It’s really as simple as the headline says, folks.
The Boston Bruins, winners of an NHL-record 65 games for an NHL-record 135 regular season points aren’t winning the Stanley Cup.
Go ahead and save this post, turn it into bulletin board material, whatever. The Cup isn’t going back to Boston this year. Teams that win the Presidents’ Trophy know this is part of the deal. Their fans do, too.
Only eight teams have won the Stanley Cup after winning the Presidents’ Trophy. The last to do it were the Chicago Blackhawks in 2012-13, defeating the Bruins in six games, but that was also on the heels of a lockout shortened-season. The Hawks only had to play a 48-game season in 2013 (and didn’t suffer a regulation loss for the first 24 of those contests). The 2007-08 Red Wings were the last team to win both the Stanley Cup and Presidents’ Trophy in a full 82-game season.
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Over the last nine years, the team that won the Presidents’ Trophy lost in the second round seven times. The Tampa Bay Lightning infamously lost in the first round to the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2019. The 2014-15 New York Rangers made it to the conference finals before the curse caught up to them.
My colleague Mary Clarke believes the Bruins will become the latest team to prove the curse isn’t real. Bostonians know better. Even after 20 or so years of unprecedented sports success, this is still a city that knows you don’t tempt fate.
The Bruins have a "bug" going around their locker room leaving numerous players such as Patrice Bergeron, Linus Ullmark, and others a game-time decision.
The Panthers are currently +185 on the moneyline. pic.twitter.com/YSkZDrDpQY
— Covers (@Covers) April 17, 2023
The Bruins were just too good during the regular season. And that’s absolutely worth celebrating. Truthfully, nothing has ruined the way we talk about sports more than the obnoxious mindset that winning a championship is all that matters.
An 82-game season proves beyond any doubt which team is best and the fans in Boston should comfortable saying they have the best team on ice this year. But the best teams don’t always win the title. The regular season and postseason are two very different endeavors. And once you’re worn down from the former, you’re playing on borrowed time in the latter.
So go ahead and celebrate everything the Bruins have done with their record-setting season. Cherish this team forever. Even after they fail to win the Stanley Cup.
