#believeinboston - The Boston Bruins win the Stanley Cup

I honestly don't know what to say, I am experiencing all kinds of emotions, I am sure many Boston Bruins fans are especially the ones that are my age... I have followed the Boston Bruins since the 1988 season when I was stationed at Fort Devens, Massachusetts as a soldier in the U.S. Army, a woman I was dating at the time introduced me to the Boston Bruins, I have followed them religiously since. As a Boston Bruins fan I have witnessed the lean years and I have seen some very bad Boston Bruins teams come and go. I can remember the cup runs in the late 1980's and early 1990's that ended in bitter defeat at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers.

Fast forward to this years Stanley Cup playoffs, the so called "hockey pundits" the "flat bellied experts" never gave the Boston Bruins a chance, they had all but given the Stanley Cup to the Vancouver Canucks before they had even played a game in the Stanley Cup Finals. Yeah! How did that work for you? The Boston Bruins not only won the cup but they out scored the Canucks 23-8, breaking it down further, Tim Thomas stopped 201 of 209.  In the four games that the Bruins won against the Canucks the Boston Bruins made Roberto Luongo look human.

I believe that the turning point in this series was when Aaron Rome knocked Nathan Horton out with this bush league check. The Canucks woke the sleeping bear and ended up losing four out of the last five games.

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• Boston Bruins Win Stanley Cup (npr.org)
• Boston Bruins win first Stanley Cup (saintel.wordpress.com)
• Boston Bruins Win Stanley Cup On Tim Thomas Shutout In Game 7 (sbnation.com)
• Your Boston Bruins-Vancouver Canucks 2011 Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 primer (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
• The Boston Bruins are the 2011 Stanley Cup Winners! (slog.thestranger.com)
• Boston Bruins Stanley Cup 2011 champions: Bruins win the Stanley Cup: Video (globaltvbc.com)
• Vancouver Canucks vs. Boston Bruins LIVE UPDATES: Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 (huffingtonpost.com)

The Boston Bruins against the World...

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeThis article is also worth a look. I would imagine it’s not as accurate as the author claims, I know a lot of fans from the Western Conference hate the Vancouver Canucks, if you don’t believe me just ask Wild and Blackhawks fans, add to the fact that a lot of hockey fans hate the on ice antics of the Vancouver Canucks.

Jonah Keri; GQ ---- "WE WANT THE CUP!"

Of course you want the Cup. Everyone wants the Cup.

They want it in Buffalo, where snake-bitten fans have seen their dreams crushed for decades. They want it in Minneapolis and St. Paul, where two different franchises have struggled in vain to get close. They want it in Winnipeg, 15 years after the Jets left town, months before a new, nameless team takes the ice.

If any of those teams win Lord Stanley's grail, that would be fine with the hockey world. Those cities have seen enormous sports heartbreak, their spirits deflated as they trudge through January blizzards waiting for their shot at the big one. If a parade runs through Chippewa Street next summer, mazel tov. They'll deserve it.

But you, Bruins fans? No one wants you to have it.

Oh sure, there are plenty of perfectly good reasons to jump on the Bruins bandwagon. This is an anonymous, lunch pail-carrying team. Only one Bruin cracked 30 goals this season, and he's a gritty two-way player from Vancouver who goes by Looch. One of their best players is a 21-year NHL veteran, also from B.C., still going strong at 43. Boston's goalie was a 217th overall draft pick, toiled for years in the minors and in Europe, didn't become a starter until age 31, and six years later might be the best netminder on the planet.

This series should have reinforced pro-Bruins sentiment. Vancouver's Alex Burrows biting Patrice Bergeron's fingers was a punk move, one that would have been handled with a flurry of right hooks to the head if this were 30 years ago and the game hadn't turned away from fighting. Maxim Lapierre's Game 2 taunt, where he stuck his fingers in Bergeron's face and dared him to bite back, wasn't much better.

