Last night was the final game for the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup Championships. It was meant to be a historic win in the NHL for either team. Boston Bruins and Vancouver Cunucks were fighting for the win and took it all the way the final game of the series. Both teams played their best and in the end, it was the Boston Bruins who won the title. This was historic for them because it's been since 1972 since the Bruins won the Cup and for the Canucks, they haven't won one since their team was born in 1970.
I would not have watched any of the games had it not been for the man I'm dating. He is a hockey player and fan. He records the game on his DVR and we watched it long after the game started. I had turned off the computer and phone so I wouldn't accidentally find out before the end of the game; being a Boston, Massachusetts fan, I knew I was rooting for the Bruins. Had it not been for them, I may have cheered on the underdog Canucks.
I did not drink let alone get drunk, nor did I cheer or scream, I didn't even get up and dance. I was happy for Boston and of coarse, the Bruins.
My first reaction when the game ended was how odd it was to see the fans still in the stands to watch the Bruins get their Cup. From what I saw, they booed the Chairman who gave the award to Boston but when they skated around the ice with the Cup in their hands, all I could hear were cheers coming from the crowd. They cheered when their very own resident, who plays for the Bruins, got the Cup. It was almost as if the fans were more happy to see a team win.
I could only imagine what the streets of Boston looked like, I had not stopped to think of what was happening on the streets of Vancouver.
My cousin from Montreal had called and left a message on cell phones voicemail to congratulate my team. Little did he know, I wasn't partying or drinking, I was sitting quietly, watching with a smile on my face, happy that the city I call my home had their seventh Championship in ten years for all four professional sports. The New England Patriots won 2001, 2004 and 2005 Super Bowls. The Boston Red Sox won the 2004 and 2007 World Series and the Boston Celtics have won the 2008 NBA Title and now, the Bruins are the 2011 NHL Champions. A victory for die hard hockey fans, a historic moment for them indeed. Think of it, seven titles in ten years. Bostonians are athletes for sure, there's no denying it and their fans are loyal, committed and extremely supportive. In the years I lived in Beantown, I had never heard a lot of cheers for the Bruins.
In 2004 my cousins and I watched the Super Bowl in Kenmore Square; at a bar across the street from Fenway Park. After the game, the fans poured out of bars and cheered the Patriots victory. As a matter of fact, I stayed in the bar a tad bit longer to watch Tom Brady's interview and he said and I can't directly quote him because it's been awhile since I heard it but he did tell the residents of Boston to be careful with their city. The fans didn't hear, they stood in the middle of the streets and started a bonfire in which they danced around. There was a lot of rioting and partying all over the city.
That fall, when the Red Sox finally beat the New York Yankee's in for the Championship and a chance to head to the World Series, fans were out of control. I had not gone out that night, but, I'm sure I would've picked a bar in Kenmore Square, on Lansdown Street. I will forever be grateful I had not done so.
After the game, as expected, fans poured out from everywhere. I can't tell you the details but I know the crowds were celebrating the victory a little too much and the cops came out in full force, with paint guns and all. One cop fired and hit a girl in the eye, she died immediately.
That year, I apologize for not remembering which game it was (Patriots or a Sox victory) somewhere around Northeastern College Campus, a teen was walking across the street while everyone was celebrating and a car drove by and hit him, he later died. The driver of the car never stopped or turned his self in.
Since the news of those incidences broke out, I've forever been fascinated with fans. I want to understand society a bit more and the fascination fans have and the obsession people have for athletes, teams and celebrities alike.
In 2005, during the Patriots Super Bowl, the city of Boston was empty. Cops were out and ready to arrest anyone who tried to act up. The celebrations were at home instead of out in public. In 2008 for the Celtics victory, the crowd was controlled but still celebrating outside on the streets. Last night, Boston fans cheered everywhere they could and according the news reports, only two arrests were made.
In Vancouver, British Columbia, hurt and angry fans decided to riot and tear the city apart.
I ask, what is the point of turning cars over and starting fires in the streets to destroy public property? The last time I heard of this destructive behavior was in Montreal, when the Montreal hockey team either won or lost the Stanley Cup. I also heard this kind of destruction happened during a Guns n'Roses and Metellica concert in Montreal.
It was not the only time or place that things like that happen.
In soccer, fans riot and act dangerously, people die from celebratory victories or from the upset they feel for losing.
That behavior doesn't make sense to me.
So far, in NASCAR I've noticed the rivalry is different. Sure it's out there between fans, especially on the teams Facebook and twitter pages.
Fans hate Kyle Busch and make it obvious.
Fans also hate Dale Jr and they razz out JR Nation.
My question is: "Why? Why the destructive and hateful behavior?"
