Fuhr was always very civil: he was a contrarian but a respectful one. People were always calling him names but he never shot back even after some dbag went a found his real profile somewhere and posted it so he could make fun of him and a lot of others joined in.
Holmes was the rude one
Look, I think what it comes down to is that civil or no, when you never have anything nice or positive to say, some people no longer want to deal with you, or prefer you in minuscule doses.
My reality is, this is entertainment, something that i read about, watch, and talk about, because IT"S FUN. Why in the world would I want to whine and complain all day everyday about something that is supposed to inject some enjoyment into my life. If it was weighing me down, I'd have to find something else to occupy my time that better served me, especially since I am paying for it.
Now lots of people use the Sens as they're dumping ground for grumpiness from other facets of life, or use the board to shed their Sens related anger before reengaging with the physical world around them, and I get that.
One person's dumping ground is another's source of joy. What I have noticed is that this place is more and more about dumping, pretty much non stop, and very little joy. Sure the team isn't doing well, but that's the cyclical nature of professional sports. We had a decade of being a top team, and now we can't have a few mediocre seasons, where at least we're on the upswing, without our little community becoming a non-stop thunderstorm?
This isn't about being allowed to criticism the team, this is about this board, and several very vocal posters, being negative towards everything and anything, where the prospects of the team going forward is ever so grim. They have a right to be here, as do I. the problem is, posters like myself tend to post less and less because it's often such a drag to read the same negative crap in every thread, and so what happens is this place becomes nothing but a sounding board for the most negative posters, smattered with people adding some timely criticism. The end result is a cacophony of negativity.
But it gets worse too. It has become OK to trash players as people, be rude towards players we once cherished, use words that are hurtful, all behind the cries of free speech and, "it's my opinion", or "so what, it's not like I meant it that way". This is nasty place sometimes, so much so that I would be embarrassed to have my real name attached to it should a real player for our team read so many of the things posted about them here.
Love the boards, love several of the posters here, but if being a Sens fan is brining out such negativity in people, it really should make one take a step back and have a look at themselves, and why they even bother.
We are what we are, find a way to enjoy the ride, or get off and wait until we're in a more palatable place for you. It only make sense.
My opinion.