By: Matthew Cunha
(Boston, MA 02/27/18) Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy #73 celebrates defenseman Zdeno Chara #33 after his overtime goal in the Bruins win over the Hurricanes at the TD Garden. Tuesday, February 27, 2018. photo by John Wilcox of the Boston Hearld.
Almost every championship moment I have been a part of in Boston sports has had “that game” in the regular season. The game that makes you believe the team has the guts it takes to win a championship. The Bruins comeback victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday was the type of win we will remember if things go the right way in May and April.
The Bruins trailed Carolina 4-1 with 10 minutes left in 3rd period. The B’s, already without Charlie McAvoy and Patrice Bergeron, lost Torey Krug, Zdeno Chara, and Jake DeBrusk during the game. With a third of the defensemen out, Nick Holden, Brandon Carlo, Kevan Miller and Matt Grzelcyk were all playing half the time. Only Carlo and Miller were on the opening day roster for the Bruins.
Passing the 10 minute mark in the third period, nothing was clicking for the Bruins. With the lack of help on the backend and a struggling, it would have made sense for the B’s to chalk it in and just call it one of those nights. The exact opposite happened. Grzelcyk, Pastrnak, and Heinen scored within 1:17 of each other to tie the game. Pastrnak added a power play goal with 3:30 remaining and an empty netter for the hat trick as the B’s left a stunned crowd in Carolina.
It also made for a really entertaining highlight reel done by a Carolina sports anchor Mark Armstrong of WTVD ABC 11. .
My Canes-Bruins Super HomerCast: pic.twitter.com/LcGGk4ITuy
— Mark Armstrong (@ArmstrongABC11) March 14, 2018
Ok, I needed to share that.
But for real, If this is not the game that makes you think the Bruins can go on a deep run, you just hate the Bruins. 10 minutes left, getting roasted on every play, one third of their defensemen gone with injuries, just one sixth of the game left and they comeback and win. By two. In regulation.
"Down 4-1, give up a shorthanded goal to start the third, probably a ton of teams would not have the resolve to come back."
🎥The Bruins react to the improbable comeback victory against the Hurricanes: pic.twitter.com/r9fk3Cg7y3
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 14, 2018
Every championship run in recent Boston memory has a marquee game in the regular season where you knew they would be their in the end. The 2016 Patriots thwarted off a comeback from their rival Baltimore Falcons in week 14. The 2014 Patriots walked over the favored Denver Broncos 43-21. The 2013 Red Sox had a bunch of them. One in particular came on September 6th at Yankee stadium. The soc trailed 6-3 in the 7th when Mike Napoli hit a grandslam to give the sox a 7-6 lead and would go on to win 12-8. The Sox swept the Yankees in that three game series.
The 2011 Bruins won an 8-6 fight filled slugfest over the Canadiens and the 2008 Celtics won three games in a row vs. a trio of tough Texas teams that all could be on the list. I could go on through the rest of the teams but you get the point. The Bruins victory over the Hurricanes gave me chills of what could lie ahead. Just maybe, that game will be further engraved in our memories in mid June.
