So, how did you spend the summer?
If you are Lord Stanley, the answer cannot be easily summed up on a one-page report.
The Stanley Cup, which the Florida Panthers won for the second straight year in late June, has crisscrossed around the world since then, travelling everywhere from Latvia to Czechia, Sweden to Finland, and Canada to the United States. It has gone on a rollercoaster, spent time on a soccer pitch and even made it onto the kiss cam at a Coldplay concert.
It's been in a jail cell, a boat and — because the Panthers have so many Scandians on the team — sweated inside more than a few saunas.
The Cup has served up Dairy Queen blizzards and coffee from the drive-thru at Tim Hortons. Anton Lundell ate a Finnish delicacy of salmon soup out of the Cup. Meanwhile, dolphins and sea lions were treated to an assortment of fish and squids out of the Cup.
The summer isn't over, but here are three of the best places the Stanley Cup has been so far:
Speeding Around On A Rollercoaster Ride
The Stanley Cup might only be 35.2 inches tall. That's too short for many amusement park rides. But the Cup was given special approval to join Lundell on a rollercoaster at the Linnanmäki Amusement Park in Helsinki.
Thankfully, there were no loop-to-loops.
"It’s Finland’s Disney World," Lundell told reporters. "It’s a very unique spot.”
Honoring Those Lost At Sandy Hook Elementary School Memorial
Mackie Samoskevich was just 10 years old when 26 people were shot and killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in his hometown of Newton, Conn., in 2012. It was a moment that left a significant imprint on the 22-year-old, who took time out of his day with the Cup to honor those who lost their lives.
“I thought we’d bring it back and honor them,” Samoskevich told reporters.
Newton native Mackie Samoskevich brings Stanley Cup to Sandy Hook Memorial during hometown visit
The Stanley Cup is back on the south side of the U.S.-Canada border.
With Hockey Elite In Halifax, N.S.
Nova Scotia has not supplied the NHL with the most players. But the players who have come out of there tend to be a special breed.
That was made apparent when Brad Marchand brought the Cup back to Halifax, where he was joined by fellow Nova Scotians' Sidney Crosby and Nathan MacKinnon. Together, the trio have won six Stanley Cups.
Brad Marchand joined by Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon for Stanley Cup day in Nova Scotia
Stanley Cup summer celebrations are kicking up a notch this week.