In Response to Jackie's Hockey Post...

(Since I can not comment on your blog personally, for obvious reasons, I chose this method because I believe that your blog post is an important topic and deserves to be discussed.)

JACKIE BLOG POST EXCERPT:

"I really don’t get this whole “is Vancouver Canada’s team?” debate. I’m quite sure that this has nothing to do with hockey, whatsoever. People have pointed out that it is a result of envy of our city and the ongoing debate of whose city is the best to live in. Who gives a shit? This kind of crap does nothing to promote the sport within our own country and dare I say it, this behaviour is very un-Canadian. Canada only has 6 teams, with a possible 7th with the return of the Jets. I would think that from year to year, the odds of a Canadian team making it to the Stanley Cup finals is pretty low, so if people want the cup back in Canada, they had better get the hell on board, because who knows when it will happen again. This past season looked like this for Canadian teams:

Eastern Division:
6th – Montreal
10th – Toronto
13th – Ottawa
Western Division:
1st - Vancouver
10th – Calgary
15th – Edmonton

The way I see it, if Montreal can avoid the plague of injuries they suffered in this last season and acquire some more firepower for their forward line, they have a good chance of doing very well next year. The remaining teams, especially Edmonton, will likely be going into a season or two of re-building, unless a miracle happens. Edmonton has had “lunch-bucket” teams come out of nowhere, in the past, but the conditions must be perfect. If Vancouver can keep their roster intact after this season…there will no-doubt be some salary negotiating going on regardless of the outcome of the final…they may just ride this wave into next season, but things aren’t the way they used to be. It now seems to be a rarity for teams to repeat greatness in consecutive seasons. So, Canucks fans soak it up and enjoy it, because it may be another 17 years before this happens again. And, the rest of Canada, I’ve travelled all across this amazing county of ours and I can honestly say that, yes, Vancouver is the most beautiful city in Canada, which is why everyone on this planet seems to be immigrating here. But we do LOVE hockey and we do LOVE Canada, so hop aboard or shut up about it. You’re embarrassing yourselves ;-)"

MY RESPONSE:

The roster shows 22 Canadian players on the Bruins, compared to only 16 for the Canucks, is that correct? Last I heard, Edmonton Oilers actually had the most Canadian players of any team in the NHL, so should we not be cheering for them if the motivation is to "keep it Canadian"? I don't even know if keeping the cup in Canada would equate to keeping it Canadian at this point, but I have heard this argument often.

As for hopping aboard, would Sharks fans root for the Kings to keep it in California? Would a Jets fan start rooting for the Giants if their team was eliminated? Would Manchester United fans suddenly start rooting for Manchester City? Would the Raider fan abandon ship and become a Charger fan when their team started failing?
It would strike me as extremely band wagon-y to start rooting for a team you have riled against all season out of a desperation to keep another team from winning.
I just can't bring myself to root for the Canucks, and I'm from BC. I grew up sitting on the laps of the great Oilers (Gretzky included) and so they will always (even as they slowly draft-pick themselves into embarrassment) have a place in my heart. That said, I have grown an appreciation for Boston since Greg is such a fan and it is sweet that they have made it so far. Otherwise, I must say, I wouldn't be nearly as invested in the finals this year.

All of that aside, rivalry makes sports entertaining, but sometimes I feel people take the rivalry to the point of actual hatred and aggression, and that is disappointing. When the game is over, drop your swords... there are much better ways* to spend this glorious summer.