Copyright The Boston Globe
The emotional Milbury had no plans to go nuclear on his club. His plan was to deliver some simple instructions — get pucks deep, everything on net, and crash the crease — in order to get back in the game. When he got to the dressing room door, however, similar messages were already being delivered. Cam Neely, Dave Poulin, and Garry Galley had taken it upon themselves to rile up a group that was without captain Ray Bourque, who was on the shelf with a hip problem. “They were saying all the right things. It was what I would’ve said only in a different voice,” said Milbury. “And I stopped at the doorway, and I turned around and walked out. There was just no reason for me to go into that locker room at that point. They knew what they had to say, they knew what they had to do.” Poulin, now the senior vice president of hockey operations for the Senators, recalls that night at the Hartford Civic Center vividly. “It was really intense,” Poulin said during the Senators’ morning skate last Monday in Ottawa. “I stood up and addressed the group about how good we were and where we were going and what we had to do in that third period.” The Bruins charged out of the locker room and scored four goals — including a pair by Poulin — to stun the Whalers and even the series at 2. That Hartford was even in the series was a shock to most. That’s not a shot at the Whalers, who had some terrific players, but the Bruins were a wagon. “Well, I’ll try to put this in perspective. We won the Presidents’ Trophy [for most regular-season points]. We were a really tight group. It was a really good group of guys, really sort of nothing in our way except for an injury to the best defenseman in the sport,” said Milbury. “I mean, I don’t know if he had a hip pointer or whatever it was with his hip, but he couldn’t skate. He couldn’t move very well. And so, we were left with a gaping hole on the blue line and suddenly we found ourselves down against a pretty good Hartford team that shouldn’t be underestimated. “They had some really good players, Ray Ferraro, Ron Francis, Kevin Dineen. Brad Shaw was a good player on the blue line. They were a plucky team I guess you’d call it. But nobody was thinking that it would be more than just a little bit of a tussle for us to get by them until Ray got hurt and then all bets were off. And then we find ourselves in Hartford down, 2-1, and I’m like, ‘Jesus, this isn’t supposed to happen.’ ” With the Bruins just 20 minutes away from being pushed to the brink in the series, the leadership corps stood up in the locker room and stepped up on the ice. Poulin was a central figure in both scenarios. After rallying the troops, he led the on-ice rally, tallying the first goal of the third and then capping the comeback. “Poulin scored two of the ugliest goals you’d ever want to see. I mean, they were just downright ugly,” recalled Milbury, who noted that Poulin was a “coach’s dream.” “And he also made an incredible pass to Dave Christian, who scored on a one-timer and all of a sudden we found ourselves in a tie game and it was something we really didn’t expect. And the next thing you know, we get the go-ahead goal on Poulin’s last goal, which was another one from inside the goalie crease, I think. Just a little tap and so all of a sudden it was 6-5 with a little less than two minutes to go. And it was a remarkable comeback. It was a game I’ll never forget.” That comeback was the precursor to another: Bourque’s. Bourque returned for Game 7 and set up Boston’s first goal in the eventual 3-1 series clincher. The season itself was a comeback story for Poulin. He started the season as Flyers captain, a spot he had held since succeeding Bobby Clarke in 1984. Poulin was stripped of his title in-season by new coach Ron Sutter and then a month later was dealt to the Bruins. “Well, the trade came as a total shock. Nothing had ever come up about someone might be looking for me, but nothing had ever come up about me being traded at any point in my career. So, there was never a rumor,” said Poulin, who was dealt in exchange for Ken Linseman. “I was captain of the Flyers until just before that, and they made a change in that about three weeks before. But even that wasn’t a red flag. Just really, really surprised and a challenging time in my life. We had young twins, and my wife was in a high-risk pregnancy with a third, so there was a lot going on.” The hockey part was no worry, however. Poulin