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
I predicted that Boston Bruins would defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games. Well, I’m very happy to have been proven wrong, and I am sorry that I doubted the resolve of the Bruins for even a moment. The Black and Gold wipe the Penguins out of the postseason in a clean sweep. The Bruins were everywhere they needed to be holding the most explosive offense in the NHL to two goals in four games. That’s bloody incredible folks. An outstanding effort against a powerhouse team. Boston now has for the fifteenth time in twelve years, a team heading towards a championship game.
I think we can agree on two things in this series. One of these things even Penguins fans will break rank and join us in. So, let’s start with that. Was this some of the most inconsistent officiating in the playoffs to date or what? Penguins got away with two many men on the ice in the series, a couple of slashes, one ugly board, and the Bruins had their fair share of missed calls. The refs would call someone for two minutes, then ignore an obvious repeat play by the other side a few seconds later. In some games, they had a “let em play” attitude, others it was like attending St. Gretzky’s school for the excessively naughty. The refs let the whole sport down in that series.
This one the Pens fans might not agree on, but I’ll call it as I see it. Could the NBCSN crew been anymore biased against Boston? They spent half of game four’s play comparing Daniel Paille‘s check of Sidney Crosby with Gregory Campbell playing on a broken leg. Pierre McGuire’s interviews always seemed to come back to Pittsburgh in some way (mostly Sidney Crosby). I get it, Sidney Crosby is an amazing player (although by getting completely blanked at the hands of a so-called lesser team, maybe he isn’t?) but last time I checked there were some Bruins players out there playing with heart, soul, and guts. If the interviews were tough, the intermissions were excruciating. Game Three and Four felt like a wake and funeral for Pittsburgh, not a conference finals game.
Then again, I guess I really shouldn’t expect anything less from a NBC network at this point, should I?
The one thing both sides can take away from this is that the Hockey Gods do love their irony. If anyone should have gotten the assist on the McQuaid goal in game four, it should have been Jerome Iginla. So, the Boston Bruins are going to be taking on the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup Finals. I wonder why other surprises and disasters the hockey gods have in store for us.