September 13, 2007

Almost Here...

With training camp officially open, Bruins players are back in town gearing up for the 2007-2008 season. I set out this past summer with a mission to start doing all the things I have never done before. What a successful summer it was. I went to my first NASCAR race with Cheri, Ashley and Jake and two of their friends where I tailgated for the first time, got my first cowgirl hat, and had my first pulled pork sandwich. I also enjoyed the luxury suites at Gillette Stadium with Cheri when I went to my first New England Revolution game...

Letters of love, lust, or disagreement can be sent to rlord (at) soveryobsessed.com

by Rebecca | 1:12 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes || providence bruins

September 11, 2007

What's that saying about three strikes?

Ways to stay on my good side: Shower me with money and/or diamonds. Let me sleep in. Tolerate my insane addiction to trashy tv/movies. Self-fulfilling tank of gas. (self-explanatory) Understand my need to browse clearance racks. Ways to stay on my bad side: Cut me off in traffic. Park in a fire lane. Remain ignorant on the finer uses of an apostrophe. Remain staunch in your belief that I am wrong and you are right- the sky IS green. Be Peter Chiarelli. We've been apart for awhile, internets. In that time we've spent apart, I've traveled and seen things, I've...

by Heather | 9:07 PM | 3
filed under: offseason notes || transactions

September 4, 2007

Dear NHL:

Thanks to your hare-brained idea to go and ugly up your new jerseys (though, I do like Boston's), the AHL got it in THEIR heads that it'd be wise to do the SAME THING to their jerseys, and I have to say: the results are not so pleasing to the eye. Now I have to look at this all season. Thanks so much. Except, not really. No love right now, Heather...

by Heather | 7:24 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

August 31, 2007

Photo Friday XIV: Marc Savard.

Welcome to the last planned Photo Friday of the summer. Because I am heading out on a much-needed mini-vacation, I left Jess in charge of this week's subject. She picked Marc. Enjoy: The verdict for Photo Friday was to keep 'er going until at least the start of the pB's home season (Nov. 14th for those of you playing along at home). I am looking forward to camp starting so I can get some new pictures of other boys so I have more subjects from which to choose pictures to post. In linky goodness, I show you an NHL.com article...

by Heather | 7:33 AM | 3
filed under: offseason notes || photo posts

August 26, 2007

Sunday morning.

I have been thinking and talking hockey all summer - maybe not as much as I've been talking lip gloss (God, I love lip gloss) or fantastic good-for-you, good-for-the-earth beauty products, or pitying the Canadians who don't get to experience the shopping love that is American-based Target, or debating the finer uses of the word "footnote," - but it's always been there, hovering on the corner of my mind, working its way into random statements. Hockey thoughts in the summer are worse than those earworm-y, addictive, sugary-pop songs that won't stop stalking your auditory nerves until you admit you like...

by Heather | 1:13 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

August 19, 2007

Hockey is getting cloooooosssseeeerrrrrrr...

Fluto posted a new article at the Globe, and it's mostly all about Mark Stuart. I believe this to be an excellent subject to discuss. My favorite points of interest: In 2006-07, Stuart made the most of his NHL playing time, finishing with a team-best plus-7 rating. When he's on his game, Stuart plays a mean, rugged style and doesn't back down from the rough stuff. Last season, Mark Stuart played 15 games in the NHL. FIFTEEN. The fact that he played so few games and wound up with the TEAM-BEST plus-minus absolutely blows my mind- and not in a...

by Heather | 11:23 PM | 3
filed under: boston bruins || offseason notes

August 16, 2007

A gallimaufry of goings-on

A couple things: 1. Stanislav Chistov has officially defected over to Russia. I am not excited. Also, does this mean Photo Friday is cursed? Of the 12 (un)willing participants, 25% have been bounced from the roster since taking part: Petr Kalus, Hannu Toivonen, and Stanislav Chistov. Coincidentally, those were the players I was ASKED to post. I'm no longer taking requests or listening to you people. 2. Providence has released their promotions schedule, and excitingly, they've spread the promotions out over the WHOLE season (that was my biggest beef with last year's- it was too concentrated at the end of...

by Heather | 9:03 PM | 0
filed under: boston bruins || offseason notes || providence bruins || transactions

August 8, 2007

AHL releases the schedule; Boston announces signings.

The AHL released their schedules yesterday (Providence's here), and in between trying to make my calendar program import an Excel file of game dates (here's a hint: don't use the @ symbol) for Providence, Boston, and Ottawa, and cursing Bill Gates' very existence/technology in general, I was having conversations like this: [21:19] Heather: i wonder how far away rochester is. [21:24] Heather: are we insane enough to go to portland? [21:24] Heather: after driving to ottawa the weekend before? Rochester is slightly less than seven hours from my bed. That's quite a drive for one single game. The true question...

by Heather | 9:01 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

August 6, 2007

Ants in yer pants!

