NEW JERSEY VS. PITTSBURGH COLORADO VS. ST. LOUIS

Monday, June 4 Too many, too late By Joy Russo ESPN.com The rivalry between the Rangers and the Bruins was born long before the inception of the Original Six in 1942. Bruins 4, Rangers 3 Date Result Goalie 3/21 Bruins 2, Rangers 1 Brimsek 3/23 Bruins 3, Rangers 2 Brimsek 3/26 Bruins 4, Rangers 1 Brimsek 3/28 Rangers 2, Bruins 1 Gardiner 3/30 Rangers 2, Bruins 1 Gardiner 4/1 Rangers 3, Bruins 1 Gardiner 4/2 Bruins 2, Rangers 1 Brimsek Boston's fate in each of its first three playoff appearances from 1927-29 was tied to the Rangers. Their next meeting wasn't until 10 years later in a defining second-round series in 1939. The start to the Bruins' season was marked by controversy when general manager and coach Art Ross sold goalie Tiny Thompson to Detroit on Nov. 27 – the hearts of Bruins fans were crushed as they lost their favorite player just four games into the season. (This would turn out to be a long historic trend with the club). Tiny's replacement was a rookie, Frank Brimsek, who was put into an almost impossible situation. But by the new year, Brimsek won over the Boston faithful. By the time the new year began, Brimsek already posted five shutouts. The bumps didn't stop when the postseason rolled around and the Bruins had a semifinal date with the Rangers. Ross broke up Boston's third and most productive line of Bill Cowley, Roy Conacher and Bill "Flash" Hollett and put Mel Hill, a 10-goal scorer during the regular season, in Hollett's place. Ross thought the checker would deflect attention to the Bruins' top two lines. The gamble would pay off. The turnaround? Hill paid automatic dividends, scoring overtime goals in Games 1 and 2 and the Bruins went on to take a 3-0 series lead. The Rangers fought back and held the B's to a stingy three goals over Games 4 through 6 to tie the series with results of 2-1, 2-1 in overtime and 3-1. But Hill would not be denied. He scored in triple overtime to give the Bruins the series with a 2-1 victory and forever earned the nickname of "Sudden Death" Hill. The Bruins' next challenge wasn't as difficult. Boston defeated the Maple Leafs in five games – only one overtime game this time – to hoist their second Stanley Cup and their first in front of the hometown crowd. The MVP Brimsek and Hill – two players who overcame pressure-filled situations and helped the B's win the Cup. By the time the season ended, Brimsek had earned the reputation of "Mr. Zero" by posting a 36-10-2 record, 1.59 goals-against average and 10 shutouts. He also won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's top rookie and the Vezina Trophy as the best goalie in the league. For Hill, his amazing individual effort still holds a place in NHL playoff history – he is tied with Maurice Richard for the most overtime goals in one season and is the only player to score three OT goals in one playoff series. Joy Russo is a staff editor for ESPN.com Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories