NEW YORK -- It was a perfectly played hockey game.

One team won, and unfortunately the other had to lose.

It was Game 7 of the 2011 Eastern Conference finals between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Boston Bruins. It was May 27 at TD Garden in Boston. The Bruins defeated the Lightning 1-0 on a perfectly executed goal scored by Nathan Horton with 7:33 remaining in regulation.

It was a crisp, physical, penalty-free game. Many consider it one of the best games in recent postseason history.

"That was probably the best game I have ever been a part of," said former Bruins defenseman and current Edmonton Oilers captain Andrew Ference. "I’m glad I was on the right side of it, so I at least can have good memories of it. Even talking to other guys that were on the Tampa side, they felt the same way; that was one of the best hockey games they had ever been in even though they lost.

"Everything about it. There were big chances, big saves, no penalties, but it was still rough. It was a slow boil throughout the whole game. You could feel the tension in the crowd and between the two teams. Obviously, the longer it went on you realized the first mistake loses."

Ference assisted on the game-winning goal, along with David Krejci, as Horton beat Tampa goalie Dwayne Roloson.

"That was the cool thing about it. It wasn’t like it deflected off four guys," Ference said. "They had such a tight system and they were so responsible in it. It was really tough to break through them. They were dedicated to what they were doing. It was one of those systems where we knew what they were doing. We tried to break it down, and we knew it inside and out, but they were so tight in it, it was really tough to get through."

Boston finally did.

The way Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas was playing (24 saves) there was no way Tampa was going to score. Plus, the noise inside TD Garden took on a life of its own.

"It was one of the loudest I have ever heard a building," Ference said. "For the rest of the game it was just crazy loud. The crowd did not sit down after we scored. It was basically a constant roar until the finish. Everybody was cheering and holding their breath at the same time, if you can do that. It was definitely one of the best memories I have playing so far. The best game for sure."

Current Anaheim Ducks forward Nate Thompson, who is preparing for Game 7 against the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference finals, was a member of the 2011 Lighting team. In fact, he played that entire seven-game series with a broken foot. He remembers it well.

"It was one of those games that every player left it on the ice," Thompson told ESPN.com during a phone interview. "Every player played the right way. You honestly saw that with a 1-0 game and it came down to them making a good play. There wasn’t one penalty called that game, so the refs definitely let the players play. It was definitely one of the best hockey games I ever played in."

That victory sent the Bruins into the finals and they eventually hoisted the Stanley Cup with a series win over the Vancouver Canucks.

On Friday against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden, the Lightning return to Game 7 of the conference finals.

Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman are the only current Lightning players to be on that 2011 team that almost reached the finals.

That Tampa Bay team faced a Bruins team with experience and a better goaltender. The same can be said for the Lightning this time around against the Rangers and goalie Henrik Lundqvist.

Hedman realizes how difficult it’s going to be.

"You know what? I was thinking about that today," Hedman said. "It’s been four years, and it was my second year in the league. I’ve said many times, you feel like you’re going to come back the next year, but it’s a tough league and a lot of good teams. It’s really tough to get this far into the playoffs.

"We’re one of four teams left for a reason and we know we have the skill. We know if we play at our best, we have a good chance. It just never stops surprising me how well this team has responded when we have our backs against the wall. We expect to play our best game of the season Friday."

In order to beat the Rangers and advance to the Stanley Cup finals, Tampa will need to produce a perfect game.

"We will try to limit their Grade A chances. We have to play our game and stick to what we do good," said Rangers veteran forward Martin St. Louis, who also played in that 2011 Game 7 for the Lightning. "They surge at times, but that surge doesn’t have to be for so long. You’ve got to be able to get your push, and once they push that’s something we’ve got to do a good job in front of [Lundqvist]."

St. Louis added that the Rangers are a confident group and he expects them to be at their best for Game 7.

It doesn’t matter if Game 7 is being played between the Rangers and Lightning Friday night, or the Ducks and Blackhawks on Saturday, or the Bruins and Lightning in 2011. The mindset going into Game 7 is universal.

"Whenever you play Game 7, the mindset is to empty your tank and give it everything you have because you really don’t have anything to lose," Thompson said. "It’s win and move on, or lose and go home. You have to enjoy the moment. You have to enjoy a time like that. Sometimes you get nervous and tense, but the biggest thing is to just enjoy it because you don’t get a chance to play in too many Game 7s."

Ference agrees.

"Game 7 is basically whoever treats it the best, as far as a clean slate, and not carrying over any kind of adrenaline, or negativity from the game before," he said. "Whoever does the best job of just going out there with a clean slate, just laying it on the line, will have the advantage."

The Rangers' veteran core and experience -- including the fact that the organization is 7-0 all-time in Game 7s at Madison Square Garden -- shouldn’t be a factor. If the Lightning win, the storyline will be that they went all out and the youth and enthusiasm paid off. If they lose, it will be that they were inexperienced.

"Even playing on the road, or playing at home in Game 7, I honestly don’t know if there’s a big advantage to either one," Ference said. "I can give you great reasons both ways for where I’d rather play. Game 7 sometimes comes down to an ugly goal. Rarely you get a game like we did against [Tampa in 2011] where one mistake was the outcome."