Some geek ass nerd Canadian is reporting that Carey Price "wants 3 million per or he's going on strike."  Is this a joke?  It's gotta be a French-to-English translation error or something.

This is why Canada is so gay.  You don't go on strike when you don't get the money you want.  You say fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, you're cool, I'm out and demand to be traded.  Or you pull a Tom Brady and accept less money because you love the organization you play for.  I mean, even Phil Kessel didn't threaten a "strike."  That says a lot about Carey Price.

But let's play into Carey's hands and assume that he will go on strike.  What kind of strike will it be, Carey?  Hunger strike?  Union strike?  A well-organized one person sit-down strike?  Good Lord, stop embarrassing yourself.

While we're on the subject, what the fuck is with the pronunciation of names up there?  It's so condescending.  It's like, I can read the dude's name on the back of his jersey.  It says Begin, not Bayzjhaaaa.  Seriously though, the NHL pronunciation guide says Steve Begin's name is pronounced bay ZHAI (look under the Calgary Flames).  Gay.

        

Mike Reiss and other people are reporting that the Patriots have put CB Leigh Bodden on season-endng injured reserve.  That's fucking weak.

That means Terrence Wheatley and Jonathan Wilhite will almost assuredly make the 53-man roster and actually play sometimes.  Again, weak.

Bodden is the latest camp casualty for the Patriots, who are already dealing with the losses of Nick Kaczur and Ty Warren.  And Logan Mankins is still off crying on his ranch somewhere.

It's a good thing that they drafted CB Devin McCourty as he will now start, but it's not looking good for the Pats this year.

        

The Sox traded Manny Delcarmen to the Colorado Rockies today.  As Steve Brule would say, "who cares?"  MDC had his own cool nickname, but had been a real disappointment over the years for the Sox.  He was always touted as an impact reliever with electric stuff, but just never put it together here.  I guess there is more to pitching than just pitching.

In return, the Red Sox get RHP Chris Balcom-Miller who I know nothing about.  But word on the street is he's pretty good.  He posted a ridiculous 117/19  K/BB ratio in 108 2/3 innings in Low A ball.  Holy moley. Rotoworld says it's "a nice get" by Theo and that Balcom-Miller "is arguably more talented" than MDC.

But Manny is definitely a guy to root for.  He is a local guy and we wish him the best here at the Buzz.

Also, that has to be one of the worst videos on Youtube.  I mean come on NESN, that's the best production value you got? It looks like they recorded that shit on a cell phone.

        

So Doug Flynn over at NESN wrote a pretty sweet article about the ascension of Johnny Boychuk.  And since Boychuk is my boy, I figured I'd throw it up on the site for your viewing pleasure.

        

Check this video out.  If you hate Canada, the Canadiens, and Phil Kessel, you'll love it.

        

Rams - 36  Patriots - 35

Patriots were losing at the half, meaning the Pats lost to the Rams tonight.  The Pats 1's lost to the Rams 1's.  And the Rams 1's are more like 2's.  Pretty pathetic for a team that should win around 10 games this year.  And considering the Rams will most likely be the worst team in the NFL again in 2010, this is a pretty big set back for the Pats.

Anyways, here are the thoughts:

-Big Gronk was one of the lone bright spots in this game, catching 2 TDs, one where he literally dragged a linebacker 5 yards on his foot like a little kid.

- Brady was great again, completing 18 of 22 passes for 273 yards and 3 TDs.

- Brandon Tate led the game off with a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, and played pretty well overall.

- Zoltan Mesko had one great punt and like 3 terrible ones.

- I've never seen a game refereed as poorly as this one.  There were like a dozen holding penalties that weren't called.  The refs got back-to-back calls on the field wrong, which Bill Belichick challenged and won.  Terrible.

- Overall, one of the worst games I've seen since I've watched the Patriots, but that's why they play preseason games I guess, right?

No awards this week.  Gotta beat a 1-15 team to get awards.

        

News came out today that the Patriots have signed K Stephen Gostkowski to a 4-year, 14 million dollar deal, making him one of the highest paid kickers in the NFL.  Fact: He is the best kicker in the NFL so just to have him signed is a good deal.

Gostkowski had the arduous task of filling the clutch cleats of Adam Vinatieri after he made his bolt for the Colts...that didn't sound as good as it did in my head.  But he fit the role better than anybody, probably including the Patriots, had hoped.  Since the Pats drafted his ass in 2006, he has hit 103 of 121 career field goal attempts.  Not bad for a 4th round pick.

Side note:  Logan Mankins, take note.  You are not the best guard in the league.  You are one of the best.  Sign your goddamn 5-year, 35 million dollar deal and do your job.  Stephen Gostkowski is the best kicker in the league and did not cry on his ranch until he was given more money than Sebastian Janikowski.  He signed a deal that is fair and got his ass back to kicking. 

Besides, at least you would be out-paid by a better player (Jahri Evans).  If I had the same job as Sebastian Janikowski and he made more money than I did, I'd seriously reassess my life choices.

        

So I'm sure you have heard about the NHL Research and Development Camp that has been going on recently.  If not, this is their blog.  There have been some stupid ass ideas like 2-on-2 OT, but a few rules might stick.

The first rule I like is putting clear plexiglass on the top of the net as a substitute for netting.  The idea would be that it is easier to distinguish goals, facilitating the decisions of the goal line gods in Toronto.  Take a look:

        

So the Bruins-Flyers series is on the NHL Network this week and I decided to watch some of it against my better judgement.  I turn my head towards the TV and see this:



Really Wideman?  The Bruins are in the thick of a playoff run and you have time to rub one out on the bench?  That's why you got traded.  Maybe focus a little more on the game next time.  Perv.

