A Story Of Blue

 

The time has come; I have nothing else to write about concerning the NHL.

Wow this lock out is awful.

While I may have nothing to write about, I can tell you a story about family, sacrifice and Sidney Crosby (who still sucks).

My dad and his friends have been sharing the same seats for the past several decades. In that time, I’ve seen many people come and go in section 336, from drunk NYC police officers to John Davidson.

But nothing makes me more excited than seeing parents with their young children. Maybe I’m just crazy sentimental, but something about it takes me back to when I went to my first games.

A couple of years ago, my dad and I went to a Pittsburgh Penguins/New York Rangers match-up in the dead of winter. Right before the game started, a younger dad in a Rangers jersey and his jacket-clad four-year-old son sat in front of us. As usual, my heart warmed at the sight.

And then, the kid’s jacket came off and my heart went black. Under that jacket was a white Sidney Crosby jersey. The spawn.

Look, I get it, and not every kid is told that rooting for a different team means you sleep in the garage with the raccoons. But letting your kid walk around in a Crosby jersey? A Jordan Staal jersey fine, but not Crosby. That’s just like, the rules of Rangerism.

Ironically enough, Crosby was the player who scored the game’s first goal. While the dad in front of my own dad and I rubbed his temples, his son turned to him with the hugest, most excited smile on his face and said, “was that Crosby?!”

And that’s when I got kicked right in the feelings.

As much as I don’t like him, Crosby is a hero to a whole generation of kids. I had those players too, every kid has. My generation had Derek Jeter, and this kid’s generation has Sidney Crosby.

That kid’s dad saw it and when you’re a parent, what do you want more than for your kid to have someone they can look up to? Sure, it means your child roots for a different team, but at least they’re moved by something.

My heart stayed warm that winter night…But Crosby still sucks.