Jun 7, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; The Boston Bruins pose with the Prince of Whales trophy after defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins 1-0 in game four and winning the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Michael Ivins-USA TODAY Sports

Unbelievable.

The Boston Bruins are Eastern Conference champions once again and are headed back to the Stanley Cup Finals after sweeping the not-so-mighty Pittsburgh Penguins out of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask, only allowed two goals in the 4 games and finished with a 0.44 goals against average for the series. That is absolutely unheard and if you can believe it he’s actually playing better than Tim Thomas did back in 2011.

Those numbers are made even more incredible by the fact that the Penguins were one of the highest scoring offenses in the history of the NHL playoffs headed into this series. Star players like Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin and James Neal were held pointless for the entire series. Just an incredible display of team defense and goaltending, an absolute systematic dismantling of an offense.

On the offensive side for the Bruins, David Krejci kept adding to his ever-growing playoff legend and still leads the NHL in scoring with 9 goals and 21 points.

Also, head coach Claude Julien was able to roll all four lines with confidence and quite honestly I never felt nervous with any Bruins forward on the ice at any time of the game. Even Kaspars Daugivins stepped into game 4 for the injured folk-hero Gregory Campbell and hit a post while looking solid in all 3 zones.

Now the Bruins get to rest there surely aching bodies as they wait to see if they’re playing the Chicago Blackhawks or Los Angeles Kings for the Stanley Cup.

I’ll leave you with one final note, the last time the Bruins won the Stanley Cup, they won the last game of the Eastern Conference Finals by a score of 1-0.

Just saying.

Jun 7, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand (63) and Boston Bruins center Tyler Seguin (19) celebrate after defeating the Pittsburg Penguins and winning the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Michael Ivins-USA TODAY Sports

June 5, 2013; Boston, MA USA; Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) dives to cover the puck during the second period in game three of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Pittsburgh Penguins at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

Tuukka Rask, Tuukka Rask, oh my goodness, Tuukka Rask. What to say about a man who singlehandedly willed his team into overtime and just wouldn’t leave the building without a win.

The Pittsburgh Penguins arrived in Boston down 0-2 to the Bruins and were being outscored 9-1. They were lifeless and getting embarrassed, they needed a good effort in Boston just to try and save some face. Well, the Penguins did just that and dominated the Bruins for most of the game while getting more than their fair-share of scoring chances.

But Tuukka Rask refused to give the Penguins any hope or life and instead slammed the door on 53 shots out of 55 on his way to helping the Bruins secure a 2-1 double-overtime win and 3-0 series lead.

Now, none of this should really shock anyone as Rask has been a wall for most of the playoffs. He’s now 11-4-1 in the playoffs with a 1.85 goals against average and .940 save percentage. If he didn’t make a case for a big payday from the Bruins in the regular season, he sure as heck is doing it now.

Evgeni Malkin finally showed up for the Penguins and hit a few posts, also Sidney Crosby was better and played a little harder but still is nowhere near where he needs to be if the Penguins wish to make this a series at all. Both are still pointless through 3 games.

As for the Bruins not named “Rask”, they decided to start playing sloppy in the 2nd period and it carried over through the 3rd period and for awhile it looked as though the Penguins were going to win the game. But like I said before, Rask and his goalposts just wouldn’t allow it.

Big ups to Gregory Campbell who blocked a Malkin bomb on the penalty-kill and stayed on the ice on one leg and even tried to block another shot. He was an absolute warrior and if the Bruins didn’t want to win it for Rask, they damn sure had to win it for Campbell. Johnny Boychuk also had some massive shot-blocks, especially in the 2nd OT before Bergeron’s game winner.

I think it’s safe to say Rask and Bruins stole this game tonight and with it I think they took what little wind was in the Penguins sails. Game-4 is in Boston on Friday night, I’ll be watching with a broom in my hand.

Jun 3, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron (37) is greeted by the Boston bench after scoring a goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the third period in game two of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the CONSOL Energy Center. The Boston Bruins won 6-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

What a difference a few days/games can make.

Last week the Pittsburgh Penguins were there consensus Stanley Cup favorite and they were going to sleepwalk past the Boston Bruins and on into the Stanley Cup finals.

Fast forward to this Wednesday and the Bruins are up 2-0 on the Penguins after two convincing wins in Pittsburgh. Also, NHL superstar and all-world player, Sidney Crosby, has been held pointless and even JetBlue pilots have started taking jabs at the polarizing center.

Then we find out today that Bruins goaltender, Tuukka Rask, who has stopped 55 of 56 shots in the series will be featured on this week’s issue of Sports Illustrated:

As you can see, things are good in Boston and not-so-good in Pittsburgh. However, this is the NHL playoffs and a series isn’t over and a team isn’t eliminated until they’ve lost four games. So, even though the Penguins haven’t looked very good in the first two games, they still have ample time and opportunities to turn it around. If any team can, it’s a team as stacked and experienced as the Pittsburgh Penguins and some think all they need to do is change their strategy.

Through the first couple of games the Penguins have outhit the Bruins by a wide margin, 71-38. That has lead to the Bruins outscoring the Penguins 9-1 in the goal department. It as if they’ve swapped roles and the Bruins are the high-scoring superstars, while the Penguins are the big, tough guys that want to wear you down.

It’s obviously not working for the Penguins and as the teams Instagram gave away yesterday, they do indeed have a new strategy and it appears to be pretty simple. The Penguins are simply going to play “Hangman” and make a “C-O-M-E-B-A-C-K”:

Penguins play hangman. Mandatory Credit: Pittsburgh Penguins Official Twitter Account.

Seriously, you cannot make this stuff up. I didn’t really know what to say when I first saw this photo and actually thought/hoped it was photoshopped. I was then informed it wasn’t.

I mean, good on the Penguins for trying to keep things light and loose but keep it to yourself.