Boston Bruins fans would be well advised to start an Aspirin regimen, as risk of cardiac arrest is high.

On Saturday night vs. Ottawa, the Bruins let another lead slip away in the final minute and were forced all the way to a shootout, where they prevailed on Michael Ryder’s snipe in the fourth round. However, turnabout is fair play – in their first meeting with Ottawa Boston scored two 6 on 5 goals in the last 2:30 of regulation; a game the Bruins would eventually win in a shootout. Thump, Thump.

Tim Thomas, making his first start since embarrassing himself against Pittsburgh on Nov. 14^th — Pittsburgh tied the game with less than a second remaining in regulation; the Thomas lost control of the puck behind the net in OT leading directly to the winning score – did a serviceable job for 59 minutes, but once again allowed a game-tying goal, this time with 19 seconds remaining. THUMP, THUMP.

I’ll give Timmy the benefit and chalk it up to rust (but in reality it looked more like a lack of focus).

Faced with as much adversity as any team in the league, the Bruins have shown a great deal of resilience.  At current, they have won 5 of their last six games, with their only loss coming in yesterday’s shootout loss to New Jersey. It’s clear that the return of Marc Savard has buoyed the powerplay which connected on Boston’s three regulation goals against Ottawa. With Savard manning the half-wall, the other member of the PP seem more relaxed; able to play to their strengths (although I would like to see someone other than Recchi crash the net on a regular basis).

Their play is deserving of the No. 1 spot in the Northeast division, but that’s only because the Northeast division is weak. Boston must have a more consistent effort if they expect to have any chance to duplicate and/or exceed last year’s success.

It’s no secret that Washington DC is corrupt and dysfunctional.  8th Congressional candidate Marc Savard had a recent posting on this very issue.  He also shares some of what he will be doing over the coming months to distinquish himself in a crowded field, while working to become the candidate residents of the 8th district can trust to represent them Washington.

Voters will have to work diligently to sort through who will earn and deserve their support over the coming months.

In my travels on the campaign trail over the last year talking and listening to residents of the District, one of several common questions arise, and that is how can we possibly change such a dysfunctional and corrupt system in Washington?My answer is that you change it one person at a time.

You don’t support candidates who just  tell you what you want to hear, and who make promises that you know they can’t and won’t keep. You look for a candidate who is living the life that you live with all of the struggles and cares that the vast majority of us deal with every day.You also watch how the candidates conduct their campaigns. What kind of folks do they have on their staff? Who are their volunteers? And most importantly of all, how do they raise and spend the funds needed to operate their campaign. Because how they do all of these things will be a good indicator of the values and judgments they will take to Washington on your behalf. You deserve a candidate who will not only work for you and our country’s well-being, but will also honorably represent you with his behavior when you are not able to follow his every move.

A key indicator of that, from Marc Savard’s perspective is how they raise campaign money.

I believe that how a candidate raises and spends money is one of the key indicators of how he will operate in Washington. Where is he getting his money from. Who is he beholden to for tens of thousands of dollars of contributions. You know as well as I that when Political Action Committees (PACs), or what is generally described as special interest lobbying, gives tons of money to a candidate  ,they expect something in return. It is fundamental to our human nature that when someone does you a favor or gives you something, you are predisposed to return the favor or  give them something in return. You know in your gut for that to be true.

So if “special interest” money is a key to the corruptness of the political system, one way to change that is to not accept such donations.

The only way to break that corrupt Washington cycle between politicians and lobbyists is for a candidate for Congress to not seek out, and not accept, such donations, so that he can go to Washington clean and clear of the attachments such contributions create.

That is something 8th Congressional District candidate Marc Savard is apparently prepared to do.

I will be making just such an announcement in a detailed and formal way before the end of the year. I will also give you the information and tools readily available to you so, as Ronald Reagan aptly put it when dealing with the Soviet Union, you can “trust but verify” my pledge.

So watch my team run in the coming months and see that I will be the candidate who will earn your trust to be your Representative in Washington DC. (Source: Saturday morning on the farm – Savard for Congress)

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Bruins C Patrice Bergeron (four assists Monday night) clearly relishes the return of teammate Marc Savard.

Here’s a recap of the three biggest fantasy developments from Monday night’s action:

1. Bruins C Patrice Bergeron tallied four assists (two on the PP, one shorthanded) in the Bruins 4-2 win at St. Louis.  He also led the Bruins with four shots on goal. A big factor behind these stats: the return of Bruins C Marc Savard (16:30 of ice time). Coupled with the recent comeback of LW Milan Lucic — who scored Monday night and now has a goal in two straight games — the Bruins are gradually regaining depth and resembling the team that dominated the 2008-09 regular season. No longer shouldering the scoring load by himself, Bergeron (22.5 percent owned in ESPN, 24 percent owned in Yahoo!) is a must-add if you need help in the assists category.

2. Senators D Filip Kuba notched three assists in the Senators 4-3 OT home win vs. the Capitals. He also led the Senators in ice time, which isn’t directly useful in fantasy but is always helpful to know when evaluating blueliners. It was Kuba’s second consecutive game with three assists. (He also scored a goal Saturday night vs. Buffalo.) And the Senators have now won four games in a row.  Though Kuba was a fantasy force last year — 37 assists, 26 PPPs — he is only 25.4 percent owned in ESPN leagues and 18 percent owned in Yahoo! formats. It’s time to grab him. By Wednesday night you may no longer be able to do so.

3. While the Maple Leafs lost 4-3 in OT at home to the Islanders, D Ian White registered one assist, five shots on goal and 26:02 of ice time. In terms of defensive pickups, I would rank him behind Kuba, but make no mistake: White is playing like a No. 4 fantasy D-man: He has three goals and six assists in his last 11 games. He also ranks in the top 10 among all defensemen with 54 shots on goal. And he is available in 84.5 percent of ESPN games and 73 percent of Yahoo! leagues.

photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons

NEWS ITEM: Welker runs wild over J-E-T-S

Something occurred to me as Wes Welker was running roughshod over the Jets Sunday (“psssssst, Rex, he’s No. 83”) – Welker should have been the guy getting the ball on fourth-and-2 in Indianapolis.

Now, the intention here was to let that thing die. Argue all you want about whether it was, depending on who was doing the talking, the worst decision in the history of the NFL or pure genius by our resident genius, I’m here to talk about the play itself, and Welker showed again Sunday why he should been the man making that play (“Rex, the little guy. In blue”).

Or maybe even Randy Moss?

Hey, anyone who has seen a Patriots game in this decade knows what a quality receiver Kevin Faulk is, so it’s hard to argue going to him – except when you have Welker, the best possession receiver of his time, on the same depth chart.

Welker (“Yeah, Rex, that guy”) has 302 catches in his 40 games in New England. Think about that, and he did it with Tom Brady missing all but a few plays last season.

