Stanley Cup (“ hockey cup Challenge") is a prize given annually to the winner of the National Playoff Series. hockey league. All athletes shown below are the owners of this cup. Also, ugly beards. Don't be the same.

Lanny McDonald

Professional ice hockey player for the Canadian NHL team Toronto Maple Leafs. Holds the Stanley Cup and is happy. The picture was taken in 1989. Look at the athlete's mustache - and everything will become clear.

Source: gettyimages.com

Greg Zanon

Canadian ice hockey player with over 500 NHL games. The color of the uncut beard was probably matched to the color of the uniform.

Source: gettyimages.com

Joe Thornton

Canadian ice hockey center forward San Jose sharks, Olympic champion 2010 with the Canadian national team. Second all-time scoring player in NHL history behind Jaromir Jagr. How do you like his beard?

Source: gettyimages.com

Mike Commodore

Professional Canadian ice hockey defenseman. He is currently a free agent.

Source: gettyimages.com

Bill Flett

Famous hockey player Rest in peace to him (died in 1999). His beard was also not luxurious.

Source: gettyimages.com

Brent Burns

Professional Canadian hockey player, defender of the NHL club San Jose Sharks. World champion in 2015 and silver medalist of the 2008 World Championship, he was recognized as the best defender at both tournaments. Brent doesn't mind being pulled on his unkempt beard.

Source: gettyimages.com

Scott Hartnell

Canadian hockey player Plays as a left winger. Columbus Blue Jackets NHL player. If he does not continue to shave, cut his hair, he will become like a yeti.

In every sport, athletes have their own signs and superstitions. Probably, many people remember how Laurent Blanc kissed Fabien Barthez's bald head before the game, Elena Isinbayeva mumbled some kind of spell before each jump, or how the goalkeeper of Spartak Moscow kissed the post after each hit in the frame. Domestic fans even liked to joke that after such a thing, Artyom simply had to marry her. Today we would like to recall the superstitions and signs that exist in hockey. Let's not remember how someone wraps clubs, since almost everyone has their own ritual: someone winds from right to left, someone winds the tape a certain number of times, etc.

No shaving, no drinking, no smoking and stay savages

When I see how hockey players do not shave their beards in the playoffs, I immediately remember the phrase from the legendary movie "3 + 2" . The most famous sign in the whole world among hockey players is not to shave during the playoffs. It appeared just over 40 years ago. In the late 70s, the New York Islanders stopped shaving during the playoffs and won the Stanley Cup. A year later, they repeated this ritual, and again they have the cherished cup. As a result, they took 4 trophies in a row, and everyone picked up this fashion. Adhere to signs, of course, not all, but still most of them try to leave facial hair.

For a while, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, as our fans affectionately nicknamed him Whatman (Gary Bettman), suggested that hockey players should not shave during the playoffs. He explained this by the fact that the face of a hockey player is a brand, and when there is a lot of vegetation on the face, this brand is no longer so attractive, and it can lose potential money on contracts. Brent Burns and Joe Thornton Just laugh in his face.

In fact, everything is simple, Bettman is not worried about other people's money, but about his own (after all, it was not without reason that he did not allow NHL players to leave for the Olympics in Korea), since it is the league that loses contracts at this time.

Don't touch it - it will kill you!

It is also a very well-known sign. She went from the NHL, and is used in many leagues. The fact is that the winner of the conference should not touch the Cup (Prince of Wales Prize - Eastern Conference, Clarence Campbell Prize - prize for the winner Western Conference) before winning the Stanley Cup. Allegedly, it is believed that if you have raised the Cup, then you will not raise more cups this year.

Increasingly, team captains are dismissing this superstition. In 1991 and 1992, Pittsburgh captain Mario Lemieux consistently touched the conference winner's trophy. In 2009, Sidney Crosby lifted the Prince of Wales Trophy over his head after winning the conference final. He also did not change this tradition for himself in 2016 and 2017. All these 5 years, the Penguins still took the Stanley Cup. Our Alexander Ovechkin did the same in 2018 - he was not afraid of superstition, he lifted the Prince of Wales Cup, and in the final, the Capitals defeated the newcomers of the Vegas League.

No man has set foot here

Everyone who is related to the team (players, coaches, masseurs, fans) believes that in no case should you stand on the emblem in the team's locker room. Everyone is trying in every possible way to get around it, because if you step on it, the team will fail.

In 2013, Justin Bieber stepped on an eagle from the Chicago Blackhawks while photographing the Stanley Cup. Photos from this moment scattered all over the world. North America, fans of the "Indians" immediately "freaked out and threw him an answer." They brought a T-shirt with his photo to the Hilton Hotel, threw it on the floor and began to stomp on it. That's right, that this little one allows himself!

