Bruins Claim Sixth Stanley Cup With Game 7 Win; Tim Thomas Wins Conn Smythe Trophy

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Boston Bruins Appear On TODAY Show With Stanley Cup

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Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins Joining Today Show On Friday Morning

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Roberto Luongo's Failings Cover For Vancouver's Lack Of Offense

Believe it or not, there was a hockey game on Wednesday night between the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks, and it was Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. After all the revelry in the locker room and the streets of Boston and after all the anarchy in the streets of Vancouver, it's hard to forget that hockey was played at Rogers Arena, complete with sticks, pucks, goals and everything in between.

The Bruins won the Cup by sticking to the plan they've had all series long -- be physical with the Canucks scorers, clog the middle in front of Tim Thomas to stop quality Vancouver scoring opportunities and have success on the penalty kill. Roberto Luongo is going to get, and deserves a lot of, the blame for the loss in Game 7 and the series.

But really, most of the credit should simply go to the Bruins. They had the perfect game plan in place to stop Henrik Sedin, Daniel Sedin and Ryan Kesler, to the point where the far-inferior Boston offense not only outscored Vancouver's, but looked a million times better doing it, too. The Canucks didn't score goals, and you can't blame that on their goaltender.

Defensively, the force field the Bruins routinely set up in front of Thomas was brilliant. How many times did we see the Canucks take a shot from the perimeter, have that shot blocked away by Thomas, and then cleared away with ease by the Bruins in front of the net? Boston simply didn't let Vancouver own the middle of the ice in their end, and that made Thomas' job relatively easy throughout the series and in Game 7.

You can blame the Canucks for not having the desire to get dirty on that part of the ice with the Bruins, but give credit to Boston for a perfectly executed game plan, too. 

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For full coverage of the Finals, head to our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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VIDEO: CBC Outdoes Itself Again With 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs Montage

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7 Ratings: NBC Pulls In 5.7 Overnight Rating, Tying Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 Record

The final ratings news of the 2011 NHL season for NBC is good news. Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday night tied the best-ever overnight rating for a Game 7 with a 5.7/10 rating. That ties 2003's Game 7 between the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and the New Jersey Devils.

The numbers are up 14 percent from the last Game 7 in the Finals between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings, back in 2009. That game pulled in a rating of 5.0, and NBC was sure to point out in their press release that two American markets particpated in that game.

The game registered the second-best rating in the last 37 years of the Stanley Cup Playoffs overall in the United States, coming in only behind Chicago's 2010 clincher in Game 6 against Philadelphia.

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For full coverage of the Finals, head to our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Tim Thomas Wins Conn Smythe Trophy, And It Grows With His Legend

When Tim Thomas stepped up to the podium for his press conference after winning the Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy on Wednesday night, it seemed as though the giant MVP award sitting next to him was bigger than usual. If you thought the same thing, good news: you were right.

Here's Thomas accepting with the trophy at that podium following Game 7 of this year's Stanley Cup Finals. Take note of the amount of rows bearing the names of previous winners. 

And here's the same exact trophy from 2010, when Gary Bettman passed it to Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks. 

Quite the facelift, no? By our count, the new Conn Smythe can hold 69 Maple Leafs with the names of previous winners on them. 60 on the bottom three rows, plus three on each side and three on the back on that top level. The previous version of the would have been able to hold  the names of about 53 winners.

And that's not even mentioning the stain work on the wood.

This isn't the first time the Conn Smythe has grown, either. Just look at this image from the 1977 Finals, when Guy Lafleur of the Montreal Canadiens won the award. Just one row.

Images via Getty. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For full coverage of the Finals, head to our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Newspapers In Vancouver, Boston Capture Completely Different Emotions From Stanley Cup Finals Game 7

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Zdeno Chara Hoists Stanley Cup, Passes To Mark Recchi

Once the boos for Gary Bettman subsided following Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 on Wednesday night, the NHL Commissioner passed the Stanley Cup to Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara.

