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01-19-2017, 09:35 AM | #1 |
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BOSTON -- A playoff hockey classic was shoved to the backburner Friday as Canadiens and Bruins players and coaches found themselves addressing the ugly issue of racism. Paul Konerko Jersey . Montreal defenceman P.K. Subban, who is black, was targeted for racial abuse on social media in the wake of his winning goal in Thursdays thrilling 4-3 double-overtime playoff win over Boston. "Im shocked," Montreal coach Michel Therrien told reporters Friday. "Honestly Im shocked to hear those type of comments." "No one deserves to be treated like this," he added. "And P.K. has all our support." Many comments with racist and derogatory terms were posted on Twitter and other social media websites after the victory. The 24-year-old Subban, a slick-skating defenceman who is one of the NHLs most exciting players, scored twice as Montreal won the opener of the best-of-seven second-round series. Subban was not made available by the Canadiens, who had a closed gym session instead of a practice Friday thanks to the tight turnaround between Thursdays extended Game 1 and the afternoon start for Game 2 Saturday. Montreal brought out four players, all of whom decried the abuse of their teammate. "I just think its unacceptable," said defenceman Mike Weaver. "Its just classless." Forward David Desharnais echoed his coach. "Nobody deserves to be treated like that. It has nothing to do with sports or anything," he said. Weaver, like the other Habs players who met the media, blamed the ugliness on "a few individuals." Boston was quick to denounce those responsible. "The racist, classless views expressed by an ignorant group of individuals following Thursdays game via digital media are in no way a reflection of anyone associated with the Bruins organization," team president Cam Neely said in a statement. Boston coach Claude Julien also spoke out against those behind the abuse. "Its just poor judgment, poor taste, and we dont associate ourselves with people like that, and people who think that way are not what we call our fans," he told reporters at the Bruins practice facility. "They may think they are, but we certainly dont support that at all. "Its a shame that this is still going around in this day and age, and that people are still thinking that way." In a week that saw a Spanish soccer fan throw a banana at Barcelona defender Dani Alves, the torrent of abuse aimed at Subban was a painful reminder that hate knows no boundaries. "Youd like to think that it wouldnt happen but it does," said Montreal forward Brendan Gallagher. "Its still part of the life and part of the world ... I think it is getting better. I think its a very small group of people. It doesnt represent the National Hockey League in any way. We have great fans." Said Julien: "Theres a lot of good fans out there, and thats the sad part about it is that, you know, your good fans get tarnished because of comments like that from people who dont belong in that same group." The abuse was an embarrassment on several levels for the Bruins, who drafted Subbans younger brother Malcolm. Asked if the Boston organization plans to reach out to the younger Subban, a goalie, Julien replied: "I think were reaching out to everybody in that situation. You know, weve got Jarome Iginla on our team. Lets be realistic here about this. Its something we dont support." Gallagher said P.K. Subban was professional in handling the abuse. "He understands the best way to handle it is just ignore it," he said. "And understand that their opinions dont really mean anything." "He shakes it off pretty good," added Desharnais. Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre called the remarks "unfortunate", saying he would not defend the undefendable. "We will answer back with the goals that we score," Coderre told reporters Friday at Montreal city hall. The mayor also had a few words for Boston fans, saying there are some who will try to destabilize the Habs. "They will try with all kinds of insults, (both) acceptable and unacceptable, but we wont fall into their trap," Coderre said. