Stanley Cup Playoffs: Boston Bruins clinch spot in Stanley Cup Final
For the first time since 2013, the Boston Bruins are heading to the Stanley Cup Final after sweeping the Carolina Hurricanes in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Stanley Cup Playoffs have been full of upsets. However, the Eastern Conference will be represented in the Stanley Cup Final by a team many thought could be there in the Boston Bruins. They tied for the second-best record in the NHL during the regular season and, after beating the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games in the first round, needed just 10 combined in the next two.
A 4-0 Game 4 win ensures the Bruins are heading to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2013. They’ll be seeking their first opportunity to hoist Lord Stanley’s trophy for the first time since the magical 2011 season.
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Ironically, the 2019 Bruins couldn’t be much more different than the 2011 team. Sure, Zdeno Chara, Brad Marchand, David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron, and Tuukka Rask, all members of the 2011 team, are still around. But while their destinations are similar, the roads they have taken are different.
The 2011 team, for example, was incredible at even strength. This made their weak power play, which converted on just 11.4% of their opportunities, quite baffling.
Meanwhile, the 2019 Bruins have relied heavily on their power play. During the regular season, they were among the lowest scoring teams in the NHL at five-on-five. However, the Bruins also owned the NHL’s top power play. This has remained the case in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
There is, however, one significant similarity for these two Bruins teams – goaltending. In 2011, Boston relied on Tim Thomas, who won the Conn Smythe after perhaps the best postseason any goalie has had in the salary cap era. Rask, who was his backup in 2011, has shown the student might have finally surpassed the teacher, as he’s been fabulous throughout the postseason.
In 2011, Thomas posted four shutouts in the postseason to go along with a .940 save percentage. As remarkable as those numbers are, Rask has been even better through the first three rounds with a .942 save percentage.
The same core that led the Bruins to the Stanley in 2011 and 2013 might still be around. However, their core has grown since 2013. David Pastrnak has given the top line duo of Bergeron and Marchand the final piece it needed to be the NHL’s top forward line. Defensemen Torey Krug and Charlie McAvoy are now handling the same minutes Chara did in 2011 and 2013.
A second Stanley Cup for Bergeron, Marchand, and Chara likely ensures their respective spots in the Hall of Fame in the future. It might even push Rask into it, depending on how the rest of his career goes. David Backes went through a lot to get to this point and now might finally be able to lift the Stanley Cup for the first time in his career.
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Give credit to the Bruins. They saw an opening in the Eastern Conference when the Tampa Bay Lightning got swept. Unlike most of the favorites in this postseason, the Bruins were able to take advantage and not be overcome by pressure.