said team leaders Bourque and Neely welcomed him with open arms. “There were a lot of really good leaders on that team. Garry Galley was a good leader. Andy Moog, Reggie Lemelin, kind of the rare goalie tandem that were also leaders, but it was a really good group of guys,” said Poulin. “And because of Raymond and Cam, the acceptance was instant.” A leader throughout his career, Poulin fit right in. “Ray and I had long talks about it,” he said. “He loved the fact that I could absorb some of the [locker room] stuff that he didn’t have to deal with on a day-to-day basis.” The Bruins reached the Stanley Cup Final that year, losing to the Oilers, 4-1. Poulin had been shadowing Mark Messier in the series until a knee injury knocked him out after Game 2. Poulin played three more seasons in Boston, winning the King Clancy Memorial Trophy (leadership qualities on and off the ice) and was runner-up for the Selke Award (best defensive forward) in 1993. He counts the rivalry with the Canadiens as some of his fondest memories. “You see it and appreciate it, but when you’re in it — and we beat them each year that I was there — it’s just different,” he said. “Being an Original Six team, what you realized was different generations of Bruins fans disliked different generations of Montreal fans. The grandfather hated that team and the father hated that team. And now the son hated this team, but that was the common bond, it was the universal hate for the Canadiens.” Poulin signed with the Capitals for the 1993-94 season. During the lockout season of ’94-95, he received a call from Notre Dame, his alma mater. "Dick Rosenthal, [the athletic director] reached out in January and said, ‘We’re thinking of making a coaching change.’ It was a Sunday. I was watching an NFL game with my neighbor," said Poulin, who was planning on continuing with the Capitals. “I’m like, ‘Oh, you want some ideas?’ And they were like, ‘No, I want you to do it.’ I’m like, ‘I’m not a coach, I’m a player.’ And I really had never thought of coaching.” The courting worked and Poulin manned the Fighting Irish bench for 10 seasons. He then spent two years on the development side of the athletic department and was instrumental in getting the Compton Family Ice Arena built, where Notre Dame plays its home games. Following his time in South Bend, Poulin reached out to a friend in Chicago that ran Riley Partners, an executive search firm, seeking advice on his next career step. “He said come work for me,” Poulin said, noting that the firm was impressed by his “Rolodex from Notre Dame ... my contacts.” Poulin was suddenly in the head-hunting game, and he helped Paul Kelly land the NHLPA’s executive director role. Based on his work with the NHLPA search, Poulin landed the gig to find a new NFLPA director after Gene Upshaw’s passing. After eight months, DeMaurice Smith got the job. Poulin said now-Patriots coach Mike Vrabel was on the executive committee for that search and he was “terrific” to work with. In 2009, Poulin returned to the NHL when Brian Burke, his original playing agent, hired him as a Maple Leafs assistant general manager and later added AHL Marlies GM to his duties. Following that stint, Poulin did some TV, radio, and newspaper analyst work before taking on his current role. A magnanimous gesture by Brad Marchand last week. The former Bruins captain took a leave of absence from the Panthers to help a family near and dear to his Nova Scotia roots. Marchand returned to Halifax to coach the under-18 March and Mill Co. Hunters team because the squad’s regular coach, Marchand pal JP MacCallum, was with his family following the death of his 10-year-old daughter, Selah Panacci-MacCallum, after her yearlong battle with cancer. Marchand is co-owner of the team with fellow former Bruin Kevan Miller and the game was a fund-raiser for the MacCallum family. “This gesture reflects the true spirit of the hockey community in Nova Scotia, one built on compassion, loyalty, and connection that extends far beyond the rink,” said Paul Graham, the president of the Nova Scotia U-18 hockey league, in a statement. “Our thoughts are with JP, his loved ones, and the entire Hunters organization.” Marchand took to Instagram after the game to thank supporters. “For those of you that don’t know the reason that all of us, myself and four friends, were behind the bench tonight coaching JP’s game was because Selah loved talking. She loved her dad’s team more than anything. She