The last time the Bruins played for the Cup, I was but a fresh-faced 15 year old winding down my final year in junior high. The B's were facing their nemesis from 1988; the Edmonton Oilers, this time without the services of Wayne Gretzky. The B's roster was filled with names both great and role; Neely, Bourque, Janney, Wesley, and a guy who would become the analyst for the team, Andy Brickley. Unfortunately, the series did not go the Bruins' way, as Edmonton hoisted yet another cup. It would be their last to date. Let's take a look back at the world of 1990 after the jump..

1990 was only 21 years ago, but so much in our world has changed. The internet, barely utilized, would become the most influential technological advance in human history (one could argue). Cellphones were enormous, and only the tools of the uber-pretentious. The U.S. national debt was a mere 3.2 trillion. Unemployment was just over 5 1/2 percent. On the entertainment front, the Academy Award for Best Picture went to Driving Miss Daisy, the Simpsons and Seinfeld made their debuts, and both shows would play a prominent role in the next decade. 

This was also the year that the Hubble telescope debuted. Those of us old enough to remember, recall it got off to a rather rocky start. Our deceased nemesis Saddam Hussein would soon be waltzing into Kuwait. The reunification of Germany occurred in 1990 as well. The White House was occupied by George HW Bush and Dan Quayle, he of the "potato is a hard word to spell" variety. 

Today the average price of gasoline is 3.81 a gallon. In 1990, it was a mere 1.16. The median cost of a new home was only 150,000.  I don't know about you, but if I could get gas as cheap as it was in 1990, I'd be buying about 100 50-gallon drums of it. 

These are just some of the events and issues of 1990, when the Oilers dashed the hopes of Boston in 5 games. I don't wish to dwell on that series much, because it sucked. As we know now, the Bruins came close to returning to the finals each of the next two years, but came up short to Lemieux's Penguins. Eventually, the 2nd greatest defenseman Boston ever saw went on to hoist the Cup in Colorado, and while I dislike the former Nordiques, I couldn't help but shed a few tears in joy for Raymond. 

That was the past, and this is 2011. It's time to write a new chapter of glory, and leave Toronto as the remaining member of the O6 with a decades-long Cup drought. Bring it home to Boston, but know that there are people throughout this continent who love this team. Vancouver presents a significant challenge, but they are not invincible. Get it done, boys.