For the second straight spring we are loserville USA. Celtics and Bruins playoff series were once a rite of spring. Sadly we have a generation of hockey and basketball fans that have no clue how a playoff series can grip an entire region. The Bruins have failed to reach the post season for the third straght year and fifth time in this decade while the Celtics have missed the playoffs four times in the same span. As a matter of fact there have been five springs in the last ten years when the Garden has been dark during playoff time, with both the Bruins and the Celtics finishing out of the money. Prior to 1997 you have to go back all the way to 1950 to find the last time there wasn't a Bruins or Celtics playoff series in town. Nothing beat the buzz on Causeway Street,the subway, the lobby of the Garden on playoff night. Often, on Sundays, the Celtics would take care business with the Hawks, Pacers or 76ers in the afternoon and then after the Garden cleared out, the Bruins would put on their show at night with the Canadiens, Rangers or Oilers. There was always a villian, public enemy #1 on the opposition while new heroes emerged in Black and Gold or Green and White. Forget the regular season, teams make their everlasting mark during playoff time, under pressure as well as intense scrutiny from an entire region of loyal as well as peripheral fans. Celtics and Bruins, we'd love to keep the light on for you, but you've given us no sign that you are close to coming home.