Don't drink, you'll become a goat

It is believed that until the team scores a goal, you can not drink water. But, as soon as your team scores the puck, you must definitely drink it, even if you don’t feel like drinking. The fans also adhere to the same sign, probably this is how they celebrate this event. Everything would be fine, but what if the team does not score throughout the game?!

It is not known when such a sign was born, but the longest match in the history of the NHL is immediately remembered. Recall that it ended only in the 177th minute with a score of 1:0. Yes, everyone had to wait a long time to drink some water.

The protagonist of that match, Red Wings goalkeeper Normie Smith, saved 89 shots and dropped as much as 6 kg during the game.

The main sign of the fans

Many fans also have their own signs: someone also does not shave, someone wears the same clothes. But the main sign of the NHL has grown into the team's mascot - the Detroit octopus. It all started in the 50s, to be more precise, in 1952. The Red Wings once again fought for the trophy. The Cusimano brothers decided to support their favorite team in an unusual way. At that time, they owned a fish shop, and it was in their shop that they came up with the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthrowing an octopus onto the ice. Then, to win the Stanley Cup in the playoffs, it was enough to win 8 matches (2 series of 4 wins each), and 8 octopus tentacles are just a symbol of 8 wins. Since then, Detroit games have been accompanied by a shower of shellfish. Yes, many thought it was okay to throw hats or plush toys for a hat trick, but octopuses are overkill. After all, it is difficult to tear them off the ice. But the sign stuck, and today fans continue to throw octopuses on the ice, which has become a symbol of the team.

Domestic fans do not have such peculiar and large-scale signs, but Avangard fans do not eat poultry meat before the games, since the eagle is the team's mascot.

Signs of goalkeepers

Perhaps the most famous goalkeeper with superstition is the legend of the "Colorado" and "Montreal" Patrick Roy. During the rolling, he never stepped on the marking lines, and also rolled away from the goal, turned around to face them and peered intently at them. So he imagined that the gates became smaller, and it was easier for him to protect them. Perhaps this helped him. He also often talked with the barbells, and more than once admitted this: “The barbells are my friends, I have the right to talk to them!”

It is not known whether Patrick's conversations with the net helped or not in deflecting shots, but, nevertheless, he is one of the best goalkeepers in the history of the league. He has many achievements to his credit: 151 playoff victories (1st record in NHL history), 551 wins and 25,800 saves. The rest of his records were broken by another phenomenal goalkeeper, Martin Brodeur (Brodeur).

Legendary Canadian goalkeeper Ed Belfour did not allow anyone to touch his ammunition, and Josselin Thibault laid out his on the floor in a certain order. He also poured water on his head 6 minutes 30 seconds before the start of the game.

Former Phoenix, Philadelphia, and Stanley Cup winner Russian Ilya Bryzgalov during rolling never touched the frame of the goal. NHL legend Ken Dryden always tried to be the first to shoot on goal, trying to get ahead of field players. In addition, he tried to finish the rollout with a successful and beautiful save. So he thought he was locking the gate. His teammate Larry Robinson noticed this and tried to throw easy throws.

Felix Potven before each game, he pasted a cross of black tape on his locker. Makd Dani after the first repulsed throw, he threw the puck from his left hand to his right.

Another legend Ron Hextall after the pre-match warm-up, he drove diagonally to where the starboard side and the blue line touch, after that he drove up to the face-off point, and then drove to the port side.

Glen Hall before each match, he tried to make him ... sick. Yes, yes, 2 fingers in the mouth - that's the secret of success. If he was not sick, then the great Hall believed that defeat could not be avoided.

Played at the turn of the century Clint Benedict sewed a horseshoe to the gate net. He hoped that she could bring him good luck.

Field players

Legendary Ray Burke after rolling out, he always took out the laces from the skates, and before the game he tucked them back in, and Joe Madden changed them after each period. Sidney Crosby arrives at games 2.5 hours early to eat toast, and former player"Calgary" Joe Nuindyke ate as many as 2. By the way, Crosby always tries to go to the penultimate game. Another fan of eating certain foods before the game was Derek Sanderson(Boston player in the 70s). Before matches, he ate chocolate chip cookies with nuts.

Former New York Rangers hockey player Ron Dagway combed his hair before every game. Everything would be fine, but he did it exactly 200 times. And in each of the breaks there are 100 more. A sort of Rapunzel from the 80s of the last century.