And there's The Hit. Five minutes into Game 3, Aaron Rome lined up Nathan Horton, watched him get rid of the puck, took three strides, dipped his shoulder, leapt for the head, and blew him up. However you felt about the hit, you had to feel for Horton, laid out on the ice, his teammates and 17,565 spectators looking on in horror, medics fumbling with a stretcher, trying to stabilize the big Ontarian before the frantic ride to Mass General.

The Bruins responded with eight goals in the final two periods. After the game, they placed The Jacket—an old Bruins warmup awarded to a player who made a special contribution to that night's victory—in Horton's locker. The last player to receive The Jacket was also Horton, after his game-winning goal in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals. This was Win One for the Gipper stuff, the 1970 Willis Reed-inspired Knicks crossed with the '93 Islanders rallying after Dale Hunter cheapshotted Pierre Turgeon's shoulder into oblivion.

And you know what? We're still not rooting for you.

No one in Canada wants you to win, of course. Not when a Canadian team might bring the Cup back home for the first time in 18 years.

But U.S. hockey fans aren't behind you either. There's none of that (slightly weird) national pride here. Flyers fans hate Boston. Rangers fans hate Boston. Casual hockey fans in Boise or Mobile are, at best, indifferent about Boston.

You know what everyone really hates? When Boston fans complain about The Drought. The Bruins haven't won a Stanley Cup since 1972. Old-timers get weepy for Orr and Esposito and Bucyk, wish for one more Cup before they die.

Sure, Boston was once a suffering sports town. Injuries derailed Larry Bird's career, and Lenny Bias' tragic death sent the Celtics into mediocrity for nearly two decades. The mismanaged Red Sox ran out a series of bloated, overpaid veterans, only to see the rest of the division—Toronto, Baltimore, and the hated Yankees—stomp all over them. Curse or not, 86 years without a title would wound any sports fan. The Patriots? They just sucked. So yeah, those were tough times for Boston sports fans.

Now? You sound like the douchebag who bitches that, after the three-bedroom in Tribeca, the place in the Hamptons, the kids' boarding school, the annual trips to Paris and Aruba, the four cars, and two alimonies, you've barely got enough left for that third bottle of Dom at Per Se.

The vast, vast, vast majority of Bruins fans are also Sox fans, C's fans, and Pats fans. The Celtics won the city's most recent title, in 2008. If the Bruins win the Cup this year, the Boston pro sports team with the longest championship drought will be the Patriots, who won the Super Bowl in...2004.

Meanwhile, the Canucks have existed for 41 years and haven't won jack. Vancouver had an NBA team once. They were run into the ground by an incompetent stooge, then shipped off to Memphis.

We hope Nathan Horton makes a full recovery. We feel for the 12 Bruins fans who've shunned the city's other franchises and waited nearly 40 years for their shot.

Related articles

• The Vancouver Canucks Are In Trouble! (sports.gunaxin.com)
• Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 5: Boston Has Momentum, But Vancouver Returns Home (sbnation.com)
• Bruins know they haven't won anything yet (aol.sportingnews.com)
• Stanley Cup Finals Game 5: Vancouver Canucks need Sedin twins to shine against Boston Bruins (fanatix.com)

Kevin Bieksa is whining now…

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeVancouver Canucks Defenseman Kevin Bieksa was whining to the media yesterday about the big bad Bruins. After watching last night’s game it would appear that the Boston Bruins have gotten into the Vancouver Canucks head’s.

That’s not the only whining coming out of the Vancouver Canucks locker room… I suppose you can mark it down as a “oh no he didn’t” moment or foot in mouth disease. Apparently the Vancouver Canucks hockey team aren’t very happy with Versus hockey analyst and former Boston Bruins player/head coach Mike Milbury; during the second intermission of last night’s game; Mike Milbury referred to the Sedins twins as "Thelma and Louise." I say if the ballet shoe fits, wear it!!! In all seriousness during the Stanley Cup Finals the Sedin twins have been invisible on the score sheet; however, the Sedin twins have been notorious for their constant and blatant diving, whenever they are tapped by the Boston Bruins player.

