Bruins’ Thornton Took Cup On Antiques Roadshow

Blair Charbonneau, Hockey Net

BOSTON — Early last August, Bruins tough-guy and amateur antiquary, Shawn Thornton, was filmed with Hockey’s Holy Grail for a segment of Antiques Roadshow.

Thornton and several cousins travelled with the hardware to Stamford, Connecticut for the taping, where he awaited an appraiser’s estimate of his “big-shiny-metal-bowl.”

Thornton, in anticipation of the Stanley Cup’s market value had envisioned a better life for himself, one filled with “fancy chocolate truffles and shit.” A life where he wouldn’t have to scrap for scraps, namely the $825,000 he gets paid a year.

With Thornton’s family members not knowing what to do with their body parts and hovering nervously in the background, the appraiser carefully examined the trophy. Anxiety washed over the Boston enforcer.

Like all Roadshow guests he was compelled to spout a“believable” tale of how the cup had been passed down in his family for generations, starting from when Lord Stanley himself presented it to Thornton’s great great grandfather, Tobias, after he was recruited to dust-up Stanley’s ex-business associate. The appraiser saw right through it once he read the description on the bottom of the trophy: Replica, trademark Hockey Hall Of Fame, 1993. 

NHL Hockey, Hockey Net Blog, Back For 2012 Season

Blair Charbonneau, Hockey Net Blog

The NHL’s 2012 season is back and here to stay for as long as the Mayans and Roland Emmerich see fit. A fresh hockey season germinates, blooming into new false hopes for dead markets (Phoenix), unrealistic expectations (Toronto), and the sound of oxygen sucking as deflated Sharks fans begin to breathe again — how exciting! What more can we expect? Well, let’s take a look:

The sub-dwelling Flames have reclaimed their corpse-like position in the basement of the Western Conference with a comfortable 1-2 record — nothing like a good headstart.

After three games David Legwand is leading the league in scoring — could you imagine if...wait, no, don’t bother.

Which players will have their eyes rolled back and minds wiped etch-a-sketch style by blind-side hits this year? And how long will Crosby milk this concussion to sit at home and play NHL 12? 

Also: How many games will it take to run Craig Anderson out of Ottawa? Will Andrei Markov walk again? How will Canucks fans blame Luongo for the Sedin’s shortcomings? What’s the over-under on fires during Montreal riots? Oh the suspense!