Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Bruins Honor ‘Big Bad Bruins’ Era, Former Cup Champions in Pregame Ceremony
BOSTON – Before the Boston Bruins dispatched the Montreal Canadiens 5-2 at TD Garden on Saturday, the organization held the latest celebration of their Centennial season, honoring the ‘Big Bad Bruins’ of the 1960s and ‘70s.
The team paid homage to the ‘Early Years’ ahead of their 4-1 win against the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 28, and this time they brought out members of the 1970 and 1972 Stanley Cup-winning teams to raise their championship banners to the rafters.
Back when they won their championships, teams did not hold banner-raising ceremonies that have since become commonplace in American sports, so getting their chance to do the same created a special moment over 50 years in the making.
“Seeing it done in other cities and how they went about it, it meant a lot to our guys,” former Bruins captain Wayne Cashman said. “You really feel the championship, and how you strive to win it when you get to raise the flag. We had never before, we did today, and now we know what it’s like to raise the banner for a great town.”
Cashman, 78, played parts of 17 NHL seasons, all with the Bruins (1964-65, 1967-68 to 1982-83). He served as captain from 1977-1983, and totaled 793 points in 1,027 games.
Former Bruins captain Wayne Cashman speaks to the media during the first intermission of Boston's 5-2 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Nov. 18, 2023. Cashman and fellow members of the 1970 and 1972 Stanley Cup champions were honored before the game as part of the Bruins' Centennial season celebration.
Joe Pohoryles/The Hockey News
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Bruins President Cam Neely didn’t know those 1970 and 1972 Cup-winning teams never raised their championship banner until a few months ago, and that when a member of the marketing department discovered that fact, it became part of the plan to celebrate them.
Neely was also impressed by the fan reception, with many not remembering that era, if they were even alive during it.
“They understand the history of this franchise,” he said. “A lot of these fans now, their parents have came, their grandparents have come, so it’s pretty cool.”
In addition to the pregame ceremony, some of the former players got to meet with current Bruins players at Warrior Ice Arena earlier in the day, no doubt motivating the team to get the win later that night.
“I’ve wanted to be that [a champion] since I could walk, man,” said Jeremy Swayman, who made 20 saves to improve to 7-0-1 on the season. “That’s a motivator that I’ve always had, was to etch history. … I know that I would love to be in their shoes one day doing the same thing.”
Regardless of the result, getting the chance to reunite with former teammates is what mattered most to another member of both the 1970 and 1972 Cup champions, Dallas Smith, 82, who spent 15 of his 16 NHL seasons with the Bruins, scoring 302 points in 860 games with Boston.
“It’s just nice to, in my case, not very often I see the boys,” he said. “So having everybody here makes it nice.”
