INSTANT MESSAGE
TRIBUNE REPORTER BOB FOLTMAN WEIGHS IN ON GAME 7 OF THE STANLEY CUP FINALS.
One of the most common criticisms of the NHL is that the regular season is meaningless. But don’t tell that to the Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning, New Jersey Devils or Colorado Avalanche, four of the last five Stanley Cup winners who needed to go the full seven games before lifting the Cup.
All four won the Cup on home ice, and in order to play that final game of the season in your own rink, you have to have a better regular season than your opponent, making those mundane October games more important than many may think.
Maybe it’s the advantage of having the last line change, or the energy of the home crowd, but if you have to play a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup finals, there’s no place like home.
And for the Stanley Cup, home for the next year is Raleigh, N.C.
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ON THE NET Read more from Bob Foltman at www.chicagosports.com/nhl
