Tag: stanley cup finals

Stanley Cup Finals Game Four Tonight

We’re just about 11 hours away from the drop of the puck in game four of the Stanley Cup Finals.  I wonder if I’d be this psyched up for the game if the Blackhawks were leading in the series.  Do sports fans in other cities go through these mood swings, or is it just we Bostonians who live and die by our teams?

When our team wins we feel invincible.  They are immortal, nothing will ever harm them.  We can’t wait for the next game so that we can witness the titans squashing the mere mortals on the other team.  Game time is celebration time.

When our team lost the last game it’s different.  There is a sense of impending doom.  The unraveling of all that is good in the world is just about to begin.  When game time comes it’s a nervous feeling.  Oh no… here we go again.

We take this crap way to seriously here in Boston.  I wonder if the rest of the country acts the same way.

Don’t get me wrong though, I wouldn’t have it any other way.  Rooting for a winning team in Boston is THE BEST.  Hell, rooting for a losing team in Boston is still pretty great.  We just bitch about them more, and who doesn’t love bitching?  Am I right, or am I right?

Game four is tonight at 8:00ish.  A Bruins win gives us a 3-1 lead in the series and brings us to the brink of another Cup.  A Blackhawks win ties the series at two and gives the home ice advantage back to Chicago.  That cannot happen.

Statistically speaking, is this a must win for the Bruins?  No.  Realistically speaking, is this a must win for the Bruins?  ABSOLUTELY!  We need to put them away quickly.  We cannot give them any hope.  We cannot give them any life.

Win game four, Bruins.  You must win game four!

Go Bruins!

Stanley Cup Finals Game Three – The Bruins Win

Here’s the NHL highlight video of last night’s game.  Give it a look.

Notice anything funny about that video?  Anything out of the ordinary?

I did.  It’s almost all Bruins highlights.  The Blackhawks highlights are few and far between?  Why is that?

It’s because the Bruins pretty much owned that game last night.  The Bruins got goals from Paille, again, and Bergeron, again.  Allow me to jump on a bandwagon and start calling Dan Paille by his new (censored) nickname:

Yippee Paille, muthaf*cker.  Heh heh, Die Hard meets Bruins.  Some how it fits.

The Bruins now have a two games to one lead in the Stanley Cup Finals.  Far be it from me to start feeling anything more than cautious optimism.  This is far, far from over.  Chicago is a fantastic team.  Don’t count them out.  Even though they threw the best they possibly could at the Bruins in game two and still ended up losing, and then came out in game three and seemed to play as if they were constantly hearing footsteps behind them.  The Blackhawks are not done.  Not by a long shot.

Boston is two wins away.  Two painfully difficult wins that we should not assume are ours for the taking.  No.  There is huge work left to be done by our heroic Bruins, but they are definitely up to the challenge.

Game four is tomorrow night in Boston.

Go Bruins!

Stanley Cup Finals Game Three: Drop the Damn Puck!

We still have more than six hours to go until the start of tonight’s game three of the Stanley Cup Finals between the glorious, brilliant, magical, majestic, kingly, heroic, noble Boston Bruins, and the douchey, pucky Chicago Blackhawks.

What do you mean, I am a homer?

Game one went to triple overtime and the Blackhawks stole the game from the Bruins. Game two included the single most one sided period of the entire post season as the Blackhawks dominated the Bruins in embarrassing fashion. The Bruins then won the game in overtime.

Two games. Both team won a game they had no business winning.

Now we come home to Boston for game three. I am hoping for a convincing Bruins win in regulation because frankly, with an 8:20ish start time, I don’t think I can make it through another overtime.

Six hours to go. I say we flip the bird to the television network and drop the puck right now. Who’s with me?!?

Go Bruins!

How to Steal a Win in the Stanley Cup Finals

And that, my friends and loyal reader(s), is how you steal a win in the Stanley Cup Finals. Those Blackhawk pukes stole game one from us, and the mighty Bruins turned right around and stole game two from them.

It was beautiful. Actually, it was awful in the first period. Oh my goodness, did they kick our ass in the first. Fortunately, we had one Tuukka Rask in the goal. As the two or three thousand shots came pouring in from inside the hash marks faster than the cameras could actually follow, Mr. Rask stood upon his Finnish head and stopped all but one.

In the second, the Bruins closed the competitive gap. It was still nerve racking, but it was better. The third was pretty even too.