Team Canada before the 2002 Olympics immured a silver dollar at the face-off point. This helped them for the first time in 50 years (before that, the last Olympic gold dated 1952) became Olympic champions.

Former Chicago player Stan Mikita always smoked a cigarette, and threw the bull into the room under the stands and always over his left shoulder, and Guy Lefleur before the game he smoked only menthol cigarettes.

Legendary Wayne Gretzky each time before the match sprinkled the hook of the stick with baby powder. He also did not cut his hair during the away series. Another sign of the legendary number 99 is the correct drinking of drinks. While rolling, he first drank Diet Coke, later iced water, then Gatorage, and then more Coke.

The second sign he had was born during one of away series: Wayne cut his hair, and the team did not win a single game during the trip. After that, he gave up haircuts.

Keith Magnusson and Cliff Coroll(Chicago) always took the same route to the games, and they tried to drive through Oregon Avenue without stopping. That is, at some traffic lights they accelerated, at others they crawled like turtles, just not to stop. John Tonelli spitting on the hook of his stick before every game. This tradition originated from the fact that his goalless streak dragged on, and someone from the coaching staff spat on the stick before the game. In that match, John doubled and started repeating this ritual. Bruce Gardiner dipped the hook of his club into the toilet, he must have thought that the water there was special. Stefan Kienthal On the day of the game, he was silent. His fists spoke for him, because he was one of the best tough guys of his time.

Signs of the coaching staff

Very little is known about the superstitions of trainers. Among them, it is worth remembering the legendary coach of the Red Wings, Scotty Bowman. He never changed his tie during a winning streak.

In total, during his coaching career, he won 9 Stanley Cups (5 with Montreal, 1 with Pittsburgh, and 4 with Detroit). Also, his Detroit team holds the record for wins in a season. In 1995/96, 62 out of 82 matches ended in favor of the Krasnye Krylia. He broke his own record, which he set earlier. In the previous season, Tampa also won the regular season 62 times.

Why don't hockey players shave in the playoffs? What kind KHL players and the NHL - the most bearded? You will learn about this from the SE special project Bearded Hockey. The first article contains an interview with Canadian Kunlun defender Matthew Maione.

Some people just hate my beard

The Chinese don't have beards at all. How do people in Beijing react to you?

- (Laughs). It's true. I have not seen a single bearded Chinese at all. When I leave the house, the locals constantly take pictures of me. Everyone comes up to me, trying to start a dialogue. I am an alien to them. But it amuses me. For me, China is also an unknown world. It's very cool that I, being there, join a culture that is completely unfamiliar to me.

Why do you have such a long beard? If you shave it off, will the game go wrong?

Well no. I'm not at all superstitious. I just think I look a lot cooler with a beard. And I'm also very lazy, and I'm just too lazy to shave. Some people just hate my beard: “Matthew, why do you need fur on your face ?!” (laughs). But I do not care. Plus, I don't have time to shave.

- How do other hockey players find time for this?

Okay, I agree. This is not an excuse. Time can be found. I don't know about others, but I repeat - I'm just too lazy.

- Do you consider yourself a fashionable bearded man?

Don't even know. Is a beard trendy at all? (laughs) Maybe in Canada, yes. In fact, the situation is this: those who have a beard dream that it does not grow so quickly. And those who do not have it try to grow at least something, but they do not always succeed. But I like myself like this, without a beard - I'm like a young kid.
- How important is style for a hockey player and any athlete?

Complex issue. Everyone has their own interests - someone likes fashion, someone likes music, someone likes art. But for a hockey player, it is at least important to look respectable. It's great that from this season we come to the game in costume. I always try to look good, I like it.

Metallurg defender Paul Postma said in an interview with SE that he was shocked that Russian hockey players wear expensive watches and drive supercars. Do you think this is a show?

The KHL is a good league, and the guys who play here make good money. Everyone decides where to spend their money. It depends on the person. Different people there is.

- When did you last shave?

God, what a difficult question. I think I did it a couple of times in the summer when it was too hot. Before that, I had not shaved at all for a year.

- Can you shave off your beard for a bet? Or bet on it, say, in a card game?

If it's worth it, then yes. But I have to be absolutely sure that I will win. I can always grow it back. I don't shake my beard (laughs).

- Is it the longest in your team?

Oh yeah. We have a lot of Canadians and Americans, almost all with a beard. Of course, with a shorter one than mine. During the season, we often come to Russian cities in winter, and it's so cold there! A beard is something that can somehow warm us.

Waiting for Kunlun to move to Beijing

- Why did you leave Dynamo Riga? They did offer you a contract extension.

