Boston: The New Titletown
The clock ticked zero, and the celebration began in Boston once again.
It's not like that they are used to it, but it has also seemed like a long way for the Boston Bruins, winning their first Stanley Cup since 1972. The city has not celebrated a championship since the Celtics won their 17th NBA Championship in 2008 over the Los Angeles Lakers. For Boston, it's been the question of when the Bruins were going to join the 21st century success that the Celtics, Boston Red Sox, and New England Patriots have had.
The Bruins' Cup victory gave the city of Boston it's seventh championship in 10 years, joining the championships of the Patriots (2001, 2003, & 2004), Red Sox (2004 & 2007), and Celtics (2008), from 2001-2011. In recent memory (if ever), there has not been another city that has experienced as much success in a decade of time. Not bad for a city that was once considered among the cursed cities in terms of sports. Maybe not as bad as Cleveland, or Philadelphia, but it was cursed nonetheless.
Prior to 2001, the last championship in the city of Boston was 1986, when the Celtics won their 16th NBA title. The Bruins last Stanley Cup was 1972, led by Bobby Orr, the Patriots lost two Super Bowls (1985 & 1997), and who could forget about the Red Sox's Curse of the Bambino, as their last World Series victory was 1918. While other cities (especially Boston's rival city, New York), was flourishing with championships, Bostonian's were wondering when the luck was going to change.
The luck turned around the moment Tom Brady came into form in 2001 as the starting quarterback for the New England Patriots, and led them to an upset victory over the St. Louis Rams and the Greatest Show on Turf in Super Bowl XXXVI. The Pats would follow their success with two more victories in Super Bowls XXXVIII and XXXIX over the Carolina Panthers and Philadelphia Eagles, respectively. However, the New York Giants stopped the Patriots' run for an unbeaten season in 2007 when they defeated them in Super Bowl XLII 17-14.
The Curse of the Bambino was reversed in 2004, starting with the Red Sox's improbable comeback from an 0-3 deficit to win the ALCS 4-3 over the Yankees, becoming the first team in Major League Baseball history to accomplish this feat. The Red Sox went on to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in a four-game sweep to win their first World Series in 86 years. The win gave Boston a Super Bowl and a World Series victory in the same calendar year for the first time in 25 years (Pittsburgh did it with the Steelers and Pirates in 1979). The BoSox would once again win a World Championship in 2007 with a World Series victory over the Colorado Rockies.
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