Tag Archives: Richard Nixon

Jun 15 2011

Boston Wins The Stanley Cup, Beats Vancouver 4-0 in Game 7

It's been a long 39-years, but on Wednesday, Boston won its sixth Stanley Cup Championship against Vancouver!

By Matt Noonan 

The Boston Bruins won the cup; the Boston Bruins won the cup!

Wait, did Boston actually win the Stanley Cup? That’s Lord Stanley’s Cup, right? Yep, the men dressed as grown-up bumblebees were victorious on Wednesday evening, as they defeated the New York Yankees on ice, (a.k.a. Vancouver Canucks), 4-0.

Wake up Mayor Thomas Menino, contact Governor Deval Patrick and alert the Boston Police Department because the home team was victorious.

This isn’t something that happens over night or once a month, but really, once every few years. The Bruins haven’t experienced this much joy since Richard Nixon was the president of the United States and America was involved with the Vietnam War. Although, 39-years later, the current men dressed in Black and Gold have something to celebrate, the franchises sixth championship.

Patrice Begeron and Brad Marchand each netted two goals a piece and yes, they baffled Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo, who finished Game 7 with only 17-saves.

“In this one game, they were the better team,” Alain Vigneault said via NHL.com.

Tim Thomas played phenomenally, as he denied 37-shots and ended the ’11 postseason with four shutouts, which is quite impressive.

“Boston played a real strong game. They’ve got great goaltending and [they] deserved to win,” Vigneault said.

All in all, it took seven games against Montreal, Tampa Bay and Vancouver, as well as four against Philadelphia, but in the end, Boston finished the ’10-’11 season as NHL champions for the first time since 1972.

Jun 6 2011

Bruins Fans Should Not Panic

It should be an exciting Game 3 on Monday, but should Bruins fans be worried?

By Matt Noonan 

Here we go again, another Boston team hopelessly, desperately trying to comeback from a 0-2 hole, but really, can they do it? Does Boston have enough energy left in their tank to cheer the Bruins onto victory?

We all know the last time the Bruins were crowned champions of the National Hockey League was in 1972. America was not at war with Afghanistan or Iraq and Barack Obama wasn’t the president of the United States, but instead, Richard “Tricky Dick” Nixon was calling the shots from the White House.

Yet, rather than go back in time and recollect about America in the 1970’s, let’s at least consider the obvious or what we already know about this particular Boston Bruins team.

First, they’re resilient or at least, we think they are, right?

They’ve overcome various deficits over the past year, such as when they lost two back-to-back games against Montreal in April. The Bruins responded by winning two games in Montreal’s barn and then finished off the Habs in game seven at the TD Garden.

They also overcame a rocky start against the Tampa Bay Lighting and eventually won the Eastern Conference crown in seven games too.

Second, they have a decent goaltender by the name of Tim Thomas. He’s the leader of the Black and Gold and certainly has been the reason why Boston has experienced a great deal of success in the postseason. He’s made some highlight reel saves, as well as amazed even the most casual fan and again, he’s why the Bruins are in the Stanley Cup Finals.

The Bruins also have quality goal scorers and defenseman. Players like Nathan Horton and Milan Lucic have been very important puzzle pieces for this offense, while Mark Recchi, Dennis Seidenberg and Zdeno Chara have anchored a defense, especially on the power play. Also, Tyler Seguin has left our jaws on the floor with his “can’t-miss” moves.

Do I need to continue with more names?

All in all, this is a quality Bruins team. They may not be an exact replicate of Vancouver, but again, they’re a team that certainly can overcome anything.

Boston sports fans never give up on their teams; so expect the Black and Gold faithful to be ready to cheer on their hometown Bruins. Everyone in the Hub wants the Cup, so a little electricity at the Garden might help Boston climb back in the series.

Apr 21 2011

Noonan: Boston Needs Something to Cheer About

Will the Canadiens beat the Bruins or can Boston fight back to win the series?

By Matt Noonan

“We want the Cup! We want the Cup!”

Come on, don’t you want to cheer?

Who doesn’t want the Stanley Cup, especially if you’re from Boston, Massachusetts?

The last time the Boston Bruins celebrated a championship on the ice was in 1972, when they beat the New York Rangers. Bobby Orr was playing for Boston, Richard Nixon was the President of the United States of America and Don McLean’s “American Pie” was a popular hip tune.

Now, Barack Obama is the President, gas prices are skyrocketing and Lady Gaga’s newest hit, “Judas” is the number one downloaded song on i-Tunes.

Game 4 between the Bruins and Montreal Canadiens will take place Thursday evening at the Bell Centre, however the Habs hold a 2-1 series advantage against the men dressed in Black and Gold. Yet, with a win, Montreal could conceivably be considered a lock to win the series, so how does that make you feel?

Bostonians and New Englanders can only hope that the Bruins will follow in the path of the Celtics and win two back-to-back playoff games, which happened this past week, but as any sports fan from the Hub knows, fairy tales don’t always end happily.

Boston knows the meaning of “misery.” They haven’t seen a team celebrate a championship since ’08, which was when Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen guided the Celtics to Banner 17.

Ever since, the local sports teams have disappointed.

The Red Sox lost two back-to-back postseason series against the Tampa Bay Rays and Los Angles of Anaheim Angels, as well as were bitten quite terribly by the “injury bug” during the ’10 season.

The Patriots watched Tom Brady come back from an ACL and MCL injury during the ’09 season, but were immediately eliminated back-to-back years in the playoffs. Might I add, last season Brady and the Patriots were practically a guaranteed lock to win the AFC, but instead, lost to Rex Ryan and the New York Jets.

As far as the Celtics go, the bitter taste of defeat still remains in everyone’s mouths or minds, as the Los Angles Lakers beat the Green and White last June in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

Although, despite dwelling on the past few years, the Celtics, Patriots and Red Sox have indeed won championships within the last 10-12 years, but the only team that hasn’t are the Bruins.

Can the Bruins actually win their sixth Stanley Cup? I believe they can, but all in all, when will it happen?

I personally thought this was the year. They made some changes, acquired Nathan Horton, as well as made a few trades at the deadline and oh, by the way, Tim Thomas has clearly bounced back between the pipes.

Yet, the four losses to Philadelphia is something that the Black and Gold will never get over until they actually win a Stanley Cup. They must win one because otherwise Game 7 of the NHL Playoffs will live in New England lore.

So again, can the Bruins beat the Canadiens? Absolutely, but if you want to go by statistics or numbers from this past season, forget it. Montreal owned the season series against Boston and had no problem winning Games 1 and 2 at the TD Garden.

Montreal may or may not be in their heads, but in order for the Bruins to win, they need to play smart and fundamental hockey, as well as score first.

They need Tomas Kaberle to be the anchor on the power play.

They need Tim Thomas to play “lights out” and stand on his head in net.

They need their offense to score early and often.

They need to win.

The fate of their season rests on Game 4 and if their performance is what it was during Games 1 and 2, then you might want to consider jumping aboard the Celtics or Red Sox bandwagon.

Boston doesn’t want another year of defeat or heartbreak, but instead, something to cheer about. The city is behind the Bruins and only the players can decide the outcome.

Again, the city wants something to cheer about, so believe me, it is certainly appropriate to chant, “We want the Cup!”