Clarence Campbell, President of National Hockey League, with the Stanley Cup

In 1948 it was time for the Stanley Cup or at that time known as the Stovepipe to get a make over.

Because the Stovepipe Cup became impractical due to its ever increasing height, the NHL decided to redesign the Hockey Trophy.

The base of the Stovepipe Cup (all of the bands prior to the New York Rangers’ 1928 ring) was moved back to the top directly under the bowl. A new shoulder collar was added below, onto which only the names of the previous winning teams were engraved. This new shoulder includes all winning team names only. The 1908, 1910 Montreal Wanders, 1911 Ottawa Senators, 1918 Toronto Arenas, 922 Toronto St. Pats, 1920, 1921, 1923 Ottawa Senators team names were finally added to the cup. The canceled 1919 Stanley Cup Finals was also acknowledged with “1919/Montreal Canadians/Seattle Metropolitans/Series Not Completed”. Room was left on the new collar for future teams.

All of the 1927–28 to 1945–46 rings from the Stovepipe Cup were eventually taken to the Hockey Hall of Fame. In its place, nine bands of various heights were attached below the new collar, forming a vastly expanded barrel-like body. The first 5 rings and half the sixth ring included the winners 1928, 1930 to 1939. There was room to add one more team the sixth band. 1956 was winner added later. Underneath that was a replica of the wide 1940 band from the Stovepipe Cup, but expanded to allow room for all winners from 1940 to 1951. The 1946–47 Cup champion Toronto Maple Leafs, who had to wait a year because of the redesign, was also added to the wide band. Finally, two more narrow blank bands were added to the bottom of the trophy for the winners 1952 to 1955.

The WHL folded in 1926, leaving the NHL as the only league left competing for the Cup. Other leagues and clubs occasionally issued challenges, but from that year forward, no non-NHL team has played for it, leading it to become the de facto championship trophy of the NHL. In 1947, the NHL reached an agreement with trustees P.D. Ross and Cooper Smeaton to grant control of the cup to the NHL, allowing the league to reject challenges from other leagues that may have wished to play for the Cup.

1. The Trustees hereby delegate to the League full authority to determine and amend from time to time the conditions for competition of the Stanley Cup, including the qualifications of challengers, the appointment of officials, the apportionment and distribution of all gate receipts, provided always that the winners of this trophy shall be the acknowledged World’s Professional Hockey Champions.
2. The Trustees agree that during the currency of this agreement they will not acknowledge or accept any challenge for the Stanley Cup unless such a challenge is in conformity with the condition specified in paragraph one (1) thereof.
3. The League undertakes the responsibility for the care and safe custody of the Stanley Cup including all necessary repairs and alterations to the cup and sub-structure as may be required from time to time, and further undertakes to insure the Stanley Cup for its full insurable value.
4. The League hereby acknowledges itself to be bound to the Trustees in the sum of One Thousand Dollars, which bond is conditioned upon the safe return of the Stanley Cup to the Trustees in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, and it is agreed that the League shall have the right to return the trophy to the Trustees at any time.
5. This agreement shall remain in force so long as the League continues to be the world’s leading professional hockey league as determined by its playing caliber, and in the event of dissolution or other termination of the National Hockey League, the Stanley Cup shall revert to the custody of the trustees.
6. In the event of default in the appointment of a new trustee by the surviving trustee, the “Trustees” hereby delegate and appoint the Governors of the International Hockey Hall of Fame in Kingston, Ontario, to name two Canadian trustees to carry on under the terms of the original trust, and in conformity with this Agreement.
7. And it is further mutually agreed that any disputes arising as to the interpretation of this Agreement or the facts upon which such interpretation is made, shall be settled by an Arbitration Board of three, one member to be appointed by each of the parties, and the third to be selected by the two appointees. The decision of the Arbitration Board shall be final.

The Stanley Cup before it was redesigned, in the 1940s

This agreement was amended on November 22, 1961, substituting the Governors of the International Hockey Hall of Fame in Kingston, Ontario with the Committee of the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Ontario as the group that would name the two Canadian trustees, if need be. In the 1970s, the World Hockey Association sought to challenge for the Cup. The Trustees denied them the opportunity to do so.

The Cup was awarded every year until 2005, when a labour dispute between the NHL’s owners and the NHL Players Association (the union that represents the players) led to the cancellation of the 2004–05 season. As a result, no Cup champion was crowned for the first time since the flu pandemic in 1919. The lockout was controversial among many fans, who questioned whether the NHL had exclusive control over the Cup. A website known as freestanley.com (since closed) was launched, asking fans to write to the Cup trustees and urge them to return to the original Challenge Cup format. Adrienne Clarkson, then Governor General of Canada, alternately proposed that the Cup be presented to the top women’s hockey team in lieu of the NHL season. This idea was so unpopular that the Clarkson Cup was created instead. Meanwhile, a group in Ontario, also known as the “Wednesday Nighters”, filed an application with the Ontario Superior Court, claiming that the Cup trustees had overstepped their bounds in signing the 1947 agreement with the NHL, and therefore must award the trophy regardless of the lockout.

On February 7, 2006, a settlement was reached in which the trophy could be awarded to non-NHL teams should the league not operate for a season. The dispute lasted so long that, by the time it was settled, the NHL had resumed operating for the 2005–06 season, and the Stanley Cup went unclaimed for the 2004–05 season.

Merry Christmas.

Players have come and gone. One venue is no more (Veterans Stadium), while two others have risen on Pattison Avenue (Citizens Bank Park and Lincoln Financial Field). The Philadelphia fandom experienced frustrating cases of déjà vu (three consecutive NFC Championship Game losses by the Eagles) and exhilarating highs (one significant moment comes to mind). We watched as a legend pack his bags, only to return three years later in an attempt to reinvigorate a franchise on the fast track to nowhere. We witnessed the tenuous marriage between a disgruntled wide receiver and his oft-maligned quarterback disintegrate into a national mess. We held out hope that the underachieving Orange and Black would get over the hump and we cried in triumph when the boys of summer finally ended the championship drought on a cool October night.

From the mastery of Allen Iverson (remember Tyron Lue and 60 points?) to the recent excellence of Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson in the final days of 2009, the decade in Philadelphia sports was certainly never dull. For all the grumbling, fans will never forget 4th and 26, Keith Primeau’s multiple postseason heroics, or Jimmy Rollin’s magical swing to win Game 4 of the 2009 NLCS. Of course, there were plenty of villains and heartache. The Flyers collapsed after holding a 3-1 series lead over the hated New Jersey Devils in the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals. The 76ers ran into the Lakers dynasty of Shaq and Kobe, falling 4-1 in the 2001 NBA Finals. The Eagles were thwarted by the likes of Ricky Manning Jr., Tom Brady, and Kurt Warner (twice). The Phillies became the first professional sports team to reach 10,000 losses and continually fell short of the playoffs.

The Numbers

• 76ers (with five games remaining in 2009)- Regular season record: 416-399 (.510), 1 division title, 7 playoff appearances (including the one after the 1999-2000 season), 1 NBA Finals appearance, 0 championships. Best description for the decade: An opening flash of success, followed by early playoff exits and poor roster moves.
• Eagles (with two games remaining in 2009)- 103-55-1 (.651), 5 division titles, 8 playoff appearances, 1 Super Bowl appearance, 0 championships. Best description for the decade: Although the story can be rewritten in the weeks to come, the Eagles of the Reid-McNabb era have fallen painfully short of their ultimate goal of winning the Super Bowl. Very good? Yes. Great. No, not yet at least.
• Flyers (with four games remaining in 2009)- 360-253-55-65 (94 points per year), 3 division titles, 8 playoff appearances, 0 Stanley Cup appearances. Best description for the decade: Always in the thick of the chase for the Cup, but never an elite team when it counted.
• Phillies- 850-769 (.525), 3 division titles, 3 playoff appearances, 2 pennants, 1 World Series title. Best description for the decade: Who would have guessed that the Phillies would end the title drought? They built a strong foundation around homegrown talent, including Pat Burrell, Cole Hamels, Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, and Chase Utley, and grew into one of the greatest teams in the city’s history. With the help of some key acquisitions, they became the best National League squad in more than a decade.

