It all started on April 14, the hated Canadiens were in town for the start of a much anticipated playoff showdown. The Bruins lost Games 1 and 2 in front of the home crowd though and all of the sudden, a trendy pick to win it all before the playoffs turned into a team everyone left for dead. The team responded by posting back-to-back victories in Montreal and there was a series again, the Bruins weren't dead yet. The final 3 games of the series featured thrilling back and forth affairs with Nathan Horton cementing himself into Bruins lore forever with the game-winning goal in Game 7. As much energy that was exerted in the Canadiens series was equal to the amount saved in the Flyers series with a quick sweep of Philadelphia to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Lightning were the next opponent, the only thing standing between the Bruins and advancing to their first Stanley Cup finals in 20 years. A series that featured both high-scoring affairs and goaltender showdowns entered the 7th and deciding game with nobody knowing what to expect. The game remained scoreless for the first 53 minutes and had fans of each side on the edge of their seats with a number of close scoring chances. Finally, at long last with 7 1/2 minutes remaining in the final stanza, Nathan Horton struck again and netted what would turn out to be the only goal of the night. The party was on in Boston and immediate preparations were made for the Vancouver Canucks, the final road block between the Bruins and the Stanley Cup. As much as it felt like a dead weight was lifted off of the shoulders of the fans after the Lightning series, that same dead weight came back as soon as the puck was dropped for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup. Marred by the biting of Alexandre Burrows, the Bruins lost heartbreakers in Games 1 and 2. Heading back to Boston down 2-0 and just a mere two losses away from elimination, little did the team that know that a cheap hit by Aaron Rome on Nathan Horton would be the rallying point for the Bruins. The hit propelled them to a decisive 8-1 victory in Game 3 and a 4-0 shutout in Game 4 to even up the series heading back to Vancouver. Once again, the home team won in this series as the Canucks won Game 5 1-0. With their backs against the wall, the Bruins won Game 6 5-2 and you know the rest. 2 nights later, the Boston Bruins were Stanley Cup Champions for the first time in 39 years and fans could finally forget about all of the heartbreak endured recently.
Going back to this season, the Bruins have as good as a chance as any of the other recent champions to repeat as Stanley Cup champs. Not done since the 1998 Red Wings, however should make people realize how hard it truly is to win back-to-back Stanley Cups. In order to have any chance at a repeat, the Bruins will need continued production from their core of young players such as Patrice Bergeron, Milan Lucic, David Krejci, Brad Marchand and Tyler Seguin. The two-headed monster of Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask returns in goal with Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg leading the charge on defense. The change in role may also pkay a huge part this year as teams want nothing more than to dethrone the defending champion. Let's hope the Bruins don't suffer the Stanley Cup Hangover like so many recent champions.
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