You want consistency? The guy caught 112 passes, for 1,175 yards and eight touchdowns in 2007,  grabbed 111 for 1,165 yards and three TDs last year (with Matt Cassel throwing the ball) and now has 79 catches for 854 yards and four touchdowns, with six games left in this season.

“I’m not trying to point nobody out, but you know, Wes Welker, you gotta pressure him, you gotta get physical with him,” said Darrelle Revis, who was busy with Moss.

Pressure him? You have to be in the same zip code first.

What he did Sunday, 15 catches, 192 yards, plus an 11-yard run, was pure video game stuff. Yes, the Jets were determined to limit Moss, and Revis did another fine job, but someone had to pay attention to Welker.

“He’s like the Energizer bunny, he keeps on going and going, even if he gets knocked down,” said Revis.

The convincing win quieted the fourth-and-2 talk – some. It likely will never go away, especially if it winds up costing the Pats home field somewhere down the road.

Next up is a visit to New Orleans, and another chance to beat an unbeaten. I thought they’d beat both Indy and the Saints. Now, they get a shot to make me half right.

NEWS ITEM: Savard returns to Bruins

Just a few days off of a bad home loss to the Islanders, the B’s produced a pair of road wins Thursday and Friday night, both on the road against decent teams and both in extra time — and featuring the work ethic it is going to take for this team to win.

To win, this team has to grind. It’s really that simple.

Monday night, the Bruins were set to get Marc Savard, the closest thing they have to a major NHL point getter, back from his broken foot. Reports are swirling he’s about to sign a contract extension, thus passing up unrestricted free agency at the end of the season. If the club had any doubts about the deal in the 15 games he was out, his absence made it clear how much this team needs his skill level.

NEWS ITEM: This and that from the notebook

For the second time in a dozen years, Boston has lost a local college football program. In 1997, it was Boston University. Now, it’s Northeastern, and while there will be screams and sobs of sadness, you have to realize the Huskies played in a residential neighborhood and no one went to the games. How do you keep something like that going?

With former Red Sox executive Jed Hoyer now running things in San Diego, do the Sox pry Adrian Gonzalez loose from the Padres? Stay tuned on that one – and what could be an interesting battle between the Sox and Yankees over righties Roy Halladay and John Lackey. Both could affect the AL East next season.

The Celtics needed a last-second overtime shot to beat the Knicks Sunday, further proof this isn’t going to be the 70-win season I thought it might be. Danny Ainge might need to do some tweaking here, and the C’s will be better when Glen Davis gets back, providing, of course, he doesn’t have any more best friends to punch out.

Finally, with Charlie Weis on the way out at Notre Dame, is it really hard to imagine him coming back to New England? If it’s not here, it’s going to be somewhere – as long as it’s in the NFL. This college thing just didn’t work out.

Pardon me for not being too excited about the Bruins’ 4-3 shootout victory at Atlanta last night. The B’s blew an early two-goal lead and allowed the Thrashers to send the game into overtime by giving up a goal with 41 seconds left in the third period. This team is just not closing out games right now. One positive, though, is that they finally won in a shootout. Penalty shots were becoming this team’s personal house of horrors until last night.

I’m still not too high them, however. Getting Milan Lucic back last night should provide a big boost and Marc Savard’s return (whenever that may be) will likely do the same. But if those two guys can’t help turn this thing around, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see the Bruins make a big trade to shake things up a bit.

In the meantime, maybe they should listen to this kid’s speech from the movie Miracle. It might light a fire under their asses. It sure gets me pumped up every time I watch it.

One in, one out in Atlanta.

The good news is Milan Lucic, out since Mid-October with a broken finger on his right hand, will be in the line-up tonight against the Thrashers. There’s no indication of how much he might play (word is he’ll skate with Steve Begin and Byron Bitz) but the team desperately needs whatever boost his presence will bring. Don’t look for him to test that finger with the gloves off anytime soon, however. The question is, will opponents use that knowledge against him? We’ll see.

Now the bad news.

Tim Thomas is out because of an undisclosed, minor injury. We’ll hope to hear more about it at some point but look for Tukka Rask in net for the second game in a row and see if Thomas’ issue is anything to be concerned about afterwards.

Meanwhile, word is that the team and Marc Savard have a new deal in the works that could extend the center’s contract in Boston for another seven years.

This surprises the hell out of me, I have to admit. If the reports are true, the deal would take Savard pretty close to the age of 40 and cement him as the offensive cornerstone of the team for as long a stretch as anyone since Rick Middleton. I had honestly wondered if the team and he might part company after his current deal was completed, leaving the no. 1 pivot spot to David Krejci and him to seek his fortunes elsewhere in free agency.

Apparently both he and the B’s think otherwise. It would offer some incredible stability to the team’s offense and leadership, now and for the forseeable future and would allow Savard to flourish even more in the veteran role he has so effectively adopted in Boston. It could be a brilliant move. It could also be a disaster.

More on that if the deal, rumoured to be completed by Thanksgiving, comes to pass. I need time to ruminate.

Game Update: I have never seen an arena so empty as the Philips Arena is tonight. Entire sections are empty. There is practically no one sitting in the loge section other than directly behind the benches.

Game Update Update: Apparently 4000 people decided to be fashionably late or got the start time wrong because the lower section is now nearly filled up as the second period starts. Q’est que le fuck, Atlanta?

Multiple outlets have reported that the Bruins and Savard are close to agreeing on a seven-year contract extension. (boston.com)

It has been reported by multiple sources that Marc Savard and the Boston Bruins are close to agreeing on a seven year deal.  There has been some inconsistencies with the amount of the contract, NESN and RDS had it at $39 million ($5.5 million per year), while The Globe has it closer to $32 million ($4.7 million per year).  Many similar contracts, like Chris Pronger’s for example, see the player receiving much of the money in the first few years while their cap hit decreasing over time.  Also, many contracts have a retirement clause that doesn’t go against the team’s salary cap should he retire.

Marc Savard hasn’t played since since October 17th, and since then the Bruins have gone just 5-4-4 in 13 games.  It is no secret that Savard puts the offense, and power-play in motion as evidenced by his statistics since and before arriving in Boston.  It’s no surprise that the Bruins would want to resign such a rare talent.  That being said, seven years is a long time.

There is a trend going around much of the NHL lately where teams are signing stars to long-term and sometimes lifetime contracts.  These contracts are controversial, and in some cases, being investigated.

Scott Burnside of ESPN gives the example of Marian Hossa’s contract:

Hossa signed a 12-year deal with the Blackhawks that begins with payments of $7.9 million for the first seven years and finishes with four years at $1 million annually. The overall cap hit for the Blackhawks is a completely manageable $5.275 million a year.

A lot of the controversy comes in when considering retirement of these players.  It is speculated that the team and the players talk about a timetable for retirement which raises some eyebrows among the NHL brass.

