Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

On the day of Game 7, Marty writes about the Stanley Cup:

VANCOUVER -- The Stanley Cup.

It's the ultimate prize. It's the one thing in hockey that has the most mystique, that has a tradition unparraleled.

We talk about it in references and adjectives that correlate to wars and battles. Guys that have won it have had broken legs and scored game-winners. Guys have waited 20 years to win it and some guys had to change teams after being lifers in one city just so they could go win it. Some guys have won it when they're 21 and never won it again.

Those are the guys that are lucky enough to carry it around and get all these great stories. There will be more of them tonight.

The lure of the Stanley Cup and its symbolism transcends a sport and a culture that in my opinion is like no other in the arena of sports.

Hockey is not played by the most people in the world and it's certainly not the biggest sport even in North America, but growing up a small-town Canadian kid playing with an orange ball in my parents' driveway, I didn't need anybody else to be playing with me to win Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.

You never had to be on a team. You didn't need a goalie. You didn't even need to have a net to ask yourself what one moment in your lifetime would you want to be a part of, to feel what it is like and think that nothing could be greater.

It always came down to scoring a goal in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, and winning the Stanley Cup.

Last year Patrick Kane did it. He didn't do it in Game 7, but it was still the perfect fairy-tale hockey ending.

Tonight, this is our 16th chance to witness a Game 7 for the Stanley Cup, and you just hope it goes to overtime and then let history write itself.

I've played on ponds and lakes. My dad built me wonderful backyard rinks in crazy cold weather after coming home from night shifts. You never appreciate things when you're a child, but learning to skate when I was two, to play when I was four, and having all these outdoor arenas at my disposal -- I was a pretty lucky kid.

I always loved the game. I loved the imagination it gave me. I loved watching Hockey Night in Canada every Saturday night with my family. Those memories are something that I'll always have. Those memories have helped develop in part of who I am today, the things you strive for and what you're willing to do in order to accomplish a task. It doesn't mean it's just hockey because I play hockey, but it's also about being a father, a son, a husband, a member of a community and society.

I always thought how lucky I would have to be to have an opportunity to compete for a Stanley Cup, but now as a professional in the NHL I get the chance to try to play to win a Stanley Cup. And, now in this new gig as an analyst for NHL Network, getting up close and personal to a series as great as this one has been, it brings back a lot of memories.

It's inspiring being deep in it, being part jealous at times, part surprised and just downright mad at watching these guys as I totally get myself into it. It's been a long time since I've been this into something that I haven't been a part of or my kids haven't been a part of, but to be in Vancouver, to be in this arena and have a chance to talk about it brings back a lot of great memories of my childhood and my experiences with family and friends. It reminds me of everything I've done in my hockey career.

Now I get to think about which team is going to win, which city is going to go nuts, which goaltender is going to be the next Stanley Cup champion and who we'll all be aiming at next year. Just thinking about all this gives me chills down my spine because it all stems from Lord Stanley's Cup, the opportunity to potentially play for it one day and maybe say I raised it.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

On the eve of Game 7, Marty writes about Vancouver goalie Roberto Luongo:

VANCOUVER -- Roberto Luongo is in a better state of mind than people assume he is right now.

He knows of his capabilities. It's one thing to be fighting the puck, one thing to be moving the wrong way, one thing to have your body not respond the way you want it to -- but in his mind the changes necessary aren't huge. They're not even minute on a physical level. There aren't really any changes that he needs to make.

The only thing Roberto knows he needs to do is blank everything out like goaltenders do, like he has done a thousand times in his career, and go out there and give himself and his teammates the best chance of winning. He knows he has to do that and he knows how to do it.

Of course, only Roberto knows what is exactly going on in his head, if he's feeling any added pressure that has hurt his chances to focus, prepare and visualize. But, let's all remember that this is a goalie who has past experiences. Just look at the first round this year for example, and, of course, the gold-medal game back here in this exact city and arena. He has to summon those positive memories.

I think he will.

Is he going to let some goals in? I don't know. There's a good chance of it, but it isn't going to be Roberto Luongo isn't playing well, or he's lost his game or lost his mind.

His resiliency has been forthright and needed here in these playoffs, and it's going to be tested again. He knows he's going to give it all and hopefully he can make some saves to help feed the crowd some and feed his teammates some confidence to continue to win at home, where the Canucks have been so good.

This is Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, something you dream of since you first start learning about the sport and about the NHL. Roberto's age and tenure in the National Hockey League will allow him to see that light.

It'll allow him to put it into perspective.

It'll allow him to do the one thing that he and his teammates and everybody that's cheering for the Canucks want him to do -- that's letting go of all things outside, positive and negative, so he can just stop the puck. As a goalie that's what you have to do.

His confidence is there. His game is there.

