"I lost my marbles": Viral Leafs fan on iconic comeback celebration
A Toronto Maple Leafs fan made headlines this week in Tampa when cameras caught him on an emotional phone call, screaming, crying, and chanting āGo Leafsā while grabbing his jersey and mouthing āIt was 4-1!ā to whoever was on the other end of the line.
The moment was the cherry on top of a monumental comeback in Game 4.
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On Wednesday, Breakfast Television caught up with Billy Kapogiannis, the man behind the meme.
During his interview on the show, Kapogiannis, who lost his voice screaming at the game, recounted the dramatic moments leading up to his viral celebration. In fact, he almost didn’t make it back from the bathroom before the third-period comeback began.
“Then overtime hit. I went, ‘Okay, I’ve got to relax.’ And then they got a penalty, Tampa Bay,” Kapogiannis explained passionately. “Then, bang! they scored. I lost my marbles!”
The business owner said he travelled to Tampa for the game with his colleague on a bit of a whim.
“Saturday night after they won in overtime, I said ‘Listen, I’m off Sunday, Monday, man. Let’s jump on a plane and whip down to Tampa,” the Aurora native said as hosts Sid Seixeiro and Melanie Ng cracked up. “I don’t know anything about Tampa Bay. I don’t even like Tampa Bay!”
When asked about his confidence in chirping fans of a team that has made it to the past three Stanley Cup Finals, Kapogiannis said, “At the end of the day, it’s all about the passion of being a Leaf fan.”
Before his interview with BT wrapped, Kapogiannis left viewers with a brief but impactful message ahead of Game 5 on Thursday night: “TAKE THEM DOWN!”
If the Leafs, who currently hold a 3-1 series lead against the Lightning, follow suit, they will advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
For both casual fans and diehards like Kapogiannis, it’s been a long time coming.
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