Editor’s note: Starting Tuesday, March 24, NESN will re-air memorable games from the Boston Bruins’ Stanley Cup run. Up next is Game 1 of the 2011 Eastern Conference final against the Tampa Bay Lightning. See the full schedule by clicking here.
The Bruins were rolling after the second round of the 2011 playoffs, but that came to a screeching halt in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final.
Boston fell 5-2 to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 of the best-of-seven-series.
Despite the result, there still were a few notable storylines as the Bruins kicked off another wildly entertaining postseason series.
Here are four things you might have forgotten about Game 1, which viewers can watch at 8 p.m. ET on Monday night on NESN.
1. The Lightning scored so fast it set a club record
There was little wait on the Lightning’s end to build a big lead.
Sean Bergenheim, Brett Clark and Teddy Purcell scored at 11:15, 11:34 and 12:40, respectively, in the first period to make it 3-0.
The goals (19 seconds between two goals and 1:25 between three) were scored in such quick succession that it set a Tampa record for time between goals.
2. Tyler Seguin made his playoff debut
It took the rookie a while to make his debut in the lineup during the postseason, but he sure made it count once he got a shot.
Patrice Bergeron missed the game due to a concussion sustained in Game 4 of the second round, meaning Seguin slotted into the lineup. He responded by scoring one of Boston’s two goals in the game, burying the Bruins’ first tally at 15:59 in the opening period off a feed from Michael Ryder.
More Bruins: Taking Stock Of Goalie Situation, Jeremy Swayman Interview | NESN Bruins Podcast Ep. 57
3. Both teams were coming off long layoffs
The two teams had to wait for the Western Conference series to finish up before they could get going with their conference final.
As a result, the Bruins were playing their first game in eight days, while the Bolts were skating in their first contest in 10 days.
Because of that, knocking off the rust wasn’t exactly a valid excuse for the B’s.
4. The Bruins’ woeful power play returned
After getting blanked on every single man advantage opportunity in the first nine games of the playoffs, the B’s got back on track during the latter part of the Flyers series.
But the fruitless power play showed back up in Game 1 against the Lightning. They missed out on all four man advantage opportunities, bringing them to a miserable 2-for-41 to that point in the postseason.
