Abel to Yzerman

Abel to Yzerman

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12/20/2006 at 1:04pm EST

A few ditties to start your day...

I took it easy on Art. It’s Christmas. Let’s move on to another favorite topic: the sideshow thuggery that is the NBA. Often a punchline here, AlanaH points out today that all is fun and games until you start comparing the “association” to the NHL.

She points us to an article using the recent NBA street brawl as a means to lump the two groups of athletes together.

I’ll say this: compare the sports, the fans, the network contracts, anything you’d like. All open game. But the minute you start merging the two groups of athletes into one generalization, you’re an idiot. The differences in character, fan relations and genuine community concern are glaring. Our sport features athletes who become part of their communities. The NBA player does whatever he can to shelter himself from his city and his fan base.

Exceptions? You bet, on either side of that statement. But, by and large…it’s like AlanaH said: “Just keep your crazy NBA analysis off my NHL. Thanks muchly.”

So the Wings visited Columbus Monday. So did some Wing fans. Apparently quiet ones. Congratulations to those of you who visited Nationwide and conducted yourselves in a manner the BJ fans approved of. Because that’s important right? You paid for your tickets. You made the drive. You support your team. But all of that takes a backseat to acting in accordance with the home team fans’ idea of appropriate visitor behavior. Here’s a Dose of Reality from the End of the Bench.

Maybe last night’s game will be the one that makes the obnoxious Red Wing fans show some respect when they come to town. They were very quiet last night because before they knew it, they were behind 3-0. They cheered politely when they scored their first goal and were a little louder after the second, but it wasn’t anything like in the past. No chants, no standing up and smirking at us locals, and no drunks wanting to do a little more to rub it in.

Whew. No chanting or smirks. Polite cheering. Good job. We’d hate to have the fans of the Original 30 BJ’s thinking you’d gone overboard.

I like EOB, and I like the Dose of Reality segments. I also like whining hypocrisy because it allows me ample opportunity to point it out. And so I have.

Finally, as mentioned earlier, Sergei Fedorov returns tonite. Let’s try something a little different Wing fans. Let’s, just for fun, show some class and give the guy credit for the role he played in 3 Stanley Cups. Just this once, how about letting one of the greatest players to ever wear the Winged Wheel know that we appreciate what he did for the organ-I-zation. Booing him is ignorant and stale.

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About Abel to Yzerman

Welcome to Abel to Yzerman, a Red Wing blog since 1977. No other site on the internet has better-researched, fact-laden and better prepared discussions than A2Y. Re-phrase: we do little research, find facts and stats highly overrated and claim little to no preparation. There are 19 readers of A2Y. No more, no less. All of them, except maybe one, are juvenile in nature. Reminding them of that in the comment section will only encourage them to prove that.

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