It is technically February 23rd. Festivus is December 23rd. Our Blues just lost to the defending Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.

I am angry.

Consider this a two-month-late/ten-month-early Airing of Grievances.

–Airing of Grievance against NHL refs: That was an interference call. That was also a tripping call. Both of which you missed. You are at the top of my list because you are not the most egregious of things that happened tonight. Could you have been better? Yes, but you didn’t make or break this game. I’m just, you know, annoyed.

–Airing of Grievance against the kid behind me tonight: If I know more about your team than you do, I do not take you seriously. Shut your face.

–Airing of Grievance against St Louis sports radio: I walked out of that game tonight and walked to my car. I got in that car and immediately flipped to ESPN 101, the local FM sports radio network. You know what was being talked about? The NEW YORK KNICKS AND JEREMY LIN. Look, I get it. I really do. The Lin thing is a big story. But you know what? This is ST LOUIS. We have a hockey team. That hockey team plays here on a regular basis, and we can’t even get the local radio network to support us? This is, well, bull shit. I am a die-hard Cardinals fan, and the amount of time they spend talking about that team is just fine, but it is winter. It is hockey season. It is about damn time that the local affiliates start supporting and BROADCASTING about LOCAL sports. What the hell does New York City basketball have to do with ANYTHING going on in this city? Nothing. Not a damn thing. Stop talking about it.

–Airing of Grievance against neutral zone turnovers: Stop it. Seriously. Stop it. There is no reason to give the puck up that many times between the blue lines. My head is still spinning.

–Airing of Grievance against the Blues power play: I recognize that there was one chance to show us what you were capable of, but let’s be real. You haven’t been that great as of late. Truth be told, you haven’t been that great all season. Yes, I know the Bruins won the Cup with a horrendous power play, but you are not the Bruins, regardless of how many “look how similar they are” articles out there.

–Airing of Grievance against the top six: Where were you tonight? Huh? Shots fired aimlessly at the net, ESPECIALLY with Tim Thomas in goal is going to do you absolutely no good. You saw that tonight.

–Airing of Grievance against anyone and everyone who refused to crash the damn crease: Did you SEE those rebounds? No? I’m not sure how, given that up in the upper bowl they looked like they could have been a hologram sitting right next to me. Get the rebounds. Score the goals. You saw how Chris Stewart and Ryan Reaves (?!?!?!) did.

–Airing of Grievance against my team: I was upset leaving this game. I am still upset. The team is SO MUCH BETTER than how they played. This type of, how Brad said at Game Time, lackluster play, will do all of jack shit down the stretch.

Tonight’s game made me Ann-gry.

Nashville tomorrow (today?). Ugh.

Former Bruin, Current Blue

Bruins at Blues, airing at 7pm CST on FSMW.

So guys. Remember this? Yeah, I did that. I wrote about the Bruins ON A BLUES SITE for damn near three months. I’ll admit, I got a little attached. I did.

But you know what? Not today. Not tonight.

Sure, I’ll cheer for the Bruins as my Eastern Conference team, but these are my BOYS they’re playing tonight. That officially makes them the enemy.

I’m just…..I don’t even know what to say about the game other than I am so excited I can’t even see straight.

I’m excited to get back in the Scottrade Center, as I haven’t been to a hockey game since early January.

I’m excited to see Andy Mac back on the ice.

I’m excited to watch two of my fantasy wingers (Vladimir Sobotka and Tyler Seguin) go head to head.

I’m SUPER excited to see Tim Thomas play, but can’t help but hope beyond hope that the Blues REMAIN the only team in the league he hasn’t beaten.

I’m excited for another win against an Eastern Conference team.

I’m excited for the tribute to Keith Tkachuk before the game.

I’m excited for Blues hockey.

I’m just damn excited.

LET’S GO BLUES!!

Technically hockey starts tomorrow. Hello, giddiness.

So basically, because the Blues don’t play until Saturday, and I still have lots of love for my adopted team, I figured that I would do what I could to keep tabs on the Bruins for the season. I won’t get in too in depth, but fun things that crop up will be passed along. Like this.

#BluesForBruins lives on! Well, except for February 22. But we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QicKdrveGU

All photos courtesy of Sarah Connors.

So I don’t know about you, but I’ve been in a little bit of a haze since Wednesday. I have spent the last nearly five solid months writing about hockey multiple times a week and then BAM. Hockey’s gone.

I don’t like this one bit.

I suppose I got really used to having hockey around. Even after baseball started, when I would have been able to fall back into the same patterns I’ve been in year after year, I kept coming back to hockey. Baseball friends would text me when something great would happen with the Cardinals, and my usual reply was “Wait, what happened, I’m watching hockey.” I never really thought that another sport could grab ahold of me so strongly.

My guess is this is what you lifelong fans already knew, what you were patiently (and some others of you impatiently) waiting for me to find out.

This sport, this beautiful, graceful, hard-hitting, exhilarating, nerve-wracking sport, is one of the best sports in the entire world. Period.

I’m a little sad it took me so long to figure out.

It seems I have come to a point where I need to toss out some thank yous.

First off, to this team:

Image flickr/slidingsideways

For letting me cheer for them, and giving me a glimpse of what this will be like when MY team brings home Lord Stanley’s Cup.

To this man:

Image flickr/slidingsideways

For letting me fall even more in love with goalies than ever before. For being an inspiration daily about how hard work and determination really will get anyone wherever they want (and rightly deserve) to be. Let me say it now, like I’ve said before. He will take the Vezina trophy. And if he doesn’t? Well, I’d imagine I wouldn’t be the only one lodging complaints.

