Philly Area Fan Big On Canes

GREGORY BOND HERALD SPORTS WRITER

ROANOKE RAPIDS - George Brooks headed to work this morning a bit sad but still a dedicated hockey and Carolina Hurricanes fan.

A number of local folks have taken notice of the Hurricanes and the sport of hockey as Carolina moved toward the title. For Brooks, a native of Pitman, N.J., hockey is nothing new.

He was a huge Philadelphia Flyers fan before the Hartford Whalers moved to Raleigh and became the Hurricanes. With a team in the neighborhood, Brooks changed his loyalty and is now a Hurricanes season ticket holder.

"It's phenomenal," he said of the team's run to the Stanley Cup. "The people (from the South) don't know how great this really is. The Philadelphia Flyers won the Stanley Cup 30 years ago and have not been back since. This just shows that two times in four years is unbelievable and with the team we have, we might be back again next year."

Brooks, however, is no bandwagon fan. He's stuck with the Hurricanes from their move from Hartford to their last Stanley Cup attempt and even last season's lockout that scrapped the entire season.

"I've been a fan since they have been here," Brooks said. "We bought season tickets when they were in Greensboro and we've been there ever since. I've been a hockey fan for 40 years and I didn't jump on the band wagon. I've always been a hockey fan."

Brooks isn't the only hockey fan in the family. His sons, George and Steven, played when they were in New Jersey.

Known as a basketball hotbed, and with the Carolina Panthers putting football front and center in the tar heel state, hockey has struggled for public attention. That, Brooks said, is changing.

"The RBC Center has been known as the loudest arena in hockey in the country and Canada," he said. "The static electricity in the playoffs has been so great that your hair on your arms stand up. When you leave there, your ears are ringing from all the noise. It's great."

Being a Hurricanes fan is not easy. The trip to Raleigh takes Brooks more than a hour, too much driving for the 41 home contests each regular season - "That's a lot of riding," he said. So, he spreads his season tickets around, letting friends and family use them when he's not attending a game.