Scott Stewart-USA TODAY Sports
The clock had just struck midnight in Chicago when the 117th shot of Game 1 of the 2013 Stanley Cup Final went into the net. It took a Michal Rozsival shot and deflections off Dave Bolland and Andrew Shaw to end the game with eight minutes left in triple overtime. No, you read that right: the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins played into triple overtime.
The game began with a threat of tornadoes in the Chicagoland area, and during the game you could hear the thunder over the roar of the crowd in United Center. While it was stormy outside, it was just as stormy inside, with the game going on so long it was like watching two games. By the time it ended, it seemed as though only Tuukka Rask and Corey Crawford weren’t ready to collapse from exhaustion, even though they made a combined 101 saves on the night.
Even though the game was evenly matched, the Blackhawks tried early on to match the Bruins’ physical play, which is what the Pittsburgh Penguins tried to no avail. Caring too much about hits and not paying attention to the puck cost them dearly when the Bruins scored their first goal. On top of that, the Blackhawks’ notoriously rancid power play was in full force, even failing miserably on a 5-on-3 power play. It made the Bruins’ penalty kill, which was already as strong as the Blackhawks’, look even better.
The next game won’t be till Saturday, so both teams will have two days to rest and recover before going at it again. Hopefully, we won’t see any overtime for that one.
