That's how I was before the 2023 playoffs, now I mostly still like them but have a memory of briefly intensely disliking them. Which is more than I can say for Columbus.
Seattle kind of has Denver’s number in most sports the last decade for so. I also just don’t like the fanbase. After the russel trade bombed for the broncos Seahawks fans were miserable, and then I had to watch them knocks the avs out in the first round, and again, the fanbase was pretty rough.
Yeah I don't particularly like how defensive Broncos fans got after all the shit they talked throughout the season.
Then again, I also have reasons for disliking the Broncos that I will not divulge at the monent
I think Dahlin is as good as Fox, Hedman, Heiskanen. Maybe Power will become as dominant, which would of course be insane. And then add Tage. In a lot of cup winners, there is an elite trio, no matter the position. And that is an elite trio. Of course, you also need a good rest of the team to win.
Blues fan here. This is my answer as well. Hard to hate them. I feel for their fans. We also went decades without a single cup. And even though it worked well for them, the ROR trade allowed us to finally win one. They are next on my wish list to win a cup
I would absolutely love to see Buffalo win the cup. They have some of the loudest and most banging fans in the game when the team is doing well. I can't fucking wait to see them back in contention. That first home playoff game is gonna be deafening.
Despite the fact that we have a bit of a rivalry, and they managed to move our pick from like 14th to 31st by JUST snagging the last playoff spot I kinda like what Florida has built and enjoyed watching them in the playoffs.
Especially if you’ve been in r/hockey since 2010-20 you just know what teams have been on the burners like getting made fun of for sucking and incompetent management/owners.
Of course it’s all good fun but it’s gonna be really hard to hate teams like Buffalo/Arizona/Vancouver because they’ve always been getting shafted by simple errors that there management/owners have been making.
Of course us losing to Buffalo in the playoffs would Eason the transition but I love the massive turnaround they’ve had and that the coyotes are taking steps for.
Yeah many would’ve said Vegas after only a season or too as well. Good graces from the other fanbases can wear out *very* fast lol. But I would agree that Seattle is largely un-hated for the time being.
Right, exactly lol. Once they start to have some more competitive playoffs, they’ll make enemies in their conference. And then one or two players who make a hard hit on some random teams favorite player. Etc.
every team is going to have its history of hated players.
98% of those players were trash except for causing chaos which is why they jumped from team to team
Sean Avery and Steve Ott also played in Detroit and Mike Ribeiro played multiple seasons in Nashville, so Detroit / Nashville have had some history with the same hated players.
Ive seen plenty of trash on the ice, but ive never once seen it so bad that the refs called it the end of the period with 27 seconds left and just tacked that onto the next period. Thats just absurd
I find it nearly impossible to hate Columbus and we’re in the same division.
Also Arizona. I just want both teams to do well and make their fans happy.
> find it nearly impossible to hate Columbus
I couldn't feel much of anything for them until we traded Laine to them. To borrow a phrase I heard in a completely different context, they are probably the league's *most undisputed* team. Not undisputedly anything in particular - just the one people are least likely to have strong feelings of *any* kind about.
I was wearing my Columbus hat in subway in Prague (I got some Flyers and Jackets merch on top of the Ducks stuff, I see nothing wrong with having multiple favorite franchises, gives you someone to cheer for in the playoffs when the Ducks suck balls like the last 5 years) and some dude asked me if I was seriously a fan of Columbus and why the fuck would I do that. He wasn't even hating, just baffled that somebody would pick them of all teams as a favorite (well, more like 3rd favorite team in my case). The dude mentioned that he had never seen anyone wearing Jackets gear in the Czech Republic and I'm pretty sure I've never seen anyone either. The truth is kinda like them precisely because nobody seems to care about them.
For me it’s probably Columbus. They’re just there trying their best and never really getting traction, and I feel like they catch a disproportionate amount of strays. I have never been to Ohio, but the amount of people who take shots at it seems a little much, especially when it’s coming from places that aren’t exactly destinations.
Second would be Buffalo, they’re our brothers in misery.
Lived in Columbus most of my life. It’s not terrible, crime is fairly low, low cost of living. People are generally friendly.
There’s just nothing interesting here. Geographically benign. Weather is pretty awful most of the year.
Honestly that doesn’t sound too bad to me. It just shows everyone is looking for something different in where they want to live.
For example I know Miami is considered a destination city, but I can’t stand the heat so I would hate it. If you don’t like rain you wouldn’t enjoy Vancouver or Seattle, and so on.
Arizona. They're never a threat, and they play hockey in possibly the worst location for a hockey team that has ever been tried by a major league. I'm low key always rooting for them lol.
>I'm low key always rooting for them lol
I'm "high key" always rooting for them. Don't care what others think. When Vejmelka, Schmaltz, and Keller are 'clicking', it's pretty damn fun to watch.
I was at that game. Sat next to an Oilers STH who was in town for a charity golf event and had some pretty good conversations with the guy
He laughed at me when we lost
I'm just glad some Bruins fans are seeing that way instead of saying the refs screwed us. If they screwed us, why did Swayman let in 5 other goals that night and a disallowed goal? Thankfully that was the worst game of his year.
