Bruins' Stars Shine Bright

It felt like the series was slipping away. Less than 90 seconds into last night's Game 5 at the Garden the Bruins found themselves trailing 1-0 to the Lightning. The goal marked the sixth straight scored by Tampa in the series. Game 4 had seen the Bruins turn a 3-0 lead into a 5-3 defeat. By the end of the first period last night the scored remained 1-0 but the Bruins seemed lifeless. They were outshot 14-4 and it seemed as if there was going to be a carryover from their collapse in Tampa.

Instead the Bruins responded in the second period as they have throughout the playoffs.

They were outshot again 9-8 in the period but outscored the Lightning 2-0. Nathan Horton scored the Bruins' first goal of the series against Mike Smith on a beautiful one timer from Milan Lucic. Late in the period Brad Marchand converted off of another exceptional pass from Patrice Bergeron. They finally regained the momentum they had left behind in the first intermission Saturday.

The most important aspect of last night's win was where the contributions came from. The Bruins' top players stepped up in a pressure situation and found a way to win the game. The Bruins saw their 6 best skaters deliver on the scoresheet in taking the lead. Horton and Marchand scored the goals, while Bergeron, Lucic, David Krejci, and Zdeno Chara were credited with the assists.

As always they also contributed in other areas. Bergeron and Krejci combined to win 29 faceoffs. Chara and Dennis Seidenberg again saw significantly more ice time than anyone else on both teams. Horton and Lucic combined for 7 hits. For a team devoid of a true superstar the Bruins rely on these players to contribute in all areas and last night was the embodiment of that.

Of course those contributions would be moot if not for the efforts of the Bruins most indispensable player. Tim Thomas again played like the best goalie in the NHL last night and ensured the Bruins would have two chances at punching their ticket to the Stanley Cup Finals.

The 14-4 shot advantage Tampa Bay had in the first period could have led to a much more lopsided advantage on the scoreboard, but Thomas turned away 13 of them and allowed the Bruins the chance to come back in the second.

As the Bruins turned things around and eventually took the lead Thomas did not allow the momentum to slip away and shut out the Lightning for the final 58:51 of the game. His evening included a spectacular lunging stick save on what appeared to be an empty net chance for Tampa that would have tied the game in the third period.

Teams rely on their best players to deliver the goods in the post season and the Bruins' stars shined brightest last night. Boston now has two chances to punch their ticket for the Finals. A lot of people still cannot fathom that concept.

Another star performance from their best players may just turn that into a reality.

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