| 27 May 2011
Team. It took a team effort and in the end, they celebrated it as a team. As the final moments of game 7 went by and the Garden Faithful rose to their feet in celebration of their team achieving their 1st Cup appearance in 20 years, the Bruins as a team came together and celebrated. And when the handshakes were through and Zdeno Chara was presented with the Wales Trophy, it was the team that he made come over and join in the photo because it was not a victory for him alone.
Tonight, the Bruins went on the ice in an effort to play a perfect game. To play mistake free, keep Tampa from the power play and execute in all 3 zones. As a team they did so and only the efforts of Dwayne Roloson were able to keep them from solidifying their place in the Cup Finals until late in the 3rd period. In the end though, their hard work, dedication and focus on surpassing Tampa let them capitalize on the one small defensive mistake that the Lightning could not afford.
With less than 8 minutes to go in the 3rd, the Lucic-Krejci-Horton line hit the ice looking to put their team ahead. Taking a pass from Andrew Ference to cut through the neutral zone, David Krejci was able to gain the blue line and delay gaving Nathan Horton the opportunity to drive to the net and receive a pass behind Roloson for the tap in. The goal would hold up as the game winner and the only one of the match as the Bruins continued to focus and kept the Lightning at bay for the remaining 7 and a half minutes.
While we've seen in the past certain lines bring the mental focus and effort required to carry the team to victory, tonight, it was a full team effort. Consistent pressure and speed ended up being too much for a hurting Lightning team. Boucher spoke after the game about it praising the Bruins depth, resilience and their ability to stay focused and perfect in a game where each team looked to find the one mistake they could exploit. The effort on the goal would carry over as the Bruins would go into a lock down mode, preventing Tampa from getting the quality chance they needed.
Even if the outcome was due to the effort across the whole team, there were players who were willing to do what was needed to make sure they moved on. Dennis Seidenberg may have played the best game on his life tonight being a consistent rock on the back end, blocking shots, taking hits, taking away space and moving the puck. Andrew Ference as well with his use of speed and physical play to shut down the quickness that Tampa can bring. Zdeno Chara, leading this team by example for the entire playoffs and then here again tonight. Tim Thomas who was in his classic zone tonight and working harder than anyone while showing that his talents only get better with age. Bergeron, Marchand, Recchi and Peverley- creating chances, pushing Tampa's defense back and keeping their opponents locked down. Tyler Seguin with his continuing maturation and dedication in all 3 zones (while playing 15 minutes in a game 7, not bad for a rookie). The Krejci line of course as they found the hole and exploited it. And everyone else that made this team succeed tonight and all throughout this journey.
So tonight they'll sit back and enjoy what they've done as a team and celebrate what only a team can do. And then they'll be back on the ice as a team, preparing and working to accomplish their final goal. One team, one goal.
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