BP #4-Sports News Article: Bruins vs. Coyotes

 The Boston Bruins won 4-1 against the Arizona Coyotes at the TD Garden on Saturday. Chara, Bergeron, Lucic, and Marchand all scored, and Rask secured the lead by stopping all but one of the 32 shots taken on goal throughout the course of the game.   

Without playmaker David Krejci, out for 4-6 weeks with an injury, the team had to step up their offensive attack. With this being said, the team did just that. The Arizona Coyotes came into the game with an 8 game losing streak. Head Coach Claude Julien exclaimed that they were not focused on the Coyotes. The team was too busy focusing on what they needed to do to pull off their second straight home win. The team certainly did just what they came to the game to do. Brad Marchand had a remarkable game. He has been on a scoring spree and was the first of the 4 bruins players to hit the back of the net.

“I said to the guys before the game, ‘It’s not who we play but how we play right now until the end,’ ” coach Julien said. “That’s the approach we have to take. We can’t afford to be unprepared for games like this, just because of their record right now and what they’ve been going through. I think it’s important if we want to be in one of the playoff spots, that we have to be a team that’s ready to play on a nightly basis. There are a lot of reasons not to take these situations lightly and I think our guys responded well.” With a pep talk like this, who wouldn't want to go out and play their hardest? 

The team has been the first to score in the past few games but struggle to keep the lead. The team must keep up the drive and intensity right into the playoffs. The B's have 20 games left in the regular season to play before they either go into off season or the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  

Hoop Dreams

   "Hoop Dreams" is a documentary following two young talented basketball stars. The athletes were Arthur Agee and William Gates.  The documentary showed great opportunities, heart breaks, and the true struggle of growing up in Chicago. Both boys were given huge opportunities and promising futures. Unfortunately, the two were faced with major struggles in life. They struggled in school because they could only focus on what they loved, basketball. William also became a father at a very young age. The two athletes lived in hard conditions in small houses surrounded by drugs and violence. Fortunately, they were able to stay clear of them for the most part. This was because they were smart enough to know not to risk losing their goals in the future. Without basketball, one may believe that the two would not have finished high school and at least begin college. 

 One theme that was recognized from early on in the documentary is hope. Hope is shown through the major struggles of the boys' lives. Neither of them wanted to go to school and were struggling academically. Thankfully, there was always a little bit of hope that pushed them to continue perusing their education and play in a collegiate level. Also, hope is shown when one of the boys can no longer afford to go to his private high school. His mother lost her job and the family was not receiving the income that they needed. They had to send Arthur to the public school. They knew he was not getting as good of an education there, but hope showed the family that their son still had a the chance of playing basketball for a career if he applied himself enough. Without hope, the boys would not have done as much in life as they did.

The Impact of Professional Sports

 

 Professional sports impact and influence societies in various ways. Many ways are great and attract people together in a common connection of likes and dislikes. People can find ways to oversee racial tension and discrimination. Although, sports can also have a negative impact on a community of people. Violence can occur with bad calls and poor sportsmanship. Once players and viewers are invested into a specific game, there is no turning back. Whether an individual allows them self to be impacted in a positive or negative way is their own choice. However, once the decision is chosen, it is very hard to change thoughts. It is important to make the right selection in which way one is effected by a sport.

  Sports can be life changing. They can be an outlet of stress, anxiety, and really support athletes and viewers in a time of need. Neighbors and individuals that would not normally ally together can do so over a specific team or athlete. Just one team can have a tremendous influence on thousands of others. For example, right after the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings, The Boston Red Sox won The World Series with strength and courage. With the city of Boston left in loss after such a tragedy, a championship win would surely lift spirits. The team united with morale,  many people truly reconstructed back into their old happy ways and life was almost effortless again.

  Sports can also be destructive and cause harm. It has occurred that after a team allows a loss, intoxicated and even just angry fans have gone out on to the streets of their beloved town or city and started violence. Cars have been flipped, buildings burned, and people seriously hurt and even killed. Athletes have received threats for not preforming at their best to win. In Superbowl XLIX, The Seattle Seahawks had an opportunity to win the whole game with just one run. Instead, the team attempted a pass and the throw was intercepted. The game ended in triumph and the New England Patriots won. Since then, the coach and players of Seahawks have been mocked, threatened, and even bullied by opposing fans and even their very own.

