Tim Thomas' inexcusable absence

The Boston Bruins visited the White House today to commemorate their 2011 Stanley Cup title. One prominent member of that squad was absent, however, in goaltender Tim Thomas. Thomas chose not to join his teammates at the White House as a sort of political stand.

Thomas released the following statement today on his Facebook page:

"I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People.

This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government.

Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.

This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT"

To me, this is not the time or the place for Thomas to take such a stand. He is right, he is entitled to his political beliefs. However, his stance took the spotlight off of a big day for the rest of his teammates and organization. Everyone else that I read quotes from spoke glowingly of the visit.

Regardless of how Thomas or anyone else feels about the Obama administration, going to the White House is a celebrated tradition. In my view, the only reason to boycott such an occasion is if a President were to remain in office following a Watergate-type of scandal (which I don't anticipate happening, by the way). I don't think anyone was going to assume Thomas was a Democrat just because he went to the White House with his team in celebration of winning a major championship.

Thomas certainly could have found a more appropriate avenue to voice his displeasure with President Obama and the current administration. Yes, this stands out more, but the message it sends is that Thomas considers his views more important than those of his teammates. In my view, it also paints him as delusional and out of touch with pro sports and society as a whole.

Thomas is entitled to his thoughts, but through his actions he placed himself above his teammates, which is just the latest in a long line of selfish acts by star athletes.

Burrows takes bite out of Bruins

At left: Vancouver's Alex Burrows bites Boston's Patrice Bergeron during Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. Burrows was not suspended for his actions.

The Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins resume the Stanley Cup Final tonight at 6 p.m. MT on Versus. The Canucks lead the series 2 games to none. The series has not been a good showing for the NHL so far. During a scrum in Game 1, Canucks forward Alex Burrows bit Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron. It was clearly a bite, I could see that on television. To back that up, it was plain to see that there was blood seeping through Bergeron's glove.

Worst of all, the NHL didn't suspend Burrows, saying there was not conclusive evidence to do so. That whole notion is ridiculous, the entire world could tell it was a bite. Worse yet for the NHL, Burrows scored 2 goals in Game 2, including the game-winner just seconds into overtime. This magnifies the problem. Burrows should not have been out there, he probably should have been suspended for at least the remainder of the series.

People have often considered the NHL less civilized than other sports. Normally, I don't quite buy those arguments because I believe some clean contact is part of the game and that guys typically aren't trying to seriously injure someone else. However, biting is frowned on in every sport. It has no place in hockey, or at least it shouldn't. The NHL failing to take action opens the door for other incidents such as this to occur. It's disgraceful to hockey and the league needs to work on cleaning up its image if it wants to grow in popularity. For an incident like this to be seen on national television and go unpunished is bad news for the NHL.

In fact, in Game 2, Canucks forward Maxim Lapierre taunted Bergeron by sticking his glove in his face, likely asking him if he wanted to take a bite out of it. Also in the game, Bruins defenseman Adam McQuaid appeared to ask Burrows during a scrum "You gonna bite me?" The Canucks' image is tarnished, but it also appears that the Bruins may be letting that get into their heads. Even if the Canucks are making light of the situation, the Bruins need to focus on Game 3, which is a must-win game for them. I kind of hope that Boston can pull it out, I was sort of cheering for Vancouver, but the biting incident makes it harder to do so.