| Five surprises and five disappointments |  |
| Columns |
| Written by Denis Gorman |
| Monday, January 30, 2012 11:07 |
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| Last Updated on Monday, January 30, 2012 22:55 |
posted by Denis P. Gorman at 11:05 PM
posted by Denis P. Gorman at 11:18 PM
| Petulant Thomas put himself above his team | |
| Columns | |
| Written by Denis Gorman | |
| Tuesday, January 24, 2012 16:26 | |
Months after leading the Bruins to the Stanley Cup championship, Tim Thomas embarrassed the franchise by skipping a scheduled White House visit. There's no 'I' in 'team,' of course, but there is an 'I' in 'Tim.' It was supposed to be a celebratory moment for the Boston Bruins. It turned out to be pyrrhic. The Bruins, for the first time since platform shoes and bell bottom pants were en vogue, were in the White House Monday afternoon to be feted for winning the Stanley Cup by President Barack Obama. The lone exception was Tim Thomas, the man widely credited with the Bruins’ first Cup since Bobby Orr patrolled the Boston Garden blue line, who was Missing in Action. Thomas, you see, does not agree with the President’s beliefs. So like an overgrown adolescent who wants to prove a point by ruining a family outing, the goaltender petulantly made the decision to not join his teammates, coaches and executives in the East Room. According to the Bruins’ website, Marc Savard and Michael Ryder also did not make the trip. Savard suffers from severe post-concussion symptoms while Ryder plies his trade with the Dallas Stars. The rest of the athletes that won the Original Six franchise’s first Cup in 39 years were in attendance. Savard and Ryder had legitimate reasons not to be at the White House. Thomas did not. And so, on the day that the Bruins celebrated the ultimate team accomplishment, the franchise was forced into releasing a statement that distanced itself from its goaltender and his political views. “As an organization we were honored by President Obama's invitation to the White House. It was a great day and a perfect way to cap our team's achievement from last season. It was a day that none of us will soon forget. We are disappointed that Tim chose not to join us, and his views certainly do not reflect those of the Jacobs family or the Bruins organization. This will be the last public comment from the Bruins organization on this subject,” were the words attributed to Bruins President Cam Neely. Thomas attempted to defend his indefensible act. In a statement, Thomas said, “I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People. This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government. Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL. This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic.” Disgraceful. Misguided. Inexcusable. By passing on the Bruins' White House visit, the truth is that Thomas placed himself above his teammates.
Does anyone think that Daniel Paille, for example, would be allowed to skip the visit because he disagreed with President Obama’s politics? Better yet, how would Thomas react if a teammate skipped on a visit to a sitting Republican President because the teammate in question and the President’s political leanings were in conflict? The questions are irrelevant because Paille would not be permitted to separate himself from the team while the oft-loquacious Thomas would be critical of a teammate’s insolence. So why did those in positions of responsibility with the Bruins give their blessing to Thomas’ act of unfettered arrogance? “We're like a family. We have our issues. You deal with them, move on, and try and support everyone,” Chiarelli told beat reporters at the White House. “I can require someone to attend a team event. If they don't, I can suspend him. I'm not suspending Tim. Whatever his position is, it isn't reflective of the Boston Bruins nor my own. But I'm not suspending him.” In short: The Bruins are enabling Thomas’ self-aggrandizement. It should be noted that Thomas is not the first athlete to spurn a trip to the White House. James Harrison, the National Football League’s pre-eminent recidivist head-hunter, did not join his Pittsburgh Steelers teammates when they were honored for winning the Super Bowl in 2006 and 2009 by Presidents Bush and Obama, respectively. Before the second trip Harrison told a Pittsburgh television station that it was “no big deal,” he was not making the trip before expressing his dismay that the only reason the Steelers were being honored was that they had outlasted the Arizona Cardinals, 27-23 in Super Bowl XLIII. “Invite us when we don’t win the Super Bowl. So as far as I’m concerned he would have invited Arizona if they had won,” Harrison explained. “I don’t feel the need to actually go.” Several days before last September’s NASCAR’s Chase for the Cup in Richmond, Va., five drivers announced they were unable to make a trip to the White House. One driver who did make the visit was Jimmie Johnson, who explained his rationale on Twitter. “Regardless of political views, when POTUS sends an invite and wants to honor you at the White House, you accept,” tweeted Johnson. Perhaps Johnson can explain his rationale in greater detail to Thomas. That is, when the goaltender grows up. On Twitter: @HockeyPrimeTime and @DenisGorman | |
| Last Updated on Tuesday, January 24, 2012 16:52 |
posted by Denis P. Gorman at 4:29 PM
NEWARK N.J. (AP)—Deron Williams came close to a triple double on Sunday night.
