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

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Oct 182011
 

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.)

  • peanutflower

    Amen.  I have to say I don’t even worry about either goalie being in the net for the Canucks.  That’s a pretty significant statement when you compare to what we have had to put up with in years past.  Scoring completely deserted the team in the SCF, so no, I don’t blame anything on Luongo.  I do, however, blame the NHL refs for develping out-sized egos and deciding to ignore the rulebook for the series.  THAT really pissed me off.

  • John

    Totally agree. He’s the best goalie we’ve had in years, still one of the premier goalies in the league and even if he wasn’t, we’re tied to him for another 11 years anyway, so buckle up and enjoy the ride.

  • http://twitter.com/NM_WAACHCast Kent Basky

    The thing that gets me, is the way Brodeur and McLean are revered, yet Luongo is vilified for doing the exact same thing. He took them to the Stanley Cup finals and people STILL aren’t pleased. It’s maddening to see the disrespect…

  • John Andress

    “Canucks fans seem to leap off the bandwagon earlier and earlier every year”

    Hell, my son has already broken both ankles jumping off and on to the bandwagon.  Same last year.  Roberto has had a poor start but so has the entire team.  Perspective seems to be a concept that Canucks fans struggle with.  Calm down.  I thought that we had all agreed that it all really doesn’t count for a great deal until the playoffs.  Let’s talk again in March and see where things stand then.  If Luongo hasn’t led the Canucks to the top of their Division and to a high seed in the Conference I would be very surprised.  Very, very surprised.

  • http://www.facebook.com/kurt.klatt Kurt Klatt

    Well said Katie. As was pointed out last Saturday on Hockey Night the Canucks haven’t played well in October for quite a while. Now if we see Lu playing poorly in December or January I’ll have reason to worry-until then I’ll wait and see. I want Lu to be successful and I truly wish people would get off his back when he doesn’t stop every shot on goal. It may sound like a redundant sports metaphor but Lu is only as good as the defense in front of him. The offense needs to provide some goals as well. It’s much easier to make “GREAT SAVE LUONGO’s!” when he’s got a two goal lead and the offense is cracking than playing in the hole down two.

    Let’s just cut the guy some slack. Stanley Cup hangover’s are the worst. Let’s just remember how they got there in the first place and celebrate the playoff run that got them there last season and try to focus on the positive for this season.

  • Nick Lade

    THANK YOU! the guy is 7 wins from being the 20th winningest goalie of all time and people continue to shred him. Within the next 3 years he will be in the top ten all time. Seriously stats like that need to be talked about in this market. Along with his 3rd all time NHL save percentage…people have forgotten what it’s like to have a Cloutier. He is our best chance period.

  • Dave murphy

    Not questioning Luongo’s performance, not only this game but the whole start of the season, would be to be blinded by being a fan. An unbiased journalist would be hard on this guy. Shots after the second against the Canucks were nine. Speaks for itself. Third period the D let the door open, and Luongo laid down for the Rangers. Three goals on six shots.This whole Canucks-’til-I-die-no-matter-what attitude is not what a questioning, professional journalist would pride themselves on. Sure Lu is notorious for being a slow starter, but this looks bad early on. He sure did play a part taking them to game 7. But will he shake this poor start of the season like previous years? If not, there’s going to be a big problem. Fans have a right to jeer because they care and they want the team to be their best as they watch at $100+ a ticket. Luongo was not at his best. The fans are right to jeer him. I hope he gets the message … this performance was unacceptable. 

  • Lionheart1004

    Pathetic. Luongo is the highest paid player on the team and he’s the worst guy on the ice. I get it that you’re a fan of the guy but please don’t tell us this is journalism. This is Luongo nut hugging. 

