4. Avoiding Boston
2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs
The 2012 Devils run to the Stanley Cup Final was magic. They beat the Florida Panthers in double overtime to send them home on their home ice in Game 7, which began the legend of then-rookie Adam Henrique. After that, they faced the Philadelphia Flyers, who had all of the momentum after dispatching the favories in the Pittsburgh Penguins. They destroyed them in five games. Their Hudson River Rivals and the number-one seed the New York Rangers were waiting for them in the Eastern Conference Final, and Henrique’s legend grew as “it’s over” began to ring throughout the ears of the Garden State.
However, the luck of the Devils didn’t involve any game they actually played in. The Devils were AWFUL against the Boston Bruins that season. Despite having more than 100 standings points on the season, the Devils could not beat the Bruins. They went 0-3-0-1 against Boston that year, taking home one lowly overtime loss in four attempts. What’s worse is they gave up 18 goals in those four games and scored just eight. It was a destruction of what was clearly a good hockey team.
The Bruins were the defending Stanley Cup Champions, and nobody thought they would get knocked out in the first round. The Washington Capitals had been known for playoff disappointments, so this should be easy for them.
Luckily for the Devils, it was not easy at all. The Bruins and Capitals scratched and clawed to a Game 7, and the Caps ended up putting the Bruins away in the closest series in history (only seven-game series up to that point where every single game came down to one goal). Joel Ward scored in OT in Game 7, giving the Devils a real path to make a run.