Cup, Cops, and Conn Smythe - An NHL Finals Post-Mortem - Boston Bruins Champions Edition

(Photo via soccer2008bygorddunphy.blogspot.com)

After 40 years of disappointment, the Boston Bruins prevailed with a perfect road win to claim the challis of the Hockey Gods. The Stanley Cup is returning to a team that I believed had no right or chance to win. Call it misdirected patriotism. Call it blind faith. Call it a sense of entitlement. You can spin it anyway you like, but the Bruins earned this championship and should've closed it out in less games.

Why Boston Won

Game plan executed to absolute perfection. They kept their game simple. They forced the Canucks into playing a game they didn't want to participate in. The Bruins spread the Vancouver defense which allowed them to exploit their offensive zone. They were carrying the puck over the blueline more than they were dumping and chasing. It's called puck possession. That's how you win games. That's how you win a series. The dump and chase can be an effective tactic if the forward lines buys into the process. If they don't, you're looking at official citizenship in Giveawasyville. Each line was committed to puck recovery, thanks to Julien's mantra of getting everyone involved. Fresh bodies give you positive results.

Thomas was sensational. I was continually waiting for the levee to break, but he kept it solid. The journeyman accomplished his goal, while taking home the Conn Smythe in one of the most dominant performance by a goal tender in Stanley Cup Finals history.

It's hard to single out a star on this team beside Thomas since the Bruins have such a balanced attack and defense. The breakout performance by Brad Marchand is worth mentioning as he put his signature on this series. He joins a long line of "pests" that mutate into playoffs performers. His patience with the puck and execution were major.

Why Vancouver Lost

Absolutely everything fell apart. The offensive juggernauts were silenced by an unforgiving Bruins defense. My initial thought on the loss will be to put the blame on Vigneault. The Vancouver coach is a proud man and that was his downfall. Most men of that ilk are stubborn, even in the face of adversity. And this is the cause of their implosion. From my point of view, his refusal to adjust to the game led to the series loss. This was most apparent in the last game of the series. The Canucks breakout was non-existant thanks to Boston's dominant forecheck. They took away all their passing options, especially on the boards. This led to turnovers, which resulted in scoring chances from those forced giveaways.

The Bs forecheck led to the Canucks relying on the homerun pass. Which resulted in more turnovers and the lack of offensive pressure. Vancouver has relied on their speed all year long. The Bruins cut their skates right off. There is a solution to this challenge and it is supporting the puck. If you don't make yourself available for the outlet pass, or any other pass for that matter, you will be a sitting duck in the neutral zone. On too many occasions did I see Canucks forwards at a stand still waiting for the pass. A body in motion is tough to contain.

I have to credit the Bruins for elevating their game in the Final as they became a cohesive unit. The Canucks became more and more disconnected as game 7 approached. Injuries took their toll on this team, as well as the constant punishment handed down by the Bruins. Edler, the Canucks tower of power, played injured and it showed. The entire team looked like they were injured. Or maybe they ran out of gas. They didn't have it in them. The effort was misdirected and the result was inevitable. They wanted it bad...for themselves and the city...but the Bruins were more in tune with what a champions transcends: focus on the task at hand which will come to fruition with hard work.

Why Vancouver Became Even Bigger Losers (And In Some Ways True Winners)

I've discussed the events at the conclusion of this series with many people. I was in awe of the riots. I couldn't stop reading about it. It really was a shock to see how this played out. This wasn't brought on by hockey fans. It was the efforts of organized individuals who took advantage of working in the shadow of 100K people. They easily swayed intoxicated members of the mob who flipped and burned cars, beat up each other and participated in spontaneous illegal shopping sprees. There were a few heroes, but they were outshined by all the villains abound.

The good citizens of the city helped with the cleanup the following day. Several facebook and Tumblr pages have popped up asking the public for help identifying the morons who were dumb enough to get caught by cameras when they committed these heinous acts. The Vancouver Police set up ways for citizens to upload evidence and submit tips. What was a complete dis-figuration of a city has turned into a black eye. The actions of a few have been somewhat neutralized by the positive reactions of the masses.

Conclusion

Hockey is over! October can't come fast enough....

The Bruins are deserving champions. The Canucks will have the summer to reflect on what could have been and what will need to be. You cannot win until you lose. The lessons have been learned inside and outside the Rogers arena.

-Paqman