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“I remember driving down Georgia, crossing Granville on the way to the game. Everybody was engaged, stores were shut down, there was a festive mood. People were waiting to see what was going to happen. With Game 7 at home it was an exciting time. We had just gone through the Olympics, won a gold medal, we had a great result. We were expecting another great result.”

From the owner’s suite, Aquilini watched the game with family and friends. “There was an energy in the arena I’d never felt or seen before. The tension in the air, the expectation. The Stanley Cup was in the building. Somebody was going to lift that trophy.

“When there were two or three minutes left in the game, I knew we had lost. My heart sank. I was so disappointed. We had come so far, worked so hard for so many years and to lose at home in Game 7 was devastating.”

Aquilini quietly slipped out of the suite and went down to his team’s dressing room. “I wanted to congratulate the team for having such a great season. They were warriors. They were champions to me. I was really proud of them, very proud of that team.”

The first few minutes in the dressing room were very quiet. “All the players were in the room. It was over.”

Then, through the long, grey tunnel, sound began to echo. “We could hear the Boston Bruins cheering with the Stanley Cup in their hands.”

Photo by Ian Lindsay / PNG files

Aquilini didn’t watch the Stanley Cup going out on the ice, where it was presented to the victors. “I couldn’t bring myself to,” he says. Instead, he walked up to the office.