American hockey fans: Have you ever noticed that a lot of Canadian hockey fans are anti American?

Question

A lot of Canadians seem angry that there are more American teams than Canadian teams, some of them are always ranting about southern cities having teams and how American teams are always winning the Stanley Cup. I once saw an answer on here from a habs fan and he said “the Stanley Cup was donated to Canada. It’s ours. Americans needs to keep their dirty fingers off it and give it back. It belongs here in Canada”.

When I was at a Sabres - Leafs game in Buffalo, NY Canadians who had drove down from Toronto booed the American anthem and waved their big Canadian flags in our faces. There was a USA vs. Canada fight near where we were seated. It *started* when a Canadian guy said “Americans are all stupid”, followed by “Buffalo is a dump!”, and then an American responded and it went on for the rest of the game.

Answer 1

Im Canadian and im not Anti-American.

This question makes you look like an Anti-Canadian.

Answer 2

Whatever the case, the Canadians on this site are our friends and we don't need to disrespect them like this.

Answer 3

To the person who said Canadian teams only generate 31% of revenue...do you realize what 31% of revenues is for the country with way less teams & people?

To the OP, I don't hate Americans, I have family in the States. Why would I hate my family? What I don't like is the fact that they have removed Canadian teams and sent them to American cities. How would Americans feel if they sent their football teams to Canadian cities, you end up with less teams than the Canadians do.

Of course America wins more cups, it's all set against a Canadian team winning, we're so few.

How fair is it that the cup that was meant for us is never here for us to enjoy. Sure many Canadian players are winning that cup, but it's just not the same. Anyone who boos the anthem is an idiot, no matter which country they come from.

p.s the fact that you don't want Canadians answer this question actually makes YOU look anti-Canadian. A little double standard.

Baron... you are one of them. You are anti Canadiens because we have the most cups.  People dislike the Habs because of that, the fact that so many hate us because of it is actually a compliment. So thank you :)

Hey Brian..your ex wife IS an idiot..for marrying YOU

Answer 4

I'm an American with many Canadian relatives- my mother's family arrived in Montreal from Scotland. Some went on to the States and here I am. Beyond Don Cherry on television, I do not get the impression Canadians hate Americans or American teams, but Cherry reserves most of his vitriol for European players.

Americans first booed the Canadian National Anthem because of a George Bush-led backlash. PM Chretien sent troops to Afghanistan but would not get involved in the looming mess in Iraq, so "hate Canada" arrived right after "hate France." Americans booed first, and I am ashamed. The next night at a Canadian rink, fans stood and cheered the American National Anthem. How's that for dignity?

If I was from QC, I'd be outraged even today that a team poised to win a Stanley Cup (and did) was yanked from under me and sold to Denver, where the average hockey fan's knowledge is limited to the chant "Red Wings S**K!" The vast majority of "biggest Avs fan in the world, baby!" are unaware the NJ Devils were once the Colorado Rockies, yep, in Denver.

Phoenix isn't supporting the Coyotes and the franchise should return to Winnipeg. There was a massive local effort to keep the team in Manitoba but the stronger American dollar won out.

I'd also be angry seeing bottom-feeding franchises like Atlanta and Florida year after year.

So I think from a Canadian's point of few, there are at least two and possibly three American clubs that should either be sent to Canada or shut down. And I agree.

Answer 5

YEP!! i have noticed that....

just watch the video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TxpxFqAV...

Answer 6

no I have noticed the complete opposite

Answer 7

OK i am here to prove a point as a Proud Canadian! Youve stated that canadians are anti- americans to answer to that maybe some are but most arent! i for one as a canadian have never disrespected americans in anyway! and i assure you that there are many other canadians out there who have never doone that either! but your being very bias in one way! your acting like americans have never booed our national anthem its just a crime us canadians have done! and you are wrong there i,ve heard many times where the canadian anthem was booed! So in this case your pointing fingers! your finding our wrongs but yet hiding ur wrongs! ok yes maybe we are angry that there are more american teams than canadian but have a reason to be angry! Hockey originated in Canada... its what we love to do! look im just trying to say that WE,ve been disrespetted before but you dont see any of us writing question about that! i am sorry if your national anthem was booed and i feel sorry for the idiots out there who have done that! but remember it has been way more times to our national anthem than yours!

to the one who said canada only brings in 31.1% of the ticket sales thats pretty damb good for 6 tweams! america has 24 team and they bring in 70% of the ticket sales! if you double  how many teams canada has which would make it 12 we would be bringing in 60% that is just as much but with only 12 teams! check facts next time! and i just read in the news paper this morning that the team that sold the most tickets and brought in the most money to nhl this season was Toronto! last time i checked toronto was a canadian ciity!

