Boston Bruins stun Philadelphia Flyers with 5 goals in the 3rd period

Just when you think you've seen it all in a crazy first half of the 2010-2011 season for the Boston Bruins, they drop five goals on the Philadelphia Flyers in a bananas 7-5 triumph last night at the TD Garden.

Where to begin with this instant classic? Beating the Flyers (27-11-5) in the regular season doesn't mean much (let's not talk about the series that shall not be named from last spring) but Philly came in leading the Eastern Conference and they were up 3-2 heading into the third period. Oh and they were 18-2-2 when they scored first, well make that 18-3-2.

If you had told me that Brad Marchand, Steve Kampfer and Gregory Campbell would score the final three goals for the Bruins (24-12-7), I would have said it was a great night to be a Providence Bruin or something snarky and clever like that. However, those are probably the three biggest unsung heroes so far in a season that is heating up with each passing game.

The bitter feelings these teams have built up from the playoffs last season not to mention two earlier games this season boiled over 2:35 into last night as Shawn Thornton took on Jody Shelley (who threw a cheap hit on Bs defenseman Adam McQuaid in December).

Scott Hartnell (sans his carrot top wig) gave the Flyers an early 1-0 lead at 3:34 from Ville Leino and Danny Briere in the first period. It was a weird goal as Hartnell was able to bat the back from behind the goal line and past Tim Thomas (30 saves).

Zdeno Chara tied it up with a power-play goal when Boston had a two-man advantage. Marc Savard and David Krejci assisted on the blast from the captain that seemed to have eyes as it eluded Brian Boucher (30 saves).

The red-hot Patrice Bergeron scored 45 seconds into the second period when his body deflected a Kampfer shot from distance. Mark Recchi also assisted.

Philly took the lead and momentum in the contest when Nikolay Zherdev scored on a breakaway (from Andreas Nodl) and Jeff Carter sniped one over Thomas' shoulder with 36 seconds left in the second period (from James van Riemsdyk and Kimmo Timonen).

It was easy to tell that the third period would be bat shit insane when Recchi tied it 38 seconds in with a goal that will likely never be duplicated again this season. He threw it off the boards and it took a fortuitous bounce right to him and he just shoveled it into the open net. Thomas and Chara picked up gift helpers on that one.

1:10 later, Michael Ryder tipped in an Adam McQuaid shot with Nathan Horton picking up the second assist.

Briere (from Braydon Coburn and Ville Leino) tied it at 6:48 and then less than a minute later, former Bruins defenseman Sean O'Donnell picked a corner with his first goal of the season (haha what?).

Marchand tied it again with a snipe from Campbell and Blake Wheeler. Finally, Kampfer scored the game-winner with a low, quick release from a tough angle.

The Flyers are stacked on offense and when Chris Pronger is healthy (he was out last night), their defense is formidable but they'll probably never win a Stanley Cup with the assorted bums they line up between the pipes. That's the only advantage the Bruins have over them and the reason you would have some hope if these teams should meet again this spring.

Campbell wrapped it up with seven seconds left, scoring another empty-net goal (his speciality) from Wheeler and Bergeron.

Woo! What a game. I can only hope that tomorrow's matinee vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins (which I will be attending) has a quarter of the thrills of last night. Truly one of the best games you'll see not only for the Bruins this season but for the NHL as a whole.

Fuck My Life: 2009-2010 Bruins edition

If you're going to make history (in the worst way possible), you might as well do it in a way that'll never be repeated. Am I right Bruins fans?

The B's became just the fourth team in professional sports to lose a series after being up 3-0, falling 4-3 to the Flyers last night in Game 7 at the TD Garden.

The final punch to the balls of the Hub of Hockey is the fact that Boston was up 3-0 last night but apparently a three-goal lead, at home in a do-or-die game wasn't enough.

Ugh. It was a dream start as Michael Ryder (from Mark Recchi, Zdeno Chara) and Milan Lucic (Dennis Wideman, Johnny Boychuk) gave the B's a 2-0 lead at 9:02 of the first period with a pair of power play goals.

Looch made it 3-0 and you couldn't help but think maybe they had it in the bag. We should have known better, James van Riemsdyk cut it to 3-1 before the first period ended. A bad omen of things to come.

Scott Hartnell (Ville Leino, Danny Briere) and Briere (Hartnell) tied it up in the second period and we had a brand new game.

