Botchford talks honouring Daniel Saturday, the Sedins, and media influence on players

[Green Building]

 

I'm pretty vocal with my dislike of Botchford, but he wrote an article that doesn't actually suck for once, so... good job, Botch. I kind of forgot you had it in ya', keep it up, bud.

 

 

                                            

 

Quote

December 1st, 2017

 

 

Daniel will rightfully be honoured Saturday afternoon before the start of the Hockey Night in Canada game at Rogers Arena, in front of the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs. The brothers will probably be honoured one more time — when they leave the Canucks. It should be more.

 

 

 

Really, the Sedins got off easy. 

Yes, they were cruelly, unfairly mocked by fans, media and even players. And people said, well into their NHL careers, they’d never make it. I mean, they had already made it, but the thought was they would never be worth the two top picks from which their illustrious Vancouver careers were birthed.

Whoops. 

But just picture the deafening social media shrieking if their careers started now, instead of 17 years ago. It’s the age of immediacy, where knee-jerk declarations are not only common, they are required. After his fourth season, Henrik was 24 years old and he had just reached his highest point total at 42. I suspect that would have inspired a lot of “hashtag bust” and “RIP Canucks” comments, not only here but around the country. 

On their paths to 1,000 points, those early years were the dark days for them and the rest of Vancouver, too. Its hockey-adoring population still suffers the residual guilt. It’s one reason why the hockey fans are so resolute in defending the Sedins even against the slightest of slights. 

The NHL felt the wrath this week. The league’s social media team celebrated Daniel’s 1,000th point Thursday night in Nashville by tweeting: “Might not be the prettiest, but it’s worthy of 1,000 points for Daniel Sedin.” 

For those who didn’t see the milestone point, Daniel’s shot is tipped in by a Predators’ stick. Because of it, there aren’t many east of the Kootenays who would have noted that tweet as being, well, offensive. In Vancouver, however, it was seen entirely differently. Honestly, it was a perfect way for him to reach 1,000 points. Daniel, from the top of the slot, nearly ruled hockey for a couple of seasons, and that’s from where he got this goal. 

It also came midway in the third period and tied what was among the most exciting Canucks games in three seasons. Sure, the bar is low, but that was still some fun. It was fitting, it came from a Brock Boeser pass, too. The rookie is at the front of the line among those who the Sedins are figuratively handing the keys to in this, the season which many believe will be their last. 

Did the league do it justice? Of course not, and Vancouver sure let it know about it. Not long after that little social media brush fire was ignited, the NHL deleted the tweet. In the big picture, a “not the prettiest” comment wasn’t really that bad. It was, however, symbolic of the sense in Vancouver that the Sedins really never get their due.  

The lockout came after the Sedins’ fourth season. They returned to Sweden and improved their skating, among other things. When Vancouver next saw them, their careers took off. In Henrik’s next seven seasons, he hit at least 70 points in all of them. It was a remarkable run of consistency during which time the Sedins were among the very best in the game. 

Were they fêted that way outside of Vancouver? It never felt like it. It always seemed a lot of people never got over the early years. They did here. Daniel will rightfully be honoured Saturday afternoon before the start of the Hockey Night in Canada game at Rogers Arena, in front of the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs. The brothers will probably be honoured one more time — when they leave the Canucks. It should be more. 

Jordan Eberle made a striking comment recently when he suggested the coverage of him in Edmonton helped sink him in that city. He was talking about how negative coverage can impact a player. At first glance, it’s easy to dismiss. The fact the New York Islanders are barely on the coverage map in that city hasn’t helped them one bit in the past 30 years. 

And big-time teams generate the most coverage, and several teams, like the Boston Red Sox, have had no problems. But things are different now. Players are actively on social media, and if they aren’t, their friends and family are because it’s what we all do. On social media, everyone can be reached. You can get to everyone, including the opinionated president of the United States. 

This world would have been more difficult for the Sedins as young players to navigate without being sunk. It would have been harder for them to escape the noise. And no one can be sure how it would have all gone down. Thankfully, they came into the league in the nick of time.
 

 

[Green Building]

I found the little tidbit about Eberle interesting, but not entirely surprising. Sometimes it's tough enough for a regular Joe to keep positive thoughts, let alone a player under a microscope of negativity in a hockey mad city. I'm sure the weight of that isn't easy to bear regardless of how much money you're making, or how much you desire to improve.

 

Does anyone agree with Botch that the Twins may have had a harder time trying to break into the league now than they did 17 years ago? 

[xereau]

There are still several passive aggressive between the lines digs, in true Botchfordian fashion, if you know what to look for.

