The Bruins in 25 Games

Having played more than 7,500 regular-season and playoff games since the franchise’s inception in 1924, the Boston Bruins have become an iconic National Hockey League team boasting a sizable fan base well beyond Massachusetts. In a century of spirited play, the Bruins have brought great joy—and great disappointment—to their passionate legions of followers across North America.
Twenty-five of these games are presented here, chronologically, in great detail. Most will be known to hardcore followers of the Bruins, others may be on the obscure side. All of them combine to create a tapestry of triumphs, travails, cheers and tears. The book follows the club’s fortunes from the early days of Eddie Shore and Tiny Thompson, through the halcyon seasons of the Kraut Line, forward to the dominant renaissance years of the Orr-Esposito 1970s, and into the third decade of the 21st century.

John G. Robertson is a private tutor and sports historian who lives in Cambridge, Ontario. He is the author of numerous books on baseball, hockey and boxing history.
Carl T. Madden lives in Welland, Ontario and is the author of multiple books on the history of sports.

John G. Robertson and Carl T. Madden
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 249
Bibliographic Info: 24 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2023
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9103-9
eISBN: 978-1-4766-4898-9
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments vi
Preface: Which Games to Include or Exclude 1
Authors’ Note 4
1. March 29, 1929: Bruins Capture Their First Stanley Cup 5
2. March 14, 1933: Bruins Defeat Chicago by Forfeit 13
3. December 12, 1933: The Eddie ­Shore–Ace Bailey Incident 18
4. March 26, 1936: Eddie Shore Loses Cool; Bruins Lose Playoff Series 28
5. April 2, 1939: Mel Hill Scores His Third Overtime Goal in One Series 38
6. March 16, 1944: Bruins Score Nine Times—But Lose 48
7. January 21, 1945: Bruins Rout Rangers, 14–3 55
8. March 18, 1952: Bobby Bauer Scores in ­One-Game Comeback 63
9. April 8, 1952: The Rocket’s Greatest Goal Sinks the Bruins 70
10. January 18, 1964: The Ultimate Outlier—Boston 11, Toronto 0 80
11. April 2, 1969: Playoff Brawl and Blowout—Boston 10, Toronto 0 88
12. April 24, 1969: Bruins Fall to Habs in De Facto Cup Final 96
13. April 26, 1970: The Afternoon the Bruins Really Won the 1970 Cup 107
14. March 11, 1971: Phil Esposito Sets ­Single-Season Scoring Record 115
15. February 23, 1972: Bruins Rally from Five Goals Down to Defeat Seals 121
16. April 30, 1972: The One That Nearly Got Away 127
17. December 30, 1973: Chris Oddleifson’s ­Four-Goal Game 136
18. October 7, 1976: Rick Middleton’s Debut Hattrick 141
19. December 23, 1979: Bruins Battle Ranger Fans 148
20. February 26, 1981: Boston’s Biggest Brawl 156
21. May 8, 1988: ­Doughnut-Gate 164
22. October 16, 1988: Cam Neely’s ­Seven-Point Game 170
23. April 11, 1990: Four Goals in Third Period to Salvage Playoff Series 176
24. April 10, 2010: Bruins Score Three Shorthanded Goals on One Penalty 184
25. May 13, 2013: Bruins Erase a 4–1 Deficit to Oust Maple Leafs 190
26. Games That Just Missed the Cut 198
27. … And 12 Games That Are Best Forgotten 205
28. A Brief History of the Boston Bruins, Decade by Decade 214
Chapter Notes 225
Bibliography 235
Index 237