Well, I was enjoying the sabbatical while it lasted. Leave it to all hell breaking loose on the Lower Mainland to rouse me from this hibernation.
So, here I was yesterday, prepping for what was bound to be a momentous Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins. While I was hoping for Lord Stanley's Mug making a triumphant return to north of the 49th for the first time in 18 years, in the back of my mind -- with memories of how bad the 'Nucks crapped the bed in Game 6 fresh in there -- I wondered if the Bruins would pull off an upset. Further fueled by my speculation were the news reports I had heard in the 2 days leading up to last night's contest of the nasty riots that transpired the last time Vancouver was in a Game 7 Cup Final back in 1994 when the 'Nucks lost to the Mark Messier-led New York Rangers. Jovially, I made a comment on Facebook to one of my friends, a Vancouver-area resident to the effect of "If the 'Nucks lose, we riot." Rightfully so, I was admonished at the time for such a tasteless quip. Unfortunately, little did I realize at the time that my premonition would become a reality.
As the game drew on and the Bruins were putting the puck behind Roberto Luongo, I was taking to my Twitter and lobbing pot shots at the lackluster performance by the homeside. Prime examples included: equating the performance of the Sedin twins -- back to back scoring title winners -- to the non-existence of LeBron James in the recent NBA Finals, and pretty much insinuating that the only reason Luongo won the Olympic gold medal 15+ months earlier was because Sidney Crosby bailed him out in overtime. The Bruins would end up winning the game by a final score of 4-0, and Tim Thomas -- the Boston netminder who backstopped the game deciding shutout -- would earn the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP. Once the hardware was being passed out, my concerns about some of the perturbed fan base that had gathered in the public viewing locales in downtown Vancouver were escalating. Would the scene turn ugly like it had 17 years prior? I think when most people watched the news late last night or early this morning know the unfortunate answer to that.
Now, I can understand people being upset over such an utter collapse. Hell, I probably would be too if I was more invested in the Canucks. But the thing that gets me is the sheer recklessness and irresponsibility of these wannabe anarchist hooligans. And yes, I'm calling them as such. Sure, they might object, but seriously, what true fan would show up to a public gathering to watch a sporting event with balaclavas in their gear? These weren't hockey fans; these were the same disenchanted youth and troublemakers you would find as part of those Black Bloc groups that cause mayhem and destruction at world summits. Need I flashback to the carnage that transpired in Toronto during the G-20 Summit back in June 2010? This was a page right out of it. I mean, seriously? Trashing and looting a drug store. There was live television footage of people swiping canisters of Pringles. I'm not kidding -- FREAKIN' PRINGLES?!? Are these looters residents of East Hastings and got a sudden case of the munchies? Or what's worse: these idiots take to social media, like Facebook to brag about their part in the madness. Hey, Earth to Klingons flying around Uranus, Vancouver's finest have been turning to these sites to help bust your dumb asses. Are these dopes so strung out on... well, dope... to realize that they're leading to their own demise? In the words of Oscar from Corner Gas, "Jackass!"
The disheartening thing I find about this whole matter was that these were the same streets where joyous fans celebrated Men's hockey gold back in February 2010; which begs me to question: Had Sidney Crosby not scored that winner 7 minutes and 40 seconds into the first overtime, and someone on the U.S. squad had netted that eventual "Golden goal", would we have seen a similar scene with the eyes of the world focused on us like we did last night? We were fortunate not to have suffered a black eye then, but because of the events of the past 24 hours, we just delayed it until now.
The clean-up of downtown Vancouver is already underway. I just hope there is a way for one of the world's most livable cities to get it's rep back.
Until next time, the views may be from the outside, but the actions of a select few last night make me ashamed to be a Canadian.
