Banner Edition of Stanley Cup of Sports Chowdah- Sox Dismiss Francona After September Fade; AL East Out in 1st Round; Stanley Cup Champs Raise Banner

RED SOX: I recieved the bad news via Red Sox radio network affiliate WTSJ-AM followed up by the nail in the coffin down in Tampa Bay on XM Radio as I moved further into the northern New England wilderness.

With a postseason berth on the line in the Red Sox regular season finale, Boston found themselves tied with Tampa Bay and playing a do-or-die game against the stubborn Baltimore Orioles last week.

Things got off to a promising start with a Dustin Pedroia RBI single in the top of the 3rd, but Jon Lester would give up a 2 run homer to O's SS JJ Hardy in the bottom frame of inning number 3 to give Baltimore a 2-1 lead.

The Red Sox would then manage to knot the game up in the top of the 4th in a most curious manner. Marco Scutaro would get on board with a 1-out double, and Carl Crawford would move Scutaro to 3rd. Scutaro would then be awarded home plate to tie the game up when O's starter Alfredo Simon balked.

Simon would then go on to give up a solo homer to Dustin Pedroia to give the Red Sox a 3-2 lead, but after handing things off to Papelbon in the bottom of the 9th, the O's would manage to tie the game up on a 2-out RBI goround rule double to OF Nolan Reimond and then win on a Ronald Andino walk-off RBI single for the 4-3 final.

While all this was transpiring in Baltimore, down in Tampa Bay, the Rays had managed to come all the way back from a 7-0 defecit to the New York Yankees for a 6-run bottom of the 8th and a 2-out, 2-strike solo homer in the bottom of the 9th to tie the game at 7-7 to force extra innings where they'd ultimately win on a Evan Longoria walkoff solo home run, effectively shutting the door on the last remaining playoff opportunity for the Red Sox.

The loss and elimination caps a historically awful 7-20 September for Boston where they had a 9 game lead in the AL Wild Card heading into Labor Day weekend, only to see that lead diminish in the final weeks.

The collapse in the final month led to the dismissal of manager Terry Francona less than 48 hours later and began fuelling reports that the Chicago Cubs are interested in GM Theo Epstein's services.

Since Francona was manager of the Red Sox when they won the only two World Series titles in my life- and most other New Englanders lives, I am of the possibly biased opinion that Francona's dismissal (espcially with no apparent replacement waiting in the wings) was a hasty and poorly thought out move by the front office. Not just for sentimental reasons either, but consider how much more challenging it will be to lure and retain free agents thanks to this front office turmoil.

But then again, with recent New England sports history as a guide, I'd like to think that adversity not only builds charachter but also championsips. Think back to the painful end of the 2003 ALCS against the Yankees and how the 2004 season ended. The 2006 Red Sox never even got a whiff of the playoffs, falling out of serious contention in August that year- and they followed it up with their 2nd World Series title in 3 years. More recently (albeit another sport), consider the agonizing end of the 2009-2010 Boston Bruins playoff run, where after taking a 3-0 lead against Philadelphia in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals only to have Philly come charging back and score the winning goal on a power play after a too many men on the ice penalty against Boston. The following season, the Flyers barely slowed the Bruins down on their championship run; Boston's 4-game sweep being noteworthy in that it was the only round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the Bruins that DIDN'T go to 7 games.

But we'll have the whole offseason for finger-pointing, arbitrary comparisons, speculation and recriminations. In the meantime, there's still some baseball to be played.

ELSEWHERE IN MLB: As bad as the Red Sox September implosion was, the Atlanta Braves suffered a comprable agonizing late season fate [it MUST be a Boston thing, even tho' one of them hasn't called Boston home for 58 years- NANESB!] losing out on the NL Wild Card to St Louis after a 13 inning loss to the Philadelphia Phillies while the Cardinals pounded the Astros 8-0 on the September 28 regular season finale. So the last game of the regular season was indeed of great interest, but had just about the worst possible outcome as far as the AL was concerned.

Also worth noting that the defending World Series Champion San Francisco Giants failed to make the playoffs, with the Arizona Diamondbacks getting the NL West pennant.

ALDS: But just like that, there are no representatives of the AL East remaining in the postseason thanks to the bats of a couple of former Red Sox. Adrian Beltre belted 3 solo homers in the Texas Rangers 4-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuedsay to eliminate Tampa after winning the series 3 games to 1.

The Detroit Tigers made things a bit interesting after the Yankees forced a deciding Game 5 in the Bronx. Former Red Sox and Indians catcher Victor Martinez would drive in the winning run off of CC Sabathia in the top of the 5th with a 2-out RBI single. Interesingly, Sabathia was the Yankees 4th starter of the game when he came on in the 5th inning.

Midseason trade acquisition Doug Fister got the win for Detroit, going 5 innings and allowing 5 hits and an earned run in his start. Both Fister and the Detroit bullpen were able to wriggle out of some bases loaded situations in Detroit's 3-2 victory in Game 5.

The conclusion of the ALDS now sets up a Detroit/Texas ALCS that will get underway in Arlington, TX on Saturday at 8:05 ET with Justin Verlander getting the start for Los Tigres and CJ Wilson on the mound for Texas.

NLDS: Lest we forget, there's also a pair of deciding Game 5's today on TBS. At 5:05 ET, the Milwaukee Brewers will host the Arizona Diamondbacks for game 5 of their ALDS series while over in Philly, the NL East winning Philadelphia Phillies will host the squirrely St Louis Cardinals for their Game 5. No firm schedule for the NLCS has been set, pending the outcome of both Game 5s today.

CHICAGO WHITE SOX: The White Sox have announced that former 3rd baseman and Nolan Ryan punching bag Robin Ventura has been named as the club's new manager, replacing Ozzie Guillen who departed for Florida at the end of the season.


NHL: The Boston Bruins 2011-2012 season got underway with an emotionally-charged pregame ceremony in which the Stanley Cup was hoisted one last time and Bruins from the 2010-2011 and 1971-1972 championship teams together raised the latest Championship banner.

Although Boston got out to the early 1-0 lead, the game itself was a touch anticlimatic. The B's would score on their first power play thanks to Brad Marchand (with assists from Tyler Seguin and Joe Corvo). However, the Flyers would come right back and tie the game up with a power play tally of their own off the stick of Claude Giroux (with assists from Chirs Pronger and Jaromir Jagr) before taking a 2-1 lead at Jacob Varicek goal with 3 seconds left in the first.



That would actually be the final, as Nathan Horton caught Flyers G Ilya Bryzgalov out of position in the 3rd period only to have the blade of Philly defender Kimmo Timonen's stick get between Horton and the wide open net (above).

The Flyers would go on to win by the 2-1 final, with Boston travelling to Tampa Bay on Saturday to face off against the Lightning. The puck drops at 7:00 ET and the game will be televised on the NHL network.

OTHER NHL NEWS: The venue for the 2012 Winter Classic has been announced, with Philadelphia's Citizen's Bank Ballpark hosting a game between the 'home' team Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Rangers. This will be the Rangers first appearence in the NHL's annual New Year's Day game played outdoors, while it will be the second go-round for the Flyers.

NFL: After Week 3's setback against the Buffalo Bills, the Patriots capped off their quickie 1-game road trip to the West Coast with a flawless 31-19 win over the Oakland Raiders.


