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spotto A few weeks back (or a month? eh) we were eliminated in five games by the Los Angeles Kings.
Yeah, the guy in my avatar came in after two games of our number one letting in a few bad goals.
Or at least, that is what you would ASSUME. In reality the entire team was just doing awful and Luongo did his best to hold the fort. The reason to switch up the goaltenders was not due to his poor play, but to shake things up. Wake up the team, make them change their habits lest end up letting the other team light-up our other goaltender too! I was quite happy and overjoyed when we won the fourth game. I kept telling myself though, not to be too happy since we're still in our deep, deep hole. We've just avoided being buried for a while, so we can climb out. Sadly we couldn't go it in game five, to lose in overtime...somewhat heartbreaking.
But I found it pointless to rant about it in this blog after that happened because it already happened. I read through many opinions of fans, non-fans and the like. While I was a bit down for a few days, I soon got over it. Just a few hours back the Los Angeles Kings swept the St. Louis Blues. A few years ago I'd be upset because I was one of those immature folk who go around spiting teams that have beaten us, trying to feel better about our loss. But unlike a team like Chicago or Boston, I felt no ill-will to the Kings. Oh sure, there were some questionable plays and some fans thought they were dirty, but I think every team's fans feel that way about the opposing team. In the playoffs, our bias grow into substantial heights and we want to glorify every single thing our hometown team does while painting the opposition so badly it's almost like they were sent by the devil.
However I truly feel no ill-will of the Los Angeles Kings. My only beef might be that they're rivals to the San Jose Sharks, a friend of mine's favourite team. I like rooting for friend's teams as well. But SJS is out too and I truly believe these Kings are the real deal. I think the reason we lost were due to a whole lot of dumb mistakes, and if we had our act together the series would've instead went to seven games. But note that, I didn't say we'd easily win if we minimized our mistakes. I already knew from the get-go the Kings would be tough and the series would be tight. We'd have to come with our best if want to beat them, but we simply didn't show up. They easily too advantage and everyone from their team elevated their play, so we lost.
A first round exit, definitely not the expectations of such demanding fans here in Vancouver. Nonetheless I'm not even that surprised. Ever since we canned Nonis all those years back, I had always said that the coach should have been fired too. I still believe that, and I'm willing to bet we won't have much success the longer we keep this coach. His decisions don't really impress me at all, and we lost to Chicago those two times due to ultimately being out-coached I think. I feel our team is spectacular, the best we've had in franchise history but the potential and talent we have is being wasted because our management, especially the coaching, isn't up-to-the-task. Maybe I'm overestimating my own team? Maybe the coach really has brought them to the best of their ability and this is what's to show? In the majority of the latter half of the season, we barely squeaked by many wins with little effort. Our star players went on the worst slump since their rookie years and we made a rather demoralizing trade, in my opinion, during the Trade Deadline. Our coach is there to pump up the team right? I know many people argue it isn't completely the coaches' job to make sure the players are motivated, but look at LA, the team that beat us!
Their year was far from perfect, in fact mediocre. Many people thought they would be excellent this year because their team, at least on paper, had a whole assortment of excellent players...yet for some strange reason they underachieved! It was a new coaching change that began a wave of good things like more scoring and better all-around play! The reason many people cite for their less-than-stellar season? The team not being motivated, and a coach came in and did that...now they're tearing through the playoffs despite being an eighth seed. So if their team can be demotivated despite having a great players, and are now finding tons of success...isn't that the same for us? The excuse I kept hearing during the season of our lazy play was that due to our position in the standings the games had little meaning, we were already guaranteed a spot in the playoffs. Our reason for not playing well in the season was how much we looked forward to the playoffs, and yet we lost in the first-round.
Anyway I am not going to throw my opinion into what goaltender we should keep, why Kesler underachieved, why anything at all happened. For now I will simply accept whatever comes our way because it is out of my hands. I certainly didn't want Hodgson traded, but now the GM comes out and pretty much states that he was a problem player, and that he implied the guy didn't want to be here. Yet Hodgson seemed so classy, so accepting of his role during his speeches and interviews. Whatever his true feelings on the matter are, I wouldn't know.
