Question about chosen team/player to root for...

[loki604]

Okay, so I've wanted to have a meaningful discussion about this for a bit...

Is it really that bad to root for a player instead of a team?

Let me qualify this by saying I know some of our opinions have been colored by a certain moronic poster rooting for a certain player, but is it really that bad? I am a 100% team-first person, and yet, I feel that where I was born is just as arbitrary as picking a player I love. Even now, there are players I root for (St. Louis, Selanne, Recchi, Pavelski) on teams I really don't care about. I've also met people who (sorry to bring him up as an example) have followed Crosby his entire career and really root for the guy.

Honestly, I just don't think there is anything wrong with rooting for a team for the player involved and following that player, and I feel I'm in the minority. Like I said and as I'm pretty sure everyone knows here, I am completely dedicated to the Penguins; however, I really see nothing bad with this viewpoint. I think (and this may be untrue) that a lot of people wouldn't have a problem with this from someone who wasn't in a city with an NHL team...but you can grow up in an NHL city without an affinity for the team or a family that cares about the team and maybe you love watching a player like Joe Sakic in his prime even though you're living in Boston...so what?

I seem to have a lot of unpopular opinions around here though, so maybe I'm just crazy.

 

[BostonAJ]

Is it really that bad to root for a player instead of a team?

You mean like, in a chick way?

 

[Bizzle McDizzle]

Liking a player is fine, but supporting and choosing another team because of it? nope.

I was a big Forsberg fan, but never would be a Colorado or Philly fan.
I (like 95% of the rest of the world) was a Gretzky fan and Mario fan, but had no cause to root for Pittsburgh, Edmonton, St Louis, LA.

It's also going to depend on your generation.
Older folk did not have the benefit of 24/7 availability of everything. There was no Center Ice package, no instant video streaming, no internet, no NHL.com, no blogging, no youtube... so if a player did not play in your town or on your team, the only way you knew about him was through the newspaper, on the few and far between televised games, the playoffs, or when he came to town.

So to the younger generation it may no seem that bad thanks to technology making it easy to do, but to the older generation, 'tis blasphemy.

(edit: speaking for the States, of course. I'm sure our neighbors to the north had more ample opportunity to follow a player from early in his career with much better newspaper reporting available for hockey)

 

[Bizzle McDizzle]

You mean like, in a chick way?

snap!

 

[juliansteed]

I'm not a fan of people making rules for who other people can cheer for in the first place. But even if I was, I don't think I would have a problem with people following a certain player. At least they are being consistent. Remember that guy who followed Hossa (of all people) and certain people insisted he was a bandwagonner because he played for 3 different teams in under a year? Well at least he remained true to his word and followed that player. It wasn't his choice to have him keep switching teams. I had a friend who was a life-long Yzerman/Red Wings fan. He always said that if Yzerman ever went to a different team they would become his new #1 team but would still have a soft spot for the Wings. Well as it turned out he never played for another team so he stuck with the Red Wings. Is this guy who followed Hossa really anymore of a bandwagon fan than my friend who would have followed Yzerman? But I think when you are a local fan its a bit different and you should be expected to support the local team. There is no clear team to root for where me and my friend live and I'm pretty sure that was the case with the Hossa fan as well.

 

[HonusWagner66]

I have no idea why anyone would care why someone else likes a sports team...


I said it before, as long as you're not one of those people that just roots for the best team year to year and run your mouth about how great that team is, I don't really have a problem with your fandom.

 

[dash]

I'm not a fan of people making rules for who other people can cheer for in the first place. But even if I was, I don't think I would have a problem with people following a certain player. At least they are being consistent. Remember that guy who followed Hossa (of all people) and certain people insisted he was a bandwagonner because he played for 3 different teams in under a year? Well at least he remained true to his word and followed that player. It wasn't his choice to have him keep switching teams.

Ah yes, flip-flopper Sure, he has no control over what team Hossa chooses, but in my opinion, it's not cool to talk smack about previous teams your favorite player skated for.

/I'm also old school though, I cheer for the crest in front, not the nameplate on the back. Put it this way, if Iggy is traded to LA, I'll wish him nothing but the best, but when the Kings play the Flames, I'm rooting for the Flames.

