Was The Stanley Cup Left In A Snowbank?
Hockey’s Ultimate Prize
Donated by the Governor General of Canada, Lord Stanley, in 1892, the Stanley Cup has the names of every team (and almost all of the players) who have won it engraved upon it. Now hailed as the holy grail of hockey, the Stanley Cup has had some pretty wild and crazy adventures over the years.
The First Team To Win The Cup
No other sports trophy boasts the history of hockey’s Stanley Cup. It’s the oldest trophy that North American athletes compete for and is awarded to the winner of the National Hockey League. The first to win the cup was Montreal’s Amateur Athletic Association hockey club in 1893.
The Winning Team Gets To Keep The Cup
The Cup also has something else that sets it apart from the other awards, because members of the winning team can take the Cup home with them. Most of the time the Stanley Cup is treated with reverence, but boys will be boys, so accidents do happen.
Used As A Dog Bowl
Of course the Cup gets paraded down Main Streets, but it’s also the guest of honor in man caves, at backyard barbecues, weddings and celebrations at local pubs. It’s been used as a baptismal font, a flower pot, a urinal and a toilet. It’s been in strip clubs, used as a dog food bowl, traveled by dogsled, eaten from by a Kentucky Derby winner and misplaced by airlines.
Drop Kicked Into The Rideau Canal
The cup has even shared a bed with a hockey player and his wife and a birth is said to have resulted from a wife kissing it. Why, in a moment of frustration it was drop kicked into Ottawa’s Rideau Canal (fortunately the canal was frozen solid).
Held For Ransom
In 1907 the cup was stolen from a photographer’s home and held for ransom. The thief returned it when no one showed interest in it being returned.
Left In A Snowbank
In 1924, the Montreal Canadiens actually left the Cup in a snowbank and it’s even gone swimming. While other sports awards sit in dimly lit stuffy halls, hockey’s Stanley Cup is most definitely the ‘peoples’ cup’. So, the answer to whether or not it was true or false that it was abandoned in a pile of snow, is that it’s true.
The Stanley Cup is one of the most prestigious trophies in professional ice hockey. It is awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) team that wins the playoffs, which are known as the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Key details about the Stanley Cup:
History:
The Cup’s history dates back to 1892 when it was established by Sir Frederick Arthur Stanley, Lord Stanley of Preston. He was the Governor General of Canada and wanted to create a championship trophy for Canada’s top-ranking amateur ice hockey club.
Structure:
The Stanley Cup is made of silver and consists of a bowl and five bands. The bands are engraved with the names of the winning teams, with the oldest bands displayed at the bottom.
Championship:
To win the Stanley Cup, an NHL team must navigate the grueling Stanley Cup playoffs, which involve series of elimination rounds among the top-seeded teams from the Eastern and Western Conferences. The final two teams from each conference face off in the Stanley Cup Final, where the winner claims the trophy.
Traditions:
There are various traditions associated with the Stanley Cup, including the winning team’s players taking turns skating with the cup, hoisting it overhead, and celebrating their victory. Each player also gets to spend a day with the Cup during the off-season, engaging in personal celebrations or public events.
The Stanley Cup is not only a symbol of hockey excellence but also embodies a rich history and tradition within the sport, making it highly revered among players, fans and the hockey community.
