Stampede coach Ryan Cruthers & president Jim Olander on how the Herd hoisted the Clark Cup

There was a lot that went into the Sioux Falls Stampede capturing the Clark Cup on Saturday night. Who the Herd brought in to skate with them and coach them is at the top of the list.   Ryan Cruthers was the coach who created the rare "family" culture in modern sports that many coaches and teams strive to have, but few actually attain. Linards Feldbergs is the Finnish phenom at goalie who saved his leg-splitting best for last. Joey Macrina was the shortest player on the ice, yet the most sure-fire player to deliver clutch goals, including the one that clinched the Cup. Who are these people? Why did it work so well despite the Herd being on the brink of elimination four times in the first two rounds of the playoffs, and then having to slink back onto the ice in Muskegon on Saturday night after having blown a two goal lead in the final four minutes on Friday night when it appeared the Cup was theirs?   Why was it so perfect that Macrina scored the final goal? Is Feldbergs the best goalie in a rich history of netkeepers for the Stampede? What makes him so special? Why did the players rush to him for a team celebration scrum after Macrina's Cup clincher?   Let's go behind the scenes and hear the stories behind those decisions and moments, and learn how all these men ended up in Muskegon, Michigan, coaching and playing in double overtime and scoring a legendary goal — the first-ever walk-off goal for a Herd championship — that they and Stampede fans will be talking about for a very long time.   President and 20-year play-by-play announcer Jim Olander has witnessed (and called) all four USHL titles and had a big hand in the hiring of head coach Ryan Cruthers, who had been a part of four league titles prior as a player and bench boss and left a job as a professional head coach to come back to Sioux Falls and lead the junior amateur team he had fallen in love with as an assistant in 2022-23.   Those two men joined the Happy Hour host at Gateway Lounge to reminisce about what Olander calls a once-in-a-lifetime team.