Rivalry

Here we see a zoomed out version of the famous McCarty-Lemieux beat down. In the background, you see that Shanny appears to have his eye on someone. That someone is Patrick Roy. Just after this photo was captured, Shanny clothes-lined Roy at center ice, leaving Roy momentarily sprawled painfully on his back. After Shanny laid out Roy, Adam Foote (#52) attempted to come to the rescue, but only managed to get his own ass kicked by Shanny. Soon after Roy returned to his feet, Mike Vernon (who we see here leaving his post and rushing down the ice to take part in Detroit's ass-whomping of the Avalanche) showed up to take over and bludgeoned Patrick Roy mercilessly with his fists. (Sidenote: In a later game between the two rivals, Adam Foote, being the genius he is, decided to challenge Shanny to a rematch, and in turn was dealt possibly the harshest punch I've ever seen in a hockey fight. Shanny wound up from downtown, waited for just the right moment, and nearly knocked Foote unconscious in a single blow.)

For those of you who don't know the story of one of the most entertaining and popular athletic rivalries of the 90's, it goes something like this:

Although the rivalry has underlying forshadowing in the history of Patrick Roy (and his undying hatred of the Wings), the main rivalry was sparked during the 1996 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Western Conference Finals. That year the Red Wings set records as the best regular season team in history, and were upset in six games by the Avalanche during the NHL Stanley Cup Semi-Finals. In game six, even when it was obvious that the Avs were going to win, Claude Lemieux (one of the cheapest, dirtiest players of all time) approached Kris Draper from behind just after Kris had been digging for the puck along the boards, and deliberately rammed his face into the ledge at the top edge of the boards (after the play had moved on), causing Kris to be out of action for six months with his mouth wired shut and screws in his face. Afterwards, Claude refused to apologize and did all he could to fuel resentment from Detroit and her fans. The following year, Claude conveniently sat out with sore toes or the common cold the first couple of times that Colorado played Detroit, and finally, with the season nearly over, decided to show his face in Detroit on the 26th of March, 1997, almost a year after delivering one of the cheapest, most dickless attacks in hockey history. The rest is history.....

This is the 1997 Championship Grind Line, featuring Kris Draper, Kirk Maltby, and Joey Kocur (who replaced McCarty on this line during the playoffs, as Coach Scotty Bowman found more effective use for McCarty opposite Brendan Shannahan on the #1 scoring line, with Steve Yzerman at center). Every team needs a Grind Line; guys who go out there and play an incredibly physical game, each member pouring their heart out in a physical attack of strength and endurance. Using a mixture of fierce determination, dauntless grinding, and a tendency to get under the skin of the opposition, these guys often set the stage for complete scoring dominance by the scoring lines by keeping the defense on their toes and drawing penalties of frustration from opposing players who couldn't handle their in-your-face tactics. None of these guys were ever afraid of throwing down the gloves for each other; they acted as brothers on the ice and were often the target of cheap shots and dirty attacks. We can all learn something about team work and sacrifice by watching this fellowship of athletic warriors spill their blood every night in pursuit of victory and success!