It’s the first question that pops into a true hockey geeks mind when a team wins a conference final… “Is the captain going to touch the trophy?! OMG It might be bad luck!”
Shirking superstition, Mike Richards hoisted the Prince of Wales trophy without hesitation tonight as the Flyers were crowned Eastern Conference champs. However, just a few days ago Blackhawks captain Jonathon Toews refused to touch the Clarence Campbell trophy the night his team advanced to the Stanley Cup finals…
You may remember that last year Sidney Crosby did touch the trophy and his Pens went on to win the Stanley Cup. The prior he did not and they lost in the finals.
So what is the genesis of this bizarre superstition and does it make sense. There was a great debate held about that very question this week over on Broad Street Hockey.
Why the NBA and NHL does this and the NFL and MLB don’t is a good question. But hockey players are extremely superstitious. They won’t touch the Stanley Cup until they’ve won it, they grow playoff beards (or mullets), and eat grilled cheese before every game. And when one thing isn’t working, they change it. Like Brodeur shaving his beard or Crosby picking up the trophy in 2009 after not touching it and losing the Cup in 2008.
Be sure to check out the full discussion.