There's a lot to be excited about....

It seemed as though hockey didn't end. It seemed as though my fellow Bruins loyalists were itching to go. I found this an odd phenomenon. For as long as I can remember - the Bruins have been the red headed stepchild of the Boston Sport Scene. The Pats have won 3 Superbowls since 2001, the Sox have won 2 World Series (who would have thought?) and the Celts have raised Banner 17. All that and the one that means the most to me, will give me the most joy is Lord Stanley's Cup. I do believe it's the hardest trophy to win in sports...you can disagree, but that sentiment is thought to be true by many. I think it would look on a duck boat on Causeway Street - just sayin'

June:

Shawn Thornton was resigned. What's not to love about a tough guy who's great with the media. I purposely leave later on the days he calls in to Toucher & Rich on the Sports Hub because he always cracks me up.

Cam Neely was named President of the Boston Bruins. Cam has shown he's not just an alumni name in the organization. When he talks about the roles he's been holding within the front office and hockey operations, he shows a lot of passion. He takes a ton of pride in the role and I know I'm thrilled to see him in this role.

Shortly after that, Wideman traded to Florida for Nathan Horton. I can't lie - I was blaming all the problems in my life on #6. I felt bad to see the guy get booed. I would never boo someone on my team. But there was no way they could bring him back. Nathan Horton sounds excited to be here and why not...he doesn't have to play hockey in Florida anymore.

Shortly after that, strengthened up the defense with the signing of Seidenberg.

In any case, there was a lot to look forward to, the lottery afforded the Black and Gold the 2nd overall pick.

The draft was broadcast in the middle of Fanieul Hall - it was a sea of black and gold. Could it be that I was not the only one anticipating the return of the team that blew a 3-0 lead just last May....yep.

Once Taylor Hall was gone, we all knew it would be Tyler.

July:

The resigning of Paille puzzles me, but in the past the Bruins have been criticized for not locking anyone up, now contracts are like ice cream at little league.

Development Camp Opened to overwhelming support. Who knew

The resigning of Stuart is a big win in my opinion, he's kind of crazy. Willing to stick up for his teammates and he's a serviceable defenseman.

Blake Wheeler is signed to the arbitration ruling for a year. Ice cream for everyone. I like that Wheels made the Bruins make some tough choices to start his first season. But disappointing season for Wheels 2009-10.

August:

Contract for Seguin. Entry level contract.

NHL announces they'll be looking into #91's contract...fingers begin to cross. Savvy's deal is borderline - but feasible. But thanks to the Kovlachuk's deal with the Devils...it's being looked into.

September:

Brings training camp and some bad news - #91 is suffering from post concussion syndrome. Speculation about him just being upset about possibly being dealt disgusts me. Knowing #91 isn't ready to go is worrisome. Matt Cooke continues to cost us and not be punished and it makes me angry knowing one of the best players to wear the spoked B in quite some time is sitting in the dark somewhere.

On the upside: Rookie Games

Everyone wanted to see Seguin, but he wasn't the only thing on the ice. 25,000 people showed up over 2 nights. 2 Nights, 2 Wins, 5 bucks for General Admission. Jack Edwards (who I have a slightly unhealthy obsession with) did the PA announcing. It even gave him the opportunity to call the OT winner by Spooner "Spooner sticks a fork in it!"

More importantly on a personal note - we got to open the winter home - check out the pipes, so to speak. We'd begun the shut down of the summer home on Yawkey Way...and it was just a matter of time till the Sox were officially out of it.

Also on a fun note for me - I went for a skate for the first time in about 20 years on the ice at the Garden. I brought my cousin KJ and we had a BLAST. He had a rough summer and was getting ready to move away the following weekend, so it was fun to go buy some skates and take the ice together.

September:

The Bruins play preseason games. People are up in arms that NESN isn't showing preseason hockey instead of the Sox. If the Sox were playoff bound this wouldn't have even come up, that said - seriously people are fired up to watch some preseason hockey. I gave up one of my two games to my cousin - my partner in crime wasn't going and I honestly felt that it was smarter to spend some time with the hubs in between the gap of softball season and hockey season.

We did go to the Bruins Caps preseason game - which hubs came with. My dirty secret is: I married a Caps fan. What can I say? I love hockey, he loves hockey. When we started dating no guy I went out with could get through a first date without picking on me for liking the Boston Bruins. While it's surprising I would be married to a fan of another team - I enjoy it.

He's a good guy, loves hockey and will pick me up on a Saturday night after a game so I can enjoy a few beverages and not worry about driving home...how can I go wrong, at least he's a fan of the Red, White and Blue as opposed to the Rouge, Blanc et Bleu. That would be bad.

Unfortunately for me it was a VERY busy day at work and I didn't make it in to the game until mid way through the second period. Just in time to see my boy Timmy give up 4 goals. By the second goal everyone was calling for Tuukka....gross. Not that Tuukka isn't a good goalie, I guess I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for Timmy. He's the perfect example of never giving up on your dreams and what can happen when you have a family that supports you. Not to mention he not that far removed from the Veznia trophy. I guess it's hard to remember in our short attention society, but this girl will always be rooting for Timmy.

The Bruins leave for Europe. All news seems to come in the form of Tweets - because barely any press has gone.

Seems like it was a wonderful opportunity for the team to spend some quality time together. Playing in Belfast and the Czech Republic.

The day before the puck was dropped halfway around the world, the news of Bergeron's extension for 3 years is announced. It's hard to believe this kid is only 25, I hope he plays for us for 13 more years.

Before arriving at The Fours for the puck drop on the opener the news of Chara's extension is announced. Good deal - now we all have ice cream - let's play some hockey.