  Fortunately, I have personally decided to be impacted and influenced by sports in a positive way. I used to use gymnastics as an escape. When tensions would rise in my life and I felt as though everything was crashing down on top of me, I would go to my gym and work on my routines and skills. I was fortunately able to do this whenever needed. One may believe that without gymnastics, I would not be the person I am today. I also to this day use soccer and track in a positive way to impact my life. Track keeps me in shape and motivated to be a better person. I look up to my captains and teammates for advice and encouragement. There has always been a runner better than me. I'm always in second place, but I use this placement to show myself that I have more to improve on and there is always potential. Because I have had to stop competing in gymnastics, I now use soccer as an escape. I can kick around a ball whenever I need. So many less fortunate kids use the same strategies as I do to keep themselves going. The struggles may not be the same, but I can connect to many others with my interests and abilities in sports.

Super Bowl XLIX Reaction

   "Uncharacteristically cool and calm," claims Sports Illustrated journalist Greg Bedard, as he praises Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. During Superbowl XLIX last weekend, The New England Patriots had all odds set against them all through the second half. This was the game where all of the controversial reports and allegations would be set to rest. Thankfully, during the final quarter of the game, the team came together to pull of a victory. Many sports teams have done this before, and it feels great to know all of your hard work has paid off. For example, Norton girls indoor track and field has acquired their best record this year for the season. The team knew they would win every single meet as long as they beat Hopkinton. There was just one problem for the girls, Hopkinton had not lost in over nine years with a record of 144 straight wins. The team was working their hardest, but was unfortunately down a few points. The only way they could win the meet was if they swept high jump. Hopkinton has a very good high jump team, but Norton was knew they had to prove themselves. The girls came together in a time of need and preformed their very best, They did just what was needed to be done to win and the meet ended in triumph. To have a game or match that is so intense and deep that the players and spectators are invested until the very last play is amazing. The girls of Norton track and field certainly did not win the Superbowl, but the rush of a hard fought win is truly inspiring. All teams should strive for victories like these because the feeling of winning will never get old.

Super Bowl XLIX Prediction

   The New England Patriots are preparing to match up against the Seattle Seahawks in Arizona for Superbowl XLIX. The question on many minds throughout the past week is who will come out victorious? The Patriots have overcome media and low-life middle aged men complaining that the team played too well. The NFL took to this idea and came up with the theory that a patriots employee deflated the balls before they were put into play. This thought is completely disrespectful and unamerican. The New England Patriots played with all of their hearts and without a doubt won the game fairly. If the Patriots play this next game with the same attitude as the last, there is no reason as to why they will not win.

  Personally, one may believe that the Patriots will win the game. If this specific game is like the last, many individuals are going to complain and come up with an excuse as to why this hardworking team does not deserve their trophy. These people are fans of opposing teams that are still upset from a game when the Patriots most likely destroyed. These people are just trying to get some sort of reaction out of the media to take away from the glory. Overall, I believe that the patriots will come out on top as long as they do their job. 

Responding To 'Bruins bounce back from break'

     The general statement made by Denis Gorman in his work, Bruins bounce back from break, praises The Boston Bruins on their ability to pull off a win last night against The New York Islanders. He writes, "Kevin Miller helped he Boston Bruins get off to a winning start after the All-Star break." In this passage, Gorman is speaking of all of the good opportunities that came together which allowed the Bruins to pull through this game. Many players took some hard hits for a play to occur which in the long run helped the team come out on top. There is more to hockey than just scoring and saving goals. Every successful pass leading up to a shot should be praised just the same. The defense did a good job of coming back quick and cutting off angles. There was good communication among the players and it definitely showed.

   In my view, Denis Gorman does a good job of telling the end result of the game but misses some key points. The author lacks detail of the outstanding plays. An example of this is, Tuukka Rask had one of his best games of this season. Even though he did not have a perfect shutout, Rask stopped an impressive number of 43 shots through the course of the game. With a chance to lead the game, The Islanders took a shot and amidst all of the chaos, Rask preformed the save of the game and kept the team alive. After this save, the team was able to get themselves together and bring the puck back up ice. Now, with just 3.4 seconds left in the second period, Kevin Miller scores an untimely goal. Gorman did however talk about this play. This goal gave the team the boost they needed to finish the game with a 5-2 victory.

What is a Sport?

   All around the world, sports are played by many. It is a way to bring people from all backgrounds together. Whether opponents speak the same language or not, sports are about performances, not necessarily speaking to the opponent. But what actually defines a sport? This is a very controversial topic, debated by the worlds' top scholars and athletes. Does the player need to have physical endurance and the outcome have an obvious winner? A sport is unofficially defined as an activity that requires skill and physical activity or practice.

  There are many activities that may or may not count as a sport depending on the viewer. An example of this is cheer leading. Cheer leading is extremely competitive. Stunts must be spot on and timing must be perfect. To some, the extent of physical endurance is enough to qualify cheer leading as a sport, but to others there is no offense or defense which keeps it from the title of a sport. There are many other activities that have the same level of difficulty but also lack contact or physical endurance needed. But for now, the true definition of sport is untold.