I had a great season at Dynamo. Plus, Riga is just a beautiful city. I will always be grateful to this team for making my first year in the KHL unforgettable. I still have a lot of friends playing Dynamo - we are constantly in touch. But in Kunlun, I saw more opportunities for myself to develop as a player. Also, it's very cool that I can make some contribution to the development of hockey in China. It's insanely interesting: they've never seen hockey, they don't know the rules. We teach them, we are the first guides in hockey world. In Russia, in Canada, in the USA or in Latvia everyone knows what hockey is, in China it is all just emerging. There are a lot of North Americans in our team. I feel very comfortable among them. The team also has a cool coach who has enough experience in the NHL. I think I did right choice for your career. But I will never forget the year spent in Riga. Great club, great fans.

- And how do you like the fans in China? They say the stands are empty from time to time...

For me, it is still not entirely clear what will happen in the season in the Beijing arena, but last game with Traktor we had 6-7 thousand spectators. We set some kind of attendance record there. This is a great indicator of the level of interest. Now we are moving from Shanghai to Beijing, and I don't know how it will be there. We haven't played a single match in the new arena yet. But I'm glad that finally I will have my own apartment there, because all the time in the KHL I live in hotels. It's hard.

- Many do not understand at all why the KHL needs Kunlun. What do you say about this?

I can understand people who are outraged. Many are unhappy with the exclusion of Lada and Slovan. But Tolyatti and Bratislava - hockey cities. But, in my opinion, the development of hockey in non-hockey countries is also important. Moreover, in a couple of years in Beijing there will be winter Olympics. Now the Chinese want to have a competitive team, hockey-educated fans - this is understandable.

- They even invited Ovechkin this summer.

Yes, I heard about it. Well done. Work in right direction(laughs). I think the Chinese will succeed. They are a very persistent people.

Popularization of hockey, a team consisting of North Americans - it's all clear ... But still, the people of Riga could not offer you more than Kunlun. This is true?

Yes, the financial factor, of course, also played a big role. Nobody wants to play for free. We leave a lot of strength and health on the ice. We all need to take care of our families, at least financially, to make up for our absence. Yes, everyone needs money. I am very glad that Kunlun appreciated my work financially well. I hope I will be useful to the club this season.

Beard, teeth, mask - these are my documents

Why does a hockey player need a beard? Why is Ovechkin not in a hurry to see the dentist? Who is the real record holder for the number of victories in the Olympics? These and other interesting facts about hockey that everyone should know, read the site material.

“Hockey is not a sport, but a whole life,” is what all those who cannot even breathe next to a stick, puck, ice and skates like to say. Over the course of more than 100 years of history, so many interesting things have happened in hockey that you can talk about it endlessly. Therefore, we tried to find the five most memorable facts, one way or another connected with Dynamo Moscow, sponsored by VTB Bank.

Lev Yashin - hockey player

Few people know, but the legendary Lev Yashin, who would have celebrated his 85th birthday this week, for some time was the goalkeeper not only of Dynamo football, but also of hockey. In the early 1950s, when Lev Ivanovich's career was just beginning, he, like many football players of that time, tried his hand at ice hockey in the winter. And I must say, quite successfully. In 1953, the Dynamo hockey team with Yashin at the gate won the USSR Cup and took bronze medals in the national championship. The following season, the legendary Black Spider could well have made his debut in the Soviet national team, but he still decided to concentrate on football. That year, Yashin ousted the seemingly irreplaceable Alexei Khomich from the main team of Dynamo football, so the decision lay on the surface.

Beard is a sign of quality

The beard of hockey players is one of the main signs that the season is coming to a climax - the playoff final. Most players have an unspoken tradition of not shaving during the elimination games. Some coaches, by the way, also observe this tradition. An interesting situation has developed in recent years in coaching staff Moscow "Dynamo": who led the blue and white to the championship in 2012 and 2013, he strictly observed the rule and, in addition to his mustache, grew an incomparable beard. But his assistant and successor Harijs Vitolinsh, on the contrary, was always clean-shaven. As both coaches said, this tradition has been established in tandem for a very long time. And judging by the result, it really brings good luck.

Only six players in history have won three Olympics.

Everyone knows that the main hockey team The 20th century was the USSR national team, the invincible Red Machine. She has seven gold medals to her credit. Olympic Games, 22 world championship victories and a whole host of awards. Nevertheless, only six hockey players in history have become three-time Olympic winners, and all of them are our compatriots. Dynamo legend Vitaly Davydov is included in this list separately, because in the 1960s and 1970s only hockey players from CSKA were consistently called up to the championship team. Vitaly Semenovich played an important role in the success of the team in Innsbruck, Grenoble and Sapporo. Another three-time - Andrei Khomutov, although he did not play for Dynamo, managed to train the blue and white in the 2009/2010 season.

