Scottish woman stays awake into the wee hours to watch the Leafs
A young woman is cheering for the Toronto Maple Leafs from across the pond.
It is a long way from Toronto, but Victoria Stewart of Dundee, Scotland, said she loves the Toronto Maple Leafs and posts online after every game.
"I started watching my local team -- the Dundee Stars -- back in 2016 and found out about the NHL shortly after that," said Stewart, a diehard Leafs fan.
"Immediately when I downloaded the NHL app, the Leafs basically picked me. They were the first team that I watched a game of and the only team I’ve every supported."
Stewart said she started posting about the Leafs a long time ago and no one really cared about it until the Leafs had some success in the playoffs.
"People in Toronto started seeing my posts and my content on Twitter and YouTube, and they seem to really enjoy them," she said.
The time difference between Scotland and Ontario is five hours. When a game starts at 7:30 EDT, it is 12:30 a.m. in Scotland. Stewart is so obsessed with the Leafs, she said she will stay up until the wee hours of the morning to watch most of the team’s games.
"I’ve only missed a few games during the season, but I’ve watched almost every single minute of Toronto’s playoff games. It makes for late nights and early mornings," said Stewart.
When asked about what her friends and family think about her cheering on her favourite NHL team, Stewart had this to say.
"There are a lot of hockey fans in Scotland so they understand a little bit more but definitely some people think I’m slightly insane when they see me up at 3 a.m. watching hockey."
Stewart has Leaf jerseys and other clothing items to show her team pride, and she is not shy about who her favourite Leaf player is.
"Definitely, Auston Matthews -- I started watching the Leafs the same year Matthews was drafted," she said.
Toronto is up 3-2 against Tampa in the best of seven series. As for a guess as to who will win game six, her answer was predictable.
"In playoff hockey, anything can happen. I’m thinking it might even go into overtime and Toronto will win," said Stewart.
If that is the case, it is going to be a very long night, or early morning for Stewart.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

U.S. assassination attempt charges 'confirm' Trudeau's claims about India had 'real substance,' former national security advisers say
The indictment of an Indian national for the attempted assassination of a Sikh separatist and dual U.S.-Canadian national 'validates' Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations that the Indian government may have been involved in the killing of a Canadian citizen as having 'real substance,' according to two of Canada's former national security advisers.
Bonnie Crombie wins Ontario Liberal leadership after 3 rounds of voting
Ontario Liberals have selected Bonnie Crombie, a three-term big city mayor and former MP who boasts that she gets under the skin of Premier Doug Ford, as their next leader to go head to head with the premier in the next provincial election.
Trump calls Biden the 'destroyer' of democracy despite his own efforts to overturn 2020 election
Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Saturday attempted to turn the tables on his likely rival in November, President Joe Biden, arguing that the man whose election victory Trump tried to overturn is "the destroyer of American democracy."
Search for runaway kangaroo in Ontario continues
The search continues for the kangaroo that is hopping around somewhere in Ontario after it escaped zoo handlers from a transport truck Thursday night.
What was a hospital like in medieval times? Researchers analyzed 400 skeletons to find out
In medieval times, hospitals took care of the 'poor and infirm,' but how were inhabitants selected and what were their lives like? Researchers analyzed 400 skeletons to find out.
James Webb Telescope confirms existence of massive dusty galaxy from early universe
New observations from the James Webb Space Telescope have confirmed the existence of a massive, dusty, star-forming galaxy which was first spotted years ago by a ground telescope, but was completely invisible to the Hubble Space Telescope.
Rocky planets may be able to form under more high-stress scenarios than previously known: study
A study of one of the most extreme, radiation-heavy environments in the universe has found that it might be possible for rocky planets comprised of water, carbon and other familiar molecules to form under far more intense circumstances than previously believed.
Teen girls are being victimized by deepfake nudes. One family is pushing for more protections
A mother and her 14-year-old daughter are advocating for better protections for victims after AI-generated nude images of the teen and other female classmates were circulated at a high school in New Jersey.
7.6 magnitude earthquake strikes off the southern Philippines and a tsunami warning is issued
A powerful earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 struck Saturday off the cost of the southern Philippines island of Mindanao and Philippine authorities issued a tsunami warning.