In celebration of the 125th anniversary of the Stanley Cup, a number of Pittsburgh Penguins fans got to see the trophy up close both in virtual reality and real life.
The NHL teamed up with advertising agency R&R Partners for the experience. At PPG Paints Arena, home of the defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins, fans were invited into a 20-foot shipping container with a small, black table in it that has a little Stanley Cup replica sitting on it. Fans sat around the table and put on VR headsets to see historic Stanley Cup wins.
Then, the keeper of the cup, Phil Pritchard appears in the virtual reality world and invites fans to reach out and touch the cup. And not just in virtual reality.
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When fans slipped the goggles over their eyes, Pritchard – who had been hiding behind a black curtain in the shipping container – had come out and quietly placed the real Stanley Cup on the table. So when VR Pritchard tells the fan to reach out and touch it, his or her fingers will actually feel the metal.
A total of 91 fans were able to experience the Stanley Cup.
“Holy (expletive),” one fan said as she removed her goggles and realized the iconic trophy was actually in front of her. Some fans were even moved to tears and others gave Pritchard hugs.