Overtime though… It was beautiful. Dan Paille. 2-1 win.

Glorious!

It’s all tied up at a game a piece now. Glorious.

Here’s the highlight video.

And here is a little nod to the Bruins of the past…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wc5yxbr23iM

Stanley Cup Finals Game Two

Game two of the Stanley Cup Finals is through two periods. In the first, the Bruins were completely out played by Chicago. It was the most dominant period I’ve seen in the entire post season. It was awful. Magically though, Tuukka Rask was able to hold the Blackhawks to just one goal.

In the second, the Bruins tightened things up. Rask remained super human, and Chris Kelly scored his first goal (and point) of the playoffs and incredibly the score is still tied at one.

The third is starting now. Hey Bruins, what do you say we steal this one, hub?

GO BRUINS!

Game One: What Did I Do to Jinx It

I take full responsibility for the Bruins losing game one last night.  It is totally my fault.  I don’t know how it’s my fault, I wasn’t even in the same region of the continent, but I know it’s my fault.

I did something to jinx the whole works.  What was it?  I worked a screwy schedule yesterday.  Instead of 9-5:30, it was 6-2:30.  That could be it.  I also ate the last reeses peanut butter cup.  There’s a good chance that was the problem. 

I wore my black Bruins jersey.  Only for a little while though, as it doesn’t really fit anymore.  I’ve always had a weird feeling that shit was bad luck.  I think the Bruins often lose when I wear it.  That’s it!  No more black Bruins jersey on game days!  Be damned, acursed replica jersey!

There is a good chance that the jersey was the jinx, but there is one other thing that might have been the culprit… I fell asleep.

I can’t be blamed.  I’ve had a shit week.  An uber shit week.  I’ve barely slept at all.  Whenever I finally get to sleep something (I’m looking at you, cat) wakes me up.  What’s worse, I’ve been snoring like a chainsaw when I do fall asleep and that is keeping everyone else awake, so everyone is fried this week, thanks to me.

Anyway, I watched most of the first two periods, and then just before the 2nd intermission I went to my room with my iPad and one of the 10,000 or so CBS radio apps.  I made it a decent way into the third period when I decided that I could still listen to the game if I was lying down.  I wouldn’t fall asleep.  The score was still 2-1 but I wouldn’t fall asleep.

Next thing I know I am awake and the audio is off.  The app just stopped streaming.  I looked at the clock, midnight.  Damn.  I checked the score.  You know, to make sure the game ended at 2-1 Boston.  Urgh.  It said 3-3 in the second overtime.  Crap!  I just gave up, took the headphones off, and went to sleep.  I woke up again at about 1:30.  I checked the score.  Damn it!  Blackhawks 4, Bruins 3 in the third overtime.  Game over.

I know it was my fault.  I’m 80% sure it was that damned unlucky jersey… but it might have been my inability to stay awake. 

I’ll try to do better on Saturday, Bruins nation.  I will hold up my end!

Go Bruins!

Stanley Cup Superstitions

Two years ago when the Boston Bruins were on their Stanley Cup run I developed a new superstition. If I ate a little Smartfood Popcorn on a game day, the Bruins would win. It worked for all of the wins in the third and fourth rounds.

I tried it in the Toronto series and it didn’t work. That was it for the Smartfood. What’s it going to be this time? I haven’t noticed anything yet. There aren’t even any candidates. I’m worried that I’m not doing my part to help. I’m worried that ill be the jinx without even realizing it.

(I’m not really, I’m just a serious hockey nerd. Deal with my nerdishness.)

The drop of the puck is just minutes away.

GO BRUINS!

Game One Tonight!

Game one of the Stanley Cup Finals between the evil, vile, gross, icky, Chicago Blackhawks and the heroic, majestic, kingly, hockey-godly, Boston Bruins is tonight at 8:00ish.

My work schedule today is completely screwy (I punched in at 6:00! The humanity!) and it’s been traumatic disaster after traumatic disaster all day. I haven’t had the time to stoke the Stanley Cup Fire as it were.

Hopefully, this photo of the statue of Bobby Orr that sits in front of the TD Garden will inspire the Bruins to murderlize the Blackhawks tonight.

