Curious that the Diamondbacks didn’t want him back, no? Granted he only made 16 starts, but he had a 2.01 ERA last season. That really is a classic Buchholz stat line though. Absolutely dominant for 98.1 innings then misses the rest of the year with a myriad of injuries.
When Buchholz is on he is one of the nastiest pitchers in the game. Unfortunately he’s so rarely “on” that it becomes more trouble than its worth. He’s 34 years old now so if it hasn’t happened by now it’s probably never going to happen, but he has still yet to pitch 200 innings or make 30 starts in a season. One of the most frustrating Red Sox players of all time, but its hard to not look back fondly on a guy that was part of two World Series winning teams and someone who threw a no-hitter at Fenway.
You can’t complain about how the Sox have done over the past 15 years with 4 championships during that span, but this team has won in a much different fashion than what many would have expected. I’ll never forget looking at this team in 2008 and thinking our rotation would be set for a decade with Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, and Clay Buchholz all spinning gems with Papelbon and Craig Hansen closing games out. (I’ll never forget seeing a guy on Landsdowne with a stitched Hansen jersey the WEEK he made his MLB debut. Save your money and think twice before buying a jersey kids.) Things worked out a bit differently, but can’t complain about the results.
That pretty much sums it up. God, what an atrocity. I figured that after a Bucks game that we were one blown call away from winning and a disaster in Chicago we’d be able to bounce back and at least compete in Toronto, but boy was I wrong. What is it with this team and second quarters? I didn’t see a single positive out of this team, and am left questioning if this team even has enough to make it through the first round of the playoffs, let alone make a deep run.
Can you imagine what that postgame locker room and subsequent flight back to Boston were like?
As for knee jerk reactions, here’s what I saw. I saw a team that completely and utterly lacks the heart, focus and energy needed to compete at the highest levels. I saw players dropping easy passes, not getting back on defense, pointing fingers, yelling at each other, forgetting how to run a fast break, not knowing who to guard, and making every possible middle school mistake you can think of. It was disgusting. And don’t get me wrong, I didn’t expect the Celtics to win this game, but I thought they’d show up.
Brad Stevens watching the other team go on a run and wondering if he should call a timeout.
Literally every Celtics fan watching opponents go on 12-0 runs while Brad wonders if he should call a timeout.
Now, I stand by everything I said about Kyrie last week. I’m sick of the drama surrounding him, not that it’s all his fault. However, I don’t blame him for all of our troubles in the least. The struggles this Celtics team have been going through are on everyone’s shoulders, and that’s reflected in the box score. Smart was -25, Morris -24, Horford -16, Brown -13, Rozier -11, Irving -10, and Tatum -8. Kyrie usually has no problem taking things into his own hands, but it seemed like he didn’t even try. This may be a result of good defense from Toronto, but the killer instinct he usually has was nowhere to be found. He only had SEVEN POINTS on ten shots. How does that happen? I understand this game meant more to the psyche’s of the Boston fan base than to the actual playoff picture, but still. That can’t happen.
Danny needs to sign a big man and bring in some much needed toughness, as well as challenge these guys to earn their minutes. Brad needs to make changes to the rotation stat. Bench some people. Theis is trash and shouldn’t see the court. One of the Marcus’ should come off the bench. Shorten the leashes and pull anyone who isn’t making shots or hustling back on defense. For the love of god, change it up. The rotations are lazy, the play calling predictable, and the defense lethargic. Now excuse me while I go finish ralphing all over my shoes.
Holy hell what a game. As many of my buddies that are not Bruins fans texted me last night; that was an incredible game, probably the best game of the entire first round of the playoffs. As a Bruins fan though? That shit was beyond stressful. From puck drop that game was a sprint and luckily, despite some massive miscues, the Bruins pulled out Game 7 in exciting fashion.
I’ve never been a TRADE TUUKKA guy. I think he’s fine. He can flash the mitt sometimes, but he’s not a top 3 goalie. He’s just not. Among goalies with at least 30 Games Played this year, Tuukka Rask ranked 15th in Save Percentage at .917, 17th in Shutouts with 3, and 15th in Quality Starts with 30. Its not like he was a workhorse either, he was 18th in Games Played with 54, which are the fewest games he’s played since the lockout shortened 2012-2013 season.
He’s also not a complete bum. He was 6th in GAA at 2.36, but holy shit does this guy have a scary tendency to disappear in big moments. Going into last night Tuukka was 1-2 with a .849 Save Percentage in Game 7s, which is cringe inducing. Still, thats a small sample size and anything can happen in a Game 7.
So what happens 2 minutes into the game? Tuukka gives up a goal. Ok, ok it was a powerplay goal so its hard to get on him too much, but this is a bad sign.
