Bruins Stomp on Canucks, Cut Series Deficit to One

Going into Game Three, the Bruins knew that it would take an effort that was off the charts to get back in this series, especially since some pretty good efforts had not given them any results while in Vancouver. In front of a packed TD Garden in Boston, the Bruins did exactly what they needed to do and gave it everything they could throw at the Canucks, coming away with an 8-1 win, cutting the series deficit down to 2-1.

The 1st period was one for the books, as the Bruins really had the flow of the play through the first couple minutes of the opening frame, working the forecheck really well and getting some early opportunities on Roberto Luongo.  The temperature had been rising at a very quick pace, thanks to some of the shenanigans that had already taken place in the first two games of the series, and the boiling point reached early in the game, when Aaron Rome ran over Nathan Horton with a late, open-ice hit over the blueline, knocking the Bruins forward out of the game.  For the rest of the period, the game was played with a less-than-frantic pace, but it wasn't to say that both teams were not trying to save something for the final 40 minutes.  Period finished scoreless.

During the 1st intermission, the Bruins really got their wits about them, which was most evident with the way they came out in the 2nd period.  At the 11-second mark, the Bruins opened the scoring with an even strength marker from Andrew Ference and they really never looked back.  Three more goals in an explosive 2nd period, including a power play marker and a shorthanded goal, lifted the Bruins to a massive 4-0 lead into the break and the Canucks had already looked to have packed it in with a serious lack of intensity when the clock ticked down.

The 3rd period was much of the same for the Canucks, not really putting the push on, emotionally drained from a pretty good beating in the period before, which left Luongo out to dry for the most part of the period. The Bruins were able to slip another four goals past the Canucks starter in the 2nd half of the frame, while Tim Thomas' shutout was spoiled by Jannik Hansen, making the game 5-1 at the time.  By the end of the game, there was no love lost between the two teams, as misconduct penalties were being handed out like candy, just to keep the game from getting too out of control, which didn't seem to work.  All of this should make for one hell of a Game Four, which will go on Wednesday night, again in Boston.

More on Nathan Horton, he was taken to hospital after the hit by Rome in the 1st period. CBC was reporting that he could move all of his extremities, but that was the extent of the update, being playoff time and all, that's all we're likely to get.  For the sake of speculation, I think it is more than fair to suggest that Horton had suffered a concussion, which would now keep the forward out for at least the next week, putting him out until at least Game Six at the very earliest.  This could be a pretty big blow to the Bruins and the overall standings, but we'll try to learn more for the Game Four preview tomorrow morning.

Overall Standings
Well, Tryst'n'Grant continues to impress with his defensive stance on the Bruins side, as he managed an extra point, compared to their rival, the Langdon River Dogs, giving them a 1-point lead out of Game Three.  Having both Zdeno Chara and Johnny Boychuk managed to be more beneficial than having David Krejci and  the now-injured Nathan Horton.

The rest of the top five didn't change in position, but there was some points gained and lost, as Superstar opened a 2-point lead on Granny Smith and Kalenab, giving them some breathing room for another game.  These are the sort of leads that teams need in the playoff pool, especially when every team is only relying on one or two players to get them out of their jams.

We'll look a little closer at the standings during the preview for Game Four, but the money spots do remain the same for another couple of days.

Game-Winning Goals
The game-winner in Game Three belonged to Mark Recchi, who scored his first winner of these playoffs.  Recchi has already been fairly clutch in these three games against the Canucks, scoring some big goals in the series, this winner now being one of the biggest ones this year.

The Kings Don't Pay Their Bills still lead the pool with 18 winners, but Headfirst has now jumped up into a tie for second place in the pool, with the Langdon River Dogs, with 17 winners.

In a certain fashion, this was a game that both teams needed.  The Bruins definitely needed a win, no matter how big or how small, the just needed a win.  I think they may have preferred it to be a less ugly win, but they'll take a win, no matter what.  The Canucks, on the other hand, were playing some good hockey, but could have used this loss to change their perception on the series as a whole, re-establishing focus.  With the way these playoffs have gone, momentum hardly ever carries over from game to game, so I would imagine we will see two different teams, with a special level of passion in Game Four.  This series is far from over.