The Stanley Cup — yes, that Stanley Cup — is on temporary display today at the Lackawanna County university

SCRANTON, Pa. — Marywood University is playing host today to one very special chalice.

The famous Stanley Cup — the symbol of ice hockey greatness awarded each year to the champion of the National Hockey League — is at the Pascucci Pavilion in the O’Neill Center for Healthy Families until 2 p.m. The public is invited to stop on down.


Why is the Stanley Cup here?

It is tradition to allow members of the hockey team that won the Stanley Cup to show it off somewhere special to them.

Our local connection is Mike Joyce, a 2017 Marywood University graduate and the current Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the 2024 and 2025 NHL champion Florida Panthers.


Why is it called the Stanley Cup?

The holy grail of hockey is so named after a Victorian-era Governor General of Canada: Frederick Arthur Stanley, Lord Stanley of Preston, Earl of Derby.

Lord Stanley was a fan of ice hockey and decided in 1892 the sport’s athletes needed a prize marking their prowess, according to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

That prize ended up in the form of a silver cup seven inches high and 11 inches wide, purchased for the price of 10 guineas. That was equal to about $50 at the time, or nearly a month’s wages for a roofer from Philadelphia.

The cup became the championship trophy of the NHL in 1926. The original silver bowl is on display at the Esso Great Hall at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto while a silver alloy copy is used as the presentation award.

Nearly 3,500 names have been etched onto the cup and its bands. 


It is the oldest trophy by far that athletes still vie for in North America.

It was first awarded in 1893 to the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association.

Other major trophies like football’s Vince Lombardi Trophy, baseball’s Commissioner’s Trophy or basketball’s Larry O’Brien Trophy did not come into use for several decades.

Unlike those awards, a new Stanley Cup is not made each year. The year’s winning team takes temporary possession its staff and players are allowed 24-hours with the cup. 

For Joyce, part of those 24-hours are being spent in Lackawanna County.