Tim Thomas and Bruins Get The Job Done

The underdog Boston Bruins jumped out to a lead and never looked back as they defeated the Vancouver Canucks, 4-0 to win the Stanley Cup Championship Wednesday night in Vancouver.  Tim Thomas got the shutout and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the tournament MVP. 

Thomas approached some of the best stats in Stanley Cup Finals history.  He finished the playoffs with a .940 save percentage and had an incredible .967 save percentage in the finals, while facing an average of 35 shots per game.

There were other heroes though:

• Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg did a masterful job on the Sedins. 

• Mark Recchi had a great series and looked like a young man again, especially as he streaked in for a breakaway in game 7.

• Rookie Brad Marchand was known more for his questionable play than anything else before the playoffs but showed the skill side of his game when it mattered most.  He set up the first goal of game 7 and scored the second on a wrap around that Luongo originally saved.  He also scored the first goal of game 6, which eventually opened the floodgates for his teammates.  In all, he had 10 goals in the playoffs and outscored both of the Sedin twins all by himself in the final series.

• The fourth line of Shawn Thornton, Gregory Campbell, and Daniel Paille earned their keep in this game and dominated puck possession when they were on the ice.

All in all, it was a well deserved win for the visitors.  Congratulations to them. 

Now the offseason officially begins, even though Carolina fans have been in offseason mode for over two months.