 

[mattola]

my canucks will always usurp any player not named Trevor Linden ... (actually I Agree with Dash on this. When Trev was traded I wished him well and still wanted the Canucks to win every game against this teams)

but really its about my team and its name. (used to be the logo but the canucks change the damn thing so much)

in NFL I used to follow where-ever Joe Montana went so I was a 49ers and Chiefs fan until my dad one day told me, "boy, you better be watching and cheering for them Cowboys..... " and I listened. been a cowboys fan since. always will be

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

Even though I'm an Islanders fan first & always will be I want to see Selanne do well. Besides I'm from So Cal the Ducks are my favorite Western Conference team. When they play each other I want the Islanders to win every game.

 

[HonusWagner66]

I'm with Dash on the crest on the front as well. But I'm not gonna say other fans can't cheer for a player over a team. I have no right to tell them which methods of cheering for a sports team is the right way to do so. Nor do I care.

 

[puckhead]

team comes first, as it should. after that, sure there are players I like.
I really liked Joe Sakic, but hated the Avs with the seething white heat of a thousand suns.
no bigggie.

It's hard not to like watching Stamkos, even though I couldn't really give a shit about Tampa as a team. I like Evander Kane - where does he play again? they have hockey in Atlanta?
Loved watching Yzerman, Neely, Hawerchuk, Lafleur, Bobby Clark all on different teams.

I love my Canucks through thick and thin, but never had much use for Matt Cooke* or Todd Bertuzzi. I cheered for them when they did good things, but didn't like them.


*after his first couple of years

 

[Automattic]

Whatever/whoever is the reason for anybodies fandom is fine by me.

I'm with Dasher and co. though, the Winged Wheel comes first.

 

[filosofy29]

Honus is back!!! (the avatar, not the poster)

I agree with Honus in that you shouldn't care why somebody has chosen to like a team or a player. Let them cheer/root for whomever they want as long as they aren't frontrunners or a-holes about it.

I for one though am of the crest on the front idea as well. I always followed Felix Potvin because he was the reason I got interested in and started playing hockey. When he played the Sharks I rooted for a 0-0 tie. But later, in my 20's, if Felix played the Sharks I'd just root for him to do very well and lose

 

[juliansteed]

Ah yes, flip-flopper Sure, he has no control over what team Hossa chooses, but in my opinion, it's not cool to talk smack about previous teams your favorite player skated for.

I agree with that. He shouldn't be bashing the previous teams. I guess from his perspective though it would be similar to bashing a former player on your favorite team.

 

[davnlaguna]

Root for a team, root for a player.
While I am a Kings fan first, I like a bunch of players. If I won a contest to have dinner with Sid or OV I would jump at the chance. I think they both are great players and wish them the best (when not playing the Kings).

There are players I would not want to spend any time with. When Kyle Calder was on the Kings I did not like him. Then I got the chance to met him at a Kings practice and after the meeting I hated him. What a jerk (not only to me and my wife but to the AEG person walking us around). I wanted him off MY team. Luck was on my side and he was gone at the end of the season (to the Ducks and now my wife hated someone on her team) Now is is gone from hockey I think.

 

[TheRobotDevil]

Like dash said I root for the crest and that for a both ways if a player signs with a rival hatred takes over.see Scott gomez

 

[dare2be]

Here's a good reverse litmus test on determining whether you care more about "the crest on the front" vs. "the nameplate on the back":

Think of one your most hated players on another team that eventually joined your team. If you hated them as an opponent but then liked them as a teammate, then you are team centric. IE., I hated Kasparaitis as an Islander but loved him as a Penguin.

That said, no Cooke jokes please.

 

[GagneFire12]

We all remember Marian Hossa's number one fan...

 

[puckhead]

That said, no Cooke jokes please.

at least not while you are looking

 

[IPostedWhat]

Without reading every post, I have to say that if you are only interested and following hockey because of a player, then you're not really a fan of hockey in general.

You should have 1 team that you root for no matter what, and it's ok to have other players that you enjoy watching play.