[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book II)]
[October 14, 2008]
[Pages 1306-1308]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks Honoring the 2007 Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings
October 14, 2008
Please be seated--not you all. [Laughter] It is a pleasure to
welcome the Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings back to the White
House. Yes, please hold your applause. [Laughter] I am looking forward
to getting a jersey, as opposed to an octopus. [Laughter]
In 2002, the Red Wings were the first NHL team I hosted for a
Stanley Cup ceremony. Turns out they are the last team I'll be hosting.
[Laughter] You guys may be back next year, but not me. [Laughter] So I
welcome you here.
The race for the Cup was thrilling. You started the season on a
tear; you ended with a league-leading 115 points. In the playoffs, you
beat Nashville, swept Colorado, dusted Dallas. [Laughter] In game five
of the finals, you were just 34 seconds from raising the Cup when the
Pittsburgh Penguins scored to tie the game, then scored in triple
overtime to extend the series. But you did not get discouraged. You
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were determined, and you won. And we congratulate you for winning a
very, very hard cup to win, the Stanley Cup.
I want to thank the Ilitch family for joining us. Give Mom and Dad my very best. I want
to welcome and congratulate Ken Holland, general
manager, the Detroit club; Mike Babcock, the
head coach; the commissioner--Mr.
Commissioner, welcome. I'm proud you're here.
Carl Levin, Senator from the great State of
Michigan, representing all the Red Wing fans who have joined us today.
Senator, I'm glad you're here. Members of my administration, who should
be working but instead are--[laughter]. Of course, we welcome the
players, the coaches, the personnel, and all the fans.
I want to thank the members of the Armed Forces for joining us. We
are proud of your service to the United States of America.
And finally, it is a pleasure to welcome future Stanley Cuppers, the
Auburn [Ashburn]* Xtreme Hockey Club. I guess ``extreme'' means
extremely good. [Laughter] Anyway, we're glad you're here. Thanks for
coming. I know the players are thrilled that you've come as well.
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*White House correction.
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The Stanley Cup is the oldest trophy in professional sports. It's
also very difficult to win. It takes 4 rounds in the playoffs--16 wins
in as many as 28 games--before an NHL player can skate and hold the Cup.
That's a lot of work after a regular season.
The players here met the grueling test, and they set some impressive
records along the way. Johan Franzen,
affectionately known as the Mule--[laughter]. Where's Johan? Yes.
[Laughter] I call Johan ``Sir.'' [Laughter] He broke Gordie Howe's franchise record for the most game-winning
goals in a single month, the team record for the most goals in a single
playoff series, and he set the league record for most goals in a four-
game sweep.
Kris Draper set an unofficial record of
sorts. He is the first player to score a playoff with his teeth.
[Laughter] Where is he? [Laughter] Those are beauties. [Laughter] But
somebody said they wished he'd have kept his Chuck Norris beard. [Laughter]
Chris Chelios set a record when he played
his 248th career playoff game. At 46 years old--or 46 years young--Chris
is the oldest player to win the Stanley Cup and the second oldest player
to play in the NHL. That guy is going to play a lot more. I mean, if he
can do it age 46, why not 52, like Gordie Howe? [Laughter]
Put that in perspective, Chris's defensive
partner, Brett Lebda, is 26 years old. As a kid,
he rooted for Chris when he played for the Chicago Blackhawks. Hey,
guys, imagine how cool this is? You grew up with a player as your idol,
and then you got to play with him to win the Stanley Cup.
Particularly inspired by the story of Darren McCarty. Darren played 11 season with the Red Wings between
1993 and 2004, but he had a problem. He drank too much, and it brought
his career to an early end. But Darren McCarty did not give up. Darren
McCarty decided to do something about it. Last fall, he approached his
friend, Kris Draper, told him he'd cleaned up
his life, and he thought he had a little hockey left in him. So he plays
for the Flint Generals in the IHL, works his way up to the Red Wings AHL
affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. And then in March, as the playoffs
approached, Darren got a call from the Red Wings offering him a shot
with the team.
This guy got his life back together,
seized the moment, and scored the opening goal in game two of the series
against Nashville. That is a stout story. And where are you, Darren?
Yes, congratulations to you.
One of the things that is really interesting about the Stanley Cup
is that every player on the championship team gets to take the trophy
home for a day. Red Wings players took the Cup on adventures across the
world, to Sweden, Finland, the Czech
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Republic, Slovakia, and Russia. Coach Babcock
took the Cup water skiing. Slalom or two skis? [Laughter]
Anyway, several players had young relatives baptized with the Cup.
Others let their children use it as a bowl for cereal, for ice cream,
and donuts. Tomas Kopecky took it home to
Slovakia and used it as a bowl for a special Slovakian broth. No telling
what was in that special Slovakian broth. [Laughter]
Many Red Wings used their time with the Cup to lift the lives of
others. Kris Draper took the Cup to Toronto's
Hospital for Sick Children. That must have been a joyous moment for them
to see the Cup. Coach Babcock took it to visit
the disabled residents of a Sherbrooke Community Centre. Brian
Rafalski took it to a Wisconsin veterans
home.
Chris Osgood, Dan Cleary, Kris Draper, and Brett
Lebda took the Cup to visit the troops at
Michigan's Selfridge Air National Guard Base. And today Red Wings
players took the Cup to visit wounded warriors at Walter Reed. As the
Commander in Chief of a fabulous military, I thank you for honoring our
troops.
There is a sign over the door of the Red Wings locker at Joe Louis
Arena that reads this: ``To whom much is given, much is expected.'' The
Red Wings live up to those words on the ice and off the ice. And so I
congratulate the players, their wives/girlfriends, the coaches, all
those who support the team; the unheralded heroes in the locker room
that make sure the lives of these players is as comfortable as
possible--the trainers, the laundry handlers, the equipment handlers. I
congratulate you for achieving a dream that millions of kids dream
about, including those in the room.
Thanks for bringing the Cup to the White House. Good luck for the
rest of the season. May God bless you.
And now it is my honor to bring Captain Nick Lidstrom to the podium.
Note: The President spoke at 2:37 p.m. in the East Room at the White
House. In his remarks, he referred to Christopher Ilitch, vice
president, Michael and Marian Ilitch, owners, Johan Franzen, Darren
McCarty, Tomas Kopecky, and Daniel Cleary, right wings, Gordie Howe,
former right wing, Kris Draper, center, Chris Chelios, Brett Lebda, and
Brian Rafalski, defensemen, and Chris Osgood, goal tender, Detroit Red
Wings; Gary B. Bettman, commissioner, National Hockey League; and actor
Chuck Norris. The transcript released by the Office of the Press
Secretary also included the remarks of Nicklas Lidstrom, defenseman and
team captain, Detroit Red Wings.