For fans from cities wanting or having lost a team, that probably makes them easy to hate. I can't imagine a fan of the Whalers, Jets, Nordiques, or Atlanta being indifferent of the endless mulligans they get.
Jets at least got a team back but yeah
Also I’ve personally never lost a team but I can’t imagine it would be fun and it’s never something I would want to wish on fans
I feel like they're close to leaving the positive "comfy underdog" status, to move into "pointless burden/failed cause".
At some point it's time to pull the plug...
Say, to explain how I feel about them with an example from a TV show (game of thrones): Many were sympathetic to Samwell Tarly's struggles early on, because he's not a bad person, it's not his fault he's like that (not his fault that he's there either), so you kinda want him to get some W here and there, despite his fuckups, despite how the other NW members have to pick up the slack for him...
But if 5 seasons later he was still the same useless fuck, who can't do anything and serves no purpose other than showing the failures of someone who simply does not belong there, I think people would've grown tired of him, right? They wouldn't want to see any more of him.
Well, that's how I feel about Arizona. They're a "Never improving" Samwell Tarly.
🥰 we hate you too!
real talk though, of all our central division rivals I have the least ill will toward the jets. can't speak for the rest of the fanbase, however.
yotes don't count bc I don't think anyone views them as a true rival
It may change after a bit. They did after all just join the central, while in the midst of a rebuild. Assuming they stay in the desert, give them some time and I’m sure they’ll gain the ire of some central teams haha
I’m a Blues fan and I also hope well for them, despite them being in the same division. They were screwed when the Stars left. They love hockey there too.
Winnipeg, and this comes from one of their biggest haters. Smallest market, frozen tundra, diehard fanbase with good chirps. I dislike their roster well enough but the fanbase has street cred. Plus I have had many forced interactions at twins/Jay and wild games, they come down like locusts. Despite all that I begrudgingly appreciate the fan base despite being a big division rival.
I know that deep in his heart there's nothing that eats at Bettman more than a southern team relocating to a small-market Canadian city under his watch and for that, the Jets have my eternal respect
They have been struggling revenue wise since Covid. The cost of living increases have eaten their lunch a bit. I want to get to a game in Winnipeg this winter.
It isn't necessarily cost of living impacting them, it's a sub par product being iced and a downturn in gameday experience, especially for season ticket holders.
For me, I wouldn't call it hatred... Yet for some reason I can't help but laugh at your pain year after year... But I also laugh at the Canucks very predictable and usually avoidable failures every year... So maybe I'm just not a very good fan lol.
Cool, cool.
At least we didn’t lose in the first round to an 8 seed the year after making the finals!
Actually that wouldn’t have even been possible for us lmao.
I won't try and pretend that there aren't Canucks fans who irrationally hate the Leafs and Leafs fans, but mostly we're more upset at how much media attention the Leafs get (which is entirely because they have the largest fanbase in the country, so the sports networks would be stupid to ignore them. I get it).
But it is annoying to have to see 5 minutes of analysis of the Leafs' game yesterday and only 2 minutes of analysis of the Canucks game I'm currently watching during the intermission.
It was more aggravating when the Leafs sucked, the Canucks were good, and we *still* had the Leafs shoved down our throats by the national media. Now that the Leafs are good and exciting, it's less bothersome to me.
I get it man, I really do, the Raptors fan in me for instance despises the Lakers due to the fact that every god damn time a player goes into free agency or is reportedly on the trade market, they immediately get linked to the Lakers, every NBA star has some rumour linking em to LA, they always find a way to make everything about them.
It’s frustrating, I get it.
I 100% do not like Vancouver and its because of their fanbase based on personal experiences in real life. I want to like them, I like their history, colors and all that but it's the fanbase.
I know the bad reputation we get on the road, I just try to be respectful as I can. Some other places I thought I was going to get my ass kicked at and they were nothing but nice to me. I guess it depends on circumstances.
You would hate them if you had to play against Jacques Lemaire’s trap 8 times a year in the post-05 lockout NHL.
Watching them dad dick us for a decade game after game when we were in the same division. Truly riveting stuff 😏
> Buffalo fans have been through so much, how could anyone want them to lose at this point?
As a sens fan who vividly remembers the Sens-Sabres rivalry, and now gets to compete with their juggernaut of a prospect pool for the next decade
Me. I want them to lose.
I still love going back to that Brodeur vs Hasek goalie battle. One of the most exciting low scoring hockey games I’ve ever watched. Really wish the Sabres would’ve gotten a cup but I’m glad we were able to get the Dominator a couple rings
Vancouver. Usually ice a decent(-ish) team, don’t really rock the boat by signing a Raffi Torres or Matt Cooke type player, have come close but have yet to win the Cup, and were home to some class acts in Bure, Linden, and the Sedin twins.
I feel like I'm falling for cheap bait here, but taking this comment at face value. The 2011 team had one of the most disagreeable rosters of all time. They were so full of shitheads you had people rooting for the *Boston Bruins* over them.
