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What was it like being a Canucks fan in the 70s and 80s?


freebuddy

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Orr was a tough guy himself. Although there were cheap shots his career was ended more so by the way he played. Like Bure, he skated with speed and reckless abandon. Knee injuries were inevitable. Unfortunately knee surgery wasn't nearly as refined back then as it is now and Orr didn't like cashing a cheque for not playing. He came back too soon from his knee injuries which was also a factor in shortening his career.

One of the great things about getting our NHL franchise was starting out in the same division as the Bruins. As a result I got to see Orr play live several times. He was truly magic on the ice.

Yeah, I saw Bobby here that first year and can still remember so many things about that night, March 13, 1971. I was just a little shaver, but I was awestruck. Was down by the visitors dressing room entrance (anyone from that time will remember you could go right down there and see them 20 feet away) and watched the Bruins come out for warm-up. It was like a procession of Gods before my very eyes.

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Yeah, It's amazing actually that Vancouver largely missed some incredible entertainment in those days.

What would people pay now to watch Gretzky in his prime? Or even just to see an 80's style hockey game?

I don't think they would be prepared for the level of entertainment value,

Half way through the first, all those iPhones would mysteriously disappear.

The first time I ever saw Gretzky and Oilers as that high-flying, fill-the-net team was Dec.31, 1981. I bought tickets for my Dad and I.

What happened? The Canucks won 3-0. Go figure.

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For anyone wanting to get a sense of Canuck hockey from the white/blue/green days....go to Youtube and type in 'Canucks 1975' and watch an edited version (58 minutes) of the last game in the first playoff series the Canucks ever played, from April 1975 against the Habs. The Canucks lost in 5 games (OT), but they played hard as heavy underdogs. At least you can get a sense of who some of the key players of that era were (Boudrias, Lever, Smith, Oddleifson, Dailey...not to mention Leon 'Cheesy' Rochefort). Fun stuff to look back at for those that remember, too.

And, uh....thanks for nuthin', Kearnsy! :mad:

That '75 team, could have been something special. The year before Phil Maloney fleeced the Leafs by trading Dave Dunn, for Garry Monahan and John Grisdale. During that season, I think they went through an awful winless streak, around 9 or 10 games, but put it all together and made the playoffs. I was at a game when I thought they had snapped it, versus the Rangers. The Canucks tied it late in the third, but on the faceoff after the goal, the Rangers got the winner. I never heard the Coliseum so quiet, after being so loud and noisy moments before.

Dennis Kearns must relive that goal going in off him over and over. He was one of the fans whipping boys during that era, I never understood why.

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The thing I miss most about the 80's and going to Canucks games is the Coliseum. I loved it when my dad would pick me up from daycare after a day of BORING school, and we'd hit McD's and then off to see Tony Tanti, Petri Skriko, and Richard Brodeur (who I'm actually pretty close with now!).

Like most have said, yah they were garbage. But being a kid in the 80's, you only cared about being there.

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I don't think I ever saw the Canucks beat the Oilers live in the '80s and that was out of probably a dozen times.

It was hard to beat a team that usually went double-digits against you. There were plenty of those. I remember listening to a 13-2 loss in Edmonton that was well beyond depressing.

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It was hard to beat a team that usually when double-digits against you. There were plenty of those. I remember listening to a 13-2 loss in Edmonton that was well beyond depressing.

I saw one where the Canucks had a 3 goal lead in the 3rd that turned into something like a 9-7 loss.

Holy Crap, Bobby Hull is on TSN1040, I didn't know he had a football scholarship to Colorado Springs

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Any of you remember running your stereo sound system through the vcr? That's what I did during the early '90's, and during the SC run in '94, we had Jim Robson calling "he'll play, you know he'll play, he'll play on crutches". Classic.

I remember listening to Jim Robson and Bill Stevenson reconstruct Vancouver Mounties baseball over the radio, in the early '60's. I was in my early teens, and would hit rocks with an old baseball bat, to try and see, if they would make it to the other side of the river. All of course when one of the Mounties hit a home run. It sounded like you were at the stadium in Portland, Spokane, or Seattle. The radio would fade in and out in the early evening, and sometimes you'd miss an entire sequence, but Jimmy would re-cap it anyway. This was done on CKWX, of all stations, as they were the sports station.

Radio listening back then, was far different than it is now, 'NW used to be that spot until they turned into blah, blah, blah radio, and I don't really care for the personalities on TSN 1040, because all those guys seem to be looking for a controversy, instead of a story.

I remember this,,big Mountie fan back then...I was even at a game when Hall of famer Brooks Robinson was playing 3rd base for the Mounties and went for a pop up and ran into the wire fence and cut his arm badly..he didnt play for awhile but when he made it to the Orioles he sure did.

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Did you ever listen to Big Al Davidson on NW?

Tiger Al was a beaut.

At one point his boat down in the marina caught fire and was totaled. There was a whisper around that it was deliberately set ablaze. Shortly after, on a postgame broadcast, Harry Neale called Al "Captain Charcoal".

I just about pissed myself.

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i use to say, give me a team of stan smyl's and we'll with the cup....my favorite player ever on the canucks, although i loved andy bathgate of the pcl's vancouver canucks..

Brother, I'm with you on Smyl. Nobody ever worked harder than Stanley. He was 100% effort 100% of the time. Never took an easy stride and never took anything for granted. I've seen them all...nobody can tough Stanley for work ethic.

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Tiger Al was a beaut.

At one point his boat down in the marina caught fire and was totaled. There was a whisper around that it was deliberately set ablaze. Shortly after, on a postgame broadcast, Harry Neale called Al "Captain Charcoal".

I just about pissed myself.

if Gillis had a personality like Harry Neale, he'd probably still have a job

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if Gillis had a personality like Harry Neale, he's probably still have a job

Harry Neale was a very good coach but he was a lousy general manager. With the exception of getting the club's first sniper in Tony Tanti for Curt Fraser, Neale's trades were horrific. His drafting, other than drafting Cam Neely, was lousy. Hiring Bill LaForge over Pat Quinn as coach....whoa.

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Harry Neale was a very good coach but he was a lousy general manager. With the exception of getting the club's first sniper in Tony Tanti for Curt Fraser, Neale's trades were horrific. His drafting, other than drafting Cam Neely, was lousy. Hiring Bill LaForge over Pat Quinn as coach....whoa.

Yeah but his personality bought him another year and a half of work here.

He was probably my favourite guest on Angry Dan's Sportstalk.

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What was it like being a Canucks fan in the 70s and 80s, especially around the time when the Oilers were winning Stanley Cups?

While there were frequent moments of frustration the word that comes to my mind about that time is: exciting.

It didn't matter that the team lost a lot (well, it sorta' did), but there was always that hope that the team would play above their heads and we'd see a game like that first win over the Flyers, or even getting a tie with the Gretzky Oilers.

regards,

G.

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