15 years ago, the Stanley Cup arrived at Exit 16W

It was June 24, 1995 - that's 15 years ago today as I post this.  It's important to underline why this day means so much to people like myself.

I was an Islanders fan (for details how that came about, click here) and watched them win four Stanley Cup titles in the early 1980's.  But to be honest and fair about it, I was just someone who jumped on the bandwagon at the right time.  I grew up a Mets fan, so 1986 is in a classification by itself.  I grew up a Giants fan, and actually quit playing soccer so I could spend Sunday afternoons with my Dad watching the Giants. So their winning that first Super Bowl seemed so improbable for so long that is very satisfying.

Still, all of those great teams did not wear the name New Jersey on their uniforms.  I switched to the Devils in the early 80's when hockey came to Bergen County at what was then comically known as 'Brendan Byrne Arena'.  We put up with a lot in those early years: the fact that the building was always half Ranger fans when the Broadway Blues crossed the river to the Jersey side; the Christmas Tree uniforms; winning the final game of the regular season in the 83-84 season when a loss or tie would have given us Mario Lemieux (instead we got Kirk Muller); my favorite all-time athlete Wayne Gretzky referring to the organization as a 'Mickey Mouse Organization'; the players that weren't the most talented of the bunch like David Maley, Rocky Trottier, Carol Vadnais, Hector Marini, and others; the 88 run to the conference finals that will mostly be remembered for the Jim Schonfeld-Don Koharski 'Eat a Donut' controversy; the addition of the former Soviet players past their prime like Slava Fetisov and Alexei Kasatonov; and of course, the 1993-94 Devils that established franchise records and played exciting hockey, actually taking a 3-2 series lead from the hated Rangers in the conference finals, only to see them rally behind Messier's Game Six guarantee and Fetisov's giveaway that led to Howie Rose becoming famous forever ("Matteau! Matteau! Stephane Matteau!") and led to the Rangers winning the Cup and ending the greatest chant in sports history ("1940!").  Plus, being from New Jersey has its own set of issues, which have been chronicled numerous times before.

And then there were the attacks on the Devils style of play and their fans: analysts across the board saying that the Devils using 'The Neutral Zone Trap' was the runiation of hockey, and Commissioner Gary Bettman saying during the finals that he thought it all right for the team to relocate the following year to Nashville (for which he still has not apologized to fans for and for which he still has not been forgiven).

But that night, that glorious late June night at the Meadowlands, was one for the ages for me and Devils fans everywhere.  Look, the 2000 Cup win was special because it proved to the hockey world that 95 wasn't a fluke and also because of how cool the ending was with recently reacquired Jason Arnott's overtime goal.  And the win in 2003 was equally as special because the one knock on the club and the fans was that they established in 95 and then duplicated in 2000 a record of winning 10 of the 16 playoff games on the road, meaning they didn't enjoy passionate fan support.  The 2003 won 12 playoff games at home, also establishing a record.  Plus, the 2003 win was the last for two great Devils players, Scott Stevens and Ken Daneyko.

And yet, the memories of the 1995 win are still as fresh today as they were 15 years earlier.  Shawn Chambers and Neal Broten, acquired in trades during the season, each scored two goals.  Sergei Brylin (who played on all 3 cup winners) scored as well.  The Crash Line did its thing to the Red Wings again, and then Mike Peluso cemented his place forever in Devils folklore when he couldn't get off the bench in the last few minutes because he was so overcome with emotion.  Scott Stevens, who had laid out Slava Kozlov with maybe the best open-ice body check I've ever seen in Game Two of that series, was able to validate his coming to Jersey from St. Louis by lifting the Stanley Cup, and three longtime Devil veterans of failure and frustration, Daneyko, John MacLean, and Bruce Driver, had finally seen the light through the end of the tunnel and come out the other side.

Indeed, the Stanley Cup had come through the Lincoln Tunnel and into the Garden State.  It was a special day that I will long remember forever.  And I was reminded of the pure joy that winning the most treasured and important trophy in all of sports means seeing the reaction of Chicago Blackhawks fans this year when they won it.  Especially my buddy Ron Amorese, a longtime and long-sufferng Hawks fan.  My growing number of friends and Examiner readers that love the Kings are in for a treat when it happens for them (which I'm telling you will be very soon), and I look forward to sharing that expereince with them.

Talking with Martin Brodeur last night at the NHL Awards, I asked him about the anniversary and what his first memory is of that moment.  He told me, "It was Scottie (Stevens) skating full speed as the final seconds ticked away and jumping into my arms.  The rest is a blur until they brought the Cup out, and then it was just a great sense of pride because we had endured the terrible pain from losing to the Rangers the year before and we knew we had to do everything we could not to feel that way again."

Before the awards began to be handed out last night, I had the chance to get my picture taken with Lord Stanley's Cup, which was an awesome experience.  But I didn't pick it up or touch it - that is reserved only for those that win it on the ice.  15 years ago tonight, on a warm summer's evening in swamps of Jersey, the team proud to call my home state as home became champions of the world.  And to be honest, other than the Olympic Gold Medal winning team in 1980 (national pride), no sports championship win as a fan has been more satisfying.

Click here to watch the final moments, including the sight of Peluso on the bench.

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