What It Means to Be a Devils Fan…
Last Monday I was lucky enough to attend game 3 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with the NJ Devils vs Tampa Bay Lightning. The Devils have not been in the playoffs since 2012, and I had never attended a playoffs game so the energy was high.
Since 1982, the New Jersey Devils became NJ’s NHL hockey team named after the infamous Jersey Devil who may or may not still haunt the Pinelands. They have been playing at the Prudential Center in Newark since 2007.
Even just standing outside the Prudential Center you could feel the excitement. Everyone we saw was dressed in Devils gear or red and back clothes (except for a few fans on the rival team, and those peopled got booed).
I even got my dogs to participate on the fun!
When we walked in side the Prudential Center was a sea of red. From the people wearing the color, to the Now We Rise towels on every seat, it made you tear up to be a Devils fan.
The game was very exciting, and what was most exciting (besides the two big fights that happened) was when we got our first goal at the SAME moment the NJ Devil visited our seats. Of course we had to get a picture. Such a fan girl moment…
It was a close game, but in the third period the Devils made a major comeback. And the last two goals blew my mind. Everyone in the stands were freaking out, asking their neighbors “Did you see that?”. Oh…we saw it.
And when we won…damn. The whole place ERUPTED in cheers. The Devils beat the Tampa Bay Lighting 5-2.
I can still hear people walking out of the stadium chanting “Let’s Go Devils” at the top of their lungs, waving flags from their car, giving high fives to strangers…it was an amazing New Jersey moment in time and I am so happy I got to be apart of it.
Sadly, the NJ Devils are out of the Playoffs as of this post…but that doesn’t mean that I’ve stopped routing for them. Looking forward to next Season!
