When the Rockets face off for the first game of the 2015 Memorial Cup tournament, one outcome can be counted on.
Super-fan Reagan Krivsky will be cheering the team on from the stands at the Colisée Pepsi in Quebec City, just like she does at every home game in Kelowna.
“They probably don’t know that I’m here… I don’t know any of (the players) personally,” she said from her hotel room in Quebec City, Thursday morning.
“But they’ve probably heard about ‘the really crazy lady.’”
Crazy is a bit severe, but fandom is a task Krivsky really takes on with gusto.
Her fingernail and toe polish is Rockets themed, her house is decked out in Rocket paraphernalia, she adopted a “lucky duck” that she named Rocket and then there’s her wardrobe.
“I have more Rockets clothes than…well, than any other clothes,” she said, laughing.
She even has some rituals that have taken her through each game since ‘97, when she and her husband started being season ticket holders.
“At 5:30 p.m., we’re there. I park in the same parking spot, where the Dolphins are, then I have to go to the casino, get an egg salad sandwich and an iced tea,” she said.
“Then I put $20 in the machine, visit some friends in the smoke pit and go to the game.”
During the away games she attends, things are a bit more loosey goosey, and she just makes sure she’s in the arena for warm-ups.
And, in case there’s any doubt, she wears a Rockets’ jersey for each and every game.
For most people Krivsky’s dedication would likely be too onerous a commitment of both time and money. This year she had to take two trips to Portland, Oregon to watch “her boys” rise above the fray, and then there’s the Quebec trip presently at hand, which she expects to be “10 days of fun.”
None of these trips are funded by the Rockets in any way.
“The Hamiltons have just brought an amazing product to Kelowna,” she said, rationalizing her dedication. “And Junior Hockey is the best hockey you are going to find. These guys are playing to get all that and a bag of chips.”
The game has changed since she embarked on her mission of super fandom.
“It’s gotten less physical and more skillful,” she said.
And the fans have changed, too.
“We’re getting louder. Rocky is a great instigator for that. It’s great.”
Krivsky won’t be alone when she bellows in support of the local team from the stands. Taking the trip with her is her husband Louie and “Allan and Anita” another couple “who are there for everything,” too.
“There should actually be eight or 10 of us going,” said Louie Krivsky.
“It’s a lot of fun. We have a group of friends who have been going to these games with us for 10 to 15 years and we’ve been to seven or eight Memorial Cups.”
As to whether or not they’ve been investing their effort on Cup winners, the Krivskys are cautious when talking about their team’s odds.
“I think they have a very good shot at winning,” said Louie. “They are, at the very least, as good as any team there, and if they play to their potential they will win.”
Reagan is even more circumspect.
“My little mantra for all this is, I am fortunate enough to watch the top four teams in Canada, and the boys I have watched over the last year may soon to be the No. 1
team in Canada,” she said.
Face off for the Rockets first game of the Memorial Cup against host Quebec is today at 4:30 p.m. Pacific time.
