The New Contest

As I had said on Saturday, there is a new contest being held by Pepsi/Frito-Lays/Gatorade, and it's one that HBIC was a part of last season. The "Team Up and Bring Home The Cup" contest allows for one minor hockey team to earn the right to host the Stanley Cup in their community, and to have Mark Messier bring the Stanley Cup to their party! Last season, the HRS Huskies from St. Lazare, Québec earned the right to "Bring Home The Cup" as they won the 2009 version of this contest. Well, as of writing this, you have four days to get your entry in for the 2010 Bring Home The Cup Contest! The rules are below, but this is a major opportunity for one team to have Mark Messier and the Stanley Cup in their neighbourhood!

Here's all the legal stuff that Pepsi and Co. needs you to know:

No purchase necessary. Must be Canadian resident, age of majority or older, to enter. Entrants must enter on behalf of a Canadian amateur hockey team. Contest Entry Period: begins February 1, 2010 at 12:00:01 AM (ET) and ends March 12, 2010 at 11:59:59 PM (ET). One (1) Team Up and Bring Home the Cup™ Grand Prize available to be won. ARV: $10,500 CDN. Odds of winning are based on the number of eligible entries received and the results of a public vote. Mathematical skill-testing question required. Some conditions/restrictions apply.

As for you, as some of you fall outside of these rules, there is a contest that I will run for a special prize. This prize comes compliments of Pepsi/Frito-Lay/Gatorade, and we'll get to that in a moment.

Your goal is simple: predict the final standings in terms of the eight Western Conference teams and eight Eastern Conference teams in terms of how the NHL Playoffs will start. The person who comes closest will earn the prize. If there are ties, a random drawing between those that are tied will take place to see who wins.

There are some excellent playoff races happening in both conferences right now, so this contest will only run until March 18. That means you have ten (10) days to get your entries in. Here's how to do that. Make sure you follow these instructions! Failure to do so may result in a disqualification from the event, or, more likely, me disregarding your entry. Ok? Ok.

• Please COMMENT BELOW WITH YOUR ENTRY and send a carbon copy to me of your entry via email Let me make this clear: NO COMMENT, NO ENTRY, no matter how many times you email me.
• Your subject line will read "Pepsi Contest".
• You will include eight (8) Western Conference teams and eight (8) Eastern Conference teams that you think will earn a berth in the 2010 NHL Playoffs in the order of seeding that you think they will earn.
• Anything else within the body of the email will go unread.

And what are you competing for?

How does a $75 gift certificate to the NHL.com store sound? That's $75 to spend on anything that NHL.com offers in their online store. All you have to do is correctly predict the final standings of the top-eight teams in each conference, and the cash is yours. And you can gear up for the 2010 NHL Playoffs!

A huge thanks goes out to Pepsi/Frito-Lay/Gatorade for this generous prize, as well as offering up the awesome "Team Up and Bring Home The Cup" contest. Pepsi deserves some props for offering up the $75 gift certificate in this blog's contest.

Make sure that you get your son's or daughter's team registered, Canadian readers! It's a chance to party with hockey's Holy Grail and Mark Messier! For everyone reading this, get your entries in as soon as possible! March 12 is the deadline for the "Team Up and Bring Home The Cup" contest, while March 18 is the final day for HBIC's contest!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!