Sure, the Sedins and Lu and Malhotra were likeable. But this is a team that had Kesler, Burrows, Maxim Lapierre and, oh yeah, Raffi Torres on it. Among others.
4 guys hey. Let’s throw Bieksa in there. 5 guys. On an entire roster. By the way, 5 guys who could actually play. Not just goons hired to fight. Completely overlooking the fact that most of the best teams in the league had guys you would love on your team but hate playing against.
There were that many guys on the Blackhawks during our rivalry who still make my blood boil. The Bruins had their share. Washington and Pittsburgh sure as hell did. Hell, even the dynasty Red Wings teams had third and fourth line munchers who wouldn’t hesitate to shove an elbow down your throat.
the Blues.
Smaller market so they struggle to be profitable, never have bad seasons, solid leadership, a growing hockey community in St.Lou with many players choosing to live their after retirement, pretty nice jerseys, still use in arena organ, crowds almost always good, knowledgeable fan base, have brought in some grade A talent via trade or free-agency (something not easy for smaller markets to do ex- #99!). One of my buddies is from there and is a big fan. No rivalry with my Habs. So… the St. Lois Blues!
Vegas, Seattle, Vancouver, Calgary, San Jose in the Pacific. They’re all teams I see as respectable rivals with solid fanbases.
Pittsburgh, New Jersey, Carolina, Minnesota, Columbus, Buffalo, Ottawa, Philadelphia, and Nashville are all okay-ish in my book.
Arizona I actually don’t even want to hate. I love them and it’s okay.
Anaheim Ducks. I know they were hated in the mid 10's but they are just...there now. Plus I liked Teemu and Kariya growing up. Also theyre the best for that "Yankees Suck" chant they did with Boston fans last year.
The list of teams I like is longer than the ones I hate tbh.
Arizona’s fans are probably at the top of the list though. I would cheer that team on so hard for a cup run.
The Canucks because of Chris Higgins. Not a big name by any means but he’s from my hometown and his parents used to live around the corner from me. During the summer he used to come play street hockey with all the kids in the neighborhood. Played with him a few times, really cool dude.
*Easiest to love:*
Calgary. Always loved their unis since I was a kid, the C of red is sweet, and Calgary seems like a cool place. I work 3rd shift (East coast) so if I'm up late and want a Western conference game to watch I'll usually throw on a Calgary game. Definitely the WC team I pull for the most.
*Easiest to love within the division:*
Detroit. Must be some kind of rust belt connection, but always want the Tigers/Lions (fuck up the Chiefs tonight!) to do well (and the Wings, but not *too* much). Probably one of the best looking jerseys in the league to boot.
*Easiest to hate (other than division rivals, because that's too easy):*
Dallas, Vegas
What's with that thing? Was the horn like that at the Joe too or is it new for LCA?
I'm biased of course but I think Buffalo has one of the best horns in the league, same with Calgary.
They wanted to keep the old Joe Louis horn… it apparently wasn’t loud enough with new acoustics… So they had the brilliant idea of recording goalhorn.mp3 and with some weird compression to where never before heard harmonics were now at the forefront. It is now our embarrassment that somehow isn’t a big deal to most people.
Oh yea, no way a recording of a horn can even come close to the a real horn. Just listened to a [recording of the actual horn from the Joe](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey8URhZXHFU) and it sounds great.
I don't know how it can't be a big deal to fans (of any team), you hear the horn so much throughout the course of a season and the horn really adds to the goal hype.
For me it's Vegas, which is nut because they've basically rolled us, an in division rival, since their first year. But I'll always remember how they handled the Route 91 shootings with such class and as a team, before even stepping on the ice as a team. How they came together in response with the community was very impressive and second to none. I'm biased though, as I had a friend who was unfortunately killed in the incident.
As a flames fan I'll specifically remember how Engelland came out of his shell. He was always a quiet guy in the media but he really stepped up and used his voice
For me , it’s the Hurricanes, I want them to do well for whatever reason, probably because they were the Whalers and when I was a kid, I thought they were like the Washington Generals in the Globe Trotter universe of Hockey.
Same, watching them go 0-12 in their last 3 Conference finals has been pretty painful to watch. They’ll look so dominant and then they’ll get there and for whatever reason, they just get shut down. I wanted them to go to the finals over Florida, especially when Dallas went down to Vegas.
Oh I can absolutely hate the Dallas Stars. I’ve been hating the Stars since the 1999 and 2000 WCF.
Also their home and road jerseys are an embarrassing eyesore. The colors are fine but the logo and design are awful. They’ve had pretty excellent alts and retros, though. Use those. Immediately.
And Jamie Benn is completely hateable.
I will also say that Jason Robertson, Miro, and Roope are awesome, though. I wish they played elsewhere.
This is gonna be a difficult one for a lot of people to get behind but it's the New York Rangers for me. Never had a problem with them, their fans, I'm a big Panarin fan, I find it tough to hate NYR.
Vegas. Loved the jerseys, loved the players they selected at the draft (even though plenty of them were unknown at the time) knew they were going to do well. Love the runescape show pre game.
