(11.28.06) As I write this, I am getting ready for what should be an emotionally charged night at the cinema. And no, I'm not going to see Happy Feet (will anyone even know what Happy Feet is two months from now, even if it is, for some reason, the number one movie in North America right now?).
A friend and I are taking in the pay-per-view match between the Edmonton Oilers and the Anaheim Ducks tonight. I've rarely seen a PPV game; I don't have the required digital cable box, and I am not popular enough amongst my friends and colleagues to be invited over to view one at their homes. My friend once told me about the raucous atmosphere that existed at a PPV event held at the cinema, and this upcoming Oilers-Ducks game seemed like a perfect occasion to experience a live PPV NHL game for myself.
There was no hope of obtaining tickets to be at the game in person tonight. The Oilers are a massive success at the box office, and the return of Chris Pronger only made the pickings for seats even slimmer. Let me put my feelings towards Pronger the player out there right now. I love the guy. I think he's the best defenceman to ever wear an Oilers jersey (Paul Coffey not excluded). Even though he only played here for a year, he could be my favourite Oiler of all time. Seriously. I was more enthralled with his play than I was when I was a kid watching Wayne Gretzky. I never wanted to be Gretzky as a kid, but Pronger has inspired me more and more to want to be a defenceman. Again - seriously!
Pronger's performance last season, especially his play in the Stanley Cup Finals against Carolina, was awe-inspiring. At times, it looked as if the Oilers would win the Cup solely on the will and talent of Chris Pronger. We lived, died, lived again...and then finally died again with Pronger and his Oiler teammates. But we were grateful for the exciting Cup run, and were anticipating many more such runs with Pronger on the blueline.
And then Pronger left. The last shard of glass hadn't even been swept off a bruised and battered Whyte Avenue when Pronger, catching some sun rays in Mexico, let it be known through his agent that he wished to be traded. Amid the continuing denial that the Oilers' magical run was over, now came news to the fans that their greatest thoroughbred wanted to play his trade in a different pasture. Somewhere else. Anywhere but here.
Forget the rumours as to why Pronger wanted out, and also forget Pronger's own consistently ambiguous reasons for wanting to go. He signed a long term contract with this team, and should have played it out. That contract was not only a bond with the team, but a bond with the community.
This is a city which has seen many a star player leave well before we thought their time here was up. Gretzky, Coffey, Messier, Weight, Guerin, Joseph, etc. Other cities would develop a sort of malaise about this continuing exodus. Fans in other cities would lose interest in their team, stop caring, and stop attending or, perhaps even worse, lose interest, stop caring, yet still attend the games (nothing is more deceptive to a franchise owner than a full building full of disinterested fans).
All those players I listed before have been booed upon their return to this city while wearing another team's uniform. And I think it's great. There's a small minority of fans and journalists in this city who don't think Pronger should be booed, and that we should all respect Pronger's reasons for leaving. Of course, that won't happen, and it shouldn't. When Pronger hears the boos tonight, he will be hearing the boos of a city that cares. A city that, despite experiencing heartbreak from many past unrequited love affairs with its heroes, still has the passion to love their current team, and chastise those who have spurned it. The passion that this city has for itself and, by extension, its hockey team, is unlike any other.
Chris Pronger will experience that passion tonight.
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