December 2006 Archives

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

I wasn't planning on blogging again before the New Year, expecially after the horrible 5-0 loss the Black and Gold were handed by the Predators, but I was thinking about all the moves, signings, firings and hirings the Bs have made so I thought, why not.

After trading away Joe Thornton on Nov. 30, 2005; Mike O'Connell was fired March 25 and to many Bs fans this was music to their ears.

There was two months of specualtion, but Peter Chiarelli was finally named as the new GM on May 26.Again, the specualtion would begin---Would Mike Sullivan stay on as the club's head coach or would he, like MOC be fired?

A month later, on June 27, Sullivan was indeed relieved of his duties. Two days later, Dave "Charlie Chaplin" Lewis was named as his replacement.

Prior to the Sullivan firing, Interim GM Jeff Gorton makes his presence known by trading away "Thornton" guys Andrew Raycroft and Nick Boynton for for prospect Tuukka Rask and defenseman Paul Mara, respectively. The Black and Gold also selected Phil Kessel as their first pick, 5th Overall, in the NHL Entry Draft.

And then the day the free agency market opened up - needless to say the Bruins made a huge splash with their first signing ....

Within minutes of the market opening up, Gorton announced the signing of mammoth defenseman Zdeno Chara for 5-years and he wasn't done....
Marc Savard was the next to sign - for 4-years. The Bruins had locked up two of the more sought after free agents - GO BS!

Then within a week the boys at the Garden would add Shean Donovan and Mark Mowers to help bulk up the checking and fourth lines.

Another Bruins miracle was in the works, on Aug. 10 Harry Sinden stepped down as the club's president and all down Causeway, up and down 93 and then some Bruins fans could be seen dancing a jig.

Fans waited to see what Chiarelli would do about Patrice Bergeron and again they would not be disappointed - not only did the Chiarelli sign Bergy, but it wasn't the staple year contract the Bs were notorious for, it was a 5-years - proving the club is trying to build around Chara, Bergy and Savard.Chara was named captain on Oct. 6 and I don't think many were shocked with that one...

Then it was finally time for the puck to drop on the '06-'07 season and the Bruins pretty much stumbled out of the gate... dropping a 8-3 decision in Florida and going 3-5-1 in the first month of the season.
Savvy would be the first one to earn NHL honors.
He was named the NHL's First Star of the Week for week ending Nov. 5 when he led all scoreres with 8-points (3 goals, 5 assists) in TWO games. By the way, in case you missed it Savvy leads the Bs with 47 points - which is also good for 9th in the league....
As well as the Bruins were playing, a medical scare was coming for one of the newer members of the Black and Gold...Kessel.
Kessel underwent surgery for testicular cancer on Dec. 11 and on Dec. 16 Dr. Judge announced "I consider Phil cured." Great news for the rookie! Kessel would hit the ice on 29th and is presumed to return within a couple of weeks, rumor has it he may even be on the ice for the Flyers game on Jan. 6.
Tim Thomas, who right now deserves to be the Bs 7th Player Award Winner, was the second Bruin to earn NHL honors. He was named the NHL's First Star of the Week for the week leading up to Christmas. During that stretch, Thomas posted a 1.33 GAA and .959 SV% - NOT TOO SHABBY. That brings us to now - the Bs currently sit in the 8th and final playoff spot heading into the New Year and will take on the Maple Leafs tomorrow night.

OH, that's right - ROCKY STYLE.....
Sylvester Stallone must have been a Bruins fan in the 80's - how else would one explain the amount of Black and Gold he wears in Rocky III. Though the Rock is from Philadelphia he wears gold trunks with black trim, a gold robe with black trim, gold boots with black laces, gold gloves, gold tank top and black shorts, black trunks with gold trim and, and... during one point in the movie the TV announcer gives the score of the Bruins' game... coincedence? I think not. Mind you, this was all brought to me by a very AVID Rocky fan....

The only two disappointments thus far on the Bruins are Hannu aka "Finnish Failure" Toivonen and Brad Boyes who seems to not be able to get out of his sophomore slump...

What do you think? Anyway, Happy New Year all!!!!! Enjoy and be safe... see you in 2007.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Final Score
Patriots 40
Titans 23

Teddy’s Take: Weird game. I don’t know what to make of it. I thought I did at one point, but just when I thought I had the answer, they changed the question.

When I saw Brady continue to play into the 3rd and 4th quarters, I came to the conclusion Bill Belichick, much like most of Patriots Nation, would rather face the Jets than Broncos. How else do you explain leaving his banged-up starting QB in so long in a contest marred by chippiness and borderline cheap shots? It didn’t make much sense, particularly with the Colts likely to win at home and earn the 3rd seed anyway. Belichick must want that higher seed badly I thought, no matter how remote the possibility.

And then, with the game in doubt in the 4th quarter, in came Matt Cassel. All we’ll ever get is the stock answer “we did what’s in the best interest of the team,� but I’d love to know exactly what the thinking was behind risking Brady for three quarters, only to replace him at crunch time.

My other thoughts are; very impressive win by the Pats over a hot team with everything to play for in front of their home crowd…and it was nice to see Vinnie Testaverde get a chance to throw a TD pass for the 20th consecutive year (an NFL record), though I think it might have been better to bring him into the game earlier, rather than give the appearance of rubbing it in.

Oh yeah, thank you to New England for playing to win and letting my 12-win prediction come true…LOL!

Shining Stars: Let’s place the obligatory star on the forehead on Tom Brady for another fine effort. Kudos also to Corey Diloln for the 2-TD’s, discovering the fountain of youth on that early game screen pass, and for passing O.J. Simpson to move into 14th place on the all-time rushing list (let’s hope he doesn’t end up stabbing anyone after he retires!)

Laurence Maroney also ran hard (13-carries for 71-yards) and gives us back the solid 1-2 punch heading into the playoffs…Reche Caldwell had one of his better games, with two long receptions, one of which was a 62-yard touchdown. I with he was more consistent, but you take what you can get…and let’s give a lifetime achievement star to Vinny Testaverde, for the record and a very nice little career.

On defense, the good Asante Samuel showed up. Two more interceptions gives him ten on the year, the league lead (until Champ Bailey got his), and a huge pay day in free agency…Mike Wright led the team in tackles (9, with 7 of the solo variety) while continuing to do a serviceable job filling in for Vince Wilfork…and props to the entire pass rush, as 5-different Patriots sacked Vince Young and continuously pressured the mobile phenom.

Quality Quote: “I think our goals are what’s ahead of us, not what’s behind us. That’s what we need to do, get ready for our next opponent, whoever that it, and be ready to play our best football next weekend, against whoever that is. That’s really where our focus is right now. I don’t think this is any time to sit back and have a big reflection.�—Bill Belichick on whether he’s proud of the 12-4 record.

That’s my take…what’s yours? Are you surprised at how the Patriots approached this game? Let’s here those playoff predictions!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Anyone out there remember the old game show Truth or Consequences? (Boy, I’m really dating myself here, aren’t I?) Well, Celtics fans who seem to think unloading Paul Pierce is a good idea are finding out exactly what the consequences are when you don’t have The Truth on your side.

I know the captain can sometimes be infuriating. Trust me, I wanted to reach through the TV screen and choke him the night he dribbled into a quadruple-team and couldn’t get a shot off in the closing seconds against Golden State. There are far too many instances of the guy trying to go solo against a defense that knows exactly what he’s going to do late in a close game, allowing the opposition to ignore everyone else on the court. It is the biggest flaw in an otherwise very good basketball player.

But if you thought life without Pierce would be just grand, I present exhibits A, B, C & D, also known as the last four Celtics games since #34 has been sidelined. Not only did the C’s lose all four contests that appeared winnable on paper, they had no real shot in any of them.

Welcome to life without Paul Pierce. Sometimes, you don't appreciate what you have until it’s gone!

What do you think of the Celtics recent play without Pierce? Is this how it would always be, or could the team eventually adjust and improve?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The Chinese calendar lists 2006 as the year of the dog. But on TheSunBlog calendar, 2006 has been the year of The Victim.

Our pigskin prognosticator continues his dominance of the Vegas line, submitting yet another scorching effort last week. Those smart enough to accept the early Christmas presents no doubt have a few extra dollars to spend partying New Year’s Eve. Of course, if you’ve followed this fearless football forecaster all season long, you’d be 18-units ahead of the game, a record I doubt any other tout in the nation can top.

The question is; can this amazing run continue? The calendar shows only two more days remaining in the year of the dog. With 2007 lining up as the year of the pig, one can only wonder what that means for The Victim and you; more gorging at the money trough, or a return to the swill that is gambling mediocrity?

On with the picks:

NY Giants (-2 ½) over Washington
New England (+3) over Tennessee
Dallas (-12 ½) over Detroit
San Francisco (+10 ½) over Denver
Chicago (-3) over Green Bay

Last week’s record: 6-1
Season record: 51-33

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

Third period woes continue to plague the Bruins, and they came close to blowing a 4-0 lead they had built, but they were able to hold off the Blackhawks for the 5-3 win. The win moved the Black and Gold up to the six spot in the Eastern Conference.

What is it with the Bs lately not being able to hold leads in the third period? It's so frustrating and to be honest with you last night's game was an extremely boring game up until the third and then it didn't get exciting, it got frustrating.

Tim Thomas made 37 saves again last night while the Bs only had 20 total shots on goal for the entire game - now scoring 5 goals on 20 shots is not too shabby.

Thank God Marc Savard got the empty net power play goal for insurance! Which is great for me because he's one of my centers on my fantasy team. I think I might have mentioned that before....anyway, Savard had had his 7-game point streak snapped in Columbus the other night.
Along with the empty netter, Savvy added an assist for his fourth multipoint game in the last five. BTW, anyone ever notice how short Savvy is compared to his teammates? I mean granted they all look short standing next to Zdeno Chara, but look at the pic of Savard with Glen Murray and PJ Axelsson - he's looks so small LOL. Sorry, I just had a RUDY moment pop into my head, when he runs out on the field for the final game and his friend yells out "he looks so little."

Bergy was outstanding again as usual - he's now registered at least a point in 10 straight games.

What was it with the music being played at the United Center? They need to update their song list over there, I think the music player must be extremely old and boring - JMO.

It has been confirmed that Hannu Toivonen is getting the start tonight against the Predators - that seems to scare me a bit.

George and I were chatting last night while we were watching the game and he said he hopes Toivonen gets lit up in the first period so Dave Lewis is forced to pull him. I disagreed - I said I hope he does well so he can become trade bait!!!!

I thought that Brad Boyes was pretty nonexistent last night and I really wouldn't mind if Lewis moved him down a line. Maybe that would jump start him.

Good news on rookie Phil Kessel - he started skating yesterday morning and was scheduled to be on the ice again today. Good to hear that he is doing well.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! Hope everyone has a fun and safe night.... see ya in 2007.I resolve to spend more time blogging about the rest of the hockey world, not just the Bruins. What are your resolutions?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

News Flash: The San Francisco Giants have agreed on a 7-year contract with free agent Barry Zito. The deal is reportedly worth $126-million, the largest ever for a pitcher.

Teddy’s Take: Anyone still think the Red Sox overpaid for Daisuke Matsuzaka?

