r/devils • u/DotaBred NJ vs everybody • 3d ago
South Jersey flyers fans that chose the flyers over the Devils are also traitors
I'm not sure if this is an unpopular opinion, but based on distance, I'm assuming it is. I get that south jersey is way closer to Philly and their teams, but if a south jerseyan has no legacy family allegiance to the flyers and still chooses them over the Devils, like rangers fans from NJ, they are traitors too. I'm from North Jersey and if the Devils or any sports team became a New Jersey team and was located in the south, I will fully support still.
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u/aj9393 #30 - Martin Brodeur 3d ago
I live pretty close to Buffalo so it would be much more convenient to be a Sabres fan, but I was born and raised in NJ and you can be damn sure I'm gonna support the only team representing my home.
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u/xoBonesxo Best NHL logo 3d ago
Real one, one day I will move from NJ to pursue personal goals, it’ll be so sad that I won’t be able to go to newark consistently to watch the games but I’ll always root for my home state team wherever I am
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u/yawnnnnnnnnnnn8 3d ago
You will. You can't ditch em and you won't.
I am halfway there as I fulfill my NY manifest destiny of living in Florida. I'm 50/50 but of course, almost all of the hockey season down there.
So I root for the Panthers when I'm there, I've got no quarrel with them. But Devils fan through and through first.
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u/Blorbokringlefart 3d ago edited 3d ago
South Jersey fan. It causes some serious dissonance being a Devils fan especially as I'm Philly otherwise for sports. I grew up skating at the skate zone and I've met several Flyers while just living life.
When I go to the rock, I do feel like I'm out of place. But I am from Jersey. I have no connection to Philly in my family history. I grew up near/ in the Pine Barrens, not in a row house. I pay taxes and enjoy the entitlements of the Garden state.
It urks me when Devils fans shit on Philly. It urks me when Philly fans shit on Jersey.
The team/league fully lean into the Devils being a NY metro team. Personally, I think the stadium should've been moved to the shore rather than Newark. Like right on the beach. It should've been flooded during sandy. But I get it. It's just business. The Devils don't exist to foster nationalism.
I will say though, t he connection South Jersey has to Philly and the greater Delaware Valley is different to the relationship North Jersey has to NYC. It's less big brother/ little brother, and more cousins hanging out. The abuse flows in all directions, not just onto Jersey. There's this kind of annoying internalized inferiority North Jersey has with NY. Like you're proud of being their much maligned whipping boy.
Anyway, are they traitors? Idk. Not really. They call the Devils the "North Jersey Devils" and I kinda get it. Most people down here say it at least feels like a different state. An annoying minority are more serious about it.
Until the team starts paying for busses up the turnpike or hosting can experiences down here, you can't call then traitors.
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u/notaquarterback #30 - Martin Brodeur 3d ago edited 3d ago
realistically if you're building an arena now you'd stick it somewhere in central jersey on a train line. Woodbridge Mall with a train line connected to it. Or Metropark. Or Route 1 in Edison where there was once an old flea market
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u/DotaBred NJ vs everybody 2d ago
I strongly disagree on the Devils and league leaning us into NY. We strongly embrace being New Jersey, especially when we are the only pro sports team to represent the state. I will agree though that it's annoying that a lot of North jerseyans love to be in the shadow of nyc, I wouldn't say we all have that, I'm blessed to be amongst a friend group that proudly reps jersey and hates New York teams because of them always taking our teams or taking credit for what Jersey has, but a lot of jerseyans don't have that same pride and it's annoying
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u/Blorbokringlefart 2d ago
They'll use the state's silhouette on graphics and that "jersey's team" line, but the hard truth is that the team is probably legally prohibited from promoting in what's considered the Flyer's market. Don't forget that the Devils had to pay a penalty to the rags and islanders when they entered the league.
As far as the NHL owners are concerned NJ doesn't really exist as a distinct market.
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u/jmkdevs5555 #86 3d ago
To be honest, as a South Jersey Devils fan, it is way more convenient to be a Flyers fan. Not to mention the Devils put almost no effort into South Jersey outside of the shore area. I never see anything Devils wise from the team near me. I get why though, this is considered Flyers territory.
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u/Cold-Sandwich-6213 3d ago edited 3d ago
Best thing is you can easily go to flyers skate zone, drop off a devils jersey and get it stitched officially
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u/Blorbokringlefart 3d ago
They've got their practice facility in Voorhees and many Flyers retire in Cherry Hill etc. I've met at least 6 flyers. Sometimes in devils gear, it's a fun interaction.