loved going to the games. She was always there supporting them, and the five of us all shared a very deep bond with Selah. We’ve known her from the day she was born. We’ve loved her since then,” he said. “... Selah would’ve loved nothing more than to see us behind that bench together ... Selah was an incredible, incredible girl full of so much love, and it was an honor to have been in her life and to know her. So, I just want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for supporting her and showing her love.” File under: The Little Ball of Love. Good on the NHL for canceling the planned Olympic kickoff shindig at UBS Arena, allowing players to get a bit of rest as they plan for travel to the Winter Games in Milano-Cortina in February. Having the players commit to an extra trip to Elmont, N.Y., for a contrived celebration (in lieu of an NHL All-Star Game) would have been unfair to all — including the fans who would have had to schlep to Long Island. Instead, the NHL and the Islanders will host the 2027 All-Star Weekend from Feb. 5-7. Some leftover Milbury nuggets: The Bruins coach was as surprised as anyone that Bourque would be able to play in Game 7. The defenseman got to the Garden around 4 p.m., geared up, and took a solo spin to test things out, unbeknownst to Milbury. Bourque came back and said, ‘I think I can do this. I think I can play.’ And I was like, ‘Well, who the heck am I to get in his way?’ I mean, when he was playing, it was just like he would come back to the bench and then when he stood up, I’d yell, ‘Change,’ " Milbury said with a chuckle. “It was just an automatic, if he wanted to be out there, you got him out there. He had remarkable stamina. Anyway, so he came into the room and said he was going to give it a whirl, and I said, ‘Great.’ ” Milbury wanted it kept under wraps. “When he came out for warmups,” he said. “I wanted Hartford to be like, ‘Damn, now we have something else to worry about.’ ” Milbury’s subterfuge didn’t sit well with one person. “Actually, I had an interview with [legendary radio man] Bob Wilson and he asked me if there were any lineup changes and I lied through my teeth and said, ‘No,’ ” Milbury said. “He was bitter at that until the day he died.” Milbury, 73, is now a grandfather a dozen times over and lives in Mashpee, where he serves on the town’s planning board and also likes to work on his golf game at New Seabury. Quiz time: Morgan Geekie became the sixth Bruin with multiple goal streaks of at least six games in Thursday’s win over the Sabres. Name the others. (Answer below.) ... There’s been plenty of Pavel Zacha trade rumors out there, but from a Bruins perspective, moving on from him doesn’t make a ton of sense. Zacha is off to a good start (11 points in 13 games heading into the weekend) and has the versatility to play center or wing. He plays in all situations and can play up and down the lineup. Zacha is popular with his teammates and is signed through 2026-27 with an affordable $4.75 million salary-cap hit ... Figured the Penguins would be in full “Tank for Gavin McKenna” mode by now, but Sidney Crosby’s crew has been one of the biggest surprises in the NHL. Pittsburgh entered weekend play atop the Metropolitan at 8-2-2 and a couple of former Bruins are thriving, including Justin Brazeau, who had six goals and 12 points through the first dozen games. Only usual suspects Evgeni Malkin (three goals, 17 points) and Crosby (eight goals, 15 points) are off to hotter starts. Additionally, the affable Parker Wotherspoon continues to team with Erik Karlsson on the top defense pairing ... Keep an eye on forward Yegor Chinakhov, who again seems unhappy in Columbus. A fair price for the talented Chinakhov, who will be a free agent at season’s end, would be a third-round pick ... Speaking of the Blue Jackets, old friend Charlie Coyle picked up four assists in a 6-3 win over Toronto on Wednesday ... Also posting a 4-point night was Riley Tufte, who did it for the Providence Bruins in a 5-3 AHL win over Springfield. Heading into weekend play, Tufte (five goals, 11 points) was tied for second in the AHL in scoring. Georgii Merkulov (five goals, 10 points) and Patrick Brown (four goals, 10 points) are next on the Baby B’s scoring list. Providence’s 7-0 start is the best in franchise history ... Quiz answer: Cam Neely and Phil Esposito (three times each), and Barry Pederson, Johnny Bucyk, and Ken Hodge (twice each). Admit it, you guessed Bobby Orr.
