Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek thinks her counterpart in Edmonton would look very good in red and black.
Mayor Gondek and Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi have made a friendly wager on the upcoming Battle of Alberta in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs.
The losing city’s mayor and city council will have to wear the opposing team’s jersey. The losing team’s mayor will also be in full face paint, celebrating the opposing team, at the first council meeting following the end of the series.
“I’m confident that I will not be donning orange and blue paint at the June 7 council meeting,” the mayor said.
“And I’m very much looking forward to seeing Mayor Sohi wearing the Flames ‘C’ on his face.”
The Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers are moving forward after their respective game seven wins. The Flames’ Johnny Gaudreau sealed the first-round victory for the hometown club with an overtime goal in Sunday night’s win.
The Oilers blanked the Kings 2-0, defeating Los Angeles four games to three in their first-round series.
Both Mayor Gondek and Mayor Sohi also agreed that the losing council will also donate either to the Kids with Cancer Society in Edmonton or Kids Cancer Care in Calgary. This gesture comes in recognition of inspirational fan, Ben Stelter, who has been battling glioblastoma. It’s also Brain Tumor Awareness Month in May.
“Kids Cancer Care [and] Kids with Cancer Society in Edmonton has made a very big difference in the lives of Ben and his family and both Edmonton city council and Calgary city council would like to amplify the great work of these two organizations throughout Alberta,” said Mayor Gondek.
Past mayoral wagers
In 1991, after a bet with former Edmonton mayor Jan Reimer, Calgary’s mayor Al Duerr had to wear Oilers jersey No.2, and ride the Zamboni between periods in the first home game between the Oilers and the L.A. Kings. Reimer wore jersey No.1.
The bet this time is between mayors and city councils.
“Councillor (Peter) Demong has been fantastic. He has reached out to his colleagues in Edmonton to make sure they’re all ready to wear our jerseys when they lose. So it’s good. It’s a collaborative effort. You know what, if we’re going to support our home team, we have to be a home team,” said Mayor Gondek.
“I’m excited for everybody, excited for all of us to bring down Edmonton and wishing the team nothing but the best,” said Mayor Gondek.
