Hurricanes Leave Prince Of Wales Trophy Untouched After 6-1 Win
The Carolina Hurricanes left the prince of wales trophy untouched after a 6-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 5 on Friday, and that choice carried them into the Stanley Cup Final. They will face the Vegas Golden Knights for the Cup, with Game 1 set for Tuesday at Lenovo Center in Raleigh.
Jordan Staal Keeps His Hands Off
Jordan Staal received the trophy from NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly and did not touch it before posing for photos with his teammates. The decision matched a familiar Hurricanes habit in this round of the playoffs, and it came after they clinched the Eastern Conference with a three-goal cushion in Game 5.
Staal’s choice also linked this team to its own history. Rod Brind'Amour did not touch the trophy when he was captain in 2006, the last time Carolina won the Stanley Cup, and the club is now back in that position after its first title run in 18 years.
Carolina’s Trophy History
The Hurricanes have already lived both sides of this ritual. In 2002, captain Ron Francis picked up the Prince of Wales Trophy, and Carolina later lost the Stanley Cup Final to the Detroit Red Wings in five games. Four years later, Brind'Amour passed on the trophy and the Hurricanes beat the Edmonton Oilers in seven games for their only Cup.
The rest of the league’s recent history cuts both ways. The Florida Panthers did not touch the trophy in each of the past two seasons and won the Stanley Cup, while the Tampa Bay Lightning touched it in 2020, 2021 and 2022, won the Cup in 2020 and 2021, and lost the 2022 Final to the Colorado Avalanche in six games.
Prince Of Wales Trophy Trends
The pattern reaches back well beyond Carolina. Sidney Crosby touched the trophy in 2016 and 2017 before the Pittsburgh Penguins won the Cup each season, and Alex Ovechkin touched it in 2018 before the Washington Capitals won the Cup. Boston won the Cup in 2011 after choosing not to touch it, but Zdeno Chara later passed on the trophy in 2019 and the Bruins lost the Final to the St. Louis Blues in seven games.
There is no clean rule in the numbers, only a superstition teams keep revisiting when the Prince of Wales Trophy is handed out to the Eastern Conference champion. Carolina chose restraint on Friday, and the result is a final against Vegas with the same old trophy still untouched.
