Thing to Do #48: Be Present When Your Country Wins the World Cup

Like many Americans, I couldn’t care less about soccer.  Yeah, I know, its the most popular sport in the world, but in self-centered America, football, baseball, and basketball (and sometimes hockey) rule.  So I have decided to count the following instances to cross this one off (all of which would be challenging to accomplish):

1. Be present when UNC wins the NCAA Basketball Tourney.  (You know, like they did this year.) 
2. Be present when the Washington Redskins win the Superbowl.
3. Be present when the Carolina Hurricanes win the Stanley Cup.

Getting into the NCAA Tournament finals or the Superbowl is next to impossible for a mere mortal like me, much less also managing to be at the game where my team wins.  Something that IS more easily accomplished is being present when the Carolina Hurricanes win the Stanley Cup, and I’ll tell you how I almost accomplished this thing to do in 2006.

Being from North Carolina, I didn’t necessarily grow up watching hockey.  It wasn’t until the Hartford Whalers relocated their franchise to North Carolina in 1997 that I even took notice of what I considered a “Northern Sport.”  I started going to some games and really got into it, especially the fights!  After learning a good bit of the rules and a few years of following them, I could even speak rather intelligently about hockey. 

Because hockey is still a rather novel sport around here, getting tickets to games are very affordable.  In fact, if you purchase tickets the day of a game, you can get tickets in the upper level for less than $10.  For a NHL game.  A professional team.  And getting tickets to Playoff and even Finals games are obtainable and affordable. 

In 2002, the Hurricanes found themselves in the Stanley Cup Finals against the Detroit Red Wings.  The morning the Finals games went on sale, I purchased two tickets for Game 3, the first game the Hurricanes would play in Raleigh.  The tickets were (if I remember) about $150.  On the other hand, Red Wings fans couldn’t buy tickets to see their boys play in Detroit; it was all owned by season ticket holders that had had these seats for decades, and the few tickets that made it to public consumption were thousands of dollars.  Their remedy?  Buy tickets for the games in North Carolina, fly down, and be able to do something that was impossible in their own backyard.

Game 3 was INCREDIBLE.  It went into triple overtime (OTs in the Stanley Cup are regular 20 minute periods so it was almost like watching two full games)-one of the longest in history and although we lost, it was exhilarating to be on edge like that for 3 overtimes.  We lost the series 4-1, only winning the first game, but I thought we had done well, especially as we were the underdogs.

A few years later we found ourselves in a very successful season and by the time we reached the Finals this time, we were the favored team to win.  I bought tickets to Game 1, just so that I could have the experience of being at a Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals.   I also bought tickets to Game 5 with the thought that we wouldn’t be able to win 4 straight, that we would inevitably lose at least one and then come home to play Game 5 and I would see them win the cup in person.   We were against Edmonton Oilers this time around, and just like Detroit 4 years earlier, Edmonton fans were in full force in Raleigh, taking advantage of the only way they could see their favorite team in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Although spirits and emotions were high, we found ourselves down 3-0, but we rallied, making the final score 5-4 after Rod Brind’Amor scored in the final 30 seconds.  The arena (which has unofficially been called the loudest arena in all of sports-please, someone from Guiness World Book come and record it!) went absolutely wild, and the exuberance followed us as we exited, giving strangers high fives in the corridor and spontaneous cheering in the parking lot. 

Just as I had planned, we lost one in Edmonton, forcing the Game 5.  I thought I was on track to complete this thing to do.  During Game 5, we went to overtime and the arena went crazy as we went on a power play.  I discovered later that at this point, the Cup was actually taken from its crate and people had been put into motion, expecting the presentation of the Cup to the Hurricanes to be imminent.  However, Oiler Fernando Pisani managed a breakaway and scored a shorthanded goal.

It was like the air had gone out of the building.  A funeral dirge may as well have been playing as the fans exited the building because we certainly seemed to be marching to our own execution.  It had been Right. There. and we all thought we were about to witness history.  But it was not to be, at least not that night.  The Oilers pushed it to Game 7, but we won 3-0 and other Carolina fans were able to see the Cup hoisted in triumph instead of me.

I went to see the Canes v. Bruins tonight in Playoff Game 6.  The series was 3-2, favor of Canes and I was excited about possibly seeing them win a Playoff Series.  However, I must be bad luck because we lost, 4-2.  Game 7 is Thursday night. 

Have you ever seen your team win their sport’s championship?  Anyone seen a World Series Game or Superbowl game?