OT: If Loving You is Wrong Then I Don't Want to Be Right

unless you are playing the Bruins Chris Drury, why do you do this to me? I've always been a fan. You hail from Trumbull which makes you a hometown hero for Connecticut. But more importantly, you're good. I always liked you when you played for the Av's. In fact, I kind of felt bad for you, because you were overshadowed by Joe Sakic and his pretty face and stupid Lady Byng Trophy. I was even thrilled when you were traded to the stupid Rangers because it meant you not only got a higher profile role on the team, but I would get to see you play more. I got to see you play the Red Wings in the Murder City back in October and I secretly cheered for you the whole time (it was only a secret because I was afraid Mini Wiseman would beat me up for cheering for a member of the opposite team. Also, I was really only cheering for you because I didn't want your team to win.).

But then you go and be your awesome self when your team plays the Bruins. The Bruins blew their early 2-0 lead and the game was tied up 53 seconds before then end of regulation play. And you have to go and score a goal on Terrible Tim in the 4th round of shootouts in the closeout position. Bergeron did his best, but the puck rebounded off the goal post just shy of the line. (Stupid instant replay. The ref called it a fair goal.) Why do you make it so hard on me? Maybe next time you meet the Bruins on Beantown ice, you could try to be less awesome so that I don't feel like a philanderer secretly cheering when you score a goal and then realizing that, along with your amazing deke, come a loss for the Bruins.

OT: A Public Apology to Tim Thomas

Dear Tim Thomas,

I have never been your biggest fan (or even a fan at all). I constantly question why the Bruins aren't willing to invest money in a Goalie, have likened your goal tending to falling on your fat ass and occasionally stopping the puck at the same time, and love to scream obscenities at you. But I'd like to apologize for that (for now). Anyone who knows me knows that I hate apologies, both coming from me and aimed at myself. I have even before admitted that I am wrong, but told my husband Kevin that I refuse to apologize. The only time apologies are cool are when they take the form of a song by Nerfherder.



My point is, apologies don't come natural to me. But you deserve it. Normally, your playing reminds me of the Katy Perry song "Hot and Cold". You make an incredible save and then the next shot on goal just slides past you. Or, you have two or three shutouts in a row and then completely bomb for several games afterwards. But so far this season, you have been on fire. Last night, you helped the rest of your team stave off the Blackhawks on their numerous power plays. Usually I cringe, because you guys are usually terrible at 4 on 5, but your help, the 'Hawks were shut down. A few weeks ago, you even played something like 158 minutes without allowing a shot in. 11th overall, you currently lead the league in GAA and Save%, which to my recollection is unheard of for you. I know there is a lot of ice time left, but it is shaping up to be a great season for you. For the first time, I actually believe that you deserve to be the lead Goaltender.

Its really too bad you didn't play this well last season when you were nominated for the Allstar Team. This year, you were left off the ballot, but you actually deserve to be there. Hopefully enough fans will write you in. I know I did, as penance for my doubt of you at the beginning of the season.

So, Tim Thomas, here's to you and your fat ass. I hope you continue to do well and don't wind up on my shit list again.

Sincerely,
Amanda Lester

P.S. After I wrote this letter to you, I stumbled across a great article by James Duthie of the Ottowa Citizen that likened you to "a freshly caught fish on the bottom of a boat" and goes on to state that

"Boston's Tim Thomas is the best thing to happen to goaltending since the mask.

Where do I start? He's small, so his equipment doesn't make him eclipse the net like some of those Jabba The Hutt look-alikes. He doesn't have one of those robotic techniques. Heck, I'm not sure he has any technique! If he does the butterfly, it looks like it's missing a wing, flying in all directions. Every night with Thomas is like Live at the Improv. He's made the position fun again....Thomas makes ugly, ridiculous, impossible saves nightly. And just to make things interesting, he's occasionally awful. When that happens, when he flips when he should have flopped, he gets so mad at himself, it looks like David Banner turning into The Hulk. "

Perhaps I have been undervaluing you all along.

OT: The best game of the season so far and I missed it

The first Bruins game of the season that I completely missed, and the Bruins whoop the Stars 5-1. I missed one of hockey's biggest douchebags, Steve Ott, starting several fights due to his unsafe, dangerous hits and then refusing to fight because the guy he chose to pick on was bigger than him (he must have learned this from fellow team mate and douchebag Sean Avery). Ott got his ass handed to him several times (and wound up getting kicked out of the game). Ott's buddy Avery got his ass handed to him by Marc Savard after he boarded Lucic. One of the things that I love about Savard is his willingness to go to bat for his team mates when he feels that they have been wronged. Avery's boarding of Lucic was completely uncalled for and Savard (and the rest of the line) let the Stars know. It turned into a giant shit show and I missed it! Not only that, but I missed Patrice Bergeron, Phil Kessel,Mark Stuart and Marco Sturm (X2) scoring. That will teach me to have a dinner party the day of a Bruins game.