Chara, who had never won a Game 7 in his career before these playoffs, clearly rid himself of those demons this year, as his Bruins won three of them en route to the Stanley Cup.

No. 33 hoisted the Cup higher than it's ever been hoisted before (tallest captain to ever win), and after taking a victory lap and screaming like a giddy six year old for a minute or two, he passed it to the recently-retired Mark Recchi, who had just played in his final NHL game and who had just won his third Stanley Cup.

Here's the video:

Pure, unbridled joy. There's nothing like winning the Stanley Cup. 

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For full coverage of the Finals, head to our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Brad Marchand Paces Boston To Stanley Cup Victory

If the Conn Smythe Trophy were awarded to the Stanley Cup Finals MVP, not the MVP of the entire postseason, it's quite possible that Boston Bruins rookie Brad Marchand could have won the thing. Marchand wound up with 11 goals in the 2011 playoffs, and five of those came after Game 2 of the series against the Vancouver Canucks.

Marchand was vital to the Bruins success against Vancouver, getting under the skin of seemingly the entire Canucks roster, punching Daniel Sedin in the face in Game 6 without suffering retribution and most importantly, adding some extra offensive punch to the second line with Patrice Bergeron and Mark Recchi.

He stepped up big, and he was perhaps at his best in Game 7 on Wednesday. He factored in on three of the four Boston goals in the game, scoring two and assisting on two. He set up Bergeron's first goal, the first of the game, by outworking the Canucks off an offensive zone faceoff. He beat Roberto Luongo on the goal line in the second period and then whipped in the empty netter to seal the deal late in the third period. 

Without Marchand's fine play in the Finals, the Bruins may have had a different fate in Game 7 and the series.

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage of the 2011 Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: NESN's Jack Edwards Celebrates Stanley Cup About As You'd Expect

Jack Edwards of NESN and the Boston Bruins is the most eccentric play-by-play announcer in the league, and there's also no hiding the fact that he's a huge homah and a true Bruins fan -- despite the fact that he's a member of the media. Listen to him for three minutes and you'll understand what we're talking about.

From his rants about the Revolutionary War to his evil cackling at the misfortunes of rival teams to his self-righteousness about everything Boston, Edwards entertains and pisses off simultaneously, depending on your point of view.

Unfortunately, we've missed his rants and ramblings at the biggest point of the 2010-11 hockey year for the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Finals, since NBC has been broadcasting the game and he's been stuck solely on post-game coverage.

But that does mean we got to see his reaction to the Bruins triumphant Stanley Cup victory on Wednesday night, and by God, is it perfect or what? Via NESN's Michael Hurley:

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For full coverage of the Finals, head to our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Claude Julien Brings His Daughter To Celebrate Bruins' Stanley Cup Victory

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VIDEO: Ryan Kesler Cries After Losing Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 To Boston Bruins

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Bruins' Mark Recchi Announces Retirement After Stanley Cup Victory

Immediately following the Boston Bruins’ victory over the Vancouver Canucks in Game 7 to win the Stanley Cup, 43-year-old Bruin forward Mark Recchi announced he is retiring.

Recchi leaves the sport as a three-time Stanley Cup champion. He had 14 goals and 34 assists in 81 regular-season games and went 5-9-14 in 25 playoff contests.

He assisted on one goal for the Bruins in Game 7 and had three goals and seven points in the Stanley Cup finals.

Recchi has 577 goals and 1,533 points in 1,652 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, Montreal Canadiens, Carolina Hurricanes, Atlanta Thrashers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Bruins.

Recchi was the second Bruin to hoist the Cup in victory.

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7, before and after. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Vancouver Riots After Losing Stanley Cup To Boston Bruins In Game 7

The City of Vancouver is on fire on Wednesday night after the Canucks lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals to the Boston Bruins at Rogers Arena. Crowds of up to 100,000 people gathered downtown, as they have for the entire postseason, to watch the game on big video screens in the streets.

