The Stanley Cup - "Interesting Stuff about Hockey to write about while the Husband watches it"

I know you have heard about it.   But - what is it?

The Stanley Cup is the *Holy Grail* of the Hockey World. 

the first Stanley Cup Champions (Montreal) with the original Cup -seemingly just thrown on the floor 

First donated  in 1892 by Lord Stanley Preston - the Governor General* of Canada appointed by Queen Victoria -  as an award for the top amateur hockey team in the league after catching "hockey fever"  when exposed to the sport during his tenure.

the Stanley Cup as it is today

It became the official trophy for the NHL in 1947.

The original award was a simple silver/nickel plate punch bowl made in Sheffield, England - purchased for under $49 USD  ($1,186 today) which now sits on top of a pyramid of bases. 

Each year, the names of the players and management from the winning team are added to it.    The same trophy is used from year to year and relinquished at the end of the season when the new victor claims the coveted prize.

The dreams of kids all over Canada...playing in the NHL and winning the Stanley Cup



Since 1914 there have been only 2 years that the Trophy was not awarded.  

The first time was during the Spanish Flu outbreak of 1918 - for the 1919 season, when it is estimated that 50 - 100 million people died - definitely more than the feared swine flu.  The season was cancelled to prevent further spread of the deadly virus.

The second time was during the 2005 NHL Lockout - the dispute between the owners and the players' union, which led to the cancellation of the 2004-2005 season.  This almost killed the avid hockey fans.

The Stanley Cup "stovepipe form"  in the 1940s before the redesign

Interesting Trivia About The STANLEY CUP

-The height of the Cup is a smidgen under one yard....the weight is just under 35 lbs. 

-It is interesting to note that the Trophy's engravings have numerous spelling errors, misprints, corrections and one illegitimate name. Some of the errors  include the spelling of "Boston" as "Bqstqn",  theToronto Maple Leafs spelled "Leaes" - and "New York Islanders" -  engraved as "Ilanders".  Who did the "spell check"?

-Jean Beliveau has his name on the most number of times - SEVENTEEN times -  10 times as a player and 7 times as management....and Henri Richard as the player on the most winning teams - 11 times.

-Twelve women have had their name engraved on the cup - as management or owners.  Only one of them is Canadian.

Hayden Panettiere licks it rather than drinking champagne from it

-Since 1896 - it is tradition to drink champagne from the Cup itself.

-Since 1950 it is customary for the Winning Team's Captain to take the first victorious lap around the rink -  first done to give the fans a better view of the Trophy.  It is now tradition that each member of the team to follow suit -  the Cup hoisted over their head.



-The Stanley Cup Winning team is allotted 100 days in which they are allowed to pass it around - placing it in a place of honor in parades or allowing  fans to touch it.   

In our town just this past year, the Stanley Cup was put on display in a local bank, allowing the public to have their photo taken with it.  There must have been a lineup of hundreds down the street!

2006 - Wounded US Marines pose with the Stanley Cup with Glen Wesley, a Canadian player now retired and living in the USA

Each team member gets it for a day.

Some players do some bizarre things with it, some of which includes baptizing their children out of the bowl - or allowing their dogs to eat out of it (only in L.A.!!). 

Glen Wesley, (pictured above -in the orange shirt) took it to a Marine Corp base camp then the beach - to his church and then served his family a sundae from it.

The Stanley Cup gets attention from the President

In 2004 the Stanley Cup was put on display at the McDill Airforce Base near Tampa Florida.  A young Staff Sergeant from Massachusetts couldn't bring himself to leave after having his picture taken with it.  His mother was a nurse in the early '70s and he remembers her taking him to meet all the Hockey team and being allowed to touch that same Cup.   "This is the reason I am here" he stated.

In 2007 it was taken to a NATO base in Kandahar, Afghanistan where it was involved in a a rocket propelled grenade attack - emerging unscathed. 

A second trip to Afghanistan was made  in 2008.

- There are 3 Stanley Cups. 
1. The Original Bowl, last awarded in 1970 and now sits in the Hockey Hall of Fame Vault Room in Toronto Ontario - on display.
2.  The authenticated "Presentation Cup" - the actual replica awarded at games - created in 1963, and kept "secret" until 3 years later.  You can see the seal of the Hockey Hall of Fame on the bottom when hoisted at games.
3.  In 1993 the "Replica Cup" was created as a stand-in at the Hockey Hall of Fame when the Presentation Cup is absent.

Peter Pocklington, owner of the Oilers - put his father's name on the Cup in 1983 when he shouldn't have - you can see the xxxxxx that strikes it out

The Presentation Cup and the Replica are almost identical and the only true way to tell them apart is to look at the strike-out of the Pocklington name on the Presentation Cup.

Stanley Cup Cupcakes

Now, just in case you want to know more about the Stanley Cup - here is a website where you can quiz yourself on Trivia about the Holy Grail.

I can vouch that it can pass the time quite nicely, as everyone else watches the playoffs.


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*Governor General of Canada - is the "official" Queen's representative while absent from her commonwealth.  The G-G is a Canadian who represents the figurehead -  a tradition within Britains colonies since the 17th century -  basically, the Queen's stand-in for official duties.  It is primarily a ceremonial role.