Disgruntled Sports Musings

Things I don't like that I've noticed during the 2nd round of the NHL playoffs:
1. That Habs fans feel the need to boo the opposing side's best players. Happened to Ovechkin in the first round and now it's happening to Sidney Crosby and (to a lesser degree) Evgeni Malkin. I'm all for chirping opposing players but every time Crosby or Ovechkin touched the puck in le centre bell it was accompanied by a large chorus of boos. What makes this booing so pathetic is that it's happening not because Crosby has been a particular thorn in the Habs side (because he really hasn't) or because he hassled them to the press (god forbid) or because he made a dirty hit that took one of the Habs players out but just because he's Sidney Crosby. What's even worse is that one can be sure that every single one of those booing assholes were cheering and weeping like little girls when Crosby scored that OT goal on February 28th, 2010 in Vancouver. Lame sauce.

2. You know what else is lame sauce, the fact that Habs fans sing that Olé Olé Olé song at all points in a game. We hear it when: the Habs are down but just scored a goal, when the game is tied and then if the Habs are winning. The ONLY appropriate time to hear that song is when a team is running away with the lead or at the end of a match when your team is winning.

3. NHL conspiracy theories. Detroit lost because they were outplayed and out of gas. They took stupid penalties and although there were plenty of phantom and missed calls every team is a victim of these things. Trust me, I'm a Vancouver fan, we love to make up bullshit conspiracy theories as an excuse for our team's poor play.

4. Inconsistent officiating. Referees are human and so, much to the chagrin of fans everywhere, they make mistakes. What I don't understand is when you call a penalty, say slashing (especially the much-used slashing the hands), and then 10 minutes later it happens, in front of you and you don't call it. Or, when a blatant infraction happens 3 feet away from the referee but because they missed a call on the opposing team earlier in the game it goes uncalled. Also, when a play is an infraction for a notorious player, like Burrows or Byfuglien, but not for players of good reputation, like Toews or Bergeron.

5. Towel Power in cities other than Vancouver. Find another way to get your fans engaged and Get off our jock. (note: If your city participates in this but the towels aren't white then I guess you're off the hook).

6. That the Chicago Blackhawks arrived in Vancouver for Game 6 with their bags already packed for San Jose. Hawks fans will call it practical planning and to be sure it is but for a team that claims not to be looking ahead and to be taking things one-game-at-a-time as Captain Jonathan Toews has asserted many times in this and the Nashville series this move reeks of arrogance. This makes the possibility of extending the series to it's maximum all the more sweet for the Canucks and their fans.

7. Press scrums with players. Conferences with NHL coaches can usually produce some smirk-inducing quotes and occasional glimmers of insight but interviews with players are about as mundane and cliché-filled as they come. That's maybe why I like Cabbie on the Street-his interviews are usually a little more revealing and the players seem a lot more relaxed and willing to show some personality.

photo via emptynetters.