Perhaps the higlight was Tackle Vince Wilfork's 2nd Interception in 3 weeks (also, 2nd career interception) in the the quarter with New England up by a 31-13 margin.

The 3-1 Patriots will next play against the 2-2 New York Jets at Foxboro on Sunday with a 4:15 kickoff. The Jets are coming off a 34-17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens from lat Sunday night.

OTHER PATRIOTS NEWS: The Patriots released RB Eric Kettani from their practice squad after being activiated by the US Navy. Kettani reported for duty aboard the US Navy frigate USS Klakring on Friday. Head coach Bill Belichick said that the Patriots decided to cut him rather than retain him as the most feasable option of bringing him back once Kettani's completed his obligations with the Navy.

OTHER NFL NEWS: Are you ready for some football? Well, too bad, because ESPN isn't.

Country singer Hank Williams Jr and ESPN have parted ways when the network dropped Williams Monday Night Football intro after the musician made comments on FOX and Friends comparing President Obama and Speaker of the House John Boehner playing golf to Adolf Hitler and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu getting together on the links. ESPN announced that the intro for next week's Monday Night Football game between the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears would feature a video montage narrated by former Lions Hall of Fame RB Barry Sanders.

The ESPN Network has been very protective of President Obama, very publicly reprimanding former PGA golfer Paul Azinger for sending out a tweet mocking President Obama's record on creating jobs.

Interestingly, the ESPN networks had nothing to say when on-air personality Kenny Mayne sent out a tweet expressing a desire to ram a vehicle that was displaying Sarah Palin bumper stickers.

NCAA FOOTBALL: A couple of bad weeks strung together ads up to a bad season, and as far as the two FBS teams in New England are concerned, that's exactly what the 2011 season is shaping up to be. It's not looking too much better as UConn and Boston College both find themselves going up against ranked conference opponents on Saturday.

The Boston College Eagles are now 1-4 (0-2 in the ACC) after dropping Saturday's home game to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons by a 27-19 final. I'm a little less optimistic about their chances on the road against #8 Clemson this Saturday at 3 PM ET.

UConn isn't doing too much better in the Big East, although they have more than one win to their name so far this season. Last week, they lost to the Western Michigan Broncos of the MAC by a 38-31 final. This Saturday finds them going up against the #16 West Virginia Mountianeers in Morgantown, WV at noon Saturday.

Lisa Kelly: With the Angels

And by "With the Angels", I don't mean there was some sort of unfortunate mishap on Atigun Pass- think more like the US Navy's Blue Angels.



Wasilla, AK native and Ice Road Truckers star Lisa Kelly was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of flying with the US Navy's Blue Angels Precision flying team at an Air Show in Fargo, ND this month.

She says she has always wanted to fly in an F-18. In Kelly's line of work, she faces danger daily, but she says that's nothing compared to what the US Navy faces.



She says chasing this dream was a great experience. Kelly says, “We flew upside down, and I’m like hanging from my seatbelt dangling upside down looking at the canopy. We would go straight up and spin and it looks like the sun is just going around the nose of it.

The flight took place immediately prior to Fargo's AirSho between Aug 13th and 14th.







Both Lisa Kelly and Canadian ice road trucker Alex Debogorski will be making an appearence at England's Truckfest in a few weeks.

Man's Best Friend Until the Very End

Tumilson and Hawkeye in happier times

In the same vein as Hachiko in Japan or Greyfriars Bobby in Scotland, a photo taken at the funeral of one of the Navy SEALs killed when their Chinook helicopter was shot down by an RPG shows a dog laying quitely by the SEAL's casket.



Lisa Pembleton, a cousin of SEAL Jon Tumilson photographed the Petty Officer's loyal Labrador retriever Buckeye at his master's side one last time as the dog lay motionless next to the casket at Tumilson's funeral throughout the service. The funeral was held in Tumilson's hometown of Rockford, IA.

Pembleton wrote on Facebook that Hawkeye was Tumilson’s loyal pet who wouldn't leave his master’s side during the funeral in Rockford, Iowa.



“I felt compelled to take one photo to share with family members that couldn't make it or couldn't see what I could from the aisle,” Pembleton wrote.



Tumilson lived in San Diego for eight years before becoming a member of SEAL Team 6. A memorial fund has been set up in his honor and donations can be sent to Frogman 238 Memorial Fund at:

First Security Bank and Trust

201 West Main Ave.

Rockford, IA 50468

Buckeye will remain with friends of Tumilson's in Nebraska who had watched after the lab during the SEAL's previous deployments.

East Coast Braces for Hurricane Irene's Approach

Tourists and truck drivers evacuating North Carolina's Outer Banks by ferry. Photo: Chuck Beckley- New Bern Sun Journal

A mandatory evacuation order for the outer banks of North Carolina is expected to go into effect Friday as Hurricane Irene gained strength while approaching from the south.



Workers from the North Carolina DOT were inspecting the aging Bonner Bridge after Tuesday's magnitude 5.8 earthquake in Virginia- the bridge links North Carolina Route 12 from Cape Hatteras to the mainland and is a key evacuation route. Further inland, residents jammed the aisles of local stores and markets in order to stock up on food, fuel, water, generators and other supplies.



At least 180 flights to and from major east coast airports have been cancelled with Irene's expected arrival. Amtrak trains south of Washington D.C., already hobbled by slow orders from host railroads Norfolk Southern and CSX after Tuesday's earthquake in Virginia, were cancelled while travellers were awaiting word on any possible service disruptions on the busy Northeast Corridor.



To the north, the governors of Virginia, Maryland, New York and New Jersey have declared states of emergency in advance of Irene's landfall. The US Navy sortied more than two dozen vessels from the huge Norfolk Naval station, including the aircraft carrier Dwight D Eisenhower, while further north, four attack submarines were dispatched from their Groton, CT base to ride out the storm in deep water. Naval aircraft was being flown further inland to ride out the storm.



Officials in New York City are considering evacuations of low-lying areas in a worst-case scenario among other preparations.

The city is making preparations to open 65 evacuation centers, seven special medical needs shelters and 75 general population shelters. These facilities can hold roughly 71,000 people; there are about 272,000 people living in the area most likely to be affected.



Officials recommended residents put together a supply kit, including drinking water, a flashlight, a battery-operated radio and a whistle

The Philadelphia Phillies have rescheduled Sundays game against the Florida Marlins to be played on Sat. In Boston, Sunday's scheduled game against the Oakland A's will likely also be moved to a Saturday doubleheader. Aug 27th as a doubleheader and the Orioles are discussing doing the same with their weekend series against the Yankees. In Maine, the Maine Eastern Railway announced that they were cancelling trains for Sunday, Aug 28th.



All these precautions and preparations are underway despite the uncertainty of where exactly Irene is supposed to make landfall. Numerous projections show her coming ashore anywhere from North Carolina's Outer Banks to Cape Cod while possibly increasing to Category 3 in the process.



Even if the eye of the storm misses the most densely populated areas, there could still be extensive damage to metropolitan areas thanks to heavy rains and winds in the storm's outer bands. If Irene does strike New England, she will likely be the first significant hurricane to strike since Hurricane Gloria in 1985. Like Gloria, it's also entirely possible that Irene could make landfall multiple times.

