RALEIGH, N.C. — Next stop: the Stanley Cup Final.
The Boston Bruins are headed for play for Lord Stanley’s Cup for the 20th time and will be seeking their seventh championship after Thursday’s 4-0 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes completed a four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Boston awaits the winner of the Western Conference, where the San Jose Sharks lead the St. Louis Blues 2-1.
The Bruins, who have won seven straight games, are going to the Cup Final for the third time in the past nine seasons and making their first trip since 2012-13, when they fell 4-2 to the Chicago Blackhawks.
The Bruins swept the Hurricanes after not trailing since the early stages of the third period in Game 1. The Bruins cracked another 0-0 first period two second-period goals on the power play from their top unit.
Brad Marchand found David Pastrnak back door 4:46 into the second period, and the Bruins continued to dominate play until Patrice Bergeron wristed a shot past Curtis McElhinney with 1:26 left in the period.
The line continued their mastery in the third when Bergeron blocked a pass by Jaccob Slavin, passed to Pastrnak who found Bergeron backdoor for his first 5v5 goal of the postseason. Marchand added an empty-netter.
Tuukka Rask continued his unbelievable run of play with 20 saves to notch his second shutout of the postseason. He finished the series with a 1.25 goals against average and a .956 save percentage.
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- The Bruins will look to close out the Carolina Hurricanes and advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time this decade on Thursday, with Boston trying to sweep a foe in the Eastern Conference Final once again after beating the Penguins in four games during the 2012-13 season. With a victory, Boston would join the Blackhawks as the only two NHL clubs to make it to three Cup finals in the last decade.
- Boston can expect another heavy pushback from Carolina at PNC Arena, with the 'Canes generating 33 shot attempts in what was a wild first period in Game 3. If the B’s can once again weather the storm with Tuukka Rask in net, the ‘Canes are likely done for.
- Boston’s power play only went 1-for-5 in Game 3, but special teams have played a key role in the B’s success so far this series — with the Bruins cashing in on five of their 12 power-play chances in the ECF. Add in the fact that Boston has killed off 11 straight Carolina power plays, and the Bruins should continue to tilt the ice in their favor away from 5v5 play.
- The Bruins will be without Chris Wagner, who suffered an apparent serious injury to his right arm after blocking a shot in the final minutes of Game 3 on Tuesday. While Wagner’s postseason is likely over, the Bruins at least have a fall-back option in Noel Acciari, who was officially cleared for game action back on Tuesday after not playing since May 2 against the Blue Jackets.