Again, kudos to Theo Epstein for identifying the best pitcher available and doing what it took to sign him. Because if the Zito case is any indication, the market on major league pitching has gone nuts! The Giants are about to pay an average of $18-million a year for a guy with the following stats:

2002: 2.75 ERA, 1.13 WHIP
2003: 3.30 ERA, 1.18 WHIP
2004: 4.48 ERA, 1.39 WHIP
2005: 3.86 ERA, 1.20 WHIP
2006: 3.83 ERA, 1.40 WHIP

See the pattern there? It’s been pretty much downhill since the 2002 Cy Young season, which is ages ago when talking about starting pitchers. Sure, he’s going from the American League to the National. But Oakland’s is one of the AL’s most pitcher-friendly ballparks, so his numbers won’t get as big a boost as other league-switchers do.

Is Barry Zito a good starting pitcher? Yes! Was he the best available major league pitcher on the market? I think so. Is he going to post better numbers than Dice-K? I doubt it. Is he worth $18-million a year? Hell no!

What do you think of the Zito signing? Have owners gone crazy again? Who’s a better bargain; Zito or Matsuzaka? Contracts aside, which of the two would you rather see on the Red Sox opening day roster?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

With the division title and a playoff berth clinched, the big question for the Patriots this week involves how to approach the Titans game; play to win or play it safe.

Bill Belichick and the players always pay lip service to approaching a meaningless game the same way they approach every matchup, but that hasn’t necessarily proven to be the case in the past. Last year the Pats basically tanked against Miami, even going so far as to bypass Doug Flutie in favor of 3rd stringer Matt Cassel when Tom Brady headed to the bench.

Prior to that, Belichick played his available starters (Brady included) most of the way against San Francisco in the meaningless 2004 season finale. However, the box score does show 4-pass attempts for Rohan Davey and a bunch of carries for guys named Cedric Cobbs, Patrick Pass and Rabih Abdullah.

The best guess for this week; something similar to last year. Expect everyone to play, but with the youngsters and backups seeing an increased workload. Brady will also play, because his streak of consecutive starts, while meaningless to most of us, is very important to him. Check out what the Pats QB had to say Wednesday when asked about the hit he took last week in Jacksonville;

“It’s part of the paying the price. You do everything you can in the offseason to try to prepare for that. You try to strengthen every part of your body. You try to stay in great shape, limber, you try to be flexible, and, you know, try to do a lot of those things over the years and incorporate a bunch of different things to my training program so that when those things come up, you’re not one hit and out of the game. So I think I’ve always said I’m real proud of the fact that I’ve hung in there as a guy [for] who the knock on him coming out [of college] was too skinny, too weak, can’t run, can’t do any of that. At least I feel like I’ve tried to overcome a lot of those things. I’ve been in there, hung in there a bunch of games in a row, knock on wood. So we’ll just try to keep that up and try to keep that streak alive.�

Sounds like a guy who’s playing this week. And one who still carries a bit of a “6th round draft pick� chip on his shoulder.

What do you think? How should the Patriots approach this game? Do you care if they have a chance to move up to the #3 seed? Is there a team you’d rather they avoid in the first round? How about beyond that?

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

Seriously, can anyone explain to me what that "line change" was all about in last night's Bruins game?

I went to bed extremely angry last night for many reasons:

1. The Bruins forwards and defensemen did not show up in the third period and left Tim Thomas alone to keep the Blue Jackets at Bay ...
2. Captain Zdeno Chara took a stupid penalty in the final minutes which gave Columbus a 6-on-3 (after they pulled Norrena)
3.I could not for the life of me figure out Mark Mowers and Stanislav Chistov were doing on the penalty kill in OT - in other words, what was Dave Lewis thinking?
4.The so-called "line change" that allowed David Vyborny to break in on Thomas and give the Jackets the 5-4 win.
5. Thomas got the loss after he made stop after stopr after stop, his teammates let him down last night.

Thomas was outstanding in the game making 37 saves in the loss, on the night he was named the NHL's "First Star of the Week."

The only GOOD thing to come out of last night's game was the Bs moved into the 8th playoff spot due to the tie-breaking procedure - but that was not enough good to drown out the bad taste that game and "line change" left in my mouth.

The Bs have two more games before the New Year both on the road. Chicago hosts the Bs on Friday, then the Black and Gold don't have much time to rest since they visit the Nashville on Saturday. Do you think Hannu Toivonen should get a start in either Chicago or Nashville? Which one would you pick?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Did you happen to catch yesterday's Lowell Sun?

If not, you missed David Pevear's look back at the biggest local sports stories of 2006. From the Red Sox to the Spinners, from the big boys to the young girls, from the ever-present to the dearly departed, Pevear ranks his Top-10 and captures the emotion that made each a thrilling part of our lives.

Visit the link above, then come back and tell us what you think. Are there any stories David left off the list? Would you re-arrange the order?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

‘Tis the day after Christmas and you know what that means; time to clean up the mess and try to recover from another season of chaos.

Hopefully, Santa brought everything on your wish list. If not, I hope he brought enough cash or gift certificates for you to go out and buy what was on your wish list.

Gift certificates and cash are funny things. When you get right down to it, they’re probably the most practical gifts, giving the freedom to get what you want and, most importantly for those of us with ever-expanding physiques, the freedom to get something that fits.

I mean, tell me there wasn’t at least one instance where you unwrapped that snazzy piece of clothing and uttered the obligatory “oohs� and “aahs,� all the while thinking; “They’re gonna need a crowbar and a tub of Crisco to slide me into that outfit.�

(O.K. Maybe that’s just me)

The only thing worse than the present that’ll never fit, is the present that’ll never fit in. You know, the one you have absolutely no use for, or the one that’s so bad you don’t even bother faking the “oohs� and “aahs.�

If you didn’t get at least one of those, consider yourself fortunate. You have a fantastic circle of family and friends, and should give serious thought to adopting me. I’m quite cute and cuddly on Christmas morning.

But I digress. What I really want to talk about are some of those gifts our sports teams and their followers wish they could exchange for a different item or store credit. For example;

Don’t you think the Red Sox wish they could re-do last holiday season, when they wouldn’t shell out the necessary dough for that rugged Johnny Damon doll, only to realize they’d be paying a lot more money for a porcelain J.D. Drew figurine this Christmas? On a related note, they shouldn’t have waited till after the expiration date to return that Coco Crisp action figure…the one that came with no arm.

The Patriots are generally pretty good at getting quality presents, though every now and then Bill Belichick unwraps one that doesn’t come as advertised. The Doug Gabriel football holder was a good example. Fortunately, Belichick was able to re-gift it to the Raiders before it could do any more harm to the household.

Danny Ainge likes to play with little gadgets before the products have even been tested and proved effective. Apparently, the Celtics “hoops el jeffe� goes by the belief that if you keep an Al Jefferson or a Gerald Green long enough, it’ll mature and you’ll either end up with a great gift or at worst, you can trade it on EBay a few years later for something more valuable, like a Kevin Garnett.

Bruins fans always ask Santa for a Stanley Cup. Unfortunately, the Grinch doing the shopping over on Causeway Street spent the last 34-years browsing in the bargain basement. This always led to players with less mobility than those table-top hockey players we used to control with thin metal rods and plastic knobs.

Of course, Lowell Sun subscribers could also complain about what they found under their tree. Last year, they asked for a knowledgeable, entertaining sports guy who could write an entertaining and informative blog.

Instead, they woke up to me!

What are some of the best and worst presents you’ve gotten, in and out of the sports world?

But I heard him exclaim, 'ere he drove out of sight,
Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Sports Talk and TheSunBlog.com!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Final Score
Patriots 24
Jaguars 21

Teddy’s Take: Hail to the Champs!

The Patriots clinched their 5th AFC East crown in the last 6-years with a hard-fought win over a very tough Jaguars squad. To me, this is the most impressive win of the season. Remember, the Jaguars had beaten the Cowboys, Steelers, Jets, Giants and Colts on their home field. For New England to go down there and come away with a “W� is quite a feat.

If you heard Bill Belichick in the post-game, you heard a coach very well aware of what his team accomplished on this day. It was also quite humorous to see him wearing an AFC East Champions hat. I don’t ever recall seeing Belichick wear such a hat. Usually, he has bigger fish to fry than just a division title. But I think it really points to the fact this has in many ways been a rebuilding year, and to win a division during such a year is another great accomplishment.

One more thing; the Patriots own the Tuck Rule. No ifs, ands or buts about it. When I saw the replay of that last minute Garrard fumble, I immediately said that’s the Tuck Rule if I’ve ever seen it. The call still went New England’s way. If a playoff game comes down to a borderline call like that, I’m feeling pretty confident…LOL!

Shining Stars: Tom Brady did whatever was necessary to win, including taking a vicious spear that knocked him out of the game for one play (where was the personal foul flag in that one?) so he could get a first down. A career high 10-rushes for 31-yards and 28-39 passing for 243-yards is reason enough for Tom Terrific to add another gold star to a very crowded forehead.

David Thomas also gets a sticker for a team high 5-receptions and 83 yards. The rookie Tight End also made his first career touchdown a memorable one on a fantastic diving catch...While we’re at it, let’s acknowledge an offensive line that did a very good job protecting the QB and helping the Pats to a sizable advantage in time of possession (37:13-22:47).

On the other side of the ball, a strong team effort was highlighted by Ty Warren’s solid play, including a stop of Maurice Jones-Drew on a key 3rd down. Also, fumble or no fumble, Jarvis Green made the key play getting to Garrard at the end of the game.

Quality Quote: “I’m proud of what our players did. They’ve overcome a lot this year, to have the record we have. I’m proud of what they did today. It’s a tough place to play, a tough team to beat down here. I’m happy we came down here to do it.�—Bill Belichick on why he wore the AFC East Champion hat

What did you think? Biggest win of the year? What about the disputed call at the end of the game? How about the play of Brady? How does this guy do it time after time?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Hopefully you’ll wake Christmas morning to find lots of gifts under your tree.

Those faithfully following The Victim’s picks, however, are well aware our pigskin prognosticator has been playing Santa with his advice since September. While there’s no denying the joy of unwrapping your favorite toy or the latest electronic gadget, there’s even more excitement in NFL fans’ eyes when the little gambling elves piece together a winning weekend of gridiron action.

So with jolly ole Saint Nick loading his sleigh for a late night run around the globe, The Victim Claus offers a few early presents to help pay down those holiday shopping bills;

Kansas City (-6 ½) over Oakland
New England (+3) over Jacksonville
San Francisco (-4) over Arizona
Cincinnati (+3) over Denver
Philadelphia (+7) over Dallas
NY Jets (+2 ½) over Miami

Thursday night: 1-0
Season Record: 46-32

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

(Editors note: the following really has nothing to do with sports. Too bad...it's my blog and I'll talk about anything I want to talk about!)

While the sport of boxing can’t seem to generate much excitement these days, the celebrity fight game is reaching new heights.

This week’s verbal slugfest between Rosie O’Donnell and Donald Trump was one for the ages…a pair of championship-caliber windbags getting down and dirty in front of a national television audience. The only thing missing was Howard Cossell screaming; “Down goes Rosie! Down goes Rosie!�

Let’s get this straight; I’ve never been a fan of The Donald. But after the vicious counter-punches he threw O’Donnell’s way, he’ll forever hold a special place in my heart. While comments like “fat ass� and “I’ll send someone to steal her girlfriend� might be mean-spirited, they’re well deserved for a loudmouth who’s made a career of spouting off about people who she knows very well won’t fight back because of the positions they’re in.

Rosie and her Hollywood brethren have every right to their opinions. What they don’t have a right to do, however, is to basically denigrate and insult people who don’t happen to share those opinions. Criticism is fine…personal attacks are not. And that’s exactly what O’Donnell and friends resort to when they don’t like someone’s political positions, knowing full well elected officials can’t fire back for fear of “lowering� themselves to her level.

