Our man-crush on Johnny Boychuk is well known. Everything from Boychuk Facts to Super Boychuk proves it. We couldn't deny it even if we wanted to.
And so we bring you, dear readers, a new Boychuk photoshop -- one we had hoped to turn into a t-shirt until we realized we'd probably be sued by the Boston Bruins and Johnny Boychuk's agent for trademark, copyright and likeness infringement.
Nonetheless, that doesn't mean you can't enjoy it as, say, a computer background.
Days of Y'Orr crew is having a busy, but interesting weekend. Went to a Shawn Thornton autograph signing and got Justin's Shawn Thor(nton) picture signed. Thornton got a kick out of it. Then we told him he was the third greatest NHL player of all time again and he thanked us for putting him ahead of Gretzky. He jokingly said we might be a bit demented if we believed that but he appreciated the notion. Thornton is a super nice guy. Seriously, if you ever see him at a signing he's great. Very friendly, especially to the younger fans, and doesn't mind idiots like us.
One of the Days of Y'Orr staff members was on the same hotel bus as a Minnesota Wild scout. A discussion about Phil Kessel was had. Hilarity ensued.
Tonight is the All-Star game. Greg has already made our feelings abundantly clear in regards to some of the festivities going on.
The "Fantasy Draft" aspect was intriguing and fun in some ways. Hilarious that Phil Kessel got picked last. He can say whatever he wants but we know that in at least some small way it bothers him. Can't believe he even got picked for the game. He's not even the best player on his team this season.
The draft also saw the Sedin twins get split up and Chara and Thomas ended up on different teams. Thomas is probably looking forward to shutting down his teammate.
One of the many, many awesome things about Tim Thomas is that he goes all out in everything he does. Watch when he's in net today. All the other players will be coasting around because its a meaningless All-Star game and Thomas will be playing his balls off. It gets personal when someone scores on him, no matter what game it is. And that is why we're pumped about the Bruins Cup chances. We're just looking forward to real hockey resuming again.
After the jump.... Thomas falls, Chara blasts and we get ready for those stupid Guardians......
And just in time for his autograph signings that's happening this weekend.
* Saturday, January 29 - Worcester Sharks vs. Providence Bruins at 7pm (Autographs going on between 6-8pm) * There's supposedly another signing going on with Thort tomorrow in Tewksbury... we're trying to get the details on that. Keep checking back; we'll update once we know more.
If you get him to sign this, send in pics to
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with your story.
Not surprisingly to any reasonable human being, TheHockeyNews guys got a lot of shit for saying Matt Cooke was "victimized." THN, however, seemed pretty taken a-back by the slew of insults and replies. And so... more tweets came.
We agree. Dirty hits won't go away when Bertuzzi and Cooke do. Cheap hits will probably always be part of the game. Whatevs. We get that. But you're calling Cooke a victim? Now that's just dumb. Dumb. Dumb. Dumb.
What THN probably wanted was to stir up some shit and get some hits to the website. It probably worked. People love controversy. Hell, we're writing a post about it. But THN credibility's gotta be taking a hit for this. After the jump... we see what Dawson and the Republic of Twitter thinks...
Boston Bruins fans will be happy to know that they've struck the fear of god into at least one Bruins player.
"I kind of panicked. I had a wide-open net to shoot at, and I just didn’t shoot. He came out of the net and I kind of panicked and I was thinking, I better score or else I’m gonna get rained on. I think it banked off of one of their sticks and bounced in." --Brad Marchand, after last night's win
Too bad that never worked for Dennis Wideman. Maybe Horton needs to start scoring out of fear.
Marchand is has 12 goals, 12 assists and is a +21 with 22 PIM. We've picked him up in our fantasy leagues. We're not sure how hot he'll stay after the All-Star Break but we'll ride him for as long as possible.
Good way to head into the All-star break. Bruins are four points up on Montreal in the division. Most of the Bruins skaters will get some much needed rest.
Games against the Panthers always seem to be close. Bruins were the better team for the majority of the game, but Vokoun made the big saves. Thomas made more. Thomas is a beast. Bergeron is a beast. Marchand is a beast. Lucic got his 20th goal.