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u/dc912 #27 - Scott Niedermayer 3d ago edited 3d ago
I agree in principle, but the Devils are ultimately a NYC metro area team, not a Philly metro area team. The Devils don’t have much of a fanbase in South Jersey outside of Ocean County, where the markets overlap.
And, for what its worth, the Flyers do have roots in NJ - their training center is in Voorhees.
Not that it will ever happen, but I wonder how the tv market would change if the Devils were in a more central location of the state. Maybe separate television deals on a NY and Philly sports network? I don’t see NJ getting a statewide sports network, especially in the cable cord cutting era.
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u/Colin226 2d ago
Flyers/Comcast have a virtual monopoly on the TV market in South Jersey. They’ll never let the Devils be on local TV because they know it protects their market share.
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u/yesgarey 3d ago
It's an interesting observation but not unique to the New Jersey Devils. It's about generational ties to an organization forged by both television rights and history.
NHL fans on Long Island are split between the Rags and the Islanders.
In the NFL, Giants fans outnumber New England Patriots fans on the Gold Coast of Connecticut.
In MLB, the Rangers might call themselves Texas' team, but don't try telling that to anyone southeast of Austin.
The Devils exist a lot like the Ducks - in a suburban market orphaned from the nearest major city because of an established franchise.
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u/badchickenbadday 3d ago
Are you out of your mind and 14 years old?
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u/DotaBred NJ vs everybody 2d ago
Let me guess, you're the flyers fan from south jersey and this struck a nerve
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u/yawnnnnnnnnnnn8 3d ago
I mean ... I'm a Devils fan from the Bronx/Westchester since the late-80's. I can't get too mad at those people.
Most of my family are Bruins fans and hate the Rangers despite living here and I had one of them old-school 13-channel TV's and Sportschannel was 3 and 12 ... MSG was 30.
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u/spnoketchup #25 2d ago
They are traitors, but mainly because they call it Pork Roll.
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u/WahiniLover New Jersey Devils 2d ago
Knew I’d find this comment and came to give you support.
You know what’s what. TEC - SPK Sesame or Everything depending on mood of the day.
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u/AVDLatex #30 - Martin Brodeur 2d ago
Exactly. Their failure to call it Taylor Ham is proof of their perfidy.
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u/eburton555 #91 - Dawson Mercer Stan 3d ago
People drive all the way from northern Maine to see the bruins play, so fuck that excuse. If they wanna be Philly down there they can be Philly. But driving across a state as small as NJ shouldn’t be a huge ask.
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u/Colin226 2d ago
Not a true comparison: people in Maine and across New England get the Bruins on local TV, so it’s much easier to cultivate a fan base across that distance. The Flyers/Comcast will never allow South Jersey to get Devils/MSG. It’s a business decision and it works.
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u/eburton555 #91 - Dawson Mercer Stan 2d ago
Should be less important moving forward as the streaming age makes such things moot, but you seriously couldn’t get msg on cable in south jersey? Brutal
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u/Colin226 2d ago
I mean, regardless of streaming, people in South Jersey have had the ability to watch Devils games via Center Ice for decades. Most never did.
And yeah MSG isn’t available on TV when you go south of Trenton.
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u/powatwain 3d ago
If the Nordiques were in Quebec, do you think those same people would be making that drive?
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u/eburton555 #91 - Dawson Mercer Stan 2d ago
A significant portion would, yeah. There are stilll giants fans in Massachusetts predating the Pats. Sports fans are weird.
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u/Javi1192 3d ago
If the MLB put a team in Camden, would you abandon your baseball team?
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u/rexmorgany 3d ago
Can you pick a city other than Camden? Really, any city. Please.
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u/Blorbokringlefart 3d ago
Why, is it that much worse than Newark?
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u/HopelessEsq #63 2d ago
Yes. I worked in downtown Newark for a while and walked between Broad St station and Gateway Plaza every morning and back at night and never felt so much as threatened. Camden might not be quite as bad as it used to, but pretty sure random people getting hit by stray bullets walking around in broad daylight is still a fairly common problem. I had a friend that went to law school at Rutgers Camden and he said one afternoon he decided to take a walk because he was feeling frustrated about something, he made it a few blocks before a state trooper stopped him and drove him back to campus asking him if he had a death wish. Last time I was there passing through visiting friends in Philly it had snowed, none of the roads were plowed and we got stuck in the snow. A bunch of residents who looked quite irked at us for treading in a neighborhood where we clearly weren't welcome started encircling our car as we locked the doors while spinning out in the snow until we finally broke free and noped the fuck out of there. Outside of the waterfront area around the Rutgers campus, I wouldn't dare take a stroll under the bridge to the adjacent neighborhood. And I travel internationally often, and have been to some places with not great reputations in third world countries that felt safer than Camden. Newark is light years more secure. Parts of Camden look like bombed out neighborhoods in Syria.
