People in St. Andrews, north of Winnipeg, are preparing to cheer on local NHL hero Darren Helm and his Detroit Red Wings on Friday night in the Stanley Cup's decisive Game 7.
Hundreds are expected to gather at the local hockey arena to watch on big screens the winner-take-all championship game against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
"The pride is unreal. I mean there's signs up at Harry's Foods; there's signs up at the community club and the school; there's signs up, so everyone is just going hog wild on this," said Darren Zembik, the ice maker at the local arena. "They're quite ecstatic and excited about Darren Helm in the Stanley Cup finals. I mean, let's face it. It's Game 7. It's every kid's dream."
Helm, 22, has helped the Red Wings reach the Stanley Cup finals each of the past two years. Last season, Detroit won the NHL championship in six games against the Penguins.
This post-season, Helm has scored four goals, including the series winner against the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference final.
Zembik hopes the party on Friday is only a prequel to another in a month or so. If the Red Wings win, Helm is expected to bring the Stanley Cup back to the community for another visit.
"Obviously, I'm going to have to talk to Darren, but I know for sure he'll want to have a big party and things are in the works right now," he said. "So let's keep our fingers crossed."
Moose maniaThe Stanley Cup final isn't the only big game Friday night.
The Manitoba Moose are at Winnipeg's MTS Centre, hosting the Hershey Bears in Game 6 of the American Hockey League's Calder Cup championship.
The Moose are trying to stave off elimination and bring the city its first pro hockey championship series in 30 years. The last team to do so was the Winnipeg Jets of the now-defunction World Hockey Association, which won the last Avco Cup in 1979.
The league then folded and the Jets joined the NHL.
When the doors open at the MTS Centre for Game 6, the Moose-Bears series will set a new Calder Cup record as the most attended final series in league history, according to the AHL website.
Through five games, 62,035 fans have gone through the turnstiles in Winnipeg and Hershey. That includes a full house of 15,003 at the MTS Centre on May 30, which set a record for the largest Game 1 attendance in AHL history.
Game 6 is also a sellout and all of the tickets for a possible Game 7 have already been sold.
For those not able to get inside to see the game on Friday, the big screen outside the MTS Centre will be showing it. It will also be broadcast on the 500-square-foot (46.45-metre) screen in the courtyard of Canwest Place at the corner of Portage and Notre Dame avenues.
The puck drops at 7:30 p.m.
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