Internets, have you ever had those kinds of days where no matter what you think of, no matter how many times you think about baseball or crying or paper cuts, you just can't stop bouncing around and grinning like a fiend? I have been in that state for approximately a week now. I don't know why; I just have been. Some of it has to do with the fact that hockey, she's a'comin, and part of it has to do with the fact that i have some super roadtrips planned - some involve hockey, some involve Xanadu - but as...

by Heather | 9:20 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

July 31, 2007

pBruins set preseason schedule.

Oh, internets. Can you feel it? Hockey is in the air! I am more excited than maybe I ought to be, given my circumstances of being a mature adult, and I am more excited than I ever was as a child on Christmas Eve. For the record: schedules are WAY BETTER than a Barbie Malibu beach house. (If only my parents knew then what they know now...) Link here. Schedule below: ... a three-game schedule beginning on Wednesday, September 26 at 7:00 p.m., when they take on the Springfield Falcons at the Bradford R. Boss Arena on the University of...

by Heather | 10:36 PM | 2
filed under: offseason notes

July 30, 2007

I hope he makes the Wild. That would be awesome.

Minnesota Wild management was certain that teams lobbying for the net protection services of Manny Fernandez would be willing to give up considerable value in return. Earlier this month, the Wild would find a plausible suitor for such a request in the Boston Bruins. This is where Petr Kalus -- a 6-1, 197-pound power forward -- became an instant top prospect in Minnesota. A native of Ostrava, Czechoslovakia, Kalus (pronounced “KAY-liss”) was acquired by the Wild on July 1, the first day National Hockey League (NHL) teams were able to operate under the new salary cap mandate for the 2007-08...

by Heather | 7:01 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

July 24, 2007

One transaction I'm happy about.

Boston resigned goaltender Jordan Sigalet today. Terms will be released later. So, that's at least one goaltender of the four that meets my all-important approval. I was looking at Fernandez's stats earlier, and I may be overreacting with my "the sky is falling!" attitude with regards to that trade (but I know what we lost in giving up Petr), however- I am reserving final judgement for right now. I've kind of just accepted that Rask is going to be the next Golden Child, like Andy Ray was. I just hope I don't get annoyed by all his press and let...

by Heather | 10:21 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

July 23, 2007

Dear Peter Chiarelli:

Kindly go buy yourself a cactus, and then cram it sideways up your rump, because I have had more than enough of your shenanigans. This is more ridiculous then the Petr trade. (No offense, Carl) Why don't we just sell off EVERY GOOD PROSPECT WE HAVE, HUH? Moron. What I don't get is what makes you think that the goaltending is better off this way. It's already been said that Manny is going to start sixty games. After that, you had two more goaltenders, both with NHL contracts. One makes $$$$, the other, $$. Now, if you're going to pay...

by Heather | 11:41 PM | 7
filed under: offseason notes

July 19, 2007

Oh, KPDP, you make me giggle. Ha-ha!

... but Fernandez is already penciled in as the likely stopper for the 7 p.m. start. If the season goes to his liking, the 32-year-old backstop will be penciled in for 60 or more games this season, which would also be to the liking of general manager Peter Chiarelli, who on July 1 shipped prospect Petr Kalus and a fourth-round draft pick to the Minnesota Wild to acquire Fernandez. Sixty or more games? What remains to be seen, of course, is how new coach Claude Julien distributes his goalies' ice time in the upcoming season. If Fernandez indeed holds office...

by Heather | 9:36 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

July 17, 2007

OMGZ, u guys! PETER SCHAEFER!!!!111!!

Do you know what makes an already-loooooooooooooongish-feeling day ridiculously longer? A midmorning e-mail like this one: From: Doten, Jess To: Creegan, Heather OHMYGOD I JUST CHECKED TSN AND WE GOT PETER SCHAEFER FROM OTTAWA FOR SHEAN DONOVAN! OH! MY! GOD! Why? Because I had to sit there at work, being professional and unable to squeal and dance around the hallways like I totally wanted to do, until I came home. When you can't sit still OR stop grinning like a nutjob, that makes the day VERY VERY long. All I can say to you, internets, is that Heather likey this...

by Heather | 7:57 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

July 11, 2007

The NHL released the schedule; I suppressed a yawn.

So, we signed Dennis Widemaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan. He might want to forget this happened, but I love this video. (Thanks, M!) It just makes me wish he wasn't ours. Dear Dennis: We are terrible enough at shootouts. Please don't fudge it up for us any further. XOXO, Heather There's an article on NHL.com about some boys I know here. I disagree with a lot of Fluto's article here. Well, ok, mostly just the part about Manny being an upgrade in goal. I know I was excited about Chiarelli's moves to get Kobasew here, but I actually am not all that impressed with...

by Heather | 9:37 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

July 9, 2007

Boston signs Jeremy Reich; I ask questions.