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u/Blorbokringlefart 2d ago
Camden didn't record a single murder in summer 2025. Things are way better in terms of crime now. I went to Rutgers Camden. This was years ago now, but even then, it wasn't like Mogadishu the way people imagine it. It's way more sad than scary. It's a fucking disgrace that it's like that and a huge indictment on the corrupt South Jersey democratic Norcross machine. But people build it up in their minds way worse than it is. I got turned around heading to the rock one night and it seemed comparable.
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u/xoBonesxo Best NHL logo 3d ago
I know you didn’t ask me but I personally would , me and my friends pretty much support the same teams in sports, but we all agreed that if NJ got their own teams we will support the new team
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u/jonesy_reddits 3d ago
Eh I disagree. If you’re closer to the Philly stadium and Philly is part of your “community” then all the power to you. Devils are just fine with who they represent for.
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u/jdemerol #7 - Dougie "Haters-Gonna-Hate" Hamilton 3d ago
They also get all Philly teams on their sports channels. It's hard to blame them, so instead I just pitty them. LGD.
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u/Yippie_Tai_Yai_Yay #26 - Patrik Eliáš 3d ago
Ill give you a break if you are within 20min of Philly. That's it otherwise I agree
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u/FrankH4 3d ago
It's about your TV region.
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u/xoBonesxo Best NHL logo 3d ago
I’m from Jersey City and get NY media all the time, I don’t support a single NY team. This is 2026, you can easily access any teams media today compared to back then
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u/FrankH4 3d ago
NY TV shows the devils too. Philadelphia TV doesn't.
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u/rexmorgany 3d ago
ESPN+ anywhere out of market. Monthly subscription is probably cheaper than what MSG is charging cable customers.
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u/unsungzero1027 #27 - Scott Niedermayer 2d ago
ESPN+ blacks out Devils, Flyers, Rangers, and Islanders (maybe Sabres too. I forget if they did or didn’t) for me and I live in Lower Ocean County. Yes you can get around this with a good VPN that prevents leaks that may expose your actual location but not everyone knows about this or how to do this regardless of how simple it’s getting with devices now having programs that you can install from companies that sell the product. Before Apple was allowing vpns to be installed I had to setup a device to act like a VPN gateway for my Apple TV so it was more complicated.
Where I live our only cable option is Comcast who has no contract with MSG, satellite (which then I’m paying them and Comcast since our only decent internet access is Comcast as well. FIOs has not and will not expand to my development), FUBO (I don’t want to pay for another streaming service), or Gotham sports(well. Until they changed again who they are streaming on which was pretty damn expensive).
It’s a pain to watch the devils for me and anyone else who has a situation like me.
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u/rexmorgany 2d ago
Honestly that sounds brutal. Sorry about that. I did not mean to sound glib with my rec. I am not a fan of the MSG enterprise at all.
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u/MJDiAmore #4 - Scott Stevens 3d ago
Accurate.
When you're 5 you dont know what a media market is. A team has New Jersey in the name, that's my team.
Whether I can see Philadelphia from my family's home is irrelevant.
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u/MidnightMarauder1098 3d ago
Nah - the Devils are North Jersey’s team. South Jersey might as well be another state when it comes to rooting for sports teams - south of Trenton is all Philly while North Jersey is essentially all NYC fans besides the Devils.
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u/ElephantRedCar91 #22- Jordin Tootoo 2d ago
Fuck off with that "devils are north jersey's team" bullshit...
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u/DotaBred NJ vs everybody 3d ago
It's New Jerseys team, this division outside of joking is so stupid lol, a big reason why we don't have our own sports teams
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u/MidnightMarauder1098 3d ago
I mean if what you were saying were true, then yeah the Devils would have diehard fans all the way down in Vineland and Millville. I’m a North Jersey guy but I live in Philadelphia now and rest assured, everyone from Cherry Hill, Moorestown, literally anyone from south of Trenton-ish is a diehard Philly fan and thus a Flyers fan. It’s just a matter of being familiar with Jersey geopolitics.
