Dear ink fans,
It is time for another round of Mystery Ink, this one No. 7, hereafter to be known as MI7.
Our theme for MI7 is, of course, the Stanley Cup. The quest for one of the greatest trophies in sports starts tonight, when hockey drops the first puck the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Only 16 NHL teams made the tournament, and after four punishing rounds of best-of-seven games, only one team will survive to lift the Stanley Cup.
Who are those 16 teams this year? Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders, Winnipeg Jets, Ottawa Senators, Washington Capitols, Nashville Predators, Tampa Bay Lightning, Calgary Flames, Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota Wild, Anaheim Ducks, Vancouver Canucks and St. Louis Blues. Geographically, if you live in North America, you have someone to root for. And if you don’t, you still do, because these teams have players from all around the world. And if your particular country is not represented among the players, well, let’s root for the underdog Ottawa Senators. Or the beloved Chicago Blackhawks. Or the Detroit Red Wings — bearing the winged wheel for their proud city. Or the Rangers! They sport the best regular season record this year. The Canadiens, winners of 24 Stanley Cups. Nashville, the Blackhawks’ first round competitor, with an amazing defense and one of my favorite goalies, the Finn Pekka Rinne. The great thing about the Stanley Cup is all the teams are outstanding, the play is high quality and you sort of wish everyone could win.
Want to know the story behind the Stanley Cup, first awarded in 1893? It’s a good one, starting with an English lord and a silver punch bowl, but it would take too long to tell here. Luckily, one can look at this awesome comic by Molly Brooks, in The Nib. Note that pen-related name, hockey agnostics.
So, MI7. Let’s think of it as a game seven, in a seven-game series. As before, we are looking for five or six volunteers who would be willing to try an unknown ink and post their impressions here, without posting any guesses about the ink’s identity. We think it's fun to try an ink without any preconceptions, or even a clue as to what it might be. In fact, to preserve the mystery, the identity of the ink will not be revealed until every last recipient has received his or her ink and had a chance to try it. So we also ask people not to write guesses about the ink’s name directly in the thread.
If you’d like to lace up the skates and throw your inky helmet on the ice, please post here and let us know why you’d like to get MI7. And if it’s not in your profile, please tell us where you live (just the state or country). That helps us pick a diverse slate of participants and figure out mailing times. Please volunteer only if you have time to use or test the ink right away, and if you are willing to post in the thread about your impressions. We are looking for people who are enthusiastic about ink, and about posting.
People who've done it before are welcome again, as are people who are new to the exercise. Everyone is welcome in MI. If we have more than six who want to volunteer, participants will be chosen randomly.
Here is the real Stanley Cup.
25a1sportspromo-color-25p-1024x761.jpg
Here is one made of bacon. Yum, bacon.
Bookmarks