I'm Back -- The Boston Sports Edition
Seems it's been over a year since my last post. Whoops. With so much going on in the world today, I figured it'd be a good time to start the blog back up. Let's start off talking about the current state of Boston sports.
It's been over a week since the Bruins were eliminated by the Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs (shocking, I know). I can't say I was disappointed in this outcome. I hadn't really been following the Bruins at all this season. I knew they had a young, talented team but I didn't expect them to accomplish much because, well, they're the Bruins. On the other hand, I absolutely love playoff hockey, maybe the most exciting sport on a per-game basis. I missed Game 1, one they lost by quite a margin, and wasn't sure I'd bother tuning in for the rest of the series. Boy, am I glad I did. The fact that the series went to 7 games was practically a miracle, and the B's should be proud of their accomplishments. I heard Aaron Ward on the Toucher and Rich show (WBCN, 104.1 FM Boston) saying that usually, when a team loses in the playoffs, they want their opponent to advance so they know they got beaten by the best. Ward did not have those same sentiments towards Montreal this year, and basically proclaimed his hatred for the Canadiens, making him a tried-and-true Bruin. Let's hope they re-sign this tough defender and get some revenge next year.
Last night was Game 4 of the Celtics vs. Hawks series, and seemed like another "foregone conclusion" game -- "Oh, the Celts had an off-game in Game 3. The Hawks didn't win that game, the Celtics lost it. They'll bounce right back and win the next two, case closed." Well, last night the Hawks WON Game 4. The Celtics squandered a 13-point lead in the first quarter, and a 10-point lead in the 3rd quarter, and were simply out-hustled and out-played. Has the officiating been bad in this series? Borderline horrendous, but that doesn't make up for the drastic ups-and-downs the Celtics showed on the court last night. If the Hawks can play the kind of game they played last night in Boston, they might pull off one of the greatest first-round upsets in NBA history. Will they be able to? I doubt it, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous.
Red Sox were off last night, and that's probably a good thing. Talk about another sliding team, where the hell have the Boston bats been as of late? Two great starts by Buchholz (why leave him in for 8 innings? I know he only had one hit, but aren't we trying to save this kid's arm?) and Beckett (yes, he allowed two runs, but he also had a career-high 13 strikeouts! 13 K's and the offense is shut out, just what we needed) were all-for-naught. I still hear talk radio shows blaming the team's recent battle with the flu and the exhaustion from the Japan trip as excuses for the recent slide. We're still giving them a pass on that? Wasn't that trip over a month ago now? They just haven't been hitting or playing well in the field, it's as simple as that. I have no doubt they'll turn it around, and fast, but columnists, please stop making excuses for them. They're big boys, they can handle it.
In other news, the Patriots drafted some defensive players, including a first round linebacker pick whose name escapes me. The draft is boring to me, so I'll give you my opinion once this guy actually plays and makes an impact, but any new blood that can be injected into the ancient linebacking corps is a good thing, a very good thing.
Also on the radar (but barely), the New England Revolution are a soccer team that play home games at Gillette Stadium. They are currently in the middle of a MLS season. That is all.
It's been over a week since the Bruins were eliminated by the Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs (shocking, I know). I can't say I was disappointed in this outcome. I hadn't really been following the Bruins at all this season. I knew they had a young, talented team but I didn't expect them to accomplish much because, well, they're the Bruins. On the other hand, I absolutely love playoff hockey, maybe the most exciting sport on a per-game basis. I missed Game 1, one they lost by quite a margin, and wasn't sure I'd bother tuning in for the rest of the series. Boy, am I glad I did. The fact that the series went to 7 games was practically a miracle, and the B's should be proud of their accomplishments. I heard Aaron Ward on the Toucher and Rich show (WBCN, 104.1 FM Boston) saying that usually, when a team loses in the playoffs, they want their opponent to advance so they know they got beaten by the best. Ward did not have those same sentiments towards Montreal this year, and basically proclaimed his hatred for the Canadiens, making him a tried-and-true Bruin. Let's hope they re-sign this tough defender and get some revenge next year.
Last night was Game 4 of the Celtics vs. Hawks series, and seemed like another "foregone conclusion" game -- "Oh, the Celts had an off-game in Game 3. The Hawks didn't win that game, the Celtics lost it. They'll bounce right back and win the next two, case closed." Well, last night the Hawks WON Game 4. The Celtics squandered a 13-point lead in the first quarter, and a 10-point lead in the 3rd quarter, and were simply out-hustled and out-played. Has the officiating been bad in this series? Borderline horrendous, but that doesn't make up for the drastic ups-and-downs the Celtics showed on the court last night. If the Hawks can play the kind of game they played last night in Boston, they might pull off one of the greatest first-round upsets in NBA history. Will they be able to? I doubt it, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous.
Red Sox were off last night, and that's probably a good thing. Talk about another sliding team, where the hell have the Boston bats been as of late? Two great starts by Buchholz (why leave him in for 8 innings? I know he only had one hit, but aren't we trying to save this kid's arm?) and Beckett (yes, he allowed two runs, but he also had a career-high 13 strikeouts! 13 K's and the offense is shut out, just what we needed) were all-for-naught. I still hear talk radio shows blaming the team's recent battle with the flu and the exhaustion from the Japan trip as excuses for the recent slide. We're still giving them a pass on that? Wasn't that trip over a month ago now? They just haven't been hitting or playing well in the field, it's as simple as that. I have no doubt they'll turn it around, and fast, but columnists, please stop making excuses for them. They're big boys, they can handle it.
In other news, the Patriots drafted some defensive players, including a first round linebacker pick whose name escapes me. The draft is boring to me, so I'll give you my opinion once this guy actually plays and makes an impact, but any new blood that can be injected into the ancient linebacking corps is a good thing, a very good thing.
Also on the radar (but barely), the New England Revolution are a soccer team that play home games at Gillette Stadium. They are currently in the middle of a MLS season. That is all.
posted by Matt Steele at 7:19 AM
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