Where does the Ray Bourque Cup win rank all time in NHL history?

[SeanMoneyHands]

I would think it's easily top 5, up there with Crosby's Team Canada golden goal, #99 first cup win in Edmonton, #99 surpassing Gordie Howe for most career NHL points, etc.

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[Yozhik v tumane]

Top 3 as in memorable Stanley Cup moments? Sure, it very well could be.

 

[Albatros]

Happy for him to have won it, but him joining contenders solely for it after 22 years with a good team in Boston wasn't really all that special. And once Colorado retired his number it became even a bit of a farce. Positively memorable overall still, but I wouldn't rank it.

 

[buffalowing88]

Happy for him to have won it, but him joining contenders solely for it after 22 years with a good team in Boston wasn't really all that special. And once Colorado retired his number it became even a bit of a farce. Positively memorable overall still, but I wouldn't rank it.

I kind of agree with this sentiment. Of course, Bourque was obviously no passenger when he got to CO and he was rejuvenated in general. With that said, however, him joining an already stacked squad annoyed me at the time even as a kid. It cheapens his victory.

In terms of top moments, though, it's pretty high up there. Bourque was the talk of professional sports for a bit there, which is unheard of for hockey. His Cup win was a big deal in that regard.

 

[MVP of West Hollywd]

You're not going to see many combinations of a guy who's that near the end of his career, had never won before, and is still an elite level player.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

I kind of agree with this sentiment. Of course, Bourque was obviously no passenger when he got to CO and he was rejuvenated in general. With that said, however, him joining an already stacked squad annoyed me at the time even as a kid. It cheapens his victory.

In terms of top moments, though, it's pretty high up there. Bourque was the talk of professional sports for a bit there, which is unheard of for hockey. His Cup win was a big deal in that regard.

When Bourque was traded to Colorado they were 4 games over .500. They finished the season 11-2-1 with Bourque. Lost in 7 seven games to Dallas in the third round when Ed Belfour outplayed Patrick Roy. Bourque missed the first two games of the series but averaged over 30 minutes per game in the next five games.

The next season they won the Cup, Bourque was a first team all-star, averaged over 28 minutes a game in the playoffs, had the best plus/minus of all Avs defensemen in the regular season & playoffs. Best of all, at age 40 Bourque played more total minutes than any other player in the NHL that season.

Hardly a cheapened Cup.

 

[MarkusKetterer]

When Bourque was traded to Colorado they were 4 games over .500. They finished the season 11-2-1 with Bourque. Lost in 7 seven games to Dallas in the third round when Ed Belfour outplayed Patrick Roy. Bourque missed the first two games of the series but averaged over 30 minutes per game in the next five games.

The next season they won the Cup, Bourque was a first team all-star, averaged over 28 minutes a game in the playoffs, had the best plus/minus of all Avs defensemen in the regular season & playoffs. Best of all, at age 40 Bourque played more total minutes than any other player in the NHL that season.

Hardly a cheapened Cup.

 

[Professor What]

When Bourque was traded to Colorado they were 4 games over .500. They finished the season 11-2-1 with Bourque. Lost in 7 seven games to Dallas in the third round when Ed Belfour outplayed Patrick Roy. Bourque missed the first two games of the series but averaged over 30 minutes per game in the next five games.

The next season they won the Cup, Bourque was a first team all-star, averaged over 28 minutes a game in the playoffs, had the best plus/minus of all Avs defensemen in the regular season & playoffs. Best of all, at age 40 Bourque played more total minutes than any other player in the NHL that season.

Hardly a cheapened Cup.

Bourque didn't really want to leave Boston, per se, did he? It was just a matter of him wanting to have a shot at a Cup and the Bruins weren't there when time was running out. The idea of leaving a place he loved playing to pursue the ultimate goal actually adds something to me, rather than cheapen it. I mean the guy even took the Cup to Boston, which says a lot about the way he felt about the city. I've always felt like he made a sacrifice to pursue a larger goal, which he thankfully achieved. As far as Cup wins I've seen, it's my personal favorite.

 

[The Panther]

This concept of a "cheapened" Cup win because Bourque went to a new team near the end is... bizarre.

 

[scott clam]

Remember seeing this as a kid, and to me nothing comes close. It's probably similar to the way people older than me remember Lanny's cup, but as great as Lanny's goal in game 6 was he had nowhere near the impact on his team's success that Bourque did.

And what a Class move by Joe Sakic, passing it to Bourque so he could be the first to hoist it.

 

[Albatros]

When Bourque was traded to Colorado they were 4 games over .500. They finished the season 11-2-1 with Bourque.

Colorado had won the division every single year of their existence. In 1999 they had started the season on the road (without Forsberg and eventually Sakic no less) as the new Pepsi Center was being opened, and conversely played almost exclusively at home to finish the season. The narrative that they were anything but one of the very strongest teams in the league already is just false. Bourque (who won 2 of his final 14 games in Boston by the way) was a good add, but the team was ready even without him.

