When Ottawa won the Eastern finals, Alfredson may have made one of the biggest misjudgements of his career. He touched the championship trophy, when it was awarded to his team. He touched it with 1 finger, but he touched none the less. Most hockey players are very superstitious, and one of best known is that no one from the winning team touches the Conference trophy. You can bet that every player on his team either saw or knows that he touched that trophy. Superstitions can undermine and eat away at confidence and focus, like a cancer. After he touched that trophy, I said to wife, that “if Ottawa loses the first game of the CUP finals, they’re done”. In game 1, Ottawa didn’t play like they had in the three previous playoff series; and in game 2 it was even more obvious. Ottawa has had two 5 on 3’s, and didn’t score; and all of the bounces have gone the Duck’s way in the first 2 games. I give the Ducks all the credit they deserve, as they have played some great hockey; but for Ottawa the impact of a long standing superstition appears to be haunting them.
