BOSTON — With a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals on the line, there won't be any shortage of motivation for the Bruins against Tampa Bay. But one Bruin has an even more personal incentive for beating the Lightning.
Defenseman Andrew Ference remembers all too well how close he came to winning the Cup with Calgary in 2004, only to be denied by the Lightning in an epic seven-game series.
The Flames led the series 3-2 entering Game 6 at home, and Martin Gelinas appeared to score the go-ahead goal in the third period. But the shot that could have won the Cup for Calgary wasn't ruled a goal despite a replay angle that appeared to show it cross the goal line. The Lightning went on to win 3-2 on Martin St. Louis' goal in double overtime, then took Game 7 back in Tampa 2-1 for the Cup.
The image of the Lightning players hoisting that chalice he came so close to holding himself has indelibly burned into Ference's memory, to the point where he admits it's the first thing he thinks about when he sees the Lightning logo.
"Yes, for sure," Ference said. "Without a doubt."
There are just three players – St. Louis, Vincent Lecavalier and Pavel Kubina – remaining on the Lightning roster from that championship squad and the club's ownership, management and coaching staff has all changed multiple times since that 2004 showdown, but that changes little about how Ference feels about the Tampa Bay organization.
"It's the same team, same city, same building," Ference said. "I think there's probably only two guys that were on that team, but for all of us that were on that [Calgary] team, and probably for any team that's ever lost, that's not something that you just say, 'Aw well, we were close.' It's brutal. The only way you can erase it is to win."
Ference is not alone in holding on to the bitterness left by that defeat, and the Bruins now find themselves drawing support from an unlikely source in Alberta.
"I've got guys from Calgary calling me up, telling me to take it to those guys," said Ference, who came to Boston from the Flames in a trade in 2007. "You just hate the people that beat you."
