The Boston Bruins fell in game seven to the Montreal Canadiens 5-0. Most will see this as an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the rival Habs. That, the Bruins once again let fans down in game seven. The casual fan will now look to the Celtics to roll through the playoffs, the Red Sox to continue to out slug everyone, and the Patriots to get even better with the seventh pick in the draft. The B’s had their shot in the lime light and came up empty. Its unfortunate that it turns out this way but when you’re competing with the best team in the respective league, its a reality.

For an instant the Bruins were the toast of the town. They were headlining sport talk shows. There was chatter all over New England when they forced a game seven. There was more hype surrounding the Bruins than there had been in quite some time. A team that was down and out  was about to pull off a Red Sox sized comeback.  It was a young likable team with a ticker the size of the ice they played on. An irrelevant team was relevant again. It was fun to be a Bruins’ fan for the moment. The streets outside the the Garden were filled with black and gold. The Garden itself was electric. City bars were at capacity with puck heads. But like all good things it came to an end.

Its hard to dissect why they eventually lost this series. They out skated, hit, and played the Canadiens throughout every game, with the exception of the first game. I know that in a seven game series the better team usually win. And obviously coming in, the Habs were the top seed and the better team. However the team that deserves it the most is now out. I hope the Canadiens get swept in the next round and embarrassed. In my mind they got lucky in this series. They got the majority of the calls, questionable ones at that. They flopped and fell like a bunch of sissies and drew penalties. I’m not saying there is a conspiracy to look into here but the Canadiens are notorious for getting those calls. The Bruins did an excellent job of killing off penalties but when you give the number one powerplay in the league gift chances, it affects the game.

The truth is that Boston shouldn’t have even been in a game seven. They shouldn’t have been in the playoffs. Much has been written about the B’s story this season. How they were slated to finish as the NHL door mat, they lost Bergeron, Fernandez, Alberts, and Kobasew, for extended periods of time, 490 man games lost to injuries, too many young kids with limited NHL experience, and a new coach, all contributed for reasons why this team should have been out a long time ago. To see how they put it all together and fight through all the adversity was something to watch. To see this season as a failure because of their inability to yet again make it out of the first round is nearsighted and wrong. Boston forced a game seven with the top seeded Montreal Canadiens as an eighth seed. They were a bounce or a call, here or there from moving on.

The Bruins are a team now on the rise rather than still trying to figure the “New NHL” out. They put the definition back to what a Bruin is. Boston’s young players grew and gained experience. The experience in playing in and losing a seventh game of a playoff series is only going to help their growth. Hats off to their resiliency making a city recognize their names. The youthful exuberance that this team displayed was a pleasure to watch and I look forward to next season with much anticipation. Congratulations to the Boston Bruins for a successful building year.

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