Vancouver and San Jose (and a bit about Toronto)

I am a Toronto Maple Leafs fan.

There, I said it. I put it out there. The Leafs, they are my team. My jersey is a blue one. Every year, I hold on to the faint glimmer of hope that my team will make it into the playoffs. Not that they'll win; just that they'll get into the playoffs. That's life as a Leafs fan.

However, they're not my actual favourite team. Like most everyone else in the Leafs nation, I am mildly ashamed to say "I'm a Leafs fan," especially during playoffs. Most of the time, I seriously dislike how they're coached, managed and dealt with. Ron Wilson and Brian Burke are two of my least favourite hockey personages. Overall, my fandom is proximal and is also a result of marriage; I was a Leafs fan before I got married, but my wife's family is a Leafs Family. I felt capitalization and boldness were both required there.

There are two other teams that I cheer for. My proximal fandom extends to Vancouver Canucks, as Vancouver's the only other place I've lived. The Canucks have some of my favourite players, including my favourite line in hockey: Sedin, Sedin, and any other guy. I'm also a big Luongo fan, mostly because he always looks so surprised that he's a hockey player during interviews. The second team is probably not a surprise if you have read the title of this post: it's San Jose. Thornton, Marleau and Setoguchi are amazing to watch, and Niemi does everything he can to keep pucks out of his net. Moreover, San Jose is a tech town, supported by tech companies; what's not to love?

This series is probably the pinnacle of the playoffs for me; I don't really care about the other matchup. I don't like how Boston plays (booooooooring), and Tampa Bay just seems like they shouldn't have a team. It's all about the Western Conference Final, and if the first two periods of this game mean anything, then it's going to be an exciting matchup.