My father had a rule with us kids growing up. The first time you tell a joke, it’s hysterical. The second time you tell a joke, it’s funny. The third time you tell a joke, it’s not funny anymore. (This put a kabosh on using the “Orange you glad I didn’t say banana!” knock-knock joke multiple times real quick.)

As one of the only Boston Bruins fans on the planet who doesn’t hate Phil Kessel, I’m beginning to understand my father’s sentiment.

You may hate Phil Kessel all you want – sports fandom thrives on hatred, as sad as it may sound. Intense fandom means hating particular teams and defector players. As a Buffalo Bills fan, I hate the Dallas Cowboys. I hate the Dallas Stars for making my Buffalo Sabres fan mother sob in 1999. I understand the dislike of those dreaded dirty Habs. I get it. Fans hate players. Fans boo players. Fans go on rants about players.

But after a year, isn’t it enough?

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