When Carolina Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal brought the Stanley Cup home to Thunder Bay this past weekend, I had the honour of photographing something most people never get to see: not the parade, not the press conference, but the private party. Just family, close friends, and a hometown crowd celebrating a captain who just won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP and helped the Hurricanes claim their first championship since 2006.

What struck me most wasn’t the hardware. It was how Jordan carried the entire night.

A Captain Who Stayed Out of the Spotlight

For a man who spent the spring being called one of the most dominant players of the playoffs, Jordan spent this night doing the opposite of taking center stage. He stood back, patient, while cousins, childhood friends, and family members took their turns lifting the Cup over their heads. He waited. He watched. And through all of it, he had a smile that never once faded, the kind you can’t fake for a camera, because it’s still there between shots, when no one’s supposed to be looking.

That’s the image I kept coming back to while editing: not Jordan holding the Cup, but Jordan watching everyone else hold it.

“It’s Not About Me” A Toast to Everyone in the Tent

Later in the evening, Jordan pulled the room together for a toast. It was a genuine, heartfelt thank-you to the friends and family who filled the tent that night. He credited the people in that room for the season, for the run, for getting him there. And when he got to the end, he turned to his wife, Heather Staal (Dysievick), and made it clear the Cup belonged to her as much as it belonged to him.

The Thunder Bay Vendors Who Pulled It All Off

Here’s the part that still amazes me: this entire celebration was planned and built in under three weeks. That it came together this well, this fast, is a testament to the local talent behind it.

• Catering — Tomlin Restaurant brought a mac and cheese bar, pulled pork, and passed canapés that had the entire tent going back for seconds. The staff were incredible all night. Holland Bakery kept the dessert table stocked with Persians — a true Thunder Bay staple.
• Live music — Viva kept the dance floor full from start to finish, with DJ Wurlwind carrying the energy between sets. Heather even got pulled into a dance with an uncle (relation unconfirmed, but the moment was too good not to capture).
• Event design — Blank Slate worked hand-in-hand with State and Co Event Planning to pull this entire night together in under three weeks — a genuinely phenomenal turnaround.
• Decor and floral design — Velvet Rope set the tone for the whole tent and absolutely hit the mark. Lakehead Printing handled all the signage throughout the venue.
• Kids’ entertainment — Pulp and Paper ran a temporary tattoo bar that had every kid in attendance lined up, a bouncy castle from Funtastic Castles kept the younger guests entertained all night, and caricature artist Brian Nieminen had guests of all ages lining up for a sketch.
• A keepsake for the Staals — an audio guestbook from Gira360 let guests leave voice recordings for Jordan and Heather to listen back to later, long after the party ended.
• The details that made it run — Warding handled washrooms, SASI supplied water, Arctic Ice kept everything cold, and First Student shuttled guests to and from the celebration.

The Moment Everyone Was Waiting For

As the night went on, the Cup-clinching game was projected onto the ceiling of the tent, right above where the Stanley Cup and Jordan’s Conn Smythe Trophy sat on display. When the final moments played back and Jordan raised the Cup on screen exactly as he had on the ice, he raised it again in the tent, and the crowd went just as wild the second time around.

It’s a rare thing, watching someone relive their biggest moment surrounded by the people who mean the most to them, and getting to freeze it in a frame. Thank you to the Staal family for having me there.

If you were part of this celebration and want to see more, or if you’re a vendor from the night looking for images to share, reach out. I’m releasing the full gallery in the coming days.

Photography by iloPhoto (@ilophoto | Thunder Bay event & lifestyle photographer