Pentagon Releases Names of US Servicemen Killed in Afghanistan Helicopter Crash

Funeral service for SEAL Team member Rob Reeves at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral in Shreveport, LA on Saturday August 14- Henrietta Wildsmith/Shreveport Times

On Thursday, the Pentagon released the name of all 30 American servicemen killed when their CH-47 Chinook was shot down by Taliban fire during a nighttime mission over Wardak province on Aug 6th.



The following SEALS have been identified as among the dead:



*Lt. Cmdr. Jonas B. Kelsall, 32, of Shreveport, La.

*Special Warfare Operator Master Chief Petty Officer Louis J. Langlais, 44, of Santa Barbara, Calif.

Special Warfare Operator Senior Chief Petty Officer (SEAL) Thomas A. Ratzlaff, 34, of Green Forest, Ark.,

*Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer Brian R. Bill, 31, of Stamford, Conn.

*Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer John W. Faas, 31, of Minneapolis, Minn.

*Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer Kevin A. Houston, 35, of West Hyannisport, Mass.

*Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer Matthew D. Mason, 37, of Kansas City, Mo.

*Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer Stephen M. Mills, 35, of Fort Worth, Texas.

*Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer Robert J. Reeves, 32, of Shreveport, La.

*Special Warfare Operator Chief Petty Officer Heath M. Robinson, 34, of Detroit, Mich.

*Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class Darrik C. Benson, 28, of Angwin, Calif.

*Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class Christopher G. Campbell, 36, of Jacksonville, N.C.

*Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class Jon T. Tumilson, 35, of Rockford, Iowa.

*Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class Aaron C. Vaughn, 30, of Stuart, Fla.

*Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class Jason R. Workman, 32, of Blanding, Utah.

*Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class Jesse D. Pittman, 27, of Ukiah, Calif.

*Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 2nd Class Nicholas P. Spehar, 24, of Saint Paul, Minn.



The five Navy special operations troops were:



*Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician Senior Chief Petty Officer Kraig M. Vickers 36, of Kokomo, Hawaii.

*Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician Chief Petty Officer Nicholas H. Null, 30, of Washington, W. Va.

*Information Systems Technician Petty Officer 1st Class Jared W. Day, 28, of Taylorsville, Utah.

*Master-at-Arms Petty Officer 1st Class John Douangdara, 26, of South Sioux City, Neb.

*Cryptologist Technician Petty Officer 1st Class Michael J. Strange, 25, of Philadelphia, Pa.



The five soldiers killed were identified as:



*Chief Warrant Officer David R. Carter, 47, of Centennial, Colo., who was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment in Aurora, Colo.;

*Chief Warrant Officer Bryan J. Nichols, 31, of Hays, Kan., who was assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment in New Century, Kan.

*Sgt. Patrick D. Hamburger, 30, of Lincoln, Neb., who was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 135th Aviation Regiment in Grand Island, Neb.

*Sgt. Alexander J. Bennett, 24, of Tacoma, Wash., who was assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment, New Century, Kan.

*Spc. Spencer C. Duncan, 21, of Olathe, Kan., who was assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment in New Century, Kan.



The three airmen who died were:



*Tech. Sgt. John W. Brown, 33, of Tallahassee, Fla., who was assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, Pope Field, N.C.

*Staff Sgt. Andrew W. Harvell, 26, of Long Beach, Calif., who was assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, Pope Field, N.C.

*Tech. Sgt. Daniel L. Zerbe, 28, of York, Pa. who was assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron, Pope Field, N.C.



[Hat tip: And So It Goes in Shreveport]

38 Killed In Afghan Helicopter Crash, Including at least 20 US Navy SEALS

A US military helicopter carrying American and Afghan soldiers was reportedly shot down by Taliban fire on Saturday, with all 38 on board killed. The helicopter was on a nighttime mission in the Wardak province west of Kabul when it was said to have been struck by a RPG and crashed.

Among those killed in the crash were members of the Navy's SEAL Team 6, although officials stated none of the men who participated on the May raid of Osama Bin Laden's Pakistani compound were aboard the chopper.

One current and one former U.S. official said that the dead included 25 Navy SEALs from SEAL Team Six, the unit that carried out the raid in Pakistan in May that killed bin Laden. They were being flown by a crew of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because families are still being notified.

A total number of 38 people died in the crash, killing 7 Afghans and one interpreter.

The death toll would surpass the worst single day loss of life for the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan since the war began in 2001 -- the June 28, 2005 downing of a military helicopter in eastern Kunar province. In that incident, 16 Navy SEALs and Army special operations troops were killed when their craft was shot down while on a mission to rescue four SEALs under attack by the Taliban. Three of the SEALs being rescued were also killed and the fourth wounded. It was the highest one-day death toll for the Navy Special Warfare personnel since World War II.

NATO confirmed the overnight crash took place and that there "was enemy activity in the area." But it said it was still investigating the cause and conducting a recovery operation at the site. It did not release details or casualty figures.

"We are in the process of accessing the facts," said U.S. Air Force Capt. Justin Brockhoff, a NATO spokesman.

With its steep mountain ranges, providing shelter for militants armed with rocket-propelled grenade launchers, eastern Afghanistan is hazardous terrain for military aircraft. Large, slow-moving air transport carriers like the CH-47 Chinook are particularly vulnerable, often forced to ease their way through sheer valleys where insurgents can achieve more level lines of fire from mountainsides.

Thinking back to the Bin Laden raid, not even a full day afterwards, I had expressed concerns that trade secrets would be given away in the euphoria and afterglow of the operation's success- and I know I can't be the only one. I'm hoping this isn't the case, but in this epoch of wikileaks and state secrets frequently showing up in the front page of the New York Times, one can't be too sure.

I really and truly am at a loss for words over the loss the Navy Special Warfare family and the US Military in general has just suffered.

And So It Goes in Shreveport is reporting that at least two of the casualties identified on Saturday are from the northwestern Louisiana city.

Quickie Independence Day Weekend Sports Chowdah Update: Wake-Up Call Decides Rubber Game vs Toronto; July 6, 2011

And I thought my 4th of July was pretty awesome!



RED SOX- Awesome 4th of July Fenway pregame ceremonies notwithstanding, it goes without saying that the last couple of days have been pretty unkind to the Olde Towne team. Although they were able to take two out of three from the Blue Jays, there were concerns as far as injuries and performance of some of the starters went.

The series opener on the 4th of July featured a surprise on-field reunion between US Navy petty officer Bridget Lydon and her family from Quincy, MA before the game got underway with visitors from up north rather rudely roughing up starter John Lackey.

Lackey gave up 7 runs on nine hits and a walk before getting the hook and replaced with Dan Wheeler with one away in the 3rd. Although Boston would come right back and make a game of it, their late rally went by the wayside in the bottom of the 9th and the Jays went on to win by a 9-7 final.

Tuesday's game was a slightly different story with nowhere near the offensive output. Jon Lester was dealing, allowing no hits in four innings of work, but he left the game in the 4th inning with back problems.

