Leafs Nation Visits Canucks Hamlet
Saturday night (well, Saturday afternoon out here), I am going to see
my beloved Maple Leafs in person for the first time since 1991, a night
where the Leafs beat Mats Sundin's Nordiques at the Gardens 5-4 in
overtime thanks to a Glenn Anderson hat-trick, a night that confirmed
and cemented that this was going to be my team no matter what. Since
then, I've seen four conference finals, four playoff wins against
Ottawa, Dougie and Wendel leave and return, Cujo and Belfour saving
the day and Kidd and Raycroft shitting the bed, Larry Murphy booed out
of town and Luke Schenn welcomed into it, I've read approximately
13,000 columns about why it's my fault the Leafs don't win the Cup and
seen a dozen or so blogs arise the cover the Leafs with insight,
humour, and passion. But in all that time, I've never been to another
Leafs game. So yeah, I'm pretty damn excited.
But not nearly as excited as the people of Vancouver, apparently.
In anticipation of the next chapter in the non-existent Leafs-Canucks rivalry (a topic I covered extensively here), the locals have pulled out all the stops.
Free local puppy-training aid 24hrs has been ensuring their readers get their money's worth this week with a slew of Leaf-baiting features. First, they took one of the the many wrecks to be found on the front lawns of Surrey, painted it in Leafs colours and auctioned off the right to put it through a car crusher. The winner? I shit you not, a self-proclaimed "Canucks and Senators fan" (which is like telling the paper you're a child-molester who lights forest fires on weekends). The video of this historic and original event was posted on the website, followed up the next day by a hockey column comparing Leafs fans to cockroaches, written by the paper's lead sports columnist - a freaking hand puppet. Then again, are they going to give the job to this genius?
And it's only Thursday. I can't wait to see what the Province and Sun (Vancouver actually prints two identical daily newspapers owned by the same company, that differ only in name and tabloid/broadsheet format. Handy!) and the local Lungo-jersey wearing dittoheads on talk radio come up with.
You might think I'd be upset about this. After all, I love the Leafs. I watch as many games as I can. I read a half-dozen Leaf blogs and write one of my own. In all, I've devoted countless hours of my leisure time to supporting and stewing over the Maple Leafs. So naturally I'd get upset when the fans of a team Leafs fans don't even give a wrinkled shit about pop off like this, right?
Wrong. To paraphrase an all-time legend at another massive club that hasn't won anything in forever, I'm absolutely loving it.
All this hate, this loathing - what is it but renewed confirmation, as if any was needed, that the Toronto Maple Leafs are the straw that stirs this country's hockey drink? What other franchise provokes this much vitriol? Not even the Habs, and their 10 Cups since expansion. What other teams fans flood visiting arenas across the continent? Leafs fans, take solace in this - no matter how much we lose, we will never suffer an even worse fate - not mattering.
So yeah, why wouldn't Canucks fans soil their jammies at the greatest show on ice coming to town? While they mock us with chants of "1967" I can look to the rafters in the ACC and see 13 banners symbolizing the accomplishments of one of the most storied franchises in North American sports. What do they see when they look to theirs? The Leafs wear iconic uniforms with a crest that is recognized worldwide - the Canucks change their uniforms as often as Van Halen change lead singers. They celebrate second-tier Swedes like Naslund and the Sedins, while the Leafs have iced two of the very greatest ever to wear the Tre Kronor - Sundin and Salming. They venerate Stan Smyl and Trevor Linden. We honour Doug Gilmour and Wendel Clark. We are on coast-to-coast-to-coast just about every Saturday night from 1931 to Armageddon. They are seen on the late game once a month or so. Classic songs are written about our team and its players. You ever hear 'The Ballad of Tony Tanti'? We have hockey's greatest rivalry and the Battle of Ontario.They have car-crushing and third-wheel status with the Alberta teams. Why wouldn't they be excited?
So Saturday I'll probably get razzed by goofs in Kesler jerseys, and I'll probably be the guy weeping into my beer after Wellwood completes his hatrick. But - three thousand clicks from home - I'll also be smiling and cheering with thousands of other Toronto fans in the building, all having a hell of a time supporting their Leafs.
How may other fans get that?
But not nearly as excited as the people of Vancouver, apparently.
In anticipation of the next chapter in the non-existent Leafs-Canucks rivalry (a topic I covered extensively here), the locals have pulled out all the stops.
Free local puppy-training aid 24hrs has been ensuring their readers get their money's worth this week with a slew of Leaf-baiting features. First, they took one of the the many wrecks to be found on the front lawns of Surrey, painted it in Leafs colours and auctioned off the right to put it through a car crusher. The winner? I shit you not, a self-proclaimed "Canucks and Senators fan" (which is like telling the paper you're a child-molester who lights forest fires on weekends). The video of this historic and original event was posted on the website, followed up the next day by a hockey column comparing Leafs fans to cockroaches, written by the paper's lead sports columnist - a freaking hand puppet. Then again, are they going to give the job to this genius?
And it's only Thursday. I can't wait to see what the Province and Sun (Vancouver actually prints two identical daily newspapers owned by the same company, that differ only in name and tabloid/broadsheet format. Handy!) and the local Lungo-jersey wearing dittoheads on talk radio come up with.
You might think I'd be upset about this. After all, I love the Leafs. I watch as many games as I can. I read a half-dozen Leaf blogs and write one of my own. In all, I've devoted countless hours of my leisure time to supporting and stewing over the Maple Leafs. So naturally I'd get upset when the fans of a team Leafs fans don't even give a wrinkled shit about pop off like this, right?