KPD writes on the Bruins Blog that Savard’s new contract could break down something like this:

A typical payout for this kind of deal, made popular by the Red Wings and Flyers, would see Savard pull in, say, all but $3-4 million over the first five years.

Entering year No. 6 of the deal, Savard would be 38 years old. If his skills were diminished by then, the Bruins coud buy out the final two years of the deal at one-third discount, with the total amount due paid over four years.

The contract, as speculated, looks good to me.  Set-up men like Savard are not easy to get, except for that one guy we used to have.  What was his name? Joe something? I also don’t think Savard will decline rapidly like some other past Bruins players because he has the advantage of good hands.  Usually a players legs go first.  If a player is a speed guy and loses his ability to out-skate the opponents, he’s in big trouble.

Savvy isn’t one of those guys, he’s a decent skater but is clearly the quarterback out there.  Speaking of quarterbacks, Tom Brady isn’t fast by any means but he’s the best at his position.  Savard’s keen eye and passing ability will not slip up until his late 30’s injuries permitting.  Hockey is a contrast to baseball in terms of contract length.  Baseball players are so overpaid that if you give a player even five years he is likely to be a salary dump by the end.  A guy of Savard’s caliber does not lose his ability rapidly, as is the case in other sports.

Before the season started a lot of people in the media were saying how Savard would become expendable upon David Krejci’s new contract.   It only took 13 games this season to completely change these perspectives.  With the Bruins struggling to keep afloat Savard’s importance to the team became more evident than ever.

The Bruins have activated both Milan Lucic and Marc Savard from LTIR. Lucic is a game time decision for tonight’s game against Atlanta. Savard is not expected to play tonight, with tomorrow night’s game being a possible return date.

According to Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe, Marc Savard is set to sign a 7 year deal worth around 32 million (4.7 per season).

An Internet report this afternoon had No. 1 Bruins center Marc Savard poised to extend his deal for another seven seasons, beginning in 2010-’11, worth a total possibly as high as $39 million (about a $5.6 million cap hit).

According to a source familiar with the ongoing contract talks, the signing is not imminent and the total payout is not likely to be as high as reported today.

Savard, who will turn 33 years old next July, is closing in on a seven-year pact worth closer to $32 million (cap hit: approximately $4.7 million).

A typical payout for this kind of deal, made popular by the Red Wings and Flyers, would see Savard pull in, say, all but $3-4 million over the first five years.

Entering year No. 6 of the deal, Savard would be 38 years old. If his skills were diminished by then, the Bruins coud buy out the final two years of the deal at one-third discount, with the total amount due paid over four years.

The Globe reported on Sunday that Savard’s new deal probably would be finalized in the days around Thanksgiving.

According to RDS, Marc Savard is on the verge of signing an extension with the Bruins. The deal is rumored to be 39 million over 7 years for an annual cap hit of $5.57 million.

 At the completion of this contract Savard will be 40 years old, so I’m not sure what to make of this deal.  If the deal is front loaded with lower salaries at the end of the contract then it would be a good deal. Low salaries at the end of a contract will allow the Bruins to buyout the final year or two if necessary.

So for those of you not paying attention the Boston sports scene has fallen a little the past couple months. Not Kansas City bad but still there’s been a dip. The Sox lost in the first round of the playoffs, the Celtics have hit a mini two game skid, the Pats lost a close game on questionable coaching decisions in Indianapolis and now the Bruins have lost three in a row.

The same vaunted Bruins team that many had winning their division and a few had winning their conference have somehow turned into the Bruins team of a few years ago. Why? Well, injuries for starters. After losing Lucic to a broken finger the team almost immediately lost Marc Savard to a broken foot. Thornton has missed games here and there with undisclosed injuries and David Krejci had the Swine Flu.

Needless to say the season hasn’t started the way most of us wanted. But the good news in all of this is that despite losing all this offense, the team hasn’t forgotten how to play defense. The goalies have been standing on their heads and the overall team defense has kicked it up a notch. But a little offensive help wouldn’t be bad.

So my headline says send help and rumors are out there that the great (no sarcasm) GM of the Bruins Peter Chiarelli is on the prowl to get the Bruins some help. The biggest name that’s being floated around is Peter Forsberg. The rumor started at the NHL GM meetings back on the tenth but really not much has been said since. Here’s what Chiarelli had to say:

“I’ve had some discussions with Don Baizley [Forsberg's agent] on him and we had people scouting him last week. It’s something that we certainly would look at exploring.”

Then of course there was the rumor that the Thrashers had attempted to sign Ilya Kovalchuk to a long term deal and he declined the offer. That fuels the speculation that he will be gone before the trading deadline this year. Waiting front and center with more draft picks than they know what to do with? That’s right, your Boston Bruins.

Now Forsberg wouldn’t cost you any picks but he wants to win a Cup. The way the Bruins are playing right now, they don’t look like a Cup contender. He’ll likely go to where his chances to win are better. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in Detroit (hard to imagine after all the Colorado/Detroit brawls of the late 90’s early 2000’s). They seem to attract veterans looking to win and mix them with their own young guys.

The Kovalchuk trade probably wouldn’t happen until later in the year just because the cap implications the team wouldn’t be able to take on his whole salary without going over the hard cap (paying attention baseball?).

So for now we wait in hockey limbo and hope that somehow the Bruins can snap out of this funk. Getting Lucic back soon and Savard after that will certainly help but one of these other guys may be that push that puts the Bruins over the top.

8th Congressional district candidate Marc Savard points out how Congressman Steve Kagen doesn’t get it when it comes to this country’s economic problems.

First a great comparison with Santa Claus.

Santa Claus is a good man with good intentions. I believe Congressman Kagen too genuinely believes he is doing the right thing when he comes back from Washington with bags of goodies for certain folks in the 8th District.
Yet the catch is that Santa Claus actually works and creates his own products, while Santa Kagen takes our work product, siphons off some for others among the Washington tax-eating crowd and then distributes back what might be left for us, at his discretion.

Next pointing out what the these recent “solutions” from Washington are really doing.  Hint – they aren’t the great deal they appear to be.

So, while the recently announced extension of the new homebuyers tax credit, and now the additional program of tax credits for existing home buyers ,sounds like a great deal, all it is doing is artificially creating a market and distorting sales that the free market forces would and should handle on its own. Just as the cash for clunkers program drew sales forward and did nothing for overall sales in the long run, so does this sound bite policy do nothing for the overall health of the economy and home sales in the long run. And just as the auto industry started with a limited policy of “cash back” programs to spur sales, now the consumer won’t buy a car without one. The same will happen with the home builders industry. Buyers will now wait to purchase until they see the next “cash back” program come from Washington, further distorting and destroying sales in the long run.

In conclusion what the sound solution really is while pointing out who the real problem is.

