Paint pen issues

I don't know what it is, but I'm being plagued again by balky DecoColor paint pens. Over the years, these have been a reliable resource in building our 2,100-plus autographed puck collection. But these three pucks, snagged earlier this week when the Boston Bruins came to town, are the latest examples that have me looking for something new.

I swear, I take the time to prime each pen -- shaking it and depressing the tip to get the paint flowing -- before getting a puck signed. Still, though, the results are less than impressive. Though it's been chilly down here lately in Hockey Bay (by Florida standards, that is), I'm not convinced that the culprit.

While two of the pucks -- the 2010 Olympic champions puck from Patrice Bergeron and big Bruins logo from Milan Lucic -- are passable, the Providence Bruins puck "signed" by Tuukka Rask is a candidate for a do-over.

Top of his list

Really, is anyone who knows us or follows Hound Central 5.0 surprised that Colin got Boston's Patrice Bergeron, his best NHL buddy, to sign this photo taken of them in November? I'm not. Of all the items we had for the Bruins on Tuesday, this was, hands down, the most important.

Yes, we may have a ton of autographs from "Petey" over the years, but this is only the latest installment of what is Colin's favorite part of our collection. Even though he may have other "buddies" throughout the league, our little #37 is extremely loyal to the Bruins' #37.

Our annual tradition

Ever since Boston's Patrice Bergeron became Colin's best NHL buddy, we've made a point of getting a picture of the two. We got the 2010-11 edition out of the way Monday before the Bruins morning skate.

As always, "Petey" was a class act.

Classic move

For the most part, Colin likes to draw a logo any time he works one of his team sheets for a visiting NHL team. This time, though, we tried something a little different -- a wallpaper image of the team's jersey from the 2010 Winter Classic.

Seeing that 21 Bruins players, including Patrice Bergeron, Zdeno Chara, Tuukka Rask, Marc Savard and Tim Thomas, as well as head coach Claude Julien all signed it Wednesday, I'd say it served its purpose.

For the scrapbook

It's always a highlight of our hockey-hounding campaign whenever Colin gets to meet his favorite NHL player, Boston's Patrice Bergeron, and I take what's becoming an annual event -- a picture of the pair.

It's even better, Colin likes to think, when Patrice signs the photo for him, like he did Wednesday when a case of the "Bruins flu" kept Colin from a half-day of classes.

Nice pick

Canadians from Cranbrook to Cape Breton will debate the addition of Patrice Bergeron to the 2010 Canadian Olympic team, but there are at least three people down here in Hockey Bay who have one word for the Hockey Canada's selection: Magnifique!

Puck No. 2,000

Enough with the suspense, right? After a week of writing about it, and leaving faithful Hound Central 5.0 readers hanging for the past few hours, you're now looking at the 2,000th autographed puck of the collection.

Much to our amazement, the Hockey Gods aligned the planets, setting in place the opportunity for Colin to get the milestone puck from his best NHL buddy and favorite player: Boston's Patrice Bergeron.

Though I know I should've captured the actual moment, the memory of witnessing this interaction is indelibly ingrained in my mind:

Patrice comes walking toward us, a smile growing on his face as he recognizes his little buddy. I hand Colin, wearing his Bergeron jersey, the two pucks -- one for the 2010 Winter Classic and this Canada souvenir puck -- we had for Patrice.

"Hey, buddy," Patrice says, "How have you been?"

"Hi, Patrice," Colin says. "I'm good. Can you sign these pucks, please? If you do, we'll have 2,000 for the collection."

Of course, as he always has, Patrice signs whatever Colin asks of him. The Winter Classic puck, one of four we got signed by Bruins players, was No. 1,999. The Canada puck was next.

"Oh, my God," Patrice says. "That's a lot of pucks."

Then, as I'm chiding myself for not grabbing the camera to record the occasion, Patrice and Colin walk away, side by side, heading toward the rink. Patrice asks Colin about his hockey season. I stay a few steps back, letting them have their moment.

The torch, I'm proud to say, has officially been passed.

For the record, though, here's the annual picture of Colin and Patrice, taken after the Bruins' morning skate, moments after Colin gave him an autographed puck.

Numbers game

One of the hardest things about these team sheets -- and really they are pretty darn easy -- is keeping track of all of the signatures that often fill them. In this case, 24 members of the Boston Bruins team and coaching staff, supplied 26 signatures.

Who signed twice? David Krejci and Blake Wheeler.

Who did Colin miss? Goalies Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask.

The most important signature? C'mon, now, that ought to be easy. It was Patrice Bergeron, tucked up in the upper right corner.

In the ballpark

Given that the 2010 Winter Classic, featuring the Philadelphia Flyers meeting the Boston Bruins, takes place Friday at venerable Fenway Park, it made perfect sense yesterday to add a few Bruins players to the mix:

Top row: Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci
Bottom row: Marc Savard and Tim Thomas

My only regret is that I didn't buy more of these pucks.

Gallery: Boston Bruins

It's part of the drill, really, heading down to the glass to watch warm-ups. It's extra special, though, when your favorite NHL team comes to town. Just ask Colin, who got his front-row perch long before warm-ups began. Here are a few sights, taken by The Missus, from last night's pregame action:

Patrice Bergeron, Colin's best NHL buddy, watches warm-ups.

Bruins captain Zdeno Chara is an imposing presence, even before the game.

Goalie Tuukka Rask prepares to make a save while Patrice Bergeron waits for a rebound opportunity.

As Colin watches warm-ups, Mark Recchi hangs out near the boards. Recchi, who earlier in the day watched Colin wipe out in front of him, would later flip a puck over the glass to Colin.

Something in the crowd catches the attention of goalie Tim Thomas.

Along the blue line, Steve Begin, from left, Blake Wheeler and Johnny Boychuk await their turns during warm-ups.