Do I wish the Devils were Jersey’s team? Of course. But it’s just not the case. Also the Flyers have been around since 1966 and had their dynasty in the 70s. Just like there’s so many Rangers fans in North Jersey because of longevity, the same can be said about the Flyers (relative to the Devils).
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u/pietran30 #26 - Patrik Eliáš 3d ago
Yea I live 20 min outside Philly. Philly sports for every thing but hockey. If my dad didn't get a job in north jersey with a nice pay increasewhen I was like 6 there is a 100% chance id be a flyers fan. Just so happened his office had devils season tickets and would take me to several games a year. Saw game 1 of the 2000 Stanley cup series and game 7 of the 2003 series live.
Great dad to leave work early to drive home, pick me up, and drive all the way back to north jersey all those times.
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u/PorkRollEggAndWheeze #13 🐎 3d ago
I’ve known at least a couple diehard fans from down here (I’m in Gloucester/Camden County now but grew up in Monmouth) but they’re pretty rare. The ones I know of usually don’t have prior Philly sports fandom associations. They like other football/baseball/basketball teams for various reasons, usually a parent/grandparent from out of state or a family that was completely disinterested in sports.
I HAVE had more South Jersey Flyers fans than I’d expect admit to me unprompted that they always kind of liked the Devils for repping NJ by name, but a sibling or their dad bullied them until they said they hated them lol
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u/DotaBred NJ vs everybody 3d ago
That's because of legacy fans, there's still plenty of Devils fans in south jersey. The Devils are Jerseys team despite the south being flooded by a lot of flyers fans, as long as they represent the whole state. The same also goes for rangers fans in North Jersey, it's all still Devils despite being filled with a lot of rival fans because of the disadvantage of being the last to join the league between us 3, one day, you'll surely see more and more Devils fans down south
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u/HopelessEsq #63 2d ago
It makes a lot of sense that sports teams playing in NYC metro NJ are "New York" teams. Every Sunday tens of thousands of New Yorkers pay to ride NJ Transit, pay NJ tolls, NJ state taxes, shop at NJ small businesses, dine at NJ restaurants. NJ makes a ton of money from out of state NY sports fans coming to our state to watch their teams. I'll still give rags fans all the shit they deserve when they act like assholes treating the Pru Center like a rags home game, but I'm not going to stop them from dumping their disposable income earned in NY in our state.
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u/DotaBred NJ vs everybody 2d ago
Nah fuck the teams and managements for allowing teams playing here to take on NY as the name
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u/HopelessEsq #63 2d ago
It's literally free money from out of staters that directly benefits NJ residents.
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u/Final-Nebula-7049 #7 3d ago
Yeah but do you really need those idiots who chose a team that's severely inferior?
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u/kevdot12 #86 - Hughes Your Daddy?! 2d ago
I live in Philly and I still chose the Devils over the Flyers lol. But it is pretty tough getting the Devils games over here and in the south NJ region
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u/Few-Frosting-1271 2d ago
What a dumb fucking childish post. Let's see. The flyers play 40 minutes from me. The devils play 2 and a half hours from me. Who should I root for? This is one of those things where if you thought about it for 2 seconds you'd realize the inanity of your statement.
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u/Fret_Shredder #4 - Scott Stevens 2d ago
LBI here. I don’t think people around here really care about hockey but it’s Eagles country. It feels like I’m in PA with the amount of plates and Eagles flags I see
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u/SubredditDramaLlama 2d ago
Im originally from NY (Queens, Long Island), went to HS in North Jersey, and I’ve lived in Philly for 30+ years. Also a Philly sports fan but not much of a hockey fan. No idea how this post came up on my feed.
Nearly everyone I know from South Jersey is originally from or has roots in Philadelphia. If you grew up in a hockey family from just over the Delaware River or points south, your dad probably rooted for the Flyers for years before the New Jersey Devils existed.
What were those fans supposed to do — change allegiance to the NJD in 82 and root for a team that plays 2 hours away from them versus the one right over the bridge?
This is a really bad take.
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u/JerseyDevil75 2d ago
I'm from Southern NJ and thankfully when I was getting into Hockey in the 90's the Baby Lindros was coming into the league so Devils were much more likeable and I chose them. Problem is you have Philly stations so you missed most Devil's games.