What we need is for Congress to start dealing with the big picture , which is to get their out of control spending under control and lower tax rates across the board. These policies are the only sound solution to the dire situation that Congress has created, yet it looks as if Congressman Kagen and Speaker Pelosi just don’t get it. Washington is not the answer to our country’s economic problems,  it is the problem. (Source: Santa Kagen – Savard for Congress)

Which means Congressman Kagen, as part of the problem, needs to be sent back private practice in November 2010.

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What's not to love about the statistical upside of Red Wings LW/RW Todd Bertuzzi?

Every Thursday, the Genius will list three players to monitor for fantasy relevance. As a rule, the players will be owned in fewer than 50 percent of Yahoo! and ESPN leagues.

Player: D Andy Greene, Devils.

Ownership: 1 percent Yahoo!, 1.1 percent ESPN.

Tonight: The Devils visit the ice cold Penguins at 7:30 pm EST.

Optimism: With D Paul Martin (broken left arm) and D Johnny Oduya (lower-body injury) on the shelf, Greene has led the Pitchforks blueliners in minutes in the last three games — and he is skating on power plays too. He has one goal and four assists in his last four, including three PPPs (one goal, two assists).

Skepticism: A breakout year at age 27? In his three previous campaigns, Greene has never played more than 59 games or tallied more than 10 points.

—-

Player: LW/RW Todd Bertuzzi, Red Wings.

Ownership: 13 percent Yahoo!, 7.0 percent ESPN.

Tonight: The Wings host the Canucks at 7:30 pm EST.

Optimism: We all remember the Bertuzzi of 2002-03: 46 goals, 51 assists, 144 penalty minutes, 42 PPPs (25 goals, 17 assists) and, as if all that weren’t enough, 243 shots on goal. In last night’s 9-1 romp over the Blow Jackets, Bertuzzi tallied one goal and one assist (PP) and led the Wings with six shots on goal. It was the third straight game in which he’s taken at least five shots. With 50 shots on the season, Bertuzzi, 34, is on pace for a career high 250 shots. At bottom, he can help fantasy owners in that category. His track record suggests he can help in a few others. As a bonus, in Yahoo! formats he is eligible at RW and LW. (He’s only an LW in ESPN.)

Skepticism: Can he stay healthy? The last time he lasted more than 70 games was 2005-06, when he had 71 points (25 goals, 46 assists), 32 PPPs (12 goals, 20 assists), 200 shots and 120 PIMs.

—-

Player: C Patrice Bergeron, Bruins.

Ownership: 24 percent Yahoo!, 19.9 percent ESPN.

Tonight: The Bruins host the Panthers at 7:00 pm EST.

Optimism: With 12 points (six goals, six assists) and 45 shots in 17 games, Bergeron is showing shades of the breakout star he appeared to be in 2005-06, when he launched 310 shots on goal and totaled 73 points (31 goals, 42 assists) in 81 games. He is the team’s leading scorer and play-maker with C Marc Savard (foot) still mending and C David Krejci (swine flu) having just returned to action Tuesday.

Skepticism: He has only one point on the power play. If Savard and Krejci return to form, he may not get a big special-teams opportunity in the second half of the season.

photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons

The Pens will be finishing up their current road trip tomorrow night against Boston (7-7-2-16) at 7pm.

- They went 1-2-0 during their West Coast trip last week, losing to LA and San Jose. A win tomorrow night would be nice before they come back to the Mellon on Thursday.

- Boston has two important players on IR, Marc Savard  (foot) and Milan Lucic (finger). Marc Savard is one of Boston’s best forwards so…that must suck. From what I remember, Milan Lucic played well for the Bruins last playoffs, and I always notice his play when I watch Boston.

- During the offseason, Boston traded Phil Kessel, one of their top forwards (36+24=60 in 2008-09), to Toronto for 1st and 2nd round picks in the 2010 draft and a 1st round pick in the 2011 draft. Kessel was awesome on Savard’s line last year. This trade made me really angry…mostly because I bought temoosalami a Phil Kessel jersey as an early Christmas present. What the heck.

- Zdeno Chara’s on my fantasy team. So if Boston does score tomorrow, let’s hope it’s him.

MISCELLANEOUS:

- Gonch, Malkin, and Talbot have all been practicing with the Pens lately.

- TK probably won’t be playing tomorrow night. Coach Dan: “I think after this next game we’ll have an evaluation with where he is…I won’t know until then.” (Pens Report) While TK’s injury has remained undisclosed, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette mentioned that it is a groin injury.

- Letang was expected to be evaluated by team doctors today after falling awkwardly on his shoulder/arm in the first period of the San Jose game. This means we’ll probably see Deryk Engelland in the Pens’ lineup tomorrow night.

- Penguins president David Morehouse had a heart attack.

The main hockey team I root for, the Boston Bruins, has been fluctuating in their ability to play like they don’t suck. This problem is due in part to the loss of awesome short forward Marc Savard. Savard recently broke his foot, and is out for 4-6 weeks. Wonderful. So here goes.

I’m going to admit it: I have a strange obsession with Marc Savard. It’s nothing creepy, nothing like “Oh golly, look at that Marc Savard. I do so want to jump his bones” Ew. Sorry Marc.
There’s just something about him that cracks me up. Whether it’s the fact that he wears bright yellow skate laces from time to time

or his penchant for being photographed with his tongue sticking out of his mouth

like he’s a human with temperature regulation issues (as opposed to a dog), it just gets me. Yeah, he’s about 5′4” (okay, 5’10”); sure, it’s been said that was booted out of a few European training camps during the lockout for being out of shape [Unconfirmed! Please don't sue me?]. Okay, maybe he keeps trying to grow an extremely unfortunate soul patch. Whatever.

It’s all forgotten in the face of about 5 things.

1. He’s good. Like, really freaking good. Passing and scoring. He scores goals and makes passes that you barely even see and then next thing you know the Bruins have scored.
I can’t embed, but if you click here you can see.

As for his passing skills, don’t just take my word for it, take his teammate’s word for it:

“Best passer in the league on the half-wall,’’ said Derek Morris. “Joe Thornton’s close. But Savvy, he can pass it cross-ice over three sticks and land it flat. You think, ‘Oh, he got lucky.’ But he does it 60 times a year. He’s the best passer, bar none. Best passer in the league. He knows what he’s doing before he gets the puck. As soon as he gets it, he’s throwing it to where the guy’s going to be.”

P.S. Please find a way to make your foot heal like, NOW, Savvy? The power play sucks terribly without you!

2. He’s a little less than twice my age, and his skin is better than mine. A lot better. I’m convinced that if he hasn’t sold his soul to the devil he drinks/bathes in the blood of babies. Seriously. Look at this.

3.

C’mon. Its bizarre, and it’s not those two pictures in particular, but….oh, fuck it. It’s just funny. What’s not to love about ridiculous photoshops and amusingly overly serious photographs?

4. Between his height, the pitch of his voice, his Canadian accent and his rather….hyperactive habits, he reminds of a Chihuahua. A full grown, hockey-playing, person Chihuahua. I swear I’m not crazy, see for yourself! Damn you non-embeddable NHL videos!

