Anaheim Ducks: The Real MVP?

Imagine it: Game seven of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Anaheim Ducks have home ice advantage for the end-all in the Honda Center. It has been a long, bloody playoff battle, and the Ducks have barely squeaked (quacked) by to get here. There has been a fan war in the stands all game, as the Ducks and their opponents have each taken their turn in the lead.

The game is tied with less than a minute left. Hockey fans from both teams hold their breath, waiting for overtime to begin. Scott Niedermayer yells something to the starting lineup just before shift change, and they take the ice. Two seconds later, the puck is in the opposing goal, and the game is over. Ducks win! Ducks win! Ducks win!

As Duck fans head to the exit to start their victory celebrations at home, dejected fans from the losing team hit the bathrooms on their way out the door. Though most of the napkins, wrappers, banners, and signs end up in the garbage, more than a few drunken fans take a literal interpretation of their hopes, and flush them down the toilets.

Soon, thanks to clogged toilet after clogged toilet, a layer of ooze as thick as ice has covered the floor of the men’s bathrooms, and as it floods into the hallways, it seems the losing fans have taken their post-game revenge. Is it curtains after all for our Mighty Ducks and their beautiful Honda Center?

Like an all-star goalie, the commercial plumber Anaheim loves arrives to make the tournament-winning save. He arrives in less time than a penalty time-out, wearing his team uniform with pride. With skills sharpened like skate blades, his rooter services quickly cut through the clogged pipes and restore flow to the toilets. Anaheim is saved from oozing floors and soggy feet, and the Honda Center will be beautiful once more to witness the Stanley Cup Champion banner raising.

Later that week, as parades head through Anaheim to commemorate the hard-won victory on ice, many heroes are recognized. As they travel through the streets, hoisted in convertibles and showered with confetti, many praises are sung. These men are celebrated for their speed on the job, their wise and successful game strategy, and their deft handling of the tools of their trade.

This victory is noted throughout the US and Canada, on television and in the homes of fans across the continent. One unsung hero, as swift in responding and as deft with his tools goes unmentioned. But the fans who were there know what really transpired that day.

They are dry-footed and odor-free thanks to the quick actions of one man, and they are secretly grateful. As the post-season begins, trades are made, and draft picks are chosen to start the 2015-16 season with force. Our faithful plumber knows that his quick work and impressive save means that he will be neither benched nor traded. He merely waits for the next time he’s called to save the game.