These are detailed explanations for the 20 Boston Bruins true or false trivia quiz questions. Go back to the quiz here.
1924-25 was the inaugural season in the NHL for the Boston Bruins. TRUE
The Bruins joined the NHL for the 1924-25 season along with the Montreal Canadiens, expanding the league from four to six teams. Over the 30 game schedule, the Bruins won just six games and finished in last place. The team was led in scoring by Jimmy Herberts with 17 goals and 22 points. Art Ross was the team’s first ever head coach.
The Bruins won their first Stanley Cup championship in 1928-29. TRUE
The team improved quickly, reaching the Stanley Cup final in their third year and winning the championship in their fifth. Now coached by Cy Denneny, the Bruins finished first in the American Division and second overall, just two points behind the Montreal Canadiens. Boston swept the Habs and the Rangers to win the title.
Milt Schmidt was the 1st from the Bruins to win the Art Ross Trophy. FALSE
Technically, Phil Esposito is the first Boston player to win the Art Ross Trophy as the award wasn’t introduced until 1947-48. Still, Milt Schmidt is not the first Bruin to lead the NHL in scoring. That honour goes to Cooney Weiland who led the league in 1929-30. Ten years later in 1939-40 Schmidt led the NHL.
The original home of the Bruins was the Boston Garden. FALSE
Prior to the Boston Garden opening in 1928, the Bruins played their first four NHL seasons at the Boston Arena. The venue seats just under 5,000 and is still in use today with the Northeastern University Huskies being the main tenant. Since the early 1980’s, the stadium had been named Matthews Arena.
Steve Kasper was the first Bruins to win the Selke Trophy. TRUE
The Selke Trophy was introduced for the 1977-78 to honour the NHL’s top defensive forward. Steve Kasper was the first Boston player to win the Selke, winning the award in 1981-82. He was just the second NHL player to win it with Bob Gainey of the Montreal Canadiens taking it home for the first four years of the trophy’s existence.
Bobby Orr was a 1st overall pick by the Bruins in the NHL Amateur Draft. FALSE
Prior to the NHL Draft becoming the norm, Bobby Orr, like most players, was signed as a reserve at a young age and brought up through the NHL sponsored junior programs. Orr played for the Oshawa Generals before moving up to the Bruins. He is technically considered as undrafted.
Phil Esposito came to the Bruins from the Chicago Blackhawks. TRUE
After starting his NHL career with the Chicago Blackhawks, Phil Esposito came to the Bruins in a May 15, 1967 trade.
Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield also came to Boston in the 1967 trade involving Phil Esposito. TRUE
In that May 15, 1967 trade between the Bruins and Blackhawks, Boston also received Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield while Chicago picked up Gilles Marotte, Pit Martin and Jack Norris.
Goaltending great Rogie Vachon finished his NHL career in Boston. TRUE
Rogatien Vachon played his final two years in the NHL with the Bruins. In 1980-81, he was the team’s number one goalie, appearing in 53 games with Jim Craig and Marco Baron backing him up. In his final season, 1981-82, Rogie played 38 games with Marco Baron taking over the number one role.
Bobby Orr is the only Bruin to win the Conn Smythe Trophy. FALSE
Bobby Orr won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1969-70 and 1971-72. The only other winner from the Bruins is goaltender Tim Thomas who won the award in 2010-11.
In 1969-70, Boston beat the St. Louis Blues in the Stanley Cup final. TRUE
In the 1970 Stanley Cup final series, the Bruins swept the Blues in four games. It was the third trip in a row to the final for St. Louis, the first two were losses to the Montreal Canadiens. Boston went 12-2 in their Stanley Cup run that year, losing two in the opening round to the New York Rangers before sweeping the Blackhawks and Blues.
Frank Brimsek was the first Bruin to win the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. TRUE
Frank Brimsek won the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year in 1938-39. Frank was brought up from the Providence Reds to replace Tiny Thompson. In 43 games, he recorded a 1.56 goals against average with ten shutouts, helping the Bruins to a Stanley Cup championship. Since, seven other Bruins have won the award: Jack Gelineau, Larry Regan, Bobby Orr, Derek Sanderson, Ray Bourque, Sergei Samsonov and Andrew Raycroft.
Ray Bourque won the Calder Trophy in 1979-80. TRUE
After being picked eighth overall by the Bruins at the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, Ray Bourque lived up to expections. In his rookie 1979-80 NHL season, the defenseman scored 17 goals and assisted on 48 for 65 points. He won the award by a large margin over runner-up Mike Foligno of the Detroit Red Wings. Pete Peeters, Brian Propp and Paul Reinhart were also given consideration.
Ray Bourque was the 1st overall pick by Boston at the 1979 NHL Entry Draft. FALSE
Ray Bourque was not the first overall pick in 1979. Seven teams passed him over before Boston took him eighth overall. Although it was a great draft class with 11 of the 21 first round picks playing over 1,000 games, Bourque was the leader of the group in games played, assists and points. Rob Ramage was the first overall pick, going to the Colorado Rockies.
As of the end of 2024-25, Bobby Orr, Ray Bourque and Zdeno Chara are the only Norris Trophy winners from the Bruins. TRUE
Yes, these are the only three winners in franchise history of the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman. The trio has a combined 14 wins with Orr leading the way with eight. Bourque won the award five times and Chara won it once.
In 1961-62, the Bruins finished 1st in the NHL with 98 points. FALSE
This couldn’t be any further from the truth. Boston finished last in the six team NHL in 1961-62 with just 38 points. They were 22 points behind fifth place Detroit and 60 points behind first place Montreal. It was the Canadiens that finished with 98 points that year – pretty impressive for a 70 game schedule.
In 1980-81, Gerry Cheevers recorded 37 wins as Boston’s number one goalie. FALSE
Gerry Cheevers did record 37 wins in 1980-81 but not as a goalie. Cheevers retired as a player after the 1979-80 NHL season to take on the head coaching role with the team. In his first of four full seasons as head coach, Cheevers led the Bruins to a second place tie with the Minnesota North Stars in the Adams Division. Boston was then swept in the opening round of the playoffs by those same North Stars.
The Bruins have won the Stanley Cup six times. TRUE
The Bruins won their first Stanley Cup championship in 1928-29, their fifth year in the NHL. Boston also won in 1938-39, 1940-41, 1969-70, 1971-72 and 2010-11.
Boston lost in the Stanley Cup final three times in the 1970’s. TRUE
The Bruins lost in the final series to the Philadelphia Flyers in 1973-74. In consecutive seasons, 1976-77 and 1977-78, they fell to the Montreal Canadiens. To go with their six Stanley Cup wins, Boston has lost in the final 14 times in franchise history.
Don Cherry was head coach of the Bruins for five seasons. TRUE
Don Cherry coached the Bruins from 1974-75 until 1978-79. The team reached the post season in each, going to the Stanley Cup final twice and the semi-final round twice. He took over for Bep Guidolin and was replaced by Fred Creighton after moving west to coach the Colorado Rockies.
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