In the NHL, as in other sports, trophies are awarded for conference titles—much in the way that hardware is given to the AFC and NFC champions, American League and National League champions, and so on.
However, only hockey's conference trophies have elaborate lore surrounding what you can do and not do with them.
Superstition generally holds that you should touch neither the Eastern Conference's Prince of Wales Trophy nor Western Conference's Clarence Campbell Bowl, instead saving your adulation for the Stanley Cup. However, the Florida Panthers bucked that tradition in 2023, embracing the Prince of Wales Trophy after their Eastern Conference title.
