Happy for the Blues
Boston’s Cup bid fell short in more ways than one
Congratulations to the St. Louis Blues on their first-ever Stanley Cup! From the crowd of 20,000 at Enterprise Arena’s sold-out “watch party” to the tens of thousands more at Busch Stadium and in downtown’s hopping streets, the celebration was no less joyous for being long-distance.
And thank goodness for the mini fireworks that sprayed up from the ice during the Cup presentation at TD Garden and blocked our view of Boston’s nasty fans. Many of those within the camera’s range made a big display of booing and giving the thumbs-down from the final buzzer onward. The Boston Bruins may share the black-and-gold colors with Pittsburgh, but you’d never mistake their fans for ours.
Boston has a long, rich sports history. Perhaps this has created a sense of entitlement so strong that Boston fans feel unusually aggrieved by any loss — even one that’s fair and square: St. Louis, in last place as recently as Jan. 3, simply outplayed every team it encountered. (Major props to the Blues’ record-setting rookie goalie, Jordan Binnington.)
Or perhaps Boston fans’ poor sportsmanship links directly to their team’s. Every hockey franchise has a man or two known for pushing the boundaries of fair play, but the Bruins’ Brad Marchand sets a creepy and dangerous new low. Kissing and licking opponents may be a psychological weapon to add to his many physical aggressions, but for sucker-punching the Columbus Blue Jackets’ Scott Harrington six weeks ago — when Mr. Harrington was already kneeling on the ice — Mr. Marchand should have been suspended and fined. Because he wasn’t, it was rather satisfying to watch him cry after the Bruins’ loss, but a team that tolerates his kind of playing shares the blame.
The better team won — better in more ways than one.
We wish the Blues continued success, unless they happen to be playing the Penguins, and even then we’ll be grateful for their worthy sportsmanship.