If you remember the final scene from the classic silent film starring Rudolph Valentino, Blood and Sand, then you know the fate of the protagonists and antagonists in the story. Ultimately, they are forgotten, a new hero emerges, and the show continues. Two nights ago, in the city of Montreal, one such contest between the hometown protagonists called the Canadiens squared off against their rivals the Bruins, who are antagonists from Boston, Massachusetts. With the score 4-0 heading toward the end of the second period, a loose puck by the boards played a crucial role in the drama called hockey.
The colours, scoreline, fans, coaches, and players are forgotten for an instant. The motionless body of a human being lies flat on his chest, as if the definition of "Pacioretty" is exactly what you see. That is false: He has parents, family, friends, hopes and dreams of one day being a successful hockey player, but he also has a fractured 4th vertebrae, and a sever concussion. For that instant Mr. Pacioretty, a man who most of us might pass on the street without blinking an eye, was all that mattered to everyone who watched him lying on the ice. However, like most moments, it passed and we demanded justice, or at the very least, a penalty.
The focus turned to the garish 6'9" captain of the Bruins Zdeno Chara, who bodied a man half his size into a dangerous partition of the rink. Five minutes would never be enough, and neither would a game misconduct: We wanted justice, retribution, a shove, a fight for a fallen comrade that was one of "us". We wanted to take sides on the issue: Those who claim its legitimacy in keeping with the dangerous and thrilling tradition of the game, and those who claim its intent represents the depraved state of our current society. Does it remind you of anything?
(I do apologize for the state of the previous video. There isn't one clean video of the incident, and the author has a clear agenda I have mixed opinions about.) Almost to the anniversary of this incident no one in authority made a substantial change to the game of hockey to root out this element. After all, it sells tickets, whips beat writers into a frenzy, get fans in their seats, notches hits on YouTube, and keeps franchises afloat. Names such as Todd Bertuzzi, Matt Cooke, and almost every player on the New York Islanders are at the forefront of fans' minds; which unlucky matador will cross paths with these raging bulls? Who will be the next Rudolph Valentino: Marc Savard, Scott Moore, or Max Pacioretty? Who will be the next Eric Lindros?
If the game was less about 'Blood and Ice', what kind of game would we see? If the game was more about Savard, Moore, Pacioretty, and Lindros, would hockey be a different sport altogether?
No comments:
Post a Comment