At the trading deadline, the Pittsburgh Penguins added Marian Hossa, Hal Gill, and Pascal Dupuis to their roster. The Boston Bruins stood pat, deciding to keep their young players and not interfere with the chemistry the team had developed all season.

Even without young star Patrice Bergeron (sidelined since October with a grade 3 concussion), the Bruins have become a force to be reckoned with in the East.  After a 4-win, 1 overtime loss road trip; the B’s returned home to annihilate the conference-best Ottawa Senators with a 4-0 shutout. The Bruins are now in 6th place with 74 points; 3 points behind the Canadiens for 5th place.

On Thursday night the B’s faced off against the 4th place Penguins.  With Sidney Crosby out for at least 2 more weeks, Evgeni Malkin has been putting up similar numbers in his abscence.

Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, the defense allowed Marco Sturm to score twice in the first period, setting the tone for the rest of the game. Captain Zdeno Chara and PJ Axelsson scored in the second on mental mistakes by the Pen’s D.

The Penguins seemed to hit the boiling point in the third period. At about at 10:36 a scuffle broke out that resulted in roughing penalties for Wideman and Chara, and a boarding call on Pitt’s Maxime Talbot.  A couple minutes after the tussle, new Penguin Pascal Dupuis scored their only goal of the night.

The highlight of the game may have been when 19-year-old Milan Lucic threw off the gloves and grappled with Jarkko Ruutu for nearly two minutes. The fight gave the team (and the fans) a boost.  Only seconds later a Mark Stuart shot deflected off of David Krejci’s foot for the 5th goal of the game.

Another decisive victory against a higher-seeded team helps the B’s playoff chances.   They will look to extend their seven-game point streak on Saturday against the Atlanta Thrashers.

After leading the New York Giants to the upset Super Bowl Championship victory less then one month ago, Tom Coughlin has been sitting on top of the world. With his new contract extension unofficially announced, soon Coughlin will be sitting on top of a pile of cash.

The Giants announced that over the next four seasons Coughlin will make $21 million dollars, which moves him into the upper tier of the NFL’s highest paid coaches. Only Mike Holmgren of the Seattle Seahawks will earn more then him next year ($8 million). Even Patriots head coach Bill Belichick who reportedly makes $4.2 million, will be earning less then Coughlin.

The deal is close to being signed, with both ends working on minor paperwork to complete the legal aspects of the contract. If the contract is signed, this will be a drastic change for Coughlin from this time last year when job security was not something he was fortunate enough to have. Many NY reporters felt that if Coughlin could not produce a playoff caliber team in ‘07 that he would not be resigned by the club.

Looks like Coughlin has nothing to worry about now except if he wants $50’s or $100’s.

Veteran LB Teddy Bruschi has agreed to the principle terms of a multi-year contract with the AFC Champion New England Patriots. The length of the contract has not been announced but is expected to be 2-3 years, at the end of which Bruschi will most likely retire from the NFL. The deal is expected to become official later this afternoon.

Bruschi is 34 years old and has been a member of all three of the New England Patriots Super Bowl Championship teams. Many thought that Bruschi may never play football again after suffering a stroke following the 2004 Super Bowl. He returned midway through the following season and has been a steady part of the Patriots defensive unit since.

In 2007, Bruschi started all 16 games during the regular-season as well as the three postseason match ups. He led the team in tackles with 99 and solo tackles with 69 all through the regular-season.

The Los Angeles Lakers 106-88 victory over the Miami Heat last night extended the team’s winning streak to 10 games, and gave them a one game lead for the best record in the Western Conference standings over the San Antonio Spurs. Since acquiring Pau Gasol, the Lakers have been unstoppable and have proven to the rest of the NBA that they are once again a serious contender for a championship run.

The Lakers do have some tough opponents on the horizon that will challenge their winning streak with competitive games. Tonight they face off against the Portland Trailblazers who have struggled recently but have played well against the West and on Sunday 3/2 they will host the Dallas Mavericks for what should be a dandy. That match up will feature two of the biggest names featured in trades this year in Gasol and Jason Kidd.

