Normally I open with, "How ya doin'?" But based on how this season wrapped up, I think we already know the answer to that.
I just wanted to let you know that I'm done.
It's over.
I'm out.
No, I'm not referring to this year's season. I'm talking about my support for the team.
Here, lemme explain...
Y'see, I've been a Leaf fan since birth. My father raised me on stories of the Big M & the China Wall, of 7-game comebacks and Pyramid Power. He laid the foundation for a Leaf fan with the classic history. My uncle took me to my first Leaf game at storied Maple Leaf Gardens in '85, where I saw Wendel Clark score a Gordie Howe hat trick against the Vancouver Canucks. He brought the team to life for me. My high school years brought the rabid fan out in me. Aside from cheering for my hero, John Druce, and his Washington Capitals, it was all Leafs. All the time. I remember Cliff Fletcher, Doug Gilmour, Dave Andreychuk, Felix Potvin, Clark, and the '93 run. Man, that was amazing.
Thru my 20's, I saw my beloved Leafs leave the Gardens for the basketball-built Air Canada Centre. I watched GM's trade draft picks & prospects for, "The missing piece of the Stanley Cup puzzle" year after year. And each year, the Cup drought droned on. After Harold Ballard died, I watched the team be acquired by the teacher's union, and this seemed a corporate turning point for the organization. Now, "Pal Hal" was never one to pass up on a dollar (he renovated the Gardens and made the seats narrower to fit more fans in the building), but there was now a different feel from the Leafs' roster moves. As the playoff losses mounted, a theory came forth that the teacher's were more concerned with the team's dollar value than on ice success. I never put much thought into this theory of dollars over titles until a good friend and I journeyed to the ACC to see the Leafs host the now-hated Ottawa Senators back around 2000. Our tickets said, "Obstructed view" but we assumed we'd have to lean around a support pillar or duck under a cross beam. Boy, that would've been a treat compared to what we had. When seated, we couldn't see 1/3 of the ice, as it was blocked by the protruding pub on the level. Basketball sight lines do not translate well into hockey ones. As awful as our seats were (we snuck to the standing room area shortly after the National Anthem for a much better view), there were at least 20 seats in our section that were deeper into that corner with even less view of the game.
That was the first chink in the armour.
It's no secret that paying to see a live sporting event ain't cheap, but the Leafs took it to another level. According to this > http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/puck-daddy/nhl-teams-most-expensive-cheapest-tickets-135920048--nhl.html , the average seat for a Toronto Maple Leaf home game will set you back $369. That's per game, per seat, folks. The second most expensive is the Chicago Blackhawks who, after winning their second Stanley Cup in 4 years, raised theirs to $314. Which begs the question, "How does a team that hasn't appeared in a Stanley Cup final since '67, let alone won one, justify charging approx. 15% more for tickets than the most recent Stanley Cup champion?"
"Because they can."
Here's really where the essence of my split with the Leafs lies. I understand that pro sports is a multi-million dollar business, but in its heart it's pure competition. Most pro teams have a single owner, and this owner has made their fortune in some other field. Being a part of a pro sport is more about ego than dollars. I know, I know; It's still business. There'll always be dollar signs in their eyes as well. Most of 'em really want a winner on the scoreboard. There are a couple of publicly-owned teams as well, and they're clearly motivated to put a winning product in front of their hundreds of thousands of owners. Once the Maple Leafs were bought by a group whose sole purpose was to protect and increase Ontario teachers' pension fund, the team took on a different feel for this fan. Now, every move felt more about the organization's fiscal bottom line than on-ice success. And, $369 for one game??? I can get Toronto Argonauts season tickets for less than that!
Ah yes...The Toronto Argonauts.
There's the rub, isn't it? I've seen the Argos win a league championship. Live. In person. They've actually won six in my lifetime.
The Argos have been fan-first in every interaction I've had with 'em. Players are available and humble, tickets are reasonably priced (actually had a price reduction after a couple of poor seasons & converting our seats to benches where I sit), and every game matters. Sure, you could argue that the Maple Leafs are the #1 draw in Toronto & don't need to do any of this, but as a fan, which organization would you rather support?
I still love hockey. I'll always love hockey. There's not another game in the world that combines speed, strength, and skill like hockey. However, I've bought my last piece of Toronto Maple Leaf merchandise. I've shared my last pitcher anxiously watching the Toronto Maple Leafs at a bar. I've rearranged my last work or social calendar around a Toronto Maple Leaf playoff game. I still respect the Leaf fans that are sticking with the team, and I'll always be a Wendel Clark fan, but with the unattainable ticket prices, an indifferent front office, the lack of on-ice success, and other options for my fan attention and dollars, I am respectfully discharging myself from your ranks. Maybe I'll start supporting another team in a year or two, but for now, I'm just gonna enjoy the game from the perspective of a nomadic fan.
Now, if you'll excuse me, the CFL season is right around the corner, and I've got a blog post to research.
