Minutes after beating the New Jersey Devils in game six of the Stanley Cup Finals, Los Angeles Kings defenseman Matt Greene hoisted the 34-pound silver trophy above his head and made a customary lap around the ice in celebration. Greene, the Kings’ alternate captain, helped lead Los Angeles to its first Stanley Cup victory since the club was founded in 1967.
While Greene was on top of the world — having claimed the National Hockey League’s holy grail — his mother, MSU journalism professor Darcy Greene, was halfway across the world in the West African country of Benin on a research trip. She missed seeing the last two series of the playoffs and was only able to stay updated by walking to a cyber cafe, pending it having electricity and a fast enough internet connection, she said.
When she finally was able to see her son raise Lord Stanley’s Cup from another continent, she was overcome with pride of her son reaching the NHL’s summit.
“I was just so happy for him,” Darcy Greene said. “All his dreams had come true — things he worked for all his life came together in that one moment.”
Although Matt Greene was at the pinnacle of the hockey universe in that moment, it was not without an intense amount of practice and a tireless determination to achieve his dreams that allowed him to reach that point, she said.
“It’s kind of indescribable,” Matt Greene said of raising the trophy.
“You wait for something your whole life … and then the feeling is finally there. It definitely eclipsed any imagination of what it would feel like.”
Matt Greene was seeking redemption after being left with a sour taste in his mouth when he lost in the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals as a member of the Edmonton Oilers, which chose him 44th overall in the 2002 NHL Draft. Prior to becoming a professional, he spent time with various club teams, the U.S. National Team Development Program and played three years at the University of North Dakota.
“I just knew I didn’t want to do that again,” he said. “I knew that was the last time I ever wanted to lose in the finals, that’s for sure.”
Darcy Greene said she buys TV packages to be able to watch all of her son’s games and tries to make it to the west coast a few times a year when she can.
As is tradition, each member of the winning team gets a day to themselves with the trophy, and Matt Greene plans to bring the cup back to his hometown of Grand Ledge, Mich., to celebrate with the city in August, he said.
He attended Grand Ledge High School for two years before bouncing around the state and later returning to receive his diploma from there.
“Everybody knows him, and everybody is aware of it, so I think there’s a lot of excitement about it,” Grand Ledge High School principal Steve Gabriel said.
“He’s very down-to-earth, that’s the best way to describe him. He’s very loyal and has a lot of pride for Grand Ledge, having grown up here.”
Among other traditions, it’s also customary for players to enjoy the beverage of their choice out of the championship trophy.
“I think a lot of things will be drunk out of it that night,” Matt Greene said with a laugh.
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