Interesting Facts about Professional Hockey’s Coveted Chalice
A quick quiz…who is the Stanley Cup, given every year to the champions of the National Hockey League (NHL), named for?
- Earle Stanley, who adapted the First Nation game initially played on frozen rivers to become what we identify as “hockey”
- Paul Stanley, innovator of the “Saskatchewan slapshot” and one of the legends of the early NHL
- Mickey Stanley, the first commissioner of the National Hockey League
The answer? None of the above. In fact, the Stanley Cup, also referred to as “Lord Stanley’s Cup,” is named after Frederick Arthur, Lord Stanley of Preston, who, as Governor-General of Canada in 1892 purchased the decorative cup on a diplomatic trip to London for 10 guineas (about 1600 pounds or $2,000 in 2024). The inaugural cup was given to the Montreal Hockey Club in 1893. Here are some other fascinating facts about the most coveted cup in Canada.
There Have Been Three Cups in the History of the Stanley Cup
The actual cup brought back by Lord Stanley in 1892 was given every year to the NHL champion, but started to show its age in the 1960s. Fearing that it would be irreparably damaged, NHL officials placed it permanently in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto and created the “Presentation Cup,” which is still awarded in 2024. NHL officials also had a replica fashioned in 1993, to be displayed at the Hall of Fame when the Presentation Cup is unavailable (when it is being awarded to a new champion).
The Cup Remains the Same, But Continually Changes
Most other sports that award a cup craft a new one every year. The NHL doesn’t do that. However, because the names of players, coaches, management and staff of every winning team are etched in the silver of the cup, rings are continually added to the bottom, to accommodate the growing list. By 1948, the cup had become too tall to display or to carry on the ice. It now has tiers, the oldest of which is removed and placed in the Hall of Fame when all the rings become full. Each name takes about a half an hour to etch onto the cup.
The Cup Has Errors on It
Though the engravers strive to ensure the accuracy of all information on the cup, mistakes have been made. For example, the 1980-81 world champions were listed as the New York “Ilanders.” A decade earlier, the champions were the “Bqstqn Bruins.” While most mistakes are left as they are, officials did correct the misspelling of Colorado Avalanche star Adam Deadmarsh’s name—he was listed as “Deadmarch.”
