Fansided

5 best NHL Stanley Cup Playoff game sevens of the 2010s

By Griffin Youngs

BOSTON, MA - MAY 13: Members of the Boston Bruins and the Toronto Maple Leafs shake hands following the Bruins overtime win in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 13, 2013 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - MAY 13: Members of the Boston Bruins and the Toronto Maple Leafs shake hands following the Bruins overtime win in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 13, 2013 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 5
Next

While the NHL is on pause indefinitely, let’s look back on the five best Stanley Cup Playoff game sevens from the past decade.

There are few things better in sports than a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The razor’s edge between elation and agony in a winner take all matchup makes for tension that’s been impossible to re-create, and unforgettable moments for fans involved.

While the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year are in question, and could realistically might not be played at all if the coronavirus epidemic does not get better before the summer, now is the best time to look back on the best time to look back on the best Game 7s from the 2010s.

Since 2010 there have been 49 Game 7s played in the NHL, 24 of which was won by the home team and 25 won by the road teams. Thirteen of them went to overtime, and four of them went to double overtime. Let’s look back at five of the very best.

BOSTON – MAY 14: Simon Gagne #12 of the Philadelphia Flyers is congratulated by teammate Mike Richards #18 after Gagne scored the game winner on a power play in the third period against the Boston Bruins in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Semifinals during the 2010 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden on May 14, 2010 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Flyers defeated the Bruins 4-3. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
BOSTON – MAY 14: Simon Gagne #12 of the Philadelphia Flyers is congratulated by teammate Mike Richards #18 after Gagne scored the game winner on a power play in the third period against the Boston Bruins in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Semifinals during the 2010 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden on May 14, 2010 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Flyers defeated the Bruins 4-3. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

Philadelphia Flyers vs. Boston Bruins, 2010 Second Round

The Philadelphia Flyers run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2010 was a run for the ages that was full of some of the best moments in team history, but none were better than Game 7 of their historic second round series against the Boston Bruins.

When the Flyers and Bruins met in the second round of the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, it was their first playoff meeting since 1978. Both pulled off upsets in the first round, and were looking to continue their unlikely runs. However the Bruins won the first two games in Boston in razor close fashion, and ran the Flyers out of their own building in Game 3 to take a 3-0 series lead.

The Flyers were not ready to be done yet however, winning Game 4 in overtime and allowing just one goal over the course of games five and six to be the first team since the 1975 New York Islanders to force a Game 7 after being down 3-0 in a playoff series. The stage was set for a potentially historic Game 7 in Boston.

A Game Seven to Remember

Early on in Game 7, it looked like the Flyers had run out of miracles as the Bruins ran out to a 3-0 lead on the back of two goals from Milan Lucic, but it turns out the best was still to come. Before the end of the first period, James van Riemsdyk got a lucky bounce to leak through Tuukka Rask to get the Flyers on the board, and the seeds of doubt were planted.

Once Scott Hartnell roofed a back hand rebound to cut the lead to one goal early in the second period, the tension in TD Garden could be cut with a knife, and the Bruins were clearly feeling the pressure. Not even six minutes later, Daniel Briere tied the game on a wrap around off a Bruins defenseman to completely silence the Boston crowd.

The Bruins didn’t completely fold under the pressure after the tying goal however, and the two put on a third period for the ages with multiple posts hit on both sides. The turning point came when the Bruins take a too many men on the ice penalty, setting up a power play goal from Simon Gagne to give the Flyers a 4-3 lead that they would not relinquish.

Yellow towels rained down on to the ice as time expired from understandably upset Bruins fans, as the Flyers had come back from 3-0 down in Game 7 to complete the reverse sweep. It was the first time since 1975 that a team came back from being down 3-0 in a series to win. It was only the third time that it had ever happened in the history of the NHL, and only once in American sports since 1975.

Next season however was a different story when the Flyers and Bruins met again in the second round. The Bruins were absolutely relentless, and outscored the Flyers 20-7 en route to finishing the job this time around with a sweep before going on to win the 2011 Stanley Cup. Despite washing out the taste of that defeat, it’s a historic choke that will live on as one of worst losses in NHL history.

Home/NHL