"Behind The B" Pretty Much Kicked Ass
The Bruins debuted their new behind-the-scenes series “Behind the B” last night on NESN and it was fantastic TV for fans of the Black and Gold. Among the highlights…
*As if to deal with it and get it out of the way immediately, the show kicked off with Claude’s speech to the his charges after they coughed up Game 6 and a chance to win their second Cup in three years. Coach summed it up pretty well: the breaks of ’11 were nowhere to be found in ’13 and they were really banged up but they still can hold their heads high.
“Aside from that, Mary Todd Lincoln really enjoyed the show.”
*The front office shit was good stuff. All of the guys were pretty blunt and plain-spoken with cameras present so I can only imagine what’s said when the cameras are gone. Like everyone, they lamented the loss of Andrew Ference but also that it’s life under the cap. Viewers also got a peek at the mechanics at play behind the Tyler Seguin trade. After his pros and cons were bandied about, Chiarelli decided they were going to shop the notorious poon hound. Jim Benning had a couple of nice cracks at Seguin’s expense. He derisively noted that his speed was great for the team “…in the regular season” and that the Bs are “winning every year, not babysitting”. And Scott Bradley said, “If he gives us half of Kane, we win the Stanley Cup”. Ouch. I wonder if Seguin’s family has called NESN yet to complain. I mean, c’mon, he’s just a lonely single guy having a few beers, eh.
*Most assumed Chiarelli’s semi-stunned reaction in the previews was about Seguin leaving Boston but it was actually Nathan Horton. It was clear by their reactions that the Bs had all intentions of bringing Guy Smiley back in the fold but the ’11 playoff legend instead opted for a happy medium between Sunrise and Boston—Columbus.
*I think Bs fans are gonna fall head over heels for Loui Eriksson. He was the best player on a bad team and wasting away in Dallas. We got a look at him checking out sweet pads down the Navy Yard (on Nomar’s old Pier 7), Monument Sq. (where, ironically, Seguin was kicked out of his condo), and the top floor of the old Stop and Shop bakery building next to the Garden with the killer view. He also bounced around the North End and noted he was told that it’s like “Little Italy”. Which is funny considering the intersection of L and 8th in Southie has more Italians than the modern day North End. But what I really liked was what I heard out of him. He seems like a guy who is a true professional and just gets it. Methinks we’ll be soon adding another name to the “Tuuuuuuk”, “Loooooch”, and “Kruuuuug” confusion.
*We got a look at Milan Lucic being the family man with his adorable daughter in Vancouver over the summer. If he hasn’t learned the lessons of showing up to camp way out of shape last year, at least he’s cognizant of it this year. Looch was an playoff animal so I just want him healthy when April rolls around.
*Jarome Iginla spoke honestly about the whole ‘diss then kiss’ history and admitted that he was riding the hot hand when the trade deadline came. If you still have a dump in your hockey pants over him going to Pittsburgh, you should probably get over it before he, you know, starts skating a top-six role for your favorite team.
*The Development Camp portion gave us a peek at what it’s like for youngsters in what is often their introduction to the pro environment. Camp vets Brian Ferlin and Matthew Grzelcyk were given some face time. Strength and Conditioning Coach John Whitesides was revealed to be the R. Lee Ermey of the Bruins staff. The stuff with him treating all players the same (i.e. Malcolm Subban paying the piper for being late) was good stuff.
*The ‘Tuukka goes golfing’ segment felt like a post-‘Weekend Update’ skit on “Saturday Night Live”.
The one-hour episode will be replayed a shit-ton over the next few weeks. Which is likely good news for the thousands of Bruins fans outside of New England who were inexplicably blacked out from watching a show on a channel they pay for. All future episodes will be a half-hour but the schedule will be done on the fly.
Overall, great shit for Bruins fans and a good call by Cam Neely to do it.
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