NHL Festival at the Finals Game 2
June 6, 2025
The Stanley Cup finals are an undeniably special time of year, where magic happens both on and off the ice. This year, Rogers has been using Canadian band TRIUMPH‘s 1979 classic “Lay It on the Line” as a sort of fight anthem for Canadian teams during the playoffs.
The band has been largely dormant, aside from a private performance for their documentary (Triumph: Rock N’ Roll Machine) in which they played three songs for a small, private audience of megafans in 2019, until now. Their first live, public performance in 17 years saw founding members Rik Emmett and Gil Moore take the stage. Mike Levine was unable to make it due to prior commitments. Rounding out the lineup were Phil X (Bon Jovi, ex-Triumph), as well as Todd Kerns and Brent Fitz from TOQUE.
The performance was electric – the pure joy on every one of those guys’ faces couldn’t help but be noticed. Phil was finally standing on stage with one of his idols, the man whose shoes he spent years filling, as he replaced Emmett when he left he band in the 90’s. Phil also recorded the last Triumph album with the band.
They were tight. Insanely tight. You would not for one second think that this was a handful of guys who had gotten a call less than a week before to put this together.
I posted a couple of teaser shots to my personal Facebook page right after the show, and they blew up. They were shared by members of the band, and fans were absolutely eating this up. I reached out to Phil X on Instagram and asked if he would be willing to answer a few questions for this review, and thankfully, he was happy to oblige. He has come across as nothing but a super down-to-earth, humble, incredibly sweet dude who was overjoyed to have the opportunity to do this.
How did your involvement in the reunion come about?
Phil X: I generally speak with Gil on a monthly basis since we met & during one conversation, he picked my brain about some kind of TRIUMPH experience. Then the Edmonton Oilers play-off finals performance came up & he called & asked if we could put it together with a drummer and bass player, and the first 2 guys on the list were Brent Fitz & Todd Kerns. Not because they’re Canadian (which doesn’t hurt) but because I play with Brent all the time in my band, and I knew Todd would also kill it vocally as well as on bass.
The Stanley Cup finals and hockey in general are a big part of Canadian culture. How did it feel being able to celebrate the legacy of the band, with original vocalist/guitarist Rik Emmett at such a celebratory event?
Phil X: The whole thing with being on stage with Rik was super surreal. We had SO MUCH FUN. He loves working out 2 guitar part arrangements & when I’d play something we didn’t work out, he’d yell “YEAH! DO THAT!!”. Canada, TRIUMPH & Hockey…. It’s like a trifecta of where we all came from.
In one of your posts, you said “my inner 11 year old is FREAKIN’ THE FAK OUT!!!!” about playing with Rik. Was it a “full circle” moment for you, having joined Triumph after his departure?
To be honest, it’s way beyond any “full circle” moment. The last time I saw Rik Emmett on stage was the Sport Of Kings Tour, and now… I’m on stage with him and he’s standing 3 feet away from me while we’re playing harmony guitars on an iconic song like ‘Fight The Good Fight’.”
Finally, the big question… will we finally see a tour after all of these years? It’s been 17 years since Triumph played a public live performance. You guys were absolutely ELECTRIC up there. The pure joy on all of your faces, the chemistry. Could this be the catalyst for a comeback?
Thanks for the “ELECTRIC” comment. It truly felt like that. Pure joy, chemistry, all that is accurate. Both Gil & Rik smiled the entire time. Brent, Todd & I were all buzzing on our flights home. None of us are strangers to big stages, and it’s amazing as artists to have multiple canvases to paint on. That said, regarding the catalyst for a comeback, you never know.