Playoff Beard

By Dakota Case

Nothing says Spring is here quite like the NHL’s traditional Stanley Cup Playoff beard.

First incorporated by the New York Islanders dynasty of the early 1980s, a prominent playoff beard is a good indicator of team success. Youthful and patchy, burly and grey, facial hair has many forms in the 16-team race for Lord Stanley’s Chalice.

Why is the playoff beard so popular? Because it’s guaranteed to work, for just one team, that is.

When a player looks down the bench to see a row of scruffy faced warriors, he can be reassured he’s one of 23 brothers in arms working together with one mind for a single purpose—a Stanley Cup championship.

After it’s all said and done, the beard ultimately has to come off. But it can wait a little bit longer, the celebrating has just begun.