Did alot of old Whalers fans become Islanders fans?
Just curious...I've had the opportunity to attend some Islander games this season and I've noticed more Whalers jerseys in their crowd than in any other. 2 Francis, 1 Verbeek...a Geoff Sanderson, a Sean Burke, and some blanks from the 80's in a game a few weeks ago. Just yesterday alone I spotted a not so insignificant amount of Whaler memorabilia worn by fans in attendance as well.
Hartford and Long Island are not that far apart. I can't imagine many of them became Rangers fans despite the Wolfpack connection since the Rangers are viewed as the big market goliath while the Whalers were more similar to the Isles of that era. Downtrodden franchise with a suburban fanbase.
You see Whaler sweaters everywhere you go, especially in the East Coast arenas. Being closer to Boston, I presume alot of fans became (or came back to being) Bruin fans or continued following the Canes.
Hartford is just over an hour from Boston whereas 3 hours to LI.
Whalers fan turned Rangers fan. I'm 15 minutes outside of Hartford and two hours away from both Boston and NYC. Dad grew up in the tri-state area so I became a Rangers fan. I think most Whalers fans split between the Bruins and the Rangers, although some followed the franchise to Carolina, while others became fans of the Devils. because they were just starting to get good around that time. I know a lot of people that didn't follow hockey for a while after they left. I don't think too many became Islanders fans really, mainly because it is the furthest of the four and the team wasn't exceptional in '97. It's been said before, Whalers gear is now more popular because people like "retro" stuff. Nothing more I don't think.
You see Whaler sweaters everywhere you go, especially in the East Coast arenas. Being closer to Boston, I presume alot of fans became (or came back to being) Bruin fans or continued following the Canes.
Hartford is just over an hour from Boston whereas 3 hours to LI.
Yes, but the Bruins were the mortal enemies of the Whalers.
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Speaking as someone who grew up a Half Hour from The Mall, anyone who started a Whalers fan and ended up still being a fan of the Canes is dead to me :x.
Luckily for me, I was young enough to know I would hate the Canes and jumped on the Caps bandwagon because of the Portland Pirates...
hartford is in CT though and a lot of ppl from CT, especially south and eastern CT associate with the NYC metro area.
Dude, I know, I was born, raised and bred in Boston. I am very aware of Conn and how some of it's residents are more NYC than Boston. But we are talking Hartford which mostly sticks with the Sox, Celts and Pats (most of the time). It's closer to Boston than NYC by an hour drive time not including traffic.
On the same token, I have a long running joke that Conn is not really New England that they are really NYC suburbs. So, I understand what you are saying.
Dude, I know, I was born, raised and bred in Boston. I am very aware of Conn and how some of it's residents are more NYC than Boston. But we are talking Hartford which mostly sticks with the Sox, Celts and Pats (most of the time). It's closer to Boston than NYC by an hour drive time not including traffic.
On the same token, I have a long running joke that Conn is not really New England that they are really NYC suburbs. So, I understand what you are saying.
This is true.
When I was a kid, Connecticut really was part of New England. And some of it still is. But the NY influence is sadly prevelent today and it has been for some time.
The Devils' board on this website definitely has its fair share of ex-Whalers fans who now follow the Devils. It makes sense - NJ (like the Islanders and Whalers) was a team that was in the shadow of big cities, and it wasn't that far away from Hartford (usually faster by car than Long Island because you don't have to drive through NYC to get there). And perhaps most importantly, if you're going to adopt a new team, it's much easier to adopt a winning team, and NJ was winning a lot around the time Hartford moved.
Just curious...I've had the opportunity to attend some Islander games this season and I've noticed more Whalers jerseys in their crowd than in any other. 2 Francis, 1 Verbeek...a Geoff Sanderson, a Sean Burke, and some blanks from the 80's in a game a few weeks ago. Just yesterday alone I spotted a not so insignificant amount of Whaler memorabilia worn by fans in attendance as well.
Hartford and Long Island are not that far apart. I can't imagine many of them became Rangers fans despite the Wolfpack connection since the Rangers are viewed as the big market goliath while the Whalers were more similar to the Isles of that era. Downtrodden franchise with a suburban fanbase.
Never having done this, I wonder if it's quicker to get from Hartford to NVMC than it is to get from Hartford to MSG. I'm from that area, but never had cause to go from CT to LI. You'd have to take a ferry, I guess. Is it really quicker?
I doubt many Whaler fans became Islander fans when the team relocated to Carolina I think the Jerseys that were seen at the NVMC was probably a retro thing. I saw a guy wearing a California Golden Seal Jersey yesterday at MSG
Never having done this, I wonder if it's quicker to get from Hartford to NVMC than it is to get from Hartford to MSG. I'm from that area, but never had cause to go from CT to LI. You'd have to take a ferry, I guess. Is it really quicker?
Never having done this, I wonder if it's quicker to get from Hartford to NVMC than it is to get from Hartford to MSG. I'm from that area, but never had cause to go from CT to LI. You'd have to take a ferry, I guess. Is it really quicker?
No, you wouldn't take the ferry to Uniondale, LI, at least I never did driving down from Boston which is similar to the route someone from Hartford would take to get to LI. You would just drive down to Bridgeport, through the Bronx, go across the Trogs Neck bridge and right into LI. You would do the same thing from Hartford.
It would be much much easier to take Amtrak straight into downtown Manhattan and go watch a game at MSG, then do the 3 plus hour drive to Uniondale.
When I was a kid, Connecticut really was part of New England. And some of it still is. But the NY influence is sadly prevelent today and it has been for some time.
I know you don't HAVE to. I guess I was thinking it'd be the only possible shot of it being quicker to get the NVMC, because by the time you get to the Throg's Neck, you might as well keep going and catch the Triboro into Manhattan or cut across the Cross Bronx and get to the West Side.
So basically, LI is geographically close to Hartford, but that doesn't mean a damn thing. Therefore, the whole premise of this thread is pretty skewed.
I wanted to punch people in the face who said they were in "The Hamptons" when they were at Hampton Beach. I worked at the Casino Ballroom one summer and if I had a dollar for every face I'd punch in, I could buy the Chicago Bulls.
I wanted to punch people in the face who said they were in "The Hamptons" when they were at Hampton Beach. I worked at the Casino Ballroom one summer and if I had a dollar for every face I'd punch in, I could buy the Chicago Bulls.
I got a good chuckle out of the phonetic spelling of South Shore. But according to this I can claim I ahve been to Cuba.
In my experience (parents from CT)....50% other teams, split three ways between Atlantic Division teams, the Broonz and the Canes and 50% Hartford Whalers - i.e. bitter ex-hockey fans.
[QUOTE]It's been said before, Whalers gear is now more popular because people like "retro" stuff. Nothing more I don't think. [/QUOTE
That's a simplistic reading.
First off, the gear's available. There was a long period of time when you couldn't legally buy Whalers gear because of some trademark issue (I think the state owned the rights and wouldn't give them up or something weird like that). People were reduced to buying knockoff t-shirts on eBay and vintage gear (before buying vintage became cool).
Secondly, there's a growing sense it's likely to be the only pro franchise Connecticut will ever have, so nostalgia is growing.
Thirdly, if you're talking about people like me, disregarding my CT roots, it's a handy way to protest the modern NHL. It's why I also wear Nordiques gear despite their rivalry with the Habs.
Fourthly, yeah, retro stuff is cool. The place I get my hats from sells Atlanta Flames stuff. Nobody cares about them!
