How I Cope with Bruins Losses & Proudly Bandwagoning to the Cup, Part 1

The earliest memory I have of watching playoff hockey while rooting for a specific team that wasn't the Bruins was in 1996, although I have faint recollections of the years before that. Normally, when the Bruins get eliminated from the playoffs, or fail to qualify at all, I pick a team to root for. Sometimes I pick a few teams, and sometimes I pick one team then change my mind halfway through. Either way, it has consistently been a way for me to cope with the loss of Bruins hockey while simaltaneously learning about and loving new players and teams (or hating them).

Before the Bruins won the Cup last year (WOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), they were pretty consistently early-round exiters or didn't even finish in the top 8. In fact, I was just 3 years old the last time (excluding last year, of course) when the Bruins went to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1990 and lost to Edmonton. I was 5 when the last time they had made it to the Conference Finals in 1992. From my earliest memories of Stanley Cup contention that I actively watched was about 1995, and I was 7, although I'd been watching hockey my whole life. Anyway, here are the Bruins numbers in the playoffs since 1995 (excluding the lockout year of 2004-2005):

• They did not quality for the playoffs 5 times ('97, '00', '01, '06, '07)
• They lost in Round 1 a total of 8 times, including this year:
• '95: lost to New Jersey (Eventual Cup Champs that year) in 5 games
• '96: lost to Florida (who would go on to the SCF) in 5 games
• '98: lost to Washington (who would go on to the SCF) in 6 games
• '02: lost to 8th-place Montreal in 7 games
• '03: Lost to New Jersey (eventual Cup Champs again) in 5 games
• '04: Lost to Montreal in 7 games
• '08: Lost to Montreal AGAIN in 7 games
• '12: We all know. (Stupid Caps in 7 games)
• They lost in round 2 a total of 3 times ('99: Buffalo, 6 games; '09: Carolina, 7 games, OT; '10: Philly, 7 games...the worst ever)
• It's worth noting that Buffalo and Philly both went on to the Cup finals (and lost thankfully) those years

Game Review: Bruins 3, Sabres 1 (March 8)

Bruins: 7 Assorted Spokes

(Photo Credit: VickeVictoria/Flickr)

7 various topics are discussed in a few short paragraphs below:

• Line Changes and Trades
• Tim Thomas and Facebook-gate
• Shawn Thornton Quotes
• Refs, Goalie Interference, and Clockgate
• Bruins Are 1-3 in February
• Bruins Charitable Work
• Predators on Saturday Afternoon

I see the Bruins play Buffalo a lot. Which Reminds me of how the only time I have ever seen them win in the playoffs was against Buffalo

In regards to the tickets I got yesterday, I was thinking about how much Buffalo Sabres I will see this year. I saw them last month at the game with Lucic running over Miller. It was a great game for the Bruins cause they won and scored 6 goals, I had pretty great seats, and had a lot of fun. 

I also have seen Buffalo definitely in the past cause it was the playoffs...2009-2010 season, when they played Buffalo in the first round and Philly in the 2nd. The Sabres game was the 3rd game of the series and it was a close series, and a close game (Buffalo scored first but Bruins won 2-1)...the single most memorable moment from perhaps any games ever was when Mark Recchi made a fucking awesome play to set up Bergeron for the go-ahead (and what would be the game-winning) goal by charging behind the net to fight for the puck, knocking the fuck over the Sabres d-man, and passing straight to Bergy. 

Random side note: Although I've grown too tolerant of them in recent years, my hatred of the Sabres was at it's highest after knocking the Bruins out of the playoffs in 1999. I hated Hasek from then on. And I loved Dallas and Brett Hull so much when they beat the Sabres in the finals, winning the CUp in OT, on a very obvious illegal goal. heh.

Negative Perceptions of the "Big Bad Bruins" in Today's Game

The Bruins have always been a physical team - it is at the very core of the Bruins organization that blue-collar work ethic and tough, physical attitude were the strength of the team and all the successful Bruins teams in the past have lived up to those traits. Over the past season and into this season, I have heard fans and critics in some cases accusing the Bruins of taking their physicality to another level and using intimidating and bullying tactics in a way that is negative to the game and dangerous to opponents. I simply don't think that is true at all.