Obama honors Chicago Blackhawks for Stanley Cup hat trick

For the third and final time during his administration, President Barack Obama welcomed the Chicago Blackhawks to the White House Thursday to celebrate the team’s 2015 Stanley Cup championship.

“And by the way, we have a state dinner coming up with Canada”, he said, “and we might just leave [the Stanley Cup] right in the middle of the room”.

The president joked about how the Blackhawks struggled to win a championship for nearly fifty years – and then, he became the Commander in Chief. “Now you’ve got the Hat Trick, so I think it’s pretty clear, the kind of luck I brought to this team”.

Chicago won its third title in six seasons by defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games last June.

“A champion reached out to help somebody who could use a hand, even though he didn’t have to, even though nobody was looking, even though he wasn’t asking for credit”, Obama said of Darling.

“It is also, by the way, a tribute to the head of scouting, who just told me he could help me pick my Supreme Court justice”, he said. Darling was spotlighted not only because he is from Lemont, but also for his act of kindness to a homeless man during a recent Hawks road trip.

Earlier in his speech Obama joked that the Blackhawks had almost 50 years between Stanley Cup titles and now have three during his presidency.

The president’s hometown team presented him with a miniature version of the Stanley Cup, a sweater and a parking pass to the United Center.

“This is the best present I have ever gotten in the White House”, Obama said.

Getting back to the White House in 2017 won’t be easy regardless of who the sitting president is, but the Blackhawks have made a habit of doing so, and they figure to be the team to beat once again come playoff time.

“I’ll admit I was hoping you’d give me a day with it this time around”.