Calgarians celebrate Calgary Flames rising star player Nazem Kadri

Amid the Calgary Flames season, why are Calgarians cheering a little bit harder for theCalgary Flames player Nazem Kadri?

Celebrating a trailblazing player Calgary’s Muslim community is feeling a sense of pride with Calgary Flames forward Nazem Kadri.

Kadri made headlines last summer when he was the first NHL player to take the Stanley Cup to a mosque.

That memory is filling Muslim hockey fans in Calgary with pride.

When NHL player Nazem Kadri decided to sign a contract with the Calgary Flames, fans were excited.

But perhaps no one was excited as Muslim hockey fans who grew up watching hockey.

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Founder of the Flames blog, The Win Column, Karim Kurji, says it’s part of his community’s traditions and will bring more and more fans to the team.

“I became a Flames fan through that community, watching games in Jamatkhana, that’s what we call our mosque. And bonding over goals and fights and playoff wins and playoff losses with people my age, people younger than me, people who were in their 80s,” said Kurji.

New Calgary Flames player Nazem Kadri is one of the team’s top players, but for some Calgarians, he means more than just being a goal scorer.

“Diversity is something that’s still growing in the sport and to have Kadri on this team, I definitely see the impact and how he can bring people back into the sport and create new fans just because of him being on the team.”