PHILADELPHIA — You can almost hear his stick rhythmically banging along the floor in the basement as he handled the puck or hockey ball or whatever he could find to create sweet music in the mind of a young child. It wasn't that long ago when Patrick Kane was just a little kid with innocent fantasies.

Kane embraced the same basic theme while imagining himself winning the Stanley Cup. He would reach deep for his Rick Jeanneret voice, the player and his favorite play-by-play man one in the same and in perfect concert. That's what he did all those years while growing up in South Buffalo.

He dreamed.

The dream didn't work out exactly the way he envisioned, but it was pretty darned close. He didn't score the winner for the Sabres in the closing seconds. He scored the overtime winner for the Chicago Blackhawks in a 4-3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in Game Six of the Stanley Cup finals.

"This is something I will never forget," Kane said during the celebration. "I don't think it has really sunk in yet. This is just unbelievable to be a part of. I mean, we just won the Stanley Cup."

At age 21, he already has a lifetime's worth of memories. In less than three years, he has been the No. 1 pick overall, won the Calder Trophy for rookie of the year, been picked for the NHL All-Star Game, won a silver medal with Team USA in the Olympics, led the Blackhawks in scoring, and won the greatest trophy in team sports.

It's with that in mind that you practically expected him to score the winner in overtime after Philly tied the game with just less than four minutes remaining in regulation. It was a fitting ending to a season in which he continued to mature as a hockey player and a person.

And now this.

Kane gave the Blackhawks their first Cup since the 1960-61 season when he found the net from a bad angle with a shot that squirted through Flyers goalie Michael Leighton 4:10 into the extra session. He was the first one who knew the puck was behind Leighton as he scooted around the net, threw his gloves off and raced to his teammates with the biggest goal he'll ever score. Yes, just like he thought so many times.

"I celebrated a little bit more because I was the only one who knew it was in," he said. "I just booked to the other end of the ice."

Kane remains a kid in many ways, a fact he alluded to himself in the hours leading into the biggest game of his career. With him come the smile and the energy of youth, the playfulness and, at times, the recklessness. Say what you will about Kane, and many people have lined up to do just that, but there is little denying this: He is a terrific, terrific hockey player.

The 5-foot-10, 178-pound winger showed how a small but elusive player who is strong on his skates and long on competitiveness can reach the top of his sport. He was blessed with world-class hands and instincts, but to suggest this life of fame and fortune was handed to him would be an insult to how hard he worked.

And he also had the support of his family. His parents, Pat and Donna Kane, and three sisters were waiting for him with open arms. They had traveled throughout the series and were there for him when it mattered most. He also had friends and other family members who made the trip down from Buffalo.

Kane this summer is almost certain to bring the trophy home, where it all began. He once wrote 7-1-6 on his hockey sticks in a tribute to his hometown area code. For years, he has spoken about how proud he was of being from Buffalo and was quick to share his feelings about his hometown in an interview with CBC right after he scored.

"I just want to give a shout out to Buffalo," he said. "I have a lot of friends and family who made the trip down here. We just won the Cup. This is surreal."

For most players, winning the Stanley Cup marks the pinnacle of their careers. You can't help but wonder if this is just the beginning for Kane, who from that basement and those streets in South Buffalo and those rinks across Western New York became an international superstar and one of the most recognizable faces in Chicago.

What you see now is a polished player, one who left his family behind and moved to Detroit at age 14 to pursue his goal. He overcame suggestions he was too small, criticisms that stalked him and motivated him and, ultimately, helped him become the best player to come out of Buffalo and one of the best in the league.

The Blackhawks winning the Cup comes with many Buffalo connections. General Manager Stan Bowman, named after the trophy his father Scotty won 10 times as a coach, was raised in Williamsville and graduated from Canisius High. Community relations man Pete Hassen is a Sweet Home graduate from Amherst.

Really, though, more than anyone, Kane is the strongest link connecting the Blackhawks and Buffalo. He joined Clarence-raised Kevyn Adams (Carolina), Williamsville native Todd Marchant (Anaheim) and East Amherst-trained Brooks Orpik (Pittsburgh) as Western New Yorkers to win the Cup in the past five years.

Patrick Kaleta and Tim Kennedy, you're on the clock.

For now, Kane is a champion and a major reason the Blackhawks will return to the Windy City with their first Cup in 49 years. He wasn't the best player in the series, but he was one of them. He helped set up Dustin Byfuglien for the first goal and Andrew Ladd for the third late in the second period before ending the series by himself.

He played the game the way he has for years, dancing with the puck on his stick, shifting between players imaginary and real, creating something from nothing.

And dreaming.