 

[buffalowing88]

This concept of a "cheapened" Cup win because Bourque went to a new team near the end is... bizarre.

Why?
He went to a very good team. He left a team that had regularly put great players around him. He won a Cup in a uniform that I don't think he should have worn. Ton of respect for him. I think he's a top-20ish player. I just think he cheapened his legacy an ounce by doing that.

 

[buffalowing88]

When Bourque was traded to Colorado they were 4 games over .500. They finished the season 11-2-1 with Bourque. Lost in 7 seven games to Dallas in the third round when Ed Belfour outplayed Patrick Roy. Bourque missed the first two games of the series but averaged over 30 minutes per game in the next five games.

The next season they won the Cup, Bourque was a first team all-star, averaged over 28 minutes a game in the playoffs, had the best plus/minus of all Avs defensemen in the regular season & playoffs. Best of all, at age 40 Bourque played more total minutes than any other player in the NHL that season.

Hardly a cheapened Cup.

But why couldn't he do that with Boston in any of the years they had a pretty great team as well? I love Bourque. All of your points about him are totally correct and I acknowledged that. I just think it takes a bit away that it happened in Colorado and not New England. And I'm not a Bruins homer or anything.

 

[Pominville Knows]

But why couldn't he do that with Boston in any of the years they had a pretty great team as well? I love Bourque. All of your points about him are totally correct and I acknowledged that. I just think it takes a bit away that it happened in Colorado and not New England. And I'm not a Bruins homer or anything.

Boston reached the finals twice with him, you can't ask for more during that era and with Neely's injuries.

 

[Albatros]

Boston reached the finals twice with him, you can't ask for more during that era and with Neely's injuries.

That's one way to see it, another is that Boston's long cupless drought coincides largely with his time with the Bruins despite them usually being one of the stronger teams in the league. They won in 1972 and in 2011, but not 1979-2000. That's of course not to say that Bourque is to blame, but if he was not the problem he was also not the solution.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

But why couldn't he do that with Boston in any of the years they had a pretty great team as well? I love Bourque. All of your points about him are totally correct and I acknowledged that. I just think it takes a bit away that it happened in Colorado and not New England. And I'm not a Bruins homer or anything.

Because they were just that, pretty good teams. Who Bourque usually carried.

Also, in Bourque's first 13 seasons, the Stanley Cup was won the dynasty Islanders (4 times), the dynasty Oilers (5 times) and Mario's Penguins twice. The 1982-83 team was probably the best one they had, but they lost to the Islanders when Pete Peters turned back into pumpkin after a great season.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

Colorado had won the division every single year of their existence. In 1999 they had started the season on the road (without Forsberg and eventually Sakic no less) as the new Pepsi Center was being opened, and conversely played almost exclusively at home to finish the season. The narrative that they were anything but one of the very strongest teams in the league already is just false. Bourque (who won 2 of his final 14 games in Boston by the way) was a good add, but the team was ready even without him.

Avs were 4-0 on the road with Bourque in 1999-2000.

I get the feeling you are drastically underrating Bourque's impact on the Avs.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

That's one way to see it, another is that Boston's long cupless drought coincides largely with his time with the Bruins despite them usually being one of the stronger teams in the league. They won in 1972 and in 2011, but not 1979-2000. That's of course not to say that Bourque is to blame, but if he was not the problem he was also not the solution.

An incredibly bad take on the situation.

 

[Albatros]

He was a good supplementary piece and helped them to solve Gusarov's decline among other things, but if you look at even just their defensive additions for the cup run in 2001, Rob Blake had at least the same if not a bigger impact.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

He was a good supplementary piece and helped them to solve Gusarov's decline among other things, but if you look at even just their defensive additions for the cup run in 2001, Rob Blake had at least the same if not a bigger impact.

First team all-stars are never considered supplementary pieces.

 

[Albatros]

Bourque got a ton of legacy votes that year. He was still good, but not on par with Zubov & co.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

Bourque got a ton of legacy votes that year. He was still good, but not on par with Zubov & co.

OK, you're just being absurd.

 

[JackSlater]

There are some weird axes being ground with Bourque in this thread.

I didn't like Bourque or Colorado so I wasn't particularly into that storyline, though I recognize that it was something for a player who provided 20+ years of excellence to finally win the Stanley Cup in his last game. It's probably the most memorable Stanley Cup handoff, or at least top two.

 

[Midnight Judges]

Eh, there is something less impressive about cup chasing relative to bringing the cup to where you are at.

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

He was a good supplementary piece and helped them to solve Gusarov's decline among other things, but if you look at even just their defensive additions for the cup run in 2001, Rob Blake had at least the same if not a bigger impact.

Can't eye roll hard enough at this garbage.

"Complimentary pieces" don't have:

2nd in Norris
AS-1
59 points, highest among D on the team
Play 26:06 a night
Play 28:32 a night in the playoffs