Anti-gloom post - What made you become a Canucks fan?

[OldFaithfulcap]

Why did you become a fan?

First game you remember?

First game you saw in the arena?

Fave jerseys/shirt

 

Me:

 

Why?: I loved the city when I visited it in 1990. Loved stanley park and nice folks. Followed the local team through newspapers at first, found a cap and then internet, CDC in 2003.

 

First game memory: The 2001-02 season, started listening to cknw and watching clips. Shorty and tom calling the wce. Big babe days.

 

 

First game: March 8 2004.Nucks vs avs.  Wearing my bertuzzi jersey. Terrible one sided game but it was all about fights and hits - salo clipping worrell was great. Wanting revenge, cheered the blood which they showed on the screen and wore my bert shirt the next day even. Over the years have softened and wish bert decided to have just demolished him on a big hit vs the punch from behind but will never forget the game, i swear i saw moore grab naslund just before on a shift which set bert off. 

 

Fave jerseys: Had my black orca customized at gm place with ohlund, had a nice naz stick in rink shirt and my bert 44 cap plus my old faithful cap.

 

 

[BCNeil]

Because I live here, and when I was young we got like 12 Canuck games a year on tv.  Along with the Leafs on HNIC or the Habs on the French HNIC.  No other choices.

First game, mid 80s.  Free tickets from my dads friend.  Row 1 behind the net vs the Sabres.  Cloverleaf foods corporate seats.  

[Jeremy Hronek]

Why did you become a fan? - because my dad's favourite team was the Canucks [became a die hard when we drafted Linden + Nucks/Flames series from 89' when Otto kicked it in.  Nucks were severely outmatched in that series but showed a lot of heart and almost pulled off the upset].

First game you remember?  Canucks getting slapped around by the Oilers in 1986

First game you saw in the arena?  Canucks vs. Minnesota North Stars (1990?)

Fave jerseys/shirt:  Our 1994 Jerseys.  

[Hammertime]

Cliff Ronning. As a kid he was my favorite. My minor hockey team got to get on the ice with the canucks a few times and "practice" with them. I think it was something they did with the kids who were going to be the intermission entertainment. I remember while the other guys all skated around signing autographs and passing pucks back n forth.  Ronning was out just having fun with us, and getting into puck battles with me. Just really connecting on a different level with the kids street hockey vibes. 

 

I remember during one of the intermissions at the Colosseum I got a breakaway and lifted it over the glove of the goalie and the arena erupted. Core memory formed. 

[nux_win]

It was geography.  I grew up in N.Van.  Pre 1970, and admittedly for a while after, I was a Bruins fan.  Now before you jump down my throat, this was long before 2011, and I was a major Bobby Orr fan.  In fact the whole Bruins team was stacked with skilled aggressive Canadians.  So when the Canucks appeared on the scene I was only moderately interested in them.  Bruins vs Habs was way more important at that time.  My dad took me to a few Canucks games and I think my earliest recollection was "gee that Andre Boudrias guy is small, we're going to get clobbered."  And of course we did.  Many times.  But slowly over the years I switched my loyalty to the basement dwelling Canucks and never looked back.  It's kinda nice that we're in first place now.  Still waiting on our first cup.  Is this the year?  Go Canucks Go!

[Optimist Prime]

late 70's dad got tickets through work. I don't recall him taking me, but someone did with those tickets. 

Been a fan ever since. Then i was like nine or ten years old for the 82 run. Excitement on a platter! I even stopped learning how to code on a VIC 20 from Commodore Business Machines to enjoy the playoffs after school instead. 

[Nucker67]

Lived in Winnipeg for 40 years (it built character, I hope) lol

 

Was a Jets fan during the WHA days (Bobby Hull, Anders Hedberg, Ted Green, etc), and then the Jets joined the NHL. In 1996 the Jets left Winnipeg for Phoenix and fans were crushed. 

 

In 2002 I met my future wife, who lived in the Vancouver area, and in 2006 I came to Vancouver to visit her and we went to a game (STL). She bought me my first Canucks jersey (Vintage stick in rink). I got 19 NASLUND put on it. My wife is amazing and we still watch every game together.

 

In 2007 I moved to Vancouver and I've been a rabid Canucks fan since. I think being starved of a home team for 10 years affected me, and now I can't get enough Canucks. It's a full time job hanging around here lol  But I love the team and following them and discussing here with other Canucks fans is one of my favourite things to do.