Nonetheless, the Sox bullpen kept it a 3-0 game until the bottom of the 9th when Jays slugger Jose Bautista belted a 2-run homer off a struggling Papelbon to make it a 1-run game. The game ended when Jays DH Edwin Encarnacion was thrown out at home by Sox LF Darnell McDonald on a disputed call.


Thursday's rubber game would feature Tim Wakefield starting out in search of career win #198. Although the Jays would get out to the early lead, Boston would break the game open against Ricky Romero in the bottom of the 4th with RBI doubles from PawSox call-up Yamaico Navarro and Jacoby Ellsbury as well as an RBI single from Darnell McDonald to make it a 6-3 Boston lead.

Papelbon would scuffle some in the top of the 9th, but he was eventually able to get the 3rd out and preserve the Red Sox win by a final of 6-4 to win the rubber game in the 3-game series against Toronto.

The win comes without the bat or glove of 1B Adrian Gonzalez, who Francona decided to give the day off.

The homestand continues with the Baltimore Orioles coming to town to kick off a 4-game series. Jake Arrieta (9-5; 4.74 ERA) gets the start for the O's while Andy Miller (2-0; 3.06 ERA) takes to the mound for the Sox. Game gets underway at 7:10 ET.

OTHER SOX NEWS: The Red Sox have sent OF Mike Cameron to the Florida Marlins for cash and a player to be named later on Monday. The 38 year old outfielder had 3 home runs, 9 RBI's and a .149 batting average with Boston this year.

POLL RESULTS: A few weeks ago, I put up a poll wondering who's behavior you thought was more self-destructive, Former Congressman Anthy Weiner's or the rioting Vancouver Canucks fans. Much to my surprise, the near unanimous verdict was that the married congressman tweeting pictures of his junk was more self-destructive than extensively looting and setting fires in the downtown area of a major metropolitan area.

D-Day, The Higgins Boat & The Big Easy

Today marked the 67th anniversary of D-Day, the day the Allied assault on fortified coastal German positions in occupied Northern France began in earnest after months of preparation.

The decision to establish a National D-Day Museum in New Orleans, LA was influenced in large part by the then-ubiquitous barges used to ferry troops and supplies to shore for the Allies, not only on D-Day, but throughout the Pacific Theater as well. These craft were called 'Higgins Boats', named after Columbus, NE native Andrew Jackson Higgins.

In the 1920s, the woodworker left his native Nebraska to set up shop in New Orleans where he started an import/export lumber business. He also used some of that lumber to build shallow draft boats for trappers and oil men along the Gulf coast.

During the Great Depression, Higgins used his own capital to start up his own boatmaking business and had persistently lobbied the US Navy to demonstrate small craft of his design. Eventually the Navy relented, and while they were pleased with the performance of his 'spoonbill' bowed-craft during trials in the late 1930s, there was still the matter of men and equipment having to disembark by climbing over the sides of the craft, leaving them exposed to enemy fire in the process.


However, the US Navy learned of Japanese landing craft during the Manchurian invasion that featured a ramp for troops, supplies and vehicles to disembark via the bow once in shallow water or the beach. Higgins and designers from his shop were able to incorporate the front-end ramp into his design. The new craft was approved by the Navy and was known as the LCVP (short for Landing Craft- Vehicle, Personnel). However, the Higgins factory in New Orleans would turn out around 20,000 such boats throughout the course of the war- giving them the moniker 'Higgins Boats'.

Not Another New England Sports Blog! Wishes You a Happy Memorial Day Weekend

(Steve Breen- San Diego Union-Tribune)

Just wanted to take this opportunity to wish everybody a good and safe Memorial Day weekend from Not Another New England Sports Blog!

Some of the more astute observers of this blog might recognize the above image as the same one I had up for Memorial Day weekend last year. Although I'll cop to being a fairly lazy individual, it wasn't laziness that prompted me to post the same image for a 2nd year in a row. I thought it was a well done piece by editorial cartoonist Steve Breen of the San Diego Union-Tribune and I figured I'd like to share it with some of the newer visitors to this blog who may not have had a chance to see it before.

If you're a veteran such as myself or just a big supporter of the troops in general, I thought I'd leave you with a couple of links to some veterans and supports organizations for your perusal.

Wounded Warrior Project

Operation Homefront

Home Base Program

Semper Fi Fund

SUDS- Soldiers Undertaking Disabled Scuba

Project Healing Waters

Happy Armed Forces Day from Not Another New England Sports Blog!

Just a quick reminder that today is in fact Armed Forces Day here in the USA. And as demonstrated in Abbotabad earlier this month, they are pretty awesome- aren't they?

BREAKING: White House Situation Room Photos Indicate Bin Laden Raid Took Place Much Earlier Than Announced, Situation Room Photos Doctored

The successful raid of Osama Bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan had since been followed up by a number of contradictory statements from the White House and allegations that the situation room photo released by the White House was in fact staged.

Now a leaked photo from White House sources has not only called the Administration's timeline of events into question, but even the veracity of the situation room photo that was released by the Administration.

My highly confidential and trustworthy White House sources have hinted that the SEAL raid on Bin Laden's hideout actually took place earlier and coincided with another event that had generated much international interest; the Royal Wedding at Westminster Abbey.

However, the raid also overlapped with the official White House Royal Wedding viewing party, and guests actually watched both events unfold in real-time on multiple screens in the situation room.

The above photo, believed by many anonymous insiders to be the original and unmodified situation room photo, seems to confirm this version of events and it's likely the White House waited nearly 48 hours to make the announcement in order to disseminate the doctored photos showing White House Staff, Pentagon brass and Administation officials.


When reached for comment on how the Obama Administration and Pentagon officials were able to get so many copies of her now-infamous hat in advance, a spokeswoman for Princess Beatrice of York had no comment about the hat, but pointed out that the 23 year old daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson had lost some weight, was the first Royal to run in the London marathon and looks 'positively smashing' in a bikini these days.
Well- who am I to argue?

Pakistan Announces Cuts in US Military Presence After Bin Laden Raid

I can't be the only one thinking that America would be better served by cutting back on the estimated $18 billion in aid money we send to Pakistan.

Apparently, SEAL Team 6 notwithstanding, The US Military presence in Pakistan is currently limited to about 300 advisers and liaison officers. Not surprisingly, Pakistan's military and Inter-services Intelligence Directorate (ISI) are unhappy with a unilateral US special ops raid.

However, given that the Navy SEALs were able to swoop in undetected on a compound housing the world's most wanted man that was 70 miles from the Pakistani capital and a few hundred yards from the Pakistani equivalent of West Point, this also gives both the Pakistani military and ISI black eyes and bloody lips.

If the Pakistani Army or ISI were searching for Bin Laden like they has assured many Western nations, then they had failed miserably. If they were seeking to protect Bin Laden from the US Military, then they had failed spectacularly.

Pakistan is calling for cuts in the U.S. military personnel inside the country after U.S. Navy SEALs killed Usama bin Laden in his Pakistan compound -- without Pakistan's help or prior knowledge.

The siege has only increased the strain on relations between the two countries, as some U.S. lawmakers are calling for cuts to the $1.3 billion in U.S. aid to Pakistan for its failure to locate bin Laden. The Al Qaeda leader was found and killed in a large $1 million compound in an army town not far from the capital of Islamabad. Lawmakers have suggested Pakistan was either too incompetent to catch bin Laden or was complicit in protecting him.

