On the eve of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal match up between the Ottawa Senators and the Montreal Canadiens, I thought we'd try something a little different.
This post was sent to me yesterday but one of our readers and I thought it would make a perfect day before the game post. There are elements in his story that I think all fans can relate to, especially as the Sens get set to open a playoff series against a close division rival. Over to you, sir!
WRITTEN BY SENSCHIRP READER- ReleaseTheKarlsson
My earliest hockey memory was when I was 9 years old.
It was Easter, and we usually got small gifts: jump ropes, posters, and chocolate. This year was different. I woke up to find a Montreal Canadiens jersey sprawled out on my couch. I remember staring at it thinking “THIS IS HUGE! A REAL HOCKEY JERSEY!” I was amazed that a gift so amazing was coming to me on Easter. I thanked my dad, who was a Habs fan, and brought it to my room.
That was the last I saw of it. I never wore it.
I still don’t know why I never wore it. It was a perfectly good jersey; something my dad obviously thought I would be proud to wear to school. But I never did. When I was 15 I remember finding it stuffed in a drawer, and I whipped it into a garbage bag to donate to someone less fortunate. I didn’t even think about it.
I am 25 now, and a diehard Sens fan. I have been since attending my first game with my dad, a 4-0 loss to the Dallas Stars. I am of the generation that grew up watching this team play. I am sure most people of my generation have parents who were Habs or Leafs fans. It’s just the way it is. Maybe some of them converted when the Sens came to town, maybe they didn’t. Our generation though, the sons and daughters of these fans, are the real “first fans” of this team.
A lot will be said over the next couple of weeks, as the Sens get set to face the Habs for the first time in the playoffs, about the fan bases. The Habs have 100 years of fans. For them to have a strong group of fans on the road is to be expected.
We have 20 years.
Now, I’m not making excuses. I can understand other fan bases that say “Sens fans are all bandwagoners,” or, “This is going to be 7 home games for the Habs.” It makes sense, and deep down I know they are probably right. A lot of Sens fans hop off and on the bandwagon as the season ebbs and flows.
But I also know this. That this fan base is growing. With every win, with every loss, with every playoff appearance, with every new player, this fan base gets stronger. The number of Habs and Leafs fans at Scotiabank Place is dwindling, as hard as it is to believe when you are in a row as the only Sens fan. The trend is changing.
I could easily be at Scotiabank Place wearing a Habs jersey, remembering my dad, who passed away when I was 13, as the guy who got me my first jersey.
But I won’t be.
I will be there with my Alfie jersey, foam Sens helmet, face painted black, red and gold, cheering on the team I grew up loving.
I never asked my dad if he was mad about me never wearing that jersey. I don’t think he was. He knew I was a Sens fan. He loved it, because I loved hockey.
Generations will follow ours, and being a Sens fan will become second nature. We just have to deal with the initial ridicule, which is fine by me. It makes it sweeter when we win.
I do know one thing, my first child will be wearing a Sens jersey.
