The GREATEST COLLAPSE In NHL History

Today let’s delve into arguably the biggest collapse in NHL History. The 2022/23 Boston Bruins shocked the hockey world, becoming the greatest regular season team of all time… key word regular season. The Bruins dominated their competition and were the favorites to win the Stanley Cup, however their first round opponent, the Florida Panthers altered the destiny of what could have been the greatest team in league history. Today let’s breakdown and analyze the Boston Bruins historic run and discuss how this one playoff run changed the league as we know it. Subscribe to Jimmy Hockey for more NHL News and Breakdowns.

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What if the NHL is filled with moments that could have altered everything we know and love about the sport? What if Wayne Gretzky was never traded to LA? What if Mario Lemieux stayed healthy? What if Conor McDavid had won game seven and completed that insane comeback? These are moments in time that have helped define legacies and changed the course of history for many franchises. But there is one moment that stands out as the biggest what-if. One team that was defined to break the history books and staple themselves as the greatest team of all time. One moment that to this day is still impacting the league as we know it. The 2022 2023 Boston Bruins. Memorable moments can be easy to come by in hockey, but the legendary ones, those that stand the test of time, those are the runs that we as fans crave more than anything. These are the moments where legends are born and banners are hung high in the rafters. And no place has more passion or championship culture than Boston. The year was 2022. The Boston Bruins, one of the NHL’s storied franchises, crafted a regular season narrative for the ages, shattering records, claiming the President’s Trophy, and laying the groundwork for what could have been the greatest hockey team of all time. Yet, in a stunning paradox, the team lost its composure, ending their otherwise historic run in the most unexpected way. But how exactly did something like this happen? October 2022, the Boston Bruins are set to embark on a new season campaign. This time featuring not only new faces, but some familiar ones that return to the lineup. After losing to the Carolina Hurricanes during their previous playoff run, the Bruins decided to make some muchneeded changes. The first firing Bruce Cassidy, their hard-nosed old school coach, and replacing him with a newaged player friendly coach in Jim Montgomery. The second address the needs of the roster, particularly the center position. They did this by bringing back familiar faces like Patrice Bersron and David Crerachche. Third, health. Find a way to stay afloat while Brad Marshian and Charlie Makavoy recover from their injuries. The expectations were at a minimum for the Bruins. Like I mentioned, they had some veterans coming back to the lineup, but they were not spring chickens anymore, and they also were dealing with some injuries that most people thought would really impact their lineup. But through October, the Boston Bruins completely shocked everyone. In their first four games, the Bruins would score 21 goals, earning a record of three and one. They would then finish out October by only allowing six goals in five games and achieving a record of 8- one throughout the first month. This was a phenomenal start for the Boston Bruins. Their veterans were producing at a high level. Their depth was starting to contribute and their star players like David Poshock were stepping up and showing out. But what really made the Bruins special to start the year was their outstanding goalending tandem. Lenus Almark, a free agent pickup the year prior, had fully taken on the responsibility as Boston’s number one net minder following the retirement of longtime goalie to Garasque. And his backup at the time, Jeremy Swayman, was nothing short of exceptional. Carrying their stellar play into November, Boston’s net minders backs stopped the Bruins to an astonishing 193 and0 record, only losing two games by a close margin during a very busy month. Boston was not only running the Atlantic division. They were the hottest team in all of hockey. And it was at this point when they started to get back some of their players from injury, making this already perfect lineup look practically unbeatable. This is where the question of sustainability came up quite frequently in Boston. The Bruins run, while spectacular, just seemed unrealistic, and most, if not all of the hockey world, expected a regression to happen at some point. Spoiler alert, it didn’t happen. Through December, the Bruins only lost one game in regulation and had a league best record of 284-4 as they prepared for their winter classic matchup against the Pittsburgh Penguins. After putting on a defensive show in their outdoor game, Boston would have their worst month of the season, going 103 and 1. Again, this was their worst month. At this point, let me save you some time. The Bruins were now on a path to win the most regular season hockey games in league history, a record held by the Red Wings and the Lightning with 62. From February to the end of the season, the Bruins went 265 and zero, finishing with an NHL best record of 6512 and five. This allowed them to surpass the Red Wings and the Lightning and become the best regular season hockey team that the league has ever witnessed. An unexpected historic run for the Boston Bruins made them the odds favorite to win the Stanley Cup. But we can’t glance over a couple of things that happened throughout the final couple of months. For starters, they had a very aggressive trade deadline, acquiring Tyler Bertusi, Garnett Hathaway, and Dmitri Orlov to truly round out their roster into a powerhouse. But something else that happened in game 82 of the season was an injury to their captain, Patrice Bersron. Something that is quite underdised when we talk about the Bruins run that year. But at this point, I have to pause you again because there’s something else that’s kind of underdised when we talk about the stories behind the 2023 playoffs. During that time, the Eastern Conference was an arms race towards the end of the season, featuring four teams, the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Florida Panthers, the New York Islanders, and believe it or not, the Buffalo Sabres. Buffalo went on a 72-1 run, but unfortunately in the final couple of games, they fell short, finishing the season with 91 points. Meanwhile, the New York Islanders had locked down one of the top