Awards and Recognition

Philadelphia Sportsman of the Decade

I did my best to find a Philadelphia athlete who was an integral part of his team’s success and a fixture throughout the decade. I limited the pool to players who spent at least 3 years of the decade in Philadelphia. After much thought and deliberation, it was difficult to pass on Brain Dawkins, Allen Iverson, and Donovan McNabb. Who is left for the honor? Two men, actually. Both born in California less than a month apart in the winter of 1978, this unlikely duo matured into the main ingredients behind the Phillies’ current reign. Inseparable on the diamond as one of the best double play combos in baseball history, it is only fitting that Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley are my Co-Sportsmen of the Decade.

Rollins is the straw the stirs the drink. He is the leader. Bold and outspoken, Rollins is among a select group of Philadelphia stars that have remained in the city for the entire decade. McNabb, David Akers, and Simon Gagne, I believe, are the only others. The Phillies’ shortstop has averaged 104 runs, 10 triples, and 36 stolen bases per year in his nine full seasons with the club. He has captured three consecutive Gold Gloves and was the 2007 NL MVP. That year J-Roll became the first player ever to compile 200 hits, 15 triples, 25 home runs, and 25 stolen bases. Always one to make brash predictions that he always seemed to back up, Rollins helped to change the culture in the clubhouse. He is a flat-out winner.

Likewise, Chase Utley does anything for his team. One of the most defensively underrated second baseman in baseball, Utley refuses to let a game go by without soiling his uniform. He is the quiet assassin who exudes the city’s thirst for hard work and non-stop dedication. In his five full seasons as a starter, Utley has posted averages of 29 home runs, 111 runs, 101 RBI and a batting average of .301. He has belted 9 postseason home runs in only 32 games, with 5 coming in the 2009 World Series. Without a doubt, Utley is the best Phillies hitter since Mike Schmidt.

Best Team of the Decade

The 2008 Phillies, of course.

Best Individual Season:

A handful come to mind…

• Donovan McNabb, 2004: 3,875 yards passing, 31 touchdown passes, 8 interceptions, 104.7 passer rating
• Allen Iverson, 2005-06: 33.0 points per game and 7.4 assists per game
• Ryan Howard, 2006: .313 AVG, 58 home runs, 149 RBI, 1.084 OPS
• Brian Westbrook, 2007: 1,333 rushing yards, 771 receiving yards, 2,104 total yards, 12 total touchdowns
• Brad Lidge, 2008: 41 save opportunities, 41 saves. 7 postseason save opportunities, 7 saves

If I have to choose, I will take Brad Lidge’s season of perfection. The Phillies would not have won it all without him.

Best Single Game Performance:

Cliff Lee, Game 1 win, 2009 World Series

9 innings, 6 hits, 0 ER, 10 strikeouts

Best 76er:

Allen Iverson (A distant runner-up: Andre Iguodala)

Best Eagle:

Donovan McNabb (Runner-ups: Brain Dawkins and Brian Westbrook)

Best Flyer:

Simon Gagne (Runner-ups: Keith Primeau and Mark Recchi)

Best Phillie:

Chase Utley (Runner-up: Ryan Howard)

Best Manager:

Charlie Manuel- 3 division titles, 2 pennants, 1 championship (Runner-up: Andy Reid- 5 division titles, 1 league title)

We enjoyed it while it lasted:

Jeremy Roenick, Peter Forsberg, Jim Thome, Andre Miller, Brian Mitchell, Jeff Garcia

It didn’t work out in the end:

Kevin Millwood, Bobby Abreu, Scott Rolen, Adam Eaton, Billy Wagner, Terrell Owens, Javon Kearse, Chris Webber, and Elton Brand (or at least it is looking that way)

Quiet, steady and solid:

Jon Runyan, Tra Thomas, David Akers, Chad Lewis, Mike Lieberthal, Randy Wolf, Jamie Moyer, Eric Desjardins, Mike Knuble, Aaron McKie, Theo Ratliff, and Eric Snow

Gone, but Philadelphia heroes forever:

Harry Kalas (may he rest in peace), Lee, Burrell (he went out on top), Dawkins, Aaron Rowand, and Matt Stairs (The Greatest Home Run of All-Time).

Stars and leaders for the coming decade: Roy Halladay (despite his age), Domonic Brown, J.A. Happ, Hamels, Jackson, LeSean McCoy, Jeremy Maclin, Brent Celek, Kevin Kolb, Stewart Bradley, Mike Richards, Claude Giroux, Jeff Carter, James Van Riemsdyk, Ryan Parent, Jrue Holiday, Marrese Speights, and Thaddeus Young.

Questions for the future:

For the 76ers: Where is the reliable foundation? Are Holiday, Iguodala, Speights, and Young starters for the future? Who will be the next free-agent pickup? This team needs a dominant player.

For the Eagles: Can the young talent push this team over the top? Is McNabb his generation’s Jim Kelly or John Elway? Who is McNabb’s heir?

For the Flyers: Who will be the rock in goal for a team in need of a consistent stopper? Are Jeff Carter and Mike Richards dependable leaders and scorers going forward?

For the Phillies: Will they capitalize on their World Series-caliber roster with more championships in the coming years? Is it possible to hold onto Hamels, Howard, Utley, and Victorino?

Here is to hoping that we add more championship trophies in the next decade.

Looking for a last minute Christmas card photo? Come on down to BHP Billiton Family Hockey Fest and get your photo taken with Phil “the Keeper of the Cup” Pritchard and the Stanley Cup! It’s almost a guarantee that your family won’t take that holiday photo off the fridge.

Some of the trophies on display beside the Stanley Cup

Hockey Fest is running at TCU Place in Saskatoon from noon – 9pm on Tuesday. Fans in Regina can check out the Stanley Cup and Hockey Hall of Fame displays on December 27 & 28 at Evraz Place. Admission is free.

The Challenge Cup era occurred during the challenge cup period, none of the leagues that played for the trophy had a formal playoff system to decide their respective champions, whichever team finished in first place after the regular season won the league title.

However, in 1894, four teams out of the five-team AHAC tied for the championship with records of 5–3–0. The AHAC had no tie-breaking system. After extensive negotiations and Quebec’s withdrawal from the championship competition, it was decided that a three-team tournament would take place in Montreal, with the Ottawa team receiving a bye to the Final because they were the only road team. On March 17, in the first ever Stanley Cup playoff game, the Montreal Hockey Club (Montreal HC) defeated the Montreal Victorias, 3–2. Five days later, in the first Stanley Cup Final game, Montreal HC beat the Ottawa Generals, 3–1.

Queen’s University in 1895 was the first official challenger for the Cup, although it was controversial. The Montreal Victorias had won the league title and thus the Stanley Cup, although the challenge match was between the previous year’s champion, Montreal HC, and the university squad. The trustees decided that if the Montreal HC won the challenge match, the Victorias would become the Stanley Cup champions. The Montreal HC won the match 5–1 and their cross-town rivals were crowned the champions. The first successful challenge to the Cup came the next year by the Winnipeg Victorias, the champions of the Manitoba Hockey League. On February 14, 1896, the Winnipeg squad defeated the champions 2–0 and became the first team outside the AHAC to win the Cup.

As the prestige of winning the Cup grew, so did the need to attract top players. Only nine months after winning the Cup, in March 1906, the Montreal Wanderers pushed through a resolution at the annual meeting of the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA) that would allow professional players to play alongside amateurs. Because the ECAHA was the top hockey league in Canada at the time, the Cup trustees agreed to open the challenges to professional teams.  The first professional competition came one month later during the Wanderers’ two-game, total goals challenge series, which they won 17 goals to 5.

