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The Blackhawks' goal song played at a Canucks game and fans lost it

Rob Williams
Rob Williams
|
Nov 29 2018, 12:54 am
The Blackhawks' goal song played at a Canucks game and fans lost it

There was a lot going on at Rogers Arena on Tuesday night.

Not so much on the ice, where the Canucks managed to score just one goal against the worst team in the NHL, eventually losing to the Los Angeles Kings 2-1.

But off the ice, it was as busy as can be.

The 50/50 reached a total jackpot of $1,413,630, setting a new world record. It was a great night for winning stuff, as in-arena host Hannah Bernard dished out free trips to LA seemingly every few minutes.

The Canucks also announced a new partnership with rideshare company Lyft, despite the fact that ridesharing is still unavailable in British Columbia. Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini, a huge proponent of bringing ridesharing to BC, also decided to live-tweet the game.

If the talk after the game wasn’t about the 50/50, it should have been about Loui Eriksson missing a wide open net, Brock Boeser hitting the post, or the fact that the Canucks didn’t touch the puck in overtime.

Instead, Canucks fans were triggered about the song that was played after the 50/50 numbers were announced late in the third period.

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For some reason, whoever was in charge of the music played the one song you are never allowed to play in Vancouver. As fans ripped up their losing 50/50 tickets, Chelsea Dagger – the Chicago Blackhawks’ famous goal song – played.

Was someone trolling Canucks fans? Is the new DJ a Blackhawks fan? Did Patrick Kane hack into the Rogers Arena control booth? What is going on here?

The reaction online was a mixture of confusion and anger. Local country music star Dallas Smith captured the feelings of Canucks fans perfectly with this video he uploaded to Instagram:

In case you’re new to being a Canucks fan, there’s a very good reason why Chelsea Dagger should never be played at Rogers Arena. It’s the song that haunted the Canucks on many nights when the Blackhawks pumped in goal after goal in Chicago during their heyday. It was the soundtrack of fans’ nightmares for years when the Canucks couldn’t beat the Blackhawks in the playoffs. Roberto Luongo probably wakes up in a cold sweat from time to time, after hearing that song in his sleep.

Though the Canucks and Blackhawks rivalry has cooled considerably, it’s still Chicago’s goal song. So fans noticed.

The Canucks recently brought in a new DJ, and the reviews have been mixed at best.

I don’t know who was responsible for Chelsea Dagger being played, but I do know that Jay Swing, who was ousted from the DJ chair, bleeds blue and green. He would have never let this happen.

With Aquilini tweeting up a storm, he certainly heard about the song choice from fans.

Even Kings fans were confused:

Blackhawks fans couldn’t understand it either:

After the song played, the Canucks tied the game up before losing in overtime. If you thought that would distract people from the sacrilegious act committed, you thought wrong.

Though the on-ice product has been less than desirable in recent years, the Canucks have actually done a fantastic job in the area of game presentation. New initiatives to get fans involved are being tried all the time.

The building is constantly being improved. The addition of neighbouring towers has also allowed for more amenities, including the Sportsbar.

They improved the food on the concourse, and yes, they improved the music too. Credit for that goes to Jay Swing. He had the pulse of Canucks Nation because well, he’s a diehard Canucks fan as well as being an accomplished DJ.

Fans will always complain about the music at hockey games because it’s subjective. But all I know is that I heard far less complaining about the music when Jay Swing was in charge.

And outside of the United Center in Chicago, I never heard Chelsea Dagger.

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