I Really Hoped I Was Wrong...

...But maybe I was right. At least it seems that way.

It all begins with this post, after which I noted that Jim Parrot's expressed desire to claim a Stanley Cup victory as glory for himself (well, for Vancouver, BC, and Canada, but mostly for himself) as opposed to glory for the players.

I tried to get the message through to him: that it was the players who had to win the victory, the players who deserved the glory for it, and that he had no right to attach his values to them without their consent.

But Jim has a thick skull. He refused to listen, and went on a two-week long binge of bandwagon jumping and demagogic grandstanding.

I sat back and paid attention. And a disturbing pattern emerged.

It seemed to me that each time Jim wrote a post questioning the patriotism of any Canadian fans not backing the Canucks, or wrote a post about how badly victimized the Canucks and their fans allegedly have been, it seemed like the Canucks would lose the next game.

At one point Jim even pointed the finger squarely at Prime Minister Stephen Harper, blaming him for the Canucks game 4 loss (this despite the fact that Canadian teams have a 2-1 record in the Stanley Cup finals when Harper attends a game). Jim directed Harper to "stay away from our Canucks".

Jim, it seems, had also claimed what was believed to be the Canucks' impending glories for the political left. In this he merely did what all too many political extremists do: that is, make everything about politics. About their politics.

I'm not really a superstitious person. At times I enjoy to feign superstition, because sports-related rituals can be a lot of fun.

I don't believe in anything like hockey gods. But the Canucks' loss has me thinking about changing my mind.

On each side of the ice in this series, there has been a magnificent goaltender who deserves to win the Stanley Cup. In Roberto Luongo, there was a bedrock of a goaltender who was won nearly everything there is to win. In Tim Thomas, there was a goalkeeper who, despite his advanced age, refuses -- simply refuses -- to fade.

But somewhere in between these two players, perhaps the hockey gods saw something else. Perhaps they spied Jim Parrot, this vindictive little worm of a man, trying to claim the glory of a Stanley Cup win for himself; for his own narcissistic ends.

Perhaps the hockey gods looked upon Jim Parrot, heard his petulant whining, his bizarre demagogic grandstanding, and saw someone whose narcissism just cannot be justified. Perhaps it was enough to tip their favour toward Tim Thomas.

Or, much more likely, the hockey gods just don't exist. Injuries to Michael Samuelsson, Dan Hamhuis, Mason Raymond, and Alex Edler (who played game 7 with an undisclosed injury) caught up to them. Perhaps it was the Canucks' lack of championship-calibre play (allowing too many goals in the opening or closing minute of a period, giving up too many blowout victories to their opponents and generally proving themselves to be a fragile team with questionable heart). Poor officiating in the closing games of this series was definitely a factor as well.

One way or the other, maybe the Vancouver Canucks just lost, and Jim Parrot has to live with it, victim mentality and all.

To most Canucks fans, the average Canadian hockey fan should tip their hat. They showed up to support their team in nearly-undreamed of droves, and did so without a surplus of violent incidents or a riot. To most Canucks fan, the message should be: don't give up.

It sucks that your team lost, but all is not lost. Next year is another year. Hopefully, the Canucks can apply the hard lessons learned this year to the postseason next year, and rise from the ashes of this defeat with a triumphant victory.

For Jim Parrot, however, the message is entirely different: before the next time you try to claim someone else's accomplishment as your own, before you try to attach your politics to them without even asking for their agreement, before you try to use a hockey playoff as a wedge between Canadians of the left and the of right, think twice.

At least show them that much respect.


Well, fuck - Everything seemed to be going so well. Thanks, assholes, for ruining a good memory for a lot of people; including your fellow Canucks fans.