"It's going to be incredible" - John Isner excited for hometown NHL hockey team's first outdoor game
ATP
American tennis pro John Isner, who is also an avid Carolina Hurricanes fan, is ready to attend his favorite team's first outdoor game when they host the Washington Capitals in the 2023 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday.
Isner, who was born in Greensboro, North Carolina and has been playing fantasy hockey for years, sat down with hosts Pete Jensen and Nick Alberga in the latest episode of "NHL Fantasy on Ice.
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"It's huge for the team, and, yes, I have been a follower since 1997, when they moved to North Carolina (from Hartford, Connecticut)," Isner said. "Obviously with how good the team is -- in my estimation, one of the top three or four favorites to win it all, the community is rallying behind them, selling out every single game."
Isner discussed fantasy and betting trends around the NHL, as well as which cross-sport athletes he compares elements of his athleticism to, including Alex Ovechkin of the Capitals and Tage Thompson of the Buffalo Sabres.
The show also covered other topics including his favorite place in the world to play tennis, his confidence in the Hurricanes' goalie trio of Frederik Andersen, Antti Raanta and Pyotr Kochetkov, potential moves leading up to the NHL Trade Deadline on March 3, a time when coach Rod Brind'Amour reached out to give him some motivation and more.
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Isner said he plans to catch up with his friend and former Hurricanes player Justin Williams, who won the Stanley Cup three times (including when Carolina won the championship in 2006), during the trip to Raleigh for the Stadium Series and set the scene for the atmosphere, tailgating scene and his favorite things to do in the area.
"The tailgate outside PNC Arena, even for a normal game on a Tuesday night, is very, very special -- and now you bring the game over to the college football stadium, it's going to be incredible," Isner said. "The (Hurricanes fans) will be getting there at 9 or 10 in the morning with the barbecues."
Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.
As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.
With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.
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