With the recent surge, some power rankings have listed the Lakers at the number one spot over the Boston Celtics for the first time all year. In the two meetings of the teams this season, the Celtics were victorious in both games. Things could get interesting come playoff time and the rivalry that hasn’t meant anything in recent years could quickly become the NBA Finals.

I’m sure every Celtics fan has heard the rumors regarding Sam Cassell coming to the Celtics over the past few weeks. The seasoned veteran hinted at his interest in joining the Green Machine but couldn’t say much as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers released the oft-injured guard yesterday opening the door for a move to the Celtics. Cassell has played in 38 games this season, averaging 12.8 points, 4.7 assists, and 2.8 rebounds. No word on whether or not the Celtics will pursue Cassell. Sam could provide some veteran leadership and experience off the bench for the Celtics. Cassell needs to clear waivers by midnight tonight to be eligible in the playoffs for any team that signs him.

The New York Rangers extended their win streak to 3 last night with a 4-2 win over the Hurricanes. The win was also their 6th in 8 games. The Rangers who have been playing great hockey of late kept pace with the Boston Bruins who were winners over the Penguins last night. The Rangers and Bruins are tied with 74 points each, but the Bruins hold the 6th playoff spot with the Rangers coming in at 7. With a tight race in the East, the Rangers have improved their focus and intensity over the last 2 weeks. After being picked by many to win the Eastern Conference, the Rangers now just want to make sure they make the playoffs.

The Boston Red Sox made their unofficial Spring debut yesterday beating up on two Boston area College teams. The Sox played Boston College in the first game and won 24-0. In the nightcap the Sox beat Northeastern University 15-0. The Red Sox have made it an annual tradition to play the two Boston college teams to open their Spring season.

The Red Sox will play their Grapefruit League opener today against the Minnesota Twins.

It had been over two weeks since the Boston Celtics stepped foot in the TD Banknorth Garden, but it felt great to return home Wednesday night with a huge 92-87 win over the surging Cleveland Cavaliers. The C’s were in control most of the way which pleased another sell-out crowd of over 18,000 fans and brought them to their feet for the games final seconds.

Not only did Celtics supporters get to see a great game, they got to witness a piece of history as Lebron James became the youngest player in NBA history to score 10,000 points. He did it in 23 years and 59 days, which was more then a year faster then it took Kobe Bryant to reach the milestone when he was 24 years and 193 days old.

“It doesn’t make me happy to do it in a losing effort,” James said on NBA.com.”To be in the record books is a tribute to my teammates, myself and my family.”

The historic basket came on a thundering dunk with 4:54 remaining in the third quarter that cut the Celtics lead to 9 points (63-54) but 21 seconds later after a Rajon Rondo floater put the C’s back up by 11 and the double-digit lead held until the final minute of the contest.

“We had our hands full (with James), but I thought we did a pretty good job,” said Ray Allen on NBA.com, “I think we gutted it out.”

Allen led the Celtics in scoring with a 7-10 shooting performance, good for 22 points in 36+ minutes of action. Kevin Garnett also contributed with a double-double grabbing 11 boards, hitting for 18 points, and snatching a game high 4 steals. Paul Pierce and Leon Powe were also in double figures scoring 12 and 13 points respectively in the win.

At one point mid-way through the fourth quarter, the Celtics lead was as high as 16 points.

This is a big win for the club, especially coming off of a sub-par road-trip in which they went 2-3 over the week. Now, in the midst of a five game home stand, the Celtics hope to defend their home territory and stay a top of the East. The Cavaliers game was exciting, but the gem of this home stand is the match up on Wed. March 5th, vs. Detroit. The Pistons are currently 3 games behind the C’s for the top spot in the East, but the Celtics have not forgotten that it was the same Pistons who handed them their first home court loss of the season back on Dec. 19th.