Bruins tie it 3 minutes later on a goal from Jake DeBrusk!
Less than 2 minutes later, Tuukka gives it right back.
Tuukka, buddy, you have got to be shitting me. Are you trying to get run out of town? I’m still waiting for Ol’ Milk Crates to make an appearance.
If you’re not familiar with that reference, back in 2009 when he was still playing for the Baby B’s in Providence, a young Rask gave up a goal to lose a game in a shootout and he went berserk. He goes after the ref, throws his stick, skates off the ice, walks down the tunnel, and then reemerges to chuck milk crates onto the ice like an absolute psycho. Thats the guy I wanna see. A crazy asshole.
Not to mention the short handed goal Rask gave up to Kasperi Kapanen in the 2nd period. It was a disaster of a play from the Bruins in the offensive zone ON THE POWER PLAY, and Marchand got bodied trying to get back in coverage. But still, Tuukka got deked out of his goddamn shorts.
It was an all around ugly play. If you want to be the man on a Stanley Cup winning team you need to pull some saves out of your ass every now and again, which Tuukka hasn’t done a ton of this series. He had a huge night in Game 4 for 31 saves, but he followed that up by getting yanked in Game 5. To make matters worse, Freddy Anderson was making Superman saves all night at the other end of the rink. Hell even Joey Hags was calling for the B’s to yank Tuukka.
Frederik Andersen makes a couple of standout saves at his end and then Tuukka Rask allows Kasperi Kapanen to get around him on a shorthanded breakaway for a go-ahead score. If I’m Bruce Cassidy, I’d pull Rask at this point. He doesn’t look like he’s up for this
Imagine that? Imagine your $8 Million/year goalie getting yanked in a Game 7? That would have been disastrous.
It wasn’t just Rask though as Boston was sloppy all night long. Whether it was fatigue or injuries piling up, they just could not clear the puck out of their own zone and they were turning it over in the offensive zone constantly.
Luckily the Bruins were shot out of a rocket in the third period scoring FOUR unanswered goals (including an empty netter) all but removing the necessity for great goaltending.
We also got this laugh out loud interview with Matt Grzelyck after the game. Keep in mind that NESN cut to this on-ice interview like 20 mins after the game ended so its not like it was live.
Its 2018. I can talk, text, tweet, and stream the Bruins on my iPhone, but DirecTv can’t figure out how to not completely crumble every time the doppler radar gets a little spotty.
Now we move onto the second round where the Bruins will take on an even tougher opponent in the Tampa Bay Lightning. Awesome. If the Bruins play the way they played in Games 3-7, they’re going to get their teeth kicked in. If they play more like they did in Games 1-2 then they’re in business. Tampa finished as the No. 1 seed in the East with 113 points, winning 54 games, and they have an absolutely stacked roster. BUT the Bruins need to remember they went 3-1 against that team this year. As good as Tampa has been, the Bruins have had their number in the regular season. Now they just have to translate that to the postseason. See ya Saturday for Game 1.
This is starting to have a very 2010 feel to it when the Bruins blew a 3-0 series lead to the Flyers and then a 3-0 lead in Game 7 to lose that series. That was one of the most stunning collapses I’ve ever seen. Granted it spurned the B’s on to winning a Stanley Cup the following year, but I’d rather not repeat that type of implosion here.
After dominating the first 2 games it looked like the B’s might actually sweep Toronto. Seriously, they dominated the Maple Leafs beating them 5-1 and 7-3 before splitting the next two. Throw in an incredible 31 save night from Tuukka in Game 4 (did you know you need your goalie to steal a game in the playoffs?), which he immediately followed up with getting pulled in Game 5.
If he has a bad game tomorrow night I fully expect ol’ Milk Crates to come out.
Now the Bruins, who were challenging for the No. 1 seed in the East until the final day of the season, and seemed set to cruise through the first round, are suddenly faced with playing a Game 7 they want no part of. Thank god its at home, but quotes like this from Toronto are what worry me the most:
“I think we’re getting better and better and more and more comfortable in these high-pressure games.” – @Breeze2Greeze
The longer this series goes on the worse I feel and last night I started to feel that creeping sense of doubt. These guys might actually blow this thing.
There has also been some questionable officiating, which actually went both ways for the B’s last night. They dodged a bullet when the refs called a goal back after replay showed the Leafs player basically punting Tuukka’s blocker out of the crease. But then they got hosed late in the game after they’d already pulled the goalie to get the extra man and the refs swallowed their whistles on a clear interference. I still don’t understand that.
