last week, I was asked who my favorite hockey team was. well not really, cause I had this activity where students had to think of questions to ask me and then answer them as if they were me. anyways, they said my favorite team was the oilers and while the penguins will always, always, occupy a special place in my heart, they just can't compete with the fact that I've lived in Edmonton for so long.
I read something awhile ago about fairweather fans and while they are rightfully deplored for many reasons, it is sometimes forgotten that their 'fairweatherness' prevents them from enjoying in a team's successes as much as the so-called 'true fan.'
while I did initially hate the oilers and resent their success, the suckiness that began in 1992-93 and lasted until the end of 1995-96 went a long way into making me an oilers fan. since they were no longer a threat to my penguins, I could afford to cheer for them.
now, being away from home and from friends and family, it is totally obvious that the oilers mean more to me than the penguins. I mean I still love the pens but I just can't relate to them as well as to the oil
jeudi 25 septembre 2008
dimanche 21 septembre 2008
phil fuckin bourque
While waiting for saturday night hockey to once again provide some entertainment, I've taken to watching a couple of classic Penguins games. Last night I finished watching their game 6 shellacking of the North Stars which brought the team its first Stanley Cup.
One of the things that struck me the most (re: made me the most nostalgic) was not that the Pens had such a killer team (Mario, Coffey, Stevens, Francis, Mullen, Jagr, Murphy, Barrasso etc.) but rather the presence plumbers like Bob Errey and Phil Bourque.
A plumber is a hockey player who is not supposed to stand out save for their intensity and their general lack of touch around the net. This is not to say they don't ever get scoring chances. In fact, since these players are not known for their offensive prowess they often find themselves wide open. However, their on-ice responsibilities consist of mostly not allowing a goal while their superior teammates rest.
Now, Bob Errey actually played on Mario's line for awhile and Phil Bourque somehow found himself playing the point with Coffey on the powerplay so it could be argued that these two aren't the purest of plumbers. Nonetheless, I will try to make them serve my purpose.
While it only makes sense that the best players tend to be the most popular, I'd posit here that the older the fan gets, the more he appreciates the work of the plumber. As a child, Mario Lemieux was my idol. I'd make highlight reels of his goals, collect his cards and study his moves. For me, Mario was someone to aspire to be just as Sidney Crosby is for millions of kids nowadays. The kids are drawn to these players for their awesome ability and dominance that allows them to determine the outcome of the game.
As fans get older and realize that their dreams of becoming just like their childhood hero are depressingly untrue that, essentially, they've been lied to by who told them they can be whatever they want to be, the fan develops a markedly different approach to players.
This disillusionment has the older fans now crediting their childhood hero with what is called "god-given talent". While it is clear that no god exists, this sort of statement serves in part to justify their athletic failure since unlike Gretzky or Lemieux, God simply didn't give them the same talent. Indeed, they often go as far as to tell themselves that they "really never had a chance" to be the next Gretzky or Lemieux.
Now, it is obvious that very few players can ever approach Gretzky and Lemieux let alone be their become the next ones. Gretzky and Lemieux were Gretzky and Lemieux precisely because they were unlike everybody else. What is important here, however, is how this 'revelation' affects their allegiances.
As an older fan, they become more apprehensive to young up-and-comers (such as Crosby), denigrating him as a baby and the like. In reality, they are jealous of and threatened by the precocity of such players for it reminds them of their own 'god-given' inability. It should seem natural, therefore, that such fans find comfort in the plumbers' modest talent. They are rarely disappointed by the plumbers' failure to bury a chance since the plumber status serves, essentially, as a carte blanche. Nobody really expects the plumber to come up big and score the game-tying goal. As long as they chip in offensively and don't commit a defensive gaffe which leads to a goal against, their role is revered.
Thus, as I was watching Game 6, I was struck by the tenacity of a certain hunched-over #29. Sporting a broomball helmet (which the NHL subsequently banned for its lack of protection), the player in black and yellow flew down the rightwing boards and cut into towards the goalie on a partial breakaway. With a wide-open net and Jon Casey at his mercy, he calmly slid the puck along the ice right into the......goaltender's outstretched arms.
For those familiar with the Penguins 1991 Stanley Cup Video, Phil Bourque is by far the most interviewed Penguin. With a beautiful mullet and the requisite playoff facial hair, Bourque elaborates at length how he loves scoring empty net goals, claiming to love them "more than anyone else in the league." What a beauty!
I recently bought this card, his rookie.
One of the things that struck me the most (re: made me the most nostalgic) was not that the Pens had such a killer team (Mario, Coffey, Stevens, Francis, Mullen, Jagr, Murphy, Barrasso etc.) but rather the presence plumbers like Bob Errey and Phil Bourque.
