Having moved to Vancouver in Dec 1991 I found myself in a city who's sports fans shared one common feeling. An abject hatred of all things Maple Leaf related. From the saturday night telecasts to the coverage on TSN the city just moaned in agony with every second of Maple Leaf broadcasts. I felt like a Mormon missionary trying to spread the good news in Mecca. Not too popular.
At first I did my best to fit in here. I did not like having to live through the invasion of Hab fans that inundated Toronto in the '70s. They were escaping the dreaded Rene Levesque and his band of country splitters or nation builders depending on your political leanings. They brought with them a disdain for all things Leafy and a rather unhealthy dose of Habitant cup fever. I will not mention the series with them in '78 after Lanny scored the goal heard around Leaf Nation against the Isles that propelled us into the aforementioned Montreal.
I tried to treat Vancouver the way I wished the Hab fans had treated us in T.O. After 1 year of this attempt I had to stop as the anti-Leaf vitriol was just a little too much for my Blue and White heart to forgive.
Happily that happened to coincide with deep play off runs and a very entertaining brand of hockey coming out of Hogtown.
The Leaf coverage is down much from our once lofty hold on the country's media, as even TSN has a much more "regional" look to it than before. How many play off games would I race home to in those years gone by just to see a few seconds of the third period due to the curse of time zones and 2800 miles of spinning earth between me and my Leafs.
Happily my local bar is owned by Leaf fans. They do not have Leaf memorabilia up as they do not wish to be the favorite target of rabid Canuck arsonists but every time the Leafs play, it makes it to their old school projection big screen TV. I am willing to put up with their unbelievably disapointing food to sit amongst fellow Leaf fans and watch our boys do their best.
I have been to many games the Leafs have played here. So many fans showing their true colours and love for The Buds. Leaf sweaters everywhere. The chants of "Leafs Are NOT our favorite team" though that may not be exactly what they chant, that is how it is translated in my mind.
In these troubled times when the Canucks are Presidents Choice winners or whatever... I can only dream of the life my mother had. Born in 1924 she lived through all the Leaf cups, all the glory years and would look at me in pity when horrific things like Reg Leach shots would knock us out of hotly contested series. Looking in those blue eyes I was filled with the belief that she was right. It WAS just next year that the Leafs would win.
Having lived through the ups and downs of the last few decades I can still say that mom was right. The Leafs do continue to win. Not in the Charlie Sheen way but in a lasting kind of Red Sox way. They cannot shake off the love we feel for them. Try as they might some nights and let's remember what happened to the Sox and hope that rubs off on our frustrating franchise.
It is difficult days we live in brothers and sisters. For those of you in the broadcast area of the GTA, please, when you are watching the endless coverage of our team on every channel think of us poor people flung far across the world. We are dreaming of a chance to see 24 hr Maple Leaf broadcasts. Send us more of you so that we can stem the tide of these upstart franchises that have sprouted up around the Original Six like weeds. Send us hope so that we know that you care about us, out here, in the frontier. Go Leafs Go
At first I did my best to fit in here. I did not like having to live through the invasion of Hab fans that inundated Toronto in the '70s. They were escaping the dreaded Rene Levesque and his band of country splitters or nation builders depending on your political leanings. They brought with them a disdain for all things Leafy and a rather unhealthy dose of Habitant cup fever. I will not mention the series with them in '78 after Lanny scored the goal heard around Leaf Nation against the Isles that propelled us into the aforementioned Montreal.
I tried to treat Vancouver the way I wished the Hab fans had treated us in T.O. After 1 year of this attempt I had to stop as the anti-Leaf vitriol was just a little too much for my Blue and White heart to forgive.
Happily that happened to coincide with deep play off runs and a very entertaining brand of hockey coming out of Hogtown.
The Leaf coverage is down much from our once lofty hold on the country's media, as even TSN has a much more "regional" look to it than before. How many play off games would I race home to in those years gone by just to see a few seconds of the third period due to the curse of time zones and 2800 miles of spinning earth between me and my Leafs.
Happily my local bar is owned by Leaf fans. They do not have Leaf memorabilia up as they do not wish to be the favorite target of rabid Canuck arsonists but every time the Leafs play, it makes it to their old school projection big screen TV. I am willing to put up with their unbelievably disapointing food to sit amongst fellow Leaf fans and watch our boys do their best.
I have been to many games the Leafs have played here. So many fans showing their true colours and love for The Buds. Leaf sweaters everywhere. The chants of "Leafs Are NOT our favorite team" though that may not be exactly what they chant, that is how it is translated in my mind.
In these troubled times when the Canucks are Presidents Choice winners or whatever... I can only dream of the life my mother had. Born in 1924 she lived through all the Leaf cups, all the glory years and would look at me in pity when horrific things like Reg Leach shots would knock us out of hotly contested series. Looking in those blue eyes I was filled with the belief that she was right. It WAS just next year that the Leafs would win.
Having lived through the ups and downs of the last few decades I can still say that mom was right. The Leafs do continue to win. Not in the Charlie Sheen way but in a lasting kind of Red Sox way. They cannot shake off the love we feel for them. Try as they might some nights and let's remember what happened to the Sox and hope that rubs off on our frustrating franchise.
It is difficult days we live in brothers and sisters. For those of you in the broadcast area of the GTA, please, when you are watching the endless coverage of our team on every channel think of us poor people flung far across the world. We are dreaming of a chance to see 24 hr Maple Leaf broadcasts. Send us more of you so that we can stem the tide of these upstart franchises that have sprouted up around the Original Six like weeds. Send us hope so that we know that you care about us, out here, in the frontier. Go Leafs Go
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