him? No, I'm going by him. I don't get out of the way, like I said. I need to be more careful and I guess get my knee out of the way, but I'm not trying to hit him in the head or injure him or anything like that."

Contrast that with Shawn Thornton.

Which player do you think is more likely to repeat what they did?

At least the NHL has given out some sort of punishment to a Penguins player. When Matt Cooke wasn’t suspended for the Savard hit, the NHL failed to curb a dirty player and a dirty team. Instead they gave him and the Penguins license to do as they pleased.

The Penguins will continue to play the Penguins Way that the NHL sanctioned when they didn’t suspend Cooke. At least until something changes. Until they lose more players to suspensions. Or until they lose more players to concussions.

Thornton seemed sorry that Orpik got hurt. I’m not sorry. I don't care. I guess Thornton has more character and class than I do. But I’m just sick of players like Orpik, like Crosby, like Neal, like Dupuis. And until that team changes the way it plays, I won’t shed a tear for their troubles or injuries.

Don't Leave Patriots Games Early, and Don't Abandon the Season Early Because Gronk Is Gone

As droves of people evacuated Gillette Stadium by the thousands in the 4th quarter of Sunday night's game, I turned to a friend and jokingly remarked "Now that everyone's leaving, the Pats will win." In reality, I didn't think they had a chance. Two touchdowns in the last 61 seconds. Unbelievable.

It shouldn't have to come to that against the Cleveland Browns. But it did. And a win is a win is a win.

It's funny how if the Red Sox play 8 bad innings then come back in the 9th, it's a thrill. Or if the Bruins score goals with the goalie pulled in Game 7 against Toronto, it's fantastic. Or if the Celtics have an amazing second half comeback against the Lakers, it's magical. We see these as great sports moments. However when the Patriots need late drama, or "win ugly," fans seem more pained than entertained. Patriots fans have no joy in them, only bitterness and resentment if things aren't perfect.

It's sports. It's a game. It's entertainment. Enjoy it.

And frankly, regular season wins don't mean much so who cares if they're ugly or beautiful. They're all part of the total you collect in 16 tries. Ugly wins, pretty wins, tough wins, lucky wins, they all count the same. And that total means nothing compared to playoff wins and losses. A dozen ugly regular season wins mean the same as a dozen pretty ones. And if you lose in the playoffs, every regular season win means nothing.

On the other hand, losing Rob Gronkowski does have tremendous meaning. He destroyed his ACL and MCL. He's done for the season. And the Patriots offense now becomes completely different. Gronk was not only Brady's favorite weapon, especially in the Red Zone. He also opened up acres of space for his teammates, by drawing attention and causing matchup difficulties. With Gronk, this offense was like Brady in the driver's seat of a Corvette. Now Brady's driving a Toyota Camry.

Shane Vereen is the only remaining difficult matchup for opponents. Give him the 12th Man Award for most contribution from an unexpected source this season. He caught 12 passes Sunday for 153 yards. He also ran for a touchdown. I wish I had picked him up off fantasy football waivers, and I'm not the only one kicking myself for not doing so.

Stevan Ridley had 0 fumbles. That's the only stat of his I care about.

With Gronkowski this team was a Super Bowl favorite. Without him they fall back to the pack of potential contenders. He's so ridiculously good. And so ridiculously injury prone. In 2014 they should bench him until Week 14, let him warm up a few games, then only really use him in the playoffs. That's not a serious suggestion, but it's not completely insane is it?

Some are saying that the Patriots' season is over without Gronk. As Barstool so eloquently put it: "Like the second you saw this you knew the season was over." What part of speech is "like" there? Quality, interesting writing, Barstool. Anyway, I understand the sentiment and I would agree with it. Except the Saints game seemed over and the Patriots won. The Broncos game seemed over and the Patriots won. This game Sunday seemed over and the Patriots won.

I'm not going to lose hope and turn my back on this team like all the so-called fans who left the Saints game early, then the Broncos game early, then the Browns game early. I'm sticking around for the 4th quarter and overtime. As stressful as these games have been, they've been a thrill to watch.

Patriots travel to Miami next week where they can clinch the AFC East.

Robinson Cano Leaving AL East (written after Cano signed with Seattle)

I was literally a second away from publishing a post bashing Jay-Z and Robinson Cano for trying to make the Mariners bid against themselves for Cano's services. Cano had been offered $225 million over 9 years, then Jay-Z reportedly demanded $252 for 10 years, and outraged Mariner ownership stormed away from the proverbial table. The Yankees had offered Cano $170 million for 7 years.

And just as I was on the verge of clicking "publish," I heard that the Mariners and Cano had agreed to a 10-year deal worth $240 million. And that makes sense based on the other numbers. Cano gets less per year, but gets an additional year.

It's an insane deal. Cano is a great player, a potential Hall of Famer, but this pays him until he's 40. Many baseball contracts are becoming insane. It's only a matter of time before we see $300 million deals for top players. One day we will see a $400 million deal.

Making the deal more insane is that Cano has only hit 30+ HRs once in his career. He's never slugged .600 or had an OBP over .400. He's only slugged .550 or higher once (.550 on the dot in 2012), and only had an OBP of .380+ twice. He turned 31 in late October so he's at his peak right now. And he's a damn good player. But if he didn't play second base I don't think people would drool over him as much as they do. Because his numbers are not shattering.

But the Mariners are much, MUCH better with him. And the Yankees are much worse without him. And the Yanks also look quite dumb for giving Ellsbury $21.9 million a year but not giving Cano $24 million a year. Cano was the entire Yankee offense last year. And now Ellsbury is their best hitter. Taking Cano out of the 2013 lineup and putting Ellsbury's numbers in, Ellsbury would have led the Yankees in average, OBP, SLG, and OPS. Cano has hit almost as many homeruns in the last 2 seasons as Ellsbury has his entire career.