It's funny, in the beginning of the season both I and my friend, Doughboy, who is the Sharks fan, agreed that this season was not going to be as exciting as the last because we both thought our team this year wasn't as good as last year. Then both the Canucks and Sharks lose in the first round, it's as if we already knew this would happen. Either way, what's done is done. Everyone will be a year older and the cup window will be closed soon, so if not next year maybe not for a while? Who knows.
What I do know is that, rather than feeling spite or disdain for the Kings and their fans...I feel happy for them. They too have yet to win a Cup, and they have rarely reached the Conference Finals (this is their second time in franchise history) even if LA is a rich city with lots of other sports franchises that are probably more successful, I still want their hockey fans to feel the same way we did last year. The exciting rush pass all the teams we played into the Cup Final, and I sincerely hope they do not experience the heartbreak we did on that Game 7, losing to the Boston Bruins. Their coach has the credentials to win after all. He coached an overachieving Flames team from a single win to the cup after all. Maybe this year some spectacular history can be made, since an eighth seed has yet to win the Cup. Sure they already made history through other records, but I'm sure on those player's minds they only care for that Cup.
And no, I'm not glorifying their team either. Certain players I may not like on that team, but to wish for the entire team to fail just because you dislike one-or-two is rather unfair to the rest of the players, does it not? Well as a hockey-fan I've a lot to learn about cheering for my own team. Perhaps I'm not a very good Canucks fan if I don't hate the Kings. Even though I dislike the Blackhawks a lot of the players on their team isn't so bad. The Bruins may have many players I don't like either, but that doesn't mean the entire team is stupid or something. Success is success, whether you like the team obtaining it or not. So I'll be satisfied no matter who wins the cup, but the dream of watching the blue, green, and white jersey lifting up the hardest trophy in sports one day won't die. I'm sure those fans who've been following the Canucks for their entire existence know much better than I do, so even if it's been seven long years of being a fan, here is to the eighth and hopefully lucky year. No matter who is on our roster, even if I have to begrudgingly tolerate our coach....I'll be a fan.
But for this playoffs at least? I do believe I am rooting for the Kings. (I was also rooting for Nashville but they're kind of in a deep hole like we were at the moment :C I'm rooting for the Caps in the East, only them. If they don't win it's West all the way!)
So uh, Go Kings Go?
Yeah, the guy in my avatar came in after two games of our number one letting in a few bad goals.
Or at least, that is what you would ASSUME. In reality the entire team was just doing awful and Luongo did his best to hold the fort. The reason to switch up the goaltenders was not due to his poor play, but to shake things up. Wake up the team, make them change their habits lest end up letting the other team light-up our other goaltender too! I was quite happy and overjoyed when we won the fourth game. I kept telling myself though, not to be too happy since we're still in our deep, deep hole. We've just avoided being buried for a while, so we can climb out. Sadly we couldn't go it in game five, to lose in overtime...somewhat heartbreaking.
But I found it pointless to rant about it in this blog after that happened because it already happened. I read through many opinions of fans, non-fans and the like. While I was a bit down for a few days, I soon got over it. Just a few hours back the Los Angeles Kings swept the St. Louis Blues. A few years ago I'd be upset because I was one of those immature folk who go around spiting teams that have beaten us, trying to feel better about our loss. But unlike a team like Chicago or Boston, I felt no ill-will to the Kings. Oh sure, there were some questionable plays and some fans thought they were dirty, but I think every team's fans feel that way about the opposing team. In the playoffs, our bias grow into substantial heights and we want to glorify every single thing our hometown team does while painting the opposition so badly it's almost like they were sent by the devil.
However I truly feel no ill-will of the Los Angeles Kings. My only beef might be that they're rivals to the San Jose Sharks, a friend of mine's favourite team. I like rooting for friend's teams as well. But SJS is out too and I truly believe these Kings are the real deal. I think the reason we lost were due to a whole lot of dumb mistakes, and if we had our act together the series would've instead went to seven games. But note that, I didn't say we'd easily win if we minimized our mistakes. I already knew from the get-go the Kings would be tough and the series would be tight. We'd have to come with our best if want to beat them, but we simply didn't show up. They easily too advantage and everyone from their team elevated their play, so we lost.
