PowerPlay Magazine

On August 23, 1973 Jan-Erik "Janne" Olsson, on leave from prison, went into Kreditbanken at Norrmalmstorg, central Stockholm and attempted to rob it. What started as an ill-planned robbery soon became a six-day hostage ordeal where unexpectedly the hostages developed and expressed sympathy and support for their captors. It is from that fateful series of events that “Stockholm Syndrome” entered the modern lexicon.

So why do I now bring up a rare psychological condition on a website about sports in general, and (at least for this writer) hockey in particular? Because after all that they've been through it's the only way I can explain this and the Toronto Maple Leafs still having loyal fans. Bon Jovi? A banner? In the same venue made possible only by the exploits of a sports franchise richly deep in storied history? In a sport that is penultimate in importance to Canadians only to single-payer universal healthcare? Oh for the love of everything good and wholesome come on already.

It's not the music (Honestly! Ok, it's not entirely the music), it's the values expressed via the rationale: We are told headliner talent Bon Jovi has sold 600,000 tickets at the Air Canada Centre since it opened in 1999. Thus they get a banner symbolically equal to Darryl Sittler, Dave Keon, Wendel Clark, etc. Just 600,000 tickets. Meanwhile Doug Gilmour drew over 3 million home-game ticket-buyers over his Leafs career back at the smaller capacity Maple Leaf Gardens, the fewest of the greats presently in the rafters. Rick Vaive was the best Leaf for much of the '80's selling over 4 million tickets, but does he get a banner? No.  Ron Ellis, he of eleven 20 or more goal seasons for the Leafs, a cup ring, Summit Series standout and almost 8 million tickets sold? No banner. But Bon Jovi? You bet. Hoist 'er up, boys.

Utterly shameful, and so typically corporate-blinkered for the suits of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.

As mentioned previously it's not like fans have had a shortage of embarrassment over the last few decades. From Harold Ballard and his farcically incompetent reign of (t)error to the once in several millenia collapse in last years playoffs, peppered along the way with far too numerous low-points in between the fans of this team need a break more than ever. But as is their legacy MLSE seemingly can not and will not oblige.

So if it isn't Stockholm Syndrome, what is it? Because clearly the Leafs give love a bad name.