I started following hockey a bit late—in 1994—well after baseball, football and even basketball were established as sports of interests. Living in the south, hockey was about as popular as cricket in the United States. I had no frame of reference with the sport and my father was clueless about it (well, he still is).
But a friend of mine had NHLPA '93 for the Sega Genesis, which did not have real team names (remember "Long Island"?). Playing that game and NHL '94 got me into hockey. I became a Quebec Nordiques, and now, Ottawa Senators fan. But I was still generally ignorant about hockey. After all, I equated Wayne Gretzky with the Los Angeles Kings and Mark Messier with the New York Rangers, neither with the Edmonton Oilers.
Nevertheless, the fresh fondness of hockey led me to follow the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Because my "new" teams did not make the playoffs, I initially watched with no rooted interests.
But the love affair with the Rangers led me to despise them, something that would be reinforced the following year when they bounced the top-seeded Nordiques. So when the Rangers met the Devils in the Eastern Conference finals, New Jerse ...
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Article written by Uncle Popov
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