Chicago Blackhawks player Trevor van Riemsdyk, who grew up in Middletown, brought his own silverware to dinner in Rumson Thursday night: the Stanley Cup. Â
Van Riemsdyk’s team won this year’s National Hockey League championship over theTampa Bay Ligthning. The league allows each player on the winning team to take custody of the cup for a day, and the 24-year-old defenseman used his day to show off the cup to fans across Monmouth and Ocean counties – as detailed in this video by Shore Sports Zone – before ushering it by boat across the Navesink River to a private party at the Salt Creek Grille.
Among the more than 100 wellwishers on shore was Middletown resident Michael Kessig, a friend of van Riemsdyk’s older brother, James, who plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The excitement for the family was “through the roof,” Kessig said, after shooting a selfie with the trophy, above right. “Trevor got his shot this year, and we’re hoping James can have his soon, too.”Â