When members of the 1993 Montreal Canadiens gathered for a reunion to commemorate 30 years since they won the Stanley Cup, they told stories and reminisced about the championship run.
Vincent Damphousse, their leading scorer that postseason, had plenty to share but also had forgotten so much. It has, after all, been three decades since he and his teammates defeated Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings to lift the Cup for the franchiseB次元官网网址檚 NHL-record 24th time.
Not only has Montreal not won it again since, but neither has any other team based in Canada B次元官网网址� a drought the at 31 years by winning Game 7 at the Florida Panthers on Monday night.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 our sport and itB次元官网网址檚 important for a Canadian team to do well,B次元官网网址� Damphousse told The Associated Press by phone over the weekend. B次元官网网址淟ook at the city, look at the country. EverybodyB次元官网网址檚 watching, and it keeps everybody engaged and watching games.B次元官网网址�
This is by far the longest stretch between Canadian Cup wins. Before this, it was a six-year span between the Montreal Maroons in 1935 and the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1942, who the Oilers are looking to follow as the only teams in a final and come all the way back.
B次元官网网址淭his series has been great for hockey,B次元官网网址� said Brian Bellows, who was tied as MontrealB次元官网网址檚 third-leading scorer with 15 points in 20 games during the B次元官网网址�93 playoffs. B次元官网网址淓veryone loves a Game 7.B次元官网网址�
The 1972 Miami Dolphins, as the only NFL team to complete a perfect season and win it all, have a tradition of popping bottles of sparkling wine to celebrate each year when the last remaining undefeated team loses. Nothing of the sort happens for the B次元官网网址�93 Habs.
Damphousse, now an ambassador for the Canadiens, feels for those north of the 49th parallel who have not drank from the Cup.
B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檙e tough markets to be successful in,B次元官网网址� Damphousse said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 been tough. There have been rebuilds and good years and bad years and IB次元官网网址檓 hoping for a success story in Canada, for sure. I donB次元官网网址檛 wish any bad luck on the Canadian teams.B次元官网网址�
It has been a string of bad luck and many other things, including near-misses. Four times since, a Canadian team reached Game 7 and lost, including Vancouver the next year against the New York Rangers, followed by Calgary to Tampa Bay in 2004, Edmonton to Carolina in B次元官网网址�06 and the Canucks getting back and falling short at home against Boston in B次元官网网址�11.
Kirk Muller, who was second in scoring to Damphousse in the regular season and playoffs in B次元官网网址�93, would have been stunned at the time to think that no one from Canada would have won it all in the next 31 years.
B次元官网网址淥bviously, youB次元官网网址檙e living in the moment and all that, but certainly everybodyB次元官网网址檚 aware of the drought that itB次元官网网址檚 been,B次元官网网址� Muller said. B次元官网网址淵ou can see the excitement in the country right now, and you can see how quickly it just magnifies across the excitement and you can see that happening in Edmonton right now.B次元官网网址�
The excitement is in anticipation of what would be the OilersB次元官网网址� sixth Stanley Cup championship but the first since 1990, a run of five titles in seven years in which the trophy pretty much lived in Canada. Edmonton won in B次元官网网址�84, B次元官网网址�85, B次元官网网址�87, B次元官网网址�88 and B次元官网网址�90, Montreal in B次元官网网址�86 and Calgary in B次元官网网址�89.
Back then, Canada had seven of the NHLB次元官网网址檚 21 teams. ItB次元官网网址檚 now seven of 32, which along with several other factors explains the dry spell. Damphousse pointed to the salary cap as one impediment, including the tax ramifications compared to some U.S. states that lead to some players asking for more money to compensate and handle the pressure of being in a Canadian market where hockey is such a focal point.
B次元官网网址淕uys are making a bit more to stay on those teams compared to Florida, to Tampa, to Dallas or even Vegas, where thereB次元官网网址檚 different tax (rules),B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚 think thatB次元官网网址檚 what makes it a bit more difficult for the Canadian teams.B次元官网网址�
The Oilers have so far been able to build a contender around and Leon Draisaitl, though the latter of their two cornerstones has just one year left on his contract and major questions await no matter the result.
Until then, Muller has been enjoying taking it all in from afar as an assistant coach with Washington.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e watched lot of playoffs this year,B次元官网网址� Muller said B次元官网网址淵ouB次元官网网址檙e always looking to get better and why are these two teams in the finals and what do they do well that can help your team? And then just purely as a fan, I think the series has been really exciting and I think the playoffs have been really good.B次元官网网址�
It will be a storybook ending either way. The Panthers will bring the Cup to South Florida for the first time in the organizationB次元官网网址檚 history B次元官网网址� which started months after Montreal won. Or the Oilers will end the drought in the most improbable fashion after losing the first three games of the final and rallying to make this an instant classic.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a beautiful series to watch as a fan,B次元官网网址� Damphousse said. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 cheering for Edmonton.B次元官网网址�
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