5. He’s sort of totally ridiculous. He bit someone once. Normally, I wouldn’t condone that, but I guess when you’re Marc Savard’s size you have to fight somehow, and his hands are too valuable to get hurt in an attempt to pummel somebody. Also, he’s always coming to the aid of teammate and tough guy Milan Lucic. It’s kind of adorable, but kind of ridiculously stupid because Lucic is 6’4” and Savard is 5’10”. I always get the impression that I could take Savard in a fight, so what in god’s name does he think he’s doing? The intent is noble though, so I’ll give him that, and it makes it on this list.

To sum up, he’s a wacky little freak, but he’s also a talented little freak. There’s a picture of him on the internet (thank god for Google Image Search and boring homework readings) eating a blue burrito, and since then I’ve wanted to find the place that makes blue burritos. I mean, a burrito! And it’s blue! What’s not to love? If it weren’t for Savard, this completely unnecessary yet awesome quest would never have made its way into my life.

Obviously, when it comes to Savard I’m biased, because he’s on the team that I root for, but who doesn’t enjoy someone they can laugh at for being completely bizarre (and short), while still loving for being super talented? In cases like these, the laughing at bit is always second to the adoration for talent.

I’d wager a bet that most people who are ardent fans of any team have some sort of ridiculous inexplicable non-romantic love for/obsession with at least one player on the team. Look at Derek Jeter. Look at David Wright. People adore them. They love these players, without being in love with them. Any time people invest emotionally in something they’re going to develop a bond with whatever information is provided. Hell, I bonded with Donatello’s statue of St. George after studying art history (Don’t look at me like that. Georgie’s a-freaking-dorable). Teams nowadays foster this bond. Go to a team website and you’ll find behind the scenes video footage, footage shot directly by players, and other types of interactive media. A more attached fan is probably a fan that’s more willing to drop money on merchandise, and at the end of the day, a team is a business. While a background corporation might not cultivate the personalities, they’re probably behind what lets us develop our love for them probably is. For a last example, look at Sean Avery. Most Rangers fans adore him. He has a personality we’ve been exposed to, and if it works in your favor, why wouldn’t you love him?
And so it goes. In another week, there will probably be a photograph of Savard on the Bruins website, and I’ll probably laugh gleefully and express my love for the weird little dude to my sister, who will agree with me, because why not? (I did just list five reasons why.)
Oh, did I mention he drives a car better suited for someone Zdeno Chara’s height and has rims personalized with “91” on them?
Yeah, if you don’t think I think that’s ridiculously stupidly hilarious, you haven’t been reading this post.

It should be noted that I have made quite a few mentions of Savard’s rather diminutive stature. I actually have nothing against short people, being rather petite myself. In fact, his size relative to that of his teammates’ is just another reason I’m a big fan. Same goes for Martin St. Louis. In conclusion….go short people! (?)

NEWS ITEM: Offseason moves make the Celtics much better

Someone asked me the other day how many games I thought the Celtics would win this season.

The number that came to mind? 70.

That was the number I thought they’d get to last year, when the injury to Kevin Garnett put a stop to all the talk. This year? It really is hard to imagine this team losing more than 12 and here’s why: the 2009-10 version is better than the one that won the championship two years ago.

Sure, James Posey is gone, and everyone loved James Posey. Sure, Leon Powe has moved on. But look what Danny Ainge did during the offseason.

Rasheed Wallace? Marquis Daniels? Shelden Williams? C’mon, that’s just not fair.

San Antonio made big, maybe even better moves (Richard Jefferson, Antonio McDyess) in the West. The Lakers brought in Ron Artest, and don’t worry about the talk of how it might not work out with Kobe. It will. Those teams are in the West and the feeling here is one of those two teams will win the title. But they’ll do it against the Celtics.

The East? Shaq to Cleveland? Did you happen to see the opening game between Boston and the Cavs? Not even close, and it won’t be in the playoffs. Orlando? Perhaps. But not Cleveland. I love Shaq but his days are well behind him. That will all continue to be about LeBron, and James just doesn’t kill the Celtics.

Simply put, Ainge has assembled a bench that could more than hold its own against some starting fives in the league. The three names mentioned above–Wallace, Daniels and Williams– joining Eddie House and the currently injured Big Baby Davis. And don’t forget the ever-useful Brian Scalabrine.

Now, for the purposes of this argument, we acknowledge Wallace is no long a 40-minute-plus guy and there really isn’t a true backup point guards. But you also have to remember this group would also have replacements for Garnett and the gang.

It’s just one of those sports arguments – my bench is better than your starters. Hear that, New Jersey? The LA Clippers? Do I put my Knicks in that group? Minnesota? Charlotte?

OK, I could be stretching a point. But this bench is good, scary good, which makes you think the Celts can withstand just about anything.

Well, a long-term injury to Rajon Rondo would be a major problem, which is why the club gave him a five-year/$55 million contract extension this week. Rondo has his flaws, mostly in his spotty maturity, and there are those out there who insist much of his offense comes from the opposition having to pay so much attention to the Big Three, but this guy’s an athlete, and he’s also the future.

The Larry Bird Celtics grew old together, and you have to remember the deaths of Len Bias and Reggie Lewis had as much to do with the collapse of the bridge to the future as anything, but Rondo is a bridge to this future. He will now, barring unforeseen circumstances, be around when Garnett, Ray Allen and perhaps even Paul Pierce are gone. Not a bad piece to a bridge.

NEWS ITEM: Bruins struggling for identity

As this was being written, the local hockey team was still in the midst of a rather amazing streak, one that could only be ended by a Tuesday night loss in Detroit.

Through the first 13 games of the season, the B’s had yet to win or lose two games in a row.

They started with a home loss to Washington and have alternated wins and losses ever since, ending up at 6-6-1. They lost to the Rangers in New York Sunday by 1-0 and were hoping to keep the early trend going for one more night with a win in Detroit, in a busy week that has Montreal coming in Thursday night and Buffalo Saturday.

The Bruins aren’t scoring. Tim Thomas, coming off a Vezina Trophy season, was 4-5, and his teammates had scored four goals in the five losses.

Marc Savard and Milan Lucic, both out 4-6 weeks with injuries, are missed. So were the 36 goals Phil Kessel scored last season, even though he wouldn’t be playing, anyway, because of offseason shoulder surgery. That was the team’s top line last year. But the problem has been the lack of production by the guys left behind.

No one is scoring, including defensemen Zdeno Chara and Dennis Wideman, who combined for 32 goals last year and had one through 13 games, none by Chara. He had 19 last year.

The power play was 2-for-36 over the last 11 games.

Claude Julien shook up his lines heading into Detroit, putting Patrice Bergeron, his best player since the opening faceoff this season (yes, he’s back), between Marco Sturm and Mark Recchi and David Krejci between Michael Ryder and Blake Wheeler. Things got so tough that Julien was forced to break up the energy unit of Wheeler, Vladimir Sobotka and Daniel Paille, the group that produced a win over Edmonton last Saturday.