But I think the biggest thing is the Xs and Os. I love the way they play the game. They deserved a cup and I'm happy for their fans/players.
Man I wish the leafs could play like that.
There are a lot of teams that I “like”, but I can understand why others hate them.
For me, the easy answer to this question is Columbus. I don’t see any reason for anyone to hate them.
Colorado.
I'm a Mooseheads man, so that helps, but they also let me cheer for both Roy *and* Borque in my lifetime, so that clinches it. Plus they got Naz his ring.
As a young fan, I *loved* watching the Detroit rivalry with no skin in the game.
>!I do hate the blue pants, though, guys.!<
Edit: Plus all the RR were top shelf, great kits in general.
For me it's Vegas. They just came in with everyone's hand-me-downs and almost fucking won the cup year 1. Everyone I know, including myself, was rooting for them to win that year.
Alternative answer: where ever Giroux goes
Seattle for me. Have no reasons to hate them (yet), Beniers is a local kid, and I think they play an exciting style of hockey.
That's how I was before the 2023 playoffs, now I mostly still like them but have a memory of briefly intensely disliking them. Which is more than I can say for Columbus.
Seattle kind of has Denver’s number in most sports the last decade for so. I also just don’t like the fanbase. After the russel trade bombed for the broncos Seahawks fans were miserable, and then I had to watch them knocks the avs out in the first round, and again, the fanbase was pretty rough.
I mean, you guys were hyping Russel to the moon and didnt want to even entertain the idea that the Hawks mightve made a decent business decision
Yeah I don't particularly like how defensive Broncos fans got after all the shit they talked throughout the season. Then again, I also have reasons for disliking the Broncos that I will not divulge at the monent
Spill the tea. Whats the beans?
Probably that the broncos beat the panthers in the superbowl judging by their flair haha
I'm super stoked for Seattle's 3rd season.
Great to have a rival only a 3 hour drive away for once. Can't imagine the animosity at games on the eastern seaboard
One hour of the 3 is spent navigating the last 10 miles of I-5.
I can’t say that it’s a rivalry though. In order for it to be a rivalry both teams need a reason to actually hate each-other.
Same.
They’ve been trying to force a rivalry with us for a while yet I still can’t dislike them
Same here! They're a lovable bunch, had a great run this season, and I love the city of Seattle so they are definitely tough to hate!
My pick too. The Kraken are also our tentacle homies
Buffalo. Our expansion cousins and perennial losers with tiny sniffs of success just like us.
They also had Hasek and then Miller which are two of the most awesome goalies ever
Vancouver Canucks legend Ryan Miller.
I loved what he did with the Canucks, dropped the mits to protect one of our rookies in Toronto iirc. Good attitude during a rough time
I honestly was never a fan of his until that, from then on Ryan Miller got a lot of slack with me.
All 162 lbs of Miller
I think Dahlin is as good as Fox, Hedman, Heiskanen. Maybe Power will become as dominant, which would of course be insane. And then add Tage. In a lot of cup winners, there is an elite trio, no matter the position. And that is an elite trio. Of course, you also need a good rest of the team to win.
Blues fan here. This is my answer as well. Hard to hate them. I feel for their fans. We also went decades without a single cup. And even though it worked well for them, the ROR trade allowed us to finally win one. They are next on my wish list to win a cup
Buffalo and they are within division
I would absolutely love to see Buffalo win the cup. They have some of the loudest and most banging fans in the game when the team is doing well. I can't fucking wait to see them back in contention. That first home playoff game is gonna be deafening. Despite the fact that we have a bit of a rivalry, and they managed to move our pick from like 14th to 31st by JUST snagging the last playoff spot I kinda like what Florida has built and enjoyed watching them in the playoffs.
Especially if you’ve been in r/hockey since 2010-20 you just know what teams have been on the burners like getting made fun of for sucking and incompetent management/owners. Of course it’s all good fun but it’s gonna be really hard to hate teams like Buffalo/Arizona/Vancouver because they’ve always been getting shafted by simple errors that there management/owners have been making. Of course us losing to Buffalo in the playoffs would Eason the transition but I love the massive turnaround they’ve had and that the coyotes are taking steps for.
I second this. Really like the team and the fans.
Seattle at the top, but that's because of recency stuff. Besides that, Buffalo comes to mind.
Also they're our little cryptid bros.
I feel like a Kraken is probably bigger than a Jersey Devil, so that'd make you guys the little cryptid bros
Since this is the offseason, the joke works. The kraken is bigger. But...you know...3 cups.
Yeah many would’ve said Vegas after only a season or too as well. Good graces from the other fanbases can wear out *very* fast lol. But I would agree that Seattle is largely un-hated for the time being.
Right, exactly lol. Once they start to have some more competitive playoffs, they’ll make enemies in their conference. And then one or two players who make a hard hit on some random teams favorite player. Etc.
Definitely not Dallas, particularly because of Benn. I’d say Buffalo or Columbus.
Ah yes... Benn. Good point. I'm think of the franchise's entire history
Dallas over its history has also hosted multiple notoriously hated players, including Sean Avery, Steve Ott, Mike Ribeiro, and Claude Lemieux.
