The bad news: It’s Friday the 13th.
The good news: It’s the only Friday the 13th in 2016.
In honour of a day often considered one of the most unlucky on the calendar, here’s our list of the 13 best superstitions, curses and spooky coincidences in sports:
1. Raptors look to clinch in game lucky No. 13
The Toronto Raptors are in the midst of their most impressive playoff push in franchise history and on Friday the 13th will play in their 13th game of these playoffs, beating their previous record of 12 postseason games in 2001. A win in Game 6 will put them in the Eastern Conference finals.
It’s just a bonus that DeMar DeRozan made his own number 13-related history in Game 5.
DeMar DeRozan’s franchise-best 13th 20-point game in the playoffs – sixth this season. #Raptors
2. Wade Boggs is @ChickenMan3010
When it comes to lists of superstitious athletes, you’ll be hard pressed to find one that doesn’t mention baseball hall of famer Wade Boggs.
Boggs is most famous for eating chicken before every game – so much so that his wife had at least 40 different recipes to keep things fresh – but he also took batting practice at 5:17 a.m., ran sprints at 7:17 a.m., and wrote the Hebrew word “Chai” (meaning “life”) in the dirt before every at-bat.
I guess it’s Flashback Friday pic.twitter.com/Cy1aqoNdgK
3. Black cat gets a bad rap
While black cat Jo Paw-velski became a bit of a good luck charm for the San Jose Sharks in this year’s playoffs, the same was not the case for the 1969 Chicago Cubs.
Coincidence or not, the Cubs went from holding a 8 1/2 game lead over the second place Mets to tanking in the month of September, losing 17 of 25 after a black cat wandered in front of their dugout during a pivotal series with New York. The Cubs eventually ended their season without a playoff berth.
1969 CUBS Team Signed (w/Ron Santo) Black Cat 16×20 Photo w/17 Sigs – SCHWARTZ https://t.co/GnmzCIZn5p pic.twitter.com/3ZpCkBlK9L
4. Bad gesture means good luck for Santo Condorelli
It’s not very often “flipping the bird” is associated with something positive, but Canadian swimmer Santo Condorelli is making his own rules. He tosses up the middle finger to his father in the crowd before every race and his father throws it right back, a signal the pair say they associate with confidence and strength.
He must be doing something right, as Condorelli booked his ticket to the Rio Olympics earlier this year.
5. Playoff season? Let the beards begin
What’s the best way to make a successful postseason push? Facial hair, obviously.
The playoff beard has become one of the most universally accepted forms of superstitious good luck. It was a tradition started by the New York Islander in the 1980s but has since been adopted by a number of professional sports leagues outside of the NHL including the MLB and NFL.
(NHLI via Getty Images)
6. The legendary lucky loonie
In 2002, Edmonton ice maker Trent Evans buried a loonie at centre ice prior to the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City to bring luck to Team Canada.
The result? A gold medal each for the men’s and women’s teams and a story that will live on for generations to come. That same loonie now sits in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
(Toronto Star via Getty Images)
7. Michael Jordan: Eat my shorts
NBA legend Michael Jordan had an illustrious career to say the least, but when he first joined the league in 1984 he relied on a little superstition to bring him good luck.
After leading his North Carolina team to the NCAA championships in 1982, Jordan would continue to wear his powder blue UNC shorts underneath his new Chicago Bulls uniform. His longer duds inspired a trend in the NBA as other players began to wear their shorts long as well.
(Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
8. NASCAR superstitions know no bounds
It’s one thing for an athlete to hold certain superstitions, but an entire sports organization?
As it turns out, NASCAR drivers abide by a few unwritten rules: No green cars (they’re bad luck), never carry a $50 bill (that’s also bad luck) and no peanut shells on the track. While the first two don’t seem to come from any real historical relevance, peanut shells were found in the wreck of a driver who had died in the 1930s.
6. In the #NASCAR events, No peanut shells are allowed on or near the track. Nuts are fine, just not the shells. #SportsRituals.
9. Sid’s pre-game ritual
Sidney Crosby’s superstitious nature was put on full display on HBO’s 24/7 Road to the Winter Classic special in 2010.
“There’s probably a few [routines] that are a little crazy,” he said. “But I guess we’re all a little crazy in our own way.”
10. Not even ‘O Canada’ can stop Wade’s ritual
In Game 4 of the NBA playoff series between the Raptors and Heat, Dwyane Wade was caught shooting jumpers while the rest of his team stood at the line for the Canadian national anthem.
Wade later apologized, citing a pregame routine as his reason for not immediately stopping practicing.
11. Don’t touch that trophy
There’s a lot of different ways to celebrate a conference championship in the NHL, but for many of the more superstitious teams, one of those ways must never be to touch the trophy.
Many players believe that to touch either the Clarence Campbell Bowl or Prince of Wales Trophy is a bad omen for the Stanley Cup finals, though statistically speaking it doesn’t seem to matter one way or the other.
(Photoshopped Image)
12. Serena’s sweaty socks
Serena Williams is largely regarded as one of the most elite tennis players the sport has ever seen, just don’t ask her to take off her socks.
The tennis great will only wear one pair of socks for an entire tennis tournament. She is also known for bouncing the ball exactly five times before her first serve and two times before her second.
13. Call him what you want, just don’t touch his equipment
If the most notoriously superstitious of all athletes are NHL goalies, Ed Belfour and Patrick Roy would both be at the top of that list.
“If you touch my stuff, I’ll kill you,” Belfour would warn his team at the beginning of every season. We’re not sure anyone ever tested how serious he was.
And Roy had a closer relationship with his goal posts than most, freely admitting to having conversations with them. He still holds the record for most playoff wins by a goaltender with 151, so he must have been doing something right.
(Sports Illustrated/Getty Images)
Superstitious or not, there’s only one real way to celebrate Friday the 13th.