NEWS ITEM: World Series heads back to New York

Dust off that Pedro stuff, Red Sox fans, it’s not over yet.

Is it me, or does Joe Buck sound a little more excited when the Phillies do well? And he’s not even an ex-Phillie.

We now have more to deal with this offseason than we bargained for.  We all expected Theo to have his hands full with fixing this team, which obviously has holes in it.  That’s hard enough.  But in addition to that the front office and coaching staff just took two huge hits.

Brad Mills is now the manager of the Houston Astros.  Congratulations and good wishes for success, though not at our expense.  To be honest, Mills achieving success at our expense isn’t likely.  Mills will have his hands full down there, because the Astros haven’t exactly been World Series material year in and year out.  But I will say that after spending time in the dugout with Tito, Mills will have learned from the best.  Still, I don’t expect the Astros to suddenly become some sort of threat.  Of course, now we have to find a new bench coach, one who’s as good or better than Mills.

It’s finally official: Jed Hoyer is now the general manager of the San Diego Padres.  Congratulations and good wishes for success, though not at our expense.  That leaves Ben Cherington as our sole assistant GM, but I think he can handle it.  More importantly, this has profoundly positive implications for a possible Adrian Gonzalez trade.

Speaking of player additions, I wouldn’t be too surprised if our front office attempts to do business with Ben Sheets.  As Theo said, it would be a low-price, low-risk move that could pay off big dividends down the road.  And if it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out.  No harm done.  Besides, it’s not like Sheets can afford to be as proud as he used to be.  After all the injuries he’s had, he’d be lucky to be in uniform for a contender next year.

Dean Jones, Jr. of the Baltimore Sun says that John Henry is the best owner in Major League Baseball.  Can’t say I disagree.  Pedro Martinez and his ego took advantage of a second visit to the World Series stage when he revisited the Don Zimmer incident.  He agreed with Zimmer that it was Zimmer’s fault.  Also can’t say I disagree.  Speaking of the World Series, the Yanks lead it two to one.  Let me just say that the region of New England will not be very happy with the city of Philadelphia if the Phillies fail to decimate.

And that’s a perfect segue into some extremely disturbing developments.  On Wednesday, Red Sox Nation and I visited the Boston Globe to read Tony Massarotti’s column, just like we always do.  But we were in for a profoundly rude surprise.  Mazz urged Red Sox Nation to root for the Yankees in the World Series because apparently a Yankees win would reinstate New England’s competitive fire.  I literally had to do a double-take.  Tony Massarotti, one of New England’s most trusted sports writers, was recommending the ultimate crime.  The ultimate blasphemy.  The ultimate act of treachery and betrayal.  First of all, let me take this opportunity to affirm in writing that I will not, nor have I ever, nor will I ever, root for the New York Yankees.  It is impossible for me to do so.  I am a Red Sox fan.  I loathe the New York Yankees with every fiber of my being and will in no way and at no time even consider the possibility of remotely supporting their organization.  And I think I can safely say that Red Sox Nation wholeheartedly agrees with me on this one.  You should have seen the comments on this column.  There were hundreds of them.  I assure you that you would be hard-pressed to find one that agrees with him.  Secondly, I was not aware of the fact that we lacked competitive fire.  We’re Red Sox Nation.  We’re the greatest fans in all of baseball.  You don’t get much more competitive fire than that.  So Mazz insults us, he insults our history, and he insults our loyalty.  I’m not sure Red Sox Nation and I will be able to read his columns in quite the same way again.

Furthermore, an article appeared yesterday in the New York Times by lifelong Red Sox fan Joe Nocera.  Same story.  He urged Red Sox Nation to root for the Yankees because they’re the underdogs.  Let me say something right now.  The New York Yankees are never underdogs.  How can a team be an underdog if they attempt to buy a championship every single year? What, they don’t win a World Series in eight years and all of a sudden they’re the victims of the rest of the league? There is a huge difference between a drought of eight years and a drought of eighty-six years.  And this article offends me personally because the author is a Red Sox fan behind enemy lines.  The New York chapter of Red Sox Nation has more fight than any other, and now he’s suddenly okay with the Yankees winning a twenty-seventh title? This is incredibly insulting.  Remember where you come from.  Remember the Royal Rooters.  Remember those eighty-six years.  And never forget 2004.

Nico Savidge of the Daily Cardinal wrote an article with the headline, “Yankees represent everything wrong with baseball.” I couldn’t agree more.  I suggest that both Mazz and Nocera read this as a reality check.  Let’s not forget that the Yankees are the Evil Empire, a business crushing opponents with its oversized wallet.  And don’t even get me started on the steroids, the ticket prices, and the broadcasters.  Seriously.

And that brings us to Tuesday.  On Tuesday of this past week, we celebrated the five-year anniversary of the 2004 World Series victory of the Boston Red Sox.  That was the greatest day in the history of the franchise.  It vindicated a Nation and set an entire region of the United States of America free.  I can’t even begin to describe the elation of that victory.  There’s only one way to sum it up:

“Back to Foulke! Red Sox fans have longed to hear it: the Boston Red Sox are world champions!”

Red Sox fans around the world were glued to their television sets on the night of October 27, 2004.  Generations of diehards achieved peace with that final out.  No victory meant more to a fan base than this victory meant to us.  And that’s why, even though this October didn’t turn out as we’d planned, five years later we’re still on top of the world.

The Patriots defeated the Buccaneers, 35-7.  We get a bye this week.  The Bruins lost to the Devils and shut out the Oilers yesterday.  With Lucic and Savard both on the injured reserve, I’m just glad we’re still putting W’s on the board.

The Onion

But when it gets this predictable, you get bored.

Through 11 games of this season, the Bruins’ record is as such: Loss, win, loss, win, loss, win, loss, win, (shootout) loss, win, loss. This leaves us with 11 points – fourth in the division, but only four points behind Buffalo, three behind Ottawa, and one behind Montreal.

It also puts us in a three-way tie for eighth in the conference right now with Philadelphia and Tampa Bay, but the Flyers get the edge based on that shootout win they had against us. Curse you, Ray Emery!

Last night’s game against the Devils was a heartbreaker – the boys had one of their best starts all season, only to lose the game on a Dainius Zubrus goal 18:34 into the third period. The Lunch-Pail Crew – Shawn Thornton, Steve Begin, and Byron Bitz – especially played well. An exchange between my friend and I during the game went as follows:

“No one remind Bitz that he is not supposed to play pretty.”

“Are our fourth-liners… oh my god, GOOD?”

“Shhhhhh. Don’t tell them that they are fourth-liners… they forgot.”

