Hockey Fans: A Rare Breed

In all the years I have been a hockey fan (and that shall go undisclosed at this time..) I’ve never failed to be entertained by hockey fans.

Since I’ve been in the Valley- dating back to the mid 70’s- I always end the year thinking that I’ve pretty much seen it all.

Of course, just when I think that some fan(s) does something off the wall which blows me away.

Like the time I was working as an usher at a Cunucks game at Jobing.com Arena, and the Coyotes were up 5-0. An entire row was filled with Vancouver fans (guys) who had their shirts off, with letters painted on their chests spelling out: C-A-N-U-C-K-S .

Well, they had NOTHING to cheer about, as the Yotes had their number the entire game… so all of a sudden, the Canucks fans starting chanting repeatedly: “WE’VE GOT HEALTH CARE’ ! The surrounding fans in their section cracked up.

Of course, if any of you have been to a Red Wings game here in Phoenix, you must have noticed that a large portion of the Phoenix crowd are Wings fans. They are fans who have moved here to the valley, and have decided to continue their allegiance with Detroit instead of following the hometown team.

(I can kinda see where they are coming from, due to the fact I am from Chicago. It took me a bit of time to drop my favoritism towards the Blackhawks, and turn it over to the Coyotes. At one Coyotes vs Black Hawks game I actually wore a Coyotes hat with the brim facing forward, while wearing a Hawks hat facing behind me! I did need some therapy after that… but it helped me decide which way to go.)

Speaking of the Red Wings fans, some of them tend to get a bit inebriated… and act, ah, strangely.

I was working security at a Coyotes game, when the Red Wings won a playoff game to eliminate the Yotes. The post0game show was being done by Todd Walsh, Tyson Nash, and Jody Jackson on the plaza.

They had the stage area where the post game show was being done fenced off with those aluminum portable fence sections. This Red Wings fan, who was a tad… well, excited about the game… came over the fence (and he was little guy), got up on the stage, and put his arm around Tyson Nash before one of security guards was able to grab him and remove from the area.

A Coyotes fan liked to amuse himself by scaring every Red Wings fan he saw strutting down the street in an obnoxious hockey jersey. He would swerve his van as if to hit them, then swerve back just missing them. One day while driving along, he saw a priest. He thought he would do a good deed, so he pulled over and asked the priest, “Where are you going, Father?” “I’m going to give Mass at St. Francis church, about two miles down the road,” replied the priest. “Climb in, Father. I’ll give you a lift!” The priest climbed into the passenger seat, and they continued down the road. Suddenly, the driver saw a Red Wings fan walking down the road, and he instinctively swerved as if to hit him. But, as usual, he swerved back onto the road just in time. Even though he was certain that he had missed the guy, he still heard a loud THUD. not knowing where the noise came from, he glanced in his mirrors but still didn’t see anything. He then remembered the priest, and he turned to the priest and said, “sorry Father, I almost hit that Red Wings fan.”“That’s OK,” replied the priest. “I got him with the door.”

To instigate the Red Wings fans further… I leave you with this:

Happy Hockey Season!

*If you’d like to join in the instigation, leave your favorite fan stories below. Of course, I’ll be amassing more as the season goes on- I’m hoping for a good Kings bit this year!

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