The smallest municipality to produce a Stanley Cup champion team is Kenora, Ontario; the town had a population of about 4,000 when the Kenora Thistles captured the Cup in January 1907.  Aided by future Hall of Famers Art Ross and “Bad” Joe Hall, the Thistles defeated the Montreal Wanderers in a two-game, total goals challenge series. The Thistles successfully defended the Cup once, against a team from Brandon, Manitoba. In March 1907, the Wanderers challenged the Thistles to a rematch. Despite an improved lineup, the Thistles lost the Cup to Montreal.

In 1908, the Allan Cup was introduced as the trophy for Canada’s amateurs, and the Stanley Cup started to become a symbol of professional hockey supremacy. In that same year, the first all-professional team, the Toronto Trolley Leaguers from the newly created Ontario Professional Hockey League (OPHL), competed for the Cup. One year later, the Montreal HC and the Montreal Victorias, the two remaining amateur teams, left the ECAHA, and the ECAHA dropped “Amateur” from their name to become a professional league. In 1910, the National Hockey Association (NHA) was formed. The NHA soon proved it was the best in Canada, as it kept the Cup for the next four years.

Prior to 1912, challenges could take place at any time, given the appropriate rink conditions, and it was common for teams to defend the Cup numerous times during the year. In 1912, Cup trustees declared that it was only to be defended at the end of the champion team’s regular season.

No Idea.

TheFifthStaal was supposed to take care of the game on Thursday, but we were too distracted by taking both games from the Flyers this week, so we forgot about this. Just go re-read the last post and pretend it was about Thursday. It’s good enough for us.

So on to tonight…the Pens took on the Buffalo Sabres for the first time this season.

Also– Talbot in, Godard out.

1st Period:

Kaleta gets things going by interfering on Fleury about 2 minutes into the game. The Pens did go 3-for-9 on the powerplay in the last two games against the Flyers, but this powerplay was dirt because the Sabres defense isn’t as terrible as the Flyers.

Orpik takes a penalty for interference, but the Pens penalty kill is reliable and can always create some shorthanded opportunities. Before the Pens can kill this, Letang gets out on our PK and takes a hooking penalty. But the Pens survive the Sabres 5-0n-3.

The Sabres pummel Fleury with some shots and get the rebound to Pominville who puts a wrist shot past Fleury.  1-0 Sabres

Just as we have come to expect, the Pens go crazy in the last minute of the period. Billy gets the puck to Sid who almost dekes around Lalime. Sid goes to the boards to get the puck out to Kunitz, who’s waiting to score from around the left faceoff circle. 1-1

2nd Period:

Nothing really happens until Kunitz gets a quick shot off at Lalime. And even that wasn’t really anything.

Mike Rupp and some Sabre run into Lalime and almost decapitate him, so we have to wait to make sure he’s okay.

The Pens twitter alerts always have something to say about every play: “Fleury with a great save on MacArthur! Remember that one in the 3rd period.” So, remember that save in the 3rd period, guys.

Cooke comes up the left wing, and passes over to Letang who loves being a forward. Letang almost goes five-hole on Lalime.

Rivet runs into Malkin (maybe? i dont remember) and takes a tripping penalty. And even though the Pens look much better on this powerplay than last period, they still don’t come out with anything.

Staal comes into the Sabres’ zone with Talbot and waits until the last minute to make a play with him. They get THIS CLOSE to scoring, ahhh.

McKee takes a penalty for roughing and then Tim Kennedy takes a penalty for tripping. Nothing happens on either.

Kunitz comes up the left wing with Staal on a 2-on-1. Staal takes a pass from Kunitz and hits the post. Pens are getting great chances this period.

I don’t remember at which point, but Eaton went into the boards behind Fleury and was out for the remainder of the 2nd period.

3rd Period:

I don’t know in what order most of this stuff happened because I was making food so…

The Pens and Sabres swap chances for the entire 3rd. Malkin takes a penalty for _____, and as soon as the Pens kill it, Malkin gets called again for 2 minutes for touching the puck before his feet were out of the penalty box. As expected, Staal gets 54 shorthanded chances.

Rupp draws a holding penalty (furthering the theory that he’s our franchise center), but the Pens can’t get anything.

Sid checks Grier into the boards. Grier almost died or something.

Orpik with a penalty for holding, MacArthur with a penalty for high-sticking, and Cooke with a penalty for interference. Pens and Sabres kill their penalties and Coach Dan even tries to argue Cooke’s hit on C____ (whats his name? no idea)…

OT:

Not a lot happens until 3:17 when Go-Go takes a penalty for high-sticking. Am I the only one that always envisions out-of-the-box breakaways whenever we get a penalty? Even if it’s someone like Brooks Orpik? Example: Hal Gill.

Staal, Adams, and Gonchar on this 4-on-3 is insane. Period. The Pens kill this and Sid almost redirects a Malkin slapshot past Lalime. T reminded me of that Sabres game last season when Go-Go scored twice in the 3rd to tie the game and Sid redirected the OT winner from Malkin. Anyways…

Shootout:

Letang gets the lone shootout winner, and Fleury stops all three shooters (including an incredible poke-check) for the Sabres. WIN. 6-0 in shootouts. Wooooh.

]]> http://rystarr.wordpress.com/2009/12/19/the-agony-of-leafs-nation/ Sat, 19 Dec 2009 15:49:38 +0000 Ryan Starr http://rystarr.wordpress.com/2009/12/19/the-agony-of-leafs-nation/

NOTHING ENCAPSULATES how badly things have been going for the Toronto Maple Leafs – and their legion of masochistically loyal fans – quite like this awful goal from last night’s game against the Buffalo Sabres.

As the video shows, this is the same hapless (hopeless? useless?) goaltender, Vesa Toskala, who in a game against the New York Islanders last March let in a goal that was shot from 197 feet down the ice.

One could argue that was simply a bad break. Last night’s blunder, however, was inexcusable.

Toskala is not solely responsible for the Maple Leafs’ struggles. With the worst save percentage and worst goals-against average in the National Hockey League, though, he’s obviously a huge part of the problem.

Still, there’s plenty of blame left to go around the Leaf locker room.

If you’re not a fan of hockey – Canadians’ only reason for living in wintertime – the Maple Leafs are hockey’s Boston Red Sox circa 2003. The team hasn’t won a Stanley Cup since 1967.

And with goaltending like that, Lord Stanley’s mug ain’t coming back to Toronto any time soon.

ryan@roadtostarrdom.com

Originally, Lord Stanley intended that the Cup should be awarded to the top amateur hockey team in Canada, to be decided by the acceptance of a challenge from another team. He made five preliminary regulations:

1. The winners shall return the Cup in good order when required by the trustees so that it may be handed over to any other team which may win it.
2. Each winning team, at its own expense, may have the club name and year engraved on a silver ring fitted on the Cup.
3. The Cup shall remain a challenge cup, and should not become the property of one team, even if won more than once.
4. The trustees shall maintain absolute authority in all situations or disputes over the winner of the Cup.
5. If one of the existing trustees resigns or drops out, the remaining trustee shall nominate a substitute.

The first Stanley Cup Champions

The first Stanley Cup Champions: The Montreal Hockey Club (affiliated with the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association)

The third rule was a response to the practice, common at the time, of allowing a contestant who won a trophy a certain number of times to keep it permanently. Many contests had to be discontinued when a repeat winner earned ownership of the trophy, and the organizers were unable to afford a new one.

Lord Stanley appointed Sheriff John Sweetland and Philip D. Ross (who would serve in his post an unsurpassed 57 years) as trustees of the Cup. Sweetland and Ross first presented the trophy in 1893 to the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association on behalf of the affiliated Montreal Hockey Club, the champions of the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada (AHAC), since they “defeated all comers during the late season, including the champions of the Ontario Association (the Ottawa Generals)”.  Sweetland and Ross also believed that the AHAC was the top league, and as first place finishers in the AHAC, Montreal was the best team in Canada. Naturally, the Ottawa Generals were upset by the decision because there had been no challenge games scheduled and because the trustees failed to convey the rules on how the Cup was to be awarded prior to the start of the season.

