Superstitions can be a fun way to cheer for Oilers: psychologist
In the Ginn household, hockey is a way of life.
Andrea Ginn, who's been an Edmonton Oilers fan since she "was a baby" — with her fandom ramping up during the team's run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Final — has passed that passion on to her two sons.
And there's some superstition involved at Ginn's house during the playoffs.
These days, Ginn and sons Alex, 8, and Adrian, 5, don their Oilers togs for the day at the same time: 7:45 a.m.
It's part of a string of superstitions she has, which started almost 20 years ago during that unlikely, magical Oilers run to the finals.
In '06, Ginn, her mother and her grandmother started a tradition of wearing Oilers jerseys on game days.
"The rule was you cannot wash it if they win, and you cannot wear the same jersey if they lose," Ginn told CTV News Edmonton.
"My mom follows that during the regular season. We just do it in the playoffs because you know how kids are."
Sports superstitions are serious business.
Some fans, such as Edmonton's Manny Deol, feel they hold the Oilers' destiny in their hands.
The life-long Oilers fan is particular with the remote controls controlling his television system.
Two years ago, he kept his remotes and his phone in place after Edmonton started scoring.
"I would leave them like that, and then the next game would come, I'd put my remote controls and phone the same way until they either lost or couldn't score, then I would change it up and then they start going on a run and then I keep on doing that until they made the playoffs," Deol said.
"Even through playoffs, I would add on which blanket I was using — I'd have a blanket with me, I'd have the same blanket on my legs every time.
"It's just a weird tradition like that."
Deol says he's known as 'The Jinx' among his friends.
"They always say that every time I cheer for the team, bet on the opposite team," he said.
"I've even been doing the reverse jinx where I'm saying, 'The Kings are going to win,' so that I'm reversing my own jinx so that the Oilers win."
Dr. Ganz Ferrance, a psychologist, says superstitions can be harmless if they stay fun.
"It's one thing to cheer for the team together, but it's a whole other thing to feel like we have some sort of influence on it by our actions, too," Ferrance told CTV News Edmonton.
"It's fun, and it gives us this sense of a little bit of control and power in kind of what the outcomes are."
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Matt Marshall
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Auston Matthews was back on the ice with his teammates Saturday.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.