Friday, July 16, 2010

Game 5: No 'Miracle on Ice' for 1980 Pens

It looked like Game 4 all over again. And that was unfortunate for the Pens, whose dream of upsetting one of the NHL's top teams in the first round of the 1980 playoffs turned into a Boston Garden nightmare.

The Bruins, perhaps stung by these pesky Penguins taking them to the brink of elimination, once again roared out of the gate and took control of the game, amassing leads of 2-0 after 1 and 4-0 after 2. This article from the Post-Gazette the day after focuses on goalie Greg Millen's surprisingly positive reaction to the loss. The column beneath it by the paper's sports editor speculates on coach Johnny Wilson's future in Pittsburgh, which wouldn't be bright - he was soon fired, making way for none other than Eddie Johnston.

The two pieces on this page of the Beaver County Times offer the views of two fans who were chosen to write columns for the paper.

And this article from the Eugene Register-Guard nicely outlines the impact rookie Ray Bourque had on the series.

This loss would represent the first of three heartbreaking, deciding Game 5 losses the Pens would endure over the next three seasons.

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