Intervju med ett Superfan

Möt Rick Ackerman. St. Louis Blues kanske största supporter och innehavare av ett museumliknande hus med en makalös samling hockeymemerobilia, givetvis med inriktning på St. Louis Blues.

Det är snart 4 år sedan vi svenska Bluesfans fick uppleva något fantastiskt och unikt.
NHL-premiären i Globen mellan favorittippade Detroit Red Wings och St. Louis Blues. En dröm för alla fans av något lag inom den amerikanska proffsidrotten gick i uppfyllelse. Att få se SITT lag på så nära håll - att uppleva det "live".

Med på lagets resa från Missouri fanns drygt 100 supportrar och bland dem fanns den kanske mest karismatiske.
Ni som fanns på plats eller såg matcherna på tv kanske kommer ihåg den något äldre herren med stor, yvig mustach, glasögon och en stor pälshatt på huvudet.
Gentlemannen i fråga heter Rick Ackerman och är ett äkta "Die Hard-fan" och en stor samlare av hockeymemerobilia där Bluesrelaterade saker naturligtvis har huvudrollen.

Jag lärde känna Rick och hans bror under helgen i Stockholm och vi har hållit en hyfsad kontakt sedan dess.
Vi hade kontakt innan resan till Sverige och Rick köpte med två matchtröjor till mig som han överlämnade i Stockholm tillsammans med lite annat smått och gott.

Nu är det dags för läsarna att lära känna Rick. En kille som upplever det vi NHL-fans på andra sidan Atlanten bara kan drömma om.

Han har profilerats på jumbotronen i Scottrade Center som "Super fan".
Han var uppe på scenen och intervjuvades av Darren Pang i samband med att Brett Hull förevigades med en staty utanför Scottrade och han har spelat veteranhockey med alla de största.
Härom veckan gjorde han mål i en match framspelad av ingen mindre än Reed Low och förra veckan gjorde han sin första tatuering - 65 år gammal.

I denna artikel tar Rick Ackerman oss med på en fantastisk resa i de verkliga fansens tecken. Han bjuder på fantastisa minnen och bjuder in oss i sitt makalösa hem.

(Intervjuven översätts ej till svenska av praktiska skäl)

¤¤¤

When did you start following the Blues?

     Unfortunately, I left St. Louis for college in Ohio in 1967 - the Blues first year. However, I returned home several times to watch games, including the SC playoffs. Growing up, I watched the St. Louis Braves (farm team for Chicago) starting in 1962; fell in love with the game right away. I managed to visit St. Louis to catch games every year I lived in Ohio (1967-2003) and faithfully listened to KMOX radio (Dan Kelly, Gus Kyle) until games became available on television when cable became a reality.

Do you have a past playing hockey yourself?

     I always wanted to play and began skating at age 21 in Kettering, Ohio when a part-time teaching job gave me afternoons off to learn to skate. I joined a garage league in Dayton, Ohio, the following year and played for around twenty years until a back injury forced me to stop. I replaced that exercise with a Tae Kwon Do class for the next fifteen years (earning a black belt), which gave me the strength and flexibility to join a league in St. Louis when I finally moved back home in 2003. And that was after a heart attack in 1998, too. Yikes!!! I was able to play regularly in a league in St. Louis until I tore up my rotator cuff in 2012 (in an Alumni game in Peoria, Illinois, yet). I plan on rejoining my league this winter after starting a rehab skating/hockey class in October. My goal is to be playing hockey at age 70 (five years to go).

Blues-väggen

Who is your favorite player all time and who is your favorite player on todays roster?

     I’ve been watching hockey for over 50 years now, so it is difficult to name one player I favor. The Braves had a prolific scorer named Alain (Boom-Boom) Caron I loved to watch score goals (he had 77 one year, wow). When the Blues came, I really appreciated Red Berenson, yet it was Jacques Plante that really captured my attention. What a fantastic goaltender! I also had an affinity for Garry Unger, another high scoring center, when he joined the Blues. And what fun it was to watch the Plagers, Bob and Barclay play tough defense. And then Brett Hull came on the scene; who didn’t like him?

     There are so many current Blues players I appreciate; I hesitate to name just one. Kevin Shattenkirk is a great guy who always treats me well when we see each other, and he is a great player, too. So is David Backes, who shares my love of dogs; he even met my dog at an event! I’ll always have respect for David Perron, recently traded to Edmonton, who also is a great guy who treated me well, giving me a stick and graciously signing his Jr. (Lewiston Maineiacs) jersey...
T.J. Oshie is another who always takes time with the fans and has treated me well, also signing jerseys, pucks and a stick.

You meet many players attending practices, events etc. Who would you consider to be the nicest player you ever met? And was there someone who wasn’t very nice?

I have never had a player not be nice about signing or just taking the time to talk some hockey. I recently attended the Blues Fantasy Camp (my fifth) and EVERYBODY was happy to see me and shake hands and chat, especially Barret Jackman, Sergey Andronov, Vladdy Tarasenko, Patrik Berglund and Coach Oshie (T.J.’s father). I also met the Blues newest players, who were very gracious with their time, including Max Lapierre, Derek Roy and Magnus Paajarvi, who was especially gracious and talkative. And I was fortunate to meet Wayne Gretzky at this year’s camp, too. We shared a story about his first professional game, an exhibition game in Indianapolis (Racers of the WHA) against the Blues. He couldn’t believe I was actually there...

