Sometimes, life can be difficult for a hockey fan that lives in a non-traditional market. If you’re a hockey fan in Nashville at this time of year, people will wonder why you’re not talking about the Titans or the Volunteers. If you live in LA and tell people that you’re going to Staples Center to go to a game, they’ll automatically assume that you’re going to a Lakers game. If you’re a hockey fan in Dallas right now (well, any time) they’ll wonder why you’re not talking about the almighty football. Needless to say, we do a lot more explaining than someone in Saskatoon would.
Like always, hockey has a way of mimicking real life. We like to think that we pick the people that we surround ourselves with—but that’s not always true. A perfect example is my best friend. I’ve had the same best friend for 25 years—and it started because I was the first one to fall asleep at a birthday party that featured The Karate Kid. Part 1. I can pretend like I had a say in that, but I know that it was one of those things that just happened.
I became acquainted with my wife in a similarly coincidental way. Way back when, I bought flowers for a girl on her birthday. That girl was NOT my wife. However, my wife was AT that girl’s house when the flowers arrived. She was kind enough to let me know that the girl didn’t even know my name and that I should have put my last name on the card. After I got over the reality that I was a complete and utter loser, the two of us started to build a friendship that grew into the love of my life. I can pretend like I had control in that situation, but I know that I didn’t. I’m just thankful it happened.
Hockey fans have this problem all the time in their everyday life. I love the Kings, yet I live in the depths of Ducks country. Hell, I love hockey, even though my dad raised me to love every sport EXCEPT hockey. Do you know how much easier it would be to passionately follow the Lakers for 82 games per season?
Maple Leafs fans continue to love the Leafs, even though every ounce of their common sense tells them that they shouldn’t.
Phoenix Coyotes fans continue to invest emotion and show up to games even though there’s a very good chance they’ll lose their team in the near future (ok, not THAT many of them show up).
Blackhawks fans continue to think their team has a chance to win the Cup even though Marian Hossa has proven that is not possible when he’s around.
Islanders fans continue to show up even though Kate Murray is single-handedly trying to ruin the Lighthouse Project and their team has an infactuation with the #1 overall pick.
All NHL fans continue to love our sport even though we know Gary Bettman continues to do everything he can to destroy it.
The point is that we all do things that defy common sense. We could make a million excuses why, but at the end of the day we do them because they FEEL right and they make us FEEL good. Keep that in mind when you’re getting depressed because your team isn’t playing how you’d like them to play. Keep it in mind when your surprising team loses a game in a shootout that you think they could have won. And remember that when you look around at your life and wonder “what the fuck is going on.”
Do what you like with people you like and the rest will figure itself out. If you don’t think that’s realistic then you should look in the mirror: you’re a hockey fan.
Matt Reitz is the Editor-In-Chief here at ViewFromMySeats.com and former NHL Writer for ProHockeyTalk on NBCSports. When he’s not shoving a mic in the face of NHLers or explaining why home teams should wear white, he’s usually trying to figure out what song to play next on his iPod. It’s a never-ending job.
