For the Chicago Blackhawks, April 15, historically, has been fairly mundane. Nothing of note happened for the Hawks on this day. Something among the Original Six did happen on this day.
Have you ever thought about how a tradition begins? What was the impetus behind it? Where did it start? Well, one of the coolest NHL traditions began on April 15 in 1952. Sadly, for Hawks fans, the tradition was started by long-time rival, the Detroit Redwings.
In 1952, the Redwings defeated the Montreal Candiens, another Original Six team in four straight games. In fact, the Redwings didn't lost a single game in that playoff season. They went a perfect 8-0. Pete and Jerry Cusimano threw an octopus on the ice at the completion of the game. Seems odd that a couple gents would have an octopus handy; but they were the owners of a fish market. I'm sure they were quite handy.
The octopus would represent the eight wins it took to win the Stanley Cup at the time. It remained that way until expansion occurred. For the first time in 1970-1971, it would require more than eight wins to win the Stanley Cup. The tradition, though, would continue with folks continuing to throw octopus on the ice. Although, I do not like the Redwings, I can totally respect a cool tradition.
