Heartbreaker

Like the sun rising in the east and the proverbial bear crapping in the woods, a Bruins loss is enough for Shank to pounce and go negative after a single game.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — They are 4,029 kilometers from home, taking on an entire country, attempting to do something they have not done since the Nixon administration.

It is not going to be easy.

On a day when natural disasters plagued fans back in Greater Boston (what is it about the Bruins and power outages in the finals?), the Bruins dropped the first game of the Stanley Cup finals in excruciating fashion last night, losing to the favored Vancouver Canucks, 1-0, on a Raffi Torres goal with only 18.5 seconds left on the clock.

That’s right, people. The Bruins and Canucks skated to a scoreless tie for 59 minutes and 41 1/2 seconds before Vancouver won it when Torres slipped the puck past Tim Thomas after a terrific pass from Jannik Hansen on a two-on-one.

The Bruins played well, but this was a crushing defeat. Boston went 0 for 6 on power plays, including a four-minute stretch in the first period, and an 83-second five-on-three in the second. Boston has converted only 5 of 67 power plays in this amazing playoff run.

How do you know he's now off the bandwagon?

Your Bruins are in a little bit of a drought when it comes to this event.

Classic Shank negativity reverberates throughout the entire column. There's also a new angle I've detected in some Shank columns, especially this one - ever get the feeling Shank's lecturing you? If that's not a turnoff, I don't know what is.