First, the Devils are from New Jersey, which alone elicits a good amount of abuse within hockey circles.
But more importantly, the Devils are really good at losing. During the 1998 season, the No. 1 seeded Devils lost to the No. 8 seeded Ottawa in the first round of the playoffs.
This was so humiliating and demoralizing that the Devils decided to repeat the performance the following year.
This year, however, after leveling their fan-base and exposing us to the taunts of cross-river Ranger fans, the Devils came back with an awe-inspiring run all the way to the Stanley Cup.
It was nothing short of glorious. And infinitely more gratifying than a Yankees three-peat.
As fans, we want teams to test our loyalties. We want them to be as embarrassing and hapless as they are victorious and masterful.
True fans appreciate the difficulty of following a team, of having to swallow a lot disappointment. We don't want it to be easy to be a fan, or even for it be popular.
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