Bruins DieHard: B's Hoping To Roll Lucky Sevens In Final Game With Montreal
BOSTON (CBS) - Did you really think it wasn't going to come to this?
C'mon! Montreal-Boston in a playoff series that would have to be decided in seven games was imminent. There would be no other way.
You knew by some maddening route, the Bruins would leave the Bell Centre with their tails between their legs after Game 6, only this time it was kind of embarrassing.
Two ugly goals caused by really inexplicable plays by two Bruins defensemen cost the B's in this one. First, rookie Kevan Miller couldn't gather in a routine d-to-d behind the net pass which led to the puck bouncing out in front of the net, too far for Tuukka Rask to poke it away. Canadiens forward Lars Eller had an easy backhand tap-in and a quick 1-0 lead.
The Bruins would never recover, especially after captain Zdeno Chara did pretty much nothing on a partial breakaway by Max Pacioretty, who deposited the puck between the legs of Rask for a two-goal Bruins deficit midway through the game.
A power play and an empty netter, both by Tomas Vanek, accounted for the 4-0 humiliation by the Habs in front of their delirious fans!
So for the ninth time in his Bruins coaching career, Claude Julien will lead his team to another seventh game in a playoff series. The Bruins are 4-4 with Julien at the helm. Three of those game seven wins were in 2011, the year Boston won the Stanley Cup.
As we know, anything can happen in a seven-game series, especially after disasters such as Game 6. But the Bruins and Tuukka are both cliche-ridden in their responses to the notion that Montreal may have the momentum going into Wednesday's ultimate tilt.
"I don't think it carries over game by game. As long as you regroup after a loss, it's only a matter of how you handle it mentally and prepare for the next one. We'll be ready for Game 7 for sure," said Rask.
They certainly didn't seem ready for Game 6, but Rask added, "We thought we played a pretty solid game and gave them some gifts, and that's it. We've got to clean it up and move on."
One year ago, the team was just about dead in the water in Game 7 against Toronto. They climbed back to make it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. Recent history shows May 14 to be a not-so-nice day for the Bruins when it comes to Game 7.
May 14, 2009, Scott Walker scored in overtime and the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Bruins 3-2. And on the same date in 2010, the Flyers made history with coming back from three games down and erasing a 3-0 deficit to beat the Bruins 4-3 in Game 7.
The Bruins look to reverse that history on May 14, 2014.
Ric Duarte has covered hockey and the Bruins for various media outlets since 1986. You can follow Ric at BruinsDieHard.com and on Twitter @bruins_diehard.
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