After not leading in either Game 4 or Game 5 (where not coincidentally their PP was scoreless each time), Boston eradicated both of those trends that were dragging them down. Also, the first line decided to show up with a pair of timely goals by Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak. Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy did his best Red Sox manager Alex Cora impression from last October (ie. pushing all the right buttons) as he put rookie winger Karson Kuhlman in the lineup for the first time since April 30 and of course, the undrafted rookie from Minnesota-Duluth came through with a key goal (his 1st career NHL playoff goal). Finally, goaltender Tuukka Rask (28 saves) further cemented his lock on the Conn Smythe Trophy (postseason MVP)-win or lose in Game 7-with yet another brilliant performance in a run chock full of them.
Led by their head coach Craig Berube who prefers his barbaric hockey straight out of the Stone Age, the Blues just can't help but commit stupid penalties time and again. That's why it's on the Bruins and their top-ranked power play in the postseason to take advantage. St. Louis outdid themselves early tonight with a pair of infractions (boarding on Brayden Schenn and delay of game on Ryan O'Reilly) that gifted Boston their first 5-on-3 of the entire postseason. The Black and Gold made the most of that golden opportunity as Marchand blasted in a one-timer from Pasta and Torey Krug at 8:40 of the first period. It was Marchand's ninth goal of the postseason (which tied him for the team lead with Charlie Coyle and Patrice Bergeron) and his 13th point (5 goals, 8 assists) in the last 13 games. The Little Ball of Hate leads the league with 23 points this postseason. Pastrnak (10th) and Krug (NHL-best 16th) both reached double-digit assists in the playoffs, mostly thanks to Boston's usually unstoppable power play.
For the entire contest, the B's outshot the Blues 32-29 but St. Louis predictably had their biggest push (outside of a nervy start by the visitors) in the second period when they outshot the Bruins 10-8. Conversely, the Blues' power play couldn't be much more of a liability: they went 0-for-4 (including 0-for-2 in the 2nd) this evening which added to their series ledger makes them a Claude Julien coached team-esque 1-for-18 in these six games. Yuck. Rask's best save of this one came in the second period with some help from a post and Charlie McAvoy. Alex Pietrangelo's backhander hit the post then Rask with some sort of Jedi mindtrick was able to find the puck with his glove behind his back (no seriously, this happened) and McAvoy was able to bat it away once it reappeared.
When it came to winning time-the 3rd period-Boston's veteran experience showed up in a major way as they closed out St. Louis to the tune of 4-1 over the last 20 minutes. Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (27 saves) got handcuffed by a bouncing shot by Brandon Carlo that beat him (with a screen in front by Kuhlman) from just inside the blue line that you expect any capable NHL goalie to stop in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. Carlo's second goal of the postseason was assisted by Jake DeBrusk for a 2-0 lead at 2:31. Any chance of a St. Louis comeback was extinguished by one of the most unlikely participants-Kuhlman-who became the 21st Bruin to score this postseason, tying an NHL record. John Moore is the only Bruins skater that has played this postseason who hasn't scored so I fully expect him to bury a huge goal on Wednesday with the way that this has been going.
Kuhlman sniped a wrister right under the crossbar from David Krejci at 10:15 of the third period. The only time that the Blues could beat Rask tonight came with the help of a video review (at least the NHL got that call right): O'Reilly's shot snuck over the goal line right before Rask got over to it and pushed it back over the line. O'Reilly has been St. Louis' best player this series as he picked up his seventh goal of the postseason at 12:01, assisted by Alex Pietrangelo (their other top stud) and that weasel David Perron. Pastrnak quickly helped Boston regain that three-goal lead at 14:06. Marchand sauced a beautiful backhand pass to him and he waited for Binnington to make the first move before he flipped it in for his ninth goal of the postseason with Sean Kuraly picking up the other helper. Bruins captain Zdeno Chara (and our Robot Overlord until further notice) officially clinched the victory with an empty-netter at 17:41. His second goal of the postseason made him the second oldest ever player (42) to score a goal in the Stanley Cup Final, trailing only former teammate Mark Recchi (43) who scored three goals in the 2011 SCF vs. Canucks.
At this point, there really isn't that much left to say (sorry Dave Matthews Band) but don't worry there is plenty of time before the opening puck drop on Wednesday night. This is the first time since 2011 that the Final has gone the distance and as all New Englanders (should) know, that's when Boston rallied from down 3-2 in the series to capture the Cup with an unforgettable win in Vancouver for Game 7. It seems odd to say this given the embarrassment of riches that Boston sports teams have delivered over the past decade plus but the last Game 7 of a championship series here was way back in 1984 for Celtics-Lakers.
Obviously, it's been a pretty back-and-forth series vs. St. Louis and while the Blues have proven to be a worthy (albeit extremely dirty) foe, I maintain that when the Bruins play their A game, the Blues can't match it. Keep in mind that St. Louis has been way better on the road this postseason (9-3) than they have at home (6-7) while the B's are a modest 7-5 at the Garden this postseason. Must resist the trite cliche that every bozo will be spouting until then (anything can happen in a Game 7!), ugh now I need to take a shower to wash that grime off. This has been quite an unpredictable series not to mention postseason for the Bruins and all we can hope is that they embrace this incredible opportunity to win the seventh Cup in franchise history on their home ice in front of their irrationally loyal and passionate fans.
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