Image via Complex Original
The NHL is a league that has been rich in tradition ever since its founding back in 1917, when the Original Six first took the ice as one, cohesive organization. This tradition presents itself in a number of different ways: the toughness of each and every player on the ice, the Stanley Cup, and the Winter Classic are just a few examples of the elements that make hockey such a historically-rich sport. Along with these rituals, though, the NHL has also become known for another thing: postgame player awards. Whether it's a military jacket or a hard hat, teams often use these game-by-game awards as a source of pride and motivation to inspire some momentum for the squad. It doesn't always have to be the guy who scored the most goals or tallied a few assists, either. Sometimes, it's just the dude who grinded it out the hardest for every shift. To give yourself a better idea of the tradition, check out this Recent History of NHL Postgame Awards.
Phoenix Coyotes
Award: The Championship Belt
Former Phoenix Coyotes goalie, Jason LaBarbera, is apparently something of a WWE enthusiast, so much so that when he was still manning the backstop for the Coyotes last year, he and some other teammates had a personalized WWE championship made for the team, to serve as their game-by-game MVP award. Even if you aren't a fan of wrestling, it's hard not to appreciate craftsmanship like what you see here. Who wouldn't want to give a little bit of extra effort around the puck if it meant taking this thing home?
Washington Capitals
Award: The Hard Hat
Started in 2008, by then-Capitals captain, Chris Clark, Washington has made use of a hard hat to denote their personal player of the game. Clark said that he and his teammates had done a similar thing when he was with the Calgary Flames for their 2003-04 Stanley Cup run. No doubt trying to spark that same sort of momentum, Clark brought it to D.C. for the 2008-09 season. Unfortunately, as with every good Capitals team of the last few years, Washington was unable to even make it to the conference finals that year.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Award: The Victory Shovel
Hockey has always attracted a blue-collar audience. The players are much the same. So what better award to reflect that attitude than the Pittsburgh Penguins' victory shovel? Revealed during their HBO 24/7: Road to the Winter Classic segment, the honor was bestowed upon the Pens' player of the game throughout the 2009-10 season. As far as awards go, does it really get any less glamorous than a shovel? We're guessing it isn't made out of sterling silver, either.
New York Rangers
Award: The Broadway Hat
What's a more fitting award for some New York hockey players than a dusty old fedora, right? Hey, it's not like these guys are Don Draper or anything, so the rattier, the better. After catching on in 2011, the fedora (originally purchased in Europe by center Brad Richards) has become a permanent part of the team in the seasons since. While it hasn't helped the Rangers' postseason fate any, they can at least take solace in the fact that they look semi-stylish while making an early exit out of the playoffs.
Nashville Predators
Award: The Belak Helmet
When former Predators enforcer, Wade Belak, was found dead in his apartment on August 31, 2011, his former teammates, then with Nashville, knew that some sort of respect had to be paid to the man with whom they had once shared the ice. Along with adorning their helmets with some special decals in honor of Belak, the Predators also decided to use an old fire helmet—specifically, the one that Belak had worn while serving as a volunteer firefighter—as their postgame award during the 2011-12 season. Playing in Belak's memory that year, the Preds may have failed to win the Cup, but they forever intertwined Belak's heart-breaking story with that of the franchise.
Edmonton Oilers
Award: The Military Jacket
Started this season, the ritual began when a friend of head coach Dallas Eakins gave him the military jacket of a Canadian Armed Forces soldier who had served in Afghanistan. In awarding it to his players, Eakins is trying to send a clear message of discipline, respect, and teamwork to a squad that has been sorely lacking in direction for years now. Will reinforcing these values help take Edmonton back to the postseason? Currently sitting at 4-12-2, it's hard to say that things look very good for the Oilers right now. But hey, it's a long season. Stranger things have happened, right?
Chicago Blackhawks
Award: The Wrestling Belt
You can make the argument that the Phoenix wrestling belt is better-made, but just recognize the fact that the Blackhawks started this whole thing. The Blackhawks first used a regular, old replica belt that defensiveman, Brent Seabrook, had found on a road trip against the Predators during Chicago's 2009-10 Stanley Cup winning season. Figuring that they shouldn't mess up the good thing they had going, the Hawks kept the idea, and upgraded the hardware a bit the season after they hoisted Lord Stanley. It's been a locker room staple ever since.
Calgary Flames
Award: The CFD Helmet
Using a firefighter's helmet to honor the best Flames player may seem a little counter-intuitive, but Calgary players say that the values of the profession fall most in line with the type of competitor they want to see on the ice every game. It's easy to understand their aim here. Said coach Bob Hartley, “Police, firefighters … to me, they’re the ultimate people. They put their lives on the line every day. They’re teaching us about teamwork and lessons of life.” Way to show respect to the true heroes, Bob.
Buffalo Sabres
Award: The Pigeon
Out of all the awards throughout the years, the Buffalo Sabres' stuffed pigeon takes the cake as the weirdest one. Started in 2008, and bearing a Sabres logo on each wing, the pigeon was ordered off of eBay as something of a joke toward former Sabres defensiveman, Jaroslav Spacek, who had been nicknamed "Pigeon" during his time with the team. Amazingly, though, the award caught on for the season, despite the fact that a pigeon has absolutely nothing to do with the Sabres' franchise or its iconography. Hockey players, man, they're just a different breed sometimes.
Boston Bruins
Award: The Army Rangers Jacket
The Bruins have shuffled out a number of different objects to recognize their team MVPs throughout the past few years, and the item of choice for their 2012-13 Stanley Cup run was an Army Rangers jacket. Former Bruins defensiveman, Andrew Ference, brought it back after a visit to a military base at Fort Benning in Georgia. Previously, during the 2010-11 playoffs, the team had used a well-worn Bruins Starter jacket that Ference had found on eBay. While they couldn't quite recapture the magic of that year's run with the Army jacket, a trip back to the Finals was certainly worth something.
