1892: Lord Stanley, Governor General of Canada is drinking champagne one night and decides it would be a good idea if there was a silver cup to be held year by year and to be awarded to the best hockey team in what was known as the Dominion of Canada. He walks into a store something similar to Birk's and purchases a silver cup for ten guineas; equivalent to fifty dollars at that time.
1893: The first Montreal team in Canada known as the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association celebrates their win by becoming the first team to be awarded the silver bowl. At the time of presentation it was called The Challenge Cup, but someone, who was not wearing a helmet, decided to Christian it The Stanley Cup. Smart thinking boys!
1910: The bureaucracy starts and the cup is now only awarded exclusively to pro teams!
1914 to 1918: First World War -- Approximately 60,000 Canadians and 118,000 Americans lost their lives. But Stanley hails on and in those four years Stanley made its round and the champagne flowed from the silver bowl to: the Vancouver Millionaires; the Canadiens; the Seattle Metropolitain (the first time Stanley went South accompanied by the first American Cup champions) and then, the following year, Toronto Arenas brought it back home.
1919: Spanish influenza invades the world! 20 to 40 million are killed worldwide. And for the very first time in history, Stanley stays with the Toronto Arenas. There was a final series, between the Canadiens (who else!
) and the Seattle Metropolitans, but did not end after several players are infected with the bug, nope...what ended the series was that a player had died. 1927: National Hockey League (NHL) is born! More bureaucracy! They take control and kidnap Stanley - but they don't own it!
1939: Germany has too much power and causes chaos in the world! Canada has dropped the Dominion of from their name but are still British subjects. The cost of the German invasion caused economical disaster for Britain, as well as Canada, and so we tramped off to kill a few men. Stanley is still travelling around two continents for the next five years.
1947: Legal jargon allows the NHL to declare that they now are owners of Stanley.
1967: Canada celebrates its Bi-Centennial and NHL decides to expand thinking it's cheaper by the dozen going from six teams to twelve in the league.
1994 to 1995: If the NHL were the president of the United States, the 100 day period would be very trying. The suits lock out the players for 100 days, but somehow heads unlocked and there was time to salvage the short series. The New Jersey Devils steal the series from the Detroit Red Wings.
2004: The dispute arises, players are locked out again and this time it is clear that the managers are worried about cost certainties and players are disputing the salary cap clause. Alberta steps in by the way of three farmers who start a website: Free Stanley www.freestanley.com/ and start a movement to try and bring Stanley back to the public out of the clutches of the bureaucrats at the NHL. A month after creating their cyberworld, it was recorded that they had 70,00 hits.
2005: Business Week has took it upon their credit to name NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman one of the worst corporate managers of the year. Hope for a season is definitely fading.
Live from New York City!
Player's associaton president Trevor Lindon faces the camera.
"We apologize to our Canadian fans, because here in America it won't change our lives. But to our fellow Canadian fans, we apologize to you, there will not be a Stanley Cup Series this season!"
Adding your comment:
Hockey is a HUGE sport where I hail from. The team I cheer (Buffalo Sabres)...well I do not think they have ever won the Stanley Cup... but it doesn't matter because it is a thirst for Hockey that feeds the frenzy! Now...with the lockout... amateur teams, college teams and yes, even high scholl teams are drawing huge crowds of people who are itching for the game! So... professional hockey, the corporate greed can stuff their beauroctaric bull*it!!! Those who are fans of the sport do not need pro-hockey to indulge themselves. I fugure... if they keep it up...when they do settle things... they will not only have lost money... but their fans will have already found another comfortable hockey scene to perch their a*es and cheer for people who still play the game for the love of it!
s...~genielassie~
8 old applause
