2019 Stanley Cup Finals: Game 1 Open Thread

And then there were two...

Memorial Day is here, and with it brings the beginning of the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals. Of the 31 teams that began the season with championship aspirations back in September, only two remain.

Representing the Western Conference, the St. Louis Blues. The Blues’ story is one that’s been covered ad nauseam, but it’s worth a quick recap. On the morning of January 3rd, no team had less points than the 34 St. Louis had accumulated. The recall of Jordan Binnington less than a week later served as a turning point for the Blues, and they finished the season with 99 points and the third seed in the Central Division bracket. They knocked off the Winnipeg Jets, Dallas Stars, and San Jose Sharks en route to their first Finals appearance since 1970, and they’ll be facing a familiar foe.

The Boston Bruins will look to end their city’s excruciatingly long championship drought. It’s been 114 days since the residents of the City of Champions saw one of their sports teams live up to that moniker, and the Bruins are the only team capable of ending the drought before the summer begins. Boston rallied from series deficits against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets before sweeping the Carolina Hurricanes to qualify for the Finals.

Making their 3rd Finals appearance of the decade, this is a Bruins’ team capable of beating the Blues down with experience. David Backes, the former Blues captain, will be out for revenge against his former team. Boston will look to make the 2019 finals a repeat of the 1970 iteration, one that saw the Bruins sweep these very same Blues in four games.

It all starts tonight in the City of Champions. Boston holds home-ice advantage for this series, and will look to enforce their will on St. Louis. Puck drop is scheduled for sometime (notice how I didn’t say slightly) after 8:00 PM EDT. Enjoy the game.