334 Fans: The Story of the Crazies

Remembering the fans who dashed through the snow

Image via NHL.com

On Tuesday, a game between the New Jersey Devils and the Winnipeg Jets had to be postponed due to a blizzard that hit most of the American Northeast. It was only the second postponed game this season, and there were only three last year.

Gone are the days when games would go on as planned regardless of the weather outside. Anytime the snow begins to come down around game time here in New Jersey, though, many fans are reminded of a wintry day thirty years ago that saw incredibly low attendance — but amazing spirit and commitment to the team.

Image via Calgary Herald

The date was January 22, 1987. The Devils had only been in New Jersey for five seasons and had yet to make the playoffs since their relocation. Their opponent that night was the Calgary Flames, a playoff-bound team that would go on to win the Stanley Cup just two seasons later. The projected attendance for the night was somewhere around 11,000. When the blizzard hit and the game went on as scheduled, that number went out the window.

Stories about traveling to the arena that night have become somewhat legendary for fans of the team. Devils legend Ken Daneyko recounted how he and four other Devils players (John MacLean, Kirk Muller, Pat Verbeek, and Joe Cirella) carpooled for the 25-mile journey to the arena: “There was nobody on the roads, which was a good thing, because there were times when we had to cross [the median] to go on the other side of the highway.” The typically short journey took over five hours that night.

Doug Sulliman, a Devils forward, had to drive the final two miles of his trek in reverse to get on the ramp entering the arena. A guy who was expected to be a healthy scratch that night, Sulliman made it to the arena and was inserted into the lineup. He went on to score the only hat trick of his career.

Image via NHL.com

After a delay of nearly two hours, the game finally began with a mere 334 people in the stands. The name of each person in the stands was collected (on a yellow note pad), and each fan in attendance received an exclusive gift. Even better than that, they were treated to a great Devils win. With help from Sulliman’s hat trick, the Devils went on to win the game 7–5, forever sealing this game’s status in Devils and hockey lore.

Image via NJ.com

Snowy weather in the northeast is nothing strange. For Devils fans, we remember this story and the knuckleheads that made it to the arena every time it snows on game day and tell ourselves that if the snow ever looks a little too high, we will probably get to the game anyway.

With another game scheduled Thursday night in New Jersey, here’s to the 334 club and never being afraid to drive in the snow.