To finish off my previous post… “Getting Taunted By Penguin Fans” in Pittsburgh…..

While I didn’t get to get sprayed with champagne by the Wings THIS year in Pittsburgh, , I didn’t get doused in beer, by Pens fans, either.

During game six of the 2008 Stanley Cup Final I purposely wore my “RED”  WOOD-TV 8 shirt to cover the Wings clinching in Pittsburgh.  During the second intermission I made my way with much of the rest of the crowd, to the restroom.  It wasn’t until I was well inside the VERY crowded facility, standing shoulder to shoulder with dozens of Penguin fans, that I realized I was the only person in the restroom not wearing a white shirt.  Suddenly one of the fans asked me, “why in the hell are you wearing Red, man?”  Without giving it any thought , I simply blurted out, “I’m from Michigan, I’m a Wings fan.”  I then immediately thought…. that probably wasn’t very smart.

Needless to say I was hit with a chorus of  BOOOOOOs that would make Marian Hossa proud.  Not only that, but I was showered with flickers and small splashes of beer.  The boos then turned into chants of  “Red Wings suck!  Red Wings suck!”  I found it all to be in good fun, until some “f-bombs” starting being fired in my direction, at which time I changed lines and made my way to one of the few enclosed stalls. That too seemed like a good idea at first, until someone decided to donate what was left of his beer to the cause…  dumping it over the door,  on my shoulder and down my back…. enough to put my shirt over the legal limit.  When I came out of the door a couple of different Pen fans apologized for the “drunk” in the crowd.  But as I made my way, shoulder to shoulder, through the crowd and back to the concourse, the chants resumed… a mixture of “Let’s go Pens” and “Red Wings Suck”.  

When I finally reached the exit, the first thing I saw on the concourse was a trio of Detroit fans, all in Red Wing uniforms, clapping as if to say, way to take one for the team man.  Suddenly the beer soaking seemed well worth it… especially when the Wings began spraying champagne, a period and a Cup hoisting later.