Tim Thomas's Contract Sent to Long Island

The Bruins have traded Tim Thomas to the Islanders. So instead of not playing in Boston, Tim Thomas will not be playing in Uniondale. The Bruins received a conditional 2nd round pick in either 2014 or 2015. What pick the Bruins get will depend on if Thomas plays for the Islanders this season.

So the Bruins no longer have to bear Tim Thomas's $5 million cap hit. And the Islanders were able to reach the minimum salary cap number without paying a player. That's a nice little loophole the Islanders found.

And maybe finally, Bruins fans can stop being melodramatic about what Thomas did, since he no longer has an impact on the salary cap. The word from Thomas's agent is that things are still "status quo" for the now former Bruins goalie. At the moment, he seems just as uninterested in playing for the Islanders as he was to play for the Bruins.

The Bruins no longer have to carry the burden of his cap hit. So it's time to get over it, people.

And if you want to accuse Thomas of being selfish, and not putting his team first, the Bruins were very honest with him that they were looking to move him to another team. So is Thomas disloyal to Boston and the Bruins because he didn't want to stick around and be traded away from Boston and the Bruins? He should have been loyal to the team that didn't want him?

Of all the selfish things athletes sometimes do, deciding to take a year off, and forfeit $3 million in salary to do it, does not seem to be high on the scale. I have yet to hear or read a coherent argument that what Thomas did is especially selfish and deserves as much crap as some Bruins fans enjoy heaping onto him.

The level of criticism he's been the subject of has greatly outweighed what he did.

And if you think Thomas wasn't a good teammate, remember this?

And for the surly and sour people out there who still dislike Thomas, please don't wear any Bruins Stanley Cup hats or t-shirts. You wouldn't have those without Thomas.

How Do You Say "Tuukka" in French?

The Bruins continue to roll, improving to 7-1-1 on the season. This is a really strange feeling because of the Lockout. It's February 7th and we've only seen the Bruins lose 1 game in regulation. That's just weird.

Tuukka Rask has been the biggest reason. He only faced 21 shots last night, but some of them were very tough to stop. He's been outstanding this year. His style looks completely different from the 2009-10 season, when he'd collapse into the net. He's challenging shooters now, cutting down the angle, making himself as big as possible. And he can read the game very well, especially for a 25 year old.

The offense hasn't been overflowing. The power play is still painfully inept.

Tyler Seguin has a scorer's instincts, though. He improves any line he is on. I liked how Claude Julien shuffled up the lines, putting Seguin with Krejci and Lucic. Those line shuffles helped win the game.

It seems like we're much deeper into the season than we actually are. There are 39 games left to play. Under normal circumstances I might try to restrain myself from being too positive.

Fuck that, though. We waited months for hockey and now our team is on top of the Eastern Conference. This is fun and I'm going to enjoy it.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Ryan Remiorz

Please Like/Follow Boston Urban Sports... Pretty Please

Hello,
My name is Rob and I run Boston Blood Sox. I'm also the Sports Editor of a nonprofit community newspaper called Boston Urban News. Recently I've started a site dedicated to the Sports section of this paper. I call it Boston Urban Sports. We focus on sports played by people from the city of Boston, mainly high school sports in the Boston City League. We'll also be covering youth and adult sports in the City.

Right now we're in the heart of basketball season and there are two Boston Public Schools in the state rankings for boys' basketball (Brighton is #11 and New Mission is #14), and many more girls' and boys' teams that will be eligible for State Tournaments. These are kids that take 2 hour bus rides, practice late, maintain their grades, and love the game. We'll be covering the City Championships and then their runs through State Tournaments.

Along with the site, I've started a Twitter feed and a Facebook page. The Facebook page has much more extensive photo galleries of the events/stories/people we cover.

As I try to get this new site started, it would mean a great deal to me to build up a following. So please follow the Twitter feed, and like the Facebook page, and feel very free to share them.

Thanks,
Rob

Remembering Why We Hate the Montreal Canadiens

The Bruins, after a lengthy break that felt like a mini-Lockout, are back in action tonight, playing the hated Habs in Montreal's Bell Centre. It's been a long time since these two rivals met, so I thought we could all remind ourselves why we hate the Montreal Canadiens.

