The Boston Bruins blanked the Vancouver Canucks 4-0 to win the Stanley Cup in the seventh and deciding game, capturing their first championship since 1972.
Goaltender Tim Thomas turned in another stellar performance, stopping all 37 shots he faced. Thomas' shutout cemented what was likely already a foregone conclusion: him being named the winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy. At 37-years-old, Thomas is the oldest Conn Smythe winner ever.
"From the first time you put on skates, this is what you dream of," Thomas said. "I can't believe it, it still hasn't set in."
"The Stanley Cup is the most important, the (Conn Smythe) is just an honour," Thomas added.
Patrice Bergeron opened the scoring for the Bruins on a quick shot with just over five minutes left in the first period. Brad Marchand assisted on the all-important first goal for Boston; the team to score first has won the previous six games of the Stanley Cup Final, a trend that held true for Game 7 as well.
"It's unbelievable," Bergeron said after the game. "Words are hard to describe right now the feeling we are having."
"It's tough to soak everything in. We've worked so hard. We believed in us, that we could do it and we got the job done."
The Bruins opened the game up in the second period, with Bergeron scoring Boston's second goal of the period - and his second of the game - on a shorthanded breakaway late in the period. The play was reviewed, but the call on the ice stood, giving the Bruins a three-goal lead.
Marchand scored earlier in the period on a wraparound, with Dennis Seidenberg and Mark Recchi picking up the helpers.
"We came out extremely hard in the first and had a lot of chances to score goals but again we couldn't beat Thomas," Canucks captain Henrik Sedin said. "As a team, you get momentum when you see the other team can't score."
With under three minutes to play and Roberto Luongo on the bench, Marchand scored his second goal of the game to ice the win for Boston.
"Everybody's disappointed," Canucks coach Alain Vigneault said. "The players gave it their best shot but at the end of the day you have to give credit where credit is due. Boston played a real strong game, they got great goaltending and they were able to score a couple of tough goals around our net and they deserved to win."
The game came down to goaltending, as Vancouver outshot the Bruins in all three periods, and 37-21 overall.
"They don't give up much and when they do they're goaltender makes the save," Luongo said.
The Canucks were 0-2 on the power play, failing to capitalize on a Zdeno Chara interference call in the second period and a Milan Lucic hooking call in the third.
The Bruins were 0-1 on the power play but did score a shorthanded marker in the second period.
Veteran Recchi, who had 13 points throughout the playoffs, said he was going to retire, going out a Stanley Cup champion.
"We never made things easy on ourselves," Recchi said after the game to CBC. "I knew Game 6 and 7 we were going to be there and we did it. What a feeling this is. This is a hell of a way for me to go out, that's for sure."
Despite making the trip, Bruins forward Nathan Horton didn't suit up for the game. He did put on skates to join his teammates for the Stanley Cup celebration after the game.
The Canucks' Mason Raymond, injured early in Game 6, was also in the building. He received a large ovation from Canucks fans when showed on the video scoreboard in the first period.