We signed Jeremy Reich. I am excited by this because I like Jeremy and I didn't want to see some other undeserving team get him. However, we signed him to a two-year, one-way deal. That's all well and good for him, but now it makes me wonder where it leaves Providence- Jay Leach has signed a two year deal with Tampa Bay, we traded away Petr Kalus for a non-upgrade at goal, and no one else on the roster really strikes fear into my heart. If Marky's mad, I wouldn't want to cross him - same goes with DiCas, Pascal,...

by Heather | 8:14 PM | 6
filed under: offseason notes

June 30, 2007

So so so so so SO NOT HAPPY.

Dear Boston. This was stupid. I hate you a lot, right now. No love for morons, Heather --- Dear Mr. Chiarelli; No longer are you a friend of mine. Before you run for the Kleenex and the soft, comforting shoulder of a dear friend, hear me out. We are not breaking up because you traded for Manny Fernandez; we are breaking up because of what you traded for Manny Fernandez. Petr is a fantastic prospect (kudos to Minnesota for recognizing that), and he demonstrated that when he was on recall to Boston at the end of that sorry excuse for...

by Heather | 10:33 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

June 28, 2007

Waiting on Reich and Allen.

According to the Globe, Chiarelli is probably going to wait on making offers to Bobby Allen and Jeremy Reich. And while this is earth-shattering news to very very few, I'm disappointed. I got familiar with the work of both boys through their time in Providence, and even if they are not a part of Chiarelli's plan for the spiffed-up Bruins of 07-08, I had hoped they'd be a part of the plan for Providence. Because that's what really matters to me: that Providence has depth and leadership. screw Causeway. (Unless they take my Providence boys of last season to help...

by Heather | 7:15 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

June 27, 2007

A conversation.

[yelled from the living room] "I can't believe the Bruins fired Jeff Gorton." [yelled in response from the bedroom] "I can't believe you're shocked." [yelled back. (who needs to get up when you've got lungs and aren't afraid to use them?)] "Well, it's par for the course. They usually keep the bad ones and fire the good ones." [twenty minute pause because my synapses melted and are not firing correctly.] "Wait... what?" [said very slowly, like one might talk to the very stupid or very insane. Becky is very patient.] "They. Usually. Keep. The. Bad. Ones. and. Fire. The. Good....

by Heather | 7:39 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

June 26, 2007

Bruins agree to terms with Matt Hunwick.

Link here. And that's all I really care to say, because the mini-heat wave is making me lazy and lethargic. I ought to be a BLAST when the July heat kicks in. Oh, the anticipation! Until then, I am looking forward to the announcements of who we tender qualifying offers to (like, other than Dennis Widemaaaaaaaaaaaaaan.) (no offense, Dennis) . And both the NHL and the AHL need to release the schedules about three weeks ago, because I totally need to see where I am going (besides Ottawa) this season. The Herald offers a rundown of our newest draftees so...

by Heather | 10:32 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

June 23, 2007

It's the same old abbreviated story.

Girl busts out of work in a hurry, girl creeps into Boston because YAY TRAFFIC, girl sits and sits on the subway because YAY BROKEN THINGS, girl finally gets to Lansdowne Street and the draft party, and girl proceeds to hang out with Canadiens fans all night. Boston selected Zach Hamill with their pick. The Canadiens did not pick Angelo Esposito (but Pittsburgh did) with either of their first-round picks, much to the disappointment of one of my new friends (he really wanted Esposito to wear a Canadiens jersey). The second and third rounds of the draft are today. Maybe...

by Heather | 12:13 PM | 3
filed under: offseason notes

June 18, 2007

Chiarelli ::hearts:: Heather!

News: Scott Gordon didn't speak to Chiarelli about the most recent job posting in Boston. PHEW. BUT! Claude Julien DID! There's a 50/50 shot I might pay attention to Boston next season! (Now, Peter... I'm serious. When are we trading for Spezza and Vermette?) Transactions: Boston resigned Brandon Bochenski. This is delightful, because if we hadn't, we would have been left with nothing to show for the Kris Versteeg trade, and then some people would have seen my Irish show. Fun fact for you: Versteeg remained one of Providence's top scorers even after he was traded. Both Nate Dempsey and...

by Heather | 9:40 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

June 15, 2007

Rumor has it...

... that Dave Lewis was fired. I can't say I'm sorry to see him go. I know that there were people who liked him because he was a nice guy, but I wasn't impressed at ALL with his coaching last year. I do empathize with him, though. I did the unemployment thing, and it wasn't exactly a party. While I'm sure our circumstances are wildly different, at the lowest common denominator, unemployment sucks. However, Boston'd better leave Scott Gordon right there in Providence. I don't need them stealing him along with all the OTHER boys from my team that I...

by Heather | 6:45 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

June 13, 2007

Beat 'em, bust 'em, that's my HTML custom.

