Winning the Stanley Cup is memorable…so is losing it. The Boston Bruins have done both in the last decade. Reaching the Stanley Cup Finals three times means eventful seasons full of noteworthy moments. These are the top-10 most memorable Boston Bruins games of the decade. Part one is here in case you missed it.
10 Most Memorable Boston Bruins Games of the 2010’s
Boston Bruins Games 5-1
5. The Cup Collapse
June 24, 2013
The 2013 Stanley Cup Finals Game 6 had one of the fastest momentum shifts in recent memory. After beating the Leafs in the thrilling Game 7, Boston went on to beat the New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins before facing the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup. Trailing in the series 3-2, Boston had home ice for Game 6 looking to keep their season alive and force a Game 7.
The Bruins started the game well when Tyler Seguin grabbed a puck out of mid-air and made a backhand pass to Chris Kelly who scored to give Boston a 1-0 with 12:43 remaining in the first period. Jonathan Toews scored shorthanded on a two-on-one rush with 15:36 remaining in the second period to tie the game at one. Milan Lucic found a loose puck in front of the net and scored with 7:49 remaining in the third period to give Boston a 2-1 lead. Looking to close the game out and force a Game 7, Boston did the opposite.
Toews found Bryan Bickell in front of the net who tied the game with 1:16 remaining. Boston was in damage control mode and hoped to send this game to overtime. Instead, Dave Bolland scored on a rebound just 17 seconds later to give Chicago the lead. One that they would hang on to and win the Stanley Cup. In a matter of 17 seconds, Boston went from forcing a Game 7 to losing the Stanley Cup on their own ice. The Bruins faithful was left in utter shock and disappointment after letting this opportunity slip through their hands.
4. Leafs Fall in the Spring
May 13, 2013
In a lockout-shortened season, the Bruins finished off the first round in historic fashion. This Game 7 will go down as one of the most iconic Boston Bruins games (and comebacks) in history. The Bruins were the four-seed and had home ice advantage for the first-round series against the fifth-seeded Toronto Maple Leafs. This was the 14th meeting between the two original-six teams but the first since 1974. Boston took a 3-1 series lead before Toronto battled back to force a Game 7 in Boston. In Game 7, Toronto found itself with a 4-1 lead nearly midway through the third period when it felt like the season had collapsed on Boston.
Bruins captain Zdeno Chara wasn’t ready to go home, telling his teammates, “I was sitting on the bench down 4-1 and looked over at Milan Lucic and said, ‘Let’s just get one and start from there. Right now. This shift. Let’s just get one.’ And we actually did get one on that shift.”
Nathan Horton scored on that shift with 9:18 remaining in the third period to cut the deficit to two. Boston pulled goaltender Tuukka Rask to get an extra skater on the ice when Lucic put home a rebound to make it 4-3 with 1:22 remaining. With 50 seconds left Patrice Bergeron scored from a distance to tie the game. The Bruins erased a three-goal lead in ten minutes and the TD Garden was erupting with excitement. The Bruins had all the momentum and seized it in overtime.
Toronto had multiple high-quality scoring chances in overtime but Rask stood tall. Boston maintained possession in the sixth minute of overtime and Bergeron found a loose puck in front of an open net. He put it home to win the game 5-4 and propel the Bruins to the second round of the playoffs. The TD Garden may never have been louder and New England was sent into a frenzy.
3. Lightning Doesn’t Strike Twice
May 27, 2011
The Bruins hosted the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals in one of the best playoff games in recent memory. Tampa won Game 1 in Boston but would not strike again on the road, losing the next three games in the TD Garden. Goaltender’s Dwayne Roloson and Tim Thomas were phenomenal in a fast-paced back-and-forth game.
This game had it all. Steven Stamkos took a puck to the face in the second period, missed one shift, and returned with a full cage and bloodied face. The scoreless tie was broken when David Krejci found Nathan Horton on a two-on-one at 12:27 of the third period. This was the first and only goal scored in the game and propelled Boston to its first Stanley Cup Finals appearance since 1990. There were no penalties in the game and it should be considered one of the best pure hockey games of all time.
“It was the greatest Game 7 in Bruins franchise history,” said Matt Dolloff of CBS Boston. “Arguably the greatest Game 7, period.”
2. Feeling Blue
June 12, 2019
A day that will live in Boston sports infamy. The Bruins lost their second Stanley Cup in six years after losing Game 7 to the St. Louis Blues. A physical back-and-forth series between the two teams built up to a Game 7 in the TD Garden. It had all the makings to be a historic day for the Bruins who had a chance to win the Stanley Cup in Boston for the first time since Bobby Orr‘s famous cup-clinching goal in 1970.
Alas it was not, as Boston surrendered the first goal and never made it close. After Alex Pietrangelo scored with eight seconds remaining in the first period to give St. Louis a 2-0 lead it had the feeling that it wasn’t the Bruins night, or year for that matter. The Blues went on to win the game 4-1 and forced Boston to watch the opposing team raise the Stanley Cup in their own building for the second time in six years.
1. The Cup Returns to Boston
June 15, 2011
Winning the Stanley Cup for the first time in 39 years is the obvious number-one choice on the list. A 4-0 victory in Game 7 to capture Lord Stanley’s Cup would land at the top of any teams all-decade list, but the manner in which Boston did it was something special. Beating the President’s Trophy winner, Vancouver Canucks, on their own ice is something kids dream about while skating on the frozen pond. Vancouver was a force in Rogers Arena that postseason with 11-2 record at home. It didn’t matter. Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand scored two goals apiece in the game and Vancouver never felt like they had a chance in this one. Bruins goalie Tim Thomas won the Conn Smythe Trophy.
“If I was going to do it any way, it would have to be the hardest way possible,” said Thomas. “Three Game Sevens in the playoffs, and to have to win it on the road in the final.”
VANCOUVER, BC – JUNE 15: Zdeno Chara #33 of the Boston Bruins celebrates with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Vancouver Canucks in Game Seven of the 2011 NHL Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Arena on June 15, 2011 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The Boston Bruins defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4 to 0. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