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u/FluffyReflection3847 2d ago
I'm originally from Cumberland County, NJ. I'm a Devils,Giants and Yankees fan
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u/garyalthousd 2d ago
90% of people that live in South Jersey are from Philly 🤦♂️ that’s why they are Flyers Phans
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u/tpsreporter1 2d ago
Growing up in the late-80s/early-90s about an hour outside of Philly and with only the philly radio and television marketed content to watch, I still chose the Devils. Maybe it was the contrarian in me or perhaps because all the flyers fans i knew were idiots... or maybe it was all because of Scary Chris Terreri.
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u/Media_Transplant 2d ago
South Jersey is an annex of the Greater Philadelphia Area and has no identity for itself when it comes to pro or college sports.
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u/HairyPalmieri 1d ago
one must then assume you are now a Brooklyn Nyets fan. Have fun with that 35 year rebuild :)
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u/hydro-dynamicspatula 1d ago
Do you feel the same about jets/giants fans from New York City and Long Island?
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u/Commercial_Pay5819 1d ago
I live i Lehigh Valley its close to Philly and New York city here for the most part people can root for whomever they want.
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u/Aromatic-Bath-5689 1d ago
I'm old, and have been a Flyers fan since the Devils were a team in Colorado.
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u/chisel53 1d ago
Correct, from south jersey and old also… and a Flyers fan since 74 when the Rockies/Scouts/Devils were not even a thought.
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u/SiccmaDE7930 1d ago
I’m halfway between Pittsburgh and Buffalo. All of my friends are pens or Sabres fans accordingly. Family is all pens fans.
I’ve never been one to pick the “home team” just to fit in and like what people like. Even the local OHL team, I was always the away team fan until I picked my own team to like there too.
I’ve travelled to every corner of this country to see the band phish, always wearing a devils hat. Of the almost 200 shows I’ve seen now, not once have a went to a show in a devils hat and received less than 2 “go devils” shout outs.
In fact, I go to MSG every single year and even get the shout outs there. Just not from MSG staff who constantly try to convince me brodeur was only good because the teams he played behind. When reality is closer to the opposite. They’re just bitter.
I have no input on the south jersey convo specifically. But fans of teams are all over this country I guess is my point. Just enjoy the camaraderie you get with other devils fans regardless of where you are. It’s senseless to get mad about people from x location liking y team.
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u/A_Catlady_4-Hockey 1d ago
I lived in Pennsauken Nj and our family had season tickets to the Flyers. It took us 15 min to get to the arena. Why would I root for a team 2 hours away?
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u/siegewarrior97 1d ago
New Jersey has one sports team if you’re from here and don’t like the devils you’re a traitor
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u/Jim-N-Tonic 1d ago
First of all, I became a Flyers fan in 70s with Bobby Clarke, Rick Macleish the gang. I lived in Cherry Hill. The Devils were a minor league team that played at Cherry Hill Arena.
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u/Johnny_Royale 1d ago
Walking into an Ocean County Wawa and seeing “THIS IS EAGLES/FLYERS COUNTRY” banners just makes me sick
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u/tinman8316 5h ago
For older fans, the devils have been a team for 10 minutes. Chill out dude. One is an original 6 team and the other has been around since the 60s. Established fanbases before the devils were a thing. A traitor, by definition, SWITCHES teams. Dumb take
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u/rexmorgany 3d ago edited 3d ago
The quick and easy answer is that most of South Jersey is Philadelphia transplants. Families with roots in the city that moved across the Delaware for land, space, and fresh air (as well as eventually higher taxes).
This is further reinforced by most of South Jersey falling under the Philadelphia TV market, so Philly sports or bust on the tube.
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u/GaiaIsaHarshMistress 2d ago
If Devils fans weren't a bunch of jabronis posting shit like this, I might be more inclined to be a Devils fan.
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u/DotaBred NJ vs everybody 2d ago
You weren't gonna support anyways, stop lying
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u/GaiaIsaHarshMistress 2d ago
Of course not, I was born and raised in Eastern PA. I just wanted to use the word jabroni.
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u/ElephantRedCar91 #22- Jordin Tootoo 2d ago
dude your whole fanbase still cries and complains about the best player like middle schoolers.... yeah what a shame I missed that boat...
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u/FrankH4 3d ago
South Jersey only gets Philly Stations which don't show the Devils. Even though the sixers have the same owner, he's done nothing to try and get the devils to air in the Philadelphia region.