Oh, internets. I do not know what I did last night, but in my troubleshooting to resolve Movable Type's hate of the me (favorite troubleshooting method: "hey, I wonder what clicking here does? ... oooohnooooooo, I shouldn't have clicked that, probably, because it seems to have made the internet mad..."), I have broken some templates. And in the vein that when life gives you lemons you should get some tequila, I am looking at the silver lining of, "well, because I didn't have a back up of the template, this means it's time for a redesign!" Things are going to...

by Heather | 12:59 AM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

May 26, 2007

HOORAY HERSHEY!

Dearest Manchester Monarchs: I just want to apologize to you. I was wrong. I said that Hershey would beat you in five. I spotted you a pity game. In reality, however, Hershey spotted you nothing but a four-game sweep. That's almost kind of sad. See you next season, Heather -- Dear Hershey: I am going to have a Hershey bar tomorrow in celebration. A Hershey bar with almonds. Good luck against Hamilton, XOXO Heather...

by Heather | 9:48 PM | 2
filed under: offseason notes

September 7, 2006

Only a few more days. I waited this long, I can wait a little longer ... right?

My roommate comes home from work. I hear her keys in the door. I don't think she's even got a foot fully over the threshold, and I'm yelling to her- "Nate Thompson has joined the other boys at the super-secret informal skating sessions in Wilmington this week!" I hear her drop her bag - maybe out of shock, maybe because it's what she does on her way into the apartment - but I don't hear her fall to the ground in a faint or anything. I think, hey, maybe she did not hear me. Maybe she thinks I am talking...

by Heather | 12:41 AM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

September 1, 2006

Training camp schedule! Training camp roster! Training camp joy!

Sometime in the hours that I slumbered last night, Boston posted the training camp schedule (EEEK!) and the training camp roster of rookie and veteran players (! I am so excited that I am down to speaking in exclamation points). I will be dancing as I continue to unpack boxes and more boxes today. Hopefully I will not fall and hurt myself, but I am pretty klutzy, so anything is possible. You can find the training camp roster here (.pdf) and the schedule here (also a .pdf). Assuming I don't !!!!!!!!!! myself into some kind of happiness stupor in the...

by Heather | 11:13 AM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

August 23, 2006

Now I can think incessantly about training camp instead.

Several transactions of note: Ryan Flinn signed with San Antonio. Former pBruin Zdenek Blatny resigned with the Springfield Falcons, something I found interesting because last I'd heard, he wasn't exactly a happy camper to have been traded over there. Patrice Bergeron resigned with Boston, for a reported five-year, $23.75 million dollar deal. Look, I know Patrice deserved a raise over his rookie salary of upper eight-hundreds/upper nine-hundreds (depended on the year in question), but a shade under $5million (average) per YEAR? Rounding up (something I am good at in math!), that's about a 500% raise. C'mon now; that's just...

by Heather | 12:10 AM | 8
filed under: offseason notes

August 18, 2006

Ticket information

Tickets for the Boston Bruins preseason game against the New Jersey Devils at the Tsongas Arena on Sept 17 at 1pm go onsale tomorrow morning at 10am through Ticketmaster. This is the event page you can buy tickets through, and they're $35 a ticket....

by Heather | 2:33 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

August 17, 2006

More transactions, but the one I want is still missing.

Hi! I have not yet been squished under a pile of boxes, which, I guess, is good news. The bad news, of course, is that I have been stacking them precariously, so it is inevitable that they may fall on my head. That, I feel, will possibly be very painful. But! To move boxes, I get to borrow my brother's truck, and if there's one thing I love more then iced coffee and hockey, it's borrowing my brother's truck. I am shallow, I know. News, news, news (in brief). Sean Curry resigned with Providence. We signed prospect Phil Kessel...

by Heather | 2:21 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

August 8, 2006

Harry Sinden to retire.

According to TSN.ca, Bruins President Harry Sinden is going to announce his retirement tomorrow in a press conference. Can I get a HELL YEAH?...

by Heather | 11:54 PM | 2
filed under: offseason notes

August 7, 2006

Boston signs Pascal Pelletier

... and I rest slightly easier, but not really because there's still no official word on a particular goaltender whose name rhymes with Mordan Figalet (was the news two weeks ago lying? was it telling the truth? oh, the suspense is infuriatingly not delightful!), or on Patrice Bergeron. But! We've signed Pascal! This is huge for Providence, possibly one day Boston, particularly in the wake of Ben Guite signing with the Avs. Back to packing, packing, and more packing. (Three weeks and counting!) We won't even discuss how many boxes it's going to take for all my hockey stuff....

by Heather | 10:38 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

Lists make me happy.

So, now that I've spent the better part of an hour bookmarking hockey blogs I didn't know existed (it was like Christmas, getting all these gifts of new things to read!) because I followed link after link after link because Mike Chen had the chutzpah to start a "5 Weird Things About Me" meme to break up the hockeyless August, I will now get around to responding to my tag from Sidearm Delivery listing five weird things about myself: When I was two, I fell headfirst into the rockers of a rocking chair and gashed open my forehead, right above...

by Heather | 2:18 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

August 3, 2006

Whatcha gonna do when they come for you?