In addition to the victory, the Celtics also announced yesterday that they had signed veteran PF/C P.J. Brown for the stretch run. Brown plays aggressive low post defense and once in game shape will be used off the bench when Garnett and Kendrick Perkins are in foul trouble. The leadership role he will assume immediately will be more influential than his physical presence on the floor. He’s not a selfish player and truly believes in the concept of team, and that’s exactly the type of guys the Celtics could use.

“First and foremost, [I’m] just try to be even more of a stabilizer on the bench, being there for the guys, being another pair of eyes on the bench, another voice in the locker room and keep them going in the right direction,” Brown said on Yahoo Sports. “I know I’m probably not going to be playing a lot here real soon, but just being there for the guys for whatever they need - encouraging, supporting and being the biggest cheerleader I can possibly be as of right now.”

Looking at the rest of the Celtics current home stand, they will battle it out with the Charlotte Bobcats March 29th, and then the Atlanta Hawks come to town for an April 1st contest. Mark your calendars if you haven’t already for the war with the Detroit Pistons on April 5th and to cap off the stand the C’s will welcome the Chicago Bulls to town for a game on April 7th.

The Boston Bruins won their fourth straight game last night beating the Ottawa Senators 4-0 at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston. The Bruins pounced on a struggling Senators team scoring their first goal within the first six minutes. Thornton, Krejci and Chara were the goal scorers for the Bruins. Tim Thomas recorded his 2nd shutout of the year with 22 saves.

The Bruins are playing great hockey of late and currently hold the 6th spot in the Eastern Conference. Last night’s win bumped the New York Rangers into the number 7 spot in the East. The two teams are tied with 72 points each. With such a tight race in the East the Bruins, like all teams near or over the playoff threshold, need to keep winning if they want to stay in the hunt.

The Bruins will host the Penguins on Thursday 2/28 at the Garden.

Rap superstar Kanye West will be on the road in the Spring of 2008. Kanye’s 2008 Glow in the Dark Tour will kick off on 4/16 in Seattle. Other stops include the Tweeter Center in Mansfield, MA on 5/15 and Madison Square Garden on 5/13 in New York. See the full tour schedule below. The tour will also feature Rihanna. Kanye West tickets are now available for most shows on the tour.

2008 Kanye West Glow in the Dark Tour

· 4/16 - Seattle, WA @ Key Arena
· 4/18 - Sacramento, CA @ ARCO Arena
· 4/19 - San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion
· 4/20 - San Diego, CA @ Sports Arena
· 4/21 - Los Angeles, CA @ Nokia Theatre
· 4/25 - * Las Vegas, NV @ Red Rock Casino Resort Spa
· 4/26 - * Albuquerque, NM @ Journal Pavilion
· 4/27 - Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
· 4/29 - Oklahoma City, OK @ Ford Center
· 4/30 - Austin, TX @ Frank Irwin Center
· 5/1 - Dallas, TX @ SuperPages.com Center
· 5/2 - Houston, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
· 5/4 - Atlanta, GA @ Gwinette Arena
· 5/5 - Tampa, FL @ Ford Amphitheatre
· 5/6 - Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena
· 5/8 - Charlotte, NC @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
· 5/9 - Raleigh, NC @ Walnut Creek Amphitheatre
· 5/10 - Washington, DC @ Nissan Pavilion
· 5/11 - Virginia Beach, VA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
· 5/13 - New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
· 5/15 - Boston, MA @ Tweeter Center
· 5/16 - Hartford, CT @ North East Dodge Music Center
· 5/17 - Philadelphia, PA @ Susquehana Bank Center
· 5/18 - Scranton, PA @ Toyota Pavilion
· 5/20 - Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre
· 5/21 - Toronto, ON @ Molson Centre
· 5/22 - Auburn Hills, MI @ The Palace of Auburn Hills
· 5/23 - Chicago, IL @ United Center
· 5/24 - Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center
· 5/27 - Saskatoon, SK @ Credit Union Centre
· 5/29 - Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Palace
· 5/30 - Calgary, AB @ Saddledome