Conference diver1::boston_bruins

    	Ah, another day, another chance to lose! I hope they go 0-fer the
    rest of the season. 
    
    Barry
    

    so do I and Toby knows why ;-)
    
    Bernie.

    Here's an update on the Oates story.
    Read the comments by O'Connell!! Is this 
    guy TOTALLY CLUELESS or what??
    
    
[Boston Globe][Globe Sports]

 Oates's criticism assessed

 By Nancy L. Marrapese, Globe Staff, 02/20/97

 CHICAGO - Adam Oates fired a bazooka right
 between the eyes of Bruins management and now
 the front office is mulling its best option of
 returning fire.

 After Boston's devastating 3-2 overtime loss
 to Colorado Tuesday night that sunk the team
 11 games under .500, Oates said management,
 not the players, is responsible for the team's
 failures.

 ``A guy who's on my left wing a week ago,
 three days later he's back in the minors,''
 said Oates. ``He got sat out the other night
 in the minors. What the [expletive] is that?

 ``We go to Florida and have to win a
 [expletive] game. [P.C.] Drouin is on my left
 wing for 30 minutes and three days later he's
 in New York not getting a shift. The next day
 he's in the minors. Now he's sat out. How are
 you going to win hockey games like that?

 ``You go on a trip and everyone says it's a
 big trip. For what? So we can win five games
 because we're lousy and we get in the eighth
 spot and lose four straight and get
 embarrassed and then get shelled all summer?
 It's upstairs, baby. That's their job, not
 ours.''

 Oates also said there seems to be no long-term
 plan.

 ``Are we rebuilding? What are we doing? What
 direction are we going in?'' he said. ``Our
 best player [Ray Bourque] is 36 and he's
 gotten less and less support every year. He's
 getting older. I'm just frustrated. [Cam
 Neely] said it two years ago. When he said it,
 I was a little younger and more naive and
 thought it was a big statement. Now I say he
 was dead right and it's gotten worse since.

 ``It doesn't matter what you say or how
 unhappy you are. I'm sick of answering all the
 questions. We played our asses off. We were
 playing the Stanley Cup champs. We played like
 crazy and we lose with 3.8 seconds left in
 overtime. OK, we played great, we lost. We're
 never going to win. We will win here and there
 but we're not [expletive] good enough. It's
 sickening. It's a joke. I'm sick of it. Every
 other team tries [to improve itself]. We don't
 even try.''

 Assistant general manager Mike O'Connell said
 he and president/general manager Harry Sinden
 (who declined comment yesterday) were planning
 to sleep on Oates's comments before making any
 decisions, but O'Connell was clearly upset. He
 saw the story for the first time yesterday
 afternoon when a copy of the Globe story was
 faxed to him at the team hotel. Before
 speaking with reporters, O'Connell sat down in
 the lobby to read it. Within seconds the color
 had drained from his face and he began tapping
 his feet on the carpet in agitation.

 ``It's a very scathing article,'' said
 O'Connell. ``I guess my reaction is I'd like
 to talk to Adam before I make any kind of
 reaction in the paper. My job right now is to
 find out is the team better off without Adam
 Oates? Is the team better off with him? Is the
 team better off making a deal for him? Is the
 team better off granting Adam his wishes?
 That's what I have to decide, myself and Harry
 and the coaches.''

 The Bruins could suspend Oates as a result of
 a clause in the standard player's contract
 that prohibits behavior deemed detrimental to
 the team. However, that decision would likely
 be met with a howl of protest from the Players
 Association. Oates' attorney, Brian Cook, said
 he spoke to NHLPA counsel Ian Pulver, who told
 Cook, ``Unless something has changed
 dramatically, you still have freedom of speech
 in your country, don't you?'' Cook said he
 doesn't believe the Bruins have any basis to
 suspend Oates.

 Another option - the likely scenario - would
 be to trade Oates. The Bruins could fine him
 but only the maximum $1,000. They could sit
 him out without suspending him or they could
 punish him in the worst way possible - by
 ignoring him and not addressing him at all.
 However, Oates has tremendous credibility with
 the fans and is one of the few stars on this
 team. Whether management likes it or not, when
 Oates speaks, people listen.

 ``It's obvious Adam's not happy,'' said
 O'Connell. ``Would he be happy if he was
 making $4 million a year? He obviously wants
 to be traded or he wants us to re-sign him for
 bigger money or he wants to go to a place that
 will pay him more money. If we trade him to a
 team that he thinks has no chance of winning
 but is willing to pay him, is he going to be
 happy then?''

