1973-1974 Boston Bruins: Getting Goals

July 10th, 2026
By SLB
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Having won the Stanley on 2 recent occasions in 1970 and 1972, the Boston Bruins were beginning to develop an edge to their team, an edge that was becoming noticeable by hockey fans everywhere. The rough style of play on the ice that the Bruins showed in the 1970’s made fans and hockey analysts call them the “Big Bad Bruins”. Entering their 50^th NHL season in franchise history, the Bruins were looking to make their milestone season a truly historic one.

In the 1973-1974 NHL season the Boston Bruins went 52-17-9, winning the Eastern Division by 7 games and 14 points over the Montreal Canadiens. In head-to-head play the Bruins went 5-0 against the Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-0-1 against the Vancouver Canucks, 4-1 against the Buffalo Sabres, California Golden Seals, New York Islanders, New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues, 4-1-1 against the Detroit Red Wings, 4-2 against the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-0-2 against the Minnesota North Stars, and 3-1-1 against the Los Angeles Kings and Philadelphia Flyers.

Center Phil Esposito had 68 goals and 77 assists for 145 points with 14 power play goals, 26 power play assists, 4 short-handed goals and 9 game-winning goals off 393 shots. Esposito led the entire NHL in goals and points and he would win the Art Ross Trophy.

The other key part of the scoring for Boston for Defenseman Bobby, one of the team’s Alternate Captains. Orr had 32 goals and 90 assists for 122 points with 11 power play goals, 25 power play assists and 4 game-winning goals off 384 shots. Orr would win the Norris Trophy and he would set a single game record for most points scored in game with 7 against the New York Rangers on November 15.

Left winger John Bucyk was the Captain of the Bruins and he had 31 goals and 44 assists for 75 points with 12 power play goals, 18 power play assists and 9 game-winning goals off 139 shots. Left winger Wayne Cashman had 30 goals and 59 assists for 89 points off 156 shots. Left winger Don Marcotte had 24 goals and 26 assists for 50 points off 150 shots. Defenseman Carol Vadnais had 16 goals and 43 assists for 59 points with 19 power play assists off 187 shots. Center Gregg Sheppard had 16 goals and 31 assists for 47 points off 168 shots. Center Andre Savard had 16 goals and 14 assists off 88 shots. Right winger Terry O’Reilly had 11 goals and 24 assists off 86 shots.

Boston had 2 goaltenders who could weather any storm of shot hockey pucks. Gilles Gilbert was the main option at goaltender as he went 34-12-8, recording a 2.95 goals against average and 6 shutouts in 3210 minutes. Boston’s secondary option at goaltender was Ross Brooks who went 21-16-3, recording a 2.36 goals against average and 3 shutouts in 1170 minutes.

During the regular season the Bruins consistently proved to the rest of the NHL that they were one of the favorites to bring home the Stanley Cup. A couple of winning streaks made the rest of the league take notice of the Bruins. Their first long winning streak stretched 8 games, beginning on November 8 with a 2-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens, and ending on November 25 with a 3-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings. Boston’s second long winning streak stretched 7 games as it began on February 3 with a 5-4 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, and it ended on February 16 with a 5-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings.

The Bruins carried their momentum into the playoffs, and for a while they looked amazing. In the Quarterfinals the Bruins swept the Toronto Maple Leafs 4 games to none. In Game 1 on April 10 at the Boston Garden the Bruins shut out the Maple Leafs 1-0. In Game 2 on April 11 the Bruins won 6-3. In Game 3 on April 13 at the Maple Leaf Gardens the Bruins again by the score of 6-3. Finally the Bruins completed the 4-game sweep with a 4-3 overtime win in Game 4 on April 14.

The Bruins had a better test in the form of the Chicago Black Hawks in the Semifinals as it took 6 games to get past Chicago. In Game 1 on April 18 at the Boston Garden the Black Hawks stunned the Bruins 4-2. The Bruins responded by winning Game 2 on April 21 by the score of 8-6. The Black Hawks then took Game 3 on April 23 at Chicago Stadium by the score of 4-3 in overtime. From here Boston took control of the series as they went on to win Game 4 on April 25 by the score of 5-2. Going back home to the Boston Garden, the Bruins won 6-2 in Game 5 on April 28, and then in Game 6 on April 30 at Chicago Stadium the Bruins beat the Black Hawks 4-2 to end Chicago’s season.

Having won the Prince of Wales Trophy the Boston Bruins would face the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1974 Stanley Cup Finals. Though both teams had great talent on their rosters, Philadelphia’s units played better as the Bruins fell 4 games to 2. The Bruins did win Game 1 on May 7 at the Boston Garden by the score of 3-2. The Bruins would get behind 3 games to 1 in the series, and then they would win Game 5 to keep their championship hopes alive, winning 5-1 at the Boston Garden on May 16.

The Boston Bruins would remain competitive throughout the 1970’s, though the landscape of the NHL was consistently changing in this decade. The times when Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr would frequently score goals to ignite Boston hockey fans into a frenzy proved to be something special for NHL history in general.