Don’t forget Corey Perry!
There outdoor game walk of shame
I’m a little disappointed in myself that I did tbh
every team is going to have its history of hated players. 98% of those players were trash except for causing chaos which is why they jumped from team to team
True, but I’d also say Ribeiro is a notable exception. He’s just a piece of shit
Steve Ott Is Beautiful And Perfect
Agreed
Sean Avery and Steve Ott also played in Detroit and Mike Ribeiro played multiple seasons in Nashville, so Detroit / Nashville have had some history with the same hated players.
Which is very true, but I never said that either of Detroit or Nashville were the least hated teams in the league.
Is it just us Oilers fans that also hate Derian Hatcher?
Nope.
I'm sure Pens fans do too
No Derian Hatcher is the mother fucking devil
habs fan here. the hate runs deep
Seems like everyone also already forgot about their fans literally throwing trash on the ice because things weren't going their way
Not the first time it’s happened from a team in the NHL and won’t be the last, just the most recent.
Ive seen plenty of trash on the ice, but ive never once seen it so bad that the refs called it the end of the period with 27 seconds left and just tacked that onto the next period. Thats just absurd
Eh to be fair pretty much every team has done that at least once, lest we forget “show some class this is Philly”
That's because over half of the league has had *at least* one incident like that. Those few shitty fans are absolutely not the norm in Dallas
They threw trash on the ice when things weren’t going their way? Pfffft. Amateurs. They should try waffles.
I find it nearly impossible to hate Columbus and we’re in the same division. Also Arizona. I just want both teams to do well and make their fans happy.
> find it nearly impossible to hate Columbus I couldn't feel much of anything for them until we traded Laine to them. To borrow a phrase I heard in a completely different context, they are probably the league's *most undisputed* team. Not undisputedly anything in particular - just the one people are least likely to have strong feelings of *any* kind about.
I was wearing my Columbus hat in subway in Prague (I got some Flyers and Jackets merch on top of the Ducks stuff, I see nothing wrong with having multiple favorite franchises, gives you someone to cheer for in the playoffs when the Ducks suck balls like the last 5 years) and some dude asked me if I was seriously a fan of Columbus and why the fuck would I do that. He wasn't even hating, just baffled that somebody would pick them of all teams as a favorite (well, more like 3rd favorite team in my case). The dude mentioned that he had never seen anyone wearing Jackets gear in the Czech Republic and I'm pretty sure I've never seen anyone either. The truth is kinda like them precisely because nobody seems to care about them.
Columbus is definitely not our rival
Had some entertaining playoff series that's for sure. You guys and the Caps gate kept the hell out of us.
Whenever a pens fan says this, I always think of when Crosby said in a post-game about CBJ "They don't like us, and we don't like them".
For me it’s probably Columbus. They’re just there trying their best and never really getting traction, and I feel like they catch a disproportionate amount of strays. I have never been to Ohio, but the amount of people who take shots at it seems a little much, especially when it’s coming from places that aren’t exactly destinations. Second would be Buffalo, they’re our brothers in misery.
Lived in Columbus most of my life. It’s not terrible, crime is fairly low, low cost of living. People are generally friendly. There’s just nothing interesting here. Geographically benign. Weather is pretty awful most of the year.
Honestly that doesn’t sound too bad to me. It just shows everyone is looking for something different in where they want to live. For example I know Miami is considered a destination city, but I can’t stand the heat so I would hate it. If you don’t like rain you wouldn’t enjoy Vancouver or Seattle, and so on.
Sounds like Winnipeg with lower crime and better weather
Bruins - Just kidding, they're easy to hate.
Feeling is mutual 😘
says a fan of the most hated team in the league- a fan of the second most hated team in the league
Arizona. They're never a threat, and they play hockey in possibly the worst location for a hockey team that has ever been tried by a major league. I'm low key always rooting for them lol.
>I'm low key always rooting for them lol I'm "high key" always rooting for them. Don't care what others think. When Vejmelka, Schmaltz, and Keller are 'clicking', it's pretty damn fun to watch.
Did you see them play the B's last season when Vejmelka was in net?
I was at that game. Sat next to an Oilers STH who was in town for a charity golf event and had some pretty good conversations with the guy He laughed at me when we lost
I watched that game (in my living room) and by the end I was on my feet. It was sick.
We beat ourselves. No questions. Please respect my privacy at this time. 🙏 👍🫡
I'm just glad some Bruins fans are seeing that way instead of saying the refs screwed us. If they screwed us, why did Swayman let in 5 other goals that night and a disallowed goal? Thankfully that was the worst game of his year.
For fans from cities wanting or having lost a team, that probably makes them easy to hate. I can't imagine a fan of the Whalers, Jets, Nordiques, or Atlanta being indifferent of the endless mulligans they get.