68% of hockey players lost their teeth on the ice

Washers, sticks, and the hockey players themselves are doing their bloody work. The Detroit Free Press estimates that 68 percent of professional hockey players have lost at least one tooth on the ice during their careers. Moreover, not only “laborers” players, who often have to go under the puck to defend their goal, turn to dentists, but also stars. The most famous hockey player in the world without a tooth "right now" is an adviser to the president of Dynamo Moscow. The captain of "Washington" lost a tooth in 2007, having received a club in the face, and is in no hurry to put it back. The fact is that with a repeated loss, doctors promise complications, so Alexander decided to wait for the end of his career, after which he would put things in order in his mouth.

Goalkeeper mask invented ... in Japan

When we look at how the puck flies at a speed of more than 100 km / h into the helmet of the Dynamo goalkeeper, it seems that in hockey, goalkeepers have always played with. However, it is not. Detroit's great goaltender Terry Savchuk, for example, played most of his career without a mask. The result is over 400 scars on his face.

Only in the 1960s, goalkeepers around the world began to actively use masks, and after that - special helmets. And the first to protect his face on the ice was ... Japanese Tanaki Hoima! It was he who came to the 1936 World Cup in Berlin with a mask. This, however, did not help the Japanese: they lost to Sweden with a total score of 0:5 and went home.

Superstitious hockey players and fans put their razors away after the start of the World Cup. Most of them believe that stubble and beard will help win the title. How did this sign appear and work?

The Ice Hockey World Championship 2019 takes place in Slovakia from May 10 to May 26. Russia with the strongest squad intends to fight for gold.

How was the sign born?

The beard and success in hockey were first linked in 1980, when the New York Islanders team fought in the NHL playoffs. They played four games in a row without having time to shave. After victories in the games, the team was afraid to frighten off luck, and did not change its image. Overgrown players in the finals beat Philadelphia. The team then went on to win the Stanley Cup four times in a row.

Such a coincidence could not go unnoticed by rivals, and became a common sign. Over time, not only the players, but also many fans stopped shaving for the time of important starts.

In the USSR, athletes did not adhere to such superstitions, including because of the round-robin championship system. Beardedness began to gain popularity already in Russia, especially considering that many members of the national team play in the NHL.

Who doesn't shave for the World Cup

Alexander Ovechkin didn't shave his beard for two months in 2018 during the NHL playoffs. After the victory of the Washington Capitals, he shaved and sold the machine at a charity auction.

His colleague Ilya Kovalchuk also used the hockey ritual. “It's not the first time I've grown a beard. Somehow I didn’t shave at the 2009 World Championships in Bern, and the Russian team won gold. And in the NHL, he didn’t stay in the playoffs for a long time, so there was stubble, but no beards, ”Kovalchuk said in an interview.

One of the most famous CSKA fans, Sergei Chumin, has been growing a beard for seven years, promising to shave off if his favorite team wins the KHL championship. “The idea finally took shape after the 2014/2015 season. Then, if you remember, we lost the conference final to SKA, leading in the series 3-0. Then I said to myself: I will not shave off my beard until we win the Gagarin Cup. Many people knew about this story, including army hockey players, ”Chumin said in an interview with the KHL website.

According to him, the players touched their beards before the match for good luck, as a result, this led to a victory, after which he shaved his facial hair.

HC Avangard designed playoff matches this year based on the concept of "#BeardofHope". As a result, the team reached the final of the KHL playoffs, where they lost the series to CSKA.

Former football player and commentator Yevgeny Savin, a few months before the start of the World Hockey Championship, announced the “Grow a beard” flash mob on social networks. He suggested that fans grow beards and post photos on social networks. The winner was promised a trip to Slovakia for competitions (who eventually won the competition is unknown).

"Hockey players before important matches grow beards, because stubble in hockey is a symbol of good luck and success,” wrote Savin.

Judging by the photos and videos from Slovakia, some of the players of the national team decided to use the famous sign and not shave. Ilya Kovalchuk has a bristle, Nikita Kucherov, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Nikita Nesterov, Artem Anisimov have a beard.

Ovechkin arrived in Bratislava with a bushy beard, but shaved before the match against Austria. However, so far the player has not scored a single goal at the World Cup, and again let go of his beard.

A photo: © Ice Hockey Federation of Russia