He had 19 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists to lead the New Jersey Nets to a 97-87 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats.
Williams’ near triple double would have been the first of the season for the Nets, who improved to 5-12 on the season.
“It was close. I’ve been close a number of times,” Williams said. “It will happen someday.”
MarShon Brooks added 20 points for the Nets, while Anthony Morrow added 19 points.
“I’ve been shooting a lot of 3s. I’ve been hitting a lot of them so I find myself settling for that shot. I need to be a little bit more efficient,” Brooks said. “Early we made shots. We put up some good numbers today so that was good.”
Rookie Kemba Walker led the Bobcats with 16 points, six rebounds and four assists. Gerald Henderson had 15 points while Bismack Biyombo and Derrick Brown had 11 each.
“I hope Kemba can continue to play well,” Charlotte coach Paul Silas said. “We saw tonight he really pushed it and was into the game. If we had some of our injured guys here with him tonight, I think we would have a legitimate shot of winning the game.”
The Nets got off to a strong start. Morrow’s 3 early in the second quarter increased the Nets’ lead to 38-25.
With less than a minute remaining in the half, he made a 3 to push the advantage to 14 at 56-42.
New Jersey led 58-42 at halftime.
“We played pretty good offense overall. The goal was to try and get to 100 points,” New Jersey coach Avery Johnson said. “We figured that (the) first team to 100 would really have a chance to win.
“We made more shots tonight.”
Without the injured Brook Lopez, New Jersey has relied on its perimeter shooting.
The Nets shot 38 of 86 from the field, including 7 of 27 from three.
“Normally they have a post-up they can go to,” Silas said, referring to Lopez. He added, “Their 3-point shooting is really good.”
Charlotte shot 46.8 percent from the field and 35.7 percent on 3-pointers.
Johnson expressed concern before the game about the Bobcats’ youthful depth and that Charlotte started two point guards in Walker and D.J. Augustin.
“They are a really young energetic team (that) starts two point guards who can pass, shoot and are fast,” Johnson said. “They bring a lot of young guys off the bench (and have) a lot of young guys who are athletic and quick.”
Augustin played the first quarter before leaving the game because of an inflamed big right toe.
“One time when I had the ball, I tried to make a move and I lost the ball. I just couldn’t get to the ball because my foot was hurting and I couldn’t get back to it. That’s when they took me out and I just went straight to the back,” said Augustin, who grabbed a rebound and had two assists.
“Hopefully this shot situation is what I get. Hopefully it can help me and I can get back soon,” he added.
Walker struggled some against the more experienced guards of the Nets. Late in the second quarter, Williams knocked the ball free to start a fast break that ended with a two-handed dunk by Kris Humphries.
“I’m going to have ups and downs. I’m trying to be consistent. But it’s tough on my body,” Walker said of his rookie season. When asked for his assessment of Deron Williams, Walker said, “He’s a good player. He’s a great player.”
Notes: The Bobcats’ youth coupled with the abbreviated season has Bobcats coach Paul Silas concerned about how his team will respond to the challenge. “It’s tough because you don’t have the practice time,” Silas said. “Playing as many games as we do, you’re not used to it.” … Bobcats forward DJ White missed the game with a left knee contusion.
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posted by Denis P. Gorman at 9:40 AM
| Cup contenders in Manhattan? Controversy commences | |
| Columns | |
| Written by Denis Gorman | |
| Saturday, January 21, 2012 19:47 | |
John Tortorella may disagree with owner Jim Dolan's brashness about the Stanley Cup but the New York Rangers appear to have the talent of a contender. As the trade deadline nears, the big question is: Do they make a major move or keep the status quo in pursuit of their second championship in 72 years?
