Which Was Bigger: Bruins 2011 Cup, Celtics 2008 Title (Boston, Saugus: colleges, versus)

[Hudlander]

Curious from neutral people, which a general website not a Bruins would be.

Where does the Bruins 2011 title rank?
Is it higher than the Celtics 2008 title?
Higher even than the Pats?
Please NOTE...this is a multiple choice poll, so check ALL which apply!
Here is what I would expect, I would think this would rank well below the Red Sox and Pats, and below the Celtics.
Why?
Because Boston is a baseball first town, football is the biggest sport in America with the Super Bowl being the biggest event/stage in sports.
As well, the NBA >>> NHL, which is generally considered niche/4th in the US, plus the Celtics are the flagship NBA franchise.


However, it seems people are saying the B's cup win is far and away bigger than the Celtics in 2008, IF NOT bigger than the Pats winning the super bowl and close to the Sox victory, which is stunning for a US city.

I am curious

1) Is this the case, where does it rank?
2) Why is it that the B's cup win would be bigger than the Celtics 2008 title?
-After all, in the US NBA is far greater than the NHL and the Celtics are the flagship team....does Boston just hate the NBA/is this a product of racism (Boston being far less diverse and having much fewer african americans than most markets like NY/Philly/Chicago)?

Please NOTE...this is a multiple choice poll, so check ALL which apply!

[Highwyre237]

I said bigger then the celtics, pats 04 and Sox 07. No where near sox 04 or Pats 01. The best thing this cup will do, is open the casual fan up to hockey a bit more. Some see this as a bad thing, but I see it as a good thing. In the minds of the hardcore Bruins fans, I'd assume they rank this just under the 04 sox WS, I dont think its even close, but I'm a casual hockey fan.

In my mind, Hockey will always be a sport that kills time between NFL seasons.

[Cliff Clavin]

Dan Shaughnessy covered the same topic on Boston.com today. I agree with his top 2, but personally, the C's 17th title (esp considering who they beat) would have been my #3.

Shaughnessy: Bruins title ranks third among the century’s best - The Boston Globe

[Hudlander]

YEh I can't see why in America an NHL title >>> NBA considering this the historic Celtics.
Just makes me wonder if/why Boston favors hockey over basketball or if it is just a skewed data thing due to less inner city minorities in Boston than most US towns.

[Cliff Clavin]

It depends where you are, and who your talking to. Bruins have a large blue collar following. I grew up on the North Shore (Saugus) and it was Bruins/hockey...and 3 other sports.

[LeavingMA]

Originally Posted by Highwyre237

I said bigger then the celtics, pats 04 and Sox 07. No where near sox 04 or Pats 01. The best thing this cup will do, is open the casual fan up to hockey a bit more. Some see this as a bad thing, but I see it as a good thing. In the minds of the hardcore Bruins fans, I'd assume they rank this just under the 04 sox WS, I dont think its even close, but I'm a casual hockey fan.

In my mind, Hockey will always be a sport that kills time between NFL seasons.

I agree. I think it was definitely bigger than the Celtics in 2008. The celtics had already won 16 championships with their last being in 1986. Plus, the bruins being the only New England pro team not to win a championship lately helped.

The celtics in 2008 in most people's mind were supposed to win or at least get to the finals. The bruins after what happened last year, and all the great playoff games they had this year really got people excited.

The sox in 2007 wasn't completely unexpected and seeing they had broken the curse in 2004 it was just some more icing on the cake.

The patriots in 2001 were a complete surprise and had an even bigger emotional affect because of what happened to Bledsoe, 9-11, and beating a high offense rams team who was heavily favored.

Still, I think baseball is still first (especially around the Boston area) football a close second (definitely the biggest sport nationally), and the Bruins and Celtics fight for 3rd and 4th depending on how each team is playing. Basketball overall is more popular, but you have some diehard hockey fans in the northeast and also some great hockey colleges.

[western mass and love it]

NBA=boring,no excitement and predictable almost to a fault. Once these guys get there 100 million gaurenteed contract they just show up for the paycheck and it shows.

NHL=exciting,fast paced constant action. just enough violence to keep you on the edge of wondering what's going to happen next. Any team can win on any given night,and the effort level is always 100% no matter what.

[Craziaskowboi]

It's bigger than all of 'em, to be honest with you, 'cuz it's the last championship that a Boston sports team will win for the next 20 years.

[Redsox1972]

My favorite sports in order: 1) Baseball; 2) Hockey; 3) Football; 4) Basketball. I was born a Red Sox fan and hated the NYY from an early age. I grew up watching a lot of hockey on Canadian tv, so, I have loved the game for a long time. That said, here are my top 4 championship rankings:

1. 2004 - Red Sox ... Down 0-3 to the NYY in the ALCS and came back to beat the evil empire. While the World Series games were less memorable, the whole experience ranks number one in my book. I would think it would rank #1 for New Englanders. I admit football has surpassed baseball as our national pasttime, but I believe at least in New England the Sox reign supreme.

2. 2001 Patriots ... Ah, the tuck rule! And, our first Super Bowl win. Being the first elevates it over the B's and C's wins this decade. What was once the worst franchise in the NFL and on the verge of heading to St. Louis was saved by the Krafts and turned into a top NFL franchise. I remember being in shock when we won. We weren't supposed to beat "The Greatest Show on Turf".

3. 2011 Bruins...while it had been 39 years, at least they had won several times previously. While I rank it third, it is still freaking sweet (still doing the happy dance). The " Will versus Skill" series. I'm glad this fan base has something to get fired up about and hopefully the B's can maintain the momentum. I still wish it was Cam Neely and Ray Bourque raising the cup (as players).

4. 2008 Celtics .... It was awesome having the new big three and beating the freakn' Lakers, particulary after the C's had stunk for so long. However, as someone else mentioned here, the C's already had umpteen championships under their belt. Who knows ... that might have been Paul Pierce's only championship with the C's.

I agree with Western Mass about the NHL v. NBA.

The OP mentions possible racism in Boston as a reason why the NBA is less popular than hockey. I just have to scratch my head at that statement.

The OP mentions that C's are the NBA's "flagship" team. The Bruins are an original six NHL franchise. Three New England states share a border with Canada, where hockey is as popular as breathing. And, New England has a lot of people either originally from Canada or having family ties to Canada. I think that plays a part in the popularity of hockey. And, as someone else mentioned, New England has several powerhouse collegiate hockey teams - a much stronger presence than collegiate basketball.

As others have mentioned, the popularity question depends on who you talk to. I think the Sox are still #1, with the Patriots being a close 1a, followed by the Bruins and Celtics.

[Hudlander]

Originally Posted by western mass and love it

NBA=boring,no excitement and predictable almost to a fault. Once these guys get there 100 million gaurenteed contract they just show up for the paycheck and it shows.

NHL=exciting,fast paced constant action. just enough violence to keep you on the edge of wondering what's going to happen next. Any team can win on any given night,and the effort level is always 100% no matter what.

That's an ignorant meathead comment. I used to be that with the NBA, till I watched the finals and saw how great a sport basketball is.