If I were a fan of the Jets or even the Leafs (just threw up in my mouth AND had the urge to listen to Justin Bieber), the last month or so of hockey would have been okay to watch. However, I actually have a set of testicles and I cheer for the Bruins...though there hasn't been much to cheer about lately by Boston standards.
The goals dried up. The goaltending was shaky. They've been shutout in their last 73 games. The physical play wasn't there. The boys were coasting, resting on their laurels and all of the points that they got early on in the season, when they were playing like the Stanley Cup finals were just going to be a formality and they should just be presented with the Cup right now.
Oh, how times have changed.
Remember when the Bruins would head into the 3rd period up by several goals? Yeah, me neither. It's been that long.
Normally the All-Star break is a good time for the team to go their separate way for a few days, heal up (or damage your liver in Vegas) and prepare for the final push. It couldn't have come at a better time for the Bruins.
It didn't work.
The team that was just entering a tailspin came back and played some of the least inspired hockey I've ever seen from this current squad. Where the fuck were the Timmy and Tuukka that we know? Gone were the amazing saves and solid consistency from the goalies, the "get me one goal and I'll do the rest" that was so prevalent when they went on their insane tear. Gone were the goals that made it look like Bruins had set their opponents on the NHL 94 retard settings.
Things have looked just a bit better as of late. The Bruins were playing so well that we Bruins fans (even though our team is the current Cup champ) were waiting for the other foot to drop, as we've been kicked in the nuts time and time and fucking time again.
A team playing that well, that isn't used to battling through adversity (injuries, hot goalies, etc.) scares me come playoff time.
Here's what I'm hoping:
-The Bruins will pull their heads out of their asses and get back to their physical ways, Shanahan and his arbitrary suspensions be damned. I gave the guy a clean slate at the beginning of the year, but he's fucked up in several instances that has now soured my opinion. I'm not going to whine and bitch about it, but it's there nonetheless. The game against the Canucks marked the beginning of the slide for the Bruins. I don't think that's a coincidence.
-Timmy and Tuukka will reclaim whatever they need to once again form the best duo in the league. Timmy has his opinions and Tuukka was quoted as saying he wanted to play more. Both items are distractions in their own right. Suck it up and do what's best for the team.
-I thought Chiarelli said it best when he dumped Kampfer, saying that he had lost his "swagger". This rings true for the entire team. The boys used to come onto the ice like they had 9 inch cocks and huge, pulsing balls. Opponents would piddle quietly into their hockey shorts and feign injuries. This has to come back. Play like you're the Stanley Cup champs, for fuck's sake.
-I don't want to pile on, but I'm going to. Corvo has to sit. The fact that the Bruins had to pick up two defensemen at the trade deadline says it all. Corvo has not been as advertised and he's a goddamn liability. The last game and his multiple turnovers just cemented my thinking that he needs to be watching from the pressbox. Sorry, Joe. It wasn't fun while it lasted.
-Zanon has played one game and I'm already loving the dude. Seidenberg 2.0. I'm down with that. Rolston has lost a step or two, but I still like the guy as well. I think we'll be seeing him on the point during power plays. He might just have the Recchi magic. Time will tell.
-The indestructible Johnny Upchuk proved that he is actually mortal and went down with a concussion on one of the hardest hockey hits I've ever seen. Some people were saying that Neil was faking injury so Chara wouldn't tear him apart, but anyone that has watched Neil play knows that he would stand their and fight if he could. Upchuk sounds like he's healing well and should be back soon...
-...but Horton is still watching from afar. I've almost gotten used to not seeing his simian looking face skating around out there and I'm not okay with that. Heal up, kid.
-Oh yeah, and Corvo has to sit.
-Claude is looking pretty fucking smart with his line changes the other night. He finally got Krejci to wake the FUCK UP and play some hockey. The Bruins cannot afford to have/let Krejci sleep through hockey games. Patty/Marchand/Seguin can't do all the scoring. The scoring buffer that the Bruins had last year isn't quite there, as the 4th line, though playing their normal solid hockey, hasn't produced the same amount of goals this year. An active Krejci is just that much more important to the success of the team. Even Lucic looked reenergized, busting down the boards like a fucking Serbian freight train to set up one of the goals. If that fucker keeps his feet moving, guys get the fuck out of his way. It's already proven that he's thought of as one of the toughest players in the league and you know for damn sure that any defenseman that sees him busting down the ice has that somewhere in the back of his mind.
So all that said, sorry for the long layoff. Normally Bruins hockey is a great escape from everything. The last month or so has been like an extended kick in the nuts with a pair of shitkickers tipped with craggy rocks. Here's hoping our boys pull themselves up, get back to that method of play that got them so much success and make a deeeeeeep push into the playoffs.
And as always, regardless of how much frustration I may feel with my team: Go B's.
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