Answer 8

That is a pretty broad statement to make about Canadian hockey fans. Speaking as a Canadian hockey fan, I have no bitterness towards how many American-based hockey teams there are. Unfortunately, I think you probably ran into the small minority at the Leafs/Sabres game... and more than likely they had a few "pops" in them.

The issue I have is that hockey is being placed in US cities where it is not being supported & is evident by the club(s) losing money. I can only speak for Canada, as there are plenty of cities across the country who would love & are begging for a NHL franchise. Ottawa & Edmonton are no better in that they need to attend more games in support of their teams. For fans in Ottawa not to sell out the arena is shameful!!! And this happened a lot.

Unfortunately, as long as Gary Bettman has his say, that is NOT going to happen.

Booing a National Anthem in unacceptable whoever does it.

As a Canadian, I am not anti-American! If my team doesn't win the Cup, there are only a few teams I couldn't stand winning it... two of them being Canadian teams (Montreal & Ottawa). That would be devastating as a Leaf fan.

With all that said... Go Pens!!!

Answer 9

be careful or GEORGE W. might bomb the c**p out of you before he leaves office.  (never say never)...go pens! and go USA!!!!!  but it would be nice if the NHL allowed the viewers to see the anthems being sung.  i give credit for organizations like montreal, carolina, chicago, toronto, boston, and the others who take pride in the antems.  and to make note about the anti-americanism in soccer in europe noted from another answer....i URGE everyone to attend an international soccer match, and i am talking euro championships, world cup games.  stand and listen to the anthems and then THE ABSOLUTE VOLUME and PRIDE their fans sing with.  it is because they are attached to a team that has all italians, or all germans, or all spaniards.  there is a sense of belonging.  mlb teams and nba teams and nhl teams are so saturated with foreign players, even they have no sense of belonging for a country that is providing them with a decent living.  (and please note i am not talking about those teams and franchises that do abide and show esteem for the great USA)

Answer 10

I'm an American, and a Red Wings fan, and I don't blame Canadians for how they feel.  Should they boo the American National Anthem?  No, because the US would be the first country to fight for them if they were ever attacked; God forbid.  However, the NHL should have never expanded in the south.  And, it should have kept it's tradition, such as the Campbell Conference, Wales Conference, Norris Division, Smythe Division, etc.  Instead of the West/East, like the NBA.  I hate that there are two teams in Florida, yet Quebec & Winnepeg don't have teams anymore.  I could go on for a while, but I'll stop now....

Answer 11

you might be right but they are pretty good at hockey but that doesnt give them the right to be anti american

Answer 12

Okay. since this is a free country I will respond to your answer even though you don't want me to.

I'm a diehard Canadian hockey fan and I don't hate everything American. There are also many other regulars on Yahoo Hockey who are diehard Canadian hockey fans and they don't hate everything American either.

And of course we're pissed off that there are teams in America, teams that could be in a city where they would be the pride and joy of that city. Instead they are in cities that could care less about hockey. A team should be in a city that cares about the team (i.e Canadian cities, Detroit, New York, etc)

AND the Stanley Cup WAS donated to Canada. It IS ours. Sure, when an American team wins the Cup it is in that city for a while and it travels with the players to where ever their from (most are from Canada) but where does it stay the rest of the time? In CANADA, it's home and native land. <<<That's a line of our anthem which brings me to my next point.

Their will always be stupid hockey fans here and there, so those Canadians booed the American anthem and suddenly all of us are bad? Well then last year some Pittsburgh fans booed the Canadian anthem in the semi finals, I guess all Americans are just as bad then too.

And one more thing, if you think that American fans never say anything to us then your wrong. Go on youtube and watch the 2007 World Juniors semifinal. Many many negative comments about the other countries from both sides. It's not just us, it's you too.

This in not me venting this is just the facts.