Thankfully, Trump has no problem getting down and dirty. The well known rule in fights of any kind is you’d better be prepared to fight fire with fire. And so when Rosie unleashed an unprovoked and personal attack on The Donald, Trump responded with verbal haymaker after verbal haymaker. Like all bullies, Rosie backed down and stayed silent, only Trump kept coming and coming the next day.

Teddy’s scorecard scores it: A 2nd round knockout for the new, undisputed heavyweight windbag of the world…..DON-ald T-RUUUUUMP!

What did you think of this week’s verbal heavyweight slugfest? What would you give to see the two of them in a boxing ring? Who would win?

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

That is the word to describe Tim Thomas' performance last night.

The Bruins did not register one shot on goal in the final period of last nights 2-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks. In fact, the Bs didn't even have one offensive zone face off.

The Canucks out skated, out hit and out shot the Bruins in the final 20 minutes and Thomas made spectacular saves.

He was named the number one star of the game making a total of 39 saves and no one deserved it more.

After giving Thomas his due props, I must take a few minutes to vent my frustrations of last nights game - and no it has nothing to do with the Bruins themselves.

George and I were sitting in section 302 last night and we unfortunately had drunken, belligerent idiots sitting in our section.

These season ticket holders, and I know that because they were the season ticket holder spotlight of the game, showed up five minutes before the game started and were already drunk.

They ruined my experience at the game because of their disgusting, degrading comments about women. I told George I had to leave, I couldn't sit there and listen to these guys for another minute - you know it's bad when I say I have to leave a Bruins game.

Anyway, George convinced me to go to Guest Relations and George had to speak for me at this point because I was crying. I was embarrassed and upset and could not believe my experience at the game was being ruined.

Now, most of you would say suck it up, but I simply couldn't and to be honest with you, I can take just about anything.

The only other time I felt horrified at a game because of other fans was when I went to Philly to see the Bs play the Flyers. Now Philadelphia fans can be nasty - let's just say when the Bruins scored a goal, I stood up and cheered. The usher came down and asked me to sit down, "I don't want to see you get hurt," he said.

But back to last night, John in guest relations would not allow us to leave. He upgraded our seats to the new Sports Deck for the final period - I just want to add AMAZING SEATS!

Christina, our waitress, was the nicest woman I have ever met. She was trying to make me feel better because I still had tears in my eyes. She gave me a bubble blower which I happily used at the Sports Grill after the game.

Speaking of the Sports Grill, I met the best Canucks fans - Colin and Emily- there.

To quote Colin "Tim Thomas stood on his head tonight." None of us could actually figure out why Roberto Luongo wasn't in net for the Canucks.

So, in the end my night was not a complete bust, but seriously folks -the moral of this story is, when you go to any sporting event just to get drunk and act like idiots do the rest of us a favor and stay home.

Anyone out there have an even worse experience than mine?

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

Ask and you shall receive. The question was asked whether or not missing out on the AI sweepstakes is good or bad. Well, it’s one of those questions with more than one side to it. Let’s weigh the good and the bad of not having Iverson under the tree this Christmas.

Let’s start with the optimistic approach.

• First, if you’re a Celtics fan you probably can feel a little relieved that the Celtics didn’t lose Gerald Green or Al Jefferson, which means they may still be members of the Green if they pan out to be all the Celtics hope. Jefferson has played like a man with something to prove in recent weeks, averaging 14.6 points and 10.1 rebounds in 31.1 minutes per game in the month of December.



• Also, while you can never be sure how a new location and a new team setting can effect a player, or not effect him for that matter, the possibility existed that along with his talent and instant credibility, Iverson could’ve brought some bad habits and/or attitudes to the Celtics locker room.



• Along those lines, there is also no telling how the dynamic with head coach Doc Rivers would worked out. Maurice Cheeks had Iverson’s vote of confidence when he came in, but things still didn’t work out. I certainly wouldn’t claim to know enough about how everything went down over the years to call Iverson a coach killer, but that case has been made by some. At the very least it would have been something to keep in mind.



• One big area that could have turned into timebomb is the pecking order. If somehow the trade went down and Iverson, Pierce, and Szczerbiak ended up on the Celtics roster, adjustments would’ve had to be made on the court. Players and coaches would have to settle into an understanding of who is going to play which roles. That’s not even mentioning the amount of money the organization would have tied up over the next few years. Those three alone would account for $44.4 million of the payroll this year and 48.5 next year.

Now, for those folks who can’t get past the urge to yell “But they had a chance to get ALLEN IVERSON,� lets take a look at what good AI’s addition could’ve meant.

• In the eyes of many, the Celtics would have been better as soon as the paperwork was filed. Contenders in the East right away. Of course they still would have had to play the actual games and get the job done on the court, but perception-wise at least, no opponent in the East or West could’ve taken them lightly.



• Bringing in Iverson also would’ve meant relying on a proven veterans with an league MVP to his name as opposed several unproven guys with “potentialâ€? attached to their names. The thing about potential is that there is the potential to be good, there is the potential to be great, and there is the potential that never gets realized. It’s all still “potential.â€?



• Imagine what Paul Pierce, who had arguably the best all-around season of his career last season, could’ve done when opponents couldn’t focus their attention on him. He could stop forcing the action on offense when nothing is there (his 3.8 turnovers per game are 5th most in the NBA). He could’ve deferred late in games to Iverson instead of shouldering all the pressure. He also could afford to have nights when his game just isn’t on. That’s a luxury he surely doesn’t currently enjoy on this team.



• For those people still harping on the lack of a shortened rotation, a trade that would have assuredly sent two or three players to Philly could have made the rotation tighter by virtue of the players being subtracted from the mix.

It all comes down to (1) how you want to look at it and (2) how the Celtics, however depleted, make out as the season goes on. We'll all just have to stay tuned.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The gentleman on the right of your screen is Drake Behrakis, a Lowell native who now lives in Sudbury, Massachusetts. He is also the winner of our Tedy Bruschi auction, submitting an extremely generous bid of $500.

The lady in the middle is Debbie Boda, the Tedy’s Team member who put the ball up for auction through the Lowell Sun’s various internet sites. Debbie was the leading fundraiser for Tedy’s Team during the 2006 Boston Marathon, collecting nearly $18,000, a total she hopes to nearly double in 2007.

(If you don’t recognize the dork on the left, tough luck!)

I just wanted to say thank you again not only to Drake and Debbie, but to everyone who got involved in the auction. Also, I’m told a lot of people who didn’t bid on the football still visited www.debbiemarathon.com and made donations there.

Thanks to everyone’s generous efforts, we’re all winners!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The Victim and I have already made our thoughts known on this whole NFL Network garbage. In tonight’s case, however, the real victims are those who have access to this atrocious Thursday night matchup.

Of course, gambling being gambling, we know full well very few can resist wagering on the sole pro football matchup of the day. With that in mind, here’s The Victim’s pick;

Minnesota (+3) over Green Bay

Last week’s record (including Thursday): 2-4
Season record: 45-32

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

It’s tough to read the tea leaves when it comes to injured Patriots, but there’s every indication Rodney Harrison may be ready to return from his broken shoulder blade.

The heart of the Patriots secondary was listed as questionable on today’s injury report. He’d been listed as out since getting hurt November 5th against the Colts, but was upgraded to doubtful for last week’s game against Houston, an indication he had returned to at least a portion of practice.

Harrison also stated a few weeks ago he was targeting Jacksonville for his return, and the upgrade on the injury list seems to indicate the safety will hit his target, something New England’s defense can use as the season winds down.

Are you folks reading the signs the same way I am? How much did the Pats miss Harrison and his leadership this last month and a half?

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

If you missed last night's Bruins game, you missed a good one.

Marco Sturm exploded for a hat trick, Marc Savard added two power play goals and two assists and Patrice Bergeron had five helpers as the Bs defeated the Senators 7-2 - not too shabby!

What's great for me is that I was finally able to trade for Savard in my fantasy league!

What bothered me was every single time Zdeno Chara touched the puck he was booed by the Ottawa faithful - no offense but get over it. The Senators said all along they were not going to be able to keep both Chara and Wade Redden.

Maybe it's just me, but I don't boo any opposing player no matter if I like them or not - just not my style.

I only hope the Bruins team that showed up last night is the same team that shows up at the GAHDEN tomorrow for their game against Vancouver - I might want to bench Luongo for the game (he's my goalie).

I was listening to Dale and Holley a little earlier today and someone called up and started to call out Chara so to speak.

It was the best hearing Dale scream at the guy, I don't remember exactly what was said, but it was something like this -"They win 7-2 and you call to complain about Chara? Have a Merry Christmas." and then Dale hung up on him. GO DALE!

Now, before anyone says it, yes, I agreed with Dale. You could not find one thing to complain about in last night's game. The Bruins showed up to play, skated a full 60 minutes and went for the jugular when Ottawa's neck was exposed so to speak.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

A five-game winning streak and first place in the Titanic Division. The Celtics (10-13) host the Golden State Warriors tonight at the TD Banknorth Garden and despite injuries and their failure to bring in Allen Iverson, things seemed to be up-beat around the Celtics facility on Tuesday.

Kendrick Perkins and Wally Szczerbiak didn’t participate in practice on Tuesday, but Ryan Gomes and Michael Olowokandi did and may be available for tonight’s game.

Golden State (12-13) comes in having lost two in a row and seven of its last 10 games. Baron Davis’ 20.4 points per game leads a group of seven Warriors scoring 10 points or more per game.

Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said what makes Golden State very tough to defend is that they have multiple guys who can create off the dribble. He also said he expects Golden State to use a lot of pressure and force guys other than Pierce to make shots.

The Pats-Celts Challenge
It seems like every football player wants to play basketball and every basketball player thinks he can play some football, well today the Celtics brought New England Patriots tight end Daniel Graham and Paul Pierce together for a little of both as Graham made a trip to the Celtics training facility to challenge Pierce to a game of H-O-R-S-E.

Graham starting off strong, putting Pierce behind from the start with an “H� on his first attempt, but Pierce put the game to rest with a long range three-pointer, a couple of twisting layups, a three pointer from deep in the corner while standing behind a ball rack, and a finale of a throwing the ball of the back board and slam dunking.

The tight end did show Pierce up momentarily in a free throw shooting contest, hitting 4 of 5 before Pierce stepped to the line and rimmed out his first two. Pierce knocked down all but one in the do over and he saved face in a three point shooting showdown. He also caught a pass from Gerald Green while Graham played the role of defensive back.

Cs Feeling the Holiday Spirit
Last week Celtics players Sebastian Telfair, Delonte West, Ryan Gomes, Gerald Green, Brian Scalabrine and Michael Olowokandi, assistant coaches Tony Brown, Armond Hill and Clifford Ray, as well as Celtics Women’s Group members Kristen Scalabrine, Esta Epstein and Danielle Smith attended a special holiday party for young patients of Boston Medical Center’s Hematology Program at Dick’s Last Resort. One hundred patients were treated to storytelling, a sing-a-long, face painting and games with the Celtics players.

On Sunday Santa was accompanied by Tony Allen, Michael Olowokandi, and team mascot Lucky for the 18th annual Christmas in the City “Winter Wonderland� party to provide a Christmas celebration for over 2800 homeless children in the Greater Boston area.

The Boston Celtics and RE/MAX of New England announced today the launch of the second year of the RE/MAX of New England Home Court Program. The Home Court Program will award a lucky Celtics fan in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island with a home basketball court renovation and community clinic with a Celtics player.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The question “where will Allen Iverson end up� has been answered, and it’s not Boston.