In a statement Thursday, Pakistan's army fired back, saying U.S. military personnel inside the country would be reduced to the "minimum essential" levels to protest the American commando raid that killed bin Laden early Monday local time. The army also threatened to cut cooperation with Washington if it stages more unilateral raids on its territory.

The statement from Pakistan's army was issued after a meeting of top generals. The statement gave no details on the numbers, and a spokesman declined to elaborate.

The statement said the Inter-Services Intelligence spy agency, or ISI, had given initial information to the CIA about bin Laden, but claimed the "CIA did not share further development of intelligence on the case with the ISI, contrary to the existing practice between the two services."

The raid on bin Laden has sharpened tensions between the two countries. Despite the calls from some U.S. lawmakers for cuts in aid to the country, the Obama administration and British Prime Minister David Cameron have indicated they would continue with their policy of engaging with the country.

So when all is said and done, this is basically an empty gesture on Pakistan's part meant either for domestic consumption or to raise sovereignty issues as a means of deflecting questions about Osama Bin Laden living unmolested only a few hundred yards from the front gate of Pakistan's national military academy.

Libyan Rebels Attempt to Advance While US, Coalition Airstrikes Target Libyan Air Defences

Coalition airstrikes against Libyan military targets began over the weekend in what's being called Operation Odyssey Dawn. Although Pentagon and NATO officials sounded optimistic at the early success in taking out Libyan air defences and Libyan rebels seemed to be regrouping, a defiant Mummar Ghdaffi promised to drag out the conflict for as long as possible.

Although the rebels claimed they were able to shoot down some of Ghdaffi's fighter planes in skirmishes, aircraft manned by pilots loyal to the Libyan ruler have largely enjoyed air supremacy over the rebels. On top of that, it's thought that only 10% of the rebels have any kind of military experience.

(Proposed No-Fly zone map courtesy of globalsecurity.org)

Participants in Operation Odyssey Dawn so far include the USA, the UK, France, Italy and Canada with ships or aircraft from Spain, Denmark, Belgium, Qatar and Norway ready to participate in enforcing the no-fly zone over the next few days. After strikes against military targets in Benghazi, Sirte, Misrata, Zuwara and Tripoli, more than a dozen French aircraft started off the second day of Odyssey Dawn by patrolling the proposed no fly zone without incident over the weekend. Rebels based out of the stronghold of Benghazi have begun pressing back south on the highway to Ajdabiya after the road was cleared by coalition aircraft on Monday, hoping to retake one of the cities they lost to troops loyal to Ghdaffi last week.

Meanwhile an Algerian TV station is reporting that Ghdaffi's 6th son and commander of the feared Khamis Brigade was killed when a rebel Libyan pilot crashed his aircraft into the brigade's barracks in a suicide mission on Saturday. The Ghdaffi regime denies the report that Khamis Ghdaffi, 27, was killed in the attack while other sources indicated it was a British cruise missile that slammed into the Khamis Brigade headquarters.

Another Horn of Africa Update: U.S. Commandos Re-Take Japanese Tanker; Danish Yacht Seized by Pirates

OMAN: U.S. Commandos have boarded a Japanese oil tanker that was seized by pirates off the coast of Oman and re-taken the vessel without firing a shot on Sunday.

Twenty-four crew members on the MV Guanabara took refuge in a protected part of the vessel after reporting they were under attack Saturday, roughly 328 nautical miles southeast of Duqm in southern Oman.

A special unit from the destroyer USS Bulkeley boarded the oil tanker Sunday and detained the suspected pirates, according to a news release from the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF). No shots were fired and no injuries were reported.

"The ships and aircraft under my command have today scored a real and immediate victory through the disruption of a suspected act of piracy and the detention of individuals believed to be engaging in piracy," CMF's counter-piracy commander, Abdul Alheem, said in a statement.

Two vessels from the NATO counter-piracy task force- the USS Bulkeley and the Turkish frigate TCG Giresun- received a distress call from the Guanabara and shadowed the vessel before it was boarded by the commandos.

The captured pirates will reportedly face trial in Tokyo.

PUNTLAND: Seven Danish nationals were captured by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean on Feb. 24th after their yacht was seized. This captives includes a family of five (the parents and three children) as well as 2 crew members.

An official from the village of Bandarbeyla in Puntland said that it was likely the Danes were being held in a mountainous region called Hul Anod. The official also said that a warship was spotted some 1.5 miles off the coast of the village and cautioned against any sort of military operation after the massacre of 4 Americans at sea last month.

According to piracy expert, the average ransom payout for a large shipping vessel and its crew is in the neighborhood of $5 million. A couple from the UK were released in September 2010 reportedly after a ransom of $1 million was paid out.

MOGADISHU: Somali officials have reported that an American from Alabama who joined the Al Shabaab Islamist group was killed in clashes with soldiers from the Somali transitional government and African Union peacekeepers this week.

Somali Defense Minister Abdihakim Mohamud Haji Fiqi told The Associated Press that Somali officials do not have a body and that the intelligence reports have not yet been confirmed.

"We have information saying that he died," Fiqi said. "I'm not sure 100 percent sure but this is the information that we get from different sources. We need to make sure."

Omar Hammami, who grew up in the middle-class town of Daphne, Alabama, joined the al-Qaida-linked Somali militants in 2007 while he was in his early 20s. He became the most high-profile American member of al-Shabab and had taken on the nom de guerre of Abu Mansour al-Amriki, or "the American."

Forces from the Somali transitional government, backed by African Union peacekeepers have been mounting a countrattack against the Islamist al Shabaab militia. On Monday, the Somali and multinational forces were able to seize control of the border town of Bulo Hawo- along the Kenyan and Ethiopian border- from Al Shabaab; the first time forces from the UN-backed Transitional government were able to exert control over territory outside of Mogadishu.

[hat tip: Jammie Wearing Fool]

US Repositions Naval Assets in Mediterrenian As Ghdaffi Steps Up Attacks on Rebel Strongholds

And at this point, I think 'Rebel Strongholds' could mean pretty much everywhere in Libya outside of Tripoli and environs.

As forces loyal to Ghdaffi continued airstrikes against weapons depots and military facilities in rebel-held territory, the US Navy began to move ships off the coast of the strife-torn North African nation. The USS Mount Whitney is already in the Mediterranean while the USS Enterprise is making its way through the Suez Canal after being diverted from the pirate-infested waters near the Gulf of Aden [complete with detained pirates on board- NANESB!]. Secretary of Defense William Gates has also ordered 400 Marines currently stationed in the continental United States to be deployed to the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge, which is also making its way through the Red Sea towards Libya.

The US, NATO and the United Nations are discussing possible actions against the Libyan regime, including a naval blockade or establishing 'no fly zones' similar to Iraq before 2003. Canada has dispatched the Halifax-based frigate HMCS Charlestown to the Mediterranean to take part in the international buildup against the Libyan regime. British prime minister David Cameron ordered contingency plans for the UK to enforce a yet-to-be-established no fly zone over Libya in coordination with other NATO members. Cameron also hinted that the UK is considering arming Libyan rebel groups if Ghdaffi continues his crackdown on opposition protesters.

