Last night the Denver Broncos won Superbowl 50 with a 24-10 win over the Carolina Panthers. In the crowd were two very overjoyed Broncos fans, and they got there with help from Maple Leafs forward Michael Grabner.
The story was told to Fox Sports, and is too awesome to not share:
Michael Grabner moved to Spokane, Wash. from Austria to play with the WHL's Spokane Chiefs when he was 17 years old. His billets that year, and for his time in the Dub were Rachel and Rob McCann. Grabner grew attached to his new North American family, and fit right in, eventually joining the fun of giving Rachel McCann sass over her preference for the Denver Broncos over the local Seattle Seahawks.
This year, with the Broncos in the Super Bowl, Grabner decided to pay back the couple that helped him when he needed it the most as a teenager, with the ultimate gift: tickets to watch the Broncos play in the Super Bowl.
"My husband told me that [Grabner's wife] Heather and Michael were going to FaceTime me," Rachel McCann told The Spokesman-Review. "I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, they are pregnant. They are telling me something big.’
"Then they told me they got tickets for the Super Bowl for myself and Rob. (Grabner) was so cute. He was really excited about giving this to me.
"It’s not just the Super Bowl. This is my team. It is really special that he even thought of this. He has been incredibly generous."
Michael Grabner's love and generosity allowed Rachel McCann the opportunity to do something very few sports fans get the chance to do: watch her team win a championship in person.