As Canadians, we like to remind ourselves that hockey is OUR game and WE invented it.
Because Canada is the gold standard for hockey success, anything but a gold medal is seen as a failure.
The World Junior Hockey Championships just wrapped up and Canadians found themselves in an unfamiliar position – on the outside looking in.
Canada lost in the quarter-finals to the eventual tournament champion Finnish squad.
It was a close game that featured a late flukey goal for the Finns and a missed overtime penalty shot. In the end, Canada lost in extra time.
This was the first time that Canada has failed to medal at a World Juniors hosted on home soil.
This was a blow that was just too much for some Canadians.
So they took to the social media page of Canadian captain, and 19-year-old, Maxime Comtois. Keyboard warriors from across the country jumped at the chance to hurl insults at a teenager they felt let them down personally.
It was Comtois, after all, that missed the penalty shot for Canada in overtime.
In fact, the criticism was so harsh that the Roy Sports Group – the agency that represents Comtois – issued a statement decrying the “shameful” behaviour of these “cowards.”
Since news of the abuse first broke, many people have rushed to defend Comtois. His junior team revealed he’ll be out of commission for the next few weeks as he recuperates from a separated shoulder.
That’s right, he played with a separated shoulder. But apparently, he didn’t give enough.
While it’s nice to see so many people rush to defend Comtois, some are capitalizing on the opportunity to advance their own agenda.
Parti Quebecois interim leader Pascale Bérubé said that the abuse Comtois faced was a direct result of anti-francophone racism.
Although it’s not shocking that some would use something like the verbal abuse of a teenager for political gain, it is surprising that anyone thinks this kind of behaviour is reserved for any particular group.
Walk into any hockey rink across Canada and there is a good chance you’ll see a grown adult shouting at a teenager.
“Skate! Skate! Skate!” some parents yell at their child as if he or she isn’t already doing just that.
“Come on Ref get your head out of your (insert body part here)!” parents scream at a 16-year-old official trying to make some extra cash.
Let’s not act like this behaviour is exclusive to some group of horrible people hiding behind the anonymity of a keyboard. It’s not. It’s part of our DNA.
Sure, those who took to Comtois’ social media page to hurl insults at him deserve to be chastised.
But there are many people who need to acknowledge that their own behaviour contributes to the attitude that this kind of stuff is acceptable.
If a child sees a parent berating an official over a perceived missed call, it stands to reason that the child will see their parent’s behaviour as acceptable.
Maybe we’d all be better served to take a step back and just enjoy the game for what it is – a game.
Chris Lowrey