Answer 13

Many Canadians are angry that the NHL moved Canadian teams to American cities. I do believe that Winnipeg and Quebec City should have hockey teams instead of Nashville and Atlanta, but I also believe in being realistic. If wasn’t for all the NHL teams in the United States, the NHL wouldn’t exist like it does today. Canadian teams only account for about 31% of ticket revenue, the rest is from the U.S.

To Coug555: Hockey was not invented in Canada. Hockey is based on Hurley which started in Ireland as a form of field hockey. Modern hockey that we know of today was started by a group of British soldiers who were based in Canada in the 1850’s. The rules were devleoped by a group of students at McGill University in Montreal. The first actual game on ice took place in the United States. After that it became very popular in Canada, and developed into the most popular Canadian sport.

Does it bother me? No, it doesn't bother me. I'm proud to be an American AND a Carolina Hurricanes fan, and that will never change.

EDIT:

Well habsfan, my point is, the NHL wouldn't have as much money as it does if it wasn't for all the money from the American teams. I'm sure it sounds great to you canucks to remove all the American teams and give a team to every Canadian city, but it just doesn't work that way. Yeah, there are more teams in the U.S. Boo hoo, get over it.

Answer 14

Kayla : would you please post the e-mail you sent me so that all can see your unique perspective on things? Merci beaucoup (it means "Thank you very much" in French)

I can see why the Americans are upset (they often feel they are the only country that matters in the world) but 288 and other Canadians responding to your question make excellent points which I hope you aren't overlooking. There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that if there were more teams in Canada and less in non-traditional cities that relations amongst fans would improve. Even in the pre-expansion of 1967, there were more teams in the States (Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, New York Rangers) than in Canada (Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs)

Another reason why Canadian hockey fans are more passionate and patriotic is that in Canada that's what they're known and reveered for. There are expections to the rule in both countries, but if Johnny from Chicago doesn't play for the Blackhawks he might still have a chance of playing for the Cubs, Bears or Bulls; if Johnny from Medicine Hat doesn't play for a Canadian hockey team, he either has to play for an American one in front of audiences who still think he lives in an igloo, or play an "American" sport where having had less access to top-notch competition he likely won't do as well.

JC how do you realistically expect Canada to generate more than 31% of the revenue if 6 of the 30 (that makes 25%) teams (Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, and Vancouver) are in Canada

Yes there are more teams in the US + therefore logically they generate more revenue. The cricket I crushed with my huarache is smart enough to know that and ditto the Geico caveman. What shouldn't be overlooked (by Canadians, Quebecois and Americans) is that the U.S. has nearly 10 times the population and therefore there are more "big cities wanting a professional sports team". But it's not always a matter of population if the locals don't appreciate what they have. Among the expansion teams, there have been more failures in the U.S. than successes, I think.

Having lived in Quebec, where hockey is the main sport, the loss of the Nordiques devestated people. And moving Winnipeg's team meant there was no longer an NHL team than from Calgary to Toronto.

In terms the average American can understand, can you imagine if there wasn't a pro football team in Texas? and what if there wasn't one anywhere in the Deep South where many of the players and passionate fans are from, their teams having been moved to .. hmm .. say Brandon, Manitoba and Dalhousie, New Brunswick? ..

Answer 15

The more northern you are the more you know about hockey and therefore are enabled to say and do whatever you please to let everyone know this fact. Joe Canada can tell me , a Michigander, that I don't know anything about anything and I can tell that to Mr. No Snow down in Florida.

Let the world turn...into a ditch.

Answer 16

I agree. I went to a Maple Leafs game in Pittsburgh where they booed our national anthem after we politely listened to theirs. i agree that Maybe it is a more Canadian fans vs. the NHL but they shouldn't boo at games played in the US. If they didn't like our teams so much in the US, we did they come and watch a game here in the first place? It probably isn't  all of them though. But like you said, alot of them (at least that I have noticed) have participated even if they didn't start the booing.

2eighty8 - the reason that they don't want Canadians to answer is question is because she wants an answer to the question. Not a debate. It's nothing to do with them feeling the need to be right because the question is have you noticed...If you haven't noticed you can just answer no and not have a debate about it. It doesn't mean they're insecure.