#1 Their Fans
It's hard to find a whinier, more entitled fanbase in the Western Hemisphere. They called the police after Zdeno Chara checked Max Pacioretty. They moan when one of their players dives and a penalty isn't called. Their biggest criticism of former head coach Randy Cunneyworth was that he couldn't speak French, not that the team was 18-23-9 during his tenure. The Quebec Culture Minister got involved in that situation, and groups called for a boycott of Molson products until a French-speaking replacement was hired. Remember, the players can all speak English, Cunneyworth just couldn't do press conferences en Français.

Oh, and they sometimes boo The Star Spangled Banner.

#2 How They Play the Game
They play a different type of hockey in Montreal. It's more like European soccer. Players collapse at the slightest touch, hoping to draw a penalty. It's disgusting.

Now all teams have a player who has occasionally embellished a trip or a slash in order to get a Power Play for his team. What's different in Montreal is how blatantly they go about it.

Diving is a part of the hockey culture in Montreal. And while they're criticized for it, the NHL rarely does anything about it.

#3 P.K. Subban
He's a talented player. But there's so much not to like about this guy. He's one of the worst and most obvious floppers on the team. You see him play the game with such strength, then he acts like he's being helplessly thrown around.

This next play sums up Subban nicely. He goes from tough guy to turtle in 0.3 seconds.

There aren't many players on this team that are worthy of respect. They're not all diving diva douches like Subban. And Milan Lucic's old pal Michael Komisarek has moved on to Toronto. But looking at their roster and the only players I have any measurable respect for are Brian Gionta and Carey Price.

I hate the players, the coach, the team, the fans, the city, the Province.

I can't wait for tonight.

The Ravens Win

I found myself confused at the end of this game. Initially, I wanted the 49ers won win, because I didn't want Ray Lewis or Joe Flacco to achieve any further glory. But then, as the 49ers played the first half from a Foxhole, I lost all respect for them. So I was forced to choose between a team I didn't like, and a team I didn't respect.

The Ravens won, and they deserved it. It's remarkable how one brother could be so much more aggressive than the other. Sigmund Freud would have a field day.

One thing the Ravens had on offense that the Patriots didn't was a strong receiver. Rob Gronkowski was out. And the Patriots' WR corps was small and not as physical as Baltimore's DBs. Meanwhile, Baltimore's receivers outmatched the Patriots' safeties.

Imagine what would happen if Anquan Boldin were on the Patriots roster. How much would Brady rely on him? How many receptions, how many TDs would he haul in? The Patriots could really use a large WR that can win battles in difficult situations.

Baltimore deserved this. As much as we can mock Ray Lewis for consuming deer antler velvet like some drunken and lonely Mainer, just about everyone in the NFL is on PEDs. So let he who supports a team without sin cast the first stone.

The Ravens played a game of football. The 49ers tried to play the Super Bowl. And in doing so they failed. The 49ers were conservative, tight, nervous, locked-up, not aggressive. They dug their foxholes from kickoff to the final whistle. And that's why they lost. The Ravens played football, and played it well.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Marcio Sanchez

Super Bowl Drinking Game

It's finally here. The biggest game of the year. And here's a drinking game you can play while trying to explain pass interference to all the non-football fans in the room, and trying to sort through all the squares you have in your degenerate gambler pools. So drink up and enjoy the game.

Anytime you hear the words...
"Harbaugh" = 1 drink from a beer
"Brothers" = 1 drink
"Harbowl" = 1 drink
"Big Easy" = 1 shot of bourbon
"180 countries" = 1 drink
"Ray Lewis" = 1 sip of beer (any more than a sip and you'd probably die of alcohol poisoning)
"Ray Lewis" and "murder" in the same sentence = 52 whole beers, because it won't happen
"Antler" = 1 drink
"Deer" = 1 drink
"Controversy" = 1 drink
"Retire" = 1 drink
"Miami" = 1 drink (lots of players from the U in this game)
"Playmaker" or anything about how exciting Colin Kaepernick is = drink for 7 seconds
"Chris Culliver" = 1 drink
"Apology" = 1 drink
"Media day" = 1 drink
"Art Modell" = 1 drink
"Baltimore Colts" = 1 drink
"Cleveland Browns" = 1 drink