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said in a statement that the offensive tweets were "a disgrace." "These racist comments are not reflective of Boston, and are not reflective of Bruins fans. Ive said before that the best hockey in the world happens when the Bruins and Canadiens play each other, and there is no room for this kind of ignorance here." The racial abuse wasnt the only fan misbehaviour on the night. Some in the building reacted to the overtime loss by throwing drinks and garbage at the Canadiens as they left the ice. "Its Boston, its the rivalry. They dont like (it) when were winning, I guess," said Desharnais. "Thats just Boston." "We come here, we dont expect to be cuddled," he added. Therrien, who is one of the first off the bench, said he had not noticed the cascade of garbage. As to how the rest of the Habs reacted, Desharnais said: "We just got off the ice pretty quick." Subban, meanwhile, restricted his Twittter activity Friday to a tweet directing followers to check out a link to one of his sponsors. But he addressed the issue of racism in a 2012 interview on "George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight." "Ive been playing hockey since I was two-and-a-half, three years old. And theres been a number of those incidents. And theyre just stupid people really, to be honest with you," he said. "Hockeys filled with great people, and its a great sport, and I encourage a lot of people to play it because of the relationships that you make in hockey. Those are the things that Id rather talk about than all those other things, because theyre just ignorant people." When Stroumboulopoulos cited fans throwing bananas at black soccer players, Subban said "Id probably just pick it up and eat it." Which is exactly what Alves did this week, to worldwide acclaim. Dayan Viciedo White Sox Jersey . They all do actually — Joel-Hans Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) July 22, 2014There is no confirmation that the date is actually happening, but that didnt stop Embiid from getting dressed up. Fresh cut..... Getting ready for dinner Ow.ly - image uploaded by @JoelEmbiid — Joel-Hans Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) July 23, 2014 Almost 930.. Jeff Keppinger White Sox Jersey . TSNs coverage of the Third Round gets underway Sunday with Game 1: Los Angeles at Chicago at 3pm et/Noon pt. TSNs broadcast schedule for the Third Round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs is as follows: Chicago Blackhawks vs. Los Angeles Kings• Game 1: Los Angeles at Chicago – Sunday, May 18 at 3pm et/Noon pt• Game 2: Los Angeles at Chicago – Wednesday, May 21 at 8pm et/5pm pt• Game 4: Chicago at Los Angeles – Monday, May 26 at 9pm et/6pm pt Featured in the broadcast booth for TSN are play-by-play announcer Chris Cuthbert and game analyst Ray Ferraro, with Farhan Lalji contributing reports from rinkside. 403 Forbidden . -- Fresh off their surprising run in the playoffs, the Portland Trail Blazers have signed head coach Terry Stotts to a multi-year contract extension.(SportsNetwork.com) - The NHL-leading St. Louis Blues will try to bounce back from their first loss of the month when they host the Edmonton Oilers in Thursdays encounter at Scottrade Center. Watch the Blues vs. Oilers live on TSN starting at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. Edmonton, the last-place team in the Western Conference, has done well in its spoiler role lately, winning three of its last four games and posting an 8-3-2 mark over the past 13 outings. The Oilers opened a four-game road trip on Tuesday with a comeback victory over the Minnesota Wild. Edmonton fell behind 3-0 in the first period, but rallied for a 4-3 shootout win at Xcel Energy Center. Edmontons Jeff Petry cut the deficit to 3-1 before the end of the first period. David Perron and Jordan Eberle then tallied over a four-minute span in the third to even things at 3-3. Taylor Hall delivered the winner in the shootout, scoring in the fourth round to complete the rally for Edmonton. After Jason Pominville was stopped by Viktor Fasth, Hall skated in and shot the puck between the pads of Darcy Kuemper for the winner. Fasth stopped 28 shots in the win. &quoot;Im proud of them. Jeff Keppinger Jersey. It would have been easy to pack it in but the guys kept scraping and clawing," said Oilers head coach Dallas Eakins. "They were playing an excellent defensive game but we stuck to it." Despite Tuesdays win, the Oilers are just 11-19-5 as the road team this season. The Blues had won five straight to begin March before dropping Tuesdays home overtime decision against Dallas. St. Louis hopes to get back on track tonight against an Edmonton team it has dominated in recent years. With 95 points, the Blues are two points ahead of Anaheim for the top spot in the NHL standings and also hold a four-point edge over Colorado for first place in the Central Division. The Blues are 2-0 against Edmonton in 2013-14 and they can complete a sweep of the season series on Thursday. St. Louis has won seven of eight and 13 of the last 16 meetings in this matchup, but the Oilers did halt a six-game road skid in the series when it posted a 3-0 win at Scottrade Center on March 26 of last season. The Blues had a three-game home winning streak snapped, but are still 23-5-4 in the Gateway City this season. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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