Dear Mr. Campbell,

I believe that there should exist a certain level of professionalism in a correspondence like this, so note that I have not approached this letter the way some Bruins fans might be tempted to (e.g. "Dear Mr. Douchenozzle", "Listen up, Mother Cusser," etc.).

But I digress.

This week you decided that Pittsburgh Penguins dirtbag, Matt Cooke, does not deserve to be suspended for his blindside hit on Bruins center Marc Savard. You, the senior vice president of NHL operations, and your staff said that the move was comparable to the hit that the Flyers' Mike Richards put on the Panthers' David Booth earlier in the year. The 'logic': No suspension for Richards, so no suspension for Cooke.

Making consistent decisions is of paramount importance, you claimed.

Well. I may have graduated from a state school, Mr. Campbell, but this judgment actually solidifies your status as a nearsighted fool. That hit likely ended Marc Savard’s season. Reportedly, the 33-year old visited a neuro-psych specialist at Mass General and his condition is not improving. NESN wrote yesterday that Savard “still can't give updates on his health to his general manager because he can't stay awake long enough.’’

And the hockey world is supposed to take comfort in consistency?

What you inexplicably failed to realize is that things are only going to get uglier. B's coach Claude Julien has stated that he believes his players should have each other’s backs. Do you know what this means? It means that if Matt Cooke is not a "healthy scratch" when the Penguins visit Boston’s home ice next Thursday, he will be mauled.

It means that your caution of, "You want to take justice in your hands...you've a real mess on your hands when Bertuzzi broke Moore's neck,’’ was the second-most useless thing that you said this week. Did Julien give an outright green light for revenge? No. But the coach would probably be thrilled if that 8-year old, shirtless, chest-pounder kid came out of Boston’s crowd and loosed those tiny fists of fury on Cooke’s junk. Imagine Roy Jones Jr. on a speed bag.

It also means that you severely underestimated the sense of justice held by NHL fans, players, and coaches, across the country. A fact that you perhaps tried to compensate for when appearing on WEEI with Dennis and Callahan.

“We don't like Cooke,” you said. “We don't like the way he plays and some things he does."

Did you really think that such a trite statement would lesson the revulsion that Bruins feel for you? Yet another miscalculation. All you did in that interview was confirm your cowardice.

Nobody wants things to escalate to the level of Bertuzzi-Moore. But there will be blood next Thursday, Mr. Campbell; it will be on the ice, on Matt Cooke’s face, and on your hands.

Sincerely,
MP

Comments

	Great letter MP.Hope he sees it. If the B's don't get Cooke maybe the fans can go visit Campbell and let him feel what Savy is feeling. Nobody wants to see a player injured but Cooke has no sense of fair play.Even Penguin players agreed he should have received some sort of suspension. 03/12/2010 6:04 PM
fan4ever

	Good blog MP. Campbell and Bettman are making the great game of hockey a joke. What kind of message does this send to young hockey players. Pathetic just Pathetic! 03/12/2010 2:53 PM
joegill88

	Good blog. I didn't see the hit, but just wondering if Campbell is pandering to the throngs who show up at games specifically to see hard hits and fights. Hockey is nothing like it was 40 years ago. Doesn't seem like anybody can handle the puck like Bobby Orr. The game should be on the ice...not in the league offices. 03/12/2010 12:46 PM
mr.pieface

Baseball fans have all heard the news by now. I first saw the story this morning on Twitter:

@MikeGiardi : So the Sox are holding a press conference to announce Nomar's retirement. (CSNNE)

My immediate reaction? Somehow contact Governor of Red Sox Nation for Massachusetts, Jared Carrabis. Anyone who knows this guy knows that Jer is one of Nomar's biggest supporters among the Fenway faithful. True to form, Carrabis' response was classic.

"I could die right now Mary."

It was a sweet little slice of drama pie that made me smile.  Sure, Jared was joking -- but just barely. The entire "Nomar retiring with the Red Sox" release blew the theater doors off the hinges. For the rest of the day, fans and media alike will extol Nomar's virtues as well as condemn the negatives.

That MLB debut home run on August 31, 1997 was an immediately endearing start. Earning American League Rookie of the Year honors sent his jersey flying off store shelves. Garciaparra hit .306 with 122 runs, 44 doubles, 30 home runs, 98 RBI, and 22 steals. He stroked a .350 average over the next three seasons, winning batting titles in 1999 and 2000. He was a six-time All Star.

But between the Spring of 2003 and when Garciaparra was traded in 2004, fans cried Foul while watching a favorite become a casualty of baseball business. Things turned ugly on the inside.

"[Nomar] couldn't keep his anger about the negotiations and lack of a new deal out of the Sox clubhouse. The other players all understood his anger, but they all felt that he had to let it go the second he stepped into their world....the clubhouse. They needed Nomar to do that and he couldn't.'' (Dan Roche, WBZ)

Reactions to the news, consequently, have been varied across the country.

@MarkNagi @knoxcounty same pride and honor which kept nomah on bench sulking while his team was on top step of dugout battling yanks? Led to his trade

@JCaLLy44 Just cried at work whole reading all the articles about Nomah.. God bless him!! He's the reason I love the RED SOX!! :)

My own leans closer to the latter. I too, adored Nomar. In fact, I'm only slightly embarrassed to admit that the username of my first ESPN.com account was NomarsGirl05. I loved his gritty shortstop style and the batter's box tics. Anticipating what he would produce at the plate each night was thrilling as hell. And one of the highlights of my 2009 Sox-watching season was actually being in attendance at Fenway when Garciaparra finally came home. His hand over his Oakland A's jersey -- over his heart -- he spun slowly around to soak in the crowd's ovation.

Did I cry? No. But neither did Nomar during today's presser. It was appropriate, I think because no tears need be shed for this celebration. The bashing should be shelved, too. Let Nomar's contract be extended to everyone -- just one day -- where we remember the 1999 Game 5 ALDS homer, the white hot .403 average that made July of 2000 feel frosty, and his triple-dinger birthday in 2002.

And then let's get on with the 2010 season.

--NomarsGirl05

Comments

	... and I might also top my previous comment - WE WON THE WORLD SERIES WITHOUT HIM. 03/11/2010 9:04 AM
section15

	The difference was, Nomar did not have most of the press completely against him, Manny did. One thing is for certain - the press / radio has the power to crank up the Fenway boo-birds, and people listen and act like sheep and go along. 03/11/2010 8:49 AM
section15

	Im with Dog on this one. Manny Gets hung and Nomar gets a fee pass from the nation? Nomar was offered a TON of cash and whined for more and his way out of town. 03/10/2010 3:56 PM
MONSTAH

	Well said. Look forwad to reading more of your work during the season. 03/10/2010 3:07 PM
irishsw..

		this was a great read 03/10/2010 3:44 PM
	Phillip ..

	Sorry Mary but I have to completely disagree on this, although I sense I will be in the minority based on being at the game he returned and watched the fans give the guy a standing O...why should I or any other Red Sox fan support a player that quits on his team to buy his ticket out of town. For whatever the reasons, he refused to play in NY near the trade deadline, similar to Manny, and in doing so burnt the bridge to Red Sox Nation along the way. Nomar came crawling back to retire as a Red Sox because he had ZERO legacy with any other team he played for. ...View More...View Less 03/10/2010 2:50 PM
SoxDog67

	Well said!!!! Great job!!!! 03/10/2010 2:25 PM
Red Sox ..

Today is truly the most glorious day of the year.

G'ahead -- throw Opening Day, the Superbowl, or the day you're getting your braces off at me. Doesn't matter. At noon today, the men's Big East Tournament begins at Madison Square Garden and I'm going to have to try to keep my head from blowing up.

I don't expect many people around the country to feel the same. Even with college hoops fans, the Final Four of the Big Dance -- the peak of March Madness -- is a far sexier affair. And yes, I absolutely appreciate when mid-majors out-muscle top dogs and Cinderellas flirt their way toward the finals. But I believe that the Big East is the best conference in the nation, so five days of heavyweight brawling is like sheer bliss.

Disagree with that? Read somebody else’s blog. Or check out some of this history.

You Like Suspense?
The Huskies crushed Pitt's 2002 hoop dreams in the championship when Taliek Brown hit a 35-foot shot clock killer in the second overtime to lead the Huskies  to a 74-65 win. In 2009, UConn-Syracuse lasts six-overtimes in the quarterfinals. The Orange never lead in any of the five OTs, but Johnny Flynn lead the sixth to close things out 127-117. I got kicked out of the bar I was in right before the final frame started because it was closing time. But before I was even born, much less watching sports over beers, ‘Cuse forced a triple overtime final against Villanova in 1981.  Leo Rautins' tipped in the insurance deuce as the clock ticked down to give the Orange an 83-80 win. His son, Andy (11.6ppg, 4.8apg), will be keeping the legacy of driving people bananas alive in this years tournament.