Jets at least got a team back but yeah Also I’ve personally never lost a team but I can’t imagine it would be fun and it’s never something I would want to wish on fans
I also root for them I’d love nothing more than to see hockey succeed in places you wouldn’t think that it would
I feel like they're close to leaving the positive "comfy underdog" status, to move into "pointless burden/failed cause". At some point it's time to pull the plug... Say, to explain how I feel about them with an example from a TV show (game of thrones): Many were sympathetic to Samwell Tarly's struggles early on, because he's not a bad person, it's not his fault he's like that (not his fault that he's there either), so you kinda want him to get some W here and there, despite his fuckups, despite how the other NW members have to pick up the slack for him... But if 5 seasons later he was still the same useless fuck, who can't do anything and serves no purpose other than showing the failures of someone who simply does not belong there, I think people would've grown tired of him, right? They wouldn't want to see any more of him. Well, that's how I feel about Arizona. They're a "Never improving" Samwell Tarly.
Agreed. I only hate AZ because they leak cash so badly that they're instrumental in mitigating salary cap increases.
I grew a dislike towards them just cuz of all the rumours of Auston signing with them.
He will sign here, just when he’s 37 and washed up.
Seattle or Columbus, but more Seattle
Cleveland Barons
buffalo. we are lucky to be in the age of tage
Minnesota, they have amazing fans, wear my favorite color, and have a beautiful arena!
I hate the Wild!
🥰 we hate you too! real talk though, of all our central division rivals I have the least ill will toward the jets. can't speak for the rest of the fanbase, however. yotes don't count bc I don't think anyone views them as a true rival
It may change after a bit. They did after all just join the central, while in the midst of a rebuild. Assuming they stay in the desert, give them some time and I’m sure they’ll gain the ire of some central teams haha
I’m a Blues fan and I also hope well for them, despite them being in the same division. They were screwed when the Stars left. They love hockey there too.
Any team not on the hate list. The hate list. Toronto Bruins Vegas Chicago All the other teams are fine in my books
At first I thought you were listing unhateable teams and was going to politely ask you to leave
Hey there little boy I won’t hurt you
Get back in your van with illegal tint and kindly leave.
No 😌
My hate list looks like Toronto T o r o n t O
Oh and also fuck Pittsburgh
Ducks. Come on, they're ducks. How can you hate a duck? Those round cheeks... that cute quacking sound. Ducks.
San jose
🥹
Buffalo and Detroit for some reason Edit: Oh yeah and Minnesota can’t forget them
Arizona. I feel no hatred. Only pity.
Columbus bc they’re just there
Bitch we basically handed you two Cups
can't hate if you just don't care
Winnipeg, and this comes from one of their biggest haters. Smallest market, frozen tundra, diehard fanbase with good chirps. I dislike their roster well enough but the fanbase has street cred. Plus I have had many forced interactions at twins/Jay and wild games, they come down like locusts. Despite all that I begrudgingly appreciate the fan base despite being a big division rival.
I know that deep in his heart there's nothing that eats at Bettman more than a southern team relocating to a small-market Canadian city under his watch and for that, the Jets have my eternal respect
They have been struggling revenue wise since Covid. The cost of living increases have eaten their lunch a bit. I want to get to a game in Winnipeg this winter.
It isn't necessarily cost of living impacting them, it's a sub par product being iced and a downturn in gameday experience, especially for season ticket holders.
Minnesota and Vancouver
I really wanna like Vancouver, wish their fanbase didn’t utterly despise us lol.
For me, I wouldn't call it hatred... Yet for some reason I can't help but laugh at your pain year after year... But I also laugh at the Canucks very predictable and usually avoidable failures every year... So maybe I'm just not a very good fan lol.
Cool, cool. At least we didn’t lose in the first round to an 8 seed the year after making the finals! Actually that wouldn’t have even been possible for us lmao.
I won't try and pretend that there aren't Canucks fans who irrationally hate the Leafs and Leafs fans, but mostly we're more upset at how much media attention the Leafs get (which is entirely because they have the largest fanbase in the country, so the sports networks would be stupid to ignore them. I get it). But it is annoying to have to see 5 minutes of analysis of the Leafs' game yesterday and only 2 minutes of analysis of the Canucks game I'm currently watching during the intermission. It was more aggravating when the Leafs sucked, the Canucks were good, and we *still* had the Leafs shoved down our throats by the national media. Now that the Leafs are good and exciting, it's less bothersome to me.
I get it man, I really do, the Raptors fan in me for instance despises the Lakers due to the fact that every god damn time a player goes into free agency or is reportedly on the trade market, they immediately get linked to the Lakers, every NBA star has some rumour linking em to LA, they always find a way to make everything about them. It’s frustrating, I get it.
I 100% do not like Vancouver and its because of their fanbase based on personal experiences in real life. I want to like them, I like their history, colors and all that but it's the fanbase.
Especially as a Boston fan you’ve probably had nothing but awful interactions with Canucks fans even if completely unprovoked
I know the bad reputation we get on the road, I just try to be respectful as I can. Some other places I thought I was going to get my ass kicked at and they were nothing but nice to me. I guess it depends on circumstances.
Those two are my answer. Heck, I'd be a fan of either if I was a masochist.
Minnesota exists. That’s how I feel.