[Optimist Prime]

3 minutes ago, Nucker67 said:

It's a full time job hanging around here lol  But I love the team and following them and discussing here with other Canucks fans is one of my favourite things to do.

samesies! My wife said I need a hobby, i rhetorically replied ANOTHER ONE?? geez..... my time would be spread too thin. 

[TheBearded1]

great topic:

 

1989:  born and raised in Alberta:  Flames or Oilers

I was a band geek:  end of the year pop and chips party with fellow band students watching game 7 Flames/Canucks

At the time, I had a very mild interest in hockey:  just saw two teams (everyone was cheering for the Flames and I really didn't know why). 

Game went into OT (which I really didn't understand)

Guy kicked the puck into VAN's net and the Flames won: and went onto win the cup.  I felt sympathy for those guys in black with the orange skate and had a hate-on for the Flames. 

 

I found out that Trevor Linden went to my high school: He was 19, I was in grade 9:    Linden played for the Tigers: where I grew up

I sat beside Brian McCabe in Math class:   another VAN/Tiger connection 

Pavel Bure entered the scene and I was hooked:  bought a Pavel Bure card for $9

Bought a Kessler jersey 

Never seen them live or attend an NHL game in my life

Never played a game of ice hockey ever:  just some floor hockey now and then

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 2 by TheBearded1

[Ghostsof1915]

Born and raised in Richmond. And I always rooted for the underdog. And boy is the Canucks the biggest underdog around.

What solidified me as a fan wasn't so much the 82 Cup run. I always viewed that as a bit of a fluke, and a bunch of lunch bucket guys working hard as a team.

 

What sold me is when Vancouver played in the old Forum. It was a game on BCTV. December 4, 1991. Vancouver rarely won against Montreal. Especially in Montreal.

Canucks won 3-0. Adams got a hat trick. Bure and Larionov got 2 assists each. And McLean stood on his head. At the end of the 3rd they were just pounding shot, after shot. Kirk wouldn't let one in and ended with 45 saves.

 

And the fans in Montreal did something I'll never forget. They gave Kirk a standing ovation for the effort. I thought that was the classiest thing I've EVER seen.

That was the first time I thought the team was really onto something special.

 

https://www.hockey-reference.com/boxscores/199112040MTL.html

[JohnEh]

My Dad got season's tix when the team joined the NHL in 1970.  My Mom tired of going to so many games, so I got to drive into the PNE with him and find parking in someone's back yard.

 

Don't remember my first game, necessarily, but I remember my Dad howling at one game when Murray Hall was getting ready to fight... while the crowd waited for the fists to fly, someone hollered "Hit him with your purse, Murray!"     So good!   

[Heretic]

Why did you become a fan? Cause my dad was

First game you remember? Canucks vs Blackhawks (74/75 season)

First game you saw in the arena? Canucks vs Blackhawks (74/75 season)

Fave jerseys/shirt Skate

Edited March 2 by Heretic

[Coconuts]

Early 2000's, my friends were Canucks fans, one of the older friends I really admired was a diehard Canucks 

 

Can't remember first game I remember, would have been tail end of WCE era, so 2003-2004 probs

 

Saw them beat the Preds back during the mid 2010's

 

Favourite jersey? The Sedin era stick probs, although I'd love to see them revamp the skate with green, blue, and white

Edited March 2 by Coconuts

[Miss Korea]

Mark Messier was my first Canuck captain.  I have some vague memories of him and Keenan doing... whatever it was they were doing.

 

Yup.  I'm a fan because I'm from here and my mother is a fan.  Sometimes I wish I was from Colorado or Tampa Bay.  But I'm not.  Oh well.

 

You gotta start somewhere.

[Phil_314]

Became a fan around the WCE era, it was exciting watching Nazzy, Bert, Morrison, JovoCop, etc. dazzle out their with their skills and the blueline with their physicality and the excitement from playoff runs (e.g. Cooke? jumping up and down in the penalty box when they scored against Calgary).

First game I saw (non-Canucks, but hockey was the 2002 Olympics, think it was the Sweden Belarus game which they played on TV at school.  It was exciting.  First Canucks game I don't remember LOL.
First game in the arena I think was a game against St. Louis, Horvat scored the winner in OT in a low-scoring game.
Favorite jerseys, I'm honestly a fan of the maroons they had as the WCE alternates, and also the vintage Millionaires one they wore against Detroit.  Then all the blue jerseys in the recent eras have looked great.

