Todd: Auston Matthews-Jean Béliveau comparison a bridge (way) too far
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Anyone who talks for a living — a TV sports host, say — is going to say foolish things from time to time.
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Anyone who writes for a living — a newspaper sports columnist, say — is going to write foolish things from time to time. The best you can do is to keep the imbecilic comments to a minimum.
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Unless, that is, you're Ron MacLean. By now, we're accustomed to MacLean's Postcards from the Land of the Gormless. Most vanish into the ether like an inert gas, unnoticed and unseen.
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But when Auston Matthews actually scored a goal in Game 6 of the Leafs-Panthers series (wow!) MacLean reached deep into that vat of tapioca pudding that passes for a brain … And compared Captain Peaheart with Jean Béliveau.
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Yes, that Jean Béliveau. The man who won 10 Stanley Cups as a player and seven as an executive. Who won 24 playoff series in an era when teams played at most two or three series a year. Whose goals-per-game production actually went up in the playoffs, where the Leafs captain's goal production falls off a cliff this time of year.
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Béliveau was a prince among men. A man who lived most of his adult life in the same modest home in Longueuil, who answered every fan letter he ever received and signed every autograph he was asked to sign.
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Béliveau was, and is, the most respected individual in the history of the game. As an alleged student of hockey, MacLean ought to know that much.
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Matthews? He's an outstanding regular-season goal-scorer. That's it, that's all. When his team fell apart in Game 7 against Florida, Matthews demonstrated his 'leadership' by throwing his teammates into the bus. 'We had too many passengers,' Matthews told the world. Yes, Auston, you did. Starting with the captain, No. 34.
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Imagine Le Gros Bill pulling a stunt like that? You can't, because it wouldn't happen.
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Look, MacLean babbles. He can't help himself. His prattle — by turns vapid, disconnected, nonsensical, spineless, harebrained and often downright daft — is the broadcasting equivalent of tinnitus. After a while, you get used to that empty ringing in your ears.
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Winnipeg Free Press
3 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
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CTV News
9 hours ago
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Winnipeg Free Press
a day ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
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