After getting dominated in the third period, the Bruins woke up somewhat in the third period. Lucic hit the post on a shot that would have put his team ahead. Then a fateful too many men on the ice penalty cost the B's.

Gagne (Mike Richards, Leino) scored the game-winner on the power play with 7:08 left. Neither goalie played particularly well but Michael Leighton (22 saves) got the better of Tuukka Rask (22 saves) after he filled in for Brian Boucher.

Philly goes on to the Eastern Conference Finals where they host the Montreal Canadiens beginning tomorrow night. It was all set up perfectly for the Bruins and they stumbled and fell, like always. It's a bitter defeat for a franchise and fan base that deserves better.

It's going to be a long summer.

The 2004 Yankees say hello

This would happen to the Bruins, that's all I can think after last night's utterly predictable 2-1 Game 6 loss to the Flyers at the Wachoiva Center.

Tomorrow night at the TD Garden, the B's will seek to avoid becoming the fourth team in pro sports to ever give up a 3-0 lead in the playoffs.

For the second straight game, Philly came out fast and scored early as Mike Richards flipped one past Tuukka Rask (25 saves) at 6:58 in the first period. Simon Gagne and Dan Carcillo assisted.

Late in the first period and for most of the second period, Boston carried the play and started to get plenty of possession in the Flyers' zone. They put 31 shots on Michael Leighton but in his first NHL playoff start, he didn't have to do too much.

When Danny Briere put a power play goal off Rask and into the net at 16:20, you just knew this series was going the distance. Richards and Claude Giroux assisted on the goal that Rask should have stopped, but you can't fault him since he made some top-notch saves to keep the Bruins in it.

Ville Leino got a gift of a penalty shot in the third period but Rask stuffed him, a nice play that seemed mostly meaningless at the time.

With one minute left in the game and Rask pulled, Milan Lucic tied it thanks to some grunt work around Philly's net. Zdeno Chara and Dennis Wideman assisted on the goal that would have been awesome if it came oh I don't know, in any of the earlier 59 scoreless minutes for Boston.

So here we are: there's not much to say. Win tomorrow night and the Bruins will make their first Eastern Conference Finals since 1992 and believe it or not, they'll have home ice since the Canadians took care of the Penguins in Game 7 last night.

Lose and they'll be the laughingstock of sports for a long, long time. No pressure boys.

The Bruins run Boston, wait what?

In my life, I've never been more into the Boston Bruins. This was an uninspiring team that barely made the playoffs this season but since the postseason started they've been a completely different squad. They hit, they're tough, they're clutch, they're not afraid of the big moments.

The B's got one step closer to the Eastern Conference Finals (where they haven't been since 1992) with a 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 2 at the TD Garden last night. Boston now has a commanding 2-0 lead with Game 3 in Philly tomorrow night.

Milan Lucic scored the game-winner with 2:57 left in the third after he pounced on a loose puck and fired a low shot past Flyers goalie Brian Boucher (24 saves). David Krejci and Miroslav Satan assisted on Lucic's first goal of the 2010 playoffs.

Twice Boston led by a goal, only to blow it. Johnny Boychuk scored 5:12 into the game off an assist from Patrice Bergeron, who won the face-off right back to him. It's a shot that Boucher would probably like back since it was a long distance, screened shot that he should have stopped.

Mike Richards, the Flyers' best offensive player, tied it at 17:06 from Danny Briere and Ville Leino.

One of the biggest revelations for the Bruins in the playoffs has been Miroslav Satan. He has continued to score huge goals and turn in game-changing plays. Last night was no different as he gave Boston a 2-1 lead in the second period from Blake Wheeler and Dennis Wideman.

Briere tied it up with 25 seconds left in the second period with a snipe over Tuukka Rask's (24 saves) shoulder. Leino and Chris Pronger assisted.

Overall this series is going exactly as most expected: these teams are basically mirrors images with the big difference being in goal; Rask is a budding superstar and Boucher is a journeyman and it's starting to show. Tuukka hasn't been as good so far vs. Philly like he was against Buffalo but he hasn't had to be, Boucher is good for a soft goal every game.

Philly desperately needed last night and since they didn't get it, they'll face a must-win tomorrow night at the Wachovia Center which should be nuts. Lose and they're done, win and they're right back in the series.