Bruins vs. Canucks: 7 Stimulating Storylines in This Stanley Cup Matchup

The Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks have posed with their conference championship trophies and claimed their passports to the NHL's final frontier. With that, it is time to cue the influx of Stanley Cup story lines.

In honor of the best-of-seven battle, set to commence on Wednesday, here are seven sidebars to the Boston-Vancouver card, complete with common threads, personnel overlaps, regional folk heroes and aspiring victors at ice level, in the stands and in the front office.

Looch Comes Home

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VANCOUVER, CANADA - OCTOBER 26: Milan Lucic #27 of the Vancouver Giants skates against the Tri-City Americans during their WHL game on October 26, 2005 at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, British Colombia, Canada. The Giants defeated the Americans 6-2

Milan Lucic is just the right age to be accepting a college degree right now. Apparently, he has majored in big games while taking Claude Julien’s capstone course.

When he was old enough to be a high school senior though, Lucic was piloting his hometown Vancouver Giants to the 2007 Memorial Cup title in their own barn.

Already a Bruins prospect waiting in the wings, Lucic led the Giants in regular season scoring with 68 points, then charged up a 7-12-19 transcript in 22 playoff games. Less than five minutes into the title game against the WHL-rival Medicine Hat Tigers, he performed “The Shift,” wherein he landed three crowd-pleasing hits and dropped the gloves with Jordan Bendfeld in a span of 28 seconds.

By night’s end, the Giants had triumphed 3-1, and Lucic accepted the Stafford Smythe Trophy as tournament MVP before an audience of 16,281 at Pacific Coliseum.

Neely Saga Revisited

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BOSTON - OCTOBER 17: 2010 Lester Patrick Trophy honoree Cam Neely enjoys a laugh during a Celebration of Lester Patrick at TD Garden on October 27, 2010 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading an

Like Lucic, Neely is a British Columbia native whose physical prowess wooed Vancouver fans before he transferred to Boston. Although his career ended prematurely in 1996, and though he never even reached smelling distance of a Stanley Cup as a player, two things are a safe bet.

First, had the Canucks retained him rather than exported him to Boston in 1986, Neely might have made the difference when Vancouver pushed the New York Rangers to seven games in 1994.

Second, the Bruins Claude Julien-Peter Chiarelli renaissance has coincided with Neely’s appointment to the position of vice president in September 2007 and subsequent promotion to president last summer. Maybe “coincided” is not exactly the operative word. There is no cause to doubt his role in the franchise’s resurgence.

Rene Rancourt: O, Say, Can He Sing

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BOSTON - FEBRUARY 5: Rene Rancourt sings the National Anthem before the Carolina Hurricanes game against the Boston Bruins on February 5, 2006 at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The Hurricanes won 4-3 in a shootout. (Photo by Bruce Bennett

Ask any TD Garden-goer their best choice for a Bruins pregame warm-up, and they will tell you it is when longtime vocalist Rene Rancourt is on hand to perform “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Only one thing can be better than that: If he precedes the American national anthem with his equally endowed rendition of “O Canada.”

With the Bruins facing Vancouver in the championship, fans are assured of hearing Rancourt at his best two times this June, possibly three.

Bergeron and Thomas Return to Olympia

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VANCOUVER, BC - FEBRUARY 26: Patrice Bergeron #37 of Canada in action during the ice hockey men's semifinal game between the Canada and Slovakia on day 15 of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics at Canada Hockey Place on February 26, 2010 in Vancouver, Cana

Come Wednesday night’s Game 1 faceoff, it will have been precisely 15 months since Patrice Bergeron and Tim Thomas each accepted an Olympic medal under the roof of Canada Hockey Place (now known as Rogers Arena).

Bergeron was a relatively quiet, yet invaluable Swiss Army knife for the Canadian team that edged Team USA in overtime, 3-2, for the 2010 gold. Thomas could only watch as American starter Ryan Miller authorized Sidney Crosby’s clincher, then settled for a silver medal.

The two longest-tenured Bruins shall now return to Vancouver as allies, both playing much more visible roles than in the Olympics, and both naturally preferring silver hardware this time.

Roberto Luongo and Claude Julien: How Do You Like Them Now?

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VANCOUVER, CANADA - MAY 24: Goaltender Roberto Luongo #1 of the Vancouver Canucks looks on during Game Five of the Western Conference Finals against the San Jose Sharks during the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Arena on May 24, 2011 in Vancouver, Br

Entering this spring, the Zamboni in Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo’s room was plastered with Chicago Blackhawks logos. Meanwhile, New Englanders were peeved by Boston coach Claude Julien’s inability to supervise a Game 7 victory. Both men were plagued by a failure to follow through on a satisfying regular season, having been halted in the second round of the playoffs three times apiece.

But in Round 1 of this tournament, Luongo and Julien exercised their respective demons as the Canucks dethroned Chicago and the Bruins zapped Montreal in Game 7. From there, they both went on to their first conference finals.

And all of a sudden, here they both are with their respective teams facing off for the right to pop a champagne cork and land it right between the collective lips of their critics.

Claude Julien and Alain Vigneault: What Montreal's Missing

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BOSTON, MA - MAY 27: Head coach Claude Julien celebrates with Adam McQuaid #54, Johnny Boychuk #55 and Michael Ryder #73 of the Boston Bruins after they defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 1 to 0 in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 201

Like Julien, Vancouver bench boss Alain Vigneault had his first NHL head coaching gig with the Montreal Canadiens. In their first full seasons, Vigneault in 1997-98 and Julien in 2003-04, both men directed the Habs to the second round of the playoffs, but otherwise mustered no postseason success.

Vigneault survived two non-playoff campaigns before being replaced at midseason in 2000-01. Likewise, Julien was fired exactly halfway through the 2005-06 season schedule.

Since then, Vigneault and Julien have landed steadier jobs with their current teams. They have each garnered a Jack Adams Award (Vigneault in 2007, Julien in 2009) upon getting their teams back into the second round of the playoffs.

And now, after a slight delay in progress, they have both scratched their fan base’s itch for more, surmounting the conference finals on their first try and engaging each other for the Holy Grail.

Guaranteed Vindication for 1 Fan Base

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BOSTON, MA - MAY 27: Nathan Horton #18 of the Boston Bruins celebrates his third period goal with fans in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2011 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden on May 27, 2011 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo

Boston has been lacking a Cup for 39 years, and the Bruins have been left out of a decade-long Duck Boat party complete with three Patriots Super Bowls, two Red Sox World Series titles and a Celtics NBA crown. The best hockey memories for Black and Gold buffs of late have been the Providence Bruins Calder Cup championship in 1999 and Ray Bourque’s victory with Colorado in 2001.

Guaranteed Vindication for 1 Fan Base (Continued)

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VANCOUVER, CANADA - MAY 24: Vancouver Canucks fans show their support in Game Five of the Western Conference Finals between the San Jose Sharks and the Vancouver Canucks during the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Arena on May 24, 2011 in Vancouver, B

The Canucks have been bereft of banners for the duration of their 41-year existence, and no Vancouver team has won a Stanley Cup since the long-defunct Millionaires vanquished the old Ottawa Senators in 1915. The best hockey memory British Columbians have had lately was the aforementioned 2007 Memorial Cup.

Simply put, something has to give.