OILERS FAN SAYS COME OVER TO DARK, OR ORANGE SIDE
Not many of the Flames faithful are openly embracing radio announcer’s offer
They couldn’t care less in Winnipeg and in Lethbridge, some even gave him a pat on the back.
When Graham Mosimann wore his Edmonton Oilers jersey in Calgary, though, he realized he just might be in enemy territory.
“On the radio, I was ‘go Flames go,’” says the announcer at Calgary’s Alternative X92.9 FM, who moved here two years ago after radio stints across western Canada. “But in my private life, I’m a lifelong Oilers fan.”
While he hasn’t exactly been hiding in the fandom closet, these days the native of Stony Plain — “I come by my Oilers love honestly” — is proudly flying the orange flag.
“For too long, the Oilers were steamed garbage,” says the 24-year-old, who says while he likes and cheers for the Flames, his heart pumps oil. “All the Oilers fans in Calgary are coming out of the woodwork to celebrate.”
Many Calgary Flames have been despondent since the team was sent packing by the Anaheim Ducks. Mosimann offers a solution: come and cheer on what now should be embraced as Alberta’s team.
Judging by my anecdotal observations on Tuesday afternoon, not that many are openly taking up the offer. Along 17 Avenue S.W., for example, only one watering hole among dozens sports a “Go Oilers Go” sign.
Still, those Oilers devotees have been crowding the pedestrian mall of Stephen Avenue during the workweek lunch hour; they invaded the Comic & Entertainment Expo this past weekend — and come Wednesday evening, they’ll descend on local pubs and sports bars to cheer on the team in Game 4 of their second-round series against Anaheim.
While some Flames fans would rather endure a root canal than support the city’s long-time rival hockey team, I find some support, in high places, for Mosimann’s invitation.
“Cheering for any Canadian team would seem patriotic, no matter how challenging that might be,” says Flames president and CEO Ken King. “Cheering for a long-time, albeit friendly rival might not be impossible.”
King’s not the only Flames loyalist willing to entertain what is unthinkable to some.
“When the Flames were out, my son and I had a long discussion about who we should cheer for, Edmonton or Ottawa,” says pastor John van Sloten of the New Hope Christian Reformed Church in Calgary. “We felt that clearly, Edmonton had to come first.”
Van Sloten, whose new book Every Job a Parable: What Walmart greeters, nurses and astronauts tell us about God is due out in June, looks at his decision to root for the longtime rivals from a faith-based perspective. “The first thing that comes to mind is Jesus’ admonition, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,’” he says.
“That’s the golden rule and it’s the hardest one to follow,” he says. “We’re a proud people in Calgary, we don’t have a Connor McDavid and we don’t have a new stadium.”
What we do have, says van Sloten, is an innate desire to cheer for a team during playoff season. “We are made in the image of a hockey-loving God,” he says. “The Flames and I are secure in our relationship, so I feel I can cheer for the Oilers now.”
Still, not everyone’s thrilled with the orange crush hitting some of the city’s most popular watering holes. “We got pushback from some customers,” says Felica Larocque, assistant general manager of Beltline pub Pig & Duke, which saw nearly 100 Oilers jersey-wearing fans fill the place Sunday after Twitter handle @oiler sy yc recommended it.
“Some people said, ‘Oh, you’re an Oilers bar now,’” she says with a laugh. “We’re just happy to host a crowd even though the Flames are out.”
Graham Mosimann is trying to remain optimistic, though he too knows it’s an uphill battle. After our interview, he poses on 17 Avenue S.W., a.k.a. the Red Mile, wearing his Oilers jersey.
“A guy slowed down at a green light and honked his horn,” says Mosimann, “and then he gave me the finger.”
A guy slowed down at a green light and honked his horn, and then he gave me the finger.