On Patriots Day, a day in which the Red Sox held their annual 11 a.m. game, the Bruins played Game 3 of their playoff series with the Capitals and there was the running of the 116th Boston Marathon, the biggest Boston sports story occurred off the field when Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine called out third baseman Kevin Youkilis.
On Sunday night’s “Sports Xtra” on Ch. 7 WHDH, Valentine gave this quote regarding Youkilis:
“I don’t think he’s as physically or emotionally into the game as he has been in the past for some reason. But [on Saturday] it seemed, you know, he’s seeing the ball well, got those two walks, got his on-base percentage up higher than his batting average, which is always a good thing, and he’ll move on from there.”
Of course, plenty was made of the comments, including responses from Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia, GM Ben Cherrington, and Bobby V himself.
A Sign that Maybe the Red Sox are a Team- Steve Buckley says that this could bring the team together and could use it as motivation, but also warns that they shouldn’t voice their displeasure too publicly.
Negative Response to Manager in Clubhouse- John Tomase has how Valentine has already taken the first step in losing the clubhouse.
For Red Sox a Matter of Trust- Gordon Edes has how the Valentine-Youkilis flap could weaken the seemingly fragile clubhouse.
What was Bobby Valentine Thinking?- Kirk Minihane calls this Valentine’s first real miss as Red Sox manager.
Valentine’s Criticism of Youkilis is no big deal- Jim Donaldson has a different take on things, and says it isn’t that big of a deal and is just Valentine’s style, which players aren’t used to.
It’s Business as Usual for Bobby Valentine- Dan Shaughnessy has his take on Valentine’s comments and then the teams’ reaction.
Strange Days: For Kevin Youkilis, 2012 off to a Perplexing Start- Alex Speier takes an in-depth look at the start of the 2012 season for the Red Sox third baseman.
As for the game itself, the Red Sox fell 1-0 in Daniel Bard’s second career major league start. The team had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, with the tying, and game-winning runs on base, but Cody Ross struck out to end the game in a questionable at bat, with pitches that were seemingly a foot outside called strikes.
For Daniel Bard, a disappointing decision and outcome, but a bigger picture- Alex Speier takes a look at Bard’s start and a decision to keep him in the game which ended up by hurting the team.
The Bruins and Capitals series picked up with a combined seven goals being scored, as well as some tension developing between the teams. Zdeno Chara’s goal with just under two minutes remaining gave the Bruins a 4-3 win and a 2-1 series lead. After struggling for offense in Games 1 and 2 Bruins coach Claude Julien mixed up the teams’ first two lines, separating Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron.
Early on the Bruins played like Games 1 and 2, but as the game progressed the team picked up their intensity and started crashing the net. Kevin Paul Dupont has how just going to the net by lesser-known offensive players led to goals from Brian Rolston and Daniel Paille. Stephen Harris says good things happen when you put the puck on net.
Things got physical and testy for the first time in this series. The Capitals Nicklas Backstrom could face a suspension for receiving a match penalty after the final buzzer when he cross-checked Rich Peverley, and following the game Milan Lucic called out Capitals defenseman Karl Alzner.
Marchand and Lucic bring emotion to table in lieu of offense- Joe Haggerty has how even though these two players aren’t scoring they are still contributing in other ways.
Better late than never: Hits, words, hate for Bruins-Capitals- DJ Bean takes a look at how Game 3 brought out the best in the two teams and how in playoff hockey, the teams just don’t like each other.
Fiesty Fits Them- Ron Borges says the Bruins got back to playing like the Bruins that fans are used to seeing.
Seidenberg Makes Early Case for Conn Smythe- Matt Kalman takes a look at Dennis Seidenberg’s first three games of the series and says he is just continuing where he left off from last year’s Stanley Cup run.
Joshua Cassidy turns in ride for the ages- Bob Ryan takes a look at the Boston Marathon’s men wheelchair winner Joshua Cassidy from Canada, and how he blew away the field.
