Segacs's World I Know

Posts Tagged ‘bruins’

Hockey’s coming back to the ‘Peg:

The True North Sports and Entertainment group announced on Tuesday that they have completed a deal to purchase the Atlanta Thrashers and move them to Winnipeg in time for the 2011-12 season.

And, right on target with the wish-I-could-punch-him asinine comment is Gary Bettman:

“Hockey in Canada has never been stronger,” said Bettman. “We get to be back in a place we wish had not left in 1996.

Considering the source, that’s rich.

Meanwhile, Vancouver kicks off the Stanley Cup Final against Boston tonight, aiming to not only kick some serious Bruin ass, but to bring the Cup home to Canada for the first time since the Habs did it in ‘93. And with history on their side and the stronger record, I see no reason why they shouldn’t pull it off.

Go Canada!

ETA: If you’re American and reading this, and you happen to be a bit confused about this whole hockey thing, Pete McMartin wrote you a primer.

By now, everyone in Montreal, Beantown and everywhere in between knows about the ugly hit by Zdeno Chara that landed Max Pacioretty in the hospital with a possible career-ending fractured vertebra and concussion:

It still hurts to re-watch. And not just because we all know the outcome.

With the news that no discipline would be forthcoming from the NHL, Montreal fans – understandably – went a little nuts, demanding justice, decrying the NHL, and calling for heads to roll.

On the hit: It was ugly, that’s unquestionable. It was illegal, that’s also unquestionable, and Chara got a game misconduct for it. It was frightening to watch, because we know how it turned out. And it was part of a high-energy, high-speed game, delivered by a guy who isn’t known for using his size to injure but certainly has it in him. And the fact that Pacioretty was having his breakout season and playing first-line solid hockey only made it that much harder of a blow to absorb.

On intent: Did Chara mean to hurt Pacioretty? He says no. I’m inclined to believe him, with a caveat: I think that, within the context of hockey, he was trying to get back at Pacioretty and this was a continuation of the feud that they had going on for a few games. In other words, I don’t think this was just an accidental check gone wrong. Since a Habs-Bruins playoff matchup is a strong possibility, I’d even allow that teams start to play dirty and there’s some intent to injure going on with good players. But it’s not the same as intent to injure, off-ice, and I’m sure that’s what has the league wringing its hands at how to mete out punishment.

On bias: Mike Murphy had to make this call because Colin Campbell was biased, what with his son Gregory playing for Boston. This isn’t the first time that Campbell has needed to recuse himself from a disciplinary decision, either. I still think he should have resigned the minute his son made it to the NHL. But it does argue that there’s too much discretion in these kinds of disciplinary decisions. Either way, the rules need to be clearer, and there can’t be so much in the hands of one man.

On criminal prosecution: Nope, don’t agree with it here. Despite the massive public pressure and outcry in the wake of the NHL’s decision not to suspend Chara (and seriously, people, tying up the 9-1-1 line for hockey? Not cool.) I don’t believe that there’s any place for criminal charges in hockey, unless the incident was outside the boundaries of the game and crossed the line to something else entirely. Trying to get the courts involved is just another way of absolving the NHL of responsibility for this kind of stuff. It happens within the parameters of the game, which makes it the NHL’s responsibility.

On violence in hockey: Is the game too violent? Is there too much fighting? Should we make them all wear bubbles and carry sticks made out of foam? Hell no. I like my hockey fast-paced, hard-hitting and tough, and I suspect most of the league’s fans do too. But there’s a difference between a clean hit and a dirty one, and that’s where I think the system is broken.

The bottom line: If you rob a store and wave a gun around only meaning to scare the clerk, but you accidentally shoot him, sorry, you’re going down for murder.

Likewise, I think the rule should be simple in hockey: If you injure a guy on an illegal play, accident or not, you’re out as long as he is. If he misses the season, so do you. If you end his career, you’re gone too.

Implement this rule, enforce it a few times so the players understand it’s serious, and watch the ugly headshots disappear like magic.

Speedy recovery, Patches.

Well, the Habs are down 3-0 against the Bruins, and the season is a hair’s breath from over. But, watching from the reds this evening, I couldn’t even work my way up to being upset about it.

From the minute the sellout crowd booed loudly and rudely through the U.S. National Anthem, I knew it was going to be a long night. There is no excuse for that kind of disgusting display. If you don’t want to sing, fine, but stand quietly and show some respect.

The boos continued all night for the likes of Zdeno Chara and company. The cheers, on the other hand, were loud and boisterous for hits, checks and fights, but were mostly absent otherwise. Last season, the Bell Centre was so loud during the playoff games that you couldn’t even hear yourself think. Not so this season. When the team needed the crowd to rally behind them as they limped their way through a scoreless third, it was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

This fanbase eggs on the likes of Laraque and Stewart and encourages the team to play like thugs. Meanwhile, the so-called “big bad Bruins” beat us on skill, not might.

Yes, it’s true that a good number of our key players were injured. Yes, it’s true that Gainey has made some incredibly questionable decisions, including giving Carey Price a stranglehold on the starter’s job for no apparent reason.

Ultimately, the better team won all three games. Boston has outplayed us, outmatched us, outdueled us in every critical category, and has walked away with the victories fair and square.

