(To see the series through my eyes, check out my Stanley Cup Flickr Photoset.)
I left work around 5pm yesterday, after getting pretty much nothing accomplished all day. The ticket to Game 7 was burning a hole in my pocket, and as I’d written earlier, I didn’t like our chances. The Canes looked beaten Saturday night in Edmonton, and were getting physically dominated by the stronger Oilers team. I hit a local sushi place for dinner to calm myself, then rode out to the RBC around 7:30 to finally get the game on. I’d tried to adhere to the “lucky fan” code and recreate my daily habits that led to wins. Stupid things like wearing shorts to the arena (did it in Games 1&2, not in 5) and driving my car with both flags affixed to the back windows (ditto). Holly also raised my spirits by calling to say that she’d found her lucky Hurricanes earrings that had vanished from their storage spot earlier in the series. Things were looking up.
Outside the arena was fairly quiet – seemed like nerves. The fans on both sides knew that anything goes in Game 7. But inside the building, it was a different story. The fans were nuts. Loud, animated, even beyond the normal Hurricanes playoff crowd. I arrived during warmups, and the arena (which is usually sparsely populated until near faceoff time due to the tailgaters hanging outside) was already pretty full. And again, the place was rocking. That was a good sign, and started to remove a few of my worries. And in an odd bit of TicketMaster-Fu, the seats I bought ended up being directly beside my next door neighbor. That was a good sign as well.
The theme for the game was “Nobody sits tonight!” and it was followed. I saw very few people sitting except for during TV timeouts. The crowd was cheering everything the Hurricanes did, and they had plenty to cheer about. Carolina was laying Oilers out, something they had failed to do for a good two games. The Oilers seemed stunned that Carolina hadn’t rolled over, and seemed to be coming off their game. Sure, they were hitting, but the Hurricanes popped right back up and hit back. Carolina’s speed was on, and their passing was crisp. The defense excelled at stopping plays and sending the puck back to the Edmonton end, forcing the Oilers to make the long skate over and over.
And in an absolute rarity for us, Carolina scored the first goal less than two minutes in off of a laser by Aaron Ward. I’m not going to look up the stats, but that almost never happens. The first period ended 1-0 Carolina, and I was liking what I saw. It was like Game 6 never happened – the team was playing like they wanted it. Taking Joe Vasicek (“Bless his heart”) off the ice in favor of scrapper Chad LaRose was a good move, and one that helped provide that spark. We almost had another one as Craig Adams appeared to score, but in a weird play, an Oiler appeared to cover the puck either in the crease or over the goal line. One ref signaled for a penalty shot, the other for a delayed penalty. After a good 5-10 minutes of review, the call was “no goal.” The reasoning being that there was a delayed penalty on Edmonton, and when the puck was batted out of the air right before it was covered in the crease, that ended play before the penalty shot could be called. We were hoping that wouldn’t come back to bite us. Heading over to 328, Jack and Roger both agreed that we were playing well. Carolina had doubled Edmonton on shots in the period, 10-5, and Edmonton was the one back on its heels.
The second period continued the strong Carolina play. Frank Kaberle rocketed another blue line shot past Markkanen to make it 2-0 Carolina, with the requisite Will Ferrell “Frank The Tank” video montage. Speaking of that, minor celebrities in the audience included actors Tim Robbins and Cuba Gooding Jr., another appearance by Kid Rock, and of course The Nature Boy, Ric Flair. We got a little nervous when Nic Wallin took a penalty then, right off the faceoff, Aaron Ward got called for shooting the puck into the seats. We thought it’d been tipped. So we were looking at 1:56 of 5-on-3. Fortunately, playing hard behind the net, Carolina was able to draw a penalty from Ryan Smyth for hooking, leading to him slamming his stick to the ice in frustration and a more managable 4-on-3 disadvantage. Carolina killed it off and went into the break up 2-0. Carolina was able to use their speed advantage to force the Oilers into taking penalties – at the end of the second, Carolina’d had three penalties called (including the delay of game), and Edmonton had five (four of which were interference-type calls and one high stick).
At the break, we agreed that Carolina needed to continue playing strong, and not revert into the “prevent” defense that doomed them in Game 5.
I was heading back to my seat at the start of the 3rd when I heard booing, and found out it was an Edmonton goal by Fernando Pisani (who had an amazing playoff run), cutting the deficit to 2-1. Suddenly that disallowed goal was looking more crucial. Edmonton roared back in the 3rd, throwing everything they had at Carolina to get to overtime. They got the only power play of the period 12 minutes in as the refs put the whistles away, but couldn’t convert. They had a scary chance with about 4:00 left as Cam Ward made a save, but the rebound scooted to the other side of the crease where an Oiler was waiting. He looked to bury it, but Ward did a split and got the toe of his pads on the puck and sent it away. I headed from my ticketed seats in 304 over to my normal section of 328 with about 2:00 left. Edmonton pulled the goalie with a minute and a half left, but Eric Staal got control of the puck and fed Justin Williams heading up-ice. The enduring memory will be Chris Pronger trying to hook Williams from behind to stop the empty-netter, but failing and falling flat on his face as Williams buried the puck into the goal for a 3-1 lead. At that point, we knew it was over, and as the seconds ticked off the clock, the place got louder. There was some rough stuff with matching minors with :20 left, but it just prolonged the inevitible, and as the clock hit 0:00, the confetti flew.
