A watch party like no other: From living room couches to arena seats, Oilers fans ready to cheer

The Edmonton Oilers may not be on home ice when they try to clinch the Stanley Cup against the Florida Panthers on Monday night, but screams of support will resound across Canada from watch parties, bars, seniors homes and  living rooms.

“We cheer them on every single game of the season,” said Derrick DeMone, an Oilers fan in Sydney, N.S., who will be watching at home with his sons, aged 24, 14 and 12.

“I haven’t felt like this since I was a young boy, I’ll tell you that.”

In a city where he’s usually outnumbered by Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins fans, DeMone said locals have come to associate him with the team he backs.

“If I’m not wearing an article of Oilers, whether it’s a hat or a hoodie, then I’m not out in the public,” he said with a laugh.

In Edmonton, thousands of fans have been packing Rogers Place for both home and away games during the playoffs, while thousands more watch giant screens outside the arena.

But once it was clear that Stanley Cup champs would be decided in Sunrise, Fla., more than a few Oilers fans threw their budgets to the wind to head south.

Among the travellers were Joel Meyaard and his son Carter, residents of Grande Prairie, Alta., who secured tickets on a fan-filled chartered flight that left Edmonton Sunday morning.

“It was unbelievable. Best plane ride I’ve ever been on,” Meyaard told CBC News in Florida on Monday. “There were tons of Oilers chants, the astronaut guys were on the plane, the replica of the Stanley Cup was on the plane.”

The 95-seat charter was organized by Mark Beck, who told CBC in an email that he initially thought he might be able to get a private jet to fly to Florida for the game. When an airline company came back with a 95-seat plane, Beck started spreading the word — and sold out the seats in 30 minutes.

“So there you have it — 95 orange-and-blue diehards jumping on a bird to…