Calgary Flames fans are ‘hexing’ the Dallas Stars on Reddit

Calgary Flames fans on the r/CalgaryFlames subreddit are taking a unique approach when it comes to supporting their team against the Dallas Stars ahead of Friday night’s crucial Game 6.

The Flames lead the playoff series 3-2 after winning Game 5 on Wednesday, felling the Stars 3-1.

A win from the Flames in Dallas on Friday would send Calgary to round two of the Stanley Cup playoffs to play the winner of the series between the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings. Game 7, if necessary, will be at the Saddledome on Sunday.

Fans have been posting curses to try and place a hex on the Dallas Stars on Reddit as early as Monday night, but the trend quickly ventured into the realm of hilarity.

Several users were quick to jump in on the fun.

“Did you just place a hex on Jake Ottinger,” user u/Currieben wrote.

Many people pointed out that the alleged curse must have worked, as the Flames won Monday’s Game 4 and Wednesday’s Game 5.

Since the supposed spell that was cast on Oettinger on Monday, many users started coming up with their own curses — some in Amharic — with the r/CalgaryFlames community going so far as to create a flair (a post tag) specifically for it.

This one, from user u/TL10 is particularly funny: Google translates “የተራዘመውን ዋስትናዎን በተመለከተ እርስዎን ለማግኘት እየሞከርን ነው።,” to “We are trying to contact you regarding your extended warranty.”

The C of Reddit has even managed to swing some Dallas fans to its side.

User u/B0NESAWisRRREADY responded with “As a stars fan I don’t know why I’m upvoting this but I can’t help myself.” Another writes “Stars fan here… Why is my blood on fire?”

Another user posted one for Seinfeld fans.

Among the incantations of black magic, users began singing the praises of Scorch, a short-lived mascot for the then-Calgary AHL affiliate in New York, the Adirondack Flames (now the Stockton Heat).

Scorch was controversially introduced overpowering a firefighter, and the mascot’s back story is that he’s the lone surviving ember from an 1864 fire that destroyed much of Glens Falls, NY.

The Adirondack Flames ended up apologizing for Scorch, and designed a new mascot, but fans have never let him go, and Scorch has become a long-running gag in the subreddit.

One user said “50 upvotes and Scorch is summoned,” another writes “Thank you Scorch our father,” while simply posting “Praise Scorch!!” seems to be the most popular way to show support.

READ MORE:

• Calgary Flames open Red Lot for Game 6 playoff viewing party

• Calgary Flames down Dallas Stars 3-1 to take series lead

• IN PICTURES: Calgary Flames fans show off just how dedicated they are

While the goal of the thread appears to be clear, there also appears to be some benefit coming from it.

One post is calling on fans to donate to aid agencies as a civil war wages on in Ethiopia. In response, many have pledged to give money for every goal Calgary can score.

Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. MT. You can catch the game on Sportsnet, Sportsnet 960 The Fan, and updates on CityNews 660.

The Red Lot is also open for a viewing party.

–With files from Sportsnet