[Green Building]

3 minutes ago, xereau said:

There are still several passive aggressive between the lines digs, in true Botchfordian fashion, if you know what to look for.

Sure there are, at least he wrote something generally positive in response to Daniel's big night. 

[darkpoet]

41 minutes ago, xereau said:

There are still several passive aggressive between the lines digs, in true Botchfordian fashion, if you know what to look for.

BINGO 

ding ding ding ding ding

give this man a cigar. and a glass of port. this is not a positive article at all. if anyone needs clarification, I'll be happy to point it out. 

[darkpoet]

38 minutes ago, Green Building said:

Sure there are, at least he wrote something generally positive in response to Daniel's big night. 

Except he didn't. He fooled you into thinking that's what he was doing, while actually doing the opposite.

Which is why it was called out as "passive aggressive" in the first place.

What a jerk that guy is. 

[Nuxfanabroad]

Well, contrast the twins' style with Daterape Doubty/Karlsson who both use the social media to fast fwd their financial outlook.

 

In the end, the twins must have been raised well, & I'm glad we got the pleasure of these two decades.

 

What's more, the young kids Van have drafted(highly touted ones) seem mostly respectful, decent young guys. Glad JB & TL seem to be prioritizing character.

[spook007]

1 hour ago, Green Building said:

 

I'm pretty vocal with my dislike of Botchford, but he wrote an article that doesn't actually suck for once, so... good job, Botch. I kind of forgot you had it in ya', keep it up, bud.

 

 

                                            

 

Its a kind of an odd article...

 

I do like though, that its pointed out how pathetic the NHL is treating the fact that a Canucks and Sedins in particular has reacted this milestone.... Any Player hitting 1K, should be celebrated by the NHL with fanfare, as this is a massive achievement.

[Green Building]

1 hour ago, darkpoet said:

Except he didn't. He fooled you into thinking that's what he was doing, while actually doing the opposite.

Which is why it was called out as "passive aggressive" in the first place.

What a jerk that guy is. 

I know what passive aggressive means. To be honest, offering him 2 niceties puts me at 2 total for the year and I'm already tired of defending him. Was never going to battle that one too hard anyways.

 

It was obvious there was going to be a Sedin tribute, but I hadn't heard about there being 1 prior to reading the article so at least he mentioned that. 

[Twilight Sparkle]

yay daniel

 

boo bitchford.

 

that is all.

[Qwags]

The best part is that Kadri has to watch the whole thing.

[khay]

4 hours ago, Green Building said:

 

I'm pretty vocal with my dislike of Botchford, but he wrote an article that doesn't actually suck for once, so... good job, Botch. I kind of forgot you had it in ya', keep it up, bud.

 

 

                                            

 

It's funny that Botchford, a member of the Vancouver media, who probably joined in on crucifying the Sedins in their early years, is writing this piece. 

 

 

[spook007]

48 minutes ago, khay said:

It's funny that Botchford, a member of the Vancouver media, who probably joined in on crucifying the Sedins in their early years, is writing this piece. 

 

 

All media are the same... Ultra short memories... It where the ' what have you done for me lately' stems from...

A pack a blood sucking wolves, with the hearts and souls of rats...

 

Thats how they make their living... Scum...

[Jester13]

4 hours ago, darkpoet said:

BINGO 

ding ding ding ding ding

give this man a cigar. and a glass of port. this is not a positive article at all. if anyone needs clarification, I'll be happy to point it out. 

Sure. Thanks in advance. 

[appleboy]

So what can we learn from this as Canuck fans.

We are now in a rebuilding mode and will see young players come in , some will struggle and go through growing pains. Different personalities will be efected by the media barrage in different ways. Players like Jake who because of their draft position will have huge expectations put on them. 

We need to understand that what we say through today's media can be destructive. The media feeds off negativity because it seems to be what people want to hear.

As fans can we change that? Can we play a part in making Vancouver the best place for young talent to develop and grow?

The Sedins were obviously strong confident people but also had each other to lean on. Having them there certainly helps our young players and gives them someone to look up to. 

What can we as fans do to create a better atmosphere?

[tas]

2 hours ago, khay said:

It's funny that Botchford, a member of the Vancouver media, who probably joined in on crucifying the Sedins in their early years, is writing this piece. 

 

 

believe it or not, in his earlier days at the province, Botchford was actually the voice of reason and a pretty damn good journalist. 

 

during the Nonis years is when I remember seeing more of his articles, and I looked forward to reading them. at the time the 2 dominant province Canucks writers were Tony Gallagher and Ed Willes, who generally had conflicting views on most matters, Gallagher a little more negative, Willes a little more positive. Botchford would write articles that by comparison seemed unbiased and fairly neutral and were usually informative and insightful. 

