Editor’s note: Starting Tuesday, March 24, NESN will re-air memorable games from the Boston Bruins’ Stanley Cup run. Up next is Game 4 of the 2011 Eastern Conference final against the Tampa Bay Lightning. See the full schedule by clicking here.
The Boston Bruins looked like they would be heading back to Boston for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final with a 3-1 series lead in tow.
But things changed during Game 4, and fast.
The Bruins blew a 3-0 goal lead en route to a 5-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 4, evening the series at two games apiece.
Here are five things you might have forgotten about Game 4, which viewers can watch at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday night on NESN.
1. It was an UGLY loss for the Bruins
Things were looking good for the Bruins after 20 minutes, as they took a 3-0 lead into the second period thanks to a pair of goals from Patrice Bergeron and one from Michael Ryder.
But that’s when the floodgates opened.
The Bruins allowed three goals in the second period to draw the game back level, then Tampa added a fourth in the third period thanks to Simon Gagne, with Martin St. Louis’ empty-netter at 19:23 sealing the win for the Bolts.
2. Boston’s hot start chased Dwayne Roloson
The Lightning ended up staging their comeback with Mike Smith in net.
Smith took over after Bergeron made it 3-0 at 17:58, and he handled his responsibilities quite well. Tampa’s backup netminder made 21 saves while holding the B’s goalless over 42:04 to give the hosts the win.
More Bruins: Taking Stock Of Goalie Situation, Jeremy Swayman Interview | NESN Bruins Podcast Ep. 57
3. There was a pretty wild end to the first period
As the horn sounded to end the opening period, there were quite a bit of extracurriculars.
There was a scrum at the end of the period that began as the result of Ryan Malone backhanding a shot into Tim Thomas just before the period ended. A scrum ensued after Thomas grabbed the puck, which prompted Steve Downie to start cross-checking Rich Peverley into the net.
Bergeron stepped in, and the scuffling moved to the end boards, with Marc-Andre Bergeron grabbing Peverley, and the two skated away. After a few moments, Peverley and Bergeron decided they wanted to fight, so they dropped the gloves.
The end result was fighting majors for Peverley and Marc-Andre Bergeron, while Downie was hit with a 10-minute misconduct and two-minute roughing.
4. Simone Gagne was the one who ultimately hurt the Bruins … again
You’ll remember that it was Gagne’s goal for the Flyers that gave Philly the Game 7, and series, win over the Bruins in 2010 — completing the 3-0 series comeback.
Well, it was Gagne who provided the dagger for his new team, the Bolts, in Game 4. With the game tied at three in the third period, he scored what proved to be the game-winner at 6:54.
5. It was an uncharacteristically awful game for David Krejci
Krejci was memorable in 2011, but his Game 4 performance was memorable for all the wrong reasons.
He was a brutal minus-three in the loss, and lost nine of his 12 face-offs.
