"She was a special girl and and she means a lot to me and my whole family," Colton told stlouisblues.com. "With me not being in St. Albert here and playing in St. Louis, the shots were a way we could frequently connect (during hockey season). In the summer when I came home, she begged me to score a few extra ones for her."
On Wednesday, when Colton got his day with the Stanley Cup, he made a stop at her home to visit Grandpa Tom and brought lunch. While they ate, the Stanley Cup sat in the center of the living room coffee table with a framed photo of Carol so she could join them.
"We had such a wonderful life together," said a teary-eyed Tom Parayko. "I wish she was here to see this."
Together with his immediate family and closest friends, the Paraykos held a toast to Carol with peach schnapps.
Grandpa Tom took his second shot of schnapps from the Stanley Cup.
"She's a special lady," Colton added of his grandmother. "She's definitely looking over us."
Be sure to visit stlouisblues.com or the Blues' social media networks throughout July and August as we chronicle the Stanley Cup's journey in our "Summer with the Champs" series. Over the next two months, the Cup will travel more than 28,000 miles, spanning five countries and three continents.