 

after Nonis was axed and replaced by Gallagher's buddy Mike Gillis, Tony and Ed basically swapped roles as far as tone went. At the same time, Willes started writing fewer and fewer Canucks pieces in general and Botchford got a bigger role, and due to the negativity void, he had to take up that side of things. 

 

as the social media revolution motored on and more and more traditional print media outlets were forced to cut back, Botchford decided to embrace the social media and ditched his journalistic ethics and trudged through the mud with all of the bloggers and Twitter morons that didn't have the obligation of maintaining journalistic integrity. this was his way of surviving, I assume. 

 

at the same time, Postmedia merged the province and the sun and Gallagher soon retired, leaving the two opposite forces of Botchford vs. Iain MacIntyre. Botch was your typical black hat, negative and happy to fight dirty, and IMac was the last bastion of light, an old school white knight who valued his journalistic credentials over all. we all know how that turned out.

 

now it's just Botchford left, with Ben Kuzma sort of lurking in the shadows putting out inoculous, non-confrontational articles and trying to stay out of the way. 

 

that's how I remember it at least. send that post to Botchford and let him address it in the Provies. 

[Wilbur]

1 hour ago, appleboy said:

So what can we learn from this as Canuck fans.

We are now in a rebuilding mode and will see young players come in , some will struggle and go through growing pains. Different personalities will be efected by the media barrage in different ways. Players like Jake who because of their draft position will have huge expectations put on them. 

We need to understand that what we say through today's media can be destructive. The media feeds off negativity because it seems to be what people want to hear.

As fans can we change that? Can we play a part in making Vancouver the best place for young talent to develop and grow?

The Sedins were obviously strong confident people but also had each other to lean on. Having them there certainly helps our young players and gives them someone to look up to. 

What can we as fans do to create a better atmosphere?

I'd like to think we can, to a certain degree.  I see the odd comment from time to time from people that head over here from HFBoards and they'll complain at how CDCer's can make them feel unwelcome due to their negativity (they'll think they're "being real").  But I think the culture has long been established here that being a fan is supposed to be fun.  Respectful criticism is fine, but leave your negativity at the door.

[YummyCakeFace]

Omg are we ever a bunch of crybabies. We whine about everything. Oh someone said something negative and now we're gonna cry about it. Grow a pair and stop being such whimps. You're embarrassing the rest of us on the left coast. No wonder the eastern media hates us. So mentally soft. 

[appleboy]

21 minutes ago, Wilbur said:

I'd like to think we can, to a certain degree.  I see the odd comment from time to time from people that head over here from HFBoards and they'll complain at how CDCer's can make them feel unwelcome due to their negativity (they'll think they're "being real").  But I think the culture has long been established here that being a fan is supposed to be fun.  Respectful criticism is fine, but leave your negativity at the door.

I doubt to many of the players come near these sites. I mean the overall feel within the city. The main stream media causes most of the problems. 1040 have always been the most negative and have pushed that attitude out to the fans. Some of their regular callers are pathetic and they encourage it.

[Gaudette Celly]

7 hours ago, darkpoet said:

Except he didn't. He fooled you into thinking that's what he was doing, while actually doing the opposite.

Which is why it was called out as "passive aggressive" in the first place.

What a jerk that guy is. 

He's gotten smarter, knowing that even the self-hating fans here see through his thinly-veiled tripe.  Now he does his mockery and smarm more surreptitiously as if he actually cares about the welfare of the team.  For the most part it's much like Gallagher -- his rep is sealed and I don't think anyone buys it, no matter how hard and heavy Bro Jake and Scatt worship and fawn over him on their show.  I notice that their Botch-polishing really amped up after they outed him on-air as a Leaf fan, so they must have been given a talking-to by TSN.

 

5 hours ago, Qwags said:

The best part is that Kadri has to watch the whole thing.

...then will proceed to go out and take out Daniel with another headshot, this time knowing that there's no chance of retribution.  Then Botchford can come out and simultaneously whinge on the Canucks for having "no physical response" unlike his manly leafs with Kadri and Martin, while he berates and mocks Gudbranson for being the worst defenceman in the league behind Sbisa and how they absolutely must get rid of him (preferably to Toronto, of course).

 

This is Botchford's favourite time of year -- his Leafs are in town and he's as giddy as a love-struck schoolgirl over a boyband, hoping they'll give him lots of ammo for his upcoming smarmfests against the Canucks.