#StayNegi: In The Defense of The Vancouver Canucks

Picture this: It’s your birthday.  There’s a big tasty double fudge cake with big scroll like letters sitting on the counter.  Across it says “Happy Birthday!”.  Safe to assume that cake is yours, right?  Wrong.  It’s not yours, not to mention, you’re not allowed to touch it, sample it, or lick the frosting.  You have to sit there and watch everyone else have a piece or in some cases 4.  

Now replace you with the Vancouver Canucks, the birthday cake with the Stanley Cup, and everyone else with the 19 other teams that have won the Cup.  I have to say, I feel for the fans.  I really do.  It’s got to be difficult to stand by your team, year after year, only to walk away empty handed.  

Now don’t get me wrong.  I don’t want to see the Canucks ever win a Stanley Cup.  Why would I?  I’m a Calgary Flames fan.  But when push comes to shove, if the Stanley Cup Finals ever ended up Canucks versus Pittsburgh Penguins, you can bet I’ll be the first one out there buying a damn Canucks shirtsey.  

I will give up hockey before I ever root for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

I’ve chatted with all sorts of people in the almost 3 years that I’ve been a part of Twitter, fans from all corners of the world and there are certain fan bases I just want to give a hug to, Canucks fans are part of that list.  I don’t want to hug those people responsible for the riots, I don’t want to hug those who follow the preachings of Jim Hughson.

I see the frustration of their fan base when I talk to them.  Most I’ve found are nothing but supportive of their team, they do not see them as a group that walks on water, but rather a bunch of guys working their asses off to bring the Cup to Vancouver.  There’s nothing wrong with being a Canucks fan.  I hope to meet more of you as I work my way through befriending the totality of hockey fans on the internet.  

But Pittsburgh Penguins fans?  How can you have such massive gaps in your collective memory when it comes to team history.  The timeline does not start with the arrival of Mario, stop when he leaves, and resumes with Crosby.  There were years before Mario and years after.  As you sit and laugh at the Islanders struggle to stay in place, remember you were there not too long ago.  Oh wait, you mean you forgot that your team filed for bankruptcy?  Twice.  Yeah that’s right.  Despite all your “success” there’s been more shitty years than awesome.  And hey, that’s okay.  Every team hits the skids at one point or another.  But get off your goddamn high horse.  Mario won’t be around forever, and as you’ve recently learned, Sid isn’t untouchable.  He gets hurt too.  

As the Oilers, Islanders, Canadiens, Leafs, and Wings have learned, dynasties come to an end, but I can’t even call the Penguins a “dynasty” y’all have won one Cup since becoming this so called “super power” within the NHL .  

Lemme try again.  Eventually the chemistry will fizzle, fans will grow weary of Sid’s face everywhere (after all this is the US, not Canada), and the Steelers will win a Super Bowl.  

But the Canucks fans will always be chasing that Stanley Cup win, whether Henrik rocks the “C” or it’s a future player honing his chops now on the Chicago Wolves, they still have that hunger.  They want a slice of that cake and how can you not like them for that?  As hockey fans we are all that fat little kid craving a big slice of Stanley Cup cake.  

That being said, feel free to continue to not succeed in the post season, both of you guys.  It’s great amusement for the rest of us.  

Stay Negi my friends.