According to the internets, today Boston announced that they signed Braddy Boyes. Tsn.ca reports the deal is a two-year one, valued at $3mil ($1.4m the first year, $1.6m the second). And I'm excited about Braddy being back, because he's fun, talented, and most importantly, because no one else's name would fit NEARLY as well into the theme song from "Cops," but I'm still kind of waiting for official word on Jordan and I'm definitely waiting on some kind of something to happen with Patrice. Sunday's papers (or whatever day. I read the articles last night. Dates blur together for me,...

by Heather | 11:24 PM | 3
filed under: offseason notes

August 1, 2006

Guess what! It's AUGUST. We are ONE MONTH closer to HOCKEY!

HI! It's WAY EARLY in the MORNING (or way late at night, depending on how you look at it) and since I am over-caffeinated and still up because of the coffee that I had well over twelve hours ago, I thought I would stop in and tell you a few things, in no order of importance: Jiri Slegr signed over in Europe. So did ex-Bruin Sean Brown. Ex-Monarch Chris Schmidt is staying over there for a second go-round, with a different German team then last season. JUST WHAT IS SO ATTRACTIVE ABOUT EUROPE, BOYS? Mike Cammalleri signed another one year...

by Heather | 2:04 AM | 2
filed under: offseason notes

July 17, 2006

One more down, a million (or so it feels) to go

Boston announced today that they re-signed Jeremy Reich. I kid you not; I was so excited that I let out a WOOO! when I read this. Boston also announced the signings of some other guys, but Jeremy was the only name I recognized. (We signed Brian Finley (goaltender), Bobby Allen (d-man), Nate DiCasmirro (forward), Jeremy Reich (forward), and Dennis Packard (forward).) EDIT: Andrew Alberts resigned with Boston, agreeing to a one-year contract. Now... about those other qualifiers......

by Heather | 4:21 PM | 3
filed under: offseason notes

July 12, 2006

Wherein I love the exclamation point and CAPS LOCK.

Random signing information, because no post would be complete without it: ex-Monarch/now-ex-Bridgeport Sound Tiger Denis Grebeshkov has signed over in Europe. If there is one good thing that the NHL lockout brought me, it's a familiarity with so many more names within the game. I really delight in the fact that there is rarely a day that goes by right now, where I don't recognize at least ONE name above the standard big names in all the transactions. Today, in time for Jessica O's birthday, and in time for Jess's tomorrow, the NHL releases the schedule. YAY FOR BEING ABLE...

by Heather | 10:40 AM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

July 10, 2006

Signing miscellany

I'm mid-sewing project (I promised my niece a trip to hockey boys and a Snow White dress, and she's finally calling me out on both counts, though she understands the hockey thing will have to wait until training camp), but I decided to check in with transactions and such, and ptttth: -Ben Guite has signed with the Colorado Avalanche. This is soooo not Boston/Providence. It's so very not Boston that maybe Jessica is right; maybe he needs a geography lesson. Adding insult to injury, this coming season is the season that NJ switches their AHL affiliate from Albany, NY to...

by Heather | 3:48 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

July 8, 2006

Happy back-from-vacation.

fireworks Originally uploaded by hcreegan. I hope y'all spent your Canada day or your Fourth of July (wherever applicable) without incident. I had a relaxing time hanging out in Jersey with a Devils fan that is by far the coolest fan they've got. (HI SHERRY!) OK, I told you about how we signed Zdeno Chara (five years/$37.5mil) and Marc Savard (five years/$20 mil) - I go away for five days, and the Bruins are all about commitment! like, what the heck? I hang out at home, and it's one-year this, two-year that! - and how we bought out Shawn...

by Heather | 12:49 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

July 1, 2006

Checking in

So, I'm on vacation, and of course, this means I have to check my email and my messages and everything, because this is why you go down the shore and get away from it all. Oh, and I'm crazy obsessed with finding out how the free agency thing goes. We signed Zdeno Chara, which is funny to me for SO MANY REASONS, none of which have to do with hockey, and none of which have to do with his skillzzzzz. Now, if we could also sign Senators center Jason Spezza, I'd be through the roof. We signed Marc Savard and...

by Heather | 8:58 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

June 29, 2006

Boston fires the coach and I fill your head with inane trivia.

Mike Sullivan was fired as Bruins Head Coach this past week. Incoming GM Peter Chiarelli (am I the only one who thinks that the term "Incoming GM" makes him sound like a missile being launched on Boston? About to land with a giant KER-POW and other explosionary noises? And that we should all run for cover?) talked to Mike a bit, and decided that no, he'd much rather have Dave Lewis, ex-Red Wings coach. And I'm kind of sad by this. Don't know Dave, don't know what he'll do with the team, but I really liked Sully. I was...

by Heather | 12:18 AM | 2
filed under: offseason notes

June 26, 2006

Free Agent List.

