Chicago Blackhawks pay tribute to Stan Mikita

For 21 seconds Sunday, the United Center came to a complete and beautiful standstill.

Everyone in attendance paused to pay tribute to Stan Mikita - a wonderful man who meant so much to the Chicago Blackhawks. So much to the city of Chicago. And so much to his wife, Jill, his sons Chris and Scott, his daughters Meg and Jane, and his nine grandchildren.

No doubt thoughts turned to the 22 years he played for the Hawks. The goals. The assists. The moves. The 1961 Stanley Cup.

Certainly, others thought of his incredible heart. One that led to the formation of the Stan Mikita Hockey School for the Hearing Impaired. And to his work with the Special Olympics.

Those 21 seconds were poignant and impressive because - unlike other moments of silence - not one soul out of the 21,812 on hand made a sound.

That's how much Hawks fans respected Stan Mikita, who passed away on Aug. 7 after a long battle with Lewy Body Dementia.

The Mikita family was joined on the ice by Hawks ambassadors Bobby Hull, Denis Savard, Chris Chelios and Tony Esposito. Plenty of tears were shed by the family and around the UC during a five-minute video that showed many of Stan's highlights on the ice, but also included touching scenes of the Mikitas at all stages of their lives.

"It was beautiful," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "I thought they did a tremendous job. Special moment for the family and everybody watching it - Blackhawks fans, players, coaches appreciated it as well."

Stan's voice was heard numerous times, and he left no doubt what the organization meant to him, saying: "After so many years with the Blackhawks and putting on the jersey every day, you kind of get attached to it. I didn't understand that until I quit playing and I'd see it hanging in the rafters and I said, 'You know, you must have done something right to get this far and have that thing hanging up there.' "

When it was over, fans serenaded Jill with an ovation that grew in volume as her face stayed on the scoreboard for about 20 seconds. She concluded the ceremony by dropping a puck between Jonathan Toews and Toronto's John Tavares.