The Stanley Cup ring is an annual award in the National Hockey League given by the team that wins the Stanley Cup Finals, a best-of-seven series to determine the league's champion that season. In addition to the players, teams give rings to coaches, trainers, scouts, executives, and other staff members. Teams often give rings to players who played for the team, but do not qualify to have their name engraved on the Stanley Cup.
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History
The Stanley Cup ring was established in 1893, when the Montreal Hockey Club won the 1893 Stanley Cup championship. Since that championship, the rings weren't given again until the Ottawa Senators won the 1927 Stanley Cup Finals. The rings are still given to the Stanley Cup champions. There have been cases in which championship teams have not awarded rings to its players, such as the Montreal Hockey Club's second championship (which gave out watches) and the 1915 champions, the Vancouver Millionaires (which issued medallions).
For many years teams did not give any rings at all and players had to buy them for themselves. In the 1950s The Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cup four times, but players were given silverware or bought a dinner instead of rings. Players were eventually given rings by the team more than fifty years later. In the 1960s the Toronto Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup four times, but players were originally only given one ring with diamonds that were removed and enlarged for each subsequent win. In 1971 the Montreal Canadiens gave players television sets instead of rings.
Design
For the last 50 years, each team has designed their own rings. Each ring usually cost between $20,000 to $25,000.