I love the Lunch-Pailers, past and present. They’re the guys who are going to get us through the injury-induced absence of Marc Savard. You can also call Daniel Paille and Vladimir Sobotka members of this prestigious group. These guys, the grit, heart, and soul of the team, are the ones who score the key goals for us and make the key plays, not the top six.

Why do I say that? Every team we need to beat has a solid top line (when healthy, ours is Marco Sturm, Savard, and Michael Ryder; Montreal’s features Mike Cammalleri, Scott Gomez, and Brian Gionta; Philadelphia has Simon Gagne, Jeff Carter, and Daniel Briere, et cetera). But not every team we need to beat has a solid fourth line. Come on, do you really think lines with Arron Asham and Georges Laraque stand a chance in matchups against our boys? I think not.

The Bruins play the Edmonton Oilers in a matinee tomorrow. Not to jinx the pattern, but I foresee a win…

Canucks G Roberto Luongo is only expected to miss one week.

1. Canucks G Roberto Luongo (ribs) is expected to only miss one week.

2. Thrashers LW Ilya Kovalchuk (broken bone right foot) is out four weeks.

3. Rangers RW Marian Gaborik (right knee) missed last night’s game at the Islanders, a 3-1 loss for the Manhattoes. He has not been ruled out of tomorrow night’s game at Minnesota. If he misses that game, don’t sweat it. Start to sweat if he misses Sunday afternoon’s game when the Bruins hit the Big Apple.

4. No need to think about Canucks LW Daniel Sedin (foot) until November 6 or thereabouts.

5. No need to think about Bruins C Marc Savard (broken left foot) until November 14 or thereabouts.

6. Blackhawks C Jonathan Toews (concussion) did not practice yesterday and is not expected to play tonight at Nashville. He may also miss Friday night’s game vs. Montreal. You need not worry unless he misses the Nov. 5 game at Phoenix.

7. Blackhawks RW Marian Hossa (right shoulder) is practicing. Based on all we have read, the Genius projects the Nov. 15 game vs. the Sharks as his return date.

8. Devils C/LW Patrick Elias (groin) has not yet practiced with the team. He may start doing so next week. Until then, keep him in your IR slot.

9. Sharks RW Devin Setoguchi (leg) has missed the last two games. The Sharks host the Avalanche tomorrow night, and he may be back — check the San Jose Mercury News to see if he returns to practice.

10. Sharks C Joe Pavelski (left foot) has returned to practice. He could return to real games any day now.

11. No need to think about Panthers LW David Booth (concussion) until November 10 or thereabouts.

12. Kings RW Justin Williams (lower body) has missed four straight games. He could return tonight vs. Vancouver. He has practiced this week.

13. Oilers D Sheldon Souray (concussion) still is not skating. No need to think about him until Nov. 5 or thereabouts.

photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Sorry folks, I know I’ve been M.I.A. for a couple months now, but it has been a hectic time for me. I’m back attending classes at the University of Rhode Island, I had my 21st Birthday, and life is pretty flippin sweet right now. Obviously I missed writing and sharing my opinions on the sports scene, so lets play a little catch up. I owe you guys a fair amount of ‘Sports Talk’ so I’m gonna write up an update for the four major local teams, a Quick Hitz, a Next Big Thing, and my Red Sox off season proposal. So without further ado, lets get it started with an update on my beloved Boston Bruins.

The Boston Bruins have had a rough start to the ‘09/’10 season, victims of lackluster play and major injuries. The roster was majorly tweaked in the off season with the trade of young stud Phil Kessel to Toronto for draft picks, and the B’s recently traded gritty forward Chuck Kobasew to Minnesota for yet another draft pick. This trend of trading assetts for picks can seem frustrating, but these picks can be used in trades to get a big piece at the trade deadline to make a push for the Cup, which would certainly be worth it. Also, the B’s are saving cap space in order to hopefully re-sign star center Marc Savard in the off season. Speaking of Savard, the playmaking veteran is sidelined for atleast the next month with an injury. Boston cult hero Milan Lucic will also be out for at least a month with an injury. However, the team can withstand the losses as long as they get great goaltending from Tim Thomas, one of the league’s best between the pipes. Thomas, along with captain Zdeno Chara, is the key to keeping the Bruins at the top of the playoff race until the cavalry comes back. This young core is set up for a long run at relevance, centered around young stars David Krejci, Blake Wheeler, and Lucic. However, after finishing first in the east last year it is important for the Bruins to shake loose this rust and avoid a “sophomore slump”. Definately a disappointing start to the season for the B’s, but nothing that can’t be turned around with some smarter play.

We celebrated the fifth anniversary of our complete and total decimation of the Yankees in the 2004 ALCS on Tuesday.  Just thinking about that 10-3 final score gives me goosebumps.  That was the greatest day in the history of New England for all of a week before we won it all.  World champions.  I said this at the time, and I say it every year, because it’s true: it never gets old.  No matter how many wins anyone else may be able to rack up, none of them will ever measure up to 2004.  Ever.  And no defeat will ever be as painful as the one the Yankees experienced.  There’s a reason why it’s called the greatest comeback in the history of baseball.  And I wouldn’t have wanted to get to the big stage any other way.

Meanwhile, Tim Bogar and Brad Mills interviewed for the Astros’ managerial job.  That’s not something I want to hear.  Mills has been our bench coach for the past six seasons, and he’s done a great job.  Obviously I’m rooting for his success, but I just hope that success is achieved in Boston, not in Houston.

And supposedly we’re chasing Adrian Gonzalez via trade.  This could get very interesting, very quickly.  At twenty-seven years of age, he hit forty home runs, batted in ninety-nine RBIs this year, led the Major Leagues in walks, and finished the season with a .407 on-base percentage.  But wait; the plot thickens.  One of our assistant GMs, Jed Hoyer, is about to become the Padres’ GM.  (This leaves Ben Cherington as our only assistant GM.  The decision is likely to be announced in the next few days.  Bud Selig doesn’t want clubs making such major announcements during the World Series, so it’ll happen beforehand, especially since Hoyer will need to get his personnel in place and prepare for the GMs meeting starting on November 9.) So if one of them lands the job, our options become wide-open, and the road to the trade just got re-paved.  The important question here is who is on the block.  I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s Mike Lowell and prospects; Youk would then move to third permanently while Gonzalez plays first.  But I don’t know if the Padres would bite.  I think it’s safe to say Youk won’t be going anywhere; he’s too good at the plate and in the field.  And I don’t think Pedroia even enters into this discussion.  So I think Lowell, prospects, and bench players are up for grabs.