Thanks to Katie for the heads up.

        

I, like some of you I'm sure, beat the shit out of a few walls when the B's completed one of the worst collapses in sports history.  But that's the great thing about sports: there's always next year.  And this year is shaping up to be a good one for the Boston Bruins and their fans.  So let's take a look back at the off season real quick, then take a gander at the team and lastly peruse the 2010-2011 outlook. 

Off Season
I had said all along that this off season would make or brake Peter Chiarelli.  And he did work son.  Like if I thought of the perfect possible off season in my head, it would be damn close to what PC actually did.

- Re-signed Shawn Thornton for 2 years at 1.625 mil.  Resident tough guy.  Needed him back.

- Re-signed Dennis Seidenberg for 4 years at 13 mil.  3.25 million dollars a year is a solid deal for a top line D man.

- Re-signed Daniel Paille for 2 years at 2.15 mil.  Led the Bruins in PK time.  Fastest guy on the team, still young.  Deal.

- Re-signed my boy Johnny Boychuk for 2 years at 3.75 mil.  Great at reading plays, probably has hardest shot in the league next to Chara, always goes all out.

- Traded Vladimir Sobotka to St. Louis for BU defenseman David Warsofsky.  Hate to Vlad go, but he didn't have a place on the team.  He'll get plenty of playing time in St. Louis and I wish him the best.  In return, the B's got Warsofsky.  I went to BU and have seen him play.  He's undersized (5'9") but is the definition of an offensive defenseman.  In 79 games at BU, he has tallied 46 points.  This is what he can do.

- Re-signed Adam McQuaid for 2 years at 1.15 mil.  Supposedly broke the jaws of the last 2 guys he fought before getting called up last year.  As a 7th defenseman, he's great.  He's solid defensively and a lot of people don't know yet how good of fighter he is.  He is right there behind Lucic, Chara, and Shawno.

- Re-signed Mark Stuart for 1 year at 1.675 mil.  Most of us wanted to see a longer deal, but it just didn't happen this year.  Better one than none though.  Caveman has been a rock on the Bruins blue line and always plays pissed.

- Re-signed Blake Wheeler for 1 year at 2.2 mil.  Had to go to arbitration, but he's 23 and still has a shit ton of upside.  This year will most likely be an audition for Wheels to see if the B's want to keep him around.

- Re-signed the wile vet Mark Recchi for 1 year at 1.95 mil.  Recchi is going to play for the Bruins until he gets a god damn cup.  I'm convinced he doesn't give a shit about anything else.

- Traded waste of space Dennis Wideman, the 15th pick in 2010, and a 3rd rounder in 2011 to Florida for Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell.  The B's finally got a top line scorer, got rid of their worst defenseman, and brought in a younger, faster, stronger Steve Begin in Gregory Campbell.  Deal.

- Drafted Tyler Seguin with the 2nd overall pick of the 2010 NHL Draft.  No big deal.

So basically PC re-signed the whole team, traded the Bruins' worst defenseman for the Panthers' best scorer, and drafted a potential future franchise player this summer.  That'll do pig, that'll do. 

The Team

Projected Lineup

Lucic-Savard-Horton
Wheeler-Krejci-Ryder
Recchi-Bergeron-Seguin
Paille-Campbell-Thornton

Chara-Seidenberg
Stuart-Boychuk
Hunwick-Ference
(McQuaid)

Tuukka
Thomas

2010-2011 Outlook
The 2010-11 Bruins look stacked on paper.  Fact. 

Forwards
Savard is going to set up Horton more than Bernie Madoff set up his "clients."  That first line looks dangerous.

I could definitely see Claude put Seguin on Krejci's line instead of Bergeron's, but those lines are good for now.  If Seguin is on Bergy's line to start the year, it means the reunion of the Wheeler-Krejci-Ryder line, which was the best line in hockey for awhile back in 2009.  Let's hope they can reignite the flame.

The main reason I could see Claude going with Seguin on Bergy's line is because of the experience on that line between Recchi and Patrice.  Recchi knows everything there is to know about hockey, which will prove invaluable to Seguin, and Bergeron is the most accountable forward the Bruins have defensively.  So if Seguin screws up, Recchi will let him know, and Bergeron will cover his ass.

The ever changing 4th line now has at least some consistency.  After a couple years of searching for the right 4th line guys, the B's have finally had a couple guys stick.  Shawn Thornton and Daniel Paille will be back together and I am happy.  Shawno is the policeman of the team and plays a much more important role than most fighters do.  And Paille will make his money on the PK as one of the most consistent guys on the team.

Defense
The defense looks deep as hell.  Chara and Seidenberg played great together before Seidenberg went down with the wrist injury, and the same can be said about Caveman and Boychuk before Stuart went down.  I never really like Ference, but if he stays healthy, he should be solid.

The big question mark on the defense is Matt Hunwick.  He needs to step his shit up and get after it if he wants to be a Boston Bruin next year.  He is unquestionably the best skater on the defensive side and has the tools to be a great offensive defenseman, but he still needs to make that jump.

Goaltending
The key to the season is Tuukka Rask.  If he can continue to build on what he did last year, the Bruins will be in business.  But if he struggles in his 2nd year, the Bruins will have to rely on a 35-year-old Tim Thomas coming off of hip surgery.  Yikesies.

So, all in all, I think this could be a HUGE year for the Bruins.  With the Celtics getting older, the Red Sox sucking, and the Patriots in semi-rebuilding mode, the Bruins have a great opportunity to grab hold of Boston this year.