Anytime this is on screen...
Roman numerals = 1 drink per numeral
Anything New Orleansy = 1 drink
A bllimp shot of a dome = 1 drink
Alex Smith on a bench = 1 drink
Alex Smith wearing a baseball hat = 1 drink
Jerry Rice's stats = 1 drink
Joe Montana = drink for 16 seconds
Steve Young = drink for 8 seconds
Brian Billick = 1 drink
Ray Lewis screaming = 1 drink
Ray Lewis crying = 1 drink
Ray Lewis praying = 1 drink
A Bible verse = drink for as many seconds as the chapter (so John 3:16 would be 3 seconds)
A promo for what's on after the Super Bowl = 1 drink
Roger Goodell = 1 drink
Jonathan Vilma = 1 drink
Goodell and Vilma hugging = drink a quart of tequila, because it won't happen


Anytime this happens...
It's mentioned that the 49ers let the Ravens use their practice facility = 1 drink
Colin Kaepernick runs for a 1st down = 1 drink
Kaepernick kisses his arms = 1 drink
A Raven leads with their helmet = 1 drink
Bernard Pollard injures someone = 1 drink
Bernard Pollard injures a Patriot = 1 drink (it could happen)
Beyonce does that authoratitive walk with her hips = 1 drink
You actually watch the halftime because of Beyonce = 1 whole beer per song
You pretend to accidentally change the channel to Puppy Bowl = 1 drink
Boring car commercial = 1 drink
Commercial that tries really hard to be funny but isn't at all = 1 drink
You hold in a piss = 1 drink per play (or commercial) that you hold it in
You temporarily root against the team you actually want to win so you can win a square = 1 drink

Yuengling Wing Sauce

I was introduced to Yuengling (pronounced Ying-ling, if you didn't know) when I went to college in upstate New York. It's a remarkable beer. It's delicious, but not so heavy that you can't enjoy a generous amount on a Friday evening.

We can't get Yuengling in Massachusetts. I'm not sure why, exactly. I've been told it has something to do with imprinting letters on the bottles. I've also been told that Massachusetts doesn't allow beer to be sold unless it's distributed by a Massachusetts based distributor. And Yuengling wants to distribute on their own. Whatever the reason, I'm sure we have some stupid regulations that prohibit the the beer from flowing.

It sucks. And now this lack of Yuengling sucks even more. They've come out with a line of sauces.

BBQ and wing sauces, just in time for the Super Bowl. Good God. It's torturous to look at this. I'm hungry. I'm thirsty. I want wings, some BBQ pork, and a dozen Yuenglings...

It's only a 3 hour drive to New York...

Vanek Attack

The Bruins need to sign Thomas Vanek, or bribe some Western Conference team into signing him, because he absolutely kills the B's. He had 3 goals, 2 assists, and was +4.

As good as Vanek was, the difference in this game was the goaltending. Ryan Miller made some absurd saves in the 3rd period that kept the Bruins stuck at 4 goals. On the other side of the ice, Tuukka Rask wasn't responsible for most of Buffalo's scoring. But on Buffalo's 4th goal, scored by Alexander Sulzer, Rask's glove was just a little bit heavy. You're seeing teams attacking him high glove-side, and it's because he's somewhat slow.

To be clear, I'm not blaming the loss on Rask, I'm just saying the goaltending was a major factor in the outcome of this game. Ryan Miller was great, Rask let up a goal that was possibly due to a weakness of his.

Speaking of weaknesses, the Bruins were 0 for 4 on their power play. They didn't get much going.

Buffalo was skating like it was a playoff game, the Bruins were playing like it was the 7th game of the regular season. Buffalo had lost 4 straight, they were playing a team that's given them trouble in the past, they were motivated. This was Game #7 of the regular season for the Bruins, the Sabres played it like a Game 7.

The Bruins need to recover and regroup. The next two games are also within the division. They're in Toronto Saturday night then Montreal Wednesday night. And they have 2 more against Buffalo in the near future.

I love divisional games.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Charles Krupa