Thursday 20 February 2014

Hey Habs fans, STOP whining about PK Subban's Olympic ice time

It's been a while since I've written an actual blog post on this site. But, in light of the incessant, unpleasant and tiring bitching moaning about PK Subban, I felt compelled to 'unlazy' myself for a few minutes and vent.

To be clear, I am a fan of PK Subban. I enjoy watching him play with the Montreal Canadiens and I think he's a special player. However, don't shoot me, but I don't think he's the best player in the NHL. In fact, I don't even think he's the best defenceman in the NHL. I know, sacrilegious, right? Shame on me. Where do I get off?

The...um....people that keep taking to social media and talk shows to complain about PK Subban not playing at the Winter Olympics are, well, wrong, and viewing these games through red, white and blue beer goggles. These...um...fans are not seeing things through clears eyes and it is my sheer duty as a level-headed commentator to point it out.

Here are the facts. I know that Habs fans don't always like to deal in REAL facts, but I'll spew them anyway.

1. Team Canada's defence has more goals than its forwards, and it's not even close. Exactly why would they need another offensive defenceman in the lineup?

2. With Weber, Doughty and Pietrangelo all playing EXTREMELY well and lining up on the right side, why would it make sense to dress and play PK Subban on the right side?

3. PK Subban NEVER takes a regular shift on the left side, so why would you want him in the lineup, on the world's biggest stage, trying to adapt to playing left D, when you have elite left D-men who can get the job done?

4. Why would you need to dress Subban as a 7th D just for the power play? Are Weber and Doughty's bullets from the point, not to mention PP goals, not good enough for you? Plus, it's not like any team gets more than 2-3 power plays a game anyway.

5. This argument that no GM in the NHL would take Vlasic or Hamhuis over Subban is absurd and shows the ignorance of some ...um...observers. No team on the planet would want 6 offensive defencemen on the blue line. You need a mix of defensive D and offensive D. Therefore, with the amount of goals already coming from the D, and with Canada giving up the least amount of shots against per game in the tournament, why would you want to remove any of the current D from the lineup?

6. If there were two minutes left in the game, and the score was tied, who is most likely to pick up a penalty? Weber, Doughty, Pietrangelo or Subban? Right or wrong, refs picking on him or not, you know that the answer is Subban. So why would you want him in the lineup over any of those other D?

I am not a PK Subban hater. But I am a Mike Babcock decision lover. I am also someone who believes in rooting for Team Canada no matter what. So instead of lamenting how Subban, of Toronto, is not in the lineup, maybe Habs fans could root and celebrate players like Vlasic, of Montreal.

But alas, any Habs fan reading this through their red, white and blue goggles will simply read that I am a racist or a PK hater. Sigh, a lost cause.

Enjoy the rest of the games, everyone. Go Canada!

Matthew Ross will be on TSN 690 this Sunday, right after the Hamilton Bulldogs game, until 8pm. 

3 comments:

  1. You are not a racist nor a hater, and you make some good arguments in your blog, but there are equally compelling hockey arguments one could make for inserting PK in the lineup as well. These arguments get lost in the twitterverse when it's flooded by the type of pro PK comments you bemoan in your article.

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  2. Absolutely agree with you. Partisanship for their hockey club is getting in the way of a lot of fans viewing this objectively, much like you have just done. Just goes to show that not every fan out there (regardless of their team loyalty) has a technical understanding of the game nor do they appreciate the pure level of talent that is there on the back end.

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  3. Thanks for sharing such great memories! I too share my experiences with anyone who will listen.

    Ice hockey bag & Roller blades

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