The scene that emanated from the Madison Square Garden press conference room on the night of Jan. 17 was about as ill-fitting as Newt Gingrich accepting a nomination from one of his ex-wives for Husband of the Year. John Tortorella arrived at his postgame press briefing after his New York Rangers had shut out their Central Division on-ice doppelgangers, the Nashville Predators, 3-0. Tortorella was joined at the dais by one of his superiors, the President of Madison Square Garden and the Chief Executive Officer of Cablevision, James Dolan. Dolan had not met with the Rangers press corps since 2005-06; that he took two questions before giving way to his coach was newsworthy. That he expressed his belief that the team he has owned since the summer of 1994 was a Cup contender became a news story. “In 2004 we decided to re-do the strategy," Dolan said. "I gave (General Manager Glen Sather) a gift and told him he couldn’t give it back until we win the Cup. I think we’re close to getting that back." After Dolan left the room, Tortorella left no doubt that he was irritated with his owner’s brashness. “Have my owner up here talking about a Stanley Cup and that’s bulls—t,” Tortorella said. In the often homogenized world of professional sports, Tortorella is a controversial figure. Some appreciate his shoot-from-the-hip, damn-the-torpedoes approach, while others find it uncouth. Both styles were displayed after the Rangers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in the Winter Classic on Jan. 2 as Tortorella sarcastically offered an over-the-top assessment of referees Ian Walsh and Dennis LaRue. “I'm not sure if NBC got together with the refs or what to turn this into an overtime game," Tortorella said. "It started with the non-call on (Marian Gaborik), and he gets pitch-forked in the stomach and everything starts going against us. So for two good refs, I thought the game was reffed horribly.” Tortorella was just getting warmed up. “So, I'm not sure what happened there," he continued. "Maybe they wanted to get into overtime. I'm not sure if they had meetings about that or what. But we stood in there. We stood in there. And again, I don't want to – because they are good guys. I just thought tonight, it was – in that third period, it was disgusting.” For those 111 words, Tortorella was fined $30,000 by the league on Jan. 4. Three days after being fined, it was announced that Tortorella would coach one of the two teams at the NHL All-Star Game in Ottawa. It is the in-season reward for overseeing a team that leads the Eastern Conference with 64 points (30-12-4) following Saturday afternoon’s 3-2 overtime win against the reigning champion Bruins in Boston. By any method one chooses to determine championship worthiness – numerically or the eye test – the Rangers appear to be serious Cup contenders.
Their 96 goals allowed is the third-fewest in the NHL while their plus-33 goal differential is fourth most. They rank ninth in the league in scoring with 129 goals. Finally, they have proven they can be successful at home (14-5-2, ninth best in NHL) and away (16-7-2, second best in the league). So despite the coach’s disdain for the subject – “We take it one day at a time,” Tortorella said after dismissing Dolan – the Rangers appear poised for their first extended playoff run since Mark Messier, Wayne Gretzky, Esa Tikkanen, Brian Leetch and Mike Richter led the Rangers to the Eastern Conference Finals in the spring of 1997. Unlike that era, in which the best team often won the Cup, the current climate in the league does not dictate that regular-season dominance equates to playoff success. Even though the Bruins earned 103 points in the 2010-11 regular season with a 46-25-11 record, it was only the league’s seventh-best record. The Vancouver Canucks won the President’s Trophy and home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs with a spectacular 54-19-9 mark. Yet it was Boston that was awarded the Cup on the night of Jun. 15 inside Rogers Arena after Tim Thomas shut out the Canucks 4-0 in Game 7. Tortorella and his charges will tell you that they are not the most skilled team in the league, that despite the presence of Gaborik, Henrik Lundqvist, Brad Richards and several others. Instead they win due to their single-minded ethos of hard work and defensive responsibility. But with 37 days until the trade deadline, the quandary facing those in positions of responsibility within the Rangers’ hockey operations department is this: Does one of the NHL’s youngest teams mortgage part of their present and future for a Cup? It has been long believed that New Jersey Devils left wing Zach Parise and Calgary Flames right wing Jarome Iginla could be available on the trade market, while Anaheim Ducks GM Bob Murray hinted to Southern California reporters that he would consider breaking up his top line of Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Bobby Ryan if his team did not begin to play like a contender. Any of those five players would increase the Rangers’ talent level, but would a deal damage the team’s chemistry? We won't know the answer for sure until the Rangers’ season ends, Cup or no Cup. On Twitter: @HockeyPrimeTime and @DenisGorman | |
| Last Updated on Sunday, January 22, 2012 02:18 |
posted by Denis P. Gorman at 10:26 AM
Evgeni Malkin celebrates scoring on Henrik Lundqvist.
posted by Denis P. Gorman at 10:01 AM
I am a freelance sportswriter based out of New York City, where I primarily cover the NHL and college basketball. I have written hard news, features and game stories for numerous outlets. Professional Contacts: Available upon request. You can review my portfolio here.
week that were breathtaking.