ESPN reports the 76ers are about to trade their disgruntled star to Denver for Andre Miller, Joe Smith and a pair of first round draft picks today. The move helps the Nuggets compensate for the loss of Carmelo Anthony to a 15-game suspension. The best part of the deal; he’s not coming to Boston!

We’ve traveled down this path over the summer, and I know a lot of you disagree with me. Hey, if Danny Ainge could have gotten him for Sebastian Telfair and Delonte West, I’d have fully supported the move. But to give up anything more would have been a bad move for the Celtics.

Simply put, Iverson would not have translated into a championship for the C’s. He won’t win one with Denver either. On the right team, sure, he could win a ring. But that team better have Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant or Tim Duncan on it. You may think differently, but consider; this “all-world� talent just got traded for a couple of uninspiring veterans and a pair of first round picks that will with 99.99% certainty not become Greg Oden. No young, soon-to-be stars. No guaranteed top-3 pick. Just two "please take them off our hands" retreads and two draft picks projected in the mid-20's.

There's a reason for that…two actually. 1)Iverson isn’t worth much more than that and 2)the smart teams are saving their bargaining chips for the Kevin Garnett sweepstakes.

What do you think of the Iverson deal? Should the C’s have made a bigger push to land him?

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

Last week I was in my car following an assignment and noticed I had two voice mails on my cell from my friend Jane.

I honestly didn't know what to think because her 10-year-old daughter, Justine, was in MassGeneral being treated for cancer.

As I listened to the messages a great big smile came across my face, in fact I was laughing when I called her back.

When she answered the phone the exact words I gave her were "Brad Boyes and Patrice Bergeron"
She was dumbfounded and didn't know what I meant.

Her message to me was #26 and #37 of the Boston Bruins stopped by her daughters room. I was simply telling her who they were.

Jane told me that Justin was just so happy that "someone famous had stopped by to see her."

Justine is suffering from Osteosaracoma and is battling everyday, anything that makes her smile is worth it these days!

Now, I know the Bruins do this every holiday season, but it means so much more when they put a smile on your friend's daughter's face!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

A few non-harmonious thoughts while trying to get those Christmas Carols out of my mind:

Explain to me how it’s the middle of December, the local football team is on the verge of clinching yet another division title and embarking on a journey through the playoffs, yet we expend most of our energy worrying about a Japanese pitcher without an inning of major league experience. Gotta hand it to that Red Sox PR machine. They know how to keep the brand name in the headlines.

My personal favorite moment was when I received an email with the link tracking the flight path of John Henry’s private jet across the country. Of course, those stuck in that Storrow Drive traffic jam while Matsuzaka’s limo got a police escort to Mass General probably didn’t find the episode as humorous as I did. How do you say “road rage� in Japanese?

And about this legendary “gyroball� that Dice-K throws; does that come wrapped in pita bread?

Tell me you didn’t get some satisfaction out of watching Scott Boras with his tail between his legs. The agents poster-boy for greed obviously didn’t get the memo about money not being the end all-be all in all cultures.

So Tom Brady and Bridget Moynahan are splitsville, supposedly for real this time. I always thought our Tommy Boy could do better and now we’ll get a chance to find out.

Sun entertainment writer Andy Ravens had a poll on his blog (Ravin’ with Ravens) asking which actress Tom Terrific should hook up with next. Jennifer Aniston was the runaway winner in a field consisting of Jessica Simpson, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Good choice, but the former Friends star was facing a field weaker than the NBA’s Eastern Division.

While I’ll always have a soft spot for any Greek cutie, Ms. Aniston seems to come with too much drama for our driven QB. The next potential Mrs. Brady better be prepared to take a back seat till number-12 hangs up the cleats for good.

My midseason Colts-Giants Super Bowl pick looks good now, huh? Talk about the kiss of death. You folks should be thanking me for not believing the Patriots are good enough to win it all this year.

Good to see our friend Terrell Owens making news again. Must have been tough on poor T.O. having Tony Romo grab all the attention in Dallas.

I’d love it if just once, one of these guys Owens keeps alienating with his mouth (or saliva) would just haul off and deck him. Of course, if anyone did throw a punch, T.O. would probably drop it.

Speaking of fighting, that sure was some good coaching there by George Karl, wasn’t it? Leave Carmelo Anthony in to show up Isiah Thomas, the man who “wronged� your good buddy Larry Brown. One question; is Brown going to provide coaching tips on how to survive the next 15-games without the league’s leading scorer?

Karl should consider himself lucky in one respect. If that was Anthony on the receiving end of the hard foul and by chance he tore up his knee, he’d really have some real explaining to do to his owner.

Pretty brave move by Melo, too. Throw a sucker punch and backtrack faster than O.J.’s book publisher.

Those are my thoughts…what are yours? 

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Apparently, someone wants a Tedy Bruschi autographed football under the Christmas tree pretty badly.

As of 4:30pm Monday, our new high bid is $500, with the bidding scheduled to conclude hours from now on SunTalk Live.

Rather than waste space giving the instructions again, I’ll just provide this link telling you how to proceed if you want to continue bidding on the football. Thank you again, and talk to you later!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Final Score
Texans 7
Patriots 40

Teddy’s Take: Nice to get a preseason game in the middle of November, isn’t it? It’s even better when you get to keep the credit in the “W� column.

Not much suspense here. Houston was awful from the opening kickoff. What a truly horrific franchise. No…Reggie Bush or Vince Young wouldn’t help. Not at all. (Drip, drip goes the sarcasm)

To the Patriots credit, they put the Texans down early and never took the foot off their throats. This wasn’t going to be a repeat of the Lions game where the Pats let an inferior opponent stick around and think it could win. It’s exactly what a good team should do. Put it away early and coast home.

The final two weeks shape up as much tougher matchups. Jacksonville laid an egg today, but the Jaguars are a monster at home. And the Titans are really playing good football. Thankfully, there’s a good chance the Pats will lock up a playoff spot even if they lose both games. However, with the stinker in Miami fresh in their minds, it would be nice to go on the road and beat some quality foes.

Shining Stars: The entire defense earns high honors, battering David Carr into submission early and often. However, two players in particular stood out and get an extra star on the forehead. Ellis Hobbs’ kick return TD took away any momentum the Texans might have thought about gaining. Throw in a pick, and you have a nice comeback game for the guy who got benched a week ago. Tully Banta-Cain also had a strong game with a pair of sacks. More efforts like this will be needed to help a thin and banged up linebacking corps.

On the other side of the ball, Kevin Faulk really got the offense rolling early with a TD run and catch on a screen pass. Corey Dillon didn’t light up the stat sheet (20 carries for 61-yards), but he carried the load with Laurence Maroney out. Add in 5-receptions, and you have a very productive day for Mr. Dillon. Let’s also give props to the offensive line for doing a good job protecting the quarterback a week after he was beaten up pretty well.

Quality Quote: “Coach talked about in the locker room after the game that we won this game on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. You have to put the work in. You have to be able to go out there and work had over the course of three days to understand what we are trying to do, understand our opponent—especially a team that we haven’t faced in a while—and ultimately on Sunday try to go out and execute and try to have some fun. There are probably more smiles today than there have been around here in a while. I thought it was very enthusiastic before the game and I think we showed that in the way we played.�—Tom Brady alluding to his comments earlier in the week about listening to the coaching staff

<p>

That’s my take…what’s yours? Was this anything more than a glorified exhibition game? How do you see the next two weeks playing out?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The immediate public reaction is to condemn the combatants. The NBA will undoubtedly come down hard on the ten players ejected during last night’s Nuggets-Knicks brawl at Madison Square Garden. Mardy Collins, Nate Robinson and Carmelo Anthony will receive the longest suspensions, especially Anthony. Isiah Thomas may also be penalized if it’s proven he ordered a hard foul.

When it does happen, you will not hear a peep of protest from this corner. But the NBA better have a little something in the suspension goodie bag for Denver coach George Karl.

In my mind, the entire incident was Karl’s fault. There was absolutely no reason for the Nuggets to have their starters, including Melo on the court during the last minutes of a blowout contest. NONE!

Not to excuse the players’ actions, but what did Karl expect the Knicks to do? He didn’t think they’d take exception to having their noses rubbed into it on their home court? He’s been in the game long enough. You telling me he wouldn’t have told one of his backups to do the exact same thing Collins did, committing a flagrant foul on J.R. Smith the first time an opportunity arose?

If I’m Nuggets ownership, I think long and hard about why I’m paying this guy big bucks to coach my team. Speculation has Karl rubbing it in Isiah Thomas’ and the New York organization’s faces for their supposed shabby treatment of Larry Brown.

Good move…jeopardize the health of your players as a show of support for a friend who’s being paid a ridiculous sum of money to sit at home. And if that’s not the reason he still had starters on the court that late in the game, then he’s a worse coach than anyone ever imagined.

Forget about the fact he's facing a lengthy suspension. How would Nuggets fans feel if that was Carmelo getting taken down hard on the breakaway attempt? What if that hard foul caused a torn ACL that led to the NBA’s leading scorer never being the same player again? Would Larry Brown put on the uniform and toss in 30+ points a night over the next decade for his good buddy Karl?

Last night’s incident was an embarrassment to both organizations and the entire NBA. And the biggest disgrace of all is that George Karl will still be allowed to sit on the bench the next time the Nuggets take the court.

That’s my take…what’s yours? Whose fault was the basket brawl? What penalties are appropriate for all individuals involved? Should Karl get off scott-free?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

A crazy NFL season continues with 5 more televised games this weekend. Of course, much like Thursday’s San Fran-Seattle matchup, tonight’s Dallas-Atlanta affair will consist of nothing but white noise for a large part of the league’s constituency.

Way to work it Commish! If one of your gun-toting offensive linemen falls in the forest and nobody can see it because you’re blackmailing them with your in-house network, does he make a sound?

On with The Victim’s picks:

Dallas (-3) over Atlanta
Houston (+11 ½) over New England
NY Giants (-5 ½) over Philadelphia
Kansas City (+8 ½) over San Diego
Indianapolis (-3) over Cincinnati

Thursday night: 0-1
Season Record: 43-29

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

As of noon Saturday, the high bid on the Tedy Bruschi autographed football stands at $331.00.

Let me take a minute again to remind everyone the bidding concludes during Monday night’s SunTalk Live program from 7-8pm. The phone number for those who want to get in on the action is (978)364-TALK. Debbie Boda, the Tedy’s Team member who supplied the football will join us in studio to talk about the team’s efforts to tackle stroke.

I guess this would also be a good time to offer some advice for those involved in the auction. When you call in to the show Monday, the moderator will ask if you want to place a bid, participate in the show by asking a question, or just listen in on the fun. (We hope you choose to do all three!) You’ll then be placed back into the program where you can follow everything going on.

Here’s the catch; if you really want that football and you hear that your bid has been surpassed, you will have to hang up and dial in again to place a new bid. At some point late in the program, I will invite everyone interested in the football to place their final offer and give you one last chance to phone in again with that offer. At the conclusion of the program, we will announce the winning bid.

If you have any other questions about the process, leave them in the “comments� section of this post (and any future Tedy's Team auction posts) and we’ll try to answer them for you.

Good luck and keep those bids coming!

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

The following is a an article that appeared in the Sun today....

By ALEXANDRA MAYER-HOHDAHL
Sun Staff
TEWKSBURY - Hockey fever is quickly spreading through South Tewksbury, as residents prepare themselves to welcome a Hockey Hall-of-Famer in their midst this weekend.
Long-time Boston Bruins defenseman Ray Bourque will be stopping by Cabot Road on Sunday night to show his support for resident Joe Lester's Christmas light fundraiser, which benefits the Travis Roy Foundation this year.