Douglas Flynn; NESN --- NHL vice president Mike Murphy announced on Tuesday that "the garbage that is going on" had been addressed and further displays, such as players shoving their fingers in an opponent's face, will draw penalties.

While the Bruins appear to have taken Murphy's warning to heart about the excessive extracurricular activity in the series, the Canucks refuse to take any responsibility for the ugliness seen so far. According to Vancouver defenseman Kevin Bieksa, they're just innocent victims being bullied by the big, bad Bruins.

"This group in here, we're fine with that," Bieksa said of the league's crackdown after Wednesday's morning skate before Game 4. "We know to stay away from it. Last game, yeah we were holding our ground, but I don't think you saw any scrums in front of our net. They were always in front of their net, their guys pushing and shoving after the whistle and flexing their muscles and proving how big and bad they are, but during the whistles we're the top-hitting team in the league so we're going to punish them during the whistles and we'll let them do that stuff after. The finger pointing and all that stuff, it's getting a little old really quick. When you're the sixth guy to do it, I don't think it's that funny anymore. We'll see if there's any more of that [in Game 4]."

So by Bieksa's logic, teammate Maxim Lapierre's initial taunt of Patrice Bergeron in Game 2 after Alex Burrows was not suspended for biting Bergeron in Game 1 was just fine. But Mark Recchi and Milan Lucic doing the same to Lapierre and Burrows, respectively, in Game 3 wasn't "funny anymore."

On that, at least, Bruins coach Claude Julien would agree. He was upset to see his players stoop to the Canucks' level and happy to hear that the league was cracking down on such antics going into Game 4.

"It's unfortunate," Julien said. "I was one of those guys that voiced my opinion that I wouldn't accept it. I certainly didn't share that with my team. Consequently, we were responsible for a couple of those. Obviously it was clear after the game what I expected from our guys. I'm certainly not a guy that encourages that kind of stuff

Lucic gives Burrows the finger(s)

Fist off Alex Burrows is a hack and the Bruins should hit him every chance they get, Alex Burrows is very, very lucky that the on ice official was able to rescue him before Milan Lucic whiped the ice with him. Game four should be a great game to watch after watching the Bruins dismantle the Canucks 8-1.

Claude Julien unimpressed with Canucks Maxim Lapierre's antics

I don't think that Boston Bruins head coach Claude Julien is the only person that is unimpressed with Canucks hack Maxim Lapierre and his on ice antics. Can you imagine if this buffoon had done this classless act to Gordy Howe or during the days where there wasn't an instigator penalty? You have to give Patrice Bergeron credit for not just hauling off and popping Lapierre.

Douglas Flynn; NESN -- They chose not to whine and complain when Vancouver forward Alexandre Burrows was not suspended for biting Patrice Bergeron in Game 1. They didn't use it as an excuse when Burrows was not only in the lineup for Game 2, but scored the game-winner in overtime.

And they're not going to stoop to the Canucks' level in responding to Maxim Lapierre's Game 2 taunt of Bergeron. Lapierre stuck out his finger at Bergeron after a whistle, challenging him to bite it, then was seen laughing about the incident on the bench.

"I can't really talk about their team," Bruins coach Claude Julien said after Monday's morning skate in preparation of Game 3 at the Garden. "I'm going to talk about mine because I don't handle those players. I don't deal with those players on a one-on-one basis. It really isn't up to me to, I guess, comment on it. If it's acceptable for them, then so be it. It certainly wouldn't be acceptable on our end of it. I think you know me well enough to know that.

"[There's] not much I can say on that," Julien added. "The NHL rules on something and they decide to make a mockery of it. That's totally up to them. If that's their way of handling things, then so be it. Again, we can't waste our time on that kind of stuff. We really have to focus on what we have to do. The last time I looked, we're down two games to none, and all our energy has to go towards that."

The rest of the Bruins downplayed the incident as well.

