12/21/24
August 26, 2003
What has the Stanley Cup been up to in the offseason? The usual. Parades. TV appearances. A rally. Museum opening. A day spent with each New Jersey Devils team member for typical jaunts to the cottage for some volleyball and golf and less typical jaunts for ice cream and poutine. And of course there was also that adventurous trip to Slovakia... (props to the Hockey Pundits)
Good thing the coolest trophy in sport isn't named The Right Honourable Sir Frederick Arthur Stanley, Earl of Derby, Baron Stanley of Preston, in the County of Lancaster, in the peerage of Great Britain, Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath's Cup. That would be silly.
posted by garfield at 09:57 AM on August 26, 2003
Ah the cup - nothing like a professional sports trophy that can take the beer, puke, champagne, dog food, cocaine, poutine, newborns, and naure's elements. A representation of all that is good in sports. It's way better than playing for an abstract reference in a book somewhere. This was covered before, I'll stop.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 01:18 PM on August 26, 2003
The one they carry around today is a replica: "In 1964 the small football-sized bowl atop the gleaming cup was removed from its base by a Montreal silversmith by the name of Carl Petersen. Mr. Petersen, over the course of several weeks, made an exact duplicate of Lord Stanley’s original bowl. Petersen’s artistry was so perfect, so precise, that when the new bowl was finished, no one noticed for several years that it was a duplicate. There was a valid reason for the change, and the secrecy was not premeditated. The original bowl was getting on in years. It was fragile and might easily be cracked or broken. And so an exact replica was fashioned and installed while the original bowl was removed to the Hockey Hall of Fame where it rests in a locked vault." I wish they hadn't done that. From here, BTW.
posted by Samsonov14 at 02:01 PM on August 26, 2003
Yeah well, puke can tarnish silver pretty easily. Just a little practicality. And most of the cup still remains original.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 04:15 PM on August 26, 2003
I don’t know, Weedy. Considering that the cup itself is a replica, and the oldest engraved band with player and team names is removed and retired to the Hall of Fame every 13 years when a new band is added, there ain’t a lot left that’s original.
posted by Samsonov14 at 04:40 PM on August 26, 2003
a timeless metaphysical debate. please, do continue.
posted by garfield at 04:42 PM on August 26, 2003
the original thing was pretty much just a bowl, no? so when they replaced that the originalness was gone. the design has expanded and some of it might be pretty old but I don't know if there is anything still in use that is truly what The Right Honourable Sir Frederick Arthur Stanley, Earl of Derby, Baron Stanley of Preston, in the County of Lancaster, in the peerage of Great Britain, Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath bought.
posted by gspm at 05:16 PM on August 26, 2003
He just bought the bowl. It's taken many decades to make the cup what it is today - and so far only one band has been removed. I don't know about you - but when I think cup, I think of the bowl with the bands. That's what makes it so great - it's history is constantly growing and changing. It's not static like all the other piddling trophies out there. Incidently - Garfield, Calgary sucks. I'm pilgramiging to Kingston this weekend. Mmmm.... Toucan/Dong Nai. They better be there. Or I'm buring the town to the ground.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 10:13 AM on August 27, 2003
You steppin, Weedy? I hope not. Calgary rocks! Though without a Wok-In, something essential to a man's happiness is missing. Oh yeah, remember to have a Kilkenny for me. I can't find that beer down stateside for the life of me: literally, that stuff is my ambrosia!
posted by garfield at 10:42 AM on August 27, 2003
Weedy, "The rings that comprise the base of the Cup are eventually retired to make room for new teams. Older rings are retired to the Hockey Hall of Fame (before we start calling it The Stanley Missile) where all but one of the original rings remain. (One legend says that that missing ring was stolen by a Canadien who melted it into a trophy for Montreal coach Toe Blake. That ring was supposedly targeted because it had the names of the 1929-30 Boston Bruins.) The Cup has five rings connected, each with room for 13 teams, so if you're lucky enough to get your name on the Cup, your name will stay on the Cup for 64 years. Not trying to bust your balls, bub, just trying to stop the spread of misinformation. None of the cup is original, nor are the rings.
posted by Samsonov14 at 12:02 PM on August 27, 2003
Ow. My balls. I really should read up of this stuff, instead of trying to remember it. Well done Protecctor of Hockey Truths. I still think the living history of the Cup is what makes it attractive and unique - so that point still stands (must... grasp... straw...). Stanley Missle - that is funny.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 03:11 PM on August 27, 2003
Weedy! 1.The TOUCAN! Quiet about that or you'll make me jealous. 2. Don't knock Calgary. Be indifferent, but don't knock it.
posted by gspm at 03:30 PM on August 27, 2003
I meant the Flames - not the city. Sorry - Garfield is a huge Flames fan. And he dissed my puke debate.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 03:59 PM on August 27, 2003
No diss was ever dispersed. It just reminded me of first year Epistemology: when is your bike no longer your bike after parts begin to be replaced? There is no answer. Ah, philosophy, the wisdom to know you don't know dick. Damn, I forgot about 1/2 price wing night. Dinner and a Kilkenny for $6. And don't forget the Wok-In. I've driven 6 hours for that pad thai.
posted by garfield at 04:10 PM on August 27, 2003
I won't forget. I can taste the number 13 already - because my mouth is still burning 3 years after eating it.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 09:40 AM on August 28, 2003
Bull-busting, beer and a toucan not readily affiliated with breakfast cereals. How can anyone say SpoFi is on the decline?
posted by wfrazerjr at 10:35 AM on August 28, 2003
Except for those of us who type "bull" when we mean "ball."
posted by wfrazerjr at 10:36 AM on August 28, 2003
Damn. Started thinking about Kingston and thought of Stooley's. I could sure go for one of their burgers now. Well yeah, after some Wok-In.
posted by gspm at 12:16 PM on August 28, 2003
ah, those chicken soup powder encrusted fries. yummy.
posted by garfield at 12:40 PM on August 28, 2003
sorry wfrazerjr, just a little impromptu Kingston love.
posted by garfield at 12:41 PM on August 28, 2003
As long as that ain't the same as Greek love, I'm down. I really, REALLY hope, however, that a "Stooley's" is not the name of somewhere or something you put in your mouth. Yuck.
posted by wfrazerjr at 01:56 PM on August 28, 2003
A Stooley burger does sound like what you make when you crap your pants.
posted by garfield at 02:15 PM on August 28, 2003
Kingston and Hockey (just to be somewhat on topic) I once watched a game between Queen's and RMC down on the harbour. They were commemorating the first intercollegiate match or some such. They had on the old style uniforms (think rugby shirts and those pants Payne Stewart wore) and used old style pucks (fragile) and old style sticks (short little hooked things). That was pretty neat.
posted by gspm at 03:27 PM on August 28, 2003
Wow - Kingston seriously repping on SpoFi. Crazy. Gspm, glad to see your kieeping the K-Town proper in Edinborough, too.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 04:04 PM on August 28, 2003
Is this what the kids call representing? I don't like it! Now get off my lawn!
posted by wfrazerjr at 04:14 PM on August 28, 2003
Did I make a mistake in my first comment? I see that it links to the user pages when I had (was it changed by the mods or had I merely meant to do so but made a mistake?) linked (in good nature) to previous Salamacis and squealy comments running down the Cup. from Squealy: No one gives a fuck from Salamacis: ugly piece of shit You know, just to save them the trouble of participating in the thread.
posted by gspm at 04:51 AM on August 29, 2003
Cue the salamcis or squealy cup of Cup hatorade...