I was doing some reading today and came across this quote from one Mark Spector:

For example, you’ll never have come to an agreement with a member of the Vancouver Canucks organization about that team’s propensity for diving or referee baiting.

For familiar Canucks Army readers, you may recall that that doesn’t seem quite right. There is at least one published example of at least one member of the Vancouver Canucks calling out his team for diving and referee baiting:

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Specifically, Kevin Bieksa calling out members of his own team last spring:

“I know guys will do whatever it takes for a power play to win a game,” Bieksa said. “But sometimes they’re crossing that line of integrity. I think for the better of the game, for the good of the game we need people to stay on that line and not cross it, and not dive and exaggerate for calls.”

This isn’t the first time that Spector has latched onto a specific narrative. This was the man who made the prophetic prediction that Cody Hodgson was angling to take over Manny Malhotra’s job.

Thomas and myself are at a panel this weekend, Blogs with Balls, which discusses how blogs and fans are playing an increasingly pivotal role in the sports discussion landscape. Objectivity doesn’t begat accuracy, which is why I’m comfortable suggesting that while Canucks Army is technically a “fan” website, as in, many of the writers on this site double up as fans, we also strive for objectivity. We want to paint as realistic of a picture of the game and the media surrounding it as we can.

I’m sure Spector is a nice guy, but you can’t take liberties with a basic narrative if you’re a paid hockey writer. That’s just common sense. Whether the Canucks dive or not isn’t the issue. The issue is that there is at least one member of the Vancouver Canucks organization who is calling his own team out.





