Shank's Annual Boston Bruins Column

Nothing like a little bandwagon hijacking where the Bruins are concerned:

They’re responding to a new coach, have a former MVP on the third line, and plenty of locker room leadership. No wonder the Bruins can’t lose.

The Bruins were already good. Then they changed coaches and got better. Now they are playing the best hockey in the NHL.

How did this happen?

There was a lot of negativity on Causeway Street when Cam Neely and Don Sweeney fired Bruce Cassidy in June. The demanding Cassidy, a fan favorite, had coached 399 games and taken the Bruins to the playoffs in six straight seasons. He came within one game of winning the franchise’s seventh Stanley Cup in 2019.

But Jake DeBrusk didn’t like Cassidy and asked to be traded. Brandon Carlo told The Athletic he felt “beat down” by Cassidy. David Krejci went home to Czechia for the 2021-22 season.

In true millennial fashion, player empowerment trumped player accountability. So Cassidy was fired, Sweeney explaining that the coach’s style “takes its toll.”

“I had a long history with Bruce,” Sweeney said before the Bruins’ 3-1 victory over Tampa Bay Tuesday. “I respect the hell out of him. He’s a fantastic coach. But sometimes you just take the pulse of where your team is at and where you think you can get to, and you make a really tough decision. This was difficult.”

We'll see how long two things hold up - the Bruins' record and Shank's non-hostile treatment of the team.

DHL Dan CXLVXII - Conflict

It seems Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics has been making, shall we say, very unprofessional comments in past weeks:

Jaylen Brown’s actions are in conflict with his words, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while watching NESN’s Franchy Cordero highlight reel …

▪ No thanks, Jaylen Brown.

Again Wednesday, you spoke about continuing to “do what I’ve been doing, trying to uplift my community, spreading kindness, spreading love, trying to be the best version of myself, but also help any and everybody around me. That’s what I’ve been since I came into this league and that’s what I’m gonna continue to do.”

Sorry, Jaylen, but I have no interest in reading or hearing your well-intentioned words promoting social justice and spreading love. You’ve had three chances in the last month to denounce antisemitism and in each instance you balked, or chose to support your misguided friends, Kanye West, a.k.a. “Ye,” and Kyrie Irving.

When you were first asked about dumping your affiliation with the hateful Ye’s Donda Sports Agency, you said you planned to stay with the agency because Ye was “dealing with a lot of adversity.” It was only when Adidas dumped Ye that you followed.

I haven't been following this story all that closely but I'm pretty sure about one thing - you can't profess support for one group of people while pissing on another.

Punting On A Good Column

As is usually the case with many Shank columns about a win by the New England Patriots, it's not that the Patriots won but rather it's the Jets who lost the game:

Why didn’t the Jets punt the ball out of bounds instead of to Marcus Jones? Because they are the Jets.

In the end, the Jets are going to Jet. And Belichick is going to Belichick. And just when you think you have wasted three hours of your life, the Patriots reward you with one of the most exciting plays in sports; an 84-yard, last-minute, game-winning punt return by a player who is unknown to most New England sports fans.

The Patriots beat the Jets, 10-3, Sunday and Jones won the game.

Not quarterback Mac Jones.

Not ballhawk defensive back Jonathan Jones.

Not Dalton Jones, Sam Jones, K.C. Jones, Popeye Jones, Adam Jones, Tom Jones, nor Me and Mrs. Jones.

Now that's some Pulitzer Prize level writing right there!

DHL Dan CXLVI - A Cold Hot Stove

While three of the four local pro sports teams are doing fairly well (Patriots) or very well (Celtics & Bruins), Shank picks on the runt of the litter:

Red Sox sure seem to be taking their fans for granted, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while hoping to see Fireman Ed at Gillette Sunday …

▪ Do the Red Sox care that they’re largely irrelevant around here at this hour? Is anybody listening to the sounds of silence on Jersey Street? How long will the Sox continue to suggest they are going to do something about their roster while they do nothing? Does the team believe fans will keep filling Fenway (at the top prices in baseball) and buying NESN if it won’t pay market value to keep homegrown stars? Are we in for another long cold winter of “the Sox are in on this guy” while they merely troll the waiver wire for bargains who’ll come here for a one-year contract?

