Conner McDavid is the best hockey player ever.
Slow down, I didn’t say he was the greatest of all time. But he is the best hockey player ever to play the game. I mean come on, his nickname in hockey media is literally McJesus. If you dropped him the 80’s he would have more points than Wayne Gretzky. Fight me on it.
However, McDavid has somewhat of a reputation of always coming up short. Whether it’s warranted or not, losing in the OHL finals, back-to-back Stanley Cup final loses, and a silver medal at the Olympics will do that to you.
Now, what if I were to tell you I’ve touched Lord Stanleys coveted mug more times than Conner McDavid.
Would you believe me?
Remember willie Mitchell? He played on the Canucks for a while. He had Jonathan Toews wondering what room he was in with a thunderous hit once. Known for being a good defensive defenseman, maybe there should be an award for that kind of position. Put a pin in that for later.
Anyway, staying on target, he won two Stanley Cups with the LA Kings in 2012 and 2014.
After his first win he brought the Cup back to his hometown of Port McNeil on Vancouver Island. I say town, it’s really just like a dirt road with houses. But Mitchell did the whole shebang, he flew in on a helicopter and walked in with the Cup hoisted above his head.
After the planned celebration and ceremony, you had the opportunity to get a group photo with it. Being the small kid I was at the time, you better believe I parked myself right underneath that 35-pound trophy.
The event staff made it very clear you’re not supposed to touch it. But can you blame me? When you touch the Stanly Cup, you can feel it. And I don’t just mean all those beautifully imperfect engravings and rings. I mean you can feel the history surging through your veins and into your entire body. You get the shivers almost. And it’s not just about the aura, that silver bowl has touched the hands of many hockey legends, and just for a brief second, you get to share it with every single one of them. It’s something extremely special that you will never forget.
Photo: Willie Mitchell next to the Stanley Cup (Megan Herman)
It’s definitely different winning it as a player, the seconds turning into years of training and grinding coming to a climax after going through a 2-month war of attrition against 4 other teams. That’s an electric feeling and a high that I have yet to find.
To this point, to the surprise of no one, I have yet to find another opportunity to touch the Stanley Cup and likely never will. My experience was even better than taking a photo with it from a distance at the Hockey Hall of Fame.
But I know one thing for sure.
If the best hockey player in history never gets to hold it high, it would be a massive disappointment for him to put all that effort in, to never have the same feeling I got.