Last week, President Obama signed an executive order placing sanctions against Ghdaffy and his associates while the European Union placed an arms embargo and travel ban against Libya. Already, international observers say that the former Soviet republic of Belarus has violated the arms embargo.

Elsewhere, A council of top Libyan dissidents remained divided on the prospect of foreign intervention, saying that while some groups were considering a request for foreign air strikes under United Nations auspices, the group ultimately opposed foreign military intervention in the crisis.

Horn of Africa Update: Four Americans Murdered by Somali Pirates; 17 Killed in Mogadishu Truck Bombing

Somali pirates shot dead four American yachters while the commandeered vessel was being shadowed by the Destroyer USS Sterrett on Tuesday.

U.S. forces boarded the yacht Quest after one of the pirates fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the Sterrett. The grenade missed, but gunfire erupted from inside the Quest. Several pirates appeared on the deck of the Quest ready to surrender. As the Navy SEALS boarded the yacht, they found two pirates dead from small arms fire and killed two more below decks in close quarters combat.

Below decks, the SEALS also found the bodies of Scott and Jean Adam of Laguna Beach, CA and Bob Riggle and Phyllis Mackay of Seattle, WA. The four Americans were airlifted to USS Enterprise where they were pronounced dead. The Navy also took 15 of the surviving pirates into custody at that point.

The yacht Quest was registered to the Adams, who had spent the past few years sailing the world and passing out bibles along remote seaside villages in Alaska, Central America, Fiji and Polynesia.

Reportedly this pirate attack was different from others in that the pirates boarded and seized the Quest directly from one of their 'mother ships' instead of sending out gunmen in small skiffs to seize the vessel. The four Americans were reportedly sailing off the coast of Oman when they were accosted by the pirates [As a side note, does anybody else find it somewhat disturbing that when this DOES get mentioned by the mainstream media, it's as though the bibles might've played a role in their death, not the dozen or so gun wielding Muslim men from the failed state who actually commandeered their ship and pulled the trigger? NANESB!].

As navies from various nations have stepped up patrols in international waters off the coast of Somalia, Somali-based pirates have pushed further and further eastward into the Indian ocean, striking vessels closer to the Indian Ocean island nations of the Seychelles or Maldives or even India than the Horn of Africa.

The massacre of the 4 Americans comes about a month after South Korean commandos successfully raided a tanker that had been seized by pirates and freed the crew who were being held hostage. In May 2010, Russian Naval commandos carried out a similar operation, freeing the crew of the MV Moscow University.

ELSEWHERE: A truck bomb detonated outside of a police training center in Mogadishu on Monday, killing at least 17 people. The Somali Islamist group Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack.

Guards shot at the vehicle as it sped towards them from a busy intersection near the port before it exploded, killing several pedestrians and destroying nearby homes. The police academy was located some 1600 feet from Mogadishu's busy port.

In response to the bombing, Somali troops backed by African Union peacekeepers fanned out through Mogadishu claiming to have captured three Al Shabaab bases on Wednesday.

Besides mounting an insurgency campaign against African Union peacekeepers presently in Somalia, Al Shabaab had also claimed responsibility for twin suicide bombings in the Ugandan capital of Kampala in July 2010.

Sports Chowdah w/A Blizzard Update- Bears Mauled By Pats O; Raise Raze the Roof; C's De-Claw Bobcats; New Outdoor Record Set

NFL: These guys must be on suicide watch after Sunday.

Coming into Sunday's game at Soldier Field, the Pats were favored by 3 points. Seems a little understated in hindsight.

In the driving snow, Tom Brady went 27-40 with 369 yards and two TDs- including connecting with Deion Branch for 59 yards to find the Bears end zone as time expired in the first half.

And that was just an exclamation point on a half in which the Bears were outscored 33-0. Brady connected with TE Ron Gronkowski for a 7 yard TD Pass on their second drive to open up the scoring, capping off a 6+ minute drive that started on their own 15 yard line. In the 2nd quarter, Danny Woodhead put the Pats up 14-0 on a 3 yard TD run and on the Bear's next possession, a lateral from Jay Cutler to WR Johnny Knox was fumbled and Pats LB Gary Guyton returned it for a TD. Shayne Graham added to the scoring with two chip-shot FGs in the 2nd period as well (although he missed the PAT after Branch's TD as time expired in the first half).

The Bears only socred once- a one yard TD run from Chester Taylor in the 3rd- while the Pats 2nd half scoring was limited to a 29 yard Graham FG.

New England wins this one by a final of 36-7, with the Patriots outscoring their last two opponents by a 81-10 margin and scoring more than 30 points for the 6th straight week. The win clinches a playoff berth for New England as well.

Next Sunday's game will be a nocturnal affair as the Pats host the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football.

ELSEWHERE IN THE AFC EAST: Apparently the Patriots broke the Jets. This time, the Miami Dolphins were able to successfully keep the Jets out of the end zone in their 10-6 win over New York on Sunday afternoon (this would mean the Jets lost their last 2 games by a combined total of 55-9).

Even so, that wasn't the most noteworthy event to take place on Sunday in the Meadowlands. Jet's strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi tripped Miami CB Nolan Carroll from the sidelines as the Dolphins rookie as he was running along the sideline to cover a punt. Alosi issued an apology a few hours after the game but will likely face some sort of fine or disciplinary action.

ELSEWHERE IN THE NFL: There was already talk of moving Sunday afternoon's Vikings/Giants game to Monday night in the wake of a massive blizzard that struck the upper Midwest this weekend.

With the collapse of the Metrodome roof, the NFL announced the game is being moved to Detroit for Monday night. The delay might've given the Viking's Brett Favre enough time to add to his NFL-record 297 consecutive regular season starts streak although the QB appeared doubtful.

The Lions will start giving away free general admission tickets on Monday morning at 9AM Central Time while repair work begins on the roof of the Metrodome. The inflatable roof is expected to be open in time for next week's Monday Night Football game between the Bears and Vikings.


NCAA FOOTBALL: The Army and Naval Academy football teams clashed in Philly on Saturday, with the Midshipmen coming out on top 31-17. This the 9th season in a row that Navy has topped Army. Navy leads the series all time at 55-49-7.

With that said, both teams will be playing one more game this year. The Midshipmen will be taking on the San Diego State Aztecs in the SD County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 23rd while Army goes up against the Southern Methodist Mustangs in the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl on December 30th.

FCS: Not only was I wrong about the number of remaining teams in the FCS playoff, but there are now no more New England teams competing with the UNH Wildcat's 16-3 loss to Delaware.

I completely overlooked two separate FCS playoff games this weekend- Eastern Washington's 38-31OT win against North Dakota State and Georgia Southern holding off Wofford by a final of 23-20.

That said, the Colonial Athletic Association is still going to be well represented in the semifinals, as Villanova handled Appalachian State 42-24 to take on Eastern Washington while Delaware's win over New Hampshire earns them a date with Georgia Southern. The winners of each game will play each other for the FCS Championship on Jan 7th at Frisco, TX.

HEISMAN: Perhaps not surprisingly, Auburn's Cam newton won the Heisman Trophy in a landslide on Saturday. It barely took 5 years for USC's Reggie Bush to be stripped of his Heisman.