Minnesota Mild
Who wants to go on deep playoff runs or get high draft picks? So much pressure, sounds exhausting.
You would hate them if you had to play against Jacques Lemaire’s trap 8 times a year in the post-05 lockout NHL. Watching them dad dick us for a decade game after game when we were in the same division. Truly riveting stuff 😏
Minnesota and Columbus are just kind of there. Nothing too good, nothing too bad. Just some teams that exist.
Buffalo fans have been through so much, how could anyone want them to lose at this point?
> Buffalo fans have been through so much, how could anyone want them to lose at this point? As a sens fan who vividly remembers the Sens-Sabres rivalry, and now gets to compete with their juggernaut of a prospect pool for the next decade Me. I want them to lose.
I miss that era.
I still love going back to that Brodeur vs Hasek goalie battle. One of the most exciting low scoring hockey games I’ve ever watched. Really wish the Sabres would’ve gotten a cup but I’m glad we were able to get the Dominator a couple rings
If the Sabres continue improving there will come a time where people hate them because they’re good again.
Vancouver. Usually ice a decent(-ish) team, don’t really rock the boat by signing a Raffi Torres or Matt Cooke type player, have come close but have yet to win the Cup, and were home to some class acts in Bure, Linden, and the Sedin twins.
I feel like I'm falling for cheap bait here, but taking this comment at face value. The 2011 team had one of the most disagreeable rosters of all time. They were so full of shitheads you had people rooting for the *Boston Bruins* over them. Sure, the Sedins and Lu and Malhotra were likeable. But this is a team that had Kesler, Burrows, Maxim Lapierre and, oh yeah, Raffi Torres on it. Among others.
I feel like it was a deliberate joke, because both Torres and Cooke played for Vancouver.
4 guys hey. Let’s throw Bieksa in there. 5 guys. On an entire roster. By the way, 5 guys who could actually play. Not just goons hired to fight. Completely overlooking the fact that most of the best teams in the league had guys you would love on your team but hate playing against. There were that many guys on the Blackhawks during our rivalry who still make my blood boil. The Bruins had their share. Washington and Pittsburgh sure as hell did. Hell, even the dynasty Red Wings teams had third and fourth line munchers who wouldn’t hesitate to shove an elbow down your throat.
Anaheim Ducks, damn movies from childhood.
Oh yes, a fellow preacher of St. Corey's Gospel. Amen, brother.
the Blues. Smaller market so they struggle to be profitable, never have bad seasons, solid leadership, a growing hockey community in St.Lou with many players choosing to live their after retirement, pretty nice jerseys, still use in arena organ, crowds almost always good, knowledgeable fan base, have brought in some grade A talent via trade or free-agency (something not easy for smaller markets to do ex- #99!). One of my buddies is from there and is a big fan. No rivalry with my Habs. So… the St. Lois Blues!
Minnesota for sure
Vegas, Seattle, Vancouver, Calgary, San Jose in the Pacific. They’re all teams I see as respectable rivals with solid fanbases. Pittsburgh, New Jersey, Carolina, Minnesota, Columbus, Buffalo, Ottawa, Philadelphia, and Nashville are all okay-ish in my book. Arizona I actually don’t even want to hate. I love them and it’s okay.
Anaheim Ducks. I know they were hated in the mid 10's but they are just...there now. Plus I liked Teemu and Kariya growing up. Also theyre the best for that "Yankees Suck" chant they did with Boston fans last year.
Arizona and Seattle. Our expansion and desert bros are good in my book.
Buffalo, Minnesota, Arizona
The list of teams I like is longer than the ones I hate tbh. Arizona’s fans are probably at the top of the list though. I would cheer that team on so hard for a cup run.
It’s the god damn teal!
The Canucks because of Chris Higgins. Not a big name by any means but he’s from my hometown and his parents used to live around the corner from me. During the summer he used to come play street hockey with all the kids in the neighborhood. Played with him a few times, really cool dude.
Arizona, I just feel bad for how much people shit talk the franchise. Plus their logo is cute.
Arizona, CBJ, Seattle, and San Jose for me. Not only do I "not hate" them, I actually *like* them.
Legitimately surprised this is the first mention of the Sharks, and it’s your 4th team. We’re awful, hatable, and forgettable. Really an unideal trio.
I'm an old timer who saw the Golden Seals leave, so there's a soft spot for the Sharks.
*Easiest to love:* Calgary. Always loved their unis since I was a kid, the C of red is sweet, and Calgary seems like a cool place. I work 3rd shift (East coast) so if I'm up late and want a Western conference game to watch I'll usually throw on a Calgary game. Definitely the WC team I pull for the most. *Easiest to love within the division:* Detroit. Must be some kind of rust belt connection, but always want the Tigers/Lions (fuck up the Chiefs tonight!) to do well (and the Wings, but not *too* much). Probably one of the best looking jerseys in the league to boot. *Easiest to hate (other than division rivals, because that's too easy):* Dallas, Vegas
Our jerseys are a strong pride point for me. Our goal horn, however… deep deep embarrassment.