wildcard spots, leaving two teams to finish out, the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Florida Panthers. The Panthers finished the season with 91 points, but since they had the tiebreakers over the Penguins and the Sabres, they would be granted the playoff spot if all teams finished tied in the standings. But hold on, the Penguins had one final game to play, and it was against a bottom three team, the Chicago Blackhawks. The Penguins were the team that should have made the playoffs that year. They had a prime opportunity to get Sydney Crosby into the postseason and were competing against one of the bottom teams in the NHL. But unfortunately, hockey doesn’t really work that way and sometimes the most unpredictable outcome is the one that ends up being in reality. The Penguins would ultimately lose to the Chicago Blackhawks and the Florida Panthers would get their shot at the playoffs going up against the powerhouse Boston Bruins in a matchup that looked like it was over before it started. Game one, Panthers at Bruins. Lenus Almark would start for Boston while Alex Lion would get to stand between the pipes for the Florida Panthers. Boston controlled the game offensively in this one with Brad Marshand opening up the scoring for his 50th playoff goal. Posternok and De Brusk added goals and Lena’s Almark made 31 saves for Boston. Meanwhile, the Florida Panthers got one goal from Matthew Kachchuck and 26 stops from Alex Lion. The first victory would go to the Boston Bruins as we headed into game two remaining at TD Garden. Game two was an entirely different story. Boston, who was known for tandeming their goalies, decided to stick with Lenus Almark, who reportedly was playing through a hip injury to start the series. But because he played so well in game one, the Bruins didn’t think that this was going to be a factor. The game would stay locked up through the first two periods. But Florida exploded in period 3 to beat Boston 6 to3 on the road and tie the series 1-1. Game three and Taylor Hall would be the hero for the Bruins having a goal and an assist on the night. Lenus Almark would put up a bounceback performance and Boston would reclaim home ice against the Panthers. Game four, also a similar story. Taylor Hall put on a show, two goals and two assists to help the Bruins take a commanding 3-1 series lead heading back to Boston with a chance to close this one out in a gentleman’s sweep. The series was going exactly as everyone predicted. Boston was the more dominant team, but something people didn’t account for was the resiliency of the Florida Panthers. Game five, Panthers look to starve off elimination on the road and get this series back to Florida. Sergey Babroski was outstanding, making 44 saves, including a miraculous stop on Brad Marshian with just the second to spare in regulation. A moment that many Boston fans look back on as the biggest what-if moment of the series. A Bruins turnover in overtime by Lenus Allar behind the net led to Matthew Kachchuck’s backhander at 605, sealing the win for Florida and keeping their improbable comeback alive. This was the game that changed everything for Boston. Game six, the biggest storyline, who is starting in net for Boston. The Bruins continued to stay firm with Lenus Allark as their starter, going against their philosophy from the season, which was tandeming their net minders. Florida surged to a 3-2 lead thanks to goals from Montour, Kachchuck, and Bararkov before Boston countered and even took a 4-3 edge courtesy of David Poshock’s power play goal. But then chaos erupted in a frenetic third period. Zack Delph tied it. Jake De Brush struck short-handed and Kachchuck scored his second to knock the game at 55, barely 27 seconds apart. Moments later, E2 Lucin would rip home the game winner. Sergey Babrosky’s 30 saves and Sam Reinhardt’s empty net would close this one out, forcing a highly improbable game seven against the President’s Trophy winner. Game seven, both teams playing with guys between the pipes that were not in net to start the series. Boston with Swayman, Florida with Babski. At the Garden, you could cut through the air with a knife. The fans were nervous after coming off a very heartbreaking loss back in 2019 to the St. Louis Blues. And this was the first time they felt like they had a competitive team that could go back to that position. The Panthers and Bruins would go back and forth goal for goal, but eventually the Bruins had gotten a 3-2 lead early in the third. But Florida, they kept fighting. With under a minute to go in regulation, Brandon Montour would score his second of the night. A clutch hammer from the left circle to tie the game 3-3. We had a game seven going to overtime. Both teams would exchange chances. But then just 8:35 into overtime, the Florida Panthers would maintain possession and Carter Higgy would unleash a wrist shot that would beat Jeremy Swayman and seal a memorable series comeback for the Panthers while delivering what was a crushing blow to a historic Boston Bruins team. Boston was stunned, their fan base in shock after witnessing their historic hockey team collapse in the first round of the playoffs. Never have I seen a moment where players seem so baffled by the outcome of a series. But then again, reality can be challenging to face. The Bruins stepped off the ice that night in the most emotional way possible, and there were many questions surrounding their roster for years to come. The organization was up against the cap. Their core players, while not officially announced at the time, were speculating the thought of retirement, and the Bruins, after this historic run, were no more. In hindsight, this series changed everything about the league. For Florida, they may have lost the cup that year, but they came back and have now cemented themselves as a potential dynasty and powerhouse team, winning back-to-back championships. For Boston, the fall-off wasn’t immediate, but eventually inner turmoil and roster complications destroyed the team from the inside out. That team that had shattered records, captivated fans, and woke the city had officially evaporated. and along with it a longtime culture, legendary players, and memories that could have been created. But this is one of the biggest what-if moments in NHL history. Let me know your thoughts on this story. Do you remember the 2022 23 Boston Bruins? And do you think that this series changed the entire league as we know it? Thank you guys so much for watching this video. If you enjoyed, be sure to give it a thumbs up and subscribe. I will see you guys in the next episode.