After the game ended, those crowds turned violent. Here's an image from the CBC:

Danny O'Neil of the Seattle Times is also Tweeting out photos from the streets, and this one is rather impressive. Seems to be a close up of the same overturned car that's been set on fire. It's still early in Vancouver, and the alcohol is surely still flowing despite the closure of liquor stores in the downtown area. 

Cops are in riot gear and are taking fans down as they attempt to clear the streets, but CTV in British Columbia reports that a police car has been overturned. There's no reason to expect that this stuff is the end of it. Likely and unfortunately, it's on the beginning of the mayhem in the streets of Vancouver. 

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7, before and after. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Gary Bettman Booed By Vancouver Fans After While Stanley Cup

Gary Bettman is not well liked, and when he presents the Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy each year, he always gets handed a large dose of hate from the crowd, no matter which arena he's in. But after Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins, in which the Bruins won 4-0 to claim the greatest trophy in sports, Bettman received the hate more than perhaps he ever has. 

The Rogers Arena crowd booed him so loudly that it was impossible to even hear him speak. Keep in mind, of course, that he had a microphone in his hand. Bettman was clearly yelling with all he had into that microphone while announcing that Tim Thomas had won the Conn Smythe Trophy.

To their credit, however, the booing stopped as soon as Thomas lifted the trophy and the cheers began -- only to resume again when Bettman tried to congratulate the Canucks and Bruins on a great series. 

I'm sure he takes his huge salary and brushes it all off, but man, Bettman was torn a new one by the Vancouver crowd on Wednesday night. 

Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7, before and after. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Tim Thomas Wins Conn Smythe Trophy As MVP Of 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs

Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas was named the recipient of the 2011 Conn Smythe Trophy, which is given out to the player deemed most valuable throughout the entire NHL playoffs. He went 16-9, came up with four shutouts (two in the Stanley Cup Finals) and just kept coming up with big save after big save throughout the playoffs. Upon receiving the trophy, Thomas was cheered by the Vancouver crowd.

He is just the second American player to win the award. The other American to win the award was Brian Leetch of the New York Rangers in 1994, the year the Vancouver Canucks previously lost the Stanley Cup Championship.

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7 Score: Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron Put Boston Up 3-0, Nail In Coffin?

Brad Marchand is a man possessed in Game 7. First, he completely made the play that put the Boston Bruins up 1-0 in the first period by beating every member of the Vancouver Canucks to the puck. Then, he walked through the crease, grabbed a puck and stuffed it along the post where Roberto Luongo made the initial save. 

Unfortunately for Luongo, he couldn't keep hold of the bouncy puck in the sweaty Rogers Arena air. It fumbled through his glove and just across the goal line, and Marchand began celebrating.

Minutes later, it looked like the Canucks were going to get a break. Zdeno Chara was called for a penalty, and when the best penalty killer and the best defenseman on the team is in the box, it's obviously a huge chance to capitalize and trim the lead.

But despite Vancouver stepping up and getting chances, which were promptly denied by Tim Thomas, it would all be for naught. 

Shorthanded, Patrice Bergeron took the puck up ice and out-skated the Canucks to the net. He was taken down from behind and a penalty was called, but the puck continued on it's path and wound up in the back of the net. Good goal, 3-0 Bruins lead. Rather incredible turn of events.

The Canucks now need at least three goals on Tim Thomas in the next 20 minutes. Luongo doesn't like thinking about that (via Bubbaprog). 

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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VIDEO: Patrice Bergeron Goal Sparks Boston's Offense In Game 7

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Chris Higgins Hits Zdeno Chara In First Period Of Canucks-Bruins Game 1

NBC's commentators called this hit from Chris Higgins of the Vancouver Canucks on Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins an "innocent play," but um, how does one innocently leap at another mans head?