SEC: Former Texas Longhorns defensive coordinator Will Muschamp was named as the new Gators head coach according to a UF statement released Saturday night.

NHL: So close to a shootout, but it just wasn't gonna happen on Saturday night.

Philly jumped out to the 1-0 lead against Boston at the Garden early in the second period of Saturday night's game. Nathan Horton managed to tie the game with his goal about 10 minutes into the third. From then on, neither Tim Thomas or Philly's Brian Boucher let anything by them for the rest of regulation and overtime. Well....most of overtime.

The Flyer's Mike Richards managed to tally an unassisted goal against Thomas with all of 3 seconds remaining in sudden death OT, thus ending the game before the shootout was necessary. Although the way Boucher was turning away the puck on Saturday night, one had to wonder if a shootout would have more work to get to the same net result.

Boucher stopped 35 of 36 shots faced, while in the Bruins net Thomas stops 31 of 33 shots faced. The Bruins have to settle for the one point and Horton gets the only Boston goal of the night.

The Bruins next game won't be until Wednesday at HSBC Arena in Buffalo, NY. The Sabres are coming off of a 5-2 loss to the Penguins on Saturday night.

OTHER BRUINS NEWS: The Bruins sent Marco Sturm to the LA Kings before Saturday's game against Philly. Technically the Bruins would be getting 'future considerations' from LA, but GM Peter Chiarelli admitted in a statement that the future considerations 'meant nothing'. The Bruins GM admitted the trade was done to make more room under the current salary cap. Currently the Kings have close to a $6 million salary cap and could absorb the cost of Sturm's contract for the rest of the season.

NBA In what could be considered the least shocking outcome of the NBA this weekend, the Celtics continued their win streak at 10 with a 93-62 rout of the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday.

Nothing like the Thursday Night cliffhanger against the 76ers, but it's not like these games are being decided by style points.

The C's will next take on the NY Knicks in a game that's scheduled to be televised on ESPN at 7PM ET on Wednesday night.

MLB: Perhaps lost in the news surrounding the signings of Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez is the fact that the Red Sox have signed catcher and team captian Jason Varitek to a one year extension worth an estimated $2 million plus another $300,000 in incentives should he start 80 or more games as catcher.

NCAA HOCKEY A new NCAA Hockey attendance record was set this weekend when 113,411 fans came to Michigan's Big House to see the outdoor contest between the Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans.

The Wolverines won by a final of 5-0.

[H/T Eat it or Wear It on Metrodome footage]

Sports Chowdah on a Roll- Crawford Lands Deal w/Sox; B's Set Islanders Adrift; C's Get By 76ers on KG Move; Army/Navy Set to Clash; Feller in Hospice

This has been one of those weeks that I simply gotta savor as a New England sports fan, and the biggest news being made so far is by a team that won't play a regular season game for another five months.

RED SOX: Good Lord- Why stop with Adrian Gonzalez?

Wondering of the Red Sox had any more tricks up their sleeve for the MLB Winter Meetings in Orlando, I headed off to bed assuming that Carl Crawford and the Angels were close to a terms on a contract. Then I woke up this morning to learn that free agent outfielder Carl Crawford signed a huge deal with the Red Sox.


The former Tampa Bay left fielder and the Red Sox had reportedly agreed to a preliminary deal for 7 years and reportedly worth $142 million. Crawford had a .307 BA last year while driving in 90 runs (and scoring another 110 himself) with 19 home runs and 47 stolen bases.

With 8 stolen bases and a .324 batting average against Boston, I would've been reasonably satisfied if Crawford was on his way out to the West Coast to face a team the Red Sox only face a few times in the regular season. Thanks to Theo playing it close to the vest, I wasn't even aware of the Red Sox and the extent of their interest in the speedy outfielder. Apparently this caught the rest of the league as well as the sports media off guard.

OTHER MLB NEWS: 92 year old Hall of Fame pitcher and former Cleveland Indian Bob Feller has been moved from the Cleveland Clinic to a hospice in the Cleveland area. Feller made his debut with the Indians in July 1936 and joined the US Navy the day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. After serving on the USS Alabama until 1944, Feller rejoined the Indians in 1945.

Feller retired in 1956 with 266 career wins, a career ERA of 3.25 and a total of 2,581 strikeouts. Six years later, Feller was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on his first year of eligibility and in 1995 the Bob Feller Museum opened up in the Hall of Famer's hometown of Van Meter, IA. Earlier this year, Feller was diagnosed with leukemia.

NFL: The Indianapolis Colts travelled to Nashville, TN to take on the struggling Tennessee Titans for this week's Thursday night game. The injury-depleted Colts had dropped three straight games against the Patriots, Chargers and Cowboys coming into the Thursday game, leading to all sorts of questions about the health of QB Peyton Manning as well as Indy's dimming playoff prospects with their 6-6 record.

The Titans were worse off, coming into Thursday night's game losing five in a row and roiled by injuries and very public infighting between QB Vince Young (now on the DL) and coach Jeff Fischer.

After going 25-35 with 319 yards and 2 TDs, including a 46 yard TD pass to WR Reggie Wayne, Manning demonstrated that the Colts weren't quite finished for the season in Indy's 30-28 win (it wasn't quite that close, as Titans QB Kerry Collins managed to find the end zone for a 3rd time as regulation expired). Presently, the Colts are a half game behind the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC South while the loss pretty much stuck a dagger in the Titan's season.

NHL: Sad to say, I completely missed Thursday night's Bruins home win against the NY Islanders- although I understand there was a Tukka Rask sighting.

The Bruins held off a 2nd period surge from the Islanders where they were outshot 17-9, but still managed to get a shorthanded goal off the stick of Brad Marchand and held on to a 2-1 lead heading to the second intermission.

In the 3rd, Micheal Ryder got what would prove to be the game-winner on a power play goal with about 5 minutes remaining, and while the Islanders would come right back to make it a 1-goal game less than 2 minutes later, Milan Lucic and Patrice Bergeron would put the game out of reach with two empty-netters of their own with less than two minutes left in the 3rd to give Boston the 5-2 win over the Islanders.

Tukka Rask and Rick DePietro each faced 35 shots on the night, with Rask stopping 33 (but not a penalty shot from Frans Nielsen, incidentally) and Lucic had two goals on the night.

I did catch the pretty awesome Tuesday night game against the Buffalo Sabres, including the extra 50 seconds of sudden death overtime after Mark Recchi scored the game-winning goal [seen at the 4:55 mark below].

Recchi's shot came in and out of the net so quickly, it's possible the officials assumed it had simply hit a crossbar, but it was reviewed during the next stoppage of play, which came some 49 seconds later. Recchi's power-play goal was made official and the Bruins won by a final of 3-2 in OT. Tim Thomas stopped 28 of 30 shots faced while Ryan Miller blocked 33 of 36 shots on the night.

The Bruins will next play host to the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday Night at the Garden. The puck drops at 7PM ET, 4PM Pacific.

NBA: Well, much like tonight's Bruins game, I wasn't able to catch any of tonight's C's game either [TWO nationally televised Celtics games back to back? What are the odds!?- NANESB]. Looks like this one peaked late, though.

If the embedded video isn't working, you're missing Kevin Garnett bank in an alley-oop pass with only 1.4 seconds left in regulation to give the Celtics the 102-101 win over the 76ers for their 9th straight win on Thursday night.

