Photo: Andre Burakovsky
It doesn’t seem right, at least to me, but it’s done by most of the Stanley Cup winners.
Part of winning the Stanley Cup includes what is simply the best tradition in all of sports, allowing each player to have a dedicated day with the Stanley Cup to celebrate with friends, family and fans. It’s all about celebrating the individual player and their accomplishments.
Andre Burakovsky had his second day with the Cup on Wednesday, but you would never know it if you only followed the Colorado Avalanche. They went radio silent between the time Gabriel Landeskog handed the Cup back to the Keeper of the Cup on Tuesday night and Friday when it made its way to Artturi Lehkonen in Finland. Not a single mention of Burakovsky. Zip.
Why, because he’s no longer a member of the Colorado Avalanche, as he signed with the Seattle Kraken in free agency. But is that really reason enough to halt all championship celebrations and go radio silent until the Cup emerges out of darkness on the other side? Not even a photo? A tweet? An acknowledgment? A simple thank you?
Burakovsky will always be a part of that championship team, and it’s likely the Avalanche will eventually embrace that later down the line. Reunions, appearances and the like are all in store for Burakovsky in Colorado in the future. So why snub his day with the Cup?
Before we slam the Avalanche let’s it be clear that most teams act in similar fashion. The Capitals did not send a crew to cover the “Day with the Cup” for Jay Beagle, Philipp Grubauer, Barry Trotz and Lane Lambert, as they had all left the team before their designated days with the Cup. They did acknowledge the days, however.
Look, I get it. It’s probably a good place where teams can cut costs by deciding not to send a video or social media crew to cover those that have already left the team. Budgets are tight for all. But a simple retweet or photo of the player with the Cup, a Cup he worked hard to earn for your team, just seems like good business.
What do you think?
It’s a joke. Shame on you, Avs.
We love you Bura! F Colorado!
I also notice that the Keeper of the Cup himself didn’t post any news about the Cup when it was Andre’s day either. Most of the news we ourselves got was from Burakovsky, his brother-in-law, his sister, his girlfriend, and others connected to him.
Do you mean to say that the teams should be compelled to make social media posts about former players’ successes?
Common decency, they should acknowledge in some fashion: website, social, etc., and not go radio silent.
It’s a business…I guess
Over the past two years, a lot of ex-Bolts got rings. Each time, there was a big ceremony before a game with players, coaches, and management participating. The ceremony was broadcast on tv and also the video over the ice if the game was in Tampa. They made it clear that the ex players were still part of the family that won the Cup and would always be part of that family. After all, their names are part of that section of the Cup.
I didn’t really follow the Cup’s travels so I don’t know if the Bolts covered its days with explayers or not. But I think that they would have based on their ring coverage. Those names will always be linked together. To ignore any of them is wrong.
I’m still upset that the Caps didn’t honor Nathan Walker by making him one of their optional names on the Cup. (wikipedia: Walker would later go on to win the Stanley Cup with the Capitals, to become the first Welsh or Australian hockey player to win the Stanley Cup. However, Walker did not qualify to have his name on the trophy as he did not meet the games-played requirement.)