Related articles

• Claude Julien's had it with biting and taunting; Lapierre has no comment on being called "punkish" (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
• Julien steamed about Canucks' biting, taunting (theglobeandmail.com)
• Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 3: Claude Julien Didn't Find Max Lapierre's Finger Joke Funny (sbnation.com)
• Bruins coach steamed about Canucks' biting, taunting (theglobeandmail.com)
• Julien: Canucks made 'mockery' of Burrows bite (sports.espn.go.com)

Mind's a Messin': Redwing77's Psychology Musings

Watching the Playoffs this year, listening to friends talk about the aftermath of games, and reading content got me thinking: We talk about the intangibles of hockey but what about the psychology?

The Finals this year reminds me a LOT of the Blackhawks vs. Canucks tilt from last year's playoffs.

Let me take you back... Then Hawk Dustin Byfuglien (IMO one of the most underrated players in the NHL) quite literally and almost single-handedly obliterated the Canucks game plan on multiple nights by simply getting them so enraged that their game plan was to basically head hunt Byfuglien (without actually hitting him in the head). This took the Canucks so off kilter that the Hawks won the game.

Right now, right or wrong/good or bad, the Canucks are doing the same thing to the Bruins. True, statistically the series still has been pretty even. True, the gripes about the Canucks methods of doing so have been merited. However, the job of the Bruins isn't to point out the cheap play of certain players. It isn't their job to go after the players either. It's their job to look at their opponents tendencies and make a game plan that expects those tendencies that still affords the Bruins the opportunity to win.

Coming into the Finals, the Bruins should have already known the following things:

1. The Canucks are a fast, great skating team
2. The Canucks are solid fundamentally
3. The Luongo of old has only temporarily shown up, but never for long enough to kill his team's chances.
4. The Canucks have been diving and getting away with it all Playoffs long
5. The Canucks aren't afraid of taking pages out of the Penguins and Blackhawks books. Penguins book- cheap hits, borderline on ice tactics. Hawks book - Aggravation, instigation, and getting under the skin of their opposition
6. They are a momentum team. The only way to beat them is to get them to lose their momentum.
7. They are a balanced team with pressure on them but only at the top. The media is swooning over the Sedins but that takes the spotlight off of players like Bieksa and so on.

Look, I'm no fan of Burrows or Bieksa, but you have to acknowledge that they've had a pretty good playoff run. I'd argue they've been more effective than the Sedins.

The flaw that the Bruin's face is that they are relying too heavily on Tim Thomas and Zdeno Chara to bail them out when the likes of Burrows and Bieksa get under their skin. And that's not working. The Bruins aren't out of it yet, but if they lose one game in Boston, they will be.

Game 3 and 4 are must wins for the B's if they expect to win. With 3 wins under the Canucks' belt, winning 1 of the next 4 should be almost a sure thing.

I'm looking at Dennis Seidenberg, Patrice Bergeron, and either Michael Ryder or Rich Peverley to step up. Tyler Seguin is a rookie and, though immensely talented, relying upon him would be a recipe for disaster.

I still have the Bruins in 7 but Game 3 will tell a lot about the possibility of there even being a Game 7.

Maxim Lapierre sticks his finger in Bergeron’s face

I don't know how Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron doesn't wind up and just punch Vancouver Canucks hack forward Maxim Lapierre in the face after this classless gesture. Seriously, Lapierre is openly mocking the NHL and making them look like a bunch of horses rear ends by not suspending Alex Burrows.

Related articles

• PHOTO: Max Lapierre Dares Patrice Bergeron To Bite His Finger (sbnation.com)
• Bruins Vs. Canucks Score: Daniel Sedin's Third Period Goal Forces Overtime (sbnation.com)
• NHL won't fine or suspend Alex Burrows for his bite on Patrice Bergeron (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
• Canucks Vs. Bruins: Patrice Bergeron Comments On Alex Burrows Bite; Suspension Possible For Vancouver Forward (sbnation.com)

Alex Burrows takes a bite out of the Bruins.

