Well this has gone up about 12 notches in terms of intensity.
It's one thing for Alexandre Burrows to bite Patrice Bergeron's finger in Game 1 (which went unpunished by the NHL) or Maxim Lapierre to mock Bergeron in Game 2, but things took on a much more serious tone with the actions in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals last night at TD Garden.
The Bruins roared to an 8-1 win, getting them back in the series and cutting Vancouver's lead to 2-1. However, it came at a big price as Boston's first line winger Nathan Horton was blindsided by Canucks scrub defenseman Aaron Rome.
Horton was carted off on a stretcher and spent the night in Mass General. He has movement in all his extremities but also a severe concussion for his troubles. He's done for the rest of the Finals while Rome was suspended for the rest of the series.
I've never been more upset over a play in my life (real talk) and that's why I waited until now for some of the venom to wear off before I blogged. Still, it was a reprehensible play by a team that gets scummier and dirtier by each period.
I couldn't be more proud of the way that the Bruins responded to that incident which happened only 5:07 into Game 3. Rather than just turn it into a bloodbath, they hit Vancouver where it really hurts: on the scoreboard. They also played with a real edge, not backing down to any challenge and when the score was safely secure, they proceeded to beat the hell out of the Canucks in the third period (145 penalty minutes combined, second most in Finals history).
Seeing Boston explode for eight goals (second most in Finals history) after struggling to score two goals combined in Games 1 & 2 was the most surprising part of last night's blowout.
Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas (40 saves) erased Game 2's bitter ending with another strong performance. Conversely, Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo (30 saves) was extremely shaky as he allowed four goals in the second and third periods.
Don't ask me why Vancouver head coach Alain Vigneault let Luongo take his beating in the third period. I certainly enjoyed it though, hopefully it has a carryover effect to Game 4 which is also a must-win for the B's.
Shawn Thornton made his first appearance in seven games, stepping in for the ineffective Tyler Seguin. I didn't like the move when it broke on Twitter right before the puck dropped but Claude Julien looked like a genius (for once). Thornton only played 5:50 before he received a bogus game misconduct in the third (for being too tough?) but he very clearly gave the Garden and his team a jolt of energy. He threw a huge hit right on his first shift and also drew a penalty that led to a power-play goal.
Haha yup, this game was so crazy that Boston scored two power-play goals and two shorthanded goals and I didn't even mention it until now. And for the record, Vancouver's All-World power play is 1 for 16 in the first three games of the series.
After a scoreless first period that was all about the Horton incident, the Bruins woke up with a goal 11 seconds into the second period. Andrew Ference's shot from the point had eyes and it got through traffic past Luongo. Ference's third of the playoffs was assisted by Rich Peverley and David Krejci.
Recchi had his second power-play goal in two games at 4:22. His attempted pass was deflected in off Ryan Kesler's skate. Recchi's fourth of the playoffs was assisted by Michael Ryder and Ference.
From there, Brad Marchand turned in the play of the game. Boston was shorthanded and Marchand stole the puck from one of the Sedin sisters in his defensive zone. He chipped it off the boards to himself and beat a defender before coming in on Luongo. He waited him out and then roofed it (his seventh of the postseason), a stunning beauty of a goal at 11:30.
Krejci's snipe at 15:47 (11th of the playoffs, assisted by Ryder and Zdeno Chara) ensured that the Bruins weren't going to be swept and there would be a Game 5 on Friday in Vancouver.
Daniel Paille's shorthanded goal at 11:38 (his third of the postseason) of the third was a great reward for a stellar game from the penalty kill specialist.
Jannik Hansen (third of the playoffs) broke Thomas' shutout at 13:53 off assists to Raffi Torres and Lapierre.
Boston stepped on Vancouver's throat with three goals in the final 2:21 of Game 3. Recchi (from Marchand and Patrice Bergeron), Chris Kelly (fifth of the playoffs from Paille and Chara) and Ryder (sixth of the playoffs, on the power play from Tomas Kaberle) had the honors.
Game 3 was incredible (other than Horton's injury) from a Bruins fan's perspective. However, Boston has to bring that same energy and physical play to Game 4 or this series will be over soon with the result none of us want. The Canucks are collectively rattled and the B's have to keep that momentum going. Get a goal early on Luongo and I like their chances to even this up.
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