Alumni in the Pros - February 2009

[Rita]

Ryan O'Byrne and Bryon Bitz playing this afternoon in the B's @ Habs game. (OB is getting lots of camera time on CBC).

The Hab's are wearing a 3rd uniform and the 3 color horizontal striping on the jersey's and socks is very hard on my eyes. I'm glad I'm not watching in HD. ::bugeye::

[Al DeFlorio]

Worst...unis...ever.::woot::

Thanks for the alert, Rita.

[jkahn]

Nice assist by Bitz gives Bruins a 2-1 lead in 2nd.  He's hustling his butt off every second he's out there in the games I've watched.
On the other hand, O'B got solidly booed by the Montreal crowd when he took an interference penalty late in the first.
And, yes I agree, worst uniforms ever, any sport, any level (except maybe some foreign soccer teams who are basically commercial billboards).

[cbuckser]

The Canadiens are celebrating their 100th anniversary by wearing its former uniforms.  Keep in mind that today's 96-year-old sweater preceded the use of uniform numbers on players' backs.  Also, I'm sure these barbershop sweaters looked better when made of wool than with modern materials.

[Al DeFlorio]

Bitz interviewed after the second period on NESN.  Usual stuff:  "We're the checking line...keep them from scoring...very emotional game...lot of fun to play, etc."

[Rita]

[quote Al DeFlorio]Worst...unis...ever.::woot::

Thanks for the alert, Rita.[/quote]

And these 96 year old unis also predate television ;-). Maybe they look better in person.

For better looking "uniforms", check out Puppy Bowl V on the Animal Planet. There are some very cute "coats" there. :-) Some even wooly and furry.

[Al DeFlorio]

[quote Rita][quote Al DeFlorio]Worst...unis...ever.::woot::

Thanks for the alert, Rita.[/quote]

And these 96 year old unis also predate television ;-). Maybe they look better in person.

For better looking "uniforms", check out Puppy Bowl V on the Animal Planet. There are some very cute "coats" there. :-) Some even wooly and furry.[/quote]
Bruins' announcers gave the final score as:  Bruins 3, Inmates 1.::crazy::

Cheap shot to the head by O'Byrne in the final seconds.::doh::

[oceanst41]

Two great games in a row for Bitz. His work along with Thornton and Yelle in the last two have really given the Bruins some momentum when they needed it.

On the flip side, with 5 seconds left O'Byrne takes a run at Kobasew with an elbow to the head, trying to drive him through the glass. No need for that kind of stuff.

[TimV]

2 nice pictures (3rd and 4th in the series, I think) of Bitz here. Slideshow includes the "Barbershop" jersies the above posts banged on.

[ugarte]

[quote TimV]2 nice pictures (3rd and 4th in the series, I think) of Bitz here. Slideshow includes the "Barbershop" jersies pajamas the above posts banged on.[/quote]
FYP

[Brian]

[quote Al DeFlorio][quote Rita][quote Al DeFlorio]Worst...unis...ever.::woot::

Thanks for the alert, Rita.[/quote]

And these 96 year old unis also predate television ;-). Maybe they look better in person.

For better looking "uniforms", check out Puppy Bowl V on the Animal Planet. There are some very cute "coats" there. :-) Some even wooly and furry.[/quote]
Bruins' announcers gave the final score as:  Bruins 3, Inmates 1.::crazy::

Cheap shot to the head by O'Byrne in the final seconds.::doh::[/quote]

Then maybe the ugly shot of the jerseys that is posted on yahoo is appropriate:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Pass-or-Fail-Habs-barber-poles-Wranglers-Blag?urn=nhl,138183

[Al DeFlorio]

From today's game story in the Cape Cod Times:

The Canadiens wore "barber pole" retro jerseys and socks featuring the distinctive look of narrow red, white and blue horizontal bands used by the team in 1912-13.

"I was really concerned about it in warmup," [Bruins forward Shawn] Thornton said. "When there were 23 guys skating around, I was dizzy and I didn't know if I got enough sleep or what. It wasn't as bad once there were five guys out there."

[RatushnyFan]

Some press on O'Byrne is more positive recently:

"Ryan O'Byrne, who has been up and down between the Canadiens and Hamilton, seems to have improved his play during his stint in Hamilton. The complaint we had earlier about him was that he wasn't using his size enough to deliver some solid hits. In the game against Boston, O'Byrne dished out six hits.  It is a beginning and if he doesn't score on our own goalie, he can't be a threat to our team."
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/118827-montreal-canadiens-present-situation-how-is-the-end-of-the-season-looking

"Ryan O'Byrne:  7.25  Very impressed with his return this week - had patience with the puck and for the most part made the right decisions.  With these injuries, he'll need to keep it up."
http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=1752

"Ryan O'Byrne:  A-  What? O'Byrne listed first? Yeah yeah, Hamrlik may have been the better choice to lead this section, but let's give the guy a break. He deserves a break. O'Byrne hit, he battled, and even pinched in smartly to keep the play alive. Now, when he makes a mistake, it does seem to stick with him for the rest of his shift. Hopefully a few more strong outings like this one will help him develop a Teflon attitude to any faults that will happen."
http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=1751

[CowbellGuy]

Speaking of odd unis...

[cbuckser]

Ryan Vesce nearly made his NHL debut last weekend.  He made the trip to San Jose for Saturday night's game, but he did not dress.