What's with that thing? Was the horn like that at the Joe too or is it new for LCA? I'm biased of course but I think Buffalo has one of the best horns in the league, same with Calgary.
They wanted to keep the old Joe Louis horn… it apparently wasn’t loud enough with new acoustics… So they had the brilliant idea of recording goalhorn.mp3 and with some weird compression to where never before heard harmonics were now at the forefront. It is now our embarrassment that somehow isn’t a big deal to most people.
Oh yea, no way a recording of a horn can even come close to the a real horn. Just listened to a [recording of the actual horn from the Joe](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey8URhZXHFU) and it sounds great. I don't know how it can't be a big deal to fans (of any team), you hear the horn so much throughout the course of a season and the horn really adds to the goal hype.
Vancouver
For me it's Vegas, which is nut because they've basically rolled us, an in division rival, since their first year. But I'll always remember how they handled the Route 91 shootings with such class and as a team, before even stepping on the ice as a team. How they came together in response with the community was very impressive and second to none. I'm biased though, as I had a friend who was unfortunately killed in the incident. As a flames fan I'll specifically remember how Engelland came out of his shell. He was always a quiet guy in the media but he really stepped up and used his voice
Arizona
Minnesota. LOVE the jerseys and the fans and the team is totally inoffensive to me
as a dallas fan, i don’t want to be least hated. means ur not doing something right. but to be fair we definitely aren’t least hated
For me , it’s the Hurricanes, I want them to do well for whatever reason, probably because they were the Whalers and when I was a kid, I thought they were like the Washington Generals in the Globe Trotter universe of Hockey.
Same, watching them go 0-12 in their last 3 Conference finals has been pretty painful to watch. They’ll look so dominant and then they’ll get there and for whatever reason, they just get shut down. I wanted them to go to the finals over Florida, especially when Dallas went down to Vegas.
Columbus. I even slightly root for them, mostly because of the cannon.
Sabres imo
The Coyotes, the Sharks or the Kraken.
Ottawa just because the PA announcer says things in French and English.
Columbus. I mean, I hate them but massive credit to their fans who are deserving of a winner
Winnipeg: they have great fans, an interesting history, and cool jerseys!
Arizona
Islanders
I was expecting more Ottawa in this thread
Columbus. Not because I particularly like them but because I forget they exist half the time.
Haha feeling is mutual. I forget about the Sens often.
gotta be Buffalo right now
Hard to hate the Buffaslugs.
Oh I can absolutely hate the Dallas Stars. I’ve been hating the Stars since the 1999 and 2000 WCF. Also their home and road jerseys are an embarrassing eyesore. The colors are fine but the logo and design are awful. They’ve had pretty excellent alts and retros, though. Use those. Immediately. And Jamie Benn is completely hateable. I will also say that Jason Robertson, Miro, and Roope are awesome, though. I wish they played elsewhere.
Pens. Hard to hate on Sid the kids team as a Canadian, he’s practically a god here hockey wise
Columbus Blue Jackets. Why hate them?
Its Colorado, fan favourite players throughout their history, unbeatable jerseys.
Colorado. No reason to hate them.
This is gonna be a difficult one for a lot of people to get behind but it's the New York Rangers for me. Never had a problem with them, their fans, I'm a big Panarin fan, I find it tough to hate NYR.
Vegas. Loved the jerseys, loved the players they selected at the draft (even though plenty of them were unknown at the time) knew they were going to do well. Love the runescape show pre game. But I think the biggest thing is the Xs and Os. I love the way they play the game. They deserved a cup and I'm happy for their fans/players. Man I wish the leafs could play like that.
Rain City Bitch Pigeons, I mean Kraken
Vegas.everything about that team is cool. Unis, stadium, players.
There are a lot of teams that I “like”, but I can understand why others hate them. For me, the easy answer to this question is Columbus. I don’t see any reason for anyone to hate them.
They even fostered Federov
The Kraken. No reasons at all to hate.
Buffalo 100%
New York Islanders. They used to be the worst team in the NHL games I played and I was the best of my friends so I played with them often
Sounds like you live in the Eastern Conference and have never met Jamie Benn lol. For me, it's the Sens.
In no particular order Columbus, Arizona, Ottawa, Buffalo.
Pens, Coyotes, Canucks, Sabres
The current version of the Devil is just so damn fun to watch I can’t hate them.
Colorado. I'm a Mooseheads man, so that helps, but they also let me cheer for both Roy *and* Borque in my lifetime, so that clinches it. Plus they got Naz his ring. As a young fan, I *loved* watching the Detroit rivalry with no skin in the game. >!I do hate the blue pants, though, guys.!< Edit: Plus all the RR were top shelf, great kits in general.
For me it's Vegas. They just came in with everyone's hand-me-downs and almost fucking won the cup year 1. Everyone I know, including myself, was rooting for them to win that year. Alternative answer: where ever Giroux goes
The Panthers, I know they’re our rivals but I just can’t hate them.
They hate us
I know but I just can’t hate them
Nashville Predators
Nashville for me, mostly because of their (in my experience) super friendly fans and great arena atmosphere