The post-series hand-shake is one of my favorite quirks of Stanley Cup playoff competition. Not everyone is fan though, namely Stan Mikita. He had a different way of congratulating a victorious opposition:
"It has always bothered me to shake hands with the opposing players after losing a Stanley Cup series. I think it bothers most players, and they would rather not do it - at least not the minute after you've lost. You want to cool down. But you're expected to shake hands with a guy who is sipping his hand into your pocket to take your money. I can't be ready to break a stick over a man's head one minute and then shake his hand the next. My wife is always after me about good sportsmanship, to shake hands, but I'm not that way. I remember, after we beat Detroit, Gordie Howe came into our clubhouse and drank champagne with us. I thought that was a real good way of congratulating the opposing team, and that's the way I've done since."
Wow. So much for the players never socializing with each other back in the old days.
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