What can be considered one of the greatest Stanley Cup Finals Series’ in NHL history had to end, as all good things do. When the series between the Boston Briuns and the Chicago Blackhawks got underway, fans and experts alike knew there was history in the making. Game 1’s triple overtime excitement was the first shred of proof that the NHL history books would remember this time and this series as one of the strongest examples of heart and ability the game has known.
Although this series did more than just crown a champion. It’s true that Chicago proved to be the better team in the end. Considered either the underdog, or evenly matched, the Blackhawks were able to fight through the war, win the battles for both team and personal pride and emerge as victors.
This series served as proof that Chicago is an elite city in the game of hockey. No longer will hockey be thought of, in the mind of the casual fan, as just a Canadian sport. The Blackhawks will be thought of as heavy-weights in the mindsets of the rest of the league.
Of course, every team goes through swings where they will be on top of the league now, before dropping to the newest champions. But Chicago has been lifted to the top of the group after the team, and the league, went though a rebuild. They are definite champions now, and will be remembered that way.
The Blackhawks have been an established and storied franchise in the game and have added another chapter of history to be proud of. Another chapter all of Chicago can be proud of.
Chicago’s superstars rose to the occasion of the grand stage. Young hopefuls proved their ability and earned a new level of respect among their peers. Those originally thought of as ‘not good enough’ stepped up to demonstrate just how wrong that idea was. Fans who were frustrated with the politics of the game attended in droves to witness history firsthand and revel in the magic of the moments.
(Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
The Blackhawks have been elevated to a new level of hockey and are forcing the rest of the league to rise to the intensity. Stanley Cup Finals Series’ like this one will now be expected every year.
However, Boston fans may not see things in such an angelic light. In fact, the term ‘heartbreaking’ would be an understatement for many in the Briuns community. But truth be told, Boston has nothing to hang their heads about. This series will be more than just remembered. This series, between two of the NHL’s originals, will be the new standard for all playoff hockey from this point forward.
Truly the best in each division met, head on, for the sport’s oldest and most coveted prize and neither had an easy time of it. Both sides sustained injuries. Both battled. It was a war on ice every night and that is what this game is intended to be.
Boston will be back. They won’t shrink away in defeat. In their rich history, they never have and they won’t now. Chicago had the upper hand this season. The city of Chicago and Blackhawks fans have a lot to be happy about and they will have their time to celebrate a battered and earned victory.
But ‘Boston Strong’ is no longer an uplifting t-shirt. We will see ‘Boston Strong’ again next year, and the year after that. It is now a motto, a slogan, the city’s ideology which has ingrained itself across the golden spokes of the ‘B’.
A sentiment Chicago understands and reflects.
DaveSchauer
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