He’s a true Be-Leaf-ber
Pop superstar pegs the Blue and White to win Stanley Cup
Whether they win or lose, Justin Bieber bleeds blue for the Buds.
But in this pandemic-shortened NHL season, the London, Ont.-born pop star is picking the Toronto Maple Leafs to win Stanley Cup.
After Toronto's Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and Joe Thornton combined for seven points (three goals, four assists) following Saturday's 3-2 road win over the Ottawa Senators, Bieber shared an image of the Leafs' logo to his Instagram page with the words, “This is the year.”
The Leafs were 2-1 going into last night's tilt against the Winnipeg Jets with the NHL season now underway.
The team's official Instagram responded to Bieber's post with a series of blue-hearts, with former fan fave Darcy Tucker adding a flame emoji.
Bieber and his wife Hailey, who were regularly spotted inside Scotiabank Arena cheering on the Leafs when the team could have fans in the stands, celebrated the return of hockey last week during Wednesday night's game against the Montreal Canadiens.
On his Instagram stories, Bieber shared a series of clips showing he was watching the team on television from his Californian home, with words of encouragement, including, “Cmon boyzzz” and “LESGOOOO.”
Last summer, during the Leafs' playoff qualifier against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Bieber shared an imaged of Matthews and William Nylander with the words, “MY HERO'S.” He also praised his wife in a video of himself celebrating after the Leafs tied the Blue Jackets in an elimination game.
“LET'S GO LEAFS!! LOVE WATCHING THESE GAMES WITH MY WIFE SHE MAKES IT 100000 TIMES BETTER!! WHAT A GAME! WHAT A COMEBACK!! I HAVE NO WORDS,” he wrote.
But though Bieber is a diehard Leafs fan, some followers of the team have blamed the singer for crucial playoff losses, citing the “Bieber curse.”
Following the team's Game 7 loss to the Boston Bruins in 2019, fans lashed out at Bieber and Toronto rapper Drake, who were spotted cheering the team in person throughout the series, prompting then-Leafs coach Mike Babcock to weigh in on allegations of a curse.
“I've heard lots of things since I've come here,” Babcock said at the time. “But that's one of the craziest things. The game is played on the ice by us. There's no curse whatsoever.”
In 2017, USA Today's unscientific investigation into whispers that Bieber's fandom means doom for teams proved inconclusive. While his appearance at a Pittsburgh Steelers bible study group was blamed for the team's inexplicable loss in 2014 to the New York Jets, he was spotting hanging out with then New England tight end Rob Gronkowski just a few months before the Pats won the 49th Super Bowl.