"People are running around buying jerseys and pucks," Lester, a hockey player himself, said yesterday. "I¹m like on cloud nine right now. Bourque is my favorite player. I¹m totally overwhelmed."

Travis Roy is also scheduled to accompany Bourque during his visit to Cabot Road on Sunday at 5 p.m.
Roy, a quadriplegic, was supposed to drop by Lester's house with Bruins goalkeeper Tim Thomas last weekend, but was unable to make it after his wheelchair malfunctioned. Lester has been raising money for charities with his enormous Christmas light display for 10 years. This year, he joined forces with former Bruins goalkeeper and Celebrities for Charity Foundation President Cleon Daskalakis, to kick off a $1.1 million fundraising effort by the Travis Roy Foundation.
Roy has been a quadriplegic since 1995, when he severely damaged his spinal cord after only 11 seconds into his first college hockey game at Boston University. His foundation aspires to help survivors of spinal-cord injury and fund research into a cure.
Bourque was drafted by the Bruins in 1979 and quickly became one of the National Hockey League's best defensemen. He also was the Bruins' captain for 14 seasons. In 2000, Bourque was traded to the Colorado Avalanche, so that he could take a stab at winning the Stanley Cup. A year later, he brought the cup back to Boston, where he was met by thousands of fans.
The public is welcome to visit Lester's home at 220 Cabot Road on Sunday to meet Roy and Bourque.

I don't know about you - but I'm planning on attending - I have met Ray many times - but meeting Travis Roy will be special for this hockey fan.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

News Flash: A day after adding Daisuke Matsuzaka to the starting rotation, the Red Sox added relief help by trading minor leaguer Phil Seibel to the Angels for Brendan Donnelly.

Teddy’s Take: Another good move by Theo Epstein.

Donnelly is a proven set up guy, though he does carry some baggage. The 35-year old righty got a late start on his career, breaking in with the Halos in 2002. He was a key contributor to the Angels 2003 World Series championship and had an even better year in 2004 (stats). However, his numbers took a decided turn downward after being suspended in June of 2005 for having pine tar on his glove during a game against the Nationals.

Whether his success had anything to do with cheating, who knows? He wasn’t exactly a stiff afterward, just a bit easier to hit than before. But even at his worst, Donnelly’s a better option than some of the gasoline pourers coming out of the Boston pen last year.

Now if we can only find a closer!

That’s my take…what’s yours?

Update: The Red Sox signed left-handed reliever J.C. Romero. Romero spent last year with the Angels after an effective stint in Minnesota.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Apparently, Colonel Jessup was right. Private Santiago was a substandard Tight End.

The Patriots just ordered a Code Red on O.J. Santiago, releasing him only two days after announcing his signing. Not that this is overly newsworthy, but anytime I can work in “A Few Good Men� references, it’s not a bad thing.

Why the two orders Colonel Belichick?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Not only did we get the $300 I asked for, but someone threw in an extra dollar for good luck! At this rate, we may have to install an extra phone line for Monday's SunTalk Live auction finale.

Keep 'em coming!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Normally, I don’t enjoy early morning text messages on my cell phone. The sound tends to wake me up.

But since I have the auction site set to notify me every time a new bid comes in, I woke up with a smile on my face when I found out we had a new high bid of $275. At this rate, we’re going to raise some serious cash in the fight against stroke!

Thank you to everyone who’s submitted a bid on the Tedy Bruschi autographed football and thanks to those who’ve visited the www.debbiemarathon.com site and made contributions there, as well. You truly understand what the season of giving is all about!

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

Brad Stuart's power play goal at 2:17 of the third period was the game winner as the Boston Bruins beat the New Jersey Devils 5-3; the first time Boston has defeated NJ post lockout.

The last time the Bruins and Devils faced each other, NJ did not committ one infraction, that was not the case in this game- the Bruins were 3 for 7 on the man advatage.

In the game the Bruins out shot New Jersey 45-29 - OUCH!
Now before the nay sayers can start to say "Brodeur didn't play" remember - last season Scott Clemmensen got the start in most of the games against the Bs.

Dale Arnold and Andy Brickley said Patrice Bergeron (2 goals, 1 assist) was the best player on the ice for both teams- obviously the other media outlets agreed - he earned the #1 star of the game.

Brad Boyes (1 gaol, 2 assists) also played a solid game- probably his best of the season, earning the second star of the game.

Dice-K was present before the the game to drop the ceremonial puck.
He donned a Bs #18 jersey - his new number for the Red Sox; wonder if Mark Mowers minded?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Well, I guess someone wants Tedy Bruschi’s autograph on a football!

As of 6:45pm Thursday, our high bid is $250. Are you going to let it go that easily? Or is someone going to step up and strip the ball out of that bidders hands?

What would Tedy Bruschi do?

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

Newly signed Red Sox pitcher, Daisuke Matsuzaka, will drop the puck tonight at the TD Banknorth Garden when the Bruins host the New Jersey Devils.

Wonder if the special ceremony at center ice will help the Bruins sell out a game... doubt it, but dreaming keeps you warm on a cold winter's night - although it is 60 degrees today!

The Devils beat the Bruins last Saturday night and Boston looks to even the series, only one thing stands in their way - Martin Brodeur. Yeah, yeah, I know not an easy task.

Tim Thomas will get the start tonight after dressing back-up in Tuesday's 4-3 loss in Montreal.

The Bruins have lost their past two games (NJ, Montreal). Maybe, just maybe - the Bs can skate hard and fast and beat the every disciplined Devils.

Will you tune in tonight just to see Matsuzaka? Were you planning on tuning in regardless?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The only thing more amusing than the phony drama surrounding the Daisuke Matsuzaka signing was the debate among Red Sox Nation beforehand about whether a guy who hasn’t pitched an inning of major league baseball was worth $51-million just for the right to negotiate with him.

Poor, poor naïve people. Still holding out the belief that major league sports are anything but big business. If yesterday’s flight-tracking, hospital-escort episode didn’t convince you of how much free publicity the Sox are getting out of this guy, then today’s circus at Fenway Park certainly will. There are literally hundreds of American and Japanese media types swarming the lyric little bandbox as we speak, documenting every single move Boston’s new import is making.

Dice-K is getting a tour of his new home, including a peek behind the Green Monster (no, not Godzilla). He'll even be at the new Gahden tonight to drop the puck on the Bruins game. The funniest scene involved Matsuzaka throwing an off-target pitch from the mound to John Henry, and the Red Sox Principal Owner nearly falling into a puddle trying to catch it.

Of course, nearly every “breathtaking� sequence will be televised back to Japan, which is exactly why Henry and company spent all that money in the first place. Look, the guy can stink up the joint and in the long run, and the business side of the Sox won’t care a lick. They’re going to sell a ton of merchandise, stamp a large footprint in the lucrative Asian market, and have a head start when it comes to recruiting future Far East stars when the system for acquiring them is revised. (Which will be another side-effect of this entire episode)

Don’t worry about the Red Sox investment here folks. Be glad they’re smart enough businessmen to go after an expensive property. And if that property can pitch as advertised, the baseball side of things might get a huge payoff as well!

That’s my take…what’s yours? Are we all in agreement that Daisuke Matsuzaka was a wise investment for the Red Sox?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The bidding on the Tedy Bruschi autographed football now stands at $175…and climbing!

Those of you who aren’t interested in the ball, please remember to visit www.debbiemarathon.com to find out how you can help Tedy’s Team Tackle stroke. Remember, no donation is too big or too small in this fight.

Keep the bids coming!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

“Private Santiago was a substandard marine..�

Sorry for borrowing a line from one of my favorite movies, but if Colonel Jessup was a football coach, he would have added that O.J. Santiago was a substandard tight end. And that was back in his heyday, which came many NFL moons ago.

The former Falcons, Cowboys, Browns and Raiders TE has career numbers (81-receptions and 9-TD’s) that add up to an average season for Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez. This guy hasn’t even played in the league since 2003! Is this the best option out there? Looks to me like Ben Watson’s going to miss some playing time.

Is it time to order a “Code Red� on the Patriots 2006 season?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

A rare hump day transmission from The Victim has us posting his Thursday night pick a bit earlier than usual.

Our unparalleled pigskin prognosticator comes off a week of treading water, though fearless followers won’t frown upon a 15-game above .500 mark. To put it in simple terms, if you bet $10 a game, you’d be up $150 on the man. $100 a pop gets you to $1,500 and so-on-so-forth till you reach Michael Jordan and John Daly proportions, which would have you sitting on a tidy $15-million dollar profit.

Bet the ex-wives would love a piece of that action! On with the pick:

Seattle (-9 ½) over San Francisco

Last week’s record (including Thursday): 3-3
Season record: 43-28

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff
According to various reports, Bruins rookie forward, Phil Kessel has undergone successful cancer related surgery.

There is not clarification as to what type of cancer he has or how long he'll be out, although hockey should not be anyone's concern at the moment, Kessel's health is the most important thing.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

You know how Bill Belichick has the Patriots trained never to say anything bad about the opposition?

Well, apparently the Miami Dolphins pushed the right buttons in Tom Brady. Here’s what the Patriots QB had to say about the ‘Fins claiming they figured out the Pats offensive line calls:

“Someone told me about that on Monday. But I don’t see that. I would love to see evidence of that. They could know exactly what our line calls are, but that’s… I mean, our defense knows what our line calls are. It doesn’t matter. They can say that, but I think that is a big crock of you know what. I think it’s a matter of how we played. If you ask them, it probably sounds good for them to say that they have it all figured out, but, you know, they’re 6-7 and we’re 9-4, so you tell me who’s got it more figured out.�

About time! Frankly, I’ve been a bit disappointed at how passive the Pats have been. Yeah, it’s good not to get overly excited about each and every game. That works well when you’re winning 14-in a row. But when you’re getting slapped around as much as this year’s edition has, it’s refreshing to see someone show some emotion and fight back.

Now, if only Brady’s teammates could show some of that on the field!

What did you think of comments? Were they accurate or a sign of frustration from a guy who’s normally cool as the other side of the pillow?

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

Reports this morning and afternoon were that Daisuke Matsuzaka and agent Scott Boras joined Sox general manager Theo Epstein and Larry Luchino on the private plane of Red Sox owner John Henry heading from California to Hanscome Air Force Base.

Epstein and Luchino traveled to California early this week in order to speed up the negotations. A deal must be reached by Thursday night at midnight or Matsuzaka must return to Japan and the Red Sox will not have to pay the $51.1 million posting fee.

SI.com’s Jon Heyman is reporting that Matsuzaka and the Red Sox have reached a deal for six years, and worth $52 million with escalator clauses that could bring it up to $60 million.

Red Sox principal owner John Henry was on sports talk radio station WEEI within the last half hour and said that the deal was not done, but that they were “close‿ and that he was hopeful.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Our new high bid for the Tedy Bruschi autographed football is $150.

A quick reminder; the bidding will continue online through next Monday night. The auction will then conclude during that night’s SunTalk Live broadcast between 7-8pm.

The number to dial in, if you want to participate, is (978)364-TALK. Debbie Boda, the Tedy’s Team member who put the ball up for auction will join us during the show to discuss the work she and Bruschi’s runners do to raise money for the American Stroke Association. We’re also working on a few other surprises for that night, as well as holding our regular open forum sports discussion.

Keep the bids coming!

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The waiting game continues in the Allen Iverson trade talks.

The possible trade scenarios, real or imagined, have been flying around for days. At this moment, Iverson remains a member of the 76ers.