 O'Connell said he believes Oates' outburst was
 motivated by money, not concern for the future
 of the organization.

 ``I think [money] is a big part of it, in my
 limited experience in this world of
 high-priced athletes,'' O'Connell said. ``He
 states that he doesn't have enough [help]. He
 has a 19-game point-scoring streak. Did he do
 it all himself?''

 ``It is about money,'' said Cook, whose client
 negotiated the deal with the idea that Bourque
 would be the highest-paid player on the team.
 Since then, goalie Bill Ranford has received a
 new deal and Bourque's pact is being redone to
 include an extension. Oates wants his deal
 redone but Sinden has already told him no.

 ``Pro sports is about money,'' said Cook,
 ``whether it's [team owner Jeremy] Jacobs's or
 Adam's. It's also about winning and being on a
 team that's successful and competitive or
 being happy and paid what you think you're
 worth.''

 But Cook parted company with his client on one
 aspect.

 ``I don't believe a player has a right to
 publicly comment on management decisions,'' he
 said. ``I agree with everything Adam said,
 everyone who bought a ticket to a game this
 year agrees with it and I understand his
 frustration but it would've been better if
 someone else had said it.''

 O'Connell wouldn't commit to Oates even
 playing tonight, saying, ``Who knows?''

 ``Anything is possible,'' said O'Connell.
 ``It's not being taken lightly. What's been
 said is very serious, what he's done. Is it
 self-serving? Probably.''

 O'Connell said the club does need to make
 improvements but he thinks Oates is off base
 with his criticism.

 ``I've said all along we're not a great
 team,'' said O'Connell. ``But I think there
 are teams in the league who have done well
 with less because they either believe in what
 [the club philosophy] is or they don't have
 their own agenda, they have a commitment to
 the team and that's why they're successful.

 ``At times we are [playing up to capabilities]
 and at times, we're not. If we play hard for
 60 minutes and make a commitment to playing,
 we can compete with anyone. I think we've
 proved that. To say, hey, we're not good
 enough, I can't buy that.''

 But Oates certainly does.

 ``We're not good enough,'' he said. ``We
 could've won every game this trip. We played
 our asses off every game. We're not talented
 enough. It's not a question of hard work, we
 work hard every night. Guys care. We're not
 good enough. Cam said something every year for
 the last three years and we've gotten worse
 every year. Now we're doing it with less and
 less guys. The guys upstairs, they're not
 doing their jobs.''

 This story ran on page c1 of the Boston Globe
 on 02/20/97.

    ...great report there, Dude...how the hell did ya type that??
    man, that's cool reporting....
    
    now onto this bulls*it....as my brother said last night, 
    "Bring me the head of Harry Sinden"....Harry's got a HELLUVA lot
    of nerve, lemme tell ya....someone has to take him and his
    lapdog O'Connell out and shoot 'em, who the frig does he think
    he is, taking Oatsie's "A" away last night???  So he's the
    General Manager, what the hell ever happened to free speech....MAN!!!!
    
    this is really buggin' me, and I know it ain't gonna do a hill-'o-beans
    in the overall picture, but I'm gonna call, fax, write Pinhead's
    office today, next week, you name it....I can honestly say I pretty
    much supported Pinhead Sinden over the years (more or less), but
    he's gone over the edge this time...and did you hear how O'Connell
    stipped the "A" off in front of the whole team???  Someone shoulda
    popped him for that, and took the consequences.....
    
    
    Good thing I'm going to Montreal in March...I gotta let off some
    serious steam......
    
    
    "Bring me the head of Harry Sinden"
    
    
    ...oh yea, almost forgot..B's too the pipe again, 5-3.....
    
    good thing it's Fried_Day_mac
    

    Well guys, believe it or not, I can't believe the stupidity of the
    Ruins management and what has transpired in the past 24 hours. Adam
    Oates is now management's scape goat and they're going to play this
    one to the hilt. Pulling his A....if I were Oates I'd tell them to
    shove it up their ass. And O'Connell's speech to the team yesteray
    blaming everything on Oates...what the f..k! The report I heard said
    that the team wasn't buying management's crap..good for them. 
    
    No hope for the Ruins to climb back to any kind of respectability unitl
    ALL of management is put on a bus and driven off the end of Rose Wharf.
    
