Quote:
Originally Posted by The Yen Man
My real start as a Flames fan was 1994, and my first experience as a Flames fan was watching the Flames choke a 3-1 series lead to the Canucks and Bure torching us in OT lol. Since then, I've been a sucker for punishment cheering on the Flames, as that was really the beginning of the Young Gun days.
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Haha yeah man, terrible. My first true year of being a fan was 1991, and that classic Flames/Oilers series with Fleury's famous sliding around on his butt after his OT goal forced a game 7, then the Flames blew a 3-0 1st period lead at home, and lost in game 7 OT. Yeah then 94 as you mentioned, followed by yet another game 7 OT loss the following year, to the Sharks.
3 game 7 OT losses in 5 years - and 0 series wins - all in series you are the favourite; a particularly gut punch style start to my Flames fandom..ugh. Pair that with those dominant Stamps teams' epic playoff chokes happening at the same time, those were rough playoff years for Calgary sports fans.
I personally see the pluses of bandwagon fans growing your team's brand, but I also totally get why longtime fans don't like them. You go through all the pain and heartbreak of a team, then when it finally gets good, some new fan gets to experience the fun. To the long tortured fan it seems unfair, like they didn't "earn" it to enjoy the good times. Very true we all start somewhere, and if these bandwagoners stay on when the wheels fall off and stay true fans, then that's great. But I get why they get chirped at the beginning. You are seen as a fan* until you prove you're on board for the long haul.