VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) - The Canucks finally have an opponent for next week's Stanley Cup final, though the Boston Bruins are hardly a familiar foe.
When the teams drop the puck for Game 1 on Wednesday, it will be just the sixth meeting between the teams in six seasons. That includes a game in Vancouver just over three months ago, even though few of the Canucks recalled much from that 3-1 loss.
What all of them remembered after the Bruins beat Tampa Bay 1-0 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final on Friday night were goalie Tim Thomas and defenseman Zdeno Chara.
Several singled out Chara, Boston's 6-foot-9 Norris Trophy nominee as the best defenseman, and Thomas, their acrobatic Vezina Trophy finalist as the league's best goaltender, as keys to beating one of the league's stingiest teams.
