stuart5035
Registered User
- Apr 9, 2017
- 328
- 338
I tell myself “it’s just a sport” and wonder if I need a life, but I am heartbroken today, like I lost my best friend, like something is gone. Better I guess than last nights utter shock. And it was only 48 hours ago that tears welled up in my eyes at the sight of their utter dominance over the Penguins-a gusher of emotional release after suffering through so much disappointment.
I remember reading a few years ago an interview with Brendan Shanahan-in this interview he expressed his view that the team would stress skill and speed-further he talked about the death of pugilism and aggression. What really stood out as best as I can remember is how he described this desirable player as one “above getting into the muck and grime “, a sort of new breed.
A few years later, his words ring prophetic: we have the ultra nice Morgan Rielly, the polite Frederick Gauthier, a gentle Pierre Engvail, stick checking William Nylander, frail and clean Mitch Marner, gentlemen John Tavares, Tyson Barrie, Rasmus Sandin, Justin Holl, Ilya Mikheyev, Timothy Liljegren, etc.
These are choir boys, young men who you’d introduce to your Mother. Oh for a charging Josh Anderson, a dirty Wayne Simmons or Cody Perry, a never quit Jonathan Toews, a chippy Brad Marchand. Players who get mad, who antagonize, who show emotion, a few players who were Saskatchewan farm boys, . More and more we are “Team Sweden”.
But I’ll be there Tuesday, I couldn’t not be. It is so often painful now to watch, but I’ve never turned it off, not even a minute. If we are losing 9-3 with 5 minutes left, I’m still hoping to see one of the boys get a goal. I’m 64 and I still remember the oh so special texture of that Maple Leaf sweater I adored at 6.
But it hurts to hear those boos last night, don’t the perpetrators realize that this is a big reason players don’t want to come here? That it hurts our future? That the players tense up, grip their sticks tighter, that it’s counter productive. I get it, I’ve never been to a game but if you’re laying out $300 a seat to watch that, it’s tough. But please do it in private.
I remember reading a few years ago an interview with Brendan Shanahan-in this interview he expressed his view that the team would stress skill and speed-further he talked about the death of pugilism and aggression. What really stood out as best as I can remember is how he described this desirable player as one “above getting into the muck and grime “, a sort of new breed.
A few years later, his words ring prophetic: we have the ultra nice Morgan Rielly, the polite Frederick Gauthier, a gentle Pierre Engvail, stick checking William Nylander, frail and clean Mitch Marner, gentlemen John Tavares, Tyson Barrie, Rasmus Sandin, Justin Holl, Ilya Mikheyev, Timothy Liljegren, etc.
These are choir boys, young men who you’d introduce to your Mother. Oh for a charging Josh Anderson, a dirty Wayne Simmons or Cody Perry, a never quit Jonathan Toews, a chippy Brad Marchand. Players who get mad, who antagonize, who show emotion, a few players who were Saskatchewan farm boys, . More and more we are “Team Sweden”.
But I’ll be there Tuesday, I couldn’t not be. It is so often painful now to watch, but I’ve never turned it off, not even a minute. If we are losing 9-3 with 5 minutes left, I’m still hoping to see one of the boys get a goal. I’m 64 and I still remember the oh so special texture of that Maple Leaf sweater I adored at 6.
But it hurts to hear those boos last night, don’t the perpetrators realize that this is a big reason players don’t want to come here? That it hurts our future? That the players tense up, grip their sticks tighter, that it’s counter productive. I get it, I’ve never been to a game but if you’re laying out $300 a seat to watch that, it’s tough. But please do it in private.