The Boston Bruins lost a game after leading 2-1 going into the third period. The Boston Bruins had won about 88% of their games when they lead after two periods during the regular season and had been perfect in the Stanley Cup playoffs to date, all good things must come to and end.

So fast forward to overtime; this was a textbook example on how not to play hockey, if you want to win the game, turnovers and players being out of position will kill a hockey team every time. But lets not forget that the bad effort started in the third period as the Boston Bruins tried to sit on a lead instead of attacking and they never really tried to stretch the lead. I believe in this instance that the Boston Bruins went to the well one too many times and it might have cost them a Stanley Cup.

Is this Karma? 

Hollywood couldn't have scripted this ending any better for the home town Vancouver Canucks, forward Alex Burrows, who could have been suspended for biting Patrice Bergeron in game one, scored two of the games three goals including the game winning goal just 11 seconds into overtime. The game ending play was a comedy of errors starting with a brutal turner over by Andrew Ference at the blue line, followed up a non challenge of Burrows behind the Bruins net by Zedano Chara and finally bad positioning by Tim Thomas who was grossly out of position. If Thomas stays in the net there is a good chance that Tim Thomas stops the shot by Alex Burrows.

Related articles

• 2011 Stanley Cup Finals: Alex Burrows Not Suspended for Bergeron Bite (bleacherreport.com)
• Boston Media Compares Alex Burrows Bite To Matt Cooke (Yes, Seriously) (sbnation.com)
• NHL won't fine or suspend Alex Burrows for his bite on Patrice Bergeron (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
• Alex Burrows Escapes Suspension After Biting Patrice Bergeron In Game 1 (sbnation.com)

Bolland: Canucks Are ‘Like A Little Girl’

Image via WikipediaLooks like the War of Words is continuing between the Blackhawks and the Canucks; I also have to say that I agree with Chicago Blackhawks Center Dave Bolland and what he had to say about the Vancouver Canucks, “Typical, pulling hair and biting people. Sort of like a little girl.”

CBS Chicago ---- “It does get pretty painful watching and seeing that team in it,” Bolland told Fred Mitchel, of the Chicago Tribune.

“It sucks seeing them there.”

The Canucks took the first game of the Stanley Cup Finals with a goal by Raffi Torres with 18.5 seconds remaining in regulation. Torres was the same player who delivered a hit to Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook’s head. It was a hit that kept Seabrook out of two games of the Blackhawks-Canucks first round series.

And the fact that Vancouver’s Alex Burrows appeared to bite the finger of Bruins center Patrice Bergeron in the first period didn’t take Bolland by surprise.

“Typical, pulling hair and biting people. Sort of like a little girl,” Bolland said. “But things happen during games. Stuff like that isn’t meant for hockey. So some of those things have to be taken care of.”

NESN; Alex Burrows Decision Is Latest Example of NHL Insulting Fans' Intelligence With Dishonest Explanations

I will say that I concur with Michael Hurley from NESN and his assessment, the NHL looks like a bunch of bumbling buffoons when they issues statements like this.We saw the video, and one can deduced that Vancouver Canucks hack forward Alex Burrows bit Patrice Bergeron, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to determine this. 

Michael Hurley; NESN ---This isn't a cry of injustice, a plea for a suspension or anything of the sort. Alex Burrows wasn't suspended by the NHL, and he probably didn't deserve to be. At this point of the year, in the Stanley Cup Final, biting a finger probably isn't enough to keep you off the ice for 60 minutes, and definitely not for 120 minutes.

That's what the folks at the NHL think, and you know what? That's fine. The problem is that they're not telling you that. They're telling you that there was "no conclusive evidence" to prove there was any biting. They're telling you that those videos you've seen, and the photos you've looked at -- they don't exist. They're basically telling you that you're an idiot.

They're insulting your intelligence.

There was conclusive evidence. We saw it. We saw Burrows chomp down on Bergeron's finger the same way I bite down on my morning apple (just kidding, I rarely eat fruit). If Mike Murphy, whose decision it was to hold off on supplemental discipline, really wanted more evidence, he'd go look at Bergeron's finger. It's got teeth marks in it.

