While Andrew Ference is serving out his one-game suspension, the Bruins have a difficult decision to make. Do they turn to rookie Dougie Hamilton or Aaron Johnson to fill Ference’s role?

Both players have their pluses and minuses. Hamilton may be the better player, but including him in the Bruins’ lineup would split up Dennis Seidenberg and Zdeno Chara. Johnson hasn’t played for more than a month, but the B’s don’t really need Hamilton’s scoring prowess against the Leafs. It may be better to keep Chara and Seidenberg together since Ference will only be out one game.

WEEI’s Mike Salk and DJ Bean debated the issue on NESN Daily‘s Two Sides segment. Watch the video above to see who won.

The NFL is currently investigating Tom Brady‘s questionable slide which clipped Ravens defender Ed Reed, but that isn’t precluding us from engaging in a little healthy speculation about said slide.

With that in mind, WEEI insiders Mike Mutnansky and Rob Bradford dropped by the NESN Daily studios to debate it out: Should Brady have apologized to Reed, or was it just a football play? In this edition of Two Sides, Bradford gives Mutnansky the business, and that may have ultimately influenced the voting, as Bradford won squarely with 64 percent of the text-message approval.

Check out the whole debate above.

With the Ravens riding the emotional exit of Ray Lewis into the sunset, it begs the question whether the Patriots need a different kind of edge to find more playoff success.

Although the Pats just concluded a season that many franchises would be proud of, in New England there’s mostly just a sense of what could have been. Likewise, the franchise may have become increasingly unlikable in recent years with Tom Brady emerging as a cover model and Bill Belichick‘s constantly surly attitude. So, that being said, could the Patriots use an emotional rallying point to get them over the hump next postseason?

Check out the video above as Patriots insiders Shalise Manza Young and Jeff Howe argue those very points.

Who’s the beast of the East?

That’s the question NESN posed to you, the fans, but we also wanted to check in and see what the experts had to say. In that spirit, we invited WEEI’s DJ Bean and Mike Mutnansky to the NESN Daily studios to debate it out. Mut is putting his stock in the Rangers, while Bean took the hometown advantage and likes the Bruins coming out of the Eastern Conference.

So, who won? Well, that hometown advantage played big for Bean, who came out victorious in the text-message voting with 61 percent. Check out the full debate in the video above.

Is Major League Baseball doing enough to correct its PED problem? Is the Steroids Era in the past?

These were the questions addressed on the latest edition of NESN Daily‘s “Two Sides” segment, as WEEI Red Sox insiders Rob Bradford and Alex Speier faced off. Bradford thinks that baseball’s recent implementation of HGH testing is a step in the right direction, while Speier thinks that MLB should be looking more closely at testosterone.

What do you think? Check out the debate above and decide for yourself.

The Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham has a Hall of Fame vote. And While WEEI’s Alex Speier does not, the two debated the issue of steroids and the Baseball Hall of Fame on NESN Daily‘s latest “Two Sides” segment.

While Abraham clearly took an inclusive approach with his ballot, while Speier believes that public opinion is thoroughly turning against all the accused players from the steroids era. Curt Schilling, among players who missed out on Cooperstown this year, had some interesting comments on the matter, which was a second topic debated by the two Red Sox insiders.

Check out all the good-natured arguing in the video above.

It’s been over a month since the Red Sox reportedly agreed to a deal with Mike Napoli, but no official announcement has been made and there are reports that a hip issue is causing the delay. Is it time to move on?

The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo and WEEI.com’s Alex Speier debated that question on NESN Daily Wednesday, and each had a rather different response.

Cafardo believes the Red Sox should stick to the plan and continue to try and land Napoli. He points to Bill James‘ number-crunching and the fact that Napoli has always been the Sox’ top first base choice as reasons why Boston shouldn’t be so quick to seek alternatives. Speier, however, believes the Red Sox must pursue other options, even if Adam LaRoche — a rumored target — isn’t exactly the best fit.

Speier suggests the Sox should consider making a trade, with Minnesota’s Justin Morneau, Washington’s Michael Morse and Seattle’s Justin Smoak leading the way as potential targets should Boston decide to go in that direction.

The two also debated which player should be on the cover of the MLB ’13: The Show video game. Check it all out in the video above.

The Red Sox certainly improved their bullpen this winter.

In addition to guys with closing experience like Andrew Bailey and Alfredo Aceves, the team added more live arms in Joel Hanrahan and Koji Uehara. That gives Boston one of the deepest bullpens in the American League, but is it the best?

The Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham thinks so, but his colleague Nick Cafardo disagrees, picking the Orioles’ bullpen arms. Who do you think got the better of the debate? Check it out in the video above.

While we all know that, first and foremost, the holiday season is about personal reflection and goodwill towards others, presents are certainly nice, too.

With that in mind, Red Sox insiders Nick Cafardo and Rob Bradford took to debating what the best present the Red Sox have bought themselves this offseason is. Cafardo is making the bold choice and going with David Ross, comparing his ability to handle pitching staffs to that of former Sox captain Jason Varitek. Bradford, meanwhile, is going the more conventional route and arguing for the perennial innings eater Ryan Dempster.

Who do you think got the better of the rhetorical sparring? Check out the video from Monday’s edition of NESN Daily above.

David Price may be the reigning AL Cy Young winner, but does he lead the best rotation in the AL East?

That’s the question that was posed to Red Sox insiders Rob Bradford and Nick Cafardo in the latest edition of NESN Daily Extra‘s “Two Sides.” Bradford may like the Blue Jays’ reconstructed staff, but Cafardo’s a bit skeptical of guys like R.A. Dickey and Brandon Morrow, so he’s picking the Rays.

Who got the better of the debate? You decide by watching the video above.

This offseason, there is likely to be a reckoning for the New York Jets.

So who gets the ax first? Is is quarterback Mark Sanchez, head coach Rex Ryan or general manager Mike Tannenbaum? That’s the question up for debate on this edition of NESN Daily‘s “Two Sides” segment, pitting The Boston Herald’s Jeff Howe against WEEI’s Mike Mutnansky.

Who came out on top in the debate? You can decide by watching the video above.

With the NFL entering its final two weeks, the MVP race is coming into clear focus.

Most of the attention right now is on the ever-present duo of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, with Adrian Peterson running in third place. While that decision might be an easy one for a Patriots fan to make, the national crowd is going to have a much tougher go of it.

Matt Chatham and Jeff Howe debated the issue on opposing sides in the latest “Two Sides” segment on NESN Daily. Who do you think won the debate? Check it out in the video above.

Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley do quite a bit of talking in their line of work, so it makes a lot of sense that the two can hold their own in a debate.

On Wednesday’s edition of NESN Daily, the crew got Edwards and Brickley together for a little friendly competition. The two broadcast partners argued over whether or not there will be an NHL season and debated who the best Bruins player to ever wear No. 12 was.

In the end, Edwards was chosen as the winner after capturing 53 percent of the fan vote. See how he managed the victory in the video above.

No, there is no NHL season yet, but if there was one, the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers would have a good shot at taking home Lord Stanley’s Cup.

While the NHL and NHLPA continue to meet at the bargaining table, fans and analysts can only speculate about what an NHL season may bring. NESN’s Andy Brickley and Fox Sports’ Kevin Gorg debated who has the upper hand in the chase for the cup.

The Bruins took home the Stanley Cup in 2011, while the Rangers look to have all the right pieces in place for a playoff push.

To hear why both of these teams are contenders, check out the video above.

And so the debate rages on.

The Boston Red Sox put the finishing touches on their coaching staff after hiring Greg Colbrunn as the new hitting coach on Wednesday, and now comes time to fill out the roster

Last season, the team dealt with its fair share of both injuries and ineffectiveness, before finally rebooting to some extent by trading away Josh Beckett, Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford. With three months left until spring training, the Red Sox front office certainly has a lot of work to do, but it’s unclear what the team should be focusing on most.

Rob Bradford and Ian Browne discussed the issue at hand on Wednesday’s edition of NESN Daily. Check out the video above to hear what they had to say.

The AL MVP debate has been raging since Miguel Cabrera clinched the Triple Crown back in early October.

The discussion is based on old vs. new, sabermetrics vs. standard stats and “value” vs. historical context. Cabrera was the best hitter in baseball this season, but was he actually as valuable as the Angels’ rookie center fielder Mike Trout? Trout led the major leagues in WAR — wins above replacement player — and is the much better baserunner and fielder.

The award will be announced on Thursday, but WEEI’s Rob Bradford and MLB.com’s Ian Browne argued each of their points Wednesday on NESN Daily with Tom Caron moderating. Bradford took Trout’s defense, base stealing and sabermetric value, while Browne took Cabrera’s bat and historical achievement. The two also debated how much the Blue Jays-Marlins trade will shake up the AL East.

Watch Bradford and Browne wage war in the video above.