A plumber is a hockey player who is not supposed to stand out save for their intensity and their general lack of touch around the net. This is not to say they don't ever get scoring chances. In fact, since these players are not known for their offensive prowess they often find themselves wide open. However, their on-ice responsibilities consist of mostly not allowing a goal while their superior teammates rest.
Now, Bob Errey actually played on Mario's line for awhile and Phil Bourque somehow found himself playing the point with Coffey on the powerplay so it could be argued that these two aren't the purest of plumbers. Nonetheless, I will try to make them serve my purpose.
While it only makes sense that the best players tend to be the most popular, I'd posit here that the older the fan gets, the more he appreciates the work of the plumber. As a child, Mario Lemieux was my idol. I'd make highlight reels of his goals, collect his cards and study his moves. For me, Mario was someone to aspire to be just as Sidney Crosby is for millions of kids nowadays. The kids are drawn to these players for their awesome ability and dominance that allows them to determine the outcome of the game.
As fans get older and realize that their dreams of becoming just like their childhood hero are depressingly untrue that, essentially, they've been lied to by who told them they can be whatever they want to be, the fan develops a markedly different approach to players.
This disillusionment has the older fans now crediting their childhood hero with what is called "god-given talent". While it is clear that no god exists, this sort of statement serves in part to justify their athletic failure since unlike Gretzky or Lemieux, God simply didn't give them the same talent. Indeed, they often go as far as to tell themselves that they "really never had a chance" to be the next Gretzky or Lemieux.
Now, it is obvious that very few players can ever approach Gretzky and Lemieux let alone be their become the next ones. Gretzky and Lemieux were Gretzky and Lemieux precisely because they were unlike everybody else. What is important here, however, is how this 'revelation' affects their allegiances.
As an older fan, they become more apprehensive to young up-and-comers (such as Crosby), denigrating him as a baby and the like. In reality, they are jealous of and threatened by the precocity of such players for it reminds them of their own 'god-given' inability. It should seem natural, therefore, that such fans find comfort in the plumbers' modest talent. They are rarely disappointed by the plumbers' failure to bury a chance since the plumber status serves, essentially, as a carte blanche. Nobody really expects the plumber to come up big and score the game-tying goal. As long as they chip in offensively and don't commit a defensive gaffe which leads to a goal against, their role is revered.
Thus, as I was watching Game 6, I was struck by the tenacity of a certain hunched-over #29. Sporting a broomball helmet (which the NHL subsequently banned for its lack of protection), the player in black and yellow flew down the rightwing boards and cut into towards the goalie on a partial breakaway. With a wide-open net and Jon Casey at his mercy, he calmly slid the puck along the ice right into the......goaltender's outstretched arms.
For those familiar with the Penguins 1991 Stanley Cup Video, Phil Bourque is by far the most interviewed Penguin. With a beautiful mullet and the requisite playoff facial hair, Bourque elaborates at length how he loves scoring empty net goals, claiming to love them "more than anyone else in the league." What a beauty!
I recently bought this card, his rookie.
samedi 20 septembre 2008
message no. 2
L'Océanic de Rimouski a perdu hier soir contre les Remparts de Québec. C'était la prémière défaite de la saison pour ma nouvelle équipe. Malheureusement, je ne pouvais pas écouter le match à la radio mais j'écoutais l'après match qui portait exclusivement sur le camp d'entrainement du Canadien de Montréal.
Ayant beaucoup écouté les après-matchs comme enfant quand les matchs n'était pas diffusés aussi souvent, j'étais content de ne pas trouver grand chose qui distinguent ces québecois des albertains auxquelles je me suis habitués à écouter. De temps en temps, je le faisais aussi mais ca fait longtemps que je n'appelle pour être entendu.
Ils ont parlé, pour la plupart, de Carey Price et Guillaume Latendresse. Le premier a perdu à peu près 20 livres au cours de l'été tandis que M. Latendresse, quant à lui, en a perdu 10. La question posée était donc, pourquoi Carey était si lourds l'an dernier et est-ce que c'était ces livres en excès qui ont contribué à la défaite du Canadien face aux Flyers de Philadelphie. C'est vrai qu'il n'a pas bien joué dans cette série mais je pense plutôt que c'était Martin Biron qui a gagné la serie pour les Flyers.
Tout ça pour soulever la question de notre obsession avec nos équipes préférées. Qu'est-ce que ca révèle de nous, de nos vies? Qu'elles soient plattes, c'est entendu, mais que les hommes d'une quarantaine d'années sentent l'obligation (jusqu'à un certain point) d'appeler et dire au monde ce qu'ils pensent de Carey et Guillaume me fait refléchir de la psychologie des fans.