For a team thats been so good all year long it would be a huge disappointment to bow out in the first round, especially in this fashion. The Bruins are clearly built for the long term as Don Sweeney somehow rebuilt this team on the fly infusing the veteran core with young studs like Charlie McAvoy, Jake DeBrusk, Brandon Carlo, and Ryan Donato. But this could be the last serious playoff run with guys like Chara, Krejci, Bergeron, Marchand, and Tuukka all playing together at a high level. Don’t waste that.
Speaking of young studs, I think its time to make some changes Bruce…unleash the baby faced assassin.
Welp for better or for worse we have the most exciting night in sports coming to Boston on Thursday: Game 7.
Boston.com – Brad Marchand is never afraid to get under an opponent’s skin….The 29-year-old utilized what can best be described as an unorthodox method of trying to take Maple Leafs forward Leo Komarov out of his game. In the midst of some standard pushing and shoving, Marchand drew close to Komarov and even appeared to lick him.
Not since “Who shot J.R?” or “Is Tony Soprano dead?” has the world (Boston) been gripped by a question to this extent. Did Brad Marchand, aka Noseface Killah, the NHL’s greatest agitator, indeed lick an opponent in order to get in his head?
Now this is not only “unorthodox” but it is also extremely unsanitary. The last thing the B’s need is for Marchand to have to sit out with some sort of bacterial infection that stemmed from gland on gland contact. Lots of sweat in saliva in this equation folks and I’m sure there are alllll sorts of germs swimmin around in the sweat of a Toronto-livin, Russian hockey player.
To answer the question, there is only one alternative explanation which is that Marchand was shit-talking Komarov Green-Durant style and that the camera angle made him appear closer and much more licky. That’s really it. If I was Marchand’s Charlie Kelly and I had a background in opponent licking law, that would be my only out.
In reality however, let’s be honest, yes, 63 licked his opponent. And yes he did it to psych him the fuck the out. But he didn’t do it for himself. He didn’t do it for the team. He did it for us, the city of Boston, and for the chance to bring us home a 7th Stanley Cup. That is why our guy licked another grown man.
So last night Tommy Wingels was on the wrong end of a completely unnecessary cheap shot from Toronto’s Nazem Kadri. Wingels was chasing a puck and boxing out a Maple Leafs player before he lost his balance and ended up on his knees. Nazem Kadri apparently saw this as a ripe opportunity to tee off on Wingels’ cranium.
Thats not even the worst angle either. The video above makes it look like a cheapshot, which is bad enough. The full view though shows Kadri literally sprinting across the ice to really lay into this hit.
Unbelievable. Granted he received a 5 minute major and was ejected from the game, but come on man that hit goes beyond dangerous. Wingels looked like he was on another planet too once he actually picked himself up off the ice.
Well at least Kadri expressed a little remorse after the game right?
“I was committed to the hit and ended up falling,” Kadri said after the game.
Hey look, man, tell me you don’t like my firm, tell me you don’t like my idea, tell me you don’t like my fuckin neck tie, but don’t tell me you brained Tommy Wingels because you were “falling.”
Now he’s clearly going to get suspended, but this shouldn’t just be a one game slap on the wrist. If Marchand gets suspended 5 games for table topping a guy, Kadri needs to get at least that for targeting a defenseless player’s head while also charging across the ice and leaving his feet. Thats a trifecta of unnecessary.
NHL Player Safety‘s list of what’s taken into account when deciding on discipline (literally the first two) pretty accurately describe the hit on Wingels.
“… In deciding on Supplementary Discipline for On-Ice Conduct, the following factors will be taken into account: (a) The type of conduct involved: conduct in violation of League Playing Rules, and whether the conduct is intentional or reckless, and involves the use of excessive and unnecessary force. Players are responsible for the consequences of their actions. (b) Injury to the opposing Player(s) involved in the incident.”
Since I don’t really follow Toronto hockey all that closely outside of Auston Matthews goal totals, I’m not super familiar with Kadri’s suspension history. Turns out he’s a habitual line stepper.
On November 13, 2013, Kadri delivered an elbow to the head of Minnesota Wild goaltender Niklas Bäckström. As a result, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety handed Kadri a three-game suspension
He received four games for illegally checking Edmonton Oilers forward Matt Fraser in the head
On April 4, 2016, Kadri was again suspended by the NHL after he delivered a cross-check to the head of Detroit Red Wings centre Luke Glendening. Kadri received a four-game suspension for the incident, effectively ending his season, and as a repeat offender under the collective bargaining agreement he was also fined $200,000.
So this was the scene right before the Red Sox Blue Jays game last night. All the umpires getting together for a brief moment of silence for their boy Angel Hernandez….who is very much alive.
I was wondering what that whole gathering was about and even Red Sox broadcaster Dave O’Brien said on NESN that this showing was for Hernandez. So this all stemmed from the Ian Kinsler Angel Hernandez showdown last week.