At the start of free agency/the offseason, I tend to compile myself a spreadsheet of who's still under contract, who's up for a contract renewal, and it's usually chock-full of weird little things I like to know. I threw together a condensed version for the innernets. You can find it here. It has everyone who ended the season in both Boston and Providence, because I have a sick fascination with making sure all my Providence boys are accounted for and signed (theoretically, I'd like that to be with us, but that's not always how the cookie crumbles). (I really don't...

by Heather | 1:51 AM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

June 25, 2006

The 8th sign of the Apocalypse.

So, I went down to Providence tonight to hang with some of my Providence peeps (that wasn't pretentious-sounding at ALL), and I'm on my way home, talking hockey boys with Cheri, and my cell phone begs for my attention, so I answer it. Becky's calling to tell me that Andrew Raycroft has done up and been traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs (we got Tuukka Rask). (This is not the 8th sign of the Apocalypse) Becky suggests a roadtrip to Toronto to go see him. And y'all? Despite the fact that I spent the entire 03-04 season loathing him and...

by Heather | 2:41 AM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

June 24, 2006

Five reasons to go buy the June 2006 issue of Men's Health:

1. Way more informative then Cosmopolitan and their same 3 recycled cover stories. 2. Handy healthy - yet tasty- grocery shopping list inside. 3. Article on skin cancer that suggests because I'm redheaded and freckled, I should be in VERY big trouble by now. 4. You'd be participating in the exciting world of commerce! 5. Article that has a two-page photo spread of Bruin Jordan Sigalet. This issue is only on display until Tuesday, June 27th. Sorry I'm late about tellin' y'all about it, but in truth, I'd forgotten to get myself a copy until I saw it when...

by Heather | 3:23 AM | 3
filed under: offseason notes

June 20, 2006

Two more pBruins head to Europe.

Nate Robinson and Eric Nickulas have both signed with German teams. Nate signed with Adler-Mannheim, and Eric signed with the Hannover Scorpions. Mike Schutte signed with Duisburg last month, and all three teams are in the same league, so I'm thinking that one well-planned roadtrip could result in a fun, ex-pB filled weekend. Funding, of course, provided by the lottery commission. I hate this part of summer the most. You'd think that as someone with such pale, pasty, delicate skin that burns under prolonged exposure to incandescent lamps, that my least-favorite part of summer would be the oppressive humidity or...

by Heather | 2:57 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

... And it's the end of June.

Didn't I say before that we've got to quit meeting like this? It's now almost the end of June, and I've just been so distant. I'm sorry, internets. I don't mean to ignore you, but the truth is that once Providence was ousted from the playoffs, I was relieved, because I've got all kinds of things going on off-line. 2006 seems to be the year for the HUGE, GIANT, life-changing things of un-fun to come along and run me over with a truck. It's a cop-out to type that and then not tell you the details, I know, but oh...

by Heather | 12:02 AM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

May 24, 2006

The second monthly update. I hope I don't stress myself out or anything.

Tonight, at 11:15pm ET, ex-pBruins Milan Gajic (with the Gwinnett Gladiators) and Ryan Gaucher (with the Alaska Aces) will face off against each other for the final run to the Kelly Cup. And I know that there's all kinds of other interesting playoff races going on, like Buffalo vs Carolina and Anaheim against Edmonton (side note: how AWESOME was that anthem sing-along?) and I know that Portland was looking down the barrel of a four-game sweep to Hershey but has since rallied to push the series to a game 5 (pttth is what I say to YOU, ye AHL team...

by Heather | 8:51 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

May 7, 2006

Hi! It's MAY now!

My dearest internets: I have been spending my time organizing my photos from the season. Because I am endlessly fascinated by statistics, even though I can never remember them correctly OR figure any out in any way that is not the rudimentary, "1+1=2" simpleton way, I thought I would maybe share the following numbers with you, so you can see why I am a prime candidate for needing Photoholics Anonymous: Number of pictures taken at six days of training camp: 498 Number of pictures taken in Boston*: 1,662 Number of pictures taken at AHL games**: 3,786 Total number of pictures...

by Heather | 1:32 AM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

April 29, 2006

Happy birthday to us all.

It's that time of year again. It's SVO's birthday. This ol' gal here is whopping three years old, representing one of the longest commitments I have ever made to any one thing that was not a person or academics or the act of breathing. Thank you for being a part of this. Another calendar year gone, and this has not gotten old- it's gotten even more exciting. This site, and the adventures it brings to me ... it causes me constant amazement to see all the crevices to which the internet reaches. You are appreciated in ways I couldn't possibly...

by Heather | 4:29 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

September 12, 2005

A letter, to you.

