Not sure that Torrey Krug’s missile-like drive into a Blues forward in game one will turn out to be a good thing for Boston.
It may have qualified as interference, but was at least marginally legal all the way around. What it might have done is muffled the whistles of officials who have been only marginally favouring the Bruins so far, and that could be bad for Boston.
The Blues are bigger and stronger and have been playing with desperate desire for months to get this far, and pocketed whistles will not bode well for a Bruins team that needs power plays and the odd favourable decision if it hopes to be successful. Not to mention that, like San Jose, the Bruins could begin having to play with pain.
We will see from the response of NHL officials, whether a crushing, injuring, St. Louis hit in game two prompts any changes. If it does not, and no brief suspension is forthcoming, be prepared for an old fashioned, no holds barred, rest of the way which Boston is ill-equipped to master.
Should be fun.
• Locally, the weather is right and there is baseball of a reasonably high level at Butler Park for at least the next week. The minor Orioles are into their interstate schedule and the local leagues are more than halfway through theirs.
So Butler, or Bilesky, which always showcases an entertaining level of baseball, can be go-tos for people tired of re-runs and reality shows. (Nobody around here plays golf when the temperature is above 22C, so that can’t be used as an excuse for not getting out and about and supporting local kids).
Bilesky organizers have put out a call for Moffat Concession volunteers for a tournament this weekend, so keep that in mind. The park, and the league itself, are Trail icons, so support for both seems a reasonable request.
The Senior Orioles apparently couldn’t entice the Cuban Academy team over the Paulson, so their only home game in the next two months will be at Donaldson Park in Grand Forks, at noon, June 23. Trail plays the Cubans as visitors the day before that, at 5 p.m. Both start times allow for reasonable commutes, and will give spectators a sense of the GFI action to come the following week.
If you like baseball, the end of next month will be attractive. The Orioles have three games with Vernon at their home park in late July, while both teams prepare for the following weekend’s provincial championships - which the Orioles are also hosting at Butler.
I am sure organizers of that event would welcome expressions of interest from volunteers of all shapes and sizes, too. I will get back to you with details, and contact numbers, closer to the dates.
• Nice thing, that video from Quinnipiac about the school’s Trail connections (Thursday, and on the web site, in the Times). Not sure, except for arcane NCAA financial rules, why the producers could not make it the bigger deal they wanted, but it is a pretty nice Tribute to the most recent grads.