“Last Saturday, MLB umpires banded together to wear white wristbands in protest of players’ treatment of them, and a perceived lack of enforcement on the part of the league. The protest was in response to the MLB fining Ian Kinsler $10,000 for declaring that controversial umpire Angel Hernandez should pursue a different occupation, as well as a more general concern with “escalating verbal attacks” levied on them by players and managers.“
Cry me a river dude. I will gladly take Ian Kinsler being mean to me if it means I get to make SIX FIGURES to work 6 months a year and watch baseball every day. Hernandez also filed a lawsuit this summer against MLB for racial discrimination and alleges that a grudge from Joe Torre is holding him back from any promotions.
As I’ve always said about umpires and refs, if the fans know you’re name, you’re not doing your job. 99/100 times the only reason a fan knows an ump’s name is because he is doing a shit job or inserting himself into the game like our old friend Cowboy Joe West.
So maybe stop getting into public pissing contests with players on a routine basis and you’ll get a promotion. Just a thought.
Again, he is still alive. So pump the breaks on your umpire Livestrong bracelets out there.
PS – The one official who’s name I know for any other reason is Ed Hochuli and thats because of those goddamn bazookas he carries onto the field each week.
Now THAT is how you clap back at the haters. If this were Beyonce or Rihanna responding to people on Instagram for fat shaming this picture would be on Good Morning America. But nay, since its Phil Kessel its just for us bloggers to champion.
For anyone unfamiliar with the reference, this is in response to the Toronto Sun hockey writers shitting on Kessel on his way out the door after the Maple Leafs traded him.
“The hot dog vendor who parks daily at Front and John Sts. just lost his most reliable customer. Almost every afternoon at 2:30 p.m., often wearing a toque, Phil Kessel would wander from his neighbourhood condominium to consume his daily snack.”
That was the lede of the story! Keep doing you man, pound those dogs like your on Coney Island on the fucking 4th of July. If only the Bruins could get players like Kessel.
So with the Toronto Blue Jays in town, naturally NESN kept showing the Blow Jays manager John Gibbons on TV and I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. It finally dawned on me. John Gibbons is Dr. Evil’s henchman from Austin Powers, No. 2. This is the same goddamn guy, no doubt.
Finally had enough of trying to take over the world so he settled for Toronto.
Wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t also post the “Who does No. 2 work for?” scene, right?
Toronto Argonauts – The Toronto Argonauts Football Club and the Toronto Argonauts Alumni Association are proud to announce that quarterback Doug Flutie has been named an All-Time Argo. Flutie played in Toronto for two seasons and was named the league’s Most Outstanding Player in both, leading the Argos to back-to-back Grey Cup Championships in 1996 and 1997. He was also named the Grey Cup MVP in both games. The product of Boston College holds the Argos’ single season record for most passing yards (5,720 – 1996), most pass completions (434 – 1996) and most passing touchdowns (47 – 1997).
First off, what a distinction. Rarefied air. Good for Doug Flutie. Now I readily admit I cant name a single other former Toronto Argonaut aside from Ricky Williams, but I recognize greatness. And holy hell did Doug Flutie put up some numbers in the CFL. He was (Canadian) Tom Brady before Tom Brady.
Have you ever actually looked at Flutie’s career CFL stats?
His career CFL statistics include 41,355 passing yards and 270 touchdowns.
He holds the professional football record of 6,619 yards passing in a single season. He led the league in passing five times in only eight seasons.
He once held four of the CFL’s top five highest single-season completion marks, including a record 466 in 1991 which was surpassed by Ricky Ray in 2005.
His 48 touchdown passes in 1994 remains a CFL record.
He earned three Grey Cup MVP awards, and was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player a record six times (1991–1994, and 1996–1997).
He passed for 5,000+ yards six times in his career and remains the only player in pro football history to pass for 6,000+ yards in a season twice in his career.
Those are legit Madden on Easy mode numbers, just a disgusting level of dominance of the CFL and their goofy wider field with goalposts in the endzone. Canada WORSHIPS this guy. Like I love Doug Flutie, but he’s a goddamn legend in the great white north. They voted him the greatest CFL player of all-time and then made him the first non-Canadian EVER inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame.
And how am I only just now hearing about Doug Flutie bobblehead night? I’ve been talking about seriously getting into the CFL this year. I think this is a sign. I think I have to drive up to Toronto for this right? I could expense this to The 300s (read: my credit card) right?
Flutie Bobbleheads are coming. You don’t want to miss your chance to get one of these 👀
Brad Stevens watching the other team go on a run and wondering if he should call a timeout.
Literally every Celtics fan watching opponents go on 12-0 runs while Brad wonders if he should call a timeout.
The 300s 