Good lesson learned in sportsmanship

Tonight has seen the end of a really sad series between Vancouver and Boston.  Not because Vancouver lost, I can accept losing.  Its even sad that the loss was so anticlimatic - I mean, a loss of 2-1 would have made for a much more exciting game.  I remember when Montreal won in '93 I was so upset they won with such a big margin.  Never fun to win like that (though I guess better than losing like that).

What I'm very disappointed in has been the poor sportsmanship shown by both sides.  The Bruins have been poor winners (Tim Thomas, as amazing as a goalie as he is, has shown he's simply not a nice guy.  Too bad because when he plays he's amazing to watch, his behaviour outside of the mask leaves much to be desired.  And retaliation for the comments from Luongo doesn't cut it because if you look at the entire interview where they clipped it, Luongo actually praised Thomas and his goal tending). 

Injuries (from hits with intent to hurt from both teams) leave a poor taste in even the biggest sports fan's mouth.

Then of course there's the incredibly disappointing behaviour of the crowds.  Neither city has handled this well.  Vancouver fans threatened in Boston (even after a Boston win) and now tonight, the riots and damage being done.  And the straw that broke the camel's back for me, Vancouver clad individuals (they don't deserve the right to call themselves fans) beating on a Boston fan. 

So incredibly sad and I for one an not proud of this series, and honestly, I don't think any one from either of these cities should be either. 

That said, it is worth a congratulations to Boston for the win.  They undoubtedly deserved the win base on play (though its worth noting only one player on the team is American - still proud to be Canadian even if I'm not that proud right now as a Canuck fan).