I DID catch most of Wednesday Night's home game against the Denver Nuggets. They didn't bother playing Carmello Anthony, even though he appeared to be healthy, which no doubt fuelled more speculation that a trade from Denver was imminent.

The C's were up by as much as 19 in the first half, but the Mello-less Nuggets managed to chip away into the Boston lead, coming within one point of them before heading into the half trailing 52-59.

In the second half, Boston really began to pull away and win by a final of 105-89 and Denver head coach George Karl is still looking for career win #1,000.

The Celtics' road trip continues into the weekend with a swing through Charlotte, NC against the Bobcats on Saturday night- also at 7PM Eastern.

NCAA FOOTBALL: Well, we're down to one last regular season game this weekend, and that's the Army/Navy game at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia this Saturday at 2:30 PM ET. Interestingly, both teams head into Saturday's game already accepting invitations to Bowl Games. The Army Black Knights have a 6-5 record and will be taking on the Southern Methodist Mustangs in the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl in Ft. Worth, TX on December 30 while the Navy Midshipmen sport an 8-3 record and will go up against the San Diego State Aztecs in the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl on December 23rd.

ELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: Florida head coach Urban Meyer, citing family concerns, announced his resignation on Wednesday afternoon. This comes after a fairly disappointing 7-5 season fir the Florida Gators. Meyer was hospitalized with chest pains after last year's SEC championship game against Alabama, but eventually decided to stay on through the 2010 season. There had been speculation that Florida was interested in Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen, but Mullen said he had no immediate plans to leave Mississippi State.

ACC: Nebraska's athletic director has denied reports that head coach Bo Pelini is a candidate to fill the coaching vacancy for the Miami Hurricanes. He told a Lincoln, NE newspaper that he neither gave Pelini permission to interview with Miami, nor had Pelini sought permission.

BOWL SCHEDULE: And here is the lineup of Bowl games for the next few weeks-

12/18
NEW MEXICO BOWL, Albuquerque, NM- BYU Cougars vs UTEP Miners; 2PM ET ESPN

HUMANITARIAN BOWL, Boise, ID- Northern Illinois Huskies vs Fresno State Buldogs; 5:30 PM ET ESPN

NEW ORLEANS BOWL, New Orleans, LA- Ohio Bobcats vs Troy Trojans; 9PM ET, ESPN

12/21
BEEF O'BRADY BOWL, St. Petersburgh, FL- Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles vs Louisville Cardinals; 8PM ET, ESPN


12/22
MAACO BOWL, Las Vegas, NV- #20 Utah Utes vs #10 Boise St. Broncos; 8PM ET, ESPN


12/23
POINSETTIA BOWL, San Diego, CA- San Diego St. Aztecs vs Navy Midshipmen; 8PM ET, ESPN


12/24
HAWAII BOWL, Honolulu, HI- #24 Hawaii Warriors vs Tulsa Golden Hurricanes; 8PM ET, ESPN

12/26
LITTLE CAESAR'S BOWL, Detroit, MI- Toledo Rockets vs Florida Int'l Golden Panthers; 8:30 PM ET, ESPN

12/27
INDEPENDENCE BOWL, Shreveport, LA- Air Force Falcons vs Georgia Tech Yellowjackets; 5PM ET, ESPN2

12/28
CHAMPS SPORTS BOWL, Orlando, FL- #22 West Virginia Mountaineers vs NC State Wolfpack; 6:30 PM ET, ESPN

INSIGHT BOWL, Tempe, AZ- #14 Missouri Tigers vs Iowa Hawkeyes; 10PM ET, ESPN

12/29
MILITARY BOWL, Washington DC- East Carolina Pirates vs Maryland Terrapins; 2:30PM ET, ESPN

TEXAS BOWL, Houston, TX- Illinois Illini vs Baylor Bears; 6PM ET, ESPN

VALERO ALAMO BOWL, San Antonio, TX- #16 Oklahoma St Cowbowys vs Arizona Wildcats; 9:15PM ET, ESPN

12/30
BELL ARMED FORCES BOWL, Ft. Worth, TX- Army Black Knights vs SMU Mustangs; 12:00PM ET, ESPN

NEW ERA PINSTRIPE BOWL, New York, NY- Kansas State Wildcats vs Syracuse Orangemen; 3:30PM ET, ESPN

MUSIC CITY BOWL, Nashville, TN- North Carolina Tarheels vs Tennessee Volunteers; 6:40PM ET, ESPN

HOLIDAY BOWL, San Diego, CA- #17 Nebraska Corhuskers vs Washington Huskies; 10:00PM ET, ESPN

12/31
MEINEKE CAR CARE BOWL, Charlotte, NC- USF Bulls vs Clemson Tigers- 12:00PM ET, ESPN

SUN BOWL, El Paso, TX- Miami Hurricanes vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish; 2PM ET, CBS

LIBERTY BOWL, Memphis, TN- Georgia Bulldogs vs UCF Golden Knights; 3:30 PM ET, ESPN

CHICK FIL A BOWL, Atlanta, GA- #19 South Carolina Gamecocks vs #23 FSU Seminoles; 7:30 PM ET, ESPN

1/1
TICKET CITY BOWL, Dallas, TX- Northwestern Wildcats vs Texas Tech Red Raiders; 11:59AM ET, ESPNU

OUTBACK BOWL, Tampa, FL- Florida Gators vs Penn St Nittany Lions; 1PM ET, ESPN/ABC

CAPITAL ONE BOWL, Orlando, FL- #15 Alabama Crimson Tide vs #7 Michigan State Spartans; 1 PM ET, ESPN/ABC

GATOR BOWL, Jacksonville, FL- #21 Mississippi State Bulldogs vs Michigan Wolverines; 1:30PM ET, ESPN2

ROSE BOWL, Pasadena, CA- #4 Wisconsin Badgers vs #3 TCU Horned Frogs; 5PM ET, ESPN/ABC

FIESTA BOWL, Tempe, AZ- #25 UConn Huskies vs #9 Oklahoma Sooners; 8:30PM ET, ESPN

1/3
ORANGE BOWL, Miami Gardens, FL- #5 Stanford Cardinals vs #12 Virginia Tech Hokies; 8:30 PM ET, ESPN

1/4
SUGAR BOWL, New Orleans, LA- #6 Ohio State Buckeyes vs #8 Arkansas Razorbacks; 8:30PM ET, ESPN

1/6
GODADDY.COM BOWL, Mobile, AL- Middle Tenn St. Blue Raiders vs Miami (OH) Redhawks; 8PM ET, ESPN

1/7
COTTON BOWL, Arlington, TX- #11 LSU Tigers vs #18 Texas A&M Aggies; 8PM ET, FOX

1/8
BBVA COMPASS BOWL, Birmingham, AL- Pitt Panthers vs Kentucky Wildcats; 12PM ET, ESPN

1/9
KRAFT FIGHT HUNGER BOWL, San Francisco, CA- BC Eagles vs #13 Nevada Wolfpack; 9PM ET, ESPN

1/10

BCS CHAMPIONSHIP GAME, Glendale, AZ- #1 Auburn Tigers vs #2 Oregon Ducks; 8:30PM ET, ESPN