These are things I think about while the Celtics and Bruins go into the weekend with the best records in their sports, and the potentially playoff-bound, always-a-hot-topic Patriots attempt to beat the hated New York Jets for a 14th consecutive time.

Seriously. While acknowledging that the Celtics, Bruins, and Patriots are in season, and the Sox are not, how many times have we been able to safely say that the Red Sox are the least popular team in New England? By a wide margin?

He's got a point - the Red Sox have yet to sign either Xander Bogaerts or Rafael Devers and they don't seem serious about doing so.

Early Conversation

Shank's first real column on the 2022-2023 Boston Celtics focuses on Jayson Tatum... the league MVP?

Jayson Tatum has been undeniably brilliant for the Celtics, but it’s a little early for MVP conversations

It is the middle of November. The Celtics have the NBA’s best record (11-3), have won seven straight, and have played roughly 17 percent of their schedule.

And the Jayson-Tatum-for-MVP campaign is all the rage.

“Tatum’s The One.’’ “Why Not The Best?’’ “Yes, He Can.’’

These veteran eyes have never seen anything like it. The Celtics haven’t yet played an NBA month, but Green Teamers are going door-to-door to spread the word of Tatum’s candidacy. This would be like dubbing Rafael Devers American League MVP in the middle of May. Or pushing Tom Brady after the first three games of an NFL season.

DHL Dan CXLV - Second Bite At The Apple

Since the Patriots aren't playing this past weekend, and the Bruins & Celtics both on winning streaks (and thus can't dump on either one), Shank looks at the upcoming Baseball Hall of Fame chances for certain former players:

A fascinating Baseball Hall of Fame committee vote is upcoming, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while wondering if the Red Sox will use the millionaires tax as their new excuse to not sign free agents . . .

▪ Roger Clemens in the Hall of Fame next summer?

Barry Bonds?

Curt Schilling?

It could happen. These three failed to gain admission in 10 tries on the writers ballot, but any of them could be announced as a Hall of Famer Dec. 4 when a committee of 16 baseball folk (usually eight Hall of Fame players plus some veteran executives and media members) votes on an eight-man ballot at the annual winter meetings in San Diego.

In addition to Clemens, Bonds, and Schilling, the committee will consider Fred McGriff, Rafael Palmeiro, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy, and Albert Belle — five more players who were repeatedly passed over by the writers and moved to this Contemporary Baseball Era Committee.

Unforced Error

You'd think that local sports teams would exercise greater levels of due diligence on prospective team members, especially in light of the Ume Udoka situation. It looks like the Boston Bruins didn't get the memo:

The Bruins tarnished their brand, and for no good reason

There’s honor in the brand of the Boston Bruins, perhaps more than the team’s ownership has ever understood.

The Bruins and their fans have always stood for something around here, a tad different from our other three franchises. The Bruins have been around much longer than the Celtics or Patriots and play in a house populated by rowdy, respectful, demanding folks who probably make less money but tip better than fans of our other three teams.

The Black and Gold have lived up to the love of their fans most winters since they first skated here in 1924. They are usually competitive, traditionally pugnacious, and ever-accountable. And Cam Neely — a big, tough, skilled leader first brought here by Bruins godfather Harry Sinden in 1986 — has been a worthy steward of the franchise since taking over as team president in 2010.

All of which made it so crushing to see Neely and the Bruins blunder into one of the worst decisions in team lore, bringing distraction and dishonor to the Hub Home of Hockey just when the surprising Bruins were off to their best start (10-1-0) in franchise history.

Read on as Shank gets to mount the Shetland Pony high horse once again.

DHL Dan CXLIV - Make Them Pay

A few weeks ago everyone was up in arms about the Ime Udoka situation. Today's complaint - the Celtics aren't getting anything in return, and we know how Red Auerbach would've handled things:

Celtics are breaking their own precedent on Ime Udoka compensation, and other thoughts

Picked-up pieces while remembering when Patriots-Colts and Brady-Manning was appointment television …

▪ The Celtics must really want Ime Udoka out of their lives. It’s pretty clear that Udoka — even after the disgrace of bad behavior that earned him a one-season suspension in Boston — is of great value to the Brooklyn Nets.

And yet it looks like the Celtics are willing to part with Udoka without asking for compensation from a conference rival.

