THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PITEA, Sweden — Tomas Holmstrom had his day with the Stanley Cup on Friday, and he let his cousin use it as a baptismal font for a christening.
Holmstrom suggested the idea to his cousin, Robert Sundstrom, who baptized his seven-week-old daughter Alva Felicia during a private ceremony outside Holmstrom’s hometown of Pitea in northern Sweden.
"Tomas came up with the idea when we were sitting in his summer cabin kitchen a week ago," Sundstrom said. "Me and my wife thought it would be fun to christen our daughter in such a priceless object."
The only outsiders at the ceremony were the two American security guards who travel with the massive silver trophy in Sweden.
Holmstrom won the Stanley Cup with the Detroit Red Wings, and each member of the team gets to spend a day with the trophy.
The Stanley Cup will next head to Vasteras, Nicklas Lidstrom’s hometown.
Lidstrom, one of seven Red Wings regulars from Sweden, made hockey history last month when he became the first European captain to win the Stanley Cup. He is also a six-time winner of the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenceman.
Later, Henrik Zetterberg, Mikael Samuelsson, Andreas Lilja, Johan Franzen and Niklas Kronwill will bring the Stanley Cup to their hometowns. It’s the first time as many as seven players from the same country outside North America will get the opportunity to spend a day with the Stanley Cup.
