Author: @dylan_gale17

The Under Appreciation of Tuukka Rask- By the Numbers

The Under Appreciation of Tuukka Rask- By the Numbers

Posted by | May 8, 2018 | ,

It’s no secret that fans of Boston sports have become spoiled over the years. Our four teams have collectively won ten championships since 2001 and Boston is the winningest sports city of the 21st century. It’s a great label to have, but these consistent banners have led to fans expecting nearly unattainable results. High expectations are nothing new in Boston, but Tuukka Rask shouldn’t be under any scrutiny. A DEPENDABLE ASSET Rask has a .922 career save percentage to go with a 2.26 goals-against average. Anybody would admit that these are solid numbers, but most don’t realize just how impressive they really are. According to www.quanthockey.com, Rask leads all active NHL goalies in both categories. He beats...

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J.D. Martinez Is Proving His Worth

J.D. Martinez Is Proving His Worth

Posted by | Apr 30, 2018 | ,

The city of Boston is all too familiar with big name players failing to meet expectations. Just look at guys like Daisuke, Pablo Sandoval, or Carl Crawford to name a few. The pressure of playing in Boston isn’t for everyone, but J.D. Martinez is looking good.   AN OFFENSIVE DYNAMO Manager Alex Cora has slotted Martinez in the clean-up spot all season, and it seems to be paying off. His 32 hits through 97 at-bats accumulates to a .330 average, which is good for fourth on the team. Martinez is also leading the Sox with 22 RBI’s. This puts him on...

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Giancarlo Stanton Can’t Handle the Pressure of New York

Giancarlo Stanton Can’t Handle the Pressure of New York

Posted by | Apr 23, 2018 | , ,

It wasn’t long ago that Red Sox Nation was collectively brought to its hands and knees, begging for Giancarlo Stanton. He has the power that the Sox need, and one can only imagine the damage he’d do at Fenway Park.  He hit 59 home runs last season in Miami, which could translate to 70+ in Boston. It could’ve been a great fit, but this selling point wasn’t enough.  Following in the footsteps of Alex Rodriguez, Stanton is now a New York Yankee.  Missing out on Stanton is tough, but he isn’t looking like the $25,000,000 man he’s made out...

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Nazem Kadri Gets a Well-Earned Three Game Suspension

Nazem Kadri Gets a Well-Earned Three Game Suspension

Posted by | Apr 14, 2018 | ,

You just can’t do what Nazem Kadri did on Thursday night.  Call it charging, boarding, hitting to the head- it doesn’t matter. You just can’t do that.  Hockey has an honest and blue collared identity, but that’s gutless. AN EFFECTIVE AGITATOR Kadri is always ready to mix things up.  He’s like Brad Marchand in the sense that he’s most effective while playing with an edge, but this is too much.   Viciously boarding somebody on their knees directly from behind?  There’s just no respect there.  You could argue that Wingels gets his elbow up on Marner just before the hit,...

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Toronto Will Be No Easy Task

Toronto Will Be No Easy Task

Posted by | Apr 13, 2018 | ,

We’re finally here. The season began with plenty of doubt, but the Bruins are second in the Atlantic and have started their first round match up against Toronto. They shattered expectations throughout the regular season, but right now is all that matters. The Maple Leafs are the task at hand, and the Bruins need to defeat them before they look any further. The Bruins easily took Game 1, blowing out Toronto 5-1. But last night’s showing should not teeter your expectations of this series.   Toronto is a young, energetic team that has quite a bit of offensive prowess.  ...

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Which Joe Kelly Will We See This Season?

Which Joe Kelly Will We See This Season?

Posted by | Apr 8, 2018 | ,

Red Sox fans don’t have much to complain about right now. The Sox are 6-1 out of the gate and have taken an early division lead. Starting pitching has been sensational, Xander’s on pace for 138 doubles, and Benintendi seems to be snapping out of the honeymoon phase. Things are looking good, but the Sox should be undefeated. Joe Kelly can’t be giving up leads like he did on Opening Day. He has the skill set to be an elite pitcher in the Major Leagues, but he’s always struggled with consistency.  He’s had a roller coaster of a career, but he can be a key piece of the Sox...

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Patrice Bergeron Hasn’t Missed a Beat

Patrice Bergeron Hasn’t Missed a Beat

Posted by | Apr 3, 2018 | ,

Patrice Bergeron is one of the premier two-way centers in the NHL. He values the defensive side of his game just as much as the stat line, and sometimes that means blocking a shot. This led to a fractured right foot which sidelined him for a month, but Bergeron is back in full form just in time for the playoffs. Back in Black He was slotted back into the lineup while in Minnesota and wasted no time making his presence known. Three minutes into the second period, Bergeron fed Pastrnak a perfect one-time pass in the high slot. Pasta tee’d it up...