Original Stanley Cup in the bank vault at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Ontario

As a result, the Cup trustees issued more specific rules on how the trophy should be defended and awarded:

* The Cup is automatically awarded to the team that wins the title of the previous Cup champion’s league, without the need for any other special extra contest.
* Challengers for the Cup must be from senior hockey associations, and must have won their league championship. Challengers will be recognized in the order in which their request is received.
* The challenge games (where the Cup could change leagues) are to be decided either in a one-game affair, a two-game total goals affair, or a best of three series, to the benefit of both teams involved. All matches would take place on the home ice of the champions, although specific dates and times would have to be approved by the trustees.
* Ticket receipts from the challenge games are to be split equally between both teams.
* If the two competing clubs cannot agree to a referee, the trustees will appoint one, and the two teams shall cover the expenses equally. If the two competing clubs cannot agree on other officials, the referee will appoint them, and the two clubs shall also pay the expenses equally
* A league could not challenge for the Cup twice in one season.

Sadly to say Lord Stanley never saw a Stanley Cup championship game, nor did he ever present the Cup. Although his term as Governor General ended in September 1893, he was forced to return to England on July 15. In April of that year, his elder brother Edward Stanley, 15th Earl of Derby died, and Stanley succeeded him as the 16th Earl of Derby.

I just read an article on by a gentleman from Brooklyn who stated that the Heisman Trophy is cool but the Stanley Cup is the Best. So I figured I would find out what you think. Obviously if you are a football fan or a hockey fan this might steer your decision in one direction or the other.

The Heisman is indeed one of the most prestigious trophies in all of sports and is awarded to the outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. The award was first presented in 1935 by the Downtown Athletic Club (DAC) in Manhattan, New York, a privately owned recreation facility near the site of the former World Trade Center. It was first known simply as the DAC Trophy. The first winner, Jay Berwanger, was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles but declined to sign for them. He never played professional football for any team. In 1936, John Heisman died and the trophy was renamed in his honor. Larry Kelley, the second winner of the award was the first man to win it as the “Heisman Trophy.”

The Stanley Cup is also one of the most prestigious trophies in all of sports and is awarded to the team that wins the playoffs of the National Hockey League. The History behind the Stanley Cup is quite remarkable.

So What do you think? The Stanley Cup or the Heisman Trophy… Tell us your thoughts!

Tuesday night marked the first time this season that the Flyers would enter the Mellon Arena. This was a game that no one needed to say anything to get excited about it. They already were. Playing Philadelphia, you always no you’re going to get a rough, hard-hitting, dirty game. But then sometimes they forget to score goals and you’re ahead by five in the end.

Jordan Staal was once again unreal for the Pens tonight. In conversation with someone recently, they mentioned how we need to trade Staal. Obviously I punched them in the face, but before that, I explained that Staal is such an asset to our team that it’s actually unreal. To have Crosby, Malkin, Staal centering your top three lines is frightening for me, let alone all opposing teams. Not only is he an outstanding two-way player, he has a ferocious yell in his goal celebrations that, if standing too close, would probably attack you and steal your soul. Scary, but true.

Max Talbot was scratched for tonight’s game. This was controversial to some, but really what do you do? Everyone is playing great. And scratching Eric Godard in a game verse barbaric animals is pretty much out of the question. Whatevs. Max got to rest and the Pens owned.

First Period

The Penguins quickly got their first Power Play chance a few minutes into the game. The unit they sent out was without Matt Cooke which is what they have been practicing. Didn’t matter. Gonchar got a shot off that was blocked by a body and rebounded right to Sid. Sidney Crosby capitalizes on everything and makes the score 1-0.

Listening to Mike Emrick literally makes me want to kill myself. I’m sorry. I just can’t stand him.

Then, as we all expected, our first fight of the night happens. Mike Rupp drops the gloves with Arron Asham.

Not to be out done, literally eight seconds later Godard drops the gloves with stupid Riley Cote.

The only problem I had with this fight was that I wasn’t the one punching Riley Cote in the face. That’s what I want for Christmas.

Next play, Adams decides to join in on the fun and drops the gloves with Daniel Carcillo. Props to Adsies for this one. Carcillo is disgusting. I wouldn’t have wanted to touch him. He should probably get tested for STDs.

Okay.

Back in our zone, Richards’  shot is turned away by Fleury. Orpik gets the puck and passes it up to Crosby, Sid gets the shot off, Boucher can’t keep it under his pads as Billy pokes it through. 2-0.

The Igloo is pretty much crazy at this point.

Later, Carter hits the goal post. Haha, Carter. Haha.

At some point, the Flyers had numerous chances in a row. Hartnell gets a shot off that’s blocked by Fleury. Then Gonchar makes a great defensive play and pokes the puck away from Briere. Take note, Mike Green. OFFENSIVE DEFENSEMAN.

Carcillo scores on a while Malkin was in the box for the Pens and then continues to jump onto the glass like an idiot. 2-1. A crew of people came out to scrub that sheet of glass with bleach before any play continued.

Then, soon after, Malkin goes off once again. Orpik gets the puck to Cooke who then hands it off to Staal. Staal skates through the neutral zone into the Flyers end and rips it past the glove side of Boucher. 3-1.

This is Jordan Staal’s 2nd SH goal of the season, 10th of his career.

Second Period

Second period starts and the Penguins had quite a few chances.

Danny Briere had a chance somewhere in there. But Danny Briere sucks.

Later, Goligoski has a nice chance, but nothing. Then Staal makes Hartnell look like a joke, gets the puck and passes it up to Sid. Sid gets it in front of the net to Tanger. Letang shoots, rebound Staal. 4-1.

Fedotenko goes off for boarding Carcillo. Hate hate hate.

Carcillo then forgets that he’s playing hockey and kicks the puck into the goal. No big celebration after that? Idiot.

Third Period

Stuff happens that isn’t worth writing about. Rupp and Dupuis each had a chance. Story of their lives. Always creatin’ chances.

Then Godsies flips the puck up to the neutral zone, Malkin grabs it and drop passes to Feds. Slapper. 5-1.

Find your own picture.

Then with little time left, Godard went to the box for roughing. A shot was deflected wide and rimmed around the boards to Malkin. Malkin decides Staal wasn’t the only one scoring a SHG tonight and gets it past Boucher.

6-1 Game.

Random Crap

> Orpik killed Giroux sometime after the Malkin goal. He was also the 3rd star(2A). USA.

> Billy Guerin went off after blocking a shot off his skate. He said he’s fine. Good.

> The Capitals scored six goals in their game against the Avalanche. Alexander Semin, you worthless human being. You couldn’t even get ONE POINT!? Your one shot on goal and two penalty minutes did BARELY ANYTHING for my fantasy team. Stupid.

> The Penguins play tomorrow night in Philly. I’m disgusted even thinking about it. Go Pens.

]]> http://trophiestrophy.wordpress.com/2009/12/16/hayden-panettiere-and-the-stanley-cup/ Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:40:51 +0000 trophies http://trophiestrophy.wordpress.com/2009/12/16/hayden-panettiere-and-the-stanley-cup/

Here is a sight you would not expect to see.  Hayden Panettiere from the  hit show Heros kissing the Stanley Cup. Who would of thought she was such a hockey fan. Well actually she may or may not be but she was part of an NHL hockey promotion where she was filmed on the set of HERO in Los Angeles with one of the most historical trophies ever, the Stanley Cup.

Luke Schenn isn't smiling anymore

While everything seems to be pointing to greener pastures in Leaf land, for one player this current win streak and good play is a little bittersweet. That player is Luke Schenn. Schenn is coming off of a stellar rookie season but is currently sitting in the press box as a result of playing himself out of the starting lineup. If the Leafs continue to play well and improve defensively, it will be hard to imagine Schenn being insterted into the NHL lineup again. There is also the consideration that surprise standout Carl Gunnarsson will return from injury shortly. He has definitely played better than Schenn this season and as a result will likely get the edge when he returns. With that being said, the Leafs cannot have their #5 pick from 2008, their prized stallion, their future captain sitting in the press box and not developing.

