Stanley Cup Here We Come!

How many of you out there are "Daddy's Girls"?  I was always one.  Idolizing my Dad meant being interested in what he was interested in - Sunday drives, fishing, farms, and Hockey Night in Canada.  When I think of Saturdays when I was a kid they involved Dominos Pizza and watching the Toronto Maple Leafs play.  My father raised me a Leafs fan.  And I was proud of it.  He would often remind me that he so fondly remembered the last time Toronto won the cup because he watched the game on TV with his Dad who died many years before I was even born.  It was really special to him.

Over the years I have learned that it's rough going if you are truly invested in this team.  They rarely make the playoffs (though I do remember a few years in my childhood where they did and things looked more promising), and when they do it's rare they make it very far.  Slowly my interest in hockey faded, I couldn't name a single player on the team anymore, and my knowledge of how they were doing was only comprised of little tidbits Dad would fill me in on once in a while.

Cory and I have been together for 10.5 years now and he is very interested in sports.  Over time I have learned that if the Red Sox or the Bruins win, his mood will improve exponentially.  Naturally, I have become fans of both of those teams.  I hadn't watched a single baseball game before I met him and never knew a thing about the Sox.  Now I have a special edition DVD set all about them that includes a movie that I love watching.  The Bruins hold a particularly special place for Cory (and therefore for me) because his Dad was a huge fan, and he passed away in 2005.  Since the Leafs never make it to the playoffs I am never forced to choose between Bruins and Leafs (Cory vs. Dad).  I am free to root for the Bruins.  This isn't always sunshine and rainbows either, though.  I don't think anyone needs to be reminded of last year's series against Philadelphia.  This year, however, things are proving different.  Last night I watched the Bruins edge out Tampa Bay in game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final and they are on their way to the Stanley Cup Final.  Sadly, as a Leaf fan, this has never happened to me before.  A team I am cheering for going all the way (well just about, anyway)?!  Unreal.  Can't wait for Wednesday.  Go Bruins!