For Jo-Anne Gagner, mother of Edmonton Oilers forward Sam, it is as simple as flipping a switch.
But for Dave Gagner, father of Sam and a Vancouver Canucks executive, it is much more conflicting.
Whenever the Canucks and Oilers face off, as the Northwest Division rivals will Tuesday night at Rexall Place in Edmonton, their first of six meetings this NHL season, the Gagner family has split allegiances. Jo-Anne and daughters Jessica, a hockey player at Dartmouth College, and Renee are firmly in Sam's corner. His mother said she is a Canucks fan 76 times a year, just not when they play Edmonton.
"To me, it's obvious," Jo-Anne said. "Every mother is their child's biggest cheerleader."
The Gagner family is from Ontario, and when Dave joined the Canucks' front office in 2008, his brood, sans Sam, was still living in London. The parents and two daughters watched their first Canucks-Oilers game at home, and the father was outnumbered and outvoted by three women who had blue and orange loyalties that day.
Since then, the Gagners have moved to Vancouver, and have a greater sense of the old Smythe Division rivalry, which implicates another family as well.
Steve Tambellini, a former Canucks executive and player, is the Oilers general manager and Jeff Tambellini is a Canucks winger after signing a free-agent contract last summer. The Tambellinis, including mother Denise and Jeff, declined to speak about this topic, but the two families have certainly swapped stories about their common plight.
"I can't speak for Denise, but every mother wants the best for her child. … He's my boy," Jo-Anne said. "I see her quite a bit. We're obviously living the same life, the same crazy life."
Dave echoes the parental sentiment, but struggles with the dilemma a little more than his spouse. The Canucks are run by general manager Mike Gillis, formerly the agent to both Gagners, who reached out and offered Dave an opportunity to join an NHL management team - something he always wanted - after just two years of coaching junior.
"The emotions are certainly there, every time they play," the Canucks director of player development said. "It has always felt odd watching it because I want us to win, obviously, but I'd like to see Sam do well. So, it's difficult at times, but you've just got to keep it in perspective.
"For me, our business is to win games," he continued. "But I want Sam to keep progressing and be happy with what he is doing."
The elder Gagner recalls his son fighting Canucks centre Ryan Kesler, but that was before he was working for Vancouver and his fingers are crossed that no further confrontations take place. He said he doesn't fear Sam getting hurt in a game against his employer, because everybody recognizes the potential for injury in professional hockey.
Typically, when the Oilers play in Vancouver, Sam will have breakfast or lunch with his mother, and his sister might wear her Edmonton sweater to school. That night, Jo-Anne will watch from her usual seat at Rogers Arena, only she roots for the visitors.
When the sides clash in Edmonton, it is appointment television in the Gagner household, as it always is for Jo-Anne and Renee, who still lives at home, because they rarely miss one of Sam's games.
But Tuesday, something will take precedence. Renee plays the part of the baroness in a high school production of The Sound of Music. Jo-Anne will be there in the audience, and will record the game for when they get home.
On this night, their boys can take a back seat.