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Bruins, Thomas taste Cup victory

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Written by Curtis Zupke

Wednesday, June 15, 2011 23:17

Boston 4, Vancouver 0 (Bruins win series 4-3)

The storyline of the Stanley Cup Finals was so firmly defined from the beginning, there was hardly anywhere else to look: Tim Thomas vs. Roberto Luongo, two Vezina Trophy finalists going head-to-head on opposite sides of North America, the weight of their long-suffering franchises on their padded shoulders.

So it was in dramatic fashion that one of them etched themselves into history with a defining performance in Game 7 as Thomas shut out Vancouver for a 4-0 victory Wednesday night at Rogers Arena.

The Bruins netminder stopped all 37 shots to silence a locked-and-loaded Vancouver home crowd and deliver Boston’s first Cup since 1972.

Dominant and unflappable throughout the finals, Thomas acknowledged afterward he was human.

“I won’t lie,” Thomas said. “I had nerves yesterday and today. I faked it as well as I could and I faked my way all the way to the Stanley Cup.”

That was the mountain that couldn’t be summited by the Canucks, as the loss represented a kick in the gut to a city and country that yearned to bring the Cup home to Canada for the first time since 1993.

Vancouver won the Presidents’ Trophy with 54 victories, led by Luongo and Art Ross Trophy winner Daniel Sedin.

But Thomas was the heart of a defensive-minded team that prevailed with a rough-around-the-edges style that conjured its Original Six roots.

“The physical work that we’ve done the whole series added up,” said Thomas, who became the first goalie to record a Game 7 finals shutout on the road.

Thomas easily won the Conn Smythe Trophy for postseason MVP. He recorded two shutouts and allowed just eight goals in seven games for a 1.15 goals-against average in the finals. His 738 postseason saves are an NHL record.
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“I know everybody expected him to have an average game at some point (but) it never came,” Boston coach Claude Julien said. “He was in the zone. He was focused and never let anything rattle him."

While Thomas was the story, veteran Mark Recchi provided the sentimental sidebar when he announced his retirement.

“What a great group of guys,” said Recchi, 43, who also won Cups with Carolina in 2006 and Pittsburgh in 1991. “It’s a great way to go out on top for me …This is it for me.”

Wednesday wasn’t quite it for Luongo, who stopped 95 of 97 shots in three previous finals home games but allowed three goals on Boston’s first 13 shots.

Daniel and Henrik Sedin, who combined for 202 points in the regular season, totaled two goals in the series. They were each minus-4 for the night.

The Canucks had survived a Game 7 against Chicago in the first round and seemed destined to finish it out at home. That made the loss all the more difficult to accept.

“I think anybody in our situation right now would feel real disappointed, whether you're the favorite or not,” Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault said.

“We battled real hard. I know we gave it our best shot, but in this one game, they were the better team. It's that simple.”

Boston rookie Brad Marchand highlighted Game 7 offensively with a pair of goals and an assist and finished with 11 goals in the postseason.

The Bruins had the Cup in sight after a short-handed goal by Patrice Bergeron made it 3-0 late in the second period.

With Zdeno Chara in the penalty box for tripping, the Bruins got possession. Dennis Seidenberg fed a breaking Bergeron, who was tripped by Christian Ehrhoff and got a shot off before the two slid into Luongo. The puck hit Bergeron’s right hand and carried into the net before a stunned Luongo. The play was reviewed and stood up as the home crowd grew quiet.

Until then, the Canucks were sniffing a comeback. They outshot the Bruins for much of the second period – Boston didn’t get a shot on goal until more than seven minutes in.

But Boston still jumped ahead and put the Canucks in a 2-0 hole by keeping the puck in Vancouver’s zone after a nice play by rookie Tyler Seguin to get the puck to Michael Ryder. The puck came through traffic to Marchand behind the goal line, and Marchand spun a backhand that Luongo stopped with his stick before he moved it across the line.

The team that scored first won each of the first six games in the series, and the din in Rogers Arena was broken when Bergeron gave Boston a 1-0 lead with 5:23 remaining in the first period.

Out of a television timeout, Vancouver won a faceoff in its zone but Marchand, stationed at left wing, got to the puck and skated around the right circle and fed a backhand that Bergeron snapped through legs in the slot into the left side of the net.

“Boston played a real strong game,” Vigneault said. “They got great goaltending and they were able to score a couple of tough goals around our net. They deserved to win.”

Photos by Getty Images