Related articles

• NHL: No suspension for Alex Burrows (aol.sportingnews.com)
• NHL won't fine or suspend Alex Burrows for his bite on Patrice Bergeron (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
• Miam! Alex Burrows takes a bite of Patrice Bergeron during the Stanley Cup final. (weinterrupt.com)

Bruins have a free pass; No supplemental discipline for Burrows

Image via WikipediaFor the self congratulatory hockey pundits that had said there is a conspiracy for the Boston Bruins because Colin Campbell’s son Greg Campbell plays for the Boston Bruins; that conspiracy has been proven to be unfounded and has been shot full of holes to boot. Vancouver Canucks "hack" Alex Burrows will not be suspended for biting Patrice Bergeron.

VANCOUVER -- National Hockey League Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations Mike Murphy today announced that there will be no supplemental discipline on Vancouver Canucks forward Alex Burrows for an alleged incident in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.

"After reviewing the incident, including speaking with the on-ice officials, I can find no conclusive evidence that Alex Burrows intentionally bit the finger of Patrice Bergeron," Murphy's statement

Canucks should change their names to the cannibals.

I have said in the past that the Vancouver Canucks are one of the most unlikable teams in the NHL (next to the Montreal Canadians and their fans); I stand by that observation after watching last night’s on ice antics by the Vancouver Canucks… I mean seriously, what a bunch of hacks, they are a bunch diving ballerinas, dancing and flailing up and down the ice. The Sedin sisters and Alex Burrows are the worst of the offenders. From are you kidding me variety; Alex Burrows are you three years old? Seriously, biting another player on the ice. Alex Burrows should be suspended by the NHL for this bush league move. According to Nick Kypreos from Sportsnet.ca, he seems to think that Alex “the hack” Burrows won’t get suspended by the NHL.

VANCOUVER (AP)---- Boston forward Patrice Bergeron wasn't surprised how quickly the Stanley Cup finals turned nasty, but he was shocked to feel Canucks counterpart Alex Burrows chomp down on the tip of his finger.

Burrows denied it, but could still face discipline from the NHL after replays appeared to show him bite Bergeron's finger during a melee at the end of the first period of Vancouver's 1-0 victory in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals on Wednesday night.

''I don't mind rough play and scrums at the end, as long as it's just pushing and shoving and all that,'' Bergeron said. ''But biting? I mean come on.''

In a game with an unexpected amount of edge between teams that meet once a season, Burrows and Bergeron were in the middle of a big scrum behind the Boston net at the end of the first period. That's when Bergeron says Burrows bit down as he reached over a linesman to put his glove in Burrows' face.

''Oh yeah, he did. He cut me a little bit on my finger,'' said Bergeron, whose right index finger was wrapped in a small bandage. ''One of his teeth caught under my nail. We just disinfected it and I'm going to take some antibiotics just to make sure. Obviously, it's not that bad but I don't want to take any risks.''

Bergeron, who played mostly against the Canucks' top line, went straight to the referees after holding up his injured finger.

''They didn't see it,'' Bergeron said. ''We were speaking French, me and (Burrows), and I told him, 'Why did you do that?' That linesmen speaks French, and his explanation was he said that I put my finger in his mouth and he had to do it. I'll leave it at that, but I'm sure the league is going to look at it.''

Burrows, who received a double minor for roughing – Bergeron only got one minor penalty for roughing – denied biting Bergeron.

''I don't think so,'' Burrows said. ''He had his fingers in my mouth, but I don't think I bit him. He put his hand up and put it in my face and his fingers in my mouth and that's what happened.''

Asked if he expected to be suspended, Burrows glared and said, ''next question.''

Vancouver Canucks "hack" Alex Burrows bites Patrice Bergeron

If the league doesn't suspend Vancouver Canucks hack Alex Burrows for this classless act on Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron the NHL has no cojones, this is unacceptable behavior and NHL hockey players are men and they should be biting people. Just for the record ; former Senators hack Jarkko Ruutu was given a two game suspension for biting AndrewPeters.  