And until we fans start demanding better and acting with class, we can expect more of the same. This season, Montreal fans truly got the hockey team that we deserved.

Shame on us.

Philly beat Washington in overtime in tonight’s game 7 to win the first round and advance, ending the Caps’ Cinderella-like late season run in the process. The game was won on the powerplay after a controversial penalty call that really raises serious questions about the quality of the officiating in the playoffs in general. I feel like Ovechkin, the clear NHL MVP, deserved better… not to mention Semin, Green, Federov and – oh yeah – Cristobal Huet. But that’s hockey, and the Caps go home and the Flyers move on.

That means we’ll be taking on the Flyers in Round 2. As much as it would have been fun to see an Ovechkin-Crosby matchup, it’s probably good news for us that we will be taking on the Flyers, against whom we went 4-0 this season, instead of the Rangers. Despite our historic comeback win against the Rangers in February, they’re a tough team to beat. Besides, let the Pens deal with Avery’s Antics.

Of course, the Flyers won’t exactly be a cakewalk. They play a hard physical style of hockey, and the series with the Bruins should teach us exactly what a season sweep of a team is worth in the playoffs: not much. But I believe we can do it. I have faith in these guys.

With Calgary’s game 7 elimination tonight at the hands of the San Jose Sharks, Montreal is now the only remaining Canadian team in the playoffs. The eyes of the nation (including plenty of green eyes in Toronto) will now turn to Montreal to keep the dream alive of finally bringing the Stanley Cup home to Canada where it belongs, after 15 long years. No pressure, eh?

Go Habs Go!

It sounds like we won the Stanley Cup out there, with all the horns honking and people partying in the streets. But no, all we did was win round 1 to advance to round 2.

Not that it was easy, mind you. The Bruins battled back against all expectations and took us to a game 7 that was making even the faithful lose heart. Whatever anyone expected from tonight’s game, it wasn’t this.

And by “this”, of course, I mean a 5-0 blowout shutout, to much singing and cheering, of the Bruins – who suddenly looked much like the hapless team we played all season, and not like the team who game within a shade of one of the biggest upsets in hockey history.

And I got to witness it from the reds of the Bell Centre. Great view!

Now… onto round 2. Go Habs Go!

Update: For the record, I think that the rioting was not only disgraceful, but completely idiotic. WTF??? I mean, it’s only round 1. At least wait until we win the cup. Sheesh!

The only thing worse than being a loser is being a quitter.

The Habs completely quit tonight – on each other, on their team, on their coach and on their fans. They gave up. Therefore, they choked. Andrei Markov’s exasperated shrug on the powerplay late in the third said it all. In case that message wasn’t received, Carey Price’s refusal to even try to save the fifth goal drove the point home.

The Bruins won because they refused to quit. And now, instead of going to the golf course, they get to go home, down 3-2 in the series but holding all the momentum cards.

How does an offense that was #1 in the NHL all season collapse so miserably? How does the league’s top powerplay fall apart so spectacularly? How does a team that went 8-0 against the Bruins in the regular season let a playoff series that ought to have been a blowout get to game 6?

The Canadiens are going to be doing a lot of soul-searching between now and Saturday. Let’s hope that includes a lesson in perseverence. I still believe that this team has it in them. Let’s hope they start believing that about themselves. Because, as the saying goes, quitters never win, and winners never quit.

• Does anyone really still believe that Mugabe will go quietly? Didn’t think so.
• Here we go again: The construction on St-Laurent launches full steam ahead into round 2… as though round 1 wasn’t a strong enough demonstration of the city’s incompetence.
• Duh alert: Allophones have a harder time getting jobs than Francophones do in Quebec. Really? Is the sky blue, too?
• You know it’s hockey fever when… even the police cars are flying Habs flags. Too bad our idiot mayor doesn’t give the same fan-dom rights to the firefighters.
• The Habs decimated the Bruins on Thursday, but just barely eked out a win last night. 2-0 is 2-0 and we’ll take it, surely. But we’re going to have to step it up quite a bit tonight. Go Habs Go!
• Hockey fever on the road: Boston is being invaded by supporters of the Bleu-Blanc-Rouge. Should be an interesting mix in the stands tonight at the TD Banknorth Centre. Then again, the Bruins fans deserve it for inadequately supporting their team. As of Friday when I last checked, there were still tickets available for tonight’s game on the Bruins’ official website. Shameful.
• Did someone forget to tell it that it’s spring? After teasing us with gorgeous balmy weather, it’s been overcast, chilly, rainy and even threatening snow this weekend. Come back, sunshine!
• Good friends… good crepes… goodbyes. Well, two out of three ain’t bad.

The Habs’ powerplay goal with 1.2 seconds left to lift us 3-2 over the Bruins was the kind of last-second move that traditionally would always happen against us. Sign of a turnaround this season? Sure hope so! (Oh, and WOOHOO!!!)

Last night’s game was fun to watch. It’s not over yet for the Habs.

But perhaps almost more notable than the game itself was how the Boston crowd reacted to the Canadian national anthem. In light of the recent booing of the US anthem at the two Bell Centre games, a notice was posted in Boston asking people to refrain from booing in retaliation. So what did they do? They cheered. Loudly. Now that’s class.