It's Cup Time, as in Stanley!!!

Yes folks, its the hockey playoffs and my beloved Avalanche have made it to the first round. It is the time of the year when the best of the best begin the hunt for the elusive Stanley Cup! I have been Avalanche fan since they first arrived in Colorado in 1995. In the team's first 10 years in Colorado they went to the playoffs 10 times, won the division title 8 times and won the Stanley Cup twice. I would say that is a very impression feat for an expansion team. By the way their first Stanley Cup win came their first year in Denver. I will have to admit though I have a bit frustrated with the team since 2001 and especially in last couple of years as they have been in a bit of a slump. From losing key players either by free agency or retirement including the best goalie in the NHL (sorry Giguere you don't have anything on Patrick Roy) or the 2004-2005 lockout season the Avs have simply not been the same team! However that all changed in February when we re-acquired Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote and turned our season around. Go Avs! In honor of the playoffs I decided to share some interesting facts about the Cup:

The Stanley Cup awarded annually to the NHL champion, is the most coveted club championship trophy in the world. Commonly referred to as The Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug. Unlike the trophies awarded by the other major professional sports, a new Stanley Cup is not made each year; Cup winners keep it until a new champion is crowned. The original bowl was made of silver and has a dimension of 7.28 inches in height and 11.42 inches in diameter. The current Stanley Cup is made of silver and nickel alloy. It has a height of 35.25 inches and weighs 34.5 lb. The Stanley Cup is the oldest professional sports trophy in North America. The original cup is now housed in the NHL Hall of Fame and a new cup has been made in it place. The players do not touch the cup until it has been presented to the winning team. The cup is first presented to the team captain who then hoists the trophy above their heads and take a lap around the ice rink. The cup is then passed to each player on the team who takes a turn around the rink. (facts, comments, etc courtesy of Wikipedia)

This year was also the first year I got to see the Avalanche live and in person. My Valentine's gift from Matthew this year was to see a Avalanche vs. Ducks game. It was awesome. Our seats were in a great location and there were a lot of Avs fans in the stadium. We had a lot of fun! Check out my slide show above! Good luck to the Avs in their quest for the Cup, let's bring it home!!!