The missed call from Game 5 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final stings for the Boston Bruins, but they still have a chance to fight back from the St. Louis Blues’ 3-2 series lead, and make sure that the controversy is a footnote, rather than a lasting memory.
If nothing else, the Bruins can look to their opponents for an example of bouncing back from that painful call, as Boston hopes to do in Game 6 at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday (NBC; stream here).
The Blues could have sulked after the Sharks got away with a hand pass before scoring a big overtime goal in Round 3, but if that happened, it mostly occurred behind closed doors. The Blues responded to that setback by winning the next three games of the Western Conference Final to eliminate the Sharks, transforming that missed call from a catastrophe to a mere bump in the road.
[That hand pass, Game 5’s missed call, and other highly controversial moments from these playoffs]
When it comes to rebounding from 3-2 deficits and tough calls, the Bruins also have their own firsthand experience, as Bruce Cassidy noted on Friday (via Michael Traikos’ transcript):
“We can draw on previous experience,” Cassidy said about the Bruins’ approach to Game 6. “This particular group went into Toronto, in a tough environment, first round, won a game on the road and came back and won it at home. That’s why we’re still playing. One of the reasons. The group that won the Cup (in 2011) had to win the last two. They were down 3-2 … They lived it. There’s some motivation that goes into it, but at this point of the year they know what’s at stake.”
Indeed, the Bruins can look to the frustration they had falling behind Toronto 3-2 in Round 1 after Zach Hyman might have gotten away with goalie interference on Auston Matthews’ crucial Game 5 goal:
Boston bounced back from that to win that series in seven games, as they hope to do in the 2019 Stanley Cup Final.
As Torey Krug noted after Thursday’s frustrating 2-1 loss, the Bruins sometimes put themselves in tough positions, but have survived with their backs against the wall.
“We’ve done it before, for sure,” Krug said, via the Bruins’ website. “There’s a lot of different ways we’ve won series, won hockey games, and it’s just another test for this group. We haven’t done anything easy this year. We’ve put ourselves against the wall a lot this season, so it’ll be another test. I think we will be ready to go.”
Really, the Bruins can even take a certain level of pride from how they responded to being down 2-0 in Game 5.
While they couldn’t beat Jordan Binnington enough to tie things up, they finally broke through late in the third period to make it 2-1, and give themselves a chance. It’s likely that the bitterness continued, yet the Bruins still kept hammering away.
Both the Bruins and Blues have had moments where they could’ve been derailed by tough losses and controversial calls. Instead, neither team blinked, and that’s a big reason why they’re battling out in this rugged, hard-fought Stanley Cup Final.
It won’t be easy, but chances are, the Bruins will bring another strong effort in Game 6 at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday (NBC; stream here).
MORE BLUES - BRUINS COVERAGE
- Both teams have seen officiating controversies even before Game 5.
- Ivan Barbashev has hearing for hit on Marcus Johansson.
- Blues hope to keep emotions in check.
- Cassidy rips officiating.
- Missed opportunities haunt Bruins.
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.