Maybe Starpower is Your Thing:
Patrick Ewing netted 69 points in three games in 1984, including 27-points and 16-rebounds in the title game. In the 1986 Championship it was Pearl Washington (SU) vs. St. John's star Walter Berry. Remember the days before Boston College turned traitor? Guard Dana Barros hit eight treys and scored 38 against SJU in 1989. The next year, Derrick Coleman (before he went mental) was lighting things up: 25 points and 23 rebounds in 'Cuse's semifinal win over 'Nova in 1990. Alonzo Mourning went off for 76 points in three games for the second-place Hoyas in 1992. Georgetown's Allen Iverson scored 38 in a 1996 quarterfinal game against Miami, and teammate Victor Page went for 34 the next day against Villanova. He then matched up vs. Allen Iverson when UConn faced against the Hoyas. 

The past is impressive but there are too many highlights to even mention. Back in the present, today’s first round schedule looks a little something like this:

    #16 DePaul vs #9 USF
    #13 St. John's vs #12 Connecticut
    #10 Seton Hall vs #15 Providence
    #11 Cincinnati vs #14 Rutgers

Hall has beaten Louisville, Pitt, Cornell, and Cincinnati. Connecticut has beaten Texas, Villanova, and West Virginia. Providence stunned UC and has beaten the Johnnies. That St. John's squad bested Siena, Temple, and Georgia before BE play even started. Cincy dropped Vandy and Maryland out of conference and swept UConn within. Rutgers took down Georgetown, Louisville, and the Irish. USF his risen out of the cellar with wins over Kent St., Pitt, and G’Town. And even DePaul has upset potential after beating Northern Iowa in it’s second game of the season.

Trying to predict winners will take a Mensa-level basketball IQ. That or a Magic 8 Ball. And this is only Round 1. Just wait until Thursday’s quarterfinals tip off -- the front half of those games each feature a team in the nation’s top-16. By then I’ll be in the fetal position, sucking my thumb with glazed-eyes glued to the TV.

And I'll love every second of it.

Comments

	Seems odd seeing UCONN playing in Round 1. 03/09/2010 12:55 PM
Gregg

Matt Cooke must be suspended.

Or stoned in the TD Garden parking lot by Bruins fans. But either way, something must be done. Cooke's hit on Marc Savard during the Penguins' 2-1 win was abhorrent. The Pittsburgh winger leveled Savard with an arm to the head that looked powered by the forearm and elbow instead of the shoulder, yet no penalty was called. Reportedly, refs told associate captain Patrice Bergeron that Cooke was finishing his check on Savard and so the cheap-shot wasn't whistled.

    @HackswithHaggs Claude Julien told me last night Marc Savard had bit of subluxation to his jaw  as a result of Cooke hit, but concussion was far more serious (Joe Haggerty of CSNNE)

Now let me say that hockey hits don't bother me; one of my favorite sounds in the sport is a solid board-rattling check. And the fighting? Love it. Hockeyfights.com is on my list of bookmarks because they've got clips of the ass-kicking in slow motion.

But there is a line between what's legal and what's dirty. Though NHL fans might get rabidly excited when the gloves get tossed, we don't want anybody to end up in the hospital. Busted lips and bloody noses? A job hazard. Getting strapped to a stretcher? A blow to the NHL itself.

The Pensburgh blog on SBNation asks:

"...is this a suspendable crime or just a hockey play gone bad?"

Well let's take a look at Matt Cooke for a hot second. He's no first-time offender.

James Murphy from NESN noted that this season Cooke was already slapped with a two-game suspension for an open-ice hit on Rangers forward Artem Anisimov. His rap sheet also includes two earlier two-gamers and  "a knee-on-knee hit to Carolina's Erik Cole during the playoffs last spring ." Around the league -- among his peers -- Cooke is notorious.

"Figures it was him," B's blue liner Dennis Wideman told the New England Sports Network.

Doesn't sound like a guy who just exercises honest fundamentals.

