Driving The Lane: Curse Reversed

Sadly, I was at the TD Garden for the Terriers’ 1-0 loss at the hands of UMass-Lowell in the Hockey East Championship game. As far as I can tell, it was a very well-played hockey game on both sides. This made the defeat that much harder to swallow. Because a couple of my friends from UMass-Lowell were in town for the game, I was sitting in the Lowell fan section. I witnessed their excitement after the victory first hand. It was one of pure ecstasy.

Despite being disappointed by the Terriers’ loss, I was happy for the River Hawks and their fans. Had Boston College won the tournament, I would not have been happy for them in any way. But I could stand to see the River Hawks hoist the trophy because it was their first ever Hockey East Championship.

There’s something to be said about seeing teams win after long droughts. This was the first time since 2004 that BU or BC did not win the tournament. As much as I would have preferred to see the Terriers win, it’s nice to see a new team bring home the championship trophy.

There is just a different level of excitement in fans when they see their team win for the first time in a long time. As a die-hard Boston Red Sox fan, I will never forget when the Sox won the World Series in 2004. It was their first championship in 86 years. Words cannot describe how I felt watching Keith Foulke underhand the ball to Doug Mientkiewicz for the final out in game four of the World Series in St. Louis.

In fact, that whole playoff run that year was simply unreal. I’ll never forget jumping up and down on my seat at Fenway Park after David Ortiz hit the Divisional Series winning home run off of Anaheim Angels pitcher Jarrod Washburn. I was high fiving and hugging complete strangers. In the next round, I remember hugging my sister and jumping around after Ortiz hit the flair to center that drove in the game-winning run in game five against the rival Yankees. I still hear Joe Buck’s play-by-play in my head, “Here comes [Johnny] Damon, and he can keep on running to New York.”

For Red Sox fans, it was much more than just a championship. Those are given out every year. No, this one meant a lot more. For anyone born after September 11, 1918, this was their first time ever witnessing the Red Sox win the World Series. This was the ultimate justice for Sox fans who had witnessed years and years of letdowns.

In a way, I’m a little bit sad that happened, because I’m pretty sure I will never feel the same way ever again. Even when the Red Sox won it again in 2007, it wasn’t the same. Sure, I was glued to the television for every single pitch during the playoff run, but not in the same way. No championship will ever equal that of the Red Sox in 2004.

I felt like, to a lesser degree, this is what the UMass-Lowell fans were feeling at the game on Saturday. It was redemption for a team that has long been pushed around in the Hockey East. Nobody likes to see the same team win every year, except for the fans of that team.

Nobody outside of New York wants to see the Yankees win the World Series. Nobody outside of Los Angeles wants to see the Lakers win the NBA Finals. And I’m sure nobody outside of Commonwealth Avenue wanted to see BU or BC win the Hockey East Tournament. Championships are always better when they come after long stretches of losing and heartbreak.