Answer 17

It's not so much Canadians hating Americans as much as it is Canadians being angry at the NHL.  When Gary Bettman took over he made it an American league.  He moved the Winnipeg Jets to Phoenix and the Quebec Nordiques to Colorado.  Then then expansion started. Cities with no interest in hockey in the States started getting teams.  Canadians are very proud of the sport they invented and want to see more Canadian teams than American cities receiving teams and for the most part they are correct but the NHL is an American business.  They are angry at the situation more than anything else.

Answer 18

While there are some idiots in both countries north & south of the 49th parallel, there are some things to note.  1st, the vast Majority of CanadIAN hockey fans don't hate or are anti American.  CanadIEN hockey fans, or fans of the Montreal Canadiens are a breed apart - in Montreal, they'll boo the US anthem, as noted vs Philly this year in the play-offs.  We don't get them either.  A HUGE example of a Canadian Hockey Fan would be Don Cherry.  He HATES it when people boo the US Anthem, and has gone on diatribes over it.  I live in Hamilton, Ontario, and am pretty close to Buffalo.  I've gone to Sabre games, and haven't experienced what you did.  I would assume a drunken Canadian Leaf fan - a dying breed if there ever was one (spoken as a Leaf Fan, btw) - got out of control and showed his stupidity publicly.  On behalf of all intelligent Canadians, I apologise for his insolence, and will search him out to be sent to the North West territories (Canada's Siberia).

While Hockey fans in general do get frustrated with expansion to "non-hockey" markets - which are all southern US Based Expansion team (a favorite of NHL Boss - Gary Bettman) it really isn't an anti-American issue.  The most recent stat I've been able to find is that approximately 60% of the NHL's players are Canadian, regardless of where they play.  The funny part - the NHL team with the Least # of Canadian players?  The Toronto Maple Leafs.

As far as the Cup History goes, yes the Stanley Cup was donated to Canadian Amateur Hockey, but eventually became the standard for Professional Hockey as a Challenge Trophy, and eventually was donated to the NHL for their Championship Trophy.  It is legally still under the domain of the Canadian Amateur Stewards, but who really cares.  It's the Oldest & IMHO, the Best looking trophy in North-American pro-sports today.  The True amateur trophy for all of North America today is the Allan Cup.

Answer 19

Dont say that

My favourite teams are canadiens and some are american teams too they might have been mad because no canadian team has won a cup since 1993 when the montreal Canadien took the cup who knows they might win next year i dont boo american teams btw

Answer 20

I won't justify your question with an answer. Except that Buffalo is a dump. And you can keep your ****ing Bills.

I have had it with the supercilious attitude ofyou ignorant USA residents. The first thing that p!$$es me off is the theft of the name America like it was yours. America is a group of 36 nations in the combined continents of North and South America and the Caribbean Islands. It is not the providence for this description to be the property of one of these nations no matter how arrogant or self centred their citizens are.

If as a Canadian I wish for the NHL to be more successful I would naturally want it to be in a city where it would sell out it's seats not in a city where half of the "ticket sales" are freebies at the local chicken barbecue stand.

When we (Canadians) let the USA have our other great game (invented by James Naismith) and you screwed it up we feel that we must be more protective of hockey.

If 20% of the teams provide 31% of the revenue isn't it good business sense if the bottom providers were to move to the vicinity of the top providers the revenue would increase. You don't have to be a graduate of Harvard Business College to prove that.

Since Canada is part of America I cannot be anti American and pro Canada but I can point out the flaws on my brothers complexion.

I do not boo another's flag, national anthem, nor beliefs. I applaud their acheivements. I am Canadian and I am proud of it. I wear my flag with pride I dress in Red on Fridays to honour our servicemen and I stand on a bridge over the Highway of Heroes with a Canadian Flag when one of our boys (as Don Cherry calls them) comes home.

So don't you ever insult my country and thumb me down for stating my opinion that your attitudes are hurting me directly.

Because your ****ing Buffalo Bills can't make any money in Buffalo don't send them to Toronto for my money. Even if I don't want tickets my season's tickets to the Argos have gone up to support this travesty.

Sorry for the rant I don't do it often but I'm feeling better now.

Peace and Love,

Tom

Answer 21

I've noticed that too, but it's nothing compared to the anti-American sentiment throughout Europe - mostly in the soccer category.