Of course, judgment isn't up to the fans or even the media. What is important now is for the NHL to take decisive action against Cooke's hit. A strong statement must be made to a guy who seems to both try to get away with what he can and shrug off suspensions as mini-vacations when he does get busted.  Patrice Bergeron, Marc Savard, and every other player around the league need to know that there are adequate measures in place to protect them.

Otherwise, this could happen again... and the next time it could be worse.

(Boston Herald photo)

Comments

	The Bruins wanted to go for the win and not go to the box. I am quite confident that when we meet the Pens at the Garden memories will still be fresh. I wonder what the refs would have called if we had done that to Crosby? The hit Ryder made was nothing compared to this and he got a game misconduct and everyone thinks he'll get a suspension. Where is the justice? 03/08/2010 1:30 PM
fan4ever

	The Bruins have been more teddy bear than Grizzly bear. They needed to defend Marc Savard and make Matt Cooke pay! 03/08/2010 1:23 PM
joegill88

	Great piece Mary! Way to be! I personally feel the Bruins response was perfect. They need the points right now more than redemption, and were only 1 goal down. With that in mind, they also will be facing Pit again next week. I strongly recommend Cooke kissing his wife and children goodbye prior to this match... 03/08/2010 11:54 AM
Lucic Crew

	The Bruins' non-reaction (similar to when Bergeron went down in 2007) was shameful, sure; but at this stage in their season, that's all it is. Cooke's intent to hurt was downright dangerous. 03/08/2010 11:13 AM
Mary Pao..

	What was more unacceptable... the hit or the lack of a reaction from the Bruins? 03/08/2010 11:00 AM
Rafe And..

Most mornings I tune into the Dan Patrick Show to get my sports talk fix. I listen streaming online instead of watching on Direct TV 101, not just because I haven't yet had cable installed in my new apartment, but because this is not a superficial ritual. My DP appreciation goes beyond that money-making mane of his.

Today's docket of guests featured a particular highlight for an NCAA hoops-head like me: Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Unfortunately my laptop's passion bucket was full of failure this morning and I missed his spot. Why such a bummer when I'm a UConn alumna?  I respect Krzyzewski; his coaching, his character, and the struggle he must have faced growing up with a last name that's so hard to spell. This also means that I respect what he has to say about the sport.

But when I checked out Twitter to see what went down:

    @dpshow Coach K on the best team right now.."I'd say Syracuse, even above Kansas to be frank with you."

'Cuse: The anti-Mary.

As if this year hasn't been painful enough with my Huskies bouncing between glory and the NCAA slum gutter, it has all coincided with Syracuse staging a bounce back bigger than Flavor Flav. Sure, there are plenty of rivalries within the Big East, but when I was at Connecticut, the fiercest wars waged in the conference were between UC and the Orange.

I stood just three rows back when Hakim Warrick and Rudy Gay met on the hardwood in 2005. That game showcased one of the most stupidly athletic one-on-one match ups I've ever seen live. In 2006 I was in New York when one of Connecticut's best teams in recent years was single-handedly buried by Gerry McNamara in the Big East Tournament. And last year's 6-OT BE tourney stunner was reportedly one of the most agonizing UC losses in the rivalry. My friend Samuel Adams thankfully helped me blank that game from my memory that night.

Surviving the season so far, watching the Orange scale the top-25 while Connecticut slides off and on the bubble, has required a certain amount of denial.

Syracuse simply can't be that good, I'd think to myself. Impossible.

Coach K blew all of that up on the DP Show today. When he tagged Jim Boeheim's crew as the best in the nation it was as good as forcing me to shake hands with reality. And then consent to being slapped around by it.

Luckily it's Friday and I'm in Boston. My plan? Two dates with Sam Adams and two days without Dan Patrick.

Comments

	Coach K's endorsement = kiss of death :) 'cuse goes down! lived with this for way too long. go deacs! 03/07/2010 11:02 AM
Carolyn ..

	a great read.. as usual! I'm a UNC fan so I have no sympathy for you. DP in 2010! 03/05/2010 8:28 PM
Rafe And..

	Thumbs up (for the author). 03/05/2010 4:21 PM
Maryland..

	Mary -- I love you, but NEVER count on Coach K to supply anything positive in your life. I mean, c'mon -- He's a f*&king DUKIE!! Oh yeah -- Sorry about your UCONN, but welcome to the real world of teams having an "off year." 03/05/2010 4:20 PM
Maryland..