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The Power of Vancouver Hockey's GREEN MEN
FarParker's PuckGobbler Interviews the Canucks "GREEN MEN,"
Vancouver has been pretty famous for a lot of interesting hockey things…The mustache of Harold Snepts, The Tiger Williams Pony (Stick) Ride, Roger Nielson's White Towel… So now to keep tradition ever moving forward, we have The Green Men. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, it looks like these guys are here to stay, so we figured ‘what the hell' and set out to chat with them!
Henceforth and such, we present our interview with the…uh, masked men of Canucks stadiumism for your reading and knowledge-growing pleasure!
Q) Let's jump right in. Green Suits. Okay…heard a rumour these were originally ordered for a SeaHawks game? Is that true, and what was the original intent there?
A) It is true... We had intended to go to a football game. The Seahawks colours are green so we thought it would match, and lets be honest, there are some crazy football fans so we figured we would fit right in. Unfortuntely, Sully's suit didn't arrive in time, so we decided we would try a Canucks game a week later
Q) For us crazed Canucks hockey fans…be honest – how did it feel to have Dave Scatchard toss a towel over the jumbotron camera to block you guys out from the masses?
A) We never expected a reaction like that. Scatchard is a pro and for him to be distracted by two goofs in green was quite comical. Tonight is actually his first NHL game since that incident! His reaction definitely helped us out. It showed Canucks fans that they can make a difference in the game
Q) Vancouver is kinda known as a fashion-y town of sorts. Were there any initial concerns about your choice of garb or where it might land you?
A) Well, ever since donning the suit we have had to watch the consumption of "adult beverages" and fast food. The suits are more then revealing so if you gain more then two pounds the world knows haha.
Q) As a beer league goalie, I totally get the ‘masked' look – I never really want fans to know who the hell I am due to my ‘skill set' in the pipes, but do you think you'll ever want to let the public know who you guys are? (I'll Keep Your names secret, unless you want to spill the beans here!)
A) Appreciate the offer, but I think we'll choose to keep our identities secret! There may be a day when we chose to reveal ourselves, but we are having too much fun right now, and our job isn't done... the Canucks haven't won the Stanley Cup (PuckGobber Notes: Lord Knows It...our fingers are always crossed!!)
Q) It was posted in a Vancouver Sun article that you guys were Broadcast Journalism students at BCIT…can you share your satisfaction rating level with being able to go back to your profs with a "hey, look at us – we made it" smirk?
A) Our teachers were actually really supportive. I'm sure it wasn't exactly what they meant when they said "make a name for yourself in the industry!" We have checked in with them a couple of times since graduating and the first thing they ask is "How's Greenmen?" haha. From the first day of BCIT they encouraged us to be creative, so they deserve a cheers for helping us be creative enough to try Greenman!
Q) Are you guys both original Vancouverites? If so, what do you love most about this town and if not, what brought you here?
A) Both of us were born and raised in Metro Vancouver. To steal from the cheesy Olympic slogan, "It is the best place on earth". Not many places on earth You Can drive forty minutes to the ocean and forty minutes to snow covered mountains. Plus, we have the Canucks. Can't beat that!
Q) Let's shoot you the loaded biased question – what hockey city has the best fans and why?
A) It's a real tough question to answer.... We kid... of course it's Vancouver. When the Canucks are in the playoffs, this city shuts down and Canucks fever takes over. The feeling is electric! However, as we have said before, the lower bowl during Canucks games is too quiet! There are way too many "suits" buried in their blackberry's. For the true Canuck fan who is there cheering every play, keep it up... You make Vancouver the number one hockey city!
Q) So rumour has it you guys are now officially comp'd home game tickets. No argument there – you deserve these! But if you want to clear the air, we'll hear ya! We also want to know if the squad is considering you guys as luggage for their road trips?
A) Haha, we would love to have complimentary tickets, but that rumour is false. The seats belong to Burrard Roofing and Drainage and they help us out when they can, but they still are paying for the seats. There was a great rumour going around the Mike Gillis has personally offered us season tickets. We wish it was true, but we have never even met Gillis! We are looking at a possible road trip, but still looking at the details.
Q) Okay…just have to ask (we ask this of all our famous hockey personalities) – why are ugly hockey players so popular with the ladies? Figure you guys see a few good faces in the Sin Bin, eh?
A) Hey, even Mike Ricchi needs love too! I'm sure it helps that most of the players are multi-millionaires.
Q) What are the best & worst experiences you've had since donning the green garbs?
A) Best experience: Our first Greenman game, the Vince Vaughn poster during the playoffs and ziplining over thousands of people in the downtown core during the Olympics.
Worst experience: This one is easy... Game six against Chicago last year. Dave Bolland scores at the end of the second period shorthanded and Duncan Keith starts chirpping us from the box. Wasn't a good feeling watching the Canucks season end
Q) Do you think this is a trend that may creep into other teams fan base in the NHL? After all, this could be considered one helluva home rink advantage for our boys, no?
A) We have heard there have been Greenmen sightings in Tampa Bay, Buffalo, New Jersey and Colorado. It is weird to have started such a goofy trend, but we find it funny! We've had lots of kids tell us they were Greenmen for halloween. We thought that was pretty cool... (Puckgobbler notes..."hell ya, that's awesome. I was green late on halloween night too, but it wasn't from a costume...!")
Q) Can you actually see out of those suits?
A) Not very well! Down by the ice, it is very bright so we can see, but once we are in the hallways of Rogers Arena, we are walking blind
Q) Gotta ask the dirty question as we have a couple of female readers…those cups "down low" you're wearing, or do you just pack natural goalie sticks with you?
A) We're going to pull the old Michael Landsberg... Next question!
Q) Your HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/canucksgreenmen" page is pushing 60,000 fans. Did you ever think things would get this huge? (Hell…you're even landing an interview on FarParker.com!!)
A) From ESPN interviews to talking to FarParker.com! Who would have thought! Haha. We didn't think it would go anywhere. It was supposed to be a one time stunt. Our goal was to be on the jumbotron and instead we are on the TSN highlights of the night! We are very appreciative of the fan support!
Q) For all those hockey kids out there, do you have any ‘Don Cherryisms' on how to build a promotional career out of hockey?
A) Well, start with being a good Canadian kid (read in Don Cherry's voice of course), be creative and have fun. If your not having fun, it isn't worth it.
Q) Girls. You guys married / hooked up / single? Gotta think this must be a pretty nifty way of meeting ladies at the Roxy…you know, the whole ‘masked men' mysteriousness thingy?
A) Well Sully is spoken for.... surprisingly, his girlfriend accepts an idiot in a green suit. Force just re-entered the singles market. Girls do seem to love Greenmen. We went to the Roxy after the first game in the suits and we were a hit!
Q) So what's next? Any big plans on the horizon?
A) We will give you the exclusive scoop... our next game will be Naslund's jersey retirement. It will be a great game, not only because Nazzy's jersey is heading to the rafters, but anytime Steve Stamkos comes to down it will be a great game. We are also looking at taking the act on the road in February, but nothing official at this point!
Damn guys – that was awesome! Thanks so much for taking the time to share these thoughts with us, and we'll be looking forward to showing you off at many more games to come! Best of luck
About the Author
PuckGobbler is the official beer league goalie part of the FarParker Team, and purveyor of hopefully-interesting & helpful comtent to our beer leaguer players, fans & readers! As is typically quoted after most games, PuckGobbler states "It's not how good I played that matters, but how I good looked while playing."