Related articles

• VIDEO: Alex Burrows Bites Patrice Bergeron In Canucks-Bruins Game 1 (sbnation.com)
• Canucks are going to study tape in preparation for Bruins in Stanley Cup final (thehockeynews.com)
• Alex Burrows readies for Stanley Cup finals with lots on his mind (theglobeandmail.com)
• Canucks study tape to prepare for Bruins in Cup final (tsn.ca)
• Canucks remain hopeful Malhotra can play in Cup final (cbc.ca)

Bergeron hit on Krejci

This was the hit that everyone was talking about tonight, Lightning defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron puts the woods to Bruins forward David Krejci. The check by Bergeron was ruled to be a 2 minute minor penalty for elbowing and the head coach for the Lightning Guy Boucher went nuts on the players bench.

My question is; do you think the ref made the right call on this hit? I believe it's a grey area and I didn't have a problem with the call because it looks like Krejci was hit in the face... That being said, Krejci should also be more aware coming through the neutral zone, David had his head down yet again, you'd think Krejci would have learned after being taken out by Mike Richards the year before. Was it a penalty, the Tampa Bay head coach didn't think so?

Bergeron to play in Tampa

According to Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe, we can expect Patrice Bergeron to make his series debut tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Bruins rookie Tyler Seguin will remain in the Bruins line up after going (3g-3a-6pts) in two games. Expect Shawn Thornton to be the healthy scratch.

Projected Bruins lineup:

Forwards

Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Nathan Horton
Brad Marchand-Patrice Bergeron-Mark Recchi
Michael Ryder-Chris Kelly-Tyler Seguin
Daniel Paille-Gregory Campbell-Rich Peverley

Defense pairings

Zdeno Chara-Dennis Seidenberg
Andrew Ference-Johnny Boychuk
Tomas Kaberle-Adam McQuaid

Goalie

Tim Thomas
Tuukka Rask

Healthy scratches: Shawn Thornton, Shane Hnidy

Projected Tampa Bay Lighning lineup:

Forwards

Ryan Malone-Steven Stamkos-Martin St. Louis
Simon Gagne-Vincent Lecavalier-Teddy Purcell
Sean Bergenheim-Dominic Moore-Steve Downie
Randy Jones-Nate Thompson-Adam Hall

Defense pairings

Eric Brewer-Mattias Ohlund
Victor Hedman-Brett Clark
Mike Lundin-Marc-Andre Bergeron

Goalie

Dwayne Roloson
Mike Smith

Again; why was Bruin's rookie Tyler Seguin not playing in the first two rounds?

Boston Bruins rookie Tyler Seguin missed the first 11 games of the Stanley Cup Playoffs because he was said to be a defensive liability, but made up for the absence tonight with two goals and two assists during the second period of Tuesday's 6-5 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Boston Bruins. The four points in the second period by Tyler Seguin tied a Boston Bruin’s/NHL playoff record for points in a period.

USA Today --- Seguin's four points in a period tied the NHL playoff record held by many players, including three other Bruins. Barry Pederson did it in 1982 against the Buffalo Sabres, followed by Peter McNab in 1982 against Buffalo and by Ken Linseman against the Montreal Canadiens in 1985.

In two games that Tyler Seguin has played in, Seguin has amassed (3g-3a-6pts) that's one more point than first line winger and the Boston Bruins regular season leading goal scorer Bruins tough guy Milan Lucic (2g-3a-5pts) again, why wasn't this kid playing in the first two rounds. The $64,000.00 question is who are the Bruins going to sit when Patrice Bergeron returns from his mild concussion? I would say that Daniel Paille, Shawn Thornton or Greg Campbell will be sitting for the Bruins all have basically been useless during the playoffs so far for the Boston Bruins.

Why isn't Tyler Seguin playing more for the Boston Bruins.