Via Bubbaprog, click to animate:

I'm sorry, but there's nothing innocent about that. It's true that both players are looking at the puck as it moves up the wing. It's also true that Chris Higgins knew exactly what he was doing, and that ain't cool, bro. 

No penalties were called on the play. I'm sure there will be somebody outraged somewhere over the lack of suspension for Game 8. 

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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PHOTO: Don Cherry's Suit Is Worthy Of Game 7

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7 Update: Boston Takes Control, Lead After Slow Start

The Boston Bruins have the first goal and a 1-0 lead through one period in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Vancouver Canucks, and as we've been reminded 40 times by NBC and CBC, the team that's scored first in every game in this series has gone on to win the game. 

But if the Bruins do hold on to win the game, and thus the Stanley Cup, it's not going to be simply because they scored the first goal. It's going to be because they continuously got better over the course of the game, improving upon their sluggish start and slowly building upon things as they grabbed momentum.

That's what they did in the first period. They looked a step behind the Canucks in the early stages of the game, but then slowly started to find their legs as the first period grew. One noticeable difference was when the fourth units were on the ice, as the Bruins definitely have more depth at this stage of the series. It's showing. Shawn Thornton has been all over the place so far on Wednesday night.

The Canucks need to get back to what they were doing early in the first period if they're going to want to get on the board. Ryan Kesler really stood out in the first 20 minutes, and with the Sedin's still kind of invisible and Mason Raymond out of the lineup, the Canucks really need that pressure from their second line going forward.

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7 Score: Patrice Bergeron Puts Boston Up, 1-0

The Boston Bruins scored the first goal of the game after a TV timeout. In the Vancouver Canucks' zone, Henrik Sedin won the faceoff against Patrice Bergeron, but Boston's Brad Marchand won up with the puck. After a sweeping skate around the boards, Marchand passed the puck to the middle of the ice where he found Patrice Bergeron.

Bergeron then snapped an 18-footer off and put it past Roberto Luongo for the 1-0 lead. The team that has scored first in each game of this series has gone on to win this game. Will Boston be able to keep that streak alive? It certainly won't be easy with both teams playing all out so far.

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7 Score: Teams Still Scoreless Early In First Period

Roberto Luongo has been sharp early in Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 between the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks, and his diving save on one opponent in the crease about five minutes in is, so far, the moment of the hockey game.

The Canucks have applied most of the pressure early, but after spending the first few shifts on their heels, the Bruins have found their legs a little bit and are starting to take the body a bit more. Tim Thomas has made his share of fantastic saves in the early going as well, and we're stuck at 0-0 still with both teams rolling four lines.

It's clearly desperate hockey out there as you would expect, and the pace has been incredible. It's only 10 minutes in, but there's no tentativeness in Rogers Arena among the guys on the ice. Hell of a hockey game thus far, and I'm sure it's going to stay that way. 

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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PHOTOS: Canucks Fans Crowd Vancouver To Watch Stanley Cup Game 7

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VIDEO: Nathan Horton Pouring Boston Water On Vancouver Canucks Ice

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Bruins Vs. Canucks Game 7 Time, TV Schedule And More

The Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins will conclude the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals at 8 pm ET on NBC. Vancouver is favored to hoist the Cup, with ticket prices surpassing even that of the Super Bowl. 

SB Nation Boston points out no Canadian team has ever lost a Stanley Cup Game 7, Canada-hosted Olympic Games always result in Finals victories and that no team has ever won three Game 7s in a single postseason. Oh, and the home team has won every game in this series. Can the Bruins overcome totally meaningless historical trends?

Daniel Sedin doesn't think so, having guaranteed a road victory. Also, Daniel Sedin has never failed to deliver on a Stanley Cup Finals Game 7 guarantee that I know of. The skies grow more and more ominous for Boston.

Vancouver fans like Roberto Luongo's record in Game 7s, but mostly appear to be kind of freaking out all over the place.

