February 17, 2006

Up too late: the goaltender edition.

Dearest internets.

Hello. How are you doing? I'm sorry I've been so distant lately. I don't really want to get into why I have been avoiding you, because I'm tired of talking about the details. Plus, I can't think about it without getting all pathetic and whiny, and there may also be tears, and really, that kind of thing just makes for those uncomfortable silences and awkward pauses. SO! On to brighter things, like thanking Shannon for keeping me rollin' in the Sens games (it makes going to my PO box MUCH MORE INTERESTING), or to Ricky and his entire class, who I belatedly found out spent January reading my every word, because I was almost-kind-of-not-really an assignment. That's just so cool, I can't stand it.

So let's talk news. The NHL has broken for two weeks to take in the Olympics. I'm not really into the Olympics this year (I used to always watch the figure skating with my mom), but quite honestly, I'm sure you've noticed, I haven't really been into the whole "NHL" thing this year, or the whole "hockey as aired on the television," thing. Plus, the AHL, it does not break for the Olympics. Providence, Lowell, Manchester, Portland, Albany... they will all be playing this weekend. Some even had games last night. (Don't fret- non-Olympian Boston players will return for workouts on Feb 22.) So, therefore, I am sure that you can predict that I am going to exploit this break to talk incessantly about the minor leagues. Not that I really needed an excuse or validation to do that, as it's what I've been doing allllllllllllll season long, but now that I have "get out of jail free" card, so to speak, I'm going to cash that puppy in.

The Carolina Hurricanes had until yesterday to opt out of their five year deal (signed last season) with Lowell. Right now, rumor has it that a potential LLM buyer has another agreement with another NHL team. I would hate to see pro hockey leave Lowell, and I say that out of pure selfishness, because I really do dig going to the Tsongas to watch Providence. EVEN IF THE LOCKMONSTERS HAVE THE STUPIDEST CAMERA POLICY IN ALL OF EVER. (I am bitter, so therefore, I lash out.) The Tsongas Arena is a great hockey arena. And from what I remember of concerts there, it's also pretty good for moderately intimate concerts. Ah, the memories- Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, the Deftones, Kid Rock, Staind, O-Town...

Ahem. Moving on. The AHL has agreed to air 15 games on XM Satellite radio. It makes me wish I had XM. Oh, no, wait, I totally do when I borrow my brother's truck. Depending on the other games they choose to air, I might have to borrow it because my car needs some "work." (I look for reasons to borrow his truck, because I have a crush on it. It's just so blue and so high and so not my car. It joins seamless glass on the list of Official Hot Stuff.)

Here you can find a list of the rookie goaltenders making names for themselves this season in the NHL. I take it as a good sign that positions 3 and 4 (of a top-15) are occupied by Bruins- Hannu and Timmy, respectively. Any time that any of my goaltenders get positive press, I dig it. And any time that Andrew Raycroft gives me more ammunition to roll my eyes and wish that someone would teach that boy the gift of the phrase, "NO COMMENT," I like to point THAT out as well:

Raycroft saw action for the first time since he was pulled from a 6-0 loss to Los Angeles on Jan. 12. He stopped the only two shots he faced but wasn’t impressed.

“It’s six minutes,” Raycroft said. “It doesn’t even count. . . . I was a little surprised (to go in) with that much left, but you’ve got to be ready and that’s the key for me. I’ve got to be ready to go in whenever.”

On the surface, it seems like a decent quote, but when you consider that the only ice time he saw was 64:10 in one small, tiny, insignificant, trivial, boring, small-potatoes AHL game since Jan 12, you'd think that he'd be THRILLED he finally saw some ice time in the big show. Look, I don't pretend to know much of what goes on in his head - it's one strange trip I'd prefer not to take - but what about this statement did the voices of reason scream, SAY IT! SAY IT! inside his head? He dissed the time he spent on his conditioning assignment in the AHL, after, BY THE WAY, being a large part of the reason that WE HAD TO GO TO OVERTIME and then A SHOOTOUT in that game against Springfield, and now he's all, hey, whatever man, about his ice time in the big show that he so rightly feels he deserves to rule? I don't pretend to know anything about being a Rookie of the Year and then suffering a very terrible sophomore slump, but DANG. You know what? I take back that sentence where I said that I wouldn't want to see inside his head. Andrew- you and I: let's go for coffee sometime. And by "coffee" I mean some deep psychoanalysis. Or as deep as my four-years-old Psych 101 course work will allow (or maybe it's five years. Hmm. I don't remember when I took Psych in college. Or in high school. Ah, details).

Mike Ayers was in camp for Boston at the start of this season, and signed on with the AHL Syracuse Crunch as a free agent in November. He also used to play for UNH, and because of that, the Union Leader brought to my attention the fact that Mike was named as the AHL Player of the Week this week. He played three games for Syracuse last weekend, making 102 saves on 103 shots, and has two consecutive shut-outs. This means that for last weekend, he had a 0.33 goals against average. That's incredible.

Don't hate me for being distant, internets. I am going to try to get back into the rhythm I had swinging, but I am also working on a couple improvements to the design I have here, in addition to seemingly driving eleventy hundred hours to Providence all the time because I am just a little bit addicted to those boys.

I've missed you. What's been new with you? Tell me.

XOXO,
Heather

Heather | 02:10 AM | 4
filed under: ahl news || boston bruins || p. bruins