This Date in Bruins History: Tim Thomas shuts out Lightning in East Final

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The Boston Bruins lost the first matchup in their 2011 Eastern Conference Final versus the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden, but they bounced back with a Game 2 win thanks to a breakout performance from rookie forward Tyler Seguin.

The B's rode that momentum into Game 3 in Tampa Bay on and emerged with a 2-0 victory to take a 2-1 series lead. It's one of only two Bruins wins on May 19 in team history.

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Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas made 31 saves on 31 shots for his first of four shutouts in the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs. B's center David Krejci opened the scoring just 1:07 into the game with a nice move in front of the net, and defenseman Andrew Ference tallied an insurance goal at 8:12 in the third period. 

The series ultimately was decided in Game 7 in Boston, where the Bruins won 1-0 on a Nathan Horton goal to clinch their first Stanley Cup Final berth since 1990.

Another memorable Bruins matchup from May 19 was Game 2 of Boston's 2013 Eastern Conference semifinals versus the rival New York Rangers. After winning Game 1 with a Brad Marchand overtime goal, the B's pummeled the Rangers in a 5-2 victory to take a 2-0 series edge. Five different players scored for Boston.

The Bruins went on to eliminate the Rangers in five games.

Here are the other two Bruins games played on May 19:

1974 Stanley Cup Final: 1-0 loss at Flyers
1992 Prince of Wales Conference Final: 5-2 loss at Penguins

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