How do you choose the team you root for?

[jimmysheva]

Went to the University of Colorado between 1998 - 2003. Naturally I started rooting for the Avalanche.

 

[FastEddie]

Either you grow up with a reason to root for a team, in which case it's deeper and more diehard, or you find a reason to cheer for something. Sometimes later in life and it's usually more casual. Most Finns on here seem to root for particular Finnish players and their club team by extension. Barkov or Rantanen or even Laine. If that's not enough for you, might I suggest rooting for traditional hockey places and climates? After that you gotta come up with your own reason.

 

[Toene]

It's in my blood. My parents cheered for them, my grand-parents cheered for them, my great-grand-parents did too. One doesn't merely "choose" to root for the Canadiens, it's just an inter-generational duty and privilege.

 

[Sniper99]

College sports - Arizona State University in anything. Don't really care about the local university (the University of Florida) but have been to two of their baseball games, and I watched one (and maybe two but I don't remember) Gators football games last year.

I was at an ASU baseball game 2 years ago. Pretty cool vibe for a college baseball and seeing all the numbers in left field of the players who made it to the majors. Also did ASU hockey that same trip.

 

[Praetorian Caps]

The Caps are the local team and Ovechkin coming to them sparked my interest in the sport.

 

[Sniper99]

My Dad took me to Maple Leaf Gardens in Sept. 93. Gilmour walked by with an agent or teammate on his way to training camp. Saw the Leafs store inside the arena with all the blue and white jerseys and that was it. My Dad to this day still regrets taking me there.

Sadly my Grandpa back home passed away that same day from cancer so I always remember the exact date too.

 

[TheGreenTBer]

Handed down to you by birth , or a location you live near or were born in. Province/State/City

Any other answer is just a bandwaggon

Any fan that religiously follows their team through both the highs and lows is NOT a bandwagoner no matter what their upbringing or location is.

 

[BigDaddyLurch]

...my Grandfather, the most amazing human being I have ever known, was a Habs fan...my Mother is a Habs fan...the first time I saw Ken Dryden live on TV, I was a DIE-HARD fan for Life...

 

[TheBeard]

Grew up in Montreal in the 80s as a Habs fan, father was a lifelong bruins fan. Couldn't decide between being faithful to my hometown or to my father so I said I'm just gonna be a fan of the new expansion team. A few months later they came out with their badass logo.

 

[GrandmaCookie]

I grew up in a city just outside Montreal, where being a Canadiens fan almost feels like it’s in your blood. My grandmother was a huge fan—she used to let me watch the first period before bed, and in the morning, the first thing she’d tell me was whether they won or not. I could usually tell just by her mood.

My parents were big fans too. The few times I got to see my father, hockey was always our thing—we’d talk about it, play it in real life and in video games, and of course, watch it together. Even now, my mom still asks me how the Canadiens are doing or tells me what she saw about them in the news. And I still watch when I can playoffs game with my pops. And he use to tell me about the stories of the great 70s Habs, Lafleur, Dryden, Robinson, etc. And how to them, winning the cup was the norm.

I’ve been a die-hard fan since I was around eight years old. Here in Quebec, that’s just how it is—kids grow up playing hockey in the streets or on outdoor rinks, dreaming of one day wearing the Habs jersey.

 

[Statto]

I was about 13 when I discovered hockey in the UK, after a rink opened in my home town. At that point the only place in North America I’d been to was LA, so it was an easy choice to follow the Kings. The Ducks didn’t exist yet, which is a relief as we actually stayed in OC.

 

[OldCraig71]

I was born into a family of Habs fans; it was a religion for my father and Grandfather and it was for me as well. I have so many great memories of all of us getting together during the playoffs and the fun that we had.

They also loved great players no matter the jersey: Marcel Dionne, Gilbert Perrault, and of course, the great one. Battling Billy Smith and the Islanders were very respected by my family. We were hockey fanatics and never missed a game.

 

[Jwads]

I thought Irbe and Vanbiesbrouck looked really cool as a kid.
Watching SJ in '94 and FLA in '96 sealed it for me. Both runs were so much fun to follow.
And I got JVBs autograph in between the ECF and SCF that year. Still have it to this day.

 

[G50]

Wolves - before moving further west in the state, used to live 20 min away.
Avs - Moser, Moser, Moser. Also I like the Nuggets and was an Elway fan, so already had a connection to the state.
Canes - I have NC sports teams in every sports, so naturally.
Sharks - Randy and Dan are so much fun to listen to.
Kraken - Normally 3 is my sports limit, but after losing the Sonics I needed a new Seattle sports team in my life.

 

[ottawa]

Easy, you pick the habs.

 

[Rejavanated]

It's obvious that one of the main reasons for people to root for a team in NHL is because it's their home town's or home state's team. But is there something else that gets overlooked?

I live in northern Europe (Finland) so for me it's not clear at all. I've been following NHL for about a year now, since last playoffs, and I've basically followed teams because of few individuals: Pens because of Crosby and Stars because of the newly formed Finnish mafia. With lack of geographical connection the hierarchy of emotional connection to a team when it comes to different type of factors goes something like this for me:

1. Admirable player on and off the ice (Crosby)
2. Fellow countrymen in the same team (Dallas/Florida)
3. Highly skilled gameplay (McDrai/MacMak/MarMatt)
4. Underdog (St. Louis, Montreal)
5. Great fan culture / history (Toronto, Montreal)
6. Youthful team/bright future (Sharks, Montreal)
7. Aesthetics of jerseys (Red wings, Canucks)

But now I'm in a pickle because come next saturday Stars and Pens will face each other. And so I'm thinking "who should I root for here?". Obviously a win doesn't matter for Pens at this point. But I do respect Crosby the most out of anyone on those two lineups. But then again Stars have five of my countrymen on their team and they deserve to win as they have won 7 games in a row, so I'll probably root for Stars.

How do you choose which team(s) to root for?

For most North Americans, I think their favourite NHL team is largely based on parental influence or geography, which usually makes the choices pretty limited. The 7 criteria you've listed end up including nearly half the teams in the league, lol. Not only that, but the criteria are either highly variable (e.g. Ranatanen has been on 3 teams this season) or highly subjective (jersey aesthetics OMG).

If you're looking for advice, I'd recommend narrowing down what criteria is actually important to you. Then, STICK WITH YOUR DECISION. Disloyalty is one of the few things that rival fanbases are likely to agree upon. Flip-flopping after the age of 20 is generally regarded as a character flaw.

 

[jalapenoWithAnH]

Not only that, but the criteria are either highly variable (e.g. Ranatanen has been on 3 teams this season) or highly subjective (jersey aesthetics OMG).

That's why I wrote "for me"

If you're looking for advice, I'd recommend narrowing down what criteria is actually important to you. Then, STICK WITH YOUR DECISION. Disloyalty is one of the few things that rival fanbases are likely to agree upon. Flip-flopping after the age of 20 is generally regarded as a character flaw.

I already did, that's why I wrote "hierarchy". The most important are the ones higher in the list aka numbers 1-3.

 

[57special]

I generally become a fan of the team where I hang my hat. Only exception was when i lived in the PAC NW - could never get into the Canucks. Kept having nightmares about Harold Snepsts' moustache.