9 hours Ago By Jason Hills
How did you become an Edmonton Oilers fan? Maybe your fandom was assigned to you at birth. Maybe you grew up in the city. But for Bill and Kathy Wagner, who hail from San Diego, Calif.
, their journey to fandom involved a postponed and later cancelled train trip through the Rockies, COVID-19, and Oilers playoff hockey. In 2022, the couple were celebrating their already-delayed 40th wedding anniversary with a Rocky Mountaineer ride from Jasper to Vancouver — but when they arrived in Jasper, they were diagnosed with COVID-19 and forced to miss the trip. Quarantined in their hotel, they happened to come across an Oilers playoff game on TV, and despite knowing absolutely nothing about hockey, it didn’t take long before they were hooked.
“Hockey was on pretty well 24-7, and we spent the entire week trying to figure out the game,” Bill told Postmedia. “We lay there in bed thinking, ‘Why did they blow that whistle? What is icing?’ We had so many questions, but it gave us something to think about instead of the misery we were feeling,” said Kathy. “Over the course of the week, we started to figure out the game, and we became Oilers fans.
” They returned to California with a newfound love for hockey and started to watch every game they could. Over the last few years, they have cheered on the Oilers when they’d play teams in California like the Anaheim Ducks, current Oilers playoff foe Los Angeles Kings, and San Jose Sharks, as well as the Vegas Golden Knights. “When we came home, we wanted to learn more about Canada and the history of the country, and the anthem, and learn more about hockey,” said Kathy.
“We’ve gotten so deep into the Oilers, we go and watch the Bakersfield Condors games when they play the San Diego Gulls. We have so much Oilers paraphernalia. Our kids think we’re nuts.
“They tolerate it. I think they kind of roll their eyes and say, ‘That’s mom and dad.’ They will ask us what are we doing? We tell them, ‘We’re watching hockey!’ “ The couple has even created bingo cards when they watch Oilers games on TV.
Any popular phrases that Oilers play-by-play voice Jack Michaels, colour commentator Louie Debrusk, or host Gene Principe say during the broadcasts are marked off the bingo card. “When (Jack Michaels) says things like, ‘The pleasure was all ours, or anything the (others) say during the games, it’s like, ‘Oh, I’ve got that one on my card.'” Driving across Canada The retired couple eventually did go on their Rocky Mountaineer tour.
They came up with the idea to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary by going to their first-ever Oilers game in Edmonton — but their idea grew from there. “We decided, why don’t we drive across Canada?” said Bill. At the start of the season, they purchased tickets for the Oilers’ final regular-season home game against the Los Angeles Kings.
They started their journey coming up the West Coast of the U.S., into Vancouver and all through British Columbia, arriving in Edmonton a few days before diehard Oilers fans assembled at Rogers Place on April 14.
“We were so excited to be at Rogers Place. We’ve always seen it on TV, and so it was great to be there and experience it,” said Kathy. “Nobody dresses their whole family in gear like Oilers fans.
I was shocked at how many people were wearing jerseys. That’s really wild. It’s like we’re now part of a secret family now.
“ The couple has lots of Oilers gear. No, they don’t wear a Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl jersey, or even jerseys with their surname. The names are more fitting with how they became Oilers fans.
“We have jerseys that say Jasper on mine and Alberta on Kathy’s,” said Bill. “It’s become something more than that now, with the wildfires that caused so much damage to Jasper (last summer). We were so heartbroken.
“People always ask us if we’re from there when they see our jerseys, but we tell them that we wear them to support Jasper because of the hardship they’re experiencing. “ While in Alberta, the couple visited Drumheller to see the hoodoos and the Royal Tyrrell Museum. They ventured to other areas of the province before making their way east to Halifax, N.
S. ‘We adore Canada’ With the tension between Canada and the United States because of President Donald Trump’s tariff and annexation threats, the couple said they were at first concerned about how they might be treated during their cross-Canada trip — but it didn’t take very long for them to feel welcome. “Quite frankly, we’re sympathetic, and we’re not supportive of the animosity being stirred up between our countries,” said Bill.
Kathy said from the moment they crossed the border, they felt a sense of relief getting out of the United States. “ We adore Canada. It was our refuge when we were sick, and it’s given us this gift of learning and now loving the game of hockey,” said Kathy.
“It’s friendly, and it has so much natural beauty, and the people are so welcoming. They’re just so nice. In the U.
S., it’s become so polarizing. You almost can’t talk to anyone anymore.
As soon as we crossed the border, it felt better. The air was free. We aren’t in that mess anymore.
“Right now, we’re temporary Canadians, and we hope you all adopt us because it was a relief to be out of the U.S. “ Falling in love with Canada A highlight they’re excited for along their journey includes going to Saskatchewan to the area where Bill’s great-grandmother grew up at the turn of the century before moving to Michigan.
They also plan to venture through Manitoba before cutting down through the U.S. to go to Maine to visit some of Kathy’s family, then heading back through the Maritimes and into Quebec and Ontario.
“We’re excited to see the Maritimes and explore Montreal and other parts of Quebec, and now that we’re big hockey fans, we definitely have to go to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto,” said Bill. “I travelled all around the world for business and had my share of flying, but rather than fly to places for vacations, we’ve just really become enamoured with driving and camping. We see a lot more, the pace is slower, and we have a lot more comfort and control over the experience.
“ Since the couple retired, they typically travel four months out of the year. They’ve travelled all across the United States over the years, but they’ve fallen in love with Canada. They’re already thinking of more places in Canada they want to visit.
One will more than likely be Jasper when the town recovers from the wildfires and they will be able to camp in the area. “It gives us a lot of pleasure to spend our vacation dollars in Canada. This has turned into an adventure for us, and we’re loving it,” said Kathy.
“We’re anchored by our kids and grandchildren in southern California, but we no doubt will be coming to visit Canada more often. “ RelatedDevoted Oilers fan hopes his 2018 yearbook prediction comes trueManitoba school principal pens letter allowing young Oilers fan to stay up late to watch games Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add EdmontonJournal.com and EdmontonSun.
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