David Krejci or Patrick Kane? Milan Luchic or Brian Bickel? Patrice Bergeron or Johnathon Towes? All tributary like questions stemming from one far greater inquiry. Who is the better team: the Boston Bruins or the Chicago Blackhawks? Who will win the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals?
A few simple questions that on a good year pose near impossible for anyone to answer, all regardless of what has happened before hand. But this year is different. From day one, this playoff season was vast with upsets as you find it hard not to remember that if it weren't for Patrice Bergeron's goal with 52 seconds left in the Bruins, Leafs game seven back in round one Boston would have been eliminated before they even got to their semifinal match-up with the Rangers. Then in the semi finals series between the Hawks and Redwings, you remember that the 7th seed Redwings once harbored a 3-1 series lead over Presidents Trophy winning Blackhawks and in order for the Hawks to make it to their conference finals date with the Kings they had to do something that has only been done 25 times in NHL history: come back from a 3-1 deficit to win a series.
Yet it was in the Boston, Pittsburgh series where perhaps the biggest of these upsets was born. Coming into the series the Penguins averaged over 4 goals a game while the Bruins just managed about 3.4. The tables were inevitably turned in Pittsburgh's favor yet Boston shut them out twice and outscored the cup favorites 12 to 2 all on their way to preforming just the 4th conference finals sweep since 1983.
So long story short this playoff season has been one of upsets, thrilling finishes and unexpected heroes, looking at you David Krejci and Tory Krug. But unbelievably that is not the only factor that hinders anyone's idea of how this cup final will go. You see normally in a Stanley Cup match-up, since each team plays each other at least once a year, you normally have a measuring stick of how the two teams match up against one another. Yet due to the lockout shortened the season one of the fatalities of that lockout was the loss of inter conference play meaning that the last time the Hawks and B's played was in the 2011 2012 season and goodness grascios a lot has changed since then.
Eastern Conference teams score in regular season game | Western Conference teams score ins regular season game | Stanley Cup finals score (in games) |
Devils: 3 | Kings: 0 | Kings win in six games |
Bruins: 3 | Chanuks: 1 | Bruins win in seven games |
Flyers: 3 | Blackhawks: 2 | Blackhawks win in six games |
Nevertheless, with what these two rosters have produced thus far and the history of physical play that these two teams have exhibited over the last few years may give us a clue.
As it is, it seems like a running theme in this series will inevitably be the ongoing battle between hard hitting guys like Milan Luchic and Zedeno Chara for Boston and Brian Bickel and Brent Seabrook for Chicago. Between the four of them they have connected on a combined total of 233 hits and 43 penalty minutes. Yet amidst all this vicious animosity and violent slews of bone crushing hits, the Hawks have not dropped the gloves at all this postseason while in the Pittsburgh series alone, Boston threw down with three different brawls in just four games and an unexpected scrap between Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron.
Turning instead to the scoring portion of these two team's respective roads to the cup, through the first three rounds of the playoffs the Bruins have scored 50 times as opposed to Chicago's slightly smaller total of 47 goals. In addition to that as you look through the list of guys who have scored for these two teams Boston seems to have an edge. They come at you from all angles, D-men jumping into plays (The Bruins defense has combined for 15 goals through 6 different goal scorers), key offensive zone face-off wins (aside from one game in Pittsburgh, Patrice Bergeron and his accompanying center men have been stellar at the dot), clutch goal scoring and an ability to stay calm during a storm. (the Bruins are 4-1 in overtime this playoff season one of those wins coming in double overtime and another coming to finish that dramatic game seven comeback against the Leafs.) After all its goal scoring and the timeliness of that goal scoring that wins games and after all it only takes four victories to win a Cup and while both the Bruins and Blackhawks are the same number of wins away from clenching the ultimate prize, it is Boston that holds the edge in goals scored and that will inevitably prove a big factor in this upcoming series.
For so many years Boston hockey well stunk. Yet since Claude Julian came into the organisation 6 years ago the Bruins have turned it around, they have won a cup, they have harbored a Norris Trophy winner in Zedeno Chara and have, without a doubt, become one of the best goal-tending teams in the NHL. Yet above all else one fact reigns supreme. In just three days the Bruins will be in the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in just 3 NHL seasons and they better win. Nothing more must be said.
As it is, it seems like a running theme in this series will inevitably be the ongoing battle between hard hitting guys like Milan Luchic and Zedeno Chara for Boston and Brian Bickel and Brent Seabrook for Chicago. Between the four of them they have connected on a combined total of 233 hits and 43 penalty minutes. Yet amidst all this vicious animosity and violent slews of bone crushing hits, the Hawks have not dropped the gloves at all this postseason while in the Pittsburgh series alone, Boston threw down with three different brawls in just four games and an unexpected scrap between Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron.
Turning instead to the scoring portion of these two team's respective roads to the cup, through the first three rounds of the playoffs the Bruins have scored 50 times as opposed to Chicago's slightly smaller total of 47 goals. In addition to that as you look through the list of guys who have scored for these two teams Boston seems to have an edge. They come at you from all angles, D-men jumping into plays (The Bruins defense has combined for 15 goals through 6 different goal scorers), key offensive zone face-off wins (aside from one game in Pittsburgh, Patrice Bergeron and his accompanying center men have been stellar at the dot), clutch goal scoring and an ability to stay calm during a storm. (the Bruins are 4-1 in overtime this playoff season one of those wins coming in double overtime and another coming to finish that dramatic game seven comeback against the Leafs.) After all its goal scoring and the timeliness of that goal scoring that wins games and after all it only takes four victories to win a Cup and while both the Bruins and Blackhawks are the same number of wins away from clenching the ultimate prize, it is Boston that holds the edge in goals scored and that will inevitably prove a big factor in this upcoming series.
For so many years Boston hockey well stunk. Yet since Claude Julian came into the organisation 6 years ago the Bruins have turned it around, they have won a cup, they have harbored a Norris Trophy winner in Zedeno Chara and have, without a doubt, become one of the best goal-tending teams in the NHL. Yet above all else one fact reigns supreme. In just three days the Bruins will be in the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in just 3 NHL seasons and they better win. Nothing more must be said.
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