Dear Internets. This whole "training camp" thing is finally getting to my head. I am way more over stimulated then I should be about camp finally (FINALLY!) commencing. I have flat-out hit The Crazy. (It's a lovable kind of crazy, though.) (And did I mention I'm sucking others into the Crazy vortex? Oh yes, I am. Sherry and Kassie and possibly a girl named Amee. Fun for all!) Speaking of The Crazy, did y'all hear that we offered Raycroft a one-year deal for $1.2million dollars and he turned it down? I think that Raycroft might be more affected by The...

by Heather | 10:00 PM | 20
filed under: offseason notes

September 11, 2005

Reminder for the 8th Carnival of the NHL

Entries due by midnight Tuesday, Sept 13. Submissions should be sent to hcreegan (at) soveryobsessed (dot) com....

by Heather | 4:09 PM | 0
filed under: offseason notes

September 8, 2005

I fell asleep and forgot to post this earlier.

And I would like to state for the record that right now? There are hockey boys skating in Wilmington, wearing black-and-gold. EEP! It is THAT TIME OF YEAR! HURRAY! The Bruins signed four players last night: Colton Orr (1 yr), Pat Leahy (1 yr), Tyler Redenbach (3 yrs), and Jeremy Reich (1 yr). Andy Hilbert still remains an outsider. Dear Andy: This is because you went about this all bass-ackwards. Had you, as Jaci so succintly put it, not given up so early, and you had played more (like, oh, I don't know, THIS SEASON), you'd have more leverage towards...

by Heather | 11:47 PM | 5
filed under: offseason notes

September 7, 2005

Two links.

One is to a Globe article on Brad Boyes. He's eager to bring his game and to get to the gettin' of some hockey. I ditto that, Brad. The other is to a Hockey Journal article where Raycroft's agent, Jordan Neumann, is vague about what's going on with the negotiations between the club and the goaltender. (So helpful!) He won't lay any odds on the likelihood of Raycroft being in camp on Monday. If I was the betting sort, I'd make up some odds, but really, over-unders and gambling odds have never made sense to me. Math in general gives...

by Heather | 1:08 PM | 3
filed under: offseason notes

September 6, 2005

Information. OF THE TRAINING CAMP VARIETY.

Hi. Guess what. Boston? HAS POSTED THEIR TRAINING CAMP INFO. I kept checking all weekend, and nothing. Today, beaten into submission, I wait to check, and WHAT DO THEY DO? Post it early. Thanks, Boston. I love you too. ANYWAYS. You can find .pdf files of the the rookie roster here, the veteran roster here, the schedule here, and more info here. My favorite part of this WHOLE THING: Training camp will run from Thursday, September 8 through Saturday, October 1, alternating between Ristuccia Arena and the TD Banknorth Garden. Please check the schedule to see where practices will take...

by Heather | 2:19 PM | 9
filed under: offseason notes

September 2, 2005

Late-night Friday stuff

Before I head off deep into the heart of Maine for a few days, I leave you this: Phil Pilmar has the seventh Carnival of the NHL up. Yours truly is hosting the next one. I'm thinking it'll be Wednesday, Sept 14th, with all entries due by midnight Tuesday, Sept 13. That gives a nice leeway for recovering from the holiday weekend, and training camps will have started by then, so there should be loads to talk about. Submissions should be sent to hcreegan (at) soveryobsessed (dot) com. Some signings: The pBruins signed Chris Dyment, David Lundbohm and Milan Gajic...

by Heather | 10:38 PM | 1
filed under: offseason notes

September 1, 2005

For all you DKM fans...

The Dropkick Murphys are a co-headliner at this year's Locobazooka on Sept 18th. (I haven't been to a Locobazooka since Godsmack was a headliner and just STARTING to get national radio play. I met a couple of the bands. Good times.) You can get tickets for this year's show at any Strawberries location....

by Heather | 7:24 PM | 6
filed under: offseason notes

Let's talk. (volume two)

Miscellaneous: If you're doing the fantasy hockey thing (we here at SVO are), Sharkspage has a pretty good post with some resources. AHL: The Florida Panthers finally have an affiliate. They are going to share Rochester with the Sabres. Now, let's do some more talking. Well, you listen (read) and I'll talk (type). As I type this, Andrew Raycroft and Nick Boynton- two supposedly important-to-Boston's-roster players- remain unsigned. This makes me want to cry, but most of all, it makes me want to beat all involved with a big stinky fish, because hello, have we lost all handles on reality?...

by Heather | 4:11 PM | 7
filed under: offseason notes

August 31, 2005

Let's talk. (A list.)

- If you're a giving person, check out how you can help with the relief efforts in Louisiana. - Hal Gill signed his qualifier. That's exciting. However, we are still missing a goalie and an All-Star defenseman. I'm not a GM (I just play one on the internet), but I think that maybe we might need another goalie. - Mike Sullivan got the nod to coach the US Men's Olympic team. He and Keith Allain will be Peter Laviolette's assistant coaches. - TSN has an article about the Making the Cut guys and how excited they are to get to...

by Heather | 1:40 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

August 27, 2005

For a giggle.

