Stanley Cup Final: Previewing the Boston Bruins vs. St. Louis Blues matchup
Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask makes a save against the Blues' Patrick Maroon during the second period on Feb. 23, 2019. Credit: AP/Dilip Vishwanat
The image is one of the most iconic in NHL history.
Bruins Hall of Famer Bobby Orr is in full flight, horizontal to the Boston Garden ice, and in full celebration mode after scoring “The Goal,” the overtime winner in the decisive Game 4 of the 1970 Stanley Cup Final.
Blues defenseman Noel Picard, whose stick tripped Orr, looks on dejectedly while beaten and off-balance Hall of Fame goalie Glenn Hall tries to steady himself by holding onto the crossbar with his glove.
That was 49 years ago this month and the Blues have not been back to the Cup Final.
Until now.
The teams, who last met in the playoffs in 1972 as the Orr-led Bruins again swept the Blues en route to another Cup, will open their Cup Final rematch on Monday at Boston. The Bruins have been idle since completing their four-game sweep of the Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference final on May 16 while the Blues topped the Sharks, 5-1, on Tuesday at St. Louis to win the Western Conference final in six games.
The Blues, then playing in the West Division comprised entirely of expansion teams, advanced to the Cup Final in each of their first three seasons only to be swept by their Original Six opponent: the Canadiens in 1968 and 1969 and, finally, the Bruins in 1970.
The Bruins' Bobby Orr goes into the air after scoring a goal against the Blues that won the Stanley Cup for the Bruins in May 10, 1970, in Boston. Credit: AP/Ray Lussier
Before dispatching the Sharks, the Blues had lost the only three conference finals they’d reached since losing to the Bruins in 1970.
The Bruins won their first of six Cups in 1929 and last lifted the trophy with a seventh game win over the Canucks in 2011.
Here’s a primer for this series:
Storylines
The turnaround: The Blues were 7-8-3 when coach Mike Yeo was fired on Nov. 19 and replaced on an interim basis by Craig Berube and were still last in the NHL at 15-18-4 on Jan. 3. Three days later, five Blues players were at a members-only bar in Philadelphia to watch an Eagles’ playoff game when a patron there repeatedly requested “Gloria,” and Laura Branigan’s 1982 hit became the team’s theme song. The Blues beat the Flyers, 3-0, the next day as rookie goalie Jordan Binnington made his first start of the season and they finished the regular season on a 30-10-5 run.
Familiar faces: Bruins right wing David Backes was a second-round pick of the Blues in 2003 and played for them from 2006-16 — the last five seasons as the captain — before joining the Bruins as a free agent . . . Binnington has been in the Blues organization as a third-round pick in 2011. But he did spend all of 2017-18 on loan to the Providence Bruins as the Blues did not have an AHL affiliate that season.
Overcoming the layoff: The Bruins will have to do better with their long playoff layoff than the Islanders, who completed a first-round sweep of the Penguins on April 16 and did not begin their second-round series against the Hurricanes until April 26. They were swept. The Bruins held an intra-squad scrimmage at TD Garden on Thursday.
The officiating: The NHL has been beset by some questionable on-ice officiating during these playoffs. The Sharks were the beneficiaries twice. Their Game 7 overtime win over the Golden Knights in the first round was facilitated by a faulty cross-checking major to Cody Eakin on Joe Pavelski that led to four power-play goals over the ensuing five minutes. And in a Game 3 victory over the Blues in the conference final, all four on-ice officials missed an apparent hand pass by Timo Meier that led to Erik Karlsson’s overtime winner.
Special teams: The Bruins’ power play has been magical so far in these playoffs, a far cry from their Cup title in 2011 as they won despite their man-advantage struggles. The Bruins are 17-for-50 (34.0 percent) in 17 postseason games. That’s a huge difference maker. In comparison, the Blues are 12-for-62 (19.4 percent). The Bruins are also killing penalties at a 86.3 percent clip while the Blues are at 78.0 percent.
Road to the Cup Final
Blues
The Blues, who finished third in the Central Division, beat the second-place Jets in the first round, winning all three games in Winnipeg and advancing with a 3-2 win in Game 6 at St. Louis as Jaden Schwartz had a hat trick. In the divisional final against the fourth-place Stars, the Blues staved off elimination twice, winning Game 6, 4-1, at Dallas, and earning a 2-1 double-overtime victory in Game 7 as St. Louis native Pat Maroon scored the winner. The Blues split their first two games against the Sharks in the conference final before winning Game 5, 5-0, at San Jose and dominating Game 6 at St. Louis after David Perron opened the scoring at 1:32 of the first period.
Bruins
The Bruins’ 107 points tied for the second-most in the NHL yet left them a distant second-place in the Atlantic Division, 21 points behind the Lightning. They were pushed to the brink of elimination in the first round against the third-place Maple Leafs before winning Game 6, 4-2, in Toronto as Brad Marchand had two goals and an assist and easily won Game 7, 5-1, with Tuukka Rask making 32 saves. The Bruins trailed again in the second round as the Blue Jackets, who had swept the Lightning, took a 2-1 series lead after winning Game 3, 2-1, at Columbus. The Bruins haven’t lost since, eliminating the Blue Jackets in six games, then sweeping the Hurricanes.
Players to watch
Blues
Jordan Binnington: The 25-year-old had one NHL appearance before taking over the Blues’ net on Jan. 7. But he was a huge factor in the team’s turnaround, going 24-5-1 with a 1.89 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage. He’s 12-7 (two overtime losses) with a 2.36 GAA and a .914 save percentage in the playoffs.
Jaden Schwartz: The left wing had 11 goals and 36 points in 69 regular-season games. He has 12 goals and 16 points in 19 playoff games.
Vladimir Tarasenko: Seems crazy now to think that there was speculation the Blues would trade the supremely-gifted right wing, who has scored at least 33 goals in each of the last five seasons. He has eight goals and five assists in the playoffs, including at least one point in each of the six games against the Sharks.
Bruins
Zdeno Chara: The 6-foot-9, 250-pound captain is expected to be available for Game 1 after missing Game 4 against the Hurricanes with an undisclosed injury. He may be 42 but the defenseman can still be a force in both ends.
Brad Marchand: The super pesky left wing is playing super well as his line with center Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak has probably been the best in the postseason with a combined 22 of the Bruins’ 57 playoff goals. Marchand has seven goals and 11 assists in 17 postseason games after compiling 36 goals and 64 assists in the regular season.
Tuukka Rask: The Finnish goalie has silenced his critics by going 12-5 (one overtime loss) with a 1.84 GAA and a .942 save percentage in the playoffs. A Cup victory would likely earn him the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP.
Bruins will win if: Chara remains healthy, Rask continues to play at the same level and they continue to dominate on special teams.
Blues will win if: Binnington outplays Rask and the penalty kill figures out a way to slow the Bruins.
Prediction
Bruins in six
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
