Ranted: Don’t like Luongo? Why don’t you #occupythenet yourself?

This must be some kind of record or something.

It’s only five games into the season and many Canucks fans are already all over Luongo like Homer on a donut. And to think he only played three of those games.

Can’t the guy catch a break in this city? Ever?

I mean, how dare he take the team to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. What a jerk! We should send him to a Siberian gulag for being such a selfish person, not to mention the worst goalie in the NHL! After all, what are Vezina nominations, Jennings Trophies and Olympic gold medals anyway? None of them are the Stanley Cup, so we might as well trade him for Sidney Crosby or Alex Ovechkin and let Cory Schneider be starter. He’s a disgrace to this city’s hockey organization!

Does anyone else see how ridiculous that all sounds? Or is it just me?

Because if you’re on any form of social media or online forum, that pretty much sums up the attitude of at least the loudest Canucks fans so far this season.

Again, we’re five games in.

I’m gonna admit I had a few laughs scrolling through Twitter to find what Canucks fans are saying about Roberto Luongo this early on. There were a lot of people “proud to be anti-Luongo” and others already demanding a trade, despite the fact that Luongo has a NTC for quite a few more years (and if you don’t know what a NTC is you better look it up before asking for a trade).

Here are some gems from last week:

@LogyHallo Tell me why luongo is ranked so high in [NHL] 12, dude is awful.”

I know, right? How did he ever even MAKE the NHL? I just don’t get it!

And here’s a keeper. The lack of punctuation really makes it shine:

@Slurpeeboy2000 Well Canucks it’s time to get rid of luongo hes making you suck!!!

Anyway, enough of that. Let’s address some of the most common Luongo complaints happening right now, like the good ole’ goalie controversy.

On Oct. 10 @kgadbois wrote:

“Thank goodness the Canucks are starting C. Schneider today. He is 10x the goalie Luongo is. Also he doesn’t choke like Luongo.”

Ten times? Really? Now I love me some Gingerbricks, but he’s no Roberto Luongo. Not yet. His first few pre-season games were a bit shaky, but he’s had a strong start to the regular season with a .933 save %, which, yes, is better than Luongo’s so far. But can you really say he’s a better goalie than Luongo, or is this just the typical bandwagon talking? I think the proof here is in the figurative pudding, so to speak, pudding meaning salary, all-time stats, ice time and awards. Luongo’s earned his from years of experience and success. Cory’s just starting his career and honestly has yet to prove himself to start in a big market like Vancouver, Boston or Chicago. Nothing against the kid, but he’s not there yet. If he was, he’d be starting. Period.

Regardless I do believe Schneider will see around 25 starts this season, not only because he really is the best backup goalie we’ve seen in ages, but also because (as seen last season) Luongo plays much better when sharing the load. And let’s face it; the pressure put on Luongo by this city during any given season makes the globe on Atlas’ shoulders look light.

Then there’s the whole, “The Canucks will never win the Cup with Luongo” thing.

It’s not like Boston won Game 7 by a score of 6-4 or 4-3 and it was Luongo letting in one or two goals that lost it for the Canucks. They lost 4-0. Meaning no goals were scored. As I’ve said before, had Luongo made 45 saves in Game 7 of the SC Final, the Canucks still would have lost the Cup to the Bruins. Luongo can do a lot of miraculous things, but scoring on Tim Thomas isn’t one of them.

And random related joke of the week goes to:

@KitsBeachCanuck Hockey fans across Canada are turning their backs on Don Cherry faster than the City of Vancouver has on Roberto Luongo.

In other news, Canucks fans have noticed Luongo starting this season with a new “style,” one I’d like to call the belly flop.

@BrettHaller As much as I love the Canucks I couldn’t help but ask this… Do you think Luongo sleeps on his stomach?

@DJ4mula Remember when Luongo had issue with the backdoor? Now it’s playing on his belly. Canucks nation relax.

Now, I have absolutely no problem with people criticizing Luongo for this strange new crease move/faceplant. Why he’s decided to throw it into his game is beyond me. It’s as if he decided to pick a fight with gravity and is losing very badly. Like everyone else, I’m hoping it’s over soon, or else AV will have to tie him to the goal posts to keep him upright.

But I digress. My entire point of this rant is how early it is and how irrational people are being. Some Canucks fans seem to leap off the bandwagon earlier and earlier every year, kind of like department stores with their Christmas decorations.

Why the rush, guys? Just sit back and enjoy the new season for a while. There’s a long way to go, so before you throw Luongo under the bus, let the bus travel down the road a little bit first.

I’ll sign off with the wisest Tweet I’ve seen in a while:

@Jsteele31 Luongo is just having a slow start like most years. Canucks will come back and make it a good season! Believe!

Now that’s more like it.

(Vid found via HF Boards.)