    Of course if they did that they would contaminate Bawstan Hawba
    forever.
    
    Jerry

    
    
    I think Oates really could care less about the "A"....granted
    O'Sinden should've done it privatly, but Oates downplayed
    the situation in the interview I saw with him.  I think he was
    EXPECTING to be fined and/or suspended and the taking of the "A"
    was more of a symbolic act.  His teammates are on the same page that
    he is and in their eyes, I'm sure he still wears it.  I think
    O'Sinden was trying to embarrass him in front of his team-mates and 
    Oates more or less laughed him off.  
    
    *$#& O'Connell
    *@&* Sinden
    #@&* Jacobs
    
    Jerry's right, I wouldn't want to pollute the hahbah anymore by 
    throwing a piece of s**t like Harry into it.....
    
    ......we have definatly "Hit Rock Bottom and We're There to Stay"
    
    
    
    CF

    
    Did they change the Assist last night on Donato's goal to Oates ? 
    Oates CLEARLY made the pass to Donato who scored the B's 1st goal. 
    But they announced it as Bourque's assist. 
    
    I wonder if Adam is getting pot shots taken at him now by all bonehead 
    league reps. 
    
    
    It's a damn shame that OConnell, Sinden & JAocob's bros think the fans 
    are so stupid.  No one believes Adam spoke out because of money. 
    Sure, most players are looking for more money but this guy wants to 
    win. He wants to play for the pride and dream of winning the cup as
    well as the money. This is very different than the businessman men in
    the front office. THEY should look in the mirror if they want to talk 
    about people making decisions with the mighty buck being foremost in 
    their minds. If you look at the fact that the Bruins turned a
    $10million profit last year without being competitive what motivation 
    do you think they have to win ? almost none. 
    
    Rp 
    Is there an E-mail address where people can write to the Bruins
    organization ? Or directly to Sinden ? 
    
      

    ...RP...just tried to get an email address for O'Connell & Pinhead...
    their secretary told me they don't have email (duh!) but you can either
    call 617-624-1050 (listen for menu options for Boston Bruins executive
    offices) or mail it thru the Post Office (how quaint!) at
    
    Harry Sinden (and/or Mike O'Connell)
    One Fleet Center
    Suite 250
    Boston, MA 02114
    
    hot damn, I was hoping they had email, we coulda fried their server....
    
    fried_day_mac
                 

    I couldn't believe it when I heard last night that they had taken the A
    off of Oates sweater.   His outburst was right on and it was as a
    result of caring.  He's a professional in the true sense of the word
    and he's tired of being embarassed night after night.
    
    If I was a Bruins fan, I wouldn't be going to any more games until the
    situation improves.  Empty seats is the only way to force this
    organization into doing something.
    
    It's a shame that this storied team has sunk so low.  How long do you
    think that they would put up with this in Montreal?
    
    Bernie.     

    	There is no such thing as free speech in an employer/employee
    relationship. You will abide by company policy or suffer the
    consequences. It's the same thing here at Digital. If you get into
    notes and make a disparaging remark about someone based on their race,
    their beliefs, their sex or for that matter anything else you could
    very well find yourself down at personel defending not only your
    comments, but your job as well. That could even apply to just a comment
    made to a co-worker in the course of performing your job or passing in
    the hallway. The constitution only affects companies in matters of 
    discrimination. Other than that the companies will lay down their own
    guidelines in the matter of accpetable behavior vs. unacceptable behavior. 
    
    	Now, that being said, O'Connell and Sinden are a couple of bone
    heads. How can they say that this is strictly about Oates' salary
    negotiation? This is about the fact that Sinden hasn't lifted a finger 
    to try and improve this team. It's on auto pilot and it's been there
    for two years now. Oates only went and said what all us fans have been
    saying all season. 
    
    Barry
    
    

    
    Barry, I think this situation is a lot different than making
    a comment about someone's race/sex etc....Discriminating remarks
    should be treated with that kind of reaction where-as someone coming
    out and saying Mr. X is not doing his job should be handled
    differently.  Obviously, if you're going to hammer your boss here
    at Digital when you come up for promotion/review, the boss isn't
    going to put you on a pedastal.  Oates unloaded on management but
    it's not like he made racist/sexiest or discriminating remarks about
    anyone.
    
