Is Boston Bruins' 2011 Stanley Cup Victory or Larry Bird's Steal Against the Pistons a Bigger Boston Sports Moment?

Is Boston Bruins’ 2011 Stanley Cup Victory or Larry Bird’s Steal Against the Pistons a Bigger Boston Sports Moment?

by NESN Staff on Tue, Aug 23, 2011 at 11:43PM

The Bruins' 2011 Stanley Cup win squares off against Larry Bird's steal against the Pistons in the second round of Boston's Greatest Sports Moment tournament.

2. Bruins win 2011 Stanley CupThe Boston Bruins entered the 2011 Stanley Cup Final with the second-longest championship drought in Boston sports history. Matched up against the Vancouver Canucks, who finished the season with the best regular-season record, the B's found themselves having to overcome hardships immediately. Boston lost the first two games of the series after being bullied (and bitten) in Vancouver. Additionally, the B's lost postseason hero Nathan Horton early in Game 3 on a late hit by Aaron Rome. The questionable check awoke the bear, though, as the Bruins exploded for 12 goals combined in Games 3 and 4. After dropping Game 5, goalie Tim Thomas carried Boston in the final two wins, including a shutout in Game 7, to give the Boston Bruins their first championship in 39 years.

7. Larry Bird steals ball against PistonsLarry Bird's instincts helped secure one of the most memorable moments in Boston sports history. The Detroit Pistons were celebrating a win in Game 5 of the 1987 Eastern Conference finals on the sidelines, and who could blame them? They were up a point, with the ball, with a timeout to use and only five seconds remaining. But as Isiah Thomas held the ball on the Celtics' half of the court looking for a man to inbound the ball to, he didn't hear head coach Chuck Daly calling for a timeout. Neither did the refs nor anyone else on the court, for that matter. So Thomas proceeded to attempt a pass to the sure-handed Bill Laimbeer. Bird, who was covering Adrian Dantley with a close eye on Laimbeer, cut off Thomas' lob pass and managed to keep his balance and remain in bounds. Celtics point guard Dennis Johnson, anticipating Bird's steal, broke for the hoop and received a pass from Bird. Johnson laid in an easy two points as the clock wound down, stunning Pistons fans and giving the Celtics a 108-107 win in Game 5 of the '87 conference finals, which they eventually won in seven games.