- Jackson Blake’s dad Jason played 871 NHL games but never got out of the first round
- Blake scored to help the Hurricanes even the Cup Final 2-2 in Game 4
- Read below for what a championship would mean to the Blake family
Jackson Blake doesn’t have to look far for his loudest fan. His father, former NHL forward Jason Blake, hasn’t missed a game this postseason, and the 22-year-old Hurricanes winger wants to win a Stanley Cup so the two of them can share it.
He talked about what a championship would mean with his dad in the stands.
“He’s loving every bit of it. He wouldn’t miss a game, that’s for sure, especially in the (Stanley Cup) Playoffs. He’s having fun and it’d be super special to win so we can enjoy it together.”
Jason Blake built a long career of his own, with 486 points in 871 regular-season games across the Kings, Islanders, Maple Leafs and Ducks. He suited up for 11 playoff games and never made it out of the first round.
Now his son sits two wins away from a title in only his second NHL season.
Blake helped drag the series back to Raleigh. He opened the scoring at 3:28 of the first period in Tuesday’s 5-3 Game 4 win in Las Vegas, the goal that pulled Carolina even at 2-2.
Watch the highlights:
The result sent the best-of-seven back to North Carolina all square:
He has been one of Carolina’s steadiest forwards all spring. Skating on the second line with Taylor Hall and Logan Stankoven, Blake is tied for the team lead with 18 points (six goals, 12 assists) in 17 games.
Watching, Jason admitted, is harder than anything he did as a player.
“I thought playing was hard and I got to live out my dreams, but this is way, way, way more stressful, to watch your kid play.”
The young winger also wants a ring for the teammates who have waited. Carolina hasn’t reached the Cup Final since winning it all in 2006, and a core led by Sebastian Aho, Jordan Martinook and Jaccob Slavin has come up short for years.
The Hurricanes get to finish it at home:
Game 5 goes Thursday at Lenovo Center, with Blake two wins from the first championship of his career, and the celebration his dad waited 871 games to be part of.
