Oilers fan shows team love by mowing logo into his lawn - Action News
Home WebMail Friday, November 22, 2024, 04:09 PM | Calgary | -10.8°C | Regions Advertise Login | Our platform is in maintenance mode. Some URLs may not be available. |
British Columbia

Oilers fan shows team love by mowing logo into his lawn

A Kelowna, B.C., man is expressing his love for the Edmonton Oilers by mowing the team logo into his front lawn as the team heads to the Stanly Cup finals.

Edmonton transplant living in B.C. has found plenty of fellow fans showing support

An overhead shot of an Oilers logo mowed into a lawn.
Drone footage of Jeff Krause's handiwork has made him an internet sensation among Oilers fans and sports media. (Marcus Gardzella)

A Kelowna, B.C., man has earned the status ofsuperfanafter mowing the logo for the Edmonton Oilers into his front lawn.

The team is facing off against the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup finals starting Saturday night, marking their first chance at the NHL championship in nearly two decades.

Jeff Krause is originally from Edmontonand moved to the Okanagan in 2005 just before the Oilers had a Cinderella run that saw them qualifying in eighth place and making it all the way to a seven-game finals series against the Carolina Hurricanes.

That's when he was first inspired to turn his lush front lawn into a canvas showcasing his love for his hometown team, cutting the grass into a pattern that he admits was "a little rough around the edges."

WATCH | How Krause mows the giant logo into his lawn:

Kelowna, B.C., man shows love for Edmonton Oilers by mowing logo onto his lawn

4 months ago
Duration 1:44
It's an unusual sight in Canucks country, but Edmonton Oilers fan Jeff Krause says he wanted to show his love for the team and support them by mowing the teams logo into his front lawn.

But he's had plenty of practice since, mowing the logo into place every time the team makes it out of the first round of the playoffs which has happened in the last three seasons.

And with the Oilers reaching the finals, Krause's tribute to the team is reaching wider audiences than ever before, with photos of his lawn circulating online and across sports media, attracting plenty of positive comments from fellow fans.

With his lush green yard slanting slightly toward the street, it's also been drawing crowds of people eager to have their picturetaken in front of it, or honking their horns in support as they drive by.

A man mows a lawn wearing an Edmonton Oilers jersey.
Krause first mowed the logo into his lawn in 2006 and has done it every time the Oilers have advanced out of the first round of the Stanley Cup finals. (Brady Strachan/CBC)

"We've been surprised by the amount of Oilers support there is in Kelowna," says his wife, Andrea Krause. "Lots of photo requests and people stopping by and taking pictures."

Krause's precision has been praised but he says there's nothing special to his method he simply uses his trusty Honda mower, and "I just look at the logo and envision it on the grass and start to cut."

As for the attention, he's been enjoying connecting with fans in town and around the world.

"It's been a little crazy, lately," he said. And he expects the attention to get even "bigger" as the playoff series advances.

"We're having fun with it," he said. "Go Oilers! Let's make it happen."

WATCH | A guide to the Edmonton Oilers for bandwagoning fans:

With files from Brady Strachan