This column originally ran in The Standard-Times on June 9, 2011.

By Nick Tavares

Late in the game, Bruins goalie Tim Thomas got physical against Alex Burrows, center, and the Vancouver Canucks. Boston defenseman Dennis Seidenerg bolds Burrows Back. The Associated Press

BOSTON — If nothing else, Tim Thomas is a stubborn man.

He stuck it out at every level of the pro game trying to make the NHL, he's survived through challenges for his job, and despite the Vancouver Canucks' best effort, he will insist on playing his game, his way.

Play his way he did. Thomas withstood 38 shots, the defense stayed disciplined in front of him, and the Bruins will fly back to Vancouver tied in the series, 4-0 winners in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Thomas' aggressive style, one that sees him roam far out of the crease to cut down angles, challenge shooters and remove options, has gotten under the skin of the Vancouver Canucks. So much so, that they've openly challenged the legality of the Boston netminder's tendencies in net.

That, paired with his territorial nature in the crease — just ask Henrik Sedin after Game 3 — has the Western Conference champs believing they can take liberties with the Boston netminder.

“Part of Thomas' way of playing is playing out of the blue paint, initiating contact, roaming out there,” Canucks coach Alain Vigneault said the morning of Game 4. “He seems to think that once he's out, set, makes the save, that he can go directly back in his net without having anybody behind him.

“Well, that's wrong. He's got the wrong rule on that. If we're behind him, that's our ice and we're allowed to stay there.”

Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli, in his pregame availability, didn't seem to agree.

“As far as I'm concerned, it's a non-issue. He's going to play the way he plays, he's not going to change, I think we all know that."

"I don't think it was ever an issue," Thomas said after the game. "I think it was made an issue by the people talking about it. But it was never a thought."

“Maybe it's a little bit of gamesmanship on (Vigneault's) part,” Chiarelli added.

Maybe, but quickly, it was obvious that Vancouver was intent on changing its style of play to get Thomas off his game and try to pick up a goal or a penalty along the way.

As far as the result? Vancouver crashed the net early and often — by the six-minute mark of the second period, the Canucks were outshooting the Bruins 20-7. But Thomas stood tall, stayed balanced, and played the way he plays, outside forces bearing no impact.

And when Canucks came roaring in, the Boston defensive corps were there to clear them away. Particularly the much-heralded Sedin twins. When they tried to get in close, the Bruins, and especially Zdeno Chara, were there to shove them out and send a message.

Not only did Thomas stand tall in his net, so did the Bruins' blueliners. Right to the end, Thomas and the Bruins defense stayed feisty. Inside of the final two minutes, protecting his crease, giving Alex Burrows a fierce chop when the winger interfered with the butt end of the goaltender's stick. Burrows went down, Thomas' mask popped off, and the Canucks were left frustrated. The shutout was just a few ticks of the clock away.

Now, Vancouver has a five-hour flight to figure out the best way to beat him.