Many tears were shed as we, the fans of the Hurricanes, oft-derided as hicks who don’t know a wrist shot from a wristwatch, people who won’t support a team (ignoring the rising attendance numbers and the explosion of new ice rinks in the area), whose team is still referred to in the national media as “Hartford”, realized what just happened. We reached the top of the mountain. The Cup was ours. For guys like Jack Spencer, who made the two-plus-hour round trip to Greensboro for two seasons, it had to be especially sweet. I moved to Raleigh in 1999, at the very tail end of the Greensboro days, and was in the building for the first Hurricanes game in Raleigh. I called Holly on my cell and just held the phone up so she could hear the crowd and the public address announcer.
As far as amazing life events, it ranks behind the wedding and Hayley’s birth, but before college graduation. Losing the Cup in 5 to Detroit in 2002, in retrospect, was a great thing. It primed the area’s appreciation for hockey, while reminding us that the Cup isn’t easy to win. I fully realize I may never see it lifted by the red and black again in my lifetime. So I stood there in 328, hugging friends and strangers alike, and soaking in the memories.
Fittingly for a team that has tried to provide a family atmosphere throughout the season, players’ families flooded the ice after the win. Kids, wives, parents, all were out there to share in the celebration.
The Conn Smythe came out first, and went to Cam Ward. I thought it was a good call, though it was close between him and Brind’Amour (Cory Stillman was 3rd on my mental ballot). Brindy was the leader and provided the backbone for the team, but you can say that Cam Ward alone won us several games we needed to advance this far. Good going, rook.
Then, it was time to bring out the cup. You can get a sense of what it was like by checking out the low-quality movie recorded on my digital camera. The Cup was amazing. Coming down the red carpet, it seemed to glow with an internal light. It was beautiful. NHL Commish Gary Betteman said a few words that nobody paid attention to, the Rod Brind’Amour lifted it above his head. The audience roared – it was time for the skatearound. Fittingly, Glen Wesley, the last remaining Whaler on the team, who had the longest span without ever winning a Cup of any active player, got it next. Doug Weight got a shot in his shoulder in the 3rd period (“Edmonton scored right after, so I thought I’d jinxed us”) held it aloft, though he could barely get his right arm over his head.
Finally, after the Cup pass-around, the players circled the ice saluting the fans. Awesome. A few team photos later, and the players continued to celebrate. I didn’t want to go. But I would have looked foolish sitting in an empty arena by myself, so I went out to the party area and band out on the front lawn. I hung out there for about 45 minutes, soaking in the atmosphere, high-fiving Canes fans, and shaking hands with Oilers fans. Then it was the ride back to Fuquay, sharing a glass of “sparkling non-alcoholic cider” with my pregnant wife, and talking about the game until around 2am.
It was a magical experience.
Time for shoutouts. First, to my Stanley Cup game guests – Mark Cornick (Game 1), my beautiful wife Holly (Game 2), and my dad Larry (Game 5). Thanks for being a part of the ride.
Next, to the aforementioned Holly, who is as passionate of a hockey fan as I’ve seen. Having her for a wife makes being a fan fun.
A nod to the also aforementioned Mr. Cornick, for accurately calling Canes in 7. Bravo, sir.
Huge thanks to my main man in Ontario, Mike Patterson, who made my Stanley Cup bet with me. An Oilers fan, it was great to see our faith in our teams rewarded when nobody picked either team to even compete in the preseason. Let’s do this again in 2007, same teams, same result. 
And I’m looking forward to my fine Canuckian prizes, and seeing your red and black blog for a week.
Lots of respect to the Edmonton fans who came down to Raleigh. They were, to a one, smart, fun, and polite. Seriously a great group of people who did the Oilers, the city of Edmonton, and Canada justice. They’re welcome back in our house any time.
A standing ovation to the Oilers team. A #8 seed running through three higher-ranked seeds in the postseason? Convincingly? Losing their top goalie and pushing the #2 in the East to seven games? Amazing. They had one hell of a run and, with their young guys and this playoff experience, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a sixth Cup in their future within the next 2-3 years.
And Finally, a collective one to the Hurricanes players, management, and fans. Section 328 tells me that “Cheaters Never Win,” and this team didn’t cheat. Jim Rutherford made shrewd moves, picking up players that nobody wanted (Cory Stillman) and finding bargain players who had career years (Matt Cullen). Peter Laviolette found a system that suited both his players and the New NHL, and stuck with it. Rod Brind’Amour took the team on his back and proved himself every bit the leader Ron Francis was. And both the dedicated Hurricanes fans who showed up every night, and the people who have just realized what a great sport we have in Raleigh, were a credit all season long.
To see the series through my eyes, check out my Stanley Cup Flickr Photoset.
I can’t believe the season is over, but we’re only 10 or 12 weeks away from the start of 06-07.
“Defending Stanley Cup Champion Carolina Hurricanes” – I like the sound of that.