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Montreal Still Hasn’t Won a Legitimate Stanley Cup

Montreal Still Hasn’t Won a Legitimate Stanley Cup

Posted by | Mar 22, 2018 | ,

Montreal’s a beautiful city.  It’s one of my favorite places in the world, and the Bell Centre is absolutely breathtaking.  It’s a relatively modern arena but it’s packed with history, being highlighted by the 24 Stanley Cup banners that hang from the rafters.  This technically leads the NHL, but how many of these actually mean something? Back in the Day People so often forget that up until 1967 the NHL only had six teams.  In theory, this essentially means that the Bruins, Canadiens, Rangers, Blackhawks, Maple Leafs, and Red wings each had a one in six chance of winning the cup every year. The Bruins weren’t near the caliber of Montreal but still managed to win three cups during...

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Bruins or Lightning- Who Owns the Atlantic?

Bruins or Lightning- Who Owns the Atlantic?

Posted by | Mar 21, 2018 | ,

The Tampa Bay Lightning took the league by storm in the first half of the season, but the Bruins have clawed their way to just four points back of the Atlantic Division lead. Just as it’s been all season, it looks like the Bruins and Lightning will finish with the top two seeds. Who comes in first is still up for grabs. They’re both powerhouse teams and the numbers leave plenty of room for debate over who’s more dominant. Bruins’ Stats Both teams share a similar goal differential, with the Lightning at +58 and the Bruins at +56. But the numbers adding up to these are drastically different. As...

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Is Brad Marchand a Hart Trophy Contender?

Posted by | Mar 12, 2018 | ,

Hart Trophy Contenders As of now it appears that Nikita Kucherov, Taylor Hall, and Nathan Mackinnon are the frontrunners for this year’s Hart Trophy. Kucherov leads the league with 88 points and has dominated all season. Hall and Mackinnon have also had career years, yet both teams remain on the playoff bubble. Many fans and analysts have actually used this to strengthen the argument for both of them. They say that their individual production is essentially the only reason New Jersey and Colorado are in contention. Heading into the season neither team had high expectations, so this is a valid point. But can’t the same logic be applied to Brad Marchand and the Bruins? If we’re talking about one player stepping up his game and allowing his team to defy expectations, Marchand absolutely needs to be in the conversation. By the Numbers They made the playoffs last year, but the Bruins have been on the outside-looking-in for a while now in terms of being a cup contender. Prior to the season, the consensus was that the Bruins would be a bubble team come the latter part of the season. One set of preseason rankings from www.sportingnews.ca even had the B’s listed as the 20th best team in the league, falling behind Montreal, Ottawa, and Carolina. But with Marchand continuing his dominance that we saw last season this prediction has become far from accurate. He leads the team with 67 points despite having played in 13 less games...

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Brian Gionta Could Have What It Takes

Posted by | Mar 7, 2018 | , ,

Up to this point in the season the Bruins have been just as good as any team in the league. They might not have the star power that we see on teams like Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh. However, as a unit the B’s have been dominant. Since December 1st, they’ve put up a record of 28-8-4, which has propelled them into a comfortable second place spot in the Atlantic. But the NHL trade deadline is all about GM’s evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of their team and making moves accordingly. As strong as the team looked heading down the stretch, Sweeney still saw one flaw that the Bruins have. That’s where Brian Gionta comes in. In Comes Gionta A good portion of the Bruins success has been thanks to their youth. Prior to the deadline, they were the 12th youngest team in the NHL with an average age of under 27. This is great for the future of the whole organization, but raised some questions about how they’d handle playoff hockey. With Gionta being unsigned and expressing interest in making a return to the NHL, the opportunity was too good to pass up. He’s played in over 1,000 regular season games to go with another 112 in the playoffs. That’s about a season and a half worth of playoff hockey. Having hoisted the Stanley Cup with New Jersey back in 2003, Gionta is no...

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What You Need to Know About Rick Nash

What You Need to Know About Rick Nash

Posted by | Feb 27, 2018 | , ,

Early Sunday morning the Bruins took part in the trade deadline festivities by acquiring forward Rick Nash. In return, the B’s sent Ryan Spooner and Matt Beleskey to New York along with prospect Ryan Lindgren, a 2018 first round pick, and a 2019 seventh. It’s a gamble by Sweeney seeing that he’s giving away some future assets. However, Nash is a big-name player who should help down the stretch. Early Career The veteran winger was taken first overall back in 2002 by Columbus and remained there for nine years. Unfortunately for Nash, he was dragged into a lengthy rebuilding process and didn’t see the playoffs until...

