New Jersey Devils heart Jack Hughes needs his gold-medal-winning puck again. The Hockey Corridor of Fame, nonetheless, has no plans to provide it to him.
In a narrative revealed Tuesday, Hughes instructed ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski that it is “bull—t” he and Boston Fleet defender Megan Keller do not have the pucks that captured gold on the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics. Hughes netted his objective in a 2-1 time beyond regulation win over Crew Canada within the males’s gold-medal sport on Feb. 22, whereas Keller scored in a 2-1 time beyond regulation victory over Canada within the girls’s gold-medal match on Feb. 19.
The Corridor of Fame replied to these feedback on Wednesday. It insists it is not obligated to provide Hughes or Keller their pucks.
Hockey Corridor of Fame explains why it will not give Jack Hughes gold-medal-winning puck
“Sadly, within the best phrases, it was by no means Jack’s puck to personal,” Philip Pritchard, vice chairman of the useful resource heart and curator for the Corridor of Fame, told Wyshynski in a narrative revealed Wednesday. “It has been donated to us now. For each artifact that is been donated, we have now a paper path and signed paperwork the place it is come from.”
If Hughes had scored his objective in an NHL sport, he would doubtless be allowed to maintain the puck. The Corridor of Fame should first contact gamers to obtain permission so as to add these gadgets to its assortment.
For worldwide occasions, just like the Olympics, the identical guidelines do not apply. Pritchard says the IIHF has been accountable for acquiring, authenticating and defending gadgets from world competitions since 1998. The Corridor of Fame introduced its employees to Milan to help within the course of.
When a probably historic second happens, an on-ice official collects an merchandise, comparable to a puck. They then hand it to an off-ice official, who wraps tape round it to mark it. That’s then given to the IIHF, which donates it to the Corridor of Fame in Toronto. Pritchard added that that is all legally backed.
“A part of being a nonprofit registered charity in Canada is it turns into form of a authorized doc that we have obtained it as a donation,” he stated. “We have insured it, we have preserved it. We conserved every part. It turns into a part of our establishment.”
Athletes in different sports activities are allowed to maintain their gadgets from worldwide competitors. Former Chicago Bulls ahead Scottie Pippen stored the Crew USA jersey he wore within the gold-medal sport on the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, which he reportedly sold for $384K at an public sale on March 10.
Pritchard stated the Corridor of Fame’s practices “protect the historical past of the sport,” however that stops gamers from making pucks and different gear household heirlooms.
Hughes stated he wished to provide the puck to his father, Jim Hughes, relatively than public sale it. He famous his father is like an archivist for him and his brothers, Quinn Hughes (Minnesota Wild) and Luke Hughes (Devils).
“After I look again in time in my profession, I do not acquire too many issues for myself, however my dad’s a monster collector for the three of us. I do know he would have a particular place for it,” Jack Hughes stated.
However as an alternative of being in a particular place, the puck is now in a museum, the place it is on show for guests, who might not know what it’s or care to be taught as they scurry by way of all the opposite displays.
