Could a dog get his name on the Stanley Cup?

Don’t laugh, it just might happen.

After the St. Louis Blues defeated the Boston Bruins in Game 7 Wednesday night to claim their first Stanley Cup championship in the franchise’s 52-year history, they crowned their new mascot, Barclay, a service dog in the making, with a championship cap.

When the image of the cap-wearing, 9-month-old golden retriever began circulating on social media, the official Twitter account of the Stanley Cup — @StanleyCup – re-posted the picture with this message:

“I officially crown you, Stanley Pup.”

That might not be the end of it, though. The Blues’ Twitter account decided to have some fun with Barclay’s season-long run of fame, tweeting this message to the NHL: “Hi @NHL. Barclay was wondering if he gets his name in the Cup, too?”

Well, technically, it’s possible. According to NHL policy, the league will allow up to 52 names from the Stanley Cup-winning team to be inscribed on Lord Stanley’s silver chalice. That comes with the assumption that the people or names included are affiliated with or have played for the club that season.

Barclay, who was born last September and has spent the entire season in and around the Blues’ office headquarters and attended games at Enterprise Center in downtown St. Louis, clearly is affiliated with the team. He’s even been on the ice with Blues’ players, chasing after pucks and picking up hockey sticks with his mouth during practices.

As long as the Blues were to include him as one of the 52 names they deem is worthy enough to be recognized for eternity on the Cup, why not? The players thought he was their lucky charm this season and soon, Barclay will graduate from his assistance training and start working for Duo, a St. Louis-based organization that provides assistance dogs to people in need.

Why shouldn’t the Blues put his name on the Cup?

When the 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers won the Stanley Cup, team Owner Peter Pocklington decided to include his father, Basil, on the list of names to be engraved. And it was, even though Pocklington’s dad wasn’t officially affiliated with the team in any way.

Eventually, the NHL caught wind of it and instructed an engraver to strike out Basil’s name with a series of capital X’s, which is clearly visible on one of the rings to this day.

Barclay should have his day in the sun, too, and the Blues can make the case that the pooch actually deserves the swag. Stay tuned to see if it happens or not.

In the meantime, make sure you tune in Saturday to catch a glimpse of Barclay during the Blues’ official Championship Parade and Rally, which kicks off at 10 a.m. (Arizona time) in downtown St. Louis and wraps up with celebration under the Gateway Arch.

The Stanley Pup figures to get a ton of air time.

Reach McManaman at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @azbobbymac. Listen to him live every Tuesday afternoon between 2-5:30 on AM 1060/SB Nation Radio on Calling All Sports with Roc and Manuch and every Wednesday afternoon between 1-4 on Fox Sports 910-AM on The Freaks with Kenny and Crash.

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SportsPulse: The St. Louis Blues have made history in winning their first ever Stanley Cup. As Kevin Allen puts it, no city in America deserves it more.
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