Stanley Cup maybe dented at Cheli's Chili Bar?

Who cares? It gets smacked around every year, especially when boozing and partying is involved. From the Detroit Free Press:

The rumor was Brett Lebda accidently dropped it. "I don't know what you're talking about," Lebda said. "I didn't drop it. That's a bad rumor going around."
Asked about the rumor, Chris Chelios said: "I'm not saying nothing. I looked at the Cup today -- there's no dings in it. There's nothing wrong with it. So it's a rumor. A bad rumor."

Word is that the boys banged the dent back out again.
Why all the denial though? If I dented it, I'd be proud to admit it! Go down in history for it. But it seems that throughout history, denial on "who did it" is common practice.
These stories surface every year. So, without further to do, it's time for links to Lord Stanley's trials and tribulations.

- A dent could be seen in the Cup last year, as Teemu Selanne hoisted it at the party at the Honda Center during the Ducks' celebration.

- Video: Chris Chelios brings the Cup to his joint, Cheli's Chili Bar.

- Video: Chris Osgood lets people drink from the Cup at Cheli's Chili Bar.

UPDATE: JUNE 17,2008

From James Duthie's blog: Here’s what happened:

Chris Chelios was atop the bar, Coyote Ugly style, Cup in hand, with the packed crowd cheering madly. At some point there was an attempted handoff to Brett Lebda. Whether it was the chaos of the crowd, or the…umm…content of the blood, balance was lost. Down went Lebda. Down went Stanley.
And no, the dent wasn’t “slight”.
In fact, it needed emergency service. Mike Bolt, the Keeper of the Cup, was taken to Joe Louis Arena, where Stan, like a forward who took a puck in the eye, was placed gently on the trainer’s table in the Red Wings dressing room, and operated on.

The dent had to be carefully banged out.



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In 1994, Mark Messier took the Cup to Scores, an East Side strip joint. Scores spokesman Lonnie Hanover said, "It was the first time I'd seen our customers eager to touch something besides our dancers!"

That is just one of the many crazy Cup stories compiled by Mitchell Szczepanczyk in a massive article called: The Stanley Cup: A History of Abuse and Neglect.

- "Why is the Stanley Cup Mario Lemieux's Swimming Pool" is a book you can buy that is loaded with crazy Cup stories.

- Some more stories found here at 100 Percent Injury Rate.

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