To these two friends. For teaching me the sport. For teaching me about the Bruins. For being two of the best people to have as my hockey sherpas ever.

To the many, many people I’ve met and become friends with through this sport, and those of you who come here to read what I actually have to say. You guys are flat out amazing. There honestly are not enough words in the English language to describe how incredible I think you all are.

And last, but VERY MUCH not least, to this team:

For everything. For being my team. For stepping on the ice in that blue note and being proud to wear it. For your determination and drive that will eventually bring the type of parade Boston had today to our very own Market Street. For being in this city, at this time, and letting us all be able to be part of this fan base.

This is going to be a long off-season. Are you sure it’s not October yet?

THIS ISN’T EVEN MY TEAM, AND MY FACE HURTS FROM SMILING SO MUCH.

For the record, I called this before the puck dropped in Game One.

Just saying.

Today, sitting at a bar with plenty of other Blues fans (#BluesForBruins, represent), it was incredibly blatant just how much this sport brings people together. This team, these guys that so many discounted as the playoffs continued, not that we’d know anything about that, brought nearly an entire fan base together. No, not all Blues fans were cheering for Boston, this is true, but having the memory of being swept from the playoffs two years ago apparently was too much to handle for many of my fan base.

Not that I was complaining.

At any rate, I don’t even think my excitement right now BEGINS to come close to what Bruins fans are feeling. Watching a team I’ve been cheering for just since the early weeks of April take Lord Stanley’s Cup for a spin around the ice made me almost giggle with excitement. It’s just a surreal feeling.

Congratulations to the Bruins, and much thanks to them for letting me cheer through four full rounds of playoff hockey.

Hey Blues? I want this for us. Make that happen.

Edited to add:

This game belonged to the Bruins. Beginning to end, this belonged to Boston.

I have never seen a goalie chased off by half way through the FIRST PERIOD. I mean even against the Blackhawks in round one Luongo lasted past the first intermission. Marchand’s wrister was an ABSOLUTE beauty, Lucic snuck one through the five-hole, and Ference chose to flip the Canucks off using the scoreboard instead of his left hand. And then? Bye bye Looey.

See Luongo? This is what happens when you piss off the, in my ever-so-humble and nonbiased opinion, best goalie in the league. You don’t poke the bear.

I like to think that Tim Thomas is very similar to Turk in this clip.

Of course Lou will get the start for the Canucks in Game Seven. Like Milbury and Roenick are talking about right now, I wonder which Luongo is going to show up.

But now the Bruins go up against what has been their Achilles heel for this series. They go back to play in Vancouver. I don’t know what it is about that city that has made the Bruins play a bit like a peewee team, but it has. They’ve moved through molasses, they’ve skated like they’re all running on fumes, and they’ve frustrated the hell out of every Bruins fan and any other hockey fan who has adopted them.

Guys, this is it. This is what it comes down to. Game Seven. Everything these guys have ever dreamed of can be a reality on Wednesday….or it can be wrenched from their grip at the last minute.

I’m going for dreams.

Dear Boston Bruins, Please beat the hell out of the Canucks on Wednesday. Do it.

First of all, Blues stuff. In case you hadn’t heard, the Blues have signed Chris Porter to a one-year contract extension. He joins four other Blues players to be signed this offseason (the list can be found here).

I must say, I’ve been pretty pumped about what the management is doing with the team this offseason. Even with ownership in limbo, not knowing where the budget could potentially end up, the team has signed players to contracts that won’t be a huge cap hit, that aren’t outrageously overpriced for what the on-ice production will be, and that will benefit the team on the ice in the long run. Me likey.

Though, let’s be real here. With this signing, and having Ryan Reaves as an RFA left to be signed, the questions begin about whether Cam Janssen will have a spot on the roster next season. Given his puck-handling skill (or some would say lack thereof), and the ever-decreasing need for the enforcer role, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was one who didn’t come back, much to what will be the dismay of the St Louis local crew who see him as “one of their own.” I love Cam, I really do, but I don’t know if his future lies in St Louis.

Moving on. Tonight’s game.

There are a bajillion and six ways to say “It’s Now Or Never.” There’s one. I won’t list anymore. The Bruins will either force a Game 7 or they won’t. Simple as that.

I sure hope they do, though. I’m not ready to say goodbye to hockey.

For what hopefully won’t be but might be the last time this season, GO BRUINS.

The Bruins scoring chances yesterday? Obviously weren’t. Grammar puns.

Had I known that this game was going to be a repeat of the previous games in Vancouver, I probably wouldn’t have even started watching it. I watched games one and two and ended up very frustrated after them. Why would I consciously do this to myself again? Oh, because I can’t help it, right.

Home ice advantage hasn’t meant anything to the Bruins this entire playoffs, so why are they starting now? I mean, we already know about their powerplay. The lack of scoring on a powerplay is nothing new. Not being able to poke in rebounds, or any of those shots that absolutely SHOULD have gone in, that part’s new.

It was a frustrating game, sure, but the thing about game 5 that stands out most happened OFF the ice. Can someone please explain to me why Luongo is determined to piss off EVERYONE? See: Comments he made comparing Round One to the Olympic Gold Medal Game. Sure, I suppose he’s entitled to his opinions, but how can he think that taunting Timmy is a good idea, especially after those 14 goals Luongo has let in? Has he not seen what happens after someone makes Timmy mad? Hope the Canucks are ready for a Game 7.

The Bruins have to come back now from a 3-2 deficit. They haven’t had to do that throughout the entire playoffs. I know they can. Game 6, in Boston, Monday night.

I believe.