Supplied Photo

Carol Francis-Stenger may well be Manitoba's greatest hockey fan.
The Maliseet elder has been a regular at both Winnipeg Jets and Manitoba Moose hockey games for years, holding season tickets for the Moose since their inception in 1996.
Prior to that, she saw almost every Winnipeg Jets home game during their NHL existence and their last year in the WHA.

During that time, she's missed only a handful of games due to illness.
But to get a more accurate picture of just how dedicated a fan she is just try and talk to her during a game.
It's impossible
"I not only cannot talk to her during a game, I won't sit next to her because she will bruise up my arm," says her husband Ron Stenger.
A couple of springs ago when her beloved Montreal Canadiens beat the Bruins in game 7 she lost it. "I couldn't even go into the basement," said Stenger. "I had to watch the final few minutes from the stairs. She went nuts."
In fact, one time her parish priest made the colossal mistake of calling her when the Flying Frenchmen were on the tube one evening.
Before he could get a word in edgewise, he was told that the game was on and she hung up the phone.
There isn't too much she won't do to watch hockey.
She's even driven fifty miles one way through a snowstorm by herself to watch her favoritie sport.
The thing is, she hates driving and lets her husband do most of it. But she had to get to the game.
But that's just the routine stuff.
Last season, Carol required knee replacement surgery on both knees and it was extremely painful for her to move, never mind walk as her bones were literally rubbing together.
But she made it to her Moose games with the assistance of a walker and the friendly staff of the MTS Centre in downtown Winnipeg. They took special care of her, ensuring she got to her seat and helping her out of it when it was a little too much.
"I wasn't going to miss any of the games," laughed Francis-Stenger. "Not if I could help it. I love my Moose hockey."
But all good things must come to an end.
This season of Moose hockey may well be her last.
Carol and her husband Ron plan on moving back to New Brunswick so Carol can be closer to family.
Francis-Stenger says she has mixed feelings about the pending move. "I'm going to miss Moose hockey a lot but we're going to be heading home and that means I will be able to speak my language."
Though she speaks her language fluently no one else in Winnipeg does. Even with almost 70,000 Aboriginal people making the city the country's largest reserve.
The only time she can speak it is when she calls home.
Though she looks forward to going home to family and friends in New Brunswick, there are plenty of memories to leave behind in Winnipeg.
Her two boys, who are both in the RCMP, were raised here.
A number of years ago, after yet another Winnipeg Jets ouster from the NHL playoffs the Stenger's were looking for something to do and dropped by one of the local rinks to see what was going on.
There were a group of six year olds chasing a puck around the rink. The Stengers had to leave because Carol was in tears.
"I think what happened was she remembered when our two boys were that age and it was too much for her," said Stenger. "You have to understand that the game has been a huge part of her life."
"It's okay," said Francis-Stenger. "When I go home there's university hockey to watch and I can always watch my team (Montreal Canadiens) on TV."
But for now, she may get one last season of Moose hockey in and that's just fine with her.