How do stanley cup finals work

There are so many traditions that go with the Stanley Cup Playoffs as a whole that just overshadow every other sport's playoffs, in my opinion. First, the Stanley Cup is the only trophy in all of professional sports that is awarded directly to the players first. It is first awarded to the captain of the winning team, who then shares it with each of his teammates. It is one of the most purely emotional moments that you will ever witness.

The owners, the GM and the coaching staff all have to wait until after each one of the players has had their chance to hoist the cup and skate it. Second, the skating of the Stanley Cup is something that is completely unique to the sport of hockey. No other sport has the players take their championship trophy, hoist it for the crowd to see and just celebrate.

Every single one of those players did it a thousand times when they were a kid playing hockey, and you get to see that child come out again when they do it for real. Third, the post-series handshake is another one that I just love to see in hockey. No other sport has anything like it when both teams line up and shake hands to honor the guys they have been battling with night after night for up to seven games. Plus, when you win the Stanley Cup you get your name engraved on the Stanley Cup, so that everybody from that point on can see that you were a champion.

You are a part of history, forever. The best tradition of all, in my mind, is that each player that wins the Stanley Cup gets to spend a day with the Cup and do pretty much anything that he wants with it. It has found its way into pools, strip clubs and rivers.

It has had children baptized in it, been bathed in and had cereal eaten out of it. The Stanley Cup has been more places and seen more sites than most human beings ever will. No other trophy even leaves the front office of the franchise that wins it. Enjoy our content? Join our newsletter to get the latest in sports news delivered straight to your inbox! Your sports. The most heart-stopping, enthralling and — if you're a fan of a team in the chase — nerve-wracking playoffs will begin Saturday when the Capitals host the Bruins.

Things are a little different this year — if you didn't already notice from the Capitals and the Bruins matching up in the first round. There will not be a Western Conference or Eastern Conference champion and the playoffs are structured differently, which we'll delve into in a bit.

The one familiar thing this year is that the road to lifting Lord Stanley's Cup will be a long and winding one but the end will taste oh, so sweet. Who will be the ones to drink from sports' greatest trophy? Only time will tell. Until then, below you'll find everything to know about watching the NHL playoffs, including series-by-series TV schedules and live streaming information. David Amber and Ron McLean will be the studio anchors and will be joined by a rotating crew of analysts and insiders.

Vitajte na NHL. Willkommen auf NHL. Bienvenido a NHL. As has been the case since , 16 teams will qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The format now is a set bracket that is largely division-based with wild cards. More FS Atlantic News ». View all Atlantic Sites. More Metropolitan News ». More FS Metropolitan News ». View all Metropolitan Sites. More Central News ».

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