Who to Blame for the Epic Collapse of the 2009-2010 Boston Bruins

One would think that being a Boston Red Sox fan, who hadn't won a World Championship in 86 years, would be the hardest job of as New England sports fan. Or perhaps, watching decades of the New England Patriots struggle to finish over .500 every year. Or maybe, watching the demise of one of the best teams in Basketball history, the Boston Celtics, barely make it to the playoffs for a few decades. However, I'm here to tell you the truth. The hardest team to root for, for all of these decades, is the Boston Bruins

Sure, losing game 6 of the World Series in 1986 sucked, being one out, or one strike, away from the Sox winning it all. That was heartbreak. So was losing in game 7 of the ALCS in 2003 to the dreaded Yankees. It was also a struggle to watch the Patriots lose in three Super Bowls, to the Bears, Packer, and Giants. But, believe me, nothing compares to our Beloved Bruins. And I'm here to tell you why.

Two words, Jeremy Jacobs. Owner of the Boston Bruins since 1975. I have never met Mr. Jacobs, who is ranked by Forbes.com as the #746 richest Billionaire in the world. As and owner, you don't see much of him. He's very low profile. And we all know why.

Year after year, the most loyal sports fans in any sport, Boston Bruin fans, are forced into the same situation. This year was a typical season for our B's. During the off season, we watched as the B's did not sign any of the top free agents. That is never unusual. In fact, right on cue, the B's dealt their number one goal scorer, Phil Kessel, to Toronto, for a first round draft pick. As fans, we were told that this would help us in the future. I think we've been told that before, right Mr. Jacobs?

Can you say Joe Thorton? Mr. Jacobs tricked us with that one. First he signed him to a big contract, then he dealt him a few weeks later. For a minute, we thought we had a future. At the end of last season, the B's signed Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas to a multi year deal. Well, at least we have a top goalie, right? The team would have traded him at the trade deadline this year, but Thomas was smart enough to have a no trade clause in his contract. So the B's sat him, giving Tuuka Rask the full time job. The reigning Vezina Trophy winner collected dust on the bench the rest of the season, and throughout the playoffs.

Oh yeah, the playoffs. I guess we must talk about that, as painful as it is. Of the 16 teams that made the playoffs in the NHL, only 2 of those teams had a lower payroll than the Bruins, Nashville and Colorado, according to Sports City.com Wait a minute, I thought a Billionaire owned us? Oh well, we'll give it our best shot. Lead by or top goal scorer, at 22 goals, Marco Sturm, our only 20 goal scorer, the B's took on the Buffalo Sabres, who had 5 20 goal scorers. The B's won a hard fought series 4-2, not with finesse, with heart, and hard work. We are all used to the hard work from this team..

Now in the Conference Semi finals for the second year in a row, but the lowest payroll team left, the B's took on the Flayers. The Flayers, with 2 players who scored 30 plus goals, and 1 that scored 25, spent 9 million dollars more on their payroll this year. Are you listening Mr. Jacobs? Never mind. The B's lost Sturm and Krejci to injuries during the series, but still had a 3-o series lead. Not because they had more stars, that's for sure, but they did have heart. Our B's always have heart. The Flyers got some key players back from injury, and went on to tie the series 3-3. They had key players to come back from injury, star players.

Game 7 started out great, for Bruins fans like me. 3 goals in the first period, a 3-0 lead. "Bring on the Canadians," Bruins fans yelled in unison. But, not so fast. The Flyers, who seemed to have 5 teams leaders, battled back, and made the game 3-3. Although the B's Goaltender, Tuukka Rask, seemed tired, and not on his game, Tim Thomas sat on the bench collecting dust. Not a minute played in the series. Hmmm, I'm wondering if there is something in his contract that pays him a bonus for appearances in the playoffs? Anyway, the B's get a 'too many men" on the ice penalty with 8 minutes left, and the Flyers score the game winning goal on the power play. Our B's worked hard, skated hard, and gave it their all, but too no avail. Not enough star power, I guess. Maybe a 37 goal scorer would have come in handy, but he was watching in Toronto.

Once again, we have heartbreak as Bruins fans. We are embarrassed by blowing a 3 game lead, and a 3 goal lead. But, we are not mad at our players, at least I'm not. They did the usual. They played better than anyone thought they would. They advanced further than we could have hoped. It is not their fault that their Billionaire owner could care less about us. Robert Kraft, Owner of the New England Patriots cares about us, the fans. He's opened his wallet, and given us 3 World Champions. The owners of the Boston Red Sox, John Henry and company, cares about us, the fans. They have given us two World Championship teams, and have spent lots of money doing it. Paul Gaston owner of the Boston Celtics, has certainly spent lots of money on his team, and given us a World Championship. He cares about the fans.

Jeremy Jacobs. You just hold onto those Billions. Bruins fans will just have to settle for no appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals since 1990. That's Okay, we'll still love our B's. But you know that, don't you? Go ahead and get the #2 draft pick this year, because we didn't need a goal scorer on this years team. Pay the draft choice as little as you can, and then, when he gets good, you can trade him. We've been on to you for years. Every Bruins fan knows how you operate. Make a profit, and that is good business. Congrats to you.

Don't blame the Coach. Claude Julien did the best with what he had to work with. Don't blame the players. They over achieved just to be in the position they were in. Don't blame the officials, who called a lame penalty with 8 minutes left in a tied game. Put the blame where it belongs. Thanks for nothing, Mr. Jacobs.