NHL East Playoff Preview

BY EVAN SPORER

EDITORIAL. PHOTOS BY AP IMAGES

With the NHL season finally concluding, eight teams in the Eastern Conference are all set and ready to make a run at Lord Stanley’s Cup. 

With no clean sweeps in any of the regular season matchups between the playoff pairings, here is the low down on how the first round could shape up.

#1 Washington Capitals vs. #8 New York Rangers

Conventional sports wisdom would tell you to pencil in the No. 1 seed in any one-eight tilt. But then again, conventional wisdom may be thrown out the window when these two rivals face off in the first round. 

The season series went to the Rangers 3-1. And not only did the Blueshirts take the series 3-1, they did it by winning the last three games of the series by a whopping combined score of 15-1! Plain and simple, the Rangers have owned the Caps this year. 

Last Call On-Air: Kathryn Tappen

November 19, 2010
Tasso, Barker, Liebman, Souza 
   Special Guest: NESN Bruins Analyst
      Kathryn Tappen

Last Call On-Air: Ryan Durling

November 5, 2010
Tasso, Barker, Liebman, Souza 
   Special Guest: Bruins writer and Biz Director, SomethingsBruin.net
      Ryan Durling 

Last Call On-Air - Brad Marchand

October 29, 2010
Tasso, Liebman, Souza 
   Special Guest: Boston Bruins Forward
      Brad Marchand

Last Call on Air - Tappen Strikes Again

July 8, 2010
Tasso, Liebman, Tam
 Special Guest: NESN Bruins Analyst
 Kathryn Tappen

Last Call NHL Playoff Predictions: Final Standings

Last Call's Hub Hot Spots

Last Call's Ian Tasso broke down and ranked Boston's Top Sports Bars…check it out:

"Hub Hot Spots"

Philadelphia - Where Failure Is an Option

by Ian Tasso

Editorial. Photos by AP News

I wasn’t going to do it. I felt bad, to be honest. Which is weird, because usually when it comes to sports, I'm a soulless bastard.

Regardless, the Bruins had somehow taken the form of Jesus on Ice, went up 3-0, and I felt bad about writing one of these. I was about halfway through, and scrapped it.

But then something amazing happened. It came when Dan Carcillo was skating around somewhere, or being a bitch at some point, his floppy mullet flailing in the air, that stupid tooth-less smile on his face – and I realized something.

God, do I hate Philadelphia.

Then, Philly went and won game four, giving me a little extra time to fish through and find some extra reasons why Philadelphia sucks.

And then my dad dropped 180 bucks – of his hard earned money - to bring me and my sister to watch game five.

And Philly went and won.

And that’s when I decided this had to be written. For my dad, for his 180 bucks, and for the city of Boston. Because we need this. And Philly needs this. Because they suck.

So without further ado, here are ten reasons why Philadelphia sucks ass.

Last Call on Air - The Return of Tappen

May 6, 2010
Tasso, Bartlett, Liebman
Special Guest: NESN Bruins Analyst
Kathryn Tappen

A Rush of Blood to the Head

By Jesse Liebman

Editorial. Photos by AP News

Let’s go back to the start: March 7, 2010 -- The Boston Bruins, playing on the road against the Pittsburgh Penguins, lose their first line center Marc Savard after a questionable hit from Penguins grinder Matt Cooke.

Savard had just taken a shot from above the circles when Cooke raised his shoulder and struck Savard in the head. Savard was on the ice for several minutes, being attended to by a Penguins team doctor, before being carried off. He would be diagnosed with a Grade 2 concussion.

The Bruins were livid.

"A guy like that has to be suspended," Bruins head coach Claude Julien said. "That's the way I see it because it's an elbow to the head from the blind side, and that's exactly the example they show, what we've got to get out of this game."

Last Call NHL Playoff Predictions: 2nd Round

Gearing Up for Round Two

by Jesse Liebman

Editorial. Photos by AP News

Okay, I'll admit it. I wanted the underdogs to win; I could back it up too. But the playoffs are always a crapshoot. One year you may get everything right, and then there are others where you might as well leave the soothsaying to a monkey spinning a wheel.

But hey, what can you do?

Never leave anything to chance. Never discount a lower-seeded team. The safe bet is also to never pick a team that has not tasted the postseason for nearly a decade.