OT:Back in the Saddle Again

For the past few years, the Bruins have been increasingly relying on young talent to rebuild their team after many abysmal seasons. Arguably one of the best set of blades on the team belongs to Patrice Bergeron. When Patrice Bergeron was drafted by the Bruins back in 2003, I immediately took notice, not because I thought he was a great pick , but mainly because he has the best birthday (July 24th which coincidentally enough, is the same as mine) and his name was Patrice, which I found very amusing at the time. However, he soon earned my respect in the 2003-2004 season as he led the Bruins with 31 goals and was second on the team with number of assists. He continued to build and craft his talent. A year this past Monday, Bergeron was forced to sit out for the season after Randy Jones of the Flyers slammed him into the boards deep in the corner while Bergeron attempted to retrieve a puck, resulting in a GradeIII concussion. He was due to come back in time for the playoffs in April, but the damn Habs knocked the Bruins out one game before Bergeron was due back.

Many people, myself included, wondered if he would ever really recover from the concussion. Not only did he have a severe head injury, but he missed an entire season of games which could result in a loss of skill on the ice. His first few games of the season seemed to support the theory that it would take him a long time, if ever, to come back after such a severe injury. But luckily, the naysayers seem to be wrong - Patrice is back and as good as ever. With Bergeron back, the Bruins stand a better chance this year. Contributing at least 30 goals for the three years before his injury, it was a major setback to have him out for last season. Just three days before the one year anniversary of his injury, Bergeron scored in the first period against the Maple Leafs. They went on to lose 4-2, but Bergeron did what he did best - gave the team an early advantage. Last night against the flames, he once again gave the Bruins an early advantage, scoring in the first period to put the Bruins up 1-0. However, due to shotty puck handling in their defensive zone and refs who were calling every minor infraction, the Bruins continuously turned over the puck to the Flames, the Bruins gave the Flames several Power plays , allowing them to score 3 goals.

I'm looking forward to watching him this season. Hopefully his teammates can get their head in the game

Favorite Thing #20: Milan Lucic

Lucic gets the crowd going after a fight in a manner reminiscent of the last great Bruins Bruiser and my personal favorite, PJ Stock

In general, I make it a rule not to watch sports besides my token 3-4 Yankees games per year. The one exception to this rule is hockey. Back in college, I was obsessive. I played Fantasy Hockey, read NHL.com every morning before class and didn't miss a single Bruins, Hurricanes (Let's Go Whalers!) or Colorado Avalanche game unless they happened to conflict with each other. Some friends even had NHL Center Ice which really enabled my obsession. However, after college, I found I just didn't have time to follow three or even one teams obsessively. Recently, I have made some good friends who also share my love of hockey, which has re-sparked the flame of love I feel for this sport. However, when I looked at the Bruins roster, all the familiar faces I loved had moved on (Joe Thorton, PJ Stock, Hal Gill, Glen Murray) with the unfortunate exception of Tim Thomas. (Why the Bruins can never invest in a decent goalie is beyond me. I'm not asking for a Roy or Brodeur, just someone who is reliable rather than hot and cold. But I digress...) These guys were replaced with names such as Kessler, Savard, Wideman, and Lucic. I remember seeing the buzz last year surrounding a rookie by the name of Lucic but didn't really pay attention. However, while watching the season opener at home vs. the Penguins, I really started to take notice of him. He plays vintage style hockey. Hard body checks, fights - basically he's the enforcer - the replacement for the sorely missed crowd favorite PJ Stock. In his rookie year last season, he started his Bruins career off with a fight, followed the next week with a Gordie Howe hat trick (goal, assist, fight). Interestingly enough, my least favorite player in the NHL, Brendan Shanahan apparently holds the record for the most number of Gordie Howes according to Wikipedia. Lucic managed to land 181 hits in his rookie season, placing him second behind Chara for most hits by a Bruin last season. I also believe he holds the record for second place in number of hits by a rookie (behind some guy from the Rangers who I can't remember).

This season is so far shaping up to be another banner year for Lucic who thus far leads the league in hits for the 2008-2009 season with 18 hits as of Wednesday. He banked a couple more at last nights game versus the Maple Leafs, but none as impressive as the hit against Van Ryn of the Maple Leafs that started the second period and resulted in a complete shattering of a piece of glass. The hit had so much force behind it that Van Ryn is probably still picking glass out of his back. It was probably one of the coolest things I have ever seen in a game of hockey, and one that the commentators are sure to be talking of for the rest of the season.

I'm definitely going to keep my eye on Lucic this season. He'll never replace PJ Stock as as my favorite enforcer (back in the day, I had a shirt that I bought on the street in Boston that said "PJ stock, Official Ass Kicker), but he just might come close.