The only answer; the Toronto Marlies. It may sting for all Leaf fans, it may create some tension with Schenn and it will definitely cause an uproar in the media but realistically, Schenn should have been sent down last year. The only reason he was kept on the Leaf roster a season ago was to justify Fletcher’s move to trade up in the draft to get him. By keeping him on the roster, Fletcher was able to show Leaf fans that the trade was a success, when in fact Schenn should have been sent to the Marlies to develop.

The Leafs have had a history of poorly developing prospects ranging from Luke Richardson to Alex Steen and the recently departed Jiri Tlusty. The Leafs have failed to create a system or process to bring their prospects to the NHL at the appropriate time. However, there is still a chance to right the wrong made with Schenn. Send him to the Marlies to earn his stripes and learn the intrincacies of the game. I say let him stay in the minors for the rest of the season. The one thing the Leafs do have a lot of is time until they can actually compete and contend for the Stanley Cup.

The origins of the Stanley Cup is quit an interesting story. After Lord Stanley of Preston was appointed by Queen Victoria as Governor General of Canada on June 11, 1888, he and his family became highly enthusiastic about ice hockey. Stanley was first exposed to the game at Montreal’s 1889 Winter Carnival, where he saw the Montreal Victorias play the Montreal Hockey Club. The Montreal Gazette reported that he “expressed his great delight with the game of

Lord Stanley of Preston

hockey and the expertise of the players”. During that time, organized ice hockey in Canada was still in its infancy and only Montreal and Ottawa had anything resembling leagues.

Lord Walter Stanley’s entire family became active in ice hockey. Two of his sons, Arthur and Algernon, formed a new team called the Ottawa Rideau Rebels. Arthur also played a key role in the formation of what later became known as the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA), and would go on to be the founder of ice hockey in Great Britain. Arthur and Algernon persuaded their father to donate a trophy to be “an outward and visible sign of the hockey championship”. Lord Stanley sent the following message to the victory celebration held on March 18, 1892, at Ottawa’s Russell Hotel for the three-time champion Ottawa Hockey Club:

I have for some time been thinking that it would be a good thing if there were a challenge cup which should be held from year to year by the champion hockey team in the Dominion (of Canada). There does not appear to be any such outward sign of a championship at present, and considering the general interest which matches now elicit, and the importance of having the game played fairly and under rules generally recognized, I am willing to give a cup which shall be held from year to year by the winning team. I am not quite certain that the present regulations governing the arrangement of matches give entire satisfaction, and it would be worth considering whether they could not be arranged so that each team would play once at home and once at the place where their opponents hail from.

A short time later, Lord Stanley purchased a decorative bowl, forged in Sheffield, England by London silversmith G.R. Collis and Company (now Boodles and Dunthorne Jewelers), for ten guineas (ten and a half pounds sterling, or $48.67 USD at that time. Can you imagine buying what would be later know as the Stanley Cup Trophy for 50 dollars!). He had the words “Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup” engraved on one side of the outside rim, and “From Stanley of Preston” on the other side.

Coming off of their first Stanley Cup win since 1955, Brendan spent his next full season with the Detroit Red Wings…the team that would turn him into a legend.

He did not see all 82 games due to a back injury, but he still led the team with 28 goals. He was third in points with 57 points.

He ranked first on the team and second in the NHL with 15 power play goals and led the team with 9 game winners. He posted 13 multiple-point games.

On November 9th versus Calgary, he recorded his 700th point and more with 2 goals and 1 assist that night.

With 154 PIMs, he recorded the most PIMs that season than he ever would with the Detroit Red Wings (his career high was with the St. Louis Blues in Year 7).

In the race for the Cup, he posted 5 goals and 4 assists. He tallied the Overtime game winning goal in game 3 versus St. Louis (western conference semi-finals), as well as the series deciding goal in game 6 of the quarter-finals vs. Phoenix.

Detroit took home their second consecutive cup in 1998, sweeping the Washington Capitals 4-0.

He represented Team Canada in 1998, but came in 4th place that year (the Czech Republic led by Jaromir Jagr would take the gold that year).

[Statistical Sources: New Jersey Devils Media Guide]

From Wikipedia:

Just six days after sweeping the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1997 Final, two of the Detroit Red Wings, Vladimir Konstantinov and Sergei Mnatsakanov were in a limousine wreck and sustained serious brain injuries. Viacheslav Fetisov was also in the limousine, but Fetisov was not injuried. The Red Wings subsequenly dedicated their 1997-98 season to the two players. The team wore a patch on their jerseys of the initials of the two players. When the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup in 1998, they wheeled Konstantinov onto the ice and placed the Cup in his lap. They also took him for a victory lap around the ice rink.

Like I could not post up some video footage that made him a legend…

And the hilarious antics of Brendan Shanahan:

And Shanny…outside of the White House:

The Pens beat the Panthers tonight at Mellon Arena, 3-2.

For the third time this season against Florida, it took overtime to decide the game.

The Pens wore their blue jerseys tonight…whatever.

Jeff Jimmerson didn’t sing the National Anthem. What’s that all about? Get these other girls out of here.

Also, Kunitz was in and Godard was out.

1st Period:

Cooke, Staal, and TK take the opening faceoff with a decent shift.

ICING. Sid comes out with Billy and Malkin, and Malkin creates some offense.
But the Panthers get the puck and bring it back for Brentson who gloves it.

Rupp gets out for a shift and I obviously expect him to score a goal.

Malkin, Fed, and Dupuis come out for a great shift. I love watching this line.
Fed has been THIS CLOSE to a goal for the past half a dozen games or so.
Naturally, I have been calling a goal by Fed for every one of those games. Including the one tonight.

Sid gets out with Billy and Kunitz. Sid has some legitimate chances, but one shot goes wide of the net and Vokoun gloves the other.
I forget how much I hate Vokoun’s glove until we play the Panthers.

Rupp gets called for hooking at 11:28.
Is it a coincidence that when Staal finishes his shift on the penalty kill, the Panthers score? No, it isn’t. Reinprecht with the goal from Olesz and Dvorak. 1-0 Panthers

Malkin, Staal, and TK come out for a shift.
Malkin lets a Panther win the faceoff to skate past him for the puck. I love that move.

Goligoski gets the puck from the Penguin’s zone and passes it up to Adams.
Adams passes the puck over to Dupuis coming into the Panthers zone on the left wing.
A Panther falls over (hahahaaa) and The Duper gets past him to put one home. 1-1

Phenomenal work these past few games, Dupuis.

A few shifts later, Sid gets a nice pass to Billy who gets a shot off that leaks through Vokoun’s pads.
No ones there for puck. Whatevs.

The rest of the period, a whole bunch of crap happens.

Sid and Ballard start getting pushy and Sid slashes him (what else is new?).
But they stopped because Sid probably didn’t want to get his head whacked off.

With 3:09 left in the 1st, Duco gets 2 minutes for cross-checking while Malkin gets 4 minutes for a double minor high-sticking.
TK serves 2 of Malkin’s penalty minutes. Nothing happens.

Allen takes 2 minutes for interference near the end of the period.

2nd Period:

The penalty from Allen carries over to the second but the Pens can’t generate anything.

Malkin gets on somewhat of a breakaway sometime around here but gets nothin’.

Kunitz takes a penatly for hooking at 15:00. Pens kill it.

Orpik nails Dvorak, and I smile.

Pens still keep getting chances, but Vokoun’s glove continues to ruin my life.
Fedotenko soon takes care of this.
Rupp gets the puck to Malkin who passes it across the crease for Fed to tap it in backdoor. 2-1 Pens

The Panthers continue to put up a fight.
Olesz misses a wide open net that would have tied the game.
McKee saves everyones’ lives when he lays down to block a shot. What a player.

At 4:38, Repik takes a penalty for high-sticking and the Pens get on the power play.
The Pens still can’t get anything going. The Panthers kill it.

Once again, Orpik nails Dvorak. And once again, I smile.

3rd Period:

Only about 2 minutes in, McCabe cross-checks Rupp’s face into the glass, putting us onto yet another power play.
Pens still got nothin’.

