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To Our Never Give Up, Never Surrender Kings

A year ago today, I posted an article about trading Jonathan Bernier and went off to get a biopsy. It turned out to be early stage breast cancer.

I am all done with my treatment now, and my prognosis is good. I have many people to thank for that, and so much to be grateful for. I am grateful for my wonderful doctors, and my family, and everyone who gave me support. I am grateful that I could take my mind off things by talking about hockey and hanging out with you all here. I am grateful Robert and Eric could take over for me and make this place even better.

But today, I am also grateful that I almost forgot the significance of this date. Only joyous thoughts fill my mind now. We have so many blessings.

After rooting for the Kings for more than thirty years, I marvel at the era we find ourselves in. I know I’m not alone. When I was a little girl, I always assumed it would happen someday. Later, once adulthood and a healthy sense of realism set in, I began to wonder if I’d ever see them win a single Cup in my lifetime.

In 2012, the Kings taught me to set aside my old fears. Watching them go on a tear at the end of the season—with elite puck possession numbers rolling in, to our nerdy delight—I decided to stay hopeful and expect the best.

It wasn’t easy at first. Yes, we had good reasons to be hopeful, but it took a while to get used to a new mindset. “POSITIVE VIBES!” appeared in every damn game thread, making me sound like a daft hippie. But I had to remind myself to believe.

They not only delivered a championship that year, they’ve made us expect to see playoff runs every summer. Think about that.

Even when they went down 0-3 against the Sharks, I knew they wouldn’t give up. I had seen too much of them to believe otherwise. I didn’t know how the series would turn out, but I knew they’d put up a fight. And they did far more than that.

After their first win, I wrote a note to myself. 54f936de-16f5-4901-b513-7514e08e5ec8_zps9ad0b044_medium

I kept it in my wallet and took it out to remind myself every once in a while: don’t quit on them. They don’t quit.

They survived seven elimination games, made history again, and won it all. Can you believe this?

So thank you, Kings, for giving me yet another reason to walk around with a huge grin plastered across my face. You did it by never giving up. You did it by always finding a little more strength to keep going, even when others doubted you had anything left. You did it by staying positive. And you did it by staying a supportive, close-knit family.

This team not only made my hockey dreams come true, they make me proud.

Now pardon me, I have a few clouds to go walk on.

How lucky are we?

Talking Points