NHL.com’s Dave Stubbs asked several NHL alumni how they feel regarding the ring commemorating Cup champs from 1953-54 to 1964-65 coming off the Stanley Cup, and one Ted Lindsay has no problem with it:
It is a remarkable list:Lindsay, Gordie Howe (four titles each) and Delvecchio (three) of the Detroit Red Wings;Maurice Richard (eight), Jacques Plante, Dickie Moore, Bernie Geoffrion, Doug Harvey, Tom Johnson (six each) and Butch Bouchard (four) of the Montreal Canadiens; Hall, Hull, Stan Mikita and Pierre Pilote (one each) of the Chicago Black Hawks; Andy Bathgate (one) of the Toronto Maple Leafs; and Bert Olmstead, who won four times with Montreal and one more with Toronto.
Four of the 16 players are living legends, and each understands that, given the Stanley Cup’s changing face, being on the trophy is not forever.
“The Cup is only so big,” Lindsay said with a laugh. “You can only put so many names on those five rings. It’s a testament to all the great men who have played the game and are being developed today. It’s an honor for today’s players to have their names on the Cup with those who went before them, as it was an honor for me to be on it with the greats who went before me.”
Lindsay, who joked that “at 93, I’m not a believer in looking or acting my age,” won titles with the Red Wings in 1950, ’52, ’54 and ’55. The forward’s first two championship teams were removed with the band honoring Cup winners from 1940-41 to 1952-53. This time his last two title teams will be taken off.
“My name coming off the Cup is progress,” he said.
Stubbs continues, also speaking with Glenn Hall, Alex Delvecchio and Bobby Hull.
Update: The NHL posted a video regarding the band being removed from the Cup:
