Should Canada be proud of the Canucks

[ddp]

Rome's hit wasn't any dirtier than Lucics GLOVE punch to the back of the head of Burrows while on his knees. OR the Chara breaking Pax's neck. Rome was going north south....hit him late. Hit...Destroyed him. Penalty yes, dirty not so much. I doubt there was intent to injure but only Chara and Rome know that right? When Hortons' head hit the ice is where most of the damage came from. Canucks Embarrassing? no.....no more than Horton squirtting water on a fan, ference Flipping the bird or Lucic going after tough guy Dominic Moore. All examples of classless behavior. Canada doesn't have one team...I agree with posters before...that is stupid. All I know is I'm ok with most of this child behavior cause I get a laugh out of it.

[hawkdog]

I don't think the 40,000 fans that pack downtown Vancouver every game night,
or sell out Rogers Arena for a game played in Boston would agree with you.

And I doubt any of you oiler/ranger fans would object to Mark Messiers dirty play in the 1994 series where he busts Linden's nose when he was crawling on his hands and knees to the bench, Messier was the dirtiest player ever.
He was the type of guy that swung his stick over guys heads. YET EVERYONE LOVES HIM.

so GO CANUCKS GO!

[horrorfan]

I'm not going to comment on the class/dirty issues brought up as they've been covered plenty, but rather about Canadians cheering for the Canucks (or any other Canadian team) in general.

I can understand that many people, regardless of allegiance, will cheer for the Canucks as they are hoping for a Canadian team to finally win a Cup after a long wait. Or, even to a greater extent, cheer for a Canadian team that has never won a Cup in their history. It's in our blood, and many feel that we should since there are only (now) seven Canadian teams in the league.

However, I'm not one of them.

For me, rivalries make this sport great, so I don't see anything wrong with cheering against them whether it's the Cup or not. Sure, good for the city of Vancouver and their fans if they can win a Cup, but I would rather cheer for teams that I like, or cheer against teams that I dislike. Of course, pharling and the others, the 'class' issue could change some people's opinions, but I'm keeping my opinion separate from it.

I'm a Calgary fan who grew up in Ottawa (Flames fan before Sens had a team, before you ask). It is highly unlikely that I would cheer for Edmonton, Vancouver or Toronto even if/when they are in the Stanley Cup finals. However, Montreal doesn't seem have the same effect when they play the Sens as do the Leafs, so I don't mind the Habs. Interesting that those three are my most hated teams, but that happens when your favourite team is based in Canada and the rivalries are so intense.

Being Canadian doesn't change the way I cheer for teams, for the players, or for the sport in general. I'll be equally happy for Bergeron (Canadian, recovered from concussions), Thomas (American, late bloomer to become best goalie in the league), or Chara (Slovak, former Senator) if they can win two more games.

In summary: go Bruins!

[Thieving Giraffe]

Interesting article in The Globe and Mail about this topic... it sounds like fewer Canadians than I'd thought have gotten behind this team.

They may, or may not, have been “Canada’s team,” but three games into the Stanley Cup final, the Vancouver Canucks have become the most hated team in the NHL.

The odd part is that Vancouver’s two best players – the Sedin twins – are the most mild mannered, polite gentlemen you’d ever want to meet, but the rest of the roster is pushing their pleasant personalities to the background. From Alex Burrows’s bite to Aaron Rome’s hit, the Canucks have won few fans outside of British Columbia with their comportment on hockey’s biggest stage...

Lots of interesting quotes from NHL players. I still don't have a huge problem with the team, but thought I'd share.