With the fate of a Calgary Flames playoff run hanging by a thread, local bars and servers are hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.
Calgary Server Kasey Latouche has worked the last two years the Flames made the playoffs and banked on the hometown heroes making it again this year.
“I was hoping the extra money would pay for a trip to Cuba in May. I make decent tips but since I’m a student, too, I needed the extra cash,” she said.
While Latouche doesn’t know if the Flames will get to the post-season, she does know she won’t make it to Cuba if they don’t.
“I make a couple hundred a night normally, but Flames games would have at least doubled that.”
While the Flames gave fans hope yesterday by defeating the NHL’s best in the Washington Capitals, they still have a long way to go.
Despite the odds, Melrose bar owner and diehard Flames fan Wayne Leong said the team still mathematically has a chance to stay alive.
“As a Flames fan, I will keep holding on to that hope that they will make it. But if they don’t, it will for sure impact business compared with the last few years,” Leong said.
He added while the bar doesn’t budget for the Flames post-season because it’s too far ahead, he would have made arrangements if the Flames were a sure bet.
“It’s not just the loss to the business and servers, but it’s the atmosphere. It’s just a great feeling when the Flames make the playoffs. But we’ll have to look to other things in patio season if they don’t make it.”
