With New Years Eve upon us, the spirit of reminiscing has taken over. The Bruins and their fans have had quite the year together: from injuries to tragedies to Stanley Cup runs we have seen it all. So here's a list of my top 10 Bruins moments from this past year.
10. Bruins Wishing Red Sox Good Luck: It's no exaggeration when we say this year in Boston's sports has been absolutely fantastic. But it's always heartwarming to see Boston's best supporting each other in their championship pursuits. As the Red Sox began their World Series run, the Bruins players wished their fellow "Bostonians" luck. How cute. Here's the link to that video.
9. Chara Protects Seguin: Don't you dare touch one of Chara's cubs or you're in for 6'11", 256 pounds worth of pain. Apparently Alexei Emelin didn't know this and decided cross checking Tyler in the neutral zone and sending him sliding into the boards was a good idea. Well Chara definitely didn't think so and took matters into his own hands by pummeling Emelin into the ice. Don't poke the bear idiot.
10. Bruins Wishing Red Sox Good Luck: It's no exaggeration when we say this year in Boston's sports has been absolutely fantastic. But it's always heartwarming to see Boston's best supporting each other in their championship pursuits. As the Red Sox began their World Series run, the Bruins players wished their fellow "Bostonians" luck. How cute. Here's the link to that video.
9. Chara Protects Seguin: Don't you dare touch one of Chara's cubs or you're in for 6'11", 256 pounds worth of pain. Apparently Alexei Emelin didn't know this and decided cross checking Tyler in the neutral zone and sending him sliding into the boards was a good idea. Well Chara definitely didn't think so and took matters into his own hands by pummeling Emelin into the ice. Don't poke the bear idiot.
8. Zdeno Chara vs. Sidney Crosby: In the heat of the moment, whine bag Sidney Crosby thought it would be a good idea to get into an argument with 6'11" giant Zdeno Chara. After having to bend down to hear the little munchkin speak, Chara got tired of him trying to get bigger than his britches and pushed him. Of course, Crosby didn't like that because god forbid anyone touch hockey's "god" and hasn't stopped complaining about it since. He may have hated it because there was nothing he could do and the refs sure as hell weren't about to stop it but the rest of us absolutely loved it because finally someone tried to put the league's golden boy in his place.
7. Brad Marchand vs. Matt Cooke: Our favorite little honey badger made his presence known during the Penguins series in more ways than one. Marchy got sick of Matt Cooke being the class A asshole he's always been and decided to show him a thing or two about being a real hockey player. So after getting into a mini shoving match during a puck battle on the opposite boards, Marchy get possession of the puck, breaks away and scores before he proceeds to rub the glory of goal scoring in Matt Cooke's face.
6. Kick Save by Ference: During an emotional game on April 17th, the astounding athletic ability and fighting spirit of the Boston Bruins came through when it was just what the city needed to see. As Drew Stafford wound up and took a shot off a rebound, Anton Khudobin was on the far side of his net, leaving the entire other side wide open. As the puck barreled toward the back of the net, in comes Andrew Ference, who makes the kick save behind Dobby and gets back up and keeps playing. Although we didn't win, Andrew Ference kept the score close and is still a beaut for it.
5. Bruins and Sabres Salute the Fans: After the tragedy at the Boston Marathon this year, the Bruins played an emotional tilt against the Buffalo Sabres on April 17th. Despite the loss, the game did exactly what it was supposed to do: give the city of Boston something that could help take their minds off of it. As much as we Bruins fans hate the Sabres, what they planned after the game with the Bruins was a great, touching gesture. For once, the Sabres didn't totally suck.
4. Gregory Campbell's Heroic Shift: The Bruins are known for the toughness, their dedication to their team and their sport, and their resilience in the face of adversity. This past year has been a year for all three of those things and Gregory Campbell became the poster child for them with what has become one of the most notorious shifts of all time. During the Penguins series, the Bruins and Pens were tied 1-1 in the second and the Pens were on a power play. Evgeni Malkin took a shot from the point and Gregory Campbell, in an attempt to keep the score tied, dove to block the shot. He definitely blocked it but at the expense of his right leg, which was broken when the puck collided with it. In obvious pain, Gregory Campbell did the one thing no one expected: he finished the power play. The guy's a hero, plain and simple, and it was partly because of his effort that the Bruins won that game.
3. Bruins Sweep the Pittsburgh Penguins: The Bruins had just come out of a crazy series with the Maple Leafs, only to find themselves pitted against the favorite to win the Stanley Cup: the Pittsburgh Penguins. No one expected the Bruins to come out on top and in all honesty the odds were against us, except us fans and the players themselves. Us fans never lost faith and in the end, the Bruins once again proved you can never underestimate the Bruins.
2. Bruins Comeback: Like I said, you can never, ever underestimate the Boston Bruins. When all our playoff hopes seemed to have been lost as we went down 4-1 in the third period with a little over 14 minutes left, the Bruins showed the hearts of lions and they fought. They fought hard and with 50.2 seconds left in the third, the Bruins tied the game 4-4 and went on to win it in overtime. This comeback has become one of the most prolific hockey comebacks the game has ever seen and will forever be remembered by those who could witness it.
1. The Best National Anthems to Have Ever Been Sung: The tragedy at the Boston Marathon took quite the toll on the people of this city. It was a scary, nerve wracking time when no one knew what was going to happen. But the city of Boston showed incredible resiliency and solidarity throughout the ordeal and came out of it stronger than ever. The showing at the April 17th game and the April 20th game were and will forever be perfect examples of this resiliency and solidarity that can only be found in Boston because only here are we Boston Strong.
and those my friends, are my top 10 Bruins moments of 2013. Have a happy New Year everyone and let's hope the Bruins ring in the new year tonight with a win!
Until next year,
Keep Calm and Bergeron!
Until next year,
Keep Calm and Bergeron!