Stanley Cup: St Louis Blues beat Boston Bruins to win trophy for first time
- Published
Superfan, 11, watches St Louis Blues end 52-year Stanley Cup wait
The St Louis Blues have ended the longest wait for a first Stanley Cup title in NHL history - having been the league's worst team in January.
They ended a 52-year wait for the cup as a 4-1 victory over the Boston Bruins sealed a 4-3 series win.
Goaltender Jordan Binnington starred in what was the Stanley Cup's first deciding game-seven contest in eight years, stopping 32 shots in all.
"I can't believe where I am," he said. "It's an incredible feeling."
"We did it," added Binnington, who didn't become the team's starting goaltender until halfway through the season. "I can't wait to get back to St Louis and celebrate with the whole city."
Ryan O'Reilly - named the play-offs' most valuable player - opened the scoring, before Alex Pietrangelo, Brayden Schenn and Zach Sanford gave the Blues a 4-0 lead.
Matt Grzelcyk scored a consolation for the Bruins, who were beaten by the Chicago Blackhawks in their last finals appearance in 2013.
Laila lifts the trophy
Laila Anderson, 11, celebrated with the team she supports
In all, the Blues won 30 of their final 49 regular-season games before progressing through the play-offs to reach their first final since 1970.
Such was the nature of the Blues' turnaround from last place in the league in January to Stanley Cup victors, one fan reportedly won $100,000 (£79,000), external from a $250 (£197) bet.
The Blues celebrated with Laila Anderson, an 11-year-old diagnosed with a life-threatening immune disease.
A video of Laila bursting into tears after being told she had been cleared by her doctor to attend the most important fixture in her team's history went viral on Wednesday.
Forward Alexander Steen had told Laila she was the team's "lucky charm", while defenseman Colton Parayko has been wearing a bracelet sporting the words "Laila strong".
She watched her team hoist the trophy, which weighs 34lbs, prompting Binngington to say: "I haven't done an upper body workout in three months. I got it up there and am going to lift it up a lot more times."