So, Jaci's going through the roster on bb.com, randomly texting this stuff, and she sends me the info from Travis Green's profile-- [snip]...His bother, David, played hockey at Providence College. ... [/snip] I know I thought my little brother was a pain when I was growing up, but MAN, bb.com! Try to keep it a little less obvious! (This typo is amusing me faaaarrrrrrr more then it should on a Saturday night.)...

by Heather | 10:09 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

August 26, 2005

Manchester loses ANOTHER player.

Now David Steckel's gone. That's three players I liked very much -- Rullier, Milam, and now Steckel -- gone. Oh, and can't forget Lehoux's prima donna-esque defection back over to the other side of the Atlantic. (Though I didn't see him much prior to his knee injury to decide if I liked him or not; though he was very charming at Hockey 101.) Yannick and Sergei Zinovjev should be friends. They can sit around in the cold of Russia and commiserate how neither of their NHL teams would give them a chance, because woe is them, their lives are pain...

by Heather | 2:12 PM | 7
filed under: offseason notes

I wonder if this'll post THIS TIME.

We signed Jay Leach (2 years), Eric Nickulas (1 year) and Garret Stroshein (1 year) Tuesday. (I have been trying to post this since Wednesday, but I was having issues on Wednesday and I forgot yesterday.) Now, all we are missing from my wishlist are Nick Boynton, Tomas Kurka, Hal Gill, and... (sigh) Andrew Raycroft. Lowell fan Goonblog says that PJ Stock's called it quits because of vision problems. (Link via Offwing Opinion). I vaguely recall hearing something similar, and I remember seeing him at the Tsongas at a Lowell game last season; his eye still looked horrendous. Po' PJ....

by Heather | 8:29 AM | 8
filed under: offseason notes

August 24, 2005

Jonathan Girard, and why I have been dreading his comeback. (a verbose early-morning essay by Heather Creegan)

The first thing you have to understand about me is that I have a soft spot in my heart for all my boys. The phrase "all my boys" is defined as men who have graced a Bruins roster from 2002 (when I started following them) forward. There are exceptions to the rule (hello Jeff Hackett), but overall, they're all my boys, and the first instincts are protection and loyalty (YOU TALK BAD ABOUT THEM AND I WILL HUNT YOU OUT) where they are all concerned (yes, even Joe Thornton. PS, I'm looking at YOU, Kevin Paul DuPont) (not so much...

by Heather | 9:30 AM | 10
filed under: offseason notes

August 23, 2005

Some miscellany.

Chris Madden signed with Bridgeport. One of the few Bruins-related posts I have seen that has no asterisk by Jon's name, stating any wishy-washy feelings about how we have to wait and see if he can return to the NHL (Have you seen Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back? Y'know the end of the movie where they are knocking on doors with a huge printout of chat rooms? Yeah. That's where I'm at on this Jonathan Girard subject right now. It is d-a-n-g-e-r-o-u-s territory. I will delve into it further when I am less cantankerous). Jaci has links to two...

by Heather | 12:58 PM | 10
filed under: offseason notes

August 21, 2005

Dear Andy Hilbert.

What's with this news story? You want OUT of BOSTON? Andy, Andy, Andy. Did you not hear me below? Did you not understand the words I typed, asking Boston to offer you a contract? Why do you want to leave us? Why? I demand answers. My e-mail is hcreegan (at) soveryobsessed (dot) com. XOXO, Heather...

by Heather | 10:48 PM | 9
filed under: offseason notes

August 19, 2005

Consider this your save-the-date card.

Individual game tickets for Boston will go on sale Saturday, September 10 at 10:00 a.m. through the Bruins box office and all Ticketmaster locations. From the Cybear e-mail in my inbox: Individual game tickets have been reduced by as much as $9 for the 2005-06 season and a $10 balcony ticket price has been added, with single-game tickets ranging from $10-$99. In all, the Bruins have lowered the price on 66% of their tickets, while the price of remaining seats have been frozen at 2003-04 prices. The Bruins will also hold an additional "Fan Appreciation Night" at the beginning of...

by Heather | 9:59 AM | 2
filed under: offseason notes

August 18, 2005

Dear Providence Bruins Ticketing.

While I appreciate your dogged determination to get me signed up for Flex Tix, I'm going to have to ask you to please stop stalking me. It's just not funny anymore. I promise I will buy Flex Tix, but you have to give a girl some breathing room. Love, Heather...

by Heather | 3:43 PM | 4
filed under: offseason notes

Intrasquad game.

Tickets go onsale tomorrow at 10am through Ticketmaster. The game is Friday, Sept 16, at the Agganis Arena on the Boston University campus. TICKETS ARE ONLY TEN DOLLARS. TEN! DOLLARS! Reasons you should go to the Intrasquad game: 1. One ice surface, and two teams- completely comprised of JUST BRUINS. 2. Ten dollars admission! 3. Smaller arena makes for more intimate hockeying experience. 4. The Agganis is new, and will still have that new-arena smell. 5. It's been over a year since you've seen anyone in a spoked-B sweater; it's time to do something about that. 6. Joe Thornton, PJ...

by Heath