Prior to 1995, NHL players had their only substantial moment with the Stanley Cup on the ice after they’d won it all and aside from a few events and the championship parade, many did not get to spend time with hockey’s ultimate prize; the physical manifestation of their hard work and sacrifice. However, that all changed with the development of a program that would allow players and staff to have one day to do as they wish with the iconic trophy.

Author Jim Lang sat down with several players and asked them to speak about their twenty-four hours with The Stanley Cup and how they chose to celebrate with family and friends.

This book is a lot of the same thing from start to finish. I loved the idea and the approach, but there isn’t much in the way of originality with respect to how players spend their day with The Cup. Last summer, my wife and I attended an event where the athletic trainer for the Las Vegas Golden Knights had his day with the cup here in Ottawa. To celebrate, he filled the cup with Golden Palace Egg Rolls and also held an event to raise money for Ottawa West Little League. That’s more or less the extent of many of these stories – a player either holds an event for charity, takes The Cup to a place that is special to him, drinks a lot of alcohol, or spends the day with family and friends while he looks over the names of his heroes etched in the rings.

There are a few fun stories (Vinnie Paul’s legendary Dallas party is a standout), but after a while, it began to feel dull. No disrespect is intended to those who worked hard to win The Cup or Lang’s effort to put together a history of championship celebrations, it’s just that the stories weren’t overly interesting. I’m not sure what I expected, but perhaps a bit more variety.