Bruins Legend David Krejci’s Most Memorable Playoff Moment

David Krejci spent over 15 years wearing the Spoked-B on his chest as he laced up the skates night after night for the Boston Bruins.

When the 37-year-old center decided to hang up the skates and call it a career on Monday, the Czech Republic native had amassed 786 points in 1,032 games for Boston.

But Krejci’s impact in Boston’s postseason runs is revered as his calling card, where he earned the nickname, “Playoff Krejci.” In 160 playoff games, the matrix-style playmaker recorded 43 goals and added 85 assists for 128 points with his greatest years being the 2011 Stanley Cup winning season and 2013 postseason which saw Boston lose to the Chicago Blackhawks in six games.

Arguably the biggest play of his career came in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning. In 2011 the Bruins and Lightning were pretty evenly matched, and it was evident in the series with Tampa notching 20 goals to Boston’s 23 in the first six games.

An assist for all-time.#BestOfKrech | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/ALJAqTtwTk

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) August 14, 2023

With the game knotted at zero at the 7:43 mark of the third period, defenseman Andrew Ference sent Krejci into the Tampa zone. He skated past Lighting superstar Steven Stamkos to the right face-off circle, and while it appeared he would run out of real estate, Krejci pivoted, feeding Nathan Horton on his forehand through a slew of Tampa players for what was effectively an empty-net goal at 7:33 giving the Bruins the 1-0 lead.

The goal proved to be the game-winner as the Bruins defeated the Lighting 1-0 on home ice to secure their spot in the Stanley Cup Final against the Vancouver Canucks. The Bruins won their first Cup since 1972, defeating the Canucks in seven games.

Krejci led all skaters in points during the 2011 postseason but lost out on the Conn Smythe to teammate Tim Thomas, who led all goaltenders with a 1.98 goals-against average, .940 save percentage and four shutouts.

Krejci is tied with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand with the most points in Bruins’ postseason history. Marchand should pass his former teammates as long as Boston makes the playoffs at least one more time before he retires.