No matter the sport, every fan base has some near universal grievances. If you call yourself a Sharks fan, the following ten things are probably high on your list.
10. Chelsea Dagger
During the 2010 Western Conference final, the Sharks were swept by the Chicago Blackhawks. The song Chelsea Dagger, while catchy as a tune, just happens to be the most infuriatingly annoying song to hear repeated when your team lets in a goal. Sharks fans could not stand Chelsea Dagger after that series, and it’s probably one thing Canucks and Sharks fans can agree on. If you go to the 44 second mark of the video below, that is the exact reaction Sharks fans have when the Blackhawks score a goal at home against San Jose.
9. The Canucks Diving
This is probably universal for fan of the 29 other NHL teams not named the Canucks. However with two recent playoff series against Vancouver and now sharing a division with them, Sharks fans have seen more than their fair share of Canucks diving. Say two Canucks fans walk into a bar and are immediately kicked out by the owner. “What did we do?” they ask, “We have the right to refuse service to anyone” responds the owner, “this ain’t no dive bar.”
8. Max Lapierre
Speaking of the Canucks, long time Canuck Max Lapierre is one of the most hated players in Sharks land. Neither cheap shot actually came as he wore a Canucks jersey, but the fourth line center has delivered two of the most reckless and classless hits in Sharks history. This hit below on Scott Nichol is one of, if not the dirtiest and most dangerous hits I’ve ever seen.
7. Dustin Brown
If you’re not a Kings fan, the first thing that comes to mind with Dustin Brown is knee on knee collisions. There used to be a number of Brown’s knee on knee collisions on YouTube but now it is even difficult to find the “accidental” knee on knee that knocked Tomas Hertl out for months during his rookie year. Not to mention the knee on knee hit in the playoffs against Michal Rozsival. These are the primary examples, but they aren’t the only times Brown has stuck out his leg “accidentally”. In both the Rozsival and Hertl hits, Brown could have easily turned up the ice and thrown his shoulder into the hit instead of making partial and dangerous contact. Safe to say Sharks fans don’t like Dustin Brown.
6. Jonathan Quick
Jonathan Quick is one of the best goaltenders in the NHL but he is also one of the cheapest in the league too. Not only did he hold on to Logan Couture’s skate so he couldn’t get back in the play on the back-check but he also jumped on Joe Thornton’s back to initiate a scrum. Most goalies skate out of the way during scrums and don’t get involved. It’s a cheap advantage with all that gear on to start getting involved but Quick doesn’t seem to care about that.
5. “Ice Girls”
Bay Area hockey fans were long proud of the fact they were one of the teams never to go the route of having “ice girls” but this season the Sharks front office made the change. Their former ice team that cleaned the ice featured both men and women but now the women wear tight black spandex pants and a tight Sharks jersey (one that no fan ever wears in the stands). There isn’t much skin showing but bare lower backs are noticeable when they are cleaning the ice. The question is what was so wrong with the ice team before? Hard to imagine the new outfits generate any more revenue. None of the men on the new ice team have any lower back that shows.
4. Jarret Stoll
No, not all the Kings make this list but Stoll is the No. 1 King on the Sharks hatred list. Not only did he elbow Ian White in the back of the head during the 2011 playoffs but he did the same thing to Marc-Edouard Vlasic last season. In total, Stoll was suspended just the one game between these two egregious head shots.
3. Cartman “Go Kings Go”
Any Sharks fan who has witnessed a game at Staples Center has experienced the incredibly annoying south park character. Even a Kings fan on twitter told me he can’t stand the voice either. As a Sharks fan though, it is just another reason to hate the Kings.
2. The Firing of Drew Remenda
There aren’t many sources yours truly has that are well connected to the Sharks organization, but the few I trust wholeheartedly are in the broadcasting world. They tell me beloved color man Drew Remenda was fired for being too critical in his commentary. Remenda, a Sharks assistant coach in the early 90’s had been a radio analyst and then television commentator for over a decade with the team. He was one of the most adored members of the organization by the fan base and this past summer the front office didn’t renew his contract. Nationally, it was one of the stories that fell through the cracks in San Jose’s tumultuous offseason. However, it is arguably the biggest sign that the organization is being poorly run. Fans love Drew, there was absolutely no reason to let him go. The chemistry with play-by-play man Randy Hahn was amazing, they were a terrific duo. Remenda actually chose to leave the booth for the 2006-07 season but came back after a one year stint in Canada because the San Jose organization was where he belonged. He still belongs here. To send him packing was just wrong.
1. Corey Perry
Corey Perry is a terrific scorer but he is the current No. 1 villain in Sharks territory. Not sure how many other players have ever cross-checked a goaltender in the back of the leg after play has stopped. Unlike Quick, Evgeni Nabokov was never one to get involved in scrums, but Perry gave him a cross-check anyway. There was also the slash to the side of Marc-Edouard Vlasic’s head a few years back. Perry is without a doubt the most hated player by Sharks fans.
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Yes, Fire Wilson. Twice. Fire him once, then say you’ve changed your mind and decided to give him a second chance, and then after he settles back in and thinks he’s safe, fire him again.
Remenda was a terrible announcer. He was worse than any other color man in the NHL, if you go around the league. If you put one of the French speaking color guys in there, he’d be more comprehensible and add more than Remenda. Hahn is a gem and a true professional, and only he was capable of making that Remenda guy tolerable as long as he did.
You are missing perhaps the most important one. The use of draft/ development systems.
Let me ask you a question, how many current Sharks drafted by the organization played MORE than 50 games in Worcester? Oh, and they have to be TOP 6 FORWARDS, or TOP 4 Defensemen. The answer to that question is…ZERO. Technically if you want to include Tommy Wingels then one.
Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture, Patrick Marleau, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Justin Braun, Tomas Hertl and Matt Nieto all spent less than half a season at Worcester.
Players that spend more time at that AHL organization are more likely to fail in the NHL. That’s why so many “promising” young defensemen that the Sharks once had never came to fruition. Nick Petreki, Taylor Doherty, and if you think Matt Tennyson is going to stick around you are kidding yourself.
Now think of all the promising young talent being wasted in Worcester right now. Freddie Hamilton, Chris Tierney, Julius Bergman, Dylan Demelo and you know Danil Tarasov’s ship has already sailed. If a player is stuck in Worchester for more than 50 games odds are they will never turn into a successful NHL player in San Jose. Thank god Melker Karlsson got a chance to get out when he could.
fire wilson.