By: Evan Michael | Follow me on Twitter @00EvanMichael
On this day in Bruins history, April 26th, 1988, the “Montreal jinx” was broken.
For the first time in 45 years –and over a span of 18 consecutive playoff series losses– the B’s bested the Habs in five games to win the Adams Division Final.
Steve Kasper and Cam Neely each scored two goals in a 4-1 victory on the road at the Forum. It was the first playoff series win for the Bruins against the Canadiens since 1943.
From an article titled “The Death of the Montreal Jinx,” this series was recapped epically from start to finish, including the exciting game five finish:
“The series did not open the way the Bruins had wished for. The newly acquired Andy Moog (24 saves on 29 shots) took the loss for the Bruins. Game 2 was pivotal [so] Coach Terry O’Reilly decided to shake things up between the pipes by inserting veteran goaltender Reggie Lemelin into the lineup.
The move paid instant dividends. Lemelin stood on his head, batting away 27 of 30 shots en route to a 4-3 victory… and the B’s never looked back!”
Joe Gill, B/R
In fact, the B’s would look forward to a Prince of Wales Conference Championship and a Stanley Cup runner-up appearance against the Edmonton Oilers — one in which neither Lemelin nor Andy Moog had an answer for the likes of Wayne Gretzky and company.
Nevertheless, that all important series victory in 1988 would end one Black N’ Gold generation’s suffering at the hands of the hated Habs while setting up another for pain and anguish for the next two plus decades. That is… until this happened nearly to the day (April 27th) in 2011:
Cheers to breaking “jinxes!”
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