Your Boston Celtics have long been thought to be among the teams making trade proposals. Among the teams that may have dropped out of the AI sweepstakes are the Charlotte Bobcats and the Sacramento Kings.

Philadelphia apparently had a deal in place with the Bobcats, but Iverson put the brakes on the idea of playing for the 5-15 squad for a franchise in just its third year of existence, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Bobcats general manager and head coach Bernie Bickerstaff denied those reports today according to a report on the Bobcats team website.

A report on Bloomberg.com quoted Kings co-owner Joe Maloof as saying of Iverson trade talks, “We're staying away. We're not going forward.''

Various reports have the Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Warriors, Indiana Pacers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Denver Nuggets in the running along with the Celtics.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

A quick update on the bidding for the Tedy Bruschi autographed football:

As of 7:30pm, the top bid is $135.00

Keep the offers coming and remember; you don’t have to win the football to help the cause. Visit www.debbiemarathon.com and find out other ways you can help Tedy’s Team Tackle Stroke!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Apologies to former NFL quarterback Roman Gabriel, but this headline was the first thought that came to mind with the announcement just minutes ago that the New England Patriots had released wide receiver Doug Gabriel.

(Get it...he got cut, so he needs a new home…he’s roaming? Ah, forget it. If I have to spend that much time explaining it, it’s not that funny to begin with! Plus, I'm sure Tom Brady wasn't laughing at how much roaming he did on his pass routes!)

Gabriel was acquired from the Raiders on September 2nd for a 5th round draft pick. At one point, he’d become the team’s #1 receiver, if any of that mediocre-to-sad crew could be called a #1. But Gabriel had a costly fumble in the loss to the Jets and basically dropped off the face of the earth in recent weeks. He leaves with 25-catches for 344-yards (13.8 avg) and 3-TD’s in 12-games.

What do you think? Has any player suffered a faster fall from grace than this guy? Was it the fumble or did something else happen behind the scenes?

The Red Sox are having a hell of a time closing the deal on a closer.

While the Scott Boras charade over Daisuke Matsuzaka plays on, the Red Sox lost out on yet another closer candidate. Eric Gagne agreed to terms with the Texas Rangers, meaning the Sox have now been spurned (or didn’t want to go the distance on) their top two choices in the free agent market. (Octavio Dotel was the other)

At this point, I don’t really know what’s out there. The name Chad Cordero (Nationals) was floated around in the Manny trade rumors. The NY Post is also reporting Boston’s Boys of Summer are offering Coco Crisp to the Pirates for injury-prone, but immensely talented lefty, Mike Gonzalez. (Still think Theo hasn’t realized what a mistake he made?) Other than that, there aren’t many attractive options unless there’s something we don’t know about.

As for the latest Boras dog and pony show, don’t buy it. Matsuzaka will be signed, sealed and delivered by Thursday. Boras doesn’t have any other options, unless he can convince the Japanese righty it’s best to return home for another year. Then again, he’d also have to explain to the Seibu Lions the genius of giving back the $51-million to Boston. How many Asian clients you think would jump at the chance to have Boras represent them if he cost a guy who clearly wanted to pitch in America the chance to do that and make a fortune in the process.

Face it Scott…you’re dealing from a position of weakness on this one, and you know it. Greed may be the dominant factor for most major leaguers, but you’re dealing with a completely different culture here. End the charade now and concentrate your efforts elsewhere.

What do you think? Are the Sox going to come up with a legit closer or are we doomed to a year of Mike Timlin-Craig Hanson debates? How about Matsuzaka? Are you as confident as I am that everything will work out?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Bids on our Tedy Bruschi autographed football are already coming in...and the paper hasn't even hit the newsstand yet!

You can follow the auction by visiting the bid entry page. While there, why don’t you make an offer yourself or increase the one you’ve already made. The current top bid stands at $125, but that won't last long.

We’re going to try to update the numbers on an hourly basis. (Please forgive any lapses during the overnight hours. Even a sports geek like me needs his beauty sleep…as you can tell from the picture!) And remember, the auction runs through next Monday night at 8pm and will conclude during our SunTalk Live broadcast that night.

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

There is nothing more enjoyable to me than talking hockey!

And that's exactly what I got to do on Sun Talk Live (http://www.lowellsun.com/suntalk) Take a listen tomorrow. I'll give you a few of the topics we chatted about - but if you want details take a listen tomorrow afternoon.

Teddy and I talked about the Bruins, Devils, UNH, Hockey East in general, Crosby, Malkin and even Thornton... All I know is that I absolutely, truly love talking hockey it was fun talking with Teddy - HE'S A GREAT HOST!

Dave Pevear chimed in to talk Patriots and Dan (a caller) had some fun chatting with Teddy and Dave as I silenty listened - which was good since if you heard the show - you would know I am not a Patriots fan.

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

Boston Bruins rookie, Phil Kessel, has not traveled with the team to Montreal. In fact the 19-year-old is currently in the hospital for a "medical reason not related to hockey."

His family issued a statement which can be read on the Bruins web site (http://www.bostonbruins.com). They are not releasing information as to the reason he is in the hospital and what his current condition is.

This Bruins fan's prayers and thoughts are with Kessel and his family.

When and if more information is available, I will update.
Don't forget to call Sun Talk Live tonight to chat with yours truly about hockey.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Tedy Bruschi can more than handle himself on a football field.

But in the Patriots linebacker’s toughest fight, an athlete’s body, shoulder pads and a helmet aren’t much use. For Tedy’s team to win the battle against stroke, the spirit must be strong, especially the spirit of giving.

On the surface, Debbie Boda has very little in common with Bruschi. She wasn’t much of an athlete growing up in Lawrence, but enjoyed watching baseball and liked going to hockey games because her brother played. Boda’s only real interest in football was cheerleading for the high school team, and even that was due to the fact her boyfriend was starting quarterback.

She started running marathons in 1998, tackling eight of them while raising money for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Societies. “But as soon as I crossed the finish line of my first one in Alaska, I knew I wanted to run Boston for my Dad,‿ says Boda.

Carmelo Marino of Lawrence died of a massive stroke at the age of 45, leaving Boda and her five siblings without parents. (Their mother was killed by a drunk driver at age 31) “My dad had so many warning signs and risk factors, but because we were unaware of what they were, they went unheeded. If we knew then what we know now, his death could have been avoided.‿

Tedy Bruschi was similarly uninformed in February of 2005. “You’re crazy. Stroke happens to old people,‿ thought the then 31-year old when told by doctors he’d suffered one himself. Bruschi survived his ordeal and returned to the gridiron after eight months of intensive therapy. More importantly, he’d found a calling.

Thus was born Tedy’s Team, an organization of volunteers hand-picked by Bruschi himself to run marathons while raising money and awareness for the American Stroke Association. The 2006 Boston Marathon was their first event, with Tedy’s Team providing training and organizational support every step of the way.

For Debbie Boda, it was a way to honor her father. Prior to ’06, Boston wasn’t one of the Stroke Association’s sponsored events. “If it weren’t for you‿ she told Bruschi, “I wouldn’t have the opportunity to run Boston for my dad.‿ In the process, she raised nearly $18,000, becoming the team’s top fundraiser.

And this is where we come in. Boda’s goal for the 2007 race is $35,500. To get the ball rolling, Boda is putting a Tedy Bruschi autographed football up for auction and using our new media ventures as a forum. Call it a “technology auction,‿ if you will.

Bidding is now open on the Lowell Sun’s internet sites. To participate, just visit the link on the upper right of thise page. You can also get there via LowellSun.com, or the SunTalk Live site at http://www.lowellsun.com/suntalk.

Bidding will continue through 8pm Monday, December 18th. However, the final hour of the auction features a twist. We will also accept bids over the phone during our SunTalk Live broadcast that night and announce the winner at the conclusion of the program. You can join in on the fun by dialing (978)364-TALK beginning at 6:45pm.

Think about it. Could there be a better Christmas present than a Tedy Bruschi autographed football and the satisfaction that comes with helping a great cause?

One more thing; you don’t need to participate in the auction to contribute. No donation is too big or too small in this fight. To offer support any way you can, visit Boda’s site at www.debbiemarathon.com.

Now then; you know the game plan. You know how tough the foe can be. Buckle up those chin straps, loosen those wallets, and let’s help Tedy’s Team tackle stroke!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Final Score
Patriots 0
Dolphins 21

Quality Quote: “Well, there is no doubt about who the better team was out there today.�—Bill Belichick’s opening statement after the game

Teddy’s Take: That pretty much says it all, doesn’t it?

Ordinarily, Quality Quote is the final piece of my game summary, but I thought the coach captured the essence of what transpired perfectly. Now, he also went on to say a lot of teams would be happy to be in the Patriots position with a 9-4 record in response to a question about his team’s play the last few weeks. But when you’ve been to the mountain top, the view from the hills just isn’t the same. And I bet deep down inside, the coach feels the same way.

The Pats always have their hands full when they play in Miami, even when New England was a dominant team and the Dolphins stunk. So there really shouldn’t be any shock at this result in a year where the Patriots are just another good team instead of the machine from the dynasty days.

Still, the decisiveness of the loss is a bit jarring. There is no longer a sure win with this team. We can no longer take Belichick’s building up of foes as the coach smartly not saying anything to rile the opposition. Now when he says players like Joey Harrington, Sammy Morris and Marty Booker pose all sorts of problems, he’s right. I guess that’s how it’s always really been. It’s just that our boys are no longer good enough for us to mock those words.

In Detention: Boy, where to begin on this one? How about we start with Tom Brady’s horrific performance. In fact, let’s give the entire offense a smack with the yard stick. (Can you tell I went to private school?) Tom Terrific was awful. He had a lot of help, but your star needs to make plays. 12-25, 78-yards does not qualify…Of course, the offensive line didn’t help, giving up 5-sacks and numerous free shots at the man they’re supposed to protect. It’s not like there was no running game to keep Miami honest. There was. And yet the O-Line still couldn’t keep the pass rush off him. When Dolphins players comment about the normally cool Brady yelling at his lineman, you know something’s gone awry.

Let’s not give the group of Reche Caldwell, Jabar Gaffney and Doug Gabriel a free pass here, either.  The trio of wideouts accounted for one catch (Caldwell) between them. That’s simply unacceptable. Part of the problem with the sacks lies in the fact good defenses simply have no respect for New England’s ability to hit a big play. And if you think this problem won’t rear its head again in the playoffs, you’re in for a rude awakening.

That’s my take…what’s yours? Were you really surprised they lost this game? Are you growing increasingly worried about the rest of the schedule as well?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

The lineup for Monday’s SunTalk Live keeps growing, as for the first time in the show’s history we’ll have not one, but two, featured guests.

We’d previously announced Gayle Simone in studio for some hockey talk. Now we can tell you David Pevear will also join the show to discuss the Patriots big matchup in Miami. Pevear is the Lowell Sun’s Pats writer and was with us a couple of weeks ago. David’s expected to call into the show at about 7:15, and hopefully we can get him to stick around for a bit to answer your questions.

As if that isn’t enough, we’ll also give you details on how you can bid on a Tedy Bruschi autographed football. That’s right, our little tease the other day about helping Tedy’s Team fight stroke involves your opportunity to contribute to a great cause and perhaps win a perfect gift for that special someone on your shopping list. Of course, if you want to keep the ball for yourself and display it on your mantle, you can’t go wrong there, either!

So join us Monday night from 7-8pm. The number is (978)364-TALK. As always, you’re encouraged to call in early. And don’t forget to tell your friends!

