Cuba Gooding Jr. Might Go Down In History As The NHL’s Greatest Party Animal

If you were to look at Cuba Gooding Jr.’s body of work in the past few years, you’d likely either know him as the actor who played O.J. Simpson or the guy who loves to party at NHL events.

It’s been a few years since Cuba established the latter identity for himself at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas, where he was a hot mess and (presumably) very drunk or otherwise impaired while presenting during the ceremony.

Then, some months later, Gooding built on that reputation at a Chicago Blackhawks preseason game. After successfully placing a puck through a small opening in the team’s intermission “Shoot The Puck” contest, the actor celebrated his achievement by stripping off his clothes.

Was it a Slapshot tribute, or just a party animal being a party animal? Either way, the crowd loved it. I can’t blame them either, that’s about as much entertainment as you’ll ever get at a preseason hockey game.

If it hasn’t been made quite clear yet, Cuba loves him some hockey. That’s why he was at for Sunday’s Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final in San Jose to watch the Penguins take on the Sharks with the Cup on the line.

Before the game, he stopped by the set of NBC Sports Network and showed support for the Sharks by dropping an f-bomb on live TV, because of course.

Unfortunately for Cuba, his Sharks came up short on Sunday night. The Penguins clinched the Stanley Cup with a 3-1 victory in Game 6, capturing the best-of-seven series four games to two. The actor didn’t seem too broken up about it, though, as he was spotted celebrating with the Penguins in their locker room after the game.

We’re not sure how he got in there — especially after apparently switching allegiances — but it doesn’t seem that any of the Penguins players particularly minded him being there.

Does this make Cuba the NHL’s version of Drake? The question must be asked. Regardless of the answer, his presence tends to make things a lot more entertaining for those of us watching at home, so I’m all for him continuing to blaze this trail — especially if the league expands into Vegas in the near future.