Once again fans in both Vancouver and Boston braced themselves for game five in which a win would provide the edge to the victorious team in sitting only one game away from claiming Lord Stanley's 'Holy Grail'. Luongo met the challenge head-on in Vancouver as the Bruins could not put the rubber past him and the Canucks regained the series lead 3-2 with a 1-0 win. Heading back to Beantown, the home-ice advantage belonged to the Bruins, hoping for the series trend to continue - that the home team wins.
Game 6 sets the stage for big finish
It didn't take the Bruins long as they scored not one, not two, not three, but four goals in a span of just over four minutes during the first 10 minutes of play to take a 4-0 lead early on in game six. The scoring barrage forced Canucks coach Alain Vigneault to pull Luongo from the net after three goals scored against as he was replaced by Cory Schneider who was beat just as quickly for a goal before settling into the game. Behind the spectacular play of Thomas, Boston maintained the four goal advantage over the Canucks until the first minute of play in the third period when Henrik Sedin managed to get one past Thomas on the power play to narrow the Bruins lead to 4-1.
The Bruins took advantage of their own power play opportunity at the 13-minute mark on a goal by David Krejci to reestablish a four-goal lead 5-1. One last goal by Vancouver's Maxim Lapierre near the end of the game left the final result at 5-2 for the Bruins. A thorough job was completed by Boston all the way around and led by Tim Thomas, the favored candidate for the Conn Smythe trophy whether he wins or loses in game seven.
As may be fitting, the final game of the NHL season will take place in Vancouver and provide the opportunity for fans there to celebrate a Stanley Cup victory as the trend of the home team winning in its home rink is back on the Canucks side. However, as wild as the ride has been so far, don't expect game seven to not bring out every emotion and ounce of energy out of all watching and expect the Bruins to play hard to earn their first Cup since 1972. The final result will be a win for the NHL and the sport one way or the other.
Take it all in stride win or lose
However, an emphatic note and plea to Vancouver fans and hockey supporters taking in game seven live - do not repeat what happened in 1994:
The moment to reveal Lord Stanley's gift to a great sport will finally arrive with all its glory and history on Wednesday and the journey along the way will finally end for the season. Celebrate the game and the sport for what it has provided everyone - a great ride. Do it right and don't tarnish the Cup or its legacy.Latest news from the Raleigh Sports Examiner:
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