Brett Hulls signerade handskar

How long did you plan the trip and how did you like Stockholm and the outcome of the experience?

     The trip to Stockholm was the best trip any hockey fan could EVER have! What a great experience!! I loved everything about Stockholm, from the food to the coffee (GREAT coffee everywhere) to the fabulous hockey rink. What a beautiful building and venue for hockey. There wasn’t a lot of planning, except taking jerseys, t-shirts and hats to trade with Swedish fans I could find. And find them I did; most spoke excellent English and we were able to chat some hockey all over the city: in restaurants, at the train station, in the hotel, even on the street! We had a nice lunch with the Blues players on the trip and then got to watch two great games in the Globe, seeing the Blues defeat the hated Detroit Red Wings. What fun cheering (I lost my voice) with other Blues fans was! Yes, it was the trip of a lifetime that I will always treasure, especially meeting all the fans and making new friends, especially with one super-special sportswriter!!!

When did you start collecting and what is your most valued item?
How many jerseys do you have and is there any special stories about them?

     I saved everything I could from the beginning, including newpaper clippings and photos in scrapbooks from the Braves era. Same with everything from the Blues early years, including Christmas cards from the Blues owners (the Salomons) to my grandfather. I got serious during the 1990s and REALLY serious when I moved back to St. Louis from Ohio. My first Blues jersey was purchased at a Blues garage sale (Emile Francis took my money) in the mid 1980s, #9, Frank St. Marseille. Now signed by him, it is probably my most valued item (although not my favorite). It’s hard to say what my favorite jersey is since I now have 250, including 57 Blues jerseys, 25 of them game worn. I have every style (both home and away) of every jersey, except for a blue (road) jersey from the first ten years or so. I also have amassed over 100 signed pucks and around 60 signed sticks. And I love the McFarlane figures; I have 47 of them, including Jacques Plante, Brett Hull, Al MacInnis, Wayne Gretzky; several signed (Chris Pronger, Curtis Joseph, MacInnis).

The best stories are when I present a CHL (Juniors) jersey to a player to get signed. David Perron could not believe I had his Lewiston jersey. And Berglund was really surprised when I gave him a Vasteras jersey! So was Yannick Veilleux when I showed him my Shawinigan Cataractes...And I really like what Brett Hull wrote on the Blues jersey I asked him to sign. I had not played for 20 years and he noted that it was never too late to start playing again on the jersey. What a treasure!

Hur många autografer känner du igen? Tips: Bland dem finns Glenn Hall, Brett Hull, Al MacInnis, John Davidson, Garry Unger, Bob Plager, Keith Tkachuk, Chris Pronger...

If there was one thing you would like to get your hands on, what would that be?

     As said, I want a blue (road) Blues jersey from the first ten years or so, fully aware it will cost over $1,000. I would also love to get any game equipment or jersey used by Jacques Plante (there is a stick on ebay, however it is $2500, out of my league, anyway. The most I have paid for any single jersey is $575 (a Jonas Junland Peoria “off their back”); the most for any stick is $200 (St. Marseille). The most for a puck is $60 for one signed by Bernie Federko, Brian Sutter and Wayne Babych, the Blues “Kid Line” of the 1980s.
And, of course, I want a Stanley Cup with the Bluenote on it...

What is your best memory as a Blues fan and what is your worst memory?

     Perhaps the best memories are going to Blues games in Canada in the 1980s and meeting players before and after games. Bob Plager had a memorable exhibition game in Brantford, Ontario (a big brawl) and we talked about it afterwards over a couple of beers. And, of course, the Sweden trip was a best memory, as was getting to go onstage before the Brett Hull statue dedication and talking to Darren Pang about being a Blues fan. I was also featured on the Jumbotron during a game as a “Superfan”; they ran a short video on me and my collection.

     The worst memory is not winning a Cup (yet).

Lägg märke till Västeråshalsduken uppe till höger.

Spending so much time with hockey, and being a collector myself, I know that it can have it’s toll on family life. How does your close ones react?
At 65, you just got your first tattoo (I don’t have any ..yet), which of course is the Bluenote. Any plans for more?

     My wife and mother both think I am crazy, especially when I got the tattoo. Yes, I want another Bluenote on my right shoulder; will go with the 1967 version. After that, I will have a Stanley Cup and small Bluenote on my chest...
...when they win the Cup!!! Yes, maybe I am crazy, yet my wife won’t think so when she sells all my memorabilia some day!!! She tolerates my passion, yet tires of my mania sometimes. She goes to games with me, but does not really care as much. She lived in Colorado and went to games when they won 2 Cups, so she is not as needy as I am.

Peoria Rivermen-väggen

You have a tendency to show up on the jumbotron during games, often wearing a fur hat. What is the story behind that?

     I have a nice fur hat collection that I wear in the winter and since I took one to Sweden and had several pictures in the paper, I thought to continue that and establish a tradition here in St. Louis. I think a fur hat looks good with a jersey!

Last, what do you think about the Blues chances this season?
     This may be the best Blues team in club history. GM Doug Armstrong has assembled a strong cast, with a good mix of players and incredible depth. There are at least five or six guys who will start in Chicago (Wolves) that could easily play with the Blues, and probably will do so during the playoffs, especially if there are significant injuries. The Blues are stacked on both offense and defense and have three capable goaltenders. With a good coaching staff and dedicated owners, the Blues are primed to be serious contenders for the Cup.

Thank you, sir for taking the times to participate in this interview and see your amazing collection.