To have one’s name engraved on the Stanley Cup certain requirements must be met. A player must have at least 41 games played with the club or one game played in the Stanley Cup Finals. However, in 1994 a stipulation was added to allow a team to petition the Commissioner for permission to have players’ names put on the Cup if extenuating circumstances prevented them from being available to play. - NHL Fun Facts

I have already stated in the previous post that I believe the Ducks will close it out tonight, so no assumption. Now, to get to what really bites ass, George Parros will not get his name on the Stanley Cup if he does not play tonight. He has played in 34 regular season games and only 5 playoff games this year. He still travels with the team, skates in practice and drills but that wont really matter. Sure, the team can petition Gary Bettman, but I think he will just shoot it down. Not being a particularly good hockey player is not an “extenuating circumstance” for not playing.

I don’t really like Parros all that much, I get the whole “fans love him” thing, he is a fighter and he has a unique look. Put aside my own thoughts on his hockey skills, this guy is a draw for the team. They even sell mustaches at the arena, that is some real fan appreciation with a hint of keen marketing. When Snoop supports you, you know you got a role on the team. His teammates seem to love him too. How can you not love someone who’s job is make sure your safe in your workplace? So the fan support is there, the team support is there, but will the commissioner care?

That means Joe Motzko, Ryan Carter and Drew Miller get their names on the cup after playing 4 games combined in the finals? Ryan Shannon will also get his name inscribed after he played 53 games in the regular season. It seems very crappy that Parros will miss out. Randy Carlyle is a take-no-shit kind of coach and he doesn’t care about things like this, in my eyes at least. Which is a great asset for a coach, that means he wants the team to win first, correct. I personally think George Parros sits in the locker for game five, which really sucks for George Parros, but is a good thing for his team. You can’t take a spot from a player who can at least contribute. But if he did get the chance to dress, you know the Honda Center would erupt, about as loud as when the final horn blows tonight. Bench the balloon and put Parros out for a shift, I personally think he deserves it.

Ducks: 50 - Ottawa: -3 (3 own goals that will count as negatives)

PS: If Randy Carlyle does this, it is a mistake and might backfire by hyping the Senators up. Then again, they really shouldn’t need to be hyped up, this an elimination game and all.