Let's talk about the two most dangerous words in the English language to any fan of the Stanley Cup Playoffs:  Game Seven.

Really, Game Seven is nerve-wracking in all three sports that uses a playoff series format--NBA, MLB, and NHL. In the NBA and NHL, all playoff rounds are best-of-seven. Since 2022, MLB has a best-of-three Wild Card Series and a best-of-five Division Series, and it's the League Championship Series and the World Series that are best-of-seven. Of course, Game Seven only comes when both teams have won three games out of six, and a final seventh game is needed to determine who advances, or in the case of the final round, who becomes champion. 

The main subject in this blog is Game Sevens in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, because while all Game Sevens are nerve-wracking, the ones that will most likely raise your heart rate are in the NHL. Baseball's slow-paced, it doesn't pick up until a bases loaded situation. Basketball's faster, but it's a controlled frenzy. Hockey can go a million ways, especially the way the puck bounces. That's why Game Sevens in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, while they are exciting, can be nerve-wracking for overall fans, and frightening for fans of teams playing in one. And if Game Seven goes to overtime...oh boy.

So we actually have a Game Seven in this year's opening round, and honestly, I didn't think we'd see one. The first round has been less climactic than usual. We have one sweep, and four series ended in five games. The only exciting five game series was the Avalanche/Jets series, and that's because there were so many goals scored. The remaining three that are ongoing now have reached Game Six, and the series that reached Game Seven is the one between the Boston Bruins and the Toronto Maple Leafs, because of course it is. This was another series that was 3-1 after four games, and it was Boston with the 3-1 lead. However, back-to-back 2-1 wins by Toronto have resulted in a Game Seven needed.

Game Seven hasn't really been kind to both teams. We all know Toronto's history, they haven't won a Game Seven in 20 years, and they have lost their last five Game Sevens--with three of them coming against Boston. And unlike the rest of the hockey world, I see both sides to this. Boston has had recent problems closing out series. The losses in Games Five and Six this year served as their fifth and sixth straight losses in series clinching games dating back to 2022. This includes last year, where a 65-win Bruins team blew a 3-1 series lead to the upstart Florida Panthers in Round 1. Speaking of that series last year, no NHL team has ever blown 3-1 series leads in back-to-back year. That's what the Bruins face on Saturday.

Saturday's winner will face off against the Florida Panthers in Round 2. As for the remaining series, the Nashville Predators and the Vegas Golden Knights each have the chance to force Game Sevens of their own. If they do, those Game Sevens will take place on Sunday.