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Vancouver Canucks Fans Stock Up On Alcohol Before Game 7

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Average Ticket Price Rises Higher Than Super Bowl XLV

So, those people in Vancouver really like their hockey, don’t they? Tickets for the Stanley Cup Finals have been ridiculous to come by for the first three games at Rogers Arena between the Canucks and Boston Bruins, but they’ve taken off to new heights for Game 7 on Wednesday night.

According to the fantastic SeatGeek.com, tickets can still be purchased three hours before Game 7, but you’ll need almost $2000 just for the worst seats in the building. If you have the audacity to think about sitting in the lower level, SeatGeek calls a $4000 seat a “great deal,” while you could potentially pay as much as $8500 or even closer to $9000 for a single seat. 

SeatGeek’s Ben Kessler told TSN that the average price of tickets for Game 7 is higher than that of the Super Bowl this past year in Dallas and the Olympic Gold Medal game in Vancouver last February.

There’s a suite for sale on StubHub for $205,888. No idea how many people that would hold, but my God, that’s a lot of money. If I were in Vancouver, I’d just be watching the game in the streets with 100,000 of my closest friends. Cheaper beer, anyway. 

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Either Roberto Luongo Or Patrice Bergeron Will Enter 'Triple Gold Club'

The Triple Gold Club in hockey is a pretty small, elite group, and on Wednesday night, either Patrice Bergeron of the Boston Bruins or Roberto Luongo of the Vancouver Canucks will join it’s ranks. 

The Triple Gold Club consists of those people in hockey that have won the Stanley Cup, an Olympic Gold Medal and the IIHF World Championship, and it’s a class of just 24 players and one coach.

Both Bergeron and Luongo were members of the 2010 Canadian Olympic Team that won gold in Vancouver last February. Luongo won his IIHF Gold with Canada in 2003 and repeated the feat in 2004. Bergeron was a member of that 2004 Canadian Team that won the World Championship for Canada. He would have won gold with Canada again in 2007, but he declined the invite after suffering injuries in the NHL season.

One player will complete the trifecta on Wednesday night when they lift the Stanley Cup. The most recent inductee to the club was Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks, who won IIHF Gold in 2007 with Canada, the 2010 Olympic Gold and the Stanley Cup in 2010 as well.  

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: So, These Teams Are Kind Of Similar...

If you haven't read this piece by Down Goes Brown on Wednesday, the day of Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins, you should probably stop what you're doing and go do so. Like, right now.

DGB is known for the humor, and this certainly has some humor in it, but it's really actually just a pretty poignant little thing. For all of the back and forth and the differences between the teams that have been highlighted over the last two weeks, it's quite possible that the Bruins and Canucks are just exactly the freakin' same.

An idea:

Your team waltzed through the second round against Peter Forsberg's old team, then beat that non-traditional southern team in the conference finals. And there you were, back in the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in a generation. Who can forget that last time you played for Lord Stanley's mug, back in the early 90s? I bet you can still picture your team competing furiously, proudly representing those black and yellowish-gold uniforms that they wore then and perhaps still do, before finally going down to a bitter defeat. Damn you, Mark Messier!

Go read the whole thing. It's worth it, and it's likely more satisfying than anything else you'll read today. 

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Roberto Luongo Stalked By Media During Pregame Seawall Ritual

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7 Odds: Bookmakers Favor Vancouver To Win Stanley Cup

As it was at the start of the postseason, it is at the start of Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Boston Bruins vs. Vancouver Canucks Game 7 odds are in, and according to Bodog, and the home-standing Canucks are favored to win the game and the Cup. The moneyline sits at +120 for the Bruins and -140 for the Canucks.

The prop bets on Game 7 are pretty entertaining. The Canucks are slightly favored to score first, and the team that has scored first in every game so far in the Finals has won the game. Bodog agrees that the trend will continue in Game 7, favoring whichever team that scores first -250 to +195.