  • OH YAH

    Luongo apologists all say “Look! We didn’t score! You can’t blame that on Luongo!” Yeah well it wasn’t for lack of trying: 40 shots, 7 powerplays & we run into a God-mode Lundqvist.  The point is that Lundqvist made the big saves when his team was on its heels and the minute we let them get one forecheck & one rebound it’s in the back of our net.  We had no big saves from Luongo tonight when we needed them the most and that’s why the jeers came out.  As the highest paid player on the team, you’re expected to bail out your teammates when they make lapses in judgment (much like Lundqvist did).  But sadly, Luongo hasn’t done that for some time.

    P.S. I’ve lost a spate of twitter followers ever since I’ve been piping up about Luongo. Unfollowing someone because you disagree with their opinion is weak.  It just shows that you’re in a state of denial.  The truth hurts. Deal with it.

  • http://twitter.com/KMaximick Katie Maximick

    Appreciate all the comments guys, but to clear things up this wasn’t supposed to be a journalistic masterpiece — just an op-ed, fun-hearted column on a Canucks fan blog. Big difference between the two. We still appreciate your guys’ input, insults and all, lol.

  • http://twitter.com/KMaximick Katie Maximick

    Appreciate all the comments guys, but to clear things up this wasn’t
    supposed to be a journalistic masterpiece — just an op-ed, fun-hearted
    column on a Canucks fan blog. Big difference between the two. We still
    appreciate your guys’ input, insults and all, lol. 

  • None

    Youre using a twitter poster who has 2 tweets as your evidence?! Are you kidding me? How do you even know he or she is even a Canucks fan? He hasnt played well of late, granted that, but to call people who use social media as an outlet to show our displeasure of a player who makes ten million a season, as irrational or bandwagoners is plain wrong. I do recall tonight, which I read both sides of your conversations to get the full picture, you had nothing to back it up on. Like he said, your “online journalism” or rant as you put it is pretty terrible..

    You might be a detractor to the people who hate on a player, but the pendulum swings both ways..
    People in glass houses…

  • http://twitter.com/KMaximick Katie Maximick

    You’re right, it’s not journalism, and I never called it that. Sorry to confuse you. Just a fun “nut-hugging” blog. :)

  • goldtrail

    Luongo cant be blamed for every loss . The so called fans in this city really do expect every game to be won 5-0 for the Canucks. Luongo had the best goals against average last year. Period. No team in the NHL would hesitate to improve their goaltending by adding Luongo to the team. Do you really think Boston wouldn’t trade Thomas for Luongo ? Maybe Canuck hockey includes a healthy dose of tight defensive play. For 2 and a half periods we got that. Most games last 3 periods..Luongo haters should try to list the last 5 goalies we had in Vancouver as well as their GA average..

  • goldtrail

    Luongo cant be blamed for every loss . The so called fans in this city really do expect every game to be won 5-0 for the Canucks. Luongo had the best goals against average last year. Period. No team in the NHL would hesitate to improve their goaltending by adding Luongo to the team. Do you really think Boston wouldn’t trade Thomas for Luongo ? Maybe Canuck hockey includes a healthy dose of tight defensive play. For 2 and a half periods we got that. Most games last 3 periods..Luongo haters should try to list the last 5 goalies we had in Vancouver as well as their GA average..

  • Flop-ongo

    For chrissakes, no one’s claiming this to be “journalism”…and anyone that knows anything about the field, knows that it’s an industry in flux anyway. 

    It’s a hockey BLOG and it says RANT right in the title of the post.

    Try going back to school. 

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  • http://twitter.com/LuuLuoKrisyx1x Kristiinee Wiinee

    I love your post. He did suck at some point but theres no reason for people  to boo him and for people to say that cory is 10x more better, I agree I do like cory too but he is no Roberto Luongo. (in a positive way) It makes me mad how people think this way and I assure you these are the same people that will be cheering for him when we win the cup.

  • http://twitter.com/LuuLuoKrisyx1x Kristiinee Wiinee

    I love your post. He did suck at some point but theres no reason for people  to boo him and for people to say that cory is 10x more better, I agree I do like cory too but he is no Roberto Luongo. (in a positive way) It makes me mad how people think this way and I assure you these are the same people that will be cheering for him when we win the cup.