Speaking of Pedroia, check this out.  During his MVP season, he swung at the first pitch fifteen percent of the time.  This past year, that stat was down to seven percent.  Furthermore, during his MVP season he hit .306 with eight doubles and two dingers on the first pitch.  This past year, he hit .167 with four hits, period.  And if you don’t consider his one-pitch at-bats, his numbers from the two season are almost exactly the same.  But there’s a trade-off.  With more patience came twenty-four more walks and a comparable on-base percentage despite the thirty-point drop in average.  And while we’re on the subject of examining the season via stats, the only Red Sox catcher since 1954 who’s had a better average in September than Victor Martinez is Carlton Fisk.  Just to give you an idea of how ridiculously awesome V-Mart is.  Youk has had the highest OPS in the American League since 2008.  (It’s .960, a full ten points higher than A-Rod’s.  I’m just sayin’.) Jacoby Ellsbury is one of only six since 1915 to bat over .300 with forty-five extra-base hits and seventy steals; the other five are Ty Cobb, Rickey Henderson, Willie Wilson, Tim Raines, and Kenny Lofton.  David Ortiz hit more home runs than anyone in the AL since June 6, but only six of those were hit with runners in scoring position and struggled immensely against lefties.  In three of his past four seasons, Jason Bay has experienced a slump starting sometime in June and ending sometime in July that lasts for about a month.

Saito cleared waivers on Monday, but mutual interest in his return has been expressed.  Why not? He finished the year with a 2.43 ERA, the eighth-lowest in the Majors for a reliever with forty-plus appearances.  Wakefield had surgery at Mass General on Wednesday to repair a herniated disk in his back.  The surgery was successful, he’ll begin rehab immediately, and expect him to be pitching before Spring Training.

In other news, Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt fired his wife, Jamie, from her position as CEO of the organization.  Ouch.  Now she’s amassing an army of investors in an effort to possibly buy out her husband.  Ouch times two.  This could potentially ruin the team; when the organization’s top officials are preoccupied with marriage and ownership disputes, it’s harder to focus on free agency, harder to allocate funds to the right players, and therefore harder to be good.  Not that I’m complaining; Joe Torre and Manny Ramirez blew it this year and I’m looking forward to the Dodgers dropping down in the standings.

That’s a wrap for this week.  Not too much goes on until the stove gets hot, but this is when Theo gets his winter game plan together.  If there’s one thing we can count on, it’s that he’ll be making some serious moves.  After a postseason finish like ours, that’s really the only thing you can do.

The Pats crushed the Titans last weekend.  Seriously.  The final score was 59-0.  It was ridiculous.  The Bruins, on the other hand, could do better.  We lost to Phoenix, shut out Dallas, lost a shootout to the Flyers, and won a shootout to the Senators.  We traded Chuck Kobasew to the Wild for right winger Craig Weller, still in the AHL; rights to forward Alex Fallstrom, a freshman at Harvard; and a second-round draft pick in 2011.  So it could be a while before we see a return on this move, but it freed cap space in preparation for next offseason, when Tuukka Rask, Blake Wheeler, and Marc Savard all hit the free agent market.  And make no mistake: Peter Chiarelli was sending a message.  If you underperform, you’re gone, because we can use the financial flexibility of a trade to make us more competitive than you’re making us right now.

Boston Globe Staff/Jim Davis

Bruins D Dennis Wideman is back, and teammate Derek Morris has reaped the fantasy benefits.

Quick: Which Bruin has scored the most in C Marc Savard’s (foot) absence? LW Steve Begin, who tallied the game-winner Wednesday in Boston’s 3-2 win vs. Nashville and scored the game-tying goal in Thursday’s 4-3 shootout loss at Philadelphia. Perhaps this isn’t too surprising. Begin seldom skated with Savard anyway; he doesn’t have to adjust to the loss of a gifted pivot.

The other Bruin scoring in Savard’s absence is D Derek Morris, who notched an assist Wednesday and one goal and one helper Thursday. But the Morris streak probably has more to do with the return of D Dennis Wideman (shoulder). Though Wideman did not score in these last two games, he was +1 in each contest and he consumed around 20:00 minutes of ice time. Don’t be surprised if Wideman finally cracks the scoring log when the Bruins visit Ottawa tonight at 7 pm EST.

Last night was the Penguins first game without D Sergei Gonchar (wrist), who like Savard is out four-to-six weeks. The box score didn’t look too different (two goals for Crosby, two assists for Malkin, one helper for Goligoski), except Goligoski played a whopping 26:22 — well above his 21:39 average. Interestingly, it was Crosby who also got a bump in minutes, logging 25:50 (he averages 21:08). We shall see if these playing-time patterns continue tonight with the Penguins hosting the Devils at 7:30 pm EST. Though the Penguins prevailed 3-2 last night against the Panthers, they did fall behind 2-0 in the first and did not score until Crosby’s power play goal in the third.

Some links and quickies before we go:

• Has anyone seen Flyers LW Scott Hartnell? In his last three games he has not scored, he has no penalty minutes, only four shots on goal, and a -2. The former first-round pick, lest we forget, was a stallion last season, scoring 30 goals and amassing 210 shots on goal and 143 PIMs. In other words: This is a guy you want to trade for.

• Very quietly, Yahoo! granted Blackhawks C/RW Patrick Sharp the RW eligibility he so richly deserves. What’s funny is that in ESPN formats, Sharp is only eligible at LW.

• Speaking of Yahoo!, there are some great nuggets in Scott Pianowski’s Red-Light District column from yesterday. My favorite tidbit: His advice to take a shot with Devils RW Nicklas Bergfors (former first-round pick, 20 shots on goal in his last five games including an eight-shot effort Oct. 17).

• Another Saturday, another great day to consume Sean Allen’s Forecaster. The following teams are playing only twice next week: Kings, Flyers, Flames, Thrashers, and Lightning.

• The tough questions: Given they are only playing twice, do you bench your mighty Flyers (Carter, Richards, Pronger, Carle), your white-hot Lightning (Malone, Stamkos, St. Louis), your five Kings (Brown, Doughty, Smyth, Kopitar, Williams), your lone Thrasher (Kovalchuk), your solitary Flame (Iginla)?

• My tough answers: In head-to-head leagues where you are forced to set your lineup Monday, bench all of the above except Kovalchuk, Kopitar, Smyth, Stamkos, Carter, and…amazingly…Malone. The only forwards worth playing in two-game weeks are the ones with hat-trick potential. Otherwise, you are better off rolling with someone like Islanders LW Matt Moulson, who plays four times next week. Moulson is nowhere near (say) Iginla as a player, but he is likely to outproduce him next week since he’s playing four times and Iginla is playing twice.

photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons

The swagerless B's need to recapture identity and intensity.

I haven’t been able to really sink my teeth into this years Bruins squad… there seems to be a definite decline in intensity and the month+ losses of Savard and Lucic is making it increasingly hard for the team to develop an identity.

–Those injuries, btw, are also going to affect their shots to play in the upcoming winter Olympics being played in Milan Lucic’s home town.–

Apparently Patrice Burgeron is playing great and some new faces are having an impact, but in general… I’m a little soft on the Bruins right now.

And they lost to the effing Fliers last night in a shootout which is a terrible way to lose a game.

StartMattCassel