McCabe gets an out-of-the-box breakaway, but Brentson makes the save.
The rebound goes out to Weiss.
Brentson tries for the poke-check, but Weiss finds the back of the net. 2-2

At 12:37, Frolik takes a penalty for hooking.
Pens are now 0/5 on the power play this game.

Orpik levels Frolik in front of the Panther’s bench.
That had to have been the sandwich of the game.

Someone gets on a breakaway and Brenston makes the save to keep the game tied.
Goligoski displays some nice puck management to get the puck out of the blue paint.

McCabe gets called for interference and the Pens are now 0/6 on the power play this game.
Gonchar gets called for holding. Gonchar getting called for a penalty should be illegal.

OT:

Staal drives to the net and draws a holding penalty from Leopold.
He leads the Pens in penalties drawn.

The Pens go on the power play 30 seconds into overtime.

GENOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. 3-2 Pens

MISCELLANEOUS:

- Orpik led the team in hits tonight with 7.

- Dupuis and Malkin both scored their 9th goals of the season, tied with Rupp for 2nd most on the team.

- Toronto came back from an 0-2 deficit to beat Washington 6-3 tonight. Thank you, Toronto.

- Pens had 41 shots tonight, giving them 128 shots in just 3 games against Florida this season. Awesome?

- I could complain about our power play right here, but I’m not going to. The Pens will work it out.

What most people oare not aware of is the the Stanley Cup was originally inscribed the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup, the trophy was donated in 1892, by then Governor General of Canada Lord Stanley of Preston, as an award for Canada’s top-ranking amateur ice hockey club. In 1915, the two professional ice hockey organizations, the National Hockey Association (NHA) and the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA), reached a gentlemen’s agreement in which their respective champions would face each other for the Stanley Cup. After a series of league mergers and folds, it became the de facto championship trophy of the NHL in 1926. The Cup later became the de jure NHL championship prize in 1947.

On Monday night the Pens met with the ‘Canes who were looking for their first away game win since March. They got that win with a 3-2 score over the Penguins. Big deal.

The Penguins swept Carolina in last years Stanley Cup playoffs. They responded by coming out and playing a hard, aggressive game.

1st Period

Staal vs. Staal opening faceoff.

Early in the period Alberts throws a backhand to the net off a pass from Whitney. Fleury can’t get there fast enough.

Pens – 0             Hurricanes – 1

Mckee penalized for hooking, Jussi Jokinen throws a wrist shot over the glove of Fleury. Not exactly the start the Pens wanted.

Pens – 0             Hurricanes – 2

Billy G drops the gloves with Gleason. The outcome? Gleason nails Billy a few times, but Guerin finally body-slams him to the ice and gets a few in. More importantly, he gave the team and the fans a much needed boost. No clue what Gleason’s doing. Bravo, Billy

With 1:13 left in the period, the Pens see their first power play of the night when Ruutu goes to the box for tripping.

2nd Period

Canes kill the power play which was carried over from the first period.

More bad news. Whitney rockets a shot right through the legs of Fleury.

Pens – 0            Hurricanes – 3

Staalsy responds by drilling one of f the post to Legace’s right. So close.

About a minute later the Crosby-Malkin-Guerin line appears on the ice. Bad news bears for the Canes.

Crosby shoots, the puck finds a new home at the back of Legace’s net.

Pens – 1              Hurricanes – 3

Another minute passes until Dupuis fires one towards the net of Legace. The puck is blocked right to Rupp’s stick. Wrister. Boom.

Pens – 2              Hurricanes – 3

5:13 — Pens are back on the power play when Eric Staal is penalized for slashing.

3:29 — Malkin to the box for high-sticking.

Nothing for either team, which brings the period to an end.

3rd Period

Malkin-Dupuis-Fedotenko line keep the puck in the Canes zone for a solid 45 seconds. Definitely a tough shift for whatever line the Canes had out.

13:47 — A hooking call to Matt Cullen leaves the Pens with another chance at a power play. Killed by the Canes.

Legace gets a stick shot on a shot from Malkin in the slot.

Pens kill a penalty to Skoula, leaving them 3 minutes left in the period to try for a goal

1:51 — Pens use a timeout, just like they did against Chicago on Saturday. Smart move, considering last time it resulted in a goal from Staal.

With 20 seconds left on the clock Carolina is called for icing. The people behind us freaked out, as they did for every icing that was called. The Pens have time for one more rush.

By the time the buzzer sounds, multiple Carolina players are laying in front of the net while many of the Pens are whacking away at the puck trying to get it to the back of the net. 3-2 final.

Just Some Stuff

- It was nice to see Goligoski warming up for the game.

- The Pens visited Children’s Hospital on Tuesday afternoon. Just another reason why the Penguins are better than everyone else will ever be.

- Rupp has nine goals, three more than in any of his previous seven seasons in the NHL. Franchise center?

- Steelers are playing Thursday evening against the Browns. Pens are also playing MTL. Well, I like hockey more so…

-

There is a new Hero on the set of HEROS (television series) in L.A.. It is not Superman or Spider-man either, it is the ’s prestigious hockey trophy the Stanley Cup. The reason, well it is part of a promotion for the National Hockey League (NHL).  Photos of Hayden Panettiere and the sport’s holy grail were taken the set of her hit show.

Hayden Panettiere is seen here worshiping the Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup (in French called La Coupe Stanley) is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs champion. It has been referred to as The Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously (chiefly by sportswriters) as Lord Stanley’s Mug.

The Stanley Cup is surrounded by numerous legends and traditions, the oldest of which is the celebratory drinking of champagne out of the cup by the winning team. Unlike the trophies awarded by the other three major professional sports leagues of North America, a new Stanley Cup is not made each year; Cup winners keep it until a new champion is crowned. It is unusual among trophies, in that it has the name of the winning players, coaches, management, and club staff engraved on its chalice. The original bowl was made of silver and has a dimension of 18.5 centimeters (7.28 inches) in height and 29 centimeters (11.42 inches) in diameter. The current Stanley Cup, topped with a copy of the original bowl, is made of silver and nickel alloy. Today, it has a height of 89.54 centimeters (35.25 inches) and weighs 15.5 kilograms (34.5 lb).

The Penguins fell to the Blackhawks last night 2-1 in OT.

I don’t think I’ve ever felt okay about losing, but last nights game was insane. I was tired and out of breath and I was only sitting on my couch. It’s unfortunate that we only get to play the Hawks once. Having Crosby in that game would have even made it more exciting even if I’m not sure it’s possible. Maybe I just enjoyed it too much.

I was expecting this game to be much like last seasons. Fast but relaxing. One where you could just enjoy the skill out on the ice without worrying about someone getting nailed by a headshot. Well, I was wrong.

Marian Hossa was welcomed back to the Mellon once again by a mass amount of boos. I’m so over Hossa that it’s not even funny. Thanks for leaving, Hoss. You gave us room to sign Orpik and to acquire Billy G and Kunitz. This is so old.

1st Period

I think Antti Niemi is one of the sweetest names ever. Try saying it five times fast.

Cooke goes off early for interference. Welcome back, Cookie.

Jonathan Toews is crazy. Watching the Blackhawks every night would be really exciting. I guess kind of like watching the Pens. Only with the 2.0 version of Crosby and Malkin. And by 2.0, I mean it would be a downgrade. Like Windows Vista.

Blah blah. Killed.

The Hawks put on some pressure, but Fleury stays strong.

Ah. Orpik goes to the box for hooking.

Duncan Keith decides to be a douche and nails Cooe in the head. For some reason that was only a 2 minute penalty. Having Bob and his mic between the bench is so great. Hearing Guerin and Cooke drop about 15 F-bombs in the span of five seconds was hilarious.

Malkin kills Seabrook and creates like five chances while doing so.

Brian Campbell shoots and Hossa finds the rebound. 1-0 Hawks.

Malkin creates another chance but Guerin couldn’t get the rebound through. Things were starting to get very hostile.

Then, Malkin and Billy have another great chance, but Niemi and the goal post were all business.