Roberto is a goaltender who has been under a lot of pressure and scrutiny, and the weight of the world will be lifted off his shoulders if he wins the Stanley Cup.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

Today, Marty offers his reaction to Roberto Luongo's comment after Game 5 that he would have been able to make the save on Maxim Lapierre because he stays deep in his crease, but Tim Thomas couldn't because he's 'wandering out and aggressive.':

BOSTON -- Roberto has been both at the top and the bottom of this series -- a shutout in a pivotal Game 5 but before that he let in 12 goals in two games in Boston to let that team back in the series. So, when he makes a comment like that, saying that it would have been an easy save for him to make, I think he is expressing his feelings outwardly just toward people in general.

He's under a lot of pressure and for him just saying it you know he's under a lot of pressure. He really wasn't thinking about it.

It was Louie saying what is on his mind and he probably didn't think that it might create a little bit of attention that he doesn't want and they don't want at this moment.

But, if you'll let me contradict myself for a moment, I would say that's the lingo he's getting from his goalie coach. That's the belief on why he's playing his position, why he's changed his position, the positive effects it has on his play to play deep. He used to play further out of the net, but he moved back this year and he's a Vezina Trophy candidate who is one win away from winning the Stanley Cup.

So, when someone asks him a question about how difficult it is to make that save when the puck springs off the end board to a guy on his backside, that's his honest answer. But, you're in the Stanley Cup Final and you would just assume that it would be preferred to not even comment on someone else's style of position, or make reference to what you would do vs. what he would do.

Then again, the reason why he said it is he feels like he has been disrespected and he wants some kudos.

And, no, I don't think he was trying to send a message to his teammates that this is how to beat Thomas. The Canucks already know that's what they have to do.

A lot of the rhetoric you're going to get from players or stuff you may hear from coaches or the GMs, that's their cliches and that's what their message is. The message in the locker room is, 'Hey, if you can't get in front and screen him, get it off to the side of the net for those bounces, and catch one off the end boards or off someone's skate, and there is going to be an open net.'

Thomas is aggressive and he plays higher out of the blue paint, so maybe you'll have more room side to side. When you hear that every day, and then you get asked about it, it's pretty easy to say something that is unassuming. But, when it's Roberto saying it, it's not very unassuming.

I personally don't think it's a big deal. I would advise against it at this time of the year, but at the end of the day it affects no one in those locker rooms or how the game is going to play. It may just affect headlines and the fervor of others.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

Today, Marty writes about the Aaron Rome hit on Nathan Horton and what it can mean for the Bruins going forward.

BOSTON -- When it comes to this hit on Nathan Horton, when Nathan went down and you see him lying on the ice, that's just something you hate to see. I don't care who you are, where you are -- you just feel terrible for him. You just hope and pray that he's going to be alright sooner than later and long term there are going to be effects resulting from that hit.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

Today, Marty writes about the Bruins' emotions heading home down 0-2 in the series and how their fans might react in Game 3.

BOSTON -- When you lose one late and then you lose again in overtime, you still leave feeling pretty good about where your game is at. You're wishing you had split on the road, but you're not thinking how bad things have gone.

But, for the Boston Bruins and everybody on this trip, myself included, it's a long flight back and that's when you do your real thinking. You think big picture because that's just human nature, but you also think about yourself, how you handle the emotion of the game and what you do to be a difference maker? Does that tighten up your stick or does that free you up?

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

Today, Marty writes about what he believes was Tim Thomas' perspective on Alex Burrows' overtime winner in Game 2.

BOSTON -- As a goalie watching the sequence that led to the game-winning goal in Game 2, you have to know that Tim Thomas did all he could to stop the play and make the save. He was out and aggressive, like he always is, the way he loves to play. He picked up the quick turnover along the boards and he saw Zdeno Chara draped on Alex Burrows.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

Today, Marty talks about his experience in his new role in the analyst's chair.

VANCOUVER -- When you're one of 60 goalies to play in the NHL, your confidence is high to say the least. So, of course you're thinking I've been interviewed maybe a couple of thousand times in my life, so I can definitely step in front of the camera. It's not like it's be my first time on TV. I'll be awesome at this.

Man was I lost on the first day.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

Today Marty talks about what it's like for players on the second off day between games and the benefits of the home team staying in a hotel:

VANCOUVER -- The second off day is always tougher at this time of the year, but I like to do a little road shopping if I get the chance. Certainly if I'm at home I'm with the family and kids and I look forward to having some nice downtime. You really can utilize the extra day to take a step back, spend some time with the kids and let some things go.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

For his entry on Thursday, June 2, Marty writes about what it's like for the teams the day after Game 1 of a series.

VANCOUVER -- After a hard fought, physical, very intense game that could have gone either way with both goalies playing well, for the Vancouver Canucks, I just imagine everybody is probably pretty happy, but you also have to expect some changes coming from the other side. You want to stay ahead of the game so they better expect some changes, whether it's in the lineup or systematically.

Veteran NHL goalie Marty Turco is lending his expert opinion to NHL.com in the form of his own blog. Turco Talk will be updated daily with Marty's thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins. Marty can also be seen daily on the NHL Network giving analysis on NHL On the Fly at the Stanley Cup Final.

Today, Marty talks about what goes on the night before a new series begins.