Falling Leafs

(First published January 20, 2015)

The Twitterverse is abuzz today over so-called Toronto Maple Leafs fans tossing jerseys onto the Air Canada Centre's ice after another lackluster performance, a 4-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. The chatter quickly escalated to crazed cacophony when it was revealed the jersey-throwers in question had been arrested, charged with public mischief, fined $5000 and banned from the Air Canada centre for a year.

Some opinions posit that the Maple Leafs organization is essentially applying a league-wide rule to the letter of the law. Citing player safety, under no circumstance shall fans throw foreign objects on to the ice, a rule that is often overlooked after the home-team scores a hat trick, or the occassional octopus in Detroit.

While the Leafs organization may argue that they are simply following standard procedure, make no mistake, the severity with which the organization is applying the law, and the public way in which it is doing so, is clearly an attempt to stem an an enormously embarassing trend.

From a hockey fan perspective, and moreover as a sports fan, while I do think the rules are being applied with notable zeal, what is being lost in the conversation is our understanding of what it means to be a team supporter.

Anyone who is a fan of a sports franchise knows that prolonged periods of success are never a given. There will be seasons of difficult losses or mediocre performances. For Leafs fans, that period has been intolerably long, and one could easily sympathize with their impatience, frustration and anger.

That said, to toss your team's jersey on their own playing surface is without question the height of disrespect. Rules and regulations notwithstanding, it is a public declaration not only withdrawing support for the current team, but also tossing aside its history and everything that it represents.

Yes, it is just a jersey. It isn't sacred or holy, however it still means something to those that wear it now and those that have in the past. In the case of the Toronto Maple Leafs that means a founding member of the NHL, 13 Stanley Cup championships and a huge fan-base whose loyalty, in the light of recent years, can only be admired.

There are other ways to express your displeasure for a team's performance (or lack thereof). You can boo them off the ice, you can stop showing up for games, you can write blogs or vent your frustration on talk radio.

But if you choose to reject the very symbol of the franchise you support, then perhaps you were never really a fan to begin with.

I believe things will turn around for the Leafs, there is too much at stake to maintain the status quo.

When it does, I'm sure there will be plenty of room on the bandwagon. I just hope the jersey-tossers enjoy the company of disingenuous hypocrites, because there'll be plenty.