Lord Stanley's cup spends a day on the rez

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Like all other members of the Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings, Norm Maracle had the honor of taking home the National Hockey League's most sought after trophy for one day this summer.

Norm Who?

Norm Maracle. Maracle, a Mohawk Indian who hails from the Tyendinaga First Nation near Belleville, Ont. was a member of the Red Wings during their lengthy playoff run this season.

One of the reasons Maracle is not as well known as Steve Yzerman, Sergei Federov, Brendan Shanahan and some of the other Detroit stars is because he didn't dress for any of the Red Wings' playoff contests.

He was with the club for insurance purposes only as the third goaltender and would only have dressed for a match if either Chris Osgood or Kevin Hodson were unavailable for duty.

"I was fine with that," Maracle said. "I knew why I was there."

Maracle practiced with the Red Wings and travelled with the club throughout their playoff schedule. He was one of the seven players in the Detroit entourage who weren't dressing for games.

"We'd watch the games from the press box or from the dressing room," Maracle added.

He certainly saw his share of rubber this season. He was the top netminder for the American Hockey League's Adirondack Red Wings, Detroit's top affiliate. Maracle appeared in 66 regular season games for Adirondack posting a 27-29-8 mark and a 3.07 goals-against average.

Maracle also dressed for 10 games with Detroit and played in four, posting a 2-0-1 record.

Maracle, 23, spent the past three seasons with Adirondack. But he will be on a one-way contract starting this coming season. Thus, he would make the same amount of money whether he plays in the AHL or the NHL.

Unlike previous years, however, the Red Wings won't have the luxury of simply being able to assign Maracle to the minor leagues. Since he's going to be on a one-way deal, he would have to clear waivers before being assigned to Adirondack.

And no doubt some NHL squad would scoop up Maracle's playing rights if he were indeed placed on waivers.

Maracle said he's not about to request a trade out of the Red Wings' organization.

"I'd like to play in Detroit," he said. "It's a great hockey town, they've got great fans and a great team."

Following their Stanley Cup celebrations, Maracle said Detroit general manager Ken Holland told Osgood, Hodson and Maracle the club will make some sort of goaltending move before the start of next season.

"He wants to let all three of us play," Maracle said. "They can keep all three if they wanted to. He knows all three of us can play in the NHL. But why screw up two guys by rotating them in and out of the lineup?"

Osgood, 25, is considered the Red Wings' top puckstopper. So that probably leaves the club to decide between the 26-year-old Hodson and Maracle.

Though he spent his first five years at Tyendinaga, Maracle is only now just getting used to living on a First Nation. He moved with his family to Calgary when he was five. Maracle moved back to Tyendinaga, where he is spending the majority of his off-season, last year.

"I've been a city boy all my life," Maracle said. "And I don't know much about (my Native background). But I'm learning bit by bit."