I know these are different times and far different circumstances, but Red Auerbach would never have done such a thing. If the Nets wanted a guy who was under contract to the Celtics, Red would have made the Nets pay. Even if Red didn’t want the guy around anymore.

Let’s go all the way back to the 1969-70 season when 41-year-old Bob Cousy was coaching the Cincinnati Royals and reluctantly agreed to come out of retirement to help the cash-strapped team sell a few tickets. Coach Cousy hadn’t played a game in seven years but agreed to lace ‘em up to help the struggling franchise.

“Not so fast,” said Red, who was rebuilding the Celtics after the retirement of Bill Russell. The Celtics still owned Cousy’s NBA rights; he was on their “retired” list. He could not play for another team without their permission. So Red demanded compensation.

“How do we know Cousy isn’t better than ever at 41?” asked Red. “Like Gordie Howe and Pancho Gonzalez?” (Tom Brady hadn’t been born yet.)

The Royals grudgingly parted with 6-foot-7-inch forward Bill Dinwiddie to grant the Cooz his “freedom.”

That's right, folks - a 'precedent' set 52 years ago and not since that time by completely different people involved (not to mention what Udoka's been accused of) is not being followed. Sorry - that 'reasoning' fails my logic test.

You First

Isn't this an interesting take from a guy who's run enough Red Sox players out of town over his career to field an entire team:

Five years after the Astros’ trash-can transgressions, maybe it’s time to let our grudges go

PHILADELPHIA — The Phillies thrashed the Astros, 7-0, in Game 3 of the World Series Tuesday. The Phils hit five homers in the first five innings. It’s almost like their hitters knew what was coming.

And America no doubt loved it. Everybody still hates the Astros.

They trail the 118th World Series, two games to one, but still have a chance to win their second World Series in franchise history.

It would be their first legit title.

I'd say their first unquestioned title, but go on...

We all remember 2017 when Alex Cora’s trash-can dream came true. The Cheatin’ Stros beat the Red Sox, Yankees, and Dodgers in succession, only to live forever in disgrace when it was learned they enjoyed the benefit of an illegal sign-stealing system designed in part by the man who would become manager of your Red Sox. The Astros instantly became America’s most hated team since the Spygate/Deflategate, Belichick/Brady Patriots pantsed the NFL for the better part of two decades.

Houston’s transgressions were worse than anything the Patriots ever did, but New England fans haven’t had much high ground in this area, given the hiring of Cora, two celebrated football scandals, and the 2017 Red Sox Apple Watch malfeasance.

Not to go all “Trash Can Report In Context” on you, but the ‘22 Astros might be good without cheating. They won 106 regular-season games, and eight of their first nine postseason games. They swept the 99-win Yankees in the ALCS and went into Tuesday’s Game 3 with a combined record of 114-58, including playoff games.

They hope this Fall Classic will be their redemption tour.

Gotta love the warped mind that can take a World Series baseball game and make it about the Boston Red Sox and the New England Patriots, like that grudge will ever be let go.

Familiar With The Subject Matter

Longtime readers of Dan Shaughnessy Watch will know Shank writes about a theme that's right in his wheelhouse:

Philadelphia and Boston sports fans have a lot in common, especially when it comes to holding grudges

PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia is bigger than Boston, but when it comes to sports, the two towns have much in common. Both have history, success, epic failures, and edge. It’s personal. Nobody ever forgets anything.

Neither does Shank!

Folks here still talk about ‘64 and Gene Mauch the way we talk about Denny Galehouse, Bucky Dent, and Bill Buckner. We’re still mad that Bobby Clarke and Co. beat the Bruins in the Cup Finals in ‘74, and they won’t talk about Donovan McNabb barfing in the huddle at Super Bowl XXXIX.

Here In the autumn of 2022, Philadelphia’s Phillies and Eagles are championship caliber at the same time. They have a World Series baseball team and a 7-0 football team with designs on the Super Bowl.

We did this multiple times already.

After the ‘04 Sox won the World Series, the Patriots beat the Eagles in the Super Bowl in Jacksonville. After the ‘07 Sox swept the Rockies, the Pats went 18-0 before losing the Super Bowl to the Giants. Alex Cora’s 2018 Red Sox won the World Series less than four months before Tom Brady and Bill Belichick won their final Super Bowl together.