Talk to you soon!

Posted by Gayle Simone, Sun Staff

What is it about this goaltender? Hannu Toivonen makes spectacular saves and then always and I stress ALWAYS lets in the soft ones...

When is the club going to realize the kid needs more time in the AHL where he can play all the time and get his confidence back?

After, the soft, bad goal he gave up to Rasmussen, Toivonen seemed to have lost his way and let the game get out of hand.

The best part of that Bruins game against the Devils - or rather the funniest part about the game was Brian Gionta trying to take on Zdeno Chara and Chara towering over him simply putting his glove in his face.

The Bruins missed a golden opportunity to slip into the 8th playoff spot - all they needed was at least a point out of the game and the spot was theirs.

The Eastern Conference is extremely tight for playoff positions at the moment and barring the fact of a Buffalo or Atlanta complete collapse it is safe to say either of those teams is going to take the top seed - but even the third seed (Atlantic Division) is not set in stone New Jersey only has a 2pt lead over the Rangers. Seeds 4-8 are all within a couple of points of each other and technically it's still very early in the season - still haven't reached the All-Star break.

On the AHL front, the Devils beat the Wolfpack 6-4 tonight with Rod Pelley recording a hat trick; the first ever in Devils history.

If the calculations are correct - some how; some way Manchester jumped into the number one seed after beating Portland and Lowell is once again tied for second.

Do you have any confidence in Toivonen? What's your thoughts on the Lowell Devils? Don't forget to call on Monday and challenge me on the sport of hockey. As per usual, I welcome the challenge.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

In the movie Dog Day Afternoon, Al Pacino’s character, Sonny, repeatedly utters the word “Attica� to rile onlookers against the police.

Perhaps in a similar effort to rev up the followers and keep the laws of gambling from catching up to his amazing streak, The Victim is turning to the “dogs� this weekend. Other than his selection of Bill Belichick’s boys, our pigskin prognosticator advises to take the points in all four matchups (five if you count this past Thursday’s pick of the Browns) appearing on the tube.

The smart money during this wacky NFL season has been with the underdogs. Is another Dog Day Afternoon on the horizon? Only The Victim and Pacino know for sure. On with the picks:

New England (-3) over Miami
Arizona (+3) over Seattle
Buffalo (+3 ½) over NY Jets
New Orleans (+7) over Dallas
St. Louis (+6) over Chicago

Thursday's record: 0-1
Season Record: 40-26

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

With the Bruins relevant again, it’s as good a time as any for SunTalk Live to go for a skate.

Our favorite hockey krishna, Gayle Simone, is Monday’s special guest to the Lowell Sun’s call-in show. Gayle will join us from 7-8pm to discuss the Bruins, Lowell Devils and any other hockey topic you feel like chatting about. As always, we’ll open the lines to our open forum as well, allowing you to chime in on the Patriots, Red Sox and Celtics. Or, if local college and high school sports is your thing, bring it on.

One more thing…During the show, I’ll reveal more information on how you can help Tedy Bruschi tackle stroke. So be sure to dial in at (978)364-TALK…and be sure to tell your friends!

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The speculation is soon to start. The Philadelphia 76ers have made it official. They plan to ship Iverson out of town. 76ers Owner Ed Snider’s confirmed on ESPN that Iverson has asked for a trade and made the following comments to Lisa Salters.

Salters: How did you feel when you heard that Allen Iverson wants to be traded?

Ed Snider: "I was disappointed, at the very least, but I think that every player has the right to say what he wants. Allen has decided that's what he wants."

Salters: What has Allen Iverson meant to this city and this organization?

Ed Snider: "Allen Iverson is a great, great basketball player and he's done a tremendous amount of good things for our organization, and whatever happens we wish him well."

Salters: Have you spoken to Allen today?

Ed Snider: "No."

Salters: What will you say to him when you do talk to him?

Ed Snider: "I will wish him a lot of luck."

Salters: How involved in the process of accomodating his request will you be?

Ed Snider: "Very involved. Meaning that Billy King and I discuss it regularly."

Salters: How are you feeling personally tonight?

Ed Snider: "I think it's time to move on and I wish him luck and I also hope we can do well."

Salters: Has Allen Iverson played his last game for the Philadelphia 76ers?

Ed Snider: "Probably."

Want to become part of Tedy’s Team and help tackle stroke in the process?

Keep your eyes on The Sun and TheSunblog.com for more details!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Thursday night football used to be a wonderful thing.

Remember when the NFL used to throw a couple of games on ESPN late in the season, giving us a special gambling treat right in the middle of an otherwise boring work week? It wasn’t Monday night football, but it was close. Along with a single prime time matchup to conclude the betting cycle, they gave us a way to begin it as well.

And then, the NFL got greedy. Yup, let’s see if we can sucker people into paying for games without calling it pay-per-view. So now, the only way you can see these special mid-week treats (and a few upcoming Saturday night jobbers) is if you have digital cable or a satellite system that carries the NFL Network. That’s right, 11-months of useless programming (unless you consider college boys running around in their underwear during the scouting combine must-see TV) for the right to view a handful of late-season games. And the best part is, millions of viewers throughout the country don’t even have the NFL Network available on their cable system at all.

I say screw the NFL and the sponsors stupid enough to let them get away with this. I’m not buying it, and neither are a lot of angry fans. And The Victim agrees with us. Sure, he’ll still dish out his picks for these invisible matchups, but our advice to the NFL; take your new propaganda machine and you know what you can do with it. You’ve already got a generation of fans in the nation’s 2nd largest market (Los Angeles) growing up without a football team. Keep alienating the rest of the country, too.

That’s my rant and The Victim’s. Now, here’s his pick:

Cleveland (+7) over Pittsburgh

Last week’s record (including Thursday): 3-3
Season record: 40-25

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

After what seems like an eternity of speculation, the Red Sox finally came to terms Tuesday night with the two free agents almost every media outlet had them targeting and signing.

Agent Scott Boras confirmed a 5-year, $70-million deal for J.D. Drew. Meanwhile, ESPN is reporting Boston’s Boys of Summer have also agreed with SS Julio Lugo on a 4-year, $36-million contract. (Nice country!)

I’ve already wasted enough space discussing both players. (If you don't believe me, type in Drew or Lugo on this site's search engine) I’ll simply recap by saying I don’t believe Drew is that bad of a move, particularly if he’s batting behind Manny and Papi. Lugo, on the other hand, I can’t get excited about. Oh, how I long for the days of Orlando Cabrera.

The best news of the day was Terry Francona’s announcement that Jon Lester’s cancer is in remission and the young lefty will be ready to roll once spring training comes around. Lester confirmed the news later on and is looking forward to returning.

What are your thoughts on the signings? How about the Lester news? And what else do you anticipate happening?    

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

If you missed last night’s SunTalk Live program, you missed a great hour of hot-stove baseball talk.

Chaz Scoggins joined me in studio to cover everything from the Red Sox off-season to his support of Mark McGwire’s Hall of Fame candidacy. His argument was pretty strong, to the point where he’s almost got me re-thinking my opposition. (I said almost!)

For those who didn’t get to join in on the fun (and for those who did but still want to listen again), you can hear last night’s show as well as all other programs on the SunTalk Live link at LowellSun.com.

Enjoy the show!

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

Four basketball teams come into Costello Gymnasium with intentions of getting on track in the Northeast-10 Conference. Of course only two will leave with the “W.� It’s still early in the season, so it could be a solid building block for whichever teams are able to stop the bleeding.

UML Women vs. Merrimack
The River Hawks (1-4, 0-4 NE-10) come in looking for their second win of the season after having dropped their last four games. Merrimack (1-5, 0-3 NE-10) has also lost it’s last four games.

Merrimack enters Costello Gymnasium after losing at American International, 48-58, on Saturday. The Warriors come in with three players averaging 10 points or more in Kara Borelli (14.5 ppg), Ashley Brownlee (10.7 ppg), and Casey Miller (10.0).

UML fell victim to a poor shooting performance in the first half against Bryant on Saturday, scoring just 11 points. The River Hawks pulled things together in the second half and sophomore forward Antonnea Robinson led the way with 10 points. Junior guard Tonya Perry also added eight points and seven rebounds.

The start time for the women's game is 5:30 p.m. at Costello Gymnasium.

UML Men vs. Merrimack
The River Hawks (3-4, 1-3 NE-10) pulled out a 75-74 win at Stonehill on Wednesday, before a late three-pointer gave Bryant 69-66 victory at Costello Gymnasium on Saturday. Merrimack (2-4, 1-2 NE-10) enters play tonight with a three-game losing streak with losses to Northeast-10 Conference opponents American International, St. Rose, and St. Michael’s.

Last year the River Hawks went to Merrimack and came away with a 77-70 victory in large part due to 51 points from the senior duo of Stacey Moragne and Brandon Arnette.

UMass Lowell will have to contain Merrimack’s Kenny Jones, who averaged 22.3 points and 5.7 rebounds in three games this past week. He had 25 against American International and 23 points against Saint Rose.

Junior guard Dashon Harper averaged 19 points and 2.5 assists per game in two games last week. Junior Jerreh Saidybah and freshman Victory Colon have also provided fairly consistent scoring, averaging 10.7 and 10.3 points, respectively.

The start time for the men's game is 7:30 p.m. at Costello Gymnasium.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Sunday started so promising.

I’d drafted Laurence Maroney in two of my three fantasy football leagues (tell me I don’t have a problem), waiting patiently for the rookie runner to supplant Corey Dillon as the Patriots full-time back. Now the time had come to cash in on the investment.

The Lions provided the perfect opponent for the dreadlocked one to bust out big-time, propelling one of my make-believe squads to victory. Boy, did I look like a genius when Maroney already had three carries by the Patriots second drive. Chalk up the century mark in yardage and at least two touchdowns, I thought.

And then it happened!

After his fourth carry, Maroney motioned for a replacement before heading to the sideline. We saw him moments later, helmet half off, trying to take a deep breath. “Maroney had the wind knocked out of him� came official word from New England’s bench. “His return is probable.�

“That’s it� I said to the guy next to me. “He’s out with a broken rib. Mark a zero next to his name on the scorecard.�

Bill Belichick isn’t the first guy to hide the truth about player maladies. It’s just that the Patriots football el jeffe has turned injury deception into an art form. “Guess the real injury or damaged body part� is a weekly game show in the Foxboro press box. We’re more likely to see Britney Spears wearing undies than find out what’s really wrong with Maroney.

To be honest, I can’t really blame Belichick. Why should any coach pass out information that could help an opponent game plan against him? There’s no logic to it. We all know why the NFL makes such a big deal out of issuing injury reports and updating them throughout the week anyway. If you don’t, head to Vegas and witness the multi-billion dollar enterprise that is NFL gambling.

If I had my way, all sports franchises would operate the way Dr. Bill does. In fact, why stop there? Every institution throughout history should have sent representatives to a Belichick seminar on injury news dissemination. Think of how much fun we’d have had:

News flash: The New York Yankees announce Lou Gehrig is day-to-day with a minor ailment. The disease is not believed to be serious, as it doesn’t even have a name yet.

News Flash: Mets outfielder Darryl Strawberry left tonight’s game with a runny nose.

News Flash: Marie Antoinette is out of the Royal Ball with a neck stinger. French Information Minister, Basil Belicheque, calls her return to the throne probable.

News Flash: Barbaro is questionable for the running of the Belmont Stakes with a minor lower extremity strain.

News Flash: Evander Holyfield was unable to continue tonight’s heavyweight title fight against Mike Tyson due to an ear infection.

