Home and away, Calgary fans support their team in the playoffs
Home and away, Calgary fans support their team in the playoffs
Fans of the Calgary Flames are repping their favourite jerseys, heading down to the Red Mile and cheering louder than ever in hopes of rallying their team to a Game 3 playoff victory against the Dallas Stars.
The best-of-seven series is deadlocked at one game each with both teams achieving victories at the Saddledome.
Calgary now heads to Dallas for its next two playoff games, but one Flames superfan still plans to enjoy Saturday night’s matchup as if it was a home game.
“It’s my home away from ‘Dome,” said Dean McCord who has transformed his entire living room into what he calls a “Flames Shrine.”
The room is set up with bar stools, three couches, dozens of jerseys throughout the Flames franchise history, countless pieces of autographed memorabilia and multiple TV screens, including a massive 82-inch screen for the ultimate viewing experience.
A TV is also set up in the kitchen so he doesn’t miss a single moment of the game when grabbing a beverage.
But perhaps the most amazing feature of the entire room is the remote-controlled light show and goal horn set up for every time the Flames score.
“I have a little remote and we like to fool everyone and tell them it's hooked up to the Saddledome even though it isn't,” McCord jokes.
“All I do is press a button when Calgary scores so you hear the goal horn and there's two songs with looped cassette tapes that play the song ‘Burn Baby Burn’ and ‘Celebration.’ Of course, I also play ‘Ring of Fire’ when the Flames win so it feels like you’re right at the Saddledome.”
McCord has been collecting Flames memorabilia for several years and spent roughly $20,000 on the entire home set up, but he calls it a ‘priceless’ collection that friends and family members adore.
“This is our season ticket,” he said.
'NO REGRETS' SAYS CALGARY FAN
While most Flames fans are confident in the ability of a team led by powerhouse players such as Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau, some fans say winning the Stanley Cup is a guarantee this year.
Long-time ‘C’ of Red supporter, Eric McComish was so assured that the Flames would ‘win it all’ this season that he got a 2022 Calgary Flames Stanley Cup Champion tattooed on his left calf in November of last year.
“I’ve been thinking about getting on for probably five years and after they won four or five games in a row early in the season, I finally went out and got it,” he said.
“I have no regrets, it’s funny because it was probably about a week and no one noticed it other than my friends and family, but then it went viral. I started thinking you know maybe this wasn't the smartest idea after reading just thousands of comments from people roasting me online, but no regrets!”
McComish admitted that a recent Flames loss in Game 2 made him anxious and if the Flames don’t go all the way, he might have to make some changes to his new ink.
“I'm gonna have to get it cheese grated off,” he joked.
“I think honestly, I'll probably just wait until we do win it if it's in my lifetime and I'll just cross it out and get the actual year but underneath. Regardless, a Stanley Cup would be crazy!”
FLAMES PUPS 'HOWLING' THE TEAM TO VICTORY
Flames fans Chris Boudens and Chantel Fox have more than one million followers on Tik Tok and it’s all thanks to the amazing talents of their two purebred Siberian husky dogs, Nico and Jackson, and their golden retriever, Zoey.
“You’d never guess that they could be so loud,” said Fox.
The trio has gone viral online as they each wear Flames jerseys and cheer on the team. Nico and Jackson howl louder than ever to show their support, while Zoey is a little more reserved.
“It’s kind of funny because there’s a lot of anxiety during the games,” Boudens said.
“Jackson definitely senses that, he comes up to you and gives you kisses and tries to calm you down.”
Videos featuring the pups have received millions of views online.
Boudens and Fox who live together in Fernie, B.C. are both diehard fans of Calgary and hopes their pups provide other fans with a little bit of extra cheer during the playoffs.
Fires across the country are burning millions of hectares of land but what does that really look like? CTVNews.ca compared the blazes to some cities and lakes in the country showing just how big they have gotten.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump is facing 37 felony charges related to the mishandling of classified documents, according to an indictment unsealed Friday that alleges that he described a Pentagon 'plan of attack' and shared a classified map related to a military operation.
Former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson shocked Britain on Friday by quitting as a lawmaker after being told he will be sanctioned for misleading Parliament.
Despite the alarming facts and figures, experts say Canada is far more reactive than it is proactive when it comes to wildfires and they’re calling for a national campaign on wildfire education to better prepare for the future.
Showers are predicted Saturday over the aggressive wildfire threatening Tumbler Ridge, but forecasters say thunderstorms could sweep through the parched region without bringing any rain.
Air Canada says it made a mistake in rejecting some compensation claims from the thousands of travellers affected by delayed flights due to computer malfunctions.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith named her new cabinet Friday, about two weeks after her United Conservative Party took the majority of seats in Alberta.
Weekly wastewater surveillance data from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control suggests COVID-19 transmission has continued declining in the Lower Mainland this month, a week after the centre reported its lowest hospitalization total in nearly two years.
Nova Scotia says it has identified more details about the records stolen in a file transfer service cyber attack, impacting teachers, students and health care workers' records.
Wildfire officials are sending an additional 20 firefighters to help battle an out-of-control blaze that has burned more than two square kilometres of forest and cut off a major highway on Vancouver Island.
A vehicle detour route that is serving as a lifeline between eastern and western Vancouver Island amid a raging wildfire will be closed for much of the day Friday.
Montreal police (SPVM) stats for 2022 show that crime went up dramatically in 2022 and, taking COVID-19 pandemic numbers into account, violent crimes have been on the rise overall since 2017. In addition, motor vehicle thefts skyrocketed, having more than doubled since pre pandemic years.
A chain of illegal magic mushroom dispensaries in Ontario is determined to open a location in Montreal this summer despite the threat of a crackdown by Mayor Valerie Plante.
Hundreds of counter-protesters gathered near three schools in Ottawa's west end on Friday to take a stand against a B.C. man who is protesting what he calls "gender ideology."
The Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway in Ottawa's west end will be renamed Kichi Zībī Mīkan, if approved by the National Capital Commission's board of directors.
Police have shut down a section of Highway 401 westbound between Woodstock and Cambridge after a crash involving a transport truck and an Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) vehicle.
The head of Saskatoon’s chamber of commerce responding with frustration to the city’s announcement of a $75 million deficit over the next two years — and the tax hikes that will likely be needed to help makeup some of the the shortfall.
Poor air quality in Temiskaming Shores forced the hospital to cancel all surgeries Friday, and depending on the forest fire situation, it may have to cancel more procedures scheduled Monday.
A tenant displaced in the downtown Sudbury fire last month said her hotel is denying her request to move her room to a centralized location following an attempted break-in.
Winnipeg police say a woman is in hospital with severe injuries after she was allegedly stabbed by a man in what police describe as a completely random and unprovoked attack.
With the Bank of Canada (BoC) increasing its kay rate once again this week to 4.75 per cent, many people with fixed-rate mortgages are feeling anxious about renewing.