(note: I know Orr ended his career in Chicago, but didn’t that move contribute to landing his agent in jail? I’m not up on that story, but I heard that somewhere, didn’t I? Besides, there is no question as to which uniform the greatest player ever is wearing in this shot. No question at all)

2013 Stanley Cup Finals Predictions

As always, before I make my prediction for the upcoming playoff round, let me recap my predictions from the previous rounds.

Considering that I correctly predicted the winner of 11 out of the 12 series in the first two rounds, the third round looks like I did a crap-tastic job.  In the Conference Finals I picked:

Boston over Pittsburgh.  Boston won.  I was right.  Oh thank the hockey gods and all that, I was right.
Los Angeles over Chicago.  Chicago won.  I was wrong.

Those damn Blackhawks.  They brought my winning percentage down!  I’m now a measly 12 out of 14.  Thanks to friggin’ Chicago my percentage dropped from about 91% all the way down to 85%.  The pukes.

I guess I’ll just have to move on and keep living life, day by day.

Right, on to the prediction for the Stanley Cup Finals!

Like there is any doubt who this Boston native is going to pick.  Hey, did you notice I changed the image in this page’s header?  What is it, you ask?  Well it’s just the ice at the TD Garden.  I took that pic just after warm ups on 3/15/2008.  The Bruins hosted the Flyers that day.  Gee… so who is Robbie picking in the finals?  I have a tough decision here.  Should I wear my black Bruins jersey tomorrow (because it’s better and it almost fits… sort of) or should I wear the white one (which is too small, but is the same color that the Mighty Boston Bruins will be wearing in game one tomorrow night)?

What was I talking about?  Oh yeah, predictions!

The Blackhawks vs The Bruins.  Chicago has been awesome this season.  Remember the way they started the season?  Damn, that was impressive.  They came back to the pack somewhat, but they still won the West and the President’s Trophy, easily.  They are an amazing team.

Sounds familiar, right?

The Penguins are an amazing team too.  On paper they beat up the Bruins in every measurable way.  Who won that series?  It kinda reminds me of another series, about two years ago, where the Bruins faced a President’s Trophy winner.  What happened in that series?  Well the Bruins beat the Canucks in seven games and won the 2011 Stanley Cup.  Yeah, sounds similar.

Let’s be honest here.  Given all of the strengths in the Blackhawks line up, they should beat the Bruins.  They really should.  Fortunately for Boston, you can’t go by that.  The Pittsburgh series proved that beyond a doubt.  If that series had been closer I might be ready to give up on my home town team, but the Bruins dominated the entire series.  Game one was close most of the way, but the Penguins just came unglued and acted way out of character.  The Bruins got under their collective skin almost immediately.  Game two was a joke.  Game three was better, game four was awesome, but was it ever really in doubt?  Was the series ever really in doubt from the moment Crosby poked Rask, or Malkin picked a fight with Bergeron?

The similarities are clear, and the Bruins came out on top before.  It will be more difficult this time, but there is no reason to think that they cannot do it again.  Rask is on fire like never before.  Two goals in four games against the highest scoring offense in the playoffs.  That’s an inhuman performance.  The Bruins defense was outstanding.  The offense came through when it was needed.  They were just amazing.

The Blackhawks were amazing too.  The Blackhawks are definitely good enough to win this series.  The Bruins, however, look like a machine that cannot be stopped.

I’m picking my Bruins.  I’m picking my Bruins to win the Cup for the second time in three years.  The Bruins will beat the Blackhawks.  It’s going to be ugly.  It’s going to be painful.  It’s going to be brutal.  For us, the fans, it’s going to be uber stressful.  The team, and the fans, are up to the challenge.

Go Bruins!
Go Bruins!
Go Bruins!

Stanley Cup Finals Schedule

Here is the schedule for the Stanley Cup Finals.  Why there is two days off between games one and two and not two and three (when there is travel involved) I will never know.  Oh wait, I do know.  Television.  The NHL whores itself to television and whatever television wants, television gets.  Okay, I get it now.  Anyway…

Game 1: Wednesday at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBC)
Game 2: Saturday at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBCSN)
Game 3: June 17 at Boston, 8 p.m. (NBCSN)
Game 4: June 19 at Boston, 8 p.m. (NBC)
Game 5: June 22 at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBC)-x
Game 6: June 24 at Boston, 8 p.m. (NBC)-x
Game 7: June 26 at Chicago, 8 p.m. (NBC)-x
x-if necessary

So don’t bug me during those times!  Hey kids, no Disney channel on those dates and times.

Go Bruins!