This is the point of the game where I was noticing Letestu every time he was out on the ice. He was also all business.

Rupp and Eager go to the box. Four to Rupp for roughing and two to Eager for being a joke.

Orpik murders Toews somewhere along the way.

The Pens had so many chances within the last second, but Niemi stayed strong for the Blackhawks. Stupid.

2nd Period

Malkin has his 80th shot on goal, but Niemi likes to ruin my life.

At this point I couldn’t even comprehend what was happening. EVERYTHING WAS GOING SO FAST.

Craig Adams kills Brian Campbell.

Dupuis has the puck, starts to get robbed but pokes it to Fed, Fed gets the shot off. And fails. Blahh.

Bob tries to jinx Niemi’s shutout. And he did. So basically Jordan Staal should thank Bob.

Letestu is all business again. Centers it for Fed but he can’t get the shot off. Dupuis had the perfect opportunity. Screw the Blackhawks.

Fraser clearly holds Malkin’s stick (awkward), but nothing is called. So Geno takes matters into his own hands and elbows him in the head. Good. 4-on-4.

Dang, Letestu. Works the boards and wins the battle, centers it for Gonch. Ahhhh Niemi with the glove save. Stupid stupid stupid.

Malkin creates 20 more chances and gets off 18 more shots or something like that.

3rd Period

Third period starts and I’m already planning on taking a nap after the game ends. How exhausting.

Puck trickles through Fleury’s pads. Hossa can’t find it. Thank Jesus.

Letestu hits the post. Story of our lives tonight.

With a little under two minutes left, Pens call a timeout. Mike Yeo gets out his whiteboard and starts drawing up a play. Fleury is pulled and Staal is the extra attacker. Letestu wins the face-off and gets it back to Malkin. Malkin takes the shot and Jordan Staal reminds Jonathan Toews that he was picked before him in the draft. 1-1

OVERTIME

Versteeg. 2-1 Hawks.

Random Crap

> How awesome would Bob Errey’s job be?

> Mark Letestu played a fantastic game. Thank God for Bourque being put on waivers or else we probably wouldn’t have had the chance to watch that.

> One of the reasons I love being a hockey fan is that I know that whenever the Pens go through a hard time or a losing slump, they have time to figure it out and get back to normal. Oh, Steelers…

Hurricanes in a few minutes.

Next post is about football. We probably shouldn’t be allowed to talk about football at all. I’ll stick with hockey. And let’s all remember that the four of us don’t have the same opinions about everything, so when they start going off about Ike Taylor being the reason for the Steelers loss (Which I do agree that Ike Taylor does nothing good at all), the Steelers literally have a lot wrong with them right now. They should probably go get that straightened out. In fact, they should’ve done that a long time ago.

I think that everyone, at some point in their life, should have to bust out of one of those big circular pieces of paper. I think ideally this would happen when we come out of the womb, maybe with the aid of a small catapult or bungee device.

I’m not an NCAA fan.  It doesn’t matter what sport we’re talking about.  I attribute this to being Canadian.  I have a hard time getting excited about University allegiances for schools I know nothing about.  Despite this, I do have some Canadian friends who pay attention to NCAA Basketball, and I know what March Madness is, and I completely understand the appeal.

I’m going to put this bluntly.  NCAA sports are more important or interesting than most major league sports.  This is likely counter-intuitive.

“Mike (err, lineout),” you say, “this is preposterous!  Major league professional sports are the pinnacle of athletic competition!  Why else would we pay them millions of dollars to go out there and put a round thing into a square area?”

But NCAA sports are played by guys and gals who are basically auditioning, all the time, for the next level.  They have everything to lose.  There are scouts in those stands from major teams during every one of their season and post-season games.  A few faulty performances could mean the difference between being drafted in the first round or fading into local obscurity as the guy who “coulda gone pro” but never found work with that communications degree and now works at the gas station.  Dreams are broken at the collegiate level of play.  Since so many of those players have dedicated their lives to the sport at the college level, it’s often too late to turn back the clock and persue something more attainable.

Unsurprisingly, there is no "Ring on it" play from the television series Glee. This is because time travel doesn't exist, and because that play was bullshit and they would have gotten like 10 penalties on that play and lost the game as a result.

In the NCAA, players are literally playing for it all. They’re playing for the dream (or their dream, anyway).  Sure, when guys are playing for the Stanley Cup they are also playing for a dream, but the difference is that many of them will still have a job next year.  They’ve made it.

What’s more, NCAA sports are more interesting to follow politically and socially.  I was just reading an essay by David Sedaris in Me Talk Pretty One Day where he talks about how, growing up in North Carolina, it mattered to people if you were a UNC fan or an NC State fan.  The former blue, the latter red.  Your allegiance said something about you to different social groups.  Sedaris wasn’t interested in football so his description ended there, but my boss at work is from North Carolina and I mined him for details.  He claims that NC State is almost a technical school filled with Engineers and other tradesmen/math folks/whatever.  UNC, on the other hand, has more of a liberal arts backing.  So, supporting NC State would be like supporting the engineering department and all the meathead anti-intellectual bravado (which is weird, considering how much math/science they would know) that goes with it.  Supporting UNC would be like supporting a team made up of philosophy students.

This is why NCAA sports are inherently more interesting than professional sports.  Major league sports usually base their allegiance on little more than geographical location.  You root, root, root for the home team.  NCAA sports teams come with added political and social subtext!  You’re not just picking a set of colors but, symbolic or not, you’re picking an ethos!

I happen to think that’s pretty awesome.

When you combine these ethos-based battles with the mentality that every game matters to the lives of the athletes playing, you get a product more exciting generally than pretty much anything except post-season professional sports.

This game, though… piece of crap.  Honestly.  I really didn’t think I’d find a worse football game than Capcom MVP Football and here it is.  I was really spoiled by the alphabetical precursor of Madden ‘96.  Side-view?  What is this, an LCD handheld?  Bah!  Also, it baffles me that more of these games didn’t have in-game control layout screens.  I mean, sure, books were more important in those days, but when you’d rent them sometimes the photocopied version of the book you got was covered in juice and detritus and you didn’t want to touch it and then HOW THE FUCK WOULD YOU KNOW HOW TO PASS THE FUCKING BALL HONESTLY WHAT THE FUCK.

I would have done much better if the Tarheels hadn't built their field on what is apparently marshlands.

1) I was tired.

2) Although I would much rather write about the Penguins, I’m stuck writing about George Orwell and the Soviet Union for finals. So much fun. Let me tell you.

3) Even if I did have time to write about the Pens, I was at the game so anything I would attempt to write would be trash.

4) I was tired.

5) Did I mention that on top of being tired and busy I am also lazy?

Go Pens

On December 4th, 1909, J. Ambrose O’Brien and T.C. Hare formed a partnership that would change history in hockey and in Canada. The two businessmen came together to found one of the greatest franchises in sports history – the Montreal Canadiens. The cost to have the team admitted to the brand new National Hockey Association was $6,000. A century later, the team is valued at more than $300 million. The team’s history, however, is priceless to millions of hockey fans who have had the opportunity to watch “Les Habitants” over the years. Names like Morenz, Richard, Plante, Lafleur, and Roy have dazzled hockey fans for 100 years. There has been as much action off the ice as on it in this franchises riveting history. More than 700 players have had the good fortune to wear “le bleu, blanc, et rouge.” Many have become champions. Some have changed the game through innovation. Others have transcended legendary status through their dedication, determination, and sheer power on the ice.

3,000 people witnessed history as the Canadiens played their first game on January 5, 1910. The crowd gathered at the Jubilee Rink had no idea of the history that would follow, when the team from Montreal (wearing blue back then), led by Jack Laviolette, beat the Cobalt Silver Kings 7-6 in a thrilling overtime win. The win was a fitting start for a team that would dominate the game for so long afterwards, but the first season was not a great success. The team was sold after a disappointing first season, in which they only won 2 games out of 12, and their colors were changed to red.

