The Time I Met Phil the Cup Guy

With the possibility of seeing the Stanley Cup presented tonight, I thought I tell you all the story of how I met one of its Keepers.

You've all seen him before. Beautiful golden hair. Snow white gloves. HHOF emblazoned sport jacket. His name is Phil Pritchard, and he is one of the Keepers of the Cup. There have been stories told about the wild and crazy adventures the Cup has been on, all while in the presence of one of its Keepers. But there are very few stories about the wild and crazy adventures these men embark on when not tending to Lord Stanley's Cup. This is one of those stories.

It was June of 2009 and I was in Montreal with the PPP crew covering the NHL draft. The day started off great with Burke selecting Nazem Kadri and Montreal selecting some nobody who falls down a lot. After the first round was complete, it was off to Hurley's pub to meet up with the legend ~~himself~~ in his own mind (PD edit), Greg Wyshynski. After drinking with the Puck Daddy and the PPPers to the point of inebriation, I noticed a guy at the bar who looker strangely familiar. So, in my brazen, drunken state I walked over to investigate. This following conversation actually happened:

Drunken SkinnyFish: Holy shit! You're "The Cup Guy"! Can I get a picture with you?

Cup Guy: Hey. Yeah sure. My name's Phil.

Drunken SkinnyFish: Yo Julian! Get your ass in the picture with Phil the Cup Guy!

Thus resulting in the picture above. (Note: The Cup was not actually there.)

Later on, I over heard one of the guys drinking at the bar with Phil say the following to another guy: "Hey, Phil said he'd buy us all a round if those two chicks over there make out." Here's why that is funny. Those "two chicks" were actually a boy and a girl, though they were both ambiguous looking. From what I remember, those two did not make out and no free drinks were bought. Shame really. After awhile Phil and his entourage left the bar and then all that was left to do was talk to Alyn McCauley for an hour.

And that is the story of how I met Phil the Cup Guy.

PPP Note: Phil the Cup guy was at the second round of the draft Saturday morning (as was your intrepid correspondent) and he was the most hungover guy there. Everyone was guzzling the free Gatorades (yes!) but Phil looked like he might never have made it to a bed that night.

Links after the jump.

Signs your favorite player may be bankrupt

"Every time the zamboni slows down, he jumps out and starts trying to squeegee its windshield."

What the Leafs can learn by watching the Stanley Cup Finals.

Some pretty solid advice in this piece from the Toronto Star.

Memo to Carl Gunnarsson's Agent

mc79 takes a look at Burke's recent statement regarding statistical analysis in hockey.

NHL teams are showing interest in Kaberle

Though the article makes it sound like his agent is trying to spoil all the fun.

A potential Europrean Super Hockey League is under discussion

Sleza brings us the summary of this story from a Swedish website.

Is ethical sports blogging on the decline?