Still very into hockey

[schneefink]

I wanted to post this yesterday, but then I got distracted by the Pens-Caps game. It was a fantastic hockey game, except for when the Caps got frustrated and started taking it out on Pens players: Weber started punching Rust who was just lying in the ice, Oshie punched Sid in the head while Sid was lying down pinned without his helmet, Weber boarded Rust, ugh. I hate that part of the sport. (I expected something like this against Philly, not the Caps!) I only watched two periods before I decided my nerves had enough (and also I was very tired) and was very happy and relieved to wake up to a 6-2 win. The Rust-Cullen-Kuhnhackl line was fantastic.
What a weekend, decisive wins against the Flyers and Caps and giving up 35 shots total. Fingers crossed Dumo is not too badly injured, fucking injuries.


March posting meme: What makes you stop being fannish about something or have you ever just quit, cold turkey, a fandom? If you haven't, what do you think would make you quit?
I've never, that I can recall, suddenly quit a fandom. In every case it was because I gradually lost interest. Sometimes because there were fewer people to talk to, sometimes because canon became worse, sometimes because I ran out of canon and fanworks, sometimes I discovered something else I liked better, sometimes I didn't even know why.

The question is currently particularly relevant for hockey (rpf) fandom. If something like what happened with Patrick Kane this summer – he was accused of rape and his team, the Chicago Blackhawks, and the league handled the situation terribly – happened with my team, could I continue being a fan of them? On the one hand I don't think so, but I'm not sure where I'd draw the line. If it's just one guy, I think I could deal with it. After all I already do my best to ignore Mario Lemieux. But what if the management & the organization support him, is that a deal-breaker, or only if my favorite players support him too?
And I don't think it will happen, but what if Patrick Kane gets the Masterton trophy this season, awarded to the player "who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey"? Would that be a league I could support? On the one hand I wouldn't want to, but it'd be hard because I'd still be attached to my team, and the hockey is so pretty; and it'd likely be possible to rationalize away because the league already does many shitty things -.- I'd probably try not to give them any more money, at least.
(Hm, would also be interesting how that would affect the hockey/hockey rpf fandom overlap/line. I'll get into that some other time maybe.)

Things other current canons could do to stop my interest (apart from stupid things I can't foresee):
- The 100: I'm already less interested than I was now that they killed my favorite character. There are fewer characters that I like and am interested in than there used to be, and when the number goes down to zero I'll stop watching. Currently it's at around 5, if I add up some halves.
- Killjoys: I'm very curious what the second season of Killjoys will look like, they basically changed the entire premise. If Dutch and Johnny die I'm not interested anymore, but that won't happen. If Dutch and Johnny's friendship is permanently ruined in a bad way, that would also be a dealbreaker.
- MCU: I'm already only watching the movies people are saying are good, Age of Ultron killed a lot of my enthusiasm. If CA:CW is as bad as Age of Ultron I probably won't bother watching the next few movies.

Fandom reasons that would make me quit a fandom: Fortunately that hasn't happened yet, because in several instances I've been lucky to be a corner of fandom that's less wanky. (Now especially because I'm not really involved in fandom on Tumblr or Twitter.) I've heard several stories that if they happened in a fandom that I was very involved in I would probably have quit that fandom, often coinciding with questionable canon developments. I'm not sure how much, but bad fandom wanks definitely would affect my interest in canon, especially since interest in canon & interest in fandom are usually related.
(I thought about examining that more closely and playing through a few scenarios, but it always came back to how glad I am that I was never in Blackhawks fandom and could mostly avoid that mess in fannish spaces. No need to relive that mess.)

Comments

[james]

It's much harder to follow, because it isn't on tv only online, but the whole Kane situation (and every other male athlete that's done the same) is why I'm trying to watch more women's hockey. The fandom isn't really there, but I watch sports for the sports and not really for the fandom, despite my participation in hockey rpf for a few years. But if you just want to watch and enjoy the sports, with women's sports you don't have to wonder if you are cheering for a rapist. ;-)

[muccamukk]

Man, the Blackhawks thing was brutal (and ongoing, bloody NHL). I'm glad all my Hockey friends are in Pens or Stars fandom, and kept out of the worst of it. I'd be more into it except I really can't handle the fighting. I like Olympic hockey better.

I think the only fandom I ever completely cold turkey quit was Battlestar Galactica, the new one, because of canon issues. Everything else I sort of got bored and wandered away from. Though often there was some canon event that would kill my waning interest.

[schneefink]

I try to watch more women's hockey too, and I've really enjoyed it this season. I hope it develops further and the sports fandom grows. But I'm still very attached to "my" NHL team, and I don't have the energy to be that invested in two teams, especially in two different leagues. In hockey fandom, the sports side alone, following "canon" takes a lot more time than in any media fandom I've been in! And then in addition to that there are fics I want to read, and sometimes I want a break from hockey and watch TV shows/read books without any sports in them.
It is good to know though that if I do decide I need a break from the NHL there are other leagues I can watch :) (I barely know anything about the Austrian league for the same reason I don't watch more women's hockey.)

[schneefink]

In the Red Army documentary they had clips of the Soviet national team in the 80s and the hockey is so. goddamn. pretty. Incredible passing plays, very little hitting. It's always a surprise when watching European leagues how little hitting there is in comparison.
I'm very glad that fighting is on the decline, especially on the NHL level, and that the Pens are among the teams with the fewest fights, because I'm not a fan of that either.

I hate that P.Kane is having such a good season. He'll probably win the Art Ross, likely the Lindsay, possibly the Hart and the Rocket Richard, and the league is going to market it as much as possible because he's the first American to do it and let's just forget that ugly business over the summer. There will be even more disgusting articles about how he's had to "overcome" the "distraction" this summer and how remarkable that is, he'll be presented as someone young players can look up to and it makes me want to stab something.

[muccamukk]

Yeah. The skating and passing is gorgeous. It really can look like flying. And find if someone gets tangled up now and then, but actual fist fights? Really? They seem to be clamping down on it in the minors/junior levels a bit, which might work its way though, but if the NHL wanted it stopped, it would stop (just start handing out five-day suspensions, and see what happens). It's frustrating.

I'm mostly following the P.Kane thing through our media, which had a good rant here:
www.cbc.ca/radio/q/schedule-for-friday-march-11-2016-1.3486649/sharapova-s-drug-story-is-fishy-says-q-sports-panel-1.3486679 (middle segment), but fandom doesn't sound a lot better.

[schneefink]

I actually read an article recently, that I'm now too lazy to look for, that in some junior leagues they now have significantly more fights than in the NHL. It's declining as well, but slower. Fighting in juniors is imo an even worse idea than in the NHL, so I hope they introduce much harsher penalties/suspensions soon.

Good summary of the latest bullshit, thanks for the link. I try to keep away from Blackhawks fandom, but from what I've seen it's not very good. There's a lot of K/T fic being posted on AO3 still, a lot more than I expected, I try to ignore it.

[james]

I have an advantage in that I don't really watch any television other than sports, and hockey isn't even my main sport! So it's easier for me to pick up watching women's college hockey and pro hockey, catching a game here and there online. It just isn't comfortable for me to watch on my computer, so it'd be easier for me to watch what's on tv.

I do still love my San Jose Sharks, but I kind of live in fear of discovering one of them is a rapist, too, and I just would like to never hear the word again in my lifetime, there's already been too much.

When I watch sports, I don't try to follow everything that happens outside the game - I don't do stats or even bother to learn everyone's name unless they've stuck around for one season. I just like to watch them play!