The holidays are here again. By the end of the week, we’ll be stuffed with turkey, surrounded by family, and thinking about all we have to be thankful for. With that in mind, I’ve come up with a partial sports list of reasons to give thanks.

Be thankful for the Patriots. The rest of the country is just starting to figure out something we’ve known for weeks now: the Pats are one of the best teams in the NFL. They’ve beaten the likes of Tennessee, and came out on top against nemesis Bill Parcells. If they can get through today’s trap game at Houston, they’ll be rolling into a huge showdown against Indianapolis to kick off December.

Be thankful the NHL isn’t going to have a work stoppage until next year. The Bruins are in first place, and playing well. It’s way too early to talk about the playoffs, but this team has responded well.

The biggest question marks surrounding the team (goaltending and defense) have become major strengths.

Give thanks to the future of the Celtics. The Antoine Walker trade makes them not as good a team this year, but they should have salary cap room to grow in coming years. Danny Ainge realized he had to blow things up to move forward, and he was right.

Be thankful we have the Red Sox. Ask the good people of Milwaukee or Detroit what it’s like to be a baseball fan.

Be thankful you’re not Grady Little. He is a good man, a fair manager, and has become the biggest Boston sports scapegoat since Bill Buckner. Did you hear the latest Grady Little joke?

Q: Why can’t Grady Little get his lawn mower going?

A: He doesn’t know how to pull the starter.

Be thankful you’re not Phil Esposito. The Bruins legend has a new book out called “Thunder and Lightning: a no-B.S. Hockey Memoir.” In it, Espo tells all and names names. And some of the names named are not too happy about it. It’s a funny, entertaining read… unless you see your name listed in some of the off-ice pranks from the old days. Does he really need the money that badly?

Be thankful the Maineiacs have come to town.

The arenas are all fixed up and pretty, and Lewiston/Auburn has a team to call its own.

Get your tickets for the next visit by Rimouski, so you can say you saw Sidney Crosby before he turned into an NHL superstar.

Say thanks that you won’t get to see Patrice Bergeron playing the Maineiacs this season. He was expected to go back to Acadie-Bathurst, but instead he’s playing for the Bruins. He’s the youngest player in the NHL, and is a serious Calder Trophy (Rookie of the Year) candidate.

Be thankful you’re not a Washington Capitals fan. The team entered the weekend tied for last place in the entire league, and owner Ted Leonsis says he’s lost some $100 million since buying the team.

There are a lot of things wrong on the business side of the NHL, and the team in our nation’s capital is symbolic of most of them.

Then again, if you’re Ted Leonsis, you can be thankful that you had $100 million to lose.

Lewiston native Tom Caron is a NESN sports analyst for Red Sox and Bruins telecasts.

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