It helps to pick a team that has a playoff pedigree, or has something to prove. Yes, every team has something to prove -- that they're worthy of raising Lord Stanley's Cup -- but there's typically a team that has had to answer the skeptics all season long.

But then again, I never was one to play it safe.

Get set to spin those wheels!

There Will Be Blood

by Joe Ballway

Editorial. Photos by AP News

Everything seems to be breaking just perfectly for the Bruins right now, and the timing couldn’t be better.

Due to one of the most bizarre and unexpected twists in NHL playoff history, Boston has secured home-ice advantage and a date with the seventh-seeded Philadelphia Flyers for the upcoming second round.

That’s right--two of the last teams to qualify for postseason play in the entire league will now battle it out for a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Bruins, bumbling and stumbling out of playoff contention little more than a month ago, are odds-on favorites to advance.

While I’d never dreamed of saying such a thing, we can thank Hal Gill and the Montreal Canadiens for this magnificent aligning of the stars. 

By shocking the world with a 2-1 Game 7 victory over the Capitals on Wednesday night and erasing a 3-1 series deficit, the Habs not only dispatched Alexander Ovechkin & Co. from the playoff race, but they snatched Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin right off the Bruins’ postseason platter.

Had the Capitals won, they would’ve hosted Philly, leaving Boston in line for an incredibly challenging matchup with the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Now if that isn’t a sign that the hockey gods have officially crossed over to Boston’s side, I don’t know what is.

Or perhaps it’s just destiny ensuring that the Bruins and Canadiens, no matter their seeding, get a crack at yet another bitter playoff battle. You could say that it would take a downright miracle for Montreal to contain the high-flying Pittsburgh offense, but didn’t we just say that about the Capitals?

Bottom line--as even the Bruins demonstrated in the first round, anything can happen in the playoffs with a hot goalie and some additional lucky bounces.

Five Things to Watch in Game Six

by Joe Ballway

Editorial. Photos by AP News

The Bruins return home to the Garden tonight with high expectations following their Game 5 setback in Buffalo on Friday night. The Sabres cut Boston’s series lead to 3-2 with a convincing 4-1 victory, but the Bruins still have two more cracks at upsetting the Northeast Division champions and moving on to a matchup with either Pittsburgh or
Philadelphia, depending on the outcome of the Capitals-Canadiens series.

Here’s 5 things to consider as we gear up for Game 6:

1.    Is Thomas Vanek his old self?

While possibilities of Marc Savard’s return by the end of the series are the hottest rumors around town these days–some are speculating that he’ll swing down from the Jumbotron James Bond-style in time for the opening faceoff, while others swear they’ve already seen Boston’s best offensive player using the alias “Ryder” a few games back–he likely won’t be available until next round, should the Bruins advance. 

On the other hand, Vanek’s return is much more imminent; coach Lindy Ruff even stated that his Austrian sniper can return “whenever he feels ready.” Which could mean trouble for the Bruins.

But in regards to Ruff’s comment, how the hell could a player nearing health not be ready for an NHL playoff game if given clearance to make the decision himself? Did Thomas ever see Jack O’Callahan in Miracle? 

I don’t see how he could live with himself if he sits out with a borderline injury and the Sabres lose–unless, of course, he’s a pussy. Which wouldn’t surprise me, considering the incredibly whiny players, coaches and fans that surround the Buffalo organization. Somebody call a wahhhmbulance.

From the Experts: 2010 NFL Draft

April 22, 2010
Ian Tasso, Nick Coit
Special Guests: Patriots' Draft Experts
Curran,Tappen, Reiss, Lee, Borges, Breer, Belichick and McCourty

You've read the live-blog. You've seen all the picks. Now here's what all the experts had to say during the night of the draft, including reaction from the head coach himself, and the #27 overall pick.

It's interesting to follow their train of thought as the night went on.

So here is a compilation of all the interviews collected on Thursday night. The objective? For you to feel the confusion and excitement that was the 2010 NFL Draft.

Enjoy:

Almost Canada: Reasons why Buffalo Sucks

by Ian Tasso

Editorial. Photos by AP News

The Buffalo Sabres and Boston Bruins are currently mired in what promises to be a great series of playoff hockey - plenty of hard hits, fantastic goalie play and better yet, down-to-the-wire games that carry an all-or-nothing weight.

