Kenora Thistles
Donated in 1892 by Lord Stanley of Preston, the Governor General of Canada, the Stanley Cup was originally awarded to the top amateur team in Canada, who would then accept challenges from the winners of other leagues. From its inception until 1912, the Cup was nearly always won by teams from Montreal, Winnipeg, and Ottawa. In 1903 Ottawa won the Cup, after finishing the season tied for first in the Canadian Amateur Hockey League with the Montreal Victorias. They played a two-game, total-goal series for the league championship. The Montreal Hockey Club, who had held the Cup, finished third in the league and therefore lost the right to keep it.
Traditions and anecdotes associated with the Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup went to Port Dover, Ontario, with Jassen Culimore when the Tampa Bay Lightning won the cup. He was the fourth NHLer to take the cup to this small hockey town on the shore of Lake Erie. It went to Simcoe, Ontario with Rob Blake when the Colorado Avalanche won the cup. A parade was held in his honor, and a private party was thrown for family and friends. Assistant Coach Colin Campbell took it to his hometown Tillsonburg, Ontario after the New York Rangers won in 1994. Daniel Cleary took the Cup to his hometown of Harbour Grace, Newfoundland. As the first Newfoundlander to win the Cup, he attracted an estimated crowd of 27,000 to the tiny community of just over 3,000. The Cup went to the top of Fisher Peak, near Cranbrook, British Columbia and the top of Mt. Elbert in Colorado. Brad Richards from Murray Harbour, Prince Edward Island took the Stanley Cup out on a fishing boat after the Tampa Bay Lightning won the cup. It went to an Aboriginal Métis Nation Settlement, and it went to an igloo in Rankin Inlet. It served as the engagement ring bearer for the Tampa Bay Lightning's André Roy while in a helicopter flown by Guy Lafleur.