Boston Wins, Vancouver Riots?

For the first time in 39 years, the Boston Bruins hoisted the Stanley Cup after a 4-0 win over Vancouver in game seven.  After three disappointing losses in Vancouver, and three Boston massacres, the Bruins conquered the Canucks in convincing fashion.

Vancouver played like a juggernaut all season, wrecking teams that crossed their path.  Their speed, style, and finesse kept opponents on the back of their skates which resulted in the most goals in the league and highest goals for to goals against differential.

But the Bruins proved that hockey is not just a game of style and fancy finishes.  The Bruins demonstrated greater toughness and grit as they punished Vancouver.  In game seven, especially, the Canucks appeared to play scared.  Sure, they outhit and outshot the Bruins, but at no point did Boston seemed concerned.  The closest that the Bruins came to making a mistake was when Chara blocked a shot in the second period when Thomas was on the ground.  Other than that, Boston simply executed better than Vancouver, controlling the puck and the game with confidence.

And perhaps someone ought to tell Roberto Luongo that he ought to put down his tire pump and put his goalie gloves back on when it comes time to play.  Luongo, long the story of this series for his words with Tim Thomas, once again failed to deliver, allowing four goals on his home ice to bring the total number of goals allowed in the series to twenty.  Meanwhile, Tim Thomas won the Conn Smythe Trophy for his remarkable .967 save percentage in the series.  Think Luongo would kept his mouth shut if he could go back in time?

Aside from the question of, "what happened with Luongo," Vancouver fans are probably curious to know what happened to the Sedin twins.  Known for their prolific scoring abilities, the two twins combined to score three goals and register two assists over the entire series.  Credit Boston's defense for an impressive performance, but that's not the first tough defense that the Sedin twins had seen all season.  They simply failed to deliver.

Boston proved to the sports world, just as Dallas did, that even in the face of inferior talent, desire and teamwork can triumph.  They squared off with the best team in the league, took them to seven games and then tore Vancouver's hearts out with a commanding victory.

Note: What the in the world was with the Vancouver fans who decided to flip cars and light them on fire after they lost?  Don't they realize that that is usually what happens when your team wins?  I am just surprised that Boston, a city known for its unruly behavior in the face of sporting events, managed to remain relatively calm and that the people of Vancouver were the ones causing problems.  Rioting, in the event of a win or a loss, has no place in sports.  Ever.