In 1914, a precursor to the greatest rivalry in hockey would have it’s first championship installment, as the Canadiens met the Toronto Blueshirts for the Stanley Cup. In a two-game, total goals series, Montreal won game 1 2-0, before losing 6-0 in game 2 to lose the series. The Blueshirts would later be at the middle of a controversy that would cause the NHA to fold, and the NHL to take over. Toronto would eventually be represented by the Maple Leafs. The Habs and Leafs have since met in the playoffs 15 times, with Montreal winning 8 of those series to Toronto’s 7.

The Canadiens would get another chance at glory in 1916, when they finished in first place in the NHA standings. They would meet the Portland Rosebuds, who finished first in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association, for the Stanley Cup. Led by player/coach Newsy Lalonde, who won the NHA’s scoring race that year, the Canadiens defeated the Rosebuds in 5 games. It was the first time that a 5-game Stanley Cup final had gone the distance. Montreal lost game 1 before rebounding to win games 2 and 3. Portland forced a decisive final game by winning game 4. In the final game of the series, the Rosebuds jumped out to an early 1-0 lead, but could not hold on. “Goldie” Prodgers became the first Montreal Canadien to score a Stanley Cup winning goal, beginning one of the greatest winning traditions in sports.

The Canadiens once again won the NHA championship in 1917, but lost the Cup to the Seattle Metropolitans, the first ever American team to win the Cup. After this season, the NHA owners disbanded the league, and set up the NHL. The first NHL game was played on December 19, 1917, in Montreal, but it was not the Canadiens who played. The Montreal Wanderers defeated the Toronto Arenas, 10-9. The Canadiens played later that same day, and beat the Ottawa Senators 7-4, bolstered by 5 goals from “Phantom” Joe Malone, who scored 44 goals in 20 games that year. In goal for the Habs that day was Georges Vezina, the first great NHL goaltender. Vezina tended the net for Montreal for 366 consecutive games, before leaving a game in 1925 with an illness. He would die of tuberculosis months later.

In 1924, a new face would emerge as a superstar for the Canadiens, as they claimed their second Stanley Cup, and first as an NHL franchise. The Habs defeated the Vancouver Millionaires of the PCHA to win the Cup, with Billy Boucher scoring the winners in both games. They would then defend their championship against the Calgary Tigers. A rookie phenomenon named Howie Morenz would lead Montreal in the Calgary series, scoring hat tricks in both games. Morenz would go on to dominate the NHL for his entire career, becoming the first NHL superstar.

Known as “the Babe Ruth of hockey,” the “Stratford Streak,” and “the Canadian Comet,” Morenz was the first player to win the Hart Trophy as the most valuable player to his team, in 1928. He would remain a vital part of the Canadiens’ team forever. On January 28, 1937, Morenz rushed the puck up ice when he was met by Earl Siebert of the Chicago Blackhawks. Morenz was knocked off his feet and he crashed heavily into the boards, breaking his leg. Legend has it that the sound of his leg snapping could be heard throughout the Montreal Forum. On his way to the hospital, Morenz said. “I’m through. This is the finish.” He died of a coronary embolism only weeks later, but those who knew him said he died of a broken heart, due to the end of his hockey career. Morenz’s legend, however lived on, as thousands of fans filed past his casket, which was laid out at centre ice at the Montreal Forum. It has been said that the “Ghost of Howie Morenz” haunted the Forum from that day forward, helping the Canadiens win. In fact, no other team won the Stanley Cup at the Forum until 52 years later, when the Calgary Flames defeated Montreal in game 6 of the finals.

A new hero would emerge for the Canadiens’ faithful in 1944. Having failed to win the Cup since 1931, the Habs were due for some heroics, and it came in the form of a local boy named Maurice Richard. Fighting blatant discrimination from the English aristocracy of hockey his entire career, “The Rocket” made himself a star by scoring a hat trick in game 2 of the 1944 finals, and 5 goals overall in the series, helping Montreal regain the Stanley Cup. Over the next 15 years, Richard would become the greatest player in Canadiens’ history, scoring a total of 544 goals and 965 points, while amassing 1285 penalty minutes. He was the first player to score 50 goals in a season, scoring number 50 in the 50th and final game of the 1945 season. He was also the first player to score 500 career goals. Always playing with style and skill, The Rocket retired after scoring the 1960 Stanley Cup winning goal, sealing his 8th Cup victory. The intensity displayed by The Rocket every night was contagious, affecting both his teammates and the fans. He was at the centre of the most infamous incident in Montreal Canadiens, and possibly, hockey history. On March 13, 1955, Richard got into a fight with Hal Laycoe of the Boston Bruins. A brawl erupted, and in the melee, Richard dropped linesman, Cliff Thompson with a powerful fist to the face. NHL commissioner, Clarence Campbell suspended Richard for the remainder of the regular season and the playoffs. At the next Canadiens’ game, Campbell was pelted with eggs until a tear gas bomb was thrown in his direction. The game was cancelled, and the Detroit Red Wings won via forfeit. As fans spilled onto St. Catharine’s Street, they showed their displeasure by looting and vandalizing shops to the tune of $500,000. The Richard Riot was a showing by the people of Montreal that they would stand by their hero, who had done so much for them. 41 years later, upon the closing of the Montreal Forum, The Rocket received a rousing 16-minute standing ovation, moving the man with the devil in his eyes to tears.

The last of 5 straight Cups came the same year that Jacques Plante changed the face of hockey forever. After being hit in the face by a Andy Bathgate slapshot against the New York Rangers, Plante returned to the ice with a broken nose, and a flimsy leather mask. Canadiens coach Toe Blake was against the idea, thinking the mask obstructed Plante’s view, but as the Habs continued winning games, he wavered. Plante would win his 5th straight Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie.

The 1960 Stanley Cup was the last of 5 straight. It was the end of the Richard era, which made the Canadiens the most dominant franchise in the game. They were not done there, however. Their next Cup would come in 1965, with Lorne “Gump” Worsley backstopping the team to 2 shutouts in the finals. The first ever Conn Smythe Trophy, for playoff MVP, was awarded to Jean Beliveau, who would win a total of 10 Cups with Montreal. Beliveau is second on the all-time list to Maurice Richard’s younger brother, Henri, “the Pocket Rocket,” who won 11 NHL championships, all with the Canadiens.

The 1970s began with a new coach and a new goalie, but the winning ways continued. In 1971, Al MacNeil, the new coach, started a rookie goalie named Ken Dryden in the playoffs. Dryden had only played 6 games in the NHL, but MacNeil had faith in the kid. That faith paid off, as Dryden led the Canadiens to their 17th Stanley Cup championship, winning the Conn Smythe award.

The following season was the beginning of another new era, with the addition of Scotty Bowman as head coach, and the emergence of Guy Lafleur as a superstar and fan favorite. Winning 5 more Cups in the ’70s with Bowman at the helm and Lafleur’s golden hair flying down the wing, the Habs dominated the expansion era of the NHL, the same way they had dominated during pre-expansion.

New dynasties emerged in the 1980s in the form of the New York Islanders and Edmonton Oilers, but the Montreal Canadiens would also have their say. After four straight Stanley Cups by the Islanders opened the decade, the Oilers won two in a row. Then, in 1986, Montreal made it back to the top, defeating the Calgary Flames in 5 games. The Habs were led, once again, by a rookie goaltender. Patrick Roy, who would become one of the greatest goalies in hockey history, became the youngest player to win the Conn Smythe award, at only 20 years old.

The 24th Stanley Cup in team history came in 1993, as Roy once again captured the Conn Smythe, and the Canadiens defeated Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings in 5 games. The Habs won a record 10 overtime games during the playoffs that year, and the finals were immortalized by Marty Mcsorley’s illegal stick penalty late in game 2, which Montreal tied on the power play and won in OT. It also marked the 9th consecutive decade in which the team had won the Cup.

As the Montreal Canadiens take to the ice tonight, in the 100th Anniversary game, and every other night, history is not only being celebrated, but it is being made. Each goal, each win adds to the legend of this team, which has grown from an agreement between two businessmen to the most storied franchise in this or any sport.