Bruins keep rolling. Good bounce back game after that poor effort in LA. Just keep kicking ass boys.
After the jump.... Thomas saves, Marchand kicks ass and the Bruins roll.......
Occasionally there are days when the entire Days of Y'Orr staff is busy for some reason and previews slip through the cracks. Today was one of those days.
Justin was busy covering the Shaq - Islanders situation. Greg was busy doing awesome rants about how ridiculous the NHL All-star game festitivies and Guardian project are. Robb was still mourning for Marc Savard. Jon was following Patrice Purrgeron and Nathan Horton around making sure Purrgeron didn't get into any trouble while helping Horton regain his confidence (story coming tomorrow).
Quick notes for the game:
In case you have forgotten (and we're sure you'll be reminded a lot) Dennis Wideman is still on the Panthers. Don't boo him too bad. Being on the Panthers sucks enough.
Former Bruin Willie O'Ree will be part of a ceremonial puck drop tonight. O'Ree, the NHL's first African American player, is also participating in the "Hockey is for Everyone" event.
Welcome to Grinding Gears. Last week Angry Bruins Fan, Greg, went on a rant about the Bruins "power play." This week, Greg talks about the NHL All-Star game entertainment and the NHL Guardians.
The more I hear about the NHL All-Star Game, the more I believe that the NHL is out of touch with their fan base. On Monday, news broke out that Clay Aiken will be singing the National Anthem in Carolina at the game. Seriously?
To piggy back off of this news, the NHL announced that 3 Doors Down will be playing during the first intermission and the NHL Guardian project will happen during the second intermission.
What the fuck?
The NHL believes that Clay Aiken, 3 Doors Down and some Stan Lee throwaways will carry a game that no one cares about to begin with? Sorry NHL, but I've had enough. Lets start out with Clay Aiken. His sexual preference aside, Clay Aiken may be the worst fucking choice for a singer in the history of choosing singers. Was BBMak not avail? Did 98 Degrees not call you back, NHL? How relevant has Clay Aiken been on the music scene? Oh, he won American Idol 2 back in 2003, when I was 20 fucking years old. Where is the relevancy seven years later? I want someone out there to name three songs he has produced in his entire music career, let alone in the past twelve months. YOU CAN'T!
Now I know you're probably reading this saying "Well Greg, it is only the National Anthem" but it's about putting asses in the seats and eyes on the television. The NBA is getting Christina Aguilera to sing the National Anthem at the NBA Finals and although there is no word yet on the NBA All-Star Game singer, I bet it will be relevant. Aguilera puts asses in the seats and eyes on the TV, Clay Aiken doesn't.
Big news broke this morning for Boston Bruins and New York Islanders fans.
Boston Celtics and NBA star Shaquille O'Neal signed a one-year deal with the Boston Bruins last night. The deal is reported to be an estimate of $600,000, plus incentives.
Shaq was not pleased by the Islanders's claim.
"This is bullshit," said Shaq in a phone interview. "I'm not going to report. I'm not reporting. I had my heart set in Boston. I already play in Boston for the Celtics. Why would I want to play for a joke organization like the Islanders? Plus, that commute would suck."
Islander's GM "Party On" Garth Snow said he's excited to add another high caliber player to an already saturated roster.
"We're very excited to have Shaq on our squad," Snow said. "He's a big man. He's got a large frame. He can cover a lot of the net. He also has several championship rings, so he knows what it's like to play under pressure."
When asked about the chances of the Islanders making it to the post-season this year, Snow replied with a "Go fuck yourself."
The latest Islanders waiver claim means New York has set the record for most goalies on an NHL roster... ever. However, only one of their four goalies is even able to start. New York also has whatever's left of Rick DiPietro's body and some no-name in Kevin Poulin. They also recently picked up FA Evgeni Nabokov from waivers after he signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings. He, too, is refusing to report to the Islanders.
"We're hoping there'll be some friendly competition between all our netminders," Snow said. "We've already ordered Shaq an XXXXL and super-tall jersey for the Big Shamrock. In fact, I've officially placed Travis Harmonic on waivers, so Shaq can continue to wear #36. Harmonic has been a waste of a roster space anyways."