Bedlam in Boston

Clean up, with credit going to AP for the photo

I'm taking a short break from the drink reviews to post the events of last night in Boston.  The event in question is the Montreal Canadiens versus the Boston Bruins, an original six rivalry that experienced a sudden explosion in more ways than one.  Yes, the final score will read that Boston won the game 8-6, but it's more than just the offense for both teams that came to life.  The first signs of the big explosion happened at the end of the first period, where the two teams had some shoving around the net.  Everything began to unravel in the midst of a goal scoring frenzy that had the announcer not even finish all of the scoring until after the last goal in that flurry...which just so happened after the first free-for-all that included a goalie fight between Tim Thomas and Carey Price.  Neither one got hurt, which is good, but you could tell that the two got into it just to feel included in the game (because everyone that saw the game knows that they weren't doing much to stop the scoring onslaught).  The big to-do happened with about a minute left in the game which saw all of the following happen: David Krejci leaving with an injury (in a fight he shouldn't have gotten into, as coach Claude Julien was mouthing when Krejci was going off the ice), PK Subban leaving the ice (mercifully) after being targeted by the likes of Brad Marchand and Shawn Thornton, Travis Moen beating Andrew Ference within an inch of his life, Tom Pyatt getting bloodied, Jaroslav Spacek getting it handed to him, and a grand total of 11 skaters left to finish the game (5 for Boston, 6 for Montreal).

The game itself is exactly what the league has been missing: a bitter rivalry that has its fans into the game, regardless of outcome.  Not since the Red Wings/Avalanche rivalry in the late 90's has a rivalry been worth every penny.  The Penguins/Capitals rivalry is dependent on the Crosby/Ovechkin rivalry, meaning that it's the superstars that have to carry the day, a fact evident by the Penguins missing Crosby and Malkin.  The Bruins and Canadiens reignited a rivalry last night, and it looks like the flames will be fanned even further if the two meet in the playoffs, if not sooner.  No superstars necessary for this rivalry, just good old fashioned hatred for one another.