December 21, 2005

Chicoutimi -- welcome to the 17th century: How far do you have to go to have your franchise disbanded?

Fans of the Chicoutimi Saguenéens, a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team, pulled out the tomahawk chop, yelled war whoops and insulted Moncton Wildcats head coach Ted Nolan during a QMJHL game on Sunday. Nolan, an Ojibwa and former head coach of the Buffalo Sabres, was upset and angry after the game, but received plenty of support from the public. He also received an apology from the Sagueneens on Tuesday.

I'm not exactly sure in what century our friends in Chicoutimi are living, but this is a complete and utter disgrace. Nolan, who spends much of his time working with aboriginal kids teaching them how to handle racial tensions, did an amazing job of controlling himself.

This wasn't just a case of a few unruly and/or drunken fans stepping over the line. The video of the incident shows hundreds of Sagueneens faithful doing the tomahawk chop along with the public-address system, which was playing the same stupid music with which Major League Baseball's Atlanta Braves have continued to embarrass themselves.

It wasn't the only incident at the game. Police were called to break up harassment of the Wildcats on the way to the team bus, and a Moncton player's father was alledgedly kicked and beaten after he confronted Chicoutimi fans who threw a garbage can at his son.

So there must be a strong reprimand coming from the QMJHL's office, right? Oh, there is -- read these crushing words from league commissioner Gilles Courteau:

"I find the events which occurred last Friday in Chicoutimi regrettable. The distasteful and disgraceful gestures and comments aimed at Head Coach Ted Nolan by an isolated group of spectators in no way represent the image of the Saguenéens organization, their players or the fans that attend QMJHL games."

Regrettable? Belching at the dinner table is regrettable. Having a large part of a crowd chant racist taunts at one of your coaches while being egged on by the staff of the home team is reprehensible.

And not representative of the image of the organization? Gilles, one of your teams is being pilloried right now, and there's plenty of nifty video showing your fans acting like complete idiots. That's the image people have in their minds right now.

The QMJHL press release also says it is taking the matter seriously, and that "the Saguenéens organization is already looking over any improvements it can make to solidify its security procedures." That might work in keeping drunken morons from attacking fans and players on the way to the bus, but it falls woefully short in terms of sanctions for the Saguenéens.

Here are my suggestions:

* Immediate dismissal of the person responsible for playing the music at the game. The crowd certainly wouldn't have been as enthusiastic without the help of the PA system.

* The next time Moncton travels to Chicoutimi, the game should be played in front of an empty arena. No ticket sales, no concession sales and no refunds -- those wanting their money back should have done a better job of telling their neighboring morons to shut up.

* A review of the video of the incident by Chicoutimi and the QMJHL to identify as many offenders as possible. Those people should be banned from the arena for one full season and also given a choice -- face charges for hate crimes levelled by the league or spend one week during the next calendar year working with underprivileged aboriginal youth.

It might seem harsh, but put it in perspective -- these measures are no harsher than what Nolan had to face on Sunday, and they certainly aren't as extreme as the scorn and ridicule the QMJHL head office should receive if it doesn't deal with this incident properly and justly.

posted by wfrazerjr to commentary at 11:51 AM - 0 comments