Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Hockey is a borderline religion in Canada, and most fans have an almost spiritual connection with the NHL team they root for. That is the case with the Quebec native who is married to Hurricanes forward William Carrier, who is refusing to root for her husband in his Stanley Cup Showdown with the Canadiens.
There isn’t a single country in the world that has more of a connection to ice hockey than Canada, which can stake a claim as the place where the modern version of the game was invented in the 1800s thanks to the British soldiers who used its frozen ponds and lakes to play an adapted version of similar games that had been played in Europe for centuries.
There was once a time when the vast majority of NHL players hailed from The Great White North. That number has decreased over time, as around 40% of guys currently skating for one of its 32 teams were born in Canada. Seven of those franchises are based in the country, and it’s no secret they boast some of the most passionate fans in the league.
There is arguably no more rabid group than the diehards who live and die with the Montreal Canadiens, the Original Six club that has won more Stanley Cups than any other team in NHL history.
The squad is currently on a quest to pad that margin and win the trophy for the first time since 1993, but they’ll have to get past a Hurricanes team that boasts a player whose own wife is rooting against him.
Hurricanes forward William Carrier says his wife is rooting for the Canadiens during the playoff series with Carolina
William Carrier was born and raised outside of Montreal and made his NHL debut with the Sabres in 2016. He headed to Las Vegas after the Golden Knights scooped him up in the expansion draft ahead of their inaugural season the following year, and he’s currently in the midst of his 10th year in the NHL during his sophomore campaign with the Hurricanes.
Carolina kicked off the Stanley Cup Playoffs with back-to-back sweeps at the expense of the Senators and Flyers, and they had 11 days off before getting back into action against the Canadiens in the Eastern Conference Finals on Thursday night.
Prior to Game 1, Carrier got the chance to address what it’s like to face off against a team that he and basically everyone he knows back home grew up rooting for. That includes his wife, Caroline, a fellow Quebecer who he said will not be cheering him on during the series.
If you don’t speak French, Carrier said:
“All my friends are rooting for Montreal. I won’t lie. My wife is rooting for Montreal, too. It’s my team. I watched them when I was younger.”
Carrier may not have been happy with the outcome of the opening contest, but his wife got something to celebrate after the Canadiens pulled out to a 1-0 lead with a dominant 6-2 win on the road.