The Great Beard Off of 2009

Have you ever wondered where did the playoff beard superstition-turned-tradition come from?

It seems to be a relatively recent trend. The New York Islanders dynasty of the early 1980s featured several players who grew or maintained beards come playoff time. Ken Morrow, Butch Goring, John Tonelli, Clark Gillies, and Gord Lane all had big, itchy, black beards. It was said to be a good luck charm, and it delivered four consecutive Stanley Cup championships.

If you dig through photos of cup winners before the Islanders you wont find many beards at all so it seems to hold a little truth that maybe the boys from New York started the whole tradition.

Check out http://www.playoffbeard.com for a little bit of a laugh on the whole beard tradition, I really like this sites "Chuck Norris Award".