What more could you ask for?

Honestly? Not much. Except for the one thing that’s missing in this series: some good, old-fashioned hatred - the sports hatred that we all know and love.

Because, to be honest, there really isn’t much right now. And we need it.

I don’t really get why it’s not there – Buffalo is in New York after all, which, to Bostonians, is a free-pass to GO as far as hatred is concerned. But nonetheless, that sports hatred? For a division rival in Buffalo? Non-existant.

I’m not talking about that type of hatred that makes you want to choke out your roommate – it’s more than that.

It’s the sports hatred – the kind of hatred that means you and your dick friend who likes the Yankees can go share a beer during the Sox-Bombers game, joke about how hot that chick in Physics class is, and then when Robinson Cano hits his second home run of the day, you can call him a bastard, and tell him “If he does that again, I’m capturing your little sister.”

That type of hatred.

So here we are, in a 2-1 hockey series that has gotten the city of Boston more riled up in their pants than Hedi Watney. This town is excited for hockey. You know it, I know it, Herb Brooks knows it and now Mark Ellis’ face knows it (boom).

As for the hatred? Gone. Until now. Here are 10 reasons why you, the Bostonian, should hate Buffalo, which, according to these reasons, sucks ass. Enjoy.

Last Call NHL Playoff Predictions: 1st Round

Mind Your B's and Q's: 5 Bruins' Playoff Questions

by Joe Ballway

Editorial. Photos by AP News

A ten-game losing streak. The league’s second-worst offense. Seemingly millions of man-games lost to injury.

The reigning Vezina winner, once a fan favorite, relegated to bench-warming duties and booed off the ice in his final home start. The captain and defending Norris winner, long hailed as a snarling shutdown force, called out for his lack of leadership and made a scapegoat for the team’s pussification.

The reigning coach of the year, once seen as the defensive genius responsible for the franchise’s turnaround–well, most of us wanted his head on a platter by midseason.

Oh yea, and Dennis Wideman. And Michael Ryder.

And Matt f-ing Cooke.

All that, and. . . the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs?

Not bad for a nightmare season–not bad at all. With all the bitching and moaning us mercurial Boston fans have been doing (and are still doing, I suppose), you would’ve thought the Bruins were in dead last–and trust me, it did seem that way for much of the season. But a minor hot streak and a few lucky breaks later, they’re in the clear.

In large part, we can thank a weak Eastern Conference for that.

Predicting the Unpredictable

by Jesse Liebman

Editorial. Photos by AP News

I'm not one to normally make predictions. Sure: in 2007, much to a friend's chagrin, I correctly predicted in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals that Ryan Getzlaf would score the game-tying goal on assist from Corey Perry before Travis Moen got the game-winner for the Ducks, moments before both plays happened. Had this been my own personal sports betting experience out of Hot Tub Time Machine or Back to the Future, I could have probably made a killing.


But I digress; I'm not a gambling man. In any case, the playoffs open Wednesday. And I'm looking to raise some eyebrows.


Read on for my predictions for the first round. Place your bets now. Just don't blame me if a squirrel hops on the ice and stops an Alex Ovechkin one-timer.

End of Season Awards

by Joe Ballway
Editorial. Photos by AP News

As the 2009-10 slate comes to a close and the Bruins head for a likely playoff berth, I've decided to create my own set of awards for this year's team. Here's my assessment of the studs and many duds that Bruins fans encountered in the regular season:

The Jack Bauer Award

In honor of the final season of the greatest show on television, this award is given to the player who, like Jack, best exemplifies mental toughness in the midst of crisis, standing out from the rest to deliver results under pressure.

Recipient: Tuukka Rask

Without a doubt the Bruins’ savior of the season, Tuukka has been cool as a cucumber while overtaking Tim Thomas for the #1 goaltending spot. Although in my opinion, the depths to which Thomas has sunk have been overblown (he hasn’t been spectacular, but he hasn’t quite deserved the magnitude of criticism he has received), Rask has clearly become the superior goaltender, leading the league in both goals against average (1.99) and save percentage (.930) despite having appeared in just 43 games. With his unflappable aura and steady positioning, Rask has been positively Bauer-like, keeping the Bruins in tight games and ensuring that this season isn’t bombed to pieces.

Runner-Up: Patrice Bergeron