They weren’t to be denied. Not on this night. Not when the strikers struck, the blockers blocked, and the saver saved.
Lars, Eller, a force in these playoffs, got the ball rolling. Max came to play at a time when we very much needed him to, notching the Canadiens second of the night, using his feet to get the puck to Thomas Vanek for a power play marker, and he skated hard.
Thomas Vanek scored that huge third goal and another as Tuukka Rask was on his way to the bench. And David Desharnais contributed an assist and saved a puck as it was sliding ever so slowly over the goal line.
Max, Thomas, and David. The three we needed in a big way. When everyone’s going, it’s a beautiful thing.
Josh Gorges and Mike Weaver sacrificed their bodies in front of flying pucks. Nathan Beaulieu, inserted for the game, played well, blocked shots, moved the puck, and assisted on Max’s marker.
Tomas Plekanec won important faceoffs. PK dangled. The fourth line, with Daniel Briere back, kept the pressure on in the Bruins end. And Carey Price held the fort as the Canadiens rack up an impressive 4-0 win to take this amazing and emotional series to a game seven on Wednesday.
It was as gutsy a performance as we’ve seen from Les Glorieux in this postseason. The lineup was packed with battlers, guys who believed. And when they skate, battle and believe, they win.
It makes my heart soar like not only like a Rufus-bellied Hawk-Eagle.
Just a solid night, although the Bruins had their chances, including a puck off the crossbar and the aforementioned Desharnais save. But mostly this was a night that belonged to the Canadiens. They kept the tempo high and the pressure on. They allowed very few odd man rushes. There weren’t nearly as many frantic moments around Carey Price as we’ve seen in previous contests.
There was no letting up, with only a few bad penalties such as P.K. holding a stick, and they got the puck out of danger constantly, which is much better on the nerves, particularly mine if I might say so.
As special bonus, I was invited to watch it with friends and we high-fived and cheered and sometimes fretted, and all-round, it was a wonderful night.
Wednesday night in Beantown. Game seven. It’s what we asked for, and they delivered.