Wrong. To paraphrase an all-time legend at another massive club that hasn't won anything in forever, I'm absolutely loving it.
All this hate, this loathing - what is it but renewed confirmation, as if any was needed, that the Toronto Maple Leafs are the straw that stirs this country's hockey drink? What other franchise provokes this much vitriol? Not even the Habs, and their 10 Cups since expansion. What other teams fans flood visiting arenas across the continent? Leafs fans, take solace in this - no matter how much we lose, we will never suffer an even worse fate - not mattering.
So yeah, why wouldn't Canucks fans soil their jammies at the greatest show on ice coming to town? While they mock us with chants of "1967" I can look to the rafters in the ACC and see 13 banners symbolizing the accomplishments of one of the most storied franchises in North American sports. What do they see when they look to theirs? The Leafs wear iconic uniforms with a crest that is recognized worldwide - the Canucks change their uniforms as often as Van Halen change lead singers. They celebrate second-tier Swedes like Naslund and the Sedins, while the Leafs have iced two of the very greatest ever to wear the Tre Kronor - Sundin and Salming. They venerate Stan Smyl and Trevor Linden. We honour Doug Gilmour and Wendel Clark. We are on coast-to-coast-to-coast just about every Saturday night from 1931 to Armageddon. They are seen on the late game once a month or so. Classic songs are written about our team and its players. You ever hear 'The Ballad of Tony Tanti'? We have hockey's greatest rivalry and the Battle of Ontario.They have car-crushing and third-wheel status with the Alberta teams. Why wouldn't they be excited?
So Saturday I'll probably get razzed by goofs in Kesler jerseys, and I'll probably be the guy weeping into my beer after Wellwood completes his hatrick. But - three thousand clicks from home - I'll also be smiling and cheering with thousands of other Toronto fans in the building, all having a hell of a time supporting their Leafs.
How may other fans get that?
That 24 Hours blogger is amazing. The print version pales in horribleness to that drivel! 24H still has my favourite article header though: "How much would you spend on exercise equipment if money was no object?" Classic.
Anyway, hold your head up high at the game and know that even with all the fellow Leafers in attendance there are thousands more in the city who were too cheap/poor/disorganized to score tickets to be there too. That's something the haters in this town just don't seem to get, that there are probably more of us than there are of them.
RIGHT FUCKING ON! That was awesome.
I've been fortunate enough to see the Leafs play on the road against the Bruins, Habs, Devils, Islanders, Rangers, Flyers, Penguins, Capitals and Sharks. And everywhere, the story is the same -- there are many of us, and our team matters. Man, do the Leafs matter.
Yes, yes, and yes.
This is exactly how I felt about tonight's game in Edmonton. It is such an awesome experience to be able to drown out the home team's fans in their own arena.
1967, 1967, 1967. Whatever. Rain or shine, Leafs fans are everywhere, cheering on their team.
You know my opinion on the leafs, but I am right with you on this one...except for the classic song written about them..I think calling that classic might be stretching it a bit.
The Sens/Canucks fan line had me laughing like a crazy person at work.
I'd just like to point out that a Sens/Canucks fan is working on a 52-year Cup drought. So he has us all beat.
Assuming they were fans all along, which, of course, they weren't. I'm going to go with "became a Canucks fan when Bure was there and they went to the finals, kind of lost track after that, got into the Sens for a few years when they were good, and now kind of watch all the teams, but I'm a hardcore hockey fan and oh yeah LEAFS SUCK!"
Thanks Dick. I hope you enjoyed the Isles punking out the Sens last nite. Joey MacDonald represent!
BGD - here's some more from someone who's backed more losers than Cecil Fielder:
"It was fun and exciting," Dhillon said. "I just hate them so much and they think that they are better than everybody. I think everyone just as a whole in all of Canada collectively think they suck."
Apparently Sarah Palin's speechwriter has found a new gig.
"This is exactly how I felt about tonight's game in Edmonton. It is such an awesome experience to be able to drown out the home team's fans in their own arena.
1967, 1967, 1967. Whatever. Rain or shine, Leafs fans are everywhere, cheering on their team."
Hey, just read your tremendous fanpost. I feel exactly the same way - let's hope the Buds can make it two in a row! I too will be wearing the jersey of a Leaf netminding legend (Felix the Cat, not Cujo)
I know this dude who's both a Leafs fan AND a Yankees fan!
I'm a leaf and sen fan. I like Cliff Ronning AND Bill Muckalt equally.
I will concede one thing to Vancouver they somehow managed to pawn off the worst hockey announcer in the world on us. That almost makes up for their collective metrosexual accomplishments of losing an NBA franchise and a kickass racing event in practically the same year. Kind of makes you wonder if there are any men left out there other than ex draft dodgers who insist on electing Hedy Frye and Libby Davis repeatedly.
Besides hoping for a Leaf win tonight I am hoping fervently that Jim "the human mute button" Hughson gets homesick this weekend and goes back to radio broadcasts in Vancouver.
I get it now.
I grew up surrounded by Leaf fans. Blue and White was everywhere. But, since the mid-80s, I've always liked the Flames. I watch lots of Leaf games (I live in Toronto now) but I don't hate them. My life doesn't revolve around how bad the Leafs are (like Sens, Canucks, etc. fans). My life revolves around how good MY team is doing, not how crap another team is (except the Oilers).
I was in Texas recently watching the Cowboys play. Everyone there loves the Cowboys. Everyone not there generally hates them. It's the same with the Leafs.
24/7 is a crap site, and like the Sens blogs, contains about 40% Leaf content. "Not jealous" my ass!
Not reading The Cox since 1989.