Those of you who follow along on our adventures know how much Eliot loves his San Jose Sharks. He's been a fan since he was about three. They've been around since 1991, and it's been a long 25 seasons waiting for the chance to win the Stanley Cup.
Along the way, I've grown to love them too. I've learned their names. Memorized jersey numbers. Proclaimed which players are my "hockey boyfriends". (Sorry, not sharing! That's top secret insider info, ha ha!) I've watched countless regular season games, as well as most of their playoff games throughout the years. Hockey season has become a big part of my life too.
As you can imagine, we're ecstatic that we're going to the finals. The only other time my stomach has been in that many knots during a playoff game, was when I've been watching my Patriots, or when I've literally been playing in the game myself. As the final seconds of Game 6 against St. Louis ticked down, and we got a few empty net goals, the realization set in, we're going to the finals for the first time ever!!!
In about a half an hour, the Sharks and Pittsburg Penguins face off in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals. The NHL plays best of 7 series each round of the play offs. So we're four wins away from the cup. In honor of making it to the finals, I thought I'd share a history of my life as a San Jose Sharks fan so far.
On February 10th, 2009, Eliot took me to my first ever Sharks game. They were playing the Boston Bruins, and since we went to college in Boston, naturally that made the more sense than attending a game elsewhere. We'd bought our tickets at the beginning of the season and were looking forward to it all winter.
When Eliot and I went to Walt Disney World in October of 2010, we brought our Sharks t-shirts. We took photos in them at Animal Kingdom and later in the day at Epcot.
I went to my second Sharks game on February 5th, 2011. That game, I wore the Joe Thornton t-shirt Eliot had gotten me. I had a great time at that game too.
The most recent Sharks game I've been to was on October 22nd, 2011. Eliot and I got really good tickets near the glass. I decked myself out in my shirt, my Sharks hat and I even wore Eliot's jacket when I got cold. It was so cool. Before the game, we got to watch them warm up right next to the glass. Patrick Marleau looked right at us!
When Eliot and I went to California in July of 2012 for Elissa's Bat Mitzvah, I had my first trip to the Shark tank. At the time, it was still called the HP Pavilion.
The girls, Eliot and I went to the Sharks Store to check out the merchandise. We had so much fun! Of course we had a few photo ops. I tried a jersey on so I'd know what size to get when the time came.
I left the store with a few new items. I bought myself a shirt, backpacks for both Eliot and me, some awesome Sharks socks and three little Sharkie magnets.
While there, a nice man saw us checking out the building and he let us into long enough for us to take a picture at the bottom of the stairway!
At some point, we got Eeyore a Build-A-Bear San Jose Sharks jersey. When it was time for Halloween 2013, Eeyore dressed up as Brent Burns. I made his jersey into an 88, added "Burns" to the back and made him a matching felt beard.
Over the years, we've watched countless Sharks games on television. When they're losing, we turn our Sharkie plushies around so they don't have to see. Eeyore, Duffy and Brother continue to cheer them on with us. I've watched Eliot clap at each win, see his face fall at each loss, and heard him cheer and hoot each goal. He truly loves his San Jose Sharks just like I love the New England Patriots. For his sake, I really hope we can celebrate a Sharks championship soon.
Finally, I'm excited to announce that Eliot and I, along with his family, have gotten tickets to the Shark Tank (SAP Center) for Saturday night's game in San Jose!!! I'm SO excited to go to my first home game at the Shark Tank. I'm even more excited that it's a playoff game, and not only is it a playoff game, it's the Stanley Cup Finals!!!
So starts another week of nerves, anxiously watching the games, screaming at the television as if what I'm yelling matters, and cheering like crazy when they score a goal. And really, I wouldn't have it any other way.
Good luck in the finals boys. No matter what the outcome, you've already made us all proud. But, I think we can agree that we all really want that cup! Go Sharks!!! °o°
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