A first round exit, definitely not the expectations of such demanding fans here in Vancouver. Nonetheless I'm not even that surprised. Ever since we canned Nonis all those years back, I had always said that the coach should have been fired too. I still believe that, and I'm willing to bet we won't have much success the longer we keep this coach. His decisions don't really impress me at all, and we lost to Chicago those two times due to ultimately being out-coached I think. I feel our team is spectacular, the best we've had in franchise history but the potential and talent we have is being wasted because our management, especially the coaching, isn't up-to-the-task. Maybe I'm overestimating my own team? Maybe the coach really has brought them to the best of their ability and this is what's to show? In the majority of the latter half of the season, we barely squeaked by many wins with little effort. Our star players went on the worst slump since their rookie years and we made a rather demoralizing trade, in my opinion, during the Trade Deadline. Our coach is there to pump up the team right? I know many people argue it isn't completely the coaches' job to make sure the players are motivated, but look at LA, the team that beat us!
Their year was far from perfect, in fact mediocre. Many people thought they would be excellent this year because their team, at least on paper, had a whole assortment of excellent players...yet for some strange reason they underachieved! It was a new coaching change that began a wave of good things like more scoring and better all-around play! The reason many people cite for their less-than-stellar season? The team not being motivated, and a coach came in and did that...now they're tearing through the playoffs despite being an eighth seed. So if their team can be demotivated despite having a great players, and are now finding tons of success...isn't that the same for us? The excuse I kept hearing during the season of our lazy play was that due to our position in the standings the games had little meaning, we were already guaranteed a spot in the playoffs. Our reason for not playing well in the season was how much we looked forward to the playoffs, and yet we lost in the first-round.
Anyway I am not going to throw my opinion into what goaltender we should keep, why Kesler underachieved, why anything at all happened. For now I will simply accept whatever comes our way because it is out of my hands. I certainly didn't want Hodgson traded, but now the GM comes out and pretty much states that he was a problem player, and that he implied the guy didn't want to be here. Yet Hodgson seemed so classy, so accepting of his role during his speeches and interviews. Whatever his true feelings on the matter are, I wouldn't know.
It's funny, in the beginning of the season both I and my friend, Doughboy, who is the Sharks fan, agreed that this season was not going to be as exciting as the last because we both thought our team this year wasn't as good as last year. Then both the Canucks and Sharks lose in the first round, it's as if we already knew this would happen. Either way, what's done is done. Everyone will be a year older and the cup window will be closed soon, so if not next year maybe not for a while? Who knows.
What I do know is that, rather than feeling spite or disdain for the Kings and their fans...I feel happy for them. They too have yet to win a Cup, and they have rarely reached the Conference Finals (this is their second time in franchise history) even if LA is a rich city with lots of other sports franchises that are probably more successful, I still want their hockey fans to feel the same way we did last year. The exciting rush pass all the teams we played into the Cup Final, and I sincerely hope they do not experience the heartbreak we did on that Game 7, losing to the Boston Bruins. Their coach has the credentials to win after all. He coached an overachieving Flames team from a single win to the cup after all. Maybe this year some spectacular history can be made, since an eighth seed has yet to win the Cup. Sure they already made history through other records, but I'm sure on those player's minds they only care for that Cup.
And no, I'm not glorifying their team either. Certain players I may not like on that team, but to wish for the entire team to fail just because you dislike one-or-two is rather unfair to the rest of the players, does it not? Well as a hockey-fan I've a lot to learn about cheering for my own team. Perhaps I'm not a very good Canucks fan if I don't hate the Kings. Even though I dislike the Blackhawks a lot of the players on their team isn't so bad. The Bruins may have many players I don't like either, but that doesn't mean the entire team is stupid or something. Success is success, whether you like the team obtaining it or not. So I'll be satisfied no matter who wins the cup, but the dream of watching the blue, green, and white jersey lifting up the hardest trophy in sports one day won't die. I'm sure those fans who've been following the Canucks for their entire existence know much better than I do, so even if it's been seven long years of being a fan, here is to the eighth and hopefully lucky year. No matter who is on our roster, even if I have to begrudgingly tolerate our coach....I'll be a fan.
But for this playoffs at least? I do believe I am rooting for the Kings. (I was also rooting for Nashville but they're kind of in a deep hole like we were at the moment :C I'm rooting for the Caps in the East, only them. If they don't win it's West all the way!)
So uh, Go Kings Go?