News Flash: Nancy Kerrigan is probable for the upcoming Olympics with a bruised knee. A Harding-Gillooly press release says doctors have advised Kerrigan to cut back on the whine.

News Flash: Vince Baker is in the trainer’s room due to, hiccup, dehydration.

News Flash: Alexander Litvinenko is out of the Espionage Bowl with what the KGB terms a “case of food poisoning.�

News Flash: Lowell Sun Sports Blogger Teddy Panos will miss his next column with a hang nail.

O.K. That last one’s not true. It’s really Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Give us your spin on any famous injuries throughout history!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Teddy’s Take: Is there really a problem?

Listen to the players, the pundits, even most of the fans, and you’d think the game against the Lions was a disgrace. Heck, for a while there I was disgusted at how terribly the Patriots played on their home turf against perhaps the worst team in the NFL. Then you take a step back and realize they won a game they had no business winning, which in an odd way is a good thing. Why? Because it shows they’re good enough and talented enough to come out on the plus side of the scoreboard despite bringing their “F� game. (Apologies to Tiger Woods)

Maybe part of the disappointment stems from the high expectations for New England. Those looking for a Super Bowl winner can’t be encouraged by a life and death struggle against Detroit. However, if you realize what this team really is, you have to be pleased with a 9-3 record and a spot in the playoffs, no matter what seed it ends up being.

Do yourself a favor; don’t get bogged down worrying about the first round bye. Frankly, this team isn’t good enough to get one. The simple truth is teams committing as many turnovers and penalties as this squad does don’t deserve such a lofty ranking. That the Pats record is good enough to even be part of the discussion is a testament to the coaching, the quarterback, and the veterans who won’t settle for anything less.

My advice; sit back and enjoy the ride, no matter how bumpy. If it ends after the second round of the playoffs…great. If not, they only lived up to their potential.

Shining Stars: The first, and most important, star on the forehead goes to the NFL schedule-maker for placing the Lions between the Bears and Dolphins. I don’t think the Patriots would have beaten any other team the way they played this classic letdown game….Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but Tom Brady gets a sticker for his work. Without a running attack, Brady was able to bring the team from behind in the 4th quarter…Let’s also give it up again for Reche Caldwell, who’s now a legitimate threat. 8- receptions for 112-yards is just the latest in a strong string of games for the emerging wideout.

On the other side of the ball, Mike Vrabel’s two picks are star worthy. Throw in a fumble recovery and you have your star of the game. Whether inside or outside, the guy just makes plays. More good news…doesn’t look like that blow to the head on the second pick will keep him out. It was very encouraging to see him answering questions in the locker room…Tedy Bruschi’s 11-tackles led the team once again…And Ty Warren had a monster effort with 10-tackles and two sacks. In fact, when you take the penalties and turnovers into account, I’d have to say the defense did well to hold the Lions to only 21-points.

Quality Quote: “I think we’re pretty far away. At this point in the season, I don’t think that some of the problems that we’re having we should be having. I think you can ask any guy in this locker room and they can tell you that.�—Ty Warren on if the Patriots are where they want to be as a team.

That’s my take…what’s yours? Should we be disappointed at the struggle to beat the Lions or glad the Patriots are good enough to win while playing a horrible game? Where is this team headed?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Do we have a treat for you Monday night!

Chaz Scoggins will be our special guest on this week’s SunTalk Live program. Scoggins is one of the most respected baseball writers in the country, an official scorer at Fenway Park and the author of Game of My Life: Memorable Stories of Boston Red Sox Baseball. This past Friday, he was awarded the first ever Peter Gammons Media Award for his outstanding coverage of the Lowell Spinners. Best of all, Lowell Sun and LowellSun.com readers get to sample his writing year-round.

We’re not sure yet if Chaz will join us in studio or over the phone…hopefully the former so he can take your questions as well. Either way, we’ll cover a variety of topics including the latest from the Red Sox and baseball’s winter meetings. In addition, we’ll touch on Scoggins’ support of Mark McGwire for the Hall of Fame, a stance which has garnered Chaz national headlines. And as always, we’ll open up the discussion to any topic you care to touch on, including the Patriots, Bruins and Celtics.

So be sure to dial in Monday night from 7-8pm. Phone lines open at 6:45 for those who want to get in early and ask questions. The number again is (978)364-TALK. And don’t forget to tell your friends!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Well, I found out why The Victim has been so difficult to track down this week.

Seems our favorite pigskin prognosticator underwent corrective eye surgery Friday and couldn’t analyze the vast volumes of gridiron data used to make his weekly selections. My question is this; did Victim’s failing eyesight over the previous months contribute to his reversal of fortune this year?

It’s a possibility. How else can one explain this lovable loser trumping all other touts with a record that’s just sick? I mean, let’s be serious now. You’d be hard pressed to have this kind of success picking games straight up, never mind against the spread.

My theory is this; The Victim’s inability to see straight led to some kind of Costanza-like episode where he did the exact opposite of what he’d normally do. Where he used to see black, he saw white. Where he once saw losers, he now stumbled upon winners. And if this indeed explains the ridiculous success rate, perhaps the eye surgery and improved vision will now restore The Victim’s earth to its axis and the long awaited losing streak is finally upon us.

Or, I could just be full of you-know-what and the Lowell’s Eddie Mush will continue to crush me and the spread. Here are the picks:

New England (-13 ½) over Detroit
NY Giants (+3 ½) over Dallas
Miami (-1) over Jacksonville
Seattle (+4) over Denver
Carolina (-3) over Philadelphia

Thursday’s record: 1-0
Season record: 38-22

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

While the men’s and women’s basketball teams will host on Bryant on Saturday, the UML Department of Athletics is celebrating the completion of major renovations to the Costello Athletic Center. Members of the 1967-68 Lowell Technological Institute men’s team as well as the 1975-76 University of Lowell women’s team, the first two teams to play in the original Costello Gym, will be honored.

UML Women vs. Bryant
The River Hawk women (1-3, 0-3 NE-10) aim to halt a three-game losing skid after a 68-50 loss Wednesday night at Stonehill. Bryant (4-1, 2-1 NE-10) defeated Assumption College 80-76 Wednesday night at the Chace Athletic Center in Smithfield, R.I.

Bryant has won three of the last four meetings with the River Hawks. Last year, the Bulldogs prevailed 57-54 in Smithfield, R.I., behind 15 points and 14 rebounds from Shannon Perry and 13 points from Joanna Skiba.

UML sophomore forward Antonnea Robinson comes into this weekend averaging 10.7 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting .526 from the field (10 for 19) in the last three games.

Skiba, Bryant’s captain and senior guard, reached the 1,000 point milestone in the Bulldogs’ win on Wednesday. She leads Bryant with 16.4 points per game.

The start time for the women's game is 2 p.m.

UMass Lowell women's basketball homepage

UML Men vs. Bryant
After a shaky showing against Bentley on Sunday, UML bounced back in style on Wednesday with a 75-74 triumph at Stonehill. The River Hawks shot 60.4 percent from the field. The Bulldogs are coming off a 62-48 win over Assumption College on Wednesday night. Bryant committed only two second half turnovers in the game.

The Bulldogs took two of three meetings last year: winning the regular season tilt (82-66), and the Northeast-10 Tournament quarterfinal (63-61). The River Hawks did end the Bulldogs’ season by bouncing them from the NCAA Tournament first round (77-67).

On Wednesday, UML junior forward Jerreh Saidybah had a season-high 19 points (9 of 10 shooting), and junior guard Dashon Harper scored 18 points and dished out three assists. Harper (11.8 points per game) and Saidybah (11.7 points per game) are the River Hawks leading scorers.

Bryant got 16 points from guard Chris Burns and 15 points and a career-high seven steals from guard Nate Sudlow in the victory. Burns comes in scoring 14.4 points per game. Jon Ezeokoli has dropped in 16 points per game, but has only played in three of Bryant’s five games.

The start time for the men's game is 4 p.m.

UMass Lowell men's basketball homepage

Saturday’s doubleheader, as well as all home games this season, will be streamed live on UML’s website as well as www.ne10.tv.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

As you’d expect, it’s been kind of a dull week down in Foxboro, what with the Patriots building up the 2-9 Lions to be the most dangerous foe on the schedule, and all that. However, a couple of exchanges caught my attention.

The first is Bill Belichick answering a question about whether he sometimes hates the long hours that go into coaching an NFL team:

BB: “I enjoy it. I really do.  I enjoy coming in here.  I enjoy the preparation and the competition of the game.  We’re going up against a great team every week, another great coach every week.  Teams that, I know, work just as hard as we do, or harder, and we have to try to find some way to be a little bit better than they are on that one day that we compete against them.  That's invigorating.  It's very challenging.  It's a rush.  It's a huge rush.  The whole preparation thing, you just can't wait until Sunday to say, ‘Okay, well now let's start competing on Sunday.’  With football, it just doesn’t work that way.  There’s competition today for us to do more on Friday than they're doing.  For us to be better prepared for the game based on what we do in the meetings and practice today than what they're doing with the same time that they have allotted to them.  That’s the kind of competition there is every week from a preparation standpoint.  Of course that carries over into the game.  There's a lot of games that are really won and lost during the week as much as they are on Sunday.  That's the final picture, that's what everybody sees and that's what they should see, but a lot of times the things that lead up to those things, those things that happen on Sunday are in some part connected to what happened on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, or even Tuesday, from a gameplanning standpoint.  I enjoy it.  It’s not like I come in here in the morning and say, ‘Oh, man.  I can't wait for this day to be over with.'  I'm excited to get going.  I'm looking forward to whatever we’re doing, whether it’s third down, or red area, or first down, or punt returns, or wrapping it all up, trying to pull everything together and get it ready for the game.  All of that, I enjoy every part of that.  I enjoy watching film and studying it, preparing a plan, working with the other coaches, giving it to the players, seeing it on the field, coaching and teaching the players on the field, and then seeing it happen on Sunday.  I think that a lot of people if they love their job, you don’t really think about the time or the work that you're putting in.  You think about the enjoyment that you get from doing it and the satisfaction that you get from doing it.  Now if you don’t like it…some of the classes that I took in college, if you don’t like the class, you don’t like what you’re working on, every minute seems like an hour in that class.  We’ve all sat through those.â€?

The second quote comes from Tom Brady and might be the best explanation I’ve heard yet for why certain teams turn it on as the year winds down:

TB: "I think we’re very well coached and, over the course of the season --when we evaluate teams now, like Detroit for example-- we have 11 games of evidence to base our judgments on and to base our gameplans on. And the trends really play out over 11 weeks. The first week of the year, everyone is trying to understand what their team is about and the schemes they want to run and what players are really the critical parts of offenses and defenses.  By now, you pretty much know what a team is all about. We always try to play to our strengths and try to play against the strengths of the other team and play away from those strengths and play into their weaknesses. I think over the course of that time, those things show up quite a bit more."

We’ve always talked about how Belichick teams, and Parcells teams before him, got better as the season progressed, without ever really understanding why. Young Mr. Brady summed it up pretty well, don’t you think?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Before you go away for the weekend, here’s a reminder to join us Monday night for our next SunTalk Live program.

With baseball’s winter meetings beginning, you can bet there’ll be plenty of hot stove topics on the table. As always, we’ll open up the phone lines for later on to discuss any subject on your mind, including the Patriots-Lions showdown in Foxboro. So all you big mouths behind the keyboard (Legend Killer, T2, A-Train, Tito's Terrors, Louis Cypher, et al...this means you!), let me hear what you've got!

The number again is (978)364-TALK. And be sure you invite all your friends in on the fun!