[-dlc-]

I've told you all my LONG story before. Here's the condensed (as best as I can do) version:

 

Mom and Dad - both huge sports fans (Mom moreso than Dad). I took that on.

As a teen, chasing my b/f around...we had a friend with an older brother who had his own apartment. Watching over there. Them watching the game, me mostly watching him.

 

We'd go on to get married. My ex started losing interest in sports...we were doomed at that point.

 

When we split up my son was young and I had to pick up the slack and be mom and dad.

My son loved hockey early on so it was he and I. He played...I took him to practices/games.

He loved the Canucks...again, following Grandma's lead (my mom). Her favourites? Trevor and .... Brent Sopel.

Gino (she taught him how to play poker).

 

My brother was a card collector/seller and invited us to shows. 

Hockey was just everything all the time for us.

 

Back then they had lots of fun stuff for kids...family carnivals, open practices, etc. We did them all.

We met Bure (a few times), Linden (many times), Pat Quinn, etc.

The team felt like family to us. '94 when we lost the cup we went to a big deal at BC Place to "celebrate" the team. Felt like we'd won the cup...so fun.

 

Hung in there through some rough patches.  The dark Messier/Kennan clusterpuck era. And the Steve Moore bs (I led the Bertuzzi march).

 

Then my friend started inviting me to games in 2010....on the glass. It was such a surreal experience being down there.

2011 - my glory days. Went to so many games, got to go behind the scenes, meet players (accidentally wandered into the wives' room lol).

Amped it up even more.

Burr, Bieksa, Sedins. So fun.

And then...this team. What's not love?

Petey got us all super stoked.

Miller (for me) from the get go.

Huggy (my son's current favouite).

 

It all just makes sense. I was born this way.

 

CDC really sent it to the next level for me. Have met so many good people. My son met his wife there. Her best friend met her guy there. It's just been a wonderful experience for our family going way back.

 

[Chon derry]

It’s a geografic thing. 

[snowman955]

I have always lived in Ottawa. Being stuck with Habs, Laffs and Bruins fans. 1970 was my glory year for a few reasons. Mostly taking in the then underdog team Canucks. 

From the start  l never wavered from being a fan.

Asked all too often why? Because l had a great dislike to eastern based softies. I was questioned why l didn't convert to The Senatsnors. My team l chose was for life, no turncoat here. As l have seen all to often in this cesspool of a city. 

Canucks for ever!

[4petesake]

I’m part of that generation that would gather around the tv set with rabbit ears and (listen to as much as) watch the Danny Gallivans and Howie Meekers broadcast Leaf and Habs games. They were the most exciting thing on tv by far so that led to street hockey after school and on weekends and when the Canucks joined the league in ‘70 I finally had a home team to cheer for. Hockey cards and the  Esso Powerplay stickers & book cemented the deal. Dale Tallon was my first hero.

 

I only saw a few games in the old Pacific Coliseum and couldn’t believe how fast players like Andre Boudrias were, how tough Orland Kurtenbach was, or the sound of a Jocelyn Guevremont slapshot when you were at a game! My first jersey was a knockoff Shmautz and my favourite was a Linden that I got as gift.

 

 

I had starry eyes as a kid and believed that every draft day would deliver the superstar that would bring us the cup! Being somewhat more of a realist now I’ve learned to enjoy the victories and shake off the losses. I was thrilled with the Canucks playing for our first cup against the Islanders even though we lost, crushed after the loss to the Rangers and absolutely gutted by the Bruins. Now I just look forward to the next game,  next playoffs, next year, or that generational superstar in next year’s draft…
 

I’m a Canuck fan who has learned that the hockey Gods don’t give a shit about what I wish for so I do my best to enjoy what I get.

