| 07 June 2011
"I don't know how to fight". The words of the German defenseman Dennis Seidenberg after Game 3 where the Bruins rock on the back end went for a tumble with Vancouver's Ryan Kesler. While the fight wasn't much to write home about, the tenacity the Bruins showed in this one is exactly what fans hope to see from the team the rest of the series.
"They have beaten them and tonight, they have beaten them up" is one of Jack Edward's more famous quotes and while tonight, the Bruins did not break out the fisticuffs like they have earlier in the season (see Dallas), the team as a whole showed the desire to battle, to work and to stand up for each other.
With teammate Nathan Horton in the hospital, the Bruins came out of the locker room after the first period with many wondering how they would respond. But as Brad Marchand put it, "We were nervous about Horton but we were focused." "We had to realize there was a bigger prize, it's tough to see guys go that way but we wanted to win it for him" said Daniel Paille as well and went after it they did. The Bruins would take the second period and put up 4 goals before storming out in the 3rd to put up 4 more.
With the building lead, the game became chippy with Vancouver's physical leaders attempting to get under the skin of Boston. In Game 2 we saw similar moves- big hits from Kesler, chippy play from Burrows and taunting by Max LaPierre as he put his fingers in Bergeron's face. Tonight at home though Boston would not let themselves get pushed around. Shawn Thornton let that be known to Ryan Kesler before he was ejected. Milan Lucic brought it right into Burrows' face as he presented his fingers daring him to eat it.
"We're not the type of team to do things like that" Lucic would say after the game "and I'm not the type of player to do things like that". But in the heat of the moment the Bruins did- for better or worse. And while many may wonder the level of classiness both teams have shown, the results have been apparent on the scoreboard and on the faces of the opposition afterwards.
With 3 games down in this best of 7 series, the Bruins are showing a level of emotional play that has made them a danger in the regular season. Going into game 4 they'll look to carry this emotion in a harnessed fashion- they'll look to out work, out hit and out battle the Canucks and bring the series back to Vancouver as a best of 3. And with a potential suspension coming along with the injury to Hamhuis, a best of 3 might swing in the Bruin's favor.
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