5:21 PM
- First name: FFF
- Twitter handle: @The_FFF
- Blackhawks fan since: Well, let's just say "fairly recently." It's hard to for me to give a definitive answer here, because it's been just kind of a gradual thing. I'm not from the Chicago area originally, and I moved here during the Dark Days. I tried to pay attention the Blackhawks, but being a casual fan was almost impossible during that time. In the last few years, it became easier, and slowly things just clicked in more.
- How did you originally become a Blackhawks fan? I've been a sports fan -- primarily football -- all my life, but hockey was never part of my life growing up. Even though I was always sort of intrigued by it, it was basically non-existent where I grew up. Then, a while back, I moved to Chicago, the greatest sports city in the world. For the rest of the story, read my answer to #3 again.
- Were you ever a fan of a different team before the Blackhawks? Nope.
- In your opinion, why is Chicago such a great team to be a fan of? Well, like I mentioned before, I think Chicago is the greatest sports city in the world. The fans here are passionate and knowledgeable and die-hard. The teams are rich in history, and the rivalries are intense and storied. The Blackhawks are a great team to be a fan of because -- well, more reasons than I have room for! The organization respects and appreciates its fans; we have a fantastic, diva-free group of players; and the fan community is a blast to be a part of. There are at least a few reasons. :)
- What is it about the game of hockey that you like so much? I love the speed, the non-stop action, and how "team-based" it is (for lack of a better way to describe it). I also really like the combination of fine skill and hard hits.
- If you could change one thing about hockey, what would it be and why? Quebec and Winnipeg need NHL teams again. As much as I don't like to say some cities don't "deserve" a team or whatever, it's clear that there simply isn't a lot of interest in hockey in some areas, and I don't favor more expansion. Oh, I think it would be awesome if Halifax (or somewhere in Atlantic Canada) had a team, too!
- Which rule would you toss from the rulebook? Shootout. Just -- come on.
- Who is your favorite player and why? Well, I have two, and I'll tell you why it's not a simple answer. #1, Antti Niemi -- because I have a (really big) soft spot for goalies, because (yes, I know he had a tough start this season) I think he's a fantastic goalie who's only going to get better, because he's Finnish which is awesome, because his unconventional style is really exciting to watch -- but now he plays for a conference rival. #2, Dave Bolland -- because I absolutely love an effective two-way player and an effective PEST. Dave Bolland is the kind of player you love to have on your own team, and HATE to play against. He's a pest without being a jerk. Plus, DERP DERP DERP DERP DERP!!
- What is it that usually endears you to your favorite player? I find this one of the hardest questions to answer, because there are so many intangibles. Of course, the obvious things are skill and heart. But then... I tend to prefer players who aren't necessarily in the spotlight, who might be a little different or quirky, apparently who are chock full of the HURP-A-DERP. I don't DISLIKE the stars, by any means, but my heart usually belongs to the underdogs.
- Your favorite player has to be helped off the ice after a brutal hit. You react by: getting overly worked-up with worry and anxiety, whining on Twitter about it incessantly, checking for news and updates constantly -- I'm a worrier by nature, and it really comes out in cases like this. Bolly has had some nagging injury problems, and it makes me crazy with worry.
- If you could take a player from any team and put them on the Blackhawks, who would it be and why? Antti Niemi. See question #10. I don't mean any disrespect to either Turco or Crawford. I'm no Turco-hater -- the problems during his games have been shared problems -- and saying Crawford has been a pleasant surprise this season is the understatement of the year. But the way our D and Niemi complemented each other and bailed each other out when necessary, PLUS the fact that I think Niemi will only improve in the foreseeable future -- I would kill to have that chemistry back, build on it, and to get back our young goalie with tons of upside. Imagine a Niemi/Crawford tandem, even.
- What position(s) do you think is/are the most important on the ice? Goalie. Last line of defense. End of story.
- If you played hockey, which position would you play and why? Hmm, enforcer maybe? I'm slow, uncoordinated, and surly. Seems like an okay match.
- If you were to describe yourself as a hockey fan in one word, what would it be? Enthusiastic
- The Blackhawks offer you a job within their organization. What is that job most likely to be? Some sort of IT thing, probably. It's what I have experience with.
- Besides winning the Cup this past June, what is your favorite Blackhawks memory and why? Without going into too much detail, attending my first live game. It was a revelation.
- How/where would you spend your day with the Cup? Hard to say. My "real life friends" are not sports fans, and my sports-fan family members are not hockey fans. Because of that, I think I'd be happiest taking the Cup places like hospitals, vets' centers, senior centers -- places where it could brighten a lot of people's days.
- Do you think of yourself as a knowledgeable hockey fan? Why or why not? I think I'm reasonably knowledgeable, except for history, which I never remember about ANYTHING. I'm no expert, by any means, but I don't think I'm a novice, either. Because of this past summer, I know WAY more about the financial aspects of the NHL right now than I ever wanted to :|
- A lot of female hockey fans are stereotyped. Why do you think this is? What do you think can be done to change this? Well, I think it's just human nature to stereotype and pigeonhole groups of people. Male sports fans are stereotyped, too (think about loud, beer-drinking, sports-bar-frequenting high-fivers). Honestly, this issue doesn't bother me much personally. I know what kind of sports/hockey fan I am and what I'm not. If someone doesn't want to take me seriously as a hockey fan because I'm female, that's their loss, not mine. What can be done to change this stereotyping? Maybe more exposure to different types of fans -- which I think is happening on social networking sites and blogs these days. The more someone encounters serious commentary and then sees it's from a woman, the more that person is probably going to accept that women can be, and are, serious, knowledgeable sports fans.
- Do you think that the female hockey fan base is growing? I have no idea. If I were to make a wild, uninformed guess, I'd say probably yes. I've never thought of myself as a "female sports/hockey fan," though -- I'm just a sports fan who happens to be female. So I have never really paid all that much attention to gender issues in sports fandom.
- A male hockey fan calls you a puck bunny; you react by: You'll have to take my word for it when I say there is almost zero chance this would seriously happen. If it did, I would find it hilarious. I have had men (or boys, when I was a kid) simply not take me seriously as a sports fan. When that happens, they just get written off in my mind as ignorant. I have no vested interest in changing the mind of an ignoramus. (Anyone whose opinion I care about already knows what kind of sports fan I am.)
- Do you think that puck bunnies give female hockey fans a bad reputation? Why or why not? They don't help the "cause" of respectability for female fans, I suppose. Then again, if it's not already abundantly clear, I don't put much stake in the opinions of people who apply stereotypes so broadly. If someone judges me because of the actions of an oversexed hoochie in a tight jersey and short-shorts, that's just ridiculous and, honestly, irrelevant to my life.
- Do you think that there will ever be a time when female hockey fans aren't stereotyped? Why or why not? No, because that would mean an end of humans' tendency to generalize and pigeonhole groups of people. I expect that the stereotypes may change somewhat over the years, may soften a bit or start being applied more narrowly. But it's human nature, and I don't see it ever going away.
Oh my all your responses to why you choose your fav players sounds exactly like what I had wrote (I haven't finished) right down to the "soft spot for goalies" & "underdog" ... it's like you read my mind!