[CanucksFan26]

Grew up in Los Angeles during the Gretzky era. My grandparents had Kings season tickets yearly and started taking me to games when I was about 4 years old. Usually cheered on the Kings. One game we went to was Kings vs Canucks. I was 5ish. I don’t really remember it my grandpa mentioned it many times over the years before he died that every time Pavel Bure came onto the ice that game I got really excited and cheered for him. Apparently by mid game I had kept telling my grandpa Bure was my favorite player. Apparently I spent basically that whole season checking the LA times newspaper daily to see Canucks scores and if Bure had scored and I was obsessed. We didn’t get Canucks games on tv but I always checked the newspaper and watched highlights on sports channels when I could. When I became a teenager my dad would take me to every kings or ducks vs Canucks game. Once I got my license I would go on my own or with friends to every  game when the Canucks came down. In 2014 I moved to Seattle for work. My first ever home game was fall of 2015. I make the drive up 3-5 times a year now for home games and have been to a few in Seattle too. Random childhood decisions and Pavel Bure are why I’m here. 

[Reg]

Grew up (in a manner of speaking) in New West. Burnaby and Vancouver. I was never really into hockey until I worked at Joe Kapp's on West Broadway. Our GM was a big sports fan and I got hooked on the Canucks. Moved downtown to open the Four Seasons in '76. While there I somehow connected with the Ticket Manager (think her name was Lynn) with the Canucks. During the season I would occasionally call her for Saturday games. Season ticket holders would re-sell their tickets through her and they were always lower bowl seats. One of my first NHL games was a four o'clock start against the New York Rangers. I remember our seats were behind the blue-shirts net. On another occasion I saw Brad Park and some of the Rangers at the Hotel Vancouver. Once I heard my girl-friend and I appeared on TV when they panned the audience during a game versus St. Louis Blues at the Pacific Coliseum. 

 

The first hockey game I attended was with a friend who worked for Labatt and we watched games from the press gallery. This was for Vancouver Blazers games during the WHA era. 

 

Eventually I moved to Edmonton (love makes you do crazy things). My soon to be wife's family (French background) were huge fans of the Montreal Canadians. One of my brothers-in-law now follows the Oilers. You can imagine the conversations we have during the hockey season. The only time we agree on anything is when the Blue Jays are playing ball. 

 

Thinking ahead to this years playoffs I hope to canvas the CFF to see how many other members live in Edmonton. I want to help organize an event to watch the Canucks.

 

The Canucks are my team forever and I feel fortunate to be a part of this community. Cheers!

[gwarrior]

Grew up here, so I guess I'm a fan because they're my hometown team. 1st game I watched, I don't even remember. I think I was 2 or 3, and I would sit on my great uncle's lap watching games with him. 1st game I went to, was in late '95 or early '96, I would have to find the ticket stub to be sure, but it was against Detroit. It was a 3-2 win. Got to see all my favorites that night. Bure, Linden, Gino, McLean. I was already hooked on the team from the '94 run. But it was game 7 when McLean made "the save" that he became my hero. Still kinda is. Hell, just this week I picked up a signed rookie card of his.

[gwarrior]

As for a favorite jersey. I've got too many of em to pick just one.

[Kevin Biestra]

4 hours ago, Ghostsof1915 said:

Born and raised in Richmond. And I always rooted for the underdog. And boy is the Canucks the biggest underdog around.

What solidified me as a fan wasn't so much the 82 Cup run. I always viewed that as a bit of a fluke, and a bunch of lunch bucket guys working hard as a team.

 

What sold me is when Vancouver played in the old Forum. It was a game on BCTV. December 4, 1991. Vancouver rarely won against Montreal. Especially in Montreal.

Canucks won 3-0. Adams got a hat trick. Bure and Larionov got 2 assists each. And McLean stood on his head. At the end of the 3rd they were just pounding shot, after shot. Kirk wouldn't let one in and ended with 45 saves.

 

And the fans in Montreal did something I'll never forget. They gave Kirk a standing ovation for the effort. I thought that was the classiest thing I've EVER seen.

That was the first time I thought the team was really onto something special.

 

https://www.hockey-reference.com/boxscores/199112040MTL.html

 

Classic game.  I don't think many Canuck fans that were paying attention that year won't remember the game.  I think Patrick Roy said it was the best or one of the best games he had ever seen a goalie play.

 

1982 warn't no fluke though.  That was King Richard turning into a demigod.

[Kevin Biestra]

3 hours ago, Miss Korea said:

Mark Messier was my first Canuck captain.  I have some vague memories of him and Keenan doing... whatever it was they were doing.

 

You gotta start somewhere.

 

Ewwww...  That's like losing your virginity on prom night to a rhinoceros with leprosy on a bed of broken glass.