    FWIW, CF

Who had the a instead of Oates.  It looked like Donato had it in the first
period, but I saw him in the third and there wasn't an A on his jersey.  I
think what would have been a great idea from the players is if no one accepted
the A that was taken off of Oates' jersey.  Too bad it didn't heppen.

Dean

    Re. .11
    
    Chris,
    
    	In .4 Mac asked "what ever happened to free speech anyway?" I used
    an extreme example of racist/sexist remarks to illustrate that in the 
    corporate structure the constitutional right to free speech doesn't
    exist. That's all. Oates could be subject to suspension and/or fine for
    his comments. Within the Bruins organization there is no such thing as
    free speech just as there hardly isn't anywhere in corporate America. 
    Under DEC's new guidelines if I tell a female co-worker "You look nice
    today" because of the way that she's dressed I can end up in personel.
    If I tell that to a female that I know at a party or gathering there
    shouldn't be a problem. That's all I was trying to say.
    
    	Oh and FWIW Harry IS a lush. ;-)
    
    Barry
    
    

	Somebody told me Odgers had the A on last nite but like
	anything I type in here (I'm not sure)  8-)

	caught Bourque's reaction to the situation and I must say
	the man has alot of Class! He said that Oates is the go to guy
	on this team whether or not he wears the A. Couldn't help but
	wonder how long it is before Ray is the coach of this team.


	Toby

    ...huh, that's funny...every time I tell an attractive woman 
    (at a party) she's a knockout, I usually end up with the potato salad
    or cole slaw toassed at me......
    
    ...or her husband wants to "meet me outside".....jeez!
    
    GAWD, I *hate* these politically-correct times we live in.....
    ...long live The 70's!!!
    
    
    fried_at_times_mac

    
    Odger's has had an A on his jersey all year. 
    
    Oates and Odgers were co-A
    
    I don't think they gave Adams A to anyone else. 
    
    Rp 
    
    By the way... they did give Oates his just Assist after the game.
    His point streak is still alive at 20games.  

    What bugs me is the way O'Connell is attacking Oates, trying to 
    get the team to turn on him, which is a dead-give-away that O'Connell
    KNOWS ADAM IS RIGHT!!!  For example, if I come up to you and say
    "Hey, you're not doing your job!" you're probably going to 
    answer "Like Hell! I just did this, this, this and this"
    Since these would be the facts, I'd have to eat my words. 
    If however, you weren't doing your job, you might attack
    me to try and cover yourself. THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT O'CONNELL IS
    DOING NOW!!!
    Last year they had somewhat of an excuse (Neely, Stevens, they 
    thought Kasper could coach, etc.)  What's their excuse this year?
    
    Anyway, someone asked me how I typed in that other message.
    Well, it took me hours but I thought it was worth it. NOT!
    I extracted it from the Internet of course, and then posted the text
    with the Notes REP/EDIT filename command.
                                                     
    -Barry

    ...Barry, thanks fer the VMS skills lesson there pal...I wuz only
    joshing....'twas a good post tho.....
    
    hell, at least this file (and its' respective members) hasn't lost
    its' sense of humor....MAN, do we need that now or what??
    Tuff times indeed for the Broon faithful....
    
    mac
              

    
    Barry - didn't mean it to sound like an attack on you, sorry.
    I was just saying that racist comments are a different kettle 
    of fish, thats all.  I agree with the point you're making (mac's
    too - I've worn the potato salad myself).....
    
    
    ....PC sucks, it's very much against the right to free-speech.
    
    
    CF

    	Don't worry Chris, I didn't take it as an attack I was just trying
    to make my point clear to all, and you didn't sound like an a$$h$le
    either. 8-)
    
    	As I was watching this game last night my wife asked me why I
    bothered to watch these bums. After thinking about it I told her that
    the reason I was watching the game wasn't that I was that interested in
    watching the B's, I was more interested in watching hockey. Does this
    make any sense??? The look that I got from her led me to believe that
    perhaps it didn't. 8-)
    
    Barry
    

    	BTW, what's all this talk about potato salad??? Every time I've
    done that all I've gotten is a little piece of paper with a phone
    number on it... 8-)
    
    Barry
    

    Barry,
    
    	Putting hockey and the Ruins into one sentence is an oxymoron isn't
    	it?
    
    Jerry

    	This year it is yes. However anyone that knows me knows that the 
    'Hawks are my second favorite team so I was watchin' them. 8-)
    
    Barry
    

    
    Don't feel too bad, I actually look forward to the
    games......	
    
    		.....sad.