I think it's fair to ask after watching this goal why isn't the Bruins rookie Tyler Seguin playing more for the Boston Bruins? The kid played about nine and a half minutes and racked up (1g-1a-2pts) in his first game in over a month. I think maybe it's time for the Boston Bruins head coach Claude Julien to re-evaluate his decision to not play Tyler Seguin the first 11 games of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Bruins close out Flyers with 5-1 win; Bergeron has concussion...

I glad that I can finally say that the Boston Bruins have made the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 1992. Yeah I do remember the Bruins that year. Last year the Boston Bruins had a comfortable series lead of three games to nothing and were leading in game seven 3-0 when the roof came down on top of them.

So the Boston Bruins finally exercised the demons of last season and now will move on to the Eastern Conference Finals where they will play the Tampa Bay Lightning… I think that it's safe to say that this season was different than last, there have been no four game collapses (to date) and the Bruins put their boot on the neck of the Flyers and this time they didn’t take that foot off… This year’s team seems like it has something to prove to both themselves and to the fans. I think it’s safe to say that, the Bruins have played with a chip on their shoulder all season long. I would also describe this years Bruins team as being very gusty and a hard working team and after two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs… Now we are down to two teams remaining teams in the eastern division.

Last night’s series win didn’t come without a cost as the Bruins leading scorer during the Stanley Cup Playoffs Patrice Bergeron (2g-10a-12pts) went down with an undisclosed upper body injury which today is being reported as being a concussion by Steve Silva and Kevin Paul Dupont. So Boston Bruins fans are now holding their breath that Bergeron won’t be out very long.

Claude Giroux hit on Patrice Bergeron...

Here is the video to the hit that injured Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron. I don't think it was a dirty hit by the Flyers Claude Giroux, I have watched the hit about 5 times I don't see any thing that was out of the ordinary, it appears to be a legal and hard hockey check... I am hoping that Patrice Bergeron doesn't have a concussion and that he left the game as a pre-caution.

They Said what? A couple of quotes...

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I think this is a good explanation of how a lot of Bruins fans including me feel about show boat and the ever-so-cocky P.K. Subban. Let me be clear, the kid is an amazing talent that God has blessed with amazing athletic ability, however, it does appear that the good Lord given him a two cent brain... P.K. Subban yaps and runs his mouth all game long and then runs and hides behind the refs and turtles when called to the carpet. My advice to the young man is that not everyone is impressed with your antics, less theatrics and more hockey, lets see more highlight goals like the one above, but act like you been there before.

Montreal Gazette --- Montreal defenceman P.K. Subban, who may be the most disliked man in Boston, sent the game into overtime when he scored a power-play goal at 18:23 of the third period.

Subban, who was described by one Boston writer as “a puck, a whiner and a diver,” scored on a shot from the point after Patrice Bergeron went off for high-sticking James Wisniewski.

Damien Cox from the Star had an interesting perspective of how the Bruins "beat" the Montreal Canadian this season. I would say that his point of view is from a Canadian and not someone covering the Boston Bruins. Reading this you would have thought the Boston Bruins were a bunch of ruffians or goons.

Just a year ago, the Habs were money in seventh games, upsetting Washington and Pittsburgh. But in the same way the Blackhawks tied Game 7 against Vancouver late in regulation but lost in overtime, the Habs forced OT Wednesday on a late goal by P.K. Subban, but were then vanquished in the extra session by Nathan Horton’s slapshot goal that was redirected past Carey Price for a 4-3 Boston win.

This, after everything that happened between the Habs and Bruins in the past two months, will be a bitter pill for the Canadiens and their legions of fans to swallow. Not only were they eliminated by Boston, the Habs were brutalized by the Bruins all season.

It started with the controversial Zdeno Chara hit on Max Pacioretty, included one brawl-filled contest, continued into the sixth game of this series with Milan Lucic’s vicious hit on Jaroslav Spacek and in Game 7 included Andrew Ference’s dirty headshot on Jeff Halpern that went unpenalized.

The Bruins did this year what the Caps couldn’t last year, and that was use their superior size to bully the smallish Habs.

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