Alyson Carney proved that she bleeds Rangers blue when she won the 2015 My Rangerstown Story Contest on Saturday. To enter, Carney wrote and submitted a story on how she became a New York Rangers fan.
“It wasn’t about becoming a Rangers fan for me, it was more about being a Rangers fan,” Carney said. “I didn’t become a Rangers fan, I was born one.”
Carney explained that all of her family members are big Rangers fans, so she really didn’t have a choice growing up. From a young age she was surrounded by hockey. Her two brothers play ice hockey, “so I was what you would call a rink rat,” she said. Her father even taught her and her siblings to give a thumbs up when he said, “Let’s go Rangers.”
“I saw the ad for the contest online on the Rangers website,” Carney said. “I didn’t fully understand it so I just typed up my story and submitted it. I didn’t think anything of it.”
Two weeks later she received an email from the Rangers office saying they would like to talk more about her entry. It was then that she learned the Rangers staff would be coming to her house in Howard Beach to film her and her family.
“My family didn’t know I even entered the contest,” Carney said. “They were all shocked when I told them. They thought it was a joke at first.”
As the cameras rolled, the whole Carney family got to show off their Rangers pride. They were all decked out in their Rangers clothes and the film crew was there to capture them watching a Rangers game.
During the game, the Rangers had a special surprise for Carney. As she and her family watched the game, former Rangers defenseman Jeff Beukeboom, Carney’s favorite player, entered her house to greet her and her family.
“I’ve met Rangers before,” Carney said. “It has always been exciting, but seeing my favorite player was always something I wanted.”
“When he walked in I had no clue,” she continued. ‘”When I saw who it was I just froze, then the tears started. It was pretty exciting. I was speechless.”
Then Carney was told that she was one of three finalists in the contest and would be brought to Madison Square Garden where they would announce the winner on the ice during intermission of the Rangers game on Saturday.
“Whether I won or not, it was an amazing night,” Carney said. “I was in a suite with other finalists and we were all just happy to be together.”
“Because the night was so exciting it took a while to realize that I won,” she added. “It was amazing just to be there and on the ice. I had no clue if I would win; it could’ve gone either way.”
As the winner of the contest Carney was given a key to Rangerstown for having the best Rangers fan story.
“I told my family that I am going to change all the locks on the house to match the key so I can use it all the time,” Carney joked. “It was such an amazing night. I’m still on cloud nine.”
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