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Ryan Donato: the Next Young Bruins Star

Ryan Donato: the Next Young Bruins Star

Posted by | Feb 21, 2018 | , ,

The Bruins youth has been responsible for a good portion of the team’s success this season. Guys like Pastrnak, Heinen, and McAvoy have provided plenty of scoring depth in addition to the consistent production from the top line. This has propelled the team all season, and it seems like there’s only more to come. Bruins draft pick Ryan Donato is having a career year at Harvard with 31 points through 23 games. He has proven that he’s ready for the next step. Fresh off a stellar Olympic tournament, it seems that the young phenom might be on Garden ice sooner rather than later. The Local Prodigy Ryan has lived every New England hockey player’s dream. He is the son of former Bruin Ted...

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If I Were NHL Commissioner

If I Were NHL Commissioner

Posted by | Feb 13, 2018 | , ,

If I Were NHL Commissioner In the 2015-16 season we were blessed with the implementation of 3 on 3 over-time. This makes for a far more exciting five minutes of bonus hockey and really gives the more skilled players an opportunity to showcase their talent. It just takes one player to lose his man or turn the puck over and then it’s an odd-man rush coming the other way. And when I say “odd-man rush” this even includes the occasional 3 on 0. Changes like this really rejuvenate the game of hockey and keep things interesting, and the following are some...

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Adam Mcquaid’s Return Could Help the Bruins More Than You’d Think

Adam Mcquaid’s Return Could Help the Bruins More Than You’d Think

Posted by | Feb 8, 2018 | ,

The issue with being a shut-down defenseman is that they’re often-times underappreciated. Today’s NHL showcases more skill and speed than ever before, and the fans will always be more drawn to the big-name players. This makes the stay-at-home guys even more prone to flying under the radar, but let’s not forget about Adam McQuaid. He was sidelined for three months after breaking his fibula, but the return of the fourth longest tenured Bruin could help the team down the stretch. McQuaid’s Intangibles Standing at 6’4- 212lbs, the Cornwall, Prince Edward Island native has always been one to lay the body and protect the front of...

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Boston’s Contributions to Miracle on Ice Still Remembered 38 Years Later

Boston’s Contributions to Miracle on Ice Still Remembered 38 Years Later

Posted by | Feb 1, 2018 | , ,

“11 seconds, you got 10 seconds. The countdown going on right now! Morrow up to Silk, 5 seconds left in the game! Do you believe in miracles? Yes!”. These words spoken by legendary broadcaster Al Michaels are forever engraved in the history of USA hockey. The call came in the closing seconds of what may be the greatest upset in the history of sports. The political ties made it much more than a hockey game. Known as the miracle on ice, the United States’ upset the USSR on the night of February 22nd, 1980. That game forever changed the...

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Brad Marchand Needs to Stop Making Illegal Hits

Brad Marchand Needs to Stop Making Illegal Hits

Posted by | Jan 27, 2018 | ,

I loved every minute of watching Brad Marchand wreak havoc in the 2011 Stanley Cup final, but there’s a difference between now and then. In 2011 Marchand was a twenty-two year old rookie still trying to prove his worth in the NHL. But now, he’s a superstar that the Bruins need on the ice. As the team’s leader he can’t keep making dumb decisions like this. Marchand shattered his career high in points during the 2016-17 season and is on pace to do just the same this year. Even with his missed time earlier in the season factored in with the recent...

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What’s Different About the Bruins?

What’s Different About the Bruins?

Posted by | Jan 22, 2018 | ,

The Bruins have finished the last three seasons with nearly identical numbers, finishing with 96, 93, and 95 points. We were treated to a brief playoff appearance last season, but they certainly weren’t ready to make the jump into the upper tier of the league. Luckily for B’s fans, this year is different. Currently sitting comfortably with the second spot in the Atlantic and on pace for 113 points, this poses one question: what’s making a difference? Goaltending For starters, the Bruins have two goalies who have put up solid numbers. Rask got off to a slow start, posting an October...

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Don’t Forget About Danton Heinen

Don’t Forget About Danton Heinen

Posted by | Jan 22, 2018 | ,

The Fountain of Youth One of the main stories of the 2017-18 season has been the success of this year’s rookie class. Highlighted by Matt Barzal, Brock Boeser, Clayton Keller, and Bruins’ own Charlie McAvoy, it’s clear that the Calder race is in full effect. Anybody in the hockey world would tell you that one of those four players is bound to win the award. But let’s not forget about Danton Heinen. This guy is the unsung hero of the Boston Bruins yet caught in the shadow of this year’s rookie class. Heinen played for two years at the University of Denver after being selected by the B’s in...

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