Birth of an American Hockey Fan, Finally: It's a Girl!

Cigars and whiskey to all three of you that have followed my four month journey from nascent fan to the Hockey Goliath that types before you now. When Ritch and Ben first approached me back in January with the opportunity to expose my ignorance and open myself up for heckling from random strangers for no pay whatsoever, I thought, well, I'd be a fool not to jump on this. It's been a long and winding road, but I'd like to think the universe has rewarded my devotion to the sport with its own slow whistle, bringing my now-beloved Sabres to the Eastern Conference finals.

Yes, that is what I'm saying. I, Jen Adams, personally brought the Buffalo Sabres to the conference finals. You're welcome.

That's not to say that I don't have a certain amount of gratitude towards Lindy Ruff and Darcy Regier, for taking care of the day-to-day mundanities, and for striking a blow for schoolgirl-named men everywhere. Shoutouts also go to the fine folks that have contributed to Wikipedia's hockey slang page, without which the word "Howitzer" would never have made it into my everyday vernacular, and to sportsman extraordinaire the Earl, who, through the measured use of beer and whiskey, patiently watched the seasons change under a relentless barrage of naive-yet-earnest-yet-still-highly-fucking-annoying questions of the "Why is the sky blue?" variety.

And, of course, special thanks to Jack, Ben, and especially Ritch, whose unfailing devotion to that abusive husband he calls a team made me realize that it's not always, or apparently since 1990, the team itself that matters, it's the love of the sport. But that might be the Finals talking.

I'll still keep writing on the site, at least until Ritch finally cracks and changes the password, but from now on, it'll be as a full-fledged Fan, which means I'm 100% open to people wishing to point out my mistakes and call me the kinds of names that aren't applicable to people of Ritch, Ben, and Jack's genitalic persuasion. I would expect nothing less.

Birthing Status: Go Sabres, baby.