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The Stanley Cup riot of 2011 might have given Vancouver one of the biggest black eyes in the history of major sporting events, but at least one high-profile Boston Bruins fan was impressed by what he saw in Canucks fans.

The operative word there, of course, is “fans”, not the assholes, fuckwits, and grey-matter-challenged loogans who put on the kind of performance that made you wonder why their parents weren’t sterilized.

In an interview with the Georgia Straight, singer-bassist Ken Casey of Boston’s much-loved Celtic-punks the Dropkick Murphys said that he was lucky enough to score tickets to Game 7 of the Canucks-Bruins final at Rogers Arena. He described the ’Nucks fans sitting around him as completely respectful.

“They were the nicest fans ever,” Casey said. “The real fans were a complete class act. I don’t know much about the city, so I don’t want to speculate, but, to me, based on who I met in the rink, all the crap that happened outside the rink was not by the real hockey fans. I had nothing but good experiences.”

The Beantown-born-and-bred musician knows what it’s like to be on the frontlines at huge games. The Dropkick Murphys’ “Tessie” became the unofficial theme song of the Boston Red Sox during the team’s 2004 World Series run to the championship, the band being invited onto the field during the winning celebration.

Casey said the city of Boston’s attitude toward managing big games is very different than Vancouver’s, with authorities taking a much more proactive attitude to making sure things don’t get out of hand. Vancouver has been widely criticized for not having enough police on the streets once the rioting started Wednesday night after the Canucks’ loss.

“Boston is the exact opposite,” Casey said. “The mayor is so afraid of stuff like that happening that, without provocation, and to be better safe than sorry, they are up there with the riot squad before anything happens. There’s such a show of force as a deterrent that it almost kills the vibe, to be honest.”

Despite the riot, feeling the vibe wasn’t difficult for Casey in Vancouver. While the city streets outside were turning us into Assholeville, he was enjoying the perks of being one of Boston’s favourite sons, celebrating with the Bruins inside Rogers Arena, including getting the chance to hoist the Stanley Cup at centre ice. Watch for a full interview with the Dropkick Murphys frontman, in which he’ll discuss the band’s excellent new album Going Out In Style, this Thursday in the Straight.