Interestingly enough, considering the Bruins have had all three of their wins come in blowout fashion in the series, Vegas likes Vancouver's chances of blowing out the score more than Boston's. It's a 60 to 1 shot that the Bruins will score five or more goals, while it's just a 20 to 1 shot that the Canucks will do so.

My personal favorite prop bet on the evening: If Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper is at the game, will he be wearing a Canucks jersey? Bodog says he must be seen live on television in the jersey, and they say that he won't be seen in a jersey. The moneyline sits at +200. 

If the Bruins win, who will Zdeno Chara pass the Cup to first? Bodog favors Tim Thomas at 2/5, and Mark Recchi comes in a 5/1. Claude Julien is a distant 20/1, understandably. If the Canucks win, they like the odds of Henrik Sedin passing the Cup to his brother, Daniel, at 1/2. Roberto Luongo comes in behind Sami Salo at 11/2. 

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Jeff Tambellini To Replace Mason Raymond In Vancouver Lineup

Mason Raymond was injured in Game 6 between the Boston Bruins and his Vancouver Canucks, and with news that his compressed vertebrae injury will keep him out for three to four weeks, it's obvious that Alain Vigneault needs to replace him in the lineup for a decisive Stanley Cup Finals Game 7. 

It appears as though the responsibility will fall on forward Jeff Tambellini, as officially reported by Dan Rosen of NHL.com. Tambellini will jump into the lineup, having only played five games to date in the postseason. He has played three games in the Finals, however: Games 1, 2 and 3 of the series. 

It'll be tough for Tambellini to totally replace Raymond, who played an average of about 16 minutes per game in the five Finals games he completed. Tambellini, by comparison, played just 2:30 in Game 1 and 5:50 in Game 2, both at Rogers Arena.

It's possible Raymond is replaced via more of a committee, with Tambellini taking shifts on the second line and a guy like Chris Higgins filling in a bit too. Higgins played most of Game 6 in Raymond's place after the injury. We won't know exactly what's going on with the spot until game time, since Vigneault surely isn't talking. All we know for sure is that Tambellini will be in the lineup for Game 7.

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 7. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.

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Bruins Vs. Canucks, Game 7: Teams Battle In One Final Showdown For Lord Stanley's Cup

You're going to hear this like 400 more times on Wednesday, but there's nothing like a Game 7, and that's exactly what we have tonight between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Finals. And while you'll listen to the cliches and probably start making fun of them before the day is over, there's a reason why they exist. It's all true.

Wednesday's Game 7 will without a doubt be the end of the NHL season, and if the series we've seen to date between the Bruins and Canucks is any indication, it should be an incredible contest. This has perhaps been the oddest Stanley Cup Finals series in recent memory, but there are a few constants so far. 

For starters, the games at Rogers Arena have been some of the most entertaining hockey of the year. Roberto Luongo has been far from the sieve he's been across the continent in Boston, posting up a nearly unblemished record in three games. And Tim Thomas? Well, he's been Tim Thomas. 

Really, if this game were in Boston, we wouldn't have the privilege of expecting great hockey. The Bruins have been far and away the dominant team at home, and that's what's made this series so strange. It's as if different teams are on the ice depending on what building the game is in. At Rogers Arena, though, the Canucks have confidence. Luongo has confidence. And that's exactly why they have a chance to win the Stanley Cup tonight.

We've learned in these Stanley Cup Finals that you can't underestimate the power of home ice, and the President's Trophy-winning Canucks fought all season long to earn the right to play the season's final game in Vancouver. They've earned a right to have a chance tonight in the biggest game any of them will ever play.

The Stanley Cup Finals are ongoing, as the Vancouver Canucks battle the Boston Bruins. Stick with this StoryStream for complete coverage of Game 6. For coverage on the Finals, stick with our Stanley Cup Finals hub, our Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct, and our Bruins blog, Stanley Cup of Chowder.