Ecoutez-bien, je n'écrit pas pour critiquer ces gars qui appellent mais pendant cette année isolée, j'ai l'intention de mieux comprendre l'importance d'hockey vis-a-vis la société dans la quelle je me trouve. Si, j'ai l'air critique c'est surtout car je me vois dans les actions et paroles de ces mêmes gars.
Franchement, le fait que ce type des gars existent me plaît beaucoup car il justifie, en partie, mon obsession avec l'hockey. (J'utilise le mot 'obsession' dans son sens vulgaire, non psychologique.) Mais je me demande toujours si la façon dont je me comporte est bien justifiée.
Comme enfant, je n'étais pas au courant de l'haine que beaucoup de monde porte sur le sport. C'est sur que ces gens-là sont souvent des gens qui n'ont pas bien réussi leurs gym classes et étaient, on peut supposer, critiqués et choisis en dernière place. Une des raisons pour lesquelles je me pose ces questions c'est parce que beaucoup de mes amis font partie de groupe et, d'une certaine façon, je tâche à les convaincre ou, plus proche de la vérité, je tâche à me justifier dans leurs yeux.
Je suis bien conscient que ce désir obsessif dit plus longuement sur moi que le monde cité en haut.
Ayant beaucoup écouté les après-matchs comme enfant quand les matchs n'était pas diffusés aussi souvent, j'étais content de ne pas trouver grand chose qui distinguent ces québecois des albertains auxquelles je me suis habitués à écouter. De temps en temps, je le faisais aussi mais ca fait longtemps que je n'appelle pour être entendu.
Ils ont parlé, pour la plupart, de Carey Price et Guillaume Latendresse. Le premier a perdu à peu près 20 livres au cours de l'été tandis que M. Latendresse, quant à lui, en a perdu 10. La question posée était donc, pourquoi Carey était si lourds l'an dernier et est-ce que c'était ces livres en excès qui ont contribué à la défaite du Canadien face aux Flyers de Philadelphie. C'est vrai qu'il n'a pas bien joué dans cette série mais je pense plutôt que c'était Martin Biron qui a gagné la serie pour les Flyers.
Tout ça pour soulever la question de notre obsession avec nos équipes préférées. Qu'est-ce que ca révèle de nous, de nos vies? Qu'elles soient plattes, c'est entendu, mais que les hommes d'une quarantaine d'années sentent l'obligation (jusqu'à un certain point) d'appeler et dire au monde ce qu'ils pensent de Carey et Guillaume me fait refléchir de la psychologie des fans.
Ecoutez-bien, je n'écrit pas pour critiquer ces gars qui appellent mais pendant cette année isolée, j'ai l'intention de mieux comprendre l'importance d'hockey vis-a-vis la société dans la quelle je me trouve. Si, j'ai l'air critique c'est surtout car je me vois dans les actions et paroles de ces mêmes gars.
Franchement, le fait que ce type des gars existent me plaît beaucoup car il justifie, en partie, mon obsession avec l'hockey. (J'utilise le mot 'obsession' dans son sens vulgaire, non psychologique.) Mais je me demande toujours si la façon dont je me comporte est bien justifiée.
Comme enfant, je n'étais pas au courant de l'haine que beaucoup de monde porte sur le sport. C'est sur que ces gens-là sont souvent des gens qui n'ont pas bien réussi leurs gym classes et étaient, on peut supposer, critiqués et choisis en dernière place. Une des raisons pour lesquelles je me pose ces questions c'est parce que beaucoup de mes amis font partie de groupe et, d'une certaine façon, je tâche à les convaincre ou, plus proche de la vérité, je tâche à me justifier dans leurs yeux.
Je suis bien conscient que ce désir obsessif dit plus longuement sur moi que le monde cité en haut.
vendredi 19 septembre 2008
narcissism unchecked
The isolation inherent in moving across the country to a place you've never been and where a foreign language is spoken, is the raison d'être for the blog. Armed with a surplus of alone time never before experienced, I have returned, in sorts, to my 10 year-old self.
The most obvious consequence of this transformation is that my attachment to hockey is at a 16 year high. It is, in fact, through hockey that I feel I will connect to les québecois. To this end, I have fulfilled a childhood dream by purchasing season tickets. The team in question: l'Océanic de Rimouski.
A blog, I suppose, should be able to justify its existence by its content. This will undoubtedly prove difficult but the only niche I can think of right now is as one who blogs about the Océanic in english.
'let the great experiment begin' - tobias
The most obvious consequence of this transformation is that my attachment to hockey is at a 16 year high. It is, in fact, through hockey that I feel I will connect to les québecois. To this end, I have fulfilled a childhood dream by purchasing season tickets. The team in question: l'Océanic de Rimouski.
A blog, I suppose, should be able to justify its existence by its content. This will undoubtedly prove difficult but the only niche I can think of right now is as one who blogs about the Océanic in english.
'let the great experiment begin' - tobias
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