Anyway, I'm just happy Cano is out of the AL East. That's really all that matters.

In 156 career games against the Sox, Cano hit .308 with 21 homeruns and 104 RBI. I don't mind him moving to another division. Not one bit.

BORAS > HOVA: Jay-Z Costs Cano Millions (written before Cano signed with Seattle)

If you're a baseball player and you want to make the most money possible, why do you hire anybody but Scott Boras? The guy gets his clients paid. He may not be as cool as Jay-Z, but he shows his clients the money.

I don't know why Jay-Z decided to go into the world of sports agency. I think he watched a few episodes of Entourage and wanted to be the sports world's Ari Gold. And if the rumors out of Seattle Friday morning are true, it seems like he doesn't know what he's doing.

According to sources, Robinson Cano's representation had been able to convince Seattle to offer him a 9-year deal worth $225 million ($25M/year). Then Jay-Z wanted more, and demanded 10-years at $252 million. By the way, that's the same deal A-Rod took, which left a bad taste in Seattle's mouth. Mariner ownership reportedly flipped out, ending negotiations.

What Jay-Z did was ask Seattle to bid against themselves. The Yankees have stayed firm with their offer of $170 million over 7 years ($24.3M/year). Nobody was close to Seattle's offer. And I have to say that it's more than generous. Yet Jay-Z demanded more.

Imagine being at an auction, and you bid $225 for a Robinson Cano autographed baseball, and the next highest bidder was $170. Then the auctioneer demands that you increase your bid to $250. Even though you've already bid the most and nobody is close to your bid. That's BS.

I just can't imagine Boras making a team feel so blatantly disrespected. Boras is conniving, scheming, sneaky. And I'm sure owners don't enjoy dealing with him. But he is a born negotiator. He's too clever to do something as brash and dumb as this. Cano's representation essentially told Seattle to get on their knees, open their mouth, and swallow whatever they put in it.

Don't forget, Cano's camp initially wanted $300 million for 10 years. I think Jay-Z literally pulled that number out of his ass. That number was not based on market value, or relative contracts, or anything real. It was a big, loud, flashy number. There was no substance behind it, just lots of noise and self-promotion. Exactly like Jay-Z's music.

Photo Credit:
Getty Images, Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE

Bruins Drop First Game Against Montreal

The Bruins seemed to approach this game waiting to see what Montreal would do and then react to it. The Canadiens came into Thursday night riding an 8-game point streak. And, surprisingly, they've also been fighting a lot. This was a different Montreal Canadiens team than the Bruins were used to. And the B's didn't seem to know what to expect. So instead of being assertive, they reacted.

Montreal was physical, selectively so. PK Subban frequently jousted with Brad Marchand, for example, not with Milan Lucic. There were some penalties, and a few post-whistle scrums, as well as a fight, but it wasn't the bloodbath some had anticipated/dreaded/hoped for. I wouldn't say that the Habs won the physical matchup, however they were not scared by the Bruins. They didn't let the Bruins affect how they played. Historically, when they've been able to play unaffected like that, they've been a difficult opponent for the B's to beat.

It helps that Carey Price had an amazing game. None of the Bruins were able to truly beat him. Gregory Campbell scored on a breakaway and Price had no chance of moving side-to-side fast enough to stop the shot. He stopped the 32 other shots he faced, carrying the Habs to 2 points, and to first place in the Atlantic Division.

Some good news from the game is that Johnny Boychuk was released from the hospital and cleared to travel. In the first period Max Pacioretty hit him at an awkward angle from behind near the boards, and Boychuk went into the dasher collar-bone first. He was taken off the ice by stretcher and transported to the hospital. Pacioretty received a 2 minute minor for the hit. I would have given him 4 (2 for boarding, 2 for roughing). I don't think he should be disciplined further. It was a weird hit, somewhat reckless, but not worth throwing the book at Pacioretty.

There's no word how long Boychuk will be sidelines for. At least he's out of the hospital.

It was a cleaner game than I thought it would be. I don't think the Bruins took the initiative. They let Montreal dictate things. Hopefully they will be more assertive when these teams meet again. Which isn't until January 30th. Isn't that lame?

Bruins host the Penguins Saturday night. That's quite unlame.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Paul Chiasson

New England Once Again Turn Themselves Into Super Bowl Contenders

If a person watched just the first half of the New England-Denver matchup in Week 12, they probably left wondering why Tom Brady is not calling it quits. The Patriots were getting embarrassed on their own field, and the future Hall of Famer looked old. Something changed at halftime though, and Brady posted his typical fantasy football numbers on his way to a win. Now that they have knocked off Peyton Manning and Denver, can this team be considered an AFC Championship contender?

Right now, the Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs are the only two teams with better records in the AFC. One of those two teams will slide down in the playoff rankings, so New England could comfortably cruise into the playoffs as the #2 seed. Not bad for a franchise that has been lost at times this season. Many fantasy football owners had no idea who Brady would be throwing to at the start of the year, but everything seems to be falling into place now. It helps that the running game has picked up as well to keep the pressure off of him.

While any team can pull off an upset in the playoffs, three teams in particular could stand in New England’s way. The Cincinnati Bengals already beat the Patriots this season, and they made the offense look terrible. However, that was back at the start of October, when the team wasn’t full strength. The Colts pose a threat simply because Andrew Luck could get hot and outgun the aging Brady. If it becomes a fantasy football showdown, some might actually favor the youngster at this point.